Top Tens: Mark Kozelek, Sun Kil Moon, Red House Painters Albums

So after yesterday’s post I’m going to somehow put together my own ten fave albums by this guy. I’ve not done one of these Top Tens for a while but this one might just be the hardest to pick because of the amazing back catalog but I think I’ve say something like that every-time I do one of these post. I guess what I mean this time is because Mark is right in the middle of a totally great and very prolific songwriting albums so maybe in a few years this can be updated or something. He’s already announced two new albums for next year, new Sun Kil Moon double CD called Common As Light And Love Are Red Valleys Of Blood out on February 27, 2017 and then the second collaborative album as Jesu/Sun Kil Moon titled 30 Seconds To The Decline Of Planet Earth is release is May 5, 2017 and you can pre-order them here and can pretty much get all these albums below there too.

If you never heard of him he’s most likely most well known for the film Cameron Crowe’s Almost Famous as the bass player in the band Stillwater so could know him without knowing. My fave cameo role is in yet another of the director’s movie Vanilla Sky where he get’s to scream at Tom Cruise “Dude fix your fucking face!” I do remember Mark once told an interview at time of the filming Nicole Kidman just filed her divorce on the very same day and some mad reasons which I don’t remember right now but it taken the whole day to filmed this one scene. Mark just had to shouted at Tom over and over and over all day, funny?

He doesn’t do any promo video clips for any of his album, I think he’d done maybe two in his whole career of three decades so they’re two live versions below and random track I pick off each album as a listening sample which I hope you enjoy and find something might want to listen to the whole album/s and agian want to buy them straight from his record label here’s the link.

#10. Sings Christmas Carols by Mark Kozelek (2014) was the album I wrote about it yesterday under my Classic Albums tag so does that mean because this is number ten here and they’re nine albums below it all those are going to get whole Classic Albums pages written about them too? Well, maybe because they’re all pretty fucking great albums!

#9. Jesu / Sun Kil Moon self-titled album (2016) is just from earlier this year so it’s hard to tell where it really should go here and where it goes? I’ve put it in at this point because it should be included, it’s so bloody great and enjoy so much. I did write a kind-of review here of it at the time it was released but I should read that again because I don’t remember what the hell I did say at the time? Number nine today!

#8. What’s Next To The Moon by Mark Kozelek (2001) is yet another cover album which time Mark done which is Bon Scott era AC/DC tracks and could be even better than the Christmas Carols album. I’ve try to rated them here but it’s a hard job to do but I guess it’s something like this order I’ve come up with here. He’s also got a whole album of Modest Mouse covers, classic acoustic guitar album called Like Rats with covers by everyone from Bad Brains, Misfits, Godflesh, Bruno Mars, Sonny & Cher etc. and this year he did an all piano covers album too.

#7. Ghosts Of The Great Highway by Sun Kil Moon (2003) is the album a lot of fans call his best album ever. It’s the debut album of his new band after his old band Red House Painters break up. As you can tell I think some other ones are a bit better but this album is still pretty great and I’m not saying it’s bad or anything because it’s still number seven.

#6. Among The Leaves by Sun Kil Moon (2012) is the album which really did kick started this new roll he’s on right now. I read an interview with him and he did say it was the second track Sunshine In Chicago that really opened the floodgates for him because this album has 17 tracks on it, yes I did just say 17 songs and it’s not just one of my typos.

#5. Mark Kozelek & Desertshore self-titled album (2013) is one album of two from the same year he released here in this list today. He’s really on a roll at the moment and it hasn’t ended yet, the new tracks I’ve heard so far it could be getting even better but around this time is pretty much where it all started, you know this role he’s on right now.

#4. Retrospective by Red House Painters ‎(1999) is a comp album of all albums by his 90’s band, they had half a dozen albums, couple EPs but it to hard to pick one of them but I’ve got to included them so does the job. I loved his band in the 90’s but once again what he’s in the middle of right now is so much more amazing. Even so they do make it here at number four which means it’s bloody great.

#3. Benji by Sun Kil Moon (2014) is maybe his most popular album of this new thing he’s on now and oh my god it’s fucking epic too. Named after the hit dog movie from the 70’s plus it’s got a very high death toll on this album, I remember one review pointed out at least one person or more die in each of the album’s tracks but somehow then it’s his highest selling album. Also backing vocal cameos by Will Oldham and Jen Wood too.

#2. Perils From The Sea by Mark Kozelek & Jimmy LaValle (2013) is the album in second palace I had to pick just one album to listen too it would be the top spot album but after that would this one, you might like one of his other ones better but I think it was around this time I rediscover him. Jimmy Lavalle also goes under the name The Album Leaf too and it’s a pity they didn’t do another album together.

#1. Universal Themes by Sun Kil Moon (2015) is the album only just last year but it’s one he toured Australia with which I finally got to see him live and he’s didn’t disappoint with a tiny little bit over three hour gig. The album only got eight tracks on it but I do think it’s got more lyrics/words than his past albums and it’s a tad over 70 mins. long too and to me it’s just unbelievable album and I did rated it the best album of year when I first started this blog here, should write more about this album sometime.

So I’ve got to ask you, anyone and everyone visiting this page do you already have a fave album/s by him?

Mark in the movie Almost Famous with Olivia Rosewood

 

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