The College Crowd Digs Me

" Ars Nova" -  Ars Nova (1968) I didn't dislike Ars Nova's debut album, but the wow factor was fairly low.  Nothing bad, but nothing stands out either.  There are a few Baroquish tracks that have occasional low-bottom brass and a Medieval presence that throws off a bit of a time-traveling vibe.  There are subtle hints of psych ghosts yet-to-come...but they never stay for very long.  I'm glad I picked it up, but I'm not sure how often I'll play it. "Ars Nova" (back) The band sometimes sound like they might've kicked some dirt wandering through the English countryside, but they are just good-ol' New York boys.  The guys look dark and foreboding on the front cover.  If only the album had more of that attitude.  Favorites are the opener  "Pavan For My Lady."     The most psych-ish track... " And How Am I To Know" ...is a grower that whips itself up into a nice, if short, fuzz-burner midway through the spin.  And the clo

"Superman: Birthright" by Mark Waid - Leinil Francis Yu - Gerry Alanguilan DC Comics (2005) 314 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.) "Superman: Birthright" is the retelling of the origin of Clark Kent, aka Superman.  Mark Waid has updated the story for fresh eyes and does an excellent job laying the groundwork for our hero.  I've never been a huge fan of heroes that are omnipotent or nearly so, but the author wisely chooses to hook his readers by first letting us see our hero as a fairly cool, somewhat flawed, ordinary guy.  Not the dork I had come to believe.  By the time Clark puts on the red "S"...we're rooting for the dude.  The author also does an excellent job of introducing the mad genius Lex Luthor to the story.  In this telling, Lex went to the same school as Clark Kent and were friends

"Circus Maximus" - Circus Maximus (1967) The Circus Maximus self-titled debut album is psych-tinged garagey folk-rock.  It has occasional freakouts and the tracks sound bright and loose with jangling guitars reminiscent a little of mid-period Byrds or Beau Brummels  The music is catchy and original.  The group is notable for having Jerry Jeff Walker in the band, but their other songwriter, Bob Bruno is the stronger of the two on this square.  Pushing things forward with a more biting, psych-driven edge.  The band was originally called the Lost Sea Dreamers, but Vanguard Records nixed that idea because the initials "LSD" was linked to the drug. "Circus Maximus" (back) Favorites are the keyboard-burner... "Short Haired Fathers."    The dark and ominous  "Chess Game."   And the dreamy 8-minute headspin.... "Wind" ...is like nothing else on the album.  Floaty and jazzy and just an outstanding late-night drive song.  The song

  "Fuzzy Duck" - Fuzzy Duck (1971) This is the 2020 UK/Europe reissue of Fuzzy Duck's  self-titled album released in 1971.  "Fuzzy Duck" is a very solid hard rock album with tasteful prog dustings all in that early 70s flavor.  The band Fuzzy Duck compares quite well to their contemporaries of the era.  There are hints of Uriah Heep and Atomic Rooste r and maybe some Bloodrock , but just hints.  The album sounds fresh and has a lot of energy and is worthy of receiving new attention.  There are no weak links on this album, either.  Drop the needle and crank it. The band had an interesting pedigree.  On the keys was  Ray Sharland who was with The Crazy World Of Arthur Brown.   Bassist Mick Hawksworth was in the Five Day Week Straw People ...a tasty 1968 psych band out of Britain.  And drummer Paul Francis was also bangin' it as an original member of Tucky Buzzard .   "Fuzzy Duck" (back) Fuzzy Duck  was from London and when their self-titled a

"The Cabin At The End Of The World" by Paul Tremblay (2018) Hardcover, 272 pages NO SPOILERS: This “cabin in the woods" horror tale involves an adopted girl and her two dads who spend a weekend at a cabin far removed from cell phones and FaceTime.  While the little girl plays outside, a nice stranger comes along.  This encounter quickly turns into a home invasion.  Up to this point, the story seems very familiar.  But then the uninvited guests throw their strange and frightening agenda into the family's lap and suddenly the story becomes a very different potato.  And it could have really been intense, but for all the flashbacks.  FBs of the two dads.  FBs of the adoption.  Just a lot of filler.  Better to take the cabin invasion for a real thunder ride, but Paul Tremblay never quite puts the pedal to the metal. Also, the ending is way too ambiguous and thus, unsatisfying.  You can get away with these types of shenanigans in a short story or novella, but for a novel,

  "Jake Jones" - Jake Jones (1971) There was never an actual  Jake Jones in the band.  Jake Jones was just a name they chose to call themselves.  Nonetheless, Jake Jones had a loyal underground following in the St. Louis area.  KSHE radio was an advocate for the band playing their music often.  Their self-titled debut album is mostly melodic and jamming rural country numbers that are okay, but a few tracks on this album have a proggier, more organ-driven flavor.  And it's these types of songs I wish they would have explored more.  This isn't a great album or a must-own, but overall I quite enjoyed it.  Both the softer and the meatier.  I don't think the " Jake Jones" album is rare or anything like that...but I sure don't see it very often. There's not a lot of information floating in the clouds about the band other than being from St. Louis and releasing two albums.  But member  Phil Jost went on to become the assistant to Producer/Engineer

"Funk Off (sic) 1966-1967" - Terry Knight and the Pack (1973)   Prior to Grand Funk Railroad... Don Brewer and Mark Farner were rocking the garage with Terry Knight and the Pack .   "Funk-Off (sic) 1966-1967" is a two-record gatefold compilation of most of the band's output and it's a solid spin.  Really good.  The album is filled with catchy garage rockers and folk-rockers.   Some with tasty fuzz burns and a few with some light psych dust.  The few cover songs the band tackle do no damage.  All are very well done and high bar.  Terry Knight and the Pack had only one charting single nationally... "I (Who Have Nothing)" ...a song obviously meant for pop radio ears, and is also included on this comp.  Terry Knight and the Pack released two studio albums before closing up shop.  Don Brewer and Mark Farner went on to form the classic thunder-shaking  Grand Funk Railroad and Terry Knight became the band's manager. Favorites are "Numbers&q

  " Every book is a new book if you haven't read it!  And so, let us begin. "They Thirst" by Robert R. McCammon (1981) "They Thirst" is not the scariest vampire novel you'll read from this heavily populated genre, but it does have fast legs that will carry you long into the night. (full review) "Custer" by Larry McMurtry (2012) A biography about Gen. George Armstrong Custer and the players and events leading up to the historic battle at Little Big Horn.  Reads quick and is perfect for readers who want to start with a light meal, rather than a full course.  McMurtry gives us a fast and fascinating read and it satisfied an itch I didn't even know I had. (full review) "The Snowman" by Jo Nesbo (2010) The story moves along quickly with plenty of plot twists and ducks to keep everything edgy.  And the author plays fair with the clues, which is always cool.  "The Snowman" was all good, but for a few of the Norwegian names

"Born To Be Wild" - Kim Fowley (1968) Kim Fowley offers up a cash-in album covering a few popular songs in a very organ-driven...soul-rock 60s flavor.  All are instrumentals and are much better than one might expect. (Word is that this album only took four hours to record.)  There's a little fuzz here and there...and occasional horns show their head and together with the organ give a pretty full and enjoyable listen.  The album tries to flirt with psych, but in vibe only.  Like when girls are dancing inside hanging cages and Joe Friday from Dragnet walks in.  The music is groovy, but nothing even close to dangerous.  In fact, this is probably Kim Fowley's most behaved record ever. Most already know Fowley as the infamous manager of The Runaways , but he also wrote many songs for a wide range of artists from Kiss to Kris Kristofferson.  Unfortunately, he became a legend in the Rock world for as many bad reasons as good.  Google him if you want to go down a rabbit ho

  "The Crystal Mansion" - Crystal Mansion (1972) Hailing from New Jersey, Crystal Mansion released their 2nd album and the music is all over the place.  There are songs with a soft, almost country-rock sound that are just...okay.  A bit of folk-rock.  And a couple of attempts at some prog songs that just never quite take off.  Nothing bad, but nothing memorable either.  It's only when the band takes a more funkier and groovier path that Crystal Mansion gets interesting.  This is where the cooler vibes set up shop...and what one might expect from a band just signed to the rockier Motown  Rare Earth label.   The album is sometimes labeled as being a bit psychedelic, but it's really not.  A little dusting at best.  But when Crystal Mansion gets their rock-funk on, the songs are quite enjoyable and worth an extra spin or two. The band's first album was in 1968 on Capitol Records, but it went nowhere.  Although they did have a charter with their pop-rock song ... &

"End Of Watch" (Bill Hodges Trilogy #3) by Stephen King  (2016) Hardcover, 432 pages   This is the satisfying end to the Stephen King trilogy that started with his book, "Mr. Mercedes" and has now become known as the "Bill Hodges Trilogy."   The first two books were criminal suspense mysteries with solid plots and page-turning action.  I loved them both.  But "End Of Watch" is my favorite of the three.  "End Of Watch" is a nail-biter, as well, but this time SK dips the ladle into his bucket of strange tricks and dishes out some supernatural creepiness that kept me in the game right up to that final whistle.   But it's all the well-developed characters introduced in these stories that make this trilogy so enjoyable to read.  And none better than Bill, the detective and his friends Holly and Jerome.  I can easily visualize each one of them just as clear as day.  And as SK waters their friendship, we can see their acceptance and

"Sugarloaf" - Sugarloaf  (1970) I'd been keeping an eye out for Sugarloaf's debut album with their "Free Bird" signature song... “Green-Eyed Lady” for a long time.  Not an intense search, mind you, but if I ever saw a good copy, I knew I'd pick it up.  But for whatever reason, this one had been playing hide-and-seek much longer than I expected.  In other words, finding a nice copy of this album was a green-eyed bitch!  It includes their original 7-minute hit song...before later being chopped up into a variety of shortened and abused versions for radio and comps.  Plus, I was curious about the rest of the album as well. There are only six songs on this album and three are instrumentals.  The music is very Hammond heavy courtesy of the talented  Jerry Corbetta and has that early 70s rock vibe you would expect.  Most critics give the album a high 3 outta 5 and that's about right.  Sugarloaf doesn't really push anything forward, but it's pre

"Clear Light" - Clear Light (1967) Clear Light was a one-shot psych-rock band out of L.A.  There are mixtures of fuzz and organ on here with occasional jangle all in fair doses.  Nothing too out there, but lysergic moments abound.  Most of the songs are short...under 3 minutes...and the variety is pretty entertaining.  Clear Light made their own noise, but have been called a poor man's Love and a can of Doors light.  Me, I can't hear much of either.  However, Clear Light's producer, Paul Rothchild , was also working with those two bands.  This is not a must-own album, but it's not a bad spin at all.  There are no duds and certainly more to like than not. The group also sported a couple of members that played in other well-known bands.  Bassist Doug Lubahn played on early Doors albums.  And  Dallas Taylor went on to bang the drum for Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young .  Lead singer Cliff DeYoung became an actor and has appeared in more than 80 films and

  "The Hawkline Monster" -   by Richard Brautigan (1974) Paperback, 188 pages NO SPOILERS: Cameron and Greer, the two cowboys in this story are best of friends and a no-nonsense “have gun will travel” kind of team.  Problem-solvers for hire, so to speak.  The cowboys are called on a journey to a big mansion in the middle of nowhere to help a couple of sexy ladies rid themselves of a mysterious and dangerous "something" in the house.  To say any more would spoil the fun. Author Richard Brautigan tells his macabre story in unique chapters of no more than one or two pages, and yet as the pages fly by, the story never feels cheap.  This gothic tale is weird.  It's both naughty and bawdy. Mysterious and dangerous.  And quirky as fark!   I loved it.  I never once felt like I was being put upon.  This is one of those “under-the-radar” novels that are so much fun to discover.  "The Hawkline Monster" is one of the strangest stories I've read all year. 

"Love Chronicles" - Al Stewart (1969) Looking a little bit like Michael Cera on the cover, Al Stewart's 2nd album "Love Chronicles" is a nice surprise and much better than I expected.  All six songs have good folk-rock melodies with occasional bites of electric guitar keeping the listener alert.  In fact, the musicianship on this album is high-caliber.  And no wonder.  Stewart's backing band had Led Zeppelin mates Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones lending a hand. (Although Jones is uncredited on the album.)  Plus Richard Thompson and other Fairport Convention mugs fill in as well.  The album is an interesting pickup just for this reason alone, but it's extra bonus for being a really good spin. Favorites are “In Brooklyn” and "Life And Life Only."   And the 18-minute title track... "Love Chronicles"   on side two is especially cool...with Page laying down electric swag between Al's confessional love verses.  The song is really