Johnny Kidd & The Pirates - "The Best of Johnny Kidd and The Pirates" Vinyl, LP, Compilation, Reissue, Mono (EMI)

Frederick Heath, better known as Johnny Kidd, is one of the first rock n' roll figures in England.  Him and his band of various players throughout the early years of the 1960s, The Pirates, were RnR authentic, but still British to the very core of their existence.  "Please Don't Touch" is the ultimate horny theme song, that to describe in one word,  is marvelous.    Although their one major hit is obviously "Shakin' All Over."  Canadian band 'Guess Who?' had a hit recording in America, and it was a song covered by The Who, and Pete Townshend is/was without a doubt a huge Peter Green of The Pirates fan.  Like another British rocker of the same period, one can trace the British accent of Johnny Kidd, which to my ears, makes the recordings unusual. 

As far as I know, Johnny Kidd never made an album.  All his recordings were 45 rpm singles, so this compilation is those singles, plus the b-sides.  A lot of the songs were written by Kidd, but also by a Gordon Mills, who became a powerhouse manager of Tom Jones, Engelbert Humperdinck, and Gilbert O'Sullivan.  Johnny & The Pirates were half show-biz of the Music Hall world and one foot in the prototype of early rock.   Kidd/Heath was very much a product of his time and place.  Of course, we now think of Adam Ant and His Ants as being the sons of Johnny Kidd, due to the Pirate motif in his stage shows and publicity photos.   

There are many compilations of Johnny's hits or non-hits, but I think this "Best of..."  is an incredible collection of music by Kidd, and it is like peeking into a keyhole of the British world at the time of the early 60s before the Fab Four hit the scene.   In a field of teenage pop stars, Kidd and Billy Fury were the real deals.   It's rock n' roll, but clearly, it's BRITISH rock n' roll.  

Morrissey - "Bona Drag" CD, Compilation, 1990 (Sire)

I'm one of the few (or not) that feel 'solo' Morrissey is better than The Smiths.  Nothing against the brilliance of Johnny Marr and the other lads in that band, but more of Morrissey becoming a better writer and singer.  "Bona Drag" is a greatest hits album in theory, but also a perfect snapshot of Morrissey's stance and work in 1990, the release of this collection of singles, b-sides, and choice album cuts.  For me, there is not one weak cut here, and on top of that, there are some of my all-time favorite Morrissey songs.  For example:  "Interesting Drug," "The Last of the Famous International Playboys,"  (the magnificent) "Ouija Ouija Board," "Hairdresser on Fire," and "Disappointed."  I would add more but be listing songs is boring to read! 

The great thing about Morrissey is that he's culture.  It's not really about Morrissey (for me), but also the ingredients that he brings to "Morrissey."  For instance the kitchen-sink British literature and films, forgotten music hall artists, gay icons, and so forth.  He's a great curator or someone who likes 'Show & Tell."  He brings his influences out front and exposes them to a wider audience, yet, still keep their mystery and charisma intact.  In that sense, Morrissey is the gift that keeps on giving.  Everything he does is coded within and from the Morrissey world.  I'm sincerely thankful for his presence in my life. 

Also of note, it's interesting that when one brings up the word "Morrissey" to a mixed crowd, one is going to hear strong opinions for and against this provocateur artist.  In a world of crashing bores, it is an accomplishment to have a figure like Morrissey that can still cause a reaction from people's gut, soul, and brain.  Sometimes I feel there is general 'logic, ' but Morrissey operates on his own 'logic,' that is sometimes confusing, frustrating, and weird.  Still, if you go pass that, Morrissey is clearly one of the great British lyricists of our times/era.   He never pleases the listener with something digestible and easy to swallow.   And not every song is a masterpiece; still, he's a remarkable public figure and artist. 

1990 was a peak year for Morrissey.  "Bona Drag" is an excellent record of those times, and he's truly one-of-a-kind figure in modern pop culture.  For those who love him, he will always be around, and if you hate him, at the very least, he's an outlet for one's frustration against the world.  Genius sometimes doesn't play by the rules.  Feel free to criticize the artist that's Morrissey, but understand to do so is very much part of the masterstroke of his genius.  Attention is something that will always be in Morrissey's hands. 

Billy Fury - "The World of Billy Fury" Vinyl, LP, Album, 1971 (Decca)

This once good-looking young man was the best to come out of the United Kingdom/Pre Beatles.  A Liverpool citizen who can rock like Elvis, but made more hits by singing perfect pop songs.  Billy Fury (incredible name) was the real deal.   A lot of British rock/pop singers before the Fab Four came on the scene, were manufactured by various managers.  Fury was part of that school, yet he also wrote his own songs as well.  I can never understand why Fury wasn't a star in the States, except perhaps the presence of Elvis kept others out of the U.S. market.   

Decca throughout the years has put out "The World Of..." series.  Mostly cheap or budget best hits type of albums, but all of them had a formula graphic design, and in actuality, quite nice.  Morrissey, of course, is a fan of these series of albums that came out during the 1960s and 1970s.  This is a very pleasing collection of Fury's major hits from the early 1960s.   Fury had a lot of drama, both in his life, due to a poor working heart, and the song choices.  "I'll Never Find Another You," "Nobody's Child," and "Like I've Never Been Gone," have a tragic presence that is heightened by Fury's vocal delivery.  Women must have wept at his shows. 

The standout track for me is "Nobody's Child."  A simple arrangement, almost like a movie cowboy song, yet the lyric is almost painful to hear.   An amazing song that I'm surprised no one in the modern pop world have done a cover yet - at least as far as I know.   There are better best of Billy albums out there (mostly on CD), but this one is an excellent introduction to the wonderful Billy Fury. 

Pete Shelley - "Homosapien" Vinyl, LP, Album, 1981 (Arista)

One cannot ever underestimate the greatness of The Buzzcocks.  For one, Pete Shelley is one of the great songwriters of the Punk/New Wave era.  What gives Shelley that extra edge is his interest in not only rock n' roll, but also contemporary classical music and electronics.  When The Buzzcocks went to sleep for whatever reason, Shelley reinvented himself as a solo act that's focused on his songwriting, but also electronic pop.  It was nice that Shelley could express himself with the two guitars, bass, drums of The Buzzcocks, but also into the world of computer technology (at the time of 1981) and the so-called "modern pop.  

"Homosapien" is a great album, but the title song is a classic.  A piece of music that flirts with the idea of homosexuality in a song format, and under Shelley's brilliant skill as a lyricist.  I have the album version, but I also have the numerous remixes of this song, and it never fails in its dynamic getting out of the closet approach.  

The technique of Shelley both in The Buzzcocks and his solo material is that he often builds tension by just repeating the phrase or chorus till the breaking point.  There is also a circular motif in his work where it starts off but meets again in the end.  The listener feels like that they are surrounded by the song, and basically, you are trapped or motivated to go to the circle.   Besides Philip Glass, I can't think of another composer or songwriter who has this approach to their songwriting.  Songs like "Qu'est-Ce Que C'est Que Ca," "Guess I Must Have Been In Love With Myself," and " Don't Know What It Is" makes one feel that they are being pulled by a giant magnet to the song, and the lyrics are often mantras served as a lyric.  The songs are of heartbreak and love, but there is also a strong eastern philosophy or religious aspect as well. 

Pete Shelley is a very unique writer, and it bugs me that at least in the media, he is sort of this classic punk rock guy, but the fact is, he's much more than that.   He has a genius sense of having the perfect melody touch, as well as an emotional punch.   The Buzzcocks/Shelley rocks yes, but they also give the listener a feeling of bliss that for me, borders on meditation.  The Punk Era, both in the United States and in England, has produced a lot of great songwriters, but Shelley I feel should be on the top of the pile.  "Homosapien" is the essential listening experience. 

The High Numbers (The Who) "I'm the Face" b/w "Zoot Suit" Vinyl, 7" 33 1/3, Promo (Mercury)

Before The Who, there were The High Numbers.  As far as I know, there are only two songs by The High Numbers, and they are "I'm the Face" and "Zoot Suit."  The Who went on to make great records, but if push comes to a shove, I prefer these early recordings by The High Numbers.  For one, they are strange.  It's RnB but with a druggy sexual edge.   The Who were never sexy to me, but these recordings expose a certain amount of Eros in their mix.  

Both songs were written by their manager at the time, Pete Meaden (1941-1978).  He's considered to be the Mod King.   Druggy with a life that was full of danger, his greatest invention was the early Who.  Both songs capture the Mod aesthetic perfectly.  Tight, controlled, yet bordering on the manic. An excellent record. 

Buzzcocks (with Howard Devoto) "Spiral Scratch" Vinyl, 7" EP 45rpm Single, 1979 (New Hormones)

I first purchased this 7" EP at Bomp Records, and I believed in 1976.   It may have been the same shopping trip where I bought the Sneakers EP as well as the Devo single "Jacko Homo/"Mongoloid." History will tell that this was a great shopping day for me.   When I went to the record store, I don't think I have heard of the Buzzcocks.  Maybe in passing in a Brtish publication.  But I was struck by their image on the front of the sleeve, as well as reading the song titles on the back.  "Boredom," "Time's Up," "Breakdown," and "Friends of Mine."  At that time (and still) I'm attracted to the titles of songs.  I was reading a lot of poetry at the time, so the lyrics and even its title had meant a great deal to me.    The Punk Era, including what was happening in New York City as well as within the U.K., was a very literate time for me.  Not only in reading, but myself trying to write lyrics as well as getting into the songwriting and craft of Cole Porter and Noël Coward.  Which sounds odd, but I put Howard Devoto and Richard Hell into the same framework as these classic lyricists. 

This 7" is a perfect moment of its time, but even now, listening to it this morning, it's fresh air being pumped into a stale environment or room.  The sound of the instruments seemed simple, but almost bordering on an avant-garde level.  Minimalists who rock!  Howard Devoto's lyrics strike me as being very literary, profound, and smart.  This wasn't angry music against a system, but a reflection of what was happening around them.  Aggressive yes, but with wit and intelligence.  The Pete Shelley/Howard Devoto team couldn't possibly go wrong.  But then Devoto left the band.  For sure, I thought that would be the end of the Buzzcocks.  Boy, was I ever wrong! 

Wizzard - "Wizzard Brew" Vinyl LP, 1973 (Harvest)

Roy Wood's Wizzard is the very definition of eccentricity.   There are albums that when I first hear it, I shake my head.  Not in hatred or disgust, but more a huge question mark appears in my brain.  Then, for whatever reason, I can't leave it but neither do I love it.  Do I just 'like' it?   There are two albums that affect me in that manner.  One is Van Dyke Parks' "Song Cycle" and Wizzard's "Wizzard Brew."  I have sold both albums back to the store and consistently purchase them back again.  As of now, I have the vinyl copy of this album as well as the CD version, which comes with the Wizzard hits of that time.  Tonight I focused on the vinyl.

The eccentric aspect of Wood's music - especially with Wizzard is that he has an obsession with rock n' roll, but his rock n' roll is very different from someone else's rock.  It is obvious he has a love for the medium, and I'm guessing that he worships Phil Spector's recordings  - just due to the fact that he has so many instruments on each song, that the combination makes me feel dizzy.  There are at least two different tubas, various saxophones, and horns, and then, of course, there's the cello, bassoon, string bass as well as electric bass trombone, recorder (a Wood favorite), harpsichord, French horn trumpet, bugle, clarinet, two drummers, plus congas.   And that is for one song! 

"Wear A Fast Gun" is a beautiful Wood ballad, yet, the song goes into directions that you wouldn't think it would go to.  There are strong jazz riffs as well as retro fifties aesthetics mixed with Jimi Hendrix like grooves.  Like the title, it is truly a Wizzard brew.   It's loud, muffled, and brilliant.  Wizzard is eccentricity at work. 

Traffic - "Heaven Is In Your Mind" Vinyl, Reissue, Mono (Sundered Music)

one of my all-time favorite albums.  I first bought it I think in 1967, or early 1968. "Heaven Is In Your Head" is confusing, due that there is another version of this album that came out in the UK, and I think even in the U.S. there may have been at least two versions of this album.  Nevertheless,  and over many years, I now have this specific version.  It's a re-issue and in mono. 

Steve Winwood and friends (sometimes Dave Mason, who is on and off this album) made the perfect psychedelic pop with touches of European flavor.   The songwriting on the album is superb and incredibly textured.   Jim Capaldi (co-writer) and Chris Wood were magnificent additional visionaries for this first release.   Like all great things, the band soured for me by their second album.  They did nothing wrong, but compared to the first album, I felt they lost their spark or originality.  Perhaps they were in the right place and time.  A great band that could have been greater, but "Heaven Is In Your Mind" is a remarkable aural/sonic work.   It's hard to believe that Winwood was still a teenager when he made this recording. 

The Honeycombs - "All Systems GO!" CD, Mono, Japan (Parlophone) WPCR-16842 (Recorded in 1965, CD 2015)

First of all, ignore this cover.  This is from an early CD release.  The one I have is Japanese and it has 11 bonus tracks.  Re-released in 2015 and remastered at that time in Japan as well.  So, a classy package of the second Honeycombs album, produced by the legendary and great Joe Meek. 

The first album by the Honeycombs (same title as their name) is a masterpiece.   All the songs were written by Ken Howard and Alan Blaikley, who worked as a team and sometimes known as "Howard Blaikley."   The essence of The Honeycombs is Denny D'ell's vocals, which has traces of vintage Gene Pitney, but very much his own voice that conveys emotional breakdown and disappointed.  A British soul voice that doesn't adopt from the Black American, but from a crooner's fate in its own hell-hole.   Their drummer Honey Lantree, who besides being a female drummer (unique at that time in the early 60s) is also a good vocalist as well, when she takes a solo vocal time-to-time, and third, and perhaps most important is the contribution by the record producer, Joe Meek.

Listening to a Honeycombs recording from the early 60s is very much like listening to a band produced by Brian Eno in the 1970s.   Meek takes all the aural ingredients from the band and transforms the sound into something compressed and highly electronic.  The vocalist echo effect traces back to the croon via Phil Spector, but Meek makes it totally unique and of course, the sound is from outer space.  There is also the weird electronic keyboard that comes through their recordings which I believe is a Clavioline or Univox.

After the success of The Honeycombs' first single "Have I The Right," they pretty much toured the world, so the second album I imagine is what is left over from the first or material put together quite quickly.  "All Systems GO!" sounds very much like a second album.   Still, a fantastic album, that is not a masterpiece like the first, but it does show a band with a future (which, didn't happen).   One of the great beauty tracks on the album is "Emptiness" a song written by The Kinks' Ray Davies.   A beautiful song that is totally classic Ray.   There are classic performances here.  "Something I Got To Tell You" is a Honey lead vocal, and she is the classic British pop girl singer.  Why she didn't make recordings under her own name is a mystery of sorts, but nevertheless her work as a percussionist/drummer as well as occasional lead vocalist and back-up is always superb. 

"I Can't Stop" is a classic Honeycombs single.  It should have been a mega-hit, but alas, it didn't happen. There are five solo Joe Meek compositions on the album, and all are either great, or of interest.  Meek's work as a songwriter always has a yearning for a better romance or life - it's moving when you know his actual life and what he went through.   For me, I feel The Honeycombs was a perfect vehicle for Meek to do his magic.   The band itself is great, with a wonderful guitarist in Alan Ward, but even the throwaway b-sides that are on this album is enticing as well.   A great find for me in Japan. I bought this CD at Pet Sounds in Meguro Tokyo. 

Bryan Ferry - "These Foolish Things" Virgin CD

Bryan Ferry - These Foolish Things

CD, Album, Remastered, 1999 (original recording 1973

Virgin

For me personally, the year 1973 was a major time for new music.  Glam reached its peak, and David Bowie and the Spiders were non-stoppable.  But also the dark mirror image of Bowie, Roxy Music was making revolutionary music.   It was virtually a shock that around the time of the second Roxy album, Bryan Ferry released a solo album.  An album of song covers on top of that.  At the time, I thought of These Foolish Things as a creative notebook for Ferry.  Perhaps influences, both iconic and sonic wise.  The majority of the songs were taken from the 60’s with a touch of the 50’s and even something from the classic American songbook.

When I first heard the album, I was shocked by Ferry singing a Bob Dylan song for some reason.  Even more surprise by his glam/experimental arrangement of “A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall.” An incredible version of the song that first rendered this protest song into a camp level.  Now hearing it many years later it seems to me to be more of a poetic approach to this iconic piece of work.  On one level the album sounds like a collection of b-sides, but that is a part of its great charm.  Ferry’s focus on turning these pieces into something more personal for him, yet the distance between his voice and the material is quite a distance.  It is, and still is, a very strange album.

The Animals - "The Best Of The Animals"

The Animals - The Best Of The Animals

CD, Compilation, Download

ABKCO Records

I never liked an actual Animals album due to the fact that they were slaves to the R&B sound, when in fact I loved their ‘hit’ singles.   “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” to me is close to perfection as a pop masterpiece.  The Best Of The Animals in all honesty is a good compilation of their different early sounds.  And one has to separate the Eric Burdon & The Animals, from just the plain Animals.  

In many ways, The Animals remind me of Manfred Mann, the same strong organ sound that runs through their material, and their very basis of Rhythm and Blues is very much part of their foundation as well.   But I prefer the voice of Paul Jones over Eric Burdon.  Perhaps because Jones played the pop star better than the very serious Burdon?  Nevertheless this is like comparing apples to oranges, The Animals were pretty great. 

“We Gotta Get Out Of This Place” is essential rock anthem.  The great thing about The Animals is that they had good taste in material.  They wrote very little, yet they had the natural talent in finding the  right song that is suitable for Burdon’s voice.  The producer Mikie Most is also an underrated genius.  He just understood the nature of a good pop hit.  Not exciting, but a guy who I think by instinct knew how to fill a record with sound, and the right sound with the right artist.  Not always an easy thing to do.  

Blues Incorporated - "R&B From The Marquee"

Blues Incorporated - R&B From The Marquee

CD, Album, UK, 1962

Download

Ground zero for British blues.  On paper it is a weird image of Europeans singing American black music.  But then again, why not?   What is important to me is the location.  And the title of this album says it all for me.  The Marquee Club.  Nevertheless this album is recorded in a recording studio somewhere in North London, and not in the legendary club.  But the pop/cultural monster that is in me pretends that this is a live recording in a rainy Soho night. 

Musically I don’t think it’s an important record, but on a historical cultural level super important.  So many British musicians probably owned or seen this band that it is probably tattooed on their DNA in some form or fashion.   The key players in this group is Alexis Korner on acoustic guitar, Cyril Davies on harmonica and vocal, Long John Baldry on vocals, and Dick Heckstall-Smith on saxophone.  A super band of sorts in the early era of Cliff Richard mania U.K.  

One thing I do imagine, and I think it is real, is these characters must have been a fascinating bunch.   Total obsession of a certain music, always makes a great character.  I will always love this album cover and the name of the band.  It is very romantic to me.