Wednesday, August 19, 2020

Return of Yet More 60s Shite


I'm digitizing some bootleg Duke Ellington air checks from 1949 while I type this.
Don't expect much on my end.







Someone I Knew (1969)

Swan song release by the Lollipop Shoppe who featured a very young Fred Cole who would be in a shit load of bands that a lot of people are quite taken with. His vocal stylings are certainly an acquired taste of which I never quite managed to get, but he touched enough people to merit a New York Times obituary, so there's that.
I'm unlikely to warrant one, so good on him.



Take the Good & the Bad (1967)

The Live Five were a fine group of young fellows who hailed from Salem, Oregon and wore some really fancy striped trousers. That's enough for me.

Saturday, August 15, 2020

More 60s Shite


I'm tired and need to make coffee.




The Girl I Love (1965)

One of at least five different bands calling themselves the Lost Souls all at about the same time in different parts of the world.

Of special note is that this is NOT the Long Island band that foisted Billy Joel upon the world as a musician. This one is actually listenable.

This one was on Bang Records and as such like the Strangeloves probably didn't exist as anything but a studio creation of the producer looking to make a buck or two off unsuspecting teens. If either song had become a hit they'd have recruited some enterprising young men to impersonate the concept for a paying audience. It didn't so they didn't bother.

Too bad, the flip here "Simple to Say" is a nice garage number.







All You've Got (1967)

Here they're called the Lovin', but previous to that Children, after that the Nerve and finally Duffy Taylor Blues.

Here they make a nice Mod Pop racket for you and your Vespa.

Thursday, August 13, 2020

International Seven Inches Cool


The preamble goes here.

I got distracted looking shit up that I lost my place.



La Linea Del Arco (1992)

The seven inch on Elefant Records apparently accompanied the #3 edition of a fanzine of the same name. I didn't get that with my copy.
No matter. I got the important part

Two bands from England and two from Spain.
All good.

I quite like the Usura track

Mercenary Tree Freaks have a web presence and I found an interview too.

La Sintesis have a few things in spanish to look at and apparently had only one press photo.

The Lovelies existed and didn't leave much of a trail to follow.




Benno Presents Volume Two (1999)

The tiny short lived Swedish label Benno brings the hits.

Bands are Nixon, Cat Skills, Ny Akustik and Chocolate Barry.

While each band and contribution has its merits and is lovely and wonderful in its own way, the reason I bought this was the brilliant cover of Jonathan King's cheesy 1970 wonder "Gay Girl"

A song so hilariously awful that it needed to be covered which Chocolate Barry does with abandon. (and spares me the duty to having to do it myself)

Yeah,  that's the stuff that gets me up in the morning ready to shuffle through crates of shitty records to find gems like this.

Today we're all winners..






Monday, August 10, 2020

Metal


Made some nice tomato soup from scratch and have some chicken thighs stewing in the oven with thyme and all the vegetables I had on hand.

My house smells fucking great.

Meanwhile the chocolate marshmallow ice cream I made a few days ago is waiting and I'm planning on scooping up a nice fat, rich as fuck, pure cream, motherfucking globe of sexy coolness at some point in the near future.

Kids, learn to cook.



Paris Marquis (1977)

The second single by the Parisian punk band called Metal Urbain.

Drum machines, guitars and synthesizers mixing it up.

But I don't know, but I find the sound of angry Frenchmen kind of funny.
It just sounds sort of wrong in a punk rock context.

Is that just me?

It's probably just me.

It's me.

Which isn't to say this is an unintentionally a funny record. I just have to take an extra second to appreciate it once the vocals start. (and as someone who can't speak any other languages, I really have no proper right to criticize anyone, but I did date a substitute French teacher for a while. I don't recommend it.)



It is early Rough Trade Records stuff, so you know it's essential listening.
Trust me.



Metal Boys (1979)

Some of the members of Metal Urbain made their own spin off band and they called themselves Metal Boys and sing in English and back it up with an instrumental track.

This too is good.

Friday, August 7, 2020

Arriving Without Traveling


It's still early, but feels like it should be much much later.
I had a productive past few days as far as creative endeavors go so I have nothing much else up my sleeve for the evening.
So here we are...







If I'd been on top of things I would have used this to follow up the Shane Champagne Band single posted some months back. I thought about it, but then promptly forgot.
I do have a rather curtailed attention span.

Here is Gary Shane and his band the Detour. He is the Shane from the aforementioned Shane Champagne Band. 

This is the much more rock side of the then New Wave. It's one that on a different day could have probably secured them at least a one record deal with a larger label. They certainly got a pretty big push on local radio station WBCN at the time. But alas, nada but sweet nostalgic memories for everyone involved.

In 1982 they made it to the semi-finals of the WBCN sponsored Rock and Roll Rumble battle of the bands. Top honors would go that year to Limbo Race (on the docket) with the Hi Beams taking 2nd place.

There's even a video for the dad joke/pun for "Johnny's Coaltrain" (get it? John Coltrane and Johnny Cash's train from "Rock Island Line" which was carrying pig iron, but that's another story...)

Anyway, long story short, here is the sole Lp  release by this band.

It is what it is.