The College Crowd Digs Me

"Cosmic Sounds" - The Zodiac (1967)      First of all, if the album is on the Elektra label 4000 series, pick it up.  They are almost bullet-proof buys.  And that's exactly what I did.  "Cosmic Sounds" is a concept about the astrological signs wrapped up and bowed in a dreamy, atmospheric "Summer of Love" piece of trippiness.  This was 1967 after all when everybody was starting to get their hippie psych groove on.   A cash-in album, perhaps, but the very best kind.  This exploito square is faithfully delivered in primo satisfying fashion.  Nothing cheap or short shrift.  Zodiac's "Cosmic Sounds" is really good and an endearing snapshot of the times. The music was written by electronic pioneer, Mort Garson and performed by several members of The Wrecking Crew .  The album is mystical psychedelia, with a variety of instruments contributing to and floating above some very early Moog.  There is a spoken voice, w...

The Eden Hunter By Skip Horack (2010) Paperback, 320 pages NO SPOILERS:      In the early 1800s, a pygmy tribesman named Kau (cow) was taken from his family in Africa and brought to the Americas to be sold into Louisiana slavery.  Kau tries to escape through Florida (before Florida became a state) to find his own place in the world.  During Kau's on-the-run journey, we learn how difficult and risky it can be to survive when facing different Indian tribes, soldiers, other renegade Africans, and whites.  A few helpful; others, not so much.  We also learn just how resilient Kau is.        Skip Horack's descriptive writing paints a clear picture of the dangers and challenges.  And reminds us of the cruelty humans will inflict on others.  And we pull for Kau to find his way.  The story reads quick and is fascinating although character development could be a bit stronger.  The Eden Hunter brings a unique pe...

"Dynasty" - KISS (1979)      This completes my '70s studio KISS albums with the original Mach 1 members.  "Dynasty" was their 7th album, and at this point, the band was looking (and feeling) like a jigsaw puzzle with a couple of pieces gone.  And yet somehow Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons, Ace Frehley, and Peter Criss did it.  It wasn't always friendly but somehow the music got waxed and it's an open-booth.  It wasn't what was expected, and haters gonna hate, but it was much better than mouths would lead you to believe.  This isn't "Destroyer" or "Rock and Roll Over,"  but I like it better than  "Love Gun."   Think of "Dynasty" as a hard pop-rock album.  Catchy and crankable.   Sure, it has their disco hit "I Was Made For Lovin' You" which must've felt like a sell-out to many fans, but the production is fantastic...and for what it is...the song is equally good.  But this is not a disco al...

"In A Silent Way" - Miles Davis (1969)      One doesn't need to be a heavy jazz-junkie to catch a ride on the mind-boat.  This classic jazz album is ambient, atmospheric, airy...and electric.  Miles was pushing things forward with some early fusion on this one.  At times, psych-like in its delivery.  When I drop the needle, I find myself dropping in and out as well.  One can have this rotating in the background making the room instantly chill.  But you owe yourself to give this square some active listening time.  It's a rather hypnotic treat. Multiple listens bring pleasant rewards.  There is much more guitar sneakery running through here than first noticed.  And the minimal drumming shimmers when it comes around.  The keyboards are doing a waterfall of things.  And yet there is no crowding.  Space is the place.  Each musician slips pleasantly in and out of the water at just the right times.  Of ...

Billy Sumers By Stephen King (2021) Hardcover, 515 pages NO SPOILERS:      Billy Summers ...is not a horror novel, but this should not surprise any fan of Stephen King.  At this point in his life, he just writes stories and lets the genre fall where it may.  The story is, however, a fantastic crime novel about a seasoned gun-for-hire (with a moral compass) taking one last job.  What could go wrong, right?  Wrapped up between the pages is an assassination double-cross with an underlying 'story within a story' that King so often likes to employ.  Thankfully, this trope is nicely utilized allowing the reader to more easily empathize with the guy.  That's a big leap, but I can only say it works in this instance.  The story is suspenseful and meticulous in the telling; relentless in the dotting of i's and crossing of t's.  The pacing is just right.  As expected, characters are drawn to great effect with that confident Stephen K...

"Physical Graffiti" - Led Zeppelin (1975 )      Not only is “Physical Graffiti” my favorite Led Zeppelin album, but it's one, I say one of the best double studio albums ever.  To me, it's a near-perfect album.  Even the leftover tracks Zeppelin used to fill out the square are good.  Leftover tracks other bands would've gladly taken.  Both squares are filled with great riffs, great lyrics, great vocals, great locomotion and really capture how tight and creative the band was for this...their sixth studio album.   “Physical Graffiti”  is the one I reach for when I want to get the Led out. The double album comes in a gimmix top-loading, die-cut cover.  Each vinyl is held in a custom card stock inner jacket with photos visible through the windows.  There is a card stock insert included with the tracks and credits which will spell out the album title through the windows, too.  It makes you feel like Jimmy Stewart in a ...

"A Saucerful Of Secrets" - Pink Floyd (1968) Until I actually held the album in my own hands, I thought the front cover was ugly and dull.  Since I've had the chance to peruse it more closely, the album cover, designed by Hipgnosis, has now become my favorite Pink Floyd cover.  For the first time, I noticed Dr. Strange on the album, Sorcerer Supreme and Protector of the Earth, wielding a cosmic-cortical spell enveloping the world, specifically the band.  The album jacket was obviously meant to create a 1968 mind-rush.  And I enjoyed the effort.    And the music contained within  Pink Floyd's second   album attempts to capture all the psychedelic forces the album cover implies.  Dark, spacey, and trippy.  Much more than I expected.  It's a great spin and has made me reevaluate my top-five PF albums.  If you dig the psych stuff...this square will be sugar in your tea. Sadly, this was the last hurrah for the Syd Barrett /P...