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Showing posts from August, 2019

TCCDM Pulls One Out..."Silk Torpedo" (1974)

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"Silk Torpedo" - Pretty Things (1974) This isn't "Parachute" or their rock-opera,  "S.F. Sorrow ."   And admittedly, I was a little disappointed.  But let's be honest, I wasn't expecting Pretty Things to touch either of those two gems.  What the album does touch, intentionally or not, is that blurry area of AOR.  And maybe trying for an FM hit. The AMG only gave it 2 stars and that may be undercutting the album a little bit.  But not by much.  There are no ducks on this record, by any means, but nothing really stands out either.  The first time I played it, I couldn't remember a single thing I listened to.  Later though, I gave the record a second spin with a more active ear, and enjoyed it much better. The opening two tracks..." Dream/Joey" ... slide together into a 6+ minute song that really gets better with each listen.  "Belfast Cowboy"  sounds like Tommy Bolin vocally and is a lost gem buried on side two

Horse Head Has An Idea:.."The Hogs Ear Report"

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HERE'S AN IDEA! The Vinyl Community , or the VC as they like to call themselves, is a group of YouTube guys and gals who enjoy collecting records.  They enjoy hunting for albums out in the wild or wherever...and then putting their mugs in front of the camera to share what they found and show them off. That's it!   It's just that flippin' simple. But their joy and enthusiasm while talking up their discoveries for the week or month...is like chicken soup.  I am not kidding.  They calm me down.  I like saving them in my "watch later" list and then once or twice a week, I throw my feet up in the air and watch a few shows on the big screen.  I have my favorites, but look, it's a cult of personality and you'll quickly gravitate to whichever one scratches your vinyl itch.  Careful though, or you might find yourself going down a rabbit hole.   If you have even a passing interest in record albums, you owe it to yourself to check out a few of the many V

Interview -- Steve Hackett (Genesis)

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"The battle was on  like a relay race  for the rest of us." ~ Steve Hackett ~ The addition of guitarist Steve Hackett into the Genesis fold in 1971 can not be overstated.  From the very beginning, Steve Hackett's mastery at filling in spaces with just the right weight, whether electric or acoustic, was just instinct doubled.  His creative guitar techniques and intricate melodies and riffs were gorgeous and sometimes head-shaking.  In a band that was already loaded with incredibly talented musicians, Steve Hackett very much held his own.  From his very first appearance on the bands' third album, "Nursery Cryme" ...followed by "Foxtrot."   "Selling England By The Pound."   "The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway."   "A Trick of the Tail."  And finally, "Wind & Wuthering” ...there was just no drop-off.   Steve Hackett's presence created a nice shady place for his other bandmates to play.  An

TCCDM Pulls One Out..."The Beat Goes On" (1968)

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"The Beat Goes On" - Vanilla Fudge (1968) “Should you or any of your IMForce be caught or killed, Vanilla Fudge will disavow any knowledge of this album.”   On the band's 2nd album, the group felt they had been sabotaged by their producer, George "Shadow" Morton.  They were so blindsided that the very same year...and only four months later, 'the Fudge' released their 3rd, and much better album, ”Renaissance” and quickly put " The Beat Goes On" behind them. And I get it. “The Beat Goes On” had no real songs on it.  Just snippets of ideas (producer ideas) and a bunch of seeds and stem studio shenanigans.  It was all supposed to be a mind-blow.  An avant-garde wonderflip.  The problem was the producer did most of this stuff unbeknownst to the band.  There is a lot of weird shim-sham and flibbety-floo goings-on. And no less than five, albeit short, versions of the title track done in a variety of subtle styles.  Nothing radio stations c

TCCDM Dig and Flip: "Headless And Other Improbable Excitations Of The Muse" (2019)

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"Headless And Other Improbable Excitations Of The Muse" (2019) Michael Jan Friedman 236 pages NO SPOILERS: I like reading short stories from time to time and try to get my hands on at least one book every year. “Headless...” is a collection of eight elliptic short stories that travel around the genres of fantasy and sci-fi, each with its own unique and mysterious destination.  Each tale throws a surprise louie at the reader.  Sometimes in your face, other times striking with a more subtle jab.  But all have a bit of the twist that makes for page-turning pleasure. Honestly, good short stories are a notorious dice roll.  They're just not easy to pull off.  But Michael Jan Friedman has delivered a pretty satisfying read.  Not every story within these pages is Starbucks, but there is certainly more gold here to be found than copper.  Friedman plays fair in the telling and never gives anything away cheaply. "Headless And Other Improbable Exc

I Went...SI--SI--SIRIUS...All The Way Home (again)

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(a short jaunt) "To Susan on the West Coast Waiting" - Donovan / “Barabajagal” (1969) My fascination with the Vietnam War, both movies and books, was always fueled, in no small part, by the large output of music inspired by this terrible conflict.  In this gentle song, Donovan sings a letter written from... ' Andy in Vietnam fighting' ...to his favorite boo.  Separated because of the mandatory draft.  Not Donovan's best, but it's Donovan.  The album is recommended. "Black Queen" - Stephen Stills / “Stephen Stills” (1970) “This is a song about a card game.”   So Stephen Stills drunkenly declares before riffing off some dirty acoustic blues and baring his drunken soul.  This recording has become one of those infamous RnR stories passed down.   In this case, Stills had quickly finished off a bottle of some 'good ol' whatever it was' ...among other things, and picked up his hardware and began tripping off some pretty ta

TCCDM Pulls One Out..."Jonathon Round" (1971)

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"Jonathon Round" - Jonathon Round (1971) If you threw Jack Black and Meatloaf into one of those experimental pods that Jeff Goldblum climbed into in "The Fly" ...you might find  Jonathon Round  on the other side.  His vocals hit the speakers with that same kind of over-the-top commitment.   His self-titled (and only) album is a mixture of hard folk and blues-rock with a bit of psych seasoning scattered about.  The insane soliloquy and spooky arrangement of the Stones, "Sympathy For The Devil" is just killer and one that a few cooler radio stations still play.  After a few moments into the song, you quickly realize that this shit's for real.  The devil ain't looking for no sympathy here.  He's demanding props and praise.  It's a great cover that doesn't imitate.  And the song also has a really cool fadeout. "In Quest of the Unicorn" is the opening track that introduces us to Jonathon Round and it doesn't fail to i

TCCDM Pulls One Out..."Love It To Death" (1971)

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"Love It To Death" - Alice Cooper (1971) I'm not going to regurgitate more hyperboles about “Love It To Death” and the Alice Cooper band .  Both were a welcome branch for the direction of rock music.  But I do want to speak about the infamous "Love It To Death” album cover.  When the album was first released in early 1971, the cover had an outrageous group photo of the band with frontman Alice extending his thumb through a buttonhole or opening of his coat giving the appearance that he was exposing his uncle jack.  It was just some juvenile shenanigans, but it soon became known as..." the thumb album." The Thumb Album Cover But it wasn't on the shelves too long, because record peep uppity-ups decided to pull “the thumb album” and release it with a new censored cover.  In December, Warner Bros. released it again with the same photo but only showing the band members from the waist up with the addition of two thick white strips appearing abo

TCCDM Pulls One Out..."Antithesis" (1972)

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"Antithesis" - Gypsy (1972) This is a more rock-driven and less prog-spinnin' Gypsy album.  The songs here are much shorter and a bit funkier.  The gorgeous harmonies are still killer.  The musicianship is still tight as ever.  But methinks their search for a radio hit was weighing on this album.  It didn't come.  This was Gypsy's third album and while there's some really good stuff here, what's missing are the extended prog trips and clever jams that made their self-titled double album debut (1970) and their follow-up, "In The Garden"  (1971) gather a bit of a cult following.  Go search those albums out first.  But if you're already familiar with the distinctive sounds of Gypsy...you'll probably cozy up to this one just fine. "Antithesis" (back) "Antithesis" (inside) RCA Victor (orange dynaflex) "Facing Time" - Gypsy / "Antithesis" (1972) TRACKS: A1  "Crusad

I Went...SI--SI--SIRIUS...All The Way Home (again)

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(a short jaunt) "Another Road" - Loggins & Messina / Capitol Theatre (7/9/1976) I've always been in the Jim Messina camp when it came to this duo.  I can certainly understand Kenny Loggins' appeal, though.  He had the sensitive voice.  He was the throb.  But Jim Messina's guiding hand pushing him to the front of the stage can not be overstated.  The live version from  "On Stage" (1974) is a beautiful little gem...but I like the live version (above) captured at the Capitol Theatre a little better.  Written by Loggins, but it's the gentle arrangement and backing vocals of Messina that keep the song from flying off.  Together they take a small song and give it real substance.  When the two were on the same page, they made quite the team.  Jim Messina interview. "Midnight Man" - James Gang / “Thirds” (1971) Was this the last “great song” Joe Walsh did with the James Gang ?  It's definitely a favorite.  The son

TCCDM Pulls One Out..."Gulliver" (1970)

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"Gulliver" - Gulliver (1970) All I needed to know about this album was that Gulliver was on the Elektra label (making it a pretty safe blind purchase) and was also notable for having Daryl Hall in the band.  The music is mostly clever McCartneyesque pop-rockers.  There is even a little bit of fuzzed-up guitar that satisfies that other itch.  Nothing hard, but sounds good.  Even when the tempo slows down, like on the wonderful "Enough"/"Over the Mountain" ...it still sounds FM worthy.  There are a couple of weaker tracks on here, but nothing that reaches the skippable level that would make you leave your chair. Tim Moore wrote most of the songs and splits vocals with Hall.  Moore went on to have a successful career as a songwriter for many musical artists.  AMG only gave this album two stars, but I think it rates higher than that.  I really enjoyed it.  The album cover, however, is definitely a two-star.  Whoever thought a group shot of the band

TCCDM Dig and Flip: "The Big Sleep" - Raymond Chandler (1939)

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"The Big Sleep" ...Raymond Chandler (1939) 231 pages NO SPOILERS: "The Big Sleep" is a noir mystery that introduces us for the first time to Philip Marlowe ...a tough, cynical detective hired by a dying millionaire to check up on one of his two beautiful 20-year old daughters.  And there are shenanigans afoot.  Taking place in Hollywood, CA circa the late 1930s, our detective narrates us through this wonderful fustercluck that involves double-crosses and blackmail.  Triple-crosses and murder.  Plus a host of not-so-nice characters that all have a bit of stink on their fingers.  Adding to the fun, Raymond Chandler has Marlowe tossing off one classic observation after another.  Gems like... “ She lowered her lashes until they almost cuddled her cheeks and slowly raised them again, like a theatre curtain." or "The sunshine was as empty as a head waiter's smile."  Even with all these delicious Marlowe observations and burns, &q