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
Jethro TullMinstrel In The Gallery(CD - EMI, 1975/2002) **** Genre: Prog rock Places I remember: Charity shop in Caterham(I recently came across this for a quid and figured why not. It can join the vinyl and CD copies back home in NZ soon) Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Minstrel In The Gallery
Gear costume: Cold Wind To Valhalla, Baker Street Muse Active compensatory factors: This one gets lost when discussion turns to Tull's greatest moments; I think because it turned its back on the move away from Tull's new directions (as heard on the previous year's War Child) and returned to the early seventies format of long songs and prog leanings. I love it more and more as time goes on. Martin Barre is a guitar hero of mine. He has very distinct tones and he's, thankfully, all over this album. It also needs to be celebrated as the last album by the classic line up before Jeffrey departed. Where do they all belong? A forgotten gem in the Tulliverse released after War Child and before Too Old To Rock'n'Roll: Too Young To Die!
R. Dean TaylorThe Essential Collection(CD - Spectrum Music, 2001) *** Genre: American soul/pop Places I remember:HMV at Bluewater Mall - £3.99 Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Indiana Wants Me
Gear costume:Two Of Us, Gotta See Jane, Taos New Mexico, Fire And Rain Active compensatory factors: I'm breaking my self imposed 'rule' (more of a guideline really) not to include compilations in these posts, but, really - this is mostly about Indiana Wants Me anyhow. Somehow, R. Dean Taylor ended up parlaying this prison escape drama into a number one single in 1970 and as a nearly teenager in Auckland/ New Zealand, I was hooked! It's all there - the high drama and the voice, but something else hooked me and I think it's the connection to an exotic America. Indiana. My febrile brain, age 12, just fell in love with a quirky idealised version of America. In other news: R Dean was not a one trick pony/ one hit wonder. His original songs are collected here, along with some stunning covers. The Beatles and James Taylor (no relation) songs don't veer much from the original arrangements but R Dean's vocals make them special. Where do they all belong? Found in the soul section at HMV, but R. Dean, a Canadian, is a Motown recording artist so who knows. BTW the R stands for Richard - I know, I was expecting something else too.
Gilbert O'SullivanBack To Front(Vinyl, MAM, 1972) *** Gilbert O'SullivanI'm A Writer, Not A Fighter(Vinyl, MAM, 1973) *** Genre: English pop Places I remember: Charity shop in Caterham - on the High St. Bought both for 2 pounds. Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Get Down
Gear costume: Claire, I'm In Love With You, Who Was It,
Active compensatory factors: Hunky big G is a guilty pleasure for me, as I've pointed out before, and a seventies icon. So when I was fossicking through some vinyl in one of the local charity shops before Christmas, I couldn't resist shelling out 2 quid when I spied these two albums in pristine condition. Clearly not played much, maybe someone was cleaning out a loved ones estate and came across these without realising what pop gold they were. Gilbert is pretty effortless with his vocal style and definitely of his time. Would he get a look it in 2019? Would he eckaslike! Except!! He did!!! Against all oddities on 24 August 2018, O'Sullivan released his 19th studio album Gilbert O’Sullivan which entered the UK album charts at No. 20, his first UK charting studio album for over 40 years. Enough to restore your faith in humankind! So, put the kettle on, pop this slice of 1972 onto the turntable and let it work its magic all over again. Where do they all belong? A distant innocent pop age that was so naff it was great and who cares if he will never ever be cool. Now, where's my woolly jumper with the big G on it?
The Moody BluesSeventh Sojourn(Vinyl - Threshold, 1972) ***** Genre: Prog rock Places I remember: Sydney and the record shop in Davy Jones Ltd department store 1973 Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Loads of fab on this one - but I can't go past John Lodge's amazing I'm Just A Singer In A Rock and Roll Band.
Gear costume:For My Lady gets me every time! Active compensatory factors: My favourite album by The Moody Blues has it all - the band hit a creative peak with this one that couldn't subsequently be replicated. In 1973, the family holiday was to Sydney and resulted in me buying Deep Purple's Made in Japan, Led Zeppelin's Houses of the Holy, a few others, and this magnificent, classic record. Every track instantly takes me back to that time, and I often need to play this and be transported to those new horizons. Have I really changed? Nope. Just on the outside! On the inside I'm still that teenage kid playing this album in my bedroom on the Garrard SP25 Mk 3. Where do they all belong? Octave was next, but sadly, by the time it came out, like many - I'd lost some interest in keeping current with the band. I still don't own a copy - must rectify that anomaly! P.S. Just bought a vinyl copy of Octave and The Present. The move away from Pinder's mellotron into moog stylings wasn't a good one but The Present holds up pretty well)
Art Pepper Discoveries - The Savoy Sessions(Vinyl - Savoy, 1977) **** Genre: Jazz Places I remember:Ray's Jazz at Foyles' flagship store in Charing Cross Road (London) Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles/ Gear costume: Suzy The Poodle
Active compensatory factors: Yes, joy oh joy, you can cruise through the vinyl bins in Ray's Jazz section at Foyles. Heaven. This Soho/Covent Garden corner of London is one of my happy places. Not only Fopp, but Foyles as well. Huge! I can while away many happy hours in this magic corner. Last week I picked up three albums - Shorty Rogers, Red Garland and this double from Art Pepper. All for the sum of 20 quid. There's something I find very relaxing about listening to jazz. Even Art's frenetic piling up of jazz sounds on his sax puts me in a relaxed mood. Where do they all belong? I used to have this album many years ago but sold it off at some stage. It's good to have it back in the collection.
DeodatoWhirlwinds(Vinyl - MCA, 1974) *** Genre: Jazz funk/ fusion Places I remember: Chaldon Books and Records (Caterham on the hill) Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Do It Again
Gear costume: West 42nd Street Active compensatory factors: I have a soft spot for Brazilian keyboard player, Eumir Deodato. He's funky, a shape shifter, jazz cool and pretty weird (check out the severed head portrait on the cover - what the heckfire's going on there?). He's also wildly prolific - I count over twenty albums in the seventies, with a staggering five albums released in 1973 alone. The musicians are usually cream of the crop: Whirlwind is no exception - John Tropea, Tony Levin and Billy Cobham all add their brilliance. This one is a solid contributor to the canon, featuring some revamped Glenn Miller swing (Moonlight Serenade), alongside Ave Maria and a funky version of Steely Dan's Do It Again. And that's just side one! Weird, but it works. Where do they all belong? In the cosmic stew of the jazz genre there is a spot for Deodato.
John SebastianJohn B. Sebastian(Vinyl - Reprise, 1970) *** Genre: American pop/rock Places I remember: Chaldon Books and Records (Caterham on the hill) Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: She's A Lady
Gear costume: Rainbows All Over Your Blues, I Had A Dream Active compensatory factors: John B. Sebastian, his debut solo album, came out simultaneously with the Woodstock documentary film and soundtrack. So for many, he's forever the tie dyed (dippy) hippie singing at Woodstock, rather than the lead voice in The Lovin' Spoonful, or for that matter, the singer of Welcome Back, Kotter's theme song. To be fair, this album isn't as tie dyed as you'd expect given the timing. There's a toughness to the arrangements, even for hippy bastians like Rainbows and Dream. Whatever your impression of the man - cool hippy dude or serious muso, this is one messy album that perhaps reflects the multiple facets -and although famous friends like Croz, Stills and Nash appear, they are all pretty anonymous. Instead we have some cool sixties pop and some mid tempo rock, plus some bizarre sounds for good measure (Fa-Fana-Fa). Where do they all belong? In a time capsule - it's a period piece. Far out. As in, I can't see millennial vinyl collectors digging this one, man.
