September 2010 Reviews

[Jumper k]

Sorry it’s a day late, I somehow thought there were 31 days in September! Fool that I am. My other excuse is that I meant to get it done before going on holiday but was so busy with work I just failed. Thanks for being patient and here’s to it:

1. tight wee reggae opener. Very solid, great groove, passionate singing, yeah, nice. I’d like more of this for sure.
Ras Michael and the Sons Of Negus with Mr Brown. Track 1 side 2 of the mighty Rastafari lp. One of my very favourite reggae artists.

2. Solid funker next. Nice elements throughout, but maybe a wee bit clean for me to listen to much of it. Still, it’s a fine track, although it goes on a bit.
Ivan Nevilles modern funk band Dumpstaphunk with Standin' In Your Stuff. From This years Everybody Want Some.

3. 70s motown, possibly even late tempts or four tops, but I certainly don’t recognise it. Nice and slick, but perhaps a bit too slick for me. The orchestration swamps it a little, and perhaps is covering up that the song itself isn’t the strongest, but that’s only a minor criticism, it’s essentially cool.
The Mad Lads with a track called Gone! Promises Of Yesterday. From the 1973 lp New Beginnings on the Volt label

4. This is excellent. Really brilliant track. It’s a great version of don’t let the devil ride. Sounds to me like it could be the Fairfield four, from the lead vocal, but the guitar sounds more Memphis than Nashville. I’ll be buying whatever album this comes from for sure.
Its The Mississippi Nightingales taken from their first self-titled lp on Hub City 1974. Its also available on the totally essential Fire In My Bones raw/rare and otherwordly African American Gospel 1944 - 2007.

5. Sweet cut, 60s girl singer, some of the arrangement is very Dusty, but it’s certainly not her singing. Really like this one too. I love this sort of thing.
The Dar-lettes with Lost. Taken off the ace comp Mirwood Soul Story on Ace, no less.

6. Nah, don’t dig this. It’s just quite annoying really. The strings loop is horrible, like nails on a blackboard, the production is clichéd – at best – and the vocal is bored. Next.
Dessa with Matches To Paper Dolls.

7. From the first note, it’s obviously a great cut. Sweet as honey, floaty piece of vocal harmony rocksteady version of hurts so good. Really like this one, yes thank you and very much too. It gives me shivers – in a good way!
Its the original Lee Perry production sung by the marvellous Susan Cadogan.

8. Slightly more rootsy, but still I think, rocksteady or ska. yes? I don’t know the styles of reggae so well, I’m quite a new reggae fan. Anyway, it’s another sure winner. I love this. Nice one.
Annette Clark with Sinner Man. Classic Upsetter again taken from the Rare Sevens Box Set On Trojan of course.

9. This one’s not really for me. It’s a modern blues, a bit worthy for me. Or maybe deliberate is a better word than worthy. It feels a little deliberate, unnatural. No thanks.
Willy Deville with Muddy Waters taken off the Crow Jane lp.

10. Exemplary southern/eastern European thing. Admirable, if not entirely easy, listening. The playing is superb and you have to admire them, even if you might not want to sit and listen to it much.
Klezmer baby! Margot Leverett and the Klezmer Mountain Boys. How to blend Bluegrass and Klezmer properly.

11. Great voice, very similar to Otis Redding. Almost identical in parts. The groove’s pretty hectic, isn’t it? That bass is all over the place while the drums are very jazzy. Pretty decent song, if a little dizzying!
Little Ron Johnson with I Keep Telling You. 1967 b-side to Steam Roller on Hard Times records. I only know of one other 7" release in the early 60's.

12. Acoustic version of The Blood by the Cure. Great band, great song, great version. Always puts me in mind of Kafka, for some reason.
Thought you might enjoy this one as I knew the last track would wind you up something chronic.

13. I kind of don’t mind this and hate it at the same time. There are bits I really like, but the whole is just a bit annoying to me. A bit like Black grape.
Black Grape my arse. Its UK hip-hop legend Rodney P with his biggest hit The Nice Up.
14. Dreadful track. Appalling, almost beyond words how terrible it is. The lyrics are not worthy of a grown-up and the music is the most formulaic shit imaginable. A baffling choice.
Not really baffling when you know who compiled this mix
Cee Lo with Fuck You.

So all told, an excellent mix, with a couple of very obvious exceptions. Really looking forward to the reveal as I think some of this must rank among the best stuff I’ve had in 2 or 3 years of mix clubbing.

Thanks mixer!

Ha ha! Fooled you. I did post it from Huddersfield to keep up the ruse. I thought a full on Hardcore jobbie would give the game away.
I enjoyed making it for you bud.

Tracklist

1. Ras Michael and the Sons of Negus - Mr Brown
2. Dumpstaphunk - Standin' In Your Stuff
3. The Mad Lads - Gone! Promises Of Yesterday
4. Mississippi Nightingales - Don't Let Him Ride
5. The Dar-lettes - Lost
6. Dessa - Matches To Paper Dolls
7. Susan Cadogan - Hurt So God
8. Anette Clark - Sinner Man
9. Willy Deville - Muddy Waters
10. Margot Leverett - Oy Tate S'il Gut
11. Little Ron Johnson - I Keep Tellin' You
12. The Cure - The Blood
13. Rodney P - The Nice Up
14. Cee-Lo Green - Fuck You.

[sloopjohnc]

Firstly my apologies for the delay in reviewing. I was laid low with the flu for weeks. Just going to work (where I’d get a few posts in) and home to eat lightly and sleep.
No worries. Glad you liked it. Here's the confirmations and reveals.

Track 1 A great hip hop track with a fantastic backing track - bagpipes. I really should hear more hip hop. Eminem right? 10 out of 5!
This is Bagpipes from Baghdad (bit of a takeoff on Bombs over Baghdad by Outkast) from Eminem on his breakup with Mariah Carey and his sobriety from the Relapse album. When he's on, he's on.

Track 2 Another rap with a bit of a Jamaican sensibility to the lyrics. Nas & Damian Marley As We Enter. It sounds way more hip hop than dancehall doesn’t it? Lyrically great. I think they put out every song on that album as singles!
Yeah, you got it.

Track 3 This I don’t know. People who criticise modern black music don’t listen and appreciate how busy the productions. There’s a lot going on in there and in a lot of rap these days!
This is Wicked by Ice Cube from the Predator album. If you really wanna get more hip hop, this would be a good album to get. DJ Muggs from Cypress Hill produces.

Track 4 They give away who they are. Kid ‘n’ Play. Old school sound now. From early 90’s I guess? If I hear pop or rock from then I think it’s too modern! Lyrically crammed isn’t it. They don’t make them like this anymore.
As they say, "We ain't hardcore, but we ain't soft," and they weren't. This is Gittin' Funky.

Track 5 More old school. 90’s style. Hush the Crowd. This has a bit lineage to current styles; I’d say Eminem heard this.
Actually, this is more or less a contemporary of Slim Shady. One of my favorite lyricists, it's J-Live.

Track 6 Don’t know this one but some good dancefloor lyrics and again really musically adventurous in the backing. Not sure what’s getting played back there.
This is Fofucha Preparada from Os Salientes. It's a good example of not having to know the words to get the feeling.

Track 7 Boogie On Reggae Woman – Stevie’s hit song.
Yep.

Track 8 Rick James –Give It to Me Baby. He deserved a way better career than he got. Busting Out of L seven is one of my favourite albums ever.
Overshadowed by Superfreak on the Street Songs album, as almost everything that year was, I think this is the better song.

Track 9 More funk from the day. I should know who this is! Another great track
Gap Band with Early in the Morning

Track 10 Like the last track made for the disco floor. Takes a while to let everybody catch the groove before the lyrics come in. It’s DAZZ BAND with Let It Whip of course. I’ll bet that there albums. largely million sellers, are all out of print! An under rated band. So much great black music in that era but the focus is always on the 60’s & 70’s for soul. Great track. I’m bouncing in my chair!
Yep again.

Track 11 Prince!!! Sign ‘o’ The Times. He was perfect wasn’t he. It was his time. He couldn’t make a bad track. Shame he’s so pedestrian now.
This is Chaka Khan, doing with Sign o' The Times what she did with I Feel for You. I kinda hinted at this with the Eminem song when he riffs off that song.

Track 12 Sounds familiar...More great dancefloor funk. I don’t how this music could ever have gone way. And why it’s not universally loved!
This is James' protege Teena Marie with Lovergirl.

Track 13 Doctor John’s best ever track was his biggest hit. Right Place, Wrong Time. He owes Norman Whitfield some posthumous royalties though
I just thought this segued nicely from the previous song.

Track 14 B.T. Express- Do It Till You're Satisfied. If we have DAZZ we should have these guys. Need some Slave; Mass Production & Brick now! I had (have) a bunch of LP’s from all these guys! Great stuff.
It's not the B.T. Express, it's the Soul Messengers from one of the Trojan box sets. Listen again.

Track 15 Wilson Pickett. He should have signed on with one of the afore mentioned bands. He’d have been massive all over again. Three Time Loser. How many heartaches can a man have?
Don Covay actually, with Three Time Loser, which was covered by the Inmates.

Track 16 The closer. I expected a slow track to wrap up the night. This is funkier than ever. Funked up Louie Louie.
This is the Topics, with their version of Louie Louie. This is from a weird album I have called Wheedles Groove: Seattle Funk & Soul, 1965 to 1975.

One of the best mix club discs ever. I’ve toyed with doing something similar in the past but I may as well not bother now. Not a bad track here and this will go on the shelves for regular play.

Thanks.

My pleasure.

[beenieman]

I'll blame lingering effects of the flu for not knowing who the artist was a few times. Can't believe I thought it was Prince

Great mix.

[whodathunkit]

A mix from inside a scarecrow's head this month and a themed collection of songs, all about finkin' and that. Here we go:-

1. Starts with "If I Only Had A Brain" from the Wizard Of Oz soundtrack. What with this and the packaging, I thought at first this might be an Oz-themed mix, which would have been a bit of a coincidence as I've been listening heavily to a WFMU podcast about the film, full of the music they cut out. Only it wasn't so there you go . It's a mighty fine song of course but what gives this stuff enduring appeal is the fantastic orchestration - pizzicato strings, swanee whistles and ee-awing brass. Fab.
2. Famous old recording of famously brainy cove Thomas Edison reciting "Mary Had A Little Lamb".
3. Electric sitar and wah-wah opening and instructions to "take your brain, it's time to go". A splendid 60s/70s US/British stately rocker. Great manly vocals and great drums.
4. A bloke with a really annoying voice comes next.. That breathy vocal mannerism would be okay if he dropped it in occasionally a la Tim Hardin but he does it all the time. Pity because this is a nice little song.
5. My favourite thing on the mix. A gorgeous piece of baroque pop with all sorts of switches of pace and direction. Who dis?
6. One I don't know by the Ramones. Pretty standard Ramones but that's just swell.
7. Calypso thing, probably Lord Kitchener or one of those. Rather droll and a nice change of pace. "Women are smarter than men" and all that crap
8. Two minutes of wierdness. "I think I'm thinking too much" . Gregorian chant featuring timeless questions such as "Why am I so ugly that I don't have any friends?" I feel the influence of my mystery mixer's deranged old man coming through here .
9. "I Wonder". I could believe that this was an old doo-wop/early soul classic except for the line "I wonder how many times you had sex". Whatever, it's a great track. A bit Dion-ish.
10. More strangeness. Unfathomable electronically-treated voices, backwards bits and general what-the-fuckness. This one defeated me .
11. I have heard this song before but it's foxed me now. A gentle little tune about Tesla, Edison, Westinghouse etc. Nice tuba.
12. A fine Robyn Hitchcock song and one of too many that I don't know. "Strawberry Mind"?
13. "The Know It All" from the Millenium's Begin. A classic album if ever there was one.
14. Crackly recording of a bloke with a German accent talking about relativity.
15. Comedy song about Einstein never wearing socks. The singer is introduced as "Tuli" so I guess it's the late Mr Kupferberg. I'm afraid it had the same effect on me as the comedy stuff I put on my own mixes has on others - rigor mortis of the funny bone .
16. This is more like it. Dylanesque ballad - "Look what I made out of my head, ma". Probably modern and a really decent song. Not a combination you come across too often.
17. Warren Zevon and "Genius". Great lyrics as usual but not one of my favourites of his. Not nasty enough.
18. Strange little song. Sounds like Sparks on heavy medication. Short and not too sweet.
19. Nice lilting little ballad. His voice reminds me of Paddy McAloon but he's definitely a yank. This ones become a bit of a grower for me.
20. Stephen Hawking says thank you for listening. Cheers Steve!

Very enjoyable mix with plenty of variety and lots of surprises. 6 absolute crackers and only a couple of flops. Thanks Debbi.

[Duncan]

OK, here we go. This month I received a disc full of reggae/ska/dancehall fun promoting, rather irresponsibly, the consumption of a certain mildly euphorogenic and hallucinogenic drug. You'll have to forgive the vagueness and shortness of this review - I do like reggae, but it's not a genre that I know much about - and also the fact that it's a bit late - I've been too stoned for the last two weeks to write anything.

1. Strong start. I really dig the slick production on this kind of thig.

2. There's a nice warmth to this one. A favourite on the disc.

3. A ballad for the persecuted stoner. I think that I may heard Gregory Issacs name dropped, so it could be him. Or ot. Anyway, good stuff.

4. Big fat beats. Causes involuntary head-bobbage and seat slidiness.

5. Nothing subtle or ambiguous about this one. Not as keen on this as some of the others although I can't put my finger on why. It just seems a little colder.

6. More summery goodness. Infectious.

7. Ah, one that I actually know, this is Peter Tosh with his pro-pot anthem Legalize It. Typically confrontational.

8. Somethng a bit more contemporary, with some dancehall fire. I have no idea what he's going on about but he sounds very passionate about it.

9. This one got a bit annoying.

10. Not keen on how 'treated' the vocals are. This track's a bit too cheesy.

11. I like the vocal interplay and the classic, bouncy rhythm. Thumbs up.

12. Soft Reggae. Is that a sub-genre? Anyway, this is actually a lot of fun.

13. Nice horn samples, I like this one a lot too.

14. this one works well on the headphones - there are some clever little production touches.

15. I really like the simple, repetitive, bleepy synth noises and the bass. Less enthusiastic about the vocals/lyrics.

16. A return to mellowness, this is a definite winner.

So there you go. The review may seem slightly perfuctary but that's a reflection on my lack of knowledge rather than my enjoyment. I'll be using the reveal as springboard and will definitely be checking out a few of the artists involved. Cheers.

[beenieman]

OK, here we go. This month I received a disc full of reggae/ska/dancehall fun promoting, rather irresponsibly, the consumption of a certain mildly euphorogenic and hallucinogenic drug. You'll have to forgive the vagueness and shortness of this review - I do like reggae, but it's not a genre that I know much about - and also the fact that it's a bit late - I've been too stoned for the last two weeks to write anything.

1. Strong start. I really dig the slick production on this kind of thig.

2. There's a nice warmth to this one. A favourite on the disc.

3. A ballad for the persecuted stoner. I think that I may heard Gregory Issacs name dropped, so it could be him. Or ot. Anyway, good stuff.

4. Big fat beats. Causes involuntary head-bobbage and seat slidiness.

5. Nothing subtle or ambiguous about this one. Not as keen on this as some of the others although I can't put my finger on why. It just seems a little colder.

6. More summery goodness. Infectious.

7. Ah, one that I actually know, this is Peter Tosh with his pro-pot anthem Legalize It. Typically confrontational.

8. Somethng a bit more contemporary, with some dancehall fire. I have no idea what he's going on about but he sounds very passionate about it.

9. This one got a bit annoying.

10. Not keen on how 'treated' the vocals are. This track's a bit too cheesy.

11. I like the vocal interplay and the classic, bouncy rhythm. Thumbs up.

12. Soft Reggae. Is that a sub-genre? Anyway, this is actually a lot of fun.

13. Nice horn samples, I like this one a lot too.

14. this one works well on the headphones - there are some clever little production touches.

15. I really like the simple, repetitive, bleepy synth noises and the bass. Less enthusiastic about the vocals/lyrics.

16. A return to mellowness, this is a definite winner.

So there you go. The review may seem slightly perfuctary but that's a reflection on my lack of knowledge rather than my enjoyment. I'll be using the reveal as springboard and will definitely be checking out a few of the artists involved. Cheers.

As if you couldn't have guessed this was from me. A few more typos than in your usual posts but understandable in the circumstances. Reveal to come.

[dgs]

Thanks to the supplier of my September disc and sorry for the later than planed review.

Ok, here we go.

1. Starting with a nursery tunesque little melody played on something like a glockenspiel, we are then treated to a sample of peter gunn over which the lyrics wax about guns, Glock’s and weaponry in general. All in this is very well done and a good start to the disc. The whispered male vocal is very Tricky like.

2. Track two is an nice little instrumental which moves along at a frenetic pace. Thrashy guitars with what sounds like a mouthy providing a melody. Liked this one, though, and not sure if this is just the production, it was quite muted in terms of volume.

3. Is this the strokes? Sounds like the strokes. Indie number not quite jangly guitars but there is a nod and a wink to jangly guitars. Funnily, it starts to get interesting just as the cut is made for the next track.

4. Home made electronica with a hint of African vibes to it. This has to be a track by Konono No.1. I will probably be very wrong but it has congotronics written all over it.

5. Interlude of some old electronica.

6. This sounds familiar but I cannot place my finger on who it might be. A female vocal with a hint of country but not a country track more indie from back in the day when indie was very guitar driven. Not too bad, even the shouty bits.

7. This is electropop if ever I heard it. Heavily vocodered vocals all over an electro backing track. It sounds like they are singing about breasts but I am sure they aren’t. I like this one, it has to be European in origin.

8. Drum intro, not sure if real or computerised but then we get either a sample of Suicide or the best copy of a Suicide backing track I have ever heard. This is a much more dirty electro sound than the last one, female vocals, not sure who it is but I guess the track is called born free.

9. Now this is Suicide, Rocket USA. Great track from a great album.

10. Losing our electro thread this has an angry US quality to the vocals, looking for a final solution. This one was alright but it sounded like a cross over between the world of twist and early Faith no more, but not necessarily in a bad way, except of course for the tortured guitar solo at the end. Must be an old track because no one does guitar solos any more, do they?

11. What I would call a Psych track next, really liked this one, be interested to find out who it is. The vocalist sounds so out of his face on acid, with some great Hammond stabs as well.

12. Back to a dirty electro sound, though the production on this is much more polished than the previous ones, the breast track excepted. Terrible vocal though, female, not good, everything that was bad about the 80’s. I will probably regret saying that.

13. Interlude no.2. I am sure these somehow connect things.

14. Unkle, Rabbit in the headlights. Don’t know if this the album version or one of the mixes. I loved Mo’Wax as a label back in the day but I am not so sure about the Unkle stuff.

15. And we finish with a quasi classical piece, which seems to be influenced in a Celtic way. Nice piece, I liked this and again will be interested to find out who this is.

Thanks for the mix, it made a long journey North from Manchester most palatable.

[John_K]

Morning Dave,

I was your mixer this month, glad the mix seemed to go down well.

Thanks to the supplier of my September disc and sorry for the later than planed review.

Ok, here we go.

1. Starting with a nursery tunesque little melody played on something like a glockenspiel, we are then treated to a sample of peter gunn over which the lyrics wax about guns, Glock’s and weaponry in general. All in this is very well done and a good start to the disc. The whispered male vocal is very Tricky like.

So Tricky like that it is, from his new album it's Murder Weapon.

2. Track two is an nice little instrumental which moves along at a frenetic pace. Thrashy guitars with what sounds like a mouthy providing a melody. Liked this one, though, and not sure if this is just the production, it was quite muted in terms of volume.

Picked this up recently on CD, it's The Go! Team with Panther Dash.

3. Is this the strokes? Sounds like the strokes. Indie number not quite jangly guitars but there is a nod and a wink to jangly guitars. Funnily, it starts to get interesting just as the cut is made for the next track.

This month's Uncut magazine has this as one of the CDs inspired by Talking Head's Remain in Light, this track is The Skin of My Yellow Country Teeth from Clap Your Hands Say Yeah.

4. Home made electronica with a hint of African vibes to it. This has to be a track by Konono No.1. I will probably be very wrong but it has congotronics written all over it.

Correct! Ungudi Wele Wele from Konono No. 1 from their Congotronics CD.

5. Interlude of some old electronica.

Added as an interlude, although I'm still not sure about these guys myself, Mr Beard, You Chatterbox from Broadcast and The Focus Group.

6. This sounds familiar but I cannot place my finger on who it might be. A female vocal with a hint of country but not a country track more indie from back in the day when indie was very guitar driven. Not too bad, even the shouty bits.

The lovely Karen O and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs with Way Out.

7. This is electropop if ever I heard it. Heavily vocodered vocals all over an electro backing track. It sounds like they are singing about breasts but I am sure they aren’t. I like this one, it has to be European in origin.

Canadian I believe, Crimewave [Crystal Castles VS Health] from Crystal Castles.

8. Drum intro, not sure if real or computerised but then we get either a sample of Suicide or the best copy of a Suicide backing track I have ever heard. This is a much more dirty electro sound than the last one, female vocals, not sure who it is but I guess the track is called born free.

Indeed, it's M.I.A's recent single, her take on Suicide's Born Free.

9. Now this is Suicide, Rocket USA. Great track from a great album.

Correct, it had to be next.

10. Losing our electro thread this has an angry US quality to the vocals, looking for a final solution. This one was alright but it sounded like a cross over between the world of twist and early Faith no more, but not necessarily in a bad way, except of course for the tortured guitar solo at the end. Must be an old track because no one does guitar solos any more, do they?

The mighty Pere Ubu with Final Solution.

11. What I would call a Psych track next, really liked this one, be interested to find out who it is. The vocalist sounds so out of his face on acid, with some great Hammond stabs as well.

Mayo Thomson and The Red Krayola with Hurricane Fighter Plane.

12. Back to a dirty electro sound, though the production on this is much more polished than the previous ones, the breast track excepted. Terrible vocal though, female, not good, everything that was bad about the 80’s. I will probably regret saying that.

Swedish siblings The Knife with Heartbeats.

13. Interlude no.2. I am sure these somehow connect things.

I'm not so sure, but wanted to add some interludes to clam things...
This is Flying Lotus with Auntie's Harp.

14. Unkle, Rabbit in the headlights. Don’t know if this the album version or one of the mixes. I loved Mo’Wax as a label back in the day but I am not so sure about the Unkle stuff.

Correct!, from memory, the album version...

15. And we finish with a quasi classical piece, which seems to be influenced in a Celtic way. Nice piece, I liked this and again will be interested to find out who this is.

A favourite, and a nice piece to close out a mix, this is Popol Vuh with Departure.

Thanks for the mix, it made a long journey North from Manchester most palatable.

If I can help further with anything, feel free to shout.

Tracklisting:

Murder Weapon - Tricky
Panther Dash - The Go! Team
The Skin of My Yellow Country Teeth - Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
Ungudi Wele Wele - Konono No. 1
Mr Beard, You Chatterbox - Broadcast and The Focus Group
Way Out - Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Crimewave [Crystal Castles VS Health] - Crystal Castles
Born Free - M.I.A.
Rocket U.S.A. - Suicide
Final Solution - Pere Ubu
Hurricane Fighter Plane - The Red Krayola
Heartbeats - The Knife
Auntie's Harp - Flying Lotus
Rabbit in Your Headlights - Unkle
Departure - Popol Vuh

[bhoywonder]

Sorry it’s a day late, I somehow thought there were 31 days in September! Fool that I am. My other excuse is that I meant to get it done before going on holiday but was so busy with work I just failed. Thanks for being patient and here’s to it:

1. tight wee reggae opener. Very solid, great groove, passionate singing, yeah, nice. I’d like more of this for sure.
Ras Michael and the Sons Of Negus with Mr Brown. Track 1 side 2 of the mighty Rastafari lp. One of my very favourite reggae artists.

2. Solid funker next. Nice elements throughout, but maybe a wee bit clean for me to listen to much of it. Still, it’s a fine track, although it goes on a bit.
Ivan Nevilles modern funk band Dumpstaphunk with Standin' In Your Stuff. From This years Everybody Want Some.

3. 70s motown, possibly even late tempts or four tops, but I certainly don’t recognise it. Nice and slick, but perhaps a bit too slick for me. The orchestration swamps it a little, and perhaps is covering up that the song itself isn’t the strongest, but that’s only a minor criticism, it’s essentially cool.
The Mad Lads with a track called Gone! Promises Of Yesterday. From the 1973 lp New Beginnings on the Volt label

4. This is excellent. Really brilliant track. It’s a great version of don’t let the devil ride. Sounds to me like it could be the Fairfield four, from the lead vocal, but the guitar sounds more Memphis than Nashville. I’ll be buying whatever album this comes from for sure.
Its The Mississippi Nightingales taken from their first self-titled lp on Hub City 1974. Its also available on the totally essential Fire In My Bones raw/rare and otherwordly African American Gospel 1944 - 2007.

5. Sweet cut, 60s girl singer, some of the arrangement is very Dusty, but it’s certainly not her singing. Really like this one too. I love this sort of thing.
The Dar-lettes with Lost. Taken off the ace comp Mirwood Soul Story on Ace, no less.

6. Nah, don’t dig this. It’s just quite annoying really. The strings loop is horrible, like nails on a blackboard, the production is clichéd – at best – and the vocal is bored. Next.
Dessa with Matches To Paper Dolls.

7. From the first note, it’s obviously a great cut. Sweet as honey, floaty piece of vocal harmony rocksteady version of hurts so good. Really like this one, yes thank you and very much too. It gives me shivers – in a good way!
Its the original Lee Perry production sung by the marvellous Susan Cadogan.

8. Slightly more rootsy, but still I think, rocksteady or ska. yes? I don’t know the styles of reggae so well, I’m quite a new reggae fan. Anyway, it’s another sure winner. I love this. Nice one.
Annette Clark with Sinner Man. Classic Upsetter again taken from the Rare Sevens Box Set On Trojan of course.

9. This one’s not really for me. It’s a modern blues, a bit worthy for me. Or maybe deliberate is a better word than worthy. It feels a little deliberate, unnatural. No thanks.
Willy Deville with Muddy Waters taken off the Crow Jane lp.

10. Exemplary southern/eastern European thing. Admirable, if not entirely easy, listening. The playing is superb and you have to admire them, even if you might not want to sit and listen to it much.
Klezmer baby! Margot Leverett and the Klezmer Mountain Boys. How to blend Bluegrass and Klezmer properly.

11. Great voice, very similar to Otis Redding. Almost identical in parts. The groove’s pretty hectic, isn’t it? That bass is all over the place while the drums are very jazzy. Pretty decent song, if a little dizzying!
Little Ron Johnson with I Keep Telling You. 1967 b-side to Steam Roller on Hard Times records. I only know of one other 7" release in the early 60's.

12. Acoustic version of The Blood by the Cure. Great band, great song, great version. Always puts me in mind of Kafka, for some reason.
Thought you might enjoy this one as I knew the last track would wind you up something chronic.

13. I kind of don’t mind this and hate it at the same time. There are bits I really like, but the whole is just a bit annoying to me. A bit like Black grape.
Black Grape my arse. Its UK hip-hop legend Rodney P with his biggest hit The Nice Up.
14. Dreadful track. Appalling, almost beyond words how terrible it is. The lyrics are not worthy of a grown-up and the music is the most formulaic shit imaginable. A baffling choice.
Not really baffling when you know who compiled this mix
Cee Lo with Fuck You.

So all told, an excellent mix, with a couple of very obvious exceptions. Really looking forward to the reveal as I think some of this must rank among the best stuff I’ve had in 2 or 3 years of mix clubbing.

Thanks mixer!

Ha ha! Fooled you. I did post it from Huddersfield to keep up the ruse. I thought a full on Hardcore jobbie would give the game away.
I enjoyed making it for you bud.

Tracklist

1. Ras Michael and the Sons of Negus - Mr Brown
2. Dumpstaphunk - Standin' In Your Stuff
3. The Mad Lads - Gone! Promises Of Yesterday
4. Mississippi Nightingales - Don't Let Him Ride
5. The Dar-lettes - Lost
6. Dessa - Matches To Paper Dolls
7. Susan Cadogan - Hurt So God
8. Anette Clark - Sinner Man
9. Willy Deville - Muddy Waters
10. Margot Leverett - Oy Tate S'il Gut
11. Little Ron Johnson - I Keep Tellin' You
12. The Cure - The Blood
13. Rodney P - The Nice Up
14. Cee-Lo Green - Fuck You.

Thanks dude, and fuck you too!

Seriously though, you don't actually like that last song, do you?

[Jumper k]

Thanks dude, and fuck you too!

Seriously though, you don't actually like that last song, do you?

Of course not its dreadful.

[beenieman]

OK, here we go. This month I received a disc full of reggae/ska/dancehall fun promoting, rather irresponsibly, the consumption of a certain mildly euphorogenic and hallucinogenic drug. You'll have to forgive the vagueness and shortness of this review - I do like reggae, but it's not a genre that I know much about - and also the fact that it's a bit late - I've been too stoned for the last two weeks to write anything.

As you sent some reggae tracks to me when I was your Mix Club client some time back I gathered you had at least a vague interest in the genre. I thought I'd make it themed and I had plenty of paeans to ganja to choose from so that was it.

I've never been a smoker myself, or a religous zealot who believes Haile Selassie to be God but Jamaicans do have some great tunes on such topics.

1. Strong start. I really dig the slick production on this kind of thing.

Barrington Levy & Beenie Man. A major hit for Barringfton then 10-15 years later redone with Beenie (note the capital letters) adding his bit to it. A major hit all over again.

2. There's a nice warmth to this one. A favourite on the disc.

Lloyd Brown Don’t Bother Me. One om fsvourite songs ever. An obscure song from the 70’s updated for the 2000’s. The riddim is the ‘Fingerprint’ and there’s 18 songs on the riddim all of which are great. I used part of the lyrics of this song as my signature for a while. He grows ganja and sounds genuinely confused when the police seek to charge him. Lloyd Brown is an expat Jamaican living in the UK

3. A ballad for the persecuted stoner. I think that I may heard Gregory Isaacs name dropped, so it could be him. Or not. Anyway, good stuff.

Gregory Isaacs & Macka B Mister Cop. It is Gregory and a nice segue from the last track. Again confused as to their persecution for holding ganja. Gregory did this solo and some years later revived it with Macka B (another Jamaican doing time in England).

4. Big fat beats. Causes involuntary head-bobbage and seat slidiness.

Chronicle Chronic Man. He doesn’t seem to record much. I’ve got just 5-6 tracks from him. This does have a nice bass behind it. I don’t know the riddim. He gets into a bit of Eek-A-Mouse style beng diddily later in the track.

5. Nothing subtle or ambiguous about this one. Not as keen on this as some of the others although I can't put my finger on why. It just seems a little colder.

Ward 21 Ganja Smoke . A bit more hip hop in style. I’m a fan of Ward 21 who have lots of hits. Smoke the weed till your eyes a bleed.

6. More summery goodness. Infectious.

Michael Fabulous Smokie Joe. On the Sweetie Come Brush Me riddim. Sadly nothing to do with the robins classic hit

7. Ah, one that I actually know, this is Peter Tosh with his pro-pot anthem Legalize It. Typically confrontational.

Peter Tosh Legalise It. There’s a few other takes on this song including an excellent version by Roundhead as well as one from Luciano I stuck with Tosh. Far & away the oldest track here but it doesn’t sound dated at all.

8. Something a bit more contemporary, with some dancehall fire. I have no idea what he's going on about but he sounds very passionate about it.

Capleton High Grade. Capleton is rasta and a major star in Jamaica.Far from the laid back rasta songs of the 70’s. Tired of licking it in the bush he wants to lick the high grade in the open. He's very passionate.

9. This one got a bit annoying.

Jah Thunder Blaze Everyday. Not everyone’s a hit I guess. He wants to blaze and get high everyday. It’s not particularly laid back. On a riddim called Pressure Cooker from way back in 2001.

10. Not keen on how 'treated' the vocals are. This track's a bit too cheesy.

Marlon Asher Ganja Farmer. I love this one. Again I had some lyrics from this as my signature for a while. Confrontational enough to make tosh look like a peacenik. Blasting the helicopters out of the air with his rocket launcher if they come near his crop.

Intro:
Hummmmhmmmmmhmmm
Ohhhhhhh
Oh
Na Na Now!

Chorus:
Yes im a ganja planter
call me di ganja farmer
deep down inna di earth where me put di ganja
babylon come and light it up on fire
me a chant
yes im a ganja planter
call me di ganja farmer
deep down inna di earth where me put di ganja
babylon come... Yo yo!!

Verse 1:
Big stinkin helicopter flow through di air
what dem call it dem call it weedeater
dem never did there when me wa totin water
or when me did applying fertilizer
yet outta di sky dem spittin fire
and im a little youth man with a hot temper
me dig up me stinkin rocket launcher
and in a di air dispense the helicopter
me ya chant

Chorus:
Yes im a ganja planter
call me di ganja farmer
deep down inna di earth where me put di ganja
babylon come and light it up on fire
me a chant
yes im a ganja planter
call me di ganja farmer
deep down inna di earth where me put di ganja
babylon come... Hear Chunne na man

Verse 2:
Tru jah jah bless i with nuff a good vibes man
and true mi a di artist with di ganja inna di land
make doctors get nuff medication
and so dem coulda give it to dem sick patients
make get chemists get nuff medication
and so dem coulda brew new medication
make singers get some inspiration
and so dem coulda spread jah message pon di land... Me a chant

Chorus:
Yes im a ganja planter
call me di ganja farmer
deep down inna di earth where me put di ganja
babylon come and light it up on fire
me a chant
yes im a ganja planter
call me di ganja farmer
deep down inna di earth where me put di ganja
babylon come... Watch it

Verse 3:
So me say ganja ganja ganja ganja
if you no waan to call it dat call it sensimillia
if you no waan to call it dat call it marijauna
if you no waan to call it dat call it di in de ca
me a bun it in a chalice and push it inna paper
Lorddddddd... thats how me love me ganja

Chorus:
Yes im a ganja planter
call me di ganja farmer
deep down inna di earth where me put di ganja
babylon come and light it up on fire
me a chant
yes im a ganja planter
call me di ganja farmer
deep down inna di earth where me put di ganja
babylon come... Ya ya!!

Verse 4:
Well its like ten thousand babylon in one blue van
waan come trespass on dis man damn ganja land
its like ten thousand babylon in one blue van
waan come trespass on dis land
ganja planter
call me di farmer
deep down inna di earth where me put di ganja
me ganja ganja me ganja
low di ganja ganja ganja
me ganja ganja me ganja
low di ganja ganja ganja
me ganja ganja me ganja
low di ganja ganja ganja!!

11. I like the vocal interplay and the classic, bouncy rhythm. Thumbs up.

Gyptian & Roundhead Through The Valley. Starts with the smoker’s cough. Gyptian has a lovely voice doesn’t he. Roundhead is deejaying. He’s pretty one track in his lyrical focus. Known as the ganja deejay as most of his songs are on that theme. He seems to find lots of ways to say the same thing mind you.

12. Soft Reggae. Is that a sub-genre? Anyway, this is actually a lot of fun.

Fantan Mojah & Merciless High Grade. Again with coughing intro. You’d think these guys might take it as a clue to quit or cut down. Not a sub genre. In fact doesn’t sound that soft to me?

13. Nice horn samples, I like this one a lot too.

Simpleton The Chronic. Another favourite of mine. Agreed on the horns. Simpleton died a few years back, quite young too (health issues). He had some good tracks.

14. this one works well on the headphones - there are some clever little production touches.

Beenie Man 100 Dollar Bag. Beenie portrays himself as the Minister of Agriculture. 100 dollars for a bag of ganja.

Yah, anyway, wo na na
Weed
High grade
weed
Good fi nerves
weed
Yeh
Weed
Hundred dollar bag
weed
Tell dem all about
weed
allright
weed
just me argument

yow, yow
When you see me inna di dance
Me an goofy a trod
inna mi scandal bag me have
Hundred dollar bag
When you see mi inna di dance
Mi an kiki a par
An you ask a where mi have
Hundred dollar bag
You see di car where mi drive
An di house where mi have
An dem ask mi how mi get it
Hundred dollar bag
An nuff night mi a bleach
And di teacher come fi teach
And mi tell di youth dem fi buy
Hundred dollar bag

Policeman ?
Why mi fadda deya bush a press di seargant wid
Legalize it, dem 'ave di permit fi green
But di bigga heads dem a sell di weed outa street
Gee, babylon take man fi flee flee
A man fi go a fi sidewalk go buy kiki
Inna face a babylon wan' brutalize we
Anna di weed a bring di music inna di industry
Through di weed
You know discover Bob Marley
Through di weed
You know discover Tosh and Bunny
Through di weed
You know discover di great Buju B.
Through di weed
You know wok Beenie and Bounty

chorus

An a guess mi a guess
Dis is what I believing
Get di sensimilla is di real born healing
When mi smoke di sensi, make mi reach to di ceiling
Mi nah go deal with no stealing
Well, di coke, di crack, di heroine
Dat mi no dealing
An di sensimilla give yah natural feeling
Coke mash dem up an leave di whole a dem screaming
Good sensimilla man burning

chorus

Well I will sell di sensimilla on di east side (east side)
Sell di sensimilla on di west side (west side)
Smoke di sensimilla on di north side (north side)
Sell di sensimilla on di south side (South side)
Dis is what di doctor come fi preach cry (preach cry)
Smoke di sensimilla a yah realize (realize)
Den a wan' fi eye dem fi recognize (recognize)
Organize and centralize and you will be wise (be wise)

chorus

15. I really like the simple, repetitive, bleepy synth noises and the bass. Less enthusiastic about the vocals/lyrics.

Silver Cat More Weed. More coughing too! He’s Beenie’s brother. From 1996 so another old track. He’s had some great songs but is always in Beenie’s shadow. A nice simple riddim

16. A return to mellowness, this is a definite winner.

Wayne Marshall The Right Herb. I like this one. If you know the Gregory Isaacs song Night Nurse this versions the lyrics. Only herb can help him.

tell her its a case of urgency
a badly in need of sensi
only It alone can calm dis ya nerves
the right herbs

So there you go. The review may seem slightly perfunctory but that's a reflection on my lack of knowledge rather than my enjoyment. I'll be using the reveal as springboard and will definitely be checking out a few of the artists involved. Cheers.

The main thing is you enjoyed it. I hope having some knowledge about what you were hearing helps you get further into it.

1. Barrington Levy & Beenie Man Under Mi Sensi 4.08
2. Lloyd Brown Don’t Bother Me 3.47
3. Gregory Isaacs & Macka B Mister Cop 5.34
4. Chronicle Chronic Man 3.27
5. Ward 21 Ganja Smoke 3.22
6. Michael Fabulous Smokie Joe 3.52
7. Peter Tosh Legalise It 4.42
8. Capleton High Grade 3.44
9. Jah Thunder Blaze Everyday 3.49
10. Marlon Asher Ganja Farmer 4.09
11. Gyptian & Roundhead Through The Valley 4.04
12. Fantan Mojah & Merciless High Grade 3.41
13. Simpleton The Chronic 3.28
14. Beenie Man 100 Dollar Bag 3.17
15. Silver Cat More Weed 3.37
16. Wayne Marshall The Right Herb 3.54

[Cosmic American Girl]

A mix from inside a scarecrow's head this month and a themed collection of songs, all about finkin' and that. Here we go:-

I was thrilled to get you as my recipient this month FINALLY! Three years we've been at this and I think that now John K is the only old timer I haven't exchanged with now. After the beautiful packaging and equally awesome music I received from you two months back I wanted to especially craft a good one for you. I'm glad you thought it had more hits than misses.

1. Starts with "If I Only Had A Brain" from the Wizard Of Oz soundtrack. What with this and the packaging, I thought at first this might be an Oz-themed mix, which would have been a bit of a coincidence as I've been listening heavily to a WFMU podcast about the film, full of the music they cut out. Only it wasn't so there you go . It's a mighty fine song of course but what gives this stuff enduring appeal is the fantastic orchestration - pizzicato strings, swanee whistles and ee-awing brass. Fab.

What a timeless song! It conjurs up so many wonderful memories. Have you ever seen the full uncut version? I'm definitely going to check out that podcast. I want to watch the movie now.

1 If I Only Had A Brain - The Wizard of OZ - Ray Bolger & Judy Garland

2. Famous old recording of famously brainy cove Thomas Edison reciting "Mary Had A Little Lamb".

He was a little bit of a smartie and belonged on a disc of great minds. Where would we all be if he hadn't conceived the principle of recording and reproducing sound.

2 Mary had a little lamb-Thomas A. Edison

3. Electric sitar and wah-wah opening and instructions to "take your brain, it's time to go". A splendid 60s/70s US/British stately rocker. Great manly vocals and great drums.

This is from the "long after the fact" album Rolled Gold. The Action is one of those bands that make you wonder what the heck happened. Why didn't these guys make it? They seemed to have all the right things going for them including George Martin.



3 Brain-The Action

4. A bloke with a really annoying voice comes next.. That breathy vocal mannerism would be okay if he dropped it in occasionally a la Tim Hardin but he does it all the time. Pity because this is a nice little song.

Terry Boylan, one of the Boylan brothers from Appletree Theatre whose 67 classic Playback is surprisingly popular around here. This is from his post-Appletree solo LP Alias Boona.
4 Who Do I Think I Am-Terry Boylan

5. My favourite thing on the mix. A gorgeous piece of baroque pop with all sorts of switches of pace and direction. Who dis?

Another one of those "Why Weren't These Guys Huge?" songs. The Smoke only made this one album but main dude Michael Lloyd went on to become one of the biggest songwriter/ producers of the late sixties and the seventies including this one.



5 Gold Is The Colour Of Thought-The Smoke

6. One I don't know by the Ramones. Pretty standard Ramones but that's just swell.

Not really much to do with the theme except that the song has brain in the title but it's The Ramones and that makes it automatically OK for inclusion.

6 My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down (Bonzo Goes To Bitburg)-The Ramones

7. Calypso thing, probably Lord Kitchener or one of those. Rather droll and a nice change of pace. "Women are smarter than men" and all that crap

Truer words never spoken.
This is from the Alan Lomax Collection and I don't really know any more beyond that.

7 Man Smart, Woman Smarter - Macbeth the Great

8. Two minutes of wierdness. "I think I'm thinking too much" . Gregorian chant featuring timeless questions such as "Why am I so ugly that I don't have any friends?" I feel the influence of my mystery mixer's deranged old man coming through here .

He's not that old (but he is a bit deranged).

8 Thinking Too Much-The Tinklers

9. "I Wonder". I could believe that this was an old doo-wop/early soul classic except for the line "I wonder how many times you had sex". Whatever, it's a great track. A bit Dion-ish.

Rodriguez was my badass discovery from last months disc from Magilla. I went right to eMusic when I got my reveal and have been enjoying the two albums all month. Really good music plus he has a pretty interesting life story.

9 I Wonder-Rodriguez

10. More strangeness. Unfathomable electronically-treated voices, backwards bits and general what-the-fuckness. This one defeated me .

Half of the album Before Time Began is referred to as "The Backwards Tapes". This is from the mid 80's NRPS and seems to prove that the 60's had long lingering erm... aftereffects.

10 A Handful of Brains -New Riders Of The Purple Sage

11. I have heard this song before but it's foxed me now. A gentle little tune about Tesla, Edison, Westinghouse etc. Nice tuba.

I wouldn't be at all surprised if you had heard. It's The Handsome Family with a lovely song about another genius.

11 Tesla's Hotel Room -The Handsome Family

12. A fine Robyn Hitchcock song and one of too many that I don't know. "Strawberry Mind"?

I love Robyn Hitchcock and one of his songs usually winds up more often than not on my mix club discs. I love this song. It's so much fun!

12 Strawberry Mind-Robyn Hitchcock And The Egyptians

13. "The Know It All" from the Millenium's Begin. A classic album if ever there was one.

Couldn't agree more that this is truly a stone cold classic.

13 The Know It All-The Millennium

14. Crackly recording of a bloke with a German accent talking about relativity.

This is Einstein himself and I'm sure you understood everything he was saying about relativity.

14 E=MC2 -Albert Einstein

15. Comedy song about Einstein never wearing socks. The singer is introduced as "Tuli" so I guess it's the late Mr Kupferberg. I'm afraid it had the same effect on me as the comedy stuff I put on my own mixes has on others - rigor mortis of the funny bone .

And here I thought this sort of silliness would be right up your alley.

15 Einstein Never Wore Socks-The Fugs

16. This is more like it. Dylanesque ballad - "Look what I made out of my head, ma". Probably modern and a really decent song. Not a combination you come across too often.

Another artist I was turned on to through the mix club. I can't remember for sure who from but I think it was Jock a long time ago. I've been hooked ever since. This came on the ipod while I was in the process of working on your disc and I stretched the theme a bit but I thought you might enjoy.

16 Look What I Made Out Of My Head Ma-Pete Molinari

17. Warren Zevon and "Genius". Great lyrics as usual but not one of my favourites of his. Not nasty enough.

I have a huge soft spot for Warren. I guess this one is just a little more clever than evil but it still has a bit of evil.
17 Genius-Warren Zevon

18. Strange little song. Sounds like Sparks on heavy medication. Short and not too sweet.

This song is from About Time by Daevid Allen and New York Gong, the short-lived US version of the progressive outfit. AND I DON"T LISTEN TO ANYTHING EVEN REMOTELY PROG-LIKE!!!!!!!!!!(much)
18 I Am A Freud-New York Gong

19. Nice lilting little ballad. His voice reminds me of Paddy McAloon but he's definitely a yank. This ones become a bit of a grower for me.

This is Glen Phillips from Toad The Wet Sprocket. I really like all of his solo efforts but then I was already a Toad fan from way way back.

19 Brain Trust Kid-Glen Phillips

20. Stephen Hawking says thank you for listening. Cheers Steve!

Nabbed this one from the tail end of one of his lectures.

20 Coda- Steven Hawking

Very enjoyable mix with plenty of variety and lots of surprises. 6 absolute crackers and only a couple of flops. Thanks Debbi.

Once again it was my pleasure and of course if your throat has a tickle for more of any of this...

1 If I Only Had A Brain - The Wizard of OZ - Ray Bolger & Judy Garland
2 Mary had a little lamb-Thomas A. Edison
3 Brain -The Action
4 Who Do I Think I Am-Terry Boylan
5 Gold Is The Colour Of Thought-The Smoke
6 My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down (Bonzo Goes To Bitburg)-The Ramones
7 Man Smart, Woman Smarter - Macbeth the Great
8 Thinking Too Much -The Tinklers
9 I Wonder-Rodriguez
10 A Handful of Brains -New Riders Of The Purple Sage
11 Tesla's Hotel Room -The Handsome Family
12 Strawberry Mind-Robyn Hitchcock And The Egyptians
13 The Know It All-The Millennium
14 E=MC2 -Albert Einstein
15 Einstein Never Wore Socks-The Fugs
16 Look What I Made Out Of My Head Ma-Pete Molinari
17 Genius-Warren Zevon
18 I Am A Freud - New York Gong
19 Brain Trust Kid-Glen Phillips
20 Coda- Steven Hawking

[Nolamike]

3 Brain -The Action

9 I Wonder-Rodriguez

You bastard! I had dibs on Rodriguez and tracks off Rolled Gold this month!

[whodathunkit]

1 If I Only Had A Brain - The Wizard of OZ - Ray Bolger & Judy Garland
2 Mary had a little lamb-Thomas A. Edison
3 Brain -The Action
4 Who Do I Think I Am-Terry Boylan
5 Gold Is The Colour Of Thought-The Smoke
6 My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down (Bonzo Goes To Bitburg)-The Ramones
7 Man Smart, Woman Smarter - Macbeth the Great
8 Thinking Too Much -The Tinklers
9 I Wonder-Rodriguez
10 A Handful of Brains -New Riders Of The Purple Sage
11 Tesla's Hotel Room -The Handsome Family
12 Strawberry Mind-Robyn Hitchcock And The Egyptians
13 The Know It All-The Millennium
14 E=MC2 -Albert Einstein
15 Einstein Never Wore Socks-The Fugs
16 Look What I Made Out Of My Head Ma-Pete Molinari
17 Genius-Warren Zevon
18 I Am A Freud - New York Gong
19 Brain Trust Kid-Glen Phillips
20 Coda- Steven Hawking

Cheers Debbi. Yes it was about time and I've finally got some CAG mixclub artwork to put in my pension fund.Should have got the Action and the Handsome Family.Is that the Smoke of "My Friend Jack" fame or another lot? That's the second thing by Mr Molinari that I've heard and loved. Think I'd better invest. And the Fugs? 2 or 3 times I've put things that I think are hilarious on mixes only to receive not even a chuckle. My turn to play the miserable git this time

[Cosmic American Girl]

1 If I Only Had A Brain - The Wizard of OZ - Ray Bolger & Judy Garland
2 Mary had a little lamb-Thomas A. Edison
3 Brain -The Action
4 Who Do I Think I Am-Terry Boylan
5 Gold Is The Colour Of Thought-The Smoke
6 My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down (Bonzo Goes To Bitburg)-The Ramones
7 Man Smart, Woman Smarter - Macbeth the Great
8 Thinking Too Much -The Tinklers
9 I Wonder-Rodriguez
10 A Handful of Brains -New Riders Of The Purple Sage
11 Tesla's Hotel Room -The Handsome Family
12 Strawberry Mind-Robyn Hitchcock And The Egyptians
13 The Know It All-The Millennium
14 E=MC2 -Albert Einstein
15 Einstein Never Wore Socks-The Fugs
16 Look What I Made Out Of My Head Ma-Pete Molinari
17 Genius-Warren Zevon
18 I Am A Freud - New York Gong
19 Brain Trust Kid-Glen Phillips
20 Coda- Steven Hawking

Cheers Debbi. Yes it was about time and I've finally got some CAG mixclub artwork to put in my pension fund.Should have got the Action and the Handsome Family.Is that the Smoke of "My Friend Jack" fame or another lot? That's the second thing by Mr Molinari that I've heard and loved. Think I'd better invest. And the Fugs? 2 or 3 times I've put things that I think are hilarious on mixes only to receive not even a chuckle. My turn to play the miserable git this time

Not that Smoke but this one
http://members.chello.nl/cvanderlely/wc ... smoke.html

And there is something about Pete Molinari. Yes, he clearly wears his influences on his sleeve but he also has his own style and talent to make it work wonderfully. I highly recommend checking him out. There are only three proper albums and a few eps. I haven't got his latest one but it is definitely on my list.

[Penk!]

Just a reminder for anyone who might have forgotten their review...

[beenieman]

Just a reminder for anyone who might have forgotten their review...

A poignant post

[NickC]

Just a reminder for anyone who might have forgotten their review...

Oh dear. Sorry, it was me...and God knows what happened. I posted it about a week after receiving the mix. I had written it out and copied it at work to 'word', emailed it home and then copied/pasted to the thread...but then logged out without having checked to see if the post had..er posted. I thought it odd that I hadn't had an email notification in reply to my post, but never followed it up. I am deeply sorry, I have never 'slooped' or let anyone down before .

Anyway, here it finally is...(again)..

1. Starts with a film score type instrumental, with an annoying 'distortion of scratches' overlaying everything. Would be ok behind a scifi type film, but not the kind of thing I would normally listen to.

2. A string laden piece now. A cello opens with quite a sombre melody which continues throughout. Two minutes in we are joined by a violin that carries the piece till the end. Ok for a quiet evening of plaintive thought.

3. Again, a similar film type score, but in a more traditional way. A piano piece, with the timbre of an upright. Starts with keys jingling, then into the piece. Sounded like the kind of thing someone who was just learning the piano would begin with. The chord and melody nice and steady, nothing hurried.

4. The first track to feature a vocal!...albeit in an odd experimental Nico'esque way. Quite odd, disjointed and fortunately, only 1.10 long

5. Back to the instrumental/film type score. This time with an electronic Eno'ish feel. I kept waiting for a Massive Attack vocal to kick in, was in that veign. Dark and echoey. Ok, but a tad too long.

6. More of an experimental melange, akin to track 4. Lots of odd bleeps and effects.

7. Fast paced electro/rock affair. Still in the instrumental playing field. This is more like the kind of stuff im likely to listen to. Has more changes and direction than the previous tracks.

8. Now we're talking! Great riff, great speed and a fantastic slide up and down the neck. Spoken vocal style telling us about Romeo, and then opens up! 'Juliettt!!. The mix is picking up speed. Liked this a lot.

9. Staying with the guitars now, jangly chords with answering beat. Easy lead melody and then odd vocal interjection...in what language? Goes mental toward the end.Quite appealing actually.

10. The piano again...but then segues into another instrumental. Has a Can'ish flavour rythym. Builds and then like the last track goes a bit mad nearer the end. The laughter halfway through was a suprise!...then very jazz/freeform soloing.

11. A Sonics sounding guitar driven track. Great vocal with quirky backing. Light and airy with brill bass lines.

12. A lovely chunk of vinyl, 70s rock with that funk style choppy chord structure and an almost reggae vocal. Great lead almost lost in the mix running through it all.

13. Wow. A great piece of playing, very latin flavoured. Builds nicely and then.....more manic laughter halfway through! This a great track with lots of styles in it. I love the double picking in the end sequence.

14. Detroit era funk. A contrast to all before it. Like most of this stuff its hard not to tap your foot.

15. At last! one I know. The fantastic Etta James. Stupendous.

16. Another odd one...thats very appealing. A foreign language vocal, accompanied only by a tamborine and a whoop whistle. Favela! Not a clue what language, but impossible not to like.

17. Is this Gil Scott Heron? Has that Massive Attack background mentioned in 5 but with the type of vocal overlay a la' blues feel. This is great.

18. A 'Live' track recording now. Very Latin/Tango flavoured. Again, not a clue what the lyrics are about but its good.

19. Now this is my favourite on the mix. A beautiful and stunning piece of Spanish guitar work with a crooning vocal. I have similar stuff that I play and it proves the point that music is about melody and not necassarily about understanding a lyric. This is beautiful.

20. This must be the Carter Family?. Not a track I have heard before, but typical of their stuff. Excellent.

OK, there you have it. A very diverse mix with a few styles thrown in. The mix definately improved for me after track 6. Im ok with instrumental/film/score types..but generally one at a time. The foreign language tracks where very refreshing and I applaud your courage in sticking so many in one mix. Overall, a satisfying experience.
Once more I apologise for what happened regarding this revue, and it will teach me to be more careful with my posts in the future

[Penk!]

Just a reminder for anyone who might have forgotten their review...

Oh dear. Sorry, it was me...and God knows what happened. I posted it about a week after receiving the mix. I had written it out and copied it at work to 'word', emailed it home and then copied/pasted to the thread...but then logged out without having checked to see if the post had..er posted. I thought it odd that I hadn't had an email notification in reply to my post, but never followed it up. I am deeply sorry, I have never 'slooped' or let anyone down before .

No worries - I assumed it was forgetfulness rather than laziness as you seem to be one of our most reliable members, and we've all had problems with the board or the post at some time or another. Glad you liked the disc in the end.

1. Starts with a film score type instrumental, with an annoying 'distortion of scratches' overlaying everything. Would be ok behind a scifi type film, but not the kind of thing I would normally listen to.

Belong - I Never Lose. Never Really
A kind of ambient piece played entirely on electric guitar, I think.

2. A string laden piece now. A cello opens with quite a sombre melody which continues throughout. Two minutes in we are joined by a violin that carries the piece till the end. Ok for a quiet evening of plaintive thought.

Max Richter - On the Nature of Daylight
This one has definitely been co-opted for film soundtracks (Richter himself used it again on his score for Waltz with Bashir); Richter is a bit pretentious and a bit "middle-class" if we're using that as a pejorative... but I think this is just an outstandingly beautiful piece of music.

3. Again, a similar film type score, but in a more traditional way. A piano piece, with the timbre of an upright. Starts with keys jingling, then into the piece. Sounded like the kind of thing someone who was just learning the piano would begin with. The chord and melody nice and steady, nothing hurried.

Goldmund - Larrows of the Field
I noticed that you'd really gone for one of this guy's tracks on another mix so threw one in here as I was starting in that kind of mood.

4. The first track to feature a vocal!...albeit in an odd experimental Nico'esque way. Quite odd, disjointed and fortunately, only 1.10 long

Phillipe Besombes - Appel de Libra
I think this was probably my "I have a minute or so spare on the disc, why not chuck another track on" selection. A French bloke who did some avant-garde stuff in the '70s.

5. Back to the instrumental/film type score. This time with an electronic Eno'ish feel. I kept waiting for a Massive Attack vocal to kick in, was in that veign. Dark and echoey. Ok, but a tad too long.

Monolake - Internal Clock
Robert Henke, the one constant member of sometime-duo Monolake, is one of the most prominent figures in electronic music over the last fifteen years; his latest album Silence is - to my ears, anyway - his masterpiece, mixing electronic styles new and old with organic sounds to create dark, intense mood pieces like this.

6. More of an experimental melange, akin to track 4. Lots of odd bleeps and effects.

Fennesz - Caecilia
From the Austrian guitarist/producer's landmark album Endless Summer.

7. Fast paced electro/rock affair. Still in the instrumental playing field. This is more like the kind of stuff im likely to listen to. Has more changes and direction than the previous tracks.

Holy Fuck - Stilettos
I think it was Magilla whose Mix Club disc introduced me to this pretty nifty new krautrock-electro outfit. Noisy and fun.

8. Now we're talking! Great riff, great speed and a fantastic slide up and down the neck. Spoken vocal style telling us about Romeo, and then opens up! 'Juliettt!!. The mix is picking up speed. Liked this a lot.

The Wipers - Romeo
Seminal US post-punk (of the "brainy punk" rather than the "shouty hardcore" variety).

9. Staying with the guitars now, jangly chords with answering beat. Easy lead melody and then odd vocal interjection...in what language? Goes mental toward the end.Quite appealing actually.

bob hund - Länge Länge
From their legendary debut way back in 1994. One of those "define rock music to a visitor from another planet" tracks.

10. The piano again...but then segues into another instrumental. Has a Can'ish flavour rythym. Builds and then like the last track goes a bit mad nearer the end. The laughter halfway through was a suprise!...then very jazz/freeform soloing.

Dungen - Högdalstoppen
These last two bands go together naturally, as the greatest Swedish outfits of the last, ooh, thirty years. This is from Dungen's actually-a-bit-under-par-now-I've-listened-to-it-a-bit-more new one Skit I Allt (Fuck It All).

11. A Sonics sounding guitar driven track. Great vocal with quirky backing. Light and airy with brill bass lines.

The New Breed - Want Ad Reader
Token psych track alert. Don't know much about these guys, it's just a cool song.

12. A lovely chunk of vinyl, 70s rock with that funk style choppy chord structure and an almost reggae vocal. Great lead almost lost in the mix running through it all.

BLO - Don't Take Her Away (from Me)
Famed Nigerian rockers with an all-time favourite and Mix Club regular. Just great.

13. Wow. A great piece of playing, very latin flavoured. Builds nicely and then.....more manic laughter halfway through! This a great track with lots of styles in it. I love the double picking in the end sequence.

Bembeya Jazz National - Petit Seckou
Staying in Africa but moving over to Guinea now, one of that country's best-known acts with one of their best-known tracks.

14. Detroit era funk. A contrast to all before it. Like most of this stuff its hard not to tap your foot.

OFS Unlimited - Mister Kidneys
I found this one on one of the patchy-but-frequently-groovy Numero Group Eccentric Soul compilations, most of which are good for a few prime cuts.

15. At last! one I know. The fantastic Etta James. Stupendous.

Etta James - Mellow Fellow
Yep.

16. Another odd one...thats very appealing. A foreign language vocal, accompanied only by a tamborine and a whoop whistle. Favela! Not a clue what language, but impossible not to like.

Seu Jorge - Eu Sou Favela
Señor Jorge is one of the best-known of the current crop of Brazilian popsters, having done Hollywood soundtrack work and covered Bowie. This is from his rather fine album Cru.

17. Is this Gil Scott Heron? Has that Massive Attack background mentioned in 5 but with the type of vocal overlay a la' blues feel. This is great.

Gil Scott-Heron - Me and the Devil
It is indeed him, doing an old Robert Johnson song on his latest album I'm New Here, which is pretty good (though this is comfortably the standout).

18. A 'Live' track recording now. Very Latin/Tango flavoured. Again, not a clue what the lyrics are about but its good.

Cesaria Evora - Bia
One of Cape Verde's biggest artists (I'm sure there's plenty of competition).

19. Now this is my favourite on the mix. A beautiful and stunning piece of Spanish guitar work with a crooning vocal. I have similar stuff that I play and it proves the point that music is about melody and not necassarily about understanding a lyric. This is beautiful.

Víctor Jara - Manifiesto
Strange you should say that, as Jara is actually as well-known for his lyrics as his music, regarded as one of South America's, if not the world's, greatest protest singers. He was among the victims of Pinochet's coup in Chile in September 1973; the stadium where the executions took place is now named the Estadio Víctor Jara.

20. This must be the Carter Family?. Not a track I have heard before, but typical of their stuff. Excellent.

The Carter Family - I'm Thinking Tonight of My Blue Eyes
Good spot again; I find a little of this kind of thing goes a long way, but they make for lovely little bits in compilations.

OK, there you have it. A very diverse mix with a few styles thrown in. The mix definately improved for me after track 6. Im ok with instrumental/film/score types..but generally one at a time. The foreign language tracks where very refreshing and I applaud your courage in sticking so many in one mix. Overall, a satisfying experience.

Well as I'm said I'm glad you liked it; I wasn't sure if the more ambient/electronic opening section would work: it might have been better suited coming at the end. But you have to take risks in this game. As always, if you want to hear more of any of this stuff, you know what to do.

The grisly details:

Belong - I Never Lose. Never Really
Max Richter - On the Nature of Daylight
Goldmund - Larrows of the Field
Phillipe Besombes - Appel de Libra
Monolake - Internal Clock
Fennesz - Caecilia
Holy Fuck - Stilettos
The Wipers - Romeo
bob hund - Länge Länge
Dungen - Högdalstoppen
The New Breed - Want Ad Reader
BLO - Don't Take Her Away (from Me)
Bembeya Jazz National - Petit Seckou
OFS Unlimited - Mister Kidneys
Etta James - Mellow Fellow
Seu Jorge - Eu Sou Favela
Gil Scott-Heron - Me and the Devil
Cesaria Evora - Bia
Víctor Jara - Manifiesto
The Carter Family - I'm Thinking Tonight of My Blue Eyes

[NickC]

Thanks for that Penk. There's a few here for me to check out. Priority will be the Victor Jara stuff.
Gil Scott is somebody I really should check out more in depth too.
Thanks again, and again..sorry about the mix up regarding the revue post.