Recommendations - October 11

AFRO SPOOKY

Not one of those LPs that comes up for sale very often. I’ve never owned one and the opportunity to get one came up so I made a good offer for it and got it. Quiet a mental LP in parts.

THE BLUE ANGELS

Composer Fred Myrow never really did that much musically, or not that I’m aware of. Phantasm is the soundtrack lots of people know about. I took a punt on this one as I’d not seen one up for grabs before and it has some really peculiar moments, especially when Mike Nesmith sings. I played one of the tracks on the OST Show and Chris, the studio managed ran in and asked if it was a weird YMO track, as it was a peculiar mix of jazz fusion, electronics and film music. I told him to shove off. Made in 1975 this is quite impressive. The Blue Angels by the way are the oldest of all acrobatic pilot squads.

JAPANESE FILM MUSIC

Imagine Benny Hill in the Far East, but with less sex and more cool. And less slapping that little bloke on the head business.

AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS

Very beautiful music indeed if you can bear to look like a bit of a twat and actually put this record on and stay with it. Best on your own I reckon.

RISING STARS

Yes, it the all new Garrick / Shake Kean mini album. Out at last, spooky as ever.

CALAMO

To be honest I bought this because of the fine pair of breasts on the back sleeve. But it’s one of those Italian records that has a bit of everything that shouldn’t go together and actually does. So we have touch of classical, some mental bits, easy bits, and yes, I think you get the idea.

KAT SLATER

Bill from JBs record shop in Hanway Street has been playing this to various punters over the last few years. It’s one of those records that should never really have come out, as it’s a mix of care in the community and urban dance. There is no clear story behind the record, all I know is that boxes of the 12” arrived in London town one afternoon in 2005, and had all disappeared about two hours later. Some people believe it was paid for through a council grant, others have their own opinion. Either way it is like no other record. It rarely comes up for sale. The catalogue number for a first release is also interesting – 01629701.

LARRY’S LOVENOTES

There is no doubt in my mind that Larry is a homosexual. It’s not stated on the cover but it becomes clear after about 2 seconds of hearing him, and even less time if you just look at him on the sleeve. Although he could quite easily pass for one of those more fashionable chaps parading up and down the Kingsland Road in Dalston these days. As well as being gay, Larry is also a talented Christian songwriter. My favourite on this privately pressed album of love songs to Christ is “A Wink Of Love” where Larry talks of sleeping with Christ and showing his affection through a cheeky movement of his left eyelid.

IM 16

Found this is a grubby old box of library music the other day, with the LP inside being without sleeve and also strangely stuck with old coffee to the actual inside of the album cover itself. A little surgery and the LP is nearly back to its original state, although even with background noise the cacophony of mind-bending futuristic electronics is still almost too much to bare. Especially when both kids are screaming, the wife is using a hairdryer and I’ve got the blender on.

THE UNAUTHORISED VERSION

This is a bunch of clever buggers from Oxford University. They’re a bit like the King Singers but with more hair, more sex and maybe even some drugs. And slightly better outfits. Killer tune on here called Girl In A Bus Queue, which is up there with other tracks I have about falling in love in and amongst public transport.

PERVERSION STORY

This has been on my imaginary wants list for many years. I say imaginary because I don’t have a wants list written down, but sometime imagine having records I’d like. Anyway, this LP ticks a lot of boxes: it’s one of my favourite composes, has a superb sleeve, features a weirdy mix of music, it just screams “want me”. Trouble is it rarely appears anywhere and when it does I really want it but cannot compete with wealthy soundtrack collectors who stop at nothing to get themselves such awesome things. Recently I have been looking after a friend’s house while they have been away. As a thank you, he gave me his copy of this. After I got myself up off the floor, I told him it was a good job he was in such a generous mood as a bottle of wine would never have been enough for watering his indoor plants so often.

WINDOWS OPENED

So there I was, thinking that years ago I’d pretty much done the Herbie Mann thing. He made tons of LPs, some awesome, some a little on the cheesy side of the street, but I still play the Village Gate LPs every now and again. Then I stumble across this baby, Mann with Ayres and that Vitous bloke knocking out moody modals and covers of Wayne Shorter numbers. It’s really super. Records just keep surprising us all. And to top it all I found this in a classical record shop’s half price sale. So I bought some new underwear with the money I might have spent, but in a different shop. They’re a little on the tight side though.

DAY OF THE COBRA

More like moment of the swinging knob actually. A strange soundtrack this one, full of fine rhythms and 80s swinging electro tensions, musically reminiscent of my early morning naked journey from bedroom to bathroom, but in slow motion.

THE JOHN LE MESURIER LP

Great for late evening, let the wonderfully familiar sound of Sergeant Wilson remind you almost constantly of Bod. Except when he starts singing. I found this LP at a market in a shit box, which gave me further hope for the future. But it did come with a number of bits of paper inside, one of which was an interview in You Magazine with him, which was run out just after he died, which then stopped giving me hope of the future knowing that we all are mortal. How much fun is that.

THE CLASSIC HEATH BROTHERS ALBUM

I don’t think this album should ever go out of fashion. It has it all. I’m listening to the European pressing which to some is a far superior pressing to the original one on Strata East. A good mate of mine came around one evening recently and he loved it so much we had to listen to the whole thing all night.

THE CLASSIC HEATH BROTHERS ALBUM

I don’t think this album should ever go out of fashion. It has it all. I’m listening to the European pressing which to some is a far superior pressing to the original one on Strata East. A good mate of mine came around one evening recently and he loved it so much we had to listen to the whole thing all night.