eli@uw-june (Eli Messinger) (04/16/84)
Another batch... some new, some old: Milkshakes--Showcase (Braineater) The Outsiders--Time Won't Let Me (Capitol) [Mono/Stereo] Thirteenth Floor Elevators--Live "S.F. '66" (LSD?) Young Fresh Fellow--Fabulous Sounds of the Pacific Northwest (PopLlama) (Various Artists)--Epitaph For A Legend (International Artists) (Various Artists)--Pebbles Presents Highs in the Mid-60's: Vol. 4: Chicago (Various Artists)--Pebbles Presents Highs in the Mid-60's: Vol. 5: Michigan (Various Artists)--The Rebel Kind (Various Artists)--Shake to Date ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Milkshakes--Showcase (Braineater) This band from England has finally gotten a domestic (or is it Canadian?) release. Mostly a compilation of sides released on their English LP's. Very early British punk (in the original early-mid 60's sense) sound. Shades of raw-Kinks as well as early Clash. Lots of rockin'. The Outsiders--Time Won't Let Me (Capitol) [Mono/Stereo] Yes, the mid-to-late 60's Ohio band. This is their debut LP, containing their one national chart smash as the title track (they had more luck with regional singles). And an incredible debut it is. The stereo release doesn't really add too much to the LP, since this debut album is produced in the (then) traditional vocals on one channel, music on the other. Later Outsiders releases (esp. their 3rd LP, "In") are must finds in stereo. This LP features some excellent originals (incl. "What Makes You So Bad, You Weren't Brought Up That Way"), as well as covers (incl. a version of "Rockin' Robin" that shows they didn't quite know all of the lyrics). As far as I know this hasn't been rereleased yet, so check the collectors bins and expect to pay $7-$12 for it. Thirteenth Floor Elevators--Live "S.F. '66" (LSD?) I'm not entirely convinced that this disc is really "live" as in "recorded at the Avalon Ballroom." But it certainly does feature different versions of some of the Elevators songs, and some covers that I don't believe showed up on their International Artists' studio releases. The sound quality is about what you'd expect for a bootleg (*gasp*) recorded in 1966--not up to today's live standards, but certainly listenable. Young Fresh Fellow--Fabulous Sounds of the Pacific Northwest (PopLlama) A witty, satiric and FUN rock-pop band that has recently burst upon the Seattle music scene. The bassist (recently switched to guitar) Scott McCaughy has teamed up with one of his childhood friends to bring their music out of the basement and onto vinyl. Many of the cuts are prefaced with snippets from a classic regional advertisting disc (that coincidentally shares it's name with this debut LP), giving the whole LP a very quirky flavor. Sample titles: "Rock 'n' Roll Pest Control" "Gus Theme" (written for Gus the Fireman from 'Leave it to Beaver') "Teenage Dogs in Trouble." I imaging the distribution on this will be very lim- ited (the first 500 copies came with autographed lyric sheets), so anyone out of the area who's interested can drop me a line for PopLlama's address. (Various Artists)--Epitaph For A Legend (International Artists) Released a few years (?) after the demise of the legendary Texas International Artists label, this 2-LP retrospective features a treasury of cuts from IA albums as well as many of the more ob- scure IA singles. There's even a piece of a KSAN-FM (San Francisco) interview with Roky Erikson from 1978. I believe that this compil- ation is also out of print, so check the collectors bins. (Various Artists)--Pebbles Presents Highs in the Mid-60's: Vol. 4: Chicago (Various Artists)--Pebbles Presents Highs in the Mid-60's: Vol. 5: Michigan The two latest volumes in this series focus on particular areas and styles from the 60's (the first three volumes of the series looked at L.A. '65, '66, and '67). More quality from the folks at "BFD Records." (BTW, it appears that the "BFD" name and logo were, uh, borrowed from an acutal 60's label of the same name out of Montana!). (Various Artists)--The Rebel Kind A compilation of mostly American garage/psychedelic bands. Features an alternate production of The Long Ryders' "And She Rides" (recorded during their Radio Tokyo sessions for "Still Get By"). Also features cuts from many other bands from West coast to East, incl. True West (same as EP), Slickee Boys, The Nomads. (Various Artists)--Shake to Date Compilation of tracks released on the Shake label. Included are "Black and White" by the dB's, two cuts by Peter Holsapple (later of the dB's), two cuts by Mitch Easter (Let's Active, and famous noo-wave producer), two tracks by The Cosmopolians (incl. "Wild Moose Party"), plus the Neon Boys.