a brief word on religion

RT 015: photograph by janette beckman; rigid digits music 1979. The Catholic Church has a saying: “Give me a boy until the age of seven, and I will give you the man.” Well. My grandfather was taught by Jesuits, and renounced religion in order to marry my grandmother. His priest was livid. I grew up

hospitals

My grandfather went into hospital sometime before Christmas in 1999 as the result of cardiovascular issues. My son was eight months old at the time, and I did not dare take him with me. The surgery wards were – and remain – rife with a virus, MRSA, which establishes itself in open wounds and minor

withnoël and i

The last gasp of Christmas present. In memory of my cherry red stratocaster, which I soldto pay the rent sometime in 1997.Never did learn to play it like this, though. Recorded live, June 18th, 1967. Recorded live, February 24th, 1969.

i’m a man you don’t meet everyday

This is quite possibly my favourite Pogues song, culled certainly from my favourite Pogues’ album, a traditional arrangement delivered with stunning clarity and understatement not by Shane MacGowan on this occasion, but by the incredibly beautiful Caitlin O’ Riordan. This is forever a New Year’s Eve staple in my house. Beauty, of course, will burn

i. begg your pardon ?

TRLS 189. I am not sure on which label this early Big Youth – Manley Augustus Buchanen – production first appeared; it features prominently on several Trojan compilations chronicling the period 1972-1976, but it definitely predates 1973’s “Screaming Target“. It very possibly first appeared under the title “Ace 90 Skank” as a 7″ on the

tales of snow and woe

With backing vocals by Orphan Annie – aka, Annie X-Mas – one may be excused for thinking this in fact none other than the Incredible String Band. Not so. Born in Dublin as a duo comprising Tim Booth and Ivan Pawle in 1967, the good doctors soon became a fully fledged band with the addition

sing-a-long-with-tricky-dickie

RR 1272. It seems a tad obvious, granted. Issued on December 20th, 1972, this was the Residents’ festive ever self release on Ralph Records. 500 copies in total, deliberately misnumbered with their silk-screened sleeves hand-folded and glued flat before the varnish had the opportunity to dry. “Santa Dog’s a Jesus foetus… has no presence, has

love is all ib ring…

check out the bleed… Strictly speaking, this is a Christmas 45 – a good one – and a rehash of a much older post I pulled months ago. Produced by Joe Gibbs, and featuring the trademark killer drum & bass combination of Sly & Robbie, this 45 crept up the UK charts in February 1978

a christmas card

Yes, folks! Jesus Saves! But these are desperate times, and desperate times call for drastic measures. With everyone feeling the pinch, the temptation is surely to buckle down and save for that rainy day. But as we know, that rainy day is here, and what the economy needs right now is for all good Christians

cry tuff, holler tuffer

Style Scott: drums, percussion; David Toop: flute; Sowell: lead guitar;Bing Bunny: rhythm guitar; Earl “Chinna” Smith: rhythm guitar;Prince Far I: percussion; Steve Beresford: toy synthesizer, melodica, whistle. Produced by Prince Far I; mixed and overdubbed by Dub Syndicate. ▼ PRINCE FAR I & THE ARABS: FINAL CHAPTER from “Cry Tuff Dub Chapter 3” LP (Front

from pillar to post…

you can’t make an omelette without turning up the heat. Further to my ongoing dispute with Scottish Power – this nation’s biggest electricity provider – here is a brief update. Currently, for every £17 I am paying directly into my pre-payment service, I am receiving 39p of power. Despite my paying £1,560 over the past

little fingers put you down

Guy Kyser: vocals; guitar; Roger Kunkel: guitar;John Van Feldt: bass; Frank French: *drums;Josef Becker: ‡drums.*Produced by Tom Mallon & Thin White Rope.‡Produced by Paul McKenna & Thin White Rope.Recorded at Tom’s Place, San Francisco & Metropolis, Studio City, CA. illustration by ib ▼ THIN WHITE ROPE: RED SUN (ORIGINAL VERSION)*from “Red Sun” 12″ EP (Demon)

sibling whispers #19: brumalia

birthday of the sun: the true meaning of x-mas. “…It seemed to the people that their god was forsaking them. The shortest day of the year came around… Several days later it became evident that the sun was coming back. …a great celebration called the Brumalia began on December 25th.”

a time for giving

prehistoric family gathering in the libyan desert. “Sir, You are using a cave painting on your site which has been in my family for the past 7,000 years and is protected by international copyright. The rock-art of Wadi al-Hayat is ordinarily fortified by an elaborate series of very high fencesbuilt by successive generations of this

block up your chimneys ?

creepy #68: warren publishing, 1975.bronner’s christmas wonderland. “world’s largest christmas store, frankenmuth, michigan U.S.A.” “Frankenmuth, Michigan, is the home of Bronner’s CHRISTmas Wonderland. Bronner’s, a fascinating year-round attraction for all ages, was founded in 1945 by Wally Bronner. It has grown to be the world’s largest Christmas store and welcomes more than 2 million visitors

life’s a drag, petrolhead

pa-130. Tearing down the straight and narrow in 1963 with Johnny Sudetta, a Clevelander who moved out west to CA in 1959. Written by R. Christian & J. Sudetta, and recorded by the rechristened Fortune Cookie at the age of just sixteen; he was invited by Johnny Burnette to tour England in the same year

where were you ?

fast 7. Another from Bob Last’s Edinburgh based Fast Product, this one – Fast 7 – featuring a double ‘A’ side from The Mekons, and one of the best drum intros from the period. Packaged in a plastic coated sleeve. Jon Langford: vocals; guitar; Sally Timms: vocals;Sarah Corina: bass; Steve Goulding: drums. Recorded on 20th

ahh but, it hurts me now…

“…in 1965 they were spotted by leading record producer Tom Wilson, who had earned acclaim as the producer of the seminal Bob Dylan album ‘Bringing It All Back Home‘ and the single, ‘Like a Rolling Stone‘.“ Frank Zappa: guitar, conductor, vocals;Ray Collins: vocals, harmonica, tambourine, finger cymbals, tweezers; Jimmy Carl Black: drums; Roy Estrada: bass,

kink kong reduxe

“Now we’ll have the Residents doing Frank Zappa’s “King Kong“,with Snakefinger Lithman on guitar…” Philip Charles Lithman: June 17th, 1949 – July 1st, 1987.From Wiki: “Lithman was born in Tooting, South London, and came from the British Blues scene. He moved to San Francisco in 1971 and became associated with the avant-garde group The Residents.

downed economy

You may recall a fairly recent post featuring Buffalo Drive‘s excellent “Shock Therapy” from their promo on Sweet Touch Records: “Peter & His Chromatic Fantasy” was produced by Boston’s Emil Hewitt. Emil – dj and ‘Whack-it Ball’ inventor – now has his own EP, “Downed Economy“, out on Sweet Touch. If, despite current economic trends,