THE TIME CAPSULE: 7 ROOMS OF GLOOM. More retro tomorrow.
<<<THE T⏳ME CAPSULE<<<
7 ROOMS OF GLOOM
The Four Tops
1967
U.K. - #14; U.S.A. - #12
Trivia:
Along with The Supremes, The Four Tops recorded many songs written specifically for the group by the legendary songwriting / production team consisting of Lamont Dozier and brothers Brian and Eddie Holland, including "7 Rooms Of Gloom".
Check out all the songs tha4t have been featured in this daily segment on Spotify, including today’s retro track.
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1fw40hqEA0Fgh4cq4yoXD0?si=BYCiWGK3QRim_FaIIkAIdg
spotify:playlist:1fw40hqEA0Fgh4cq4yoXD0
Led Zeppelin's second album spearheaded the development of heavy metal. The British
group borrowed from the past and re-designed its sound into a new sonic force.
This was particularly the case with the track “Whole Lotta Love”. The song was
a cover of a Willie Dixon blues number entitled “You Need Love”. Group members Jimmy
Page, Robert Plant, John Paul Jones and John Bonham completely transformed the
song into something revolutionary. Countless musicians used the song as the
blueprint for hard rock and heavy metal recordings. The track paved the way for
seminal tracks such as “Paranoid” (Black Sabbath) and “Smoke On The Water”
(Deep Purple). Led Zep continued pushing boundaries with classics that included
“Kashmir”, “Stairway To Heaven” and “D’yer Mak’er”. 
Chuck
Berry, B.B. King, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, John Lee Hooker, Hank Marvin, and
Jimmy Page had all been revered as legendary guitarists. The arrival of Jimi
Hendrix soon took on iconic status. On stage, his wizardry and image seemed
other-worldly. As an axeman, it was as if we mere Earthlings were witnessing an
alien visitor from another galaxy attacking his instrument in a way no mortal
had before. To this day, Hendrix is still regarded as rock’s greatest
guitarist. In 1968, he and his band, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, unleashed a
third and final studio album. ‘Electric Ladyland’ added more dimensions to their
sound. Along with the usual psychedelic rock, Hendrix and his band incorporated
new studio techniques to expand the sonic landscape. This is most evident on the
LP’s closing track “Voodoo Child (Slight Return)”. The guitar hero displays his
skills as a bluesman while sound effects leave listeners in awe. Within 2
years, Hendrix was dead, but his legend has never diminished. Among his
other classics are the tracks “All Along The Watchtower”, “Hey Joe”, “Little
Wing” and “Purple Haze”. 
Johnny
Cash was already recognized as a fundamental influence in the country genre by
1968. He had contributed staples such as “I Walk The Line” and “Ring Of Fire”
that carved out new directions for musicians that followed. In 1968, his image
as “the outlaw” and “the man in black” came together with even greater impact
when he recorded a new album in Folsom Prison. He had sung about the facility
more than a decade prior, releasing “Folsom Prison Blues” as a single in 1955.
The live re-recording added authenticity to Cash’s lyrics. The song begins with
the country icon introducing himself: “Hello, I’m Johnny Cash” before the incarcerated
greet him with an enthusiastic cheer. It is soon followed by the powerful line: “I
shot a man in Reno just to watch him die”. Cash remained a legend in the
country, folk and pop music genres until his death in 2003.