- Blog
- Profile
- Homepage
-
David Bromberg, Wanted Dead or Alive, 1974 on Columbia
I’m a huge David Bromberg fan – he’s an under-appreciated player in the universe of bluegrass/blues/folk/jazz. This was his third LP. One side was recorded with Jerry Garcia, Phil Lesh, Keith Godchaux and Bill Kreutzmann (of the Grateful Dead) and the other side was recorded live. The opener “The Holdup” was cowritten with George Harrison,…
-
Gerry Mulligan & Chet Baker, Timeless, 1968 on World Pacific Jazz
Originally released on Pacific Jazz in 1963, and then reissued as part of the Jazz Milestones Series by World Pacific Jazz in 1968, these are all recordings from 1952-1956. The first side includes Gerry Mulligan, whereas side 2 is Chet Baker with later incarnations of Baker’s bands. Recorded at Gold Star Studios, Radio Recorders, The…
-
Willie Nelson, I Don’t Know A Thing About Love, 2023 on Legacy
The missing subtitle here is “the songs of Harlan Howard” – the primary songwriter on all these tracks. It’s a great collection, released on the 23rd anniversary of Howard’s death in 2002. Artwork is by Micah Nelson (aka Particle Kid). My copy is the VMP vinyl edition (which also seems to be the only vinyl…
-
OMD, Universal, 1996 on Virgin / EMI
I always loved Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark – the name, with it’s British spelling – and the music. This was their tenth full length album, released in 1996. In many ways this was the end of a dark era for OMD who had fallen out of fashion given grunge, britpop, and other ascendant styles…
-
The Clash, Sandanista!, 1980 on CBS Records
The Clash’s fourth album, released in 1980 on CBS Records, distributed by Epic in the US. Sprawling, six-sided 3xLP collection that truly is all over the map, including a cover of Mose Allison’s “Look Here.” The FSLN catalog number on the labels is a nod to Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional, the name of the…
-
Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown, San Antonio Ballbuster, 1974 on Red Lightnin’
Although it was originally released in 1974 on Red Lightnin’, my copy is a reissue from 1979 on Charly Records. Red Lightnin‘ is a blues label started in 1968; Charly a reissue label started in 1975; both are UK labels. Not sure how this ended up in Mel’s Record Shop in Amesbury MA, but that’s…
-
Thelonious Monk, The Complete Genius, 1976 on Blue Note
Though this compilation was released in 1976 – part of The Blue Note Re-Issue Series – it actually collects sides he recorded for Blue Note in 1947, 1948, 1951, and 1952. Note: This album contains the complete Monk on Blue Note with the exception of his appearance as a sideman on two of his compositions…
-
Neil Young with Crazy Horse, Toast, 2022 on Reprise
Back in the early part of the new millennium, Neil Young and Crazy Horse recorded a bunch of songs at Toast, a recording studio at 1340 Mission St. in San Francisco (pictured on the cover). The songs they recorded got shelved and not released until 2022. Volume 8 in the Neil Young Archive’s Special Release…
-
The Decemberists, Castaways and Cutouts, 2002 on Hush / Jealous Butcher
The last in a series of records I was happy to pick up from the merch table at the Decemberists show in Boston earlier this year. Originally released in 2002 on Hush Records, then reissued in 2003 by Kill Rock Stars, then released on vinyl in 2005 by Jealous Butcher. My copy is a later…
-
Midnight Oil; 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1; 1982 on Columbia
The fourth full-length from Midnight Oil, released in 1982 on Columbia in the US and CBS in the UK and Australia. The album reached #3 on the Australian charts and 178 on the Billboard charts in the US. Having found Midnight Oil via Deisel and Dust I came back to this record but love “Power…
-
Neil Young, Decade, 1977 on Reprise
It’s amazing to me that all of this music was before 1977. I came to Neil Young’s music well into the 1980s and while I knew some of the legacy (Buffalo Springfield, CSN&Y and combinations thereof) I didn’t know just how many great songs he’d put out in the first decade of his career. This…
-
Justin Townes Earle, Single Mothers & Absent Fathers, 2022 on Vagrant Records
Combination of two previously released Justin Townes Earle LPs: 2014’s Single Mothers and 2015’s Absent Fathers, issued as a 2xLP release in celebration of Vagrant’s 25th Anniversary on yellow/black splatter vinyl. Putting these two together isn’t crazy, of course – the recording sessions were originally intended to be a double album but turned into two…
-
Phantom, Rocker & Slick; Phantom, Rocker & Slick, 1985 on EMI America
Self-titled debut album for Phantom, Rocker & Slick (I’ll forgive them for the lack of an oxford comma) from 1985. Slim Jim Phantom (drums) and Lee Rocker (vocals, bass) had been part of Stray Cats. They were joined by Earl Slick who had replaced Mick Ronson on the Diamond Dogs tour and played on Young…
-
Gram Parsons, GP, 1973 on Reprise
It’s hard to overstate the importance of Gram Parsons’ two solo albums: GP and (posthumously) Grievous Angel. This was his solo debut though he is joined by Emmylou Harris (with whom he was touring) on two duets. It was recorded Sept-Oct on 1972 and produced by Ric Grech from Blind Faith. My copy (via Reykjavik…
-
Mose Allison, Live 1978, 2022 on Liberation Hall
Although this was recorded (at the Showboat Lounge in Silver Spring Maryland) in 1978, it was unreleased until 2022 when it was put out as a Record Store Day release. Allison is accompanied by Tom Rutley on bass and Jerry Ganelli on drums. As the liner notes put it: Most of the material is fairly…
-
The Decemberists, Her Majesty, 2003 on Kill Rock Stars & Jealous Butcher
This was the first Decemberists album on Kill Rock Stars, after Castaways and Cutouts came out on Hush Records. Recorded at Jackpot! and Type Foundry in Portland OR and produced by The Decemberists, Adam Selzer, and Larry Crane. Only Colin Meloy could get away with lyrics like this: The bosun calls upon the quay /…