Recent Acquisitions: March 26, 2009

The Spinanes, Manos (Sub-Pop, $2.50). Before there was the guitar-drums duo of Jack and Meg White, there was the duo of Roberta Gates and Scott Plouf, except the guy played drums and the gal played guitar. (File under: Band Name or Archaic Malady?)

The Schramms, Walking to Delphi (OKra, $2.50). Dave Schramm was an original member of Yo La Tengo, who struck out on his own. He returned to the group for one album that happens to be one of the greatest cover albums of all time (Fakebook). This is his band playing literate rock. Two songs set Emily Dickenson poems to music and one song borrows from a Baudelaire poem. Just goes to show you that bands these days don’t even aspire to pretentiousness. (File under: Band Name or Beer Name?)

Francoise Hardy, Loving (Reprise, orange and tan label original pressing, $13). This is Hardy’s first album sung entirely in English. Will that diminish her appeal? It might if it turns out she’s been singing about buttercups and bumblebees all along. (File under: ESL Records)

Van Morrison, Tupelo Honey (Warner Brothers, green label, original pressing, $1). This is an album that I sold during a vinyl purge in the late 80s. This used copy has a very honey-colored album cover, hopefully due to exposure to sunlight. This thought also crossed my mind: Could tupelo honey be a genteel Southern euphemism for piss?

Brahms, Four Symphonies, Bernard Haitink, Concertgebouw Orchestra (Philips, 4 LPs, Dutch pressing, $1). Four monuments of Western culture for a buck! On one hand I’m glad about this bargain. On the other hand, it depresses me that it’s valued less than The Monkee’s Greatest Hits.

Beethoven, Late Quartets, Amadeus Quartet (Deutsche Gramophone, tulips label, 4 LPs for $15). Wonderful warm analog sound. It's always interesting how different performers interpret this other-worldly music. These performances are a little too refined for my taste. (File under: Rocky’s Favorite Music)

Rimsky-Korsakoff, Scheherazade, Reiner, Chicago SO (RCA stereo, shaded dog label, $2.50). This record is treasured by audiophiles. I’ve seen a mint copy sell for $100. This copy is not mint, but excellent nonetheless and hard to pass up at the price.

Peter Tosh, Legalize It (Columbia, $2.50). It’s a warped, thrashed copy. After listening to it, I’m intent on picking up a clean copy. Great album! (File under: Drug Czars in an Ideal World)

Dusty Springfield, Dusty in Memphis (Atlantic, original pressing, $15). I’ve been looking for an original pressing of this classic ever since I bought a recent reissue a few years ago. There’s a noticeable difference in sound quality, more bloom in the original pressing. Advice for all singers: record an album in Memphis if you want to revive your career. It never seems to fail.

Cal Tjader, Hip Vibrations (Verve, original stereo pressing, $3). I guess in the 60s it was conceivable for a horned-rim-glasses-wearing jazz vibraphonist to put out a record with a psychedelic cover and the title Hip Vibrations. Far out. (File under: Good Vibes)

Perez Prado, Our Man in Latin America (RCA original stereo pressing, $3). Latin big band music is made for happy times. That's to say it doesn't get played much at my place. 

Perez Prado, Estas Si Viven (UA Latino, $2). I can imagine this record being played near the end of a cocktail party in the 60s after most of the gin has been consumed or spilled on the carpeting.

The Horace Silver Quintet, Tokyo Blues (Blue Note, blue label, Van Gelder in dead wax, $5).

Miles Davis, In Concert (Columbia, -1A pressings, 2-LP, $8). There are no songs listed on the jacket or record labels. Judging from the Fat Albert-type cartoon figures on the cover, this is a live album from the On the Corner period (mid-70s).

The Ahmad Jamal Trio, Volume 4 (Argo stereo pressing, $4). Surprisingly Jamal seems neglected these days, especially considering he was a major influence on Miles. He sounds good to my ears.

The Delfonics, Super Hits (Philly Groove original pressing, $10). I've been looking to pick up a Delfonics album ever since I saw Jackie Brown, with the scene of Pam Grier playing a Delfonics album for Robert Forster. 

Al Green, I'm Still in Love With You (Hi Records, $8). I'm on a mission to acquire all of Al Green's secular albums released on Hi. We'll see about his religious albums.

Al Green, Livin' for You (Hi/London Records, UK pressing, $9). UK pressings generally used higher quality vinyl than US pressings of the same era. But the sound of this pressing is less dynamic than the US Hi pressings of other Al Green albums. 

Joe Simon, The Chokin' Kind (Sound Stage 7, $3). Never heard of Joe Simon, but I like the song list. "The Chokin' Kind" is one of the greatest songs ever written.

The Who, Quadrophrenia (Classic Records reissue, 2-LP 200-gm vinyl, $34). This is comfort food for me. But I suspect buying a second, expensive copy when I already have a clean original pressing of the album sets me apart from sane people, among other things.

The Police, Ghost in the Machine (A&M, Sterling TJ in the deadwax, $2). 

Jimi Hendrix, Hendrix in the West (Reprise, Sterling RL in the deadwax, $3).  RL stands for Robert Ludwig, one the best mastering engineers in the business. His version of Led Zeppelin II is justly sought after by vinyl collectors. It makes other pressings of the albums sound dull and lifeless. His abilities are limited if the original tape isn't good to begin with, which is the case with the Isle of Wight concert tracks on this album. The Berkeley and San Diego concert tracks sound great.

Bonnie Tyler, Faster Than the Speed of Night (Columbia, $1). The album title begs the question, exactly how fast is the speed of night? Does it stay constant during a total eclipse of the heart? It’s enough to confound Stephen Hawking. (File under: Airhead Physics)

Classifying Records

I started writing about organizing my record collection with the basic premise that dividing the collection into musical genres was necessary to find individual albums with the greatest ease. But as I thought about it, it became apparent that arranging all the albums alphabetically by artist name, regardless of genre, would be the simplest organizational system. It would still allow me to find a specific album without much trouble. This method also eliminates the problem of cross-over artists such as Ray Charles and Ella Fitzgerald who could fit into two or more genres. Yet I will never adopt this system. I can’t bear the thought of finding J.S. Bach next to Burt Bacharach next to Bachman Turner Overdrive.

Then what is the real reason for organizing records by musical genres? My best guess is it has to do with establishing (or imposing) a sense of order. Just as biologists name flora and fauna within a taxonomic system to make the natural world more understandable, record collectors establish a taxonomic system of musical categories and subcategories to understand what they have. Except it’s not an objective, universal system like the taxonomy of organisms. Each collector’s method of organizing records is highly personal. I suspect, ultimately, categorizing records isn’t an attempt to understand the musical world, but rather an attempt to understand oneself. When I look at my collection, I can see I have three shelves of classical albums with about ten inches of Mahler albums, and four shelves of Jazz with about eight inches of Mingus albums, etc. When I see this, there is some sort of self-identification going on that would be impossible if the albums were all mixed together.

I’m reminded of the scene in Diner where Shrevie (Daniel Stern) reprimands his wife (Ellen Barkin) for not returning an album to its correct location on the shelf. He can’t understand how she can confuse musical genres. Her response—“I just want to listen to the music”—is perfectly reasonable on one level, but misses the perhaps unreasonable relationship of the record collector to his collection. Levinson uses the scene to illustrate the disintegration of their marriage. He stages it so the audience perceives Shrevie as overreacting to the situation. For me there’s a little more to it: As long as she has access to his records (I don’t think Shrevie complains about her listening to his records), his sense of order and self-identity will be challenged by another who may think the Nat King Cole Trio belongs in Pop, not Jazz.

Album Cover Gallery: Punk Ass Kids

"Hey! Get off my lawn, you punk ass kids!"

"Hey, kids, get off my porch! Scram!"

"For Christ's sake, get off my roof!"

"Hey, you no-good kids, stop drinking my booze!"

"Where are you going with my hubcaps!"

Recent Acquisitions (2-20-09)

Visit to the Newark Record Swap yielded these goodies:

Michael Henderson, In the Night-Time (Buddah, $2.50). Is the cover a late addition to the Crimes of Fashion gallery? Hell, no! If I had an album of smooth 70s soul and had his chest, I'd dress exactly the same as Michael Henderson. 

Barry White, Stone Gon' (20th Century, $2.50). Barry White's baritone is the vocal equivalent of an open shirt. Lucky for him, because he would look ridiculous with his shirt opened to the waist. 

Al Green, Explores Your Mind (Hi Records, $2.50). The record still has the shrink wrap and a price tag from the Record Factory. It cost $4.98 back when it came out in 1974. Using the Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI Inflation Calculator, that's equivalent to $21.33 today. Money aside, this album is about as close to a religious experience as this secular soul has had.

Bill Withers, Just As I Am (Sussex original pressing, $4). This is Withers' debut record, which was released when he was 33 years old. He had worked in factories most of his early adult life. He's holding a lunch bucket on the album cover. I wonder if he had to bring his own lunch to the recording sessions. He sounds kind of pissed on this album. I would be pissed too if I had to bring my own lunch to the recording sessions. After the success of this album and his next one, which contains "Lean on Me", he sounded less pissed and his albums got less interesting. 

Bill Withers, Just As I Am (Sussex/A&M German pressing, $2.50). I love this album so much I have to have two copies. Curious what the Germans did to this fine-sounding LP.

The Motown Story: The First Twenty-Five Years (Motown 5-LP compilation, $2.50). Motown used to manufacture hits. Now I hear the hits are manufactured by 12-year old children in sweat shops in Sri Lanka. That would explain the Jonas Brothers and Milly Cyrus.

David Bowie, The Man Who Sold the World (RCA, orange label reissue on dynaflex vinyl, $2.50). The original LP was released on Mercury Records and featured a different cover. If the album is any good, I'll look for the original.

Neil Young, On the Beach (Reprise, $5). The 2nd of Young's Doom Trilogy and one of his scarcer albums. This one is stone mint.

Gabor Szabo, Wind Sky and Diamond (Impulse! red and black 2nd pressing, $2.50).  The cover gives this credit: "With the California Dreamers". In other words, I'm bracing myself for disappointment. That's why I didn't spring for the $15 original pressing at the record swap.

Charles Mingus, Mingus at Monterey (Mingus JWS-1/2, double LP, black label, distributed by Fantasy, $8). There is no other jazz artist who so effortlessly bridged the traditional and the modern strains of jazz. This is the first album Mingus released on his own label. It was originally available only by mail order. Those albums command big bucks now. Two years after its initial release, Fantasy distributed the album to a wider audience. I almost bought a Fantasy copy for $30 at Amoeba. Glad I waited. Patience is crucial in buying records. Conversely, when you come across a rare record, you need to be decisive enough to snap it up while elbowing others away.

John Coltrane, A Love Supreme (Impulse! red and black label 2nd pressing, Van Gelder in the dead wax, $15).  I'd be really happy if not for the quarter-inch scratch on side 2. This is the best sounding version of the album I've heard. Copies mastered by Van Gelder are hard to find.

From the dollar bins. I rationalize buying dollar records by equating their cost to a candy bar, One good song on an album lasts longer a candy bar. And you can't ever eat that candy bar again.

Mike Oldfield, Tubular Bells (Virgin Records). I can't believe this guy can wank for 50 minutes straight. I couldn't get past the first 10 minutes of his musical masturbation. To think some people like this. I guess there are folks who like to watch others jerk off. (File under: Onanism)

The Police, Outlandos d'Amour (A&M, no bar code). The Police actually have held up really well. I like them now more than ever before.

ELO, El Dorado (UA sunrise label). I can't say the same for ELO, but it's good for times when you feel like listening to the Beatles without actually wanting to hear the Beatles.

Joni Mitchell, Mingus (Asylum). I'm not a huge Joni fan, but I love Mingus. I wonder who wins in this incongruous pairing. I bet Joni walks all over Mingus.

Simon and Garfunkel, Wednesday Morning 3 A.M. (CBS stereo 2-eye). Contains the original version of "Sound of Silence", not the hit version featured in The Graduate.

Cat Stevens, Mona Bone Jakon (A&M tan label). What the hell does the title mean? It sounds lewd.

Go-Go's, Beauty and the Beat (IRS, Sterling in dead wax). No, Rocky is not gay. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Album Cover Gallery: Crimes of Fashion

"Put on your finest threads, Buckaroos, we're playing Carnegie Hall!"

Modern lover of bad pirate costumes. 

Art may have recorded this album after having served 15 years in San Quentin, but wearing that shirt on an album cover should get him a life sentence in the fashion penitentiary, living legend or not

I don't know why the Cat Woman hairstyle never caught on, especially when you could get such smart matching accessories

This one hits a little too close to home

This Week's Acquisitions (2-2-09)

Dropped off about 40 unwanted LPs at Goodwill. 

New additions to the collection from the previous 2 weeks:

Rivers Cuomo, Alone: The Home Recordings of Rivers Cuomo (Geffen, new for $11). Damn you, Terri Gross, for making me buy another album! (File under: Phi Beta Kappa Rock Stars)

Linton Kwesi Johnson, Bass Culture (Mango, original pressing for $8). Kind of like beat poetry read to jazz music, except it's a reggae band and LKJ instead of Kerouac ranting about the Man. (File under: Reggae, slightly pretentious)

Miles Davis, Someday My Prince Will Come (Columbia mono two-eye, 2nd pressing, $10). I already have an original pressing in stereo, but the mono pressings of that era often sound better than the stereo version, as most recording engineers hadn't quite figured out how to record in stereo. (File under: Jazz, almost classic)

Ravi Shankar, 3 Ragas (World Pacific, original pressing, $5). The other day I was thinking I don't listen to enough sitar music and I need to do something about it. Really. (File under: Sitar Music Played by Real Indians)

Neil Young, Rust Never Sleeps (Reprise, $2). An empty feeling overwhelmed me when looking through my Neil Young collection I realized this album was missing. Problem solved. (File under: Albums that belong in every rock collection)

Bob Dylan, Self Portrait (Columbia, $4). This used to be considered Dylan's worst album, until the Grateful Dead dragged him to a new low. (File under: Meh Dylan)

Alice Cooper, Greatest Hits (WB palm tree label, $2). I'm not sure what it means, but I've got an urge to play "I'm Eighteen" repeatedly. (File under: Musical and Personal Regressions)

Cheap Trick, In Color (Epic reissue, $2). What the hell, you're picking up an Alice Cooper album, might as well get this, too, you loser. (File under: Music Snob Repellant) 

Henry Mancini, The Big Latin Band of Henry Mancini (RCA black label with white dog, stereo original pressing, $2). Hmmm, the "Mission Impossible Theme" played by a big latin band.... I'd say that's a solid 10 out of 10 on the Irresistibility Scale. Your mission, Jim, is to cha cha cha! (File under: Ironic or Not?)

Debussy, Images/Prelude to the Afternoon of the Faun, Michael Tilson-Thomas, Boston SO (Deutsche Grammaphon, $0.50). Another thing I haven't been able to resist lately are cheap Debussy records. (File under: Music for daydreaming about living peacefully in a forest with no worries of bear attacks)

Art Pepper, Art Pepper+11 (Analogue Productions, 45 rpm pressing on 2 LPs, new for $50). #969 of 1,000 limited edition copies. Yeah, I already have this album, but this is supposed to be the best-sounding version ever. (File under: rocky's favorite music)

Mahler, Symphony No. 2, George Solti, London SO (Speakers Corner, 2-LP reissue, new for $54). I can't believe how much better this German pressing sounds compared to my early English pressing of this fine album. Expensive and totally worth it. (File under: rocky's favorite music)

Listening Session: Feist, The Reminder

Feist’s The Reminder is on my list of the ten best albums of the new millennium. The songs are brilliantly written and sung; they hold together to form a coherent album that is greater than the sum of its parts. This should be apparent to the most casual listener. (The “album” has become a lost art form in this era of downloadable singles. Its decline probably goes back to the advent of CDs, when artists had to think of an album in terms of a single long-play format with the capacity for 75-minutes of music instead of two 20-minute sides. The latter just seems like a more manageable format for structuring an album. But that’s a topic for another post.)

What I want to discuss is how the production of The Reminder contributes to the album’s greatness. There’s usually very little discussion regarding the production value of an album by music reviewers or fans, especially compared to, say, movies. The Reminder is one album in which each song is produced differently for effect and artistic purpose. The album starts with “So Sorry”, which sounds like a simple, live analog recording (there’s even tape hiss in the background). When Feist starts singing, the realism is startling. The entire song has a sense of immediacy that makes the rest of the album sound like artifice. It’s as if “So Sorry” is the present point and the songs that follow are a constructed past or background to the present moment. This is readily apparent in “The Park”, a song that has a severely boxed-in sound, as if the singer’s voice is coming from a transistor radio or metaphorically trapped in the past. The production perfectly matches the song’s essence. The following song, “The Water”, adds heavy reverb to Feist’s voice that heightens the sense of a person lost in a vast space. In “Sea Lion Woman”, Feist’s voice is processed in a way that suggests the shamanistic tone of the song. “Intuition” has the same boxed-in sound as “The Park” with a little extra reverb in her voice. It’s this common sound that made me realize that “Intuition” is the sister song to “The Park”, with a common subject but a different perspective. On the vinyl LP, these two songs are also the fourth track on the respective side. As these examples illustrate, The Reminder is a rich, complex album that merits close listening. My only complaint is that Feist has such a great voice that it’s a shame that on all but the first song, there’s some produced effect to her voice.

Record used for the listening session is the Dutch pressing on white vinyl. I also have the US pressing of the album, but have not compared it to the Dutch pressing yet.