My love of Chicago's Numero Group Label was fairly solidified before they went & found the secret Wichita, KS soul scene of the mid to late 60's. I live in Kansas and had never heard about the soul scene in Wichita until this release came out. It's a wonderful collection based around the Smart Brothers and the Neal Brothers and the Smart's Palace club and restaurant they ran and played in. There are some crazy good soul sides on this release, especially by Baby Neal & The Smart Brothers. The compilation also includes other related acts like Fred Williams & The Jewel Band & Theron & Darrell. The liner notes recount the Smart Brothers tearing up the club night after night, playing the sax behind their back, jumping from table to table and just plain belting out a lungful of soul.

Here's my 3 favorite cuts from Eccentric Soul: Smart's Palace. They'll put you on the floor.

Baby Neal & The Smart Brothers - I've Got a Funny Feeling (1966)

Baby Neal & The Smart Brothers - I'm Not Ashamed (1965)

Fred Williams & The Jewels Band - Tell Her (1969)

Buy this amazing album over at the Numero Group. I recommend the 2LP.

Hey everyone,

So its been awhile since I uploaded anything. But forget that and listen to this. Mississippi Records and Canary Records just released a vinyl only compilation called String of Pearls: A Collection of International 78's. On it is an 1946 release by Shalom Katz entitled Eil Malei Rachmim. It's breathtakingly powerful. According to the liner notes, Shalom was a Holocaust survivor and had been slated for execution. While digging his own grave, he supposedly sang this song and it stirred the guards so much that they postponed his execution. He was able to survive the war beyond that and emigrated to the USA following the war.

I know old 78rpm Jewish folk tunes are not the rage these days, but you have to hear this.

Shalom Katz - Eil Malei Rachmim [1946]

UPDATE: Smeg Pole from The Scrotum Poles has asked me to pull down a couple of these songs. I hope to continue sharing the rest and will update again in a few days.

The Scrotum Poles were a punk band from Dundee, Scotland and they had one real release, a 5 song EP called Revelation that came out in 1980 and its just about perfect.

Check it out here - [Closed Link] The Scrotum Poles - Revelation EP

Tracklisting:
1. Why Don't You Come Out Tonight?
2. Night Train
3. Pick The Cat's Eyes Out
4. Helicopter Honeymoon
5. Radio Tay

Its about as simple and wonderful as pop-punk can get at that time period.

Enjoy.

Hey everyone,

I caught Alabama band, Thomas Function, the other night at the Replay Lounge here in Lawrence and had a blast. They have a relatively new 7" out on Fat Possum Records called Belly of the Beast. Its a wonderful little pop diddy that reminds me of older perfected Poster Children. Check it out.

They also just started a very long European tour and I'm sure they'd love you to come out to a show if you live on that side of the pond.

Thomas Function - Belly of the Beast (MP3)

I've completely fallen in love with older gospel from the post war period that more or less is categorized as sanctified blues and soul and this love stems entirely from discovering the gospel compilations on Mississippi Records. MR only does vinyl and is a current obsession of mine.

Now last year, they released the LP, Life Is a Problem and I flipped my lid over it. It was probably my favorite release of all last year.

And here's why -
The Crumb Brothers - Seat In the Kingdom [MP3]
(This song is unf__king-believable. The lead vocalist is a 10yr old boy named Sugar and he will devastate you)

Other stand outs on the LP included

Elder Charles Beck - Rock & Roll Sermon 1 & 2 [MP3]
Rev. Lonnie Farris - A Night in the House Of Prayer [MP3]
Tom Dutson - Lil' School Song [MP3]
and for a very limited 1st Pressing, MR included a 7" Bonus with the LP that was
George 'Bongo' Coleman - This Old World is in a Terrible Condition [MP3]

THEN THIS YEAR, MR put out a followup LP, Oh Graveyard, You Can't Hold Me Always. And it was just as mind-blowingly wonderful as the 1st LP. This music will make you feel unlike anything else.

From OGYCHMA -
Mosby Family Singers - Eternal Life [MP3]
Laura Rivers - That's Alright [MP3]
James Carter & The Mighty Stars - You Don't Know [MP3]
Silver Quintette - Sinner's Crossroads [MP3]

Even if you've never enjoyed gospel, please give this music a listen. It's so worth it and next week I'll upload that awesome face-melting grindcore I've been listening to.

Hey everybody,

Thought I'd pop on real quick at Xmas time with a treat for you.

Black Christmas are a wonderful instrumental rock band from Lawrence, KS and they have a new album called "By Way of Decay" thats splendid in every genuine way. I recommend the warm sound of it on vinyl. Here's a cut from the A side for you entitled The Black Heva.

Black Christmas - The Black Heva (192 kbps MP3)

RIYL: Mogwai, GYBE, Bardo Pond.

Contact them to grab a copy before it's gone.

Black Christmas Myspace.

So I watched Lásky jedné plavovlásky (Loves of a Blonde) the other night. It's Milos Forman's breakout Czech film before he graced our shores here in the US. The film was genuine and nice, but what I couldn't get out of my head was the opening song played live acoustically by a woman who wasn't even a character in the storyline. She just appears and pounds out this rocking tune on the guitar and then the story starts. I can't read Czech, but I think that Evžen Illín wrote the song. If you know, let me in on it.

I ripped this MP3 straight from the DVD.

Evžen Illín - Lásky jedné plavovlásky (Loves of a Blonde) [MP3]

The Lawrence based band Mammoth Life self-released their debut Kaleidoscopic Art Pop back around Christmas time. Since then I've been listening to it relentlessly. Please give this a listen and then do yourself a favor and go out and get the album on iTunes or at CD Baby or better yet, get your local record store to order it for you. Its a spectacular piece of pop masterwork.

Their Myspace.

Mammoth Life - To Suffer For Passion

So its a slow Monday and I was going through a stack of ol' bootlegs and I started listening to Kid Koala live in 2003 at the Knitting Factory and it made my day. I'm in a really great mood now all b/c Koala. I have talked before about how distinctly unique Eric San, ie Kid Koala, is. Watching him live is a remarkable time. I can't recommend it enough.

This is Downward Spiral recorded live March 29, 2003 at the Knitting Factory. (MP3)

Its a bootleg, but LastFM hosts the bootleg for sale here. I assume Koala gets the profits. right?

The Kinetiks are an awesome four piece band from here in Lawrence, KS that my friend Sara introduced to me. They put a 5 song EP out last year called Music History. Its easily got some of the best album art that came out last year and those tasty tangy tunes to match.

This song is my favorite - Bully (MP3)

Grab their album for a mere 5 clams. Just contact em via their Myspace site.

Cheerio

So back in 2004 the tiny & apparently now dead Catastrophic Records put out 2 10" EPs by 10 Minutes With My Dad. They were a two piece performance art band that rocked out an superbly raunchy 10-15 minute set in the London area. They became the talk of town with their dildo waving shenanigans and then they abruptly disappeared. The records are long out of print and the last few times I tried to correspond with the label I never got any response.

I only have a copy of one of the S/T EPs and would love to find the other.

If your party lacks some dysfunctional pizazz try throwing this on the ol' music box. By the time they sing about fucking their father you'll have twenty people asking you who the hell they are.

10 Minutes with My Dad - 10" S/T EP (2004 - Catastrophic)

1. Heavy Metal Parking Lot
2. Party with the Devil
3. Rock On Sister Child
4. Yesterday I Died

Hey,

Everyone should head over to the Goatlab website and grab all the supercalifragilisticexpialidocious live DJ sets that got posted from Parasite's 30th birthday blowout. And of course pay special attention to my favorite, Pisstank. Other DJ sets include Exillon, Ironside, The Doubtful Guest & Stivs.

Take care Cadets.

Quite awhile ago I found the song "Master Jack" over at Little Hits. It blew me away and made me happy. I went out immediately and tracked down the LP it came from, an out-of-print gem itself called Master Jack by Four Jacks & a Jill. They were a white South African pop group who performed from the mid to late sixties. The five piece group had the stunning Glenys Lynne, aka "Jill",  at the helm vocally and I have to say that I've developed somewhat of a crush on her. She was so cute in 1968.

Anyway, since there is no reason to believe this album will be reissued anytime soon, its time to share.

Four Jacks & a Jill - Master Jack [1968] (ZIP File 320kbps MP3)

Tracklist:
01. Master Nico                     
02. Timothy                              
03. Sunny Side of Somewhere
04. Penny Paper
05. Hamba Liliwam
06. I Looked Back
07. Master Jack
08. Fifi the Flea
09. Bobby Blows a Blue Note
10. Lonely Desert Boy
11. La La Song

Craig Comstock is a one man army of sound. Imagine David Yow of the Jesus Lizard playing everything in the band live and singing as well.

Craig goes by the moniker of This Is My Condition. And as someone in Kansas City once said, in a perfect world, Craig would be a superstar for what he creates.

I am the very proud owner of his LP Cut Loose and can't recommend it enough if you desire a tad bit of mayhem and destruction in your evening. And never pass up the opportunity to see him live. He's a machine possessed.

From Cut Loose -

My Blood (Vinyl Rip - MP3 320 kbps)

175 (Vinyl Rip - MP3 320 kbps)

TIMC on Myspace
TIMC on the Web

Over the holidays I got to travel through the Caribbean and went record shopping when I could. In Barbados, I discovered a style of music I was unfamiliar with, Spouge music. Its roots lie in Jamaican Ska and Trinidadian Calypso. I stumbled upon this cool compilation Vintage Spouge, Vol. 2.

The stand-out track is clearly by Springer & The Barons.

Springer & The Barons - Don't Play That Song.

Presumably the track was recorded sometime in the 1960's, but I couldn't find any date on the track. Does anyone know about Vol. 1 of Vintage Spouge?

Michael

Hi everyone,

I'll actually have a new episode up in a few days which is slightly crazy, but in the meantime I wanted to share the following free compilation of local tunes from here in Lawrence, KS. It's a continuation of the compilation series that my former radio station KJHK puts out every once an awhile. I'll also be playing several of these gems in future shows.

KJHK FM Presents
FARM FRESH SOUNDS Winter 2007

01. Thunderous Olympian - Web 2.0
02. Coat Party - Mental Condition
03. Boo & Boo Too - Black Buggy
04. Rusty Scott - Sovereign
05. Mammoth Life - To Suffer for Passion
06. Blue(ish) - Waitress 1
07. Five Defy - Stained Glass Window
08. Les Somniferes - East Berlin
09. Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing - Old Skool's Getting Old
10. DJ Spence - Statement of Intent
11. Transmittens - Boo and Sparklemittens
12. Soundquist - Glue Stick
13. Stik Figa - Absitively

AVAILABLE ON HANDY LITTLE ZIP FILE

While in Denver I found this nasty little LP of awesome rock instrumentals from the 50's and 60's called Loose Ends. Thought I'd share the abundance.

















Loose Ends [Union Pacific Records 1972] (ZIP FILE)

Tracklist:

Young John Watson - Space Guitar [1954]
Scotty Moore Trio - Have Guitar Will Travel [1958]
BB Cunningham Jr - Electrode [1958/59]
BB Cunningham Jr - Scratchin' [1958/59]
Eddie Skelton - Curly [1958/59]
The Virtues - Guitar Boogie Shuffle [1959]
The Virtues - Guitar in Orbit [1959]
The Vigilantes - Eclipse [1961]
Jerry Lee Lewis as The Hawk - In the Mood [1960]
The Vigilantes - Man in Space [1961]
The Viscounts - Harlem Nocturne [1959]
Duane Eddy - Caravan Pt. 1 [1961]
Duane Eddy - Caravan Pt. 2 [1961]
Ronnie & the Rainbows - Loose Ends [1960]
The Fendermen - Torture [1960]
The Fireballs - Good Soul [1961]

Enjoy cadets.

A while back I discovered The Particles, a devilishly twee pop band that recorded in Sydney during the late 70's and early 80's. One of their songs had been released on the compilation "Can't Stop It : Australian Post Punk '78-82" and I had to have more. It seemed there was merely one soul in all the universe that had a lead on the Particles' catalog of recordings. So with much thanks to the awesome Roger Griffin I would like to share the following MP3 recordings with you fine lot.

The band had 3 EP's.

"Colour In" [1980]
1. Driving Me
2. Apricot's Dream
3. Zigzag

"Advanced Colouring" [1981]
1. Truth About You
2. Bits of Wood
3. Remington Rand

"I Luv Trumpet" [1982]
1. The Trumpet Song
2. Dresses and Shoes
3. Observations

And they also recorded a superbly energetic live set for Triple JJJ Radio in Australia that is pompously beautiful and explodes beyond their twee sound and is a true gem of a session.

1982 The Wireless Studio 221, 2JJJ-FM.
1. introduction
2. Truth About You
3. Walking Talking
4. conversation
5. Bits of Wood
6. Remington Rand
7. The Trumpet Song

Hey everyone, I came across this Scottish radio session for ballboy and insist on sharing it.

It was recorded Nov. 14th, 2002, but I'm not sure what station broadcast it. It's not a BBC session as far as I can tell.

The session was all acoustic.

1. Nobody Really Knows Anything
2. interview
3. I Gave Up My Eyes To a Man Who Was Blind
4. Meet Me at the Shooting Range

Download the MP3 ZIP file here.

If anyone knows the station that carried, I would like to know.

Enjoy.

Michael

Thank God that Son House was rediscovered after his initial career in music. Having thought he was forgotten, the renewed interest and what money there was came gladly. The best, simply the best in the blues.

He played for John Peel July 06, 1970 and recorded the following -

Death Letter (MP3)

spoken word part 1 (MP3)

Don't You Mind People Grinning In Your Face (MP3)

spoken word part 2 (MP3)

My Good Gal (MP3)

Unfortunately, the two spoken word segments I have are each incomplete and are only 30 sec. apiece. The original segments are longer. If someone can help me attain a copy of the complete spoken word interludes I would be very thankful.

Cheers everyone.

Several years ago I was visiting my old girlfriend in Angers, France. There I stumbled upon this gem of a 7". I seriously want to know how much money George Lucas got for the licensing on this. It was made in 1977 for CBS Records and it is the dreadful band Galaxy 42 singing a disco version of the Star Wars theme. It doesn't get any better than this.

Enjoy.

Galaxy 42 - Star Wars Theme (Disco Version) [MP3]

And in case you were wondering, the B-Side was the Dynamite Band w/ "She's Dynamite"
It really stinks.

Here in the states today, PJ Harvey releases a Peel Sessions album (it has been out in the UK for several weeks now). I'm really happy whenever any Peel sessions come to official release, but news of this album feels unfortunate, as it is only one disc and only contains a handful of the sessions. Harvey recorded 10+ sessions for Peelie, why not release them all for Christ's sake? 

But instead of just bitching about it, let's share some of what was left off the album.

On May 20th, 2004, Harvey played Peel Acres and here is the stellar session, none of which made the album.

Enjoy everyone.

PJ Harvey - Peel Acres Session 05/20/04
MP3 Format
01. The Letter
02. Uh Huh Her
03. Cat on the Wall
04. Evol
05. Shame + John's closing remarks

Went and saw Swede crooner Jens Lekman last night here in Lawrence. Great show and Jens is a modest and stunning performer. But I wasn't always paying attention to what Jens was doing. You see, his six piece band is made up entirely of beautiful women, presumably also Swedish. Never have I wanted to amble around the country in a van with a band more.

And by the way, Jens played the crowd favorite, "Black Cab".

Check it out here -

Jens Lekman - Black Cab

That saying has been attached to The Embarrassment for some time. The band formed in Wichita, KS in the late seventies and carried on well into the eighties. They even were courted by the earliest formation of Sub Pop Records. Almost everything in their catalog is out-of-print including the Bar-None anthology Heyday. But why am I telling you this? Because the best band you've never heard of is reuniting for 3 shows only. Two in Wichita and one here in beautiful Lawrence, KS. So if you can, don't pass up the opportunity to see them August 20th at Liberty Hall.

Here are my favorite two Embarrassment tunes -

"Patio Set" (1979) [B-Side to their first single "Sex Drive"]

"Lifespan" (1981) [Sub/Pop #5 cassette]

(MP3Pro Format Encoded)

After a week of musical highs, a low has shown itself. One of the most amazing bands of the last ten years is coming to an end. Sleater-Kinney will play one final show in Portland and that'll be all they wrote.

I remember when I first heard them. Call the Doctor had come out and I found a used copy for sale and took a chance on it. I didn't put that album down for a year. It is a masterpiece.

So in celebration of their phenomenal career I've pulled out my best sounding bootleg and will share the entire show with you.

Sleater-Kinney - May 27, 2000, Echo Lounge, Atlanta.
[MP3 VBR Format]

Setlist: intro / Ballad of a Ladyman / Ironclad / Start Together / All Hands On the Bad One / Get Up / Words & Guitar / The Professional / You're No Rock n' Roll Fun / Call the Doctor / Milkshake n' Honey / I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone / #1 Must Have / Was It a Lie? / Male Model / Little Babies / Youth Decay / encore break / The End of You / Good Things / Dig Me Out

The show is recorded from an audience mic, but sounds quite good. It's a ZIP file at 88 MB's.

Enjoy it everyone. Tell all your friends and if you have the chance to see SK in the next two months, don't pass it up.

Thank you Sleater-Kinney for all the great music.

One of my favorite bands this year, Shrag, have a new 7" on Rough Trade Records. This is phenomenal because it's a debut release and I've been waiting anxiously for anything by them. Several of their tunes have made it onto the show and my favorite "Pregnancy Scene" is their choice for the single.

Check out the MP3 - Shrag - "Pregnancy Scene"

Then grab a copy of the 7" to hear the great b-side "Mark E. Smith."
And don't wait. Only 300 copies were pressed.

AND IN ADDITION, not only do Shrag have this new single but they opened up for Love is All last Wednesday. L.I.A. are a brilliant Swedish band and I'm addicted to their new album, "Nine Times That Same Song", and especially the album opener. Check it out here.
Love Is All - Talk Talk Talk (MP3)

Buy Shrag's new single here.
Buy Love Is All's new album here.

Monday night I took in a great Sonic Youth show here in Lawrence. In addition they were actually in town all of Sunday too, on a day off. Various Sonic Youth sitings were all over town. So let me be your local gossip hag. During the show Thurston said they took in a day of bowling. And supposedly they also went and saw the new Al Gore movie. The show itself was somewhat tame by SY standards but it did have one exceptional shock. They closed the show not with Teenage Riot, Silver Rocket, Dirty Boots, or any other "hit", but with Shaking Hell. SH is a real oldie coming from their Confusion is Sex album. It's raw and violent and came out of nowhere. I'm sure they've been playing it throughout this tour, but for someone who doesn't like to see setlists from previous shows, it was a welcome smack.

Enjoy this MP3 - Sonic Youth - Shaking Hell

So it has been a while since my last post or podcast. Well my out of town job over the last few weeks left no time for internet or really anything but sleep. What may you ask is keeping me from the tunes? Film.

I work on films when I'm lucky enough and I was working grip on a National Geographic IMAX feature that began June 5th. But it's done now, so the tunes will wait no more. I'm still cobbling together a podcast that won't be done until the weekend, but first let me tell you about a killer new album from local musician Justin Roelofs. It's recorded under the name White Flight and is on Range Life Records.

Listen to the most amazingly catchy song on the album,
White Flight - The Condition.

I played it in the last episode, but I still can't get it out of my head and it deserves more print. The album is a grand stroll through a funk and psychedelic Latin summer camp. Also, some of you might recognize Justin's old band, The Anniversary. They had one song that was an absolute gem and its a crime it never became more popular. Check it out.
The Anniversary - Sweet Marie.

Buy White Flight on Range Life Records here.
Buy Anniversary releases on their old label, Vagrant.

Enjoy the tunes and come back soon as updates should start daily again. Plus, this weekend, grab Episode 14 of the Yank Sizzler Podcast when it comes out.

I had a very pleasant surprise this morning when a FedEX person rang my doorbell and woke me up. I had fallen asleep on the couch the night before and had failed to set any alarm. The package arrived a half hour before I was to be at work, so it had impeccable timing. Not only that, the package itself was a mix CD that a listener had compiled for me. After rushing to work, I threw the mix on and was treated with plenty of grand tunes including perhaps my favorite blues song, "John the Revelator" by Son House.
It's a very simple tune comprised of a soft clapping and a capella, but single-handily is one of the most powerful songs in the American songbook. Immediately it calls upon us vicariously fore we are Adam, naked and ashamed, answering to God with our sin upon our chest. Son House knew about sin. He was a spiritual man of sin, in battle with God. He murdered a man for which he went to prison and he quit music afraid that the blues was inhabited by the devil himself. Upon returning to music in 1964, he found a new audience and a new lust to play it.

This was recorded in 1970 long after many of the original greats were gone, but Son House wasn't and we are blessed with these later life recordings that are vibrantly full of fidelity. Son House died Oct. 19, 1988. It was my birthday. The blues at its best is a vicarious relish within all our sorrows to understand that our individual sorrow is not wholly our battle.

Please enjoy this song and may it conveniently help you out by getting you to work on time or something equally spectacular.

Son House - John the Revelator MP3

Thanks for the mix, Jamie.

Actually, it was very laid back as Eugene Hutz, Sergey Ryabtsev and Yury Lemeshev of the band stopped in at All Things Considered to talk and have a small acoustic set yesterday. Regular visitors/listeners of The Yank Sizzler know that I'm absolutely rabid about Gogol Bordello. Did I mention they are the best live band playing today?

Make sure you head on over to NPR's website and check out the full set and interview, especially the unaired parts of the interview as they are more interesting than the stuff that made it to air.

As a treat, here is a MP3 of "Greencard Husband" played acoustically for the NPR session. For some reason they decided not to play a song about lesbian roommates on the air. And here I was positive that NPR was more progressive than that.

Enjoy it everyone,

Michael


The photo was taken by someone I don't know of. But they deserve any credit for it.

Hey remember that crappy song by the Reel Big Fish?  Way back in 1998 i was at a really boring music festival with an odd commercial lineup that was
Pharcyde (headlining)
Everclear
Reel Big Fish
Wilco
and Incubus

and I was arguing with some guy who insisted that Sublime sang the above mentioned song. When RBFish sang it, he did not apologize.

So goes life, and so go musicians who write a catchy little diddy for some company.

A day or two ago, the blog Thighs Wide Shut put up the Jack White jingle he wrote for that certain soda company, you know, the one with the polar bears and the Latin American union-busting death squads.

It reminded me of the great minds that have shelled out talent for various products and in addition to Jack's "What Goes Around", there is also the infamous Ween / Pizza Hut team-up that created "Where's the Mother-Fuckin' Cheese". Interestingly enough, PH passed on the song, even the clean version.

And of course, there's Mick doin' it for Rice Krispies.

Hundreds of others have done it too, but those are the ones that come to mind right now. Rest assured I will probably be sued for suggesting that some soda company is connected with hired thugs who murder people.

That said, I still respect Jack White and still really love a lot of the music he creates. The Raconteurs new material is pretty good.

Boston really had a wealth of good music in the 1980's among The Pixies and Mission of Burma were Galaxie 500. The band is long gone, but since both of the previously mentioned bands have reformed and toured I imagine G500 will to, fingers crossed. Last year, they released an EP of their lone two Peel sessions. Looking back on it, I would have expected there to be more Peel sessions from this band, but they really were a constantly dimming light and we should be thankful we have what we have.

The sessions were marked by the beautiful nature that often lent itself to a Peel session. A range of covers were played including songs from The Sex Pistols and Jonathan Richman plus a dandy version of my favorite Young Marble Giants song, "Final Day".  If you ever get a mix tape from me, chances are good that "Final Day" by YMG will close out the tape. That or "Midnight Cowboy" by John Barry.

Regardless, here is Galaxie 500 doing "Final Day."

Buy the album here.

Unfortunately, a cool little record shop nearby recently quit business. The blow was softened by the fact that the owners didn't have to quit business because they couldn't make a living at it anymore, but because they wanted to try something new. Regardless, Recycled Sounds is now gone. RIP.

As they were selling out the inventory, I grabbed up a double LP compilation called Live at The Hope & Anchor: Front Row Festival 1977. It's bands from the punk and post-punk scene playing live at a pub called Hope & Anchor in Islington, north of London, in late 1977. The set has The Stranglers, X-Ray Spex, 999, The Only Ones, XTC, The Saints, Dire Straits and many more. It was only released in the UK on Warner Bros. I don't know what the Hope & Anchor looks like on the inside, but I imagine it's somewhat small, so I was hoping for a real intimate sound on the recordings.

Excited by my find, especially since I was able to get it at 50% off, I rushed home to play it. Too bad the record didn't pan out. It's decent but not amazing. However there are 3 solid numbers on it. Check em out below on mp3 (Vinyl rip at 256 kbps)

The Stranglers - Hanging Around (live 1977)
The Saints - Demolition Girl (live 1977)
X-Ray Spex - Let's Submerge (live 1977)

This is Sparklehorse teaming up with the poet William Blake to create one hell of a good song. The tune is titled "London" and was originally a poem penned by the English wordsmith Blake.

Last week, I contributed this tune to the third episode of The Contrast Podcast done by Tim Young. It's an excellent program, so head on over there and check it out. Anyway, the song is considered out of print because it was originally released only as a 7" single. Capital Records put it on a promo CD called Chest Full of Dying Hawks, but that release is not official.

So here it is. Enjoy.

Sparklehorse - London (1995)

Way back now, in Episode 001 of this podcast, I played a calypso cover of "Long Time Boy" done by Nadia Cattouse of Belize. Nadia had moved to the UK and recorded several LPs and singles for Parlophone and RCA in the early 60's. Apparently she was also on a kind of TV variety show as well. Her material has never been reissued on CD and her LP's now commonly reach $80 when they come up for sale. "Long Time Boy" was the b-side to "Boy Without a Heart" which fetches up to $20 for the single.

Thank God a record collecting group called The Numero Group are around. They crate dig with the best of em and they compiled a splendid compilation of Belizean artists entitled Belize City Boil Up. They included Nadia which is where I discovered her.

Unfortunately the prices of her albums have excluded me from getting anything else but a single split with her singing "Judas and Mary."

In an attempt to further infect the ears of music fans with her rare sound, here is a MP3 of "Long Time Boy."

This might backfire though, as more people discover Nadia, her record prices will only keep going up.

Also, supposedly, Nadia is still alive and in good health having returned to Belize.

Support what The Numero Group is doing by buying the compilation here.

Eugene Hutz and Oren Kaplan of Gogol Bordello stopped by a Tel Aviv radio show and performed 3 great acoustic numbers - Occurance on the Border / Underdog World Strike / Through the Roof 'N' Underground. This was a rare acoustic performance with lots of energy. Two of the tunes are going to be Episode 009 of the podcast.

Check out the radio station here. [In Hebrew]
Or you can see the host of the show's Myspace page. [In English]

Zip File of the show in MP3 Form.

Photo by Hilary Hulteen.

Vashti Bunyan is a British folk singer that has inspired a generation of cultish folkies. In 1970 she recorded a debut LP Just Another Diamond Day and then retired as a recording artist for 35 years. It wasn't until last year that she was persuaded to come back to recording music and she released her 2nd album, Lookaftering.

But before all that, in 1965 she recorded a tune called "Some Things Just Stick in Your Mind."  It was that year that she met the manager of The Rolling Stones, Andrew Loog Oldham. He gave her that song to record as it had been penned by Mick and Keith. It was released on Decca under just the name Vashti and was the sound of swinging London town, and essentially gave no clue to the soft folk sound she would come to inhabit.

I know the song has been put on several comps from then to now, but for the most part, its kind of hard to track down for purchase. So here it is.

Some Things Just Stick in Your Mind by Vashti Bunyan.

It's also featured in Episode 003 of this podcast.

Enjoy.

Since I started this podcast I've gotten to communicate with some very cool podcasters from around the world. Today, one of them was kind enough to let me share in a brilliant idea that he had. Tim over at the Contrast Podcast puts together a show combining the song suggestions of a dozen or more podcasters. The result is a genuinely entertaining romp in the musical landscape. The participants range from newcomers like me to heavy hitters like Said the Gramophone. So head on over there and grab Episode 002 of the Contrast Podcast and be sure to listen for my entry by Kimya Dawson.

Also, several other podcasts right now are the dose of radiant new music I need to breath. In no particular order please check em out.
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Some awesome Peel fans in Finland have put together a bit torrent at Pirate Bay. You can get dozens of shows from when John was DJ'ing a show called Radio Mafia. It was a hourly broadcast he did bi-weekly for Finnish Radio.

The links below will get you to the torrents. It's broken up into 4 parts.

Part One

Part Two

Part Three

Part Four

Note: This isn't a podcast.

On the show I play a lot of music that isn't available commercially for purchase. Most of the time, the only way to obtain it is through bootleg markets. So in a spirit of sharing like it is 1970's Sesame Street, I will sometimes put Zip files on here for download.

The first such download will be for the Marine Girls 1983 John Peel Session. Four songs were recorded for the session on April 16, 1983.

Enjoy,

Michael

Marine Girls Peel Session

All files are MP3.