Kings of Leon - Youth & Young Manhood (2003)

"Trani" by Kings of Leon


Both bands are royalty from the lands of Convenience and Leon, respectively.  Music journalists are still puzzling over how both constituencies can operate under a polymonarchic system, but they manage.  Kings of Leon released their debut album in Youth & Young Manhood in 2003.

Here is the discography surrounding Kings of Leon's debut album:

Holy Roller Novocaine (2003 EP)
What I Saw (2003 EP)
Molly's Chambers (2003 single)
Youth & Young Manhood
Wasted Time (2003 single)
Live at the Paradiso (2003 live bootleg)
California Waiting (2004 single)

"Wasted Time" by Kings of Leon


"Joe's Head (live)" by Kings of Leon


"Molly's Hangover" by Kings of Leon


Pass the Headphones!!

Great Lake Swimmers - Great Lake Swimmers (2003)

"Moving Pictures Silent Films" by Great Lake Swimmers


One of the backing vocalists on the original release of Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum is Victor Szabo whose only other recording credit is playing percussion on the debut album by Great Lake Swimmers.  (It could also be just two people with the same name.)  Based in Toronto, Great Lake Swimmers is a folk band led by the guitar, songwriting, and voice of Tony Dekker.  Unable to find a label, his demo tapes landed in the hands of artist-curators Phil Klygo and Germaine Koh.  Tony's haunting, empty voice impressed the two enough to found an independent record label for him in 2002.  The minted label, weewerk, released the eponymous Great Lake Swimmers album in 2003 and was well-received by critics.  The band recorded the album in an abandoned grain solo in rural Ontario that complemented the vulnerable lyrics and bare instrumentation with the animated drone of night sounds.

Here is the discography surrounding Great Lake Swimmers's debut album:

Great Lake Swimmers

"I Will Never See the Sun" by Great Lake Swimmers


Pass the Headphones!!

The Pleased - Don't Make Things (2003)

"No Style" by The Pleased


One of the guest performers on Vetiver's debut was Andy Cabic's friend, harpist Joanna Newsom. Although widely known for her solo recordings, her first recordings were with the San Francisco garage band The Pleased. The band got their first gig in 2001 with Newsom on keys, frontman Noah Georgeson on vocals and guitar, Rich Good also on vocals and guitar, Genaro Vergoglini on drums, and Luckey Remington on bass. Jason Clark would join the band later adding a synthesizer to the group. The Pleased successfully toured along the West Coast and in England in 2002. Eventually, they gained enough follwing and critical praise in the music press to garner a contract for their debut album Don't Make Things in 2003. The band would continue to tour until 2006 when they finally parted ways (though they still play together at intermittent concerts).

Here is the complete discography for The Pleased:

Never Complete (2002 EP)
One Piece from the Middle (2002 double EP)
Don't Make Things

"We Are the Doctor" by The Pleased


Pass the Headphones!!

Amy Winehouse - Frank (2003)

"You Sent Me Flying" by Amy Winehouse


Ms. Dynamite worked closely with several producers in getting her debut album ready, one of them being Hip Hop DJ and songwriter Salaam Remi. He helped give several hit singles their R&B tastes until he stumbled upon a creative partnership with jazz chanteuse Amy Winehouse.

Amy was a stand out performer in her teens and garnered the music industry's attention at the age of 18 in the newly minted millennium. Not only did her talents spark a bidding war as a non-pop performer amongst major labels, but they also sparked her management (a managing company headed by Simon Fuller, creator of the Idol franchise) to keep her a company secret as they began to build her image and the tracks to her debut. Universal won Amy's publishing rights and released her debut single "Stronger Than Me" in the waning days of 2003. The single performed poorly, hitting the wrong side of the UK Top 40. In fact, the three other singles from her debut, released throughout 2004, performed no better than 57 on the UK charts. The success of her debut, however, bolstered her under-performing singles. Frank, released at the end of 2003, peaked at #3 after a slow start in the UK and performed just as well in other countries. The album would earn itself a triple platinum sales figure.

Critically, Frank met with critical acclaim. Amy's sincere talent and unique qualities followed the populist trend against label-fabricated singers and boy/girl groups. Critics fell in love with her voice, her songwriting, and her look. All of these elements took cues from her female predecessors (Sarah Vaughan, Dinah Washington, Ronnie Spector, Erykah Badu, and even Ms. Dynamite), but she effortlessly transcended these influences falling somewhere in between them all but standing just as tall as the rest. Her critical acclaim led to music prizes such as the Ivor Novello for songwriting, BRIT Awards for popularity (basically), and a shortlisting for the 2004 Mercury Prize. Frank played a strong debut from a talented singer and set off a promising start to what would become a tragic career.

Here is the discography surrounding Amy Winehouse's debut album:

Stronger Than Me (2003 single)
Frank
Take the Box (2004 single)
In My Box (2004 single)
Sessions@AOL (2004 Live EP)
Pumps (2004 single)



If you have any ideas for where the tour should go next, please give a shout. I'm open to whatever as long as the artists are historically related in some way and go in an artist's chronological order.

Pass the Headphones!!