"Rare Tracks"
6-19-08 Rare Tracks
I have always been fond of ‘various artist’ albums. Sometimes, they are merely a marketing tool of record labels to promote new records they are releasing. Other times, they are a bit more interesting…
In 1975, Polydor
Side One
THE SOFT MACHINE – Love Makes Sweet Music
CREAM – Anyone For Tennis (The ‘Savage Seven’ Theme)
KEVIN GODLEY – To Fly Away (10cc)
FAIRPORT CONVENTION – If I Had A Ribbon Bow
LINDA LEWIS – You Turned My Bitter Into Sweet
JETHRO TOE (aka JETHRO TULL) – Sunshine Day
NICKI HOPKINS & THE WHISTLING PIANO – Mister Pleasant
THE HIGH NUMBERS (aka THE WHO) – Zoot Suit
JACK BRUCE – I’m Getting’ Tired (Of Drinkin’ And Gamblin’ Etc.) (CREAM)
Side Two
JACK BRUCE – Rootin’ Tootin’ (CREAM)
STU BROWN & BLUESOLOGY (feat. ELTON JOHN) – Just A Little Bit
JETHRO TOE (aka JETHRO TULL) – Aeroplane
JOHN’S CHILDREN (feat. MARC BOLAN) – Desdemona
SLY & THE FAMILY STONE – Take My Advice
JIMI HENDRIX – Dolly Dagger (Live,
ALEX HARVEY & HIS SOUL BAND – Ain’t That Just Too Bad
THE SOFT MACHINE – Feelin’ Reelin’ Squealin’
I got this LP because of the Soft Machine cuts. I could never find their rare original 45, so this was a great way to get those songs. I was also aware that the Jethro Toe cuts were rare – but by ’75, I was sort of ‘finished’ with J. Tull. And I’d never even heard of the Jack Bruce solo 45! In 2008, my favorite cut is doubtlessly the Nicky Hopkins cut – wonderful UK EZ piano kitsch! I think this Kevin Godley cut turned up on either a 10cc LP or maybe the Hotlegs LP. Also, must remember to check out which cuts are stereo. Only real oddball on this volume is the helium-voiced Linda Lewis – simply not my style.
And the following year, Polydor
Side One
FOCUS – Crackers
VAN DYKE PARKS – Come To The Sunshine
LEE DORSEY – When Can I Come Home?
GALLAGHER – LYLE – Trees
THUNDERCLAP NEWMAN – The Reason (single vers.)
BIRDS BIRDS – Daddy Daddy (Ron Wood)
GINGER BAKER’S AIRFORCE – Man Of Constant Sorrow (Denny Laine)
BOBBY THOMPSON – Foxfire
Side Two
LEE DORSEY – On Your way Down
FOCUS – O Avondrood
VAN DYKE PARKS – Number Nine
JOHN’S CHILDREN (feat. MARC BOLAN) – Sarah Crazy Child
GALLAGHER – LYLE – In The Crowd
MAINHORSE (feat. PATRICK MORAZ) – More Tea Vicar
LEE DORSEY – Freedom For The Stallion
BOBBY THOMPSON – Devil Dance (Banjo player of Area Code 615)
I didn’t get this volume until years later. The first volume just had such good stuff! Well, in 2008 – I am OK with this volume, too. Swank to have nice non-LP Focus cuts (“O Avondrood” is on a Dutch language sampler LP, “Zing Je Moers Taal”). And I think this is a different Birds cut than I have on those ‘See For Miles’ collections – were they really called Birds Birds or just ‘The Birds’? But, really!? The banjo player for Area Code 615???). Isn’t Lee Dorsey the guy famous for “Ya Ya” (that John Lennon so famously covered?).
posted by Ron Kane @ 6:38 AM
7 Comments:
Wow. John Lennon covered "Ya YA?" I've always loved Lee Dorsey's tune but had no idea that JL covered it. Can't really imagine it. Might as well have a "Lennon Sings Dr. John" album!
I think Lennon's "Ya Ya" is on his "Rock & Roll" LP / CD. Dr. John is on a Ringo album or two...
That first "Rare Tracks" LP -- what a collection!!
My own favourite "various" compilations include NO WAVE (A&M 78) -- to this day I buy every copy I see, and have found several variants over the years. Some records just CHANGE YOUR LIFE, and that was one of them. We played the HELL out of that record at WGAG.
There was also METHODS OF DANCE (vol. 1), again a life-changer; Volume 2 was awesome as well ...
PERMANENT WAVE (CBS 79) sticks in my mind prominently, but it's probably nowhere near as good as I remember it ... the same can be said for FROM BRUSSELS WITH LOVE (80?), which has some GREAT stuff on it but is about half crap. Geez, I could go on all day like this ... I remember a lot of compilations ...
Forgot to mention -- Sly Stone (and what remains of his family, no doubt) is coming to Victoria. I'm more excited about the Skatellites, and later this year WEIRD AL.
"No Wave" variants? Do tell...
I dig the high numbers! Check out 'Leaving Here' if you haven't already for some unbridled youth gone wild!
I don't think I've ever seen "Medium Rare," but I love "Rare Tracks."
The Fairport song is very twee, but still totally great to have. Any comp with Soft Machine, Fairport Convention and Mark Bolan on it is a must have, pretty much.
Here's a question about the Nicky Hopkins track: it's a Kinks cover, produced by Shel Talmy. In addition to Nicky's raggy piano part, there's a guitarist, a drummer and bassist, and a trombonist. Plus the whistler, of course.
I think the drums sound sloppy enough to be Mick Avory, and the players could easily be Dave Davies and Pete Quaife too. In fact, the lead guitar sounds like exactly the same guitar/tone/everything as the Kinks version of the same song.
Not to mention, of course, that Nicky Nopkins played the piano on the Kinks version, recorded in early 1967, and Nicky's track could well have been recorded by Talmy at the same session, or close to it.
So, do you think it's the Kinks?
JJ
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