Walter (Wendy) Carlos - "Stanley Kurbrick's A Clockwork Orange" OST, Vinyl, LP, 1972 (Warner Brothers)

A beautiful icy cruel album for our brutal times at the moment (Trump Virus). Wendy Carlos, who made most of the music on this album, adopts Beethoven and Sir Edward Elgar, as well as a memorable version of Rossini's "William Tell Overture." The thing about Kubrick is that he was always two steps ahead of a lot of other mainstream artists.  Stanley's approach to using music, such as classical, is unique and bold. Kenneth Anger comes to mind as a fellow genius in using music/songs to convey the mood of the images. The soundtrack to "A Clockwork Orange" is very much not only fits the images of the film exceptionally well but also expresses the rot that is the 20th and 21st-century. This is music that reminds you of a rich past but in a bleak present. Mostly due to the skill and vision of Carlos in making something new out of old material. As I look at images of the virus and how it has affected various parts of the world, I hear this soundtrack in my head. This is the music that announces that we are fucked. 

Kimley and I have a podcast called Book Musik, and we did an episode focusing on Wendy Carlos. You can hear it here:  BOOK MUSIK: Wendy Carlos

The Kinks - "The Kink Kronikles" 2 x Vinyl, Compilation, 1972 (Reprise)

I have always loved The Kinks since I first heard their music in 1964, but it was in the late 60s and early 1970s where I became a fanatic fan.  Their album from 1968 "The Village Green Preservation Society" opened me up in an emotional manner that to this day was a unique experience for me.  I have heard people taking a walk and finding God in their lives, and correspondingly, this is what happened to me with respect to The Kinks.   Throughout the early 1970s, I went to see the band play at the Santa Monica Civic numerous times.  As a teenager, I was liberated at the thought of Ray Davies acting 'camp' in front of an audience, but also his sharp lyrical writing skills of telling a story, or observing a life that's quiet, yet full of emotional meaning.  "The Kink Kronikles" was heaven sent for the American fan because it added Kinks songs that were not available to the U.S. market at the time of its release (1972).

For the first time, I heard songs "Deadend Street," "Autumn Almanac," and "Did You See His Name?"   I don't know how I missed these songs in the first place, but by late 1966 and early '67, the Kinks sort of disappeared in the U.S. marketplace.  "The Kinks Kronikles" is an excellent compilation of those years, and it shows the genius of Ray Davies but also the sound and vision of the band, as they focus on the little things in life that are significant in one's life.  "Lola" a song about gender confusion on the dance floor has enough detail in its story to be a novella.

More important this is an album for the Kink fanatic, and usually, this double-record was passed among other fans, in a secret society of lovers of this type of music.  John Mendelsohn's liner notes describe precisely what made the Kinks a fantastic force in one's life.  For those who are not familiar with the magic that is The Kinks, this is a magnificent collection that will wet your hunger for more.

Andy Newman -"Rainbow" Vinyl, LP, Album, 1972 (Track Records)

Eccentricity is not appreciated enough in the mainstream pop music world.   Andy Newman was in the band Thunderclap Newman, which included him (of course), Speedy Keen (the chief songwriter) and teenage guitarist Jimmy McCulloch.   An odd trio of music makers, but Newman added surprised touches to Keen's compositions by adding his turn of the century style of boogie-woogie piano, and the punk instrument that is a Kazoo.   What made Thunderclap Newman so wonderful was the Newman touch and he took the songs to another level. Especially with the song 'Accidents" which has an incredible middle part that is pure Andy Newman solo artist. 

After the band split up, Newman made this very strange solo album "Rainbow."  It's all him playing the instruments and mostly instrumentals.  It's like all the weird parts of Thunderclap Newman, leaving out the singing and the pop side of things.  "Rainbow" is very much music rooted in the 1920s, there is a touch of the British Music Hall, but it's more of a scaled down version of big band jazz of the early 20th century.  The most dominant instruments are Newman's piano and kazoo playing.   He also plays various saxes as well, and my only complaint is that I wished to hear a full-blown arrangement with him playing all the horns, piano, etc.  And he does in spots, but a lot of the songs/arrangements are just for piano and kazoo.  

I lost track of him as a musician after Thunderclap Newman, and only recently discovered this solo album by Andy.   I regret that he didn't make more music or albums in the later years. It seems he put together another version of Thunderclap Newman to play the old songs, but as far as I know, no new music.  Still, "Rainbow" and the first and only Thunderclap Newman album "Hollywood Dream" are amazing.  Also do note that the b-side to Thunderclap Newman's only hit song in the U.S. "Something in the Air" is "Wilhemina" which is a superb Andy Newman song.  A classic.  Look out for it!  

Roxy Music - "Roxy Music" Vinyl, LP, Album, Reissue, Limited Edition, 1972/2008 (Virgin)

There are only a handful of albums that had such a powerful effect on me on the first listening of such a record.  I can still remember when I played "Roxy Music" for the first time.  It was in the evening at our home in Topanga, and on the first cut "Re-make, Re-model," I thought to myself that this is the sound of 1972.  By the time of the second song "Ladytron," it was like if someone brought a brand new language into my life.  I never heard anything like Roxy Music. 

"Roxy Music" is a combination of camp, serious noise in the avant-garde world, futuristic sounds, and a glance to the past.  Years later I can pick up on the influences of the album - vintage Hollywood cinema, Joe Meek recordings, 1950s kitsch aesthetics, a touch of prog-rock,  and an appreciation of artists like Marcel Duchamp.   It's a heady brew of images and sound, that to this day still gives me the kick that never tires.     The first thing one notices is Bryan Ferry's voice - a croon that seemed manufactured but with incredible lyrics that painted a picture in one's head.   Borderline outrageous, but with a firm footing on a foundation that is art, cinema and music history.  One can hear the traces of David Bowie's presence, but it's like Roxy Music was hearing Bowie, not at the present time (1972) but in a sometime way in the future.   

There is not a bad cut on this album.  One of the great strengths that are Roxy Music is that it is truly a band.  Bryan Ferry wrote all the songs/lyrics, but it takes someone like Andy Mackay, Phil Manzanera, Paul Thompson, Graham Simpson (one of many bass players in this band), and of course, Eno.  The electronics are all over "Roxy Music."  Through the sound of vintage synths, to the layered electronic sounds of treated guitars, vocals, and god knows what else on this album.   I can't say that this album changed my life, but for sure made me appreciate the layers of textures that make a sound, and that is what I heard on "Roxy Music."