Little Anthony and The Imperials:

Best of:(1966)

When I hear the band name, Little Anthony and The Imperials, the first thing I think of is the etherial voice of "Little" Anthony Gourdine, and that on the song, Goin' Out Of My Head, he actually seems like he's singing from outside of his head. 

I picked this record up in Carbondale, CO at an antique store while I was on tour with singer/songwriter Ronny Elliott. Now, this record is more of Ronny's time than mine. I mean, he remembers it being brand new, I just remember it from the oldies station as a child. That said, as we got in the car, and he was looking through the records I had just purchased, he says, "I never really cared for Little Anthony. I always thought his stuff was too slow." It's true, these are slower more dramatic tunes that fall on the Baroque Pop side of R&B, but there are elements of that that have always interested me.

Little Ann:

Deep Shadows:(2009)

This is a wonderful reissue... Well, it's not really a reissue, since these tracks weren't released back when they were recorded, but it's all vintage, and all so damn good. Little Ann recorded these track with a producer in Detroit in the sixties, then they sat in a box for decades. Contained in the grooves of this record are the possibilities of what could have been.

   

Gordon Lightfoot:

Sundown:(1974)

I absolutely love the song, Sundown. Hence the reason I own this record. There's something so cool about the groove, and feel of that song. That's not to slight the other tunes on this, Lightfoot's tenth, album. This is a heavy slice of seventies singer/songwriter magic.  

Jerry Lee Lewis:

Original Golden Hits, Vol. 1:(1969)

She Still Comes Around (To Love What's Left of Me):(1969)

Roll Over Beethoven!!!:(1972)

Jerry Lee Lewis:(1979)

The Killer! One of the originals, and one of the last ones standing. Most hear his name, and immediately think of Great Balls of Fire, as well they should. His Sun sides are so damn good. But, his country records are pretty cool too. The man is just a great talent period. 

Let's Active:

Cypress:(1984)

Jangley 80's Indie-Rock from a band most people haven't heard of when I mention their name, but most have heard something that the front man of Let's Active has worked on. I say that because the front man is Mitch Easter, who has done work with REM, Ben Folds, Pavemant, Pylon, and Marshall Crenshaw. 

Cypress is a nice"Let's Start The Day Off" type record. I scored it at thrift store for fifty cents when I was about twenty. I didn't know who they were at the time, but I knew the record had come out on I.R.S. Records at time when they were releasing lots of good stuff, so I took a chance. I mean, fifty cents? Come on.

John Lennon:

Plastic Ono Band:(1970)

Imagine:(1971)

Mind Games:(1973)

How much more is there to say about John Lennon's body of work? It still evokes the same feelings and spirit that, I'm sure, it did when it first came out. That's genius, and it's what makes certain artists timeless. Songs off of these albums are still, unfortunately, relevant. Right now, go put on Bring On The Lucie (Freda People)... See? 

March 1st Spin A Record That Was A Gift:

So, it was suggested by a friend that March first be "Play A Record That Was A Gift" Day. OK. So I couldn't pick one, I went with two. Both of them gifts from my wife. I thought these two were particularly relevant to today. These are uncertain political times in the nation, and both of these songwriters tackled those types of things with gusto. As Joe Strummer sings on Long Shadow, "You don't face your demons down, you gotta grapple 'em jack, and pin 'em to the ground."

Oddly enough, Joe Strummer was a huge Woody Guthrie fan, going so far as to take on the monicker of "Woody" as a young man. Neither was a man to back down, or as Guthrie sang, "Ain't the world's best writer, ain't the world's best speller, but when I believe in something I'm the loudest yeller."    

These are both artists I reach for to get grounded, to refocus, because they both were good at dropping pretense, and cutting to the quick. They both also seem to have been good at turning their weakness into strength. By that I mean, neither was a child of means, both had serious character flaws, and unhealthy tendencies that would have crushed most people. But, these men were able to channel those weaknesses into empathy, and that empathy into fearlessness. Strummer once said, "...I realized early on, you either became a power or you were crushed." Seems like Woody knew this too. It's in that attitude were one feels both the toughness and the tenderness in their songs.

There you go, my vinyl spinning that was a gift.