NEWS FROM LAKE WOBEGON  -  GARRISON KEILLOR

YEAR:  1983
LABEL:  PHC
TRACK LISTING:  Me and Choir,  A Day In the Life of Clarence Bunsen,  Letter From Jim,  Fiction,  The Living Flag,  The Tollefson Boy Goes To College,  Tomato Butt,  Chamber of Commerce,  Dog Days of August,  Mrs. Berge and the Schubert Carillon Piano,  Giant Decoys,  Darryl Tollerud's Long Day,  Hog Slaughter,  Thanksgiving,  The Royal Family,  Guys On Ice,  James Lundeen's Christmas,  The Christmas Story Re-Told,  New Year's From New York,  Storm Home
IMPRESSIONS:  Around 1984 I had a fantastic college professor for my Mass Media class - Dr. Denis Mercier - who, in order to demonstrate something which I can no longer remember, played for us in his lecture hall "The Tollefson Boy Goes To College" by Garrison Keillor.  At that point in my life I had never heard of Keillor or his radio programme "A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION" and was thus totally ignorant of his "News From Lake Wobegon" readings.  I was completely captivated.  Keillor's voice was spellbinding and his story was both warm and funny.  Naturally, at the end of class I asked Dr. Mercier where to get that album and he showed me the "butter box" of four cassette tapes which comprised the four volumes of "NEWS FROM LAKE WOBEGON" which make up this album.  The four volumes are divided thematically into "Spring", "Summer", "Fall" and "Winter".  I've since heard many, many Keillor monologues and many, many episodes of his radio show but none hold that special place in my heart as this collection and his "GOSPEL BIRDS" tape which I bought at the same time . . . I believe I got them at the Waldenbooks store on Route 70 (now long gone) back in those early to mid-80s.  There was something just so right about the packaging of that original cassette box which made it look like a Land-O-Lakes butter box.  I now, of course, have it on cd and it's just not the same.  The album starts off with one of Keillor's greatest ever monologues:  "Me and Choir" which is as near to a half hour long as makes no difference -- and is one of the greatest monologues I've ever heard.  There's the genuinely hilarious "Tomato Butt" which recalls a summertime youth and the expertly-observed "Thanksgiving" with all the faults and foibles -- as well as the heart of family.  Then the entire collection ends in winter with another of my all-time favourite stories:  "Storm Home".  Ever since hearing this story, I too have achingly longed for a "storm home" of my own.  These recordings are around 30 years old now and they've grown to become treasured classics to me; as comfortable and rewarding as a beloved old book.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Truthfully?  Every one of them.
FACT SHEET:  NEWS FROM LAKE WOBEGON is a 4 volume collection of monologues by Garrison Keillor taking from his weekly public radio show "A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION".  PHC has been running in its present format since 1974 (although it uses the name of a previous unrelated show which began in 1969).  PHC is a live radio variety show broadcast live usually from the Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul, Minnesota every Saturday afternoon from 5 to 7 pm.  The show takes its name from the Prairie Home Cemetery of Moorhead, Minnesota near Concordia College.  This album compiles Keillor's most well-known and beloved feature of A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION:  his "News From Lake Wobegon" monologues which describe events in his fictional hometown of Lake Wobegon, Minnesota "where all the women are strong, all the men are good-looking and all the children are above average".  Each monologue always begins with another Keillor catchphrase:  "Well, it's been a quiet week in Lake Wobegon; my hometown...".        

TUBTHUMPER  -  CHUMBAWAMBA

YEAR:  1997
LABEL:  Universal
TRACK LISTING:  Tubthumping,  Amnesia,  Drip Drip Drip,  The Big Issue,  The Good Ship Lifestyle,  One By One,  Outsider,  Creepy Crawling,  Mary Mary,  Smalltown,  I Want More,  Scapegoat
IMPRESSIONS:  For some reason, Chumbawamba and their single "Tubthumping" (and consequently their entire album "TUBTHUMPER") has gotten the reputation as something of a joke; a one-hit wonder novelty band.  This seems more a demonstration of the ignorance of those holding this view as to the true nature and history of this band.  A band with what some would call extreme radical, almost anarchist political convictions, Chumbawamba had already produced (in their own Do-It-Yourself manner) nine previous albums during the previous 15 years before their mainstream "discovery" with this album.  The band was lambasted as sell-outs by their own fans when they signed to EMI before making this album much like the earlier controversy when the Clash signed to a major label and seemingly "betrayed" their punk aesthetic.  Far from a novelty record, TUBTHUMPER is a seriously accomplished, hook-heavy album which pairs social message with "...dance beats, pop hooks and football chants..." in the words of Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine.  This, in effect, sugar-coats the possibly bitter social messages and slogans so they go down easily.  Speaking of the Clash, Chumbawamba mixes a cocktail of music with audio clips and sound effects much like Mick Jones' post-Clash project Big Audio Dynamite so successfully did; and there's some room for comparison between the two bands.  TUBTHUMPER plays straight through like some sort of anarchic dance suite that also gives the impression of being a concept album:  it's us against the them of oppressive governments, callous capitalist fatcats and fascist rascist bully boys.  All this to the drunken-sounding bar brawl of their hit single-led album.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Tubthumping,  Amnesia,  Drip Drip Drip,  The Big Issue,  The Good Ship Lifestyle,  One By One,  Outsider,  Mary Mary,  Smalltown,  I Want More
FACT SHEET:  TUBTHUMPER is Chumbawamba's tenth album and won the 1997 Penguin Award for Album of the Year.  In July 2012, the band announced they were breaking up after a 30 year career.      

DISCOVERY  -  DAFT PUNK

YEAR:  2001
LABEL:  Virgin
TRACK LISTING:  One More Time,  Aerodynamic,  Digital Love,  Harder Better Faster Stronger,  Crescendolls,  Nightvision,  Superheroes,  High Life,  Something About Us,  Voyager,  Veridis Quo,  Short Circuit,  Face To Face,  Too Long
IMPRESSIONS:  Don't you just love French musical robots?  Whether they intended it or not (and I think they DID), the album title is always pronounced by me "Disco (pause) Very".  Daft Punk, following up their influential first album (which had a "Chicago House" sounds as opposed to DISCOVERY's synthpop/disco house sound) from four years earlier, reigned at the tippy top of noughties house music.  I was never really into that genre but managed to pick up some of the best house albums through the years and this is definitely one of them.  The thing I enjoy most, apart from the obviously hook-heavy music, is the tremendous sense of humour to all the songs.  I think this album slightly makes up for the French love of Jerry Lewis and proves that sometimes they actually have a good sense of humour.  There is, of course, a load of disco tropes to be heard here as well as other seventies "sounding" musical devices.  The album creates such a particular soundscape that it served as the sole soundtrack of the Japanese anime film "Interstella 555:  The Story of the 5ecret 5tar 5ystem" which . . . yes . . . I also own.  Listening to this album is just such a pleasant experience; I think the word "giddiness" has been used.  Thomas Bangalter described the vibe of the album in a Remix magazine interview thusly:  "This album has a lot to do with our childhood and the memories of the state we were in at that stage of our lives. It's about our personal relationship to that time. It's less of a tribute to the music from 1975 to 1985 as an era, and more about focusing on the time when we were zero to ten years old. When you're a child you don't judge or analyze music. You just like it because you like it. You're not concerned with whether it's cool or not. Sometimes you might relate to just one thing in a song, such as the guitar sound. This album takes a playful, fun, and colorful look at music."  Regardless, it's an indispensible album of the noughties.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  One More Time,  Aerodynamic,  Digital Love,  Harder Better Faster Stronger,  Nightvision,  Something About Us,  Voyager,  Veridis Quo,  Face To Face
GUEST ARTISTS:  Romanthony (vocals on "One More Time" and "Too Long",  Todd Edwards (vocals and production on "Face To Face")
FACT SHEET:  DISCOVERY is Daft Punk's second album.  Daft Punk are robots.  Or else they're French electronic music duo Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter.  The album provides the soundtrack to the "INTERSTELLA 555" anime film by Leiji Matsumoto and Toei Animation.  The album's departure from the sound of the previous HOMEWORK album confused and annoyed some fans but critical reception was usually extraordinarily good.  Q Magazine rated it 5 out of 5 stars (a rarity), Resident Advisor rated it the fourth best album of the decade, and Rhapsody as well as Pitchfork Media both rated it #12 of the best albums of the decade.  The album was also nominated for a 2001 Penguin Award as well as both "Something About Us" and "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" were also nominated for Song of the Year.   

10 FROM 6  -  BAD COMPANY

YEAR:  1985
LABEL:  Atlantic
TRACK LISTING:  Can't Get Enough,  Feel Like Makin' Love,  Run With the Pack,  Shooting Star,  Movin' On,  Bad Company,  Rock 'N' Roll Fantasy,  Electricland,  Ready For Love,  Live For the Music
IMPRESSIONS:  Loathe as I am to include "greatest hits" albums on here, that eventually occurs in certain cases and here is one of them.  This is the only album I own by Bad Company (with the exception of some live reunion cd released in the last decade).  But more importantly, this is a "Sizzler album" with nostalgic connotations to my mind.  This album means to me heading to Guppy's condo after work most nights to hang out and drink copious amounts of vodka.  Guppy was called "Guppy" cuz she drank like a fish; the only things in her refrigerator were a bottle of Absolut and some lemons!  But for some reason, one of the albums we listened to A LOT there and at the time generally (this was circa 1991) was this Bad Company "Best Of".  It's always seemed odd to me how this very English rock supergroup had all these cowboy-sounding songs; but England has always had more of a lingering love affair with the Western than we indigenous Yanks.  Be that as it may, this album is chock full of great songs which practically define the term "70's classic rock" and the eponymous song "Bad Company" is one of my all-time favourites.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Can't Get Enough,  Run with the Pack,  Movin' On,  Bad Company,   Electricland,  Ready For Love
FACT SHEET:  10 FROM 6 is Bad Company's first "greatest hits" album culled from their first six albums:  hence the title referring to 10 songs from 6 albums.  Those albums being:  BAD COMPANY (1974), STRAIGHT SHOOTER (1975), RUN WITH THE PACK (1976), BURNIN' SKY (1977), DESOLATION ANGELS (1979) and ROUGH DIAMONDS (1982).  The personnel of "supergroup" Bad Co. included singer Paul Rodgers and drummer Simon Kirke (from Free), guitarist Mick Ralphs (from Mott the Hoople) and bassist Boz Burrell (from King Crimson).  10 FROM 6 has been certified double platinum.      

AT MISTER KELLY'S  --  SARAH VAUGHAN

YEAR:  1957
LABEL:  EmArcy
TRACK LISTING:  September in the Rain,  Willow Weep For Me,  Just One of Those Things, Be Anything (But Be Mine),  Thou Swell,  Stairway To the Stars,  Honeysuckle Rose,  Just A Gigolo,  How High the Moon,  Dream,  I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter,  It's Got To Be Love,  Alone,  If This Isn't Love,  Embraceable You,  Lucky In Love,  Dancing in the Dark,  Poor Butterfly,  Sometimes I'm Happy,  I Cover the Waterfront
IMPRESSIONS:  Sarah Vaughan's first live album is an easy and swinging affair with the Divine One bantering easily with the audience.  The cd release has, of course, given us much more of the original performances including one or two lyrical flubs by Sassy (despite using lyrics sheets as stated by the emcee at the beginning of the concert).  This album was fairly early in the live LP stakes but it still sounds fresh and modern without any sense of archaic production.  As I've said, Sassy swings the up-tempo songs and sounds really on point vocally in the ballads as well; she sounds really involved in the performance.  She expertly lays back in the tempo of such songs as Fats Waller's "I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter" or Johnny Mercer's "Dream" with a confidence and assuredness of masterly control that is astonishing.  John Bush of Allmusic states it rather better:  "her unerring sense of rhythm carries her through every song on this set, whether the occasion calls for playfulness and wit ("Thou Swell," "Honeysuckle Rose") or a world-wise melancholia ("Willow Weep for Me")" and that the album captures her at her "best and most relaxed".  There are also some nice surprises on display i.e. her slowed-down version of the usually frenetic "Just a Gigolo" or her playful imitation of Ella Fitzgerald's scat singing on "How High the Moon". 
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  September in the Rain,  Willow Weep For Me,  Thou Swell,  Stairway to the Stars,  Honeysuckle Rose,  Just a Gigolo,  How High the Moon,  Dream,  I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter,  It's Got To Be Love,  Embraceable You,  Poor Butterfly,  I Cover the Waterfront
FACT SHEET:  AT MISTER KELLY'S is Sarah Vaughan's first live album; it was recorded between August 6 - 8, 1957 at Mister Kelly's Club in Chicago.  Sarah Vaughan's trio includes Jimmy Jones (piano), Richard Davis (double bass) and Roy Haynes (drums). 

BONA DRAG  -  MORRISSEY

YEAR:  1990
LABEL:  Sire
TRACK LISTING:  Piccadilly Palare,  Interesting Drug,  November Spawned a Monster,  Will Never Marry,  Such a Little Thing Makes Such a Big Difference,  The Last of the Famous International Playboys,  Ouija Board Ouija Board,  Hairdresser On Fire,  Everyday Is Like Sunday,  He Knows I'd Love To See Him,  Yes I Am Blind,  Lucky Lisp,  Suedehead,  Disappointed
IMPRESSIONS:  Somehow I'd totally missed the Smiths the first time around.  It was the music of solo Morrissey I encountered first here on this oddball collection I got from the BMG Music Service back in 1990.  And I quite enjoyed the rococo songs herein and found myself spinning them fairly frequently.  Also my mother was a fan.  It wasn't until years later that my dear wifey Lisa* gave me pretty much the entire recorded output of the Smiths.  However, it is with my wifey that my favourite story about Morrissey occurs -- and my one degree of separation with the nutball.  {I hope I get the story right; I haven't heard you tell it in years so let me know if I get it wrong, dahling.}  Lisa* and some friends were waiting in line to see Morrissey but La Mo was very, very late.  When he pushed his way through the waiting crowd without making eye contact or apologizing or doing anything other than acting surly, my Lisa*, in order to express her displeasure, started yelling "JOHNNY MARR!  JOHNNY MARR! JOHNNY MARR!" and instituted a chant amongst the throng.  Love it!  And hey, I love this compilation cd too.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Piccadilly Palare,  Interesting Drug,  November Spawned a Monster,  Such a Little Thing Makes Such a Big Difference,  The Last of the Famous International Playboys,  Ouija Board Ouija Board,  Hairdresser On Fire,  Everyday Is Like Sunday,  Yes I Am Blind,  Suedehead,  Disappointed
GUEST ARTISTS:  Graham "Suggs" McPherson (vocals on "Piccadilly Palare"),  Kirsty MacColl (backing vocals on "Interesting Drug")
FACT SHEET:  BONA DRAG is a 1990 compilation cd of songs selected from Morrissey's previous solo albums dating from between 1987 to 1989; this is not a greatest hits compilation but is a sampling of his non-album singles and b-sides.  During this period, Morrissey focussed on releasing singles that were stand-alones and not from any album; it was this cd which collected some of them (and other material) onto an album for the first time.  This change in "policy" occurred after the release of Morrissey's 1988 album "VIVA HATE" when the artist decided that, rather than produce a follow-up album he would release a string of singles before working on the next album.  Thusly, Morrissey released top ten hit singles "The Last of the International Playboys" and "Interesting Drug" followed by "Ouija Board, Ouija Board" throughout 1989.  Soon realising that he would not in fact be able to put together an entire album of new material soon enough, Morrissey scrapped this strategy and decided to put together a compilation album of singles and b-sides instead.  In May 1990, he released the single "November Spawned a Monster" and the following October released the single "Piccadilly Palare" and the "BONA DRAG" album on the same day.  The album contains the strongest material from Morrissey first three years as a solo artists including "Suedehead" and "Everyday Is Like Sunday" from the "VIVA HATE" album.  "BONA DRAG" was the first album to break Morrissey into the US charts:  "Piccadilly Palare" and "Ouija Board, Ouija Board" both hit #2 on the "Modern Rock" charts, with "The Last of the International Playboys" hitting #3, "November Spawned a Monster" making #6, and "Interesting Drug" at #11.  Wikipedia states:  "Bona Drag launched Morrissey's career in the US, and in many ways it marked the turning point after which he became less popular in the UK but achieved increasing success in America."  The title "Bona Drag" is "Polari" slang for "nice outfit"; the slang form is highlighted on the opening track "Piccadilly Palare".  The cover photo is taken from Morrissey's video for "November Spawned a Monster"; his shirt was optically altered from black to red.  In 2010, an expanded edition of "BONA DRAG" was released including 6 new bonus tracks of outtakes and different mixes of "Ouija Board, Ouija Board" (edited in the middle section), "Piccadilly Palare" (including an extra verse circulated on bootlegs), "Interesting Drug" (fades into "November Spawned a Monster") and "Suedehead" (edited to remove guitar fade on the intro).  The new edition features Morrissey's jacket changed back from red to the original black again.  I have it not.     

THE GREAT MILENKO  -  INSANE CLOWN POSSE

YEAR:  1997
LABEL:  Island/Psychopathic Records
TRACK LISTING:  Intro,  Great Milenko,  Hokus Pokus,  Piggy Pie,  How Many Times?,  Southwest Voodoo,  Halls of Illusions,  Under the Moon,  What Is A Juggalo?,  House of Horrors,  Boogie Woogie Wu,  The Neden Game,  Hellalujah,  Down With the Clown,  Just Like That,  Pass Me By
IMPRESSIONS:  This was the first of the Joker's Cards I got into in a really big way (working backwards to RIDDLE BOX soon after) and this shows by the fact that I nominated it for a Penguin Award for Album of the Year.  The dunderheaded rap of ICP combined with an expertly hidden morality and some good ole axe murders made for a strange combination but one I found to be very amusing.  The mystique of the "Dark Carnival" and the six "Joker's Cards" melted this horror-fan's heart and the abundance of hooks melted my ears.  And how can you not love an album which starts with Alice Cooper introducing it?  And the fact that the whole album was made by Disney is just too hilarious to forget!  The title track is a monster "head-nodder" you can't help but move to -- as is the rather profound (for wicked clowns) "How Many Times?" which holds up as a stand-out track.  Seriously though . . . who was asleep at Disney that didn't realize what kind of album Insane Clown Posse was gonna produce?!?!?!
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Intro,  Great Milenko,  Hokus Pokus,  Piggie Pie,  How Many Times?,  What Is A Juggalo?,  House of Horrors,  Boogie Woogie Wu,  The Neden Game,  Hellalujah,  Pass Me By
GUEST ARTISTS:  Alice Cooper (narration on "Intro"),  Steve Jones (guitar on "Piggy Pie"),  Slash (guitar on "Halls of Illusions"), Rich "Legs Diamond" Murrell (vocals, guitar on "Piggie Pie", "How Many Times", "Halls of Illusions", House of Horrors", "Hellalujah" and "Pass Me By"), Deb Agoli (vocals on "Intro", "Hokus Pokus" and "House of Horrors")
FACT SHEET:  THE GREAT MILENKO is Insane Clown Posse's fourth album and the fourth "Joker's Card".  The Great Milenko (in the "Dark Carnival" mythology) is a "Necromaster" illusionist who tricks people into "greed, envy and lust" and warns them against committing these sins.  The album was released by Disney-owned Hollywood records who quickly pulled the album from release laughingly stating that they didn't realize what the album's content would be -- despite the fact they spent a million dollars making it.  Island Records agreed to take the album and release it untouched.  The album features guest appearances by original horror-glam rocker Alice Cooper, the Sex Pistols' Steve Jones and former Guns N Roses guitar hero (and self-confessed ICP fan) Slash.  A song called "House of Wonders" was originally recorded for this album but didn't make it; instead winding up on the collection "FORGOTTEN FRESHNESS VOLUME 1 & 2"; this cd compilaton also features the "uncensored" version of "Piggy Pie".  THE GREAT MILENKO was produced by DJ Mike E. Clark who brought a stronger "rock" sound and better production to the album.  The strong sense of morality always hidden beneath ICP's violent lyrics always guaranteed that those punished with violence in the songs were guilty of such sins as bigotry, perversion, violence and injustice themselves; the innocent never get axed in an ICP song.  This quite clear theme throughout ALL the Joker's Cards assured my guessing quite early that Violent J and Shaggy were secretly Christians; a fact revealed in the final Joker's Card to some juggaloes' dismay.  In 2009, long-running horror magazine FANGORIA named "THE GREAT MILENKO" an iconic horrorcore album . . . whatever THAT means.  The album was also nominated for a Penguin Award for Album of the Year.   

HELP!  -  THE BEATLES

YEAR:  1965
LABEL:  Capitol/Parlophone
TRACK LISTING:  Help!,  The Night Before,  You've Got To Hide Your Love Away,  I Need You,  Another Girl,  You're Going To Lose That Girl,  Ticket To Ride,  Act Naturally,  It's Only Love,  You Like Me Too Much,  Tell Me What You See,  I've Just Seen A Face,  Yesterday,  Dizzy Miss Lizzy
IMPRESSIONS:  This is not the HELP! album I grew up with; that was the US version which was truly a soundtrack album featuring instrumental pieces from the movie on half the album.  However, this is the "real" HELP! album and what's to be said about it that hasn't been said before.  Obviously it's got some solid mid-period Beatles numbers in it.  There's John Lennon's favourite Beatles song "Help!" which he preferred in its original slow-tempo, piano-driven ballad format instead of the commercial rocker it became; the song was Lennon's self-described "fat Elvis" song which was an unconscious cry for help by Lennon at the time.  Then there's apparently everybody ELSE'S favourite Beatles song "Yesterday" which is actually a solo track by Paul McCartney with no other Beatles present; the song was thought by its author to be somebody else's so he constantly went around humming the tune to everyone he met asking "What's this song?"  After everyone assured him that it was indeed a newly-written song and not someone else's, Paul assigned it the temporary title "Scrambled Eggs" before the lyrics were finalized.  Also featuring two George Harrison songs (of varying degrees of success) for the first time on a Beatles album since 1963's "WITH THE BEATLES".  A good, solid Beatles album.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Help!,  The Night Before,  You've Got To Hide Your Love Away,  I Need You,  Another Girl,  You're Going To Lose That Girl,  Ticket To Ride,  I've Just Seen A Face,  Yesterday
GUEST ARTISTS:  John Scott (flute on "You've Got To Hide Your Love Away)
FACT SHEET:  HELP! is the Beatles' fifth album and the "somewhat" soundtrack to their second movie; seven songs appear in the film.  The iconic cover photo is by Robert Freeman and DOES NOT feature the Beatles spelling out H-E-L-P in semaphore; they were supposed to originally but the correct letters did not look aesthetically pleasing so the fabs are in fact spelling out the letters N-U-J-V.  Of course, the Beatles being the Beatles, the original UK cover photo was reverse-printed so, if you hold it up to a mirror, the boys are spelling out L-P-U-S (i.e. "Help us").  "Act Naturally" was written by Johnny Russell and Voni Morrison.  "Dizzy Miss Lizzy" was written by Larry Williams.  "I Need You" and "You Like Me Too Much" were written by George Harrison; all the other songs are by John Lennon and Paul McCartney.  This is the last Beatles album to feature cover songs until "LET IT BE" in 1970 included folk song "Maggie Mae".  The song "Wait" was originally recorded for this album but instead ended up going on "RUBBER SOUL" when it was one song short.       

THE ROCKIN'EST  -  THE COLLINS KIDS

YEAR:  1997
LABEL:  Columbia/Bear Family
TRACK LISTING:  Hop Skip and Jump,  Hoy Hoy,  Beetle-Bug-Bop,  Just Because,  Whistle Bait,  I'm In My Teens,  Move A Little Closer,  Hot Rod,  Rock Boppin' Baby,  Go Away Don't Bother Me,  The Rockaway Rock,  Rock and Roll Polka,  The Cuckoo Rock,  Sweet Talk,  Hush Money,  They're Still In Love,  Make Him Behave,  Shortnin' Bread Rock,  Heartbeat,  The Lonesome Road,  Mercy,  Party
IMPRESSIONS:  I have never been a fan of "precocious youths"; usually because kid performers are nowhere near as good as they're touted to be.  When described as "remarkable for a kid" that means they're not equal to an adult level of performance.  The Collins Kids could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with their adult peers and quite often outdo them.  Little Larry Collins was an acknowledged guitar master by age 10 who played his double-necked Mosrite with lightning dexterity while his older sister (by two years) Lorrie sang with adult-sounding forceful assuredness to match any female singer of her day.  While performing seemingly juvenile songs as "I'm In My Teens", it was only the subject matter that dealt with their ages; the songs were not children's novelty but straight-ahead, solid rockabilly which sounded more "grown-up" then a lot of their "adult" peers.  Larry's guitar mentor was Joe Maphis and the youngster learned his craft well.  Lorrie became the first girlfriend of teen idol Ricky Nelson and allegedly broke his heart when she broke up with him and married another guy.  Regardless of the "gimmick" of their young ages, the Collins Kids were the real deal; knocking out rockabilly belters on the stage of "TOWN HALL PARTY" which, when at their best, blew veteran performers right off the stage.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Hop Skip and Jump,  Hoy Hoy,  Whistle Bait,  I'm In My Teens,  Move A Little Closer,  Hot Rod,  Rock Boppin' Baby,  Rock and Roll Polka,  Sweet Talk,  Shortnin' Bread Rock,  Heartbeat,  The Lonesome Road,  Mercy,  Party
FACT SHEET:  THE ROCKIN'EST is a compilation of the Collins Kids' songs ranging from the years 1955 to 1959.  Lorrie and Larry became regular performers on TOWN HALL PARTY beginning in 1954 and also the show's TV version "TEX RITTER'S RANCH PARTY" from 1957 to 1959.  Larry is also a successful songwriter whose most famous composition is "Delta Dawn".  The duo reunited in 1993 for an English rockabilly concert and have performed together many times since.   

HERGEST RIDGE  -  MIKE OLDFIELD

YEAR:  1974
LABEL:  Virgin
TRACK LISTING:  Hergest Ridge Part One,  Hergest Ridge Part Two
IMPRESSIONS:  TUBULAR BELLS was the big commercial monster hit; even before THE EXORCIST utilized it, the album was a blockbuster.  Naturally, a follow-up was demanded and HERGEST RIDGE was it.  Also a commercial and critical success, Mike Oldfield's second album was much more "quiet" than his previous; I might actually go so far as to call it Mike Oldfield's "pastoral album".  After all, the album cover (which Oldfield says he was "never entirely sold on" for some reason) features as it's four major images:  sky, grass, doggie and model airplane.  And the very name of the album derives from the Hergest Ridge summit nearby Oldfield's house at the time.  The album, of course, follows much of the previous pattern; it's a piece broken into two movements (to fascillitate vinyl's side one and side two) and features building, interweaving instrumentals and melodies; however, like I said this is a more "lyrical" and quite "medieval" sounding album to my ears, quieter, less fireworks (in fact, for the first re-release in 1976 as part of the 4 LP vinyl box set "BOXED", Oldfield remixed and removed some of the "bells and whistles" that made the original release more "Tubular Bells-like" and announced his preference for the remixed version.  I have the original vinyl LP, the vinyl "BOXED" set as well as the cd of this album and I still don't know if I can speak to the differences between them -- I haven't heard the original vinyl for years.  However, I waver back and forth as to whether HERGEST RIDGE or its follow-up OMMADAWN is my favourite Mike Oldfield album; OMMADAWN being something of a melding between the commercial blockbuster TUBULAR BELLS and the mellower HERGEST RIDGE.  The building up of textures seems more seamless here than on TUBULAR BELLS making the entire work feel more "organic".  While OMMADAWN usually pips this album to the post as my favourite Oldfield work, HERGEST RIDGE is always closely nipping at its heels.  
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  It's all one track, folks.
FACT SHEET:  HERGEST RIDGE is Mike Oldfield's second album.  The album is named after the hill Hergest Ridge summit near Kington, Herefordshire close to the English/Welsh border; Oldfield lived there at the time in a house called "The Beacon" (now a guest house and popular tourist destination for Oldfield fans) wherein Oldfield wrote the album.  The album itself was recorded at Branson's The Manor as was its predecessor TUBULAR BELLS.  HERGEST RIDGE entered the UK album charts at number one; it was displaced by TUBULAR BELLS(!); this making Mike Oldfield among the select company of artists (like The Beatles and Bob Dylan) who knocked themselves off the number one spot.  The album was produced by Tom Newman and features choral vocals by the London Sinfonietta.  The original vinyl mix has been released on cd in 2010 along with a new remix and different cover art.     

TRUE COLOURS  -  SPLIT ENZ

YEAR:  1980
LABEL:  A&M
TRACK LISTING:  I Got You,  Shark Attack,  What's the Matter With You?,  Double Happy,  I Wouldn't Dream Of It,  I Hope I Never,  Nobody Takes Me Seriously,  Missing Person,  Poor Boy,  How Can I Resist Her?,  The Choral Sea
IMPRESSIONS:  The album that broke Split Enz in the USA.  A classic in every respect, this is the album that produced the first videos I'd ever seen of the band on MTV:  that is, the videos for "I Got You" and "I Hope I Never".  My love for Split Enz has probably been covered enough already in my previous posts here so I'll give you a break and not go over old territory.  Suffice it to say that the album cover of this album was released with many different colour combinations; the above "yellow and blue" model was what my original vinyl LP looked like whereas my cd has the red and green cover.  I prefer my original.  Also, the original vinyl features the spectacular "laser etching" of geometric patterns right on the grooves themselves; this effect truly was (and is) spectacular as it catches the light brilliantly.  I still have mine.  As good as this album is, the next album ("WAIATA" aka "CORROBOREE") would be better still and the following "TIME AND TIDE" is a masterpiece.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  I Got You,  Shark Attack,  What's the Matter With You?,  I Hope I Never,  Nobody Takes Me Seriously,  Poor Boy,  The Choral Sea
FACT SHEET:  TRUE COLOURS is Split Enz's fifth album.  The band's line-up for this album was Tim Finn (lead vocals, acoustic guitar), Neil Finn (lead vocals, guitar), Noel Crombie (vocals, percussion), Malcolm Green (drums), nigel Griggs (bass guitar) and Eddie Rayner (keyboards).  The original album featured "Shark Attack" as track one and "I Got You" as track two but the success of the latter as a hit single prompted US label A&M to switch the order so that the popular hit would lead off the album.  Just to prove the old axiom that artists never can judge their own best stuff, the band thought "Missing Persons" was the stand-out track to be released as a single; thankfully, wiser heads prevailed.  The album cover was designed by band member Noel Crombie and was originally released in four colour combinations:  yellow and blue, red and green, purple and yellow and blue and orange; there have since been even further colour combinations in re-releases including lime-green and pink, hot purple and burnt orange, gold and platinum (denoting its sales success) and and yellow, blue and red.  A&M also chose this album as the first to ever feature "laser-etching" directly on the vinyl; geometric shapes were literally etched onto the grooves so that light hitting it would flash around the room.  This technique was not only a boon to DJs spinning the record but also a deterrent to the then-problem of vinyl pirating of counterfeit LPs.  Cyndi Lauper was a Split Enz fan and her 1986 hit single and album "True Colors" were named in tribute to the band.  In a boner of the same proportions as Rolling Stone magazine's crowning of 1979's "London Calling" by the Clash as the best album of the 1980s, New Zealand's Split Enz found their TRUE COLOURS declared #22 in the book "100 BEST AUSTRALIAN ALBUMS".  Apparently at the time 1 in every 4 households in New Zealand owned a copy of TRUE COLOURS.    

BRYTER LATER  -  NICK DRAKE

YEAR:  1970
LABEL:  Island
TRACK LISTING:  Introduction,  Hazey Jane II,  At the Chime of the City Clock,  One of These Things First,  Hazey Jane I,  Bryter Later,  Fly,  Poor Boy,  Northern Sky,  Sunday
IMPRESSIONS:  Probably my least favourite Nick Drake album of the three; despite the fact that some of his best songs can be found here.  I think the major problem I have with the album is that Nick himself seems to be absent for about a quarter of it; we have here a few instrumental tracks which, sure, Nick plays guitar on and Nick wrote, but it's almost as if he's stepped out for a smoke.  And the fact that we have precious little Nick Drake on record, this is almost an unpardonable sin.  Then we have the often-touted complaint of the overly-sweet string arrangements by Robert Kirby which Nick himself seemed to dislike as he insisted on a stripped-down sound for his next album "PINK MOON".  I actually don't have much of a problem with these arrangements except in a few cases.  "Poor Boy" actually sounds like a decent song but when smothered in an inappropriate pop arrangement and back-up singers (including the wonderful Doris Troy), the effect is jarring compared to the rest of the album.  And back to those instrumentals.  The opening track "Introduction" is innocuous, I suppose, but the title track is pure rubbish; it sounds like it was lifted from a 60's comedy film.  So we have here a seriously flawed album -- and that's a big deal since we've only got three Nick Drake albums to listen to.  However, even a flawed Nick Drake album is something to be conjured with.  Here we find some of his greatest recordings:  the darkly jazzy "At the Chime of a City Clock", the beautiful rolling ramble of "One of These Things First", the sunny, drumming-tempo of Fairport Convention's rhythm section in  "Hazey Jane I", the drawing room miniature of "Fly" and the exquisitely joyful spring air chasing away the winter chill in "Northern Sky".  Q Magazine in 2007 declared the album as having "more hooks than a pirate convention".  So even Nick Drake's worst album is a stone classic.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  At the Chime of a City Clock,  One of These Things First,  Hazey Jane I,  Fly,  Northern Sky
GUEST ARTISTS:  Dave Pegg (bass guitar), Dave Mattacks (drums), Richard Thompson (lead guitar on "Hazey Jane II"), Doris Troy (backing vocals on "Poor Boy"), Ray Warleigh (alto saxophone on "At the Chime of a City Clock" and "Poor Boy", flute on "Sunday"), Mike Kowalski (drums on "At the Chime of a City Clock", "One of These Things First", "Poor Boy" and "Northern Sky"), Paul Harris (piano on "One of These Things First"), Ed Carter (bass on "One of These Things First"), Lyn Dobson (flute on "Bryter Later"), John Cale (viola and harpsichord on "Fly", celeste, piano and organ on "Northern Sky"), Pat Arnold (backing vocals on "Poor Boy"), Chris McGregor (piano on "Poor Boy"), Robert Kirby (arrangements)
FACT SHEET:  BRYTER LATER is Nick Drake's second album.  The album title is a reference to the common British weather report term for clearing weather as "brighter later".  The album features members of Fairport Convention's rhythm section Pegg and Mattacks (as well as Fairport's leader Richard Thompson), John Cale of The Velvet Underground, R&B singer Doris Troy and Beach Boys rhythm section Kowalski and Carter.  The album was produced by Joe Boyd and arranged by Robert Kirby.  The paradoxically dark iconic album cover to BRYTER LATER was designed and photographed by Nigel Waymouth.       

GO INSANE  -  LINDSEY BUCKINGHAM

YEAR:  1984
LABEL:  Reprise
TRACK LISTING:  I Want You,  Go Insane,  Slow Dancing,  I Must Go,  Play in the Rain,  Play in the Rain (Continued),  Loving Cup,  Bang the Drum,  D.W. Suite
IMPRESSIONS:  Ah, remember when 38 minutes made an album?  Nowadays, if you put out an album only 38 minutes long people would either call you a slacker or rename it an EP.  But back in the days of vinyl, this was a respectable album length (any more and you'd have a double LP) and nobody expected more.  This brings us to Lindsey Buckingham's second solo album right at the height of the mid-80's new wave MTV boom when Fleetwood Mac's guitar god was perhaps even a little too odd for music videos.  This was when Mr. Buckingham went around everywhere with his "high hair" do -- I mean everywhere -- even on the "We Are the World" video!  The album's first single "Go Insane" is a fantastic song and I loved it the minute I heard it:  driving drums, bizarre sound and even featuring a heavy guitar presence during the age of synthesizers.  The song was quite successful and got a lot of airplay.  Mr. Buckingham followed it up with another fantastic single which sadly didn't capture the public's attention as much:  "Slow Dancing"; the video for this song was exquisite -- think waltzing ghosts from "THE HAUNTED MANSION", folks.  There were a few other notable album tracks:  the two-part "Play in the Rain" (which ended side one with a "locked groove" which meant that the song would endlessly play until you physically lifted the needle) and album-ender "D.W. Suite" which was a tribute to the Beach Boys' Dennis Wilson who died during the making of this album. The experimental sound here looks forward in many ways to a little techno, a little bit of the synth-driven Depeche Mode sound as well as sounding strongly influential (in the song "D.W. Suite") to the sound of the Polyphonic Spree.  But while half of this album is great, the other half is mainly undistinguished 80's experimentation which fell kinda flat.  I've had the album since it came out in 1984 and I don't think I've ever listened to the other songs (I haven't mentioned) more than once.  And I certainly can't remember them.  For an album only 38 minutes long, this isn't a laudable track record.  More time focused on melodies and less on experimental sound tinkering would've netted a better album.  Lindsey's first album suffers from a similar complaint:  half a great album, half a forgettable album.  So, indeed perhaps the best thing to do is to take half the songs from his first album "LAW AND ORDER" and half the songs from "GO INSANE" and create the perfect Lindsey Buckingham 80's solo album; I dunno, you could rename it "INSANE ORDER".  That's kinda fitting, actually.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Go Insane,  Slow Dancing,  Play in the Rain,  Play in the Rain (Continued),  D.W. Suite
FACT SHEET:  GO INSANE is Lindsey Buckingham's second solo album.  It was recorded during the time when Fleetwood Mac had supposedly broken-up for good with the release of what was supposed to be their final album "MIRAGE"; the break-up was short-lived when Fleetwood Mac suddenly re-formed in the mid-80's.  All the songs (except "D.W. Suite") are about Buckingham's break-up with girlfriend Carol Ann Harris and the album is dedicated to her.   

CASTLEWISE  -  ROY CASTLE

YEAR:  1961
LABEL:  Philips
TRACK LISTING:  One Two Button Your Shoe,  How High the Moon,  Blue Moon,  Softly As In A Morning Sunrise,  So Would I,  Breezin' Along with the Breeze,  Top Hat White Tie and Tails,  I'm Old Fashioned,  If I Can Help Somebody,  Dancing on the Ceiling,  A Brown Bird Singing,  Happy Ending
IMPRESSIONS:  Roy Castle OBE will always be Biff Bailey to me.  In me youth, my cousin and I dearly loved the Amicus flick "DR. TERROR'S HOUSE OF HORRORS" which featured a bumbling Biff Bailey stealing an "ancient voodoo tune" to use for his next big hit -- against the wishing of the great god Damballah!  In this film, Roy Castle even managed to toot his trumpet along with the Tubby Hayes Quintet; and Roy wasn't faking it -- he was an accomplished jazz trumpet player.  Besides this, Castle had debuted on the silver screen as an assistant to Peter Cushing in "DR. WHO AND THE DALEKS".  So how could I not love a Roy Castle record like this?  All "ring-a-ding-ding" early 60s finger-snapping goodness, CASTLEWISE maintains the light and breezy touch that seems integral to Roy Castle's personality.  Ably accompanied by "THE GOON SHOW" musical director Wally Stott (soon to become Angela Morley) and his Orchestra, Roy Castle gives us a delightful album.  A prime example is the easy swinging he brings to the vocals of "How High the Moon" as well as some friendly/comical band introductions and some respectable scat-singing as well.  Castle was truly multi-talented:  a pleasing singer, accomplished trumpet player, likeable TV host, comedian and actor and, at the end of his life, a public-spirited activist with his anti-smoking cancer fund.  Castle died of lung cancer despite not having been a smoker; he attributed it to all the second-hand smoke he passively absorbed while performing in countless jazz clubs.  Little known over here in the States, Roy Castle was a beloved and respected performer and public figure in the UK who deserves to be better-known here in the US.  Take this post as a small step towards that goal.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  One Two Button Your Show,  How High the Moon,   
GUEST ARTISTS:  Wally Stott & His Orchestra
FACT SHEET:  CASTLEWISE is Roy Castle's first album . . . or his second album . . . the internet is its usual useless self and cannot seem to provide me with an answer.  I know that Castle recorded assorted singles and three albums between the years 1958 and 1969 and this is one of them.  Oddly enough, the internet also tells me that, of the three albums, the only one available on cd is "ISN'T THIS A LOVELY DAY" when in reality THAT cd is almost impossible to get (except at exorbitant prices) while "CASTLEWISE" is easily available from itunes (from whence I gotted it).  Sad because "ISN'T THIS A LOVELY DAY" (retitled for cd from the original 1966 album "SONGS FOR A RAINY DAY") I would kill to get; all the songs are about rain, don'tcha know and I love rain songs.  Be that as it may, that's a lot of stuff NOT about "CASTLEWISE".  But since there seems to be no extraneous info on "CASTLEWISE" on the useless internet (other than what I've already told you) -- well, that's your lot then!