CDs acquired March-December, 2003
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(The format here is suggested by the lovely logbooks, hand sewn and as hefty as a wizard’s spell book, found at the Peter Pan coffee shop in Sendai, Japan. There, Nagasaki-san, the master, writes in every CD he buys. At first, he merely jots down an explanatory comment or two; then, after a month or two has passed, he writes down a ranking for the CD. The CDs are listed in order of acquisition; some never quite get a ranking, while for others the ranking sometimes shifts. If you visit Peter Pan, it is one of the great joys to pick up these volumes and page through—they date back to the 1970s. A whole history of rock music there, as heard at one small rock kissaten [coffee shop]. I stole many hours of pleasure, pouring over those handwritten volumes. I hope the following provides you with similar pleasures. And I presume the same privileges as Nagasaki-san: some CDs acquired may never quite earn a ranking, while others may see their rankings shift, depending on the whims of the moment. Five Stars is the highest possible ranking. )
×××The Thrills, So Much For The City (2003, Virgin). An Irish band that’s been receiving heaps of critical praise lately. Their website is here. It’s nice, but after a few dozen listens, it still doesn’t grab me—I haven’t found myself humming any of the songs on here. But a band whose future is worth watching.
J.S. Bach, Goldberg Variations BWV 988, Charles Rosen, piano (1992, Sony). Originally released on vinyl in 1969.
Dmitri Shostakovich, Symphony No. 11 ‘The Year 1905,’ London Symphony Orchestra, Mstislav Rostropovich, conductor (2002; LSO).
×××The
88, Kind of Light (2003, Mootron/EMK).
A local LA band that’s been getting much good press lately, a pop-rock
sound. Check out their webpage here. Very promising debut; everyone else says the sound like the
Kinks, but I hear more mid-period Bowie and—above all—Blur. Of course, mid-period Bowie and Blur often
sound like the Kinks. Never mind.
Eno, Another Green World (?, EG). Originally released on vinyl in 1975.
××××Warren Zevon, The Wind (2003, Artemis). What a nice piece of work to leave behind! Several fantastic songs on it, especially “Keep Me in Your Heart.”
The White Stripes, Elephant (2003, v2 Records).
Nirvana, In Utero (1993, Geffen).
Pearl Jam, Ten (1991, Epic).
Weezer, Weezer (1994, Geffen).
The Replacements, Let It Be (2002, Restless). Originally released on TwinTone back in 1984.
R.E.M., Automatic for the People (1992, Warner Brothers).
×××××Hank Williams, Hillbilly Hero (2002, Proper Records). Another Proper bargain box set: 4 CDs for about $22.00. A great deal, nice package, just terrific.
××Van Morrison, What’s Wrong With This Picture? (2003, Blue Note). Disappointing. Only a couple of songs have a real Van Morrison feel; the rest could be being sung by just about anybody.
××××Harry Nilsson, Pussy Cats (1999, Buddha). Vinyl LP originally released in 1974; this includes bonus tracks. A legendary piece of work, Harry’s voice is completely shot, but somehow all the more compelling because of it. And producer’s John Lennon’s boozy fingerprints are all over it.
××××Ozomatli, Coming Up (Limited edition EP) (2003, Concord). Very strong collection of tunes, carrying on their remarkable experiment at blending salsa with hip hop. They have a new album coming out soon; I can’t wait.
×××××Outkast, Speakerboxxx/The Love Below (2003, Arista). A landmark piece of work, ranks with the very best pop music double-album sets of all time: London Calling, Blonde on Blonde, Exile on Main Street and The White Album. Even people who don’t get rap get this (my wife, for instance). It’s especially great to see someone pick up the thread of funky silliness, in the line of Funkadelic.
×××The Beatles, Let It Be…Naked (2003, Apple). The verdict: “Long and Winding Road” works better without Phil Specter’s strings; “Across the Universe” works better with them; and “Let It Be” is a wash, since they use a different and inferior take here. And there’s nothing here that a true Beatlemaniac hasn’t already heard a thousand times on bootlegs.
××××Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Shout Sister Shout: Sister Rosetta Tharpe, The Original Soul Sister (2002, Proper Records). My first contact with Tharpe came through a brief 1950s black-and-white clip shown on the recent PBS series on the blues--she was her standing there in her church robes, in front of a gospel choir, playing a biting solo on her electric guitar. I was blown away. I found this 4-CD set which includes her major recordings from 1938-1949.
×××Stew, Something Deeper Than These Changes (2003, Smile Records). The latest from one of Los Angeles’ (and America’s) very best singer-songwriters, and the sometime-leader of the Negro Problem, one of my favorite bands. The lyrics, as always are clever and attractive, and he has a wonderful voice. But musically, many of the songs aren't up to his usual wonderful standard: they lack the breaks and bridges, the layering of melodies and harmonies, that mark his best work, either on his earlier solo CDs (The Naked Dutch Painter....and other songs and Guest Host) or in his work with his band, The Negro Problem. The production here sounds a little too plain, as if these were recorded and released in a hurry.
×××××The Who, Who’s Next (1995, MCA). LP originally released in 1971; this is the remastered CD version, with bonus tracks. What can you say about this?
××Macy Gray, The Trouble With Being Myself (2003, Epic). A couple of good songs, and still a great voice. But….
××××The White Stripes, White Blood Cells (2001, v2).
×××The Beach
Boys, Sunflower/Surf’s Up (2000,
Capitol). LPs originally released in
1970 and 1971. I really like Surf’s
Up; Sunflower is more uneven, but it has it’s moments, too.
××Various Artists, Uta wa utsukushikatta: orijinaru kashu ni yoru meikyoku-shū (2002, Nippon Columbia). Anthology of early postwar pop songs from Japan.
××××Shiina Ringo, Karuki zamen kurinohana (2003, Toshiba-EMI). A widely celebrated work, often compared to Bjork. It’s really quite good—sophisticated, unpredictable, jarring at times. The Asia edition of Time magazine did a big profile on her a few months back.
××HY, Street Story (2003, Climax). The first indie CD to go to #1 in the Japanese Oricon CD charts. They sound a bit like the Dave Matthews Band to me—except, of course, for when they break into Okinawa folk-song mode.
××××David Bowie, Scary Monsters (1999, EMI). LP, one of my all-time favorite pieces of vinyl, originally released in 1980. With the LP, I always listened to side one, which was so good I almost never got around to flipping it over to hear side two. With the CD, though, I’m finally hearing the songs on the second half—and it turns out they’re not half bad.
××Various artists, Ozawa Shōichi ga eranda koichi natsukashi hayariuta 4 (1999, Columbia). One of a series that collects various recordings of songs that were popular in early 20th century Japan. I got this one because it has Matsui Sumako’s “Kachūsha no uta,” recorded back in 1914 and probably the first real hit record ever in Japan. But the liner notes contain only lyrics—no information about recording dates, artists’ histories, etc.
Love, Love (1988, Elektra). Originally released in 1966. Their first album, including their first hit single, “Little Red Book.” They really had that psychedelic, garage-rock band thing going, lots of fun. What the Sunset Strip sounded like just before the Summer of Love, when that idiot Jim Morrison took over.
×××Dave Davies, Transformation: Live at The Alex Theatre (2003, Meta Media). An official bootleg of a concert I saw earlier this year. Nice recording, nice versions of some of Dave’s newer stuff, too. Only available through his website: http://www.davedavies.com/
××××Paul and Linda McCartney, Ram (?,
Capitol). Originally issued in 1971. I’m a closet Paul fan, so you might not want
to trust my rating on this one. But
ever since I first heard it as an eleven-year-old, I’ve thought “Uncle
Albert/Admiral Halsey” was perfect pop.
×××××The Pretenders, Learning To Crawl (1983,
Sire). I finally breakdown and replace
a long cherished vinyl version of this.
I remember when I first heard “Back on the Chain Gang” on a jukebox at a
bar in Saint Paul, back in 1983. I was
convinced that George Harrison finally had a great hit song.
Various artists, Precious Lord:
Recordings of the Great Gospel Songs of Thomas A. Dorsey (1994, Columbia.). Originally issued in 1973.
××××Bob Dylan and various artists, Masked and
Anonymous soundtrack (2003, Columbia).
Found a used copy for $9.95 in St. Paul barely a week after it was
originally issued—not a good sign. But
it turns out to be pretty good—the covers of Dylan tunes by various bands from
around the world are quite good—the Magokoro Brothers from Japan included. And the new stuff by Bob himself isn’t
bad. I could do without the Grateful
Dead and Jerry Garcia covers, but you can’t have everything in this world. And I bet the movie really sucks.
××Whoopee John, The Whoopee John Story (1997, Polka City Records). Found it for $9 at the gift shop of the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum in Walnut Grove, Minnesota. Who could resist? Unfortunately, there are no liner notes giving information about recording history, dates, personnel, etc. Too bad—I had hoped for a better introduction to the music and work of John Wilfahrt (1893-1961), the great mid-century polka king of the Upper Midwest. But the music is there, including the “yoo hoo hoo!” You can learn more about him at www.whoopeejohn.com or http://www.wilder.org/goodage/RememberWhen/klink601.html
×××Fountains of Wayne, Welcome
Interstate Managers (2003, Virgin).
I loved these guys’ last CD.
They sound sorta like the Cars way back around 1979, but with slicker
lyrics and more guitar. And they like
the Kinks. But this one is perhaps a
tad too slick; a bit more grit would have been welcome. [Postscript: Then I listened to it after a break of a
month or so and found myself really fond of nearly all the songs. Hmmmm….]
××××Radiohead, Hail to the Thief (2003, Capitol).
×××××Billie Holiday, The Quintessential Billie Holiday Volume 9 (1940-1942) (1991, Columbia). Finally, I own the whole series. I think I bought volume one back in 1988. But the wait was worth it: she really has come into her own on this one.
Vic Chesnutt, About to Choke (1996, Capitol).
××××Blur, Think Tank (2003, EMI). I bought this with some trepidation, because I was convinced that Graham Cox, the band’s recently departed guitarist, was the main reason I liked Blur. But this is really a fine piece of work, very nice. I think Damon Albarn finally gets the World Music/Brit Pop synthesis right here.
Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention, We’re Only In It For
The Money (1995, Rykodisk), originally released in 1968. Found it used cheap while back in
Minnesota.
××Richard Thompson, Mirror Blue (1994, Capitol). I dunno, I just don’t get Richard Thompson the way some people do. He’s nice, of course, and there is something appealing about British folk rock (cf. mid-period Kinks). But the tunes don’t grab me in the guts, I guess.
×××Eels, Soul Jacker (2001, Dreamworks). I really like the song, “Friendly Ghost.”
Beethoven, Diabelli
Variations/Moonlight Sonata, Daniel Barenboim, piano (2001,
Westminster). Originally recorded in
1959 and 1966.
×××Heitor
Villa-Lobos, Complete Music for Solo Guitar, Norbert Kraft, guitar
(2000, Naxos). The great Brazilian
composer’s works for guitar on one CD.
I’ve enjoyed his cello music for years and stumbled across this in a
bargain bin.
××BEGIN, Omoto takeo (2000, Teichiku). NHK’s (the Japanese equivalent of the BBC) idea of what Okinawan music sounds like. They aren’t afraid to play up the exotic ‘island music’ angle.
×××Cody
Chesnutt, The Headphone Masterpiece (2002, Ready Set Go). I'm a sucker for this kind of
thing, a motley collection of demos recorded in the guy's bedroom. What
"Trout Mask Replica" would sound like if Prince were the leader of
the Magic Band.
×××Thelonius Monk, Thelonius Alone in San Francisco (1987, Riverside). Originally recorded in 1959, my favorite jazz pianist all by himself. Very nice, but I find myself missing the other members of the quartet. What did I expect when I bought it, I wonder?
×××Love, Da Capo (1988, Elektra). Originally released on vinyl in 1967. The A-side songs are terrific, almost as good as the stuff on the classic “Forever Changes” LP. The B-side is one of those 1968 blues jams that goes on forever and ever and ever….
×××Eels, Beautiful Freak (1996, Dreamworks). One of the best local bands here in LA. America’s answer to Radiohead—except they don’t sound anything like Radiohead. Think Lou Reed’s “Berlin” album without the self-pity (that raises an interesting question: If you took the self-pity out of “Berlin,” what would be left?).
×××V.A. Kyokutô saizensen (n.d., Sakamoto Shoten). Compilation of various current alternative rock bands in Japan, including Husking Bee, eastern youth, and Number Girl.
××××Number Girl, Sappukei (2000, Toshiba-EMI). One of Japan’s hottest alternative rock bands. I’m getting a little too old for this sort of thing (I kept waiting for the acoustic ballad; it never arrived), but these guys strike me as being really, really hot. The first few listens, I heard traces of old No Wave guitar and Clash-style dub, but there was something else it reminded me of, but I couldn’t remember exactly who. Then it hit me: they sound a bit like Cui Jian, the great Chinese rock singer. But they have a sound all their own and on many songs it really works—I find myself reacting to this the way I did to “London Calling” when I first heard it back in 1980. Great drum sound.
××V.A. Twin Town Music Yearbook Vol.
3, 1999-2000 (2000, no label). Features a track from the Phones,
another one of the great Midwest barroom rock bands I grew up on back in the
early '80s.
××V.A., Twin Town High Music Yearbook, Vol. 2, 1998-1999 (1999, no label). I swear by the proposition that every individual and every band has one great pop song in them. That's why compilations like this are fun, even if uneven. Found it (and its companion, listed below) used cheap during a swing through St. Paul in April and figured, what the hell. Some good, some bad, some inbetweenies. Best line comes from Mark Mallman's song, "I Married A Skull": "I married a skull, she only wants me for my body."
××The Mods. Kilburn Brats (1995, Antinos Records). I first encountered the Mods back in 1984, during my first visit to Japan. They were one of the first new wave/punk bands from Japan, marked by a strong melodic sense, punky/ska-ish rhythm, some humor, and pretty fair musicianship. I’ve always wanted to have them in my collection and encountered this used CD for five bucks at a local Japanese market. It was recorded in England and shows the boys (though they are now entering middle age) still hanging in there, nice songs with hooks, a keen edge.
×××The Monkees. Head (1994, Rhino Records). A vinyl album, first released in 1969, that I had treasured and finally broke down and bought on CD. What the Monkees sounded like when they were finally allowed to produced their own music, after the TV show was cancelled. This is the soundtrack to a genuinely mind-blowing film—do not pass by the opportunity to see it, should such opportunity arise. The bonus tracks here are great, especially the live version of “Circle Sky” and the unadulterated version of the chant: Hey hey we are the Monkees, you know we love to please….
××××The
Roots. Phrenology (2002,
MCA). This one was a critic’s fave, and
so I finally broke down and bought it.
Turns out, the critics were right.
I’m completely blown away by “The Seed” and “Break You Off.” Brainy hiphop, a lethal combination.
××Badfinger, Day After Day (1990, Rykodisk). One of the most underrated bands of all time. I stumbled across this live recording in a used bin during a visit to Minnesota. It was only five buck, so what the hell? A 1974 concert from Cleveland, it includes several of the band’s best songs, though inexplicably “Come And Get It” is missing. But nice enough, and given the tragic end of so many of the band members, a nice tribute to have on hand.
××× The Flamin’ Oh’s. Live at Moby Dick’s 1983 (2003, Art Records). One of the GREAT Minneapolis bands of the early 1980s. I saw these guys live maybe 50 times way back when. They were the band I (and many others) thought would “make it” from Minnesota. That never worked out—bad management, hungry noses, who knows? Who can explain why a band that deserves everything doesn’t make it? Anyhow, thanks to this 2 CD set just released, you can taste the noise, first-rate Midwestern bar rock, the kind of music that could get you through a Minnesota winter. The recording leaves something to be desired, and the performances on a few songs aren’t up to par, but overall, a great live document of a great band. RIP. And if you’re in the Twin Cities, show up when Robert Wilkinson plays. Ordering information is available here.