"I am positive that she is positive, and I think it's really sad she's gonna die..." Remember Jeff Dahl? Afro'd punkrocker, played in the Angry Samoans and Powertrip before starting his own mean lil' outfit. Probably wrote the first punk song ever about aids, and a damn good one at that. Featuring the legendary Dave Smalley on guest vocals. Jeff Dahl - Positive
Back with a rootsy bang, as Just The Vibes is a fine reggae collection on the excellent Moll-Selekta label I had criminally overlooked until recently. Not so strange that, as Brooks himself always preferred a position in the background. Although he was definitely a talented singer, Brooks rather worked away quietly in the producer's chair, putting the finishing touches to roaring roots music by the Revolutionaries, the Mighty Diamonds, Barry Brown, and his pal Jah Lloyd, to name but a few. Mike Brooks - Holy Jah Jah [...]
Four saxes, one vision. Always loved Tenor Conclave , a hot blowing session recorded in 1956 and featuring messrs. Mobley, Cohn, Coltrane, and Sims in great form. The Bob in the title refers to Bob Weinstock btw, founder of the famous jazz label Prestige . While you dig, I'm off for a few days on a hopefully sunny rest & recuperation trip. See ya sometime next week. Hank Mobley, Al Cohn, John Coltrane, Zoot Sims - Bob's Boys
And here's mr. Hendrix, from that wonderful purple velvet box set I just can't get enough of at the mo. We'll start with a short but very sweet early take of Room Full Of Mirrors from the Electric Ladyland sessions, with his old pal Paul Caruso on harp. And we'll conclude with the full blast tandem of Hey Baby and In From The Storm , recorded on the Hawaiian island of Maui in that long gone summer of 1970. The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Room Full Of Mirrors [...]
This just in from the Americana dept: time to meet Screen Door Porch, all the way from Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Got a second album coming up which will be called The Fate & The Fruit , and I'm calling on all aficionados of twang to pay some well-deserved attention. Screen Door Porch - Burnin' At Both Ends Screen Door Porch - Devil's Honey
Costello does a Dury, live at Leicester Uni, 1977. Featuring Davey Payne, that fine fine saxophone man of the Blockheads. No need to hustle... Elvis Costello - Roadette Song
My current fave from the always amazing Funky 16 Corners compilation. Simply irresistable. "Get out on the floor and show me what you can do..." Ernie & The Top Notes, Inc. - Dap Walk
Where other reggae reissue labels slowly fade away or have just plain given up, the mighty Pressure Sounds refuses to knuckle under. What's more: it digs deeper still. Just when I thought the Scratch vaults were all but empty, here's High Plains Drifter , a wicked collection of pre- Black Ark Lee Perry productions of 45's only issued in Jamaica. The Ethiopians - Awake The Faithful Brothers - Iniquity Workers
Revisited this cool sampler from Anyway Records yesterday. Yup, that's the tiny tiny Ohio label that gave the New Bomb Turks and Gaunt their first shots at punk rock stardom. But the lesser known names, such as Appalachian Death Ride, Greenhorn, and the rather wonderfully named Stupid Fuckin Hippie take care of lofi business just as well. And in case you were wondering, a bladdernut is not some painful medical condition, but some kind of plant , apparently. Appalachian Death Ride - Firefly Greenhorn - Conversations With Myself [...]
In June '92, Bob Dylan recorded a couple of tracks with David Bromberg in Chicago's Acme Studios. Sadly, none of these were released, until Tell Tale Signs , the 8th installment in the Bootleg Series , gave us Miss The Mississippi and Duncan And Brady . Of at least eight other songs recorded at the Bromberg sessions that remain in the vaults, three rather lofi-sounding but fine tracks are circulating in collector's circles: two takes on Bromberg originals, and the beautiful traditional Polly Vaughn . Bob [...]
My original vinyl copy of the delightful Crazy Rhythms - on the legendary Stiff label - being all but worn out, I just had to replace it. And guess what: the fairly recent cd reissue on Bar/None and Domino comes with a download code for access to a couple of bonus tracks, two of which are pre-album demos recorded at Carla Bley's studio in the spring of '79. Here's the best one, with that trademark neurotic guitar work and hypnotic percussion already firmly in place. The Feelies - [...]
Johnny Jenkins, once the boss of an up-and-coming Otis Redding in the Pinetoppers, makes an already classic Muddy Waters recording his own. Come on in, Johnny boy... Exquisite slide courtesy of the one and only brother Duane. Johnny Jenkins - Rollin' Stone
Since I noticed with satisfaction that a lot of readers really enjoy the flamenco stuff I post here, and not too many blogs feature it on a regular basis, here we go again with a hotblooded Spanish six pack. And in case you're interested in buying some cd's, here and here are two recommended online stores specialized in flamenco. ¡Vámonos, mi amigos da musica! Fernando De La Morena con Moraíto - Vamonos Pá Sevilla Jesús Méndez - No Consiento Que Me Digas [...]
"If you're a greedhead you're going down... if you're a fat cat you're going down..." Dunno if you realised it yet, but Saint Julian has a new album out , and it's a double helping at that. Looks like the archdrude is seriously fed up and pissed at the mo, toting a machine gun and dedicating disc one to Che Guevara and disc two to Leila Khaled . Here's the heavy heavy title track, with main vocals by one Lucy Brownshill. "Gonna spike some fuckers tonite..." That's the spirit. Julian Cope - [...]
Two uplifting afropop gems from the Ivory Coast, courtesy of Ernesto Djédjé. Dude sported the coolest sideburns in all of Africa and was known as the king of ziglibithy . Ernesto Djédjé - Anowah Ernesto Djédjé - Bliwana
Kevin Ayers was a big admirer of Syd Barrett, and when he was about to record the catchy Singing A Song In The Morning , a.k.a. Religious Experience , he paid the Floyd eccentric a visit. Ayers invited him to add some of his trademark guitar magic, to which Barrett agreed, and on the 28th of November, 1969 the madcap duly appeared at Abbey Road studios. Alas, the producers thought Barrett's contribution was too uncommercial for release (nonsense of course) and the song too long (quite right). Subsequently, the take was never officially released until the cd remaster [...]
All hail the art of the Jamaican 12" disco mix, which basically meant that a song was extended with either a straight dub version or with a dj toasting over the riddim. Here's a few irie examples straight from the laboratory of the Mighty Two: legendary producer Joe Gibbs and his faithful engineer Erroll Thompson. Trinity is doing fine on the mic. Junior Murvin & Trinity - Time Stiff/Time So Rough Naggo Morris & Trinity - Su Su Pon Rasta/Stop Su Su Pon The Dread [...]
That specimen from Cameroon pictured above hangs on my own wall. Can't do without it. Cabaret Voltaire - Black Mask
"I'll forget about him... don't worry... I'll bet ya..." Hey, what can I say. It's the one and only Kath Bloom, man. Wanna talk about underrated? Go ahead and talk. Kath Bloom - Forget About Him
"The desert raven, he has poetry..." I guess we'll be hearing a lot more of Jonathan Wilson in the near future. That 'new Laurel Canyon' sound of last year's ambitious Gentle Spirit debut sure hit the spot here. Retro? Nope. Just understandably influenced by past masters. Jonathan Wilson - Desert Raven Jonathan Wilson - Ballad Of The Pines
For The Sake Of The Song
No Church In The Wild
Nas - Daughters
The Rains of Castamere by The National
CHROMATICS "THESE STREETS WILL NEVER LOOK THE SAME"
DIIV "How Long Have You Known?" (OFFICIAL VIDEO)
[LISTEN] Gotye (Passion Pit Remix)
Big Boi & Theophilus London (feat. TRE LUCE) - 'She Said OK'
