SUGGESTED SIDE

If I had minions, I'd be saying "Minions, go forth and get me this record".  But, no minions. I came up dry looking for even one mp3, so something tells me this 45 is rare, and I'm realistic, I know I'm not going to go hunt this down. But you can bet it's been comped. So, yeah, no mp3, but I thought you should hear it. You really should. Now.

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Listen: 
The Undertakers - Unchain My Heart (streaming) at YouTube

LOST IN THE TRANSLATION CREEP

Just a quick one here, not entirely noteworthy musically, just an oddball I'd been looking for an excuse to post.  A friend of mine, let's call her by her proper title, Lady Latimore, hepped me to the video below of a commercial, which is the accoutrement I'd been looking for.  It's for a mens cologne called Mandom, and features Charles Bronson.  He was probably assured at the time that the commercial would only be aired in Japan.  Should he have consulted the Amazing Criswell, he would have been saved the postmortem embarrassment of a YouTube moment.

Now here's the song I'd been waiting to post, "Punk Rock Creeps" by a band calling themselves Bronson.  It was introduced to the folks at Aquarius Records, in San Francisco, with the attached copy:

"I am one of Paul Kersey's neighbor's kids. He told my dad to let him come over and jam with us from time to time. Last night we made some more songs. He scared us some, because he said now was the time to have the songs listened to. So then we recorded all our songs on to my computer. Please play them in the record store. Mr. Kersey said for me to find out where the songs can be played to creeps."

For those born yesterday, Paul Kersey is the character that Bronson played in the Death Wish movies.  If you haven't seen any of them, or are unfamiliar with Charles Bronson, take a pass.  The rest of you can take a moment out of your day to rid the streets of creeps.

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Listen: 
Bronson - Punk Rock Creeps mp3 at Beware of the Blog
Visit:
Aquarius Records - An amazingly esoteric record store.  Search for "Bronson" for the whole story behind this slab of vigilantism. 

THE MANY MOODS OF BALDEMAR

Here's a little stumble from today.  I was in a Latin mood, in search of boogaloo.  I ended up at Super Sonido, which is where I usually begin a Latin music hunt, listening to Freddy Fender and the Comancheros' "Boogaloo en Monterey," which doesn't sound like boogaloo at all.  It's funky as shit. And the production, it has something in it, some sort of secret ingredient, and it ain't slick.  I don't even want to know whether the sound, the slight echo (or whatever it is), or the overall vibe was intentional.  All I know is that it does sound good now, in a "they don't make 'em like that anymore" sort of way.

I came across some other earlier stuff under other names (he was born Baldemar Huerta). "Pancho Rock" and "Acapulco Rock" are both early Tejano rock.  "I Love Mi Ranchero" is some later Tex-Mex.  He's got a pretty varied dossier there, and that's without the Texas Tornados or Los Super 7.  Man, though, that "Boogalloo en Monterey" is a killer.

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Listen:
Freddy Fender and the Comancheros - Boogaloo en Monterey mp3 at Super Sonido
Baldemar Huerta - Pancha Rock mp3 at Vuelve  Primavera 
Eddie y Los Shades - Acapulco Rock mp3 at Vuelve  Primavera
Freddy Fender - I Love Mi Rancho Grande mp3 at Lil Mikes
Visit:
Freddy Fender at Wikipedia

JUST BE DONE WITH IT

The compilation these suckers came from (not the one pictured above) is called Psych Funk Sa Re Ga! and is described as psychedelic funk from India (1970-83).  How that pertains to the songs below I've no idea, because there's very little in the way of funk or psychedelia going on here.  "Psychedelia," by the excellent X'lents, owes more to no-name surf bands stretching their exotic chops than anything else.  It's something like the Venture's "Outer Limits" meets Al Garcia and the Rhythm Kings' "Exotic," and with a snippet of Dick Dale's "Miserlou,"  all bashed out in a gloriously cheap sounding studio.  Viola! A Bollywood surf proto-mash-up!  The Black Beats "The Mod Trade," has a similar sound, though borrows less in the way of pre-existing licks.  Atomic Forest's "Mary Long" is a Deep Purple cover that, though unusual, is not nearly as awesome as the band's name.  It doesn't sound like Deep Purple at all.  What it does sound like is one of those shredding shoppers in a guitar store, taking a fuzz box on a test run, with a drummer in the other part of the store making a similar spectacle of himself; and all the while, a woman singing along with a broke ass karaoke machine.

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Listen:
Psychedelia - X'Lents mp3 at Clumsy and Shy
The Black Beats - The Mod Trade mp3 at Pop Matters
Atomic Forest - Mary Long mp3 at Stones Throw

HOW THE HELL DID HE SNEAK IN?

How could a remix of a David Bowie song possibly get my attention?  When it's not really remixed, but recreated with all new backing tracks.  Yeah, I know, that's still kind of ho-hum, but hold on.  The backing tracks were recorded by members of the Budos Band, the Dap-Kings, and the Menahan Street Band.  Looking better?  The story behind it is that EMI asked four DJs from KCRW (in Santa Monica, CA), to remix it, to commemorate some deluxe reissue.  One of the DJs, Jeremy Sole, went all out, taking it with him to Dunham Studios in Brooklyn, which astute Dapheads will recognize as the studio for Daptone Records.  Here's what he had to say:

 "My plan was to not remix, but re-play the song in a full live setting, as if in 1975 Bowie recorded the original and then flew to Brooklyn (or even Jamaica) to cut another take with “my” players. Everything was recorded 100% analog to 2” tape. All equipment that was available before 1975. My approach was to take influence of the Jamaican musicians (and recording styles) of the mid-seventies, and their infatuation with American Soul music."
  

Check it out.  Whether or not you think it has any sort of Jamaican sound to it, it is sort of interesting.  There is a little dub in spots.  Personally, I think it could use a little more chunka-chunka guitar, but I'm an admitted armchair record producer, so my opinion usually has a little blowhard in it anyways. 

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Listen: 
David Bowie - Golden Years (remix) mp3 at Club Cortez
Bonus:
The Menahan Street Band - Home Again mp3 at Caipirinha Lounge
The Menahan Street Band - Montego Sunset mp3 at Caipirinha Lounge
The Menahan Street Band - Karina mp3 at Caipirinha Lounge
Related:
The Budos Band - Other posts
Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings - Other posts

STEALTHNESS

Here's just what I needed tonight, just a simple hot shit rock 'n' roll single.  Thank you Diddy Wah for throwing it down.

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Listen:  
Mickey Hawks - Bip Bop Boom mp3 at Diddy Wah
Mickey Hawks - One more song at Diddy Wah

OVERTHINK AT YOUR PERIL

I really doubt my objectivity.  Weighing all of the San Diego bands I've heard live and on record, old and new, I still really can't think of a better band than Rocket From The Crypt.  I appreciate their whole thing for a number of reasons, two of which are that they're informed music freaks, and they 're willing to stick their necks out. Here's a couple examples.  One is a nod to Phil Spector's Wall of Sound (at the bottom), and the other a recent "only reunion yet" appearance on Yo Gabba Gabba, a kids show.  The band broke up in 2005 (or thereabouts) and have not played together since, until this performance.  The song is "He's A Chef," and, given the vehicle, it's a total kids song.  I think it's hilarious; John Reis spitting out lyrics so simple that they make Jonathan Richman look like Leonard Cohen.  It really is hilarious, and musically, tight as shit.

He's A Chef, 2012

This song below, "Used," is from the 1995 LP Scream, Dracula Scream.  The album was was their major label debut, on Interscope, and the signing enabled what they rightly assumed might be their only opportunity to go big.  The snarl is still intact, despite the Spector-esque layers in the second half of the song.  It's every rock nerd's fantasy, the opportunity to make a big over-the-top record with ingredients from Spector's Wall of Sound stash, and they made the most of it.

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Listen: 
Rocket From The Crypt - Used mp3 at Ayetunes 
Visit: 
Rocket From The Crypt caters to the coveted preschool demographic with Yo Gabba Gabba! performance at A.V. Club 
Rocket From The Crypt at Wikipedia 
Rocket From The Crypt - Scream Dracula Scream entry at the RFTC Discography

Other Rocket posts

BACK OFF JACK

Reggae fiends, commence chop licking. I practically tripped on these in a clicking frenzy, and they're all choice cuts for one reason or another.  The first one is, in a word, killer.  It's the one credited to "Various Artists," and is a disco single, and each side has a vocal, with some King Tubby dub, and Augustus Pablo slathered on top of it for good measure.  Side one is Jacob Miller's "Keep On Rocking," and the flip is the Heptones "Love Won't Come Easy."  There's a whole lot going on in these two cuts, enough to warrant a slight pain in the ass to download (it's a rar file, so get out your chosen extraction machine). The Meditations cut is a Lee Perry production, and if you're like me, you can't get enough of stuff with crazy producer stink on it. The Marley thing is also a Lee Perry work, a little less spit shined than the Marley stuff played incessantly by the hackey sackers.  And there's one by the Perry himself, from the last recordings he, the crazy producer, made before intentionally burning his Black Ark Studio to the ground. The Minstrels' cover of the Impressions "People Get Ready" is a Studio One joint, so it's a no-brainer.  It's supa-smooth.  It's from a 45 reissue, the original is apparently pretty rare, routinely selling for over a grand.  So, yeah, suck that one up.

Club Cortez, the blog that hosts all of these is awesome for all sorts of non-rock 'n' roll stuff.  There's a great Hawaiian mix, distilled from thrift store Hawaiian LPs with the cuts selected for their "weirder and more alien" qualities (here, here!).  Another post has a great Latin Jazz LP by some dude named Montego Joe.  It would behoove you to do some digging around over there. 

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Listen:
Various Artists - Keep On Knocking and Love Won't Come Easy (1979) (via DivShare) at Club Cortez See description above. Jacob Miller, the Heptones, King Tubby and Augustus Pablo, on one disco single. 
The Meditations - No Peace (1978) mp3 at Club Cortez 
Bob Marley - Rainbow Country (1979) mp3 at Club Cortez 
Lee Perry - Bed Jammin' (1980) mp3 at Club Cortez 
The Minstrells - People Get Ready (1968) mp3 at Club Cortez 
Visit: 
Club Cortez

WAY OFF BASS

These guys get a pass for guitar tone, it is a pretty mean racket, but does the world really need another guitar/drums two-piece?   After Mr. Airplane Man, the White Stripes, the Black Keys, and Hanni El Khatib, just to name four, the novelty is kind of losing its shine.  One thing Black Pistol Fire has going for them is that they look suitably dirtbaggy.  You can almost imagine them in some scraggly bar band less a couple hungover band members.  But you know what?  Licensing their music for a Pepsi commercial, Beverly Hills 90210, and an O'Neill Girls Surf Team video isn't doing a damn thing for their authenticity. If pressed for a reason, lets just say I'm posting these for all of the band-less bass players looking for another band to be annoyed with.

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Listen: 
Black Pistol Fire - Suffocation Blues mp3 at Liquid Jesus 
Black Pistol Fire - Sort Me Out mp3 at Liquid Jesus 
Black Pistol Fire - You're Not the Only One mp3 at The Wheel's Still In Spin 
Black Pistol Fire - Long Tall Sally mp3 at My Old Kentucky Blog 
Bonus chaser: 
Little Richard - Long Tall Sally mp3 at One Sweet Song

THOSE AREN'T YOUR PLAY CLOTHES

I'm not especially enamored with bands so intent with driving their schtick home that the take the whole retro thing to an entirely different level.  The Kaisers were one band that always kind of irked me. The whole obsession with sounding like the Beatles, dressing the pre-mop top part, black and white photos on the album covers, recording in mono,...I mean, jeez guys give it a rest!  Well, they did give it a rest, back in 2002, and now in hindsight, I can relax a bit, and stop being a nazi about them being nazis.  They were good, they had it down, and they put out some good records.  Who knows, if they would have followed their imaginary trajectory, they might've been sitting around cross-legged, doing acid and recording shit backward by now.

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Listen:
The Kaisers - She's Gonna Two Time mp3 at Infrason
The Kaisers - Time to Go mp3 at Beware of the Blog 
The Kaisers - No Other Guy mp3 at Beware of the Blog
The Kaisers - Five more at Beware of the Blog
Bonus fakers:
Spongetones - She Goes Out With Everybody mp3 at Infrasons

MEANWHILE, BACK IN THE STATES

The Rock Shop's "State of Your Mind," is mindblowing-lite, which is to say, won't necessarily blow your mind, but it's pretty damn interesting.  "Far out," as they say.  It's a garage sort of song, a little dirty behind the ears.  At about the 1:10 mark, something pretty cool happens.  The vocals drop out, then the bass, then drums until, at about 1:42, you're ass deep in fuzzed out guitar.  Slowly everything fades back in.  You reggae nuts already know where this is headed.  This is the crazy part.  The mix follows the same basic methodology as early dub.  This was 1967.  Tubby might have already been doing something, but this song sure doesn't sound informed.  It was just some other nut at the board getting freaky.  Just like Tubby.

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Listen:

The Rock Shop - State of Your Mind mp3 at Office Naps

Other:

King Tubby posts 

DOUBLE OH G

Do you like U Roy, Dillinger, Big Youth, Dennis Alcapone, Scotty, and other reggae DJs? Count Machuki was their man. The first person to toast over Jamaican records. The first time he did it, he was just fucking around, killing time while the sound system operator Tom the Great Sebastian was on a booze run. When the crowd dug it, he went home and started working on his rhymes. "If you dig my jive/you're cool and very much alive, Everybody all round town, Machukis' the reason why I shake it down, When it comes to jive, You can't whip him with no stick." If you go chronologically backwards, all roads lead to the Count. From hip hop, rap, and dancehall, through all of the other reggae DJs, it is a direct lineage. He was the first to rap, free style or otherwise. He also to first to make rhythmic oddball grunts and such, which was a huge part of the DJ package. The Count did it in the mother loving fifties.

I've never run into his stuff online, except at YouTube (and believe me, I've looked). So when I ran into the one today at Planet Mondo, I absolutely had to post it. If you need some padding, check the past posts about other reggae DJ's.

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Listen:
Count Machuki - Pepper Pot mp3 at Planet Mondo
More:
Reggae DJ posts
All reggae posts

ONLY ONE KING BEE

The photo above, kiped from The Slow Drag, was so awesome, I had to post some stuff to go along with it. Most of you should be familiar with Slim Harpo, and undoubtedly most of you who are came to his music through covers, and most of you who are familiar with him through covers first heard a cover or two by the Stones. So, really, those shaggy proto-hipsters did their job. Great. Maybe they'll sell some records and make a career out of it.

Though never having had any ailment worse than a common cold, Harpo died of a heart attack at the age of 45. Mick Jagger is, what, pushing 70? No justice.

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Listen:
Slim Harpo - Jody Man mp3 at Beware of the Blog
Slim Harpo - Te-Ni-Nee-Ni-Nu mp3 at Boogie Woogie Flu
Slim Harpo - Shake Your Hips mp3 at Le Mellotron
Slim Harpo - I'm a King Bee mp3 at Gapersblog
Slim Harpo - I'm Your Bread Maker Baby mp3 at R n B 45
Slim Harpo - Baby Scratch My Back mp3 at Gapersblog
Visit:
Slim Harpo - Excellent bio at The Hound Blog
Slim Harpo - Illustrated discography

R.I.P. SPREAD THE GOOD WORD

Holy hell, Reverend Tom Frost, purveyor of good shit, is hanging up his blog, Spread the Good Word. If you've hung around here enough, you know that he's unequivocally in with this out crowd. He began posting single songs in 2004 and later added mixes, all showing his impeccable taste, the sort of which that if you didn't recognize the artist's name, you clicked anyway, because it passed his muster. His was one of the first blogs I linked to, appearing on my radar after posting Mahalia Jackson and the Anti-Nowhere League back to back. Along with just a few others, he's what got me into this mess. The big difference is that he offered encouragement, which was always welcomed.

He's posted one final mix, and it's a eighty minute doozy. This one has Bernard Herrmann, Hank Mizell, Hershell Gordon Lewis and the Amazing Pink Holes, Bunker Hill, Ronnie Dawson, Ennio Morricone, Cozy Cole, Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee, Captain Beefheart, the Tornadoes, Roy Acuff, Otis Blackwell, Joe Clay, Jackie Wilson, and Eddie Cochran, along with sixteen others that I didn't even recognize. And those sixteen unfamiliar artists are the draw, that's where want lists are born. He's leaving all of his mixes up for now, but I'd do some digging stat, because you never know when the lights will go out.

He's checking out to devote more time to his own music, and he's no slouch with that either. A lazy comparison would be Tom Waits, but the Reverend has his own brand of swing. Good stuff, Maynard, as they say. If'n I was you, I'd bookmark his site, buy his music and become a pest over there.

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Listen:
Rev. Frost Presents, for the last time...A Bloody Farewell Mix !!! [Thee Final Mix] (80:10) You'll want the song list so go there. His other mixes are in the top right column.
His music:
Reverend Tom Frost - A Bloody Life (streaming) at YouTube
Reverend Tom Frost - Dust to Dust (streaming) at YouTube
Reverend Tom Frost - More samples of his music at Rev. Tom Frost
Visit:
Reverend Tom Frost - Official site
This is for you, Reverend:
The Sonics - Have Love, Will Travel mp3 at Hey Cool Kid

TRY NOT BEING GOOFY

Here's a typical bill from the Casbah days of yore. I gotta say, my attention span sometimes wanes after too much mid-nineties stuff. You may know what I mean. Anyway, I ran into the Fastbacks cover of Sweet's "Set Me Free," and in looking for something to pad it out with, found the Uncle Joe's cuts (at the ever fine Adios Lounge). Attention...span...waning...Batman.

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Listen:
The Fastbacks - Set Me Free mp3 at The Finest Kiss
The Fastbacks - On The Wall/Went For A Swim mp3 at The Adios Lounge Live, 1995
The Fastbacks - Waterloo Sunset mp3 at Cover Me
Uncle Joe's Big Ol' Driver - The Same Thing mp3 at The Adios Lounge
Uncle Joe's Big Ol' Driver - Lip Gloss mp3 at The Adios Lounge

STILL SMELLS LIKE BEER

Any number of old drinking buddies will have the cockles of their hearts dipped in shit over these, which I think are songs from a new Dinosaur Jr. album. I'm not familiar enough with them to know if these are new or not, but they were on a post about something new. Regardless, this is all about tipping the hat towards the friends who couldn't get enough of this band, back when life's greatest mystery was who took the last beer.

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Listen:
Dinosaur Jr. - Don't Pretend You Didn't Know mp3 at Liquid Jesus
Dinosaur Jr. - Watch the Corners mp3 at Liquid Jesus

F BOMBS AND GUITAR GAIN ENTRANCE

He sings, he plays guitar, he drinks, he cusses, and ladies seem to like his looks. Dude's got it going on. But, whoa, wait a second. He's going to record with Dan Auerbach? Okay, so there's one thing he doesn't know. Pat Carney is a better producer. If you have any doubts, I suggest you revisit the first Black Keys LP. Duuuude, you were this close.

Here's some stuff he's already done. Dig it before the Auerbach thing comes out, you know, so you have a control group.

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Listen:
Hanni El Khatib - Fuck it. You Win mp3 at Ground Control
Hanni El Khatib - Come Alive mp3 at The Meaty Sauce Review
Hanni El Khatib – Roach Cock mp3 at Cortesia de la Casa
Hanni El Khatib - You Got a Thing mp3 at Rollo and Grady Direct linking disabled, go there to get it.
Visit:
Hanni El Khatib - Official site
Hanni El Khatib - Interview at LA Record

WE'RE A COVER BAND

When the first recording of 45 Grave surfaced in 1980 it was on a compilation called Darker Skratcher, put out by the Los Angeles Free Music Society. Juxtaposed with the other other songs on the largely experimental/arty compilation, their song "Riboflavin Flavored, Non Carbonated, Poly-Unsaturated Blood" stood out as some catchy ghoul pop. Just now climbing out of my hole, I'm finding out that it was a cover. No wonder it was catchy, there were experienced novelty record song writers behind it. Well goodnight Irene, I can close the case file.

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Listen:
Don Hinson and the Rigamorticians - Riboflavin Flavored, Non Carbonated, Poly-Unsaturated Blood mp3 at Graham Trievel
45 Grave - Riboflavin Flavored, Non Carbonated, Poly-Unsaturated Blood (streaming) at YouTube
45 Grave - Evil mp3 at The Cargo Culte
45 Grave - Black Cross mp3 at AliceBag.com

AGAIN, DUKE REID GOT WEIRD

I can be lazy. You may have noticed a few recycled posts here and there. I try to avoid it, but every once in a while there's a good reason involved. That's the case with Nora Dean's "Angie La La," a record that seldom pops up in downloadable format. So when I ran across it in a post at Art Decade, I had to post it for anyone who missed about a year ago, because it's strange, beautiful, and exotic; a potent combination. A little recycled gushing from the last time:

With the exception of Coxsone Dodd, there's probably no better known producer/label owner/studio owner in the ska, rock steady and early reggae eras than Duke Reid. He recorded just about all of the heavy hitters of the day for his Treasure Isle label, many of whom also recorded for Dodd's Studio One. The majority of the records he released were pretty straight forward in their approach, or so I thought. While this might not carry significance for anyone other than fellow reggae fiends, I must report that last night I came across a record that is hands down the strangest record I've ever heard on Treasure Isle label. There's very little reggae in it, but there's very little of anything in it; that is, anything that you can pin down. Sound confusing? It is hard to describe how unusual it is, but far easier to describe what other music has the same vibe, not that it even that makes things any clearer. Try mixing up Mulatu Astatke, the Budos Band, and Jerry Dammer's Spatial AKA Orchestra, with the bird and animal noises of Martin Denny, and the vocals of Billie Holiday. One thing is certain, this is one trippy record.

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The featured song:
Nora Dean - Angie La La mp3 at Art Decade
Other stuff:
Nora Dean - Barbwire mp3 at Beware of the Blog
Nora Dean - Night Food Reggae mp3 via 4Shared*
The Duke Reid Group - The Rude Boy mp3 at Cubik Musik
Visit:
Nora Dean fan site
Treasure Isle partial discography
Duke Reid at Wikipedia

POST-SPICOLLI

It is brilliant in it's simplicity. Or maybe not. I know what it is. It's like a surrogate drinking buddy. Everybody's had one. The guy who's a beer or two ahead of everyone else, with a total disregard for fancy people. Burps, farts, scratches. He's the guy who would say it, "I drink cheap beer. So what. Fuck you." That's the chorus of "Cheap Beer," by Fidlar. Everybody would have to either agree or disagree with the sentiment, right? I think you can figure out what the official platform is over here.

The name Fidlar is derived from Fuck It Dog, Life's A Risk. That's kind of an eye roller. But, I do like the band as distinctly SoCal, some part of a post-Spicolli, punkish rockish beach slack. Just look at the song titles and you'll have a good idea of what I'm talking about. I think it's significant that the only cover I came across was one of Pulp's "Common People." I'm not a fan of Pulp, but I love that song. I first heard William Shatner's version, which I like a lot. Shatner's trademark cadence is not as corny as you'd expect, and actually works to the songs advantage, adding to the lyrics effectiveness. (Both versions are posted below.)

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Listen:
Fidlar - Cheap Beer mp3 at We All Want Something to Shout For
Fidlar - Common People mp3 at Turntable Kitchen
Fidlar - Max Can't Surf mp3 at My Band's Better Than Your Band
Fidlar - I Wanna Be Your Cocaine mp3 at This Is the Big Beat
Fidlar - No Ass mp3 at Gimme Tinnitus
Fidlar - No Waves mp3 at Rollo and Grady Direct linking to mp3s may be disabled. If so, go there to get it
Fidlar - Got No Money mp3 at Rollo and Grady Ditto: got there.
Fidlar - Wake Bake Skate mp3 at Rollo and Grady Ditto: Go there.
Beam me down:
William Shatner - Common People mp3 at Inkiostro
Visit:
Fidlar - Official site
Fidlar at Bandcamp

BRYLCREEM? NOPE, HAVEN'T SEEN IT.

I don't have much to say that hasn't been said about this lot. An old favorite, and I mean old; not the version that's around now, with only two original members. No Johnny Thunders, no Dolls. There's no wiggle room there. Anyway, I ran across the Dolls' version of "Funky But Chic," a song that David Johansen had on his first post-Dolls LP. I never heard it before, so I figured what the hell. Here's that one and a whole mess of other stuff posted a year or so ago.

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Listen:
New York Dolls - Funky But Chic mp3 at Planet Mondo
New York Dolls - Looking For A Kiss (demo) mp3 at Art Decade
New York Dolls - Red Patent Leather (live) mp3 at Planet Mondo
New York Dolls - Frankenstein mp3 at Salad Days Music
New York Dolls - Personality Crisis mp3 at The Adios Lounge
New York Dolls - Jet Boy (demo) mp3 at The Music Slut
New York Dolls - Stranded in the Jungle mp3 at Blackout Musique
New York Dolls - Bad Girl mp3 at Cubick Musik
New York Dolls - Bad Girl (demo) mp3 at x818
New York Dolls - Pills mp3 at The Vague CD
New York Dolls - Trash mp3 at The Vague CD
New York Dolls - Great Big Kiss (demo) mp3 at Glam Punk
New York Dolls - Back in the U.S.A. (live) mp3 at x818
New York Dolls - Chatterbox mp3 at Lil Mike's
New York Dolls - Human Being mp3 (via 4Shared*)
New York Dolls - Vietnamese Baby mp3 (via 4Shared*)
New York Dolls - There's Gonna Be A Showdown mp3 (via 4Shared*)
New York Dolls - Pirate Love (live) mp3 (via 4Shared*)
*At 4Shared, look for the blue "Download Now"button.
Video:
New York Dolls - Jet Boy (Old Grey Whistle Test) at YouTube
New York Dolls - Personality Crisis (The Beat Club) at YouTube
New York Dolls - Looking For a Kiss (Old Grey Whistle Test) a

PRE-CRATE DIGGING

If you're a music fiend that's been at it a while, you no doubt remember when you could graze at thrift stores and pick up some good stuff, especially if you had esoteric taste. If you're not quite that old, let me fill you in. It was a world in which, when something was out of print, that meant out of print. There were very few reissues. That meant no special orders at the record shop, and downloads didn't exist. Ebay didn't exist. The internet didn't exist. Record auctions were for hard core collectors only, usually by mail or phone. If you wanted to hear something as common now as a Dick Dale or Stooges LP, you had to know someone who had it, or hope to find it somewhere in a dusty bin or garage sale. As futile as that sounds, scouring thrift stores was a lot more rewarding than you'd think. Ten cent oddballs ruled, but you could find treasures as well. But the internet that spawned all of the convenient accessibility that you now enjoy (and I can't lie, I like it too), has enabled everybody to get into the auction game. The downside is that if you want first crack at records in a thrift shop, you're going to have to get up pretty early to beat those Ebay scoundrels. And I don't mean the folks that snag the mainstream stuff. I could care less about that stuff. I'm talking about the guys who snag a Sonics LP who couldn't give two shits about the music. They just know there's a thousand old fucks who will engage in a bidding war.

Every once in a while I'll run across a site with music that almost brings back that feeling of flipping through 45s at a thrift store. You know, the "Hmm, this looks interesting. Ten cents, you can't go wrong..." feeling. That's what brought this on. The past week I've been digging on Office Naps, a site I'd forgotten about. Their posts are thematic, it could be Latin tinged surf, jazz exotica, or torch singers. And the writing is good too. Here's just a few of the surf things that wound my watch. I could link to a hundred things on their site, but that would take away the fun. Go there and dig through the posts.

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Listen:
Charles Wright and the Malibus - Runky mp3 at Office Naps
The Torquays - Escondido mp3 at Office Naps
Calvin Cool - El Tecolote mp3 at Office Naps
Richie Allen - Caveman mp3 at Office Naps
Visit:
Middle Eastern tinged exotica post at Office Naps
Jazz Exotique post at Office Naps

YABBA DO

Yikes! I already knew that Bo Diddley had his spells of musical slutiness, but the Hook? A word of warning: if you listen to the two songs below hoping for some good old fashioned Bo Diddley or John Lee Hooker, you're going to be disappointed. If you think of them as some seventies oddball half effort funk biscuits, you'll be okay. Really, these are for the curious. I do have to hand it to Bo for the thought provoking lyric "Yabba yabba yabba yabba dabba do, If you ain't careful, gonna bite you." Hooker's "Make It Funky" sounds like James Brown's tired uncle crashing the jam.

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Listen:

Bo Diddley - Bite You mp3 at DK Presents
John Lee Hooker - Make it Funky mp3 at DK Presents

MY KIND OF SURF MUSIC

Walking home from an evening dip earlier, it was one of those rare cynicism free moments. I'd gotten off early, and on my way down to the beach, I ran into a friend with all six of her kids, from the ages of five to fifteen, all half fish, as is their mom. A block later I ran into Gary, the guy who's always down on the wall by the beach handing out dog eared second hand bibles to any takers, sermon free. A hundred yards later, Larry, known to locals as "the guitar guy." He sits on the same rock, playing the same barely audible songs, that he has for going on twenty years. Larry lives in his van, but is a man with unbroken spirit, always appreciative of his real home, a rock by the sea. By the time I reached the water I was already on a familiar fall high. (Excuse me for getting wordy.) Heading home, saturated with warm weather, warm water, and total locals, I was thinking about what type of music would be most fitting for the last couple hours of daylight on a nearly perfect fall day. I had the Budos beat. The Budos Band is my go-to fall soundtrack, and after thinking about it, just as fitting for a surf movie soundtrack as Bud Shank was fifty years ago, and just as valid as Dick Dale and his mob.


Not entirely what I had in mind, but this almost works.

An interesting coincidence: When I looking for some songs, the first blog I landed on, This Bonus Track, began their Budos Band post thusly: "You’re driving along the edge of a cliff. It’s sundown and there’s an ocean next to you..." There's that damn ocean again.

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Listen:
The Budos Band - Ghost Walk mp3 at This Bonus Track
The Budos Band - Unbroken, Unshaven mp3 at This Bonus Track
The Budos Band - Chicago Falcon mp3 at This Bonus Track
The Budos Band - Natures Wrath mp3 at The Cargo Culte
The Budos Band - Mas O Menos (streaming) at Our Vinyl With a good interview

JOHN'S GREASER FRIEND

You know, when it gets right down to it, I hate it when blogs tell you how hot shit something is and how you should just lap it up, as if they know something you don't. They just come off as blowhards. Well, call me a blowhard. I think Dan Sartain's stuff is hot shit and you should lap it up. Enough so that I will give him a pass, even though he did one song with Jane Wiedlin from the Go-Gos, which looms big, because I have a strong distaste for her. It's not just because I don't like her persona, it's a character thing. Many years ago, my friends from the band Monitor threw a party in some warehouse in Venice. It was a great party, but a mess to clean up. After all the people wandered out, someone that was helping clean up swept all the crap from the party into one big pile. Jane Wiedlin came back to the party. She was in a tizzy because she had lost an earring that was a small plastic dice. She proceeded to spread the pile that had just been swept up all over the floor again to find her precious earring. A cheap plastic earring. I don't remember if she found it, I just remember she left without helping to clean up the mess that she had just made. This whole digression proves two things: I can hold a grudge for a very long time, and Dan Sartain's shit must really be hot.

Sartain's soft side

His music got me through today, and I thought I'd post his stuff again and, you know, bitch about Jane Wiedlin along the way. Sartain has a newish LP out, a little more punk rock than his past endeavors, it's twelve songs in eighteen minutes. It came out in January, but I've given up waiting for any new mp3s to be posted, so here's some new stuff streaming, and some downloadable goodies that have been posted before. Check the two videos. He's both of these things, and lot more in between.

A minute and a half long song, called "Fuck Friday." This is Occam's Razor.

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From the latest
Dan Sartain - Fuck Friday (streaming) at Blah Blah Blah Science
Dan Sartain - I'm Aware (streaming) at DanSartain.com
Dan Sartain with Messmaker Wiedlin - No No No (streaming) at Mad Makerel
Older variety:
Dan Sartain - Atheist Funeral mp3 at Brooklyn Vegan
Dan Sartain - Perverted Justice mp3 at Big Legal Mess
Dan Sartain - Flight of the Finch mp3 at Kolledge Daily
Dan Sartain - Boxcutter in My Boot mp3 at Xtrmntr
Dan Sartain - Who's Sorry Now mp3 at WBHM
Dan Sartain - Baby's Town mp3 at Swami Records
Dan Sartain - Telegram Sam mp3 at Xtrmntr
Dan Sartain - 19 more songs at Xtrmntr Click on the song titles to download
Visit:
Dan Sartain official site
Dan Sartain at Facebook
Dan Sartain at MySpace

CHERRYPICKERS DELIGHT

I'm going to say as little as possible about these guys, because everything I've read, including lengthy liner notes by a band member, come close to over-thinking things. Even if some of it is tongue in cheek. It's just a goddamn band, stripped down, playing simple songs that I like hearing repeatedly. I do like the production. It's kind of flat; cheap, without sounding too intentionally lo-fi. Some of the stuff is really good (the first two). Some sucks. And that's it. Done.

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Listen:
Chain and the Gang - In Cold Blood mp3 at Escafandrista Musical
Chain and the Gang - Detroit Music mp3 (via Box.net) at Sonic Masala "Download" button at top right at Box.net.
Chain and the Gang - Musics Not For Everyone mp3 at Motel de Moka
Chain and the Gang - Not Good Enough mp3 (via Box.net) at Sonic Masala
Chain and the Gang - Four songs at The New Lo-Fi
Chain and the Gang -Two songs (steaming) at Everybody Taste
LP:
Chain and the Gang - In Cold Blood LP (streaming) at Under The Radar 13 songs, streaming

RIDICULOUS RULES

I dig textbook surf music as much as the next guy, but there's something about bands who take surf music and give it a serious tweaking. It used to irritate the fuck out of me, but after bands like Lawndale, the Romans, and the Raybeats started messing the recipe, I loosened up a bit. That was quite a while ago, and now there's a thousand bands messing with that recipe even further, two of which are right out my back door, the Creepy Creeps and Monsters From Mars.

The Creepy Creeps are a flat out riot. Check out the video above, just try to ignore the corny intro. After that, take a gander at the wild live videos below and you'll get an idea. They've got a real salad bowl, these guys. Surf, garage, punk rock, and the Northwest garage sound, all kind of thrown together. Visually, they are a site to behold. For instance, in the Live in the Parking Lot video below, they have their identities concealed, as they always do, this time with skull masks. They're wearing mariachi outfits. They've got two female go-go dancers and two male, well I'm not sure what they're doing, but they've got mechanics coveralls, Lucha Libre masks, and fezzes. All of this in broad daylight. In a parking lot. Oh yeah, I almost forgot the best part: with a fog machine. It's so ridiculous, it sucked me in. They also have this other thing too, as Creepxotica, doing exotica versions of their songs (again, link below). I wasn't able to find any single songs by these nuts, but there's a link below to an LP that someone has posted (it's really good). The other guys, Monsters From Mars do things in a loosely similar vein, enough to have done an aborted split single with the aforementioned Creeps. The songs at Bandcamp (link below) were to have been the two on their side of the split, and both are good. The 2004: A Space Odyssey thing is an early self-recorded LP, their first I think. It's closer to regular surf music and, to be honest, if I'm in a regular surf music mood, there are a lot of bands that I'd listen to first. But it is a good listen.

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Listen:
The Creepy Creeps - Fink About It LP at What Are Blood Wings Go there to get it, look for "Download" button at the bottom of the post.

Monsters From Mars - Two songs at Bandcamp (click on "Download")
Monsters From Mars - 2004: A Space Odyssey at Internet Archive Full LP, early home recorded. Single song and full LP downloads
Video:
The Creepy Creeps - Live In the Parking Lot at YouTube Skip the interview, music starts at 2:30
The Creepy Creeps - Live in North Park at YouTube Yet again, in another parking lot.
Creepxotica - Live At a Pool Party at YouTube Pool party? Now they're just showboating.
Visit:
The Creepy Creeps at MySpace
Monsters From Mars