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Various Artists, If You’re Going To The City: A Tribute to Mose Allison, 2019 on Fat Possum
Fantastic collection on Fat Possum of artists covering songs Mose Allison wrote. Three-sided vinyl, with an etching on the fourth side. Also includes a DVD of Mose Allison: Ever Since I Stole the Blues. Tracklist includes: I had to find a way to get a DVD rip to watch the documentary (you can see it…
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Spandau Ballet, True, 1983 on Chrysalis
Spandau Ballet’s third album and major breakout – with Steve Norman on Sax adding to the New Romantic sound. The title single was unavoidable in the early 80s, and got overplayed but it’s really a wonderful album to play through. My copy via Beverly Coin & Jewel
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Willie Nelson, Red Headed Stranger, 1975 on Columbia.
This was the follow up to Shotgun Willie, and was a commercial and critical breakthrough as Nelson moved away from RCA (with two albums on Atlantic in between) and into the Outlaw Country phase. At Columbia he got the creative control he’d been after. It’s an early concept album with a continuous story running through…
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Big Joe Williams, Hand Me Down My Old Walking Stick, 1969 on World Pacific
World Pacific was an imprint of Liberty Records. Recorded in London in 1968, when Williams was ~65 years old and was regularly touring European and American festivals. My copy must have been at some point in the collection of WRSU, the record station at Rutgers – but came to me via Academy Records in NYC.
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Sorcha Richardson, Hot Fuss, 2022 on Turntable Kitchen
Another full album cover from the folks at Turntable Kitchen. This one has Irish singer/songwriter Sorcha Richardson taking on The Killers’ 2004 Hot Fuss. It’s an unexpected approach but it really works – Mr. Brightside, All These Things That I’ve Done, Glamorous Indie Rock & Roll – all sound great in a new treatment. Alex…
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Mary Gauthier, Trouble & Love, 2014 on In The Black Records
Another solid album from Mary Gauthier, with Viktor Krauss, Beth Nielsen Chapman and others. Produced by Gauthier and Patrick Granado. Great songwriting as always: Jagged edges, broken partsWhere you end and where I startGot so tangled up in youThat I can’t tell false from true Fasle from true Part of a set of records I…
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Thompson Twins, In the Name of Love, 1982 on Arista
This was the first Thompson Twins album in the US – a compilation of two tracks from 1981’s A Product Of . . . (their debut album in the UK) and 8 tracks from their followup 1982 album Set. Set was produced by Steve Lillywhite and had Alannah Currie replacing Jane Shorter who was on…
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Peter Gabriel, Peter Gabriel, 1978 on Atlantic.
The second in the series of self-titled albums Gabriel put out between 1977 and 1982, this one is sometimes called Peter Gabriel 2 or known as “Scratch” to differentiate it from the others, based on the cover art (by Hipgnosis). Produced by Robert Fripp, with Frippertronics on “Exposure.” In the UK this was on Charisma,…
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Aretha Franklin, Aretha Arrives, 1967 on Columbia
Aretha’s 11th album and second for Atlantic – the follow up to I Never Loved a Man. Includings covers of the Rolling Stone’s “Satisfaction” and the ? and the Mysterian’s “96 Tears” as well as “You Are My Sunshine” and “That’s Life.” Sometimes gets dismissed as the weak follow up to her Atlantic debut, but…
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Ella Fitzgerald, Ella at the Hollywood Bowl: The Irving Berlin Songbook, 2022 on Verve
Recorded in August 1958, but not released until 2022, this concert followed the release of the Ella Fitzgerald Sings The Irving Berlin Songbook LP. The concert was conducted and arranged by Paul Weston, who had played the same role in the LP. There’s an animated video for Puttin’ on the Ritz, one of the songs…
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Georg Holm, Orri Páll Dýrason, Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson, and Kjartan Holm, Circe, 2015 on Krúnk
Two members of Sigur Rós (Holm and Dýrason) working with Icelandic composer Hilmarsson and Georg Holm’s brother Kjartan (touring guitarist with the band) on the soundtrack to The Show of Shows – a documentary by Benedikt Erlingsson on vaudeville, circuses, and carnivals that aired on the BBC as part of Storyville (unfortunately listed as “not…
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UB40, Self-Titled, 1988 on A&M
Ub40’s eighth studio album, released in the US on A&M (It was on DEP International in the UK). Includes the Dusty Springfield cover “Breakfast In Bed” with Chrissie Hynde. At this point they were mega stars, not the early political unknown band I’d loved in the early 80s, but I still think this album sounds…
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The Who, The Kids Are Alright, 1979 on Polydor
The Soundtrack LP to the 1979 rock documentary The Kids Are Alright, with performances from 1965 to 1978. It was originally released on MCA Records in the US and Polydor in the UK – my copy is a reissue from 2019 on Polydor based on a 2017 remastering by Jon Astley. Note the record labels…
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The Ink Spots, If I Didn’t Care, 1964 on Crown Records (CST 448)
Crown is somewhat reviled as the king of the discount labels – records were issued without even paper inner sleeves, and issues records between 1953 and 1972. Records issue by Crown often have really noisy recordings or sound warn, but this one actually holds up pretty well. Their biggest single, the title track here, came…
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Mary Gauthier, Rifles & Rosary Beads, 2018 on In The Black
All the songs on this LP were co-written with service members and spouses – and a portion of the proceeds go to SongwritingWith:Soldiers. Bullet Holes in the Sky sticks with me the most – cowritten with Jamie Trent: It’s the 11th of November down in Nashville Tennessee Free breakfast at the Waffle House if I…
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Herb Ellis, At Montreux, 1980 on Concord Jazz (CJ-116)
Recorded live by Mountain Studios at the Montreux Jazz Festival, Montreux, Switzerland July 1979. With: Produced by Carl Jefferson, who founded Concord Records (as well as the Concord Summer Festival in Concord CA) and sold it in 1994. My copy via Beverly Coin & Jewel.
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Erroll Garner, Feeling is Believing, 1970 on Mercury
Garner’s first album in the 1970s, with five of his own compositions plus recordings of the Beatle’s “Yesterday;” Blood, Sweat, & Tears’ “Spinning Wheel;” “For Once In My Life;” “Strangers in the Night;” and the Hal David Burt Bacharach “The Look Of Love.” Listed as “A Product of Octave Records” – who are currently reissuing…