The College Crowd Digs Me

"Tales Untold" - Kopperfield (1974 - Rei-2024)      So what if this gnarly, cool album cover looks like it was ripped from a three-ring binder of that one kid who sits drawing fantasy characters by the corner window during Algebra class?  How can you not love it?  This was a blind purchase, except for the hype sticker.  Apparently, this 70s band had been drinking from the rock waters of Michigan.  That was all I needed to know to make up my mind.  Kopperfield's "Tales Untold" sounds like the kind of early hard rock album you'd hear on the cooler radio stations.  Which is also cool, 'cause I kinda like that early classic rock stuff.        The band sounds a little bit like Bloodrock, but without the gloom.  And there's a Grand Funk vibe hanging around, as well.  Prog rock dust is all over it, but not heavily so.  Stoners will have no problem getting behind this.  "Tales Untold" is a banger and a l...

"In L.A., it was The Wrecking Crew. And there was the equivalent in London as well.  I was a part of it." ~ B.J. Cole ~      Session musicians like B.J. Cole may never know when they'll be asked to come into the studio, or who they'll be working with, but the good ones, the very good ones, always know the ask is coming.  From Elton John to David Gilmour.  T. Rex to The Alan Parsons Project.  R.E.M. to Robert Plant.  And it must be a double-edged sword at times.  The anonymity of it all.  Only music aficionados of a particular song or album might know the names of everyone involved in the recording.  Perhaps a blessing and a curse.  But for the last six decades, London's B.J. Cole has been the premier pedal steel guitarist, called on when an artist needs a particular sound and vibe to enhance their song.        B.J. Cole has been adding his unique pedal steel flavors and flares in all the right measures si...

"Every One Of Us" - Eric Burdon & The Animals (1968 )      The album definitely has a smidge of ringwear front and back.  And by smidge, I mean, gangster whitewalls. There are no seam splits, but the darker album covers always seem to bring out the worst.  I would've left it behind, but the vinyl looked almost minty.  Played VG+ or better when I got it home.  And the songs are pretty good.  The music has a nice psychedelic dusting about it.  There are some jammin' fuzz burns and jazz flourishes.  A little experimental here and there, for sure, but overall, "Every One Of Us" is more acoustically driven than I expected.       As I said, the music sounds fine, but there are a couple of songs with spoken interludes in the middle.  And even that's not bad, the first couple of times you spin it.  Then it starts to wear out its welcome.   For me, anyway.  You'll want to pick it up for the song…...