The College Crowd Digs Me

"Rainbow Rising" - Rainbow (1976) I'm not the biggest fan of Rainbow.  I mean I don't dislike them.  I don't change the channel when they come on the radio or anything.  But I don't go out of my way either.  That's just me.  Except when it comes to their 1976  "Rainbow Rising" album.  This monster was a "one-shot" super lineup and they killed it.  And it's my 'go-to' album when I need a heavy dose of Dio .  Ritchie Blackmore's guitar sounds possessed.  A young and much-needed  Tony Carey  really punches up the keyboards.  Nice fills and heavy flares.  And Jimmy Bain and Cozy Powell hold everything together underneath.  But it's Ronnie James Dio that delivers the mail and he never sounded better.  Only six songs, but it satisfies that itch.  I just love it.  From needle drop to label,  “Rainbow Rising”  is a smoking gem, and yet still is a bit of an under-appreciated spin. "Rainbow Rising" (b

"Marvel 1602" Neil Gaiman, Andy Kubert (Illustrator), Richard Isanove (Digital Painter) Marvel (2006) (first published in 2003) 248 pages (I stumbled upon a good-sized box filled with a variety of graphic novels at an estate sale. No official count as I've just been pulling from the box when I find time to read one.  Afterward, I post the book and go from there.) NO SPOILERS: There is a lot to like about this story.  A hiccup in our time universe causes many familiar Marvel characters to find themselves in the 1600s.  Time of the Elizabethan society.  Time of King James's Inquisitions.  And a time when Marvel superheroes are smack in the middle of a rip-in-time that will destroy the entire universe if not corrected.  Neil Gaiman's story is clever and tricky in the telling, yet Gaiman sets a tone that allows readers to relax and trust he'll get us through this adventure fairly.  Nothing ever feels forced or rushed.  And it's especially

"The Blades Of Grass Are Not For Smoking" - The Blades Of Grass (1967) Occasionally, a person needs to be reminded just how wonderful sunshine pop can be.  Especially when it's dusted in psych and shaded in baroque colors.  And this is the really good stuff.  Nothing cheap.  The Blades Of Grass harmonies are great and there is an overall cleverness going on that belies the band members ages.  All just high school guys from New Jersey...honing their craft while tossing books in their lockers.  Session musicians were brought in, for sure, but they bring out the band's natural moxie without losing them in the shuffle.  In other words, great flavoring for the stew. For sunshine stuff, this album is solid front to back with a maturity that is arguably better than some of the more recognizable albums from this era.  “Happy” was their big ("cough, cough") hit, but it’s the other songs on this sunshine square that make it worth your time.  This record stil

(a short jaunt) "Ships Don't Disappear in the Night (Do They?)" - 10cc / "10cc" (1973) "Better be nice to Vincent Price"    This is a little like  McCartney's   "Helen Wheels"  dipped in Adam Ant sauce.  And the 10cc boys beat Mac by a full month.  Often what 10cc serves-up is so firmly tongue-in-cheek and clever, you almost forget the witchery they conjure up in the studio.  I admit sometimes they clever themselves right over my head, but I don't care.  Their songs are always recorded at a high bar, it just doesn't matter.  This was from 10cc's debut album "All Along The Watchtower" - Brewer & Shipley / "Weeds" (1969) No studio wizardry going on here.  Still, it's deceptive in its simplicity.  Just when you let your guard down...you realize the duo has struck your ears in a familiar, yet curiously wonderful and different way.  Brewer and Shipley's sophomore album. &quo

"Kingdom Come" - Sir Lord Baltimore (1970) Get this album any way you can.  This is a box of fire-sticks!  And it's so much fun to spin.  Sir Lord Baltimore out of Brooklyn, NY and their nearly forgotten “Kingdom Come” album is about as close to the original crack in the Heavy Metal egg as very few bands can ever claim.  I can only imagine the number of bands influenced by this powder keg.  It might seem...almost tame for metalheads today, but this was 1970 and the early stuff.  Very few bands were making the earth and heads shake in quite the way SLB was laying it down.  And, my goodness, the frontman vocals for Sir Lord Baltimore are just killer.  Tag that along with all the clever riffing and power chording and blistering drumming.  And you've got yourself a band.  Even the psych-folk track that shows up midway is a welcome treat.  It's all a bit of a stoner's square and I really enjoyed it.  Sir Lord Baltimore was a bit of a pony-up for me. (C

"Jack: Secret Histories" - F. Paul Wilson (2008) Softcover, 302 pages NO SPOILERS: This is a fun, quick read that provides some back story for the wonderful grown-up  “Repairman Jack” series created by the same imaginative author... F. Paul Wilson .  Here, a young Jack along with his two best friends discover a strange object in the New Jersey woods that beg explanation.  Of course, curiosity leads to other more dangerous things as one might expect.  “...Secret Histories” has a very Hardy Boys flavor, but with a more creepy, unearthly tone.  And even the author enjoys poking fun at himself acknowledging the Hardy influence.  "Repairman Jack" fans will especially gobble this up, but it's not necessary to be on board that train to find pleasure on this journey.  It all adds up to an enjoyable adventure that stands alone but still waves a flag for dangers yet to come. "Neon Repairman" - Freedy Johnston / "Neon Repairman" (2015)

"When I was 14 years old, I became a songwriter." ~ Terry Isaiah Johnson ~ “I Only Have Eyes For You” is like having a Vulcan mind-meld performed on your heart...courtesy of Terry Isaiah Johnson ...arranger, singer, songwriter, and guitarist for  The Flamingos .  In 1959, (think about that a moment) Terry took a rather ordinary song from the 30s and turned it into an out-of-body experience.  The song is heady, romantic and a wee bit cosmic.  Yeah, a little bit!  It's a slow dance daring couples not to fall in love.  “I Only Have Eyes For You” was welcomed into the Grammy Award Hall of Fame and  Rolling Stone slipped the song into the comfortable #157 spot of the 500 greatest songs of all time.   Terry Isaiah Johnson has been involved in the music world, both solo and with The Flamingos, for over 60 years.  And recently, Terry released a brand-spanking-new version of this classic gem with a fresh and soulful arrangement as only he can do.  The song is availab

"John, The Wolf King of L.A." - John Phillips (1970) The Wolf King album doesn't scream out lost gem or where have you been all my life.  Not like some rumors floating around suggest.  But the thing is, this is still an easy album to warm up to.  Lyrics are good.  Melodies are comfortable.  And the musicianship, thanks to the killer Wrecking Crew , handle the one with the weakest vocals from The Mamas and the Papas with kid gloves. It's all a bit country rock and hippie folk and lacks for nothing but maybe a little more bite.  In fact, the album would've probably faired much better had lawsuits not been hovering around the studio.  Instead, the record peeps pretty much looked at the album and said, " set it and forget it.”  And so it was.  However, this gentle, almost bittersweet John Phillips debut does have the honest ring of a forgotten Laurel Canyon troubadour that somehow lost his way.  And that could be enough to make fresh ears pause.  Noth

"Toe Fat" - Toe Fat (1970) A lot of music on Toe Fat's self-titled album has the feel of a forgotten classic rock album.  And I hate it when others play the comparing game...but forgive me, I can't help myself.  On my first spin, I could hear a bit of early Bad Company with a harder rock vibe going on.  Some of it anyway.  And that's not a bad thing.  I hope I haven't ruined it for you.  I thought this British album was going to be more psych, but no.  This is mostly straight-up hard rock.  The good kind.  Several songs from this debut could easily find a home on any legit classic rock radio staish.  And even though nothing on here is what one would call groundbreaking, for 1970...Toe Fat offers up some pretty solid rock.  Toe Fat was a British band that included future members of both Uriah Heep  (Ken Hensley and Lee Kerslake) and Jethro Tull  (John Glascock) so the playing level is definitely tight and taut. Not an essential, but there are definitel