Welcome to week 19 of the Isolation Room Listening Booth, songs as chosen by RPM club members week ending Friday 31st July. More music from the virtual box of virtual 7” singles………dipping my hand in, it’s over to…..
John – “Hi All RPMers………Hope you're all keeping safe and well. Here's a selection of what I've been listening to this week...”
Look Through Any Window by The Hollies – “Any song that starts with a nifty arpeggio on an electric 12-string guitar is OK with me....”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3B2_OTRpPd4
Aunties Operation by The Coral – “The Coral's self-titled debut album from 2002 was amazing - as was their live set at the time which was basically the entire album and not much else. We saw them a few times at various venues and when the second LP came out (on Orange Vinyl) it didn't disappoint. Their third LP, a mini-album called 'Nightfreak And The Sons Of Becker' was, however, a disappointment at the time even though their live performances were still stunning. I now have eight of their albums and 'Nightfreak...' still hardly gets a spin. I played it last week for the first time in ages and this little quirky little gem stood out.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUSkPqOHECw
Tarhatazed by Mdou Moctar – “Give this man a left-handed Stratocaster, sit back and let him grooooove...!!!”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZvPoE0EH1o
Dave – “Hi RPMers, hope all is well. Here’s my 3 tunes……”
Tuesday Makes Me Cry by Snapped Ankles –
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prJJhrRsTkw
Sin City by The Flying Burrito Brothers –
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UcU04NGMQb8
Blue is Beautiful by The Make Up -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DYZqNiflBSI
Jean – “I’ve got the singles out again this week and chosen 3 on the Warner Brothers Label…..”
Mashy by the Routers, 1962 – “This was the ‘b’ side of the big dance hit ‘Let’s Go (Pony)’. In the USA it was a favourite of cheerleaders, apparently. ‘Mashy’ was purely instrumental and written by Michael Z.Gordon who formed the group in 1961. Scott Engel (of Walker Brothers fame) was in the original line-up as bass guitarist. Gordon also founded The Marketts – who didn’t have as much success. Gordon went on to be a very successful screen writer and has only just retired.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QI-xIB5ePuw
The Price of Love by The Everly Brothers 1966 – “This is one of my favourites. Don and Phil were brothers who played country influenced rock and roll with their trademark of steel-string acoustic guitar and close harmonies. They wrote and recorded in Nashville and from 1958 – 1984 and had 31 single hits on the Billboard Hot 100. Such as ‘Bye Bye Love’ and Wake Up Little Susie’. They separated in 1973 for 10 years after a row on stage at a gig. In 1983 they reconciled; toured again and released a live album. They are members of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame/ Music Hall of Fame and have a Grammy for Lifetime Achievement. Phil died in 2014 aged 74. Don is alive and well and now 83.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0vKL82wI9Y
Stone Cold Sober by Sir Rod Stewart C.B.E. 1975 – “I like the raw sound he gets on this single – ‘b’ side of ‘Sailing’. From 1964-69 he was on the music scene and rubbed shoulders with Baldrey/Driscoll/Fleetwood/Green and Beck amongst others. He became well-known after joining The Faces and stayed with them until 1974. He wrote several hits and made solo Albums during that time, though, and has continued doing so ever since. He has had 9 No.1 Albums/ 62 hit singles and sold 120 million records worldwide. He has taken a lot of flack, in his career and private life, over the years, but is the ultimate performer who gives 100% to his audience. Can’t see him ever retiring.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IScFCdRs9M
Piers – “I hope you are all well and like the choices I have made this week…. As Pink Floyd once sang, “The memories of a man in his old age, are the deeds (or in this case vinyl), of a man in his prime…. “
This week I thought I would go for a theme; it could have been called Stopped Me Dead In My Tracks, and all these were first heard in the Black Cat Coffee Bar in Thorpe Bay. So, I dedicate them all to Shirley, the bee-hived blonde who ran the cafe. I might revisit the clubs and cafes of my youth in the future, as they each had a distinct sound - Post bop modern Jazz at 'The Shrubbery’, Blues at 'The Studio', Motown/Stax in 'The Capri', Speedy Mod at 'The Jacobean', Hard Soul and Blue Beat at ’The Harold Dog’. And as for “The Regency’….. (No one went there, we hated trad jazz!)……………
One grey, early evening I was in the ‘Black Cat Coffee Bar’……Not a particularly groovy place, though John Lee Hooker did stay at the ‘Black Cat’ for a couple of nights during his first tour. (No I didn’t meet him)………
In the afternoons, it was all parchment lampshades and crisp doilies. ‘The Black Cat’ catered to little old ladies who battled to keep the jam off of the linen, and not to spill the earl grey. In the evening the tablecloths came off and it was frothy coffee and peopled by a smattering of local kids from the St George’s Youth Club and ‘overflow’ Modernists from the very funky ‘Shades’ scooter club, located next door to the infamous rocker cafe, 'The 59', just a couple of hundred yards further along the Esplanade. Shades was owned and run by Robin Trower’s dad and where his band the Paramount’s, (later to become ‘Procol Harem’), had a weekly Thursday night residency in the basement…….and also where my mate Stevie clocked up an unheard of 60,000 points, and 30 replays on the ‘Buckaroo’ machine…..”
Stone Free by Jimi Hendrix - “…….One grey, early evening I was in ‘The Cat’ when, as happened every week, the new singles were being put onto the Juke Box. I always liked to be there for that event but this week was special…..
Shirley had written out the labels by hand, and slipped them into the carriers. The old singles were being sold to eager customers, (one of the reasons I liked to be there). The bloke closed the plexiglass dome with a thump, and the Seeburg went, Clunk, Click, Whirr, Whirrrrr and shush and then……. it was the very first time I heard Jimi Hendrix. His first single. And I heard the B side first! “
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MoCuGUUMzpA
Can’t Explain by The Who - “I bought this one when it came off the Seeburg, and still have it….”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11fiOemKw_8
On the Road Again by Canned Heat – “And this was a game changer too… “
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRKNw477onU
Sal – “My three tracks for this week are...”
Describe by Perfume Genius -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAoWMJTClqo
Love Is The Key by The Charlatans -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tLa4QEtN9I
Video Games by Lana Del Rey -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cE6wxDqdOV0
Jayne – “Greetings RPM faithful, my selection this week is a gentle collection of acoustic tracks which I think are really soothing but poignant at the same time.”
The Cherping of the Lark by Leveret -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1UYpKoGTQM8
The Bird by Jackie Oates (song by Lal Waterson) -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2G03Yyevjqo
Blackbird by Rachel Unthank and the Winterset -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pI8D0z78bbI
Philip –“Greetings to all RPMers as always. This missive is being sent from under the gazebo at the top of our garden. This week, I'll take you back to the first three months of 2020... you know... that period when it was repeatedly claimed that Covid 19 was just another type of flu and that "herd immunity" might be the way to go. Incompetent or evil... you decide.
From albums issued in the first quarter of the year then…….”
The Roving by Bonny Light Horseman – “They balk at being called a "folk super-group" but if you accept the term "super-group" as a description of people coming together from having previously achieved success or acclaim in other settings then this seems an eminently reasonable term for Anais Mitchell, Eric D. Johnson and Josh Kaufman.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1bsBBU_ETy8
Hand Over My Heart by The Secret Sisters – “From their new "Saturn Return" album. They are in fact real sisters, Laura Rogers and Lydia Slagle, and their harmonies have resulted in comparisons to The Everly Brothers.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmW6mE12zSo
A Bigger Boat by Brandy Clark (with vocal support from Randy Newman) – “One of contemporary Nashville's finest songwriters, Brandy Clark might occasionally write with a partner, but not for her that writing by committee that results in strings of cliches with no real individual viewpoint - a sort of song-writing-by-numbers that makes you think "how many people does it take...?" as you examine the credits. She is a distinctive individual voice.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XpWgORfA2IY
Morra -
10 Don’ts For Honeymooners by Monochrome Set -
Some Weird Sin by Iggy Pop -
A Quest of Numbers by Leon Rossleson -
Tony – “Glad we are still going full steam ahead with this…….here's my 3 for this week. Best wishes to you all and here's hoping that we can meet up soon……Can't stop - dashing off to buy some stuff by my latest favourite act - Larkin Poe (thanks Piers!)”
If I Should Fall Behind by Paul Carrack - “On Saturday at midday we will finally get the chance to scatter the ashes of my much loved and much missed wife Sandra so I would like to include this song which was played to begin her funeral service. It was the only piece of music that we had agreed that each would arrange to have played because we liked the track so much and it reminded us that she always struggled to keep up with me when walking (due to a hip condition she was born with). We also liked the idea it suggested to us that an afterlife might be possible and that we could someday be reunited to continue our partnership which, at the time of her death at the start of October 2019, had lasted almost 58 years. The song was written by Bruce Springsteen for his "Lucky Town" album but she/we loved this version.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KrKjjlghIwk
Human Touch by Bruce Springsteen - “As I swerved The Boss's version of my previous choice, I think he deserves to have a go with a track I've always liked and the pick of the bunch of songs by him from his simultaneous release of "Human Touch" and "Lucky Town" LP's in 1992”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85cNRQo1m3A
"Need Your Love So Bad" Gary Moore – “To remember the remarkable talent that was Peter Green I would like to propose this version of Fleetwood Mac's fantastic rendition of one of my favourite songs first recorded by Little Willie John and written by his elder brother. This track is taken from an excellent album made as a tribute to Peter Green by Gary Moore called "Blues for Greeny". Gary owned the guitar that once belonged to Peter (a 1959 standard Gibson Les Paul) and I saw him play it at the UEA some years back. I recall that he played this number on the night.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAEcYT8WAp8
Alan – “Peter Green. R.I.P. Deaths in the music business sadly come along pretty regularly*. Some deaths occur when artists have, possibly, achieved all they were capable of. Others, however, may have died just as they were approaching a period of their greatest creativity. Two who probably best illustrate this were Otis Redding and Jimi Hendrix. Otis had shown a new, mature, relaxed style in his final compositions but, when Hendrix died the promise of so much new, uncharted music seemed to disappear with his passing. Jimi's plans to record with a trio featuring Miles Davis, Tony Williams and Paul McCartney had only been an informal approach via Jimi's cable to Macca on 21st October 1969. Later, John McLaughlin (Donny's finest guitarist) and Gill Evans were also mooted to attend other, official, sessions. In his final interview for the Melody Maker Jimi said “I want a big band. I don’t mean three harps and 14 violins. I mean a big band full of competent musicians that I can conduct and write for. And with the music we will paint pictures of earth and space, so that the listener can be taken somewhere." Perhaps the Davis, McCartney etc line-up were his initial thoughts for that 'big band'? We'll never know now. As I've said at several RPM meetings, there are one or two artists' whose songs I have difficulty playing without becoming 'emotional'.... and Jimi is number one on that list. To those artists I now have to add Peter Green. Here's three from my collection which show his composing, vocal and guitar skills at their very best……”
Oh Well by Fleetwood Mac (Live at the Boston Tea Party 5-7th February 1970 LP) – “Difficult to improve on the original recorded version but here Peter and Danny Kirwan do just that. Great vocals, fantastic 'twin lead' guitars showing two minds working as one and, don't forget, Danny was still only 19 when this was recorded!”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kMy-ORtRpE
Evil Woman Blues by Peter Green and John Mayall (First released on 'Raw Blues' compilation 1967) – “Mike Vernon, a producer at Decca Records recalled Green's début with the Bluesbreakers: "As the band walked in the studio I noticed an amplifier which I never saw before, so I said to John Mayall, "Where's Eric Clapton?" Mayall answered, "He's not with us anymore, he left us a few weeks ago." I was in a state of shock but Mayall said, "Don't worry, we got someone better." I said, "Wait a minute, hang on a second, this is ridiculous. You've got someone better?.....Than Eric Clapton?" John said, "He might not be better now, but you wait, in a couple of years he's going to be the best." Then he introduced me to Peter Green." This track came from the sessions for the album 'A Hard Road', which I prefer to its predecessor... 'the 'Beano' album, but the track found its initial release on the compilation album 'Raw Blues' released on the Ace of Clubs budget label in late 1967. It's a real cracker including scarce early tracks by Mayall and Clapton, Curtis Jones, Otis Spann and others, including a disgruntled Stevie Winwood (as Steve Anglo) who was then contemplating leaving the Spencer Davis Group. Here though, it seems to be just Green and Mayall on a Green composed song, lyrically perhaps foreshadowing his later Mac compositions relating to 'the supernatural' (sic), with John McVie and Mick Fleetwood presumably 'jumping in the shadows' (another sic!!). Great guitar of course but, probably, with over recorded piano from Mayall. A lost classic which evaded re-release until the 2003 expanded 'A Hard Road' album CD release.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BefaAMqCERY
Billed as: John Mayall's Bluesbreakers with Peter Green 'Greeny' (First released on 'World of Blues Power' compilation 1969) – “And this is what McVie and Fleetwood (although Ainsley Dunbar had drummed on much of the 'A Hard Road' album) were waiting for. After the sessions were completed Green, Bob Brunning and Fleetwood recorded this little cracker which must have given Green food for thought for a possible unit of his own. Late-summer 1967 saw producer Mike Vernon unlock Decca Studios under cover of darkness for a secret session by the nascent line-up for rehearsals and demo recordings. In a hushed London clubland conversation, Jeremy Spencer was told by Green that he was to be a member of a new band, even though he hadn't asked to join. Shortly after, the Melody Maker was reporting that Green was forming a new 'Cream-type' super group and, faced with that prospect, Mayall allowed Green to leave...... and promptly signed wunder-kind Mick Taylor as a replacement! Within weeks, Spencer had joined, McVie replaced Brunning, who featured on one or two cuts, and the band started recording their 'Dog and a dustbin' debut album in earnest. This particular track was never intended for 'A Hard Road' and remained unreleased until the 'World of...' compilation allowed it to sneak out virtually unnoticed.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CV64V9kvPpE
* Denise Johnson of Primal Scream, New Order and many other 'Manc' bands should have been releasing her debut solo album in a few weeks.......
Tim –“My 3 from the turntable this week………...”
Breakthrough by Mark McDowell and Friends- “Second mention this week in despatches for Piers…….loved the Dark Weave track he selected in week 5……this from the new album…and on blue vinyl to boot. Mixing acoustic and electronic instruments, it’s almost as though the Hawkwind spaceship c.1972 had crash-landed onto Planet Folk on this track. Shame there isn’t more like this across the album, but the sunshiney psych folk songs which comprise the rest of the material are fine and make for a pleasant enough listen.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a00_XXOyPX4
Goodbye Jimmy Reed by Bob Dylan – “So at last, after pishing about doing his Sanatra / crooner pop covers albums (no, I didn’t buy them), our Bob has released an album of new all original material………..and yes, I was excited about hearing some new Dylan music. Firstly, the vinyl sounds fantastic…the string bass was making wine glasses vibrate on the dresser; I could’ve sworn he’d set up in the living room. Vinyl came with a download code as well; bonus. Rough and Rowdy ways isn’t really all that rough or rowdy, actually. It’s an album which sees Dylan in a mostly subdued and contemplative mood, requiring one to sit and listen rather than having the album on as background music. There’s a lot on the 79-year old’s mind which ensures this album will undoubtedly yield more to the listener the more it’s played. Goodbye Jimmy Reed is the only really up-tempo number on show here and is a typical Dylan-blues-swagger number and tribute to one of his musical heroes.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-DG3g-ggdg
Whirl-Y-Reel 1 by Afro Celt Sound System “…….well, not from the turntable but heard emanating at reasonable volume from the shed this week………”