BLACK VINYL MONDAY

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BLACK VINYL MONDAY

BLACK VINYL MONDAY To much Music not enough time
(1)

02/20/2020

Pink Floyd “Games For May” 1999 Bedrock 4-CD Set - Limited and numbered (146/1000) bootleg odds ‘n’ sods compilation of outtakes. I have no idea what of this set has been officially released in the immersion box sets.

02/19/2020

Fountains Of Wayne “Welcome Interstate Managers” 2003 Virgin Records - I’ll be seeing Chris Collingwood as the opening act for Squeeze @ The Grand Opera House of Wilmington in Delaware this Saturday. Gotta brush up on some Fountains of Wayne!

02/18/2020

Tame Impala “The Slow Rush” 2020 Modular/Island/Interscope/Fiction/Caroline Records - What’s with all the record labels on the back cover? I’m assuming they’re all subsidiaries of the manufacturer, Universal Music. Nevertheless, Kevin Parker has returned, and based on a few spins, Rihanna should find something new here to cover.

02/17/2020

Bryan Ferry “Live At The Royal Albert Hall 1974” 2019 BMG Records - Recorded December 19, 1974 on Ferry’s first solo tour following the completion of Roxy Music’s “For Your Pleasure” and the release of his first two solo albums, “These Foolish Things” and “Another Time Another Place.” Like his solo records, this live set features all covers and is a hoot to listen to.

02/17/2020

Gram Parsons “180 Gram: Alternate Takes from “G.P.” and “Grievous Angel”” 2014 Rhino/Reprise Records - Excellent Record Store Day release from six years ago.

02/16/2020

GA-20 “Lonely Soul” 2019 Karma Chief/Colemine Records - The folks out of Loveland, Ohio are so busy putting out a steady stream of superb records, that great ones get lost in the shuffle. Such is the case of this Blues gem from last year. At least it didn’t get lost in my shuffle.

02/15/2020

“Mary Mary” Written by Michael Nesmith and first recorded by The Butterfield Blues Band in 1966 for their album “East West.” Later covered by Nesmith’s bandmates, The Monkees, for the heir second album, “More Of The Monkees” in 1967.

02/14/2020

Minutemen “Project Mersh” 1985 SST Records - I was just spinning Steppenwolf’s version of “Hey Lawdy Mama which led me to the Minutemen cover version on this EP. While I never got to see the criminally underrated Steppenwolf, I can attest that the Minutemen were one of the most ferocious and exciting bands I’ve ever seen. Pure energy tightly wound. Rest In Peace, D. Boon. Both bands belong in the Rock ‘n’Roll Hall Of Fame. Eff the R’n’R HOF.

02/13/2020

Cat Stevens “Buddha And The Chocolate Box” 1974 A&M Records - This is typically not the first Cat Stevens record that I would gravitate to. Those include the run of records between “Mona Bone Jakon” through “Foreigner.” But this one has aged well and it has one of my favorite of his songs, “Sun/C79.”

02/13/2020

Khruangbin & Leon Bridges Present “Texas Sun” 2020 Dead Oceans/Columbia Records - Exceptional Soul! I saw Khruangbin last summer at The Pitchfork Music Festival and loved their music and their visual shtick. Now they’ve paired with fellow Texan and soul singer supreme, Leon Bridges on this four song EP. Let’s hope there’s more.

02/11/2020

Tom Ze “Brazil Classics4: The Best Of Tom Ze” 1990 Sire/Luaka Bop Records - Another from the series compiled by David Byrne. Although surely a member of the Tropicalia Movement, Ze’s brand of psychedelia is singularly his own.

02/11/2020

“Brazil Classics 1: Beleza Tropical” 1989 Sire/Fly Records - The First volume of many, compiled by David Byrne. This series opened a new musical world to me back when this came out. Great tracks by Jorge Ben, Gilberto Gil, Caetano Veloso and Milton Nascimento.

02/09/2020

Van Morrison and Joey DeFrancesco “You’re Driving Me Crazy” 2018 Legacy/Exile Records - Another one of the five solidly great albums Van has released over the last three years. This one’s got seven Morrison originals and an additional eight covers. This one’s full-on jazz and blues, and Morrison has never been in finer voice.

02/09/2020

Paul McCartney “Off The Ground” 1993 Parlophone Records - I’ve always thought this to be one of his best records from the 1990s. It was also great to see the tour supporting this one especially since it’s a strong set of McCartney originals including two more co-writes with Elvis Costello.

02/09/2020

Michael Jackson “Off The Wall” 1979 Epic Records - Say what you will about MJ (and there’s plenty that can be said), but when the needle hits the wax and the groove kicks in, that’s all that matters to me.

02/09/2020

Miles Davis/Gil Evans + 19 “Miles Ahead” 1957 Columbia Records - I crashed out last night to the Miles/Gil Evans box set and the track, “My Ship” from this album, got stuck in my head. This is a clean original mono pressing with the original cover art.

02/09/2020

Todd Rundgren “a capella” 1985 Warner Bros. Records - Well, at least Todd didn’t get sued for following his muse like Neil Young did. Super fine album, aptly titled.

02/07/2020

Barbra Streisand “Stoney End” 1971 Columbia Records - The first of two records Babs did with ‘70s superstar producer, Richard Perry. Sporting a top-shelf tune stack featuring a who’s who of songwriters including Laura Nyro (the hit title track), Joni Mitchell, Randy Newman, Gordon Lightfoot, Nilsson, Goffin & King and Mann & Weill. It was an album that brought her contemporary pop star relevance.

02/07/2020

“KC and The Sunshine Band” 1975 T.K. Records - Harry Wayne Casey, the Floridian funkateer whose namesake gave the band its initials. If you were around when this was new, it couldn’t be escaped. But the infectious groove was so good-time, you didn’t want to miss it.

02/06/2020

Isaac Hayes “Live At The Sahara Tahoe” 1973 Stax/Enterprise Records - Although, I’ve only posted two of his records, I’ve listened to most of the Isaac Hayes catalog over the last few days. When I was a kid, his whole chains getup used to scare me. His long vamp jams are so smooth and nobody did groove better.

02/06/2020

Isaac Hayes and Dionne Warwick “A Man And A Woman” 1977 Hot Buttered Soul (HBS)/ABC Records - A bill that I would have loved to have seen in person. Recorded live at The Fabulous Fox, Atlanta, GA.

02/06/2020

David Murray “Children” 1985 Black Saint Records - Murray on tenor sax and bass clarinet, the great James “Blood” Ulmer on guitar, Don Pullen on piano, Lonnie Plaxico on bass and Marvin “Smitty” Smith on drums. I came to this record via my love of James “Blood” Ulmer’s work from the late 70s and early ‘80s. With it, I first tapped into the deep well of David Murray.

02/04/2020

Bob Dylan “Tell Tale Signs - The Bootleg Series Vol. 8: Rare and Unreleased 1989-1996” 2008 Columbia Legacy - Superb cache of unreleased sessions spanning the albums, “Oh Mercy,” “Time Out Of Mind,” and “World Gone Wrong.” Sadly, only one track from his run of shows at The Supper Club in New York City from 1993. I saw two of those shows which I believe were filmed as well as recorded.

02/01/2020

Be-Bop Deluxe “Axe Victim” 1974 Harvest Records - Their all-out glam fest. Nelson disbanded this incarnation of BBD after touring behind this record because they were being regarded as just another glam band.

02/01/2020

Bill Nelson “The Love That whirls (Diary Of A Thinking Heart) 1982 Happytronics/PVC Records - The album where the Be-Bop Deluxe frontman washed his music in synths. It’s still a glorious spin all these years later.

02/01/2020

New Power Generation “New Power Soul” 1998 NPG - One of the few Prince records that are completely out of print. Probably because it was credited to NPG. Nevertheless, this one has some bangers on it including “Mad Sex,” “Freaks On This Side,” “Push It Up,” and “Until Ure In My Arms Again.” I’d love a vinyl version of this one!

01/31/2020

Prince “Crystal Ball” 1998 NPG Records - This is the 5-CD version that contains 3 CDs of outtakes, plus two albums, “The Kamasutra,” an instrumental disc, and the mostly acoustic album, “The Truth.”

01/31/2020

“The Philly Sound: Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff & The Story Of Brotherly Love (1966-1976) - 1997 Legacy Recordings - Now that I live right outside of Philly...

01/30/2020

The Kinks “did ya” / “Phobia” 1991/1993 Columbia Records - Their brief run at Columbia began with the five song EP on the left, and finished with their excellent final album, “Phobia.” I saw them tour that album in 1993. God Save The Kinks!

01/30/2020

The Kinks “To The Bone” 1994 Konk Records (13 Track Edition)/1996 Guardian Records (2-CD 29-Track U.S. version) - Live acoustic and electric versions of Kink songs mostly recorded before a small invited audience. Great versions of “Days,” “Picture Book,” and “I’m Not Like Anybody Else,” highlight a great tune stack.

01/30/2020

The Kinks “Live: The Road” 1987 MCA Records - Caught on stage at The Mann in Philadelphia and Merriweather Post Pavillion in Maryland touring behind their MCA debut, “Think Visual.” A reassessment of their MCA records finds the band in fine form with good songs, occasionally marred by production especially on “UK Jive.” I miss The Kinks! God save The Kinks!

01/29/2020

The Kinks “Think Visual” 1986 MCA Records

01/29/2020

The Kinks “UK Jive” 1989 MCA Records - I haven’t given this one a spin since it was a new release 31 years ago. By that point, Kinks albums were pretty much panned and the band was taken for granted. Sure, it’s got big ‘80s production, but in retrospect, this record is way better than I ever credited it to be. It’s time to reinvestigate the rest of their MCA catalog and those that came after.

01/28/2020

“Todd Rundgren’s Utopia” 1974/2019 Bearsville/Music On Vinyl - When one of your all-time favorite Rundgren records gets the deluxe blue vinyl pressing!

01/27/2020

Waylon Jennings “Only The Greatest” 1968 RCA Victor Records - The best Waylon for me has always been early Waylon. His “Only Daddy That’ll Walk The Line” single has been a staple in my jukebox for years. It’s on this album as well.

01/25/2020

Yoko Ono “Fly” 1971 Apple Records - “Dub Dub Dub Dub” When I was eight years old in 1969, my grandfather took me shopping and allowed me to choose any record I wanted. John Lennon’s “Live Peace In Toronto” was a new release, so I chose it. When we got back to my grandparents’ house. I cued the new record up on their console stereo and began listening. I then flipped it over to side two and experienced Yoko in all her glory for the first time. At the same time, I began flipping through the calendar that came with the album and came across the month of March where J&L posed nude. I was transfixed! At about this time my grandfather came in red faced and began ranting about buying me the crappy record. He also took the coveted calendar away. I became a fan of Yoko that day because of ol’ gramp’s reaction. It took me years though, to come to appreciate her music, culminating with seeing her on her “Rise” tour in the late 1990s.

01/24/2020

Ella Fitzgerald and Duke Ellington “The Cote d’Azure Concerts On Verve” 1998 Verve 8 CD Set - Recorded in France on July 26-29, 1966, these imperfect but totally worth the listen discs include rehearsals and what still exists of the concert recordings. They culled a double LP out of this back in 1967.

01/24/2020

Courtney Barnett “MTV Unplugged” 2019/2020 Mom+Pop Records - Picked this vinyl copy up on the opening night of her solo tour last night in Wilmington, Delaware. The vinyl copy will be coming out later in February on clear vinyl. This one is blue.

01/20/2020

Jean-Luc Ponty “King Kong: Jean-Luc Ponty Plays The Music Of Frank Zappa” 1970 World Pacific Records - Superb collaboration with Zappa, a few Mothers (Ian Underwood, Art Tripp) and jazz greats Ernie Watts, George Duke (who would soon become a Mother), Wilton Felder, John Guerin and others.

01/17/2020

Tower Of Power “Live And In Living Color” 1976 Warner Bros. Records - Friday night funk! While I have most of their catalog, this has been my go-to TOP album for many years. Superb musicianship abounds from the TOP horn section including Lenny Pickett, Emilio Castillo, Steve Kupka, Mic Gillette and Greg Adams.

01/17/2020

Rod Stewart “Every Picture Tells A Story” 1971 Mercury Records - Friday night rock! Enjoy the weekend, y’all!

01/17/2020

“Hair” Performed By The Original French Cast - 1970 Philips Records - Such a blast to hear this musical sung in French. A classic in any language!

01/17/2020

The Hues Corporation “Freedom For The Stallion” 1973 RCA Records - The album that gave us the smash hit, “Rock The Boat” and a superb title track penned by Allen Toussaint. A closer look at the credits show the musicians to be the cream of the studio crop, including Joe Sample, Wilton Felder, Joe Osborn, Ron Tutt, Jim Gordon, Hal Blaine, Larry Carlton, Louie Shelton and Al Casey.

01/16/2020

The Beach Boys “Pet Sounds” 1966 Capitol/DCC Records - I can’t think of a better way to start the day!

01/14/2020

Leon Russell “Will O’ The Wisp” 1975 Shelter Records - An all-star affair featuring the Memphis elite (Al Jackson, Steve Cropper, Duck Dunn), plus sessionistas Carl Radle, Jim Keltner and Don Preston. Some great tracks on this one too!

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