Music is the wine that fills the cup of silence - ROBERT FRIPP.
Information is not knowledge;
knowledge is not wisdom;
wisdom is not truth;
truth is not beauty;
beauty is not love;
love is not music;
MUSIC IS THE BEST - FRANK ZAPPA.
I think we're a little happier when we have a little music in our lives - STEVE JOBS.
Music in the soul can be heard by the universe - LAO TZU.
Rock and Roll is fire, man. FIRE. - DAVID BRIGGS.
Music grips you, gets into your soul -
GEORGE MARTIN
Michael Bublé Christmas(CD - Reprise, 2012) *** Genre: Jazz Places I remember:HMV in Llandudno, this Christmas Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas
Gear costume:Jingle Bells (with the Puppini Sisters) Active compensatory factors: Okay, I m not a fan, generally, of Michael Bublé's type of jazz vocal, but, I was won over by the featured track. In fact I've been singing it non stop over Christmas, having bought the CD for my wife from the HMV in Llandudno while on holiday after she complained that I had no Christmas music in the car. My dad would have loved it, as so would my mum - those Puppini Sister vocals would have have instantly reminded her of her fav Andrews Sisters. Michael is effortless, and smoooth. Great for easy listening at Christmas while touring around North Wales with her indoors. Where do they all belong? May be worth a search to see what else is available in the swing genre from this guy. He's just put out a new album of love songs that I'll most definitely be avoiding but that potential proper jazz album (if it exists) could be good.
Slight deviation for this edition of goo goo. Please join with me in celebrating by the fire wih a delightfully festive top 5 selection. 1 John Lennon/ Yoko Ono - Happy Xmas (War is Over)
Alan Parsons ProjectTales Of Mystery And Imagination(Vinyl - Mercury, 1976) **** Genre: Prog rock Places I remember: Chaldon Books and Records (Caterham on the hill) Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: (The system of) Doctor Tarr and Professor Fether
Gear costume:The Raven Active compensatory factors: I admit to being slow to discover the merits of the Alan Parsons Project.
Original cover
In the seventies I was suspicious and more into the heavier music of the time. APP seemed light weight in comparison to Rory Gallagher frinstance. But over time I've come back to APP albums. I played my son's copy a few times at home in NZ and realised what I'd been missing out on - namely Beatles inspired prog pop songs. Where do they all belong? This one (with the slightly revamped cover) is a slightly revamped version Alan Parsons put out in 1987. I can't tell the difference myself but I'm sure he's added some spit and polish to what is a fine album anyway. Producers can't help themselves sometimes.
The Supremes and The Four TopsThe Magnificent Seven(Vinyl - Tamla Motown, 1970) *** Genre: Soul Places I remember:Chaldon Books and Records (Caterham on the hill) Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: River Deep Mountain High
Gear costume: Stoned Soul Picnic Active compensatory factors: No Diana Ross on this one - she'll pinged off to her solo career by now. Instead we have the wonderful soulful team of Mary Wilson and Cindy Birdsong being joined by Jean Terrell. The Four Tops are as you were and the two groups, seven singers, mesh well together on a range of covers. Everything sounds effortless. Where do they all belong? They'd follow this up with The Return of...which I'll feature presently - as soon as I buy it from Chaldon Books and Records!
Oscar PetersonThe Trio(Vinyl - Pablo, 1974) **** Genre: Jazz Places I remember: Chaldon Books and Records Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles:Blues Etude (sounds like Coltrane's frenetic blast during Chasing The 'Trane, but on piano)
Gear costume:Come Sunday Active compensatory factors: While working at Marbecks Records in the late seventies, shipments of records from Pablo came in, in large quantities. All were recording brilliantly, all used iconic black and white photos on the covers. Knowing dad was a jazz fan I bought a few Oscar Peterson, Errol Garner, Duke Ellington titles for him. Although, not this featured Peterson album. He would have really appreciated the dexterity on display her. Peterson is in breath taking form and displays his talents over a range of jazz styles. Where do they all belong? He was extremely prolific, but the Pablo material is all top notch.
Grant GeissmanCool Man Cool(CD - Futurism Records, 2009) **** Genre: Jazz Places I remember: Great bargain: 99p from Fives - Leigh-on-sea, on the weekend. Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles/ Gear costume: Cool Man Cool
Active compensatory factors: What is cool jazz? Well, take a listen to the above track and have a look at the audience - they know cool when they hear it! Something great happening here and I'm not just saying that because the CD only cost me 99p. I started listening to it on my ipod while travelling to Warwick for work. The train was packed, the people smells interesting, the body-spam unwelcome, the guy beside me, large - and yet I was blissfully miles away thanks to Grant Geissman's lovely cool jazz. That comes from his guitar and the soothing sounds from his combo. Cool! Where do they all belong? Try some Dave Brubeck and Paul Desmond for more cool man jazz.
RiversideWasteland(CD - InsideOutMuisc, 2018) **** Genre: Prog rock Places I remember:FOPP (Covent Garden) Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles:The Struggle For Survival - a 9 minute epic that showcases the band's strengths well.
Gear costume:The Night Before - meditative closer is the perfect final track. Active compensatory factors: I love Riverside. Much more than I love mainman Mariusz Duda's spin-off band Lunatic Soul. I have all of the CDs those bands have done (being a completist is tough at times) so I think I'm in a position to judge. Riverside is the big deal. For some reason Riverside's combination of musicians works for Duda, and the, even darker, solo stuff, although interesting, doesn't quite. The album is a return to bone crunching prog metal for the most part, with some ethereal tracks for variety. In total, I've only heard the album three times but The Struggle For Survival immediately stood out. Up there with the best of Riverside. Where do they all belong? Return to prog metal form after the death of a band member and the noodling electronica of the previous album, Eye Of The Soundscape (worth checking out if you like that sort of thing).
VariousThe Best of 2018(CD - Mojo cover mount, 2018) *** Genre: All over the shop - there's jazz, rock, power pop, indie rock, world, and more Places I remember: Free with Mojo #302 Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Elvis Costello - Stripping Paper. Each time I heard this it got better and better!
Gear costume: Kamasi Washington - Will You Sing Active compensatory factors: I'm wary of best of year sampler collections. But I trust Mojo. So I went into this with pragmatic high hopes. Some heavy hitters make an appearance: Elvis Costello is in good form on Stripping Paper; Ry Cooder; Cat Power, Christine and the Queens, and Kamasi Washington are on it in more ways than one. Everything Kamasi seems to do is massive and Will You Sing, positioned at track 8 is epic! A mountain of sound! Overall the CD's like 15 tracks from my ipod shuffle and works somehow by throwing disparate sounds together. Where do they all belong?Not sure 2018 has been a stellar year musically but Will You Sing seems to represent the possibility of producing order from the chaotic world of 2018.
SladeOld New Borrowed and Blue(CD - Salvo, 1974) *** Genre: English pop/rock Places I remember: HMV (Oxford Street, London) Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles:Everyday (piano based ballad showed another side of Noddy and Jim)
Gear costume:My Friend Stan Active compensatory factors: Dave Hill's autobiography, So Here It Is, has been a fascinating read of late. Honest and unpretentious - just like the band in fact! Somehow, this album emerged after Don Powell's car crash (which put him in hospital and killed his girlfriend) and it continued the success of 1973 into another year. With all the drama and the touring during Slademania it's a wonder it came out at all. For me, it became the beginning of the slide into obscurity for Slade. I bought it on release back in 1974 because of the previous singles and Slade Alive (forever their best moment in my opinion), but I sold my vinyl copy in one of my periodic purges. It still sounds piecemeal to me - unlike Slade Alive and Slayed?, the highs are still highs though and I can now listen to it with greater context. Thanks to the pleasure I got from H's book, I bought it last week, along with their first two albums (Beginnings and Play It Loud - more on them to come) and nearly got all their eighties product as well. Nearly. The problem is that Slade Alive is such an iconic part of my youth and I'd stopped listening to Slade by the eighties. Everything else is in that album's shadow but who knows. If I can track down, Noddy's book could make me come back to them as well. Where do they all belong? After 74 it was Slade In Flame and some obscure lean pickings years.
Barclay James HarvestConcert For The People (Berlin)(Vinyl - Polydor, 1982) **** Genre: Progressive rock Places I remember: Chaldon Records and Books (Caterham on the hill) Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles:Mockingbird (glorious version clocking in at over 7 minutes)
Gear costume: Child Of The Universe Active compensatory factors: Barclay James Harvest's prog rock tag is a strange one and I guess comes from the association with the Harvest label and their prog band roster (Pink Floyd most notably). The band members write great songs that don't fit into pop or rock categories - mainly thanks to the quietly distinctive vocals of John Lees and Les Holroyd (and before he left the band in 1979, Stuart "Woolly" Wolstenholme). This live album collects some of those great songs and with the help of some studio overdubs (the original live recording in Berlin had technical hitches) presents the band as they are in concert. It's all about the songs and the playing - no one would ever accuse the band members of being rebel rousing front men! Where do they all belong? Recorded in 1980 and released 1982, this one slots into their mid career adjustment following the departure of Woolly.
Daryl Hall/ John OatesAbandoned Luncheonette(Vinyl - Atlantic, 1974) **** Genre: American pop/rock Places I remember:Chaldon records and books (Caterham on the hill) Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles:She's Gone
Gear costume:Las Vegas Turnaround (the stewardess song) Active compensatory factors: 'Soul-inflected' is a great description of the guys' style. I was an early fan - buying the (almost perfect) single, She's Gone, and thrashing it, but not the parent album until a few weeks ago. I don't know why I didn't buy it before then as I've loved the cover and loved their vocal style for decades now. This is their second album and was successful to a point in the mid seventies. It's only since their mega success in the eighties that the album has grown in stature and sales. She's Gone stands out - how could it not? but the rest of the album has glimpses of the ecstasy that seems effortless in She's Gone. Apparently it's the duo's favourite album, so if you haven't experienced it yet - get in there! Where do they all belong? They are much better known for their huge late seventies/eighties monster hit smash records but there is a lovely glimpse of two guys meshing amid some cool smooth soul grooves on this record.
Cass ElliotCass Elliot(Vinyl - RCA, 1972) ** Genre: American pop/rock Places I remember:Chaldon Records and Books (Caterham-on-the-hill) Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles:Disney Girls
Gear costume:I'll Be There Active compensatory factors: Obviously, Cass Elliot has become a tragic figure, dying young at 32 from a heart attack, but her vocals can instantly recall the sixties when she was Mama Cass. Here, she's in full on glamour mode, singing standards with lush backings - not really my thing. What made me take a punt on the album was seeing the immortal Disney Girls on the track listing. In this case she's also got Bruce Johnston and Carl Wilson appearing with her. Magic ensues! Where do they all belong? Back to those Mamas and Papas' greatest hits packages.
Anna BurchQuit The Curse(Digital download, 2018) ** Genre: American alt-pop Places I remember: Eleri's turn on MNAC Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles:Tea Soaked Letter (nice jangly early REM)
Gear costume:Belle Isle (with it's quirky pedal steel) Active compensatory factors: Unfortunately, I had a mix tape on the car sound system as I cruised back from Wales during my half term break. I think it was on Wozza's Road Mix Vol 5 that Phoebe Buffay from Friends joined the party with her dirge about her mother (Snowman, which came straight after I'll Be There For You on my mix tape). You remember the one: I made a man with eyes of coal and a smile so bewitchin'. How was I supposed to know that my mom was dead in the kitchen?
Unfortunate because aspects of Anna's vocal style remind me of Phoebe. It can't be helped. Once that lodged in my brain, Anna was done for. That said, on side 1, Anna Burch's music is lovely and her songs are sparkling in an alternative pop kind of way (there's a sprinkling of folk and country at times too). Side 2 isn't as bright though and the Phoebe-isms came back to haunt me again and again. Where do they all belong? All up it's a meh rating for me, sorry Eleri, and I'll pass on Anna Burch.
Red GarlandA Garland Of Red(CD - Avid Jazz, 1956) **** Genre: Jazz Places I remember: Fopp (Covent Garden) Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles:A Foggy Day
Gear costume:What Is This Thing Called Love? Active compensatory factors: I love Radio 2 (from the Beeb Beeb Ceeb). I was listening to it in a hotel room recently and Jamie Cullum had a show, during which he played a Red Garland track. It fit my mood perfectly - an up tempo piano jazz piece, and I was on a mission. Vinyl is always preferable so I tried Chaldon Records and Books, the jazz racks at Foyles by Fopp in Covent Garden, but no luck. Retracing my steps back to Fopp I picked this up, along with three other Garland albums on CD. I'm not sure how I haven't been captured by him before. It's the kind of jazz my dad would have liked in the mid fifties before I came along, but he also didn't own any of Red's albums. Instead, dad went for the more cerebral Dave Brubeck. A pity - Red's the real deal. Nevermind - it's great to make the discovery now, all thanks to Jamie Cullum! Where do they all belong? Red's a shining star within the jazz world.
SladeSlayed?(CD - Union Square Music, 1972) ***** Genre: English pop/rock Places I remember:FOPP Covent Garden - the CD replaced the old long gone vinyl copy. Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles:Gudbuy T'Jane
Gear costume:Look At Last Nite, Move Over, Gudbuy Gudbuy, Mama Weer All Crazee Now Active compensatory factors: Back in 1972, after Slade Alive, I waited very impatiently to get my hands on this album. I wasn't disappointed. The Slade sound delivered: Noddy Holder's instantly recognisable vocals (Gudbuy Gudbuy's sneer is peerless); Don Powell's iconic drum shuffle; topped off by Dave Hill's punk/glam/metal guitar. All that is great, but, for me, the real star of Slade is Jim Lea - bassist, violinist, songwriter: listen to Look At Last Nite for the classic Slade sound and what do you find? Jim Lea's bass - that's wot. Back in the day, these songs packed punch and they still do. Move Over is still remarkable and the Beatles inspired pop songs lead by Gudbuy Gudbuy, Mama Weer All Crazee Now and Gudbuy T'Jane are timeless. Where do they all belong? Without Slade, no AC/DC (The Whole World's Goin' Crazee alone was the template)
