The College Crowd Digs Me

"Triangle" - The Beau Brummels (1967) I'm a fan of everything Beau Brummels (apart from "...'66" ) and what a surprise to find "Triangle" at a garage sale on my way to lunch at Braum's.  I have never seen one in the wild and seldom in a record store.  The album is an original Mono copy and in really nice shape.  The vinyl looks well taken care of with no cover stains, splits or crumbles.  Just a dinged corner at the bottom.  Sounded great.   The garage sale had the Beau Brummels' album... "Bradley's Barn" as well, but it had massive liquid stains on the front and back cover that were ugly and peeling. (I know we don't play the cover, but I just couldn't go there.)  "Triangle" had a firm $20 to take it home, which was not a squeal of a deal, but it was fair.  Plus it's always a rush to find something unexpected out in the wild.  Out of San Francisco, these guys had come a long way from the days of ...

"Armageddon" - Armageddon (1975 ) File this self-titled  Armageddon  square in the relatively obscure inexpensive powder keg bin.  A mix of proto-metal, prog-psych spankage, and still a cheap album for the pleasure.  I don't see this album nearly as much as I used to, but the price usually floats under the $15 cloud when I do.  I recently found a nice clean copy at the local Record Ship for a simple Hamilton and that's a bargain.  The album came out in 1975 and sounds like one foot's in the past, one foot's in the future.  Not a mind-blow, but is still a fun spin to rattle your jewelry.  A sweet low-dollar square to punch up your collection.  Armageddon has been labeled a supergroup, a title that has always been a red flag for me.  However, in this instance, Armageddon doesn't disappoint.  Keith Relf (Yardbirds and Renaissance).  Bobby Caldwell (drummer from Captain Beyond).  Guitarist Martin Pugh and b...

"Big Brother & The Holding Company" - Big Brother & The Holding Company (1967)    This is the album notable for introducing  Janis Joplin to the world during what would become known as the "Summer of Love."  Ears would never be the same.  Janis fronts on three or four tracks, and backup sings on the rest.  There's plenty of vocal interaction between the band members and it's an almond joy.  Having more of a Country Joe and Fish vibe than expected,  Big Brother & The Holding Company's self-titled debut sounds like a band still working it all out.  The music is loose, and fun, with a little psych-trippage thrown in to boot.  A pretty good spin for what it is. The biggest hang is all the songs are short.  I mean really short.  And that's too bad because a couple of tracks are just begging for a jam stretch and would have been more than welcome.  Nonetheless...it's cool listening to Janis take her fi...