Album · David Lindley
El Rayo-X by David Lindley
El Rayo-X is an album by David Lindley, released in 1981. 1 song from it has charted on rock radio countdowns, with 2 countdown appearances in total. The biggest is “Mercury Blues”, on 2 lists with a best position of #68.
El Rayo-X was David Lindley's first studio album, released in 1981 and produced by Jackson Browne, whose records Lindley had spent years decorating. He named the band behind it El Rayo-X as well, and they had to be quick on their feet: Lindley, a founder of the psychedelic Kaleidoscope and a collaborator of Linda Ronstadt, Ry Cooder, Bonnie Raitt and Warren Zevon, could play almost anything with strings, and was hailed as a master of the lap steel.
The record is a rolling party, stirring blues, rock and roll, Cajun, zydeco and Middle Eastern flavors into one loose-limbed groove, with "Mercury Blues" as its calling card. It stayed on the Billboard 200 for 18 weeks, peaking at number 83. The Washington Post's Boo Browning didn't call it the album of the year, but found little to touch it for good-time rock, and a happy shock from a man best known as Browne's sidekick.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs from El Rayo-X on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mercury Blues | 2 | #68 | – | 1981–2010 |
Only songs that appear on at least one countdown are listed. Release data from MusicBrainz.