Songs Of The Week, 2023: 5/20-5/26

 

Nowhere Is My Home- The Replacements
Gasoline Alley- Rod Stewart
I Need So You- Tommy McLain
You Can't Be Too Strong- Graham Parker
All My Life- Nilsson
I Idolize You- Ike & Tina Turner
Out in The Street- Galactic w/Cyril Neville

Nowhere Is My Home- The Replacements
In a conversation with a friend who loves the 'Mats as much as I do, I tossed off a casual, "The three best Replacements albums are the first Bash & Pop, Westerberg's '14 Songs' and 'Boink.'" I expected an explosion but instead got "I can see that." I do love "Boink" partly because of this gem.

Gasoline Alley- Rod Stewart
I listened to a personal Rod playlist I put together after reading about the Jeff Beck tribute at the Royal Albert Hall. Those Mercury records are something else.

I Need So Bad-Tommy McLain
I found an oldie but goodie from the great Tommy McLain.

You Can't Be Too Strong- Graham Parker
A GP masterwork.

All My Life- Nilsson
I sent an note to myself reminding me to write something nice about the "Pussy Cats" album. I'll do it here. This album wasn't very well received, but I think it has aged nicely. I think it plays like Nilsson's version of Lennon's "Rock & Roll" only it sounds better and has a few originals, some of which are Nilsson classics. Give it another go.

I Idolize You- Ike & Tina Turner
For Tina.

Out In the Street- Galactic w/Cyril Neville
Open your windows, let in some sun, and play this one LOUD!

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Holiday Vinyl Sale

 

 

I am dumping a lot of records and I am practically giving them away, that's how low my prices are.

24 hour sale. Prices back to normal by noon tomorrow.

Thanks for looking.

Buy some records. 

You'll feel good and so will I.

records for sale

Adam Deitch's Big Quartet

 

Adam Deitch is the drummer for Lettuce, a jam band crowd favorite, but not a band I have ever really cared for that much. They are fine players, but more times than not, they leave me cold. I've seen them throw crowds into a frenzy, but what I hear is what I imagine those who don't like jam bands hear--just a lot of riffing and noodling with little substance. Still, when I see Deitch's name as part of an ensemble, I am intrigued because he is a fantastic drummer. While listening to WWOZ New Orleans radio a few weeks ago, Adam Deitch was a guest and they played a track from his 2019 release "Egyptian Secrets" and I wanted to hear more. The record is billed as the Adam Deitch Quartet, but it felt much bigger. 

The band features Lettuce alumnus Eric "Benny" Bloom, an excellent trumpet player who I have seen play with more people in New Orleans than I have with his own band, the great Wil Blades on organ, and Ryan Zoldis on sax, who was new to me. Legendary jazz guitarist John Scofield guests on a few tracks, as well. I found this whole record to be a breath of fresh air. It's melodic. It swings. It gets funky. But most of all, it feels like a jazz record, with real compositions and arrangements and not some tossed off jam session. There is even a groovy Michael Jackson cover.

 

 

Give these tracks a chance and hopefully you will dig them enough to give all of "Egyptian Secrets" a spin. I really enjoyed the whole vibe of this record.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Damn it.

Sailor

 

While digging through yet another box of cheap records, I found a copy of Sailor's 1975 sophomore release "Trouble." I still can recall my cousin and I shopping at the greatest record store that ever slung wax, Titus Oaks on Flatbush Avenue, and picking up a promo copy for $2.99. My cousin had read about the band, most likely in Creem Magazine, and I immediately fell in love with what was the hit at the time, "A Glass Of Champagne." I listened to all of "Trouble" yesterday, probably for the first time since the late 70's, and I think I enjoyed it more than ever.

But what kind of music is it?

Discogs says Sailor is a "British pop group." I guess that's not wrong. Discogs also lists about nine Sailor releases. I thought they were two and out, but apparently made records well into the 90's.

All Music calls Sailor an "Early '70s pop-rock outfit whose sound was augmented by the nickelodeon, a contraption featuring pianos, synthesizers, mini-organs, and glockenspiels." Not the usual instrumenation for a pop-rock outfit. Dave Thompson of AMG reviews Sailor's debut but there is no review for "Trouble." 

"The first album by Sailor dropped onto the U.K. glam scene in late 1974 like the greatest secret you've never been told. Comparable in its underground impact to the first, similarly overlooked albums by Cockney Rebel and Queen a little over a year earlier, Sailor boasted a spellbinding introductory single, "Traffic Jam," a slew of magical follow-throughs, and the promise of a glittering future that could not have been broadcast any louder. And so it proved -- a year on, and Sailor was everywhere. "Traffic Jam" remains one of the group's finest achievements, an ecologically themed reflection on the history of the motorcar, executed in shamelessly Beach Boys-esque style. "Let's Go to Town" and "Sailor's Night on the Town," meanwhile, conjure visions of a bizarre collision between 10cc and Jacques Brel, poignant pop with a beautifully bittersweet bite. It is difficult to play favorites among the first three Sailor albums -- like the other bands to which the group can most readily be compared (add Roxy Music and Sparks to the aforementioned litany), each has a distinct character that is as unique as it is inseparable from the main body of work."

Sounds like a rave review, yet AMG only gives the debut *** 1/2.

It's easy to label the band as glam after hearing "Glass Of Champagne." But every other track on "Trouble" seems to be its own genre. Maybe these tracks will be a bit much for you, or just a bit too far on the other side of quirky. But, I really enjoyed all of "Trouble."

Give these tracks a spin. I am also including "Josephine Baker" and "Traffic Jam"from the debut. Let me know what you think.

 

  

 

 

 

Really Sweet. Ignore The Mustache.

  (h/t cmealha)

Songs Of The Week, 2023: 5/13-5/19

 

Woman Of 1000 Years- Fleetwood Mac
Black Cadillac- Rosanne Cash
Rosie Won't You Please Come Home- The Kinks
Beautiful Beige- The Cowsills
Missing You- The Merry-Go-Round
Lighten Up, Morrissey- Sparks
Sheik Of Araby- Leon Redbone

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Woman Of 1000 Years- Fleetwood Mac
Right after Christine McVie passed, my friend and I discussed those underappreciated Fleetwood Mac albums that always get lost in the weeds. We both agreed "Future Games" was a beauty. This track opens that album and this mix.

Black Cadillac- Rosanne Cash
I hadn't heard this song in years. It was powerful then, soon after Johnny Cash's death and still packs a wallop now.

Rosie Won't You Please Come Home- The Kinks
I listened to "Village Green Preservation Society" yesterday, an album widely regarded as The Kinks best. And I won't argue that. It sounded better than ever. But I reach for "Face To Face" more than any other Kinks record. 

Beautiful Beige- The Cowsills
I was digging through a few boxes of mostly lousy LPs but I grabbed a copy of The Cowsills "We Can Fly" for a buck because I remembered liking "Beautiful Beige." You know what? I still do and most of the album is pretty solid sunshine pop, as well. 

Missing You- The Merry-Go-Round
While listening to the MGR's Best Of, this track stood out...yet again. It was a b-side written by Larry Marks. I did a search on Burning Wood to see if I had ever shared it before. I did. Four times! This is number 5. I love this track.

Lighten Up, Morrissey- Sparks
SPARKSMANIA!

Sheik Of Araby- Leon Redbone
I hope everyone has as much fun this week as Mr. Redbone had on this track.