Doom & Gloom From the Tomb

You’re Invisible Now

The Flaming Lips have a new album out! Lamentably, I’ve yet to hear it. But I intend to — apparently, it’s the darkest, strangest thing the band has done since Zaireeka, AKA the most bizarre major label rock release since Uncle Lou’s infamous Metal Machine Music. Zaireeka, of course, is the “four discs playing simultaneously on four separate stereos” magnum opus the Lips released back in the 1990s. The idea (probably conceived under a thick haze of pot smoke) was to make the album a communal listening experience. The way I’m presenting it to you today is not the way the band intended — but it’s a bit more user-friendly. This is a very nicely done “mix-down” of Zaireeka’s four discs. Don’t worry, the album still maintains its ultra-bad-trip vibe, freaky sonics and brain-fried lyrics in this single disc format. It’s great, kind of like Coyne & Co.’s very own Dark Side of the Moon (which I understand they’re going to be covering in its entirety soon?). And now you can listen to it on headphones.

http://www.sendspace.com/file/pdrwr5

Sweeter Shellac

Here’s another disc’s worth of R. Crumb’s Sweet Shellac BBC radio program, wherein the distinguished American cartoonist shares choice 78s from his “fabulous collection” (as Crumb puts it ever so modestly). Highly recommended. The first show here covers wacky French jazz “before Django.” Some mind-bending stuff. The second show is maybe my favorite of the series, highlighting some rare sides of American string bands from the 1920s. In particular, I love the banjo/fiddle duet, a rare-for-the-time interracial collaboration. Sounds like music from another planet. As always, Crumb’s asides and stories are wry fun, and he even attempts a little singing towards the end. This is the last of these Sweet Shellac shows I am in possession of — does anyone know if he did any more?

http://www.sendspace.com/file/jse2jm

REAL COOL TIME: 32 Years of Live Feelies Covers

If you’ve downloaded any of the Feelies shows I’ve posted in the past, you know that The Feelies are a magnificent cover band. Whether tackling songs by Patti Smith, Wire, R.E.M., The Stooges or, of course, The Velvet Underground, they manage to put their own stamp on anything they play. A Feelies cover song isn’t radically re-arranged, mind you — it’s just given that elemental Feelies feel. Some of these songs made it to the studio, while some of them ended up being live-only experiences. Over the years, I’ve gathered up what I think is a complete set of these tunes, and I’m sharing that with you now. Here’s the tracklisting:

Vol. 1

1. Egyptian Reggae (Modern Lovers)
2. Everybody’s Got Something to Hide (Except for Me & My Monkey) (Beatles)
3. Barstool Blues (Neil Young)
4. She Said She Said (Beatles)
5. Dancing Barefoot (Patti Smith)
6. Outdoor Miner (Wire)
7. White Light/White Heat (Velvet Underground)
8. King’s Lead Hat (Eno)
9. Little Red Book (Bacharach/David/Love)
10. Take It As It Comes (Doors)
11. Sedan Delivery (Neil Young)
12. Carnival of Sorts (R.E.M.)
13. Funtime (Iggy Pop)
14. Paint It Black (Rolling Stones)
15. See No Evil (Television)
16. Velvet Medley (Velvet Underground)

Vol. 2

1. Fun To Be Happy (Love Tractor)
2. We’re Gonna Have A Real Good Time Together (Velvet Underground)
3. Looking At You (MC5)
4. Third Uncle (Eno)
5. Head Held High (Velvet Underground)
6. Mannequin (Wire)
7. I Want To Sleep In Your Arms (Jonathan Richman)
8. Sunday Morning (Velvet Underground)
9. I’m A Believer (Neil Diamond/Monkees)
10. Roadrunner (Modern Lovers)
11. Real Cool Time (Stooges)
12. Sweet Jane w/ Lou Reed (Velvet Underground)

Tacked onto the end of Vol. 2 is a “bonus EP” of Yung Wu covers (which was basically the Feelies with percussionist Dave Weckerman on vocals)

1. Big Day (Eno)
2. Child of the Moon (Rolling Stones)
3. Kingdom Come (Tom Verlaine)
4. You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away (Beatles)
5. Nobody Told Me (John Lennon)

Acknowledgments: Gotta say thanks to ILM-ers Marco and Erik for hooking me up with a few songs I didn’t have, as well as Janice for coming through at the last minute with “King’s Lead Hat.” Also thanks to the tapers who documented all of this — only one I know specifically is www.nyctaper.com, who has been lovingly recording the reunited Feelies in the last year or so. More thanks to Massimo, who runs the excellent Feelies website, where I was able to research this stuff, thanks to the bootleg database there. And thanks to The Feelies for being so awesome! Go out and get those reissues, people!

Finally, the download link

Edit! Hit the link above to get a missing track — Yung Wu’s version of “Powderfinger” by Neil Young. Add that to the end of Vol. 2 and you’re good to go.

I promise this blog won’t turn into a “cute pics of my daughter” blog, but … this one is too good.

Sylvie at six weeks

A Master Thief

Legend has it that this late-1965 recording of Bob Dylan & the Hawks in Berkeley, CA was made by none other than Allen Ginsberg. Sadly, Allen does not offer a stream-of-consciousness running commentary. But we can thank him for this rather excellent, and rather unique snapshot of Bob and the proto-Band prior to their epic 1966 Australian/European tour. The sound is far from perfect, but once you get into it, it’s quite listenable. And it’s especially recommendable for the songs that weren’t played during the infamous 1966 tour — a rollicking “Tombstone Blues,” a majestic arrangement of “It Ain’t Me Babe,” (with a great solo from Robbie Robertson) and the only known Dylan-sung version of “Long Distance Operator,” a tune that The Band would record later on. The performances here aren’t nearly as intense as they’d get in the next few months, and the crowd actually seems pretty into the then-new electric-style Dylan. At least no one’s calling Bob “Judas” here. Unfortunately, the acoustic set has never circulated — apparently, it’s when Dylan premiered what is certainly one of his greatest songs, “Visions of Johanna.” Maybe the tape will show up in Ginsberg’s archives one day … Until then, enjoy this set!

http://www.sendspace.com/file/e0cge2

The Party’s Over

In contrast to the (rather glorious) slickness of the Go-Betweens’ last two albums of the 80s, Tallulah and 16 Lovers Lane, the band remained a somewhat raw act onstage up until the end. And this December 1989 recording is pretty much the end — it’s one of the band’s final shows, before Grant McLennan and Robert Forster got back together in the late 90s, sans drummer Lindy Morrison and multi-instrumentalist Amanda Brown. They don’t particularly sound like a band on the verge of a break-up here, however. They’re breaking in a new bass player, playing new songs, and generally enjoying themselves, it would seem. The new songs are one of the main draws of this set — they would later show up on Forster and McLennan’s respective solo albums, but it’s certainly interesting to hear fully-fleshed out Go-Betweens versions of such great tunes as “Easy Come Easy Go” and “I’ve Been Looking For Somebody.” The classics sound great here too, including a great “Clarke Sisters” and an appropriately majestic “Bye-Bye Pride.” After 20 years, love goes on!

http://www.sendspace.com/file/2t5cz4

Dusted In Memphis

In honor of yet another September box set that I can’t really afford at the moment, here’s a wonderful little 1975 radio broadcast featuring the singular talents of Jody Stephens and Alex Chilton — IE, the shards of what had been the great Memphis power pop group Big Star. In what one can only assume was a VERY late night, Jody and Alex run through ragged duo versions of several Third/Sister Lovers tracks (which had either just been completed or was near completion), as well as some not-very-rehearsed, but very fun Bonzo Dog Band, Dolly Parton and Box Tops covers. During the Parton cover (an achingly wasted “I Will Always Love You”), Chilton gives a rundown of the various painkillers he’s taken this particular evening. Classy. It’s easy to romanticize the darker aspects of the Sister Lovers period, but to be honest, I don’t hear too much of that here — this just sounds like fun. Fun with the aid of many controlled substances, sure — but fun all the same.

http://www.sendspace.com/file/jvdrjl

Hiatus

Sylvie Faison Wilcox, born August 22, 2009

The Return of Bad News: The Godfather of Crunk

Our latest installment of Neil Young rarity weirdness takes us into the 1990s, whereupon Neil emerged from the wilderness of the 80s triumphant. In many ways, this is his most conservative decade — instead of trying out new genres, Neil mainly stuck to making “Neil Young” music. So that meant back-to-basics albums with Crazy Horse, reflective country rock, and moody solo acoustic ruminations. The strangest moments of the 90s bookend this comp: a cut from the powerful soundtrack to Jim Jarmusch’s Dead Man, and the guitar feedback tsunami that is Arc (presented here in its promo single edit, haha). In between, we’ve got plenty of good stuff. In particular, check out the three live tracks recorded in 1993 with Booker T. & the MGs — two great songs that have yet to be released on any Neil Young album (“Live To Ride” and “Separate Ways”) and an early version of “Change Your Mind,” which would be recorded by Crazy Horse in epic form for the Sleeps With Angels album. Also worth your attention: “Don’t Spook the Horse,” the ultimate Crazy Horse anthem, and “Ambulance Blues,” featuring Neil and backing band R.E.M. Suck it, Pearl Jam!

http://www.sendspace.com/file/egd7hi