The College Crowd Digs Me

(a short jaunt) "Ghost Blues" - Rory Gallagher / "Fresh Evidence" (1990) "Came home this morning, looking halfway like a ghost." Funny how we gravitate to certain blues guys.  We love this one, not so much that one.  I don't know nothing much about the blues.  I don't actively seek the stuff out.  I just know what I like.  I like  Rory's joy and who he surrounds himself with.  And  Rory , like Johnny and Howlin' and Taj...they all make the feel...real.  Sure, there is a bit of cult of personality goin' on, but for whatever reason, I'm right there with'em.  This was Rory Gallagher's eleventh and last studio album.  He was only 47 when his health problems finally caught up with him. (NEED) "Seven Seas Of Rhye" - Queen / "Queen II" (1974) "I command your very souls, you unbelievers. Bring before me what is mine at the seven seas of Rhye." This is my 2nd favorite Queen album.  For many reasons I...

"Shinin' On" - Grand Funk (1974) This Grand Funk album was an upgrade for me.  My previous copy was missing the 3d glasses and the front cover had a wicked tear from where the glasses had been removed.  This one is a really clean OG with everything still intact.  The glasses are still in place.  The 12" x 24" cardboard 3d poster inside has never been used and the original custom inner sleeve is still hanging around. "Shinin' On" was Grand Funk's eighth studio album and their follow-up to the monster "We're An American Band" square.  Not an easy task, but it's strong enough, Rundgren or not.  I believe the hits were better on the former album, but the lesser-known tracks on "Shinin' On" are more satisfying.  The  Craig Frost keys added to the Farner/Brewer team on this square really enrich the mixes.  And the more I spin this, the more I'm enjoying it. "Shinin' On" - Grand Funk (back) Favo...

(4 For Friday) *   Robin Williams improvising a line in "Good Will Hunting."   They kept the cameras rolling and it was natural gold. *   A comic panel. Here are all the comic book hands involved from beginning to end. *   Everyone should know  the Heimlich Maneuver .  But why not take 17 seconds to refresh yourself anyway? *   Quentin Tarantino's 40 favorite movies of all time.  And he writes a comment about each. "To The Good Old Days" - Dennis DeYoung (Ft. Julian Lennon) / 26 East, Vol. 1 (2020) Good stuff. Casey Chambers Follow Me On FACEBOOK  

"Demon & Eleven Children" - Blues Creation (1971 - Rei 2022) "Demon & Eleven Children" is a banger of an album to spin.  The music is early 70s heavy acid rock that recalls early Black Sabbath quite a bit.  Not as dark and gloomy, but the blistering guitar riffing and time-changing are in that same mold.  Guitarist Kazuo Takeda is your frontline server and he burns up the ears nicely. There are some nice psychedelic moments here and there, mostly from the mellower atmospheric tracks.  The floaty change-ups play pretty nice with the burners.  However, the bar boogie  "Mississippi Mountain Blues" sounds out of place on this excellent heavy metal offering.  Breaks the magic if you will.  And that's too bad because it's a good song in its own right.  Blues Creation  was one of several Japanese bands that had all the right stuff and I plan on checking more of them out. "Demon & Eleven Children" - Blues Creation (back) Favorit...

"Earthbound" - King Crimson (1972) This has to be one of the more polarizing releases in the King Crimson catalog.  And I get it.  King Crimson's first official live album and it's captured with a more or less glorified cassette recorder. The sound quality is your average bootleg at best.  But honestly, I've heard far worse.  Tempering expectations just a little will definitely make the spinning a less jarring experience. After floating "Earthbound" on the turntable a few times, I think I'm going to keep it.  As Roger Ebert might say, "I'm giving this a marginal thumbs up, Gene."   The album is obviously lacking in sound quality...varying from one song to the next.  However, the songs are played well and are interesting enough to make the spin worthwhile for fans of the band.  The songs are crazy abrasive one moment; raw and funky another.  The jams jam with improvs taking the lead on occasion.  Overall, hate the sin but love th...

  (4 For Friday) *  A knife going through a knife sharpener . *   Well, it looks like we have a winner.  The new AAA Insurance commercial .  Good stuff. *   The Vinyl District shares their list of 100 most awesome all-time rock songs .   *   Photoshop troll James Fridman is a photo-problem fixer.   "Tinderbox" - Elton John / "The Captain & The Kid" (2006) Good stuff. Casey Chambers Follow Me On FACEBOOK

"Easter Everywhere" - 13th Floor Elevators (1967 Rei-2013) I'm reminded of a documentary I watched about this guy who attempted to high-wire walk between the Twin Towers.  No nets.  No ropes.  "Easter Everywhere" has that kind of vibe.  Roky Erickson and bandmates sound like they could fall apart at any moment.  Like the band might not make it, but they're too far gone to turn around and come back.  It's more than rumored the 13th Floor Elevators were hitting smoke and dropping blotter heavy, I don't know.  But we're right there with them on the wire just the same. The early psych-driven, oven-baked  "Easter Everywhere" was the band's sophomore album and arguably their best.  And was the last album with all members fully contributing.  The vocals are very good as you might expect.  And along with hallucinating guitar tones and oscillating jug drones, together give the album an "all for one" kind of aura that speaks vo...

(4 For Friday) *   A little Boyz II Men lip sync gold from our old friend Jimmy Slonina .   *   This is how a grease fire reacts to just one cup of water poured on the flames. *   All 9 Martin Scorsese And Robert De Niro Movies Ranked From Worst To Best *   A flashback of  high school students from 1989 . "If You Want Me To Stay" - Sly & The Family Stone / "Soul Train" ( Live  1973) Good stuff. Casey Chambers Follow Me On FACEBOOK  

"Up Up And Away" - The Generation Gap (1968) "Up Up and Away" is just one of several exploitation records that flooded the market in the 60s.  A quick psychedelic cash-in money grab.  Most were not very interesting.  However, a small few were much better than expected.  This was in no small part thanks to session guitarist Jerry Cole . Jerry Cole is best known for recording two highly sought-after psych albums... "The Inner Sounds Of The ID" and "The Animated Egg."   Afterwards, many of the unused tracks Cole left on the cutting floor were added to some of these quick grab albums.  Mostly uncredited.  "Up Up and Away" has some of these leftover tracks making this square a better-than-average spin.  Even better, this early example of psychedelia can be had for a Lincoln.  Sometimes even less.   "Up Up And Away" - The Generation Gap (back) The album starts off a little weak but does grow stronger as you go.  Favorites inclu...

(4 For Friday) *   Are you sure about lunch little ol' wolfie-wolf? *   In 1941, this was how cartoon artists created sound effects  at Disney. *     Riffing on a pocket stylophone.   Looks like a whole lot of fun to me. *   The last cigarette commercial aired on American TV at 11:59 p.m on January 2, 1971.   Open Culture revisits the ad. "Old Porch Swing" - Tony Jackson / "Larry's Country Diner" (2017) Good stuff. Casey Chambers Follow Me On FACEBOOK  

"Saint Steven" - Saint Steven (1969) Saint Steven's self-titled debut is a mixture of hard psych rock and softer folk-psych trippage.  Sound effects, animal noises, and snippets from a political convention all permeate.  It all sounds like it might be a fustercluck, but it somehow works.  The album appears to be a concept of some kind, and it may be.  It doesn't really matter.  The spin is a cool journey of mysteries and psych delights.  The album has plenty of replay value and is unlike anything I can compare it to.  This is not a 5-star square.  This is not Morgen , which shares the same label.  But Saint Steven is not just flipping fries here, either.  The listen is time well-spent.   There is surprisingly little known about Saint Steven .  We know that Saint Steven is guitarist and singer/songwriter Steve Cataldo  who later went on to form one of Boston's first punk/new wave bands... Nervous Eaters .   If...