The Dead Milkmen 'Bucky Fellini' 1987 LP. Their third. Great album. TDM have a very cynical, smart-ass humor and jangly lighthearted brand of punk. Fun band. Favorites on this release: Going to Graceland, Take Me to the Specialist, Instant Club Hit, Nitro Burning Funny Cars, and Surfin' Cow. Many goodies on this release.
Erroll Garner 'Everest Records Archive of Folk & Jazz Music'
Garage sale find. One of the first things I noticed about this collection was that they spelled Garner's first name wrong! Unbelievable. Anyway, Erroll Garner is my favorite jazz pianist, because my grandfather introduced me to him and also because I love his expression and how smooth his playing is. There's a Garner track for almost every mood. Erroll (spelled with two L's!!!) was from Pittsburgh, PA, near where I grew up. My grandfather saw him a few times back in the day, up in Pittsburgh, and so Garner came to be a family favorite as my grandpa passed down knowledge. Interesting tidbit: like a lot of jazz musicians, Garner wasn't formally trained and couldn't read music. These things obviously don't factor at all because it didn't stop him from becoming one of the greatest jazz pianists in history. His bouncy 'This Can't Be Love' is a blast, the swinging 'Sunny Side..' is a great springtime jam, and the dizzy climbing and plummeting of 'Moonglow' is an enjoyable ride. I enjoy every track on here. The quality of these recordings isn't optimal, but the somewhat muddy sound creates a certain ambiance I can't argue with.
Duran Duran 'Arena' Live LP. Recorded at various locations worldwide in '84 according to the cover. Absolutely great album for D.D. fans. Contains many of the major singles: Hungry like the Wolf, Wild Boys, Planet Earth, and Union of the Snake. It's really great to hear how some synth parts are played live on guitar instead, how some vocal parts are lengthened or shortened, and how some of the very polished studio guitar licks are reproduced a bit more naturally on stage. This live LP sounds so crisp and polished and the crowd noise is so very subdued (barely perceptible if at all through the majority of the album) that I heard that it was disputed whether or not these were actually live performance recordings, which is certainly a testament to the band's ability to perform in a live setting and the quality of this release. I too have my suspicions about one or two tracks, which just seem too spot-on, mirroring studio versions I have heard. Anyway, wonderful album, which contains an excellent live version of my personal favorite D.D. track: The Chauffeur. Sing blue silver!
Hall & Oates 'H2O' 1982 release.80s synth rock/pop. A big one for these guys, largely due to the single 'Maneater.' Includes two other singles: 'One on One' and 'Family Man.'Any 80s music dweebs like yours truly should own a copy of thison some format. This LP, and the Voices and Private Eyes LPs are all good albums, but as H & O are a radio hits band whose career was really singles-driven, their full-lengths will be a bit spotty with a few weak cuts here and there. This one's no exception to that. This has some great tracks on it, though. Favorites: 'Maneater,' 'Open All Night,' and 'Go Solo.'
Hoagy Carmichael - The Stardust Road
1982 MCA Records compilation LP. Thrift store find from Sandy, UT. Solo piano w/ vocal, and backing jazz accompaniment on most tracks. Music for cocktails, or you can listen while giving yourself a good shave to fill the house with an old school barbershop feel, as I did this morning. The recordings featured here are from 1939 to 1951, although he wrote many of these songs in the late 20s. Hoagy was a jazz pianist and composer active from 1918 to 1981, although it seems the majority of his output was pre-50s. Favorites: 'Star Dust,' 'Rockin' Chair,' and 'Doctor, Lawyer, Indian Chief.'
Depeche Mode 'Catching Up with Depeche Mode' Found at a local vinyl shop, for $4. Score! Early compilation featuring 13 tracks from their first 5 years - released in 1985. It's amazing to hear how upbeat and poppy their very earliest work was, like 'I Just Can't Get Enough' and 'New Life.' You can really plot out the progression of their sound through this collection. This came out the year before the Black Celebration LP, which is one of my faves. This is a great comp and includes a few of their best. Recommended. Favorites here: 'Fly on the Windscreen,' 'Blasphemous Rumours,' and 'Shake the Disease.' 'Fly on the Windscreen' may be my favorite D.M. track of all time, especially in this earlier version. I'm torn between that and 'Behind the Wheel.' Anyway, they're both brilliant.
Toto 'Fahrenheit'
When these guys go for their brand of radio-directed rock, it's just an awful thing, but some of their more R&B-inspired slow-burners are enjoyable. The bouncy nature of the majority of the instrumentation, the
inspirational lyrics, the overproduction, the corny vocal stylings (which are comparable to
Kenny Loggins, if not worse), all leave me apprehensive to recommend this to anyone in 2013. I maintain a nostalgic reverence for some of the tracks, which somehow always grants tunes we'd otherwise find abhorrent a free-pass. In this instance I may not be a trustworthy source. Fahrenheit is a guilty pleasure for me. I have memories of my father owning and playing it at home, and hearing Toto on the radio regularly as a youth. It was ground into my impressionable child brain. There are some repulsive tracks here, but some legitimately good ones too. These are the goodies: 'Without Your Love,' 'I'll Be Over You,' and the very MJ-influenced 'Somewhere Tonight.'
Duran Duran 'Seven and the Ragged Tiger'
1983 release - DD's 3rd full-length. Savers thrift store find (Utah). I found this and the Arena live album (which includes my personal favorite track of theirs' 'The Chauffeur'), both in near-perfect condition on the same day. As a huge Duran Duran fan, I was absurdly pleased. This is one of my favorite LPs by Duran Duran. It includes some of their absolute best: 'The Reflex,' 'New Moon on Monday,' and the brilliant 'Union of the Snake,' as well as a few good minor cuts: 'Of Crime and Passion' and 'The Seventh Stranger.' 80s classic.
Roxy Music - Avalon
Avalon, the mystical Isle from tales of Arthuriana, first introduced in Geoffrey of Monmouth's The History of the Kings of Britain, is an appropriate title for Londoners Roxy Music's 8th (and final) LP. It's tough to think of a better final album title for a British act, because Avalon is where the slain King Arthur's body is taken to heal after his grand battle with Mordred, leaving his people with hope that he will one day return, and along with him, his grand idealized Arthurian era. The album is smooth as silk. I got into Roxy Music via Bryan Ferry's solo work, which I love. Roxy Music's later efforts have a similar sound to his solo work. Their earlier stuff not so much, but I've grown to really enjoy it as well. Great album. Released upon the world in May of 1982, the same month and year of my unveiling (birth). Favorites: 'The Space Between,' 'While My Heart is Still Beating,' and 'True to Life.'
20/20 '20/20'LP
Excellent thrift store find. Original 1979 Potrait Records/Epic album. 20/20's debut full-length, and best LP. Classic American power pop release. 'Yellow Pills,' 'Cheri,' 'She's an Obsession,' and 'Tell Me Why' are some of my favorites, but in all honesty every number on here is good. I put this right up there with my Buzzcocks and Undertones albums. This is a great one. Listen below.
Social Distortion 'Somewhere Between Heaven and Hell' 1992 Epic/Sony Music LP. Social D's 4th album, and second best-selling one. Picked this one up at a small record shop in a Norfolk, England village, the name of which now escapes me. Everybody knows the blues/country/rockabilly influenced punk sound of Social D. You like it or you don't. I always have, more so in my late teens and twenties than now, but I'll always like them. This is probably my third favorite album of theirs. 5 or 6 of the 11 are strong tracks. This offering also has very strong production. Favorites here: 'Cold Feelings,' Making Believe,' 'When She Begins.'
2001: A Space Odyssey soundtrack Thrift store find. Original 1968 MGM soundtrack LP to Kubrick's brilliant film. I love the sci-fi comic style cover art. Obviously one the greatest films of all time and, I believe, one of the best soundtracks. 'Requiem for Soprano, Mezzo Soprano' is one the creepiest pieces of music ever recorded, 'Gayane Ballet Suite (Adagio)' is beauty through and through, and Johann Strauss' 'Blue Danube' and Richard Strauss' 'Also Sprach Zarathustra' are well-known classical treasures.
Morrissey 'My Love Life'
1991 Sire Records 12" "maxi-single." 3 tracks. To say I'm a Morrissey fan is the understatement of the century. But, I'll be fair. 'My Love Life' isn't a brilliant song. I like the video, with Morrissey & gang cruising through Pheonix in a Rolls Royce convertible, but the track itself is very basic, musically and lyrically, and ranks rather low in my book. The two B-sides here are far better. My favorite of the two is the brilliant "I've Changed My Plea to Guilty." I've included a live performance of that track below. Watch the video. Mozzer kills it.
Wire Train 'She Comes On'
Wire Train was a new wave/post punk/alt-rock act active in the 80s and 90s. This is a 1987 12" single. Contains only the one track, which at times bears resemblance to The Cars' 'You Might Think' from 1984, which is problematic. It uses a very similar lead guitar/synth line...only The Cars employed it to better effect 3 years earlier. It's dissimilar enough that it could be an accident, but unfortunately similar enough to always remind me of the superior Cars' track. Anyway, 'She Comes On' isn't all that great. I bought this at a local mom and pop in their used section simply because I enjoy Wire Train's criminally neglected 1984 LP, ...In a Chamber. Buy ...In a Chamber and leave this 12" single on the shelf. The track below is from ...In a Chamber.
The 5th Dimension 'Stoned Soul Picnic'
This 1968 LP couldn't have a more accurate title. I really like The 5th Dimension. They're the only hippie, psychedelic, pop, R&B, folk, soul group I can think of, that really delivers on the soul aspect while maintaining a healthy dose of all those other genre influences. These 5 have it all covered. They are super-posi, and when most artists are overly positive I get a little queasy and annoyed, but not with The 5th Dimension. Their ultra-positivity feels really natural, believable, and uplifting. Many of the ultra-posi tracks on this, their 3rd LP, are balanced nicely w/ a few slightly less chipper numbers, like the excellent Billy Davis Jr.-fronted 'It'll Never be the Same Again.' This is no-worries, summertime, sippin' on wine in the park with your friends music. It's music for good vibes and summer adventures. Pick this up if it crosses your path. My only complaint is that it's not 6 times longer.
Elvis Presley 'Blue Hawaii'
Thanks, Goodwill. This is the soundtrack to the musical film, and a Hawaii-themed Elvis album. It's Elvis' 14th. This 1961 release blends rock and Hawaiian music and comes in at a mere 32 minutes long - but they're a quality 32. It was certified triple platinum. Really good album. I enjoy it a lot. In the photo above I include the cover and also the sleeve, because I love the Elvis ads printed on it. Hang ten.
Billy Ocean 'Suddenly'
This LP is an uber-80s joyfest that's commonly found at thrift stores and in bargain bins, alongside the equally joyous Love Zone LP, so I actually replaced an old beaten-up copy with this clean, shrink-wrapped one that I recently found. Every time I hear 'Caribbean Queen,' 'Loverboy,' or 'Suddenly' play, my mood is instantly elevated. These 3 are enough to render this 1984 LP classic, but some of the minor tracks like 'Dancefloor' and 'Syncopation' are also good. Ocean's the man. Always will be.
Fabian 'The Fabulous Fabian' I'd heard a few Fabian tracks before this, one of which was really good, and I typically like 50s and 60s rock of this style, but this 1960 LP is just not terribly good. I only enjoy 2 or 3 tracks on here. The music is nice (some guitar parts are rather impressive), but Fabian's voice isn't, and the lyrics are less than substantial. Obviously Fabian is Fabian because of his teen idol looks and not so much his musical talent (he's also referred to in the liner notes as "the Tiger" and "America's boyfriend"). This is further evidenced by the gatefold package w/ inserts packed to the hilt with model-shot photos including huge glossy mug shots on the front and back. Oh, and mine has a "cut-here" seam where it must have also had a poster in it at one time, which was no doubt removed and plastered on some awkward teenage girl's wall back in 1960. I can't recommend this. It's more or less the Tiger Beat of 60s rock LPs.
Rain Parade 'Crashing Dream' Rain Parade's a cool psychedelic college rock band from L.A. that was active in the 80s. A guitarist on their earlier material, David Roback, went on to become half of Mazzy Star. This 1985 Island Records LP is their third, and was my recent introduction to them. I really enjoy their sparse but effective use of keyboard, and that late-80s/90s college-rock vibe. This is another thrift store find. I've since purchased their Beyond the Sunset album as well. My favorites here: 'Depending on You,' 'Mystic Green,' and 'Fertile Crescent,' but they're all good.
The Beach Boys 'Surfer Girl'
I found this classic 1963 Capitol Records LP at a neighborhood D.I. thrift store. It's The Beach Boys' 3rd LP, and everyone knows it's the cat's PJs so I'm not gonna go into it too much. The two big hits on this release, 'Surfer Girl' and 'Little Deuce Coupe' were never my cup of tea. I really love 'The Surfer Moon' and 'Your Summer Dream.'
Georges Brassens 'Georges Brassens et sa Guitare'
I've been to France twice, and don't know a lick of French, but somehow derive a lot of enjoyment from listening to 50s/60s French pop/folk without having a clue what is being said. Singer-songwriter and poet Brassens has 12 solo vocal & guitar tracks here, and provides a paragraph explanation for each track's meaning on the back of the LP, providing a fair bit of reading to accompany the listening experience. He's a well-respected post-war poet and apparently led quite the eccentric private-life. A bio on the rear of the LP states that he had something of a home zoo including ducks, cats, a raven, rats, and parrots. I've listened to this 1958 Epic comp many times since I purchased it from eBay about 6 months back. My favorites: 'Le Vent,' 'Pauvre Martin,' 'Le Gorille' and 'La Mauvaise Reputation.'
Gold & Platinum Vol.2 compilation
1986 CBS/Columbia House compilation of 80s radio hits, compiled to support Leukemia and Cancer Research. Awesome comp, with Wham!'s 'Careless Whisper,' Sade's 'Smooth Operator,' Huey Lewis and the News' 'Heart and Soul,' Tears for Fears, Bryan Adams, and more. 80s party album. Picked it up for 1 dolla at a Savers thrift store. Your trash, my treasure.
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark 'If You Leave' single
I'm a big OMD fan and finally saw them live just last year. I couldn't find anyone who wanted to go with me, so I just went by myself. I ended up having a blast, though. I danced my ass off, and typically hate dancing. These guys put on an awesome live show. I ordered OMD's Crush LP on eBay, and when it arrived, the seller had thrown in this 12" single for free. Not too much to say, but that 'La Femme Accident,' the B-side is a fun number, and everyone knows 'If You Leave.' Both sides are extended versions of the tracks.
Dial A Hit compilation
The Dial A Hit compilation from Bell Records is another record from 1969. I seem to stumble on many records from that same year for some reason. It includes 2 tracks by one of my personal favorite all-time groups, The Delfonics, and also features Al Green and The O'Jays, among others. 11 tracks, all of which I enjoy but one. Very cool comp I found in a local record store. My copy has it's fair share of bends and wrinkles, and is missing a bit of one corner, but the dial on the telephone spins!...and it has Delfonics tracks!...so I had to pick it up. In the video below I show the working dial.
Wanda Jackson 'The Many Moods of Wanda Jackson'
Thrift store find. The first track on this 1969 compilation makes me laugh every time I hear it. The chorus is "I wish I was your friend...and not your wife." The Many Moods... does a fine job of capturing just those. It's a good Wanda Jackson collection for a newcomer for this reason, with downers and uppers, capturing her country, folk, rockabilly, and pop elements. I'm a fan of hers, and even as an established fan I appreciate the variety featured. It balances well. My favorites here are: 'I'd Do It All Over Again,' 'I Started Loving You Again,' 'Fever,' and 'Poor Ole Me.'
Breakfast Club 'Right on Track' 12" single
I'm probably one of a very small number of individuals on planet Earth who care about this song. As a child I had the Pee-Wee Hermanesque music video on a VHS tape, and watched it numerous times. I'll include the video here for your viewing pleasure. Imagine my surprise at discovering this in the back of a crate at a record sale a few months back. This 1987 one-hit-wonder single contains the original LP version and 6 remixes.
The Everly Brothers '15 Everly Hits' Why am I hugging this excellent find? Because the Everlys are heros. The Nashvillian brothers, Don and Phil, have crafted some of my favorite songs. I could listen to them all day long. This Cadence Records compilation has a nice thick cardboard sleeve and my copy's in pretty clean condition for a 1963 release. Thrift store find of the highest caliber, in my book.
Don Henley 'Building the Perfect Beast'
Don Henley, of course, is a member of The Eagles, a group I've never enjoyed. This is his solo effort, which, logically, I should also dislike, but find quite enjoyable for nostalgic reasons. This album came out when I was a really young tike and my father worked at a radio station where I recorded commercials as a little guy. So, this album's many hits were stamped upon my mind: The Boys of Summer, Building the Perfect Beast, All She Wants to do is Dance, and Sunset Grill. All of these, with the exception of the first, are on side two. So, I recommend the nostalgic 80s pop/rock found on side two, because side one is largely awful. It's a classic 80s album. Gotta have it.
Gang of Four 'I Love a Man in a Uniform'
Gang of Four's one of my favorite post-punk bands, and I'm a big post-punk fan. I love their danceable funk bass lines. I've heard them referred to as a dance-punk outfit before, which is appropriate. These tracks come from the Songs of the Free LP, not my favorite of theirs. Anyway, not much to say here but that 'Call Me Up,' the B-side to this single is really good, much better in fact, than the A-side single. Cool find.
The Lost Boys soundtrack
Found this gem at a record dig. I used to own it on cassette and I'm very pleased to have a vinyl upgrade now. 'Cry Little Sister' (the Lost Boys theme), 'Beauty Has Her Way,' 'People are Strange' (Doors cover by Echo and the Bunnymen), and 'Lost in the Shadows' are all rad. 'Beauty Has Her Way' by Mummy Calls is by far my favorite track of the album, which I've included here. One or two numbers are admittedly horrible, like the painful 'I Still Believe' and 'Good Times,' but as an 80s/90s kid I hold the film and the soundtrack in high regard, regardless of a few obnoxious missteps.
