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Category Archive: Random Vinyl

Random Vinyl 11/16-11/20

Posted at 11:45 AM on November 20, 2009 by Jill Riley (0 Comments)
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Monday: The Suburbs, "The Suburbs" (1986)
The Suburbs were true to their name, they were actually from the Twin Cities suburbs. Their self titled album was produced by Bobby Z, drummer for Prince and the Revolution and they were even on a major label by this time. This album should've launched their career right? Wrong. Frustration with not breaking out nationally led to the breakup of The Suburbs a year after this record was released. We played "Every Night's A Friday Night."

Tuesday: Stryper, "To Hell With The Devil" (1986)
Christian metal? Yes, that's a genre. Yes, we played Stryper on Random Vinyl. We delighted the audience with the power ballad "Honestly." By accident, no seriously, we meant to play the rocker "Free." Maybe next time.

Wednesday: Smith, "A Group Called Smith" (1969)
Smith covered a number of songs, they even had a hit song with their take on "Baby It's You," sung by their front woman Gayle McCormick. When they covered a song they put their own bluesy, rock sound on them. We played Smith covering the Stones' tune, "Let's Spend the Night Together."

Thursday: Sly and the Family Stone, "Stand!" (1969)
"Stand!" was the breakout album for Sly and the Family Stone. "Sing a Simple Song" was the b-side to "Everyday People." Even though it was a b-side and album track, it's been covered and sampled numerous times over the years.

Friday: Bob Dylan, "The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan" (1963)
This album contains just two covers. One of them is, "Honey, Just Allow Me One More Chance," originally by Henry Thomas in 1927. Bob totally "Dylanized" the song by rewriting the majority of it. He also sped up the tempo and added harmonica parts.

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Random Vinyl 11/9-11/13

Posted at 11:40 AM on November 13, 2009 by Jill Riley (0 Comments)
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Monday: Various Artists, "Psychadelic Dream" (1982)
This complilation features tracks from The Byrds, Aorta, The Hollies and The Peanut Butter Conspiracy, amongst others. I was pleasantly surprised to find a Great Society jam on here.

Before Grace Slick was in Jefferson Airplane, she was in a band called Great Society with her then husband, Jerry Slick. The Great Society version of "White Rabbit" is a much longer jam and it featured Grace soloing on... oboe?!

Tuesday: "Si Si Senorita"
(Listen to the audio to hear the awesomeness)

Wednesday: Elvis Presley, "A Date With Elvis" (1959)
This is another one of those Japanese pressings (handed down from her mother) that Jill grabbed from her personal collection. The sleeve looks like a cheap photo copy of the "A Date with Elvis" cover. Could this rare gem be worth some money? We enjoyed "Baby, Lets Play House."

Thursday: The Sherbs, "The Skill" (1980)
Here's one from the wacko-obscuro vault: An Australian band that went by the name "Sherbet" from 1970-1979 and then regrouped under the moniker The Sherbs in 1980 with a more poppy, new-wavey sound. Upon playing the title track (the album's only single), Steve was forced to admit this was definitely a case of "I remember this song being so much more awesome than it actually is."

Friday: Utopia, "Oops, Wrong Planet" (1977)
Todd Rundgren's band that began as a prog-rock jam-out experiment took a turn for more concise (although still occasionally spacey) pop hooks on this record, which contained "Love Is The Answer" - a tune later covererd (and made somewhat more famous) by the soft-rock duo England Dan and John Ford Coley. For Steve's money, that pap-pop version can't hold a candle to the original, especially given it's heavily multi-tracked Rundgren vocals.

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Random Vinyl 11/2-11/6

Posted at 11:57 AM on November 6, 2009 by Jill Riley (0 Comments)
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Monday: Emerson, Lake & Palmer, "Emerson, Lake & Palmer" (1971-US release) Keith Emerson plays the best Moog Synthesizer solo ever at the end of the Greg Lake penned tune, "Lucky Man." We even played it on Emerson's birthday.

Tuesday: Rolling Stones, "Their Satanic Majesties Request" (1967)
In response to The Beatles, "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band," The Rolling Stones went psychedelic with this record. The album cover even resembles "Sgt. Pepper's." We played "2000 Light Years From Home." If you have this LP, make sure to check out the crazy hidden track ("Cosmic Christmas") after "Sing This All Together (See What Happens)." It's a trip. All in all, The Stones do some really cool work on this record, but it's really the only time they would dive into the world of psychedelic rock.

Wednesday: Roxy Music, "Flesh And Blood" (1980)
By the time Roxy Music arrived at their penultimate record, they were already quite a distance from the pulsating urgency of "Do The Strand" and "Love Is The Drug" and sinking ever deeper into the late-night candelabra-vibe that would make their final album, "Avalon," one of the staples of early '80s New Romantic suave'. We played the single "Oh Yeah," and also a few seconds of the album's cover of "Eight Miles High," which is just bizarre.

Thursday: Tammy Wynette, "Greatest Hits" (1969)
The song "D-I-V-O-R-C-E" is almost a testament to what Tammy Wynette's soap opera life was. She experienced her share of heartache from her mother abandoning her, all her failed marriages (including her most famous marriage and divorce from George Jones), painkiller addiction and other health problems. She was known as the First Lady of Country Music, a title she wore well.

Friday: Janis Joplin, "Pearl" (1971)
Janis Joplin's untimely death due to a heroin overdose meant she would never see the release of this album. It was released a few months after she died. At the time of this record, she had the Full Tilt Boogie Band backing her up. An instrumental was included on the album and it's only an instrumental because Joplin died before she could record the vocals. It was called "Buried Alive in the Blues." Ironic?

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Random Vinyl 10/26-10/30

Posted at 11:41 AM on October 30, 2009 by Jill Riley
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Monday: Emmylou Harris, "Elite Hotel" (1975)
Emmylou Harris released two albums in 1975, "Elite Hotel" being the second. It's likely she was keeping busy while grieving the loss of her friend and singing partner Gram Parsons. She does a number of covers on this record, including one she used to sing with Parsons, a tune he wrote, "Ooh Las Vegas."

Tuesday: The Records, "The Records" (1979)
They've been called "the British Big Star," and whether or not that's a fair comparison, The Records made some deliciously sweet power pop in the 70s that's almost completely forgotten on this side of the pond today. This self-titled debut featured their biggest hit, "Starry Eyes," but we went with the equally awesome tune, "Teenarama."

Wednesday: Gene Pitney, "Greatest Hits of All Times" (1966)
Gene Pitney wrote some big bits in the 1960's ("He's a Rebel" for The Crystals and "Hello Marylou" for Ricky Nelson) and enjoyed his own success as a musician/performer. His big hit "Town Without Pity" was the last song he publically performed before he died during his UK tour in April 2006.

Thursday: Pink Floyd, "The Wall" (1979)
Since this album is all about isolation, it's Jill recommendation to listen to it alone and zone out. In fact, pull all the curtains and turn out the lights.
We played "Young Lust."

Friday: Bloodrock, "Bloodrock 2" (1970)
We couldn't think of a better song for Halloween Eve than "D.O.A." And not the 4 minute single version either, the full 8 minute album version. It's so creepy and gory that some stations wouldn't play the single back when it came out.

Random Vinyl 10/19-10-23

Posted at 12:03 PM on October 23, 2009 by Jill Riley
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Monday: Prince, "1999" (1982)
"1999," "Little Red Corvette" and "Delirious" are all great songs. We chose to play a deeper cut, "Something In The Water (Does Not Compute)."

Tuesday: Pete Townshend, "White City (A Novel)" (1985)
Critics embraced Pete's 1985 solo project as a return to the vitality he showed on his solo debut, "Empty Glass." "White City" is a biographical concept album about growing up in the slums of London, and the track "White City Fighting" was co-written with David Gilmour (the opening arpeggios even sound a bit like Pink Floyd's "Hey You" from "The Wall").

Wednesday: Johnny Cash, "Sings the Songs That Made Him Famous" (1958)
The second full length of Johnny Cash tunes put out by Sun Records. It contained a number of his hit singles including "Home of the Blues."

Thursday: Simon and Garfunkel, "Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme" (1966)
Upon release, "Homeward Bound" was on the American release of this album, but not on the UK version. The album version has a different sound compared to the live version included in the 1972 release of "Simon and Garfunkel's Greatest Hits." It's much slower on the album release and includes the drums.

Friday: Haircut 100, "Pelican West" (1982)
Led by singer Nick Heyward, this New Wave band seemed to be taking their sartorial cues straight from "The Preppie Handbook" - fisherman's sweaters, swoopy haircuts and conservative silk ties. You get the feeling they were even sporting shiny pennies in their penny loafters. They reached the apogee of their career with their MTV hit "Love Plus One."

Random Vinyl 10/12-10/16 (The Jim McGuinn Picks)

Posted at 11:10 AM on October 16, 2009 by Jill Riley
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Monday: The Jazz Butcher
A favorite snarky little British band of the later '80s, whether playing jazzy clean guitars or chugging along like the Velvets, they were always anchored by the wit and humor of Pat Fish. From a US comp of early UK singles, we played "Partytime," cause it's better than a cold bath with someone you dislike.

Tuesday: Red Simpson
Still gigging Monday nights at age 75 in Bakersfield, CA, Simpson made his mark penning a series of mid-'60s country #1s for Buck Owens - AND by being an artist most closely associated with the concept of Songs About Truckers (I'm a Truck, Roll Truck Roll, Truck Driver's Wife, The Flying Saucer Man and the Truck Driver) - although this spin came from an attempt to branch out with songs about policemen called The Man Behind the Badge. We played "Under Arrest" - You're under arrest / and the sentence is life / you're under arrest / you gotta be my wife. Sweet, no?

Wednesday: Three Dog Night
Growing up in the early '70s with AM pop radio, for a while it might have seemed like Three Dog Night was the biggest band in the world. While few of their hits were self-penned, their early albums are full of great blue-eyed soul interpretations of (at the time) contemporary tunes. The debut album contains high energy, horn-blasted takes on songs originally done by Traffic, Otis Redding, Nilsson, and "The Loner," from Neil Young's debut album that was released just a few months before this recording.

Thursday: Lou Rawls
Like Wednesday's Random Vinyl, we're always fascinated on songs being interpreted by another artist fairly close to their original release. This time it's Lou Rawls, soul crooner and ad pitchman who had his biggest hit with "You'll Never Find, Another Love Like Mine," but on this day we took it back to 1968 for his reading of Buffalo Springfield's "For What It's Worth."

Friday: The Kings
SCTV, Bob and Doug's Great White North, and the Kings. That's about all I knew of 'culture' coming from Canada at the dawn of the '80s. The Kings made their mark in Toronto, and from their Bob Ezrin (Lou Reed, Pink Floyd's The Wall, etc) produced debut The Kings Are Here comes "This Beat Goes On / Switch Into Glide," a frolicking good New Wave / Power Pop lost classic, and while they pretty much disappeared without a trace in the US after this minor moment in the sun, the band continues to be record and play in Canada, where they are still revered.

Random Vinyl 10/5-10/9

Posted at 12:51 PM on October 9, 2009 by Jill Riley
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Monday: Graham Paker and The Rumour, "Squeezing Out Sparks" (1979)
Easily the most successful album from British post-punk artist Graham Parker, this record nonetheless gets far too little recognition today. How good is it? Rolling Stone named it number 335 on their 2003 list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. How about that? We played the record's highlight, "Local Girls."

Tuesday: Heart, "Dreamboat Annie" (1976)
This was the debut album by Heart, first released by the Canadian record label, Mushroom Records. "Magic Man" and "Crazy on You" were the biggest hits. We went with "Dreamboat Annie (Fantasy Child), the shortest version of that song on the record.

Wednesday: Oingo Boingo, "Dead Man's Party" (1985)
This album had the big movie soundtrack hits, "Dead Man's Party" (from Back to School) and "Weird Science." We played one of the singles called "Just Another Day." Danny Elfman has kept himself quite busy in his post-Boingo days scoring movies and writing theme songs.

Thursday: The Beau Brummels, "The Best Of The Beau Brummels 1964-1968" (1987)
This is a Rhino Records compilation of the bands best tunes. The guitar player, Ron Elliott did most of the writing for The Beau Brummels. We chose a song that singer Sal Valentino penned called "Here We Go Again," which was never released on an album before this collection.

Friday: Diana Ross and The Supremes with The Tempatations, "Original Soundtrack to TCB" (1968)
These groups teamed up for a few albums and recorded this NBC TV program together as a Motown Revue band. They performed some showtunes, songs from the Motown catalog and some covers. We played a medley of covers off the album. "A Taste of Honey/Eleanor Rigby/Do You Know the Way to San Jose/Mrs. Robinson/Respect."

Random Vinyl 9/28-10/2

Posted at 2:42 PM on October 2, 2009 by Jill Riley
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Monday: The Shirelles "Baby It's You" (1961)
A: "Baby, It's You"
B: "The Things I Want to Hear (Pretty Words)"
Label: Scepter
Catelog#: 60145
Format: 7" vinyl

Tuesday: The Dave Clark Five, Greatest Hits (1967)
Not many rock pop bands are/were named after their drummer (tends to be more of a jazz thing). Dave Clark wasn't just the drummer for who the group was named for, but wrote a lot of the tunes as well. We played, "Glad All Over."

Wednesday: Fleetwood Mac, Rumours (1977)
This was the second album recorded with Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, Lindsey Buckingham, Christine McVie and Stevie Nicks as the lineup. Since their last album, Mick Fleetwood had split from his wife, Lindsey and Stevie were on the outs and John and Christine had separated. Making "Rumours" was almost like a group therapy session. We played "Second Hand News."

Thursday: Lou Christie "Two Faces Have I" (1963)
A: "Two Faces Have I"
B: "All That Glitters Isn't Gold"
Label: Roulette
Catalog #: R-4481
Format: 7" vinyl

Friday: Rush, A Farewell to Kings (1977)
Drummer Neil Peart writes the bulk of the lyrics for Rush, but had a little help from his friend Peter Talbot when he penned, "Closer to the Heart."

Random Vinyl 9/21-9/25

Posted at 12:12 PM on September 25, 2009 by Jill Riley
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Monday: Rough Trade, "For Those Who Think Young"
The Canadian band Rough Trade made their breakthrough in 1981 with one of the first explicitly lesbian-themed Top 40 songs in the world, "High School Confidential." Later that year, they released this disc which had an MTV video hit with the song, "All Touch" - which also became their only US charting hit, peaking at #58.

Tuesday: The Canadian Sweethearts, "No Help Wanted" (1961)
The Canadian Sweethearts were a rockabilly duo from... you guessed it, Canada. Bob Regan and Lucille Star recorded songs on a few different labels, including Soma Records, based in Minneapolis.
A Side: "No Help Wanted"
B Side: "The Flirtin' Kind"
Label: Soma Records (Minneapolis, MN)
Catalog #: 1156
Format: 7" single
AHardDaysNightUSalbumcover.jpg
Wednesday: The Beatles, "A Hard Day's Night Original Motion Picture Soundtrack"
United Artists Records released the U.S. version of "A Hard Days Night" in June of 1964. The track listing is of course different from the U.K. version. The biggest difference is the inclusion of four instrumental Beatles tracks, arranged by George Martin. We played "Ringo's Theme (This Boy)."

Thursday: Be-Bop Deluxe, "Sunburst Finish"
Guitar virtuoso Bill Nelson, who'd go on to become a solo cult figure and sought-after session musician, enjoyed moderate commercial success with his band Be-Bop Deluxe in the 1970s. I specifically remember this album in record stores when I was a kid, for it's, er, provocative cover - a "naked lady" as we used to say when I was 10, holding a burning guitar. It's actually kinda one of the classic album covers of all time. Be-Bop Deluxe's music was super slick power pop, but always tongue-in-cheek and often fairly absurd. We played "Ships in the Night," the band's only charting single.

Friday: Pete Seeger, "Clearwater Classics" (1984)
If you know very little about Pete Seeger, this is a good collection to start with. One might even call it a greatest hits compilation. We played, "Turn, Turn, Turn (To Everything There Is a Season)." Seeger borrowed the words from the Book of Ecclesiastes, put them to music in 1959 and recorded it a few years later. It showed up for the first time on his album, "The Bitter and The Sweet." The song has been recorded by a number of artists. The Byrds would bring it into the mainstream in 1965.


Random Vinyl, Week of 9/14-9/18

Posted at 12:14 PM on September 18, 2009 by Steve Seel
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Monday: The Cars, Heartbeat City (1984)
The song "Stranger Eyes" was used in the trailer of Top Gun, but it never made it into the soundtrack. What a shame.

Tuesday: Warren Zevon, Warren Zevon (1976)
The excitable boy's first outing features a host of California studio regulars backing him up, like guitarists Waddy Wachtel and David Lindley, plus some unexpected guests - like backup vocalisists Lindsay Buckingham and "Stephanie" (!) Nicks. We played his classic "I'll Sleep When I'm Dead."

Wednesday: The Byrds, Greatest Hits (1967)
This greatest hits record contains the Roger McGuinn penned tune, "Mr. Spaceman." It was originally released on the 1966 album, Fifth Dimension. Ever heard the expression space-rock? This is a song that fits into that genre. One of the many genres or labels The Byrds' music would go through during that time.

Thursday: Doo Wop Delights/The Roots of Rock 'N Roll
A compilation of obscure doo wop tunes from the New York jazz label Savoy Records. We played a tune from The Temptations, but not the Motown Temptations. "Mad Love" was recorded January 17, 1958 in New York City.


Friday: The Bears, The Bears (1987)
Guitar whiz extrodrinaire Adrian Belew (King Crimson, Talking Heads, David Bowie) led this side project in the late 80s, a kind of geeky power-pop band containing some friends from Cincinnati. It's got a goofy charm, and of course, Belew's utterly searing, ptyerodactyl-from-hell guitar solos. I played "None Of the Above."

Random Vinyl 9/8-9/11

Posted at 12:22 PM on September 11, 2009 by Jill Riley
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Monday: (Off for Labor Day)

Tuesday: Jerry Lee Lewis, "Down the Line" (1958)
A side: "Down the Line" (written by Roy Orbison)
B side: "Breathless"
Label: Sun Records
Catalog #: 288
Format: 7" single

Wednesday: The Beatles, The Beatles (White Album) (1968)
We couldn't think of a better song to play on 9/9/09 than "Revolution 9." Are there any other tracks from The Beatles that are this insane?

Thursday: Lesley Gore, The Golden Hits of Lesley Gore (1965)
A collection of Lesley Gore's hit songs. She would never be as sucessful as she was in her early years, she was churning out hits left and right at her peak. She had a hit single in 1963 with the dark, feminist statement, "You Don't Own Me."

Friday: The Lovin' Spoonful, Do You Believe In Magic (1965)
Before forming The Lovin' Spoonful, John Sebastian and Zal Yanovsky were in The Mugwumps with Mama Cass and Denny Doherty (of The Mama's and the Papa's). The Lovin' Spoonful was a band that combined folk, rock and pop and churned out quite a few hits in the 60's. Their debut release included their own songs and some old folk tunes like the one we dropped the needle on, "Blues in a Bottle."

Random Vinyl 8/31-9/4

Posted at 11:12 AM on September 4, 2009 by Jill Riley
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Monday: The Beatles, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)
This album was a turning point for The Beatles. They went from touring band to studio band with Sgt. Pepper. Jill's copy is the stereo UK Parlaphone version. This is more than likely the 4th pressing, with the "70's label." The page of cardboard cutouts is even still intact. The only real difference between the US and UK versions, is the audio loop in the run out groove. We played "Lovely Rita."

Tuesday: Otis Redding/The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Monterey International Pop Festival (1967)
The Monterey Pop Festival kicked off the Summer of Love in June of 1967. Jimi Hendrix and The Who were introduced to the US, Janis Joplin and Otis Redding also introduced to the masses. Otis Redding performed a Stones tune in his set, "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction," backed by Booker T and the MG's. Otis died six months later in a plane crash.

Wednesday: The Association, Insight Out (1967)
They were known for their hits "Along Comes Mary," "Windy" and the tune we played "Never My Love." This California sunshine pop band was also famous for being the first band to play at Monterey Pop in 1967.

Thursday: The Lemon Pipers, "Green Tamberine" (1967)
A side: "Green Tamberine"
B side: "No Help From Me"
Label: Buddah Records
Catelog #: BDA-23
Format: 7" single

Friday: Gary (U.S.) Bonds, "Dear Lady Twist" (1962)
A side: "Dear Lady Twist"
B side: "Havin' So Much Fun"
Label: LeGrand Records
Catelog #: 1015
Format: 7" single

Random Vinyl 8/24-8/28

Posted at 12:12 PM on August 28, 2009 by Jill Riley
Filed under: Random Vinyl


Monday: Gram Parsons, "Grievous Angel" (1974)
"Medley Live from Northern Quebec:"
(a) "Cash on the Barrelhead"
(b) "Hickory Wind"
This wasn't recorded live. Gram just wanted a live sound to the studio recording so he invited some friends into the studio to do some hootin' and hollerin'. This "live audience" included tour manager Phil Kaufman (Gram's tour manager, who would later steal Gram's coffin and corpse and set them on fire in the desert to fufill a pact that he and Gram had agreed on), and Kim Fowley (founder of The Runaways and well known hippie of the 60's).
Gram's 2nd solo album was released posthumously . The original cover art included both Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris. The credit had originally been "Gram Parsons with Emmylou Harris". After Gram's death, his widow made the changes with only Gram on the front cover and Emmylou's name credited only on the back of the album.

Tuesday: Kiss, "Alive II" (1977)
Most of the live tracks on Alive II were recorded during the band's August 26-28 residency at the Los Angeles Forum while on the Love Gun tour. Since it happened to be Gene Simmon's 60th birthday, we played one that Gene sang on, "Calling Dr. Love."

Wednesday: Boston, "Don't Look Back" (1978)
We're bringing Boston back baby! Hey, it worked with Journey. We played, "Feelin' Satisfied."

Thursday: Elvis Presley, "Elvis" (1968)
Elvis Presley's NBC-TV Special (commonly referred to as the "'68 Comeback Special") would revitalize his career. He hadn't stepped onto a stage in seven years, but he looked in great shape, tan and well dressed for this show. The girls still went wild for him. It's amazing that Elvis could still be popular and/or relevant in 1968, considering what was happening in music at the time.
We played "Medley: Nothingville/Big Boss Man/Guitar Man/Little Egypt/Trouble/Guitar Man"

Friday: Skeeter Davis, "Blueberry Hill and Other Favorites" (1965)
This wasn't exactly a proper album, but a nice collection of Skeeter Davis' work on the RCA Camden budget label.

Random Vinyl

Posted at 1:09 PM on August 21, 2009 by Jill Riley
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Monday: The Fireballs (feat. Jimmy Gilmer), "Bottle of Wine" (1968)
The Fireballs had a bit of a comeback hit with "Bottle of Wine" in 1968. In the late 1950's The Fireballs was an instrumental band. Then they started making pop music in the early 1960's and had a hit with "Sugar Shack." They had a hard time competing with British Invasion bands and sort of fell off the radar. That is, until they started singing about being drunk on wine.

Tuesday: Martha and the Muffins, "Mystery Walk" (1984)
A Canadian New Wave group featuring latter-day uber-producer Daniel Lanois (U2, Bob Dylan, Peter Gabriel), Martha and the Muffins put out a number of under-appreciated, musicianly records in the 80s. Martha Johnson is the eponymous lead vocalist, but co-bandlearder Mark Gane also took the vocals from time to time, and we played one of his tunes, "Nation Of Followers."

Wednesday: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, "Valley of the Dolls" (1967)
The record sleeve reads, "Valley of the Dolls is a disturbing look at people with appetites for life greater than their capacity for living." Valley of the Dolls started as a novel, then adapted to film. We played, "I'll Plant My Own Tree."

Thursday: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, "The Return of the Living Dead" (1985)
Zombie comedy is such a ridiculous movie genre. The Return of the Living Dead is extremely cheesy, but had a great soundtrack. We played a great zombie song, The Cramps, "Surfin' Dead."

Friday: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, "Times Square" (1980)
Two girls escape from a mental institution and hit the streets of New York, looking for adventure and musical stardom via their nascent band the Sleez Girls. Along the way they meet DJ Johnny LaGuardia, played by Tim Curry, and possibly lose their minds. It wasn't "Citizen Kane," but it sure has an awesome soundtrack, featuring Roxy Music, Talking Heads, The Ramones, XTC, and ... Robin Gibb? Well, mostly awesome. We played Suzi Quatro's "Rock Hard."


Random Vinyl 8/10-8/14

Posted at 12:32 PM on August 14, 2009 by Jill Riley
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Monday: Creedence Clearwater Revival, "Green River" (1969)
Filling in for Steve on Monday, my 30-hour delay (and re-routing via to Minneapolis from Albany via Atlanta!) was on my mind, so we played a Creedence Clearwater Revival classic off Green River, about the musician who came in to town for a one night stand, but it looks like those plans fell thru, cause Oh! Lord, I'm stuck in Lodi again...
-Jim McGuinn

Tuesday: Woodstock, Music From the Original Soundtrack
We played a great Woodstock 69' moment with Joan Baez featuring Jeffrey Shurtleff performing, "Drug Store Truck Drivin' Man." It was a song written by Roger McGuinn and Graham Parsons when they were in The Byrds together. The opening commentary to the live Baez version is priceless. The 40th anniversary of Woodstock is this weekend.

Wednesday: Katie Lee, "Songs of Couch and Consultation" (1957)
Katie Lee was a folk singer back in the 50's, so it's funny that she wound up on a goofy project like this. The record is fun poke at psychology. We played the fun ditty,"The Will To Fail."

Thursday: Cyndi Lauper, "The Goonies 'R' Good Enough" (1985)
Side A: "The Goonies 'R' Good Enough" (3:27)
Side B: "What A Thrill" (3:00)
Label: Portrait (CBS)
Catalog#: 34-04918
Format: Vinyl, 7"
cyndi-lauper-the-goonies-r-goo-48300.jpg

Friday: The Beatles, "White Album" (1968)
Eric Clapton plays the red 1957 Les Paul guitar that he gave to George Harrison as a gift on "As My Guitar Gently Weeps." George's name for the infamous guitar was "Lucy." We had Les Paul on our minds, since he just passed away at the age of 94.

Random Vinyl 8/3-8/7

Posted at 8:02 AM on August 7, 2009 by Steve Seel
Filed under: Random Vinyl

Monday: Sparks, "Angst In My Pants" (1982)

As a kid, I had seen the brothers Ron and Russel Mael on TV before - I think it was Don Kirshner's Rock Concert or something - and I knew I was equally intrigued and freaked out (actually, downright frightened is more like it with regards to Ron), but it wasn't until seeing them perform "Mickey Mouse" on Saturday Night Live back in 1982 that I was actually fired up by the band. Mom and Dad, who policed my record collection at the time like good Christian parents, never would have approved of this one (who's the guy with the Hitler moustache in the wedding dress on the cover?), so I had to get a bit older before I could get away with buying it.

Tuesday: Stan Getz & Joao Gilberto featuring Antonio Carlos Jobim, "Getz/Gilberto" (1964)

Our Saturday morning host Jacquie Fuller loaned me this one, the jazz-cum-bossa-nova sensation that helped spur the boss-nova craze of the mid 1960s. It became one of the best-selling jazz albums of all time, and turned Astrud Gilberto, who sang on the track "The Girl from Ipanema", into an international sensation.

Wednesday: Let's Active, "Cypress"

The first full-length record from Mitch Easter's Winston-Salem based band (Easter is probably best known for producing, including records by R.E.M., Pavement, Suzanne Vega and others). I played "Blue Line."

Thursday: "Instrumental James Bond: 25 Years of 007" (1988)

This one is just weird: it's a recording of instrumental versions of all the theme songs from the James Bond movies over the years. No, I didn't subject you to a muzak-y version of "Nobody Does It Better" (although that would be pretty spot-on Random Vinyl material), but I did play the theme from "Dr. No," which became the theme associated with all the James Bond movies after that.

Friday: Golden Palominos, "Visions of Excess" (1985)

The second album from the revolving-door project led by drummer Anton Fier - this time featuring guests appearances from the likes of John Lydon, Syd Straw, Chris Stamey, and Michael Stipe - the last of whom was featured on the track I played, "Boy (Go)."

Random Vinyl 7/27-7/31

Posted at 11:20 AM on July 31, 2009 by Steve Seel
Filed under: Random Vinyl

Monday: The Stray Cats, Rant N' Rave with The Stray Cats (1983)

The band's follow-up to their breakthrough 1982 compilation Built For Speed, 1983's Rant N' Rave contained equally strong hits such as "(She's) Sexy & 17" and "Look At That Cadillac" - and our pick for today, "I Won't Stand In Your Way." Nothin' better than a little rockabilly to start off a cloudy Monday.

Tuesday: Lloyd Cole and The Commotions, Easy Pieces (1985)

Another album that's seen more as a follow up than a stand-alone (in this case, following the band's amazing Rattlesnakes). But it's still a tremendously strong if underappreciated record. We played the lovely ballad "Pretty Gone."

Wednesday: Wayne Newton, The Best of Wayne Newton (1967)

Okay, this one was admittedly played far more for weird laughs than out of appreciation - I mean, Wayne is one freaky dude. The album cover describes his "all-embracing friendliness"; today we might call that puke-inducing cheesiness. Submitted for your approval: young Wayne, sounding not the least bit male whatsoever (I mean really: when he was a young guy, he sounded 100% like a very sexy lay-day), doing "Danke Schoen."

Thursday: David Byrne, The Catherine Wheel (1981)

Is it clear with this pick that Steve has taken over the reins completely while Jill is away? Here's another David Byrne score for the New York art stage, from 1981. In this case, Twyla Tharp's dance piece The Catherine Wheel. I played the very Talking Heads-like "His Wife Refused."

Friday: Pylon, Chomp (1983)

Yes, I've featured this one before, but it's so awesome it's just a gift that keeps on giving. A cult band from Athens, GA from the early 80s and one that REM cites as being one of their biggest inspirations (in fact, after being called "The Greatest Band In The World" by Rolling Stone, Bill Berry from REM said, "We're not the greatest band in the world. That would be Pylon." That's reason enough for you to check them out. One of my prize vinyl possessions is a mint-condition copy of Chomp. I played "Beep."

Random Vinyl 7/20-7/24

Posted at 12:30 PM on July 24, 2009 by Jill Riley
Filed under: Random Vinyl


Monday: Donovan, "Mello Yellow" (1967)
Don't attempt to smoke bananas while listening to this record. You won't get high. It's a myth. We played "Museum," which you might recognize as a song that Herman's Hermits covered.

Tuesday: The Mamas & The Papas, "The Mamas & The Papas" (1966)
This album marks the point in the band's career where Michelle Phillips and Denny Doherty's affair was out in the open. Michelle Phillips was kicked out of the band when they made this record and replaced with Jill Gibson. That didn't last long and Michelle was back in the group. Michelle having to sing "I Saw Her Again Last Night" over and over again was probably... awkward?
But, enough about Michelle all ready, we chose to drop the needle on a tune featuring the booming voice of Mama Cass. Written by John Phillips (Papa John), "Words of Love" was a hit single for the group in November of 1966.

Wednesday: The Suburbs "Love is the Law" (1983)
Here's a Twin Cities music gem from the 80's. They got their start releasing albums on the Twin/Tone label, but this one was a little more of the big time for The Suburbs. The record, "Love is the Law" was released on Mercury/Polygram. "Rattle My Bones" is a favorite of Steve's.

Thursday: The Beatles "Yellow Submarine" (1969)
The soundtrack to the 1968 animated Beatles movie. The Beatles didn't have much to do with it though, other than the music of course. They didn't even voice their own characters. We thought it would be timely to feature this soundtrack since the art director for the film, Heinz Edelmann recently passed away. We played the very simple, easy to sing-a-long with song, "All Together Now."

Friday: The Archies "Everything's Archie" (1969)
Archie, Reggie, Jughead, Betty and Veronica were The Archies. Let's not forget Jughead's dog, Hot Dog, who served as the animated band's mascot. They even penned a tune for him. The lyrics of "Hot Dog" are too precious. OK, they didn't pen the song. Jeff Barry did. And they didn't sing and play the songs. Studio musicians did. Hopefully this slice of bubblegum pop brought you back to the time you watched The Archies every Saturday morning on CBS.

Random Vinyl 7/13-7/17

Posted at 1:16 PM on July 17, 2009 by Jill Riley
Filed under: Random Vinyl

Monday: Pink Floyd, "A Nice Pair" (1973)
A re-issue of two albums, "Piper At The Gates of Dawn" and "A Saucerful of Secrets." Since this was released just after "Dark Side of the Moon", fans were able to go back and get a taste of what Pink Floyd sounded like when Syd Barrett was apart of the band. We played "Lucifer Sam."

Tuesday: Various Artists, "Stars of the Apollo Theatre" (Columbia KG 30788)
This album pays tribute to some of the great performers of the Apollo Theatre in Harlem. It contains some rare and unreleased material as well. We chose to play a Bessie Smith recording from 1933, "Gimme A Pigfoot."

Wednesday: The Rolling Stones, "Sticky Fingers" (1971)
Famous for the Andy Warhol designed cover, the real working zipper on the jeans might come to mind. "Brown Sugar" and "Wild Horses" are the big hits from this album. We went with the ballad, "Moonlight Mile."

Thursday: The Mothers of Invention, "Just Another Band From L.A." (1972)
A live album recorded at the campus of UCLA in 1971. Frank Zappa, Flo & Eddie (The Turtles), need we say more? Playing 24 minutes of "Billy The Mountain" seemed a bit much, so we went with, "Eddie, Are you Kidding?" It's a nice jab at consumerism.

Friday: Luxuria, "Unanswerable Lust" (1988)
Howard DeVoto, original lead singer for The Buzzcocks (and later for the band Magazine) put together this new wavey-project in 1988 with multi-instrumentalist Noko (Norman Fisher-Jones). It ended up being a one-off, and truthfully, the record isn't all that great - except for the lead track and single, "Redneck," which is quite awesome in Steve's opinion.

Random Vinyl: Week of 7/6-7/10

Posted at 1:29 PM on July 10, 2009 by Michael Wells
Filed under: Random Vinyl

Listen

Monday: Hank Williams, "Mr. and Mrs. Hank Williams" (1969)
The description on the back of this record says it all. "For those old-timers who remember the early barn storming days of Hank and Audrey Williams, for those younger fans who wish they had, here's a collector's collection of vintage Mr. and Mrs." We played the duet, "Lost on the River."

Tuesday: Spanky and Our Gang, "Spanky's Greatest Hit(s)" (1970)
Jill says, "I don't know what I like more. The music or the fact that this band decided to name themselves after the Our Gang (The Little Rascals) comedies. I'm also a sucker for 1960's bands that were fronted by women." We played what is probably the most recognized 1967 hit, "Sunday Will Never Be the Same."

Wednesday: Cat Stevens, "Greatest Hits" (1975)
Not every greatest hits collection is simply just a collection of past work. This release had a new song on it called "Two Fine People," which was also released as a single in 1975.

Thursday: Jane Siberry, "No Borders Here" (1984)
The Canadian avant-folk chanteuse's second release (and first released outside of Canada), it was the first of two records during the 80s that had a slight new wave tinge. I played a lovely, atmospheric number called "Dancing Class" that almost verges on prog in the middle, with off-kilter arpeggios and time signatures.

Friday: Red Rockers, "Good As Gold" (1983)
No, not the "red rocker" Sammy Hagar. This band from New Orleans existed from '79-'85, and are best known for their hit "China," which leads off this record. Red Rockers toured the United States opening for The Cars, Men at Work, U2, Joan Jett, and The Go-Go's. Lead singer John Thomas Griffith went on to co-found the band Cowboy Mouth.

Random Vinyl 6/29-7/2

Posted at 11:52 AM on July 2, 2009 by Jill Riley
Filed under: Random Vinyl

Every weekday morning at 6:30am we pull some wax off the shelf. We call it Random Vinyl.

Monday: Jefferson Airplane, "Crown of Creation" (1968)
Grace Slick wrote the song "Lather" for Jefferson Airplane drummer Spencer Dryden's 30th birthday. He was the first to turn 30 in the group and Grace Slick felt that once you hit 30, you were no fun anymore. That's the gist of the song anyway.

Tuesday: Buddy Holly and The Crickets, "20 Golden Greats" aka "Buddy Holly Lives" (1978)
A great compilation album of some the best tunes by Buddy Holly and The Crickets. We played one of Buddy's last hits of his lifetime, "Rave On." That single was released April 20, 1958. Buddy Holly would die in the infamous plane crash in Clear Lake, Iowa on February 3, 1959.

Wednesday: Joe Jackson, "Big World"
Joe's 1985 live-to-2-track album, recorded that way to express his growing disdain for modern reliance on studio overdubs. "Big World" features another gimmick: it's three sides of music on two LPs (the fourth side is blank, featuring a label that reads in large print, "There is no music on this side"). It is also possibly his last truly decent record; too bad he didn't have enough material to fill out the fourth side. "Wild West" leads off the album.

Thursday: David Byrne, "Music for The Knee Plays"
A long out-of-print record on the jazz/avant-classical label ECM (only recently reissued on Nonesuch) featuring Byrne's score to Robert Wilson's minimalst play "The CIVIL WarS" (sic). The music sounds like The Dirty Dozen Brass Band playing Laurie Anderson. The track "In The Future" contains typical Byrne-sian observations about war, entertainment, love and sex.


Random Vinyl 6/22-6/26

Posted at 12:12 PM on June 29, 2009 by Jill Riley
Filed under: Random Vinyl

Every weekday morning at 6:30 we pull out some wax. Randomly. Or not so randomly.

Listen

Monday: Ray Charles "Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music" (1962)
"Just A Little Lovin" was a hit for Hank Williams. On this album it's kicked up a notch with a little swing and a tenor sax solo by David "Fathead" Newman.

Tuesday: "Outta Sight! Musical Sounds of the New Generation"
David Allan & The Arrows "Theme from Thunderball"

Wednesday: Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band "Live/1975-85" (1986)
"Fire" was recorded live December 16, 1978 at the Winterland. The short spoken intro is from July 7, 1978 at The Roxy.

Thursday: The Psychedelic Furs "Forever Now" (1982)
The third album from the Furs was produced by Todd Rundgren. We couldn't decide on what to play, so we went with the title track.

Friday: Michael Jackson "Can't Get Outta The Rain"(1983)
This was the B-side to "Billie Jean," "Thriller" and "The Girl Is Mine." If you've heard music from "The Wiz," you'd surely recognize it. Rest in peace Michael.
A "Billie Jean"
B "Can't Get Outta The Rain"
Label: Epic
Catalog#: 34-03509
Format: Vinyl, 7"
Released: 1983

Random Vinyl 6/15-6/19

Posted at 12:34 PM on June 19, 2009 by Jill Riley (2 Comments)
Filed under: Random Vinyl

Every weekday at 6:30am, we sift through our vinyl collections and play a randomly chosen track.

Monday: Split Enz, "Waiata" (1981)
The New Zealand new wavers' follow-up to their breakthrough LP "True Colors," this one didn't have a hit quite as big as "I Got You," but it did have some sterling songs - including our selection, "History Never Repeats." Neil Finn - later of Crowded House and solo fame - sings the lead vocal.

Tuesday: The Dixie Cups "Iko Iko" (1964)
They gave themselves the writing credits on this song... even though the tune all ready existed in another shape or form.
Side A: "Iko Iko" (2:05)
Side B: "Gee Baby Gee" (2:30)
Label: Red Bird
Catalog#: RB10 024
Format: Vinyl, 7"
Released: 1964

Wednesday: Simon and Garfunkel, "Bridge Over Troubled Water" (1970)
Turn down the lights and get into Zen mode. This album is a must have for your wax collection. We played "El Condor Pasa (If I Could)" and realized we didn't know Spanish enough to translate that title live on the air. Paul Simon pulled a Dixie Cups on this song and gave himself some writing credits he probably shouldn't have.

Thursday: Prince and the Revolution, "Purple Rain" (1984)
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of Purple Rain, we should all purify ourselves in the waters of Lake Minnetonka. We thought we'd start the party by playing all 8 minutes and 45 seconds of "Purple Rain."

Friday: Utopia, "Utopia" (1982)
Todd Rundgren's sometimes-side-project-sometimes-full-time-band, Utopia, had been going for several years when it finally released a self-titled album in 1982. They boys were decked out in their new-wavey best black n' white duds on the cover in keeping with the styles of the day. We played the deliciously gooey glob of pop sugar, "Feet Don't Fail Me Now."

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Random Vinyl 6/8-6/12

Posted at 12:03 PM on June 12, 2009 by Jill Riley (1 Comments)
Filed under: Random Vinyl

Every weekday at 6:30 a.m., we sift through our vinyl collections and play a randomly chosen track.

Monday:
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap, "Greatest Hits"
Allmusic music journalist, Jason Ankeny writes, "Clad in Civil War era Union Army uniforms (complete with fictitious military ranks) and bizarrely pedophilic lyrics, Puckett and the Union Gap were in their own way as far-out and singular as any other act of the period." That quote says it all really. Did you know Gary Puckett was born in Hibbing, MN? This greatest hits collection was released in 1970. We played "Lady Willpower."

Tuesday:
Suzi Quatro, "If You Knew Suzi"
This album was released at the end of 1978, and while it's not her best... it has a decent cover of "Rock and Roll Hoochie Koo." Funny, she must've ditched the leather for this album cover for a pair of... chordory pants??
When Suzi isn't performing music, she's playing DJ these days with a show called, "Wake Up Little Suzi." You can listen to her on BBC Radio 2.

Wednesday:
Jackie Wilson, "Greatest Hits" This greatest hits compilation was released on Brunswick Records in 1972. Just a few years later, Jackie Wilson would have a heart attack and slip into a coma that would last nine years before he passed away. His influence on soul music will live on forever. We played his 1957 hit, "Reet Petite (The Finest Girl You Ever Want to Meet)." That song would become popular again in the 80's after being used in a Levi's commercial.

Thursday:
The Grass Roots, "Their 16 Greatest Hits"
This was released in 1971 and went Gold. It was hard to choose just one song to play, but we went with the 1970 hit, "Temptation Eyes." Only because I hate the Blake Babies' cover of it and wanted to hear the real thing! The Grass Roots made a lot of fantastic music in the late 60's and early 70's.

Friday:
Nena, "99 Luftballons" Time to flip it over to the B side. This is song is way better to sing along with when I'm attempting to speak German.
Tracklisting:
A 99 Red Balloons (3:50)
B 99 Luftballons (3:32)
Label: Epic
Catalog#: 34 04108
Format: Vinyl, 7"
Released: 1983


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Random Vinyl: The McGuinn Edition (week of 6/1-6/5)

Posted at 2:09 PM on June 5, 2009 by Jill Riley
Filed under: Random Vinyl

Every weekday at 6:30 a.m., we sift through our vinyl collections and play a randomly chosen track. The Current's Program Director, Jim McGuinn, sat in this week for Steve Seel. He shared some wax delights from his own collection.


Monday: The Lovin' Spoonful, "Six O' Clock" - A great song about the Random Vinyl hour at hand, and a great band too, led by John Sebastian (who later scored a solo hit with the theme to Welcome Back Kotter), that created some of the most effervescent '60s rock - today we'd call it Indie Pop - and you can hear elements of their sound all over the new music on the Current.

Tuesday: Jerry Reed, "Lord, Mr. Ford" - A little tribute to the car industry, from classic country picker Jerry Reed, also a buddy of Burt Reynolds (see his non-Academy Award Winning performances as "Snowman" in all those Smokey and the Bandit films) who passed away last year, Reed was a clever singer and songwriter and great guitarist.

Wednesday: Jimmy Smith and Wes Montgomery, "Night Train" - A classic cut of soulful jazz from The Dynamic Duo, a nice 1966 Verve Records album.

Thursday: Kris Kristofferson, "Jesus Was a Capricorn" - Speaking of clever, this ode to everyone needing someone to look down on is a standout title track to Kristofferson's 1972 album. A few years before A Star is Born, and judging from the photos on the back, a band that would be right at home touring with Ryan Adams today.

Friday: Motorhead "Ace of Spades" - There are rock stars, and then there are rock stars' rock stars. Like Lemmy. From seeing the Beatles at the Cavern to roady-ing for Hendrix to playing in Hawkwind, Lemmy was already a legend when Motorhead formed in 1975. Bridging metal and punk and offering some of the most ferocious bass attack, this live classic from No Sleep 'Til Hammersmith is a wonderfully kind and gentle way to greet 6:30 AM and say "Hey, get up, it's Friday - time to pillage!"

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