(---LEE GORDON--- ^^^^^^^^)
I recently found this mix I did for somebody's project of some kind that never happened. I wrote liner notes for it and everything (including a refence to my then girlfriends dog, Rodney. Miss you, Rod!). Here it is, three years later! The songs are now three years older, but they were already old then, and dumb songs about cowboys and ghosts never go out of style…
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THE CASTILES - ENCHANTMENT (Magenta)This is like a lovably crappy attempt at that Eden Ahbez "Eden's Island" kinda steez. I still chasin that Eden Ahbez LP, this'll have to do in the meantime…
THE EL TORROS - YELLOW HAND (Duke)Just my kinda thing at the moment! A popcorny groove and some lyrics about indians or arabs or ghosts or something like that, that's my kinda shit. Great lyrics on this thing, love the bit about using a whole buffaloes hide to make one shoe for Yellow Hand. We've started singing this to my girlfriends dog, Rodney, cause he's got yellow hands…
CHAMP BUTLER WITH THE BUDDY COLE QUINTET - KAW-LIGA (Columbia)More Indians! Love those hoo cha ha BV's. I always thought the upbeat chorus part kinda ruined the hank williams version, and it sounds even stupider here, but it's still good altogether. Nice to hear Champ jazzing it up. I think I might be the only Champ Butler fan under 80, but dang it I like his style…
JOHNNY WESTERN - LIGHT THE FUSE (Phillips)I love these country records that kinda cross over into r'n'b territory with nice ripping guitar breaks, and of course the lyrics and the whole theme of this thing is fantastic. Johnny Western is great at this cinematic cowboy shit, check out his masterwork "Cowpoke" if you don't know it.
PAUL WIBIER - SATAN (Pendulum) Another one that's all about the lyrics! Nice mariachi horns and cool organ, but really this song is so badass cause he sings "I was born mean, by the time i was 12, i was killing, killing for satan..." It's from a biker movie called "Satans Sadists". The soundtrack LP goes for money and isn't really that great altogether (though it does have an aternate version of 'Satan'), but thankfully this came out as a promo 45 too, with something lame on the other side.
CHUBBY CHECKER - GYPSY (20th Century)It sure blows peoples minds when you tell them this is Chubby Checker. Wild, face melting acid-rock-soul, or something. I never know which box to put it in when I get home and unpack records. He recorded a whole album of this type o stuff in Europe in the early 70's, but none of it's as good as 'Gypsy'. The other side of this 45 is this execrable cod reggae thing called "Reggae My Way".
JAMES DUHON - GRAVEYARD CREEP (Jetstream)Another one that combines several things I love, driving bass, bongos, spooky noises and a guy mumbling about ghouls. My copy has some nice mold on it too, which seems to suit the theme. Love the reference to Ripple wine…
BOBBY DIXON - WOMAN, YOU MADE ME (Probe)One of those comically long intros that just makes the killer piledriving groove that comes in all the more powerful if you can convince people to stay on the dancefloor for it. Bobby Dixon is Bobby Lee Fears from The Fabulous Denos, who did the original version of Lee Moses's 'Bad Girl'. Like 'Bad Girl', this is another one of those Johnny Brantley productions that despite being kinda wonky and messy and a little bit out of tune seems to packs 5 times the intensity of most 'well produced' records.
NOLAN STRONG & THE DIABLOS - (I'M IN LOVE) REAL TRUE LOVE (Fortune)Archetypal cruddy Fortune Records sound, handclaps to die for, and boy Chuck Chittenden sure gets that guitar singing on the solo. I remember the first time I heard that solo, I screwed up my face and went 'oooooooooh.' Written by Nathaniel Mayer. He eventually got around to recording it himself about 40 years later…
HOLLYWOOD JILLS - HE MAKES ME SO MAD (Tune-Kel)More crud! I love this kinda sloppy garage soul stuff with crappy skronking horns and lazy twangin guitar. A bunch of girls from New Orleans calling themselves The Hollywood Jills, that kinda thing seemed to be a common practice at the time. Anywhere is more exotic than wherever you are! The whole thing is so laaaaaaazy, and i love their accents. Written, produced, arranged and generally concocted by the legendary Sax Kari…
LA BRENDA BEN AND THE BELL JEANS - THE CHAPERONE (Gordy)There's so many great oddities by unknowns like "La Brenda Ben" in the first few years of Motown releases. I LOVE the way she drops into the deep voice for the annoying little brother part…
JACKIE HARRIS - NO KIND OF MAN (Chess)Another great extended intro, and such a thick, greasy guitar groove. The whole 'no kinda man' concept is great, and his over the top monologue about a woman letting him know he's 'the masterpiece of her life' always cracks me up…
THE STONE CRUSHERS - CRAWFISH (Rca)I found this randomly out the back of Hound Dog's Bop Shop on it's last weekend of operation. I didn't know it but thought it might be a version of the cool Elvis song. Put it on the turntable and flipped my proverbial wighat. That heaaaavy beat, the dueling flute and sax, the stupid opera vocals. The stuff record nerd dreams are made of. The Stone Crushers was apparently just a made up studio band led by Atlantic stalwart Jesse Stone for this one record.
B. BUMBLE AND THE STINGERS - NAUTILUS (Rendezvous)I love these guys! Another made-up group schemed into being by Kim Fowley and played by a bunch of crack LA studio musicians. This is quite an odd one for them, most of their records are rock n roll versions of classical tunes, that's their shtick, but this is going into some weird dreamy underwater ghost territory i am all too happy to follow them into…
BUCHANAN & GOODMAN - FLYING SAUCER THE 2ND (Luniverse)I have three of these B&G flying saucer records, but i thought it would be cruel to inflict all of them on you. I think this one is my favourite, especially for "a whiiiite, sports coat…"
BOB SEGER AND THE LAST HEARD - SOCK IT TO ME SANTA (Cameo)Bob Seger sure made some killer records in the heady pre-beard days of the 1960's. I love this kinda funky white Detroit rock n roll, and this one gets extra points for the twinkling bells and stupid guitar solo…
SONNY FLAHARTY AND THE MARK V - HEY CONDUCTOR (Phillips)And god said, "I shall make me an ultimate fuzzy guitar organ garage jam, with a perfect dumb simple riff to show off the excellent fuzzy tones I have created". And it was good.
THE HONEYCOMBS - CAN'T GET THROUGH TO YOU (Astor)I always liked "Have I The Right", but jeebus I didn't know they were capable of this. Possibly the punkest sounding 60's thing I've ever heard. Freaky amphetamine stalker music. Genius Joe Meek production, and the delightfully gamine Honey Lantree on drums. Pulled this out of a pile of filthy unsleeved singles, jeez you shoulda seen the colour of the rag after I cleaned it off...
THE FRANTICS - WEREWOLF (Dolton)Excellent minor key twang, fine snarling and howling, good job fellows. The other side is "No Werewolf", the same record but with no werewolf, for the faint of heart surfer.
BERNA-DEAN - ONE GAL IN TOWN, FIVE MEN HANGING AROUND (Imperial)Yet another great Dave Bartholemew number. Stack em up and they'll reach the moon, no doubt. Finger snaps, creepy organ, great lyrics. I'd like to see Jody doing his 'real crazy walk'…
DELLA REESE - SOLITARY WOMAN (Abc)This is the other side of her rather popular with the dj's funky version of 'it was a very good year', which unfortunately makes it harder to get a hold of than it should be since it actually cracked the billboard top 100 at the time. But this side is the side for me. The way she flips the lyrics and adds little things, her perfect sultry but weary delivery, that nice heavy minimal groove. And then when the organ man comes out and goes for his on the chorus, jesus, it's all over. The period between me first hearing this and actually getting a copy of it was just agony I tell you, agony every day…
KEN NORDINE WITH THE FRED KATZ GROUP - HUNGER IS FROM (Dot)I feel ya ken, I feel ya…
LEE GORDON - SHE'S THE GINCHIEST (Prestige) Lee Gordon was an American entrepeneur who moved to Australia in the 50's and introduced to our fair shore: 1)The Drive Through Restaurant 2) The Exotic Dance Club 3) The Rock n Roll Package Tour. What a guy. He also had his own label, Leedon, that released some killer 0Z 60's gear and cut this one record himself, a fabulous beatnik pisstake. "I dig the cool, fat feel of romance; cause she wears a skirt, and I wear pants. She's the ginchiest..."
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