Five Dollar Singles

"Grand Opening" by Coast Jumper

Fri, 30 Sep 2011 23:35:00 -0400

I found this album on Reddit; self-listed and published through bandcamp as a pay what you want and braced myself for the worst. Thankfully, though, I was immediately drawn in by the ambiance of Sutures i, their opening track whose video is below.

In general, the production quality is fantastic.

Though self-described as “indie psych-rock”, I’m not entire sure I see the “psych” side of the album; I can hear some major influence by the more modern ambient rock style, but a couple songs pack a nice punch through a screaming lead guitar—something which, I admit, I’m pretty partial to. Particularly notable are Lawless and Disabler, both of which are the songs I’d suggest you listen to first.

Nevertheless, most of the songs on this album seem to be more down-tempo, like their Beach Boys cover, Don’t Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder). Though I don’t know how often I’ll be coming back to it, the album certainly reaches toward a commendable emotional punch.

The only bad thing I have to say about this San Fransisco, CA band is that the outro of their album builds down much in the same way the intro builds up: over a large amount of time. Sutures ii is their definitive stopping point, but …to the West! seems to fall into a bit of a cliché; I’m not sure if there was really a point to including it except to add bulk to the album. I would have much rather had a well crafted last track instead of this 46 second homage to “O Brother, Where Art Thou?”.

Overall verdict: throw some bucks at these guys; they definitely deserve it. A fantastic first try which should put these guys in a comfortable position; and I’m certainly excited to hear what they’ll bring to the table the next time around.

They Might Be Giants at the National, September 29th, 2011

Fri, 30 Sep 2011 12:17:39 -0400

image by Steve Stearns from the September 23, 2011 show in Chicago (Creative Commons, non-commercial)

They Might Be Giants was one of the first bands that I actually started consuming; mostly because of their involvement with Homestar Runner. Needless to say, the way I regard them compared to the way I think of every other band I love is a little weird.

And, as always, they put on an incredibly energetic show, considering their fan base. Notable moments include separating the band and the crowd into “people” and “apes”, having each section chant along to their assigned band members rocking out; accidentally confusing the National with the NorVa (for shame, John Flansburgh!); and thanking us for coming to the show, since we have a wide selection of, as a direct quote, “aging alternative rock bands to choose from.”

Not to mention Jonathan Coulton, who put on a fantastic, witty show as well.

Make sure to check out TMBG’s new album, Join Us, which they mentioned quite a few times. Possibly a bit too much. They sort of seemed desperate. Nevertheless, When Will You Die was particularly well performed and certainly worth the listen.

See you next time I’m not too lazy to write something up.

Okay, it’s been a while. Sorry. Some news: Congratulations again Laura and David...

Wed, 28 Sep 2011 21:43:43 -0400

Okay, it’s been a while. Sorry. Some news:

Congratulations again Laura and David Woods.
I’ve been a bit busy. Sorry. I may do away with my schedule and do write-ups whenever I feel like it; this way, they’ll actually be well thought out and researched.
Coming soon: album reviews of new releases.

Jim Lowe — “The Green Door” (2:17) pub. Dot 1956,...

Sun, 18 Sep 2011 21:41:38 -0400

Jim Lowe — “The Green Door” (2:17)

pub. Dot 1956, 45-15486

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A number one hit in ‘56, this song (possibly named after a 1906 O. Henry short story) quickly entered the American consciousness after reaching #1 in the charts. The Irish-American folk-punk band Flogging Molly even named a live album after it.

Blatant promotion gimmick ahoy! First person to answer this question correctly gets a promo post for their website or tumblr:

This version’s B-side, the original from 1956, is hilariously racist. Which other Jim Lowe song (also from ‘56) was released as this song’s B-side in other countries?

I accidentally deleted the B-side to Hanky Panky. I may re-record it tomorrow, but probably...

Thu, 15 Sep 2011 22:05:20 -0400

I accidentally deleted the B-side to Hanky Panky. I may re-record it tomorrow, but probably not.

See you Monday.

Tommy James and the Shondelles — “Hanky Panky”...

Wed, 14 Sep 2011 21:38:29 -0400

Tommy James and the Shondelles — “Hanky Panky” (2:52)

pub. Roulette 1966, R-4686

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I guess they wanted to make it very emphatically clear that his baby does, in fact, do the hanky-panky. Which is sex, by the way. He has sex with his baby.

This is actually a cover song, originally by the pop group The Raindrops, this version, however, reached number one in 1966.

Oh, and Roulette is now owned by EMI.

See you tomorrow.

Lesley Gore — “Danny” (2:05) pub. Mercury 1963,...

Mon, 12 Sep 2011 20:37:00 -0400

Lesley Gore — “Danny” (2:05)

pub. Mercury 1963, 72119

Lesley Gore — “It’s My Party” (2:55) pub....

Sun, 11 Sep 2011 23:15:57 -0400

Lesley Gore — “It’s My Party” (2:55)

pub. Mercury 1963, 72119

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I have been referencing this song for a while now, even though I don’t think I’d ever heard it before.

So, needless to say, my roommate and our cat were a bit annoyed at my repeated utterances of “what the what” as I put on this record. I was just overcome.

But see, here’s the thing. This blog? It’s my party, and I’ll cry if I want to.

Anyway. Lesley Gore recorded this song at sixteen. Sixteen years old. It was quickly a number one hit; and she didn’t have any songs in the top ten after ‘64—speaking of, this woman is still alive and actually 64.

And she was on an episode of Batman, which is pretty cool.

See you tomorrow.

Bill Aliiloa Lincoln and his Hawaiians — “Pua Be...

Thu, 08 Sep 2011 23:36:00 -0400

Bill Aliiloa Lincoln and his Hawaiians — “Pua Be Still” (2:55)

pub. Waikiki Records, 45-503, 1958-1966?

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See you Monday.

Bill Aliiloa Lincoln and his Hawaiians — “Beyond the...

Wed, 07 Sep 2011 23:59:00 -0400

Bill Aliiloa Lincoln and his Hawaiians — “Beyond the Reef” (3:04)

pub. Waikiki Records, 45-503, 1958-1966?

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This record doesn’t exist. That being said, Waikiki Records was a small publishing company dedicated solely to making Hawaiian music; though their legitimacy could probably be called into question. Check out the art, though—pretty cool.

See you tomorrow. Sorry the posts are getting short; school’s kicking my ass.

Herb Albert & The Tijuana Brass — Mexican Road Race...

Mon, 05 Sep 2011 23:40:00 -0400

Herb Albert & The Tijuana Brass — Mexican Road Race (2:26)

pub. A&M 1967, 840

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Vroom-vroom. See you tomorrow.

Herb Albert & The Tijuana Brass — Wade In The Water...

Mon, 05 Sep 2011 18:05:50 -0400

Herb Albert & The Tijuana Brass — Wade In The Water (3:05)

pub. A&M 1967, 840

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Herb Albert is a guy who’s still alive and being generally a philanthropist, and the “A” in A&M Records.

And, as you probably know, Wade In The Water is an old (originally published in 1901) Black Spiritual; which is strange, considering every session musician in Herb Albert and the Tijuana Brass was white.

See you tomorrow for the B-side.

(also, yeah, yeah, this post was late. sorry.)

It’s finally here. Yes. No words for how happy I am.

Fri, 02 Sep 2011 20:28:17 -0400

It’s finally here.

Yes.

No words for how happy I am.

The Fontane Sisters — “Silver Bells” (3:11) pub....

Thu, 01 Sep 2011 23:59:00 -0400

The Fontane Sisters — “Silver Bells” (3:11)

pub. RCA Victor 1953, 45 RPM Single, 47-5524

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Come on. Christmas is a little under four months away. I shouldn’t be listening to this.

A-side here.

See you Monday.

The Fontane Sisters — “Kissing Bridge” (2:28) pub....

Wed, 31 Aug 2011 23:59:00 -0400

The Fontane Sisters — “Kissing Bridge” (2:28)

pub. RCA Victor 1953, 45 RPM Single, 47-5524

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The only evidence I could find of this single even existing in this form is here; apparently it got to number 21 on the charts in the very beginning of ‘54.

I can’t be objective on this one. I hate Christmas music. It’s not a secret.

The Fontane Sisters are apparently still poignant; topping charts from ‘49 to ‘54, they recorded a great deal with Perry Como.

And apparently there’s a ski resort in New York called “Kissing Bridge”. Also, apparently there’s a website that gives weather updates, including conditions at ski resorts, called “Weather Underground”.

See you tomorrow.

Happy Wednesday.

Tue, 30 Aug 2011 23:19:00 -0400

Happy Wednesday.

David Terrry and his Orchestra — “Swingin’ Shepherd...

Mon, 29 Aug 2011 23:59:00 -0400

David Terrry and his Orchestra — “Swingin’ Shepherd Blues” (2:28)

pub. RCA Victor 1958, 45 RPM Single, 47-7153

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Check out the A-side here.

This song was the first hit of Moe Koffman, reaching the charts in ‘58, initially titled “Blues à la Canadiana”; seemingly re-orchestrated here in the same year. This is one of 300 versions of the song.

Yep. See you tomorrow.

David Terry and his Orchestra — “March From the River Kwai...

Sun, 28 Aug 2011 22:58:00 -0400

David Terry and his Orchestra — “March From the River Kwai / Colonel Bogey” (2:15)

pub. RCA Victor 1958, 45 RPM Single, 47-7153

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I had no idea what to expect when I pulled this record out of one of the boxes. Then I started playing it. I was dumbfounded. “Wait. This… this is the song from Spaceballs. What. What.”

Actually, the song “Colonel Bogey March” has a lot of history behind it. Yes, it’s the “dink dink” song from Spaceballs. It was also on The Parent Trap, The Breakfast Club, A Very Brady Sequel, and most famously, The Bridge on the River Kwai, a movie from 1957 whose score included a song which expanded upon the original composition. Written by the British army Lieutenant and Bandmaster F. J. Ricketts in 1914, he’s credited on the single as his pen name, Kenneth J. Alford.

The original composition has wide spread use: it’s an official march of a branch of the Canadian Armed Forces, the namesake of the scoring of “bogey” in golf, and the tune behind many ear-worm like songs.

So this version, recorded above, is a version of the score from The Bridge on the River Kwai with a counter-melody written by Malcom Arnold in 1957, titled “The River Kwai March”; the re-orchestration here gets neither part of the title correct. And, not surprisingly, there is no biographical information available for David Terry online, other than his involvement with several different presses of this same score by RCA, most with the same B-side, but some being part of a two record set—not this one, though.

So, speaking of which, be sure to come back tomorrow for our B-side, “Swingin’ Shepard Blues”.

Simon and Garfunkel — “Flowers Never Bend With The...

Thu, 25 Aug 2011 23:03:00 -0400

Simon and Garfunkel — “Flowers Never Bend With The Rainfall” (2:15)

pub. Columbia 1966, 45 RPM Single, 4-43617

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Check out the A-side here.

This B-side was from their immediate, rushed recording session in response to their success with “The Sound of Silence”. The A-side from this single ended up on their album cleverly titled “The Sound of Silence”, while the B-side ended up on “Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme”, which was released about nine months later.

Simon and Garfunkel — “I Am A Rock” (2:57) pub....

Wed, 24 Aug 2011 23:11:00 -0400

Simon and Garfunkel — “I Am A Rock” (2:57)

pub. Columbia 1966, 45 RPM Single, 4-43617

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I AM A ROCK, I AM AN I-HI-HI-LAAAAND~!!

First of all, it’s a pretty heinous crime how warped this record is. The file above is a digitization at a pretty high tracking weight—actually, a little higher than I was comfortable with. I was pretty excited when I pulled this out of the stack. And yes, I admit, this wasn’t a random pick; I was getting some sort of protection on each single (about fifty were just shoved in a record box without sleeves) when I saw this one among a few others that made me really excited.

My job researching this single was made extremely easy by its Wikipedia page, so here’s a really quick back-story.

Simon & Garfunkel are an iconic folk rock duo that joined forces in ‘57 and disbanded in ‘70; though they got back together in 2003 and are now playing the occasional show. They exploded in popularity with their ‘65 single, “The Sound of Silence”; before that, they were very poor and even more poorly known.

I Am A Rock was written by Paul Simon alone and released in a more acoustic version on his first and relatively unsuccessful solo album, The Paul Simon Songbook, in 1965. Extremely disenfranchised with the album, he even wrote in the liner notes:

There are some here that I would not write today. I don’t believe in them as I once did. I have included them because they played an important role in the transition. It is discomforting, almost painful, to look back over something someone else created and realize that someone else was you. I am not ashamed of where I’ve been and what I’ve thought. It’s just not me anymore. It is perfectly clear to me that the songs I write today will not be mine tomorrow. I don’t regret the loss.

Immediately after the single “The Sound of Silence” reached the Billboard Hot 100 chart (where it peaked at #1 for the first couple weeks of ‘66), Simon & Garfunkel rushed back to a studio in the United States, with Paul Simon returning from England, to record songs based on the more “rock”-like template they had created. Thus this version of “I Am A Rock” was born, which reached #3 on the Hot 100 and insured the group’s success.

Thanks for reading and come back tomorrow for a write-up on the B-side, “Flowers Never Bend With the Rainfall”.