VALOTTE  -  JULIAN LENNON

YEAR:  1984
LABEL:  Atlantic
TRACK LISTING:  Valotte,  O.K. For You,  On the Phone,  Space,  Well I Don't Know,  Too Late For Goodbyes,  Lonely,  Say You're Wrong,  Jesse,  Let Me Be
IMPRESSIONS:  Being the son of a murdered, martyred rock god can lead to all sorts of insurmountable problems if you're interested in a music career; especially if you look just like him and sound uncannily similar when you sing.  This is the peculiar double-edged sword faced by Julian Lennon in 1984 when he released his debut single and album "Valotte".  While the eponymous debut single sounded very much "in the style" of John Lennon, the rest of the album -- I think wisely -- stayed well in the pop realm.  I think that was the only way to do it.  Those are some REALLY big shoes to fill and, for a kid just barely 21 to try to write and perform songs in the same "genre" of a mature John Lennon would've been fatal and probably embarrassing.  I mean, John Lennon himself didn't start off writing "Imagine"; it all began with things like "Love Me Do".  So the slightly spooky "Valotte" single got all our attentions sounding hauntingly like John Lennon.  But then, the rest of the album (or most of it) and the succeeding hit single "Too Late For Goodbyes" was firmly bubble gum and quite successful.  Having just written all that, I'll now contradict myself in saying that I enjoyed the stuff on the album that was a little less poppy:  songs like the title track, the floating, ethereal "Space"or the keening "Lonely".  Still pop but less bubble gum.  I found some good things on his next two follow-up albums as well: the hit single "Stick Around" and "You Get What You Want" featuring Billy Joel on piano from the 2nd album "THE SECRET ART OF DAYDREAMING" and the single "Now You're In Heaven" from 3rd album "MR. JORDAN".  By the third album, however, Lennon had bizarrely chosen to mimic the singing style of David Bowie; perhaps this was an effort to shed his father's voice and constant comparisons?  I will say it worked wonderfully on the single "Now You're In Heaven" but such a conceit cannot be sustained over more than one song.  That was in 1989 and that's pretty much the last I heard of Julian Lennon except for the excellent "Saltwater" from 1991's "HELP YOURSELF".  Having such a father makes a singing career almost impossible to pull off and I think Julian's output is remarkable for succeeding as much as he did.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Valotte,   On the Phone,  Space,  Too Late For Goodbyes,  Lonely
GUEST ARTISTS:  Toots Thielemans (harmonica on "Too Late For Goodbyes"), Michael Brecker (saxophone on "Lonely")
FACT SHEET:  VALOTTE is the first album by Julian Lennon.  The album was recorded at Muscle Shoals Sound Studio in Muscle Shoals, Alabama and at The Hit Factory in New York City.  The song demos for the album were actually sent in anonymously before Julian revealed who he actual was in order to have them judged solely on their own merit.  The title of the album is taken from the name of an old French chateau "Manon de Valotte" which Julian Lennon particularly loved.  The album went platinum. 

THE TONY BENNETT / BILL EVANS ALBUM  -  TONY BENNETT & BILL EVANS

YEAR:  1975
LABEL:  Fantasy
TRACK LISTING:  Young and Foolish,  The Touch of Your Lips,  Some Other Time,  When In Rome,  We'll Be Together Again,  My Foolish Heart,  Waltz For Debby,  But Beautiful,  Days of Wine and Roses
IMPRESSIONS:  Here we have an album that was suggested to me by my friend Rama.  Being something of a modern-day beatnik, Rama was somebody I'd sometimes ask to recommend music or films or books when we worked together at the late, lamented Borders.  This was his recommendation one day as one of his favourites.  I can see why.  If there's only one Tony Bennett album to own, this is it.  The album is spare but not in a bad way; there is only Anthony Benedetto on vocals and Bill Evans on piano.  But there is a rapport between the two musicians, both at something of a low ebb in their careers in the mid-70s.  Bennett's singing is emotionally connected and immediate while Evans' accompaniment is sympathetic but still interesting in its own right.  Neither one overshadows the other and the result is something like a perfect set.  The songs, for the most part, are lesser-known selections and there's a real, personal connection that happens between the listener and this record which makes it a very "human" experience.  No adornment, no fluff or fireworks - just an enthusiastic voice singing songs he wants to sing for non-commercial reasons probably for the first time in decades and an accomplished pianist whose virtuosity elevates the singer's performance with a generosity of spirit while still providing equally worthy piano playing in between the vocals.  Really a perfect, equal team-up.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Hell, the album's only 35 minutes long.  All of 'em.
FACT SHEET:  THE TONY BENNETT / BILL EVANS ALBUM is the first album pairing Tony Bennett and Bill Evans.  The album was recorded between June 10-13, 1975 at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley, California.  The two would make another album together in 1977 on Bennett's Improv record label entitled "TOGETHER AGAIN".     

WATERGATE (5 Volumes)  -  Various

YEAR:  1973 - 1975
LABEL:  Smithsonian Folkways
TRACK LISTING:  President Nixon's Watergate Speech April 30, 1973,  James McCord Testifies ~ Outlines His Background,  Further Testimony of James McCord,  Bernard Barker Testifies,  Questioned by Samuel Dash - Jeb Stuart Magruder,  Questioned by Sen. Howard Baker Jr. - Jeb Stuart Magruder,  Questioned by Sen. Sam Ervin - Jeb Stuart Magruder,  Questioned by Samuel Dash - Jeb Stuart Magruder,  Questioned by Joseph M. Montoya - Jeb Stuart Magruder,  Questioned by Samuel Dash ~ Background/The White House/The Cover-Up/The President - John Dean,  Questioned by Sen. Edward J. Gurney ~ The C.I.A. & The Cover-Up/The Kalmbach Episode - John Dean,  Questioned by Sen. Edward J. Gurney (cont.) ~ Meeting with H.R. Haldeman/The $4800. Expenses/The Kalmback Meeting - John Dean,  The Nixon Meeting/Clemency Discussion - John Dean,  Questioned by Samuel Dash ~ The $1,000,000.,  Senator Talmadge:  The Liddy Plan - John Mitchell,  Senator Inouye:  Criminal Activities Discussed/Why Wasn't the President Advised?/Protecting the President/Is the President Above the Law? - John Mitchell,  Executive Privilege - John Mitchell,  Involvement of the F.B.I. and C.I.A. - John Mitchell,  Senator Baker:  Involving the President - John Mitchell,  Nixon as President - John Mitchell,  Senator Ervin:  Executive Privilege/Telling the Truth - John Mitchell,  Senator Weicker:  Protecting the President - John Mitchell,  The March 21st Meeting - John Ehrlichman,  The Ellsberg Case & the Plumbers - John Ehrlichman,  THE FBI Investigation - John Ehrlichman,  Political Espionage - John Ehrlichman,  Opening Statement - H.R. Haldeman,  The Tapes - H.R. Haldeman,  His Staff - H.R. Haldeman,  The Internal Revenue Service - H.R. Haldeman,  Handling Demonstrators - H.R. Haldeman,  Attacking the Democrats - H.R. Haldeman
IMPRESSIONS:  I've always had a strong fascination for the bizarre character of Richard M. Nixon.  As a tiny tot, I barely remember the actual Watergate scandal as it was going on (beyond vague recollection of it in Scholastic magazines at school and satirical reference to it in Cracked and Mad Magazines.  But since then, especially after earning my degree in history, I've found Nixon immensely puzzling; his intelligence and drive tempered by some incredibly glaring character flaws of Shakespearean proportions which both saw to it that he would reach the presidency and also guaranteed that he would lose it like he did.  These 5 volumes of Smithsonian Folkways recordings offer (with the exception of Nixon's speech on Watergate of April 30, 1973) the recorded testimony of key figures in the Watergate scandal:  Watergate burglars James McCord (ex-FBI and CIA agent) and Bernard L. Barker, odd little Republican zealot Jeb Stuart Magruder (former White House aide and Deputy Director of the Committe to Re-Elect the President), former Presidential Counsel John W. Dean III, former Attorney-General John Mitchell and Nixon's "Berlin Wall" H.R. Haldeman and John Ehrlichman.  Even after all these years, this edited testimony is fascinating, riveting and astonishing. 
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  This isn't really the kind of album (or albums) in which you can pick and choose "tracks".
FACT SHEET:  WATERGATE is a 5 volume set of recordings of aspects of the Watergate hearings produced by Smithsonian Folkways records.  "WATERGATE VOLUME ONE" was released in 1973 and is entitled "THE BREAK IN:  JAMES MCCORD TESTIFIES/PRESIDENT NIXON'S WATERGATE SPEECH, APRIL 30, 1973".  VOLUME TWO was released in 1974 and is entitled "THE TESTIMONY OF JEB STUART MAGRUDER:  A QUESTION OF ETHICS".  VOLUME THREE was released in 1974 and is entitled "I HOPE THE PRESIDENT IS FORGIVEN":  JOHN W. DEAN III TESTIFIES".  VOLUME FOUR was released in 1974 and is entitled "WHITE HOUSE HORRORS:  THE TESTIMONY OF JOHN MITCHELL, FORMER ATTORNEY GENERAL OF THE U.S.".  VOLUME FIVE was released in 1975 and is entitled "THE TESTIMONY OF JOHN EHRLICHMAN AND H.R. HALDEMAN".  Also heard on these recordings are Senate Sub-Committee members Senator Sam Ervin, Samuel Dash, Senator Howard Baker, Senator Joseph M. Montoya, Senator Edward J. Gurney, Senator Herman Talmadge, Senator Daniel Inouye, and Senator Lowell Weiker.

GOLDEN ALBUM (寺内タケシとブルージーンズ)  -  TAKESHI TERAUCHI & BLUE JEANS

YEAR:  1966
LABEL:  King
TRACK LISTING:  涙のギタ Sentimental Guitar,  雨の想い出 I'll Remember In The Rain,  ダイヤモンド・ヘッド Diamond Head,  黒田節 Kuroda-Bushi,  夜路 Night Road,  夜霧の渚 Yogiri-No Nagisa,  津軽じょんがら節 Tugaru Jyongara-Bushi,  越後獅子 Echigo Jishi,  ユア・ベイビー Your Baby,  ブルー・ジーンNo1 Blue Jean,  ハートで歌おう Touch Your Heart,  涙の十字路 Namida-No Jyugiro,  草津節 Kusatu-Bushi,  急がば廻れ Walk - Don't Run,  グラナダ Guranda,  黒い瞳 Dark Eyes,  禁じられた遊び Jeux Interdits 1st Part,  第三の男 The Harry Lime Theme,  ジャニー・ギター Johnny Guitar,  駅馬車 Stagecoach,  マラゲーニャ Malaguena,  魅惑のギタ Haunted Guitar,  キャラバン Caravan,  テネシー・ワルツ Tennessee Waltz,  ウスクダラ Usukudara (Turkish Tale)
IMPRESSIONS:  In that indispensible tome RE/SEARCH: INCREDIBLY STRANGE MUSIC (Vol. 2), Jello Biafra states that "BLUE JEANS GOLDEN ALBUM" is the best instrumental album he's ever heard.  And it's hard to argue that point - except to say that it isn't entirely an instrumental album.  There are a couple vocals here.  But we know what he means.  In the realm of "surf guitar" albums (for want of a better term), Takeshi Terauchi & Blue Jeans' "GOLDEN ALBUM" is certainly in the top 5 handful.  Certainly Terry (as he is known) is the greatest electric surf guitar player in Japan and can stand shoulder to shoulder with the likes of Dick Dale, Duane Eddy, Link Wray or the Ventures (whose 1962 tour of Japan was the "big bang" that created an entire Japanese musical genre:  the "Eleki Scene" or "Electric Boom" which is still going to this day).  As a rule, I cannot sit and listen to an entire "surf guitar" album without the "sameyness" wearing me down; however "GOLDEN ALBUM" is an exception.  There variety in Terry's playing as well as the song choices and many musical genres (still inside the surf guitar style) never tire the ear.  Besides the expected surf guitar fast rockers and slow ballads, Terry offers us cowboy western (the "Oh Bury Me Not"-sounding "Stagecoach" and the Joan Crawford operatic western theme "Johnny Guitar") and Spanish guitar ("Guranada", "Malaguena"), the whimsical big band arrangement of "The Harry Lime Theme" (better known as "The Third Man Theme"), the Russian folk dance "Dark Eyes" (better known as "Hotchacornya" or some such spelling) and even "Arabian Nights" lounge cliche "Caravan" (done in a style very reminiscent of the computerized Perry & Kingsley oeuvre) and the Turkish "Usukudara".  Then, as mentioned, there are a couple vocal tracks which give Japanese versions of mid-60's pop songs ("Your Baby" and "Touch Your Heart") which manage to duplicate and parody them at the same time.  That's quite a varied menu.  And Terry puts them all over with incredible energy, dexterity, virtuosity and whimsical humour.  
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Sentimental Guitar,  I'll Remember the Rain,  Kuroda-Bushi,  Night Road,  Tugaru Jyongara-Bushi,  Echigo Jishi,  Your Baby,  Touch Your Heart,  Namida-No Jyugiro,  Kusatu-Bushi,  Guranada,  Dark Eyes,  Jeux Interdits 1st Part,  The Harry Lime Theme,  Johnny Guitar,  Stagecoach,  Caravan,  Tennessee Waltz
FACT SHEET:  Takeshi Terauchi was born in Tsuchiura, Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan on January 17, 1939.  He began his career playing rhythm guitar for the country-western band "Jimmy Tokita & the Mountain Playboys" before forming his own band "The Blue Jeans" in 1962 in response to surf guitar band the Ventures' immensely influential tour of Japan in tha year which created the Japanese surf guitar genre "Eleki Scene".  Terry's guitar of choice is a White Mosrite on which he demonstrates his virtuosity with the tremolo arm or "whammy bar" as well as his heavy use of vibrato and frenetic picking style.  In 1966, Terry left the Blue Jeans to form a new band called "The Bunnys"; this lasted only until 1968 when he left and re-formed the Blue Jeans in 1969 with whom he's recorded and performed ever since.      

STRANGE ANIMAL  -  GOWAN

YEAR:  1985
LABEL:  Columbia
TRACK LISTING:  Cosmetics,  Desperate,  City of the Angels,  Walking On Air,  Burning Torches of Hope,  Keep the Tension On,  Guerilla Soldier,  (You're A) Strange Animal,  A Criminal Mind
IMPRESSIONS:  Boy, listening to this album all these years later is cause for embarrassment.  It's not that the songs aren't good; they are.  But it's the hopelessly eighties song arrangements which almost totter the album into the land of cringe.  But I must admit this is a definite guilty pleasure.  The production and arrangements by David Tickle are much too poppy and seem to be aimed at 12 year old girls.  Which it probably was back then.  I even remember at the time hearing the follow-up album "GREAT DIRTY WORLD" and thinking what a more "grown-up" adult contemporary sound had been achieved.  The songs "Moonlight Desires" and especially the anthemic "Dedication" can be listened to today without the slightest cringing.  But back to STRANGE ANIMAL.  What a gloriously over-the-top eighties bubble gum hair mousse and lipstick mascara circus of an album this is.  Fittingly the first track is called "Cosmetics" because this is one glammed-up sounding MTV generation album.  The only song that made it onto MTV was the video for "A Criminal Mind" which is still a fantastic operatic tour de force in the style of the video for Tom Petty's "Don't Come Around Here No More"; all strange masks and straight jackets.  I seem to have purchased this record (yes, on vinyl) right before I had four impacted wisdom teeth out in 1985.  Actually, I bought the LP at Sam Goody at the Moorestown Mall!  I remember taping it and playing it over and over on my Walkman while I was recuperating.  Coming out as it did smack dab in the middle of the 80s, STRANGE ANIMAL always slams me right back to that time when I was working at Rustler and the eighties were at their height.  So I'm naturally extremely forgiving of the perhaps cheesy overly-theatrical production on this nostalgic guilty pleasure.  And the best song on the album -- A Criminal Mind -- can be listened to today with no apologies. 
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Cosmetics,  Desperate,  Burning Torches of Hope,  Keep the Tension On,  Guerilla Soldier,  A Criminal Mind
FACT SHEET:  STRANGE ANIMAL is Gowan's second album. Larry Gowan is a Scottish-born Canadian artist who is a classically-trained pianist.  He was in the band Rhinegold before going solo under the name Gowan.  STRANGE ANIMAL features Peter Gabriel's rhythm section of Jerry Marotta and Tony Levin.  The album was heavily honoured by the Juno Awards winning a "Best Video" Juno for "A Criminal Mind" and "Best Album Graphics" by designers Rob MacIntyre and Dimo Safari as well as being nominated for "Male Vocalist of the Year", "Album of the Year", "Best Selling Single" for "A Criminal Mind" and "Best Video" for both "(You're A) Strange Animal" and "Cosmetics".  Since 1999, Larry Gowan has been the lead singer for the band Styx.     

SONGS IN THE KEY OF X  -  VARIOUS ARTISTS

YEAR:  1996
LABEL:  Warner Bros.
TRACK LISTING:  X-Files Theme (Main Title)  -  Mark Snow,  Unmarked Helicopters - Soul Coughing,  On the Outside - Sheryl Crow,  Down In the Park - Foo Fighters,  Star Me Kitten - William S. Burroughs & R.E.M.,  Red Right Hand - Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds,  Thanks Bro - Filter,  Man of Steel - Frank Black,  Unexplained - Meat Puppets,  Deep - Danzig,  Frenzy - Screamin' Jay Hawkins,  My Dark Life - Elvis Costello with Brian Eno,  Hands of Death (Burn Baby Burn) - Rob Zombie & Alice Cooper,  If You Never Say Goodbye - P.M. Dawn,  X-Files Theme (P.M. Dawn Remix)  -  P.M. Dawn
IMPRESSIONS:  This is not a soundtrack album; despite the fact that a couple songs did actually appear on the X-FILES TV show.  This is a compilation album of songs "inspired" by THE X-FILES during the height of its popularity.  I watched the show from its beginning (when no one else was watching, I hasten to add) and slowly lost interest after a few years just as the rest of the world was getting into the show.  Ah, I've never been a follower.  However, I always liked the conspiracy/paranoia atmosphere evoked by the show and this album (along with David Baerwald's TRIAGE album) perfectly conjure it up.  I think my favourite songs on the album are the Soul Coughing and Nick Cave songs because they REALLY strike the right mood.  I am far from a Sheryl Crow fan but "On the Outside" is the best thing she's ever done and the only thing by the artist I can listen to.  The Foo Fighters' Gary Numan cover is also a winner.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Unmarked Helicopters - Soul Coughing,  On the Outside - Sheryl Crow,  Down In the Park - Foo Fighters,  Red Right Hand - Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds,  Man of Steel - Frank Black,  Unexplained - Meat Puppets
FACT SHEET:  SONGS IN THE KEY OF X is a compilation album inspired by the Fox TV series THE X-FILES.  The album was originally supposed to feature songs by Tom Petty, Bruce Springsteen and Seal but these plans fell through.  "Star Me Kitten" is a new version of a song found on R.E.M.'s 1992 album AUTOMATIC FOR THE PEOPLE.  "Down In the Park" is a cover version of a song by Gary Numan.  "Hands of Death (Burn Baby Burn) was nominated for the 1997 Best Metal Performance.   

LIONHEART  -  KATE BUSH

YEAR:  1978
LABEL:  EMI
TRACK LISTING:  Symphony In Blue,  In Search of Peter Pan,  Wow,  Don't Push Your Foot on the Heartbrake,  Oh England My Lionheart,  Fullhouse,  In the Warm Room,  Kashka From Baghdad,  Coffee Homeground,  Hammer Horror
IMPRESSIONS:  Usually knocked as Kate Bush's worst album . . . and it is.  However, that doesn't make it a bad album.  Kate Bush's worst of all her albums is still better than a great deal of artists' best albums.  Yes, LIONHEART was rushed out by the studio to capitalise on the great success of Kate's first album THE KICK INSIDE.  Yes, Kate's singing is probably more mannered here than it ever was and yes the songwriting is rather weak in places.  Yet, this album still has some gold nuggets amongst the naff.  The single "Wow" may seem ridiculous at first hearing (and indeed it was mercilessly parodied on NOT THE NINE O'CLOCK NEWS) but the song is actually quite good; it's only the rather (deliberately, I suspect) silly chorus of "Wow, wow, wow, wow, wow, wow unbelievable" that raises a snicker from those not listening closely enough.  There are great Kate Bush moments on this album -- the superb "Hammer Horror" for one.  Kate's tribute to "The Studio That Dripped Blood" stands amongst the best of her early work.  Then there's Kate's love letter to her home "Oh England, My Lionheart"; granted the album version is not as good as the live performance found on her one and only concert film "LIVE AT HAMMERSMITH ODEON" but it's still a wonderful song.  Finally, the deliriously spiralling "Coffee Homeground" stands as a cracked murder ballad either emanating from the Folies Bergere or the Grand Guignol.  And its very hard to dislike an album which features a cover shot of Kate wearing a fuzzy lion costume in her attic studio.  Even the least of Kate Bush's albums offers quite a lot.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Symphony In Blue,  Wow,  Don't Push Your Foot on the Heartbrake,  Oh England My Lionheart,  Coffee Homeground,  Hammer Horror
GUEST ARTISTS:  David Paton (bass)
FACT SHEET:  LIONHEART is Kate Bush's second album.  The album was recorded in Nice making it her only album recorded outside of the U.K.  It was produced by Andrew Powell (with Kate's assistance).  LIONHEART peaked at #6 on the UK charts; making it her only album not to enter the top five.  LIONHEART is the first album to feature long-time band member Del Palmer on bass; he has played on all of her albums since up to 2011's Penguin Award-winning 50 WORDS FOR SNOW. 

THE STORY OF STAR WARS  -  Original Cast

YEAR:  1977
LABEL:  20th Century Fox Records
TRACK LISTING:  The Story of Star Wars Part One,  The Story of Star Wars Part Two
IMPRESSIONS:  I saw STAR WARS the opening week it came out in May 1977; before anyone had heard of the film (including myself).  My parents, aunt, uncle and cousins were all going to go out to the movies and I was asked if I wanted to see this new film STAR WARS.  "Yeah, I guess" I said distractedly.  Never heard of it but why not.  Well, I would fall in love with it (I was 11) and see it 14 times in the movie theatre before the days of VCRs.  Fast forward a few months when my friend Mike Baronowski and I were hanging around Two Guys department store when suddenly we heard dimly in the distance the sounds of our current favourite film:  STAR WARS.  We heard the familiar John Williams music, the familiar laser blasts and the familiar voices of Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher and James Earl Jones!  The sounds were coming from the record department.  What the hell was going on?!?!?  We edged our way over and low and behold we could hear the final attack on the Death Star from the movie.  We were at this point losing our fucking minds!  We soon discovered that there was this record newly released called THE STORY OF STAR WARS which featured an abridged version of the entire movie.  The album was narrated by Roscoe Lee Browne who gave the proceedings the weight of Shakespeare!  Remember, there were no VCRs so this was the one and only way we could revisit the film without heading out to the movie theatre.  Needless to say, we both plonked down our shekels and took a copy home.  And played it to death!  Now, I wouldn't want to listen to it for more than momentary nostalgic reasons.  I mean, I've got the movies on DVD so there's really no need.  And far from my favourite film now, the STAR WARS movies have lost a lot of their bloom for me.  But back in the day, this was something new and exciting and I loved every minute of it.  Its really not possible to convey the importance of this record in the days before VCRs.  Especially if you were 11 years old. 
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  All of it.  It's only Side One and Side Two and cannot be separated into "tracks". 
GUEST ARTISTS:  Roscoe Lee Browne (Narrator)
FACT SHEET:  THE STORY OF STAR WARS is an abridged version of the film STAR WARS on vinyl.  The audio is taken directly from the film featuring original cast, music and sound effects.  The story is narrated for the album by actor Roscoe Lee Browne (who replaced Benson on SOAP).  The record was produced by George Lucas and Alan Livingston and the script was adapted by E. Jack Kaplan and Cheryl Gard.  The album was released on LP, cassette tape, 8-track tape and even reel-to-reel tape and went gold.  

RADIO DINNER  -  NATIONAL LAMPOON

YEAR:  1972
LABEL:  MCA
TRACK LISTING:  Deteriorata,  Phono Phunnies,  Teenyrap,  It's Obvious,  Catch It and You Keep It,  'Quinas 'n' 'Rasmus,  All Kidding Aside (PSA),  Phono Phunnies (2),  Teenyrap (2),  Magical Misery Tour,  Those Fabulous Sixties,  Profiles In Chrome,  Teenyrap (3),  Phono Phunnies (3),  Pigeons,  Support Your Locol Polece (PSA),  Pull the Tregros,  Teenyrap (4),  ng Asi,  Phono Phunnies (4),  Concert In Bangladesh,  The Voice of the Future
IMPRESSIONS:  They don't make comedy albums anymore.  I don't mean stand-up comedy albums, of course, but I mean comedy albums like this that they used to make back in the 70s (and before).  These were comedy albums done basically like old radio shows with acting, sound effects and music.  Groups like National Lampoon were joined in the 70s by Monty Python's Flying Circus, Cheech & Chong, The Firesign Theater and many others in making comedy albums like this.  So there's something particularly 70s about listening to them once again.  And this one I've been listening to for a long time (despite it's being perpetually unavailable on cd).  RADIO DINNER is particularly of its era 1972 with savage comedic attacks on the post-60s hippy (in the "Teenyrap" tracks) and topical references to Nixon, George Harrison's recent "Concert for Bangladesh" or Philadelphia's Frank Rizzo ("Support Your Locol Polece").  There are also devastatingly sharp and hilarious lampoons on John Lennon ("Magical Misery Tour") and "Her Nibs" Joan Baez ("Pull the Tregros") which deflate the rich, white pop star artistic pretensions of the former and the equally rich bleeding heart championing of the oppressed (as long as it's convenient) of the latter.  All through the album are repeated parodies of Paul McCartney's "Give Ireland Back to the Irish" song which are particularly funny.  Add to this the classic opening track satire of the perennial high school graduate greeting card "Desiderata" and you have the perfect comedic artifact of 1972.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Deteriorata,  Catch It and You Keep It,  'Quinas 'n' 'Rasmus,  Magical Misery Tour,  Phono Phunnies (3),  Pull the Tregros,  Phono Phunnies (4),  Concert In Bangladesh,  The Voice of the Future
GUEST ARTISTS:  Norman Rose (narrator on "Deteriorata"),  Melissa Manchester (vocals & keyboards on "Deteriorata", as "Yoko" on "Magical Misery Tour"),  Jackson Beck (announcer on "Catch It and You Keep It" and "Profiles in Chrome"),  Diana Reed (vocals on "Pull the Tregros")
FACT SHEET:  RADIO DINNER is National Lampoon's first album.  The majority of the album is the work of Tony Hendra, Michael O'Donoghue and Christopher Guest.  The cover art is by Charles White III.  "Deteriorata" is a parody of Les Crane's "Desiderata".  The lyrics of "Magical Misery Tour" are taken directly from a 1970 John Lennon interview in Rolling Stone magazine.  Jackson Beck was the original announcer on the old time radio show "THE ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN" as well as on the Fleischer Brothers' 1940s Superman cartoons. 

SONGS OF FAITH AND DEVOTION  -  DEPECHE MODE

YEAR:  1993
LABEL:  Sire/Reprise
TRACK LISTING:  I Feel You,  Walking In My Shoes,  Condemnation,  Mercy In You,  Judas,  In Your Room,  Get Right With Me,  Rush, One Caress,  Higher Love
BONUS TRACKS:  My Joy (7" Mix),  Condemnation (Paris Mix),  Death's Door (Jazz Mix),  In Your Room (Zephyr Mix),  I Feel You (Life's Too Short Mix),  Walking In My Shoes (Grungy Gonads Mix),  My Joy (Slowslide Mix),  In Your Room (Apex Mix)
IMPRESSIONS:  Following after the monolithic "VIOLATOR", "SONGS OF FAITH AND DEVOTION" was more problematic; not only in the fact that it had to follow a monster hit album but also because lead singer Dave Gahan was battling addiction and Alan Wilder was preparing to leave the group after so many years.  This album did kick off one of my favourite concerts of all time:  the "DEVOTIONAL" tour.  However, it doesn't even contain my favourite Depeche Mode song.  Or does it?  I waver between declaring "Never Let Me Down Again" as my fave and then changing it to this album's "Walking In My Shoes".  Either way, this album contains some of my all-time fave Depeche Mode songs from the aforementioned "Walking In My Shoes" to the toweringly relentless "In Your Room".  The album has more of a guitar presence and the "real live drums" that Alan Wilder fought so hard for.  It may not be the megalithic "VIOLATOR" with its monumental hits "Enjoy the Silence" or "Personal Jesus" but it's still one hell of a terrific album.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  I Feel You,  Walking in My Shoes,  Mercy In You,  In Your Room,  One Caress
FACT SHEET:  SONGS OF FAITH AND DEVOTION is Depeche Mode's eighth album. It reached number one on both the US and UK album charts.  This is the last album featuring the "classic" line-up of Dave Gahan, Martin Gore, Alan Wilder and Andy Fletcher as Wilder departed the group soon after it's release.   

FINIAN'S RAINBOW  -  Original Broadway Cast

YEAR:  1947
LABEL:  Columbia
TRACK LISTING:  Overture,  This Time of Year,  How Are Things in Glocca Morra?,  Look To the Rainbow,  Old Devil Moon,  Something Sort of Grandish,  If This Isn't Love,  Necessity,  That Great Come-and-Get-It Day,  When the Idle Poor Become the Idle Rich,  The Begat,  When I'm Not Near the Girl I Love,  Finale - That Great Come-and-Get-It Day
BONUS TRACKS:  How Are Things in Glocca Morra? - E.Y. Harburg,  When I'm Not Near the Girl I Love - E.Y. Harburg,  Don't Pass Me By - E.Y. Harburg
IMPRESSIONS:  I am not Irish and I am not a fan of "Broadway musicals".  At least not those from the modern era in the heyday of Rodgers & Hammerstein.  However, this one is old enough to be of interest to me.  Broadway musicals of the early part of the 20th century (the 1920s and 1930s) were the greatest source of those perfect set of songs we call "standards" now or else assign the title of "The Great American Songbook".  These are the Broadway shows which produced songs by Cole Porter, Rodgers & Hart, George & Ira Gershwin, Irving Berlin and scores of other masterful songsmiths.  These are the Broadway shows which provided jazz singers from Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan to Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole and Frank Sinatra.  And "FINIAN'S RAINBOW" just gets in on the tail end of that before things went all "high as an elephant's eye" and I largely lose interest.  There is also a strong aura of pathos to this album as it was a particular favourite of John F. Kennedy and his sister "Kick" and JFK was listening to it when he received a phone call telling him of Kick's death in a plane crash.  Besides all this, "FINIAN'S RAINBOW" just has some great songs written by E.Y. Harburg and Burton Lane; who both have quite a large number of "standards" between them.  There is just something about the album's mid-century feel that greatly appeals to me.  Ella Logan's voice is so distinctive and no-nonsense I never tire of listening to it (neither did JFK) and a song like "How Are Things In Glocca Morra?" - which I always dismissed as Broadway fluff - acquires a startling resonance when emerging from Logan's pipes!  The album's bonus tracks also offer an interesting example of songwriter "Yip" Harburg singing a couple songs from the show as well as discussing their writing.      
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  This Time of Year,  How Are Things In Glocca Morra?,  Look to the Rainbow,  Old Devil Moon,  Something Sort of Grandish,  If This Isn't Love,  Necessity
FACT SHEET:  FINIAN'S RAINBOW is the first recording of a Broadway musical that Columbia Records ever did.  Originally released in an album of six 78 rpm records in 1947, the album was released on the new LP format a year later.  The original Broadway production of the show ran for 725 performances beginning January 10, 1947.  The show's story summarised by wikipedia is as follows:  "Finian moves to the southern United States (the fictional state of Missitucky is a humorous combination of Mississippi and Kentucky) from Ireland with his daughter Sharon, to bury a stolen pot of gold near Fort Knox, in the mistaken belief that it will grow. A leprechaun named Og follows them, desperate to recover his treasure before the loss of it turns him permanently human. Complications arise when a bigoted and corrupt U.S. Senator gets involved, and when wishes are made inadvertently over the hidden crock. All ends happily." The show starred Ella Logan as Sharon, Donald Richards as Woody, Albert Sharpe as Finian, and Tony Award winner David Wayne as Og.  The show has been revived many times (most recently in 2010) as well as having been filmed by Francis Ford Coppola in 1968.   

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THE BLACK AND ORANGE ALBUM  -  VARIOUS ARTISTS

YEAR:  2010
LABEL:  Wonderful Wonderblog
TRACK LISTING:  Welcome to Horror Hotel  -  Daniel Roebuck,  The Gourd's Prayer  -  Cult of the Great Pumpkin,  Batman Wolfman Frankenstein or Dracula  -  The Diamonds,  Chamber of Horrors  -  Radio Spot,  Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde  -  The Who,  Dracula's Lament  -  Jason Segel,  The Devil's Rain & the Virgin Witch  -  Radio Spot,  Ghostbusters  -  Run-DMC,  Goosebumps Theme  -  TVToons,  Grim Grinning Ghosts  -  Barenaked Ladies,  Halloween  -  Betty Grable,  Halloween  -  Radio Spot,  Happy Halloween  -  The Fuzztones,  Haunted House  -  Flexi-Disc,  King Kong vs. Godzilla  -  WAKY Radio Spot,  Keepin' Halloween Alive  -  Alice Cooper,  Magic  -  Radio Spot,  Monster Movie Ball  -  Spike Jones,  Monsters Lead Such Interesting Lives  -  Mel Torme,  To Cause A Witch To Die  -  Vincent Price,  Mr. Monster's Movie Marathon  -  Peter Pan Singers,  Dawn of the Dead  -  Radio Spot,  Dry Bones  -  Fred Gwynne,  Punky Punkin (The Happy Pumpkin)  -  Rosemary Clooney,  Purple People Eater  -  Judy Garland,  Ghost Whisperer  -  TVToons,  Scarecrow  -  The Wellingtons,  Secrets of the Crypt Keeper's Haunted House  -  John Kassir,  The Blob  -  Wolfman Jack,  The Headless Horseman  -  Pickwick Records,  The Headless Horseman  -  Thurl Ravenscroft,  The Island of Dr. Moreau  -  Radio Spot,  Monster Hop  -  Bert Convy,  The Night Before Halloween  -  Bill Buchanan,  Trick or Treat  -  Elvira,  Vampires Quote  -  Boris Karloff,  Zombie Jamboree  -  Rockapella,  Fairly Lame Ending Track  -  Daniel Roebuck
IMPRESSIONS:  Once again we have a non-commercial release like the previous post.  This is one of many compilations originating from the great blog called "Wonderful Wonderblog".  The first thing that strikes you is the lovely spoof on Metallica's "Black Album" cover; what could be more fitting for Halloween than a "Black and Orange" album cover?  After that laugh, we get a nicely-chosen selection of Halloween tracks  -  most of which I admittedly already possessed in my vaults  -  but once again it's always great to hear someone's selection of a playlist.  And this is a good'n.  I kinda like the inclusion of radio spots and movie trailers in between the songs; it gives things a nice Halloween party air.  There are several old favourites of mine appearing here:  The Who's rare "Jekyll & Hyde" song showing John Entwhistle's abiding love of the horror genre, the Spike Jones track (originally credited to "The Fiend-ager") from that beloved "SPIKE JONES IN STEREO" album I played to death in my youth (and which is discussed in depth on this very blog), and the tracks by Mel Torme, Vincent Price, The Diamonds, Rosemary Clooney, Judy Garland, The Wellingtons, Thurl Ravenscroft, Bert Convy, Bill Buchanan, Elvira, and Rockapella have long featured in my Halloween listening.  However, it was only with this "BLACK & ORANGE ALBUM" that I first encountered Run-DMC's terrific cover of "Ghostbusters", the Cult of the Great Pumpkin's "The Gourd's Prayer", and Alice Cooper's "Keepin' Halloween Alive" tracks.  There are many, many Halloween compilations all over the internet and I love all of them; it's a wonderful practice and albums like this one are a great example of how to do it right. 
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  The Gourd's Prayer  -  Cult of the Great Pumpkin,  Chamber of Horrors  -  Radio Spot,  Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde  -  The Who,  Ghostbusters  -  Run-DMC,  Halloween  -  Betty Grable,  Haunted House  -  Flexi-disc,  Keepin' Halloween Alive  -  Alice Cooper,  Monster Movie Ball  -  Spike Jones,  Monsters Lead Such Interesting Lives  -  Mel Torme,  To Cause A Witch To Die  -  Vincent Price,  Mr. Monster's Movie Marathon  -  Peter Pan Singers,  Dawn of the Dead  -  Radio Spot,  Punky Punkin (The Happy Pumpkin)  -  Rosemary Clooney,  Purple People Eater  -  Judy Garland,  Scarecrow  -  The Wellingtons,  The Headless Horseman  -  Pickwick Records,  The Headless Horseman  -  Thurl Ravenscroft,  Monster Hop  -  Bert Convy,  The Night Before Halloween  -  Bill Buchanan
FACT SHEET:  "THE BLACK AND ORANGE ALBUM" is a compilation of Halloween tracks produced by the "Wonderful Wonderblog" website.  The 2 Daniel Roebuck tracks are taken from Dr. Lady's "HORROR HOTEL" album.  "Dracula's Lament" is taken from the film "FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL".  "Grim Grinning Ghosts" is a cover version of the Thurl Ravenscroft song and appears on the soundtrack to the "HAUNTED MANSION" movie starring Eddie Murphy.  The "Halloween" track by Betty Grable is taken from an old radio broadcast.  The Fuzztones' "Happy Halloween" is a cover version of a Zacherley song.  "Monster Movie Ball" is taken from the 1959 "SPIKE JONES IN STEREO" album.  Mel Torme's "Monsters Lead Such Interesting Lives" appears in the short film "DAFFY DUCK'S QUACKBUSTERS".  "Dry Bones" is taken from an episode of "THE MUNSTERS" with Fred Gwynne as Herman Munster.  "Scarecrow" by the Wellington's is taken from the Disney TV show "THE SCARECROW OF ROMNEY MARSH" starring Patrick McGoohan.  "Secrets of the Crypt Keeper's Haunted House" is taken from a 1997 episode of HBO's "TALES FROM THE CRYPT".  Thurl Ravenscroft's "The Headless Horseman" is a cover version of the original song sung by Bing Crosby in Disney's 1949 film "THE ADVENTURES OF ICHABOD & MR. TOAD".  The Bert Convy who sing "Monster Hop" is the same actor/TV host who appeared as a regular on "THE SNOOP SISTERS" as well as hosting the TV game show "TATTLETALES" and others.  Bill Buchanan is one half of the duo of Buchanan & Goodman who brought us the classic original "break-in" record "The Flying Saucer". 

GHOULS WITH ATTITUDE VOL. 1  -  VARIOUS ARTISTS

YEAR:  2004
LABEL:  Oddio Overplay
TRACK LISTING:  Graveyard Rock - Tarantula Ghoul & the Gravediggers,  Riboflavin-Flavored Non-Carbonated Poly-Unsaturated Blood - Don Hinson & the Rigamorticians,  Vampire Playgirls - Movie Trailer,  Vampira - Bobby Bare,  Rockin' Zombie - The Crewnecks,  Jam at the Mortuary - Griz Green,  Monsters Crash the Pajama Party - Movie Trailer,  Monster Man - The MSR Singers,  Monster Surfer - The Abominable Surfmen,  Surfer Smash - Bobby Boris Jones,  The Spook Spoke - Jupiter Jones,  I Dig You Baby - Bob McFadden & Dor,  The Mind of Mr. Soames - Movie Trailer,  Strangler in the Night - Albert DeSalvo,  House on Haunted Hill - Kenny & the Fiends,  Hear the Monsters (Spooky Sounds & A Spooky Tale) - Winchell's Donut House Halloween Record,  The Raven - Buddy Morrow & His Orchestra,  The Rockin' Ghost - The Modernaires,  Satan Takes a Holiday - Rosengarden and Kraus,  Ha-Ha-Ha The Bride of Frankenstein - Boris Karloff,  Brain Eaters - Movie Trailer,  Goolie Garden - Groovie Goolies,  Haunted House - Hap Palmer,  The Witch's Vacation - Bruce Haack & Norman Bridwel,  Burned at the Stake - Sounds of Terror,  Intro: Orgies (A Tool of Witchcraft) - Louise Huebner,  Night On Bald Mountain - Marty Manning & His Orchestra,  Someone Walked Over My Grave - Criswell
IMPRESSIONS:  As it's once again the Halloween season, I thought I'd feature a Halloween compilation I came across this summer.  Unfortunately for you boils & ghouls, this isn't actually a cd made by a record label but appears to be an amateur-compiled collection (and there's also a great Volume Two, folks) which is no longer available where it was first posted in 2004.  However, it's floating around out there in the vorld vide veb so you should be able to find it without to much ado.  It's apparently something of a legendary (or at least fabled) cd collection which fans of horror-themed music have long known about.  Now, there's a lot of stuff on here I already owned on other cd collections such as the Don Hinson track from his "MONSTER DANCE PARTY" album, "The Raven" from Buddy Morrow's "POE FOR MODERNS", "I Dig You Baby" from Bob McFadden & Dor's "SONGS OUR MUMMY TAUGHT US", the Bride of Frankenstein track from the truly legendary "AN EVENING WITH BORIS KARLOFF & HIS FRIENDS" LP or the real-life witch Louise Huebner track from her "SEDUCTION THROUGH WITCHCRAFT" album.  However, the songs (and movie trailers) which a horror compiler picks and chooses are always interesting and worthwhile and this is such a fun collection of songs (many from the late 50s-early 60s horror boom when it seems like EVERYONE was releasing a spooky song to jump on the "MONSTER MASH" bandwagon) and the cover artwork is simple but really eye-catching and pleasing to my eyes.  This compilation has a nice cohesion to it.  And any compilation which includes one of my favourites - The Modernaires' "Rockin' Ghost" - is OK by me! 
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Graveyard Rock - Tarantula Ghoul & the Gravediggers,  Vampira - Bobby Bare,  Rockin' Zombie - The Crewnecks,  Jam at the Mortuary - Griz Green,  Monster Man - The MSR Singers,  Monster Surfer - The Abominable Surfmen,  I Dig You Baby - Bob McFadden & Dor,  House on Haunted Hill - Kenny & the Fiends,  Hear the Monsters - Winchell's Donut House,  The Raven - Buddy Morrow,  The Rockin' Ghost - The Modernaires,  Goolie Garden - Groovie Goolies,  Intro: Orgies (A Tool of Witchcraft) - Louise Huebner,  Night on Bald Mountain - Marty Manning,  Someone Walked Over My Grave - Criswell
FACT SHEET:  GHOULS WITH ATTITUDE VOL. 1 is an online compilation by Otis Fodder.com with production by Oddio Overplay.  The cover art is by Suzanne Baumann at Fridge Mag.  The singing style in both the songs "Jam at the Mortuary" and "I Dig You Baby" are meant to be imitations of the character of "Digger" O'Dell the undertaker on "THE LIFE OF RILEY" radio show as voiced by actor John Brown.  "Hear the Monsters" was a promo record given away by Winchell's Donut House.  The Groovie Goolies was an early 1970s Saturday morning cartoon by Filmation which featured song performances by unnamed studio musicians a la the Archies.  Louise Huebner is the official witch of Los Angeles, California.  Criswell was a TV fortune teller who is best known for having appeared in Ed Wood's masterpiece "PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE".