One can hardly imagine the genre-busting, culture-crossing musical magic of Outkast, Prince, Erykah Badu, Rick James, The Roots, or even the early Red Hot Chili Peppers without the influence of R&B pioneer Betty Davis. Her style of raw and revelatory punk-funk defies any notions that women can’t be visionaries in the worlds of rock and pop. In recent years, rappers from Ice Cube to Talib Kweli to Ludacris have rhymed over her intensely strong but … READMORE >
Matt Sullivan remains hard at work attempting to complete Light in the Attic's reissue of Jim Sullivan's 1969 album, U.F.O. Scheduled for a fall release, Matt has embarked on quite the journey as he tries to find answers into Jim Sullivan's mysterious disappearance 35 years ago. He has been kind enough to catalog his story. You can read previous installments here, here and here. This most recent dispatch finds our leading man (and his two ace companions) in the New Mexico desert, where he retraces the final hours before Jim Sullivan vanished:
Awakening to a sunlit sky in Gallup, New Mexico, we pick over the remnants of our hotel’s continental breakfast and hit the road. We head east, bound for Santa Rosa 252 miles away. Around lunchtime, we arrive in Albuquerque. Johnny Horn randomly calls with a tip about a local store – Mecca Records. As we pull up, we notice a Betty Davis poster in the store window. Inside, we discover a nice selection of new and used vinyl, CDs, and books. I find some Waylon and Watertown vinyl (still need that poster). Jennifer picks up the Friday Night Lights book. We chat with Rocky, the shop’s owner. He’s a super cool dude, and big Light In The Attic supporter – LPs and CDs from Rodriguez, Betty Davis, and The Free Design are scattered around the shop. We fill him in about our quest, and he suggests contacting a loyal Mecca customer, a district attorney who has recently been reopening cold cases from the past. As it turns out, he is a Santa Rosa native and Light In The Attic fan. Might have to give this man a call. We hit a Mexican joint for lunch then head back onto I-40.
With anticipation high, Jim’s U.F.O. album blasts on the car stereo. Before we know it, we’re in Santa Rosa. It’s a small town along Route 66 in eastern New Mexico, tucked away in a long stretch of beautiful desert wasteland. It’s more like the Texas Hill Country than the vast open desert we envisioned earlier. Unlike some of the other towns we’ve come across on Route 66, Santa Rosa doesn’t look riddled by years of hard times. The last census reported that the population was 2,744.
We drive to the La Mesa Motel. It’s where Jim checked in on March 5, 1975. Like the rest of Santa Rosa (its original neon sign is still intact), the motel looks like time stopped around 1955. The sheets look clean, though. We snap a few photos, and talk about what we know regarding Jim’s first few hours in Santa Rosa. Jim left Los Angeles in his Volkswagen Bug sometime between noon and 1 p.m. on March 4. In the early morning hours of March 5, he was pulled over outside Santa Rosa for swerving. He was taken to the town’s police station for a sobriety test, which he passed. He was swerving from fatigue caused by the taxing 15-hour drive. Jim checked into the La Mesa Motel, but police reports later indicated that the bed in his room was not slept in, and the key was found locked inside the room. Some reports stated that the key was the lone item found in the room, while others mentioned that Jim’s guitar was also found. Jim’s friends and family often said that if Jim was planning to disappear, the one thing he would never leave behind was his guitar. It’s one of the many things about his disappearance that don’t add up. We take pictures of the motel’s neon sign and cruise around town.
[caption id="attachment_1793" align="alignnone" width="450" caption="Jim Sullivan's room at the La Mesa Motel."][/caption]
The next stop is the ranch where Jim’s car was found – the last place he was reported seen. The ranch lies southeast of Santa Rosa, about 20 miles outside of town in the middle of nowhere. For half an hour, we drive on a dirt road, seeing only a smattering of houses for much of that time. The temperature is well into the 90s, and the sun is really bearing down. Parts of the drive are beautiful, with vibrant red rock formations followed by spots where you can see for miles. Mel films the scenery by going Commando-style – climbing onto the roof of the car and filming while we drive.
Finding the ranch took some Nancy Drew-style action on Jennifer’s part, as we couldn’t locate an actual address. Between 1953 and 1971, there was a National Weather Service collection station on the ranch, which was once owned by a family by the name of Gennetti. The coordinates for the station appeared on the weather service’s Web site. Jennifer plugged them into Google Maps and the address magically appeared. We know that after he checked into the La Mesa, Jim stopped by the liquor store, bought some vodka, and drove around town. Somehow he ended up at this ranch. The story goes that Mrs. Gennetti saw Jim’s headlights from her house and drove down with two ranch hands to see what was going on. She asked Jim if he had a problem. He replied, “No, do you?” We’ve also heard that he knocked on the Gennettis’ door and Mrs. Gennetti answered, but she only spoke Italian and didn’t understand what Jim was saying. So he walked off. When the police found Jim’s car (a neighbor reported it), it was locked and the engine was dead. A number of things were found in the car, including Jim’s wallet, guitar, clothes, reel-to-reel tapes, cassettes, silver appointment book, and a box of LP’s of Jim’s 1972 self-titled album on the Playboy label. The car was towed on March 8. There have been a number of rumors over the years that the Gennettis were part of a Chicago crime family. All we know is that a year or so after Jim disappeared, they moved to Hawaii.
[caption id="attachment_1794" align="alignnone" width="450" caption="The Gennetti Ranch. It was the last place Jim Sullivan was seen."][/caption]
We roam near the property, stumbling upon a little mission with a cemetery. Rather than driving back the way we came in, we decide to keep going on the dirt road, spotting a deer out by the creek, and then a few minutes later, a snake slithering across the dirt road. Eventually, the dust settles as the road turns to asphalt, and we cross a large dam. The scenery looks more impressive upon each turn. Back in Santa Rosa, we check into the La Mesa. Mel shoots a number of Santa Rosa’s abandoned gas stations, bars, and vintage, barely standing, neon signs. Each sign is cooler than the next. The topper is the Sahara Club on the main strip, Route 66. The sun is going down and the light is perfect. Hungry, we wander over to Joseph's Bar & Grill, an old spot that’s been newly renovated but retains a classic, kitschy Route 66 charm. The menu is printed on newspaper with funny articles about the restaurant’s mascot, a big fat man. The bar in the back looks great, as well. Margaritas and Mexican food are scarfed down. We end the night by cruising around this quiet town, taking more shots, and almost grabbing a few drinks at the local bar. After a long day, we’re beat. We have to get up early, so we decide to crash. Looking back, we should’ve grabbed those beers. Isn’t that always the case though?
[caption id="attachment_1795" align="alignnone" width="450" caption="A gas station in Santa Rosa."][/caption]
It's happened again, the year, slow and ponderous, has churned to an inevitable conclusion. It's been a year of vast changes in the world and right here in the underground liar of Light In The Attic. And so much change has occurred - from the death of pop stars to the election of an African-American president - we knew that our little lists couldn't do it justice. Thus, as we've done now two years running we've reached out the good folk that we love the world over and asked them for their top ten lists. And we've deemed it, again,:
We've got lists from musicians, writers, editors, bloggers, co-owners of certain record labels, Spanish music curators, and on and on and on and on ... there's a staggering pile of information below and we implore you, dig in, it'll be well worth your while.
This year we'd like to thank our main man Strath Shepard for bringing together that fantastic image above. You're a gem Strath Shepard, a goddamn holiday gem.
So please, order some pizza, cracked three or four beers and get ready ...
IT'S THE 3RD ANNUAL LIGHT IN THE ATTIC YEAR END EXTRAVAGANZA!
Favorite Things of 2009
All Time Entertainer/Performer - Michael Jackson
Movie -
a. Wheedle's Groove, the Movie
b. The Temptations
Food - Mexican
Club to Perform In - The Triple Door
Holiday - Christmas
Music - ANYTHING by Michael Jackson
Candy - Butterfingers
TV Show - America's Most WantedStephen John Kalinich,
Poet
5 Favorite Poets…
Walt Whitman
Rainer Maria Rilke
T.S.Eliot
Shakespeare
Edwin Markham...
5 Favorite LA Restaurants
Spago
Peppones
Le Votre Sante
Pacific Dining Car
Saketini
5 favorite Home Run Hitters
Ted Kluszewski
Mickey Mantle
Hank Aaron
Babe Ruth
Willie Mays
Ever Kipp,
Tiny Human Publicity
1 The Sheng: It’s a bowl of flutes!
2 Chipotle peppers: Still awesome despite media oversaturation.
3 Milt Jackson: So vibey!
4 Eggs over easy
5 Pre-verbal toddler-speak: language of the nitrous-huffing wood elves.
6 Owen Roe
7 Starting your own company: terrifying, and terrifyingly gratifying.
Eddie Shaw,
Bass, Monks
Happy New Year, Light in the Attic.
Having had my first fifteen minutes of fame and now my second fifteen minutes, to be a Monk does not feel all that bad. The group survived because the Monks are a “we” group, not an “I” group. There was no “I” until there was a “we.” Let’s face it. I’m a monk. You’re a monk. We’re all monks – just like the people monking around, above.
For 2010, I am finishing a new book PASSING THROUGH MINNESODA AND OTHER ALTERED STATES (732 pages). There are a couple of chapters about the monks in it, but basically it’s about a trumpet player who thinks he’s a pigeon.
Even as I do a lot of text writing, music is still the defining activity for me. I don’t like to listen to old music because the moment of its relevance is normally past. I’m always looking for the new. I’m looking for salvation. I’m looking for an answer.
FAVORITES FOR 2009 Favorite places to hear new music: Austin, TX (naturally) and Buffalo, NY
Favorite new groups: (changing all the time) Here’s a couple –
1. Ghostland Observatory – Two zany/weird guys prove that the smallest group possible, is not a trio. They’re way out there – probably causing a lot of people to scratch their heads and say, “Huh?”
2. Phoenix – There are a couple of different versions of them.. When they test the limits they go somewhere.
3. And there are my friends: The Nuns – Them Bird Things – Kelley Stolz – Grave Brothers Deluxe – 5,6,7,8s – Mike and The Ravens. - Nista Niji Nista – The Raincoats - I have forgotten a few, I know.
Favorite older groups: 1. Nine Inch Nails – I saw Trent Reznor live in Reno. It was my favorite live performance; better than Charles Aznavour who I saw in L.A. (even through I did like his performance). Who says French Chanson singers are not interesting? NIN was over the top. “I want to Fuck You Like An Animal” made me hide underneath my seat.
2. Radiohead – Their pop music always sounds new, even as the singer often sounds like he’s whining. That’s a compliment because there is a lot to cry about.
3. Faust – Klangbad never gets old - so perhaps the context from which it came was ahead of its time.
4. Masserati – A group of guitar players who know how to arrange and play. Great guitar music.
5. Propelerhead – for hip hop, of course – as well as Chemical Brothers - and Eminem – don’t tell anyone.
6. And there are my friends: Henry Rollins – Wayne Kramer - Mark E Smith – Genesis P’Orridge - I have forgotten a few, I know.
Favorite jazz:
For me, jazz lasts longer than pop-rock-country-folk. At one time or another almost all the jazz musicians were my favorites. My favorites change from day to day. For today they are:
1. Flatland – interesting arrangements
2. Brad Mehldau – jazz piano – rock drums – rough on purpose.
3. Mathias Eick – German trumpet player who plays sparse long notes. On a long rough airplane ride from Warsaw to NYC, he kept me totally in one piece (meditating).
Favorite Country: I haven’t been near a cow or a pig in a long time.
1. Charlie Haden’s new release, Rambling Boy - Charlie is also a great jazz bass player - best known as working with Ornette Coleman.
Favorite Classical:
1. Still it’s Henryk Góki – perhaps classical music has a longer shelf life.
Favorite Light in the Attic Recordings: I haven’t heard all the Light in the Attic artists.
1. Karen Dalton – LITA’s Billie Holiday. My wife listens to it constantly.
2. Wheedle’s Groove – reminds me of a group I used to work in. “Jesus Christ Pose” got my attention.
3. Black Angels – Rough, raw – in your face. I could get in a barroom fight with this music in the background.
4. Oz Mutantes – a lot different than Milton Nasciemento (one of my favorite Brazilian singer/songwriters. These songs make me think because they have so many different influences.
5. Free Design – They were too good to make it in NYC – part jazz, part Hi-Lo’s, part ABBA; good singers. Some groups sound better live. Free Design is one of them. They have great back-up musicians. One of my favorite cuts is an old Duke Ellington tune, “I Like The Sunrise.” I first heard this song, many years ago, sung by Mahalia Jackson. Yes, they are too good to be pop/rock stars.
Noah Sanders,
Mr. Blog, Criterion Quest
It's been a hell of a year folks. Big moves, upheavals aplenty on the emotional front, and hell, I moved in with a lady. Along the way I've listened to a whole lotta tunes, eaten a whole lotta good food, and seen a whole lotta good shit on various sized boob-tubes.
It's been a challenging one, but let me agree with Matthew Sullivan when I say, one of the best.
Hope it was just as hard and just as rewarding for you.
Top of the Pops - 2009
1. Justin Vernon. The man does nothing wrong. Call me a softy, call me a sell-out, this man makes my heart swell and my pants short. You, you're a cold-hearted grinch.
2. San Francisco. Fuck bread bowls and rice-a-roni, this is the wackiest city in the U.S. of A. Nicknamed the "City of the Perpetual Teenager" and for all the right reasons.
3. The Sandwitches. A late entry to my playlist, but this trio manages to ride the line between 50s doo-wop, Neko Case and oh, I'll say it, Dolly Parton. Matt Sullivan poo-pooed this, but I poo-poo him.
4. Discovering the ones I previously spited. My brother used to try and push his twangy country crap on me and I rebuked him at every turn ... turns out the dirty bastard was correcto and now I'm swimming in the seas of Cohen, Waits, and Bill Callahan. Justin, you're not so much a wanker after all.
5. Garage rock's gritty revival. Perhaps I'm a little deeper 'cause of the SF scene, but Jesus I dipped myself baptismal style in to modern garage rock this year, and for every cigarette burn, I found a gem or four. Call it hipster music, I call it rock 'n' roll.
6. Upheaval - emotional, locational, whatever - it's good for the soul.
7. Alex Healy.
Strath Shepard
Art Director/Graphic Designer, Pacific Standard
Eirik Johnson at the Henry (up through the end of January).
No Age playing a live score to L'Ours (The Bear), the 1989 film by Jean-Jacques Annaud at the Triple Door.
The early-'70s d.i.y. architecture influences in this Hussein Chalayan ad campaign, the color in this Miu Miu campaign, and the vast minimalism of this Jil Sander campaign.
Richard Avedon at ICP.
The opening of the Highline.
1) The Sadies featuring The Mighty Pope - Wow! Late addition y'all. From the ashes of Jamaica to Toronto comes Canada's #1 soul brother with holy musical backing from cosmic country/rock/garage/R&B brothers, The Sadies. LIVE on this year's The Hour Christmas Special (CBC, airing late December 2009, check your listings for local airtimes)! More history in the making!
2) Vancouver - Returned to the coast after 3 years living in Toronto. Loving the beach (Third), ocean (Pacific), mountains (North Shore), Power River (Haslam Lake), friends (you know who you are), family (ditto), food (Chinese, Japanese mostly), and nuff music (Sports, Lightning Dust, and Pink Mountaintops all released new albums in 2009!)
3) Sweet Grass Music - Was stoked to lay down a new 2009 mix ("Sweet Grass Music") for long time homies, Sandinista/2Step from Tokyo, Japan. All-Canadian folk, rock, and psych from the archives.
4) Rodriguez in Vancouver - June saw Vancouver's first taste of Detroit-singer-songwriter Sixto Rodriguez at the dearly departed Richard's On Richards. Was lucky enough to play vinyl at this event (which also included a solo set from Stephen McBean's Pink Mountaintops and more than able backing from SF's The Fresh & Only's).
5) Vinyl recap - Well, my passion for vinyl has ebbed and flowed quite a bit over the past year. Blogs and Ebay have killed many musical mysteries for us. At this point, I'm looking for the unknown. All genres. Listening with open ears. Biggest find of 2009 is easily Art Snider's Corny Songs I Play On My Organ (Sound Canada). Here's to more...
Matt Sullivan,
Co-Owner, Light In The Attic
No question the best year of my life…
Tying the knot
When the economy hits bottom build a bar in your garage
Leaving South By Southwest at 8 AM to visit Snow’s BBQ
The year of Sixto Rodriguez – seeing the man play at the Barbican in the UK, then having the honor to tour manage the West Coast jaunt
Wheedle’s Groove film wraps. Soon after wins Audience Award at Indie Memphis Film Festival
A Great Day In Seattle, Garfield High School, September 27, 2009
Kris Kristofferson & Merle Haggard at The Paramount Theater, Seattle
Visiting Stax Museum and meeting Stax alum Lou Bond, Deanie Parker and Al Bell, along with Communications Director Tim Sampson.
2009 Light In The Attic Road Trip – once again we embarked on a fruitful journey. 3,000 miles, 10 days, 50 record stores. Sandy, Cody, Troy & Tyson: THANK YOU!
Deep Water – Film Documentary
Eating the best meal of my life at Table, Asheville, NC followed by good times with the crew from Harvest Records
Leonard Cohen at WAMU Theater, Seattle
Big S Bar, Memphis, TN with the one and only Andria Lisle
The Story of Anvil
Big Star – Keep An Eye On The Sky
WFMU Record Convention – every record you’ve ever wanted under one roof
“Song of a Sinner” by Top Drawer from the compilation Forge Your Own Chains(Now Again) – highly recommended when cruising the Los Angeles highways. Put on repeat and float away
New sounds… Bill Callahan, Shilpa Ray & Her Happy Hookers, Soundcarriers, Naomi Shelton, The Amazing, Heartless Bastards, Fruit Bats, Animal Collective, The Fresh & Onlys, Phosphorescent, Eddy Current Suppression Ring, Malakai - Snowflake 12", El Perro del Mar, Strange Boys…
Best Blog – Pacific StandardStill Bill – I could sit and listen to Bill Withers talk for hours.
Seeing the premiere of Twilight: New Moon in Houston, Texas with my wife, her two girlfriends, and thousands of fanatical teenagers and forty year old ladies. 8 sold-out screens in one theater all at 12:01 am. Could this be the end of the world as we know it?
And working on our 2010 release schedule. Thanks for making this far and away the greatest year at Light In The Attic. All of us here at the label are incredibly grateful for your continued support!
The Mighty Pope,
Jamaica to Toronto
Calgary Folkfest. working and meeting great people/artists
Working with Jason Wilson and friends
Road trip to Montreal in the summer
Hanging with the Mighty Sip
CBC The Hour
Discovering a new way to cook salmon
Grateful for good friends and family
Pat ThomasTop 5 releases of 2009:
Big Star - Keep An Eye On The Sky - Rhino
Neil Young - Archives (Volume 1) 1963-1972 - Warner/Reprise
Rolling Stones - Get Your Ya-Ya's Out! (3 CD box & DVD) - Abkco
John Martyn - Solid Air(2 CD deluxe edition) - Island
McCabe & Mrs. Miller - Time For Leaving - Magnetic
Sandy Wilson,
Film & Television Guru, Light In The AtticI had a lot of things to be grateful for in 2009, here are a few of them in no particular order;
The Monks "Boys Are Boys And Girls Are Choice" on Californication
The Black Angels "Bloodhounds On My Trail" in the Harley Davidson Iron 883 commercial
The Black Angels "Manipulation" in Drew Barrymore's Whip It starring Ellen Page
The Black Angels "Sniper At The Gates Of Heaven" on CBS' Numb3rs
Finally getting to see The Black Angels "Black Grease" in the film No Subtitles Necessary: Laszlo & Vilmos air on PBS' Independent Lens. I'm a HUGE fan of both of those guys, and it was awesome that our music was a part of that film.
The Free Design "Love You" again rocking the global ad world in 2009 with a Toyota spot that spanned the EU
The Free Design "Love You", in addition to being the closing song for the WEEDS season 4 finale, also appeared on the 2009 soundtrack release along side The Soul Swingers "Brighter Tomorrow" (Wheedle's Groove). So yeah, that's two of our songs on the WEEDS soundtrack release. Damn.
Patrinell Staton's"I Let A Good Man Go" (Wheedle's Groove) appeared in film Fighting starring Terrance Howard (Hustle & Flow)
Sleepy Sun "Lord" (for ATP Recordings) on Showtime's Californication, also appearing on the soundtrack release.
The Blakes "Don't Bother Me" appearing on 90210The successful completion and release of 3 films that I worked on this year, True Adolescents (Mark Duplass, Melissa Leo) which premiered at SXSW this year, The Wheedle's Groove documentary that won the Audience Choice Award at the Indie Memphis premiere, and Funky Prairie Boy which is still tearing up the festival circuit.
The LITA 2009 Road Trip with Black Daisy. From what I remember (i.e. whatever was filmed) we had one hell of a good time. How could you not have a good time with that crew while spreading the gospel according to LITA. Hallelujah!
And last but not least, another wonderful year with my amazing girlfriend Leigh. I'm grateful for every day that she puts up with me. Thanks baby!
=> end transmission, Kirk out <=
And the rest of you beautiful people ...John Ballon,
Must Hear, liner notes writer for Betty Davis’ Nasty Gal
10. The Beatles Box
9. Barack Obama
8. The L.A. Food Truck Scene
7. Lacoste Red! Collection
6. Green Shoots In The Economy
5. 3 weeks in France
4. David Weidman's art
3. Hard Times: An Oral History of the Great Depression by Stud Turkel
2. Elizabeth Vitanza (and her pizzas)
1. My dad, William Ballon, my he rest in peace
Brian James Barr
1) My Cameras: Nikon F2 and Canon AE60. This is gonna sound dramatic, but taking pictures literally changed my way of thinking and, more so, changed the way I see everything.
2) Visiting Ernest Hemingway's Birthplace in Oak Park, Illinois: According to Hemingway himself, Oak Park was a place of "wide lawns and narrow minds." He had no great love for the Chicago suburb as he did for Paris, Key West, Venice, and Idaho, but standing there in the very room in which he was born, everything about the man made sense.
3) Bob Dylan @ WaMu Theatre 10.5.09: The man was on fucking fire this night. Hunched like a vulture over his keyboard, oggling the ladies as he traded licks with Charlie Sexton on "Lay Lady Lay", striking Bobby Darin poses during "Beyond Here Lies Nothing", and that voice...it's not about delivering words anymore, but about pure raw energy and emotion, siphoned up from his charred lungs through a rusty tailpipe of a throat.
4) Duke Ellington - Indigos: Coming home from work one night, my wife said, "Life would be so much nicer if I could walk through the door and hear this every night." From 1957, Indigos is music that lowers the blood pressure and relaxes the shoulders. And like all Ellington's work, it is smooth and utterly cool. Though not considered a high water mark in Ellington's catalog, I think that criticism is unfair and lazy. Anybody who listens to this record and comes to that conclusion must despise beauty. Indigos is as lovely as autumn leaves falling.
5) White Center and Richard Hugo: Middle of this year, I learned my wife and I live two blocks from where the writer Richard Hugo was born and raised, in the South Seattle neighborhood of White Center. Seattle loves to claim Hugo for itself, but he is a White Center boy through and through and I am very proud to live in his hometown. The house was torn down in the 80s, the New Nick is now the Triangle Tavern, the grassy boulevard on 16th Ave SW ripped out and paved over, but much of Hugo's White Center remains intact.
6) William Eggleston: I never would have considered photography had I not seen the work of Bill Eggleston. Pure fucking art, period.
7) Mushrooms: My wife brought home a pocket guidebook called All That The Rain Promises And More and a massive shroomopedia called Mushrooms Demystified. Walking in the woods became a whole different experience thanks to these books.
8) The Interrogative Mood by Padgett Powell: The most important writer in the country right now, Padgett Powell actually brings something new, awe-inspiring, and, most importantly, fun, to the stale fiction market. The Interrogative Mood is a wild ride driven by Powell's own impulses. It's a prose work of nothing but questions, each one telling multiple stories. Do you miss Tab and do you fully understand its disappearance? Do you regard yourself as a connoisseur of anything? Do you anticipate having sex again? Assuming you might have as a child, could you eat Chef Boyardee canned noodles today? Are you lazy?
9) Glacier National Park: We hiked to the tops of mountains where Bighorn sheep looked at us, blankly. We drank beer as we drove. We stood with an Australian couple peering at a mother grizzly and her cubs in the valley below. We ventured to Polebridge, the end of the line. We ate dinner alongside Blackfeet Indians. We did not see any buffalo.
10) Turning 30: For whatever reason, this one felt important-feeling in a way that I cannot quite describe but don't really need to.
Bill Bentley,
Sonic BoomersBest of 2009
Mayer Hawthorne, A Strange Arrangement (Stone’s Throw)
Wilco, Wilco (The Album) (Nonesuch)
Mulatu Astatke & the Heliocentrics, Inspiration and Information (Srut)
Dawes, North Hills (ATO)
Staff Benda Bilili, Tres Tres Fort (Crammed Discs)
John Fogerty, The Blue Ridge Rangers Rides Again (Verve-Forecast)
James Hand, Shadow on the Ground (Rounder)
Jesse Winchester, Love’s Filling Station (Appleseed)
The Avett Brothers, I And Love And You (American)
Long John Hunter, Looking for a Party (Blues Express)
Peter Blecha,
Author, Sonic BoomTop-5 Fresh Local Artists:
1. The Fabulous Hammers: A band that has captured the old-school "Northwest Sound" with their all-original instrumental tunes. In a day & age when the sound of this region's first strains of rockin' R&B are essentially extinct on the live-music scene, this quintet suddenly appears & brings the form back to life with a vengeance.
2. Lion's Ambition: A hip-hop group whose original tunes boast endless pop hooks, & whose blend of raps & melodic vocalizing are simply magic. It was my pleasure to serve on the judging panel that awarded them top prize at last summer's exhilarating Battle of the Tech Bands event produced by the Washington Technology Industry Association.
3. Out From Underneath: Far from being just another same 'ol everyday rap-metal band, OFU brings it all to the table: pounding rhythms, punishing riffs, excellent musicianship, great vocals, & memorable melodic hooks. Did I mention scary lyrical themes? Great rock (with some addictive hip-hop inspired beats) -- & nice guys too!
4. Gameboy: I'm no hip-hop expert -- only been studying the music since I first stumbled across KNHC back in 1982 -- but I do know what I like. Met Gameboy at the U District Street Fair last May, got his brand new It's Already A Classic CD, & was immediately impressed by his pop sensabilities. You wanna hear hooks? Try spinnin'' Gameboy. In my mind, he's already a Northwest classic.
5. The Flanagan Precept: It would be forgivable to presume -- based on their name alone -- that these guys are an Irish band. However, this rock crew are a Seattle-based group whose collective musicianship, winning vocals, & superior songwriting skills should see them in the town's top ranks before, I predict, next St. Patrick's Day.
Zach Cowie,
DJ Turquoise Wisdom
1. california
2. fitzy's DOODcast.
follow these instructions:
go to your itunes
at the top click ADVANCED - select subscribe to podcast - copy
paste this URL
and get ready to party!
3. the first showing of STAR TREK at the arclight dome in los angeles. best vibes ever. 4. selected DJ'ing highlights:
the weddings of kevin & amy and ben & zooey. touring with animal collective and then the fleet foxes. every guest spot i jammed at DR WHO. the animal collective big sur after party with me, all the a/c dudes, fitzy, braddax, and cabic all throwing tunes (and getting wasted enough to play the moonshake 45 twice!). the dublab 10 closing party. hearing votel & sheep at hollywood forever. the bobb trimble show in brooklyn.
5. must plays:
darrow fletcher - now's the time for love pt 2 45
philwit & pegasus - elephant song 45
chico magnetic band - my sorrow 45
affinity - s/t LP
brigitte fontaine & areski - ca va faire un hit 45
u.s. warren & the genghis pea - hard headed woman 45
pentangle - i saw an angel 45
shoes - black vinyl shoes reissue LP
larry sanders - child of december 45
circuit rider - s/t reissue LP
raekwom - only built 4 cuban linx II LP
fairfield parlor - bordeaux rose 45
forever amber - love cycle reissue LP
lifetones - for a reason DIGITAL
john kongos - he's gonna step on your again 45
mario ft gucci mane - break up DIGITAL
cold sun - dark shadows reissue LP
amon duul II - archangels thunderbird 45
jay-z - the blueprint 3 DIGITAL
alasdair roberts - spoils LP
elephant's memory - mongoose 45
3 hur el - hurel arsivi reissue LP
the sweet - juicer 45
both the b-music/finders keepers well hung and drive in, turn on, freak out double LP's
alessi bros - seabird 45
breakout - na drugim brzegu teczy LP
stones throw's forge your own chains double LP
anything j dilla
anything brian eno
anything kanye (still!)
Chris Daly,Les Enfants TerriblesTop Ten Lessons for New Zombies
1. Braaaaaaaiiiiiiiiiins.
(Actually, that's pretty much it.)
Kyla Fairchild,
No DepressionFavorite Albums of 2009
Zoe Muth and the Lost High Rollers - S/T
Vandaveer - Divide and Conquer
Gregory Alan Isakov - This Empty Northern Hemisphere
Amanda Shires - West Cross Timbers
Sam Baker - Cotton
Andrew Bird - Noble Beast
Built To Spill - There Is No Enemy
Neko Case - Middle Cyclone
Cave Singers - Welcome Joy
Monsters of Folk - Monsters of Folk Andy Fischer,
Vinyl FilmsTop Five U.S. Craft Beers of the year (in no particular order):
Duck Duck Gooze - The Lost Abbey Brewing Company, San Marcos, CA. A Belgian-style sour, this is one of the greatest summer beers ever. Crisp, tart, refreshing and delicious.
Nelson - Alpine Beer Company, Alpine, CA. They call it a Golden Rye IPA, I call it the hoppiest loaf of Rye bread you'll ever drink. Insanely great and probably my beer of the year.
Theobroma - Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, Milton, DE. I may be cheating on this selection since it may have come out in 2008, but it is by far the most complex, incredible beverage I've ever tasted. Hints of cocoa, chilies... it simply has to be tasted to be believed.
Consecration - Russian River Brewing Company, Santa Rosa, CA. This Cabernet barrel-aged monstrosity is another genius addition to the Russian River slate of Belgian-style Ales, this one brewed with Currants. Complex, complicated and amazing - and for me definitely a sipping beer at 10% abv.
Sculpin - Ballast Point Brewing Company, San Diego, CA. As tasty as an IPA gets, this limited edition single is happy with hops - do whatever you can to get your hands on a few of these.
Matt Grady,
Factory Twenty Five
Julian Cope - POSTPUNKSAMPLER...A streaming album of the month on Cope's Head Heritage site.
Stone Roses 20th Anniversary Limited Collector's Edition...One of the best Box sets of all time w/Vinyl, Prints, CDs, a lemon shaped usb, and a DVD.
92nd Street Y in Tribeca...It may be a pain to get to but has turned into the film venue with the best curation in NYC.
Food at the Brooklyn Flea...Papusas, Fish Tacos, Brick oven pizza (from a home made portable oven) and so much more...best food and deal in town...I've waited 45 minutes for a Papusa-and it was worth it.
WFMU's Free Music Archive...So many discoveries made on this site (which did lead to many vinyl purchases)
FAVORITES OF 2009
Currin Grayson,
Independent WeeklyThe Twilight Saga: New Moon (Team Edward forever, y'all.)
The bands in my particular area of North Carolina (So crazy right now, y'all.)
Andrew WK (His thoughts alone are worth the soul-evaporating cost of signing up for Twitter, y'all.)
Touring with The Avett Brothers for some magazine (Nicest dudes, y'all. Greatest live band at the moment, y'all?)
Inauguration Day (Snow in North Carolina. No work. Outdoor hot tub party? Barry O)))bama, y'all)
The prolificacy of Tiger Woods' "one-iron" (Hopefully he'll be on Season 8 of VH1's terr(ific/ible) Sex Addicts, y'all.)
Big Ears (Knoxville, Tenn., experimental festival with P. Glass, Antony, Matmos, The Necks? Fuck yeah, y'all. KNOXVILLE!)
Counter Culture's Ethiopia Idido Misty Valley (Blueberries-n-coffee via Ethiopia via Durham, y'all.)
Barista (Revolutionary Portland coffeeshop, y'all.)
Meeting Neil Young (at a gas station in Texas, y'all.)
Hometapes (This label's killing it, y'all. Best SXSW party people, too.)
The Jazz Loft Project (And we thought we knew jazz, y'all.)
Alice (the name of my dog, the name of the remarkable finale on Sunn O)))'s new record, and the hottest Twilight character, y'all! )
Cable "Five Inches of Pain" Griffith
Top 5 Things with "5" in the Title (in no particular order):
The Jackson 5 (1964 - 1976)
Full Fathom Five, Jackson Pollock (1947)
Take Five, Dave Brubek Quartet (1959)
Slaughterhouse Five, Kurt Vonnegut (1969)
Five Fingers of Death, Chang-hwa Jeong (1972)
Nancy Guppy,
Art ZoneTOP TEN THINGS FROM 2009
Herb & Dorothy, a documentary film about a librarian and postal worker from New York who amassed a world-class art collection
The awesome SuttonBeresCuller exhibit at Lawrimore Project
Working with Greg Pecknold, the phenomenally talented creative director of SHOUT, on a new open for ArtZone
Breaking a King Size Nestle Crunch Bar into approximately 32 equal sized pieces, placing them into a small blue bowl, and savoring each chunk while watching old episodes of Perry Mason
Local actress Amy Thone in absolutely anything
Eric Elbogen's new record Oohs and Aahs
Attending the first annual Theatre Puget Sound Gregory Awards
Serving Cafe Lago lasagne at my husbands 54th birthday party
The debut of Humpday from the wonderful writer/director, Lynn Shelton
The seriously talented Reggie Watts & Tommy Smith in Transition @ On the Boards
Iñ,
Vampi Soul
Music wise. Stuff that keeps repeated again and always. In no special order:
1- BIG STAR BOX SET . The due is paid, and the set is awesome. None can ever get tired of that stuff, listening to that thousands of times.
2- KAREN DALTON VINYL. The first album delivers so many THINGS that is priceless. You can just play that over and over and get hit harder and harder
3- FRED NEIL - ELEKTRA LP on Sundazed. Released a long time ago but still gets played over and over again. No folk revival gets any better than THIS.
4- JONATHAN RICHMAN LIVE. Nowdays hes giving much better shows than in the past 20 years. He's even playing Modern Lovers songs
5- THE RATIONALS REISSUE. One of the best groups of the 60’s finally reissued properly. All you would expect from white kids from Detroit loving the Kinks and Motown. NOW its time for a BOB SEGER plan.
6- WAU Y LOS ARGGGHS LIVE. Not so many bands deliver so mucho on stage these days. Imagine Jello Biafra fronting We The People.
7- 13TH FLOOR ELEVATORS - SIGN OF THE 3 EYED MEN. The Box set
8- STRANGE BOYS LP. From Austin Texas, same as the 3 Eyed Men. Very good debut album with all the elements that a juvenile rock & roll combo must have.
9- FATAI ROLLING DOLLAR. A master of African music that must be reissued no later.
10- PLASTIC PEOPLE OF THE UNIVERSE. From Prague. The definition of Underground . You got to learn the lesson.
Michael Jaworski,
Mt. Fuji Records
Favorite 10 records of 2009 (that I can remember, and in no particular order)
The Intelligence - Fake Surfers - I really wish I could have played guitar on their fall tour. Amazing record. How does Lars do it?
Future of the Left - Travels With Myself and Another - Best live band going today. Best live show of the year x 2. Great record. I miss Mclusky less now.
Box Elders - Alice and Friends - One of the funnest records of the year. Great songs, super catchy rock n' roll.
Pains of Being Pure at Heart - S/T - horrible live band, but this record kills me. Blissed out pop gems that are so infectious.
The Dutchess and The Duke - Sunset / Sunrise - someone called them campfire punk. I just call it great folk, rock n' roll.
Obits - I Blame You - I am such a sucker for Rick Froberg's songs. Great record but I still miss the Hot Snakes
Reigning Sound - Love and Curses - Like a lot of folks, I couldn't wait for this one. Greg Cartwright and crew delivered again. Great rock n' roll album.
Cass McCombs - Catacombs - Beautiful record that got a million spins on my turntable.
Arctic Monkeys - Humbug - I never knew I liked the Arctic Monkeys. Maybe it has something to do with Josh Homme producing. Killer record.
Sonic Youth - The Eternal - Arguably the most important band of my generation makes yet another classic record.
Lauren,
Music SnitchFavorite Albums of 2009: (No particular order)
Passion Pit – Manners
Kasabian – West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum
Freelance Whales – Weathervanes
Yeah Yeah Yeahs – It’s Blitz
Grizzly Bear – Veckatimest
Say Hi – Oohs & Aahs
Flaming Lips – Embryonic
The Xx – Xx
We All Have Hooks For Hands – Made Up Of Tiny Lights
Noah and the Whale – The First Days Of Spring
Favorite Artists/Bands of 2009:
Sunbears, Princeton, The Middle East, Animal Collective, Micachu & The Shapes , Girls, Cold Cave, Mumford And Sons , Spiral Stairs, Lost In The Trees, The Avett Brothers, Yacht, Nurses, Dirty Projectors, Florence And The Machine, The Drums, Port O’Brien, Fever Ray, The Antlers, Sunset Rubdown, Tempo No Tempo, The Cave Singers, Winter Gloves, Electric Tickle Machine, Free Energy, Neon Indian, Banjo or Freakout, Washed Out, Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros, The Cribs, New Ruins, Matt & Kim, Cursive, Hot Panda, Memory Tapes…
DaVe Lipp,
Short and Sweet NYCTop Singles of 09
Solid Gold – Get Over It
Neon Indian – Psychic Chasms
Papercuts – Future Primitive
Hockey – Too Fake
Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Heads Will Roll
Yeasayer - Ambling Alp
Silversun Pickups - Panic Switch
St. Vincent - Actor Out Of Work
Jay-Z – Empire State of Mind
Franz Ferdinand – No You Girls
Brent Locke,
Universal MusicVegas Faves
My business travels this year took me to Las Vegas 5 or 6 times (lost count…go figure).
Here are the top places I enjoyed (or remembered). There is “another” list but I can’t post it in public
XS Nightclub at Encore
Lavo Nightclub at The Palazzo
The Foundation Room at House of Blues Mandalay Bay
N9NE Steakhouse at The Palms
Koi Restaurant at Planet Hollywood
Mon Ami Gabi Restaurant at Paris Las Vegas
Pho Kim Long (Vietnamese restaurant in a strip mall away from the main strip)
Mairead Case
1. The Megabus – Get most anywhere in the Midwest, for cheap. Sometimes the bus is late and sometimes you get stuck in a corner and can’t open the windows, but it’s always cheap. Why argue with cheap?
2. Seeing Your Friends Dress Up – So we used to dress all punk whatever, right? But a couple of times this year – weddings, funerals, elections, etc. – we’ve dressed for reasons other than Immediate Self-Expression. Other than Getting Laid. It’s not selling out! It’s getting better at listening and lasting and coming home. Plus it’s not like we got rid of the combat boots or anything. I’m really proud of us
3. This poem, again4. The Public Collectors Tumblr5. Kate Greenstreet reading her poetry – holy shit, man. If she was a band and I was sixteen, I’d wait in a block-long line and buy the t-shirt, too
6. The Martians Meet the Clock – as my sister pointed out, it would be nice if we could hide our eyeballs in our lips every time we got scared
7. At Random – There’s this bar in Milwaukee and it has mirrors and mood lighting and waitresses who say “Sweetie” and a chandelier and statues of naked people and ice cream drinks with liquor in them. Amazing!
8. Steel Shavings, a journal publishing oral histories from Calumet, IN
9. Kristine McKenna, asking Iggy Pop which songs make him cry. "Dionne Warwick's," he says.10. John Ashbery on A Wave. Molotiu on Blogspot. Woodring on Youtube. My So Called Life on Hulu (“Life of Brian” especially). Beth Ditto and Lady Gaga, owning weird on national television. Asterios Polyp. Wave Books. The Raincoats! You. And the bells in Los Jaivas’ “Foto de la Primavera Comunion”
Steven Matrick,
Kepler Music
1. The Decemberists- Hazards of Love
2. God Help the Girl- God Help the Girl
3. A Place to Bury Strangers- Exploding Head
4. Sharon Van Etten- Because I Was In Love
5. Au Revoir Simone- Still Night, Still LightMichael McDonald,
Music Lover, Vinyl Junkie
1. Famous as The Flying Sweet Angel of Joy LP.
2. Sensational Brown Brothers - Stand By Me: A Tribute To Mother
3. Carol Kleyn - Love Has Made Me Stronger LP
4. Guitar Ensemble - The You-N-You LP
5. Ronaye Shandler - Affinity LP
6. Ed Hartman - The River LP
7. Gabrielle - Time Journey 7"
8. Alice Baze - The Gift 7"
9. Daniel Schell & Dick Annegarn - Egmont and The ff Boom LP
10. Little Ann - Deep ShadowsJon Naito,
Furloughed writer/bar stool pundit
Random things I generally enjoyed about 2009
1 - Weddings. I'm not a romantic by nature, but the three weddings I attended this year were soirees of the highest caliber. A tip of the hat to each party, ace gents and fine dames all.
2 - Old Overholt. Economical and Don Draper approved. I take mine in an Old Fashioned.
3 - Mad Men. The finale was worth watching the entire season alone. Wow.
4 - Tacos El Asadero. LITA co-jefe Matt Sullivan will beg to differ, but my vote for best taco truck (it's actually a school bus painted white) in the city.
5 - The French Onion soup at Cafe Presse. Nothing hits the spot better on a fall evening in Seattle.
6 - The 69 series at Northwest Film Forum. Great idea, perfect execution.
7 - Wallace Stegner. Can't believe it took so long for me to discover him. A true Western writer (in the best sense), and criminally unappreciated.
8 - The Roanoke Tavern. For being the quintessential neighborhood bar (in the best sense), and also within two blocks of my house.
9 - Girls, Album. I don't know if this was the best record I heard all year, but I listened to it more than any other. I'm listening to it right now.
10. Kanye West. Pop stars don't act like stars anymore. Kanye, I love you for your unabashed narcissism, rampant egotism, and doing your damnedest to personally embody all the excesses and untoward behavior of pop stars past.
Adam Perry,
Boulder Weekly, Westword, AlibiFavorite albums of 2009:
1. Andrew Bird - Noble Beast (Deluxe Edition)
2. Alela Diane - To Be Still
3. Cotton Jones - Paranoid Cocoon
4. British Sea Power - Man of Aran
5. Flaming Lips - Embryonic
6. Heartless Bastards - The Mountain
7. Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest
8. Phosphorescent - To Willie
9. Dodos - Time to Die
10. Animal Collective - Merriweather Post PavilionMegan Petty,
Les Enfants Terribles1. Alabama football: As an Alabama alum, I couldn’t be more thrilled about the season my beloved Tide has had. Undefeated and gunning for a national title (#13?), and the school’s first Heisman winner to boot (yay Mark Ingram). 2009 was a great year to be Crimson.
2. SXSW 2009: For a first-timer it was daunting, but a thrill. I loved my introduction to Austin's biggest fest, from the numerous Bang! Bang! Eche! sightings to the crazy intimate and amazing Ringo Deathstarr gig at Headhunter's, to the walking all over downtown Austin in not-yet-broken in cowboy boots. Visting Waterloo Records was an added bonus.
3. Records: Records make my list for the second year in a row. I've accumulated several hundred over the past year, and am still convinced vinyl is just better. I'm obsessively collecting Rolling Stones records, and seem to keep buying Leon Russell. Send recommendations, please.
4. Netflix: I tend to be behind the curve on things, but this year I signed up for Netflix and have been constantly glad I did so. My queue always hovers around 400 things, so I'm probably way behind the curve seeing movies, too.
5. Turning 30: It's the new 20, I hear.
6. Living on Richmond's Monument Avenue: Sure, my apartment leaks and the heat doesn't really work, and I don't have many mod cons, but living on THE poshest (and very historic) street in Richmond makes me really happy.
7. The Nine Inch Nails/Jane's Addiction Tour: Seeing both of these bands together in June (in Maryland) was so very special. Definitely one of the best shows of all of 2009. And of course, meeting one Mr. Reznor, didn't hurt either.
8. Trysts: probably shouldn't require explanation.
9. Music Trivia at Cous Cous: One of my favorite activities in Richmond happens every Tuesday night, at my favorite Richmond watering hole. Music trivia, not for the faint-of-heart (or light of knowledge) at its most unfailingly entertaining, especially when my former team, David Bowie's Nipple Antennae, was constantly emerging as champs.
Chris Porter,
One Reel, Bumbershoot FestivalTOP 5 LIVE SHOWS IN SEATTLE
Leonard Cohen - WAMU Theater (one of my Top 5 for the decade!)
Raphael Saadiq - Bumbershoot Festival
Paul Weller - Moore Theatre
Motorhead - Showbox SoDo
Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears - Tractor Tavern
TOP 5 CD RELEASES
The Clientele - Bonfires on the Heat
Mayer Hawthorne - A Strange Arrangement
Shawn Lee - Soul in the Hole
Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears - Tell 'Em What Your Name Is
Various Artists "Where The Action Is! - Los Angeles Nuggets 1965-1968
Honorable mentions to Atlas Sound, Devendra Banhart, The Heavy, and The New Mastersounds
Steve Quenell
Top 21 list of the best psyched-out, sitar-laden, organ jams and library sounds I stumbled upon in 2009:
1) Affinity "Night Flight" (1970)/Brainticket "Radagacuca" (1972)/Julian's Treatment "6th Chapter: Altarra, Princess Of The Blue Women" (1970)
I'm a sucker for any psych with floating, sometimes Leslie-soaked, female vocals and these three tunes are prime examples. They're what you'd expect to hear while going down the rabbit hole.
2) Al Stewart - "Turn To Earth" (1966)
Yes, THAT Al Stewart. Mr. Year-of-the-Cat started as a psychedelic goof ball. Regardless (or because of that), this Yardbirds cover eclipses the original with its haunting vocals and jazzy instrumentation. Broadcast (who I love) totally ripped this song off!
3) Annie Girardot "La femme faux cils" (1968)/Delphine "La fermeture éair" (1966)/France Gall "Laisse Tomber Les Filles" (1964)
I thought I'd had my fill of the French pop ladies, but there are still a few nuggets out there that ruled my world this year. Each one of these sends me into fits of yééages.
4) Aphrodite's Child "The Four Horsemen" (1972)/"Altamont" (1972)
If The Who were a Greek proto-prog band that did Kenneth Anger soundtracks? Yes! Both songs are off the album "666." Yes!
5) Roger Roger "Safari Park" (1972)
Library music master "Roger Roger" wrote countless songs, background music and themes for the BBC and Chappell studio. Not all of them are great, but this sleek, dirty and downright funky song may be his finest moment.
6) David Axelrod "The Smile" (1968)/The Electric Prunes "Holy Are You" (1968)
Axelrod's production always floors me and these two songs of his are at the top of this year's most-played list.
7) Ennio Morricone - "Svolta definitiva" (1970)/"Fruscio di Foglie Verdi" (1968)
In my constant search for more of his work, El Maestro never ceases to astound me with his output from the 60's & 70's. "Svolta definitiva" grooves hard ala Vampyros Lesbos and "Fruscio di Foglie Verdi" with its haunting mix of Italian choir vocals atop a go-go beat shakes the senses.
8) Los Bravos - "Getting Nowhere" (1967)
Los "Black Is Black" Bravos top their more famous hit with this sweet, fuzzed-out rave up. Imagine Gene Pitney doing "My Little Red Book" or just see for yourself.
9) John Cameron - "Swamp Fever" (1973)
All around amazing British studio composer, arranger and musician, Cameron did it all including this brooding, flute-filled solid groover. One of the best library tracks ever written.
10) Ozdemir Erdogan Ve Orkestrasi - "Uzun Ince Bir Yoldayim" (late 60's/early 70's)
If Procol Harum were Selda's back up band you'd have something closely resembling this sun-soaked, Turkish instrumental delight. Thank-you Ozdemir Erdogan Ve Orkestrasi!
11) Piero Umiliani - "Nostalgia" (1975)/"A New Experience" (late 60's/early 70's)
Like fellow composer Morricone, Umiliani was also cranking out some of the sweetest soundtracks and library jams back in his day. These songs both represent what Piero did best: his own brand of hazy, mellow early 70's synth sounds.
12) Marc Moulin/Placebo - "Humpty Dumpty" (1974)
Sounding like the theme to a gritty 70's crime drama, Moulin (with his band Placebo) laid down some serious Herbie Hancock-style, punchy horn/smooth rhodes jazz with this mind-blowing track.
13) Serge Gainsbourg - "La Horse" (1969 with Jean-Claude Vannier)
I really can't believe how fantastic this Serge instrumental is. It starts off sounding a bit like a John Barry espionage thriller until the beat drops around the 30 second mark and then it's all over. It grooves so hard (fleshed out by a sweet bass line and Vannier's string section) and then, when you think it can't get any better, the drums break it down, followed by a moment of silence, a BANJO SOLO(!), and then it kicks right back into the original jam. My favorite song of the year.
Pat Riley,
Domino Records
That Petrol Emotion live at The Bellhouse, Brooklyn, NY- the band rocked, jumped, wailed and thumped like it was 20 yrs ago. There was kicking of ass AND fun!
Animal Collective live at Prospect Park, Brooklyn, NY- I got to work their merch booth with my pal Adam and give away posters to fans on a perfect summer night.
Dirty Projectors live with guests The Roots and David Byrne at Bowery Ballroom, Manhattan, NY- It just felt like a special night even without the guests.
Jesus Lizard live at The Fillmore at Irving Plaza, Manhattan, NY- 15 or so years since I last saw them and Yow is still in your face incredible while being quietly funny.
Tour Managing Max Tundra at SXSW and meeting his Japanese superfan. He spoke to her in Japanese sending her into an ecstatic laughing fit where all she could say was "Oh, Max Tundra! Oh, Max Tundra!" then ran away.
Rainbow Bridge - Big Wave Rider
Atlas Sound - Walkabout
Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
Jay Z - Empire State of Mind
The Big Pink - DominosStuff that I can't exclude
Guest spinning with DJ Mona D on East Village Radio
The Beastie Boys reissues
Nirvana - Bleach reissue
Stuff I came to late
Q-Tip - The Renaissance
Various - Born Bad Vol 1-7
Robert Wyatt - The EPs
I will deeply miss Jim Carroll and Lux Interior
Kevin Serra,
Writer, Kevchino.comTop 13 Albums of 2009
001 | Natureboy - Natureboy Self Released
002 | Warpaint - Exquisite Corpse Self Released
003 | Masterface - Freedom Tower Self Released
004 | Real Estate - Real Estate Woodist
005 | Cass McCombs - Catacombs Domino
006 | The Antlers - Hospice French Kiss
007 | Sharon Van Etten - Because I Was In Love Language of Stone
008 | Beat The Devil - Idiot’s Guide Self Released
009 | Grizzly Bear - Vecktimest Warp
010 | Shilpa Ray & Her Happy Hookers - A Fish Hook An Open Eye Self Released
011 | The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - S/T Slumberland
012 | Volcano Choir - Unmap Jagjaguwar
013 | Wildbird & Peacedrums - The Snake The Control Group
Steven Severin,
Neumos / Wake Up Productions
(in no particular order)
The Avett Brothers
Bourbon and Ginger
The Wire
Matts in the Market
Vacation
NBA season
Matthew Smith,
Outrageous Cherry
1. Dennis Coffey every Wednesday night at Northern Lights Lounge in Detroit...jamming from 7 to 11 PM...four hours of funk and fuzzbox freakout.
2. Amboy Dukes reunion...4/17/09 in Detroit...Ted Nugent's feedback-drenched solos blaze like an expression of anarchistic hippie idealism that threatens to undermine Ted's weird political notions...especially on "Baby Please Don't Go"!
3. Rhys Chatham's "A Crimson Grail", performed at Lincoln Center, NYC, 8/8/09 with 200 electric guitars...an incredible experience...and Liquid Liquid was on the bill too!
4. Throbbing Gristle in Chicago 4/26/09...the "hits" set was cool, but the film/improvisation set was T.G. in full flight.
5. Flower Travellin' Band live at SXSW...the guitarist plays an instrument that looks like a giant cinnamon roll.
The Soundcarriers
Records:
There’s been a fare few releases, re-releases, re-visits and purchases this year, which have given The Soundcarriers camp a tilt in their kilts. Well worth mentioning include:
Pish – Inner Space LP (Akarma/Wah Wah Spain LPS061)/ Various Artists, The Sound Of Wonder (Finders Keepers FKR023LP)
Martin – Sly Stone, Rock Dirge 45 (Woodstock Records WOO001) / Serge Gainsbourg, Historie De Melody Nelson LP (Light In The Attic LITA040)
Leonore – Mazzy Star, Among My Swan CD (Capitol 7243 8 27224 2 7) favourite track: "Rhymes Of An Hour"
Hazel – Rodriguez, Coming From RealityFashion:
Since 1784, John Smedley have been producing the finest quality knitwear in the beautiful setting of Lea Mills, Matlock, not far from the breathtaking Peak District, Derbyshire - And in 2009 have been keeping The Soundcarriers warm in winter and cool in summer.
John Smedley knitwear is truly sublime, the finest 30 gauge knit is fully-fashioned and hand-linked in the most luxurious Merino wool and Sea-Island cotton.
Pish wears - Hepworth in muscovado
Adam wears - Elliot in pine needle
Dorian wears - Tarquin Cardigan in navy
Leonore wears - Dolly in charcoal and Gabo gloves
Bands:
Adam - Fraser King – The Witch and Mr. WooNightclubs:
Two fantastic nights we’d like to mention:
Martin - A good few beers were sunk, and some great 45s spun at Rock’n’Roll Soul. Downstairs at the deliciously loungey club The Phoenix, Cavendish Square, just off London’s glittering Oxford St, there’s a great night happening once a month; previous guest DJs include Acid Jazz legend Eddie Piller, Jazzman Gerald, The Bees, Andy Lewis and a couple of drunk cats who go under the tag The Soundcarriers DJs. Reputed to have ‘More Soul Than A Shoe Shop’ – and endorsed by the late Arthur Lee – this is a top night! London Pride served on draught in proper mugs, too. Expect to hear: Johnny Jones & The King Casuals – ‘Purple Haze’; The Faces – ‘Stay With Me’; Pigmeat Markham – ‘Here Comes The Judge’
Pish – Raw Rockabilly, Blues Stompers, Surf Instros, Garage & Frat, New Orleans R&B and anything Titty Shaker related... all on 45. Not a compact disc insight? Then, that’ll be Nottingham’s strictly dancefloor rock ‘n roll night The Rubber Room
Heavyweight collectors Martin Lawrie and Nick Smith spin the wild sounds up at The Maze, creating a soundtrack made for nipple tassels and leopard print.
Books/Publications:
Martin – It’s been a real honour to have been featured in some brilliant magazines this year, and none more so great than the fab and happening Shindig!.
Jon ‘Mojo’ Mills and crew have a really good thing going on here. In-depth and informative articles on everything great in this musical world of ours. Highlight – Julie Driscoll feature. Fab!
Leonore – Everything Is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran FoerAdam – Black Snow by Mikhail Bulgakov
Pish - Patricia Highsmith’s Tom Ripley NovelsExhibitions/Galleries:Pish –The Museum Of Brands, Packaging and Advertising. Portobello Road, Notting Hill, London
Martin – I really drew the short straw here! I couldn’t handle the 30 minute queue at The Royal Academy Of Arts, so left George to enjoy the magical delights of Anish Kapoor on his own, whilst I spent 30 minutes on the tube, and 20 mins in heavy rain to get to the Tate Modern to view Pop Life: Art In A Material World, which I’m not going to even say one word about in case I’m mistakenly accused of promoting this travesty of an exhibition. Whereas George had a time of his life! The towering pile of large chrome balls (Tall tree and the eye) reaching for the sky in the museum’s courtyard: reflecting buildings, people, sky, is breathtaking alone, and sets the standard for a fantastic exhibition of modern, ingenious and challenging sculpture.
Hazel - Passion for Fashion & Fine Textiles including an Important Audrey Hepburn Collection – Kerry Taylor Auctions - Fantastic pre-Auction viewing of Audrey Hepburn’s infamous wardrobe.
Blog:
Martin – Paul Smith. Love this man’s blog! It’s just hard not to feel lazy when you read how much he gets up to!
Film:
Adam- A Serious Man – The Coen Brothers
Event:
Martin - Got to be really self-indulgent here, but the event of my year has to be my wedding to my beautiful new wife Hazel. It was an unbelievably special, emotional day. Set in the home where Hazel grew up in Braunston, a historic canal-side village, we were so touched by how many people dear to us traveled great distances to share our special day (cheers Jules for coming all the way over from Japan), eat fresh North Sea lobster, dance to some of the greatest records and drink some of the finest ale. And huge thanks to The Soundcarriers for rocking the World War II marquee!
Pish - This time last year, we were still celebrating the continued success of legendary independent record store, Selectadisc, Nottingham. Sadly, but with dignity still in-tact, Selectadisc ceased trading earlier this year. Ex-staff from all over the shop’s 43 years of supplying records to the residents of Notts and further afield, came along on its last day and leant their services in what can only be described as a wake. As the shutters came down for the last time on this much loved shop, tears in many people’s eyes, the partying continued into the small hours, with many of the staff DJing their record collections purchased over the years from one of Nottingham’s institutions, Selectadisc. Much missed.
Gigs/Festivals:
We all had a fantastic time at the superbly organised, super friendly festival The Green Man. It was a real treat to open the main stage on the Saturday. Other highlights include:
Leonore – “The Dirty Three live was one of the best things I’ve seen in years”; Joe Boyd reading and expanding on extracts from his book White Bicycles; having a ‘Gong Bath’; Beyond The Wizard’s Sleeve slick DJ set... A brilliant festival set in the beautiful Welsh Brecon Beacons
Martin - The Godfathers Of Groove, Jazz Cafe, London. Rueben Wilson, Bernard Purdie and Grant Green Jr. The line-up and title says it all. Legends! Pure Hammond and guitar groove from the originators. Witnessing Wilson’s effortless B3 style was worth the ticket price alone, whilst Purdie’s a complete all round entertainer. Just a shame Purdie’s kit has lost that baggy Blue Note sound and raspy snare – instead a bit flat and Rock School sounding. Apart from that minor gripe, a night in groove heaven. Sookie Sookie
People:
And finally, we’d like to mention a few names who have helped to make 2009 a year to remember in the Soundcarriers world: Dave Cooper at Melodic, Will Lawrence at In House Press, Matt Sullivan at Light In The Attic, Chris Dedrick, White Denim, Justin 'The Professor' Spear, Jon 'Mojo' Mills, George Vedmore, Jim Cooke, Jo and Danny at The Green Man, Charlotte Foy at John Smedley, Jon Matthews, Keith Haworth, and Kieron Tyler for voting Harmonium as album of the year
Gabe Spierer, Beggar's GroupFive things I liked this year (not the definitive year-end list, but a LITA exclusive):
an album: The Horrors - Primary Colours
a dog: one specific Dachshund named Dorothy
a country: Brazil
a rookie: Brandon Jennings (got to watch him for the first time last night on my just-purchased NBA League Pass. Milwaukee, who's psyched?)
a concert: Nine Inch Nails live at Bowery Ballroom
Jeff Terich
Editor, Treblezine.com
Top 10 events/albums/songs, etc. of 2009
1. Getting married
2. Dining on Octopus, tuna and patatas bravas at Inopia in Barcelona
3. Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest
4. Jay-Z's "Empire State of Mind" (but not so much the rest of Blueprint 3)
5. covering Fugazi's "Waiting Room" with a tuba player for Musical Pursuit at the Whistle Stop
6. Baroness at The Casbah
7. Baroness' - Blue Record
8. Raekwon's - Only Built 4 Cuban Linx II
9. 30 Rock
10. Grizzly Bear at The Belly Up, incorporating mason jars as lights into their stage setup
Kieron Tyler,
WriterTop Eleven Albums Of The Year
The Soundcarriers - Harmonium (Melodic)
1. The Amazing – S/T (Subliminal Sounds)
2. Benjamin Biolay - La Superbe (Naï)
3. Shogun Kunitoki - Vinonaamakasio (Fonal Records)
4. Blk Jks - After Robots (Secretly Canadian)
5. Oh No Ono – Eggs (Morningside)
6. Soap & Skin - Lovetune For Vacuum (PIAS Recordings)
7. Papercuts - You Can Have What You Want (Memphis Industries)
8. Mayer Hawthorne - A Strange Arrangement (Stones Throw)
9. Pierre Lapointe - Sentiments Humains (Audigram)
10. MúSing Along To Songs You Don’t Know (Morr Music)
Top Eleven Reissues Of The Year
1. Various - Where The Action Is (Rhino)
2. Harmonia & Eno ’76 - Tracks and Traces reissue (Grönd)
3. Various - Clap Your Hands Stamp Your Feet (Excelsior Recordings)
4. 13th Floor Elevators - Sign Of The 3 Eyed Men (Charly)
5. The Inner Space (i.e. Can) - Agilok & Blubbo (Wah Wah)
6. Various – Saint Etienne Present Songs For The Dog & Duck (Ace)
7. The Master’s Apprentices – S/T (Aztec Music)
8. Various – Britain Learns To Rock (Fantastic Voyage)
9. Jacques Dutronc – Et Moi Et Moi Et Moi (RPM International) – I know it’s one of mine, but it’s great, so there.
10. Heldon – S/T (Wah Wah)
Pari Zangeneh – The Series Of Music For Young Adults Iranian Folk Songs (Institute For The Intellectual Development Of Children And Young Adults) – ok, it’s a bootleg, but how else are you going to get an Iranian album for 1976?
Greg Vandy,
Host, KEXP - The Roadhouse
Pickathon (in Portland): the heat! the dust! the music!
Cliff Lee trade to M's: solid one-two in the rotation!
Frank Fairfield LIVE In The Roadhouse: time travelin'!
Mad Men: the set designs alone....
Rodriguez @ Triple Door (& party at Sully's pad): sugarman!
No Depression Fest @ Marymoore Park: rapping with the stars!
The Roadhouse Summer Sell-Out Radio Show: cuz it's summer and it feels good...
Breaking Bad: tuco! ring!
Wheedle's Groove Documentary: bold soul sister!
Alela Diane: #2 album- super sweet
Fire In My Bones Compilation: #1 album- old rare raw black gospel!
My Wedding @ Sodo Park: featuring performances by Michael Vermillion, Mark Pickerel, Shane Tutmarc, & Zoe Muth! thank you!!
Adam Voith,
BillionsTop 5 Cheats While Trying to Lose 25 lbs:
5: Entire package of Pinwheel Chocolate Covered Marshmallow cookies
4: Large Double Chocolate Fudge milkshake from Steak n Shake
3: Twelve 100 Calorie Packs of Chips Deluxe cookies in one less than one hour
2: Two Limited Edition Fudge Snickers candy bars in less than twenty minutes
1: Wendy's Double w/ Cheese for lunch, Steak n Shake Double w/ Cheese for dinner
Geoffrey Weiss,
Hollywood RecordsSome highlights of 2009:The Hunches - Exit Dreams. Oddly emotional, completely vicious, the Hunches were a unique band, and this swan song is worthy of the titanic legacy that will grow up around them.
Cold Sun - Dark Shadows - I don't know when the fancy new version actually came out (the '80's version on Rockadelic was awesome, but this is even better), but I played it a lot in 2009, and it really is that rarest of things, a lost psychedelic masterpiece. If it had come out when it was recorded, there would be bad tribute albums to it. Get the vinyl, get the CD, download it, or sing it to yourself.
Francis Harold & the Holograms - Who Said These Were Happy Times? An illustration of the subjectivity of the listening experience. I play this, and feel waves of bliss like when Loveless was new, I play it for other people and they cover their ears and run away. Folks compare FHH to other things and I just don't know what they're talking about.
Lost Abbey - 10 Commandments Ale - Event Beer. If I've got one in the fridge, II look forward to opening it all day. I should also mention Golden State on Fairfax, because Jason there has real enthusiasm for what he does, and he always has great beers on tap.
The Thomas Function - I love "In the Valley of Sickness." The words that come out of Josh Macero's mouth surprise me every time.
Lucky Luke - Traveling for a Living- As mossy and flinty as the best UK folk, with real forward momentum. This album has been a few years coming, but when you play it it's whenever you want it to be. Harvest, Vertigo, Trailer, Transatlantic, Mexican Summer.
Ed Solo- Watch Your Eyes - Maybe there is lots of electronic music this odd and immediate, if so please tell me. At my house, this is a game ender.
Scrotum Poles- Auchmithie Forever - I haven't actually played the vinyl yet, but just the idea that this came out in 2009 makes me happy. And I have all the songs, and they're all great, so it's not a complete abstraction.
Where the Wild Things Are - (the movie). Beautiful, odd, soulful. A great, insightful film. I don't know if it's for kids, but it's for me.
John Wenzel,
The Denver PostNational albums:
1. Metric – Fantasies (PIAS/Metric)
2. Smug Brothers – Fortune Rumors (self-released EPs)
3. The Flaming Lips – Embryonic (Warner Bros.)
4. Phoenix – Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix (Glass Note)
5. Siriusmo – The Uninvited Guest (Monkeytown Records)
6. Tortoise – Beacons of Ancestorship (Thrill Jockey)
7. Camera Obscura – My Maudlin Career (Merge)
8. Telekinesis – Telekinesis (Merge)
9. Kings of Convenience – Declaration of Dependence (Astralwerks)
10. The Mountain – Heartless Bastards (Fat Possum)
Runners-up:
Jawbox – For Your Own Special Sweetheart
Headlights – Wildlife
Boston Spaceships – Zero to 99
David Bazan – Curse Your Branches
The Thermals – Now We Can See
The Appleseed Cast – Sagarmatha
The Cribs – Ignore the IgnorantAlbums from Denver bands:
1. The Jim Jims – Bottom of the City EP
2. Everything Absent or Distorted – The Great Collapse
4. Houses - Summer EP
3. Wentworth Kersey – (O) EP
5. Bad Weather California – Young Punks
6. d. biddle – Beds and Monsters
7. Aakash Mittal – Videsh
8. Pacific Pride – Pacific Pride
9. Meese – Broadcast
10. Pretty Lights – Passing Behind Your Eyes
11. Everything Absent or Distorted – The Lucky One
12. Gregory Alan Isakov – This Empty Northern Hemisphere
13. Houses – Spring EP
14. Paper Bird – A Sky Underground
15. Churchill – ChurchillMichelle Witten,
Editor/producer, Wheedle’s Groove, Editor, Scout’s Honor
Favorite meats I have eaten this year after 18 years of vegetarianism:
1. roasted duck with creme de foie gras
2. oxtail stew
3: lamb birra tacos
4. wild boar sloppy joe
5. uncured applewood smoked bacon
Andy ZaxTop 11 Experiences of 2009:
Getting yelled at on the phone--twice!--by Country Joe McDonald (who later apologized)
Flying 3000 miles to see Van Der Graaf Generator
"Take Me Round Again" by The Fiery Furnaces
Everything that has ever been--or will ever be--released on Ghost Box
The Experience Music Project Pop Conference
Being nominated for a Grammy
The Tuscan Vegetarian sandwich at Columbine in Tribeca
Stumbling across Noveller's "Brilliant Colors" on a rental car radio while driving through the middle of nowhere
Tearing the shrink wrap off of a sealed original of David Axelrod's Earth Rot
The ceeFrenzy iPhone app
Ommegang Rouge sour ale
Jonathan Zwickel,
Freelance Writer
Ed. Jonathan Zwickel threw together a list for you and yours this holiday season. All you need to do to download it is send an email to zwickelicous@gmail.com. Well worth the small bit of effort. We promise.
Our good friends American Apparel, they who clothe the youth of today, have partnered up with Viva Radio and Anthology Recordings for what you, discerning fashonistas you, might think is pretty choice. From now until whenever, walk in to most American Apparel stores in the USA and you'll be able to purchase one of the above Betty Davis tees, screen-printed with the iconic photography of former Rolling Stone chief photographer Baron Wolman.
Along with this purchase you'll also get a digital copy of an Anthology Recording's curated compilation featuring Ms. Betty Davis herself, as well as Karen Dalton, Telegraph Avenue, Bill Quick and many more.
C'mon, you've already got thirteen American Apparel hoodies in all the colors of the rainbow, what's one more Betty Davis sportin' tee going do to your pocket book?
Betty Davis was a saucy, sexy songstress, of that no one has any doubt. What we oft times forget is Betty's role as a fashion icon. The "T" - The New York Times beautiful fashion blog - has put together a fantastic little piece about the silver-booted sex pot and we couldn't be happier to share it with you.
Check out the whole thing HERE.
You've heard of Betty Davis, the silver-booted funkstress of which we've been releasing amazing albums over the course of the last six years or so (the most recent being Nasty Gal and the never-before released Is It Love Or Desire). And of course you've heard of NPR, the god of radio that lords over us the small and pathetic information hungry listeners of the world.
Well the two are together at last. NPR's prestigious and glorious All Things Consider did a little bit of a thang on our favorite nasty gal, and you can listen and read and view the whole damn thing.
RIGHT HERE.
Get over there and check it out, Betty'll knock you around if you don't.
This week of Betty Davis love is careening to a startling ten-car pile-up, and the lovely Alex Healy decided to drop in with a second set of reviews. A brief recap: Alex Healy, writer, fashion designer, burgeoning business owner, came in to last week never having heard a lick of the silver-booted sex bomb that is Betty Davis. We shoveled four albums worth of BD goodness on to Alex's front porch and let her have at it.
Alex, we're eternally grateful for your witty prose.
Read the first set of Alex Healy's Betty Davis reviews HERE and HERE.
You can check out Alex’s fashion writing HERE.You can check out Alex’s San Francisco estate sale business, Old Hat, HERE.If you have the opportunity, I highly suggest befriending the gorgeous people at Light In The Attic. Next thing you know, you'll be abreast of some sweet music and drinking at The Rusty Barnacle. Betty Davis, hope to see you there some day...
Nasty Gal: Betty Davis
In a time when (cringe) cake farts and food carts are at the zenith of popularity, I wonder, was I meant for this era? Betty Davis's third album, Nasty Gal released in 1975, is something I can handle. An album certainly related to her first two in sound and lyrical content, but it's got something else, and someone(s) else. Although I'm wontedly opposed to super groups, Funk House, her handpicked backing band, is pure talent. Album 3 is an album I want to dance to. An album I want to clean my room to. An album to have sex to. An album to forget you slammed your fingers in a door to.
What I wish I knew: Was she friends with Bobby Seale of the Black Panthers. Was she stalked by Cointelpro? Did she support John Sinclair, leader of the White Panther party? Did she partake in an orgy or two at the famed Plato's Retreat? Did she go on a touring hiatus due to gas shortages? Did she learn to shoot machine guns with Patti Hearst?
Food carts are good, but hotdog comin from dirty water, this Betty Davis album is epic.
NastyGal reclaimed.
Is It Love or Desire: Betty Davis
33 years ago maybe your grandmother bought a glorious plaid cape and a darling plum colored bow tie, and then realized it just wasn't the right time and they were shelved in the pretty little boxes they came in, sitting adjacent to Betty's fourth album, Is It Love or Desire. There they sat. There they stewed, still carrying the volition of the year they came from. Waiting for 2009, apparently. Back in 1976, Island Records had this album shelved due to the lack of commercial success of Betty's previous albums. "A good friend once told me, 'in order for a business to be successful, somebody's got to get fucked", written by Fred Mills, a dear friend of Betty's. It's sad and surprising that this queen of trysts, this boozing alley cat got skinned in the sick and twisted world that is the music industry. Thus this album turned into a Betty Davis time capsule.
What does a Betty Davis time capsule sound like? It sounds like Davis, and on some songs with the addition of a synthesizer it's as if you're at the naughtiest light show being projected onto the Grand Coulee Dam. The dam naughty light show, and she's still letting you know that "if you can cut it, you can love it." Her less throaty vocals showcased on "When Romance Says Goodbye" is lilting and somehow sexier, if not a little depressing. Going through a break up? This is the cut for you.
A suit shelving your art, the ugly under belly of the music industry, a high-profile divorce, Betty head high with mo' money mo' problems, at least she don't have to tour for this album.
How do you encapsulate Betty Davis? Seriously, just listen to her albums.
In honor of our brand new Betty Davis reissue and release we had our good friend Vincent Cook cobble together an absolutely breath-taking limited-edition poster of Ms. Betty Davis (which you can win right HERE). We sat down with this very talented graphic designer and fashion designer to pick his brain about the poster, music in general, and that wiley Canuck, Sipreano.
LIGHT IN THE ATTIC: What was the inspiration behind the design for this limited edition Betty Davis poster?VINCENT COOK: I wanted to create something that was simple and iconic and reflected the more classic side of Betty (i.e. more of a Blue Note vibe rather than the heavy space-funk vibe).
LITA: You also run a clothing company (2Step/Sandinista), I wonder what the difference is in the creative process between designing clothing and crafting this truly beautiful packages.VC: Designing in the fashion world is inevitably going to be trendy - what I mean by this is that you are reacting to trends, whether to follow or try to stand apart from the current trends. Things are changing pretty fast in fashion, everything is becoming homogeneous and trends come and go in a 2-3 month cycle now because of blogs and look-books posted online. Designing for music is a lot more fun - I personally feel there is more depth in music culture. I also have a much more personal connection and passion for music, digging in the crates, making mix tapes and so forth, so the stuff I do for LITA is very enjoyable and rewarding.
LITA: You've also done the design work for both of our Rodriguez issues, the entire Jamaica to Toronto series and Doug Randle. What draws you to these releases?VC: One big draw was that a good friend wrote all the liner notes for the releases. And he also [re]-discovered a lot of the music. Being Canadian and a huge fan of West Indian roots music, the Jamaica to Toronto series was obviously a must-do project!
LITA: Also, is there a favorite Light In The Attic title you've worked on? One that sticks out as your absolute highlight? VC: I would have to say Jamaica to Toronto, in particular the first, self-titled compilation. It was done totally analog style, with the only digital work being at the very end for production layout (I am referring to the cover and gatefold; I did not design the booklet for that one). I made and assembled all the elements for the main image, and we had an amazing photographer shoot the whole scenario. We had all these crazy lights set up in a furniture factory. That stuff just doesn't happen anymore.
LITA: What are you obsessed with right now in terms of music, food, movies, etc.?VC: Sipreano's new mix for the Sandinista website is sublime. I'm also a big fan of DJ Harvey and The Force of Nature Crew from Tokyo (what's up Wakkun!). Food should be local and organic if at all possible. One love for all the heritage brands such as Filson, Russell, Moccasin, Danner, Woolrich, Pendleton, etc ... they are finally getting some recognition. Simple and timeless design will always win out over stupid trends. Blatant localism and quality island time are high priorities right about now.
LITA:What are you currently working on? What can we look forward to from Vincent Cook in 2010?VC: I want to dedicate more time to some product and furniture design which I've been sadly neglecting lately. Matt [Sullivan, co-owner of Light In The Attic] also has a top shelf re-issue project for LITA that I'm hoping to be involved with. I'm sure he will make it happen. I should also log more time on The Rivet, and if anyone is interested, I sometimes, but rarely update my blog.
http://www.sndnst.com/vancouver/
A limited edition poster that looks just like this! Designed by Vincent Cook (he of Sandinista fame, as well as both of our Rodriguez albums, and Doug Randle and our Jamaica to Toronto series) this poster reflects the sultry blue-note days of the silver-booted funkstress we know and love.
It's limited edition and we've hand numbered all 100 of them.
How might you, the lucky Betty Davis-ite, win one? BD once wrote, "My middle name is game," well, we want to know, in a perfect world where Betty Davis sat on a space ship throne and lorded over all, what you're Betty Davis middle name would be? Just put your full Betty Davis-ified name in a comment and our Light In The Attic Middle Name Robots will pick their favorite.
If anyone knows about Betty Davis, Oliver Wang does. Creator, founder, all-around master of Soul Sides, Mr. Wang has spent some serious time amongst the obscure annals of funk and soul, and is one of the few folk to sit down with Ms. Betty Davis and pry some hard fought answers out of her.
Oliver is the author of the liner notes for Nasty Gal (a fantastic read in it's own right) and we sat down with the man to pick his brain about all things Betty.
Check out Soul Sides HERE.
LIGHT IN THE ATTIC: What originally drew you to Betty Davis and her music? And why you've written so extensively on her?
OLIVER WANG: The funny thing is, I hadn't written that extensively on her prior to handling the liner notes for the first two reissues; I might have had one or two pieces that appeared in alt. weeklies but that's it. However, there had been so little available on Betty that it may very well have amplified what little press there was.
As to what drew me to Betty and her music...to start with, her funk rhythms were undeniably arresting. They weren't the most sophisticated, complex compositions but she understood how to grab your attention with a good bassline groove (it also helped she was playing with all-stars like Larry Graham and Mike Errico). Beyond that, I think I was just struck by the brazen attitude and sexuality Betty exuded in her album covers. You can try to compare her with other female funk stars of that era - Parlet, Millie Jackson, the Brides of Funkenstein but I still think Betty was in a class by herself in terms of making this spectacular visual impact. I mean, she was rocking an Egyptian headdress and javelin on an album cover; how are you not going to take notice?
LITA: Can you remember the first time you heard Davis? Where you were? What you were doing? What your first reaction to the music was?OW: Ha, well, I can't say I felt like hearing her music for the first time was "an event". But I do remember it was her "Nasty Gal" album and what I heard was good enough that it made me curious to hear more from her.
LITA: Amidst creative difficulties with her label and a sort of emotional fade from the music industry, Betty only recorded one more album after Is It Love Or Desire. Do you feel as if you can sense the beginning of the end of Betty's music career on this album?OW: Not on the album itself, no. I think the album was exuberant given how good the chemistry was with the band and with Betty. However, the failure for the album to get a release definitely was part of the general industry difficulties Betty had in that era and portended the future challenges facing her.
LITA: Certainly you'd been privy to the existence of Is It Love or Desire prior to Light In The Attic's release. As a collector, and a fan, what's your reaction to the news that this previously lost album is finally seeing the light? OW: I think it is an incredible development. Everyone I had interviewed the first time around spoke of how great the album was and how it was such a shame it got buried. I was even more surprised that no one seemed to have a copy of it (I didn't discover the existence of the test-pressing until later) and I feared the worse. As it turns out, the tapes had been kept safely in two different locations all these years! Just goes to show what you can find when you go looking. But yes, I think it is wonderful that this album finally gets a proper release after all these years.What would you give to be in the audience for one of Betty Davis' infamously wild shows with Funk House in the early and mid-70s?
OW: They definitely sounded like a helluva show. Just the stunned reaction by the press says a lot. That plus you might have run into Muhammed Ali at one of them!
LITA: Outside of Betty Davis, what are you currently listening to now? What are you musically obsessed with in these beginning days of Fall? OW: I'm spinning an Aretha Franklin tribute set at a party this week so I've been digging back into the Queen's music. Always an enjoyable endeavor.
Strath Shephard is a man amongst men. Not only the designer of both of our booklets for our brand new Betty Davis reissues (you may have heard of them, the first American reissue of Nasty Gal and the previously never-before-released Is It Love or Desire) but also the designer for our upcoming website reboot. Aside from dabbling in the ponds and puddles of Light In The Attic, Strath is a brilliant designer in his own right and recently started an absolutely fantastic blog with his lovely wife called Pacific Standard.
Everyday is fantastic on Pacific Standard but there's been two Betty D. posts lately that focus on aspects of the design of Betty's original albums and Strath's choices in creating the cover for Is It Love or Desire.
We were justifiably blown away and we think you will be too.
Head on over, give it some love.
Read Strath's words on Nasty Gal cover artist Antonio Lopez.Read Strath's thoughts on his influences for Is It Love or Desire.
Betty Davis was a force on stage. A silver-booted, wild-haired, sweating dripping, sex-pot of a performer that took the stage and your soul captive for as long as she wanted, and left you a shriveled bag of a person. But these live performances would've been shells without the backing of one of the funkiest bands to ever grace a stage - Funk House.
Fred Mills was the big-hatted keyboardist for the band (as well as the musical director for Is It Love Or Desire) and he was kind enough to sit down with us for a few moments and discuss the albums, Betty Davis, and the wild world that was Funk House.
This is a fantastic interview and we hope you enjoy!
LIGHT IN THE ATTIC: How did you see Betty Davis' sound changing between her early albums (S/T, They Say I'm Different) without Funk House and her later work (Nasty Gal, Is It Love Or Desire)? What did Funk House add to Betty Davis' existing sound?FRED MILLS: The musicians that recorded (They Same I’m Different) with Betty were guys we listened to and got a lot of our feel from. The Sly, Larry Graham, Ohio Players and Santana type funk was what Funk House was about.
LITA:It seems that Betty Davis had a hand in all aspects of Funk House, from creation of the band, to the selection of your outfits - I wonder if you could discuss your thoughts, or observations on Betty as a band leader.FM: We really started Funk House to play dates when we had down time from the road with Betty. Promoting ourselves as her recording and tour band helped us keep busy. She had wanted us to change our name to Sleazes, but we had established a following already. Performances with Betty were as much about the visual as the music. She wanted a certain look from the type of guitar I was playing to me not wearing a shirt and being well oiled (she liked that dark Miles type). Betty was the first female artist I had worked with that was also the band leader. She was really cool, but she would always say "If she I a man!" when situations were not cool.
LITA: What's the feeling of being right there with Betty as she started moving towards a sort of mainstream success? And concurrently, what was it like to be there when it became evident that Betty's rise to fame might be short lived?FM: When you’re in the moment it’s hard to think that maybe next week “this isn’t going to be happening”. The business end was Betty’s thing and by the time we were aware of certain things it was a formality. It was Betty’s concept and record deal. She was the boss and we really never got involved with that end as it relates to Betty Davis the business woman.
LITA: Looking back now Funk House is widely considered to be one of the "funkiest" backing bands to ever grace the stage. While performing, or recording, did you recognize that? Did you see yourselves as this funk force or was it just another day at the office? FM: Being the recording and performing band meant we were locked by the time we took the stage. Every song was our baby, and Betty was the momma. We all grew up together, and had played with each other from time to time before Funkhouse. Betty would bring the lyrics and an outline of what she heard musically, and we would take it from there. As Ray [Davis, Funk House bassist ed.] would say…”we just made it do what it do”
LITA: What was the emotional atmosphere amongst Funk House and Betty Davis as you entered the Studio in the Country to record what would become Is It Love or Desire?FM: You have to remember we were in Reidsville NC and Betty was in Pittsburgh. Maybe two or three weeks before we did performances or start recording, we would get a phone call and off we go. This was the first time that we did not rehearse at a separate location. Studio in the Country was full service 24 hrs. We would rehearse on day and record the next, or record as we rehearsed if the magic was there. It was very relaxed and open for us.
LITA: On Is It Love or Desire? you took on a more active role as the musical director. How did this change your relationship with Betty? FM: I remember the only clash that Betty and I ever had. She wanted to do a kind of of Betty Davis presents Funk House and she wanted us to do "Going To A Go Go". I wasn’t feeling it. We had spent some of our off time fooling around in the studio and had a song I thought was better for Funk House. We never came to an agreement and I think in her relationship with me from then on was “If I was a man”.
LITA: This previously unreleased record has been called "the best project Betty ever put together." What was the feeling then to see such an amazing album get shelved? And what's the feeling now that it's finally seeing the light?FM: First let me say Matt [Sullivan, Light In The Attic owner, ed.] is my hero! The first reaction is somebody will pick Betty up and we’ll be on the road soon. As the days and weeks turn into months without a phone call, you move on. The music business is like no other. Until you call it quits, there’s always another gig.
LITA: What do you think the reasons were that Is It Love or Desire got shelved? FM: Money, money, money. That is the reason so many of today's artists have taken control of their projects. If you don’t have an individual or company that is willing to put up some money within reasonable parameters of who gets what, you find yourself making decisions about how much you are willing to give up to make this happen. I guess Betty and the money people couldn’t find a common ground. A good friend once told me “In order for a business to be successful, somebody’s got to get fucked”
LITA: Finally, in your opinion, why did Betty Davis fade from the spotlight?FM: I’ll leave that for Betty. I can only tell you that Betty Davis was ahead of her time.
If there's a man that can take a sizable amount of credit for the reemergence of Betty Davis' career, John Ballon is that man. As Ballon helped to force the record labels to award Betty Davis the royalties they'd kept from her for so long.
We sat down to glean a bit more of that story and pick Ballon's brain on just who Betty Davis is.
Ballon wrote the liner notes for Is It Love or Desire and is the founder of music website MustHear.com.
Check out MustHear.com HERE.
LIGHT IN THE ATTIC: Aside from your more scholarly work with Betty Davis, you also have a semi-personal story with Betty Davis that involves you actually helping her to receive $40,000 in unpaid royalties. I was hoping you could tell that story.JOHN BALLON: I first got in touch with Betty through the head of MPC records. He was the one who found her after all these years and got her to sign a record deal to reissue her early albums. At the time I was writing liner notes for Aztec Records, which had licensed Betty's first two albums from MPC which they were planning on reissuing in Australia. As part of my research, I tracked down Michael Lang of Just Sunshine to ask him about signing and working with Betty. He immediately challenged MPCs claim to being a legitimate rights holder. He told me that he had been looking for Betty for years, because there were years of back royalties that were owed her and they had no clue how to find her. I got in touch with Betty's publishing company and gave them her current address. In the end, a check was cut and Betty finally got what she had coming. It allowed her to move into a place of her own. As far as I know, the guy from MPC disappeared and Aztec sadly never got their licensing fee back. The true rights holders were subsequently found by the guys at Light In The Attic, leading to the first non-bootleg reissue of Betty's music on CD. She is now getting paid everything she deserves.
LITA: Betty Davis is known to be one of the more reclusive artists what was like working with her in the past?JB: My first interview with Betty was not much different from my most recent conversation. She's a woman of few words. The television is usually blaring in the background. Answers are often vague, short and elusive. She eventually tires of the conversation and finds a way of getting you off the phone. She is a woman who treasures her privacy above all else. While I feel I have earned a degree of her trust, I never felt that she was ready to be totally open and honest with me. There are walls she's spent years building, and nobody from her past or present seems to be able to break them down.
LITA: In the liner notes for Nasty Gal you give several reasons as to why Betty Davis chose retirement so early in her career (health, creative control issues, etc.). Do you, being one of the few people who's had contact with the singer in the later years of her life, have any personal observations or thoughts on the reasons behind her fade from the spotlight?JB: The music business is a killer. She attacked it with all she had, and in the end, she had very little to show for it. I think her manager making off with her final "Hanging Out In Hollywood" recordings combined with the death of her father were a 1-2 punch that she couldn't recover from. What happened after that remains a mystery. She says she just went on living, but has never really defined what that means. I have no clue how she survived all these years. But I do know she has no interest in going back to music. When someone from Lenny Kravitz's camp approached me and asked that I gauge Betty's interest in some kind of collaboration, she flat out said no. Now maybe if Prince had called, the answer would have been different. But I doubt it. Whatever reasons she had for quitting the music business, they remain strong to this day.
LITA: What drew you to Betty Davis originally? Why were you drawn to her music, to her, and to her career?
JB: A friend of mine first played Betty's "Anti-Love Song" off a funk compilation for me while we were riding up Pacific Coast Highway on a perfect California summer's day. I was blown away. He mentioned that this lady was married to Miles. Now I'm a huge Jimi Hendrix and Miles Davis fan. When I discovered that she not only was Miles' wife, but had in fact been good friends with Jimi and his "Dolly Dagger" girlfriend, Devon Wilson. The more I learned about her, the more fascinated I became. In many ways, her story is even more incredible than her music. It touches so many defining things about America--rock, jazz, sexual liberation, feminism, groupie-ism, the music industry, youth, beauty, revolution, critical acclaim, failure, the black experience, conformity, identity and of course, the funk.
It's all totally fascinating.
LITA: Do you remember where you were the first time you heard Betty Davis? What you were doing? The effect it had on you emotionally? What your reaction to it was?
JB: As I mentioned before, "Anti-Love Song" was my first introduction to Betty. It was one of the most devastating first listens I can remember. Larry Graham's bass and Greg Erricco's drums. The unconventional lyrics. The production. It really doesn't get much better than that song. I couldn't believe it hadn't been a hit. I wanted to hear more. I was hooked. It was love at first listen.
LITA: Over the years has your reaction and experience listening to Betty Davis' discography changed in any drastic way? Or are you still just enjoying the shit out of her wild style of funk?
JB: Believe it or not, I pretty much only play the first record, even though I think all of her music is great. There's just something about 1973. The musicians on the record. Erricco's production. The rawness. The others albums are cool, but I reach for that one again and again.
LITA: On a less Betty-centric note, what are you listening to now? What are you obsessing over in terms of music or food or life or whatever? JB: My life is the remastered Beatles box. I'm hearing something new in those old albums everyday. Thank god for my long commute. Wow. But man can't live on music alone. As far as food I'm obsessing over, I'm hooked on my wife Elizabeth's heirloom tomato pizzas. Word to the wise. Buy the Beatles box and marry an Italian. You'll thank me.
Alex Healy - Betty Davis virgin, clothing designer, writer, and newly christened entrepreneur - continues to dodge and weave through the sexified labyrinth of sweat, funk, and soul the absolutely brilliant Betty Davis wove oh so long ago.
You can check out Alex’s fashion writing HERE.You can check out Alex’s San Francisco estate sale business, Old Hat, HERE.
This time, she tackles Ms. Davis' sophomore release, the dangerously sexy They Say I'm Different.
Alex, please, let your lovely opinions fly.
Album two in many a career is cursed. Star-fucking groupies, egos, booze and a powerful jinx that seems to permeate the studio for a performer's second album is difficult to escape, but Betty's sophomore album released a year later in 1974,They Say I'm Different, dovetails bewitchingly with her inaugural album. No slump here. It's heavy on the funky bass, righteous vocals and sexy lyrics that many were begging for. And something tells me Betty has a lot of people begging for her.
What you need to know: Now, I'm open minded but pain is not my middle name (see prior post), Song 2, more formally titled "He Was a Big Freak", regales of floosy fantasies, whippings with turquoise chains and middle names like Pain. You can tell this stunning lady used to model for Glamour and Seventeen with such an apt description of her chains. The world of sex could really use more color descriptions, golden rod paddles, cerulean whips and gargoyle gray hand cuffs. Sounds delightful doesn't it?
"They say I'm different because I eat chitlins." I say I'm jealous because you eat chitlins.
The day has come! The amazing brand new Betty Davis reissue/release that we've been busting our considerable humps to get out to you, our amazing fans, have arrived. As much as we want you to buy these fantastic bits of Betty Davis funk, we also just want the music to be spread like Moses parting the motherfucking Red Sea - so we're giving away a copy of each.
These aren't your average back alley Betty D. bootlegs either, your silver-boot lovin' sum'bitches, these are thoroughly researched, immaculately packaged, near perfect bits of music history pieced together like only wee little Light In The Attic knows how to do. Beautiful liner notes? Check. Bonus tracks? Check. One entire album unheard by the public for over thirty years? CHUH-CHUH-CHECK.
Here's all you have to do to enter to win:
Post a comment on this here post explaining just why you love Betty Davis so damn much. Is it her space-goddess style? Is it her back-breaking funk? Or is the tingle in your gut, ladies and gentlemen, you get when you hear her throaty growl? Tell us, and our two favorites will receive copies of both albums.
GET ON IT!
Or ... just buy Nasty Gal and Is It Love or Desire?from our website.
The week has arrived. After days and weeks of preparation our amazing new reissue/release of Betty Davis' amazing third and fourth record (the brilliant Nasty Gal and the previously unreleased Is It Love or Desire?) are finally hitting the shelves for the world to enjoy. In honor of these releases, we've cobbled together a series of interviews and essays and giveaways to spread the knowledge and love of the one, the only, the absolutely stunning Betty Davis.
To kick things off, we've enlisted the help of SF writer, clothing designer, and entrepreneur Alex Healy. Prior to the writing of this article, Alex had been uninitiated in to the wild, sexy, silvery world that is the Betty Davis catalog. We thought, who better to help the unknowing, the bewildered, the scared, ease their way in to this amazing selection of music. Each day Healy will take a shot at exploring one of Betty's fantastic records, starting today with her amazing self-titled debut.
You can check out Alex's fashion writing HERE.You can check out Alex's business, Old Hat, HERE.
Alex, please lead us down the Betty Davis rabbit hole, of which there is no return.
Just diggin' Betty Davis'seponymously titled first album, BettyDavis. It's a sexy, raucous, large lapeled trench coat from the 70's. It's the kind of album that time travel should be invented for. It's 1973, you have an embassy gold cigarette in hand at a small club in Philly with a gorgeous Betty Davis blowing your mind. A sincere sex pot on stage, with audacious moves and audacious clothes. You can tell instantly from this album that Betty lived for the stage, that these songs were made to be performed. It is strange however, that there remains no footage of Ms. Davis shakin' it on stage. Where are these secret tapes? I'm now pining for these recondite tapes.
What you need to know: The song of the album is "Game Is My Middle Name"and I think it is for obvious reasons. It's funky, a sensuous sonic build that suggests going outside the bounds of middle names like Ann, Christopher or Marie. Let's take not-an-intern-Noah Binford Sanders and turn it into Noah Funk Sanders, or Matthew Kevin Sullivan to Matthew "don't-call-her-no-tramp" Sullivan. And Betty, if you're not still using it, or if you're not opposed to sharing, I might just opt to emulate the master of rock n funk, the humble Alex Game Healy.
Betty Davis's first album is ultimately bad ass. Ultimately bad ass.
We're releasing two more amazing Betty Davis records next week (the reissue of Nasty Gal and the very first release of Is It Love or Desire?) and we hope you're as excited we are (near impossible, we'll be honest).
In honor of the release we've gone out and got a few absolutely amazing interviews with a few folk who might know a bit about Ms. Davis.
Who might you ask? A schedule, it's forthcoming!
MONDAY: Vincent Cook (designer of THIS amazing poster)TUESDAY: Joost Burger (#1 Betty Davis Superfan)WEDNESDAY: Fred Mills (Keyboardist for BD backing band Funk House)THURSDAY: Oliver Wang (The man behind Dusty Grooves and author of Nasty Gal liner notes)FRIDAY: John Ballon (Betty Davis confidante and author of Is It Love or Desire? liner notes)
It's going to be one huge fucking week of Betty and these fantastic interviews are just the start. Stay tuned, keep your ears peeled, Betty Davis she's a coming!
Matt Sullivan, mental master of all things interwebs, passed along a hastily scribbled note to the blogging room last night. It smelled slightly of ketchup and King Cobra malt liquor, but after hours of arguing, we deciphered its cryptic message:
Strath Shepard
Digging deeper we realized that Matt Sullivan was tipping us off to not only one of the more talented graphic designers (Wax Poetics, our upcoming Betty Davis reissues [more on that soon] and the beautiful layout of our new upcoming website) working today, but also 'bout the blog put together by him, his partner Emily, and their friend Matthew - a blog entitled, Pacific Standard. It's a wacky blend of fantastic pictures, informative blurbs, and spot-on writing, as well as a nice little mix of crazy records that Strath (one time owner of Seattle's Conception Records, the producers of one of Not-An-Intern Noah's favorite rap tracks "Blessed One") and company adore.
It's an excellent site and we strongly suggest you give it a peek.
Seriously, the man just recreated the age-old FANIA logo, and it looks a little something like this:
We’ve been meaning to update the blog more often with news on what we’re working on, listening to, loving, hating, and all that. Raise your glasses, here’s to round number one…
Working on the release schedule for 2010, which is coming together very nicely. Not sure we’ll ever top Cold Fact but we’ll try in ’10. What’s in store? Well, we can’t spill the beans just yet though. Sit down, sit down, more news coming soon. Small hints… gems from Memphis and Nashvile; another glimpse into the world of all things Gainsbourg and once again a glorious re-mastering by Dave Cooley at Bionic in Los Angeles. I only wish Dave could have re-mastered Serge’s entire catalog. Serge certainly deserves it. Oh, and a project that’s been in the works for five lonnnnng years – close to the life of the label – will FINALLY see the light in 2010. Thank the heavens b/c I don’t know how much longer we could have kept quiet.
We’re deep in the midst of a major site redesign. One day soon you won’t have to experience our ancient, clunky site. A friend said it best – your site looks like the nineties. The new site will give us the freedom to quickly update the site with news of what’s going on, video, exclusive mix tapes, limited edition goodies. Thanks for sticking with us.
It’s been a wonderful week - the mailman delivered the goods and our arms got weak carrying it all in… Sometimes we forget the significance of exercise. Must pull away from the office more often or invest in an elliptical machine and Light In The Attic headbands. Anyways, outside our office door we discovered boxes and boxes piled high. Tucked inside were finished copies of our upcoming releases: Wheedle’s Groove – Kearney Barton (LITA 043), along with the long overdue reprint of our seminal 2004 comp Wheedle’s Groove: Seattle’s Finest in Funk & Soul 1965-75 (LITA 009). A few years back local DJ and collector Mr. Supreme opened our eyes to a long forgotten Seattle soul scene of the 60s and 70s. Yes, Seattle had an incredibly vibrant funk and soul scene, which birthed notables like Jimi Hendrix, Ray Charles, and Quincy Jones, but loads of others who sadly went forgotten. Soon after we spent a solid year tracking down the bands, musicians, engineers, and labels who brilliantly produced these wicked and rare 45s back in the day. Licenses ensued, then a deluxe compilation, followed by much acclaim around the globe and a handful of sold-out shows. The times were too good to disappear once again so we put the musicians back in the studio. Not just any ordinary studio though. We shot for the stars and came close… recording for three solid days at Kearney Barton’s legendary Audio Recording Studios in Seattle. Kearney Barton is the Pacific Northwest sound engineer who recorded many of the original tracks on the 2004 release, including songs by Black On White Affair and the Soul Swingers. Well, the man – nearing 80 – was still hard at it – with his studio doors still open, still using the same archaic analog gear as he had with the aforementioned bands and other Northwest staples that he recorded since his sound design days launched in the late ‘50s – The Sonics, Ventures, Wailers, Don & The Good Times, The Frantics. And loads of national acts from Cal Tjader to Les McCann. You could say he’s the George Martin of the NW sound. Kearney kindly opened his doors to our Seattle soul supergroup who cut one hell of a record, all straight to analog. We’re completely honored to be releasing this record. Album producer Dynomite D. and music director Johnny Horn were the glue that made this one happen. The album art was the genius of Jamaica to Toronto series photographer Chris Gergley, who kindly took the bus down from Vancouver on a number of occasions, snapping pics at Kearney’s studio. I may have drove him to the brink but fortunately he still picks up the phone. Expect deluxe hand-numbered vinyl on new album - LITA 043. We’ll also be reprinting wax for LITA 009. CDs will drop on September 8th. Vinyl soon after. We’ve gone through 4 test pressings and I think the bastards may have finally got it right. IT MUST SOUND PERFECT! Too much love has gone into the project to have anything less than absolutely mind-numbingly magical.
WOW! As I’m sitting here writing this on a sunny Sunday afternoon in Seattle, the phone rings – it’s Rodriguez and his daughter Regan calling from half away around the globe. The man is in Cardiff, Wales having just walked off stage at the Green Man Festival. Things went very well – fantastic new back-up band, enthusiastic reception, and what sounded like his favorite UK performance to date. He was sad to have missed reconnecting with Animal Collective, but caught Wilco. Seeing the man finally get his due is such a high. I can’t think of anything we’re more proud of over the last six plus years. All of us here feel so lucky to have met the man and his music. Good people don’t come around too often, at least not often enough. Next up… in September he’ll be touring South Africa for the first time in a few years, followed by an early October date at the Austin City Limits Music Festival.
Recent office favorites –
The return of free summer concerts at the Mural Amphitheater at the Seattle Center. Does anyone remember the glory of Pain In The Grass?
Fruit Bats – Ruminant (2009, Sub Pop) – none of us expected this to be so damn good.
Madmen, Madmen, Madmen – Joan Holloway, please be our intern.
???
Ernie Hines – Electrified (1972, We Produce)
The bar in the Moondoggies’ garage. Watch out for the homemade Moonshine.
Blogs like Waxidermy and Aquarium Drunkard. Thank the heavens for these two sites delivering the goods day in and day out. Consistency is a beautiful thing.
Beck – One Foot In The Grave 2xLP reissue (2009, Iliad/K) – Miss the old Beck like One Foot, Midnite Vultures, and Mellow Gold. Why’d he have to start taking himself all serious? Must hand it to him for his site though – digging the web features Record Club and Irrelevant Topics.
Pacific Standard – designers of our upcoming Betty Davis reissues (more info TBA). Best design firm on the planet. We are lucky bastards to be graced by their presence.
Soundcarriers - Harmonium (2009, Melodic)
Paseo Caribbean Restaurant – it never gets old. Best sandwiches on the planet hands down. Two blocks away from our office and the scent percolates through our walls.
Duane Eddy - Does Bob Dylan (1965, Colpix)
The 2009 Light In The Attic Road Trip (3,000 miles, 50 stores, in 10 days) is over, and still we shed tears of salty grief, but thanks to Cody Hurd, one half of the trouble-making duo of Black Daisy, the magic lives on.
In his fourth video of Road Trip madness, the boys, nearly 8 days in to this hocking-records-from-their-trunk adventure down the West Coast sit down with producer and remastering genius Dave Cooley (all of our Betty Davis work, Serge Gainsbourg, Rodriguez, as well as production for Silversun Pickups and many more) to do a little music nerd chatting with a modern great.
We swooned, just a little, but if you were looking you would've seen.
Enjoy!
Listen & Buy
Betty Davis
They Say I'm Different (CD,MP3)
LITA 027
Betty Davis’ 1974 sophomore album They Say I’m Different features a worthy-of-framing futuristic cover challenging David Bowie’s science fiction funk with real rocking soul-fire, kicked off with the savagely sexual “Shoo-B-Doop and Cop Him” (later sampled by Ice Cube). Her follow up is full of classic cuts like “Don’t Call Her No Tramp” and the hilarious, hard, deep funk of “He Was A Big Freak.”
In 1973, Betty Davis would finally kick off her cosmic career with an amazingly progressive hard funk and sweet soul self-titled debut. Davis showcased her fiercely unique talent and features such gems as “If I’m In Luck I Might Get Picked Up” and “Game Is My Middle Name.” The album Betty Davis was recorded with Sly & The Family Stone’s rhythm section, sharply produced by Sly Stone drummer Greg Errico, and featured backing vocals from Sylvester and the Pointer Sisters.
Betty Davis was riding high in the 70s. A new record label, a series of high profile relationships, and intensely sexualized live performances made her a rising star. It seemed like everything was aligned to take the music world by storm. So Betty and band got back into the studio where she would act as writer, producer, and performer, creating what she thought would be her definitive release…
Is It Love Or Desire is a little-known gem in the Davis catalogue. Mastered from the original tapes, and untouched for over 30 years, this release features detailed liner notes by Oliver Wang (Soul Sides, Betty Davis and They Say I’m Different re-issue contributor), the originally intended artwork housed in a lavishly packaged digipak, rare photos, archival material, and recent interviews with Davis and her skin-tight band Funk House.
18″ × 24″ limited edition Betty Davis poster designed by Vincent Cook (world renowned designer of Sandinista, as well as Light In The Attic releases Jamaica to Toronto, Rodriguez – Cold Fact & Coming From Reality). Posters are hand numbered and limited to only 100 copies.
Matt Sullivan remains hard at work attempting to complete Light in the Attic's reissue of Jim Sullivan's 1969 album, U.F.O. Scheduled for a fall release, Matt has embarked on quite the journey as he tries to find answers into Jim Sullivan's mysterious disappearance 35 years ago. He has been kind enough to catalog his story. You can read previous installments here, here and here. This most recent dispatch finds our leading man (and his two ace companions) in the New Mexico desert, where he retraces the final hours before Jim Sullivan vanished:
Awakening to a sunlit sky in Gallup, New Mexico, we pick over the remnants of our hotel’s continental breakfast and hit the road. We head east, bound for Santa Rosa 252 miles away. Around lunchtime, we arrive in Albuquerque. Johnny Horn randomly calls with a tip about a local store – Mecca Records. As we pull up, we notice a Betty Davis poster in the store window. Inside, we discover a nice selection of new and used vinyl, CDs, and books. I find some Waylon and Watertown vinyl (still need that poster). Jennifer picks up the Friday Night Lights book. We chat with Rocky, the shop’s owner. He’s a super cool dude, and big Light In The Attic supporter – LPs and CDs from Rodriguez, Betty Davis, and The Free Design are scattered around the shop. We fill him in about our quest, and he suggests contacting a loyal Mecca customer, a district attorney who has recently been reopening cold cases from the past. As it turns out, he is a Santa Rosa native and Light In The Attic fan. Might have to give this man a call. We hit a Mexican joint for lunch then head back onto I-40.
With anticipation high, Jim’s U.F.O. album blasts on the car stereo. Before we know it, we’re in Santa Rosa. It’s a small town along Route 66 in eastern New Mexico, tucked away in a long stretch of beautiful desert wasteland. It’s more like the Texas Hill Country than the vast open desert we envisioned earlier. Unlike some of the other towns we’ve come across on Route 66, Santa Rosa doesn’t look riddled by years of hard times. The last census reported that the population was 2,744.
We drive to the La Mesa Motel. It’s where Jim checked in on March 5, 1975. Like the rest of Santa Rosa (its original neon sign is still intact), the motel looks like time stopped around 1955. The sheets look clean, though. We snap a few photos, and talk about what we know regarding Jim’s first few hours in Santa Rosa. Jim left Los Angeles in his Volkswagen Bug sometime between noon and 1 p.m. on March 4. In the early morning hours of March 5, he was pulled over outside Santa Rosa for swerving. He was taken to the town’s police station for a sobriety test, which he passed. He was swerving from fatigue caused by the taxing 15-hour drive. Jim checked into the La Mesa Motel, but police reports later indicated that the bed in his room was not slept in, and the key was found locked inside the room. Some reports stated that the key was the lone item found in the room, while others mentioned that Jim’s guitar was also found. Jim’s friends and family often said that if Jim was planning to disappear, the one thing he would never leave behind was his guitar. It’s one of the many things about his disappearance that don’t add up. We take pictures of the motel’s neon sign and cruise around town.
[caption id="attachment_1793" align="alignnone" width="450" caption="Jim Sullivan's room at the La Mesa Motel."]
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The next stop is the ranch where Jim’s car was found – the last place he was reported seen. The ranch lies southeast of Santa Rosa, about 20 miles outside of town in the middle of nowhere. For half an hour, we drive on a dirt road, seeing only a smattering of houses for much of that time. The temperature is well into the 90s, and the sun is really bearing down. Parts of the drive are beautiful, with vibrant red rock formations followed by spots where you can see for miles. Mel films the scenery by going Commando-style – climbing onto the roof of the car and filming while we drive.
Finding the ranch took some Nancy Drew-style action on Jennifer’s part, as we couldn’t locate an actual address. Between 1953 and 1971, there was a National Weather Service collection station on the ranch, which was once owned by a family by the name of Gennetti. The coordinates for the station appeared on the weather service’s Web site. Jennifer plugged them into Google Maps and the address magically appeared. We know that after he checked into the La Mesa, Jim stopped by the liquor store, bought some vodka, and drove around town. Somehow he ended up at this ranch. The story goes that Mrs. Gennetti saw Jim’s headlights from her house and drove down with two ranch hands to see what was going on. She asked Jim if he had a problem. He replied, “No, do you?” We’ve also heard that he knocked on the Gennettis’ door and Mrs. Gennetti answered, but she only spoke Italian and didn’t understand what Jim was saying. So he walked off. When the police found Jim’s car (a neighbor reported it), it was locked and the engine was dead. A number of things were found in the car, including Jim’s wallet, guitar, clothes, reel-to-reel tapes, cassettes, silver appointment book, and a box of LP’s of Jim’s 1972 self-titled album on the Playboy label. The car was towed on March 8. There have been a number of rumors over the years that the Gennettis were part of a Chicago crime family. All we know is that a year or so after Jim disappeared, they moved to Hawaii.
[caption id="attachment_1794" align="alignnone" width="450" caption="The Gennetti Ranch. It was the last place Jim Sullivan was seen."]
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We roam near the property, stumbling upon a little mission with a cemetery. Rather than driving back the way we came in, we decide to keep going on the dirt road, spotting a deer out by the creek, and then a few minutes later, a snake slithering across the dirt road. Eventually, the dust settles as the road turns to asphalt, and we cross a large dam. The scenery looks more impressive upon each turn. Back in Santa Rosa, we check into the La Mesa. Mel shoots a number of Santa Rosa’s abandoned gas stations, bars, and vintage, barely standing, neon signs. Each sign is cooler than the next. The topper is the Sahara Club on the main strip, Route 66. The sun is going down and the light is perfect. Hungry, we wander over to Joseph's Bar & Grill, an old spot that’s been newly renovated but retains a classic, kitschy Route 66 charm. The menu is printed on newspaper with funny articles about the restaurant’s mascot, a big fat man. The bar in the back looks great, as well. Margaritas and Mexican food are scarfed down. We end the night by cruising around this quiet town, taking more shots, and almost grabbing a few drinks at the local bar. After a long day, we’re beat. We have to get up early, so we decide to crash. Looking back, we should’ve grabbed those beers. Isn’t that always the case though?
[caption id="attachment_1795" align="alignnone" width="450" caption="A gas station in Santa Rosa."]
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Ernie Hines – Electrified (1972, We Produce)
The bar in the Moondoggies’ garage. Watch out for the homemade Moonshine.
Blogs like Waxidermy and Aquarium Drunkard. Thank the heavens for these two sites delivering the goods day in and day out. Consistency is a beautiful thing.
Beck – One Foot In The Grave 2xLP reissue (2009, Iliad/K) – Miss the old Beck like One Foot, Midnite Vultures, and Mellow Gold. Why’d he have to start taking himself all serious? Must hand it to him for his site though – digging the web features Record Club and Irrelevant Topics.
