Salutations™!!
The BCPF and I had a fantastic day on Saturday. The weather was wonderful, dinner and lunch were both wonderful, record buying at Underdog Records and home-listening were wonderful. Here’s the haul:
Iron And Wine – Archive Series Volume No. 5 — This, according to the hype sticker is the LOST debut album recorded by Sam Beam while he was still in college at Florida St. It’s limited to 1000 copies, I think. It was a good listen. Sounds just like the rest of his stuff. That’s a good thing. New.
Weezer – Van Weezer — Indie Exclusive Pink Vinyl. Hype sticker on shrink: Van Weezer Neon Pink. Track B6 is hidden and is not mentioned in the track listing. This album was supposed to be released last year upon the commencement of their tour but because the world stopped, that was put off. This is heavy, but still very much Weezer. It’s dedicated to Ric Ocasek and Eddie Van Halen. New.
Emmylou Harris – Red Dirt Girl — 2×LP. Grammy Award Winner for best contemporary folk album. Non-gatefold sleeve. Sealed. NM.
Big Star – #1 Record — Wow. #434 on the RS list that matters, #474 on the one that doesn’t. This whole record is amazing. This is what I wrote when I reviewed it in November 2014: My second exposure of Big Star on this countdown. Again, not what I expected. “Feel” is a old-fashioned rock tune that has a great chord progression and dissonance that makes for creative song construction. Really the whole album is ahead of its time. I don’t feel the dissonance was really realized until many years later and here it was as common as a family supper on Sunday. The production was slick as heck, too. The dual lead singers made this a formidable force in music at the time, even though I, admittedly, was shut out from much of that until now. I didn’t know what I was missing and it’s a shame to say so. Harmonies that are tighter than a drum and the excellent musicianship and songwriting over all make this a wonderful album to listen to. I still believe that and double my enthusiasm now. It really is a great record. Limited Edition, Reissue, Repress, Clear White w/Blue Swirl, 180g. Limited to 500. Sealed, but since my belief is “records are to be listened to not looked at,” I opened that bad boy right away. NM.
Tom Waits – Nighthawks At The Diner — 2×LP, Special Pressing; Gatefold from 1975. Records are auto-coupled, meaning record 1 contains sides 1 and 4 while record 2 contains sides 2 and 3. I love Tom Waits songs. I just don’t always love Tom Waits doing them. I don’t know about this one as I’ve not heard it yet, but I can’t wait to. VG+.
Tom Waits – Foreign Affairs — PRC Richmond pressing from 1977. The liner notes include this line: “Forward all my mail to the corner of Pork & Beans.” All the same things I said about Tom Waits above, ditto. VG+.
It was all I could do to not buy a $75 VG+ copy of Rain Dogs from Tom Waits. It’s on the list and that’s the only time I’ve seen it. But, I just couldn’t do it. I really wanted it, though. But, there was plenty to go through, I was just disciplined… somehow. Underdog Records always has great things to find to bring home to have a listening party, either alone or with a group (being socially mindful, that is). Underdog is open Wednesday-Saturday and you can purchased new vinyl 24/7 by visiting the Underdog Records website. Record Store Day is in June and July you can see the drops lists by visiting that website. I use Discogs to track my collection. You should, too.
Until tomorrow, keep spinnin’…
Scorp out!
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“Wondering what are you doing? You’re driving me to ruin. The love that you’ve been stealing has given me the feeling. I feel like I’m dying. I’m never gonna live again. You just ain’t been trying. It’s getting very near the end.” – “Feel” (Bell/Chilton)