What's Playing Now

[Fritz The Cat]

Listen to track A2:"Saturday Night". A hit in 1979. A little bit of Steely Dan, a little bit of Bellamy Brothers. Partly jazzy, partly weatcoast pop. Usual AOR? No, because of the famous guitar player! What a surprise: The main attraction on all tracks exept A2 are the solos of Steve Lukather (Toto).
As noted on the back cover: Lukather played ALL the solos exept on A2. He was in good form. And there are so many solos in his typical style! That's why i love this album since i found it on a flea market this summer. How would you characterize the style of Lukather? In Toto he had little bit of a sterile style. What do you think?

[Fritz The Cat]

This is the one with the cut out edge cover i showed in my post today. Actually i have to confess: it's not a US pressing, but a german one! Shame on me. Shame on german record company Elektra Musician of these days. The dynamics are very good. No lack of quality at all. Why did they mistreat the cover? Here we listen to a typical Mose Allison work with the thrilling involvement of Phil Upchurch g and Joe Farrell ts/fl. Good time Jazz. Listen to track A2 "Rollin' Stone" . An interesting version of the Muddy Waters song. Do you like the voice of Mose Allison? Is there sufficient variability in his voice?

[Fritz The Cat]

Produced by Glyn Johns. The Who!! Eagles fly with Burritos to Greece. A good one. But the vocals are not very impressive. This is one weak point. The other weak point (more important) is the english Kinney pressing. Dynamics? Forget it. Too Bad. Wasted vinyl. What do you think about those english Kinney pressings?

[Fritz The Cat]

This is a fantastic one. Mike Morgan is influenced by Stevie Ray Vaughan. The guitarist with the eye patch plays his Fender or Danelectro easily and masterly. Magic! No boring seconds. Characteristic strong voice. Remember the Fabulous Thunderbirds. I'm glad to have found it this summer in a thrift store for 5 Fr. In Switzerland a Coffee in a Restaurant costs 4 Fr.. You see? Nobody wanted to buy this one but me. They didn't know...... I didn't know either....I just tried. A gem. Now i know better.....Does anybody own further albums of these enthusiastic musicians?

[hsosdrum]

Does anybody know, what the Asylum Label picture means? There are so many funny label signs. But this one.....

It is a picture of the door to a cell in what used to be called an "insane asylum," from whence the record company took its name. (Yes, I read the posts here.)

[Fritz The Cat]

It is a picture of the door to a cell in what used to be called an "insane asylum," from whence the record company took its name. (Yes, I read the posts here.)

Thank you for the answer. Hey, now i know, this is a massive jailhouse door of the middle age. Very characteristic for a record company: "No one gets here out alive!" (Jim Morrison/Doors). It significates the might of the big record companies. Gruss Fritz

[Fritz The Cat]

Gerry Mulligan was a wild one. Mostly too " free" for me. Only Brave Brubeck could tame him.There were so many influences he admitted in his work. He had an open mind for every kind of music. Do you know another Jazz Musician who was more inventive as Brubeck? He is the brain of jazz music. But not without heart & soul. His work is a jungle for discoveries. I saw him in 2004 in St. Gallen, Switzerland. Unforgettable. He introduced his musicians in his cool style as "My young fellows". (They were about 70 years old). But he was sensationally young in his mind and was interested in new influences as long as he could play his piano on stage. Until 5. December 2012. What do you think about the work and musical development of Dave Brubeck? A poker face of jazz......

[SpeakerLabFan]

Thin Lizzy - s/t
(1971, Decca) UK




wow this is great stuff. glad I spotted this while on vacation in France in July.

[SpeakerLabFan]

It is a picture of the door to a cell in what used to be called an "insane asylum," from whence the record company took its name. (Yes, I read the posts here.)

wow nice to know. thanks to Fritz for bringing this up.

There's an interesting documentary on David Geffen, Asylum founder - here

[SpeakerLabFan]

Jimi Hendrix - Hendrix In The West
(1972, Reprise) STERLING RL in the deadwax, mastered by Robert Sterling




a longtime favorite, a great bunch of live tracks with great intros by Jimi.

[SpeakerLabFan]

Bob Marley & The Wailers - Uprising
(1980, Island) STERLING in the deadwax




wow, jaw dropping low frequencies and sound quality.

[Fritz The Cat]

Bob Marley & The Wailers - Uprising
(1980, Island) STERLING in the deadwax




wow, jaw dropping low frequencies and sound quality.

You're right. The bass is very impressive. This is superb english pressing. Anyway superb production in Tuff Gong Studios in Kingston/Jamaica. Listen to track B3. You may recognize every instrument. No tendency for overproduction. No synthesizers. Handcrafted. They kept the music as simple as possible. An example for effective production. Less technics, more heart & soul. It's a very important principle in life, music, lyrics, politics, arts etc.: KEEP IT SIMPLE. Music is more impressive, if it's reduced to the necessities. An empathic producer respects this rule. On this one there was no special producer. But Chris Blackwell had the control functions. Very important man. Do you know further examples for music reduced to the maximum impressions? I remember John Lennon. Which producers are typical for simplicity and efficiency?

[Fritz The Cat]

In these times of media overkill and audio-visuell oversaturation, this one gives goosepumps to me: track B5. "Redemption song". Simple and pure! Notice the impressive lyrics:"Emancipate yourself from mental slavery. None but ourselves can free our minds." 35 years ago. Marley was foreseeing. A prophet?

[Fritz The Cat]

Three musicians. Simply three instruments. Simplicity with maximum efficiency. Listen to the witty guitar played by Barney Kessel. Listen to the drums of Shelly Manne. Hear the accoustic bass of Ray Brown. It's fun to play this one LOUD because it's such a simple and brilliant recording. Track A2 "Volare" flies me to Italy: Nel blu, dipinto di blu. What a funny record. Joy for the analog loving world: Until the merry go round broke down (track B 5). A thrift store wonder. Would you pay for this LP 10 FR. (about 10 EURO/ about 10 Dollars) ? Mint condition. Never played. A beer in the restaurant costs 4 Fr. in Switzerland. But i guess this one is for eternity.....Does anybody know the combo amplifier used by Kessel? Soft sound. Is it a Fender Deluxe? (See picture below). How much do you pay for a good open beer in the restaurant?

[Fritz The Cat]

Do you have knowledge of microphone types? It seems to be a modern one, or not? This cover picture says to me: this record has much technics, disco. At least, this is not the music you do prefer. A sunny day on the flea market this summer. A quick look to the backside cover says to me: You have to take a closer look. Aha! The well known sticker below is a quality label for interesting records: Be Bob Records Distribution. You can't go wrong with this one. That's why i wanted to pay the 5 Swiss Fr.. What kind of music may this be? The musicians noticed on back cover are not known at first look. But after all it's a gem! The significance of this record in the history of folkrock in Britain is because most musicians were members of "Albion Band". This was the third great British folkrock band after Fairport Convention and Steeley Span. Graeme Taylor had been in Gryphon. John Tams of Albion Band is a worldclass singer/songwriter. Listen to track B2 "The old man's song": a wonderful piece of music. This record is simply a masterpiece. I have to shake my head: why did they use this misleading front cover picture. Did nobody of the record company think about the appeal of this record cover? Remember all that shallow MUSAC of the eighties. Beware of synthesizers and overproduction. Didn't they want to earn money? Do you know further examples of deceptive/misleading record covers of unknown musicians? They often wait for me in dustbins on flea markets and thrift stores.....