C O S M I K D E B R I S O C T O B E R , 1 9 9 7 - I S S U E # 2 9 ____________________________________________________________________________ - The Specialists - DJ Johnson.................Editor Shaun Dale.................Associate Editor Wayne Burke................HTML coLeSLaw...................Graphic Artist Lauren Marshall............Administrative Assistant Louise Johnson.............Administrative Assistant Sarah Sterley..............Research Assistant - The Cosmik Writers - Jeff Apter, Ann Arbor, coLeSLAw, Robert Cummings, Shaun Dale, Phil Dirt, DJ Johnson, Steven Leith, Steve Marshall, Rusty Pipes, Paul Remington, John Sekerka and David Walley. _____________________________________________________________________________ T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S EDITOR'S NOTES: Lots of stuff to talk about this month, from columns on hold to columns making an entrance to changes in the Cosmik system. LUX INTERIOR - ALL THE NEWS FROM BADSVILLE: This month we were lucky enough to get separate interviews with Lux Interior and Poison Ivy Rorschach of The Cramps. With Lux, the conversation covered a wide array of topics, including cars, records, Cramps, and outrage. Interview by DJ Johnson. POISON IVY - TALKIN' AXES & AMPS WITH THE QUEEN OF THE CRAMPS: Our interview with Poison Ivy, on the other hand, focused on a very specific topic: guitar! After twenty-some years of rockin', critics are finally starting to comment favorably on Ivy's nasty sound. See what she thinks of the whole thing. Interview by DJ Johnson. NO DAMAGE DONE - FICTION DAMAGE TURNS FICTION: San Diego's Fiction talks to Paul Remington about their unique approach to music and the differences between Fiction Damage and Fiction. The name and personnel changes haven't slowed this talented trio down a bit. Interview by Paul Remington. TAPE HISS INTERVIEWS: This month we present talks with Steve Wynn (Gutterball, Dream Syndicate) and Tortelvis (Dread Zeppelin). How's THAT for contrast? Hmmm? Hmmm? Interviews by John Sekerka. KACY CROWLEY - REBEL WITH A CLUE: From the street music culture of Austin to the world stage, Kacy Crowley's journey has led her down some bumpy roads. With the release of her major label debut, Rebellious, things are looking up. Article by Jeff Apter. IN THE BOOKS: Reviews of books about everything from country music to zine culture. RECORD REVIEWS: Almost 80 of 'em this month. What, are we crazy? Ya gotta ask? C'mon. CLASSIC EXAMPLE (Robert Cummings): This month, Mr. Cummings examines the music of his own favorite composer, Prokofiev. BETWEEN ZERO & ONE (Steven Leith): The war over encryption is previewed. PHIL'S GARAGE (Phil Dirt): For a Halloween feast, drop by the Beastro. FREE ASSOCIATIONS (Shaun Dale): Debut of our associate editor's information and observation column. This month: a band looking for a label, voter turnout, and Di -vs- Mother T. WALLEY AT WITZEND (David Walley): A love story. CLOSET PHILOSOPHY (Rusty Pipes): A face, a faith, and fictons. CONTACTS: How to send us hate mail and/or checks just for the hell of it. ___________________________________________________________________________ EDITOR'S NOTES By DJ Johnson Life is good. We just put the finishing touches on the October issue, as you know because you're here, and we're all very pleased with the way it came out. As usual, we didn't even know for sure who our interviews would be with until about two weeks ago. We just kinda float around looking at this band and that band until it feels just right, and then we boldly spring into action. Someone fires off a memo. From there, it quickly becomes an e-mail, and before you can figure out how much of your computer is deductible in the current tax year, two or three of us are discussing it openly. I mean hard-hitting action-speak, like "man, The Cramps would be a killer interview!" Then the drinking begins, and though it's not really central to the process, we cling to it for reasons of chemical dependency. Two weeks, fourteen cases of Michelob and two or three short naps later, Cosmik Debris hits the ol' invisible magazine rack. This month we did it up right. The Cramps were indeed a blast to interview, and we ended up with two separate conversations to present. Lux talked about collecting comics, cars, and records, and about music in general. Ivy's interview is a bit different. This is the first interview we've done specifically for the musicians that read Cosmik. We talked about guitar and sound, right down the colors generated by different chords. In the past we've often managed to get guitar questions in, and many of you have written to us asking for more. We'll do our best. We hope you enjoy the Poison Ivy interview. Be sure to send e-mail to moonbaby@serv.net to voice your opinion on this concept. Be sure to give the sound clips a listen, too. While those interviews were goin' on, Paul Remington was deep in conversation with an outstanding young band called Fiction. [Formerly known as Fiction Damage.] This is a band with so much skill and talent that they have attracted the attention, and earned the admiration, of Mike Keneally and Steve Vai. Be sure to give them a listen. There are sound clips at the end of the interview. John Sekerka's Tape Hiss Interviews are also quite noteworthy. Former Dream Syndicate member Steve Wynn and Dread Zeppelin's Tortelvis make an interesting contrast. We didn't have access to Wynn's latest, but there is a clip of Dread Zeppelin for your amusement. Finally, Jeff Apter profiles Atlantic Records' recording artist, Kacy Crowley, as she steps from the shadows of Austin to the world stage. Clip hunters will find two at the end of that article. And, of course, there are several clips in the review section. There... I promised one of our readers that I'd reveal the location of our sound clips in Editor's Notes. All done. Now I can tell you about a whole 'nuther sound clip. A big long clips. Beginning October 27th and running through November 1st, we'll have a special 2-hour Audible Debris episode called "The First Ever Official Cosmik Halloween Thingy!" The music will include everything from the traditional to the rare, from Screamin' Jay to The Rattles to Black Sabbath. Halloween party music right from your computer. Don't forget! Speaking of Audible Debris, we've had to temporarily cut it from weekly to bi-weekly for various reasons including time consumption/difficulty factors, technical difficulties, and angry little lawyers claiming we can't play just any song we feel like without paying the artist or getting written permission. In the words of the late great Pat Paulsen, "Picky, picky, picky." As a result, you'll probably hear more independent label music on future shows. Indie folk tend to understand that 8-bit mono RealAudio isn't a big medium with bootleggers. And they also understand that it's a great way to get people to hear and buy their records. Not a tough concept, unless you're a lawyer or somethin'. Other things that need to be announced? Yeah, our ascii (text) version is no longer e-mailed to subscribers. This wasn't part of the plan. The entire list of subscribers, which has grown to include far more people than I ever expected when I started this thing, was destroyed when hackers broke into our ISP's system and began deleting everything they could see. As it was an old fashioned Pine address book file, there was no backup. We had considered scrapping the subscriptions in recent months, but had decided against it. Some #%&#ing hacker reconsidered for us. It's still available for download every month on the website, and back issues can now be found at http://www.etext.org. One last thing... I haven't quit writing my column, Stuff I Noticed. I've simply been too busy with Cosmik and Audible Debris over the past few months. Thank you to those who sent me concerned e-mail. It'll be back. Meanwhile, Cosmik's Associate Editor, Shaun Dale, kicks off his new column, Free Associations. It's a mixture of information and commentary sure to enlighten or enrage you, and you know how much you love being enraged, so get t'readin'. HAPPY HALLOWEEN! See ya next month. Deej ____________________________________________________________________________ THE CRAMPS - All The News From Badsville Lux Interior interviewed by DJ Johnson It's a well known story by now. Lux Interior (not his real name) met Poison Ivy Rorschach (not her real name) in California as she was hitchhiking. Of course, there's an equally well known story where they met in a college class, but I like this one better because it holds that Ivy was wearing jeans with a big hole in the backside, through which Lux saw bright red panties and knew instantly that he'd found his true love. You've gotta admit, it's a better story. I didn't ask Lux which one was correct when I interviewed him one late September afternoon, partly because I was afraid the boring college story would turn out to be true. Instead, we talked about records, cars, soul, blues, records, collecting stuff (like records), sexploitation flicks, sex in general, and the music on Big Beat From Badsville, the latest LP/CD from The Cramps. Most everyone knows at least something about The Cramps, so we'll dispense with the intro and jump right in. * * * Cosmik: You have new digs since your last album. How did you end up with Epitaph, a label known for high-speed punk? Lux: Well, they put out our last album on vinyl because we were on Medicine Records, who is going through Warner Brothers, and they don't do vinyl because they think it's an ancient thing of the past. So Epitaph contacted them and said "you're not putting it out on vinyl, at least let US put it out on vinyl." So they let Epitaph put out Flame Job on vinyl. We met them at that time when that happened because they were bringing us test pressings, and we got to know them then and really dug them. They all seem like real people as opposed to some of the people we were dealing with at Warner Brothers. Then Medicine Records went out of business and we just went straight to them. Cosmik: What's your general opinion of that type of music, the stuff that's most commonly associated with Epitaph? Lux: I don't know, I'm not too familiar with it. I'm not too into what you'd think of when you say "punk rock." I mean, everybody's got a different idea of what punk rock is. I think of it as what was going on in the Bowery when we started playing, but the fast melodic punk rock that's coming out now... I think it's great, I think it's a good thing, and it's doing its job for a lot of people, but I don't listen to it too much. Although they've got quite a lot of good stuff on that label, and they've got another label called Fat Possum that's got an amazing record by T. Model Ford, which I really love. Cosmik: Yeah. I love the R.L. Burnside, too. That raw blues. Lux: Uh huh. I just like rock and roll, and that kind of punk rock stuff, it's more of a pop music. I could dig going to a club and being there, but I don't sit at home listening to it. Cosmik: Do you think the label "punk" ought to be retired at this point because it doesn't really mean any one thing? Lux: Yeah, cuz I don't really know what it is. Actually, I'd consider what Epitaph is doing to be punk rock. It's kinda like... we started that term "psychobilly" when we started in the spring of '76, we were advertising ourselves as that and saying that's what we did. To us, it was a mixture of garage punk from the 60s and rockabilly and all that, and all the things we do. Later on, it became... There is a thing called "psychobilly," which is real fast, 90 mile an hour rockabilly-flavored punk rock, and I don't think we're that. I think the same thing's happened to punk rock. It's become something different from what it was originally, and so what people think of as punk rock now is not the same thing as what I thought of as punk rock for years. Cosmik: Ask any three people what punk rock is and you'll get three different answers. Lux: Oh yeah. I like William Burroughs' definition the best. He said "I always thought that a punk was somebody that took it up the ass." (Laughs) Cosmik: {Laughs) Never heard that one, but it works. Have labels tried to change your sound in the past? Lux: No. Nobody has, that I can think of, outside of a casual remark or something about this or that. They've never really attempted to say "I want you guys to do this or that..." Cosmik: ...to make you more commercial. Lux: Yeah, you know, there've been some really timid attempts, but I think we just appear too crazy to try and even get started in that direction. Cosmik: So sometimes your scary personae will come in handy. Lux: It has! A lot of times people will come to see us, people from record companies, and they're supposed to come back later, and they don't. They'll say "I was too freaked out! I saw your show and I left." So that's good. It keeps away the evil spirits. Cosmik: The new album is just what we all expected: another batch of great Cramps tunes. I don't think there's another band that's been doing it as long as you that has stayed faithful to their original sound and vision. How have you been able to do that through all the personnel changes and with all the changes in the sounds around you? Lux: Well, you know it's just basically that me and Ivy have always written all the songs, and we had the idea for this band before we'd even HAD any bands, because we were going to see other people in bands. That really doesn't change. We still listen to a lot of the same old records that we listened to back then, so it seems perfectly natural to us. We just like rock and roll. It's no effort to keep doing this. It would be an effort to do something else cuz this just seems like the bullseye of what's fun and what gets us out to an exciting show in a town near you. Cosmik: Are you a soul music fan? Lux: Oh yeah. Cosmik: You know the old "answer records," like "Work With Me Annie," and then Etta James answered with "Roll With Me, Henry," and then somebody came up with "Annie Had A Baby..." I noticed you've continued the legend of Sheena. "Sheena's In A Goth Gang Now" is punk, but there's some R&B in your approach to some of your tunes. Lux: It's strange; no one ever comments on it. Everybody says we do garage punk and psychedelic and rockabilly, but there's all kinds of 60s and 70s soul in our songs, too, and definitely rhythm and blues, and blues. "Can Your Pussy Do The Dog," you know, that was just like a 60s soul song. Most of our albums have that influence, but it seems like nobody ever brings that up. We love soul music. Cosmik: Most bands make their influences obvious from song to song, but you seem to have distilled a lot of different influences into a very consistent single thing, so I wonder if maybe a lot of people can't actually hear the R&B or any of the other influences anymore, like they just hear "the Cramps' sound." Lux: Yeah, I think a record collector, somebody who just can't get enough music and buys all kinds of music and listens to it, would hear it, but most people wouldn't. Led Zeppelin was a band that came straight from the blues. You listen to what they did in the 70s, and most people would think that was totally original and didn't come from ANYWHERE... but it did. And it's the same with most other bands. Cosmik: I want to ask you about the imagery in some of your music. "Monkey With Your Tail," for instance, is another hot dose of animalism, which is one of the aspects of your music that fascinates me. What is it about that aspect of human nature that draws you? Lux: You know, I can't really give you an honest answer, cuz I ain't got one. It seems like that comes up a lot in the records we listen to. A real rock and roll song, I think, is about sex most of the time. So that leads you to "I Wanna Be Your Dog." That's one of the things that a lot of people would like to pretend, that human beings are above being like animals. We kind of enjoy that idea, but that that's what we are: one more animal. Cosmik: And the best sex is animalistic? Lux: Yeah, well, sex is pretty animalistic, I think. It can have more than that, but that was definitely part of the blues, kind of an attack on that idea that now we're cultured, civilized people and we're above that kind of thing. Seems like the blues has always been about "no, we're not above that kind of thing." Cosmik: The monkey sounds in that song are great. I have that song on a tape segued from "Wild Women Of Wongo" by The Tubes, by the way. Killer segue. Lux: I've seen The Tubes several times now, but I saw them before they had any records out. They were opening for The New York Dolls right as The Dolls' first record came out in San Francisco. We were not expecting anything. It was just a band named The Tubes, you know? It could have been anything. It could have been four guys with beards come out and and play violins, you know? And out came Fee Waybill with these two-foot high platforms. We weren't ready for it at all. They were amazing, and then The New York Dolls came out and they were amazing, too. Cosmik: Man, I don't know if I could stand a double header like that. I'd be too hyped. Lux: I remember that night David Johansen (NY Dolls singer) came out wearing a T-shirt that had a picture of Marilyn Monroe on the front... It was like a black and white picture, and he had painted her hair blonde and her face pink, and then he put lipstick on her lips. Then when he started sweatin' about the fourth or fifth song, her lips just ran down his stomach. (Laughs) Cosmik: What a cool thing to see! The Tubes, and maybe sometimes The Dolls, had a certain level of camp in their performances. Do you think there's an element of that in your show? Lux: I would say The Tubes were a more theatrical group. We don't do anything very theatrical except be ourselves. You wouldn't call The New York Dolls a theatrical kind of group. They were just an R&B band that came out and played as themselves, and that's kind of what we do. We don't have props, but it's definitely entertaining. Cosmik: Most of your sex songs are about danger in one way or another. The image of woman as predator. Does sex without danger bore you? Lux: Well, geez, I think just about any sex is exciting, but it's even more exciting if there's a little danger involved, I'm sure. Cosmik: Your music... the sound of it... is dangerous, too. Put the imagery with the sound and you're probably the most dangerous sounding band of all time. What kind of resistance have you seen from churches or parent groups over the years? Lux: Oh, some people are really upset by us and go to great lengths to try and do something about it, but it's never caused us too much of a problem. Except that we've missed out on opportunities because of it. We've had the cops come, like in Florida, cops come to watch and make sure we don't get out of hand. Florida's pretty back there, and always has been, for some reason. I don't know why that is. Cosmik: Aw, they're just still mad because Morrison died and got off the hook. Lux: Yeah, they're lookin' for somebody. Cosmik: Let me throw a quote at you, one you know well... "Each one of us, in his timidity, has a limit beyond which he is outraged." Of course, the quote goes on toward analyzing public attitude, but...what are YOUR limits? What are you outraged by? Lux: What outrages me is that people can be so satisfied and half asleep. I don't want to go back to the 50s or something, but I do remember a time when cars looked like rocket ships, and people wanted to have a wild time and dress sexy and dance sexy and try new, crazy things. It seems like these days there's an abundance of boringness and timidity, and that's the kind of thing that outrages me, you know? Boring people, that's nothing new, but the numbers are growing rather than going down. It's not a good sign. Cosmik: What is your life like? I mean when you're not recording or touring. What do you like to do when there's no claims on your time? Lux: We have a huge collection of old horror comics from the 50s... And I have 80-some old 3-D cameras; I do a lot of 3-D photography. That's a passion of mine. I watch Ivy prance around the house in fabulous sexy outfits... Cosmik: Not a bad life! Lux: No, it's great. I can't think of any way to improve upon it. We have a huge record collection of 78s and 45s, and we play that stuff all the time. We have a huge collection of sexploitation videotapes, like the stuff Something Weird is putting out. [Ed.Note: Something Weird is a Seattle-based video company. Call 206-361-3759 or visit their website at http://www.somethingweird.com/.] We're involved in the custom car thing that's happening here in LA, and we go to a lot of that stuff. We have a '56 Dodge. Cosmik: Wouldn't happen to have a flamejob on it, would it? Lux: Actually, it doesn't. We want to get some other cars, but we don't have anywhere to park them right now. I don't have the heart to put a flamejob on this one because when we bought it, it only had 38,000 miles on it and it was like brand new. We got it for like $1,500. I'd rather buy something that's a little bit more of a junker, because if it's junky you don't mind stripping the paint and customizing it and putting flames on it. But not this one. Cosmik: It would feel like sacrilege? Lux: Yeah. It's stock. Except that we put leopard-skin seat covers in. That's the only thing that's not stock. It's pretty amazing to have a completely stock car from 1956 that's so new. You don't wanna mess that up. Cosmik: Do you turn your own wrenches? Lux: Oh, it depends. I spent my life fixing cars, but lately I just don't have the time. When something goes wrong with it, unless it's something pretty easy to fix, I'd just as soon let someone else do it because I just don't have the time anymore. Cosmik: Trying to picture you working on an engine... Lux: Oh yeah, I've done that all my life. Cosmik: So you were into the car club scene? Lux: Yeah. Back when I first started buying cars, I'd always buy 'em, they wouldn't be running, and I'd have to put a new engine in 'em or something. I'm pretty much... I'm about a half-ass mechanic, I'd say. Course, I couldn't work on one of these cars today, but the old cars I can. You open up the hood on these cars today and it looks like a computer. Cosmik: It's not like anything you'd be proud to drive, anyway. I still dream of having a '57 T-Bird. Someday I'll have it. Lux: When I was a kid, I used to say "someday I'll have one," and I hate to say I still haven't got one, but maybe that'll happen before they throw me in the box. Cosmik: What, you mean a '57 Bird? You wanted one, too? Lux: Yeah, or a '55 or '56. Cosmik: Cool. Those were great cars. Let's shift gears a bit here and talk about your record collection, because I know that's one of your biggest passions. You've been at it a long time now. Lux: Yeah, actually my brother was a real juvenile delinquent in the 50s, and he had an amazing collection of 45s. At one point he decided he didn't want them anymore and he gave me this huge collection of his stuff. That was in the early 70s, and music was really boring at that time. When I met Ivy, we were discovering all these rockabilly records in junk stores in Sacramento. Ever since then we've been record collectors, and we've amassed quite a bunch. Cosmik: What kind of space does the collection require at this point? Lux: Oh, a bunch of rooms. More room than we've got, because they're stacked up in boxes all over the place instead of being easily accessible, but we've got some great stuff. We've got all the Sun Records 45s and 78s, except for a few. There are like maybe 6 or 8 of the early blues numbers that we don't have. Cosmik: Whoa, so you're saying you actually own almost everything ever put out by Sun? Lux: Yeah, we have over 200. When me and Ivy first met, we had an old '61 Chevy station wagon, and we heard that you could still buy Sun Records in Memphis, so we drove to Memphis from Sacramento. This was in 1972. You could buy Sun Records at six for a dollar at Selective Hits, which was the Sun warehouse. So you could buy "Flying Saucers Rock And Roll" by Billy Lee Riley for 18 cents. We went in and bought boxloads of them, kept one of each, and used the rest to trade for other stuff. When we lived in Ohio it was especially amazing because we'd just find unbelievably rare things. All the southerners would come to Ohio to work in the Steel Mill and the rubber companies in the 50s and 60s, and they brought their records with them that never made it out of the south, and they ended up in the junk stores around Akron and Cleveland. We went in there and got that stuff. We got stuff like the Teen Kings record... it's Roy Orbison's band, before he was on Sun, doing "Ooby Dooby." It's a different recording. There were only about 300 [pressed], and we found one of those. We found all these unbelievably obscure records. We've been doing that for 25 years or something, so we've amassed a lot of them. Cosmik: Did you ever go through the business of cataloging all that? Lux: We have them in alphabetical order, like we have all the rockabilly in one place, all the rock and roll instrumentals in one place, all the surf instrumentals in another place, R&B in another place, blues, you know... Cosmik: With all of that, it seems like you'd be overwhelmed by choices. How do you even decide what to listen to? Lux: Well, over the years you get to know them just like they're friends. Like friends you have on your mind, and you think "oh, I wanna listen to that," and you just go grab it. When you've got a LOT of records, it's more fun, because you can just go looking through them, and you always find something that you don't remember what it sounds like, and you rediscover something you haven't heard in ten years. Cosmik: So if you're in the mood for Little Walter, you might find yourself listening to Charlie Musselwhite? Lux: Uh huh. I think we've got a pretty good selection. When we first started out, it was collecting the vocal groups from the 50s, like The Orioles and the Castelles, and all these weird R&B vocal groups that would do the real slow stuff, you know, the stuff that's even slower than doo-wop. The slow, dreamy, druggy kind of stuff. As we were doing that, we just ran into rockabilly by accident. We'd buy some record, put the needle down, and we'd say "I wonder what THIS sounds like?" And it would be some guy going "HYAYAYAYAYAHH!!!" And we'd go "My GOD," you know? And that's when it first dawned on us, I think, because we were thinking we wanted to have a band. We'd go see all these bands and we'd be thinkin' to ourselves "boy, it would be cool if WE had a band," and then it dawned on us because of some record we brought home, "geez, we could play this stuff." There were all these bands, like The Rolling Stones and The New York Dolls, that took R&B and did something with it, but nobody had really done anything with rockabilly yet. We thought that would give us a real head start, that we'd have some resources to do something that came from the blues but hadn't been done yet. Cosmik: Hey, when you drove away from Selective Hits with all those Sun records, did you feel like you'd just robbed Fort Knox? Lux: Oh, yeah! Oh, man... And they not only had Sun records, but they had stuff from a lot of other labels that were there, too. It was just amazing. Then when we went to Ohio... We basically went there to get jobs to buy guitars, because we were on our way to New York, to CBGB's and everything, because we knew we wanted to have a band. When we got to Ohio we found there was a place THERE selling Sun records really cheap, too. They had done the same thing. They had bought a bunch of records earlier at Selective Hits in Memphis, and they were selling them for a dollar to five dollars, and the really rare ones were ten dollars. Cosmik: Which is still one hell of a buy. Lux: Yeah, oh... I can't even imagine what the really rare records are going for these days. But that's what's great. These days, you don't have to have it that way. You can buy reissues. Back then, there was only one way to get that stuff. You had to find it somewhere, in a junk store or something, you just had to discover it. Which was the more FUN way of doing it, but I'm really thrilled that all these reissues are out now so people can hear it all. We talked about it for a long time when we first had a band, you know, and people would say "50s music? You don't sound like 50s music!" People had no idea of the great music that had happened, rockabilly in particular, just because none of it had been re-released. Outside of Jerry Lee Lewis and Elvis, you know, there wasn't much that anybody had even heard. It was pretty obscure stuff. Then when all these reissues started happening, people became aware of this amazing heritage of great American music that nobody knew about. Which is really good. You know, it's just music. People shouldn't have to pay 100 dollars for a record. It's insane. Cosmik: Agreed. You know, I'd never heard Charlie Feathers until Charly Records put out some Sun compilation CDs. Hearing him was such a revelation. Lux: Oh, he's my all-time idol. He's just really amazing. Sun Records, in particular, you know just about anything you buy on Sun Records has gotta be pretty good. When we recorded at Phillips Records in Memphis, Sam Phillips came walking into the place, and that was a real amazing shock. He was covered with grease all over his hands. The hedges had grown up over the sign in the front, and he was out cutting them with electric hedge trimmers, and the thing just exploded all over him. So he was covered with grease, and we all grabbed him and we were shaking his hand, getting grease all over ourselves! (Laughs) Cosmik: "It's okay, it's Sam Phillips grease!" (Laughs) Lux: Yeah, boy, I said "we have almost every record that you ever made here. Almost every 45 and everything." And he looks up and he goes "Well, y'know what? You're lucky." (Laughs) Cosmik: Damn straight! What are some of the prizes of the collection, not necessarily in terms of market value, but in terms of how big a buzz it was to find them? Lux: Lemme see... We found Vern Pullens doin' "Bop Crazy Baby" on Spade Records, which there are probably only about a hundred of... There's one that we have by Hank Davis called "Women Train." He has a new CD out that's really great, and he left that one off. It was the only one he left off... probably because he thinks it's sexist these days. But that was a great rockabilly 45 that we found. We've got "Hot And Cold" by Marvin Rainwater, we've got all the Charlie Feathers singles... We've got quite a few things from Star-A-Day Records. Those are really great, all the Star-A-Day stuff... I dunno, I could go on and on about this. Cosmik: What are some of the records you always look for but never find? Lux: Well, I really would like "Indian Rock" by The Linn Twins. We've got one record by them, but this one is like... WAY out there. It's like "Love Me" by The Phantom, or something. I've seen one copy of it, and the guy wouldn't sell it. Cosmik: Is this a rockabilly? Lux: It's rockabilly, but it's way beyond that, even. It's rockabilly from outer space. Really archaic, wild, out of control thing. Cosmik: Is your record collecting habit and your affinity for collectors partly responsible for the number of singles and EPs you've put out for each album? Lux: Oh yeah. To us, the 45 RPM single is... We tend to think in terms of songs and not albums anyway, so when people say "this is your best album," or "I don't like this album as much as that album," I never even know what to think of it because we think in terms of songs. I'm sure if someone said "I don't like this song as much as that song," I could start to think about that. A single is usually the best thing on an album, anyway. Cosmik: Do you have any use for CDs, or see any hope for the format as a collector's item? Lux: I don't know about a collector's item, but I think it's really great that it happened. Because of that, a whole hell of a lot of music has been reissued that would not have been reissued otherwise. One of the first things that came out was that Robert Johnson box set, and it sold something like 300,000 copies. A Robert Johnson set! If somebody put out a Robert Johnson ALBUM, it would probably sell about 2,000 copies. But everybody had new CD players and everybody bought that. I think that's amazing. Anything that can make people buy a Robert Johnson record, well it's a good thing. Cosmik: Are you particularly fond of Halloween? Lux: Oh yeah, it's always a special night for us. Cosmik: Are you playing anywhere this Halloween? Lux: Yeah, in San Francisco. Played there last year, too. We like to play there on Halloween because they like to dress up insane and go all-out. Cosmik: When you do shows on Halloween, do you do anything different than usual, or is usual different ENOUGH? Lux: That's the one night we dress up... like I'll wear a dress or something. We're not just the "normal Cramps" that night. Last year our drummer went as Elizabeth Taylor. [Laughs] Cosmik: You've been doing this a long time. Do you ever get burned out on it and want to call it a day? Lux: Oh, no. It's the funnest thing we do. It gives us energy, it doesn't take energy. Cosmik: What's in the plans? What's next? Lux: Well, we're touring America in a couple weeks, and then we go to Europe and do a lot of touring... Then after that, we've got some ideas for things, but I don't wanna say anything because half the time you say something it doesn't happen, and you're left saying "How come THAT happened?" Cosmik: [Laughs] Hey, I understand. I'm a big believer in "the jinx" myself. Well, I've just got one more question here, but it's a long one... Your music reflects a different culture than most people have been exposed to: surreal art, trash novels, b-movies... If someone, let's say someone reading this interview and getting curious about The Cramps, was going to prepare to listen to your music for the first time, what would you suggest as a prep course? What would be the perfect films, books, paintings, etc, to absorb before turning up The Cramps? Lux: I'd get some 50s horror comics. The kind that were extremely gruesome and sexy. The kind that inspired them to write that book, The Seduction Of The Innocents, that talked about how our youth was being destroyed by comic books. That's one of the first things that happened in the 50s that led to the youth revolution of the 60s. I'd tell people to buy some reissues of old rockabilly records, or any kind of real great rock and roll records. Get some of the sexploitation movies that Something Weird Video is putting out on video. There's a huge wealth of these sexploitation movies that people don't even know about yet, and they should. It's a real important part of Americana. It's a whole world that exists that is still yet to be known. ____________________________________________________________________________ POISON IVY RORSCHACH - Talkin' Axes & Amps With The Queen Of The Cramps Interviewed by DJ Johnson "This is Ivy. Lux said you had guitar questions?" I was more than a little surprised, and anything but prepared. I had finished up my interview with Lux Interior only an hour or two before, and I was already transcribing from tape when the phone rang. Being the suspicious type, I had figured Ivy must have blown off the interview because she'd heard all the questions before anyway. Let's face it, The Cramps have been making great rock and roll records for two decades. That's probably several thousand interviews. Who could blame her for getting burned out on the whole process. But here she was, apparently anxious to talk about one of her favorite topics. Poison Ivy Rorschach once said she admired anyone who declared themselves king or queen of their own little world, or words to that effect. She never had to declare herself queen. It was an unspoken fact acknowledged by all who witnessed The Cramps in performance. As the Gretch-slinging, garter-wearing head mistress of rock and roll, Ivy has probably been lusted after more than any other woman in the biz, and it's unfortunate that the public perception often stops right there, because behind the sex goddess image there lurks a mighty fine guitarist. In recent years, Ivy's playing has finally been mentioned favorably in various guitar publications, but the press in general almost seems to be unaware that she even plays guitar at all. This is somewhat perplexing to Ivy, but then she's certainly no stranger to sexist attitudes, and that is most likely the root of the matter. We began with that subject. * * * Cosmik: Ivy, your playing on Badsville is hotter than ever, and I talk to players all the time who list you as an influence. Not bad for someone the critics said "couldn't play." Are you surprised to find yourself getting that kind of recognition? Poison Ivy: Yeah, it does seem like I'm getting it on this album, though I'm still surprised how little I... Like I've gotten recognition, like from Guitar Player [Magazine], and this and that, but like you mentioned that you thought I must get tired of answering guitar questions, and NOBODY ever talks to me about music or guitar. It's actually weird that they don't. They say stuff like..."Lux's sidekick." [Laughs] What am I, Igor going "Huhuhuh, Lux, let's play 'Surfin' Bird'" or something? Cosmik: Do you resent that a lot? Poison Ivy: Well, it's just kind of weird, because they'll also say we're sexist, but they won't even comment on my playing as being unique, which I find pretty sexist. Cosmik: It seems like there would be a paradox there, because the way you dress on stage would invite sexist attitudes, but the danger in your persona would make a lot of people afraid to approach you that way. Poison Ivy: It does. Yeah, it does. No, I don't have problems. Some other band, some female guitar player, said she got hassled, but I don't. I guess I look like I would dish it back. Cosmik: It just seems to me that you would scare them away from doing that. Poison Ivy: I think we even get the kind of fans that wanna BE scared by us. Cosmik: I can tell you really love the key of E... Poison Ivy: I do. Cosmik: Powerful chord, isn't it? Poison Ivy: It is. I also love D. I love the D to E thing a lot. Something about going back and forth from D to E. Isn't that strange how if you change key, it doesn't seem the same? Cuz I know that color... like in sound and color there's supposed to be different frequencies, like a higher octave of sound is supposed to manifest in colors like green or red. That must just be something that you hear in a different chord. Yeah, I love E. I also love E because I like doing a lot of open things. Cosmik: Like open string stuff, riffing and all that. Poison Ivy: Yeah. Cosmik: And you can obviously also kick ass in other keys, but it seems like even the songs in other keys touch on E somewhere in the meat of the riff. "Monkey With Your Tail," for instance, which is in F-sharp. Poison Ivy: Yeah, I don't know why, I just always feel it's like home. It's like headquarters or something. [Laughs] Cosmik: It's your anchor. Poison Ivy: It must be. Cuz you're right, that song starts in F-Sharp and then goes back and forth on E. It's also partly to do with the keys the singer sings in. Which I think a lot of bands don't bother to do that, to play in good keys for the singers, because with a lot of bands, it's the singer that keeps me from liking the band. We'll always try like 10 different keys until we find one that's just in the pocket for the singer. I wonder if some bands do that, and I think they should consider it, because with a lot of these bands I think the guy can't sing, but the band's just not finding his key. You know, it helps. Cosmik: On a lot of the indie punk records I get, the singers are just struggling. Poison Ivy: I think it's like every man for himself. They don't think "maybe we should move that or adjust that." That's one thing we always do. We always experiment. Lux has a pretty good range, and he can sing things in different keys, but sometimes a song just sounds more exciting if he sings it higher. Or just the opposite; depending on the nature of the song and the tempo, it might sound more sinister if he sings it low. So we'll rehearse it in like three different keys, and they'll all have different feels to them. Even if he can sing all of them, maybe one of 'em, he's straining his voice, and sometimes straining his voice makes it sound more exciting, so we'll go with it. So we experiment a lot. I think we work harder than some bands in that department. Doesn't sound like it. The way it comes off, they say we have simple boneheaded songs that don't evolve, but there's a lot of work there. Cosmik: Yeah, but they say it because it's not glossy. Poison Ivy: I think it's like a cultural slur. When someone is from outside a culture, they'll say "all that music sounds alike," or "all those people from that culture LOOK alike," because they're not tuned in to all those subtleties. To a lot of people blues all sounds alike. I'm not tuned into the subtleties of reggae. I know there's a lot of it there, but it's just not my world. Or hip-hop. It's just all different for different people, and they should at least acknowledge that maybe they just don't know instead of criticizing. Maybe it's better just to back off and say "I don't know that." Cosmik: I can't tell you how often I end up defending reggae to people who don't even know where Jamaica is. Poison Ivy: Yeah, and any kind of music, you have to really be into it, and you have to figure if you're NOT into something, it could be because you, the listener, haven't really jumped into that world or that culture. There are types of music I like that I won't attempt to play or be influenced by. I like music from India, but it wouldn't be authentic if... I mean, how could I begin to be influenced? It's so culturally different. So I'm going to play what I think I can play authentically. Cosmik: And would it even work in the context of The Cramps. Poison Ivy: Not right now. I mean... [laughs] that might take about 50 years to incorporate it into the music. Cosmik: Then again, The Cramps just might BE there in 50 years. [Laughs] So for now you continue to explore the power of the open chords and rockabilly and punk. I'm guessing that you're fond of Link Wray. Poison Ivy: Oh, I LOVE Link Wray. Still. He was initially my biggest influence, and he still is. I hear more and more. No matter how long I've been doing this, I hear something new when I listen to him. Maybe because I'm not the same person, maybe I know more from playing longer. It enables me to hear more now, so it seems like I'm always hearing something new and getting influenced by some new aspect of Link Wray. He's just so... it's like guitar at the end of the world. So austere. And so much drama. You know, he makes the most out of the least, for sure. Cosmik: So many guitar players follow the path of the intricate melody, which is fine, whereas it seems your focus has been the power you can get out of the open strings, and just finding the guts, the balls of an E chord, which is why I asked you about Link. Poison Ivy: Yeah, that's probably what made me aware of it or tuned me into it, because my favorite guitarist is Link Wray, and I guess the thing I like in what he does is what I wanna do, too. I just like hearing a lot of strings splashing all at once. And just the austerity and the starkness of how he plays, you know? The drama that's created by not overplaying. Cosmik: Exactly. Which is still the number one crime committed by the average guitarist, in my opinion. With all these songs in E and A, how do you manage to keep it fresh and dangerous sounding where so many other players can't? Poison Ivy: I don't know. And I appreciate you saying that, because some people would say that we just keep doing the same thing over and over, which I don't think we do. So that means you're tuned into the subtlety of it, which is great. I don't know... We collect a lot of records, and I just hear a variety of things done in that key on those records. It's kind of a weird form of meditation, I guess, because meditation means just focusing on one thing for a very long time and finding all the different layers of it and all the different things you can get out of it instead of flitting from here to there. It's like "what ELSE can I wring out of this chord? Is there another way to attack it?" But I have a lot of inspiration. There's just such great stuff on records, so there's always somebody to [listen to], and there's an infinite amount of ways to play even the most cliched rock and roll. There are just so many angles. If what I do is fresher than what others do, I don't know what it is, unless they're just not listening to enough records to get inspired. Cosmik: I think it goes back to not knowing when not to play, too. I listen to "Cramps Stomp," and there's so much power from chords just tailing off, just hitting a chord and letting it snarl and sneer. Poison Ivy: It's a real joy to play 'em that way. I think some guitarists get led into an ego thing where they want to perform in some technical way, which even if you can it's not always the best thing to choose to do. I still like the idea of playing for the pure euphoria. My favorite thing to play, still, is rhythm. It's just so euphoric that I really get high playing. Certain things I play don't even feel like it's me playing it, and that's my favorite kind of playing. I think guitarists can get caught up in trying to be recognized for something technical or intricate that they're doing, but they lose the whole world of getting high just from playing when they do that. Cosmik: Is "Haulass Hyena" in the key of A with the tape sped up? Poison Ivy: It's got shifting keys. It was really hard to learn it, in a way, to remember where to go, and now I've got to learn it again because we have to go on tour soon. So many songs, I've recorded them and never played them since. I remember I got out every guitar boogie record we had... there's like "Earthquake Boogie," "Guitar Boogie Shuffle," the Larry Collins/Joe Maphis "Hurricane" and... I think I got out like 10 different guitar boogie records and I thought "can I cram all this into one song?" [Laughs] Our poor drummer, he's so good on it, but boy, when we first wrote the song we were like "okay, when this part comes you do like this, and then you stop, and then you..." and he was just staring into space. But then they did it, and they learned it pretty quickly. Cosmik: They got it down. I was talking to Lux about the animal imagery tunes, like "Monkey With Your Tail" is my favorite track on the new album. Poison Ivy: It's mine, but I don't know why. It's something really juvenile about it that I like, or jungly, or primitive... I don't know what it is. Cosmik: The beast within... The wild thing. Poison Ivy: Yeah. I really love doo-wop R&B vocal group stuff. It kinda reminds me of that. Cosmik: Really? You're a doo-wop fan? Poison Ivy: Oh, that's how we got into the record collecting, initially. Vocal groups. Then we just discovered rockabilly and everything else while buying that. It's still an influence, but it's an influence that's not recognized because we don't sing harmony. I get guitar parts from vocal harmony parts. We don't get ideas from regular sources. We'll get ideas for guitar parts from the saxophone parts on a record. Things that aren't obvious. I love sax, you know? We've never had one in our band, but I love sax. I don't PLAY sax, but I like it as much as guitar to listen to, like 50s rock and roll, the really obnoxious kind of sax. Cosmik: The kind of sax with guts and balls. Poison Ivy: Yeah, and like that baritone sax that sounds really dirty. Cosmik: Tone that really vibrates ya. Poison Ivy: Big Jay McNeeley... He's not baritone, he's alto, but he's really wild. He's wicked. Cosmik: I was talking with Lux about the kinds of sounds you've absorbed into your music. With you guys it's all melted into a central sound so nobody would be apt to say "oh, check out the R&B influence in this one," but it's definitely there. There IS R&B. Like "Can Your Pussy Do The Dog." Poison Ivy: Yeah. Oh, that and... "Ultra Twist" was totally like the Ike-ettes and that kind of influence. I'm trying to remember which song on this album is kind of like a soul song... Well, "Super Goo" went past that. By the time we finished that, it got pretty schlocky. [Laughs] Cosmik: I loved your version of "Peter Gunn" on the Del-Fi Mancini tribute. (Shots In The Dark.) Poison Ivy: I love the song "Peter Gunn," and that was an opportunity to do it. I don't know if The Cramps would have had an excuse to do it. Aside from just collecting records in general, we collect certain songs, and "Peter Gunn" is one of them. With some songs, it's hard to find a bad version. They're all really fascinating, but different. There are all these cool but very different versions of "Peter Gunn," so I've just always wanted to do that song. Cosmik: I'm curious... What did you think of The Art Of Noise's version? Poison Ivy: Well, I was about to say there's not a bad version, EXCEPT... That one just didn't make it for me. And I love Duane Eddy so much, but I just didn't see what... I guess it helped Art Of Noise more than it helped him. But there are some songs that are pretty hard to screw up, like that one, "Harlem Nocturne," and "Night Train." All the versions there are are just usually pretty great, and I just wanted to add my own. Cosmik: How did you get involved with the Del-Fi project? Poison Ivy: We were at a friends house, and he said he was going to be doing something for it. He had a list of what everybody was doing, and I was pretty amazed that no one was doing "Peter Gunn," so I just said "Oooo! Here's my chance!" Del-Fi seemed excited to have my track on there, too. They seemed like nice people, and they're based in LA, too. So it was easy to do. Cosmik: I assume you collect surf records, also? Poison Ivy: Yeah. Cosmik: Did you get a little buzz from being on a label with so much surf history? Poison Ivy: Oh, definitely. That was part of why I wanted to do it. I used to collect their records before we were IN a band, and I never thought I'd have a song on Del-Fi! I mean, that's probably a silly thing to get excited about, but I was even excited about having a record on RCA in Spain. Most people would think "well, that's a major," but to me, it was the label Elvis was on. "Wow, I'm on the label ELVIS was on!" So, yeah, it was great. Del-Fi had a LOT of cool stuff on it. Cosmik: Is that a major buzz for you, having been a collector all your life, knowing that people are out there madly collecting all your stuff? Poison Ivy: Yeah, it's weird. Some of the records are really collector's items now. Cosmik: I asked Lux about this, too. You put out five or six EPs and singles for each album, and most bands don't do that. You guys make some of the coolest collector's items out there. Poison Ivy: Yeah, and then there's the whole bootleg thing, too, which is vast. Cosmik: Does that bug you? Poison Ivy: Most of it does, because a lot of it is pretty bad quality. There are some that are pretty good, but most of them aren't. And they retitle songs because we have fans that'll collect everything. So they change the title of a song, and our fans take the records home and... like they'll call "Psychotic Reaction" something, like on one they called it "A Walk Down Broadway." So the fans think "well I never heard them do THAT song, I guess I'd better plunk down all my dough and buy this." Then they take it home and it's "Psychotic Reaction." It's mean. But other ones seem more fan oriented. Some are really slick and have bar codes, and you can tell it's just there to hustle money, and then another one will be like a real crazy looking fan thing by some psycho, and that's kinda more interesting. Cosmik: [Laughs] That's a whole 'nother scary area. Poison Ivy: Yeah, but it's kind of exciting. Cosmik: You played without a bass player in the band for a long long time. Was it hard to adjust to playing WITH a bassist? Poison Ivy: No, it wasn't, because it evolved in a real natural way on A Date With Elvis. We didn't have a fourth band member, and I had already done that song, "Surfin' Dead," for the soundtrack of Return Of The Living Dead. We were still between members at the time that we made that, so I just made a wall of guitar and included bass. They said they wanted it to be "real pop," but OUR notion of pop was like Phil Spector, not 80s pop, so we put that Phil Spector thing, that kind of "bomp...bomp-bomp... bomp...bomp-bomp" beat in there. Then, when we made A Date With Elvis, we still didn't have anyone. Also, the bass I played with was a Dan Electro 6 string, and I also played a little bit of Fender VI on A Date With Elvis. I only played a real bass on one song. But I kinda dug it. It seemed even more prehistoric, to me. It was simpler. It's kind of, in a way, given me more space to go from chords to lead and whatever. It hasn't really changed what The Cramps is. A lot of people think it has, but Slim [bassist Slim Chance] still takes solos on "TV Set," and he plays those breaks on "God Monster." That's the bass player, it ain't me. So nothing's different. It's just a different octave. In a way, we're still acting like a two-guitar band. He does very un-typical things for a bass. A lot of the fuzz is on bass. The fuzz pedal immediately takes all the low end out anyhow. So it really hasn't been much of a change. The place I notice the difference is on rockabilly songs. It's given them more power. It's nothing slicker. I've heard people say it's slicker. It's just that you have an octave. With Brian Gregory and The Kid, we had them playing bass lines on the guitar. They were playing everything on the 5th and 6th strings, just literally bass lines. Nothing's changed, in that way. To me, it's just more primitive and prehistoric and heavy, and it just evolved naturally. Cosmik: Is gear a big issue with you? Are you into gear? Poison Ivy: Yeah... Yeah. Cosmik: What's your setup right now? Poison Ivy: My 1958 Gretch Chet Atkins 6120. Usually I play several guitars, but this is the first time I played a whole album with that guitar. Cosmik: Kind of gave it a cohesive sound, too, didn't it? Poison Ivy: Oh, it's a great sound. I record with small amps. You get a bigger sound with small amps. I prefer that. Cosmik: Like what? Poison Ivy: Valco. Live, I play with vintage Fenders. 15 inch speakers. Real simple and tiny. Small gear, big noise. Now, everything's miked, so when you see the stacks it's all for show. It's got nothing to do with the sound that's being made at all. You know, not that "show" doesn't have its use, but that's all it is, it's just show. * * * We had run well past the allotted time for this interview, so I asked Ivy if she'd do one more thing for me. I asked her to do a quick voiceover for our online "radio" show, Audible Debris, that I could use as a segue into Cramps tunes. After 45 minutes of conversation in which she sounded like Ivy, the girl next door, it was definitely Poison Ivy Rorschach who quickly said "Hi, this is Poison Ivy. Stay sick with Cosmik Debris." Look for The Cramps in the coming month, because they may just slide into your town for a while, and you wouldn't want to miss that. ____________________________________________________________________________ NO DAMAGE DONE: Fiction Damage Turns Fiction Interviewed by Paul Remington 1996 was a good year for bob and the boys. Their band, Fiction Damage, released their first CD after nearly two years of writing, performing and recording. Momentum was building. Heathen Stuff received airplay on local radio, and they snagged as many gigs in and around the San Diego area as they could. With all that, these ambitious musicians still describe how they hope to "slip through the cracks" and hit it big. And why not? Their music has the elements that can take a band to the top. They perform a repertoire of original music. They have personality, solid musicianship, and a following. Their music is hard rock with an interesting twist that requires musical aptitude and a good ear. They have an understanding of dynamics in writing, and a use of space. But, while they're hard, they're also soft. While they're eclectic and progressive, they're also steeped in "pop". Simply put, they are unique with a very original sound. So, who are "they," you ask? Meet bob, the songwriter, lyricist, vocalist and bass player of the band. Yes bob. No first name; no last name. Just bob. Why? To understand why, you need to appreciate the essence of bob. This can be captured through his music, his lyrics, and his writing on the band's Website. bob is not a follower of trends or the status quo. When asked why he goes by bob, he replied, "I figured I could get away with it because it's such an unglamorous name. The idea is that someday we'll have a good laugh at up-and-comers being referred to as `bob-esque'." Then there's the quiet and levelheaded Mike McQuilken; the timekeeper of the group. He wields the sticks and has a surprising mix of musical influences affecting his playing and the sound of the band. He's studied African rhythm and is sharpening his skills performing straight-ahead, mainstream bop jazz on the side, which is a whole different style of drumming. He's currently studying with Toss Panos, former drummer for Mike Keneally [Zappa, Vai, and Beer for Dolphins] and Z [Dweezil and Ahmet Zappa's band]. His skills are wide-ranging. Heathen Stuff allows McQuilken to stretch his abilities. Listen to Angelina or any of the other pieces on the disk. His presence is distinct and solid. The next member of the group requires some explanation. TJ Brinjak is the guitarist, replacing George Sanchez. The addition of TJ was a natural one. bob describes TJ as influencing the band, "Pretty massively, not only because of his influence, but because . . . there are latent things that we have, influence-wise. There are things that we have inside us that he's brought out." The band promises the addition of TJ to be a positive change. As for the band's name: they've decided to get rid of the Damage and keep the Fiction--literally. The October release of Fiction's newest CD, Five Short Stories, launches a new phase in the band's career. Released as an EP, Five Short Stories tells a tale in five songs of the maturation and ultimate demise of love--love's birth and death. The work on this CD still has that old Fiction Damage sound, but there are some exciting new additions to their style. Although mostly electric, there's an acoustic quality to some of the pieces. Vocal arranging has been well thought out. bob's songwriting talents are very well presented. The pieces have legs . . . they stay with you. While the San Diego music scene is glutted with thousands of bands, there's always that one band that stands out amongst the crowd. Fiction is one of those bands. Five Short Stories shows great maturity and promise. If this is the direction the band is taking, it's a fantastic one. The band is well aware of this, as the following interview attests. We caught up with Fiction a few weeks prior to the release of Five Short Stories. The band was clearly excited about the release, and the addition of Brinjak to the group. They sported insight, confidence, and one cannot overlook the unavoidable bob wit. - - - Cosmik: Tell me who Fiction Damage is and why you changed the band's name to "Fiction"? McQuilken: Well . . . we wanted to get rid of the Damage. [Laughs] bob: The damage was done. No, actually we found out that there was a huge band at the top of the charts called Fiction Damage. Cosmik: Really? Wow . . . they couldn't be that huge. I've never heard of them. [Laughter] Brinjak: Mariah Carey's backup band, I believe, was called Fiction Damage. Cosmik: Are they still around? Brinjak: No . . . no . . . bob: No, I just meant that they were physically huge. [Laughs] No . . . seriously, it was because we wanted to get a new guitarist and a new line-up, and we were thinking of new, new, new. Cosmik: Your current CD, "Heathen Stuff," is actually material that was written over two years ago. Is that right? McQuilken: Yeah, most of it, except for about four of the songs. Cosmik: How much time did it actually take to get that material recorded? Was it a two year effort, or did it take two years to finally get it released? bob: You know, it did kind of take a while to get it down. Right around the time we started recording, we hooked-up with our management. We were kind of trying to figure out what our relationship was going to be like with them, and try and record shows, and get a reputation going. But, then we recorded most of the basics for Heathen Stuff in a studio here in San Diego called Double Time. We came away with decent basics, but the studio wasn't really what we were after. [Mike] Keneally records a lot of stuff there. So, there was kind of an eclectic vibe. Our thing has always been to think eclectically with an eclectic approach without really having a "shiny" production. Cosmik: Songwriting seems to play a big role with the band. You don't just crank out circular rhythms with banal 4/4 time, all the time. You know what I mean? bob: Yeah, totally. I think that's why we have the dynamic of the fans we have. I've been writing for years and years and years, playing all kinds of different styles with all kinds of different bands. So I got to the point where I could craft a decent song by bringing it to the band. Mike's background is a lot of fusion, jazz, and a lot of African stuff that I've never been exposed to. T.J.'s coming from a sort of hard rock, R&B sort of background. It's just a question of not getting too . . . committed, or printing too polished a demo. Just bringing it in, throwing it into the pile and seeing what happens. That's where things start to get interesting. Cosmik: I would assume, once you bring a new tune to the rest of the band, that's when the piece really begins to take focus; when you begin developing it. bob: Yes, exactly. Like, Mike, T.J. and myself; we can sort of throw in an idea, rehearse it a few times, then take it back to the acoustic guitar for a while. Other possibilities start to come out. Cosmik: The Heathen Stuff CD is primarily electric. Do you focus at all on more acoustic instrumentation with the new band format, or are you taking primarily the same approach? McQuilken: I would say, it's primarily still going to be electric, but our dynamic range has expanded to the point that we have softer, more subtle areas, but we still crank it up to get the intensity across. There's probably a little bit more of an R&B--a jazzier kind of sound on the new material. We basically played the five songs that are coming out on this new CD, back to back, at a club on Wednesday. Cosmik: How did that go? McQuilken: It went really well! bob: It was so cool... so seventies. Cosmik: So seventies? bob: People were just standing there with their jaws down around their knees. I should probably make note of the fact that San Diego and the scene here has as much to do with molding our sound as anything else. It's a vast metropolis populated by eight trillion bands, either of which sound like Green Day or Alice in Chains. Cosmik: So, there's a lot of similarity between a lot for the sounds that are being created in that area. bob: Absolutely. With us, it's always . . . I don't know if it's some fetishistic thing to go against the grain, or if it's just wanting to offer people something new, or just sort of like just guffawing at the word "alternative." But, for us, it's always . . . When I was a kid and I got turned on to music, it was always something like punk rock, new wave, or something like that. You'd always hear Johnny Rotten and all those guys talking about what punk was and what punk wasn't. The thing that stuck with me was, whatever it sounded like sonically, it was a shaking-up of the status quo. It was sort of going the opposite direction of whatever the status quo was. It's funny because we've been really influenced by the anonymity of San Diego music. So much so, we wanted to do the opposite. That means to not necessarily have a ton of attitude, and not necessarily slam people against the back wall, but actually entertain, and actually be a band in the old sense. And, it's funny . . . it sounds very "Pollyanna" of us, but at least, for me, personally, it's kind of an evil glint. I mean, we do sing-alongs and stuff, which is just not done. And I find that a lot of fun. Cosmik: It sounds as though you're not interested in fitting into the norm. You're interested in paving your own road and following that. bob: All three of us have one great big thing in common: we couldn't fit in if we wanted to. We would try, and we would fail. It's just the way it is. Cosmik: How is that accepted in the San Diego area? If the audience is primarily acclimated to a specific sound and specific style of band, and a band like Fiction comes along, do you find you've received appreciation from your audience? Mike Keneally, I would assume, would be considered "non-standard" in the San Diego area, like your band . . . how is Fiction accepted? bob: I think you'd be amazed. People come around so fast. They sort of snap-out of their nose piercing and have new attitudes so fast. At first they resist. It just amazes me how many people get into it. Cosmik: Yeah, it's like anything else new. It's a matter of accepting it. Once they hear it, and they get turned onto it, the rest is natural. I think musicianship really speaks for itself, in many respects. Especially if you have a new sound and a new approach, that's one of the greatest assets you can have; originality. That's what defines trendsetters, and the movers and shakers in the music scene. Just fitting into what is currently out there is kind of like . . . what else can you do with it? Where can you go with it? McQuilken: That's a good question. I think that's something we're trying to do. I think one of the things we have that gives us the capability to go off in another direction is also because the three of us come from completely different musical backgrounds. So, bob's basically the songwriter in the band, but he introduces ideas and stuff like that. Just like the background that T.J. and I come from, we may interpret something a little bit different than he may have intended it. Sometimes it works really, really well, sometimes it needs to be a combination of the two things, but it always mutates it a little bit. Thankfully, it always seems to do that for the better. Brinjak: I think it ends up being kind of organic, like the music in New Orleans. You're gonna have jazz music there, you're gonna have a ton of gospel music, blues, bluegrass, and just because of the location there, those things are gonna blend into one big organic mix. I think that's kind of the thing that happens here. Just like what Mike [McQuilken] was saying, that everyone's approach to whatever ideas bob brings us, we'd approach it a lot differently than a lot of bands would. Cosmik: I get a kick out of some of the lyrics in your music. Is that primarily bob writing that? bob: Yes. Cosmik: If I can quote a segment of lyrics from "Company Man," you wrote: "Now you're standing at the bus stop with your book of Limbaugh quotes, and your Nicoteenage memories jammed like fingers down your throat." Heathen Stuff is loaded with lyrics like that, and it's very creative. Even when you get on your Website [http://www.erols.com/damage/home.htm], the writing is very much the same way. bob: I like to write. Certain things can really talk to me in a certain way. A tune like "Company Man", it might sound like an indictment, but it's not. It's a cautionary tale. I was almost writing that to myself. Like, if you end up like this, I will kill you. [Laughs] You know, we still have to have day-gigs, and stuff like that. And it's very conflicting having to say, "Yes sir, yes sir", all day. It bugs me. I tend to not cut myself too much slack on that. Cosmik: It seems to me you're writing more from the inside out than the outside in. The most interesting part of the Website, for me, is the Band Diary. [Band laughs] Cosmik: It's the most unique area of the Website, I think. It's deep, in the same way Heathen Stuff is. Now, when you write the lyrics, is that pretty much static? You write it and that's the way it goes, or when you get in the studio, do you find pieces and lyrics mold and change along with what the other band members feel. bob: Yeah, that always changes, definitely. Sometimes I'll have a lyric that's so . . . it's sort of my problem, because I have to sing them. Sometimes I'll have a lyric that's just so close to home that it's got to be that way. But, in a lot of cases, there's a lot of ways of saying the same thing. If there's something I need to say in a certain way, I'm not going to change that. I don't care what happens to the band politics. Cosmik: In terms of the content of the lyrics, do you envision getting into social issues? Like, right now I know the big issues in the news are Princess Diana's death, and the death of Mother Teresa. Are you moved and inspired by the mass-global? Or, do you avoid that kind of depth? bob: Oh, no . . . we totally do. The next project we're working on is actually a 70 minute rock opera based on the life of Johnny Versacci. When I was younger, I was much more into writing about political stuff and things like that. I used to read a lot of politically angry and rotten stuff. But, the older I get, the more I get into the things that are universal. I mean, if you write a good song about some sort of promotional scenario, I think that can speak to someone politically. Cosmik: Some people have an issue with the "We Are the World" syndrome of songwriting, where you sit for 15 minutes and crank out a one-hit-wonder based solely on auspices that are politically correct. While you may pay attention to political and social issues, I just can't imagine Fiction coming out with anything related to that kind of approach. bob: Not only that, you really limit yourself on rhymes. What rhymes with "Mother Teresa"? Except for maybe, "Wendy and Lisa". [Laughter] T.J.: There ya' go! Cosmik: Well, there you go . . . right there, you have the seeds of a new tune. bob: I'm gonna grab a pencil. [Laughs] Cosmik: Yeah, write that down. bob: One thing that's really cool--recently--is that the addition of T.J. has taken the songwriting in another direction. He and I have had some true collaborations--some real 50/50 stuff. Like, he has some chord sequences and I have some lyrics, or vice-versa. Cosmik: Have you worked together prior to him joining the band? bob: No, not really. Cosmik: With George's [Sanchez] departure from the band, how has T.J.'s influence changed the sound of Fiction? bob: Pretty massively, not only because of his influence, but because of . . . there's latent things that we have, influence-wise. There are things that we have inside us that he's brought out. I was talking about the liner notes for the new CD. I have a "latent-stack full" problem that he kind of just drudged that out of me. So, it's definitely changed us. Cosmik: I think it was T.J. that mentioned the word "organic" when describing your sound. Brinjak: Definitely. Cosmik: Is that descriptive of your approach to your influence to the band? Brinjak: Yeah, I just realized, as far as the song writing goes, we would have a chance to hammer things out, see what works, and see what does not. Like bob said, it just took off pretty quickly. We'd hang out on my back porch with acoustic guitars and, just about every time, we come out with something usable. Cosmik: That sounds great! It sounds just plain enjoyable. [Band agrees, in unison] bob: T.J. And I believe that will come through on the new CD, "Five Short Stories". Cosmik: That's right . . . that's the new CD that's coming out. And, when is that slated for release? bob: Probably be the end of September [1997]. We're at the point now that we're just adding a couple of final overdubs and we have some lead vocals to do. We actually mixed the single; the first song--it's called, "Love Reaches Out". I was getting ready to go on vacation for a while, and we wanted to have something to give our management, to make them drool. Cosmik: Did you pass it to them? bob: Oh yeah. Cosmik: What did they think? bob: They really dug it! Everybody's really eating it up. Brinjak: Yup. Cosmik: I'm on your Website now, and it says the following about "Love Reaches Out": "Love Reaches Out takes an interesting structural trip from Beatle-ish to Police-ish to Sneaker Pimp-esque to 'Dark Side of The Moon'--like in a scant four or so minutes." [Band laughs] Cosmik: I found the material on Heathen Stuff really grew on me. I'm quite interested to hear what comes out of the new incarnation. bob: Well, it's "pop-ier", but at the same time it almost isn't, because there's pop as such, and there's pop in reference to what's popular now. And, I think for the public at large, Five Short Stories, in a certain way, is going to be a bit more challenging. Music now can almost smack you against the wall. That's what music seems to be like on the radio now. Cosmik: Much of popular music is very homogenized and uninteresting, from a uniquely creative standpoint. Most stations play a repertoire of maybe 30 or 40 tunes, then recycle them endlessly throughout the day. bob: . . .over and over. It's the same thing with radio in San Diego. Out here you have your so-called "alternative" stations. Cosmik: Yeah, modern rock. bob: Yeah, the alternative stations have about a 10 song play list. Cosmik: [Laughs] That's about it--that's exactly right! I mentioned in the review I wrote for Heathen Stuff, the only concern I have about the release was the eclectic nature of the material. How was it going to get airplay? I think the tunes on that CD are very playable on the air, it's just a matter of a station wanting to promote it. How has that been a factor with your last CD? McQuilken: As far as radio play is concerned, at least in the California area, there basically is the 30 or 40 song rotation, which is mostly major signed acts. Some of the radio stations, from time to time, have a "locals only" type of show where they will play basically what's happening in the local music scene. We've received some airplay on those shows. Really, until you gain the support of a major label, you might as well forget about getting rotational radio play. bob: Unless you're handy with a sidearm. [Laughs] Cosmik: So, you find getting in heavy rotation is a difficult thing to achieve. bob: It's tough. Back in the old days--like during the mid-eighties--if you were an alternative band, or what was called back then an "Indie" band, if you had the resources, you could find an independent promoter, line their pockets, and count on them to get your product out there to college alternative stations. You'd get a biweekly report that stated that you've been added here, you've been added to Chapel Hill, you guys are doing really good in Arkansas, and it was great. You had, like, a little map. These are the places you need to get out to. These are the places you need to focus on. Cosmik: That becomes your gig list. bob: Exactly . . . exactly. It's really nice. For example, if you were added at the University of Connecticut, if you were number one with a bullet, you knew you could call and book a show and make a grand, and just widen your audience that much more. But, now it's just so overpopulated. Even the independent promoters, they have to think that you're God before they'll touch you. Cosmik: You're with High Time Records. Are you going to stay with High Time? bob: That's actually our management company. We've released our CDs as a totally independent thing, and we just refer to it as High Time. We'd like to get a deal, but it would have to be a certain kind of deal. What we've been looking at are smaller labels and bigger label distribution. For example, the way Red Ant is distributed by Warner. That's kind of what we'd like to end up with. Obviously, that's the ideal situation. A small label that doesn't have a zillion band roster. Cosmik: Exactly. Mike Keneally is signed through Immune Records, which is also a small label. He seems to be getting some visibility and doing well. Immune's owner, Suzanne Forrest, has given valuable attention to Keneally. bob: You know, it's funny, Paul, because you get these labels, like High Time, which we're through . . . High Time is like, us, sitting at our desk. And, Immune, I know, is Suzanne Forrest sitting at her desk. [Laughs] Suzanne's cool. Cosmik: Yeah, she is. She's been very supportive. She's been good to Cosmik, and a great Keneally supporter. So, now, I know Keneally has made some real positive and humorous comments about Fiction Damage. Specifically, he stated, "If I were on a lifeboat with Fiction Damage and there were insufficient supplies to sustain all of us, I would gladly sacrifice myself that they might survive. Their contribution to American culture is that great." Typical humorous Keneally quote. I understand you guys had a chance to gig with him. bob: Oh, it was the greatest! Mike, our drummer, got in touch with him. We wanted to do, uh . . . well, you tell him about it, Mike. McQuilken: Basically, we had this show set up at Sam Goody in Horton Plaza, which is actually the largest Sam Goody in California. It's a three level store, and on the bottom level they have a coffee house area, and they set up a stage there. You can get a couple of hundred people in there listening to you. So, we had this show set up there. What we wanted to do was . . . this was a point in time when George was no longer in the band, and we had a couple-three weeks to get the show together. I think the first time we got to work with him was about two weeks before the show was supposed to be. So, we gave Keneally a call, and he said he'd help us out with the show. Cosmik: Nice guy. bob: Yeah, he is. He's so cool! McQuilken: We played with another musician . . . oh, his name just slipped my mind. bob: Steve Kruse. Yeah, Steve's an LA session guy. He just did Billy Joel's new single. We were chuckling about that. He's someone that our manager, Kathleen, set us up with. The three of us had been saying "let's do something unique, let's do something different. If there's a guitar on "Missing Something" [on Heathen Stuff], let's make it a harp solo." We were all very "high concept" at first, and that just ended up being the reality. It's like, Why not? Let's get a harp player. Cosmik: Well that's a unique approach. So, you got together with Steve Kruse and Mike Keneally. How did the gig go? I assume you clicked with Keneally immediately. McQuilken: It went really well. We had a short rehearsal over at my place before the gig, then went down there. Mike played Keyboards. Cosmik: Yeah, he actually started out as a keyboard player, which surprised me. I've always known him more through his guitar talents. He's very adept at the keys. bob: Yeah, he's a great keyboard player. It was killer because we were sort of going for that greasy Hammond organ and Leslie speaker thing, and he was all over that! You didn't even have to explain it to him. Cosmik: It's right under his fingers. Brinjak: Insert tab A into slot B, and there's a band. My favorite thing about playing with those guys was just the level of experience and professionalism they had. For me, getting up there and singing is such a vulnerable experience. But, with a band like this, and all those guys behind that, I felt like a well-cradled baby. It was cool. Cosmik: Is that the only time you played with Keneally? McQuilken: Well, we opened for Beer for Dolphins [Keneally's band] three times. Cosmik: I know he's been quite active in the San Diego area. I'm thinking of clubs like The Casbah and many others. bob: We played the Casbah on our first show, and we opened for Mike there. Cosmik: Really? McQuilken: Yeah that was . . . that's right. Cosmik: That was rather historic, in a Fiction Damage kind of way. bob: Yeah, time will tell if it's truly historic. If anyone gives a damn! [Laughs] Cosmik: If anyone gives a Damage, you mean. [Laughter] bob: If it's not ours, we're done with it. And this other gig we did with Keneally and Kruse was T.J.'s first show too. That was total baptism by fire. We did a lot of instrument changes, and I was playing an upright electric bass. We did the song, "Gethsemane". I started it out acoustic, and Mike came on during the big drum explosion section. We segued that into a drum solo that was monumental! I grabbed a bass, and T.J. picked up a guitar, and we finished it out like a power trio. It was not an easy show. It was very ambitious. Cosmik: That's great. You'd stretch your abilities, then you walk away from that with more confidence, I would expect. bob: Yeah, exactly. The big thing we were going for was the whole idea of people coming down, they know what the CD sounds like, some of them do and some of them don't . . . some of them were really entertained by it. They really let themselves see us as a band that's not afraid to go out on a limb. For me, personally, that was really important. Cosmik: That makes sense. You put yourself on the line, and people recognize that. And, I think it's natural an audience would respond to that. bob: Yeah, they totally do. I know I do, when I see a band like that. They're not just cranking out the hits, you know; they're artists. Cosmik: Also, I suspect when you play live, you don't just play exactly what's on the CD the same way it's recorded. A lot of bands, when you see them live, it sounds as though they just put the CD on and pushed play. With many bands it sounds worse than the CD. bob: That's boring. You know, people already know the songs. Obviously, we're stuck, to an extent, since we're trying to achieve a stature to leave crummy jobs behind. In a lot of cases we need to play the songs as they are, because people don't necessarily know the CD. Cosmik: I'd think the improvisational element of the tunes themselves allow you to do a lot with each tune. Even if you play the song exactly the same, you can take completely different solos each time. bob: A lot of the songs on Heathen Stuff were constructed specifically that way. When we have the freedom to do that live, obviously that's the dream: to be able to completely deconstruct each piece. There have been nights where we just let it go where it wants to go. "Gethsemane"'s like that; "Angelina"'s like that; "Missing Something"'s like that. I like to watch a band where you never know what's going to happen. Cosmik: Absolutely . . . otherwise it becomes predictable. In terms of the musician, it gets boring, having to play the same tune night after night. bob: And then, where can you go with that? All you can do is change your hairstyle. [Laughter] Cosmik: Speaking of Keneally, I understand you, Mike [McQuilken], took lessons from Keneally's drummer, Toss Panos. McQuilken: I was doing it, like, every four to six weeks, and now I think it's been something like eight or ten weeks since I've actually gotten together with him. Sometime soon I'll hook back up with him and get some things going. Cosmik: Yeah, he's a fantastic drummer. McQuilken: Oh yeah! Cosmik: You also play in a hard bop band? McQuilken: Well . . . I'm playing a little bit with one right now. Part of working with Toss Panos was to broaden my education and work on my drumming. I used to play in the San Diego youth jazz band, and stuff like that. But, it wasn't in the same style as Elvin Jones or Jack DeJohnette. And, I just wanted to open myself up to be able to not only understand that but to be able to play in that manner, take those influences and incorporate that into any style I'm playing. I think you're going to hear those influences coming out on the new CD. The one thing about Toss Panos was, for me, I was just playing along with CDs. He said, "You know, you need to find some guys to play with." Cosmik: This was after Heathen Stuff came out, right? McQuilken: Yeah, this was after that. So, I get together once a week or once every couple of weeks, with a couple of other guys to go over Real Book charts. It's kind of like a drum lesson for me. Cosmik: It sounds as though this has had a major change on your approach to the instrumentation and music, and the band. It's difficult to find any up-and-coming rock bands that are conscious of the musical element. bob: Again, it's us, it's the status-quo, and I hate the status quo. I don't care what the status quo is, I'm gonna hate it. [Laughs] Cosmik: And, ultimately, I think it doesn't matter what it is. I mean, you know what you want, and that's all that matters. bob: Yeah . . . exactly. And, Heathen Stuff . . . It, uh . . . it sounds like . . . Cosmik: How does it sound to you now, when you listen to it? bob: Oh, we love it! I'm always going to love that CD. McQuilken: Right. bob: But, it's the sound of three guys trying to out brilliant each other, and that's cool. That has its place. But, Buffy and Jodie ain't gonna buy it. Five Short Stories is very much a song effort. Let's take this ridiculous amount of expertise we have and lets bring it to bear in a way that not only floors people musically, but also gets an emotion out there. Cosmik: Let's talk about that for a little bit. What is the concept behind the Five Short Stories? bob: It all came about because we wanted to change the name of the band from Fiction Damage to Fiction. For me, personally, as soon as I saw that word sitting there on a page, I was like, "Oh man . . . this is band-concept heaven." You know, I started thinking about books, and fonts. You could do this . . . you could do that. You could have a very complete visual package. Not only that, but since we're one of those silly bands that are too smart for their own damn good, it all fit together. It grew into this thing where we decided to put out a CD and decided, let's almost style it like a book. Like, the CD has a Forward, it has a Table of Contents, and it's very complete, visually. What happened was--as far as the "Five Short Stories" thing--we printed the songs and had the songs down as basic tracks in the studio. We stuck them in a certain order and realized that it was a big long story. If you put them in a certain order, it was about the birth and death of love, and what it is that takes love and twists it into the inverse. So, the beginning is all very positive, hippie-dippy, love reaches out, and I could cry kind of thing. The first song is about how love is everything. The second song is about how it's scary to be this vulnerable. The third song is about baggage, and how you can bring baggage to the table and just destroy love. And, the fourth song is about the pain and mistrust, and the bad things that can come from that. And, the last song is just, like . . . see ya'! Cosmik: So, you found the concept and explored it--like Vai did with Fire Garden. bob: Exactly . . . Totally! Cosmik: How long is the CD? Does each piece segue and flow into the next, or are they independent entities. bob: They're independent. But, it's us, so some of them are pretty damn long. [Laughs] Cosmik: Good! I like it when they're long. bob: You'll love the last song. It's called, "I Know Why". The description I wrote on the Website probably sums it up pretty nicely. But, it's this very, very dark, spooky jazz waltz. The lyrics are kind of Ray Charles, histrionic and over the top. Lots of "Baby, baby, baby . . ." and it's just one of those "ache" songs. Then, there's this false ending that comes back in to this whole-improvised section that goes on for a . . . pretty fair spell. Cosmik: How much time did you actually spend in the studio? I suspect you worked all this out ahead of time. With a studio, time is money. McQuilken: We wrote these songs very quickly. It almost seems like those four or five songs we wrote all within a month. I mean, got them arranged to the point where they were ready to record. So, we went in and laid down drums in a day. We went back and did the bass guitar. Actually, [addresses bob] the bass was doubled, wasn't it? bob: Yeah, I did a lot of bass doubling. I love doing that. Cosmik: Well, that's a neat thing too, you use fretless bass, which a lot guys can't do. bob: Well, sometimes I can't either. [Band laughs] It depends on what my consumption is on any one given evening. [Laughs] It also depends on what the stage lighting is like. It's really weird. Like, I play upside-down. If you just take a normal bass and flip it, that's how I play. Cosmik: So, you took the Jimi Hendrix approach. bob: Yeah . . . exactly! When you take a right handed bass and flip it left handed, there's no little markers on the side of the neck anymore. You have to watch it really, really closely. Obviously, when you're singing at the same time, it's definitely . . . I have a long way to go. Cosmik: It's a lot to pay attention to. bob: Yeah, it definitely takes a lot of mental energy. Cosmik: The sound of a fretless bass is so beautiful. bob: Very expressive. Cosmik: Talk about organic. Brinjak: Paul, um . . . about bob playing fretless bass and singing at the same time . . . I don't know how a human being does that. Cosmik: I can't do it. I play guitar, and I can't sing and play at the same time. I've tried, and worked at it. It just doesn't come naturally. Bob: What makes it work is . . . I'm a singer, like, just miles and miles above anything else. That ability came first, and then the desire to accompany it--we're talking about when I was a kid--the kinesthetic of playing came second. So, they developed at the same time. It was like a piece of music. It was like a counterpoint. Singing and playing bass has always given me a McCartney-ish, contrapuntal way of thinking of the bass line and the melody. And I love it! I love to take a song into the studio when all the tracks are printed, and solo the bass and the voice to kind of see if the counterpoint is happening there. It's very much like a classical composition where the violins are doing X, and the viola is doing Y, they fit together in a certain way. Cosmik: Is the instrumentation of each piece decided prior to going into the studio, or do you determine that while recording? bob: Instrumentation is a funny thing when you're in a three-piece. Cosmik: I'd think it would be. Your sound is a very big sound, even for three guys. When I first heard your material I thought, oh, there must be five guys in this band. bob: Yeah, exactly. It's a never-ending discipline, when you're in a power-trio, to stay that way until the song is begging for you not to. Because, there's some songs you end up doing as a power-trio, you add some stuff, and you end up shaking that stuff away. It's such a beautiful thing. Some of those Cream albums, some of those mid-period Police albums where they're just, like, "Look, we're a three-piece, we're gonna be a three-piece, and there's gonna be a lot of space in here, and that's gonna be the fourth band member." But, it's true . . . on Heathen Stuff we had a lot of stuff going on, and I think those songs kind of wanted that. On this one, it's definitely more sparse, but that was kind of an agenda all its own. Cosmik: But, that was a component you wanted built-in to it anyway. bob: Exactly! And it's tough, too, because you have to think about, "Well, this is cool in the studio, but if we put the London Symphony Orchestra on this, how are we going to perform it live? Does it have the energy, does it hold your interest?" Some things are funny. You can look at what other power-trios have done in the studio to spice up the fact they're in the studio, and there's not that live energy. Can we take this out live, and not have that four-part harmony going? That's something that always has to be considered. For me, that's the fascination of a three piece. That's it, in a nutshell. Cosmik: If I were to go the room and ask who your primary musical influences were, what would they be? Let's start with Mike [McQuilken]. McQuilken: I grew up on the old "prog" [progressive] rock field, and also bands like Cream and Led Zeppelin. I'm more along the lines of what I call real fusion, which would be early Mahavishnu Orchestra or Return to Forever. That's the kind of stuff that I still like listening to. Most recently I've been listening to the Bozzio/Levin/Stevens release. Those are my influences and what I like to listen to. But, I'm also big into hard bop, like New York style jazz. I really like what you hear from the musicians playing the club circuits there. So, those are basically my influences. bob: Mike's got a lot of African things going on too. McQuilken: Yeah . . . bob: Things that have come to play a huge part in what our songs sound like. Cosmik: Tell me about that. McQuilken: Well . . . I had met a guy from Ibou M'Eaye who was a member of the Wolof tribe. That was in 1987, or something like that. I had never seen traditional African drums before. I studied with him for a couple of years. There's a guy named Paulo that puts out the Djembe line, and that's the whole West Coast of Africa's style of drums. Cosmik: So, you've pretty much adopted that into your sound. McQuilken: After getting into that, and then delving more into music history, you find the jazz greats that we know of that came out of the swing era of the `50s and developed the bop style of the `60s, they used that. That probably influenced Elvin [Jones]. Cosmik: Okay, T.J. . . . you're up. Brinjak: Well, let's see . . . I grew up listening to a lot of classic rock and blues, then around college I took a heavier course in R&B and gospel. As far as specifics, I really like Ray Charles, and Janet Jackson. As for the new guitar stuff that you'll hear on the new EP, Five Short Stories, it'll be pretty easy for the listener to pick things out. Like, here's some hard rock stuff, here's some George Lynch, here's a whole lot of Stevie Ray Vaughn, and some more Stevie Ray Vaughn, and . . . Cosmik: . . . even more Stevie Ray Vaughn. [Band laughs] Brinjak: You're going to hear a lot of that. bob: And some Sarah Vaughn. [Laughs] Yeah . . . We recorded it in a motorcycle, too. Cosmik: What?! bob: I saw that in a feature. Wasn't that in Cosmik Debris about Ben Vaughn recording it in a car? It was so cool! [Ed.Note: Refers to our July 1997 interview with, and separate article about, Ben Vaughn. He had just recorded an entire album, Rambler '65, inside his car.] Cosmik: Oh that's where you got that. [Laughs] Okay, stay with me bob . . . you're next. bob: For me, it's not so much a question of influence as much as it is, under the influence. [Laughs] I started out back in the wonderful days of punk rock anarchy, and I loved the Pistols, the Clash, the Subway Sect, the Damned, the UK Subs, the Specials, and all that kind of stuff. All that stuff is coming around again now, and it's annoying the hell out of me! You wouldn't believe, man . . . the shows we play, the kids are like, "Play some punk . . . play some ska." I thought I was gonna want to do that when I was this age, like, now I can be all my heroes. It's like, "kids . . . that stuff was old when I was your age. Can we please offer you . . ." Cosmik: . . . something new. bob: Yeah . . . and then, from that, I got into the . . . well, you know how punk and new wave was. It was always, [English accent] "London school, no it's New York school, no it's London School.' Cosmik: London Calling. [Clash LP] bob: Yeah . . . exactly, exactly! Then I jumped across the Atlantic and got into all the CD stuff, television, Patty Smith, the Heads, the Ramones, Blondie, XTC, and all that stuff. The one that really stood-out was the Police. I worshiped the Police when I was a kid. They let me in. Everything was so sparse that you could see, like . . . this is what a guitar does, this is what a bass does, and this is what the drums can do. I couldn't really get into music before that, because I couldn't figure out what the hell everyone was doing. So, that was kind of my primer. Than when I went to school I really had the time and inclination to get into my head and study music. I've always been a real pop guy. I love pop. But, at the same time, I have this left-of-center thing. In college I got into the Beatles, Beach Boys, Big Star, all this sort of stuff. If you want to be a GOOD pop writer as opposed to a crummy hack, all the lessons are there to be learned. I think college was where I began dissecting all that stuff, getting into the studio, and getting into the "classic" and "pop" stuff. There's a lot of modern stuff that I really like. I love Michael Penn, I love Jeff Buckley, a lot of alternative bands. For me, there are three chunks: new wave/punk, `60s pop, and modern "alternative" music. I just slap that all together. Cosmik: It sounds like you take those influences and weave them into your music. But, writing pop music seems to be a real art. There's so many elements to pay attention to, not only in the piece itself, but in how it's recorded, produced, and marketed. All three of you seem to have a real eclectic mix. bob: Yeah . . . it's cool to see how it all comes together. Cosmik: What's the long-term projection for the band? Do you have any visions of other recording projects, live releases, tours? McQuilken: I think the next one will be, "One Long Story". [Laughs] Cosmik: [Laughing] It's like one of those `70s concept albums where the whole side is one tune. bob: Yeah! Cosmik: That would be really cool, artistically. bob: Mike . . . wouldn't it be cool to put out a live CD? McQuilken: Yeah. I think that would be really good. That's what we should probably do next. Cosmik: That's a real test of a band; what they sound like live. A real good band will do a better performance than the studio album because the spontaneous element exists, and the music recreates itself. bob: Exactly. It's all different when you're getting feedback from people. [Western accent] It's a whole different shootin' match! Cosmik: How are the gigs going these days? Are you guys booked-up? bob: No . . . it's hard to get shows in San Diego. There are ten trillion bands, and nine trillion of them . . . I don't want to, like . . . we have a non-negativity policy, but they suck, They're clogging up the club circuit. Clubs are opening and closing so fast you can't get a following going. In Southern California--I don't know if you've ever been out here--it's a whole different thing. In the course of my day I can travel 100 miles, easy, all for rehearsal. Make sure you have enough gas. It's so spread out and it's so diffuse. There's so many trillions of bands, and the things that get bands back to clubs is--of course this is universal--how many people come and how many get smashed on the club's wares. Cosmik: There's a lot of competition. bob: Yeah . . . and you have to make a decision, at some point. You have to make a very conscious decision: Are we going to be a big San Diego band, and are we going to use San Diego as a thermometer of what we need to develop or not develop. Or, are we going to picture ourselves as a national thing and not a geographically based phenomenon. It's hard to make those decisions. Cosmik: How do you approach that? That's an excellent question. bob: Well, we just try to play as many shows as we can get, and we try to get as many people to the shows we play, but we try not to let that end up being the sole focus. Brinjak: Definitely. I like bob's point about thinking of yourself as a national act. I could see, possibly, with this band, doing the shows in San Diego just to get out there to play as a group . . . bob: Yeah! Brinjak: . . . and I can also see this band slipping through the cracks, like Jewel or Stone Temple Pilots. Nobody thinks of them as a San Diego act. But, that's where they cut their teeth before they slipped through the cracks. Now San Diegens [sic] say, "Wow! I don't remember you." I see that could definitely happening to us. bob: Yeah, that's a good point. Cosmik: It seems as though you have a lot of control over what you're doing. Do you feel, If you became a national act, you might lose some of that control? bob: Over my dead body! No, that's not going to happen. I don't care if Joe Schmoe at MegaStar Records wants us to have Cindy Crawford's left buttock on our cover--they can eat me! Cosmik: Either that or the biggest sin would to be told you could have no tunes over five minutes long. bob: We're not going to get all attitudinal about it. I like three-minute songs, too. I think that there are fewer forms of art higher than the three-minute pop song. I aspire to it, a lot of the time. Cosmik: It's a different thing . . . a different approach. bob: It's something we've come to terms with more on the new CD, and obviously we have these big explorations and there's a lot of weirdness . . . I think you'll be blown away when you hear the first tune, Love Reaches Out. It's a four-minute pop song. It's definitely Fiction; it's definitely us. There are lots of weird noises, and lots of left-field sentiments, and stuff like that. But it's a pop song, and it's not because of Ahmet Ertegun. The thing is, we want to be successful. Cosmik: But at the same time, you don't want to compromise your own artistic abilities to make it successful. I think that would ruin the fun. bob: I think I would do a Cobain, at that point. Cosmik: Oh man . . . we don't want that . . . bob: I wouldn't do it in your house! [Laughter] Cosmik: Okay . . . so if you live in the San Diego are, go check out Fiction. Heathen Stuff is available on CD in stores in the US. People can get it at any Sam Goody, Tower Records, and Blockbuster Music. bob: Probably the easiest way to get it is through our Website. [http://www.erols.com/damage/home.htm] Cosmik: Five Short Stories comes out in October, so your fans will be looking for that. Things sound as though they're going well for each of you. Listen, guys . . . thank you for chatting with Cosmik. bob: You guys are like . . . gods! (Copyright 1997 Paul Remington, All Rights Reserved) ____________________________________________________________________________ TAPE HISS INTERVIEWS By John Sekerka [The following interviews are transcribed from John Sekerka's radio show, Tape Hiss, which runs on CHUO FM in Ottawa, Canada. Each month, Cosmik Debris will present a pair of Tape Hiss interviews. This month, we're proud to present interviews with Tortelvis (Dread Zeppelin) and Steve Wynn.] - - - - - - - - - - - - - STEVE WYNN Former leader of the influential guitar pioneers The Dream Syndicate, and now a veteran solo performer, Steve Wynn talks from his New York home, avoiding the dreaded packing ritual before a month long tour John: There's one burning question I feel obliged to lead off with: who is going to win the World Series? Steve: Good question. Being a lifetime Dodger fan and a current New York resident, to be completely schizophrenic I'm kinda looking toward a Dodger/Yankee series. I'll put my money on the Yankees. John: Is it true that on the night of a gig you were at the ballpark watching Fernando Valenzuela duel Dwight Gooden in extra innings? Steve: Yes, you've done your homework. It was an amazing game. That was back when they were the two top pitchers in baseball. It was scoreless in the ninth inning and I had a gig at eleven o'clock. I hung on till the tenth inning - the last possible second. I ran outta the stadium, jumped in my car, drove to the gig, got there just in time and opened with "Talkin' Fernando Valenzuela Blues", which, unfortunately was never taped. John: Maybe we should change the subject. Steve: Hell, I'll talk about anything, as long as I don't have to pack. John: Who is in your band these days? Steve: The Continental Drifters, which feature former Dream Syndicate Mark Walton, Robert Mecher, Peter Holseapple and Vicki Peterson from The Bangles. They play their own set as well. John: Your last record, "Melting in the Dark", was a great rocking album. Where are you heading with "Sweetness of Light"? Steve: It's a slightly more upbeat, positive, poppy version of the last one. That's drawing on my rusty rock critic skills. John: How did you get involved with Boston's Come for the "Dark" record? Steve: Come has taken similar territory as The Dream Syndicate. They're a two guitar band in which there's not really a lead and a rhythm. The two guitarists are kinda snaking around, doing a lot of improvisation. I put them in the same tradition as Television and Quicksilver Messenger Service. I was a big fan of theirs, and they knew my material really well. We were actually trying to get that together for quite a long time. It was three years after we agreed that we could get together and make the record. John: You're renown for short recording times. How long did it take to make the new album? Steve: The last few records took ten days, and that seemed just fine. This time I spent twenty. That's a quick record in most peoples' eyes, but for me it was like "Tusk." Actually it wasn't long enough for me to get too neurotic or self-indulgent, but long enough where I could stand back and see what I will like to hear six months from now. John: I've always liked the spontaneity and freshness of your records. Steve: Out of the fifteen records that I've made, I only spent more than a month on a couple. Because I record quickly it can come off as if I don't care, or I'm just not a perfectionist, or I'm lazy, or I'm a slacker. I think that by taking longer, you don't necessarily get a better record. Out of boredom or over inspection, you might file off all the cool things, and leave all the boring stuff. Mistakes are not necessarily a bad thing. I like to record the whole band together in the studio, so everybody plays off each other. It's not quite the extent of a jazz band, but you are reacting. And even in a scripted, non-improvisational pop song you still have room for give and take. John: When The Dream Syndicate first came on the scene in '82, there was a definite danger element to the music. When you're young and rebellious, and the world is there for the taking, it's easy to have that attitude. How do you feel about losing that exciting element of danger? Steve: You can never be as naive and innocent as when you start out, but I think the danger element is still there. Mostly live, but sometimes on record, as in Marvin Gaye's "That's the Way Love is", which I think can get as frenzied as anything on "Days of Wine and Roses". Just the fact that I'm better at what I do now, it would be a lie for me to fake some kind of teenage rebellion danger. I think it comes in different ways now - lyrically "Melting in the Dark" was quite disturbing, probably as ugly in its own way as anything that The Dream Syndicate ever did. John: I just wanna backtrack to something you mentioned earlier. Were you really a rock critic? Steve: Well, a sports writer actually, and I ended up reviewing music as well cuz that was the best way to get free records. That didn't last very long. I just didn't enjoy being that analytical about something I loved. John: And what about sports writing? Steve: My dream was to be on the masthead of Sports Illustrated. Something happened called punk rock which changed my whole way of thinking, and that was it. I was corrupted. John: Did you have a goofy nickname when you were a sports writer? Steve: I should've. I probably would've lasted longer. John: Don't you get tired talking about The Dream Syndicate? Steve: No, I'm proud of those times, and as a music fan, I know how that is: when a band starts out it's real exciting. I'm glad that "Days of Wine and Roses" is important to a lot of people. I was talking to somebody the other day, wondering if when I'm seventy years old and making my thirtieth record, will I still be talking about a record I made in 1982? John: As much as I like that record, I do prefer the follow up, "The Medicine Show." That one kinda got buried. Was that because you got signed to a major (A&M) and they didn't know what to do with it? Steve: Yeah. Back then, to be going from an indie to a major - we were actually the first band to really do it. To this day I don't think indies are any better than majors. There are artist driven majors, and corrupt indies. We spent a lot of time on "The Medicine Show", plus we changed our sound ... a lot of things. The funny thing is that in the States there was a backlash, but in Europe that record was and is seen as the band's masterpiece. In a recent issue of The London Guardian, it made the forty best records list in the forty years of rock'n'roll. John: What I particularly like is the dual guitar interplay of you and Karl Percoda. Did he leave the band shortly after that record? Steve: Yeah, it was a complete personality conflict thing. We played well together, made really great music, but grew to hate each others' guts. We were young and all the stupid things played a part: egos, drugs and liquor. It was sad because I think we could have made a lot more good music together. John: Did that personality clash effect "The Medicine Show"? Steve: Yeah, that record took six months to make. That was the least fun I've ever had doing anything in music. I like the results, but making the record was miserable. It was almost nervous breakdown inducing. And to have it slagged in the States made it even worse. By the time we got some indication (positive feedback) from Europe, we were too far gone. John: It's not as immediate as "Days", a lot of long songs, slow to build, some jams. Maybe it just threw people for a loop. Steve: Right. It was a very different record. All my music heroes would change from record to record. But you're expected to find your sound and stick with it. Sadly, it's the only record I've done that's out of print right now. John: Do you know what Karl's up to these days? Steve: He ended up getting his PhD in literature, moved to Charlottesville, Virginia, and he became a professor there. I heard recently that he's been playing in a band, and that he's made a record. Though I don't know anything about it. I'm real curious. I'd love to get together and play with him - not as the Dream Syndicate though. I think reunions are silly. John: You've done a lot of collaborating. How do you hook up with all these people? Steve: By touring for fifteen years you make friends. That's the case with Howard Gelb of Giant Sand, Peter Buck of R.E.M., John Wesley Harding or Come. They were just peers I've admired. Then there's people like Lou Reed, bassist Fernando Saunders, or Flo & Eddie, of whom I was a fan and sought out. John: What about Johnette Napolitano from Concrete Blonde? Steve: Oh yeah, we went out for a while. I still talk to her every week. We live three thousand miles apart, but we talk all the time. She's one of my best friends. John: Were you romantically linked when collaborating on music? Steve: No, but since we broke up, we've done a lot of stuff together. We covered Nick Cave's "The Ship Song", we've sung several duets on my records, and we've toured together. John: There were quite a few L.A. bands in the mid eighties that were very influential: Concrete Blonde, X, Gun club, Green On Red ... Steve: All great bands. John: Recently I spoke with Chuck Prophet from Green On Red fame, and your name came up. Steve: Right, we wrote "Look Both Ways" for his "Brother Aldo" album. I did it again for my "Fluorescent" album. John: Two different versions. Steve: Two very different versions, in fact. His came first, and it's more Townes Van Zandt folky, while mine is more a Bob Dylan "Desire" era stomper. Chuck's a great guitarist, I'd love to work with him. This might sound blasphemous, but he's in a league of Richard Thompson or Tom Verlaine. I think he's that good. For whatever reason, maybe his records don't sell that well - who knows, but I don't think he gets that kind of credit. John: Agreed. One of the things that came up was the "Danny and Dusty" album which you made with Green On Red's Danny Stuart. Whose idea was that project anyway? Steve: Danny's girlfriend at the time was doing a record of L.A. psychedelic people doing country music. Danny and I decided to put together a song for the compilation. We had so much fun doing the one song that we turned it into an entire album. John: Now wait a minute, you claimed that you didn't have a nickname as a sports journalist, but are you not in fact Dusty? Steve: I am Dusty. That's cuz Danny called me Dusty all the time. I have no idea why. "Hey Dusty, let's go get a beer." I think I was pretty clean at the time. I washed my clothes. I bathed regularly. We liked the whole Waylon and Willie thing so we called the record Danny and Dusty. John: Did you get caught up in that wild L.A. scene, becoming a casualty of excess living - the big rock'n'roll stereotype? Steve: Oh there was a lot of decadence. I definitely consumed a fair share of brown alcohol, but that's part of being young, and the transition of a music fan to the point of some level of success, and people offering you everything all the time. It's hard to say no. Hopefully you get through that point and get on with life. John: Is indie supergroup Gutterball still an ongoing side project? Steve: As much as it ever was. It's always been more of a social gathering that got recorded every now and then. John: So who's in the band, or is it a revolving door thing? Steve: It's pretty steady. It's Bryan Harvey and Johnny Hott from House of Freaks, Steve McCarthy from The Long Ryders and myself. At first we had Bob Rupe on bass, but he was replaced pretty quickly by Armstead Welford from Love Tractor. That's been the band now for four years. It's a real fun group. We did a record as a side project goof kinda thing and it became really popular. There was a period where we tried to turn into a real band, do a lot of touring, photo sessions, whatever real bands do. And we found that it just wasn't what the band was all about. The more serious we took it, the more we got sick of it. It's kind of a band that'll make a record every couple of years. We all agreed not to spoil it. The last one ["Weasel"] came out in '95, so there should be another record in '98. John: Did the House of Freaks call it a day? Steve: They did, which is really sad. John: Yeah, I loved that band. Steve: They were a great band, but you know it was just two people, which is basically a marriage. I think they still get along, but I think they were just sick of playing together. Their last record "Invisible Jewel", which got ignored... John: That was a fantastic record! Steve: It's an amazing record, and it's also the roots of a lot of what's happening now in music. It was really ahead of its time. John: Johnny Hott's wild percussion is just mind blowing - everything from steel drums to oil drums. Steve: That sound can now be heard in Sparklehorse. Johnny played in Cracker for a year, but he quit that recently. Bryan is playing ukulele in a Hawaiian band, and loving it. John: Thanks for the lowdown on all my favourite performers. Steve: This is like an encyclopedia interview! John: Say, it's been a long time since you've come to Ottawa... Steve: I think it was '88, and I have a picture of the marquee cuz it said "Tonight: Dream Syndicate, Tomorrow: Mark Farner [Grand Funk Railroad]". John: That sounds like our little town. Steve: I just love that. I still cherish that photo. That just said it all. John: Steve... it's time to pack. Steve: Damn. ..tape hiss DREAD ZEPPELIN'S TORTELVIS In an era of music tributes there is no equal to TortElvis, the man who mixes the King's music with Led Zeppelin and reggae. After a brief hiatus in which milk deliveries took precedence over music, TortElvis is back, bigger than ever. John: How's the milk business? TortElvis: I been all around the world the last year and a half, setting up home delivery systems for countries in need. And son, it sure is satisfying. John: You seem to have some strange callings in life. TortElvis: That's right. I'm an entertainer by night and a regular working man by day. Just one of the boys. John: Do you still have your towel boy? TortElvis: Yes. Charlie Hodge [former NHL goalie] hands me my towel and water. Everywhere I go, he goes. In fact when I deliver milk in the wee hours of the morning, he's there by my side. John: What poundage are you up to these days? TortElvis: I'm proud to say I've broken the 300 mark. Right now I'm at 345 pounds, ladies and gentlemen. John: How did you achieve that level; is it with the help of those big fat burgers? TortElvis: Ya gotta eat a lotta fat, that's for sure. Mainly it's sitting around doin' nothing. Unfortunately 'cause I work so hard, it's hard to keep the weight up, but I'm doing the best I can. John: Wow. So I guess it's safe to say that you won't be reverting to the early Elvis as we know him on the US commemorative stamp. TortElvis: That's quite obvious by looking at my girth. But I'm proud to do the later Elvis: the Vegas years. I think that's the most interesting time in his life. John: So how did you happen on the idea of moulding the Elvis persona with Led Zeppelin tunes? TortElvis: It was actually an idea that Elvis himself had talked about shortly before his death. I pretty well stole the idea. It's something that I think he would be doing if he was still around. John: So you think he's long in the grave? TortElvis: Well yes I do. There's no doubt about it. But the spirit lives all over the world, and hopefully I'm doing my part to keep the faith alive. John: Here's a question you may choose not to answer: I happen to know on good authority that that's not your real hair and those are not your real sideburns. Now when you take them off, would people recognize you on the street? TortElvis: I'm proud to say that after all these years of performing, I've finally grown real sideburns. You can come to the shows and feel them for yourself. Do whatever you want, but just don't shave 'em off. The hair may or may not be real at this point, but I am semi-recognizable when I walk the streets. John: Can you run down the current line-up for those who haven't experienced the Dread Zeppelin experience? TortElvis: We've got six players plus Charlie. Karl Jah plays lead guitar. He's an exact replica of Jimmy Page ...as far as playing goes. On the other guitar we've got Jah Paul Joe: he's the prince of peace and love. On bass guitar there's Butros Buttboy, who's also a fantastic dancer. And, this is a true story by the way, Spice, a former member of Menudo, plays drums. The fabulous Ed Zeppelin from Trinidad on congas rounds it out. John: You have a fine voice; have you been singing all your life? TortElvis: Oh yes. I was singing "Love Me Tender" out of the womb. John: Did you ever get a chance to meet the King himself? TortElvis: Yes I did. I met him in January 1977. He wasn't looking too good - way overweight. I was standing on the side of the stage as he went on for one of his final concerts. I told him "Elvis, watch your step." He turned and smiled. That's the very last I saw of him. John: I think that's more than we ever wanted to know, thanks TortElvis. TortElvis: Wellthankyouverymuchson. ..tape hiss ____________________________________________________________________________ IN THE BOOKS - A stack of book reviews we've been meanin' to write SPACE IS THE PLACE: THE LIVES AND TIMES OF SUN RA by John F. Szwed (Pantheon) $29.95, 476 pages Reviewed by Shaun Dale Herman Poole "Sonny" Blount was born in Alabama in 1914, but Sun Ra was born over and over in times and places beyond description, if not belief. John Szwed, a professor of music and African American studies at Yale University, has written a comprehensive and revealing look at Sun Ra's transformational life and transformative music. Szwed traces Sun Ra's development from his Birmingham roots to his elevation as an innovative leader on the progressive jazz scene and the flamboyant front man for the various incarnations of his Arkestra. Drawing on an incredible range of documentary sources and original research, Szwed has produced a valuable and overdue document of one of the most idiosyncratic and accomplished figures in American musical history. Sun Ra's music is well documented by recordings, often self produced, from throughout his career. This volume contains a 22 page discography that gives ample evidence of that. Written documentation of his life and career has been less widely available and far sketchier in its contents. A selected bibliography reflects magazine articles, concert and recording reviews and brief interviews scattered among many publications over decades. Szwed's integration of these would be a worthy contribution in itself. That contribution is enhanced by a considerable body of original research which includes interviews with musicians, family members and others with various levels of personal and musical involvement with Sun Ra. That research allowed Szwed to move past the musical and more deeply into the personal aspects of Sun Ra's life. He also provides insightful linkage between Sun Ra's distinctive cosmology and the tradition of African American thought, with connections to Egyptology, numerology, tales of the diaspora and general feelings of "otherness." The overall effect is to leave the reader with a knowledge of a man that only enhances the experience of his music. He also examines Sun Ra's roots in the African American musical spectrum, most explicitly his strong grounding in the swing music of mentors like Fletcher Henderson. A review can only point at the wealth of material to be found in this book. It is a must read for anyone with a serious interest in the development of modern jazz, African American history and one of its central figures. It's an entertaining and informative book for anyone who enjoys popular biography. (C) 1997 - Shaun Dale I WANT TO TAKE YOU HIGHER - The Psychedelic Era 1965-1969 (Chronicle Books) 208 pages; 200 full-color and black-and-white images. Reviewed by Jeff Apter Having recently strolled the length and breadth of Haight Street for the first time - starting at the Ashbury intersection, naturally - I have a pretty clear 'after' picture of hippie haven, San Francisco. This lavish book, tieing-in (tie-dyeing in?) with the like-named Rock & Roll Hall of Fame exhibit, fills in the 'before' gap in my education. Offering a trippy snapshot of the latter half of the 1960s, its every page is jam-packed with posters, pictures, prose and paraphernalia, presenting the obligatory icons of the age (Lennon's Rolls, Woodstock fever, shaggy scenester Ginsberg), along with surprising revelations. The biggest of these revelations is that the book's main essayists - former Rolling Stone writer Charles Perry and underground mover'n'shaker Barry Miles - track down psychedelia's ground zero to 1965, not 1967, as commonly believed. They also reveal how London was every bit as 'happening' as San Francisco. For instance, Ken Kesey's first 'Acid Tests' took place in '65, as did an epochal London poetry reading, which kicked out the Albert Hall's jams and kickstarted the London underground. And as Ginsberg chanted mantras to the Brits, a Nevada saloon was being given a psychedelic makeover, evolving into the 'Red Dog Saloon,' a forerunner to hippie HQs such as the Fillmore and Avalon ballrooms. And also during 1965, Dr Timothy Leary and his lysergic-loving acolytes were gobbling LSD as if they were M&Ms. So, despite the hallmarks of 1967 - 'Human Be-Ins' at San Francisco's Golden Gate Park, dazzling debuts from Hendrix, The Doors, The Dead and Pink Floyd, the emergence of 'Rolling Stone' and 'International Times' - the authors contend that '1967 was the beginning of the end' for psychedelia. That comment makes plenty of sense when you scan the 'timeline' that runs along the bottom of each page of 'Higher', which plots the escalating Vietnam body-count and the political dramas breaking out all over as the 60s rolled on. But the perennial problem of 'art vs commerce' was just as influential in psychedelia's downfall. Grace Slick, during one of the book's many candid flashbacks, reveals how she thought Donovan 'too cute...too commercial.' The end was nigh when 'Mellow Yellow' scaled the charts. Irrespective of exactly when psychedelia began and what killed it off, the latter half of the 1960s were still tumultuous years of social, cultural and political upheaval, 'a time when anything was possible', according to the book's editor, and Hall of Fame curator, James Hencke. This utopian dream runs like an electrical current through 'I Want To Take You Higher', via its hundreds of potent images and wistful essays (mostly written with the benefit of hindsight, admittedly). To me, some of the most vivid images are the posters of Family Dog music marathons and Grateful Dead shows, an artistic style that screams 'psychedelia', with its chunky, curvaceous type and eye-popping colors. One glance at this artwork will remind you exactly why the book's called 'I Want To Take You Higher.' (C) 1997 - Jeff Apter NASA / TREK by Constance Penley (Verso) $11.00 Reviewed by John Sekerka You know the joke "what's this button for?". It might as well be etched on Christa McAuliffe's gravestone. She, of course was the astronaut/teacher on board the ill fated Challenger/fireworks mission we all watched in horror. I knew she was an all-around super mom, the perfect Republican housewife, but there is much more to the story, and Constance Penley gets right down to it. There doesn't seem to be a tiresome tale to be told of the space program, but few written words are as riveting as those found in Nasa/Trek. Penley dissects the space program down to it's bare bones, leaving a bit of a freakish skeleton. This is very popular science, looked at from a cynical, clinical, speculative and feminist view. Spending time on subjects like McAuliffe and Star Trek guarantees an increased attention level, cleverly leading the reader at a brisk pace. You'll learn a lot, and it won't hurt a bit. (C) 1997 - John Sekerka THE ALL MUSIC GUIDE TO COUNTRY - The Experts' Guide To The Best Recordings In Country Music * Miller-Freeman Books * 611 pages Reviewed by DJ Johnson This is the 5th chapter in the All Music Guide series, and like the jazz, blues, rock, and multi-genre books before it, it's an extremely useful addition to any comprehensive collection of musical reference books. Those who take full advantage of the information will discover new musical loves without wasting a wad of money on CDs that weren't even what they were looking for. As usual, the bulk of this book consists of CD reviews, recommendations, and warnings, but some of the most interesting text can be found in the essay section. There are excellent short primers on a wide variety of country sub-genres, including honky-tonk, Nashville sound, urban cowboy, Western swing, rockabilly, country rock, the Lubbock scene, the Bakersfield sound, singing cowboys... even country comedy. Each essay is accompanied by a "music map": an excellent reference tool that follows the evolution of each sub-genre in much the same way a flow chart outlines a computer program. These charts, in conjunction with the list of definitions of various sub-genres that opens the book, makes it extremely easy to pursue a sound you particularly enjoy. Let's say you know you like Buck Owens' music and you want to find other artists to check out. A quick glance at the heading for Buck Owens in the review section will reveal that he is a performer of the "Bakersfield sound." The music map of the Bakersfield sound tips you off to the existence of players like Tommy Collins, Wynn Stewart, Rose Maddox, and Merle Haggard. 'Course, if you didn't know of the existence of Merle Haggard, you're going to need more than this book to get a clue, but that's another matter. The Bakersfield map also shows a branch that comes from honky-tonk, which can lead you into yet another list of your future country heroes. All of these players have listings and listening recommendations in the review section, so it's easy to follow up your research from the music map. Looking up "Bakersfield Sound" in the list of definitions reveals the components of the sound, making it simple to understand just what it is that's drawing you. Nice system. A system that worked for me, by the way. As you may surmise from this article, I discovered what it was about country music I loved best when I looked up Buck Owens in the review section. I'm now well on my way to having a fairly comprehensive collection of Bakersfield influenced country music, and I'm planning an article on the subject for a future issue of Cosmik. Having just recently discovered my country fixation, it could have taken me a long, long time to figure it all out and discover Ferlin Husky and Rose Maddox. The All Music Guide is put together by four editors and sixty-three contributing writers, some you'll agree with and some you'll be making voodoo doll likenesses of, but by and large, the recommendations are valuable and astute. Just about anyone with a taste for country music would enjoy The All Music Guide To Country, but it's absolutely essential for anyone who is just beginning to explore the genre. (C) 1997 - DJ Johnson RAMBLIN' ROSE - The Life and Career of Rose Maddox - by Jonny Whiteside Published by Vanderbilt University Press/Country Music Foundation Press Ever wondered from where Ani DiFranco's defiant, flip-'em-the-bird stance sprang? Rose Maddox is a likely role model. Here, biographer Jonny Whiteside accurately documents the rich life and strange times of 'country's original, high-kicking firebrand'; in the process he also sets in stone (well, words, anyway) Maddox's significance as a groundbreaking performer and an accidental feminist, years ahead of her time. Yet the book's title is deceptive: the wayward, talented Maddox brothers and tyrannical mother Lula take up as much time centerstage as 'The Sweetheart of Hillbilly Swing'. The Maddox family's hand-to-mouth struggle in the early 1930s was the non-fiction version of Steinbeck's Dustbowl novels, as they hit the road from backwoods Boaz in search of their mother's dream of Californian sunshine. Whiteside documents it vividly here; it's probably the most engrossing passage of his faithful, by-the-numbers biography. And it wouldn't take a degree in psychology to understand from whom the Maddoxes inherited their independent spirit, or their musical acumen. Like a ferocious mother bear looking out for her cubs, hugely ambitious matriarch Lula left corpses of promoters and club owners strewn by the roadside as she carved out her sibling's career and security. As for music, it was in the blood: Grandpa Maddox, a young man touched by the Lord, wandered the lost highways of Dixie 'a-preachin' and a-playin' his fiddle'. And the ultra-tight-knit Maddoxes were astute: they knew that music offered them a passage out of Dustbowl destitution. 'Ramblin' Rose' plots Rose's rollercoaster ride of a career, particularly how she chewed asphalt up and down the west coast, slowly outgrowing the rodeo circuit (where she shared the bill with 'wild cow milking' free-for-alls). Several thousand miles later, she'd outgrown her brothers, too, as the crowds and cash started to roll in. As successful as she was, though, personal happiness eluded Rose: her relationships with son, Donnie, and mother Lula, redefined the term 'patchy', and she endured more heartache than the most maudlin country balladeer could ever imagine. Whiteside doesn't overlook the music, of course. He details Rose's unpredictable solo output, and plots the evolution of the Maddox sound: how traces of r'n'b, rockabilly and boogie helped them cast off their hillbilly-swing-band roots (along the way inspiring hordes of imitators). Rose and her brothers are also remembered as entertainers, with eye-popping outfits and rapid-response stage patter adding a Vaudevillian twist to their crowd-pleasing shows. As an aside, 'Ramblin' Rose' provides insider's glimpses into the early, unreliable days of the music biz, and shows how aggressive rivalry was between 'countrypolitan Nashville' and 'hard-country California'. Whiteside keeps his hand on his heart as he tells Rose Maddox's remarkable story; what emerges is a portrait of a rough-hewn survivor, whose life falls fairly and squarely into the 'I wouldn't believe it if it wasn't true' category. (C) 1997 - Jeff Apter SEARCH & DESTROY #1-6, #7-11 by V. Vale (V Search) $19.95 (each) Reviewed by John Sekerka Absolutely essential reading for any zine or punk fan, the compete set of Search & Destroy is collected in full tabloid size glory. This is 1977-'79, San Francisco. V. Vale is hammering out punk's first zine on a typewriter at the City Lights bookstore, a beat hangout. This is the stuff of legend. Jam packed with photos and interviews of everybody, and I mean everybody, who was a punk, Search & Destroy has reached mythical status, and for those unlucky to have missed it the first time around, this two set collection is a godsend. Read what Debbie Harry, Joey Ramone and Patti Smith had to say, when there were no agents or record company hassles to get in the way. Read Iggy Pop discussing painting. Read Devo talking about neutron bombs. Read .... ah, just read it all damn it! (C) 1997 - John Sekerka _____________________________________________________________________________ RECORD REVIEWS! BIG RAY & THE FUTURAS: Self titled (Ray Line Records) Reviewed by DJ Johnson This is an extremely honest recording that features exactly zero overdubs and zero punch-ins. Furthermore, most of these tracks were done in one or two takes. I've heard other bands that made similar claims and sounded like they should have tried a few more takes, but Big Ray & The Futuras have their act together. These guys dish out a big sound, and all three players contribute a chunk of atmosphere and personality. Krishna Jain's slightly distorted bass tone gives the music muscle and bite, blending perfectly with Paul Wilson's outstanding drumming. (The more I listen to Wilson, the more I appreciate his technical skill.) Guitarist Chris Neff brings it all together with his tasteful, textured chording and melodic solos. The entire thing is bathed in reverb, the way the good Lord intended, making Wilson's drums all the bigger and draping the band in atmosphere. The final few tracks were recorded live at The Continental in Greenwich Village, New York, and these tracks sound as good as the studio cuts. Guess they really meant that "no overdubs or punch-ins" thing. (Ray Line Records: 8 Lee St. Somerville, MA 02145 - (617) 666-0253 - E-mail futuras@hotmail.com) THE BLUE STINGRAYS: Surf-n-Burn (Epitone) Reviewed by DJ Johnson This one kinda popped up out of nowhere a few weeks back, and it was a real mystery. A quick spin through the liner notes only made matters worse. The story goes that The Blue Stingrays debuted in 1959, made a small handful of albums, and vanished, never having allowed their identities to become known. Says here they even made their recording engineers wear blindfolds. Uh huh. Well, it's a hoax, folks, right down to the convincing looking album covers shown in the liner notes. Word on the street is that this is a fun little one-off project for Mike Campbell (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers) and some of his buddies. Makes sense because Campbell is a big fan of surf music, and because the playing on Surf-n-Burn is quite tasteful. The originals are well written and some are even catchy, and the cover of "Goldfinger" is fantastic. So why don't I love this album? Because when it comes to surf, I need to hear reverb, and Surf-n-Burn is dry as chalk. By the time they finally discover the reverb knob at track 10 ("Surfer's Life"), I'm like a starving dog smelling steak. Turns out to be fake steak, because the drought is back four minutes later. The 'verb returns here and there, but always on one guitar, and always in very light doses. Despite all that, this album came closer than any other to convincing me surf could be played with no reverb, and I can see the merits to the approach, but I find myself thinking how fine Surf-N-Burn would be if they'd just given it a bit of sea spray. BOY WONDER: Wonder-Wear (Cherrydisc) Reviewed by Jeff Apter In the power pop cosmos, two of 97's finest are The Muffs' Happy Birthday To Me and Sloan's One Chord To Another. Wonder-Wear - direct from indie heaven, Cambridge's Fort Apache Studios - completes the trilogy. Boy Wonder are a feisty four-piece who mix a garage-band swagger with a well-tuned ear for melody and have tongues wedged so far in their cheeks they could just about choke. To this you can add a surreptitious slant on sexual politics; if you could imagine the heartstruck emotions and teeth-rotting melodies of 50's teen-tragedy-pop given a brutal, grrrrl power makeover, then you'll understand Boy Wonder: this is where the Crystals collide head-on with Juliana Hatfield. Main songwriter, crooner, strummer and power-pop-goddess-in-the-making, Paula Kelly, has a wicked glint in here eye as she taunts wayward lovers. When she warns "I'll do anything it takes / To make your black heart sting," swear you're not the one who's done her wrong. It's only when she hands the mic over to guitarist Jake Zavracky, as she does on four tracks here, that I question the "wonder" in their "Wonder-Wear." MEREDITH BROOKS: Blurring the Edges (Capitol) Reviewed by Steve Marshall For those who don't pay a whole lot of attention to the charts, Meredith Brooks has been a mainstay on those charts for most of the summer with her song, "Bitch." Contrary to what you would think from the title, the song has an unexpectedly positive message. She's admitting she can be a bitch, but that's just one side of her multi-faceted personality. Listeners will learn quite a bit about Brooks by listening to the Blurring the Edges. She's not just another angry young woman who hates men. The obvious comparisons to Alanis haven't hurt record sales at all, but they're not something she's entirely comfortable with. Musically, the CD has a definite edge to it, and most of the songs stand up quite well to repeated listening. The only one that doesn't is "Watched You Fall," which comes across as little more than an exercise in whining. The leadoff track, "I Need" is a cool tune with a great hook, and it's the latest single. There are a couple of tunes--"My Little Town" and "Stop"-- that sound like they could be Sheryl Crow songs, only with better vocals. Other highlights include "What Would Happen," and the bluesy "It Don't Get Better." Brooks is an accomplished guitarist as well. Her playing is inspired, but not overdone. Blurring the Edges is a fine, energetic debut from Brooks. She exhibits a keen sense of drama, with a tongue-in-cheek sense of humor. Her songwriting skills are a bit lacking at times, but she shows a lot of potential. You'll be hearing a lot more from her. BRUCKNER: Symphony No. 5 in B Flat. Royal Scottish National Orchestra conducted by Georg Tintner. NAXOS 8.553452 [DDD] 76:46 Reviewed by Robert Cummings Georg Tintner is an eighty-year-old Viennese conductor virtually unknown to the average concertgoer and record collector, virtually unknown even in the inner circles of classical music. At least, until now he was. How he emerges as a major interpreter of the music of Anton Bruckner at this stage in his career is a miracle of this modern age. His previous obscurity is rather easy to explain, though. When the insanity of Hitler had reached Austria in 1938 (via the so-called Anschluss), Tintner fled, eventually arriving in New Zealand, then settling finally in Australia. Neither of these countries can hardly be described as the Mecca of classical music activity, though Tintner remained quite active within them. In 1987, following a stint at the English National Opera, he moved to Canada. Somehow Naxos stumbled across him. And, owing to that good fortune, we are blessed with this magnificent recording. Karajan, Wand, Barenboim and many others have traveled this road with success, and Tintner joins them with a reading that balances the majestic with the subtle, always eschewing any tendency to go over the top, or to wallow in the score's seductive beauties. Most importantly, he demonstrates a fine sense of structure here, without which all talent for phrasing and highlighting of crucial detail would be squandered. In the end, he serves up a multi-faceted Bruckner, unbridled by any self-righteous inspiration to view the music in some new or extreme way. From the quiet pizzicato-bass opening of the first movement on to the glorious, brass-dominated ending of the finale, you hear Bruckner neither fettered by mannerism nor inflated by pomposity, but rendered judiciously yet compellingly. The Royal Scottish National Orchestra, which under Neeme Jarvi made dozens of recordings for the Chandos label, most notably of works by Prokofiev and Shostakovich, performs admirably here, showing nearly as much skill now as world-class ensembles. I do wish, however, their strings would swell in number or at least in their collective sound. The well-balanced recording was made at a slightly lower than usual level; so you may want to crank up the volume a bit. Tintner himself provides very enlightening notes to top off this most attractive release. J.J. CALE: Anyway the Wind Blows - The Anthology (Mercury) Reviewed by Shaun Dale "Anyway the Wind Blows" is more than an anthology. It's a 50 song documentary of a career which has been simultaneously one of the most influential and unsung in popular music. Covered by artists ranging from Lynyrd Skynyrd to Santana, Cale's music is familiar to a good many people who have never heard him play it. In fact, Cale's music, in the form of Eric Clapton's recordings of "After Midnight" and "Cocaine," is familiar to just about everyone who has paid any attention at all to popular music in the last 25 years or so. While he's produced bona-fide hits as a songwriter, he remains something of a cult figure as a performer. With a performing style more suited to clubs than concert halls and an idiosyncratic approach to recording (Cale's early experience as a recording engineer has given him a specific notion of how he wants his records to sound, and how to get the sound he wants), J.J. Cale is one of those players who has justifiably earned the mantle of an "artist's artist." He's earned a great deal more than that, though, and if you are among those who have missed his original work, this is a great place to catch up. The 50 songs on this 2 disc set include all the essentials from his recording career along with a handful of rarities. There are over 2 and 1/2 hours of quality songs and solid performances altogether. If you're a long time fan, all the reasons you're a long time fan are gathered in one place. This collection is giving my now less-than-pristine stack of Cale vinyl a well deserved retirement to a place of honor on the shelf. Track List: Disc One: Call Me The Breeze * Crazy Mama * Magnolia * After Midnight * Lies * Changes * If You're Ever In Oklahoma * Midnight In Memphis * Cajun Moon * Rock And Roll Records * Anyway The Wind Blows * Crying * Everlovin' Woman * I Got The Same Old Blues * Woke Up This Morning * Cocaine * The Woman That Got Away * Ride Me High * Hey Baby * Durango * I'll Make Love To You Anytime * Don't Cry Sister * Thirteen Days * Things Ain't Simple * Sensitive Kind Disc Two: Carry On * Runaround * Mama Don't * City Girls * Devil In Disguise * You Keep Me Hangin' On * Downtown L.A. * A Thing Going On * Don't Wait * Wish I Had Me A Dollar (live) * Money Talks * Hard Times * People Lie * Unemployment * Trouble In The City * Santa Cruz * Shanghaid * Change Your Mind * New Orleans * Humdinger * Lonesome Train * Jailer * Artificial Paradise * Long Way Home * Closer To You JOHN CALE: Eat/Kiss - Music for the Films of Andy Warhol (Rykodisc) Reviewed by Jeff Apter Do not file under "easy listening." This album may come from the classical side of John Cale's big brain, yet the sounds within are as dissonant and brooding as anything he created with the Velvets. Comprising Cale's scores for two early Warhol films, "Eat/Kiss" is an exceptional live recording (though you'd hardly know there was an audience), from a 1995 performance in France, with subdued accompaniment from ex-Velvet time-keeper Mo Tucker, plus BJ Cole and The Soldier String Quartet. Cale drifts through many styles and sounds, from the mournful, elegiac "Frozen Warning" (originally warbled by ice maiden Nico), to near-Oriental stylings and elegant, esoteric Michael Nyman-like pieces, driven by harpsichord and weird operatic wailings. While I question whether Warhol's trashy pop-art deserved such high-art compositions, Eat/Kiss is brilliant, beguiling mood music, nonetheless. CHEAP TRICK: At Budokan (Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab) Reviewed by DJ Johnson Anybody who was alive in 1978 knows about Cheap Trick At Budokan. Couldn't help it. It was a sensation then, and it still stands up nearly 20 years later. Why? Because of the Japanese audience's infectious excitement, and because Cheap Trick's music was incredibly well-structured power pop. Songs like "Hello There," "Big Eyes," "Come On, Come On," and "I Want You To Want Me" never go out of date. The gold disc is, of course, a format of choice among audiophiles because it will not fall apart in 20 years like aluminum discs, but you're really paying for the work of the remastering engineer... who is apparently uncredited here. The sound is quite good, if still a little light on the bottom end, and the noise level is negligible. The CD booklet effectively re-creates the 12-inch insert that came with the original LP, right down to the section of Japanese text. I'm going to assume that the already bulging booklet had no room for re-issue notes, because I sure can't find any. It'll be interesting to find out if Cheap Trick At Budokan sells like the recent Nirvana gold discs. All I know is this: twenty years hasn't taken the sting out of this album's punch, and great power pop never fades away. All these years later, we're still ready to rock. CHEIKH LO: Ne La Thiass (World Circuit) Reviewed by Shaun Dale The best musical moments are those of discovery, and the moment I discovered Cheikh Lo is one of the best moments of all. Cheikh Lo is a Senegalese composer, singer and guitarist whose six song, self produced cassette swept through his homeland and captured the attention of Youssou N'Dour, who produced this expanded and refined version for the international market. Heavily accented by the Cuban rhythms that have enjoyed long popularity in West Africa, the music also carries hints of mento and other influences acquired by Cheikh Lo during his years playing for tourists in Dakar's hotels and doing session work in Paris studios. An adherent of the Mourides sect of Islam, much of the music is devotional, which is reflected in the heartfelt delivery which is a major factor in Cheikh Lo's ability to move the listener with his vocals even when not a word is intelligible. (Happily, the accompanying booklet includes full translations of the lyric, in both English and French. Read them. There's a wealth of fine poetic images and intriguing folklore in the offing.) The music itself is transformative. Based on acoustic guitars, acoustic bass and the tama, or talking drum, with subtle touches of keyboards, sax, flute and electric bass, the distinctively African treatment of Cuban Son music is a marvel. I found it literally uplifting, making me feel lighter in body and spirit and moving me to tap my hands and feet until the impulse to get up and dance around the room was simply irresistible. I don't know if this is the best music I've heard this year, or even this month. I do know it's the most exciting musical discovery I've enjoyed in a very long while. More please! Track List: Boul di Tagale * Ne La Thiass * Ndogal * Doxademe * Sant Maam * Set * Cheikh Ibra Fall * Bamba Sunu Goorgui * Guiss Guiss CHOPIN: Twelve Etudes, Op. 10; Four Rondos, Opp. 1, 5, 16, 73 (includes two piano version). Frederic Chiu, Piano. HARMONIA MUNDI HMU 907201 [DDD] 77:10 Reviewed by Robert Cummings Frederic Chiu has been stirring up some controversy with critics of late. As far as I can tell, though, most have taken a decidedly favorable stance regarding his highly individual style, a style less radical than that of the young Glenn Gould, to be sure, but far more provocative than the approaches of most leading pianists of the day. I count myself among his admirers, if I can judge from four discs from his Prokofiev cycle and the one under review here. On the whole, his Chopin is sprightly and incisive in the Rondos, and probing and colorful in the Etudes. I like his slightly slow tempo in the third etude (E Major), how he manages to skirt the saccharine and sentimental by adding a pinch of sobriety. His "Black Key Etude" is among the best versions I've heard, certainly surpassing one Horowitz account (RCA) and equaling another (Sony). Chiu wrings out the gloom and tension in the E-Flat Minor in so ravishing a way as to tempt the depressed to skip their Prozac. And the verve and playfulness he unleashes in the tenth etude (F Major) are enough to make you forget all about the delicious gloom of the eighth. A little overuse of rubato afflicts the F Minor Etude, though overall it's not a bad version, your interest never actually waning. His "Revolutionary Etude" sounds a bit stiff and "studied," but then, you say, these are studies. In the end, his set is compelling for its freshness and insights. Of recent note is the 1996 Sony release of the Op. 10 with the Op.25 Etudes, featuring young Japanese pianist Yukio Yokoyama. Chiu may be more the thinker here, but Yokoyama is more the romantic. Of course, there are others in the horse race including Ashkenazy and the iconic Cortot. In Op. 10 I'll say that Chiu comfortably holds his own in the company of most, if not all, of the most prominent Chopin players. His readings of the much less popular Rondos are just as successful. He reveals the Op. 16 work as a delight, deftly pointing up its lighthearted classicism and making you wonder why more pianists don't play this thoroughly enjoyable work. Chiu performs both versions of the Op. 73, overdubbing the second piano part, thereby accompanying himself and posing the question: are two Frederic Chius better than one? Personally, I'll opt for the splendidly enacted solo version, the two piano rendition seeming too regally rich for the peasant palate, though it surely is no virtuosic misfire in Chiu's four talented hands. The other two Rondos also receive fine performances, the Op. 5 (Rondo a la Mazur) unveiled as another gem. Harmonia Mundi provides excellent sound, and pianist Chiu, with one hand, I'll surmise, has written informative notes. In sum, a very fine release. ROGER DALTREY: Martyrs & Madmen: The Best of Roger Daltrey (Rhino) Reviewed by Steve Marshall Roger Daltrey is best known as the microphone-swinging lead vocalist for The Who. While his solo efforts are usually less than spectacular, there are always at least a few songs that are more than capable of standing on their own. Most of those songs are included on the new compilation from Rhino, entitled Martyrs & Madmen. The title comes from one of Daltrey's better solo tunes, although for some reason, the song doesn't appear on this CD. All the FM favorites, like "Giving it All Away," "Free Me," "Say it Ain't So, Joe," "After the Fire," and "Under a Raging Moon" are on the CD. There are a few tracks that are missing; but overall, the bulk of his best solo material is all here. Martyrs & Madmen is a fine introduction to Daltrey's solo work. The fact that most of these tracks come from albums that are long out of print just makes it that much better. TRACK LIST: One Man Band * It's a Hard Life * Giving it All Away * Thinking * World Over * Oceans Away * One of the Boys * Avenging Annie * Say it Ain't So, Joe * Parade * Free Me * Without Your Love * Waiting For a Friend * Walking in My Sleep * Parting Would Be Painless * After the Fire * Let Me Down Easy * The Pride You Hide * Under a Raging Moon (single version) * Lover's Storm THE DAMBUILDERS: Against The Stars (EastWest Records) Reviewed by Shaun Dale The Dambuilders had built up strong indie street cred with a stack of tapes, discs and 7" releases on some ten different labels before landing with EastWest/Elektra in 1994. This, their third EastWest CD, shouldn't cost them any of that hard earned rep, and should, if the attention "Burn This Bridge" is getting from radio is any indication, broaden their audience to a new, and well deserved, level. This is simply a wonderful piece of pop music. With all four members (Dave Derby, bass; Joan Wasser, violin, guitar, keyboards; Eric Masunga, guitar; Kevin March, drums) making vocal and compositional contributions, the songs reflect the collaborative harmony that has kept the band intact for years beyond the average lifespan of indie (or other) acts. The songs themselves are bright, danceable and often reflect elements of humor that provides an appealing alternative to the alt.everythinsucks school of songwriting. If you've been a fan for awhile, you'll surely find something to enjoy here. If the Dambuilders are brand new to you, don't be surprised if you find yourself scouring the bins for back catalog selections. There's plenty to find. Track List: Digitize * Break Up With Your Boyfriend * Burn This Bridge * Herstory * You Might Want Me Around * You'll Never Know * Itch It * Discopolis * Luster * I Was Wrong * On The Slide * Seek And Destroy * Wished On The Wrong Star BO DIDDLEY: His Best (Chess/MCA) Reviewed by Shaun Dale What becomes a legend most? How about a collection of twenty of his finest performances on a brand new CD suitable for replacing that stack of scratched up vinyl you've been hanging on to just because the songs are so damn good? That's what MCA has done for Bo Diddley on this new volume from the Chess Records 50th Anniversary series. The 20 songs included here, recorded for Chess between 1955 and 1966, provided the core material that includes songs that have become standards of the rock genre - "Bo Diddley," "Mona," "Who Do You Love?," and "I'm A Man" are all on hand and they're all songs you know by heart even if you've never heard the originals. There have been a lot of Bo Diddley sides recorded since these, but there is no question that the album title says it all - these are truly his best and he is truly one of the best. This should be one of the basic pieces in any roots rock collection. Track List: Bo Diddley * I'm A Man * You Don't Love Me (You Don't Care) * Diddley Daddy * Pretty Thing * Bring It To Jerome * I'm Lookin' For A Woman * Who Do You Love? * Hey Bo Diddley * Mona * Before You Accuse Me * Say Man * Dearest Darling * Crackin' Up * The Story Of Bo Diddley * Road Runner * Pills * I Can Tell * You Can't Judge A Book By Its Cover * Ooh Baby TANYA DONNELLY: Lovesongs For Underdogs (Reprise) Reviewed by Jeff Apter Throwing Muses, The Breeders, Belly - ace strum-popper Tanya Donnelly works her way through bands at the same rate most of us go through socks. She's finally wised up to the fact she works best alone, although for much of Lovesongs she's enlisted Wally Gagel - of prickly rockers Orbit - as co-producer, engineer and one-man band. As the none-too-subtle title implies, Donnelly's romantic streak has a dark smudge. "It's a tinkertoy world," she snarls in her surly little-girl-lost voice one minute, yet she still cries at sad films and dreams of the next time "someone writes another beautiful song." I'm unsure if she's the perennial fencesitter, happy to have an each-way bet on life's vicissitudes - although the album's closing line, "I've got it made," might prove that TD's an optimist after all. One thing for sure is that she hasn't lost her knack with pristine guitar-pop, typified here by "Pretty Deep," "Landspeed Song" or "Swoon." There's a punkish drive to "Lantern," while "Acrobat" is more pensive, a solitary strum in a darkened room, albeit punctuated with gorgeous brushstrokes of cello, and "Clipped" fluctuates between ominous rumblings and golden sunbursts of chiming guitars. Despite "Lovesongs" deft tunes and the fact that Donnelly virtually wrote the alterna-pop songbook, however, she's still living in the shadows of the Alanises and Courtneys of this world. There's no justice. DOWN BY LAW: Last Of The Sharpshooters (Epitaph) Reviewed by Shaun Dale Last year's All Scratched Up made my personal top five list, so I looked forward to the new Down By Law list with a combination of eager anticipation and cautious apprehension. Could they do it again? Why not. Down By Law is a terrific band. Did they do it again? Absolutely. There are fifteen new songs on the disc and there's not a weak moment in the lot. Once again combining straight ahead punk rock that emphasizes the rock, a tough pop sensibility that makes the music accessible to listeners who might be put off by some of the hard core scene and reggae in the tradition of the Clash for a dash of flavor, the band continues to impress. Singer/guitarist Dave Smalley continues to carry most of the songwriting load, but lead guitarist Sam Williams provides music to support Smalley's lyrics on three cuts and "DJG" is all Sam's. Bassist Angry John Dimambro cowrote "The Last Goodbye" with Smalley. The band was shopping for a new drummer at release time and the drums heard on the disc are uncredited, but the core trio are at top form. Sam Williams is one of the best young guitarists on the punk scene and Dimambro is rock solid as always. Dave Smalley's distinctive vocals and fine songs would stand out in any setting. There's an emphasis on social concerns in many of the songs here, with patented DBL anthems ranging from comments on the violence in American society to a call for British withdrawal from Ireland. Along with songs of social import, Down By Law continues to be one of the only punk bands on the planet that can deliver a convincing love song. Another stellar effort and a perfectly good reason to get out of your chair and head to the record store right now. Track List: USA Today * No Equalizer * Call To Arms * Guns Of '96 * Get Out * Burning Heart * Question Marks & Periods * Urban Napalm * D.J.G. * Concrete Times * No One Gets Away * The Last Goodby * Factory Day * The Cool Crowd * Self-Destruction FRANCK: Le Chasseur maudit; Les Eolides; Symphony in D Minor. Arnhem Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Roberto Benzi. NAXOS 8.553631 [DDD] 67:58 Reviewed by Robert Cummings This is the first volume in a projected series of all the orchestral music by Cesar Franck (1822-1890). It won't comprise many discs, since Franck was not particularly prolific in this realm--not prolific, but quite vital, nevertheless. The D Minor Symphony is the major work here, of course, and Benzi's reading of it is on the slow (but not lackluster) side. His tempos, and even to some extent his approach, are similar to the controversial studio performance from the 1950's by Furtwangler and the Vienna Philharmonic. The latter ensemble has an edge over this solid but less suave orchestra from Arnhem. If comparison between these two recordings continues, it must be noted that the Naxos sound reproduction is vastly superior to the good mono effort Decca's engineers afforded the iconic Furtwangler. Moreover, one also notices that the latter actually sounds slower in the first movement, in spite of his marginally faster tempos (18:03 vs. 18:37). True, Furtwangler effectively harnesses a profound grimness, but does so at the expense of energy and thrust, of color and flexibility. Benzi, on the other hand, shortchanges no aspects of the symphony's broad and colorful expressive palette to achieve his ends. On the whole he is a middle-of-the-roader, straddling emotional fences and steering clear of interpretive extremes, preferring clarity and straightforwardness to swashbuckling risk-taking. Perhaps he could be more imaginative and less earth-bound, but in the end you can't fault him for delivering a powerful and direct, if slightly heavy-handed, performance. The first movement comes across with plenty of muscle and darkness; the lyricism of the second sings, even if the tempo for the main theme could be a bit more animated; and the joie de vivre of the finale sparkles. The two symphonic poems are substantial bonuses here: again the playing and interpretations are solid. The string section of this Dutch orchestra, by the way, sounds quite impressive throughout the disc; and if I gave the impression above that the group as a whole is a second-string assemblage, let me dispel that notion now: they play with spirit and polish and are decidedly superior to many better-known orchestras. I look forward to more recordings from them. Good notes. In sum, a fine issue. HERBIE HANCOCK: Man-Child (Mobile Fidelity) Reviewed by Shaun Dale A steaming slice of essential funky fusion, Man-Child found Herbie Hancock in search of the sound and the players that would create the landmark fusion album Head Hunters. All of the Head Hunters players are on hand here--Hancock (keyboards), Bennie Maupin (sax), Paul Jackson (bass), Harvey Mason (drums) and Bill Summers (perc)--along with an all-star lineup ranging from Wayne Shorter to Stevie Wonder. The overwhelming success of Head Hunters has eclipsed Man-Child in the Hancock catalog, and this gold disc reissue from Mobile Fidelity is a welcome step in the direction of restoring this fine album to a proper place in the affections of jazz fans generally and fusion followers in particular. The revival of funk-based fusion is particularly welcome at this point in jazz development. With the "contemporary" jazz artists making an effort to incorporate funk and R&B elements in the jazz environment, it's worthwhile to be reminded that it has been done before, and very well indeed. There are lessons all over this disc for contemporary players, and great enjoyment for music lovers as well. Track List: Hang Up Your Hang Ups * Sun Touch * The Traitor * Bubbles * Steppin' In It * Heartbeat THE HENTCHMEN: Broad Appeal (Norton) Reviewed by Shaun Dale With each of the sixteen tracks on the new Hentchmen disc weighing in at about two minutes, this will be a half hour or so well spent for fans of garage rock sixties style. The trio (organ, drums, guitar) could use the services of a bass player with a strong voice if they ever wanted to break out of the indie garage ghetto, but they sound like they're having a lot of fun right where they're at. Mixing up original vocal and instro tunes with a couple well chosen covers, this could be taken for one of the spate of sixties garage reissues in the bins these days - high energy, mid-fi performances with that distinctive sound of a band recording live in the studio. There's nothing earthshaking here, just decent tunes played with joy and sincerity. Come to think of it, a little joyful sincerity can be pretty musically earthshaking these days. Worth finding for fans of sixties garage or just plain good times. Track List: Michigan Blues * Slow Down * Casmere And Campau * Chrissy Rides Again * Half Step Away * Exit 154 * Old Enough To Drive * Four Eyed Buick * Red Hot Car * Lookin' For A Girl * Shadow Play * Leaving The Highlands * My Catalina * Nothing To Say * Celibate Stroll * Lucille BILLIE HOLIDAY: Songs for Distinguished Lovers (Classic Records/Verve) Reviewed by Steve Marshall Ask any Billie Holiday fan to tell you what they consider to be her best material, and they'll most likely say it's the music she recorded for Verve. Producer extraordinaire, Norman Granz always surrounded her with the best players on the jazz scene at the time and this album was no exception. The immaculate sound quality doesn't hurt matters either. From the time your stylus settles into the groove on this vinyl pressing, you can tell you're in for a treat. Originally cut in January 1957, this album sounds like it was recorded yesterday. Surface noise is non-existent. The bass drum on "Day In, Day Out" is deep and tight, never muddy. Barney Kessel's aggressive guitar work on the track sounds warm and natural. When tenor sax legend Ben Webster's solo comes in, you'll swear he's right there in the room with you. Channel separation on "A Foggy Day" is outstanding. The solos from Kessel, and master pianist Jimmy Rowles, are firmly planted in the left channel. You won't hear a thing out of the right side until trumpet virtuoso Harry "Sweets" Edison comes in. Edison really stretches out on the classic "One for My Baby," and never sounded better. One of the album's best sounding tracks is "Just One of Those Things." The dynamic range on the entire album is superb, but it really stands out here. Kessel turns in another dazzling solo, as does Rowles. Like all vinyl pressings from Classic, the album features the original labels, and the edges of the album are rounded and smooth. If you're a fan of the great Lady Day, this album (also available on gold CD) is a must for your collection. HOLST: The Planets, Op. 22. Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Herbert von Karajan. Elgar: The Enigma Variations, Op. 36. London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Pierre Monteux. LONDON "The Classic Sound" Series 452 303-2 [ADD] 78:29 Reviewed by Robert Cummings Nostradamus, the 16th Century mystic and prophet, made many startling predictions, as most surely know--predictions that came true with astounding regularity, even though many were made centuries before the forecasted events occurred. One of his more esoteric and apocalyptic ones was that "in 1999 a king will come out of the sky and Mars will emerge the victor." Pretty scary stuff. Listening to Mars, The Bringer of War, the opening movement of The Planets, one hears a veritable musical Armageddon here. I have never heard such a savage performance of this music. Never. This recording, from 1961, often features playing that exudes wanton power and warlike character, voraciously intent upon gobbling up all obstacles in its sonic quest to register on some nearby Richter scale. But there is excitement aplenty in all this power, not decibel-laden bluster: details emerge cleanly; rhythms are emphatic and urgent; and dynamics and a sense of climax, critical elements here, are perfectly rendered. Venus is touching in its peaceful sadness; Mercury is fleet and deliciously diaphanous. The whole reading is incisive and enlightening in capturing the essence of each planet portrait. The recent Dutoit, also on London, is beautifully played and thoughtfully interpreted, though relatively tame compared with this one by Karajan, surely one of his finest recordings. As a footnote to my commentary about Nostradamus, I should mention that the reference to Mars in his prophecy most probably refers to the God of War, not to the planet. If that comes as a disappointment to the prophets of doom among you, cheer up: though we won't be crushed by Martians, fellow earthlings will do us in--if Nostradamus is correct! For all the aural and visceral excitement generated by Holst's most popular work, Elgar's The Enigma Variations comes across clearly as the greater, more profound piece. Some call it this British composer's greatest creation. That's saying a lot when one considers the high quality of the symphonies, concertos, The Dream of Gerontius and other works. But the assessment begs notice still: are there any other theme-and-variations orchestral works that surpass this masterpiece in sheer beauty and subtle construction? Brahms' Haydn Variations come to mind, but don't emerge the winner. For those who may not know what the "Enigma" in the title refers to here, let me say it pertains to a second or counter-theme in the piece--a theme which is never heard. If it is unheard, you ask, how can it be in the work? Well, that's part of the enigma; but bear in mind that it may be musically implied somewhere. Elgar revealed his secret to three people, all of whom took it with them to the grave. So we can only speculate about what the theme is. One theory is that since each variation describes a friend of Elgar (or love--his wife is depicted in the first), the second theme is a non-musical one, that of friendship. Who knows? What we do know for sure is that this 1958 reading is on the same artistic level as its decidedly quite different disc mate. Monteux, a Frenchman who was principal conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra from 1961 until his death in 1964, goes to the heart of this wonderful piece, capturing its British elegance, its sensual (and unVictorian) romance, its kinetic verve, and its buoyant color. Sir Adrian Boult and many others have made splendid recordings of this work, but Monteux's rendition can stand with the best. Good notes and quite vivid and detailed sound in both recordings, especially considering their age. As far as I'm concerned, in the reissue realm this is the most important disc of the year so far. Better purchase it before 1999! RAY WYLIE HUBBARD: Dangerous Spirits (Philo) Reviewed by Shaun Dale One of the finest songwriters to come out of the Texas progressive country scene, Ray Wylie Hubbard's best known song, "Up Against The Wall, Redneck Mother," is hardly his best. It's a fine song, and he's written other lighthearted honky tonk gems to accompany it, but singers in search of a song know that Hubbard's output is a country music motherlode. "Dangerous Spirits" yields 12 nuggets from the rich vein of Hubbard's songbook. Philo Records, part of the Rounder group, is in a position to give the disc distribution that has been a problem for a number of Hubbard's independent releases over the years. Here's hoping a lot of people hear this one. He taps a bit of everything here. Densely textured ballads, country gospel-flavored love songs, even a taste of the honky tonk humor of "Mother" on "Hey That's All Right." Hubbard delivers the song in a straight-forward style, backed by a mostly acoustic outfit and singing like a man who's seen enough to have something to write about. Ray Wylie Hubbard probably won't be knocking any of the popular hat singers off the charts with this one, but he's just likely to provide a song or two for them to chart with, and to inspire a bunch more. Believe me, you're almost always better off getting it straight from the source, and this is the straight stuff. Track List: Dangerous Spirits * If Heaven Is Not A Place To Go * Without Love (We're Just Wastin' Time) * Hey That's All Right * Last Train To Amsterdam * The Last Younger Son * Resurrection * Crimson Dragon Tattoo * The Sun Also Rises * The Ballad Of The Crimson Kings GREGORY ISAACS: Hold Tight (Heartbeat) Reviewed by Shaun Dale Although he's been one of reggae's most prolific voices for over twenty years, it's still a treat when a new set of tracks from Jamaica's "Cool Ruler" hits the shelves. "Hold Tight" offers thirteen slices of island soul, Isaacs style. Recorded in Jamaica and England with producers/players/vocalists Mafia (Leroy Heywood) and Fluxy (Dave Heywood) backing him every step of the way without intruding on the trademark reggae soul sound that has made Gregory Isaacs a major figure in the music for a long while, this is a non-stop delight. Few in reggae deliver a love lyric with the sweet conviction that Isaacs summons up, and that's the main focus here. While he's more than capable of laying down hard consciousness, "Hold Tight" is at its best when it's at its most personal. The way Isaacs sings about the feelings between lovers he shows that a love song can be very spiritually conscious indeed. Solid performances from a master of the form. Track List: Miss Cutie Cutie * Wah Dee * Hold Tight * Mi No Want * Tan So Back * Thank You Mr. Judge * Kill Them With Music * Lady On The Frontline * Come Make Love To Me * Get Deport * Don't Go * Motherless Children * I Miss You JETHRO TULL: Living In The Past (Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab) Reviewed by DJ Johnson If Living In The Past isn't deserving of the 24 karat gold CD treatment, what is? Essentially a "best of" that culled tunes from their first five albums and added a few interesting live tracks, it was so well programmed and so listenable that most people don't think of it as an anthology at all. It's respected and revered as an essential ingredient to any decent Tull collection. Originally a double LP, it was trimmed to fit a single CD, and in the process, two of Tull's most enduring tracks were scuttled. Who knows what the thinking was at Chrysalis when "Teacher" and "Bouree" hit the cutting room floor, but it's a moot point now; Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab has restored order. Even at the price of 41 dollars--low by gold double CD standards--this set won't be within every budget. But those who take the plunge will not be disappointed. MoFi has returned Living In The Past to its original length and restored the booklet as well. The Chrysalis CD's "booklet" was nothing more than two pages of small photographs. The original insert was filled with outstanding pictures and track-by-track player credits, all of which are present in the Mobile Fidelity package. The A/B comparison between the Chrysalis and Mobile Fidelity discs finds Mobile Fidelity the clear winner. In fact, this is the most shocking A/B I've experienced yet. I never had any illusions about the sound quality of the Chrysalis, but after this comparison I'm not quite sure how I ever forced myself to listen to the old version. It sounds lifeless and flat. The gold discs have punch and clarity, radically improved separation, and all the warmth it should have. Some tracks, like "Bouree" and "Driving Song" were warm to begin with, but even ice cold tracks like "Inside" are improved here. On nearly every track, Ian Anderson's flute has regained the extra dimension of breath, a wonderful component that was present on the LP but sadly missing from the original CD. There's only one thing to bitch about, and it needs to be said. Those of us who care enough about an album to shell out big bucks for a gold CD would very much appreciate re-release notes. As copious as possible, please, but if that's too much trouble, at least give us the essential information. We're curious creatures, and some of us like to know all the details. There's almost nothing in these liner notes that wasn't in the original LP booklet. We want to know what happened in the studio THIS time around. That being said, I have to say that I'm crazy about this release in every other way. In this case, the 24k gold treatment is much more than just an offering to audiophiles. It's like a star on the walk of fame or a jersey number on an outfield wall. It's a high honor for a masterpiece of rock and roll. STEPHEN KENT: Family Tree (City of Tribes) Reviewed by Shaun Dale This two disc set chronicles nearly a decade of Stephen Kent's explorations of the Australian Aboriginal didgeridoo, a wind instrument fashioned by nature (the traditional didgeridoo is a tree branch hollowed by termites) and capable of producing some of the most haunting sounds in the human musical vocabulary. Kent's recordings accompany this ancient sound with everything from middle eastern percussion to digital samples, and then some, to create sounds that range from trance to dance to solo didgeridoo work that will transport you to the Australian plains and into dreamtime. Disc One features solo work and tracks from Kent's projects; Trance Mission, Lights In A Fat City and Beasts Of Paradise are included, along with work featuring vocalist Eda Maxym. Disc Two is Kent solo, in a more traditional setting as he pays homage to the heavenly light show Hale-Bopp provided this year. This is an astonishing collection, demonstrating that the fine line between music that moves your bones and music that transports your senses can disappear at any moment under the impact of the right time, tone and player. These discs should appeal to fans of World Music, trance, psych or just about anyone who is willing to let sound shake them or soothe them. Track List: Disc 1: Energizer * Yekke * Head Light (Trance Mission) * Jungnawangra * Hole In The Road (w/Eda Maxym) * Zozobra (Trance Mission) * Veedeevu (Lights In A Fat City) * Red Rock (Beasts Of Paradise) * Toots Pts 1 & 2 Disc 2: Hale * Comet Allez Vouz? * Bopp LAJTHA: Symphonies: No. 3, Op. 45; No. 4 (Spring), Op. 52. Suite No. 2, Op. 38. Pecs Symphony Orchestra conducted by Nicolas Pasquet. MARCO POLO 8.223671 [DDD] 74:15 Reviewed by Robert Cummings Dmitri Shostakovich's Fifth Symphony's finale is said to be an example of forced jubilation, the bombastic ending supposedly representing the composer's reaction to the repressive Stalin regime's dictum that artists must celebrate and be happy in their works. The Fourth Symphony of Laszlo Lajtha (1892-1963) (pronounced Lye-tuh) is perhaps another such example, as evidenced especially in the finale and in the first half of the opening movement. In the early 1950's the Hungarian Communist government, at the behest of its Soviet bosses, began demanding that composers write less complex, more approachable and optimistic music. Lajtha must have felt the pressure, as he turned away from the grimness and dark emotions of the Third Symphony toward the buoyancy and folkish joy of the Fourth. It's not hard to speculate that this work was written to appease the Communist censors, since it came in a particularly depressing time in the composer's life, owing to his lack of a major position and ban on his travel abroad, a time when one might normally have expected doom-and-gloom music from his eager pen. The Fourth, forced joyous emotions or no, is a major work. While it may not quite rank with the greatest symphonies of the century, it is nonetheless thoroughly enjoyable and superior to the several lesser symphonies of Shostakovich, for example. Speaking of Shostakovich, the first movement of the "Spring" Symphony invokes that composer's Ninth and Fifteenth Symphonies, especially their lighthearted and colorful first movements. The Allegretto second movement sounds utterly Hungarian, featuring a theme similar to the alternate theme in the fourth movement of Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra. Both must have come from the same Hungarian folk source. The finale is joyous and jubilantly raucous. By the way, the Hungarian Communist cultural czars turned thumbs down on this work, hearing negative Western influences in it. Translation: despite its rather direct expressive language and folk-like character, it still sounded a bit too modern for their leftist-extremist, we're-looking-out-for-the-good-of-the-people ears. But Lajtha was lucky--he was never arrested for his imagined artistic sins, as were many other artists. The Third Symphony is derived from music Lajtha composed for the film version of T.S. Elliot's Murder in the Cathedral. The idiom here is darker, menacing, deeper than that of the Fourth. It opens with the most sinister-sounding clarinet solo I've ever heard. The music hardly lightens as the movement progresses, seeming the Hyde side of its older sibling. The second (and last) movement continues the generally grim mood, though greater color is present throughout, here and there invoking folk images, but hallucinatory folk images, in no way benign as in the succeeding symphony. Again, we have a work whose excellence begs greater notice. I'm not sure which of these two symphonies achieves a higher level of artistic expression. The "Spring" is more appealing, deftly joyous; the Third is darker, more profound. Both are indispensable to twentieth-century enthusiasts. The Suite No. 2 is based on Lajtha's unperformed ballet, The Grove of Four Gods. The music is light and enjoyable, making a fine filler here. The Pecs Symphony Orchestra performs splendidly under the knowing baton of Nicolas Pasquet, capturing the folk elements and drama with idiomatic rightness and impressive virtuosity. Marco Polo provides excellent sound and good notes. To those unfamiliar with the music of Lajtha, they will mostly be pleased by this disc. Strongly recommended. LA TRAVERSEE: Traditional songs from France, Celtic Brittany, Canada and Louisiana. Sandra Reid, vocals. LYRICHORD 7432 [DDD] 50:57 Reviewed by Robert Cummings Sandra Reid is an undeniably talented singer who has assembled music with a Francophile folkish slant for this disc. I'll hazard a guess that this issue won't hit the charts, not owing to any artistic or musical deficiency, mind you, but because its market appeal is fairly limited. If, like chant, this quaint idiom--mostly post-Renaissance folk songs from France, Celtic Brittany, Canada and Louisiana--got more exposure, it might take off like the proverbial rocket. I say "mostly post Renaissance" since a few songs are either of a more recent origin, Vive l'Amour (track 12), for instance, or appear in a decidedly modern-sounding arrangement. Almost every selection here is of some considerable appeal, not least because Reid has chosen to sing the texts in their original languages. An exotic melancholy permeates The Huron Carol (track 8) that lingers in the mind's ear long after its 5:20 duration has run. Ar Pilhaouer (track 2) has a delicious charm in its rhythmic lyrics and engaging accompaniment of the uillean pipes by Jerry Sullivan. In fact, the accompaniments often are almost as beguiling as the singing: try Blanche comme la niege (track 3), where Randy Crafton's bodhran spices the gloomy atmosphere with just the right dose of rhythmic color. But don't take that to mean that Reid isn't the star here. She is compelling in every piece, even in the more seemingly out-of-place items. Louisiana Suite (track 11) and Vive l'Amour (track 12) are two selections that stick out perhaps not quite like sore thumbs, but at least like dirty fingers, mainly because of their self-consciously contemporary sound. The latter song actually conjures up images of a smoke-filled café in 1950's Paris, replete with small jazz ensemble and pop singer in a gaudy red gown who strolls from table to table, crooning love sentiments to the woozy patrons. This is one of Reed's most effective and atmospheric performances. All in all, this collection points up this mezzo's formidable versatility. No doubt, she's a talent who could score many triumphs in different genres, probably including the operatic stage. Lyrichord offers intelligent notes and excellent sound. Strongly recommended. LIFE OF AGONY: Soul Searching Sun (Roadrunner) Reviewed by Jeff Apter 'My mind is dangerous,' Life of Agony frontman Keith Caputo warns on the track of the same name - so you know this is no place for wimps, OK? Deep, dark messages such as this recur throughout their third long-player, 'Soul Searching Sun'; the poetically-named 'Hemophiliac In Me' typifies their for-the-throat attack. Yet there's a surprisingly melodic side to this tumultuous and tormented foursome straight outta Brooklyn. Despite its theme (or maybe because of it), 'Heroin Dreams' is a slowburning rocker; the aforementioned 'My Mind Is Dangerous' is another cut that relies more on ambience than ampage to broadcast its 'life is tough, watch your back' message. Likewise 'Angry Tree', while 'Desire' takes a near-funky turn. Sure, in the main their sound is heavy enough to sink a ship, yet LOA are wise to the fact that melody and menace aren't necessarily oxymorons. When it needs to be, their playing is deft and guileful, and in keeping with the tradition of metal belters such as Coverdale and Dickinson, Caputo's vocals are soul-heavy. And if you're looking for bloodlines, comparisons to staunchly indie acts such as Fugazi and Sick Of It All would probably ease LOA's pain, just a little. LIONROCK: An Instinct For Detection (Time Bomb) Reviewed by DJ Johnson By the time track three was beginning, I was hooked on this double CD of trance-inducing ethereal grooves. It was clear there was something different about Lionrock, something that gave the music a sincerity not usually found in the genre. Turns out this ain't no computer programmer with a hobby. Lionrock is a band. Justin Robertson has made his bones in the British club scene, which is a whole 'nuther world than you might think it is. The popular theory among non-scenesters is that anybody with a few turntables and a mixer can be a star. El-wrong-o. The good ones can keep a dance floor full of clubbers happily gyrating, but the great ones can weave an atmosphere and drive the dancers like high-tech automobiles. Robertson is an artist in that world, and it turns out he's no slouch with conventional instruments, either. The Lionrock project has now grown into a rather unconventional band that has earned a rep as a fine live act. The key is that Robertson has been able to transport his sense of mystery and tension from the turntables to the arena of live performance. Disc one is new material, a 70 minute atmospheric time trip that runs parallel to a Sherlock Holmes adventure that we only visit in brief glimpses. Disc two contains 40 minutes of remixes of disc one tracks (including one by that busy duo, The Chemical Brothers) and a few of Lionrock's early singles. In the hands of remixers, much of the charm and warmth is banished in favor of techno flash, and for that reason I probably won't be flipping the tray in the single-width, 2-CD jewel box too often. I have very few bitches with this release. It might have been nice to see them go the rest of the way, though. The drums remain mostly or entirely machine generated (there are a few places where it's a tough call), and while that's most likely calculated to retain the flavor of techno and house, bands like Electric Groove Temple have shown it can be done very effectively with a living, breathing drummer. But I doubt Robertson and company are actively trying to make any particular point. This is about sensation and groove, about a long mind trip, and about twice as cool as anything I've heard like it in a long while. (Time Bomb Recordings: 219 Broadway - Suite 519, Laguna Beach, CA 92651.) LUNA: Pup Tent (Elektra) Reviewed by Shaun Dale Luna brought producer Pat McCarthy (Madonna, R.E.M., etc.) aboard for their fourth release, and credit him with pushing the edges of their moody pop toward new levels of textural complexity. Led by former Galaxie 500 frontman Dean Wareham, the foursome (Wareham, vocals & guitar; Justin Harwood, bass, keyboards, trumpet & guitar; Lee Wall, drums & percussion) are augmented by the sounds of mandolin, dobro, marimba, vibes, accordion, cello and "bits and bobs" to create layers of sound with an intriguing complexity that still retains a certain skeletal architecture that avoids any hint of "wall of sound" production. Wareham's lyrics are spare slices of life that are variously poignant, paranoid and perceptive. Sometimes all of the above. He uses his full vocal range and a variety of miking and mixing techniques to fit his vocal performances to the lyrics and to the guitar driven background of moody pop performances delivered by the band. This is thoughtful music for people who think. It's a peculiar sort of pop music that seems crafted with no particular regard for its popularity. The band continues it's dedication to providing what the songs require rather than what the market might desire. In the process, they've developed an audience of their own by staying on the scene long enough to be found. If you're among those who haven't found them yet, search this CD out. You might not like it. They might not care. But then again, this just might be what you've been waiting for all along. Track List: IHOP * Beautiful View * Pup Tent * Bobby Peru * Beggar's Blues * Tracy I Love You * Whispers * City Kitty * The Creeps * Fuzzy Wuzzy WARNE MARSH & LEE KONITZ: Live At The Montmartre Club (Mobile Fidelity) Reviewed by Shaun Dale Warne Marsh and Lee Konitz became acquainted and inexorably associated as the twin sax attack in Lennie Tristano's combo in the early 50s. With both well established as early masters of the cool style that Tristano, as much as anyone, exemplified, Konitz went on to play in a variety of styles and settings while Marsh spent time in and out of music, confining his musical activities to explorations of the cool style in its well established West Coast setting and occasional teaching gigs. This disc, recorded live in Copenhagen in 1975, was a reunion of sorts. Konitz traveled widely, but was based in New York, while Marsh rarely strayed from his Los Angeles home. The Danish Jazz Exchange made Marsh an offer he apparently couldn't refuse, however, and a series of dates was arranged for a Warne Marsh-Lee Konitz Quintet that included Dave Cliff on guitar, Peter Ind on bass and drummer Alan Levitt. The musical result was well worth whatever offer had been made. Marsh and Konitz picked up where they'd left off, playing everything from Tristano classics to Konitz originals to a pair of J.S. Bach's Two Voice Inventions. The unison playing they had trademarked over twenty years earlier still rang true as a bell and their individual solos were as creative and demanding as would be expected from two masters. Warne Marsh is sadly under-represented on CD, and this is an excellent opportunity to hear him in a nearly ideal setting, with his old bandmate Konitz and an outstanding rhythm section, playing live for an appreciative audience. Mobile Fidelity's Ultradisc II 24 karat gold format captures the music wonderfully and the label has done a better than average job of documenting the music with session notes and a 1993 essay on the disc from Alun Morgan. Track List: Kary's Trance * Foolin' Myself * Sound-Lee * Two Voice Invention No. 1 Allegro * Two Not One * Darn That Dream * 317 East 32nd Street * Two Voice Invention No. 13 Allegro Tranquillo * April * Everything Happens To Me Allegro MAYFIELD: Mayfield (Zerodisc) Reviewed by Shaun Dale Sure, it would be easy to trash this new project from former Tears For Fears founder Curt Smith. I mean, these days who's willing to admit that they *liked* Tears For Fears (obviously no one living bought all those albums...) and the "Curt is Mayfield" shtick could be considered pretty cheesy if you aren't willing to regard it as kind of funny. Still... The fact of the matter is that Curt Smith has had a hand in writing some of the most popular pop songs of the last couple decades because he's actually pretty good at it. And Curt *isn't* Mayfield. Mayfield is a very much a band effort, and it's a pretty damn good band. Along with Smith on vocals and bass there's Charlton Pettus on guitar (Pettus also shares writing credit with Smith, who has always been at his best as a collaborative writer), Doug Petty and Russ Irwin on keyboards and Shawn Pelton on drums. The combination punch on keyboards is a major ingredient in the big, sometimes almost orchestral, sound that supports Smith's big vocal approach. (The touring band will feature a replacement for Irwin who is now playing keyboards with Aerosmith. Rich Pegano, who is heard on "Reach Out", is the new full time drummer.) "What Are We Fighting For" is the hit, a soulful ballad that's largely representative of the feel of the disc. Anyone curious about Smith's sentiments regarding former Tears bandmate Roland Orzabal will have no doubts after hearing "Sun King," which Smith admits is an "incredibly base and angry" take on his longtime musical partner. The album is on Zerodisc, an indie label formed by Smith in order to insure that Mayfield had full control of their fate. With his mega- platinum history he could have no doubt tapped the bank account of the major label of his choice, so respect is due to the commitment reflected by going the indie route with the band. This is one worth repeated listening, and the more I hear it the more I like it. Is Curt Mayfield? Not exactly, but he's a big part of it and it sounds like a part he was born to play. Track List: What Are We Fighting For? * Sorry Town * Jasmine's Taste * Reach Out * Trees * Mother England * Snow Hill * I Don't Want To Be Around * Sun King * Gone Again DERRICK MORGAN: Time Marches On (Heartbeat) Reviewed by Shaun Dale Subtitled "sings Ska, Rocksteady and Reggae," this is an essential retrospective of one of the pioneer voices in Jamaican music. Derrick Morgan's recording career began in 1959 on Duke Reid's Treasure Isle label. By the next year, he was the acknowledged King of Ska, occupying the top seven spots on the Jamaican music charts at the same time. His 1966 hit, "Tougher Than Tough," is considered the first Rock Steady record. His career has continued to flourish as his music has adapted to the Reggae style. Today he is an honored elder statesman on the festival circuit. The twenty one cuts assembled here show Morgan in all three styles, accompanied by many other Jamaican legends. Lloyd Brevette & the Skatalites, Desmond and George Dekker, Ernest Ranglin, Earl "Chinna" Smith and many more have been part of the Morgan sound over the years. As a producer, Morgan has been an instrumental part of the sound of artists such as Jimmy Cliff, Bob Marley and Max Romeo. The cuts here cover a twenty seven year range from 1959 to 1996, showing solid development at each stage in an amazing career. This is a crucial collection, both historically and musically. Fittingly, Heartbeat has provided a booklet with a brief overview of Morgan's music and extensive track by track notes. This belongs in every serious collection of Jamaican music. Track List: The Ska Years: Time Marches On * Fatman * You're A Pest * I Wish I Were An Apple * Love Not To Brag * Lover Boy The Rock Steady Years: Do The Beng Beng * Father Killiam * Bad Luck On Me * Ain't That Crazy * Tears On My Pillow * Lagga Head * Stumbling Block * Conquering Ruler The Reggae Years: Top Of The Pop * What A Bam Bam * Searching So Long * Reggae Train * Rudies Don't Fear * I Shot The Deputy * Moon Hop (live) NATHAN & THE ZYDECO CHA CHAS: I'm A Zydeco Hog (Rounder) Reviewed by Shaun Dale From the opening notes of "Tante Rosa," it's clear that the sessions for Nathan Williams and his Zydeco Cha Chas sixth Rounder album tore the roof off of New Orleans Mid-City Bowling Lanes. That's right, bowling lanes. The Mid-City Rock n' Bowl nights provide a home for some of the best in zydeco and some of the best is what they got in this hot set from the Martinville, LA, based Cha Chas. Playing the piano accordion in the style of zydeco legend Clifton Chenier and backed by a rocking quintet, Nathan Williams, a native Creole speaker, plays in the authentic zydeco tradition without sacrificing a bit of the hard driving dance rhythms that the contemporary zydeco scene demands. His ability to play a crowd pleaser - whether a boogie, a blues or a bayou flavored polka - is evident in the enthusiastic reactions of the demanding Mid-City audience on hand for this live recording. "Take your shoes off," he exhorts the crowd, kicking off a rockin' "Tout Partout." You can do what you want with your shoes, but you'd best roll up the carpets before you put this one on. There's a bayou party on every track. Track List: Tante Rosa * Hey Bebe * Grand Prix (What A Price I Had To Pay) * Tout Partout * Josephine Ce Pas Ma Femme * Zydeco Hog * Slow Horses And Fast Women * Oh Yie Yie (Mon Couer Fais Mal) * El Sid O's Zydeco Boogaloo * Everything On The Hog * Stomp Down Zydeco * Why You Wanna Make Poor Cha Cha Cry? * You Got Me Baby Now You Don't * Zydeco Road NRBQ: You're Nice People You Are (Rounder) Reviewed by Shaun Dale Formed in 1967, they really aren't all that new anymore, and they don't play all that much R&B either, but the New Rhythm & Blues Quartet (NRBQ) continue to be one of the longest lasting and most crowd pleasing acts on the scene. They certainly *can* play R&B, along with about anything else they want. In fact, over the last 30 years, that's been one of their strongest suits - the ability to play damn near anything it takes to make an audience happy. It's pretty hard to think of a popular style they haven't successfully attacked over time. Another quality that has endeared them to crowds has been a stubborn reluctance to take themselves and their craft too seriously. There has always been a large portion of fun in the NRBQ recipe. That's certainly a major ingredient in their new release, You're Nice People You Are. You're Nice People... is a family record. It would be easy to categorize it as a children's record, but it would be a shame, 'cause there's plenty of enjoyment here for mom and dad, too. There's no instrumental compromise - the band plays with all the talent and energy you'd expect. The simplicity and humor that infect the songs have been a feature of NRBQ's music for decades (maybe for once they won't take critical knocks for their sometimes goofy good nature). Nope, this is a perfectly good NRBQ record that just happens to be full of songs that kids will love. Like the best of, say, Woody Guthrie's "children's" material, this is one you're just as likely to enjoy when they're all tucked away as when they're all over the house. But don't get to like it so much that you hide it from the kids. It's a family album, after all... Track List: You're Nice People You Are * Encyclopedia * Always Safety First * The Music Lesson * There's A Girl, There's A Boy * Next Stop Brattleboro * Spider * Keep Lookin' For Tumbleweeds, Danny * It's St. Patrick's Day * We're Walking * Plenty Of Somethin' * You're Nice People You Are (Repise) * Sleep THE PENETRATORS: Hit The Jet Stream With... (Continental Records) Reviewed by DJ Johnson I love this spy thing. The Penetrators, a quartet of surf slingin' super spies from Bama, have made a 7" EP that is a blast to listen to, not just because of the quality tunes, but also because of the theme. Imagine, if you will, our four heroes from the Southern Surf Syndicate as they wing toward Moscow aboard their private jet. Pilot Buck Bangalore's voice breaks in between tracks to give the boys progress reports, mission briefings, emergency instructions, and sightseeing tips while the beautiful flight attendants, Midge Keebler and Pepper Burns, serve martinis and side arms. There's adventure and danger when Bangalore hastily and nervously announces that "there's folks here running around with automatic weapons, some of them are shooting, so what we're gonna try to do here is get into the air as soon as possible." My kind of pilot! All of this is great fun, but what about the music? It's the freakin' Penetrators! What do you THINK the music is like? Four wet, wetter, and thoroughly drenched spy/surf tunes that'll have you moving your feet as you go for your gun. Great stuff, this. Some traditionalists will bitch about the "gimmicky" aspect of this platter, but as Buck Bangalore says, "sit down, shut up and enjoy the flight." (Send $3.75 US post-paid to Continental Records: PO Box 4336 Bellingham, WA 98227-4336. This is the first release on the official label of Continental Magazine. Check out their website at http://www.az.com/~sberry.) ART PEPPER: Intensity (DCC) Reviewed by Shaun Dale By 1963, when Contemporary Records released these sides, recorded in 1960, Art Pepper was in San Quentin, serving a 15 year sentence stemming from his heroin addiction. In the original liner notes, he was referred to in the past tense. Indeed, he wouldn't re-enter a recording studio until 1975, though he was in and out of prison enough to allow for some brief gigs in the 1960s. One can only wonder what might have developed during that lost decade and a half. Certainly "Intensity" shows an artist on a precipice, ready to step into uncharted musical territory. A well established figure on the West Coast jazz scene, Pepper was becoming increasingly influenced by the playing of John Coltrane and intrigued by the possibilities opening up in the playing of "free" artists like Ornette Coleman. The seven tracks that were released in 1963 are, on the surface, a conventional collection of standards, and much of the playing is in the more or less conventional mold, to the degree that Pepper was ever conventional (closely associated with the West Coast, or "cool" jazz scene, he was always one of the more energetic and emotional players in that school). At some point on each cut, though, Pepper would break a rule somehow, taking a liberty with his alto horn that defied logic and made perfect sense. Ably backed by Jimmy Bond on bass, drummer Frank Butler and the relatively little known and greatly underappreciated piano of Dolo Coker, Art Pepper closed the first chapter of his career with a brilliant album, full of adventure, packed with promise. Included on the CD release is "Five Points," a Pepper original which richly deserves its spot in the set. Unconstrained by whatever loyalties he had to the composers of the seven standards that accompany it, he stretches out, exploring multiple registers and challenging the rhythm section every step of the way. Art Pepper would return to recording in 1975 and take his well deserved place as a senior statesman of jazz until his death at 57 in 1982. By the end, he had defeated some of his demons and gained some of the recognition he was due. Those past tense references in 1963 proved to be thankfully premature. We'll never know what was lost, though, in those missing years. Thankfully, with this audiophile release, using DCC's 24 karat gold disc format to reveal every note and nuance of the music, we know what we had. As always, the DCC package sets a high standard, including the original art, notes and labels as well as a biography of Contemporary Records (and Good Time Jazz) founder Lester Koenig by his son and successor John. This is a technically excellent release of a historically important document of brilliant music. Needless to say, I recommend it without reservation. (To reach DCC, call 1-800-301-MUSIC) Track List: I Can't Believe That I'm In Love With You * I Love You * Come Rain Or Come Shine * Long Ago (And Far Away) * Gone With The Wind * I Wished On The Moon * Too Close For Comfort * Five Points (bonus track) PIE: "gone" (Bigtop/Kimchee) Reviewed by Shaun Dale "gone" is a tasty little 5 slice EP whipped up by a Boston based trio who combine with pure thrash, a bit of Neil Youngish dino- balladry and a giant guitar sound to fill an alternative crust. There's a lot packed into 25 minutes here - enough to make you wish there was another slice when it's all over...or two...or six. Hopefully the response to the five tracks here will inspire a full length release in the near future. These guys are players, and if they have a few more songs as interesting as these I'd like to hear them. This one's worth looking for. If you can't find it where you live, try writing Big Top Records at 995 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA 02319. Track List: Our History * My Germs Shirt * Swarthmore * Smashed Your Dreams * Her Gleam COZY POWELL: The Best of Cozy Powell (Polydor) Reviewed by Steve Marshall Cozy Powell is probably best known for his consummate drumming with the Jeff Beck Group in the early 70's. In 1975, he joined forces with Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow on the Rainbow Rising album. After a five-year stint in Rainbow, he assumed the difficult task of filling in for Carl Palmer in ELP (enabling the group to keep the same acronym) while Palmer was in Asia. The thing that most people don't know is that he produced three solo albums of instrumental jazz-rock. This CD is a compilation of those three albums. Powell's albums, while concentrating on drums, always featured great lineups of musicians. Jeff Beck, Gary Moore, David Sancious, Jack Bruce and Max Middleton are just a few of the names appearing on this CD. The synths on "Killer" sound dated when you hear them now, but the guitar and bass riffs produced by Moore and Bruce speak for themselves. "Sweet Poison" was one of the highlights on his first (and best) album, Over the Top, and is included here. "The Loner" could have easily fit in on any one of Jeff Beck's 70's albums. Most of the cuts from the other two albums, Tilt and Octopuss, are good too. "Cat Moves" features Beck himself on guitar. "The Blister" sounds like "Killer" part two--basically the same melody, only faster. On the Octopuss album, Powell started experimenting with an orchestra, but the results sounded like little more than a movie score. "Dartmoore" is a blues workout for Gary Moore, and another highlight on the CD. The Best of Cozy Powell marks the US debut of this material on CD, and takes a comprehensive look at the solo career of one of rock's best drummers. If you're a fan of Jeff Beck's Wired, Blow by Blow, and There and Back albums, don't miss this CD. ELVIS PRESLEY: 24 Karat Hits! (DCC) Reviewed by Shaun Dale Elvis Presley's discography offers nearly 800 individual songs, all of which I'm certain you can find on one of the innumerable re-issues and re-packagings out there. If you can settle for just twenty four of those songs, these are the twenty four to get. Even if you've got them, and then some, this is the release you want. As far as the music is concerned, a glimpse at the track list will tell the tale. From "Heartbreak Hotel" to "Suspicious Minds," every track is indeed a 24 karat gold hit. As far as the release is concerned, these 24 karat hits deserve nothing less than DCC's 24 karat gold compact disc format. As much as Elvis Presley was the king of rock n' roll, DCC's Steve Hoffman is the king of remastering classic recordings for compact disc. The sound on this disc is simply impeccable. This *is* the way you want to hear Elvis, Bill Black, Scotty Moore, D.J. Fontana, Chet Atkins, Floyd Kramer, the Jordanaires and all the others who contributed to the Presley sound. It is revelatory to hear this music, which made it's mark through AM radio speakers and low-fi 45s, in this format. As always, the DCC package is outstanding. An original compilation, it's put together in a style undistinguishable from an vintage RCA original. Included are recording notes from Presley engineer Bill Porter along with logs of the A&R supervisors, studio locations, musicians and engineers that were used for the cuts. Hard core Elvis fans will get this to complete their collections, of course, but anyone with a passing interest in rock history or an appreciation of good music will want it. Elvis was the king. The jewel box that holds this disc is the finest castle he ever lived in. (To reach DCC, call 1-800-301-MUSIC) Track List: Heartbreak Hotel * Love Me * Don't Be Cruel * Hound Dog * Love Me Tender * All Shook Up * (Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear * Jailhouse Rock * Wear My Ring Around Your Neck * A Big Hunk O' Love * Stuck On You * It's Now Or Never * Are You Lonesome Tonight? * Surrender * (Marie's The Name) His Latest Flame * Little Sister * Can't Help Falling In Love * Good Luck Charm * She's Not You * Return To Sender * (You're The) Devil In Disguise * Crying In The Chapel * In The Ghetto * Suspicious Minds RADIO TARIFA: Rumba Argelina (World Circuit/Nonesuch) Reviewed by DJ Johnson This remarkable album was recorded in 1993, but it's just now getting wide distribution through World Circuit. The band is from the southern tip of Spain, but the music reaches across the strait to Africa, blending the various influences into a whole new creation of sound. The performances are sometimes simple and beautiful, sometimes technically dazzling and brilliant. Geraldo Nunez's Spanish guitar work in "Tangos del Agujero" is out of this world, and Fain S. Duenas performs pure magic on several instruments, including buzuki, tar, cumbus, guitar, derbuka, and tabla. Duenas also wrote most of the songs, using traditional lyrics for many of them. The liner notes include English translations of the lyrics, and these should keep you entertained for a while. The imagery isn't what I expected from this dramatic music; there's a song about "naughty flies" that bite "under the apron." Hmmm. Me personally, I found it much more enjoyable to put the booklet down and remain ignorant of the lyrics, opting instead to let this exotic hybrid of Spanish and African music wash over me. It's an experience well worth having. RAINBOW: The Very Best of Rainbow (Polydor) Reviewed by Steve Marshall Ritchie Blackmore has never been known for his congeniality. From the early Deep Purple days, to Rainbow, back to Deep Purple, and then back to Rainbow again, Blackmore has kicked more people out of his bands than just about anyone in the history of music. Rainbow was probably the worst in that respect. In nine years, seventeen people (besides Blackmore) were in various stages of the group. The band's first three studio albums provided the best material. Highlights from these albums were all over the radio. "Man on the Silver Mountain" and "Long Live Rock 'n' Roll" were FM mainstays. The best thing about these albums was the progressive edge. They weren't just 'classic rock;' the music had substance. Songs like "Stargazer" and "Gates Of Babylon" show this more exciting and dramatic side of the band. Then, the music changed. Vocalist Ronnie James Dio left the band. They began recording material that was more commercial. Fans of the band's progressive music soon lost interest. It was good news for Rainbow though, as the change in material translated into bigger record sales. All of the band's hits from the 80's are here--"Since You Been Gone," "Stone Cold" and "Street of Dreams"--plus the lesser hits like "Jealous Lover" and "I Surrender." The liner notes come as a poster-style booklet, including a new 'family tree' for the band. The Very Best of Rainbow is a good retrospective of the band's career, although it is a bit light on the early material. TRACK LIST: Man on the Silver Mountain * Catch the Rainbow * Starstruck * Stargazer * Kill the King * Long Live Rock 'n' Roll * Gates of Babylon * Since You Been Gone * All Night Long * I Surrender * Can't Happen Here * Jealous Lover * Stone Cold * Power * Can't Let You Go * Street of Dreams REAL LULU: We Love Nick (Big Beef Records) Reviewed by Shaun Dale Real Lulu is Kattie Dougherty (guitar, vocals), Sharon Gavlick (bass, vocals) and Gregg Spence (drums), though Spence only appears on seven of the fourteen cuts on this CD, with five other drummers mounting the throne for a cut or two apiece. There's also reference to yet another drummer who has done live work with the band. I can only assume that Dayton, Ohio is in the running for drum capitol of the known universe. Dougherty is the principal songwriter, though Gavlick contributes 4 & 1/2 tunes to the mix ("Hell" is co-written by the pair, and produced by Kim Deal, the only departure from the self production - with Andy Valeri -of the remaining cuts). Maybe Kattie and Sharon use so many drummers because they just flat wear them out. They produce some pretty serious two piece thrash between them and use a big drum sound to round it out. The most distinctive features of the sound are their vocal harmonies, which can approach actual harmonized screaming in spots, balanced with a poppy, well, almost sweetness in other places. They're also capable of delivering some tasty instro, though, as demonstrated in the first half of Gavlick's "Throwing God Out With The Bathwater/Nightly." Overall, this is a juicy slab of Midwestern madness, with a fittingly big sound for the Big Beef label. If you happen to be near Dayton, or have reason to pass through, I encourage you to keep an eye open for Real Lulu - they sound like a hell of a club band. (Big Beef Records PO Box 303 WBB, Dayton, OH 45409) Track List: Let Me * You * Pushed * Smokin You Away * Always Never (The Married Song) * Time * Hell * Throwing God Out With The Bathwater/ Nightly) * Mary's Cry * Little Leaver * I Mind * Coal Black Hair * Bobcat STEVE ROACH: On This Planet (Fathom Records) Reviewed by coLeSLAw For those who think of ambient music as a vast, empty wasteland of non-noise, I present Steve Roach. A full "the-way-every-CD-should-be" 73 minutes of music explode at you from the very opening, and just keeps on going. Like a sonic big bang, lasting an eternity, pulsating ever outward in a force stronger than anything we know, but moving in a way that cannot be measured. This sound is rich, dense, and full of life. Rolling through percussive hills into washed out valleys of undefinable noise, it is a landscape piece that seems as alien as it does familiar. On This Planet is a ten song collection of the best of Roach's live performances over the last year. These were not pieces chosen by some marketing stiff sitting in a badly lit room puffing on Newports writing liner notes from a legal pad that was penned by someone who has never heard the album, but merely wrote what sounded good from what they were told the album sounded like from someone who is really into pop music. These are the tracks that made Steve musically "wet". In the liner notes he encourages the listener to listen to these songs at a volume approximating that which he recorded them at. I love my computer speakers, they are very good computer speakers, but I do not think this is a possibility. If it matters, I did my best. I am rumbling the white- trash neighborhood I reside in into new levels of musical awareness (whether they like it or not). Having done so, I can now offer my own recommendation, or "amendment" perhaps would be more suitable, to Steve's request. Yes, turn this album up loud, as loud as it will go without causing that yukky over- driving sound that means your speakers are in their final death throes. But turn it up, close your eyes and picture Steve up there on stage, looking like a cross between a one-man NASA mission control booth and a dark wizard calling forth the fiery dragon that lives under the smoking mountain. Ignore the track names and times, they become unimportant, as he has weaved these pieces into one solid yet flowing mass of orgasmic vibration. Do this all at night, with incense, with candles, with what- ever turns your crank, but don't say that you weren't warned...... .....you might not ever come back. ROLLING STONES: Bridges To Babylon (Virgin) Reviewed by Shaun Dale This is the best Rolling Stones album since 1978's Some Girls. Maybe better than that. Maybe the best since 1972's Exile On Main Street. I'll stop there. No way I'm gonna say this one's better than Exile. Wouldn't be prudent. Nah gawna doot. Nope. But if you've been listening to the Rolling Stones for the last twenty years and wondering what all the fuss was about, this is the answer. I don't know if it's because producer Don Was knew exactly what I wanted a new Rolling Stones album to sound like, or whether it's because Mick and Keith have apparently been sandbagging some of their best songs since "Sticky Fingers," or whether...well, I don't know what it is, but the songs *are* great, it *does* sound exactly like what I wanted a new Stones album to sound like and the band is in exceptional form. Bluesy ballads, scorching rockers, butt-bumping funk, a couple fine vocal performances by Keith Richards, 13 new songs altogether - this, gentle reader, is the real deal. But you won't believe me. I know, I know. "The World's Greatest Rock And Roll Band" is on the cusp of becoming "The World's Greatest Rocking Chair Band." Well, maybe. But not yet. I don't know if they have two good albums left in 'em, but they sure had one great one. And this is it. Have I made myself perfectly clear? I know it's only rock and roll, but I like it. Track List: Flip The Switch * Anybody Seen My Baby? * Low Down * Already Over Me * Gunface * You Don't Have To Mean It * Out Of Control * Saint Of Me * Might As Well Get Juiced * Always Suffering * Too Tight * Thief In The Night * How Can I Stop TODD RUNDGREN: With a Twist (Guardian) Reviewed by Steve Marshall Imagine this… You walk into a grocery store. You hear the usual 'grocery store music.' This time, though, it sounds slightly familiar. Suddenly, you recognize the lyrics of one of your favorite Todd tunes. You stop for a minute and ask yourself--"who in the hell is butchering this song?" Then you recognize the singer - it's Todd, butchering his own song! You ask yourself why, but all you can do is shake your head in disbelief. How can he do this to his own song? Normally, Rundgren is always on the cutting edge of music. This time, though, he's been sucked into believing that people really want to hear lounge versions of some of his biggest hits (and a few misses too). It just doesn't work. Two of the songs--"Never Never Land" and "A Dream Goes On Forever"--actually sound pretty good. However, aside from those, it's all you can do to keep from hitting the eject button. For completists only. OUMOU SANGARE: Worotan (World Circuit) Reviewed by Shaun Dale Oumo Sangare is a young woman from Mali who composes and sings songs which blend traditional styles with lyrics that contradict the traditions of her culture and blend African and European instrumentation beautifully and seamlessly. Most of her material is topical, and the translations of the lyrics reflect her rejection of patriarchal conditions of oppression that women in her society face. Without the translation, the chant, call and response, choral and other vocal styles she utilizes reflect the deep sources of African American gospel. Not knowing what she is saying, it would be easy to hear the echoes of a Holiness Pentecostal choir singing in tongues. It would be nearly as easy to hear Ella caught up in ecstatic scat. She is accompanied on several cuts by a jazz horn section (Pee Wee Ellis, tenor; Winston Rollins, trombone; Graeme Hamilton, trumpet) along with the African ensemble which joined her in a British studio. As is so often the case, the guitar work, here provided by Baba Salah and Boubacar Diallo, leaves me feeling that Africa is the greatest hotbed of guitar outside of Nashville. Those Mali cats play wild as mountain dew... An expressive voice, an impressive instrumental unit and songs that can hold interest on several levels add up to an altogether fascinating and satisfying contribution to the world music scene. With the Warner Music Group providing distribution, this shouldn't be too hard to find. It's too good to miss. Track List: Kun Fe Ko * N'Guatu * Baba * Worotan * Denw * N'Diya Ni * Tiebaw * Sabu * Fantan Ni Mone * Djorolen SISTER 7: This the Trip (Arista Austin) Reviewed by Steve Marshall This is one of the coolest CD's I've heard all year. Sister 7 has come up with a winning combination of rock, blues, R&B, funk and hip-hop to create a unique, irresistible sound on their third album, This the Trip. The band consists of Patrice Pike on lead vocals, Wayne Sutton on vocals and guitar, Darrell Phillips on vocals and bass, and Sean Phillips on drums. The CD starts with the title track--a sexually charged, funk-based tune that begs you to take notice. Pike's stark vocals on this tune are reminiscent of Ani DiFranco. "Bottle Rocket" starts off with an R&B groove, then cuts loose with a hard-rocking bluesy chorus a la Sass Jordan. . "Nobody's Home" is a great song, with a killer hook on the chorus. "Say Goodbye" is another highlight. The track features a Zeppelin-inspired main riff, then slips into an R&B groove to deliver the one-two punch. "Flesh and Bones" is probably the worst song on the disc, and even that isn't bad. "Perfect" has an interesting chord progression on the chorus that catches your attention on the first listen. The hip-hop elements and unusual guitar work on "Shelter" form the foundation for yet another very cool tune. The last tune on This the Trip is a hidden track called "Out of My Hands" (only available on the CD). If you haven't heard this band yet, call your local radio station and tell them to play it. If they won't play it, tell them you're going to listen to another station. This the Trip is a killer new CD that deserves to be heard. Don't miss it. SOMETHIN' FOR THE PEOPLE: This Time It's Personal (Warner Bros.) Reviewed by Shaun Dale On first listen, Somethin' For The People's blend of hip-hop inflected rhythms and soulful vocal stylings brought to mind R&B revivalists like their Warner Brothers labelmate Eric Benet. Looking at the notes, I wasn't the least bit surprised (and more than a little bit pleased) to find none other than Mr. Benet himself making a guest appearance on "Act Like You Want It." As befits an album by a group whose initial impact came as a successful production team for artists like Brandy and En Vogue, there are guests aplenty on hand. Trina & Tamara join the SFP trio on "Somebody's Always Talkin'" and "My Love Is The Shhh!." "...Shhh!" is, of course, the first single, which was climbing the R&B charts ahead of the full CD release (and no doubt will soon be crossing over to a chart near you). Puff Johnson joins in on "Feel So Good" and DJ Kool joins SFP in declaring inter-coastal hip-hop peace on "I Got Love." While each of the guests makes a memorable contribution, it's the steady beats, soaring voices and ringing harmonies of Sauce, Fuzzy and Cat Daddy that make this a standout CD, and a standout it is. Romance, positivity and artistry wrapped up in danceable mid-tempo rhythms, this one will help you help someone keep warm on those long winter nights ahead of us... Track List: This Time It's Personal (Intro) * All I Do * Days Like This * My Love Is The Shhh! (w/Trina & Tamara) * Take It Or Leave It * Act Like You Want It (w/Eric Benet) * Feel So Good (w/Puff Johnson) * What In The World? * Somebody's Always Talkin' (w/Trina & Tamara) * I Got Love (w/DJ Kool) * She's Always In My Hair * I Don't Get Down Like That * Playin' The Field * SOUNDTRACK: A Smile Like Yours (Electra) Reviewed by Shaun Dale From the look of the stills that are included in the CD booklet and cover, "A Smile Like Yours" promises to be a humorous and heartwarming flick about a cute couple and their baby. I'll let you decide how intriguing that might sound... Perhaps you'll be more intrigued after a glance at the soundtrack. Once past the title cut, featuring Natalie Cole doing what Natalie Cole does, we're treated to a tasty mix of soul classics and a couple new tracks in the soul classic style. With artists like the Supremes (Where Did Our Love Go), Ike & Tina Turner (I Heard It Through The Grapevine), James Brown (I Got You) and Marvin Gaye (Too Busy Thinking About My Baby) on hand, it goes without saying that you'll find plenty of good music here. The too frequent problem with discs like this is the presence of filler material that distracts from the classic selections. In addition to the Cole title cut, there are two new performances tucked amidst the vintage R&B. Martha Davis and Ivan Neville contribute a version of "Baby, You've Got What It Takes" which is right in the vintage R&B mold. Kirby Coleman, Dooney Jones and Bilal Muslim update "Love Will Keep Us Together." You can judge the song for yourself, but my guess is you won't miss the Captain & Tenille a bit. All in all a nice collection of songs and performances, this is worth getting ahold of if there are gaps in your collection or if you happen to catch the flick and fall in love with it. Listening to "A Smile Like Yours" put a smile on my face. Track List: Natalie Cole/A Smile Like Yours * Martha Davis & Ivan Neville/Baby, You've Got What It Takes * The Supremes/Where Did Our Love Go * Ike & Tina Turner/I Heard It Through The Grapevine * James Brown/I Got You (I Feel Good) * The Temptations/My Girl * Marvin Gaye/Too Busy Thinking About My Baby * Kirby Coleman, Dooney Jones & Bilal Muslim/Love Will Keep Us Together * Four Tops/Ain't No Woman (Like The One I Got) * Santo & Johnny/Sleep Walk * Stevie Wonder/Isn't She Lovely SOUNDTRACK: Your Cheatin' Heart (Rhino) Reviewed by Shaun Dale "Your Cheatin' Heart" is classic example of a soundtrack which outshines the motion picture it was created to accompany. The 1964 movie, which was a staple of the southern drive-in circuit in its day, was chiefly notable for the vocal performances of 15 year old Hank Williams, Jr., lip-synched by George Hamilton in the largely fictionalized account of his fabled father's career. That's right, 15 year old Hank Williams, Jr. Groomed by his mother, Audrey, to fill his father's boots since early childhood, by 1964 young Hank could sing Dad's music with a strength and maturity that belied his youth. That ability was enough to rescue many of the tracks from the updated "countrypolitan" arrangements created for the movie. Recorded with instrumentation that Hank, Sr. would never have been allowed to bring to the 'Opry stage and staged to fit a story line that was just a story, one shudders to thing of what might have occurred if the producers' plan to have Hamilton sing the material himself had prevailed. Of course, it might have turned out fine, anyway. These are some of the finest songs in the country repertoire. It's hard to believe that some of this material is nearly a half a century old by now. "Jambalaya," "Cold Cold Heart," "Hey Good Lookin'," "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" and, of course, the title track, are songs every aspiring country singer is honor bound to learn. The movie performances of these, and several other Williams classics, are, in fact, among the better examples of the hundreds of versions available of each song. Even if the soundtrack cuts (including three ("Kaw-liga," "You Win Again," "Ramblin' Man") which ended up on the cutting room floor and are restored here) were awful (and they aren't) this disc would belong in the collection of any Williams fan. In addition to the soundtrack material, there are eleven cuts from the three track demo masters that Audrey Williams had Hank, Jr. cut to support her campaign to use the youngster as the official soundtrack voice. Cut with acoustic backup, often with just Bocephus on guitar, these come closer in spirit and sound to his father's original sound and style than anything on the soundtrack itself. These are the cuts which make the singer's youth the most startling - he sings "Cold Cold Heart" like a man who's heart has been broken more times a year for more years than he'd been alive and "Ramblin' Man" like he'd been on the road for twice as long as that. These demos, released here for the first time, are worth the price of admission to "Your Cheatin' Heart." More than that, they make this one essential for fans of two generations of Hanks. Track List: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack: Your Cheatin' Heart * Long Gone Lonesome Blues * I Saw The Light * I Can't Help It (If I'm Still In Love With You) * Jambalaya (On The Bayou) (w/saxophone) * Cold Cold Heart * Jambalaya (On The Bayou) (w/electric guitar) * Hey Good Lookin'(w/ saxophone) * Hey Good Lookin' (w/electric guitar) * I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry * Kaw-liga * You Win Again * Ramblin' Man Acoustic Demo Versions: I Saw The Light * Jambalaya (On The Bayou) * I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry * Long Gone Lonesome Blues * Cold Cold Heart * You Win Again * There'll Be No Teardrops Tonight * I Saw The Light * I Can't Help It (If I'm Still In Love With You) * Ramblin' Man STEEL PULSE: Rage And Fury (Mesa/Atlantic) Reviewed by DJ Johnson Once upon a time, Steel Pulse was considered the future of reggae music and was the favorite of one Bob Marley. They were incredible and in a category all their own. Somewhere along the way, they decided poverty sucked and changed their sound into something that, while not as limp as UB-40, wasn't exactly thrilling, either. A few years back they released an album called Vex, a return to their roots, featuring deep bass, dreamy grooves and cerebral atmospherics. This, of course, was greeted as extremely good news. Rage And Fury finds Steel Pulse seeking a middle ground between commercial production values and roots reggae. The grooves are still deep and the feeling is still serious and conscious, but there's a thin layer of sonic gauze smoothing it out, presumably to make it more palatable for the masses. Luckily, it doesn't detract from the power of the music, and in places it actually adds to the headiness. The songs are among the best Steel Pulse on record, covering everything from the decay of Babylon to the sickness of the Klu Klux Klan to the senseless violence of the dancehall gunmen. Oh, and amidst all this seriousness, a beautiful, rich cover of "Brown Eyed Girl" that Van Morrison could appreciate. To insure commercial success, several big names have cameo DJ spots, including Mega Banton, Junkie Ranks, Michael Franti, Diana King, and the wonderful Prezident Brown. There are a number of guest-heavy albums on the market that don't have one tenth of the reggae power of Rage And Fury. One can only hope that the strategy works and this becomes the model of what can be achieved artistically without sacrificing the bottom line. STELLAMARA: Star Of The Sea (City Of Tribes) Reviewed by Shaun Dale Combining elements ancient and new, Stellamara's new City Of Tribes release is a sonic voyage through musical time and mental space. Or mental time and musical space. Or something. Something astonishing. Principals Sonja Drakulich and Jeffery Stott bring artistic and academic backgrounds in everything from Bulgarian choral singing to the Gnawan trance rhythms of Morocco to the table and serve up a feast of exotic instrumentation, haunting vocals and rhythmic melodies that seem to tap a deep well of subconscious familiarity by blending traditions into a surprisingly contemporary sound. Joined by Gary Haggarty on violin and viola, Susu Pampanin on darbukas and riqq, Marika Hughes on cello and Micheal Emenau on bells, gongs and electronic samples, Drakulich and Stott round out the instrumental accompaniment with bendir, zills, oud, darbuka, hammered dulcimer and guitar. Drakulich pulls lyrics from 13th century Galacia, 15th Century Spain, Persia, Croatia and from deep within her own musical experience and inspiration. The music thus produced defies simple description. This is one to hear with ears and mind open. Given the opportunity, Stellamara will transport you to a place outside of time through the medium of perfect timing. This is world music for another world - one well worth a visit. Track List: Maris * Kereshme * Zephyrus * Taqsim * Del Mar Rojo * Immrama * Leda * Karuna * Oj Jabuko MIKE STERN: Give And Take (Atlantic) Reviewed by Shaun Dale Give And Take, his eighth Atlantic release as a leader, finds Mike Stern continuing to cleave to the jazz tradition while stretching its definition with masterful guitar work and moving compositions. Since his late seventies stint with Blood, Sweat & Tears, Stern has played with a variety of luminaries including Billy Cobham, the Brecker Brothers and Miles Davis' early eighties "comeback" band. Along the way he's come to be identified as a bebopper with a rock n' roll heart, and that's the mode you'll find him in on "Give and Take." Accompanied on every track by bassist John Patitucci and in various spots by Jack DeJohnette (drums), Don Alias (percussion), Michael Brecker (tenor), David Sanborn (alto) and Gil Goldstein (piano), Stern turns in a solid set of seven original tunes and four covers, ranging from the Cole Porter standard "I Love You" to Jimi Hendrix's "Who Knows." Capable of maintaining an astonishing fluidity of line even at breakneck speed, there's far more than flash here, though there is some flash for those that need some. There's a blend of passion and skill that a good many players could take a lesson from, and a willingness to stretch and risk that is the hallmark of great jazz. A good example of that is found on "Giant Steps." With Brecker and Sanborn on hand, the obvious thing to do is to share the demands of the Coltrane classic with a sax player. The risky - indeed, the *jazz* - thing to do is to take on one of the world's most famous saxophone solos with no saxophone at all. Stern handles the challenge so skillfully that it's hard to remember that this wasn't written as a guitar part. On his original compositions, Stern is more than willing to share the spotlight, with Brecker offering intriguing solos in several places and Sanborn making an impressive contribution to "That's What You Think." A hero in Europe and a regular on the NYC jazz club scene, Mike Stern is overdue for some major attention from stateside audiences. Give And Take offers plenty to pay attention to. Track List: I Love You * Hook Up * Everything Changes * One Liners * Jones Street * Lumpy * Rooms * That's What You Think * Giant Steps * Who Knows * Oleo TEXAS: White on Blonde (Mercury) Reviewed by Steve Marshall It's been four years since the last Texas album here in the US. They have been huge in Europe for years, but never got the break here that they needed. They released their debut album, Southside, back in 1989 as teenagers. To many, it remains their best effort to date. The signature acoustic slide guitar heard on the album is gone now, and replaced by a more 'mature' R&B-flavored sound. Their last album, Rick's Road, hinted at this new musical direction with its cover of Al Green's "Tired of Being Alone." One thing that has improved over the years is the voice of vocalist Sharleen Spiteri. She has always had a great voice, but like a fine wine, it's getting better with age. The core trio of musicians from the first album is still intact--Spiteri on vocals and rhythm guitar, Ally McErlaine on lead guitar, and Johnny McElhone on bass--along with Richard Hynd on drums and Eddie Campbell on keyboards. After the lead-in track featuring an excerpt of Cole Porter's "I Love Paris," the CD begins with "Say What You Want," the first US single and a #1 hit in the UK (this CD was released overseas several months ago). "Halo" sounds like it could have appeared on Southside, and is one of the best tracks on the CD. "Put Your Arms Around Me" is a torch song in the truest sense, and features great vocals from Spiteri. It's no secret where they got the inspiration for "Black Eyed Boy." One of the CD's better tunes, you'll swear you're listening to The Supremes doing a cover of "Tears of a Clown" until the chorus comes in. The mood shifts from Motown to something more sensual with the breathy vocals on "Polo Mint City." Aside from "Halo," the closest thing to a rock song on the new CD is "Postcard." Most of the other tracks have a 'retro' feel to them, and are more R&B-oriented than on previous albums. A prime example is "Good Advice." With its string arrangement and 70's sound, I kept looking to see if Barry White was coming around the corner. White on Blonde is a definite departure for the band, and they manage to pull it off quite well. It's better than their last album, but not as good as the first two. If you are familiar with the band's previous material, it may take a few listens to get used to their new sound. If the 70's R&B scene is more your style, though, chances are you'll love it. THE TEXAS CHAINSAW ORCHESTRA: Texas Chainsaw Orchestra (Rhino) Reviewed by Shaun Dale Have you noticed that the oh so adventurous experimentation of the electronica scene has almost completely ignored the instrument section of your local Good Value hardware store? Or that the possibilities of petrolica, the application of gasoline powered instrumentation, has been neglected by virtually the entire musical world? Well, take heart music lovers! The Texas Chainsaw Orchestra are on hand to clearcut a path for those with the courage (and major medical coverage) to follow. Rhino has issued the units' first official release, following the underground classic "Toolshed Tapes," often bootlegged, never imitated. Complete with historical notes from Black Diamond, Washington's foremost hardware musicologists, Earl Black and Tom Decker, the Orchestra cuts up on seven slices of pure pop for powered people. Featuring various combinations of lead Stihl, rhythm McCullough and a challenging assortment of other saws, drills, etchers, joiners and household appliances, this cannot be described. It must be heard. Inspired by the region that gave birth to Twin Peaks and Nirvana, there's definitely something here for somebody. Maybe you. Try it and see... Track List: Tuning Up * Sabre Dance * American Woman * You Oughta Know * Chain Gang * I Will Always Love You * Birthday THIRD EYE BLIND: Third Eye Blind (Elektra) Reviewed by Shaun Dale Yeah. Third Eye Blind's self titled debut has already produced a bona-fide hit single with "Semi-Charmed Life" and there are enough hook filled chunks of solid pop and roll on this fourteen song collection to provide months of chart action to come. This is one of those discs that keep me reaching for the volume control. Some inner voice keeps saying "That one would sound a little better if it was just a little louder," and that inner voice is always right. Stephan Jenkins has one of the more appealing voices in contemporary rock and he's backed by a solid band. Kevin Cadogan plays guitar like there's three of him, Aron Salazar plays bass like it's a lead instrument without sacrificing a bit of the vital rhythm duty he's responsible for and Brad Hargraves knows what to do and when to do it with a drum kit. Oh, did I mention that I really like this one? I do and I think you will. I'm not sure you'll have any choice. These guys should be all over your radio dial for quite awhile. And in your town. With fall tour dates scheduled with U2 and the Rolling Stones, they've got the product and they're getting the push to get huge fast. That's fine by me. It's not often that I hear a single disc that I wish was a double these days, but I'd love to hear 14 more songs like these any time. You might as well buy this one now. It's probably too late to be the first one on your block, but there's no reason to be the last one on your planet. Track List: Losing A Whole Year * Narcolepsy * Semi-Charmed Life * Jumper * Graduate * How's It Going To Be * Thanks A Lot * Burning Man * Good For You * London * I Want You * The Background * Motorcycle Drive By * God Of Wine THE TIKI TONES: Suburban Savage (Dionysus) Reviewed by DJ Johnson Get your torches lit and your blue drinks mixed, because it's time for a musical luau courtesy of our mysterious hosts, The Tiki Tones. Suburban Savage finds the band in fine form as they rock and swirl on numbers like "Spectre Detector," "Twister," and "Go Go Loco." While there is reverb in their equation, it isn't as all-important as it is for most bands in the genre. The sound is crisp enough for the snare to snap right in front of your face, and clear enough to let you appreciate the wind on the bass strings. When they do let the reverb dam burst, they make as exotic a sound as you're likely to hear on a contemporary release. The keyboards, played by an individual listed only as Lord Wahini, have a wonderfully bizarre way of making even a darkly mysterious tune like "Don't Go In The Shed" shimmy and swirl with a decidedly rockin' attitude. This one gets my highest recommendation. (Dionysus Records: PO Box 1975, Burbank, CA 91507.) VANESSA-MAE: Bach: Partita No. 3 for Solo Violin; Brahms: Scherzo in C Minor for Violin and Piano; Beethoven: Romance No. 2 for Violin and Orchestra, Op. 50; Bruch: Scottish Fantasy for Violin and Orchestra, Op. 46; Vanessa Mae: Arrangement of "I'm A-Doun for Lack O' Johnnie". Vanessa Mae, Violin; London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Viktor Fedotov. EMI 72435-55395-2 [DDD] 60:38 Reviewed by Robert Cummings I've reviewed a fair number of recordings in my career, ranging from Medieval chant and Renaissance choral music, on through the Baroque, Classical and Romantic periods, on through the Twentieth Century, even including avant garde computer music of the current day--you know, the weird stuff that doesn't even sound like music. But I have never encountered a disc quite like this one. Looking at the drab, new-age cover portrait, you'd suspect the album contains a collection of virtuosic (and usually vapid) showpieces, or at least some popular transcriptions of war horse repertory. In fact, as you can glean from the headnote, it's comprised of fairly substantive stuff--music of the three B's, plus that of another another B, Bruch. None of this is put on the cover, though. Added to this distinguished company, at the close of the disc, is Vanessa Mae's own take-off on the traditional Scottish song, "I'm A-Doun for Lack O' Johnnie," upon which Bruch based the third movement of his Scottish Fantasy. But Vanessa Mae's piece is a pop creation that will headline an upcoming enhanced CD. Coming on the heels of the other music on the recording, it's kind of like following up the mesmerism of Hildegard's chants with the miasma of anybody's Rap. Perhaps I'm exaggerating a bit, but not much. And the album notes. You have to be almost an eagle to read them, and able to distinguish red print from a sort of pink background on certain pages. It's as if someone wanted to sabotage your efforts to read them. When I finally summoned the courage to strain my nearly 20-20, spectacle-free, half-century-old eyes to read the notes about Vanessa Mae, I learned her birthday was October 27 (the same as Paganini's)--but, villains!--no year was given. I knew she was around twenty, but couldn't help thinking that someone on the EMI production team didn't want you to know her age, as if intending to build up some kind of mystique about her. I also then began wondering if maybe there was a conspiracy between the author of the notes and the person who chose the font size for them. Ye gads, the plot thickens! But what I discovered in the album credits rather shot down my conspiracy theory regarding the stonewalling intents: there, next to her song title, legible to the eye aided by a Hubbell-like magnifying glass, was the year of Vanessa Mae's birth--1978! I was close! But, you ask, what about the performances? As evidenced here, there can be no doubt that Vanessa Mae is a transcendental talent. Anyone who can play--and play quite well--such wide-ranging music is an artist not to be dismissed as the glamour girl EMI is apparently hyping her as. Her Bach is subtle and spirited, with deftly-nuanced dynamics and splendid technique. The Beethoven and Brahms selections, while lesser pieces of those composers, come across with individuality and color. She renders the Scottish Fantasy with panache and charm, pointing up its warmth and melancholy, its romantic radiance and bucolic joys. At her tender age, she may not yet have developed the strong interpretive profile and tonal subtlety that many other great artists have demonstrated in the Bach Partita or, for that matter, in the Bruch Scottish Fantasy, but suffice it to say these readings are certainly compelling and well worth the purchase price. Curiously, the sound reproduction in the Bruch turns hard and shrill in places, though elsewhere on the disc it's quite fine. As for the Vanessa Mae song, "I'm A-Doun for Lack O' Johnnie," subtitled, "A Little Scottish Fantasy," her many pop fans may well be taken by it. Personally, I'm not crazy about all the processed vocalizing in the opening, but can imagine that, shorn of effect, the piece is not without appeal. I'll hazard a guess that, like most of Vanessa Mae's discs, this one will sell big despite the noted production lapses. You certainly won't be disappointed by this album, but do arm yourself with a Godzilla-sized magnifying glass! VARIOUS ARTISTS: Beg, Scream & Shout - The Big Ol' Box Of 60s Soul (Rhino) Reviewed by DJ Johnson Retrospectives are cool for what they are, though they're rarely the top attraction around Cosmik Central. But ever since this baby arrived, it has been the absolute center of attention, getting played over and over, being fawned over, being examined, pawed, and, in on one strange occasion... cuddled. Why is this one so different? There are a lot of answers to that question. Beg, Scream & Shout is a 6-CD box set of fantastic 60s soul music, which in itself doesn't make it particularly unique: there are plenty of soul boxes out there. Lets start with the most important difference, the music, and work our way to the trading cards. (Trading cards?!) Most soul boxes suffer from predictability. The Wilson Picket song will be "Midnight Hour" and the Martha & The Vandellas song will be "Dancing In The Street." Nice to have in your collection, and it probably is. On four or five different comps! Take a look at the track list for Beg, Scream & Shout, and try this test: read the artist's name and try to guess which song it'll be. With a few notable exceptions (Ben E. King's "Stand By Me," for instance), you will be surprised nearly every time. Quick! Which Marvin Gaye tune do you expect? Your first twelve answers are incorrect. It's "Can I Get A Witness." Which Aretha tune? Nope, nope, and uh-uh. It's "(Sweet Sweet Baby) Since You've Been Gone." Martha & The Vandellas? Save your breath. It's "You've Been In Love Too Long." This wonderful unpredictability is the rule through all six discs, and that in itself makes this set essential. Seeing that they had something special on their hands, the design crew at Rhino put together a highly entertaining package, centering on a theme near and dear to many of us: The 45. The box itself is modelled after the boxes that people used to tote their singles around in. Each CD is snapped into a piece of plastic designed to look like a 45, grooves and all. (The CD becomes the label!) Each of these assemblies is packed in a 45-size sleeve with the tracks listed on the back. Furthermore, each CD is designed to look like a different legendary 60s soul label. Nice touch. The 14 page booklet (also 45-size) offers tech notes and all the date and chart stats for each track, but no real information about the artists. This is where the trading cards come in. There's a card for each of the 144 artists in the set, each with a picture on the front and great bits of trivia on the back. Is this necessary? No, but it's a lot of fun, isn't it? You can easily lose track of time reading these cards. By the way, I didn't know that Bobby Womack was suspected of killing Sam Cooke, that he showed up for Sam's funeral in one of Sam's suits, and that he married Sam's wife shortly after. Hmmmmm... Let me tell ya, there's nothing better for a sweet soul mood than to put all six of these discs into shuffle-play. The experience is much closer to re-living 60s soul radio than it would be with any other set because these weren't all big hits. Many of these are the songs that were here for a summer and then gone from memory, or the songs we remember because they were on the flipsides of some of our favorite singles. Many of them are sublime. Some are entertainingly odd. F'rinstance, Don Covay's "See-Saw," which has a great hook, excellent playing, wonderful vocal harmonies, and one voice vamping in such gritty, tortured hysteria as to suggest Miss Piggy after years of alcoholism and cigarettes. That's part of the charm of Beg, Scream & Shout, part of what makes this the best soul box money can buy. TRACK LIST: BEG I - The Soul Clan/That's How It Feels * The Delfonics/La-La Means I Love You * The Fantastic Four/The Whole World Is A Stage * Ben E. King/Stand By Me * The Precisions/You're The Best (That Ever Did It) * O.V. Wright/Eight Men, Four Women * Brenda Holloway/Every Little Bit Hurts * Toussaint McCall/Nothing Takes The Place Of You * Judy Clay & William Bell/Private Number * The Mad Lads/I Don't Want To Lose Your Love * The Jackson 5/Who's Lovin You * Garnet Mimms/Cry Baby * Brenda & The Tabulations/Dry Your Eyes * Barbara Mason/Yes, I'm Ready * Smokey Robinson & The Miracles/The Love I Saw In You Was Just A Mirage * Sam & Dave/When Something Is Wrong With My Baby * Otis Clay/That's How It Is (When You're In Love) * The Sweet Inspirations/Sweet Inspirations * Barbara Lewis/Baby, I'm Yours * Percy Sledge/It Tears Me Up * Mitty Collier/I Had A Talk With My Man * Deon Jackson/Love Makes The World Go Round * Al Green & The Soul Mates/Back Up Train * The Impressions/Choice Of Colors BEG II - The Dynamics/Ice Cream Song * Otis Redding/I've Been Loving You Too Long (To Stop Now) * The Dells/Stay In My Corner * Jackie Ross/Selfish One * Eddie Holman/Hey There Lonely Girl * William Bell/ Everyday Will Be Like A Holiday * Joe Hinton/Funny * Aaron Neville/Wrong Number (I Am Sorry, Goodbye) * Tony Clarke/The Entertainer * Leon Haywood/It's Got To Be Mellow * Tyrone Davis/Can I Change My Mind * Bobby Hebb/Sunny * The Intruders/Cowboys To Girls * Dionne Warwick/Don't Make Me Over * Maxine Brown/Oh No Not My Baby * Bobby Womack/Fly Me To The Moon * Billy Stewart/I Do Love You * The Radiants/Voice Your Choice * James & Bobby Purify/I'm Your Puppet * Esther Phillips/Release Me * Gene Chandler/Rainbow * Jay Wiggins/Sad Girl * Irma Thomas/Wish Someone Would Care * Ray Charles/In The Heat Of The Night * Lorraine Ellison/Stay With Me SCREAM I - Shorty Long/Function At The Junction * King Curtis/Memphis Soul Stew * Dobie Gray/The "In" Crowd * The Blue-Belles/I Sold My Heart To The Junkman * Barbara Acklin/Love Makes A Woman * The O'Jays/ Lipstick Traces (On A Cigarette) * Bettye Swann/Make Me Yours * Clifford Curry/She Shot A Hole In My Soul * Betty Everett/You're No Good * The Ikettes/I'm Blue (The Gong-Gong Song) * Four Tops/7-Rooms Of Gloom * Aretha Franklin/(Sweet Sweet Baby) Since You've Been Gone * The Young Holt Trio/Wack Wack * Solomon Burke/Got To Get You Off My Mind * Martha & The Vandellas/You've Been In Love Too Long * James Carr/Pouring Water On A Drowning Man * Fontella Bass/Rescue Me * Joe Tex/Show Me * Gladys Knight & The Pips/Friendship Train * The Knight Bros/Temptation 'Bout To Get Me * Clarence Carter/Snatching It Back * Lou Rawls/Dead End Street Monologue/Dead End Street SCREAM II - James Brown/Out Of Sight * The Esquires/Get On Up * Jerry Butler/Only The Strong Survive * Willie Tee/Teasin' You * Mel & Tim/ Backfield In Motion * Erma Franklin/Piece Of My Heart * Chuck Jackson/I Don't Want To Cry * The O'Kaysions/Girl Watcher * Stevie Wonder/I Was Made To Love Her * Carla Thomas/B-A-B-Y * C & The Shells/You Are The Circus * Wilson Pickett/I'm In Love * Bobby Moore & The Rhythm Aces/ Searching For My Love * The Velvelettes/He Was Really Sayin' Somethin' * Joe Simon/The Chokin' Kind * Don Covay/Seesaw * The Showmen/39-21-46 * Ike & Tina Turner/A Fool In Love * Mary Wells/Bye Bye Baby * Brenton Wood/The Oogum Boogum Song * Doris Troy/Just One Look * Booker T. & The M.G.'s/Time Is Tight SHOUT I - Arthur Conley/Sweet Soul Music * The Meters/Cissy Strut * Archie Bell & The Drells/Tighten Up * Bob & Earl/Harlem Shuffle * Howard Tate/Stop * Bull & The Matadors/The Funky Judge * Soul Brothers Six/Some Kind Of Wonderful * Major Lance/The Monkey Time * The Supremes/ Love Is Like An Itching In My Heart * Alvin Cash & The Crawlers/Twine Time * Gloria Jones/Tainted Love * The Joe Jeffrey Group/My Pledge Of Love * Rex Garvin/Sock It To 'Em J.B. - Part I * Marvin Gaye/Can I Get A Witness * Lee Rogers/I Want You To Have Everything * Shirley Ellis/ The Real Nitty Gritty * Rodger Collins/She's Looking Good * Cliff Nobles & Co./The Horse * Johnnie Taylor/Who's Making Love * Bobby Patterson/ T.C.B. or T.Y.A. * Little Milton/Grits Ain't Groceries (All Around The World) * The Isley Brothers/It's Your Thing * Darrell Banks/Open The Door To Your Heart * Soul Sisters /I Can't Stand It * Dyke & The Blazers/ We Got More Soul SHOUT II - Jackie Wilson/Baby Workout * Edwin Starr/Agent Double-O-Soul * Robert Parker/Barefootin' * The Marvelows/I Do * Sir Mack Rice/ Mustang Sally * Soul Survivors/Expressway To Your Heart * The Capitols/ Cool Jerk * J.J. Jackson/But It's Alright * Etta James/Tell Mama * The Flirtations/Nothing But A Heartache * The Temptations/(I Know) I'm Losing You * Rufus Thomas/The Memphis Train * Mar-Keys/Last Night * The Five Du-Tones/Shake A Tail Feather * The Contours/First I Look At The Purse * Eddie Floyd/Big Bird * Bob Kuban & The In-Men/The Cheater * The Marvelettes/Danger Heartbreak Dead Ahead * Jr. Walker & The All Stars/ Shake And Fingerpop * The Fantastic Johnny C/Boogaloo Down Broadway * Bar-Kays/Soul Finger * Kim Weston/Take Me In Your Arms (Rock Me A Little While) * Eddie Holland/Leaving Here * David Ruffin/My Whole World Ended (The Moment You Left Me) * The Show Stoppers/Ain't Nothin' But A House Party VARIOUS ARTISTS: Bossa Novaville - Ultra-Lounge #14 (Capitol) Reviewed by DJ Johnson From the vaults to your changer. This collection of long lost bossa nova music may add up to the best disc in Capitol's 18 volume Ultra-Lounge series. Face it, though, that wonderful genre of music, developed by Antonio Carlos Jobim, can take almost any abuse and still come out sensual and essential. There are tracks here that bring odd ingredients, such as Moog, to the form, but somehow or another it all works. The uptempo reading of "Witchcraft," by Joe Graves & The Diggers, comes as close to out of bounds as it gets, but most of these tracks are downright gorgeous. Martin Denny's variation on "Quiet Village" is particularly interesting in that it shifts to a completely different style without losing much of its exotic flavor. Bossa nova is/was quite exotic, as one listen to Bill Perkins' "Baia" will prove. If that doesn't do it for you, Sergio Mendes, Si Zentner, or Laurindo Almeida will. Me, I'm a pushover for Julie London's "Fly Me To The Moon," which appears here as the bonus track. This disc could just as easily have been marketed as a high class jazz retrospective, but its inclusion in a series known for intentionally cheesy music may limit sales to some of the people who would truly appreciate it. Spread the word. This is a classy collection. TRACK LIST: So Dance Samba (Jazz N Samba) (Wanda De Sah) * Meditation (Meditacao) (Laurindo Almeida) * Little Bird/Little Boat (Bill Perkins) * Samba De Orfeu (Ray Anthony) * Amy's Theme (Martin Denny) * Corcovado (Quiet Nights) (Cannonball Adderley & Sergio Mendes) * The Look Of Love (Billy May) * One Note Samba/Recado Bossa Nova (Leroy Holmes) * Triste (Howard Roberts) * Miserlou (Laurindo Almeida & The Bossa Nova All-Star Band) * Desafinado (Si Zentner) * Exotique Bossa Nova/Quiet Village Bossa Nova (Martin Denny) * Witchcraft (Joe Graves & The Diggers) * Baia (Bill Perkins) * Que Sabe Voce De Mim (Walter Wanderley) * The Girl From Ipanema/Manha De Carnaval (Laurindo Almeida) * Mas Que Nada (Rubin Mitchell) * So Nice (Samba De Verao) (Wanda De Sah & Sergio Mendes) * Fly Me To The Moon (Julie London) VARIOUS ARTISTS: Brown Eyed Soul - The Sound Of East L.A. (Vol. 1-3) (Rhino) Reviewed by Shaun Dale When I first visited LA in the early seventies, I had a pretty specific image of what the music scene would be. A pair of images, really. Of course, I expected to find a beach culture with the surf-based party music I'd grown up on. I was also aware of the Sunset Strip scene - spandex, eyeliner and loud guitars. What I wasn't ready for were the radio dedication shows passing messages between young lovers through the medium of doo-wop records. Cruise nights on Whittier and Van Nuys Boulevards would find every radio tuned to Art Laboe as he read expressions of undying affection to introduce the voices of Mary Wells, Brenton Wood and a variety of others, both famed and obscure. The audience for these shows was primarily Chicano. While their Texas cousins might have been out scoring the latest Tejano tapes and the rest of the city was trying to get ahold of the "next big thing," the East L.A. market was keeping slow, romantic R&B alive while nurturing a select group of artists all their own. Luckily, the music came through just fine on the radios of Anglo R&B lovers like me, too. The three volumes of Rhino's Brown Eyed Soul chronicle some of the best music from the golden age that made DJs like Art Laboe and Huggy Boy the low-rider's best friend. One of the strengths of the Brown Eyed Soul scene, and of these discs, has always been the mix - the songs can be old or new, the artists black, white or brown, the style sweet soul or solid rock. No barriers in the barrio. The result is three discs full of music you know by artists you can't quite remember mixed with artists you know singing songs you never heard and hits that crossed over to enough charts to be familiar to almost everyone. The common denominator seems to be romance. With all three discs on hand, you'll have a 48 song soundtrack for the makeout party of your dreams. Music designed to move you to the backseat of a '57 Chev. The discs are available individually, and they aren't individually themed - there's a good variety of releases from the late fifties to the mid sixties on each disc - so you may not *need* all three. Listen to one, though, and you'll *want* all three. They're that good. Every one of them. Track Lists: Volume 1: The Turks/I'm A Fool * Tierra/Together * War/All Day Music * The Penguins/Hey Senorita * Don Julian & The Meadowlarks/Heaven And Paradise * Tony Clarke/The Entertainer * Van McCoy/Mr. D.J. * The M-M & The Peanuts/I Found My Love * Thee Midniters/The Town I Live In * Brenton Wood/Me And You * El Chicano/Brown Eyed Girl * The Carlos Brothers/Tonight * Chuck Higgins/Pachuko Hop * The Five Satins/Our Anniversary * Brothers Of Soul/I Guess That Don't Make Me A Loser * Little Julian Herrera/Symbol Of Heaven Volume 2: The Blendells/La La La La La * Rene & Roy/Queen Of My Heart * Ritchie Valens/We Belong Together * Johnny "Guitar" Watson/Those Lonely, Lonely Nights * War/Why Can't We Be Friends * McKinley Travis/Baby, Is There Something On Your Mind * Billy Stewart/Sitting In The Park * The Pardons/Diamonds And Pearls * The Gallahads/I'm Without A Girlfriend * The Romancers/My Heart Cries * Thee Midnighters/Dreaming Casually * Cannibal & The Headhunters/Please Baby Please * Jesse Belvin/Beware * The Premieres/Farmer John * Brenton Wood/Baby You Got It * Hank Jacobs/ East Side Volume 3: The Olympics/Mine Exclusively * El Chicano/Tell Her She's Lovely * Carol Hughes/Let's Get Together Again * Gene Chandler/I Fooled You This Time * Bloodstone/Natural High * War/Don't Let No One Get You Down * Cannibal & The Headhunters/Land Of 1000 Dances * Patti Drew/Tell Him * Bo Diddley/I'm Sorry * Thee Midnighters/Making Ends Meet * Rosie & Ron/Bring Me Happiness * Peaches & Herb/Close Your Eyes * Safaris/Image Of A Girl * Brenton Wood/Catch You On The Rebound * It's Got To Be Mellow VARIOUS ARTISTS: The Chess Blues-Rock Songbook (MCA/Chess) Reviewed by Steve Marshall Here's a question for you. What do Eric Clapton, The Blues Brothers, Van Halen, Tom Jones, Janis Joplin, Jose Feliciano, Elvis Presley, The Who, The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, The Doors, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix and Phish (among numerous others) all have in common? If your answer was that they all covered songs on the new blues-rock compilation from MCA/Chess - you win the grand prize! Well, OK... You don't really win anything, but you got the answer right. MCA is currently in the middle of a massive reissue program celebrating the 50th anniversary of Chess Records. The songs that make up this double-CD package are the real roots of rock and roll. This is where it all began. Not all of them are real 'blues' tunes, per se, but just about any rock artist you can think of has cut their teeth on these songs. The key thing on this collection is authenticity. All the classic tracks included here are presented in their original versions; and overall, they sound better than ever. Rather than going into details on the individual tunes, check out the track list below. The music speaks for itself. These songs have been covered repeatedly by an endless list of artists. The Chess Blues-Rock Songbook is an indispensable collection of the seminal tunes that influenced (and continue to influence) multiple generations of rockers around the globe. TRACK LIST: Disc One: I'm Your Hoochie Coochie Man (Muddy Waters) * Mother Earth (Memphis Slim) * I Don't Know (Willie Mabon) * Sugar Mama (John Lee Hooker) * 24 Hours (Eddie Boyd) * Ice Cream Man (John Brim) * Jock-A-Mo (Sugar Boy Crawford) * Wang Dang Doodle (Willie Dixon) * I Just Want to Make Love to You (Muddy Waters) * Reconsider Baby (Lowell Fulson) * Eisenhower Blues (J.B. Lenoir) * My Babe (Little Walter) * I'm a Man (Bo Diddley) * The Seventh Son (Willie Mabon) * See You Later Alligator (Bobby Charles) * Trouble No More (Muddy Waters) * Roll Over Beethoven (Chuck Berry) * Who Do You Love? (Bo Diddley) Disc Two: Rock and Roll Music (Chuck Berry) * Walking By Myself (Jimmy Rogers) * Mona (Bo Diddley) * Johnny B. Goode (Chuck Berry) * Suzie Q (Dale Hawkins) * Memphis (Chuck Berry) * Back in the U.S.A. (Chuck Berry) * Back Door Man (Howlin' Wolf) * Madison Blues (Elmore James) * Spoonful (Howlin' Wolf) * You Shook Me (Muddy Waters) * The Red Rooster (Howlin' Wolf) * Bring it On Home (Sonny Boy Williamson) * Help Me (Sonny Boy Williamson) * High Heel Sneakers (Tommy Tucker) * Killing Floor (Howlin' Wolf) * More and More (Little Milton) * Tell Mama (Etta James) VARIOUS ARTISTS: Chess Soul (MCA/Chess) Reviewed by DJ Johnson Chess records is best known for blues and early rock and roll, but these two CDs of soul prove they had that area covered quite nicely, thank you. Etta James, Fontella Bass, Mitty Collier, Irma Thomas, Gene Chandler, Ramsay Lewis and a host of other incredible artists were doing in Chicago what the Motown crew was doing in Detroit and the Stax gang was doing in Memphis. Of course, Stax and Motown grabbed most of the headlines and a big helping of the airplay, but there was some pure magic going down on tape in Chi-town. Chess Soul collects 45 tunes that are as deeply soulful as your heart can take. Much of this music is criminally overlooked by classic soul radio today. Me, I've got this set now, so while the radio plays "Baby Love" for the fourth time today, I'm rockin' to Etta James and her childhood pal, Sugar Pie DeSanto, as they belt out "Do I Make Myself Clear" in fantastic harmony. If that ain't gritty enough, I can click over to "Dirty Man," by Laura Lee. Yeee GADS, this stuff stings in the best possible way. The liner notes include a track list with as much session info as they could dig up, a scattering of black and white photographs, and a thumbnail history written by David Nathan, the U.S. editor of Blues & Soul Magazine. This arrives at a time when Capitol, Rhino, and a handful of others are putting out some excellent multi-CD soul sets. Is there a soul revival in the air? Probably not, but with Chess Soul in the bins, at least the tasteful minority can get a great collection of soul without going broke, and they'll get an education in the merits of the Chicago sound at the same time. Track List: Disc One: Mama Didn't Like (Jan Bradley) * Strange Feeling (Billy Stewart) * I've Been So Lonely (Cookie & The Cupcakes * Soulful Dress (Sugar Pie DeSanto) * Love Ain't Nothin' But A Monkey On Your Back (Johnny Nash) * Who's That Guy? (The Kolettes) * Ain't Love Good, Ain't Love Proud (Tony Clarke) * I Had A Talk With My Man (Mitty Collier) * I Can't Help Myself (The Gems) * Don't Mess Up A Good Thing (Fontella Bass & Bobby McClure) * Voice Your Choice (The Radiants) * The Selfish One (Jackie Ross) * The Entertainer (Tony Clarke) * I Do Love You (Billy Stewart) * Love Is A Five Letter Word (James Phelps) * Soul Of A Man (Fontella Bass) * Temptation Bout To Get Me (The Knight Brothers) * Do I Make Myself Clear (Etta James and Sugar Pie DeSanto) * Take Me For A Little While (Jackie Ross) * What About Me (The Valentinos) * I'm Satisfied (Mitty Collier) * Searching For My Love (Bobby Moore & The Rhythm Aces) * Only Time Will Tell (Etta James) Disc Two: Rescue Me (Fontella Bass) * I'm Not Ashamed (Bobby McClure) * Stay By My Side (Jo Ann Garrett) * Have Pity On Me (Billy Young) * Wade In The Water (Ramsay Lewis) * I Fooled You This Time (Gene Chandler) * Don't Pass Me By (Big Maybelle) * Lonely Girl (Andrea Davis) * To Be A Lover (Gene Chandler) * Don't Knock Love (Barbara Carr) * I Believe She Will (Eddie & Ernie) * Mercy Mercy Mercy (Marlena Shaw) * A Love Reputation (Denise LaSalle) * Dirty Man (Laura Lee) * I Can't Make It Without You (Fred Hughes) * Hold On (The Radiants) * Good To Me (Irma Thomas) * You Left The Water Running (Maurice & Mac) * Oh What A Day (The Dells) * Baby I Love You (Little Milton) * Losers Weepers (Etta James) * Give Your Baby A Standing Ovation (The Dells) VARIOUS ARTISTS: A Dose Of Psychedelic Trance (Hypnotic) Reviewed by Shaun Dale OK, two arguments in favor of the 12" record sleeve. First, the cover art for this Hypnotic release is beautiful, and would be only more so in a larger format. Second, I wouldn't need a magnifying glass to get what information is provided in tiny psychedelic lettering even tinier small print off the back. But I did, so I can report that the folks at Hypnotic, in their ceaseless quest to make electronic music from around the world accessible have compiled ten tracks from the Israeli label Phonokol, and their subsidiary label Trust in Trance Records, for the enjoyment of audiences who might not be keeping up with the Tel Aviv dance club scene. There are nine artists represented, but there's a group mind at work. The mood and rhythm of the tracks is of a piece and except for a couple jerky segues there are seventy five minutes of unmitigated music that will make your mind dance as well as your body. The source may be foreign, but the beat is universal. Well crafted throughout, these Israeli trance mixers are masters of the form. Well worth checking out, but beware, once you get started you're likely to stay aboard for the full ride. Track List: Astral Projector/Enlightened Evolution (Remix) * Miko & Har-El/Alala * Aban Don/Black & White * Shidapu/Paradise * Power Source/ Goaway * Kailum/Kailum * Astral Projector & MFG/The Sleeper Must Awake * Nada/Transparent Future * MFG/The Prophecy * Mystica/Expose VARIOUS ARTISTS: Golden Age Of Underground Radio w/B. Mitchel Reed(DCC) Reviewed by Shaun Dale It's the generally held opinion of most everyone I talk to that radio sucks. It has *always* been the generally held opinion of most people I talk to that radio sucks. Well, a lot of radio is pretty bad, but it wasn't all that long ago that things were a lot worse. (OK, it was a pretty long time ago, but time is relative, and *I* remember the bad old days...) Back in what people who don't remember it seems like the golden age of rock n' roll radio, you counted yourself lucky if your local station kept 20 songs from the top 40 in rotation. There was virtually no FM, there was absolutely no stereo AM and nothing over 3 minutes long got as much as 3 seconds of consideration for airplay. Station policies seemed to demand that all the jocks talk over the beginning and end of every song and that every commercial be delivered in high volume hysteria. That began to change in the late 60s with the advent of "underground" FM radio. Searching for creative freedom, disc jockeys like San Francisco's Tom Donahue and L.A.'s B. Mitchel Reed moved of the AM dial to stations that gave them license to play what they liked and display their personalities in a more straightforward and generally understated fashion. No matter how bad you think radio is today, people like Donahue and BMR made it much, much better. This disc combines some classic soundchecks and commercials from BMR's broadcasts on L.A.'s KMET between 1968 and 1971 with some of the music his show featured. Today it's hard to understand how revolutionary a notion it was to play a full four minutes of so of Electric Flag or Dave Mason on the radio, let alone 5+ minutes of Steppenwolf, 6+ of Brewer & Shipley or the Airplane or, heaven forbid, a full 11:30 of Mark-Almond. BMR did it, though, and helped make it possible for some of the finest musicians of the time to get airplay. There's an interesting mix of the obvious and the unusual among the musical selections here and an entertaining mix of vintage commercials and BMR's observations on the times here. Next time you find that everything on the radio sucks, slip into some tie dye and slip this in the player... Track List: BMR Sign On * Spirit/I Got A Line On You * Donovan (with the Jeff Beck Group)/Barabajagal * BMR * Ike & Tina Turner/Honkey Tonk Women * BMR - Hip Bagel Commercial * Canned Heat/Rollin' And Tumblin' * Electric Flag/Killing Floor * Leather Ltd. Commercial * BMR - Jeans West Commercial * Dave Mason/Only You Know And I Know * BMR * Nillson/You Can't Do That * BMR * The Byrds/Eight Miles High * Love/Alone Again Or * BMR * Steppenwolf/The Pusher * BMR * Music Odyssey Commercial * BMR - Fat Bernie's Waterbed * KMET News * Spirit/Nature's Way * Jefferson Airplane/Wooden Ships * BMR * Grateful Dead Concert Commercial * BMR * Brewer & Shipley/Wichi-Tai-To * BMR Sign-Off * Mark-Almond/The City VARIOUS "ARTISTS": Golden Throats 4 Celebrities Butcher Songs Of The Beatles (Rhino) Reviewed by DJ Johnson My hands trembled as the priest mumbled on about redemption and salvation. Suddenly the door opened with a sickening clang. "It's time." I was led to the chamber and strapped into the chair, and the headphones were placed over my ears. "Any last words," our Associate Editor said as he readied his hand over the volume knob. "Please," I cried, "don't make me do this!" Too late. It was time to listen to, and possibly review, Golden Throats 4. Rhino had included a set of earplugs with the review copy. Now that's salvation. What's Golden Throats? It's a series of compilations from hell, that's what it is! Collections of cover tunes recorded by movie actors and other melodically challenged celebrities. This time around, the tunes are of the Beatle variety, but even material that good can't transcend performances this bad. Telly Savalas singing "Something?" Tragic, but not fatal. How about George Burns faking his way through "With A Little Help From My Friends?" Yeah, that's pretty rough, but at least you can laugh about it. Mae West's walker-tapping warbling of "Day Tripper?" MMMmmmm, okay, that one's pretty awful, but it all pales in comparison to William "Captain Kirk" Shatner's embarrassingly twisted reading of "Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds." Spock... Bones... Friends don't let ham actor friends make complete asses of themselves in public! The real shock of volume four is the realization that the real singers are as embarrassing as the actors. Bing Crosby's "Hey Jude" is pitiful! This ain't Robert Stack I'm talkin' about here, this is Bing Freakin' Crosby! He should have known better. The Brothers Four managed to suck every ounce of passion from "Revolution," turning it into drek that would have bored Mitch Miller. Tennessee Ernie Ford seemed to be doing an impression of Abraham Lincoln "if the late great President were to attempt 'Let It Be' in the key of C." And then there's Jan & Dean, which I just can't talk about because it breaks my heart! Strangely enough, amidst all of this odd "music" there are a few tracks that stand out as being... um... more odd than the others. Xavier Hollander, better known as The Happy Hooker, practically fakes an orgasm throughout "Michelle," the only problem being that you have to keep pumping quarters in or the song stops every thirty seconds. If that isn't enough, Claudine Longet's breathy "it's hard to sing with my ankles behind my ears" approach to "Jealous Guy/Don't Let Me Down" proves that shooting Spider Sabich wasn't her most heinous crime. Wait, this gets weirder. How about "Got To Get You Into My Life" by a sweet li'l soprano named Little Joe Peschi. No, I ain't %$&#ing kidding, the mother@#^$!# was apparently a $#&$@!& singer when he was a *!@&*%$ yout. Not bad, but Wayne Newton kinda had the market cornered. All of this is weird, right? Right. But I saved the weirdest for last. Theo Bikel... wonderful character actor, nice guy... singing "Piggies" in a manner that, had it been the popular version, would have led Charles Manson and the Family to kill Theo Bikel and leave everyone else the hell alone. And I think, after you hear it, you'll agree that this would have been okay. What motivates us to listen to something like this? The same thing that makes us watch Bloopers & Practical Jokes, I spose. The same thing that makes us crane our necks to see the bloody crash victims as we drive by. Morbid fascination and a capacity to laugh when we are in pain. Golden Throats 4 is marvelously painful. Track List: In The Beginning/With A Little Help From My Friends (George Burns) * She's Leaving Home (Joel Grey) * Spleen/Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds (William Shatner) * Something (Telly Savalas) * Day Tripper (Mae West) * Hey Jude (Bing Crosby) * Michelle (Xavier Hollander) * Mission Impossible/Norwegian Wood (Alan Copeland) * Let It Be (Tennessee Ernie Ford) * Got To Get You Into My Life (Little Joe [Peschi]) * Revolution (Brothers Four) * She's A Woman (Noel Harrison) * Jealous Guy/Don't Let Me Down (Claudine Longet) * Piggies (Theo Bikel) * Norwegian Wood (Jan & Dean) * A Hard Day's Night (George Maharis) VARIOUS ARTISTS: Knights of the Blues Table (Viceroy/Lightyear) Reviewed by Steve Marshall Tribute CDs seem to be everywhere these days. Some are good; some are not. Knights of the Blues Table is one of the better, paying tribute to the British blues movement of the early 60's. All of the musicians appearing on the CD were asked to record either their favorite blues track, or a song that influenced them personally. The CD is dedicated to one of the founders of the British blues movement, Cyril Davies, and the musicians who followed in his footsteps that are no longer with us. The disc starts with a rare, previously unreleased track from Davies entitled "KC Moan." Recorded at his home in 1954, this hidden track can only be heard on newer CD players by scanning backwards beyond the first track (instructions are on the CD). If your CD player can access this track, you'll also get to hear a brief history of British blues by Pete Brown (who is probably best known as the lyricist for Cream's "White Room") Jack Bruce's rendition of Davies' "Send For Me" is the first 'real' cut on the CD, and its cool, shuffling rhythm makes for an excellent lead track. Georgie Fame's lounge take on "If You Live" almost sounds like a Ben Sidran cut from the mid-80's. Chris Jagger gets help from his older brother, Mick, on the acoustic "Racketeer Blues." Maggie Bell and Big Jim Sullivan turn in a powerful, gut wrenching performance of "Blind Man" that shouldn't be missed. One of the best tracks is "Nine Below Zero," by Nine Below Zero, a new group headed by Dennis Greaves (formerly of The Truth). Since they named the group after the Sonny Boy Williamson tune, it was only appropriate that they do the song. Although they're newcomers to the blues circuit, they play with real authenticity. Last, but not least is the slow, burning take on "You Shook Me" by ex-Rolling Stone guitarist, Mick Taylor, and ace keyboardist, Max Middleton. Knights of the Blues Table is an excellent disc for blues-rock fans, as well as those who are just discovering early 60's British blues. The liner notes are informative, and include photos of the recording sessions that produced the CD. TRACK LIST: KC Moan (Cyril Davies) / Oral History of British Blues (Pete Brown) * Send For Me (Jack Bruce) * If You Live (Georgie Fame) * Go Down Sunshine (Duffy Power) * Racketeer Blues (Chris Jagger & Atcha (featuring Mick Jagger)) * Rocks in My Bed (Pete Brown / Phil Ryan) * Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood (Miller Anderson) * Blind Man (Maggie Bell / Big Jim Sullivan) * Travelling Riverside Blues (Peter Green / Nigel Watson) * Drop Down Mama (TS McPhee) * I've Got News for You (Clem Clempson) * Nine Below Zero (Nine Below Zero) * Judgment Day (The Pretty Things) * Play On Little girl / T-Bone Shuffle (Paul Jones / Otis Grand) * One More Mile (Mick Clarke / Lou Martin) * You Shook Me (Mick Taylor / Max Middleton) VARIOUS ARTISTS: Kurtis Blow Presents The History Of Rap (Rhino) Volume 1: The Genesis Volume 2: The Birth Of The Rap Record Volume 3: The Golden Age Reviewed by Shaun Dale From the Disc One opener, James Brown's "Give It Up Or Turnit A Loose," to the Biz Markie rap "Just A Friend" that closes Volume 3, Kurtis Blow uses three discs to lead the listener down a thirty five track trail through the history of rap. Blow, whose own journey from NYC club DJ to influential artist to seminal rap producer put him in direct touch with the development of the form, is an excellent choice to put together this series, and he's done the quality job his credentials would suggest. His personal notes on the scene and the songs are almost worth the price of admission themselves. Volume 1, The Genesis, presents the obvious influences - J.B., the Isleys and Booker T. - as well as less obvious choices from the likes of The Jackson 5, Michael Viner's Incredible Bongo Band and Rhythm Heritage. Altogether, it's a stunning and smoking set of funky dance tracks that would be a welcome addition to any R&B collection, with or without the rap relation. Volume 2, The Birth Of The Rap Record, documents some of rap's pioneers, including such seminal tracks as "Rapper's Delight" by the Sugarhill Gang, Grandmaster Flash's "The Message" and Blow's own breakthrough hit, "The Breaks." These cuts, and the eight that join them on Disc 2, set the foundation for a musical and social phenomenon that would soon break out of the confines of the clubs and corners and become a dominating force in popular music. Volume 3, The Golden Age, is another set of a dozen tracks by the artists that built a lasting edifice on that foundation. Run DMC, Whodini, the Fat Boys, Public Enemy, Big Daddy Kane, Biz Markie...the names are hip hop legends, and deservedly so. If rap's appeal is one of those things you never quite got a hold on, these three discs will take you to school. If rap has already won its place in your heart, and on your player, this is an essential collection of some of the finest artists and cuts in its development. If you don't own all these, you should. If you do, you should hear them put together in a way that perhaps only Kurtis Blow could do. If these are the only rap discs you'll ever own, these are the three you need. Track Lists: Volume One: James Brown/Give It Up Or Turnit A Loose * The Isley Brothers/ Get Into Something * Booker T. & The M.G.'s/Melting Pot * Baby Huey/ Listen To Me * Dennis Coffey & The Detroit Guitar Band/Scorpio * The Jimmy Castor Bunch/It's Just Begun * Michael Viner's Incredible Bongo Band/Apache * The Jackson 5/Hum Along And Dance * Black Heat/Love The Life You Live * Rhythm Heritage/Theme From S.W.A.T. * Herman Kelly & Life/Dance To The Drummer's Beat * Fatback/King Tim III (Personality Jock) Volume Two: Sugarhill Gang/Rapper's Delight * The Sequence/Funk You Up * Funky Four Plus One More/Rappin And Rocking The House * Kurtis Blow/ Christmas Rappin' * Kurtis Blow/The Breaks * Spoonie Gee meets The Sequence/Monster Jam * Afrika Bambaataa & The Jazzy 5/Jazzy Sensation * The Treacherous Three/Feel The Heartbeat * Grandmaster Flash & The Furious 5/The Message * "Love Bug" Starski/Starski Live At The Disco Fever * Davy DMX/One For The Treble (Fresh) Volume Three: Run DMC/Rock Box * Whodini/Friends * Whodini/Five Minutes Of Funk * Fat Boys/Jail House Rap * The Kangol Kid, Dr. Ice & The Educated Rapper/Roxanne, Roxanne - UTFO * M.C. Shan/The Bridge * Public Enemy/Rebel Without A Pause * Boogie Down Productions/Criminal Minded * Big Daddy Kane/Raw * Rob Base & D.J. E-Z Rock/It Takes Two * Biz Markie/ Vapors * Biz Markie/Just A Friend VARIOUS ARTISTS: New Blues Hits (Bullseye Blues/Rounder) Reviewed by DJ Johnson Here's a great way to add some serious diversity to your blues collection in one easy move. Stylistically, these 18 tracks run from gospel a cappella ("Life Is A Ballgame" by The Persuasions) through shuffle ("Trombone Party" by Porky Cohen With Michelle Willson) to hot and fu-fu-funky ("No Use Talkin" by Irma Thomas). All but three tracks are decidedly uptempo and upspirit, making this one killer party disc, and a nice pickup for those who love the blues but don't really want to feel too bad just now. Even among those three slow tunes, there are no dark blue blankets to wrap up in and cry. Nope, this is dancin' blues, partying blues, and laughing blues. And smokin' blues, by and large. The most priceless gem is found at track 17. Blues legends Ruth Brown and Johnny Adams sass and strut up a storm in "I Don't Know." If you're a blues-newbie who has only heard The Blues Brothers' version of this classic, this'll be revelatory. Whole damned disc is a blast. Track List: Life Is A Ballgame (Persuasions) * Can't See For Lookin' (Smokin' Joe Kubek) * You Don't Drink What I Drink (Smokey Wilson) * Trombone Party (Porky Cohen With Michelle Willson) * Hot Leftover #1 (Magic Dick & J. Geils & Bluestime) * Running Out Of Time (Roomful Of Blues) * Promised Land (Holmes Brothers) * No Use Talkin' (Irma Thomas) * The Talkin' Is Over, The Walkin' Has Begun (Jumpin' Johnny Sansone) * Longwallin' (Pat Boyack & The Prowlers) * Check Out Yourself (Tutu Jones) * Let Me Play With Your Poodle (Marcia Ball) * Hot Leftover #3 (Magic Dick & J. Geils & Bluestime) * I Need Time (Andrew "Jr. Boy" Jones) * One Foot In The Blues (Johnny Adams) * Soldier For The Blues (Jimmy King) * I Don't Know (Ruth Brown and Johnny Adams) * Mean Case Of The Blues (Eddie Clearwater) VARIOUS ARTISTS: Ruff Cut: Jah Works International (ROIR) Reviewed by Shaun Dale "PUSH THE BASS!" the sticker on the front of the jewel box instructs. Which is a fine idea, but check your levels first. The folks at the Jah Works have provided a pretty deep bottom all by themselves. Jah Works is a dub studio, but it's not tucked away into a corner of Trenchtown. Rej Forte set up shop in the English countryside - Berkshire to be exact - where he's been cranking out dub sides for over a decade. "Ruff Cut" is a retrospective look at his work as an artist and producer, from his 1982 debut playing with Pressure to new riddims from G.T. Moore. This is mainly players dub, using the talent of the musicians wherever possible rather than depending on studio pyrotechnics. That's not to denigrate the Jah Works production. The studio restraint is admirable in an era when dub too often implies turning knobs and inserting samples and too seldom calls on high level musician ship. You'll find great playing on these cuts, produced with respect for the talent. The mix is distinctive, though, and a definite Jah Works sound has been developed. It's a sound that deserves to move far beyond the English countryside and this compilation on ROIR is a well deserved giant step into the wider world. Track List: Hi-Tech Roots Dynamics & Martin Campbell/Jah Works Sound * Hi-Tech Roots Dynamics & Martin Campbell/Jah Works Sound (sax version) * G.T. Moore/Ganja Flower Dub * Jah Works Players/Turn To Jah * The Outsider/Jerusalem * Roots Dynamics/Solomon's Temple * Martin Campbell/ Wicked Rule * Jah Works Players/Foundation Dub * G.T. Moore/Blind Man's Dub * High Tech Roots Dynamics/Dubbing The Richman * Pressure/Dub To Yourself * Roots Dynamics/Check Your Reality * Roots Dynamics & Martin Campbell/Struggling For Freedom * The Outsider/Serengeti * The Dub Crusaders/Rootsman Chant * Hi-Tech Roots Dynamics & Martin Campbell/Jah Works Dub VARIOUS ARTISTS: This Is Space (Cleopatra) Reviewed by Rusty Pipes I've always had a great love for spacey music; little did I realize it's officially a genre now! So what the heck is Space Music, anyway? It seems just about any approach to music that encourages a hypnotic trance qualifies as Space according to this set. This is music to float away to. The unifying element is some sort of drone, intended to sweep the listener away into alpha-wave land. The drone can be made in many ways, from a single sustained note to a repetitive drum groove. The trick in good space music is making the overall sound interesting while keeping the drone prominent. The artists on This Is Space are very good at this balancing act and you'll be amazed at how many different ways Space Music can be created. This compilation is a re-release of two earlier space rock compilations on the Cleopatra label, Space Daze and Space 2000 which comprise 3 CD's. It also comes with a bonus fourth CD which we'll tackle separately. Most of the approaches across the three discs are not pure electronic but hybrids that are much more interesting: electronic ambient, electronic band instrumentals, electronics with vocals, electronics with drums and samplings, electronics with a touch of sitar. Did I mention it's got some Electronic Music? Everything seems to have synthesizers somewhere in the mix. I tend to enjoy the instrumental pieces more; sometimes the pieces using vocal samples can be annoying but there are not many of those. One thing's for sure: this is not a techno-pop dance album, where most synthesizers live these days. Sometimes This Is Space is a subtle wash that has no discernible rhythm or melody, like Fripp & Eno's sublime minimalist almost-sound-effects approach in "Wind on the Water." On cuts like "Spacelab" the synthesizers cover all parts for a robotic feel, then there's "Sploosh," which has nice drum work, a synth bass and an exotic keyboard lead that's quite catchy. Other times it's guitars, keyboards and drums driving away with no small amount of frenzy, in a style that can only be called Space Rock. By coincidence only about ten days after first getting a listen to This Is Space, I saw one of these groups, Sky Cries Mary, at the HORDE festival. Even though their set was in the late afternoon, the crowd seemed to enjoy the mesmerizing thrum they put out. I didn't recognize their contribution to this album, "Rain," in the set though. Their lead singer was all decked out with a mylar contraption behind her head that looked like it came out of a Dr. Strange comic. It is Space after all... Fortunately that didn't stay on the whole set and didn't distract from the performance. I've also seen some nice work (both musically and graphically) from The Future Sound of London on MTV recently. The producers seem to think it helps to have been associated with legendary group Hawkwind and its legacy, plus there's fellow Germans Amon Duul, Kraftwerk, Tangerine Dream and one third of the Dream, Klaus Schultz, represented here. There's also a few experimental English like David Bowie, the aforementioned Robert Fripp and Brian Eno, plus Gong and a sans-Eno Roxy Music cut. The whole thing tracks very well and stretches all the way back to a Syd Barrett composition (do we need to identify him as Pink Floyd's original guitarist?) from 1968, but I find it most interesting for introducing several new Space artists that I hadn't encountered before. With many of them, like The Future Sound of London, Ozric Tentacles, Spiral Realms and Delirium I'm ready to hear more. And I thought my knowledge of Space Music was pretty good. This Is Space made me go back and re-listen to my vinyl copies of Amon Duul's Wolf City, Fripp & Eno's Evening Star, Tangerine Dream's Phaedra, and Kraftwerk's Man Machine. Along the way I began to wonder, where's contributions by Jade Warrior, Nektar, Silver Apples, Dick Hyman, Roger Powell, Synergy, Larajii, M. Frog Labat, Jean Michel Jarre and Patrick Moraz? My list could go on; maybe those are too obscure historically. So include old Genesis or Yes, some of Rundgren's spacey stuff perhaps? Where's the Pink Floyd for chrissake? Surely they are the kings of Space. Is it too obvious? Something from Ummagumma, Atom Heart Mother, Echoes, More or Obscured by Clouds would have fit nicely here. Space is vast, after all. Oh well, they already have 3 CD's filled. In general, I must admit the choices on This Is Space are quite good and the liner notes are very informative. Then comes the "Bonus Ambient CD." A different kind of Space Music indeed, this time from a bona fide space case, Steve Peregrine Took. Took at one time was half of Tyrannosaurus Rex with Marc Bolan. That's as far as he got, really. Bolan died in a car wreck in the late 70's; in 1980 Took managed to choke on a cherry while in a drugged stupor. (One might say he "Took" his own life. -- You can slap me now.) But some fans cared enough to tell his story and master this body of work onto a CD. The liner notes tell of Steve wrestling with drugs for several years after leaving T. Rex and making these wonderful recordings around 1972. Right. Actually he didn't wrestle at all, he loved his drugs and had a reputation not only as a prodigious user but was nicknamed "The Phantom Spiker." And the wonderful recordings? Well, maybe megadoses are required to appreciate them. I find most cuts here are half-baked basement tapes. And the ones that are not half-baked are half-fried basement tapes. The liner notes are probably the best thing about this recording and contain more than I ever wanted to know about Took. If they weren't so sympathetic they would make a good anti-drug story. Only the most dedicated fans need apply. Nuff said? Okay, let's pretend the fourth CD doesn't exist. This Is Space weighs in as a damn nice primer on Space Music. TRACK LIST: Disc 1: Spacelab (Kraftwerk) * OV Light (Psychic TV and Thee Angels) * Adjust Me (Hawkwind) * Blue Room (The Orb) * The Point Of No Return (Helios Creed) * Evolution (live) (Legendary Pink Dots) * To The Other Side Of The Sky (Gong) * Dark Matter (Delirium) * Sploosh (Ozric Tentacles) * Mrs. Fiend Goes To Outer Space (Alien Sex Fiend) * Elements (Spiral Realms) Disc 2: Here Come The Warm Jets (Brian Eno) * Silver Bird/Mastadon (Pressurehead) * Lanky (Syd Barrett) * Nasa Arab (Coil) * Wie Der Wind Am Ende Einer Strasse (Amon Duul) * Slo Blo/God Rock (Nik Turner) * 2000 Flushes (DIN) * Movements Of A Visionary (Tangerine Dream) * Rain [19.5 Remix] (Sky Cries Mary) * Eternity (Clock DVA) Disc 3: Spineless Jelly (Future Sound Of London) * Wind Of Change (Hawkwind) * Out Of The Blue (Roxy Music) * Anubian Light Destiny (Anubian Lights) * Wahnfried 183 (Klaus Schulze) * All Saints (David Bowie) * Venusian Skyline (Melting Euphoria) * The Last Lagoon (William Orbit) * A Trup To G9 (Spiral Realms) * Space Does Not Care (Zero Gravity) * Antenna (Kraftwerk) * #9 (Aphex Twins) * Wind On The Water (Fripp & Eno) * Oblivium (Dilate) STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN & DOUBLE TROUBLE: Live at Carnegie Hall (Epic) Reviewed by Steve Marshall On October 4, 1984 (the day after his 30th birthday), Stevie Ray Vaughan played a show at world famous Carnegie Hall. This gig was a bit different than usual, though. For the first time in the band's history, Stevie Ray and Double Trouble (Chris Layton on drums, and Tommy Shannon on bass) expanded the band's regular trio format in the second half of the show. Older brother Jimmie Vaughan joined them onstage, along with Dr. John on keyboards, and the five-piece Roomful of Blues horn section. SRV chose a number of cover songs to be performed during the show, reflecting his own musical influences. After being introduced by John Hammond (the man who signed SRV to the Epic label), the band rips into "Scuttle Buttin'" and an extended version of "Testifyin'." The horn section joins them for the first of two Guitar Slim covers, "Letter to My Girlfriend," and stays onstage until the encores. "Dirty Pool" showcases Stevie at his fiery best. One of the highlights of the CD is hearing the interplay between Stevie and the horns on "Pride and Joy." It's great to hear how easily he adapted the song to the new arrangement. On "The Things That I Used to Do," the audience is treated to one of the few public appearances of the Vaughan brothers. The guitar work on this track is awe-inspiring. As with any SRV show, one of the highlights here is "Lenny," a beautiful instrumental from his debut album. Written for his wife, he introduces it as "a song I've always wanted to play in a place like this." The CD wraps up with a shorter than usual, solo version of "Rude Mood." This CD is a worthy addition to any SRV collection. There are enough of the hits to please the newcomers, and the variety in the set will please the diehard fans too. VOODOO CHILD/MOBY: The End Of Everything (Elektra) Reviewed by Shaun Dale Voodoo Child is just one of the various pseudonyms that The Artist Currently Known As Moby has recorded under over the last few years. Both names are used on the cover to "The End Of Everything," though the writing and production credits belong to Moby alone. There's also a new Moby disc out there, "Animal Rights," which finds him working more in the rock idiom, but as Voodoo Child, he's produced a set of meditational electronica with an oceanic feel. There's a mellow groove here, but there's definitely a groove. The cover photo features a tropical beach scene which appears quietly idyllic until you notice that the palm fronds are being blown back by strong approaching winds. So it is with the music - seemingly passive but with an insistent beat and the occasional swell of sound that tells you there could be a storm just outside your range of hearing. This is not a pop record. It's something for people who like this kind of thing. Of course, there's no way to know if you like this kind of thing until you *listen* to this kind of thing. I suspect if more people hear it, a lot of them will be surprised to find that they really like it. I heartily encourage you to take the plunge and find out for yourself... Track List: Patient Love * Great Lake * Gentle Love * Honest Love * Slow Motion Suicide * Dog Heaven * Reject MUDDY WATERS: His Best - 1947 to 1956 (MCA/Chess) Reviewed by Steve Marshall When it comes to the blues, one name that comes to mind before all others - Muddy Waters. The fact that more artists have covered these songs than there are tracks on this CD is an indication of his vast musical influence. Waters started recording for the Aristocrat label (which later became Chess) in 1947, accompanying blues pianist, Sunnyland Slim. In April of 1948, Waters recorded the classics "I Can't Be Satisfied" and "I Feel Like Going Home" and he was on his way. By 1953, Waters could do no wrong. He had already waxed classics like "Rollin' Stone," the two-part "Rollin' and Tumblin'," "She Moves Me," "Standing Around Crying," and "Baby, Please Don't Go." At this point, there was no stopping him. His band became known as 'The Headhunters,' due to their reputation of blowing bands off the stage with their superior musicianship. Still, his biggest success was yet to come. In 1954, legendary bluesman Willie Dixon supplied Waters with the three biggest hits of his career up to that point--"I'm Your Hoochie Coochie Man," I Just Want to Make Love to You," and "I'm Ready." Muddy scored another major hit in 1955 with his cover of Bo Diddley's "I'm a Man" (retitled "Mannish Boy"). Waters' success continued over the next few years, although a bit more sporadic. The second MCA / Chess collection, His Best: 1956 - 1964 (reviewed last month in Cosmik), covers most of the highlights from that era. For those who are just discovering Muddy Waters--start with the first disc, then pick up the second one. If you're already a fan, the improved sound quality and informative liner notes make each CD a worthy addition to your collection. Together, these CDs are an excellent retrospective of a true American treasure. TRACK LIST: I Can't Be Satisfied * I Feel Like Going Home * Train Fare Blues * Rollin' and Tumblin', Part One * Rollin' Stone * Louisiana Blues * Long Distance Call * Honey Bee * She Moves Me * Still a Fool * Standing Around Crying * Baby, Please Don't Go * I Want You to Love Me * I'm Your Hoochie Coochie Man * I Just Want to Make Love to You * I'm Ready * Young Fashioned Ways * Mannish Boy * Sugar Sweet * Trouble No More WEEZER: Pinkerton (DGC) Reviewed by Shaun Dale For their self titled debut album Weezer used the production talents of Ric Ocasek. On their sophomore effort, "Pinkerton," they passed on outside help and handled production tasks themselves. The change is clearly discernible. While pop melodies as bright and catchy as "Buddy Holly" are to be found throughout "Pinkerton," they're overlaid with a denser mix and underlie a set of more personal, often darker, songs by Rivers Cuomo, who has said that the album was an exorcism of his "inner Pinkerton." I hope he got it all out. Actually, the album is fine, but with a little guidance from the booth it might have been great. Cuomo is one of the best melodists in the biz and has an engaging voice. The rest of the band (Matt Sharp, bass; Brian Bell, guitar; Patrick Wilson, drums) are talented players and Sharp and Bell contribute enjoyable if not always harmonic backing vocals. All the ingredients are in place for a terrific pop band. Unfortunately, in this case, some of those great melodies are lost in the mix. A little more jangle and a little less roar might help, guys. There are bright spots and the folks that made "Weezer" a double platinum selling MTV favorite will no doubt snag enough of this one to justify a third album. If you're not in the hard core fan base, that third album might be the one you want. Track List: Tired Of Sex * Getchoo * No Other One * Why Bother? * Across The Sea * The Good Life * El Scorcho * Pink Triangle * Falling For You * Butterfly DWIGHT YOAKAM: Under The Covers (Reprise) Reviewed by Shaun Dale Anyone who has ever played in a cover band knows that creative interpretation of people's favorite songs is a path fraught with danger. "You did it wrong!" is the typical response to any variation from the original arrangement. Dwight Yoakam risks doing it wrong twelve times on this disc and in the end gets it mostly right. He picks a pretty safe opener. Roy Orbison's "Claudette" isn't the most familiar Orbison tune and it's easily enough Yoakamized in a fashion that doesn't stray too far from its rockabilly origins. It doesn't take long for Dwight to stray of the safe track, though. The Clash's "Train In Vain" becomes a honky tonk shuffle and it's the first of several successful surprises on the disc. Which is not to say that everything Yoakam tries here works as well as he no doubt hoped. A swing band arrangement of the Kinks' "Tired of Waiting"... well, let's just say I could have waited a little longer. Yoakam shows some facility as a swing crooner, but this isn't a song that's meant to be swung, or crooned for that matter. Two of the toughest tests come when Yoakam takes on the twin icons of the 60s British Invasion. His uptempo, nearly bluegrass, take on the Rolling Stones "The Last Time" is one of the strongest cuts on the album, and the Lennon/McCartney cover, "Things We Said Today," should pass muster with all but the purest of the purist crowd. "North To Alaska" hardly departs from the original Johnny Horton interpretation outside of the application of Yoakam's distinctive vocal style and a bit of extra twang in the guitar. The disc is rounded out with the bonus inclusion (uncredited on the outside of the package) of a notable version of Jimmie Rodgers "T for Texas" which was previously only available on a tribute compilation. If you're a Dwight Yoakam fan, you'll like this one just fine. If you buy it because of affection for the songs, well, some will make you happier than others. I'm glad he made this music, and I'm glad I heard it. I'm also glad that cd changers are programmable... Track List: Claudette * Train In Vain * Tired Of Waiting For You * Good Time Charlie's Got The Blues * Baby Don't Go (with Sheryl Crow) * Playboy * Wichita Lineman * Here Comes The Night * The Last Time * Things We Said Today * North To Alaska ____________________________________________________________________________ CLASSIC EXAMPLE By Robert Cummings Sergei Prokofiev (1891-1953) led one of the most colorful musical careers among classical musicians of this or any century. His father was a well-to-do agriculturist, his mother an amateur pianist of considerable ability, who was young Sergei's first teacher. By the time Prokofiev was five he was composing piano pieces; at nine he wrote an opera. He would go on to become one of the most prolific and artistically successful composers of this century: he wrote more compositions that have entered the standard repertory than any of his rivals, including Stravinsky, Shostakovich, Bartok and Ravel. He was also a virtuoso pianist of the highest rank and an expert chess player, who most probably could have contended for world championship status with Capablanca and Alekhine, had he devoted more time to the game. Such success and genius, as you might surmise, often produce a sizable ego, and Prokofiev, while not overshadowing Brahms, Wagner, Beethoven and many others in this dubious trait, often did manage to demonstrate fits of incredible gall. One notable instance occurred during a concert in which the composer was the soloist in his own titanically difficult Second Piano Concerto (1913, rev. 1923), a rather revolutionary work much despised at first by both critics and public alike, owing to its abundant dissonance. Throughout the performance the audience hissed Prokofiev, and many took early departure. At the work's end the composer stood up and bowed to a chorus of boos and hisses, and perhaps dodged a tomato or two. To the audience's utter dismay, he then sat back down at the piano and defiantly played a most unwelcome encore! Such nose-thumbing brashness was a prominent characteristic in the music of Prokofiev, especially in the earlier compositions, as evidenced in the concerto cited above, or in the darkly humorous ballet, Chout (1920), or in the caustic Sarcasms for piano (1912-14). In the latter part of his career, Prokofiev focused more on the lyrical side of his compositional talent, creating works of soaring beauty, like the ballets Romeo and Juliet (1935-36) and Cinderella (1940-44), the opera War and Peace (1941-52), and the film scores Alexander Nevsky (1938) and Ivan the Terrible (1942-44). In these works, one notices less the sardonic Prokofiev, and more the melodic and nationalistic Prokofiev--a mature composer who could fill the musical/historical canvas with vivid colors and riveting scenes. But even in many early works, like the Classical Symphony (1916-17) and the Third Piano Concerto (1921), attractive melodies and sophisticated orchestration abound. And his set of nine piano sonatas, which spans nearly his entire career, is widely regarded as the most important series since those of Beethoven and Schubert. Nos. 3 (1917), 6 (1939), 7 (1939-42), and 8 (1939-44) are probably the most commonly performed sonatas of this century and surely rank with the best from any time. But, you ask, beyond sarcasm, humor and beautiful melodies, how could one more specifically describe the music of Prokofiev? Good question, but the answer is more problematic than you might expect, since his style embraced so many elements while still sounding from the same pen. The Classical Symphony, mentioned above, is written as if Prokofiev had come from the time of Haydn (1700's) into the twentieth century, carrying traits from that era with him, while absorbing some modern elements. The orchestration is mostly Haydnesque, but the music is peculiarly Prokofievian. His next symphony, No. 2 (1924), is so totally different that you could imagine Prokofiev had developed the opposite scheme for its foundation: the composer coming back from the bold future to write a prescient work to shock and astonish the masses. His extraordinary opera The Fiery Angel (1919-27), which deals with mysticism, devil possession and twisted love, makes films like The Exorcist seem tame by comparison. Yet his Peter and The Wolf (1936) is cute and charming, a much-admired classic for children. And so it goes. The Cantata for The Twentieth Anniversary of The October Revolution (1936-37), ostensibly a paean to the Soviet-Marxist state, is in actuality a veiled satire on the Bolshevik revolution and its Communist leaders. On and on the seeming contradictions go, but still we find those distinctive musical fingerprints in his works: a predilection for the diatonic (white keys), as opposed to the chromatic (black keys); a love for the key of C; a tendency for large leaps in his melodies; a frantic, motoric quality in much of his fast music; an uncanny ability to make reeds sound mischievous and brass sound brazen; an inimitable talent to mesmerize with strings that swirl and turn gossamer; an ability to draw attention to the music via some clever effect or momentary flourish; and a chameleonic gift to create great music in virtually every genre imaginable (film scores, sonatas and concertos for piano and many other instruments, symphonies, choruses, songs, band music, string quartets, children's music, operas, ballets, incidental orchestral scores, and various chamber works). Prokofiev was an indefatigable one-of-a-kind. But what better way to demonstrate his style and music than to cite a few clips from his scores. Try the graceful Gavotte from his Classical Symphony. Or how about an excerpt from the ever-popular Third Concerto: this is from the second movement and features a thrilling buildup to the fifth variation. While we're on the subject of the thrilling, let's try an extract from The Fiery Angel, a snippet from the last act where Renata, the opera's main character, appears to have brought evil spirits to the nuns in the convent she has joined, evil spirits a determined exorcist attempts to drive off (employing the actual words from a Roman Catholic exorcism). To sample Prokofiev's more melodic, more mellow side, try the love theme from the Romeo and Juliet ballet, or the glorious closing to the massive opera War and Peace. Prokofiev wrote a fair amount of chamber music; so let's try a small dose. Here's a clip from the 1919 Overture on Hebrew Themes. Despite the flavor here, Prokofiev was not Jewish. (I told you he was a chameleon!) I could go on and on demonstrating the multi-faceted musical persona of this composer, but I'll limit myself to one more clip: this is the famous Troika from his 1933 Lieutenant Kije Suite. Sound familiar? Well, there you have Prokofiev. I must confess I've been enamored of his music for forty years, and if a desert island is in my future, joining me would be food, water, Prokofiev, and other things, in that order. Next month, the music of the irascible genius, Ludwig van Beethoven. Factoids: Sergei Prokofiev - Sair-gay Pro-ko-fee-eff; (also, Pruh-coffee-eff). Born, April 23, 1891 in Sontsovka, Ukraine; Died, Moscow, March 5, 1953 (on the same day as Josef Stalin!) At Prokofiev's funeral, colleagues violinist David Oistrakh and pianist Sviatoslav Richter wanted to play something sad from among his many works, but could find nothing suitable! Clip Information: (Sound clips can be found at http://www.cosmik.com) Gavotte from Classical Symphony (Kuchar/Naxos) Track 5 Piano Concerto No. 3 (Janis/Mercury) Track 2 The Fiery Angel (Jarvi/DG) (Act V) CD 2; Track 22 Romeo and Juliet (Ozawa/DG) CD 1; Track 21 War and Peace (Rostropovich/Erato) CD 4; Track 26 Overture on Hebrew Themes (Berlin Soloists/Teldec) Track 1 Lieutenant Kije Suite (Jarvi/Chandos) Track 3 ____________________________________________________________________________ BETWEEN ZERO & ONE By Steven Leith WHEN ENCRYPTION IS OUTLAWED ONLY OUTLAWS WILL HAVE ENCRYPTION. "They’ll have to pry my encryption software from my cold dead fingers." That is what Americans should be yelling at congress. Instead their attention is riveted on airplane crashes and fund raising calls made from the White House. While the media is busy with non-issues like scum-bag photo journalists, yet another under-reported technology issue is about to change our lives. If you think encryption technology is just for nerds, child pornographers and terrorists, congratulations, you have been successfully brainwashed by the Shadow Government. You know the Shadow Government. They are the ones who brought you the Iran Contra scandal, Coke for Guns in LA, various bloody dictatorships around the world and the all time favorite, Vietnam war. The NSA, FBI, CIA, G2 are your friends and if they think encryption is bad for the country it must be so. Giving these shadow agencies unparalleled access to your communication doesn’t mean they will really use it. After all, if you are not a terrorist or a child-pornographer, why do you need to hide your communications from the government? Besides, they assure us that even though they will no longer need a court order to read e-mail, no one else will be able to read it because they will safeguard the encryption back door. There will never be another Harold Nicholson in any agency tempted to sell the encryption key to the highest bidder (Chinese?, Bill Gates?). Just because there have been several high profile cases in recent years of moles going for the big bucks, that is no reason to think it will ever happen again. Funny that agencies whose very life is based on the fact that the best defense against a determined assault is complete and utter secrecy should now say that limited and crippled encryption will not fall easy prey to information hungry enemies. It would be funny if it were not for the fact that their only real enemy is the average U.S. citizen. U.S. citizenry, besides being unmatched in their consumption of the world’s resources, are also unmatched in their power to affect the Shadow Government. It is people like you and I who threaten to divert funding from Black-Ops to blackboards. We must be stopped. Perhaps you are willing to give up some personal freedom to ensure that the evil are punished. Are you also willing to give up your job? That is the down side to the Shadow Government’s plans. A world safe for them is not safe for high-tech commerce. Do you think Intel should not have the right to send production secrets electronically from one fabrication plan to another? Do you think criminal hackers will not crack crippled encryption systems used for funds transfers? Do you think there should only be one group in the entire world who are allowed to have secrets? Luckily there are still sane U.S. representatives. On September 24, the House Commerce committee rejected the Shadow Government’s new controls on the use of encryption. They rejected the Intelligence Communities wish list because of an overwhelming citizen outcry. Involved citizens are the Shadow Government’s worst nightmare. Please take note! This was but one battle in the continuing war between the citizens and the spooks. They will try again. The price of privacy is eternal vigilance. Get involved and keep your eyes open. LINKS http://www.crypto.com/ Encryption Policy Resource Page http://www.epic.org/ Electronic Privacy Information Center. Bookmark this for sure. http://bs.mit.edu:8001/~jis/pgp.html Be a dangerous subversive, download your PGP encryption software today. http://www.fc.net/phrack/ Be a real dangerous subversive, read this zine. http://www.disinfo.com/ A cool place to find stuff. __________________________________________________________________________ PHIL'S GARAGE By Phil Dirt BEASTRO Sally was on her way to meet her friend Alfredo. She had been on vacation with her family in Rio del Minudo. They went there every year. She was now of the age where she really wanted to be with friends instead of with her mom and dad, but not yet old enough to have a say in it. Next year would be different - she would be 30, and mom had said she could decide things like this for herself then. Tonight, she cooked up an excuse to leave the house to meet Alfredo. She turned into the parking lot and paused, searching for an open parking space. It wasn't difficult to find a spot. The lot was nearly empty. She spied a slot down to the right that looked just right. She drove down there, and eased her brand new red convertible Saturn Spatula in with no problem at all, much to her relief. She was very proud of her new car. It was here very first, and she had saved for many years for the down payment. She had even paid the extra money at the DMV for a personalized license plate. In school, her nickname had been "Salad Oil," which now proudly shouted out from the rear of her car. Besides, she had only been driving for a few days, and was still apprehensive about the finer points of driving, like backing up and not hitting things. She put her car in park, got out, and locked it up. She triple checked the lock to be sure it was secured, and then proceeded to the entrance of diner that she had agreed to meet Alfredo at. It was just past dusk, and the neon sign over the door seamed to light up the evening sky with the eatery's name, The Beastro. She though it was cute that they misspelled the name that way. She would soon learn it was not an error. As she entered, she looked around for Alfredo. In a few seconds, she spotted him towards the kitchen, half buried behind a menu. She meandered over, and silently slid into the luscious vinyl upholstery of the booth. As she slid across the seat, it let out a bit of a motorboat sound that yielded to squeaks as she settled in. Without even looking up, Alfredo mumbled " I didn't think you were going to make it." Sally replied "I had to tell my mom I was going to the library. She gave me a list of books to pick up for her. I had to stop there first so that she wouldn't figure out that it was a bogus excuse just to get out of the house. What a pain." Alfredo responded "You don't have to worry. I don't think she cares anymore." Noting Sally's arrival, Grace Servant picked up another menu and walked to the table. I see your party has arrived, Mr. Sauce. Here's a menu. Can I get you something to drink while you decide what to order? Sally said "No thanks," took the menu, and began to peruse the listings. She couldn't find her usual favorite chef's salad on rye. Frustrated, she started to read more carefully. After about five minutes, Sally realized that something was different about the menu. She was just about to mention it to Alfredo, when it dawned on her what was different. The menu was black with orange trim, and bleeding crypt style red letters. This was odd. Again, she was about to speak to Alfredo about it, when she remembered the date. It was October 31, and that probably meant it was a Halloween special menu. Relieved, she went about deciding on a meal. The menu looked cuter and cuter, and more thematic as she browsed. BEASTRO - A FEAST FOR THE BEAST IN YOU BONE APPETITE Goat's Eye Dip Stuffed Snozola Finger Food Platter YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT: TODAY'S SPECIAL Rump Roast Wart Hog Roast Athletes Foot SAND WITCHES Nostril Dommis Pate Knuckle VEGETATIVE STATE Hemlock Quiche Artie's Choke Prosthesis Rotissus My Grain ON TRAYS Tender Loin Herniated Membrane Aorta con Tessa EXTREMITY ROTISSERIE Arm Char-broil Leg of Former Customer Finger Kabob CALDRON DELIGHTS Mar Soupial Herniated Membrane Hen's Teeth Broth Pond Scum Honey Bucket Stew Cell Hairy Soup TANTILLA DE ZERT Ooze Pie Lady Fingers Necropolitan I Scream Bumped Kin Pie Rotting Festering Gob Bowl LUBRICATION (SERVED IN A FROSTED FRANKEN STEIN) Deteriorata Fermenta House Whine Colonic Tonic Sally was having a difficult time deciding what to order. Grace came by several times before taking their order. Sally finally decided on Aorta con Tessa, with white whine sauce, instead of the traditional red sauce, and selected boiled mountain oysters, instead of the baked tumor. She decided on a glass of Deteriorata Fermenta. Alfredo just remarked that he would have his "usual," to which Grace replied "What else!" It was dimly lit at the Beastro, not for any artistic concerns about the atmosphere, but because of the substantial number of burned out and flickering fluorescent lamps. As Sally sat quietly, waiting to see what her dinner would REALLY be, her eyes began to drift about the room. It slowly dawned on her that there were no other customers at the Beastro. She thought to herself "This must be a slow night." She sipped slowly on her glass of Deteriorata Fermenta, not because it was the way Emily Post would have her act, but because she just couldn't quite place the taste. It was not a routine wine, but more of an alcoholic beverage with a musty taste - not bad, just not very good. She glanced over at Grace, who was standing at the counter stuffing new soda straws into the dispensing jar. She had not noticed Grace with any detail before, since being preoccupied with her menu whenever Grace was at the table. In the poor light, she thought it looked like Grace was sort of hunched over. She noticed that Grace kept looking at her, then quickly looking away when their eyes met. "Nervous woman" she thought. Just beyond Grace, through the opening between the counter and the kitchen, she kept seeing a rapidly moving figure, racing past the aperture. Even in the harsh incandescent light of the galley, she really couldn't make out what the cook looked like, only that it appeared to be a man, very tall, and sort of lumpy. As she glanced back to her immediate surrounds and looked at Alfredo, she realized that she had not actually seen him since arriving. He looked some how not quite the same. He was in a shadow, directly under a burned out light, but he looked - unkempt, maybe unshaven, sort of mysterious. She was just about to ask Alfredo how he was, when Grace came over with a tray that supported their meals. Grace placed Sally's dinner before her, naming it "Aorta con Tessa with Mountain Oysters." The aroma emanating from the platter was warm and strong, a bit pungent and sweet. Grace said "and your usual..." as she placed a covered dingy platter before Alfredo. He just nodded. Sally was pondering the unusual appearance of her dinner. She looked up towards Alfredo, who was just uncovering his "usual." She was curious just what it would be. The main course inside seemed almost as high as the domed cover that had hidden it from view. "It's so damn dark," she thought as she strained to see what was on his plate. Just as she was poised to ask what it was, an old pickup truck drove into the parking lot, making an awful worn-out racket. Distracted, she looked out the window. Just as she looked back at Alfredo's dinner, the driver of the pickup turned off his lights. In the rapidly fading light, she thought there she saw a face on his plate. She was startled for a second, but then her rational mind told her it was just an illusion. She decided not to make a big deal about what Alfredo was eating, and to concentrate instead on her own plate. After all, it was shaped just like an aorta. "These people here at the Beastro sure are creative" she thought. Grace came over to ask how everything was, a necessary inquiry taught in waitressing school, to be employed only when customer mouths are full, so no actual complaints can be voiced. Sally mumbled "OK" muffled through her half-chewed and hearty portion. She tried to get a good look at Grace, but could see little due to the dim light. She couldn't see Grace's eyes, almost as if she had none. She did notice certain scars on her face, but Grace turned so quickly, she wasn't really sure. Sally was munching on her meal, when a lightning flash lit up the whole place, and for that electric instant, she saw a familiar face on Alfredo's plate. It scared the Hell out of her. She shared her childlike fear with Alfredo, saying "I know this will sound really stupid, and I know it's Halloween and all, but I could swear I saw my mother's face on your plate." Alfredo said, in his most reassuring voice "I told you not to worry." ____________________________________________________________________________ FREE ASSOCIATIONS... By Shaun Dale, Associate Editor (for free) My association with Cosmik Debris started when Deej offered me the chance to spew some reflections on the '96 U.S. Presidential campaign. That was pretty appealing because I've been a professional hack for a number of years, helping candidates for everything from small town city councils to the U.S. Senate. I've even had a piece of a couple Presidential campaigns - small pieces, sure, for candidates who didn't stand a chance (though you gotta admit, Jerry Brown was right about Bubba all along...), but it's a living. Anyway, when you're working on campaigns, you learn to sublimate your opinions and do what you can to make your clients look good, so the chance to write my own opinions in my own voice for the on-line audience was a treat. As the campaign wrapped up, and my Political Playbook series neared its end, Deej slyly slipped me a couple CDs for review. "They're free, man," he said, "and it feels real good..." Well, he successfully preyed on my addictive personality and now I've got a 25 or so a month CD review jones. Not to mention interviews, features and other music stuff that I've been doing for the past year and whatever. Which means it's been a long time since I've blessed you with political insights, or any non-musical cultural commentary at all. Hence "Free Associations," named for my slot as Associate Editor of Cosmik, which means I'm pretty much free to do anything I'll do for free. So watch this space. D.J. notices stuff. Stuff that gets him pissed off enough to rant in his column. Me, I've just got this discursive intellect that might jump from conspiracy theory to music to electoral politics to B movies to...well to whatever comes to mind. And this is where I'll tell you what it is. Or what is it. Or whatever. For instance... If you're among those who feel that Diana Spencer's death got too much favorable attention compared to Mother Teresa's, consider this: Diana could have lived a far more comfortable and private life in the jet set cocoon she rejected in favor of a public life devoted to the advocacy of causes like AIDS and the international landmine ban. Mother Teresa raked in millions from friends and patrons like the Duvalier tyranny in Haiti and used it in a lifelong campaign against gays, family planning and any hint of social progress that might have alleviated the suffering in India that she believed offered a level of nobility to its victims. Check out Christopher Hitchens' authoritative research on the views and activities of Teresa. Me, I have no more use for the British royal family than I do for the Roman Catholic hierarchy, but judged as mere humans (and we're all, after all, mere humans), Diana wins that one hands down. ****** On the musical front, I want to take a minute and plug the latest side project by Down By Law frontman Dave Smalley. He's produced an album by a British band named Travis Cut which he's shopping around to US labels (European distribution is handled). If you, or someone you know, is in a position to place a great album in the hands of a label with good distribution, Dave's got a winner waiting for you. ****** If you're 18 and in the US, you can vote. If you can vote, you should. But you probably didn't. Not this year. Nothing very sexy on the ballot, after all. No Prez, no congresscritters, probably not even a state legislooter. Nope, just a bunch of city councilmembers, school board types, maybe a sewer commissioner or two. Might as well stay home, right? Wrong. Fact is, your voice in these smaller "off-year" contests is stronger because of the generally depressed turn out. And those local officials probably have a greater impact on your life than you realize. Taxes, the level and nature of local law enforcement, the number of potholes on your block, the frequency of your trash pick-ups, the odds of your dog getting snagged by a man with a net - that's all more likely to effect your day tomorrow than who Al Gore has tapped for a $50k contribution or who the next ambassador to Mexico will be. Really. You probably missed the primary in your town (here in Seattle the turn out was under 25%). No excuse for blowing off the general election. I'll see ya at the polls. ****** Anyway, time for me to dive back into the stacks o' wax on my desk and make some recommendations for your next trip to Sam Goody's, but I'll be back next month with more random observations and free associations. Til then... ____________________________________________________________________________ WALLEY AT WITZEND By David Walley TALK TO ME Once upon a time there was a woman who was married to a hard-working dependable guy who, she insisted, never talked to her. Oh, he was attentive enough, well-spoken, and good in bed which, after a decade of marriage and a few kids, was saying something. Rarely if ever did he have "night out with the boys", or make her a football widow during playoff season. He was also a world-class putterer and do-it-yourself-er who maintained their cars, things men were always good at. At first when they just had each other, life was orderly, he worked downtown, she freelanced out of the house as a design consultant, and they talked about everything all of the time. Like most other couples, they slept in on weekends (or when he called in sick to work), went to the movies and dinner, and vacationed. Their first child, a girl, significantly altered this cozy relationship, hers more than his. When he was around, he was curious, helpful and even did the night shift when asked. Before she crashed for the night, she'd fill him in on The Latest Developments. Tradition was observed when it came to diapers: ie. she did them since she was at home --- it was her girl, she knew more about them than he did. It's not that he didn't try, it's just that he made such a borscht and a shambles out of it that she was forced to step in when she couldn't stand watching him fumble any longer. Assuming that it was through genetic ineptitude, not unfamiliarity, she stopped asking him altogether while secretly resenting him, wondering why things were like that. As her girl grew into a toddler, the woman's energy level, along with her attention span, declined from the sheer exhaustion of keeping baby out of mischief, her major activity since the business was on hold until she came out the other side of Babyland. Their evenings together gradually grew strained, being less of an inter-connected conversation and more like a series of reports. In time, he stopped asking how her day was because he'd know just by looking at her, and rather than have her re-live it in excruciating detail, he sought to divert her with office gossip just to make her laugh. Of course she was bushed and stressed out by the end of the day, he'd be too if he was in her place. For her part, since he didn't ask, she assumed that he no longer seemed as interested in her or her world; and who else could she bitch to? Thinking better of it, not wanting to bring him down when he seemed so up and positive, she let him prattle on while she silently fumed inside. How could he be bored with their child? Was he losing interest in their lives together? Why didn't he say anything? And because she didn't say anything to the contrary, he assumed everything was UNDER CONTROL. He would have cooked dinner since he knew how, but she preferred to do that herself as a matter of honor. Of course he'd wait, there were other more important priorities in her life now. Still he did his chores, maintained the cars and the house while she was nagged by the feeling that he didn't care. Maybe he intuit it, eventually catch on and get with the program, such as it had become, she'd dream. Their second child, a boy, was less of a shock to her system because now she had a good one in place. Her husband seemed to take more of an interest and was marginally better with diapers too. When they were perchance alone at night, she no longer thought of sharing details of the children with him, and of course he didn't ask thinking that if there was anything out of the extraordinary, she'd tell him. Finally when both children were in pre-K and she had more time to herself to think about working again, she brooded, meditating on his apparent ineptitude and indifference. Introspectively overloaded and over the top in more ways than one, instead of telling her husband any of this, she confided to her therapist at $40 dollars an hour. She was now well into the process of poisoning her sex life, having convinced herself that his "oblivious" nature extended from his children to her, though none of this had actually been confirmed. In subsequent sessions she revealed elaborate fantasy scenarios of her husband collapsing under the strain of the obligations, and how the children would live in squalor and discord without her around. Afterwards at home, she'd maintain a stiff upper lip when he asked why she seemed too stressed of late, though behind her cool fascade she was actively speculating on who of her friends her husband was checking out when she was put out to pasture. The marriage would have gone south had not fortune intervened in the guise of an emergency in her family which required her presence, alone, for a weekend. After exhausting the possibilities of alternate care including Rent-A-Nanny, Housekeepers-'r-Us, relatives or the like, she reluctantly prepped her husband with a ten page single-spaced ukase including relevant phone numbers and medical information. With a heavy heart she boarded her plane for her mother's, and while buckling in thought it would be a modern miracle if she returned home and they weren't all dead. Oh the house would be standing and the cars would be runing, but everything inside would be a wipe, and I'll bet that Clarisse (her nemesis, the likely Candidate, Mrs. Perfect) will have put in an appearance by then, and that's IT for me. Her mood nose-dived further when her departure was delayed for two hours because of icing on the wings and she arrived at her mother's just after a freak electrical storm had wiped out the phones. When she finally got through it was The Witching Hour when the kids were out of school and gnarly because they were hungry and tired. From the ambient room noise it was obvious that all hell was breaking loose. There, she thought grimly to herself, now he'll know what it's like. However, rather than being frantic and crazed, he was surprisingly low-key and cheerful. She imagined him talking in a shambles of a kitchen with a sink-full of dirty dishes and the laundry was strewn in heaps around the house, but obviously he wasn't letting on how bad it really was. Oh course things weren't running as smoothly without her but for the most part he had it covered. He sounded rushed and harried, but as everyone with young children knows, having a coherent conversation at the Witching Hour was fruitless. Not to worry, after he bedded the kids down, he'd call; she just couldn't wait. Yes it was certainly an experience to deal with the kids full-time, though he hadn't run into anything untoward (she marveled at his sang froid). Marnie's cold was better, she wasn't interested in what was pre-prepared for dinner so he whipped up something which did the trick. When he picked up Little Tommy from school, his first grade teacher told him his son was less fidgety and had stopped being such a buttinsky in class (that wasn't on the list, she thought). It also appeared the boy was outgrowing his need to have his teddy eat real food because " Teddy liked pretend much better". (How did he know that?). And on he went, very completely, enthusiastically, and in loving and knowing detail. She was waiting for the other shoe to fall since, as the saying goes, no good deed goes unpunished. Still she was astonished how it was dropped thirty-five minutes later into his update. "Oh and your friend, Clarisse came over to check in to see that everything was all right (I'll bet, she did)," he announced casually. "She was overdressed for the occasion and wearing this perfume that was deadly. You think her husband goes for that? Anyway I gave her a quick cup of coffee and sent her on her way. For some reason she seemed disappointed when I told her that I had pick-up to do and lunches to make, but I said I'd call her if I needed anything which I don't think I'll do. I don't know what you see in her, dear, she's such an overbearing cow at times, don't you think?" She no longer had a clue what to think. "I'm thinking of taking the kids to a ball game Saturday and then we'll have pizza later. I probably shouldn't subject them to my cooking twice without some kind of respite," he added in his charming self-deprecating way and vowed to check in with her Saturday evening. After hanging up she was thoroughly confused if not demoralized now that the careful systematic reasoning she'd developed in therapy began to unravel before her very ears. She was overcome with a whole raft of conflicting emotions as well as a sinking feeling that perhaps she had misjudged him. The anecdote about Clarisse was accurate and right on the money, she knew because he was a bad liar, a quality she'd all but overlooked in her catalogue of his sins. That night she experienced the first good sleep she'd had in what seemed like years, and in the morning awoke refreshed and far more capable of dealing with whatever shenanigans her mother had prepared especially for her. That night they talked for what seemed like the first time since the children had come into their lives, and she found herself falling in love with him all over again. "I'm just so amazed and delighted that everything's all right at home, " she enthused. "Why shouldn't they be? They're my kids too, I live here, I have to be a participant, don't I?" "But it's so funny that some of the things you told me I wasn't sure you were even aware of." "It's all part of maintenance isn't it, only it's on what's inside the house, not outside ---" "--- I mean I thought you weren't interested, you never said anything to me--" "You never asked me. If you had, I would have told you, so I just picked it up by myself." "But I never saw you." "Well, I was lurking around, you were just too pre-occupied to notice me. I'm a good lurker, you know." She admitted that he was and how intensely she missed him. Still she couldn't kick the feeling of impending doom when she arrived home the following afternoon. To her great relief, the children greeted her enthusiastically; they were clean and well-turned out while the house, save for the laundry room, a lost cause for even her, was in good order. After dinner when the children were safely in bed, she made love like she meant it, and told him so. The following Monday after cutting her therapist loose, she asked her husband how exactly he made that "surprise" that Marnie raved about. Moral: Assume nothing; talk is much cheaper than therapy and twice as effective. David G. Walley, dgwalley@bcn.net ____________________________________________________________________________ CLOSET PHILOSOPHY With Rusty Pipes FICTONS, FALSEHOODS AND THE FRIGHTENING FACE October. Halloween. It's time to visit the haunted house I used to live in. My parents, though not particularly religious, took the family to church regularly, and there I was told to always be good because God was just behind each of us, watching. I believed it without question. I even remember trying to turn around fast enough to see God when I was very little. When I was five my dad was able to build a big modern house. Moving in before it was complete, my three brothers and I were given the basement, with my younger brother and I sleeping in the large unfinished area directly under the living room. It should have been too new to be a haunted house, but every now and then I would wake up at night and see the blurry image of a face, glowing faintly yellowish on the wall. I'm not kidding. It always appeared in the same place and never changed. Most of the time it wasn't there, and when it was, turning on the lights would make it disappear. I was worried at first it was a ghost, but the face never did anything and I ended up only mystified. I forget whether my Sunday school teacher told me or I came to the conclusion by myself, but I came to believe that the face on the wall was The Face of God watching over me. Okay, it's not exactly a scary Halloween story but it's true. Perception, and your belief in the rightness of your perceptions, creates your reality. We'd like reality to be solid all the time so we can learn one set of rules and get on with playing the game. Some rules of reality are indeed solid enough to hold on to, but much is liquid we can only cup for a moment or vapor we can't grasp at all. Perhaps our reality is all built out of fictons. Quantum particles called "fictons" were postulated, somewhat facetiously, by Robert Heinlein many years ago. Fictons both true and false, he said in one of his Lazarus Long novels, are responsible for constructing all the possible realities that arise from different choices. Fictons can also be thought of as particles of fiction and non-fiction, the stuff that makes up stories. Much of what we believe must be composed of fictons because it comes from tales we've heard, the rest arises from direct experience. But direct experience only speaks about our own corner of time and space. All we know of other eras and places is composed of fictons and the march of fictons down through the ages transmits our culture from one generation to another. Most of the information-fictons we're fed these days are very poor quality compared to real experience. Anything in the mainstream media is filtered and twisted to viewpoints serving different commercial interests, all subtleties are cut away and it's reduced to a sort of pasty soup, still brightly colored and sweet, but certainly not something you can sink your teeth into. Nuggets of celebrity are cooked up in this soup and served to the public by TV, radio, newspaper and now the Net. Do we really know famous people like Princess Dead, sorry, Princess Di? (There it is, my stalwart editor, a mention of That Person in a magazine that should have no conceivable interest in vestigial monarchs and their families.) We feel we know a lot about celebrities like Diane but aside from a few who may have actually met and talked with her, all we've gotten of her to form our images, to base our opinions on, is a passel of fictons. Was there another reason Prince Charles didn't like her? Was she really into stopping land mines or was that just a good PR move? We can't tell without more info. More fictons. In a similar vein I still carry an image of OJ as a likable guy slapsticking his way through Naked Gun movies that is a polar opposite of a bloodstained killer. At my information level I have trouble reconciling the two (but I don't exactly loose sleep over it either). The same thing goes for statesman-philanderer President Bill and countless other public figures. I am fairly well read, I know my history, geography and have plenty of opinions about things, but I am aware that all information outside my experience has come to me as fictons. I tend to say "it appears to be..." and "it seems to me..." a lot. My information may not necessarily be true. It's been presented to me as a story. I decide whether to believe it or not. Without doing your homework to corroborate a story you hear, you're always taking it on faith that someone else has done their research accurately. The Net presents new channels for ficton transmission without substantiation like that. Windbags and demagogues in cyberspace actually put forth that men never landed on the Moon and that the Holocaust never happened these days. Marshal McLuhan was right, the medium is the message, and some credulous numbskulls will always believe these messages just because the medium it came in on is flashy. Others use more traditional mediums like the pulpit to give their fictons weight and authority. They fear The Rules turning to vapor in their hands, so they rage against evolution because it negates the Adam and Eve story which negates the idea of Original Sin. Which takes away the reason for saving us. Which is why Jesus came to this world. Follow that string of fictons okay? That's why preachers erect the cumbersome architecture of Creation Science and maintain the world is only 6000 years old. To protect the Book. To keep the flock coming to church to hear what's in the Book. To keep the donations flowing in. Calm down already. The Bible tells wonderful stories and contains many good teachings, but are all the accounts what really happened? From my vantage point it seems some are and some aren't and I cannot tell for certain in many cases. We're only 2000 years removed from the direct experience and pardon me but I think I do detect a little manipulation of the stories for effect here and there. I still can't help asking questions about the Bible's version of things. Did God really take sides when one tiny tribe fought another in those ancient days? If Jesus primarily taught us to love one another, then why is all that violent Apocalyptic crap in the Scriptures? If it's the Word of God then why didn't Jesus write the New Testament Himself? Did it all go down in that contradictory way? No, probably it didn't, but I wasn't there. I might slam the door on the preachers but I never lock it. I'm willing to question my assumptions from time to time. I try to keep an open mind about ALL things. I make my judgments tentative and revocable if new evidence comes in. Okay so the world is a tentative place full of fictons and most people can't live with that fact, but there is at least one other thing I know FOR CERTAIN from experience. God's Face does not appear on the wall of the my family's basement any more. Why? Because carpet was put down in the living room. Remember, most nights I didn't see The Face. I didn't figure out why until years later. Most nights my mom was not up late reading! C'mon, follow me on this. Her chair was positioned in the living room above me in the basement, along the edge of the wooden floor where it didn't quite match the rough Ohio limestone edge of a planter box. The reading light for the chair aimed down the wall almost vertically, hitting a small set of holes left open along the joint of the floor and the planter box and leaking through the unfinished ceiling of the basement. The reading light projected a pattern of light through the holes that I took as a face upon the wall of my room, the same wall that held up the stone planter box above. When my folks put in carpeting years later, the light was blocked. For awhile in my life, though, I was convinced of God's immediate presence. Now I know better. He/She/It is EVERYWHERE. But that's another column. And on corroded, creaky Halloween hinges, the Closet door closes until next month. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- E-MAIL ADDRESSES FOR CONTACTING COSMIK DEBRIS' WRITERS DJ Johnson (Editor)..........moonbaby@serv.net Shaun Dale.(Assoc. Editor)...stdale@well.com Jeff Apter...................jeffa@netaxis.com Ann Arbor....................Nprice@aol.com coLeSLAw.....................coleslaw@serv.net Robert Cummings..............rcumming@csrlink.net Phil Dirt....................reverb@cruzio.com Louise Johnson...............aquaria@serv.net Steven Leith.................leith@speakeasy.org Lauren Marshall..............Ocean@pluto.njcc.com Steve Marshall...............SteveM@pluto.njcc.com Rusty Pipes..................RustyKLST@aol.com Paul Remington...............prem@frontiernet.net John Sekerka.................jsekerka@gsc.NRCan.gc.ca Sparky Lou...................sparkylou@hotmail.com David Walley.................dgwalley@bcn.net Cosmik Debris' WWW site..http://www.cosmik.com/cosmikdebris Subscription requests....moonbaby@serv.net coLeSLAw's gAllARy is at http://www.serv.net/~coleslaw/ Shaun Dale's web site is at http://www.zipcon.com/stdale Phil Dirt's Surf Site is at http://members.cruzio.com:80/~reverb/central.html