Richard Barone - Clouds Over Eden (1993)

I was a bit surprised to notice that in nearly two years I've never mentioned Richard Barone before. Richard is the former lead singer with Hoboken band The Bongos, which released classic albums such as Drums Along The Hudson, Numbers With Wings and Beat Hotel in the early 80's. I first discovered Clouds Over Eden due to the fact that Jules Shear showed up with some writing credits and Jules has always allied himself with some interesting artists.

Clouds Over Eden is a fairly atypical album for the early 1990's. There's some classic jangle pop ("Paper Airplane"), strident pop ("Nobody Knows Me"), angst-ridden ballads ("Forbidden"), chamber-pop ("Clouds Over Eden") and several other great tracks. It's been a favorite of mine for a few years now as a dense, cohesive and mature artistic statement.

Most of Richard's product is available either at iTunes or Amazon, and can be accessed through his website, www.richardbarone.com.

Here's three lesser known cuts from the album as a taster. I would also recommend River To River from Primal Dream and his charity track A Call To Prayer as must have downloads.

Richard Barone - Paper Airplane
Richard Barone - Within These Walls
Richard Barone - Law of the Jungle

Lately, Richard has been recording with the legendary Tony Visconti and his latest release is the Glow EP, again available on iTunes and Amazon.

Martin Page - In The House of Stone and Light (1995)

Bargain Bin (bah-gayn been) n. An assortment of full price audio recordings that have been neglected to the point of being presented to the public for a few pennies in the hope of earning the store a tax write-off. Generally rubbish, but a few gems linger e.g. Martin Page's In the House of Stone and Light.

I've long suspected that the dictionary definition of music store throwaways would include a specific reference to In the House of Stone and Light, particularly in the US. If you don't believe me, try this scientific experiment: the next time you are in a bargain basement, look for it. I guarantee there will be at least one copy. Trust me, I've seen this one everywhere.

I was browsing in a CD Warehouse with about ten dollars in my pocket about three years ago. A woman at the counter was trying to sell a large number of CD's and as I overheard the conversation she mentioned that even though there were quite a few that the store would not buy from her, she had no intention of hauling them all home again. I came up to her at the counter and casually offered her $5.00 for the contents of her crate, without even looking at the titles. I was like a big kid when she readily agreed and hauled my trophies home. If nothing else, I figured I would have some replacement cases and a few eBay sales. I took inventory and found that my five bucks had purchased 113 CD's of all genres.

To cut a long story short, here's what happened. One of the titles turned out to be a rare album by The Iguanas and I sold that on eBay for $30 within a week. I also sold another 50 or so, and probably made over $150. I kept about 10 titles, gave several more to my brother when he visited, and donated the remainder to charity.

In the House of Stone and Light was one of the few I kept, and it's been a favorite of mine ever since. It's a stylish, contemporary pop album in the vein of Peter Gabriel and featured many well known musicians. Martin Page has a very interesting musical pedigree. New wave fanatics may know that Martin was the brains behind Q-Feel and their awesome synthpop track "Dancing In Heaven (Orbital Be-Bop)". Just as much of a recommendation is that he penned many contemporary 80's hits including "We Built This City" for Starship which Blender magazine (rather puzzlingly, I might add) voted as the worst single of all time. Obviously, they have never heard "Agadoo". Or Mr. Blobby. Or "Snooker Loopy". Or, well you get the message. It's really not that bad.

Martin has finally released a follow up, thirteen years later, called In the Temple of the Muse. Do you notice a pattern here? I'm thinking the next one (expected in 2021) could be called In the Vegetable Section of the Supermarket. Just a thought.

Martin Page - In the House of Stone and Light (1995)

1. In the House of Stone and Light
2. Shape the Invisible
3. I Was Made for You
4. Keeper of the Flame
5. In My Room
6. Monkey in My Dreams
7. Put On Your Red Dress
8. Broken Stairway
9. Light in Your Heart
10. The Door

Download

Official website

Wikipedia Entry

Mad At The World - Mad At The World (1987)

One of the best things about producing my own blog is that it gives me the opportunity to mention albums that very few people are likely to be familiar with. A good example is the self-titled debut from alternative Christian band Mad At The World. In a year when synthpop acts such as Erasure and Pet Shop Boys were dominating the charts and modern rock was awash with lyrical themes of alienation and doubt, it was refreshing to listen to music that addressed humanistic concerns in a positive way, without being preachy. The album's production values were top-notch, and it still stands up twenty years later.

The core of the group were the brothers Roger Rose (vocals, guitars) and Randy Rose (vocals, drums) and on their debut album they were able to synthesize rock, pop, electro and gospel in a quite original way. "Taking The Easy Way Out" is probably the best song ever written about the contemplation of suicide; "All The Lonely Sheep" and "It Can't Rain Forever" address the fear of teenage loneliness. "I Want To See Heaven", perhaps the standout track, discusses a fear of making bad moral choices, as does "Here We Go Again" and "Bad Motives". If the Christian content doesn't put you off, then all you need to know it that this album flat out rocks. Roger Rose's idiosyncratic vocals are a mildly acquired taste but ultimately serve to strongly differentiate this album from anything else in the CCM genre, or anywhere else, for that matter. The cover art was also striking and sold the package effectively.

Released on the US Frontline label, the album proved to be something of a one-off. Unable to replicate the unique studio arrangements in a live setting, the group began to incorporate increasing amounts of rock guitar into future productions, ultimately to the detriment of the initial fan-base.

I initially owned a cassette copy of the album, which became so worn that eventually the shell was replaced and held together with sticky tape. It's possible to find the original CD, but you'll probably have to pay more than the $6.00 I paid for mine on eBay seven years ago.

UPDATE: Happy to report that the entire Frontline Records catalog is now available through digital sources.

Also check out some footage of the band recording in the studio at Roger's YouTube channel.

Mad At The World - Mad At The World (1987)

1. Living Dead
2. All The Lonely Sheep
3. I Want To See Heaven
4. No Room Left
5. Taking The Easy Way Out
6. Bad Motives
7. No More Innocence
8. It Can't Rain Forever
9. Here We Go Again
10. Dry Your Tears
11. Mad At The World
12. Chance Of Luck

Legal Download at Amazon

I still get chills just typing out the song titles. What a great album.

The best MATW website
Wikipedia Entry

Lincoln - Lincoln (1998)

In the late 1990s, alternative rock had divided itself into two camps: frat-boy music and nerd rock. Lincoln fell perfectly into the latter, but their They Might Be Giants-inspired pop is hardly derivative of any one genre. From straight-ahead alt-pop to country-rock and even synth-pop, Lincoln is truly an eclectic mix, borrowing elements from many genres to create a disc packed with humorous, light, and unique pop songs. Lead vocalist Chris Temple constantly changes personas, from the enraged nerd in "Sucker" to a tender, heartbroken and scared man on "Wish You Were Dead." Temple's lyrics are often very personal, but he attempts to put up a macho front to help him from being vulnerable; however, his delivery gives him away. Not all of the 12 tracks are particularly memorable -- the last two seem to be stretching the album a bit -- but this proves to be an excellent souvenir from an unfortunately short-lived pop band. Lincoln broke up in September 1998, making this their first and last release. (from Allmusic.com)

1. Sucker
2. Blow
3. Stop
4. Unhappy
5. Basketball
6. Taller
7. Wish You Were Dead
8. Straight
9. What Up
10. Carversville
11. To Build A House
12. Smashing

Downloadhttps://rapidshare.com/files/2693814327/Lincoln.rar

For fans of Fountains of Wayne crossed with They Might Be Giants and Prefab Sprout.

Angie Aparo - The American (1999)

Here's another recent classic that seems to have fallen out of print. I had the privilege of seeing Angie (short for Angelo) perform a solo set in Winooski, Vt. a couple of years after this came out (hence the signed cover) and over a pint I told him that this album was in effect a greatest hits album - every track could have been a worthy chart single. He seemed to appreciate that. Much of the power and apocalyptic sound of the album is thanks to the involvement of Matt Serletic (producer of Matchbox 20 and many other alternative rock acts) and he succeeded in wringing every nuance out of the thoughtful compositions and dramatic melodies. "Cry" is the best known track, being covered later by Faith Hill, and the lead single "Spaceship" briefly impacted MTV. My favorite tracks are the MLK inspired "Memphis City Rain", the jaunty "It's Alright" and a powerful commentary on contemporary life in the USA, the haunting title track "The American". But truthfully you could put this on random play and enjoy every track, in any order. I've added two extras - "Alone" was the B-Side of the Spaceship CD Single and "Nature's Way" was included on a later covers album project but I always thought it fitted in well in terms of sound and composition.

1. Green Into Gold
2. Spaceship
3. Hush
4. Cry
5. Third Time Around
6. Free Man
7. Gravity
8. Beautiful
9. Memphis City Rain
10. Swell
11. It's Alright
12. Wonderland
13. The American
14. Alone (bonus track)
15. Nature's Way (bonus track)

Download


Official Website
MySpace Page
Wikipedia Entry

Jules Shear - The Great Puzzle (1992)

Sometimes musical discoveries seem to come about through true serendipity - an alignment of cosmic forces, if you will. A good example is this album by Jules Shear, to my mind the best in an absurdly idiosyncratic catalog dating back to the mid seventies. Back in 1992 I was reading a book in my local library by Paul Zollo (Songwriters on Songwriting) and out of all the interviewees, I was most interested by Jules. I was impressed to know that he had not only written "If She Knew What She Wants", my favorite song by the Bangles, but also "All Through The Night", amongst others. In describing his craft, he seemed to identify exactly the elements that can make a song special.

Although the interview was about five years old, by a quirk of coincidence I found a new release called The Great Puzzle nestling in the CD rack in our local store. It was unusual in those days for me to buy an album without reading a review, but without listening booths and the internet (can you imagine that?) sometimes you just had to take a chance. When the latest edition of Q Magazine came out, I noticed that they reviewed the album and gave it four stars out of five, an assessment I thoroughly agreed with.

Anyone who has not heard Jules' work before will find his voice takes a little getting used to. He has a very nasal, noo-yawk timbre, and in truth this can be a little wearing unless the material is compelling. Fortunately, every track on The Great Puzzle is a mini-masterpiece, a masterclass in songwriting where the melodies flutter and the stories weave their way into your head. Jules takes a slightly off-kilter approach to songwriting conventions. For example "Bark", naturally enough, is about a dog. "Jewel In A Cobweb" is about a dangerous relationship with some interesting spider allusions. "The Sad Sound of the Wind" and "Dreams Dissolve In Tears" take standard romantic break-up material and put an elegant spin on the proceedings such as "Not to deceive or with plans to leave/It was pure without intent". Other songs touch on loss, the perils of the world, and - in the sublime title track - its profound mysteries. When Jules wonders aloud, the question marks hang in the air like suspended chords.

Carefully produced by Stewart Lerman and also featuring his wife Pal Shazar, The Great Puzzle is a witty, melodic gem that has never lost its appeal to me. Nowadays, most second-hand CD stores have a copy for a couple of dollars - that's where I found the autographed one shown in the picture.

After the rise of the eBay era, I discovered that three additional "puzzle pieces" from the sessions had been added to a promotional single, but had never been commercially released. All three are fine efforts and I have no hesitation in appending them to the set.

Jules Shear - The Great Puzzle (1992)

1. The Trap Door
2. The Great Puzzle
3. We Were Only Making Love
4. The Sad Sound Of The Wind
5. Something Else To Me
6. Make Believe
7. Much Too Much
8. Dreams Dissolve In Tears
9. The Mystery's All Mine
10. Jewel In A Cobweb
11. Bark
12. His Audience Has Gone To Sleep (Bonus Track)
13. She Makes Things Happen (Bonus Track)
14. Nothing Is Left Behind (Bonus Track)

http://www.zshare.net/download/39098664389342/

A few copies of the album were packaged with a bonus disc Unplug This, featuring acoustic versions of several tracks from this and previous albums. You can find this to download here courtesy of my friend Big-D at Musica Obscura, along with several other rare albums by Jules.

Official Jules Shear Website
Wikipedia entry
A Good Summary of links to various Jules Shear related articles

Jeff Lynne - Armchair Theatre (1990)

It was great to see the reissued Traveling Wilburys albums riding in the charts earlier this summer. Back in the late 80's and early 90's, all the members of that illustrious supergroup were producing the best material they had released in years. There was a generous spirit of collaboration that infused not only the Wilburys recordings, but also the solo albums released by several members not long after. Roy Orbison delivered Mystery Girl, a fine effort even by his high standards, and Tom Petty released Full Moon Fever, arguably still the finest individual collection of songs in his canon.

Tying all of these releases together was the trusty hand of Jeff Lynne, who capped a remarkable four year period by releasing his one and only solo album, Armchair Theatre. A modest success on release, the album has been out of print for several years now, a truly mystifying state of events given the overall quality of the record. Opening single "Every Little Thing" was straightforward and easy to like. "Lift Me Up" featured a heavenly chorus and found its way on to a soundtrack or two. The real treasures remain buried later in the album. The covers of two standards, "Stormy Weather" and "September Song", (ostensibly for Jeff's mother who had recently passed away) unroll their charms with a simplicity and directness that Jeff had never brought to his work before. Likewise, the charming closer "Save Me Now", a throwaway acoustic ditty, conveyed an earnestness and economy that ended the album on a high note. Throughout the album, fellow Wilbury George Harrison contributed his trademark slide guitar lines in a way that underlined and improved every song, without stealing any of Jeff's thunder.

My personal favorite is the penultimate track, a collaboration with Tom Petty entitled "Blown Away" that describes romantic aspiration with a remarkable mixture of lyric, melody, and instrumentation. The interesting thing to me about this album was how I bought it on a whim, played it once, and then shelved it for a full twelve months before I gave it a second chance. Even now, 16 years later, it sounds like a musical letter from a postcode in heaven.

Jeff Lynne - Armchair Theatre (1990)

1. Every Little Thing
2. Don't Let Go
3. Lift Me Up
4. Nobody Home
5. September Song
6. Now You're Gone
7. Don't Say Goodbye
8. What Would It Take
9. Stormy Weather
10. Blown Away
11. Save Me Now

http://www.zshare.net/download/379010905aab11/

Despite clocking in at under 40 minutes, Armchair Theatre has a balance and flow that I would do little to disrupt. Reading around the multitude of ELO/Jeff Lynne forums, it seems like "Don't Let Go" is the least liked track, and I would tend to agree. Several other tracks were recorded in the same time period, and showed up as later B-Sides:

1. Sirens
2. Borderline
3. I'm Gone
4. Every Little Thing (Extended Mix)
5. Wild Times

Now you can make up your own track list. I am good to you or what?

Wikipedia entry

Black - Black (1991)

My interest in Black (AKA Colin Vearncombe) goes back to early 1989, when I joined a CD club as a way of adding a few discs to my meager collection. I bought my first CD player in the fall of 1988, and back then not many stores were stocking anything outside the charts. I ordered Black's first album Wonderful Life (1987) and the second, Comedy (1988) on the basis that both were on sale for half price that month.

Wonderful Life, of course, had the hit title track. However I always preferred the second album, plunging as it did into a world of languid desperation and studied spite. I thought about featuring this as my classic album this week. After 20 years, I still enjoy a listen. However, it seemed to me that both of these have been blogged fairly recently - Ripped Vinyl featured them both here and here.

So I decided instead to focus instead on Black's third album, and last for A&M, Black, released in 1991. My initial reaction was to be just slightly underwhelmed. The album was a quieter affair, with earlier snarls of disaffection turning into utter resignation. This was, and is, a definitive late-night album. Sounding utterly unlike anyone else in the charts (I was too young even then to recognize a Scott Walker impression), there were, needless to say, no hit singles and no appearances on Top of the Pops. However, what was left instead was quite achingly beautiful. On "Two Many Times" Black laments that he can no longer talk to his father ("How was I to know you'd go so soon?") and other tracks like Listen, This Is Life, and Here It Comes Again are masterpieces of aural autobiography - the emotion is so naked that the album feels like it should be wrapped in brown paper. A couple of tracks are more defiant - Let's Talk About Me, for example, but nothing shatters the mood, and nor should it.

I managed to find the electronic press kit, which includes excerpts and an interview with Black.

From a historical perspective, I have added some extra B-Sides released with accompanying singles which extend the experience without detracting from it. More than due for a reissue, or at least a little respect, some treasures sadly remain buried.

Black - Black (1991)

1. Too Many Times
2. Feel Like Change
3. Here It Comes Again
4. Learning How To Hate
5. Fly Up To The Moon (with Sam Brown)
6. Let's Talk About Me
7. Sweet Breath of Your Rapture
8. Listen
9. She's My Best Friend
10. This Is Life
11. Nice (B-Side from Feel Like Change CD Single)
12. I Can Let Go Now (B-Side from Feel Like Change CD Single)
13. Whole Wide World (B-Side from Fly Up To The Moon CD Single)
14. Under Wraps (B-Side from Fly Up To The Moon CD Single)
15. What's Right Is Right (B-Side from Fly Up To The Moon CD Single)

http://rapidshare.com/files/55613337/Black.rar

Wkipedia Entry for Black
Black's Offical Website
And one more

The Blessing - Prince Of The Deep Water (1991)

You may notice that my definition of a "classic" album is different from the choices offered by Rolling Stone, the New Musical Express, and other publications. Many of my favorite albums saw limited release, had no hit singles and are largely unknown. Perhaps that's why I like them. A case in point is The Blessing, who were the victims of bad timing back in 1991. They certainly had the musical chops, and in lead singer William Topley, they possessed a singer with a unique and powerful voice. However, the world was going baggy at the time, and had no need for a cinematic, tightly produced album that exuded exotic locales, strange and dangerous characters and superb musicianship. Consequently, both the album and first single "Highway 5", a comparatively light track, slipped off the radar despite a favorable 4-star review in Q Magazine. The Blessing would issue one more album, and William Topley would go on to make several solo records in the same vein, often with one, two, or even all three of his former bandmates - for the record, Mike Westergaard (keyboards), Luke Brighty (guitars), and Kevin Hime-Knowles (bass). However, for me, POTDW remains the high water mark, with standout tracks including the Dire Straits-ish "Hurricane Room". the poignant ballad "Delta Rain" and the Rolling Stones meets Bruce Springsteen swagger of "I Want You".

The Blessing Prince of the Deep Water (1991)
01 Highway 5
02 Flames
03 Hurricane Room
04 Baby
05 Let's Make Love
06 Back From Managua
07 I Want You
08 Delta Rain
09 Birdhouse
10 Denial
11 Prince of the Deep Water

William Topley Official Website