Well, this was a match up between two of the albums on my list. I was pretty sure that Seven Swans would win, and I was right. However, I think both albums are worthy of the list. I kind of wish someone else had drawn The Ghost of Tom Joad because I would have liked to hear their thoughts. I think I got the album as a gift either in 95 or 96, right after it came out, and it helped broaden my musical interests from pretty much only listening to the popular alternative music of my high school days, to finding an appreciation for folk music. A number of the albums that ended up on my top 30 list were chosen for some qualities that perhaps don't come through if you're just looking at the music. Things like storytelling, quality of voice, message, and ease of listening. I love Bruce's voice on this album. Many of the stories are of immigrants to the U.S. and the plight they face here. If you're like me, and you believe that art is rarely truly apolitical, then I definitely don't mind when art critiques an unjust part of society. I knew that this album wasn't going to beat Seven Swans for me, but listening to it was enjoyable, although I did find by the end that I was ready for it to end.
I'm not going to pretend that I have a good enough understanding of music to write intelligently about an album like Seven Swans. I'll leave that to Sarah and many others in this group. I'll just say that I love listening to this album. See Karl's post for more reasons to like the album. It's personal, it's beautiful, I love his voice. I like the repetition and the added layers, both vocal and instrumental, throughout the songs. I have listened to this album a lot over the last five years, perhaps more than any other album over that time period. I think I've slowed down on it a bit over the last couple years, but I was reminded in listening to it again today how good it really is. Unlike The Ghost of Tom Joad, which I enjoyed, but was glad when it was done, I started Seven Swans over when I was done listening, as I wasn't quite done washing the dishes.
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Clearly I need to give Seven Swans a listen, since both you and Karl recommend it so highly. Also, my experience with TGoTJ is similar to yours, and I'd like to give that another listen.
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