Bob Dylan - Nashville Skyline (Columbia, 1969)

Bob Dylan - Nashville Skyline
(Columbia, 1969)

Yeah, it's this guy called Bob Dylan. You might have heard of him before.
I was driving on a lonely stretch of highway one afternoon nearly ten years ago, listening to the radio (gasp! radio?! what's that?!) when this then unfamiliar song came on and caught my ears' attention. It was "Lay, Lady, Lay" and I had no idea who it was but I knew I was in love with the man. Who could resist an invitation to lay across a "big brass bed" and see all the "colors you have in your mind?" Imagine my surprise when I looked the song up later and found out it was Bob Dylan. "Well, yeah...duh." you say? Well, this was a different Bob Dylan, a twangy, horny (though this may just be projection on my part), crooning, Bob Dylan. Apparently, back in the late 60s, Dylan grew tired of the "voice of a generation" persona he'd been labeled with and decided to turn his sound around and show another side, a side that said "Shut the hell up. There's more to me than that." Dylan was tired of the fans who expected more of him than just the music. He'd had enough of fanatics sneaking on to his property and disturbing him while he was trying to lead his private life, with his family. So, he recorded this album in Nashville, devoting one day of the sessions to duets with Johnny Cash. It's only 29 minutes long, which is a delight because you can enjoy it from front to back even when you've not got a lot of time to spare, it's a quickie. Apparently, there are better versions of most of these tunes on bootlegs but I've never really noticed that these studio tracks were lacking, myself. Now, I've got to give those alternate versions a shot. I wonder a bit whether hearing those is something like when you're young and you've been dry humping guys/girls for a while and finding it a thrill, only to eventually get down to actual sex and think, "Wow. That dry humping just won't feel the same now, will it?" Well, here's the dry humping, maybe I'll post the sex for you another day. ;)

01. "Girl from the North Country" (with Johnny Cash)
02. "Nashville Skyline Rag"
03. "To Be Alone with You"
04. "I Threw It All Away"
05. "Peggy Day"
06. "Lay Lady Lay"
07. "One More Night"
08. "Tell Me That It Isn't True"
0 9. "Country Pie"
10. "Tonight I'll Be Staying Here With You"

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The Astronettes - The Astronettes (Astronettes Records , 1990)

The Astronettes - The Astronettes
(Astronettes Records, 1990)

Instrumental surf rock from a nude all girl band? Count me in. (Even if I have seen folks claiming this band is not what they seem to be. Actually an Astronauts rarities bootleg? Well, that works for me too!)

Preview Track (click to play): Martian Pyramid Stomp , Drinkin' and Astronavigatin'

01. Che! Che! Che!
02. Martian Pyramid Stomp
03. Moving
04. Hot Dog Foot
05. Firewaters of Alpha Gabba
06. Space Party
07. Drinkin' and Astronavigatin'
08. Surf into Space
09. Gouch!
10. Quiet Planet
11. Space Silent
12. Space Cock (or Dock?)
13. Quasimoto X9

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Sam Cooke -Live at Harlem the Square Club, 1963 (RCA, 1985)

Sam Cooke - Live at the Harlem Square Club, 1963
(RCA, 1985)

LAME V0

Everyone knows a Sam Cooke tune. Even if they don't know who sings it, they've at least heard "Cupid," "You Send Me," or any of the other twenty-nine Top 40 Hits Sam had between 1957 and 1965 playing over the grocery store speakers. Y'know what I have to say about that? I have to say, "It's not enough! They need to hear more!"

This is no obscure record, it's a classic and I think it's a damned shame that there are ears on this planet that haven't had the pleasure of listening to it straight through. The studio versions of these classic tunes are a delight, that's sure, but they can't hold a candle to the power of this live performance. It's not polished and clean, it's a little rough and raw and I like it that way. It's as though you can hear the sweat on Cooke's brow along with his every guttural "Ha!" and every howl of approval from the crowd. Sam's amazingly passionate, sometimes even desperate, vocals are so convincing and moving on tunes like "Bring It On Home" that it's easy to forget that he was only a young thirty-three years old when he died in 1964, a year after this performance was recorded.

It's my understanding that this album wasn't actually released until 1985, if I'm wrong on that, someone drop me a line and let me know. I'm only including one preview track because you've got to hear the whole thing, to really appreciate what is easily one of the greatest live albums ever made.

PLAY IT LOUD AND SHAKE WHAT YOUR MOMMA GAVE YOU!!! : )

Favorite Tracks (click to play): Bring It On Home

01. Feel It
02. Chain Gang
03. Cupid
04. Medley: It's All Right / For Sentimental Reasons
05. Twisting the Night Away
06. Somebody Have Mercy
07. Bring It On Home to Me
08. Nothing Can Change This Love
09. Having a Party

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The Monks - Black Monk Time (Infinite Zero,1997)

The Monks - Black Monk Time
(Infinite Zero, 1997 reissue w/ bonus tracks.)
(Original release was Polydor, 1966.)


192cbr Xing
Includes: front cover

Woohoo, my first post! I've been struggling with what to post and finally decided to go with one of my absolute favorites ever, Monks' (or "The Monks," if you prefer) Black Monk Time.

O.G.s of feedback, mad men of rhythm, Krautrock pioneers(?), these disgruntled American soldiers stationed in 1960s Germany came together to blow off some steam. Their unholy musical union birthed the amazing Black Monk sound (Monkmusik) which combines raging banjo, the badassest organ this side of that opening bit of Bach's Toccata, crazed vocals, chants, and persistant rhythms (I challenge you to try and not drum along on whatever table, steering wheel, or thigh you have within reach! Good luck on that.) to wondrous effect.
I sincerely love this album, and I hope you will too.

Check out their official website (it's not hard to find) for lots of good reads and photos of the fellas in all of their tonsured glory.

Favorite Tracks (click to hear): Monk Time, I Hate You, Complication


01. Monk Time
02. Shut Up
03. Boys Are Boys and Girls Are Choice
04. Higgle-Dy-Piggle-Dy
05. I Hate You
06. Oh, How to Do Now
07. Complication
08. We Do Wie Du
09. Drunken Maria
10. Love Came Tumblin' Down
11. Blast Off!
12. That's My Girl
13. I Can't Get Over You
14. Cuckoo
15. Love Can Tame the Wild
16. He Went Down to the Sea
17. Monk Chant [Live]
18. I Hate You [Demo Version]
19. Oh, How to Do Now [Demo Version]

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