MATTHEW EDWARDS AND THE FUTURISTS "The First Song of the Revolution EP" (Static Caravan Recordings)

MATTHEW EDWARDS AND THE FUTURISTS "The First Song of the Revolution EP" (Static Caravan Recordings) Listening to Matthew Edwards's new EP "The First Song of the Revolution" reminds me of all the things I like about music. Music that is textured and performed with taste, precise musicianship, and a reflection of one's past as well as the present. The title song reminds me of The Lovin' Spoonful's "Summer in the City" in its intense sense of place and time. The tune is not the same, but the sense of urgency is very much of those two songs. There are traces of Jack Thackery and early Scott Walker, not due to the voice, but more of the narrative snapshot images in these four songs. Edwards is an artist who takes you to an aural sensuality pool, with the added presence of beautiful lyrics. I bring up the past a lot when I write about music, and it is because I feel I live many lives in songs, and I think Edwards has the same aesthetic or approach to music as well. He's fantastic and very much a treasured and shared artist.

The Kinks - "Till Death Do Us Part"/"People Take Pictures Of Each Other"/"This Is Where I Belong"/"Do You Remember Walter?" Vinyl 7" EP, 2016 (Sanctuary Records)

Throughout the 1960s The Kinks had a series of perfect moments.  This EP release is perhaps my favorite moment in the Kinks' world.  Two of the songs are from the great "Village Green Preservation Society" album, one from "Something Else" and the other, or title tune is for a soundtrack TV show.  Limited edition of 2500 was made, and I'm one of that number that has this in their collection.

I never heard "Till Death Do Us Part" and it's a fantastic piece of music.  It's classic Ray Davies stating he's only him, and not better or even good.  In the years 1964 thru 69, they could do no wrong.  I don't know if there was something in his diet, or what sounds to me on the verge of an emotional breakdown, but Davies proved to be the best of the greats.  In my young life as a pop lover, Ray was the first pop star who had a questionable sexuality that I couldn't put my finger on.  But what I hear from him and the band was something personal, and I never had that experience with pop before the Kinks. 

The other three cuts on this EP are classics, but probably only known to those who drank the liquid that is The Kinks.  "Do You Remember Walter?"  is my favorite cut from "Village Green," and again, it has an intimate aspect to it.  The singer to the other character, or is that character the audience?  It is probably one of the most moving songs I have ever heard. 

Bryan Ferry - "Extended Play" Vinyl 7" EP

I purchased the original copy of this EP at Moby Disc record store when they were located on Ventura Bouvelard.   At the time, I loved the compactness of having an EP with four new songs.  The year being 1976, the height of the punk era, and yet, Bryan Ferry totally ignored that world for his own private-like cell of luxury and his version of recorded history.  The design and even the liner notes expresses a time gone past.  I imagine that Ferry still has all of his old original vinyl EP’s in some room in his house.  So this selection is perhaps a tribute to that era, but the music, at least on the surface, is all over the map.

We have a classic Beatle tune from “Rubber Soul,” and in theory Ferry could do a whole re-make of that album, and it would fit into his aesthetic.  It is quite straight forward with a heart on the sleeve sentiment - which ironically enough there is another track with that very title.  “Heart On My Sleeve” is totally nice but also unnecessary.  What comes off the strongest is his version of Jimmy Reed’s “Shame, Shame, Shame” and The Everly Brothers “The Pice Of Love.” That is totally superb, with an intensity that is powerful and then going right into “Shame…” is a great series of moments.  The b-side is all reflection, as I noted above.  But the real star of this package is the idea of the EP.

Andy Starr - "Rockin' Rollin' Stone" 2 x Vinyl 45 RPM EP (Record Store Day)

Andy Starr - Rockin’ Rollin’ Stone

2 x Vinyl, 45 RPM, EP, Limited Edition, Gatefold, U.S. 2013

Sundazed Music

“Hey R-rrr-oo-c-k, R-rrr-oo-c-k” pretty much says it for this limited edition double  45 rpm vinyl set.  Andy Starr is an artist I know noting about, nor have I ever heard of him till I looked up the Sundazed website to see what they were offering  today on Black Friday Record Store day.   Once I saw the cover, I rolled down to Rockaway Records to pick a copy up.   It’s a fantastic set.

“I Wanna Go South” is the key cut for me, because it really builds, builds to a slow burning intensity.  There is something nasty in these tracks and I mean nasty in the right way.  The rhythm is a slow train heading towards the South, where our singer will eventually start his own church and it seemed he made a few X-Rated comedy records as well (according to the liner notes). 

Starr is the real deal.  It is odd of a man such wonderful talent comes to only two EP’s and eight songs in all.  But perhaps that is all needed to light up the world.  The two EP’s were recorded in different times from each other.  The first one is just voice, one guitar, stand-up bass, and drums.  The second disk has back-up vocals, and if you compare the two, the second disk is Elvis at RCA, and the first one is Sun.  Nevertheless it was a mood that made me buy this record, and it shows one needs to be in tuned with one’s mood.  It never fails man.

Billy Fury - "The E.P. Collection" Vinyl

Billy Fury – The E.P. Collection

Vinyl, LP, Compilation

See For Miles Records Ltd.

There are three Billy Fury albums that I love and feel that are essential, and The E.P. Collection is one of the releases that I can't live without. So much so that I bought this album on vinyl in Japan last March (2013) and for some years now have the CD version as well.

A greatest hits album for the connoisseur, but deeper than that because this is a collection of EP's realeased in the UK, including the b-sides or the three other songs. A typical EP would have two songs on each side. It was invented by record companies to deal with those who couldn't afford an entire album, and specifically marketed to the teenager and their budget. But also I imagine this format was popular with the jukeboxes at the time as well.

To this day the EP has a romantic appeal for me. I like the 45rpm format, and having four songs on a 7” single, aesthetically speaking, is very pleasing to me. So what we have here is 20 songs and not a bad cut on the collection. All his early hits are here, but also strong recordings from his catalog as well.

There are two songs that gives me goose-bumps whenever I hear them. “Nobody's Child” and the Morrissey like “Don't Jump.”

“Nobody's Child” is a heartbreaking narrative about a child all alone in the world, and Billy's voice conveys the loneliness and despair, but also just the sadnessness of it all. “Don't Jump” is our hero about to end it all at a cliff's end, with only the chorus singing “Don't Jump Billy, Don't Jump.” It's a brilliant pop record, but those two are just the highlights of an amazing album all the way through.

Even the titles alone has a haunted aspect to the Billy Fury theme of romantic disaster coming around the corner. “Don't Walk Away,” “What Am I Living For,” and the incredible “I'll Never Quite Get Over You” are important landmarks to an era when Pop was popping its head above the murky waters of Pre-Beatles UK.