formal disclosures

toulouse, 2008. photographs by rory lindsay.So much has been written here and elsewhere regarding Brooklyn’s once forgotten finest that I will resist the temptation to embellish, save for the reminder that chief songwriter, Mike Brown was just sixteen years old when this rarified gem of an album was recorded in his father’s studio above a

two rum cherries spells casino ruin

one armed bandit. photograph by yale joel, 1951. I like berries. I do not like fruit machines. Slot machines. The term “one armed bandit” seems hideously appropriate. Like a shrunken Mexican purse snatcher lying in wait in a dark alley in Vegas. Or the deserted parking lot at the back of the diner. As I

step off the grass and into the crop circle

My favourite fruit is the blackberry. Brambles, we call them. They grow wild by the roadside in the late summer months into autumn, protected from pickers by a vicious array of thorns. If I remember correctly, their appearance on the vine broadly coincides with the first bloom of psilocybin. Cars travelling over the speed limit

communis exalti

com•mun•ion |kəˌmjuːnjən| noun 1 the sharing or exchanging of intimate thoughts and feelings, esp. when the exchange is on a mental or spiritual level : in this churchyard communion with the dead was almost palpable. See note at CONVERSATION. ORIGIN late Middle English : from Latin communio(n-), from communis (see common). From wiki:“Whitley Strieber was

when the not so weird turn pro

A couple of nights ago I watched Alex Gibney’s “Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson” on terrestrial tv. I have not read any Hunter for quite some time, although I have a good several of his key publications from 1965’s “Hell’s Angels” through to 1979’s retrospective, “The Great Shark Hunt“. Benign

small and stately

The fifth 45 release from the Small Faces, hitting the #1 spot on the British singles chart two weeks after its release on August 5th, 1966; sharing the top position with The Beatles’ “Yellow Submarine“, quite bizarrely. Think Rod Stewart’s cover of P.P. Arnold’s “First Cut is the Deepest” pipping the Pistols’ “God Save the

paging mr. lee

GOLAS 2. A fractured slice of almost indecently perfect pop from the late 1980’s, penned by Merseyside mysterioso, Lee Mavers, and prompted by this interesting tidbit recently posted on Blank Stares and Cricketclaps. Produced by Bob Andrews, formerly of Brinsley Schwarz; Dr. Feelgood; and The Rumour. Andrews also contributed piano and hammond organ to Johnny

byrd with coils

albinio banana california king snake. A Jaques Levy & McGuinn composition from The Byrds’ untitled 1970 LP, featuring Clarence White, Gram Parsons and Skip Battin. Also including the great Terry Melcher on piano in pieces, this was undoubtably the last release from McGuinn under the Byrds banner of any merit. McGuinn’s voice on this live

pour a little sugar on it

The Archies, of course, were the saccharine comic-book-creation-made-flesh of Bubblegum Svengali, Don Kirshner; the evil impresario who also played his hand so well in the cynical manufacure of The Monkees. Devised originally in late 1967, there was so much of a liberal sprinkling of sugar on this one that even Kellog’s were soon queuing up

capricorn one

A Gerry Goffin & Carole King composition, of course, allegedly named after Pleasant Valley Way; a road in West Orange, New Jersey which stakes out a path from the heart of suburbia into the Watchung Mountains. Or so I am informed. Produced by Douglas Farthing Hatlelid(aka Chip Douglas).Mike Nesmith: lead guitar;Peter Tork: keyboards;“Fast” Eddie Hoh:

philadelphia freedom: drake’s cake iced

protect yourself, people. back up. The following post on Philly Soul legends, The Intruders – sans all audio links – originally ran here on December 3rd, 2008 and was very recently the subject of a DMCA Takedown Notification. If you are fortunate to own their “Cowboys to Girls” LP on Kenny Gamble & Leon Huff’s

luna reduxe: and the moon is full of wrinkles

“It was forty years ago today…” Well, almost. Essentially a re-up of a post from a year back; on thisoccasion simply to commemorate what many continue to regard as an elaboratehoax designed to cement President John F. Kennedy’s vision of the USA’striumph in the Space Race and set in stone the mission statementfirst put before a

houston, we have no problem

Ouch. I did not intend to let this 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon Landing pass unremarked. Launching on July 16th, 1969 from the Kennedy Space Center at 9:32 AM, local time – in the unlikely event that you may have missed all recent television coverage on it – Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins splashed

auditors and auditties

big star trip thru kansas? poul•tice |ˌpəʊltɪs|nouna soft, moist mass of material, typically of plant material or flour, applied to the body to relieve soreness and inflammation and kept in place with a cloth. verb [ trans. ]apply a poultice to : he poulticed the wound. ORIGIN late Middle English : from Latin pultes (plural),

road runner (thrice)

spirit of ’76 In which Rotten, Jones and chums throw up – not without some revolutionary affection – on the spirit of 1956, if not Boston’s JR or 1776. Stern and bow, like time travelling pirates from William S. Burroughs’ “Cities of the Red Night“. Rather aptly too, since it appears a couple of previous

white line fever #1

“undertakers to the industry – if they’re dead – we’ll sign ’em”. A curiosity. From the early compilation – SEEZ 2 – from 33 Alexander Street, London W2; that original little shop of horrors. An entirely different take to the one which made its way onto their debut LP on Chiswick. Lemmy: bass, vocals; Eddie

agitated: another porky prime cut

RT 008. Recorded on May 25th, 1975, and released on Geoff Travis’ UK label some three years after these Clevelanders finally disbanded; by which time Nick Knox was firmly installed in the percussive seat of psychobilly cheerleaders, The Cramps. Dave E. (McManus): vocals; Nick Knox : drums;Brian McMahon: rhythm guitar; John Morton: lead guitar. Written

music city and the wild things

Occasionally, some unexpectedly fine stuff feeds its way under the wire and into my mailbox. Such is the case with Max and the Wild Things, a self-proclaimed “3-piece NewCountryPunkWave band from Nashville“.Not only is it encouraging to find concrete evidence that Tennessee continues to distil raw proof talent of the calibre of a first rate

after the stooges…

above and below: 1970. camp, subjects and photographers unknown. Hey Keith ? I never got to summer camp as a kid. It is – or was – a uniquely American phenemonon.However. This is as close to a soundtrack, short of Charlie Brown, as is feasible. ▼ THE DAMNED: I FEEL ALRIGHT from “Damned Damned Damned”

a teardrop explodes

who ate all the pies ? dig•i•tal•is |ˈdɪdʒɪˌteɪlɪs|nouna drug prepared from the dried leaves of foxglove and containing substances (notably digoxin and digitoxin) that stimulate the heart muscle. ORIGIN late 18th cent.: from the modern Latin genus name of the foxglove, from digitalis (herba) ‘(plant) relating to the finger,’ from digitus ‘finger, toe’ ; suggested