Jay H. Alanski

4-16-08 Jay H. Alanski

I knew the name Jay Alanski from his superb production of my favorite albums by Lio. I was reading “Rock et Folk” when “The Price of Love” came out – I believe the advertising copy read: “Du grande art!”

12" BLACK AND BLUE / NEVER QUITE A LOVER POLYDOR FR 885018.1

12" COMME UN FOU POLYDOR FR 883200.1

7" COMME UN FOU / J'T'AIME (C'EST ECRIT DANS MES YEUX) POLYDOR FR 883200.7

7" HALF OF YOU / CHAIN-SMOKIN' CBS FR 655447.7

CD HONEY ON A RAZOR BLADE FNAC FR 592204

CD JAY H. ALANSKI promo CBS FR SAMPCD 1362

CD LES YEUX CREVES F COMMUNIC FR F 174 CD

CD PRICE OF LOVE, THE CBS FR 462432.2

LPx2 PRICE OF LOVE, THE CBS FR 462432.1

LP TENDRESSE EST LA NUIT ARIOLA FR 202.356

7" THAT'S HOW THE WORLD IS TURNING NOW promo CBS FR PRO 499

7" UNE ADVENTURE AVEC TOI (CE SOIR) VOGUE FR 101.245

The center of Alanski’s work is the aforementioned “The Price of Love” (CBS France), an ambitious double LP sung entirely in English. Before I had time to figure out how I was going to mail-order a copy in a pre-internet world – I found a ‘promo’ copy at a used record store in Los Angeles. Just amazing – pop music of the highest order. Funny, yet dramatic – it was a ‘megalomaniac style’ album – Alanski played almost all of the instruments. I played it endlessly, it fueled my imagination etc.

Well, I wrote to the address inside the CD cover – and Mr. Alanski wrote back, sending me a sampler CD that had the songs missing from the single CD of the double LP! He also sent me several other productions he had been working on – Les Innocents, Plastic Bertrand etc. He was very nice – taking the time to write me back in English.

I really liked the follow-up to “Price…” – “Honey On A Razor Blade” – on the indie FNAC label. I raved about Alanski endlessly to my friends (as many of them will attest) – one of my friends (Bob) sent me the next Alanski CD, “Les Yeux Creves”. I have obtained Alanski’s electronica works (recorded as “A Reminiscent Drive”), but I am primarily interested in his “pop songs’.

The happy conclusion to this tale if that I eventually discovered he’d made solo records before “The Price of Love” – I think the 45 “Une Adventure Avec Toi (Ce Soir)” is one of the sweetest pop music 45’s ever released – a perfect 3 minute pop song. I eventually found the album that it belonged to, “Tendresse Est La Nuit” – but that 45 remains tops in my book.

And don’t miss his work on the debut LP by Lio – the album with “Le Banana Split”. Alanski wrote all of the songs and did the production, and all of it is stellar.

Also check out Alanski’s work with Jil Caplan – especially her debut CD, “A Peine 21 Ans”. Alanski wrote and produced that too. Thanks for the music, Jay!