Pierre Bachelet & Hervé Roy - "Emmanuelle" OST, CD, Japan, 1974/1990 (Warner Brothers Music)

I bought my CD copy of the OST "Emmanuelle" some years ago in Tokyo.  For whatever reason, it seems to be the perfect city to buy the ultimate Euro soft-porn soundtrack.   The score is by Pierre Bachelet and Hervé Roy, and it reeks of 1970's swingers' scent.   The album is a favorite of mine because it's basically the same melody played in various styles and settings.  Luckily, the melody is pretty and of course, flexible for the needs of the producer(s) of the film "Emmanuelle."  With song titles like "Emmanuelle Song," Emmanuelle in Thailand, "Emmanuelle Swims, " and the controversial "Rape Sequence," mostly due that the composers borrowed from a King Crimson composition. 

An album like this I feel can't be made in the 21st-century, not only for its eros but the focus on one theme as it is played out throughout the album and movie.  One of my (guilty) faves, and a trip back to a world that's different then from now. 

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

Mike McGear - "McGear" Vinyl, LP, Album, 1974 (Warner Brothers)

Mike McGear is a McCartney, meaning he's the younger brother of Paul.  He was in a band called The Scaffold, which was a Liverpool super group that consisted of Poet Roger McGough and comic talent John Gorman.  "McGear" is Mike's second solo album, and it's produced and co-mixed (with McGear) by Paul.  The album is pretty much co-written with Paul as well. "McGear" is also the best Paul McCartney related project outside the Beatle or solo Paul world.  Perhaps, the best Paul record of all time!

"McGear" is backed by Wings circa 1974, which includes Linda (of course) as well as Denny Laine and Jimmy McCullogh (Thunderclap Newman).   Perhaps due to Mike's input, these songs are superior to anything recorded by solo Paul.  "What Do We Really Know?," "Have You Got Problems," "Norton," and the beautiful "The Man Who Found God On The Moon" are songs that fell through the cracks of Beatleolgy.  McGear is just as good as a vocalist as his big brother, and they even do a fantastic (Beatlesque) version of Bryan Ferry's (Roxy Music) "Sea Breezes."   Why this record is not more known is beyond my comprehension.  

There's a whole category of an album that seems to be throw-away or second-thought recordings.  The essence of the b-side of a 45 rpm single.  I find these records either unusual or exceptional.  "McGear" I suspected was recorded in a downtime for Paul and Wings.  Still, "McGear" is an intriguing piece of music making.  I strongly suggest for all Paul or Beatles' fans to check out "McGear."   And why this hasn't been re-released is beyond the ability to think.  

Sex Pistols - "Never Mind The Bollocks Here's The Sex Pistols" Vinyl, LP, Album, Reissue, 2008/1977 (Warner Brothers Records)

My first impression of when I first heard of the Sex Pistols is ho-hum.   At the time I was totally in love with the New York City Punk/No Wave scene.  The British side of the Punk world seemed to be more fashion orientated (which is laughable on my part, because clearly, NYC had that as well) and more bullshit media attention than anything else.   It wasn't till I bought the original single of "Anarchy in the U.K." that I went "oh my god."   For the reasons above I suspected that this song or recording would be so-so.  I didn't expect it to be a sonic masterpiece on a higher level.  Lyrically, theme wise, melody and just the production of this song became a huge wow for me.  Clearly up there with "My Generation,"  "Psychotic Breakdown" and "Talk Talk" of the 1960s.  Yet though the roots of the song were in those recordings, "Anarchy" is very much the sound of that moment or time.  There are a few records for me that yell out a moment and becomes a snapshot of life then.  

It's fun to know the story behind this album, and the relationship between band members and their manager. As well as the entire British music scene of the time - but I will also like to distance this album from that world, and listen to it as music.  Is that possible?  In my opinion, no.  It's very much of a product/artwork from 1977. 

Johnny Rotten's lyrics are like journalism.  He's reporting the world through his eyes, and his work is very unpoetic and straight forward.   In that sense, it is very much part of the social world of Punk, but not only is he making art here, but also reporting it at the same time.   Sex Pistols could have wrapped this album around a British newsprint, which would have made great sense.  It is also a work where you don't need a second album or further thought.  The band did all their work on that one disc, and there is no reason why there should be another album.   Them breaking up makes perfect sense in the Pistols world.  In my opinion Rotten's next adventure, Public Image Ltd. is a much better band (with Wobble and Levene) and vision.   Still, "Never Mind The Bollocks" is a great rock album.  A classic like the first Doors album.  And like that album, it fits perfectly in that year or decade, but the power doesn't last.  The music still sounds good, but it's not an essential sound in my life anymore.  Like a flower that blossoms, we love the instant second that happens.  A lovely memory of that flower, but once gone, it's gone. 

THE ROUTERS "Let's Go! With The Routers" (Scott Walker) Warner Brothers Records 1963

I found this album at Rockaway Records on Glendale Blvd, and there are two reasons why I bought this vinyl.  One, I love the song "Let's Go!"  Pre-glam drums (Hal Blaine?) mixed with a chorus yelling out "Let's Go," is a cocktail for the perfect aural listening experience.  The number 2, is the most important reason why I have this album in my collection.  Scott Engels plays bass on it.  In other words, Scott Walker.   From teenage singer to The Routers to Sunn)))0 - how can it be so perfect.  

Beyond these two and important facts above, this is a great instrumental surf/beat album.  Handclaps, beat drums, honking sax (roots of Andy MacKay/Roxy Music), and the knowledge of the bizarre twist of Scott Walker's entire career.  Also I played two sides of this album, and the record was finished before I could finish these two paragraphs.   Short, makes it point, and it's gone is a haze of hot rod exhaust.   

Scott Walker on bass on both photographs