Phil Collins - Face Value...

Phil Collins - Face Value.  This is too dense an album to review.  I have a feeling this could have been a double studio album, what with the sheer depth of material Phil was culling.  One of the finest BEATLES cover songs ever - Tomorrow Never Knows.  And a cover version of a song from his main band Genesis - Behind the Lines.  Phil asks Eric Clapton to sit on on two ballads - The Rook is Leaking and If Leaving Me is Easy.  And the fine vocalist Stephen Bishop.  Apparently - Phil needed to temporarily break away from his band during his break-up and this album was the result.  I read in the superb book, The Last Sultan - about Ahmet Ertegun - that Genesis, signed to the Atlantic label, Ahmet himself encouraged Phil to create this - his epic outlet solo record.  Phil did have a sting of other solos that were decent enough, but nothing like this one.  Even if it did not have In the Air Tonight - it would still be among the finest "solo" (yet, I have NOT leave mu other band) record.  Two others that come to mind are Mick Jagger's She's the Boss and most of Pete Townshend's solo efforts.

Skin Tight - Marty Gold, freaky Friday...

Marty Gold - Skin Tight.  I found an interesting review of this record.  Click on the title of this post to read that.  In the mean time - what a great cover!  Here is what is available on line about Mary Gold.   Martin Gold (December 26, 1915 – January 14, 2011) was a composer, pianist, and bandleader born in New York City, New York.  He was the pianist and arranger for the Korn Kobblers, a popular 1940s novelty group billed as "America's most nonsensical dance band", but was probably best known as the composer of the song "Tell Me Why", which was a hit for The Four Aces in 1951.  Mr. Gold passed away on January 14, 2011, in Agoura Hills, California, at the age of 95.

Goodies for L.P. Fans - (vinyl MONO LP record) - NM9/NM9 - LP Record

Goodies for LP Fans.  Hell Yeah!  That's what I'm Talkin' About...I did not make it to a record store last Saturday on national (is it international?) Record Store Day.  But that's OK.  Every day is record store day in my world.  Click on this post's title for a fun read about some serious vinyl addicts on their great Record Store Day Road Trip.  And even though this record has the word LP in it, the six records on the cover are 45's.  The Browns, Rod Lauren, Jim Reeves, Ray Peterson, Della Reese, Neil Sedaka - Goodies For L.P. Fans: If I Had A Girl, Goodnight My Love, Oh! Carol, He'll Have To Go, Not One Minute More, Till Then, No Wonder (vinyl MONO LP record) - NM9/NM9 - LP Record.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9AqESKOaeGk&feature=fvst
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJCvPhqcY9A&feature=related

James Last - Well Kept Secret, not his first...

James Last - James Last.  Also known as "Hansi," (born Hans Last, 17 April 1929, in Bremen, Germany) is a composer and big band leader.  His highly orchestrated style of happy and incessantly upbeat and uptempo music made his numerous records best-sellers in Germany and also in the UK.  His composition, "Happy Heart," became an international success in interpretations by Andy Williams and Petula Clark.  According to the British Hit Singles & Albums book, he has reportedly sold in excess of seventy million albums worldwide.

AC/DC - Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap

Not the best photo I've ever shot of a record cover (or merged), but this post has been in draft form for many months, while I waited to get a version of a Guest Post from from my pal Scott.  Rather than bug him, I am going ahead without him.  Scott won't mind.  I was reading a book recently on AC/DC, and found out that Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap was almost not released in the US.  It was not until five years after it was first released in Australia, AC/DC's homeland, and after lead singer Bon Scott had died - that the US version came out.  Some of the songs here are the aptly named "Rocker," and - "There's Gonna Be Some Rockin'" - some say a tad mellow for this band, which does not do mellow.  Every show I've seen, they have always played the title cut, which opens this album.  "Problem Child" is standard-issue AC/DC.  Plus "Squealer."   One of the great rock songs ever is called, "Ain't No Fun (Waiting Round to Be a Millionaire)" - the story of trying to make it big.  And "Ride On" is a nice bluesy number.  The band's lineup here had Mark Evans on bass, later replaced by Cliff Williams.  Many people think this is AC/DC's best album.  It's right up there.

Pretty in Pink - the Movie Soundtrack

Pretty in Pink movie soundtrack...I don't think I ever saw this movie.  But the more I look at this album cover - the better it gets.  It has lots of cool songs by all of THE in bands of the day.  That would be 1986.  Of course this is a John Hughes coming of age flick, one in his series of 4 or 5 films.  The title song by the Psychedelic Furs was the actual inspiration for the film and was re-recorded for this soundtrack.  Songs from these bands are on the record:  OMD (that would be Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, not the Ozark Mountain Daredevils.  I came up with that one), plus Suzanne Vega, Joe Jackson, INXS, New Order, Echo and the Bunnymen, and The Smiths.  A band called the Rave-ups appear in the film, performing "Positively Lost Me" and "Rave-Up/Shut-Up" from their Town and Country, but  they do not have any songs on the soundtrack.  The former lead singer front man from Three Dog Night, Danny Hutton does a song with his band, Danny Hutton Hitters.  The film also includes Otis Redding's "Try a Little Tenderness," which actor Jon Cryer's (Two and a Half Men!) character "Duckie" lipsyncs to in the film, The Association's "Cherish," and Talk Back's "Rudy".  Those 3 tracks do not appear on the official soundtrack.  Here is a plot summary I found on IMDB,  by Mattias Thursesson, "Young Andie is one of the not-so-popular girls in high school.  She usually hangs out with her friends Iona or Duckie.  Duckie has always had a crush on her, but now she has met a new guy from school, Blane.  He's one of the rich and popular guys but can the two worlds meet?"

it's a Joni Mitchell Monday - Hejira...

Hejira is a 1976 folk/rock/jazz album by Canadian singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell. The album title is a transliteration of the Arabic word hijra, which means "journey," referring specifically to the prophet Muhammad's and his followers' escape from Mecca to Medina in 622.  The songs on the album were largely written by Mitchell on a trip by car from Maine back to Los Angeles, California, with prominent imagery including highways, small towns and snow.  The photographs on the front and back cover were taken of Mitchell by Norman Seeff and appear against a backdrop of Lake Mendota, in Madison, Wisconsin, after an ice storm....  Playing with her on this record are Jaco Pastorius, Larry Carlton, Victor Feldman, Tom Scott, Neil Young, and Abe Most.  Not sure who Abe is - but will look him up.  And - if you are keeping score at home - its cover was chosen as the 11th greatest album cover by Rolling Stone in 1991.  Really?

Art Garfunkel - Watermark

Art Garfunkel...of course he has only the best musicians sitting when he makes records, he's Artie.  I have his first three solo records.  This is Watermark, his third.  Here are some of the people who play/work on it.  Jimmy Webb.  And Paul Desmond, Stephen Bishop, James Taylor, David Crosby, Leah Kunkel, Richard Tee, the great Bill Payne, Tony Levin, Stave Gadd (of course), and Paul Simon. It was produced by Jimmy Webb, Art Garfunkel, and Phil Ramone.  I read that this record got pretty much panned.  Originally released in October 1977 on Columbia Records. When the first single, "Crying in My Sleep", failed to chart in the United States, the album was immediately withdrawn and a version of "(What a) Wonderful World" (featuring harmony vocals from Garfunkel's old partner Paul Simon and mutual friend James Taylor) was added to the track listing. The updated version of the album was released in early 1978. "(What a) Wonderful World" was also released as a single, reaching #17 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart. The songs "Watermark" and "Paper Chase" had previously been performed by Richard Harris on his albums A Tramp Shining and The Yard Went On Forever. This album is also noted as being the final recording sessions of legendary saxophonist Paul Desmond who died of lung cancer shortly thereafter.