Soundway's re-release of Colleen Grant's "Latin Parang" b/w Sandra Hamilton's "Parang Jam" will save you a few hundred bucks.
Just in time for Christmas, Soundway is recirculating Colleen Grant's synth-enhanced Trini yuletide banger "Latin Parang" from 1980 b/w Sandra Hamilton's "Parang Jam" both written by Odessey One's Arnold Shuffler. Incidentally, Colleen Grant also voiced Odessey One's Carib-disco classic "Dance With Me"
Parang is a style of folk music that originated from Venezuelan and Colombian immigrants that came to the Caribbean, and evolved to include elements of Latin music, disco and soca - as is evident in this release. Although traditionally used to be played during the festive season in Trinidad and Tobago, parang music continues to heat up dancefloors all year round.
These two in-demand tracks were originally released on the local RH Productions label in Trinidad & Tobago. Fully restored, remastered and licensed - both are now being released officially for the first time on digital, and re-pressed for the first time on vinyl. Listen below.
The new SQÜRL album from filmmaker Jim Jarmusch and pal Carter Logan began as the soundtrack to Claire Pijman's documentary Living The Light.
NYC-based duo Jim Jarmusch and Carter Logan aka SQÜRL will release SomeMusic for Robby Müller via Sacred Bones Records on January 31st, a new album in tribute to the Dutch cinematographer Robby Müller. Here's a statement from Jarmusch about the album...
"These recordings were made by SQÜRL to provide the score to the documentary film LIVING THE LIGHT by Claire Pijman. The subject of Claire’s film is Robby Müller, the unparalleled Dutch cinematographer and poet of light whose work includes: PARIS TEXAS, DEAD MAN, BREAKING THE WAVES, BARFLY, 24 HOUR PARTY PEOPLE and at least 70 other remarkable films. He also produced many still photographs, like these luminous Polaroids on the jacket of this vinyl recording.
Claire Pijman is also Dutch, and also a cinematographer. Her film is, happily, not a conventional or formulaic documentary, but more a personal essay focused on Robby’s vision, his gathered images, and his approach to light, to storytelling and to life itself. LIVING THE LIGHT has now been screened at numerous important film festivals around the world, and was recently awarded the top prize for best feature documentary at the Netherlands Film Festival.
I first met Robby in 1981, in a bar on a boat in Rotterdam during the film festival (where I was presenting my first feature film, PERMANENT VACATION). Wim Wenders knew I was a huge fan of Robby’s work and he told me exactly where I might meet Robby – in that bar on that boat seated next to the peanut machine which rested on top of the bar. And yes, there he was. I nervously introduced myself, and then we talked and talked and talked. This was the beginning of one of the most important relationships of my life.
Robby became my close friend, my collaborator and my teacher too. From him I learned about the emotional qualities of light, about telling stories with a camera, about artistic intuition, collaboration, and integrity. We worked together on the films DOWN BY LAW, MYSTERY TRAIN, DEAD MAN, parts of COFFEE AND CIGARETTES, and GHOST DOG: THE WAY OF SAMURAI. We spent time together in many interesting places in the world, and became parts of each other’s families. Honestly, I can’t even begin express all that I learned from Robby, the joy I had just being with him, or the depth of my respect for him as a compassionate, energetic and rebellious human being. I miss him very much.
As SQÜRL approached creating music for Claire’s film, we attempted to be guided by the beautiful and illuminated elements of Robby’s spirit. We tried to channel his love of the special light during “magic hour,” his love of moving images – from trains and cars, the sadness of certain architecture, or the vibrant energy that can be felt emanating from all living things.
Just before recording, SQÜRL borrowed an unusual vintage Japanese electric guitar from the wonderful Brooklyn–based Dutch luthier, Flip Scipio. We used it for all the guitar parts, its tonal qualities also somehow channeling the spirit of Robby. Robby liked formal purity and focus but he also embraced imperfection, accidents and experimentation. He was well aware that contradictions can and should become strengths.
So here is Some Music for Robby Müller created by SQÜRL in NYC and inspired by Claire Pijman’s film, LIVING THE LIGHT, and of course by Robby himself; his perceptions, his wonderful presence, his mind, his heart and his twinkling, mischievous eyes -- through which he communicated, and with which he surveyed the same illusive world still vibrating around us." - Jim Jarmusch
Listen to "Robby's Theme" followed by a trailer for Claire Pijman's film Living The Light below. Pre-Order a copy of Some Music For Robby Müller directly from Sacred Bones right here.
"Fort Greene Park" is off the new Juice B Crypts album from Battles out now on Warp. Battles play Lee's Palace on December 7th.
Here's the scoop...
“A lot of things going on here for me. My daughter called her little brother Juice B Crypts when he was born. I didn’t know what that meant. But here the opening shot is of him climbing the Prison Ships Martyr Monument in Fort Greene Park, which is an actual crypt, and near to where I lived for 13 years. The place played a central role in my life for a long time. On another level, one of the guys from the building where I live rides an E-Unicycle around my neighborhood and was the original kernel of an idea for this video. So he and his friends are the e-unicyclists. My daughter and her kindergarten friends are the kids on the scooters. Other friends of ours are some of the skaters. And Colin elevated the concept of the video extending it into a broader story about the evolution of human transport which is a contentious issue these days in our city of New York. But in the end, it just a love letter to the place we live. New York City.” – Ian (Battles)
Here's the scoop from Crashing The Party...
THE BIG TEN INCH! Introducing the Crashing The Party record label! The only radio show with its own record label – what are the chances? And dig the fact that the platters are destined to appear as red shellac souvenir ten inchers, each with ten tunes each- TEN ON TEN! Our first release is STEP IT UP AND GO - jamming the ten top early RUDY RAY MOORE rhythm & blues stormers onto one big red ten incher! Pick it up now!
Crashing every party with ten early R&B tunes from our hero Rudy Ray Moore – on a ten inch red wax souvenir platter deluxe! Catch it while you can! Rudy storms and sashays through his signature early sides, well before his Dolemite persona took the comedy and rated-X motion picture world by storm. Dig it on the brand new Crashing The Party record label! Step It Up And Go/ Ring-A-Ling Dong/ Hurts Me To My Heart/ The Buggy Ride/ Rally In The Valley/ I'm Mad With You/ Robbie Dobbie/ Ballad Of A Boy And Girl/ Whatcha Gonna Do/ I'll Be Home To See You Tomorrow + ye olde Dolphin's Record Shop radio ad! Artwork by Tommy Bishop! Out now!
Get Rudy Ray Moore's Step It Up And Go 10" directly from Crashing The Party right here. Listen to three of Rudy's rockin' tunes below.
CRASHING THE PARTY TONITE
All new Crashing with a flash-a-ma-thang on our star RUDY RAY MOORE plus loads of rhythm n blooze vocal group shebangs a/k/a Doo-Wop deliriums - from the vaults and dungeons of Crashington Arms debuts with hosts Marc and Miriam on Thursday (December 5th) at 6 pm EST - push the blast off button at https://www.crashingtheparty.co/
News flash to follow regarding the upcoming East Coast/West Coast debuts and Rudy fan-mashes due this week! Celebrating the radio show's first record STEP IT UP AND GO - it is on red vinyl 10" – ten songs on a ten incher, and it's Rudy Ray Moore, for goodness sake!
Modern Harmonic's 14-song June Tyson anthology, Saturnian Queen Of The Sun Ra Arkestra, includes five previously unissued tracks.
Here's the scoop...
Undoubtedly the most sublime constellation in the Sun Ra cosmos, June Tyson’s voice is the perfect guide through one of the most challenging and varied musical legacies ever to be encountered. Capable of strong, fierce, and emotive vocalizations as well as intricate weavings, her voice transcends genre. This first ever collection affirming June Tyson’s unassailable gravity in Sun Ra’s realm features previously unissued cuts and includes a full color zine-style insert featuring rare photos and extensive liner notes!
The strong, powerful, & fiercely feminine voice of Sun Ra’s Arkestra for decades was the strong, sassy, & spacey June Tyson. As Sun Ra’s closest companion throughout his time on Earth, she represented Afrofuturism as boldly and powerfully as her Saturnic leader. He the king of Afrofuturism and she the queen. The zine style insert is externally a replica of one of June’s personal items, her “Dream Book”; open the composition pad to unveil stunning unseen photos courtesy of June’s daughters and a powerful set of notes from Cat Celebreze.
Finally the Princess Leia of avant-garde jazz finally gets her due. Mastered by Joe Lizzi, cut at Cohearent Audio by Kevin Gray and pressed on gold vinyl at Third Man. Out now!
Raymond Scott - The Jingle Workshop: Midcentury Musical Miniatures 1951-1965 is available from Modern Harmonic as a 2LP or 2CD set.
For over a decade (1951–1965) Raymond Scott earned a solid living composing, arranging, and recording catchy ditties for Revlon, Delta Airlines, Stuckey's, Alka-Seltzer, Sprite, Ford, and other sponsors. The JINGLE WORKSHOP includes finished spots, outtakes, rehearsals, alternates, demos, instrumental beds, studio chatter, and irresistible earworms about mid-20th century consumer goods. All were transferred from Raymond's original tapes at the Marr Archives.
Hear Dorothy Collins, Mel Tormé, and dozens of unnamed session vocalists and musicians serenade you about beer, ice cream, gasoline, cigarettes, more beer, bread, shampoo, cars, mouthwash, and MORE BEER. The styles range from cool jazz to percolating Latin, from lush orchestrations to piano & voice; the arrangements feature soloists, vocal duets, and group harmony. There's even some stray electronic works discovered after the release of the all-electronic compilation Manhattan Research Inc. Cover art by Javier Garcia, and liner notes by Gary Stockdale. Now available from Modern Harmonic on 2LP or 2CD.
Check out Raymond Scott's catchy commercials for Tareyton cigs, Hamm's Beer and Stuckey's convenience stores and Ex-Lax below followed by the complete track listing.
Raymond Scott – The Jingle Workshop: Midcentury Musical Miniatures 1951-1965
DISC 1: 1. “When You Bake With Gold Medal Flour [Demo]” 2. “The Taste Is Great (Tareyton Cigarettes)” 3. “When You Shop At A Food Town Store [Vocal]” 4. “Move Up To Schlitz” 5. “It’s Compatible (RCA Victor TV)” 6. “Male/Female Scott Family Napkins Themes [Instrumental] 7. Road-Tuned Wheels (Mercury)” 8. “It Outsells Because It Excels (Duquesne Beer)” 9. “Hangover Dirt (Instant Fels Naptha)” 10. “Think Of A Carpet (Masland Carpets) [Instrumental]” 11. “Stop At The Esso Sign [Rehearsal 1]” 12. “S-W-E-L (Swel Frosting)” 13. “Song Of The Milk Bottle Moppets (Glass Container Institute)” 14. “So Good, So Fresh, So Southern (Mel Tormé) (Southern Bread)” 15. “The Tingling Tartness Of Sprite [Instrumental]” 16. “Use Vicks Medicated Cough Drops [Electronic Version]” 17. “Stuckey’s Theme [Vocal]“ 18. “DX Super Boron (Sunray DX Oil Co.) [Demo]” 19. “Vibes & Marimba [Instrumental]” 20. “Miller Beer Theme [Instrumental Rehearsal]” 21. “Uptempo Theme With Vibes [Instrumental]” 22. “The Big M (Mercury)” 23. “Be Happy, Go Lucky (Lucky Strike)” 24. “There’s A Tingle In The Taste (Fitger’s Beer)” 25. “Way Ahead In Flavor / Almost Like Magic (My-T-Fine Pudding)” 26. “Scott Family Napkins Guidance Tracks” 27. “Melonball Bounce (Sprite) [Instrumental]” 28. “Go Greyhound - Leave The Driving To Us” 29. “Today’s Best Buy (Plymouth) [Demo]” 30. “Who Took The Beer? (Hamm’s Beer)” 31. “The Fashion To Be Fashionable (Ford Galaxie)” 32. “Dirty Carburetor #1 & #2 (Atlantic Imperial)” 33. “Bottled Soft Drinks Serenade (Glass Container Institute)” 34. “All-Purpose Breeze [Demo]” 35. “The Only Candy Bar (Fifth Avenue)” 36. “Better Get Some More Beer (Mel Tormé) (Hamm’s Beer)” 37. “Nothing Works Like Listerine” 38. “Let’s Have a Sackful Of Krystals (Krystal Hamburgers)” 39. “Ex-Lax Helps You [Demo]”
DISC 2: 1. “Lady Gaylord (Ideal Toys) [Alternate Instrumental]” 2. “Lilt Home Permanent (Procter & Gamble) [Demo]” 3. “Think Of A Carpet (Masland Carpets) [Vocal]” 4. “Seven-Minute Fluffy (Swel Frosting)” 5. “Super Cheer Detergent (Procter & Gamble)” 6. “Look For That Hotpoint Difference” 7. “Let’s Have A Sackful Of Krystals (Krystal Hamburgers) [Instrumental]” 8. “The Tingling Tartness Of Sprite [Vocal]” 9. “Good News–Here’s Hamm’s Beer” 10. “What’s New, Bokoo? / An Unusual Name” 11. “Buy A Carton Of Lucky Strike” 12. “Right Car, Right Price (Chrysler)” 13. “Wave Your Hair With Hudnut Care (Richard Hudnut)” 14. “It’s The Ice-Creamiest (Russell’s Ice Cream)” 15. “Stuckey’s Theme [Instrumental]” 16. “WQXI Bumper Montage” 17. “Use Vicks Medicated Cough Drops” 18. “Delicate Theme [Instrumental]” 19. “Use Trushay” 20. “Tingle In The Taste (Fitger’s Beer) [Duet]” 21. “The Big Change (RCA Victor TV)” 22. “Use New Instant Autocrat (Autocrat Coffee)” 23. “Hamm’s Beer Theme [Instrumental]” 24. “Trushay Theme 1 [Instrumental]” 25. “DX Super Boron (Sunray DX Oil Co.) [Instrumental]” 26. “Melonball Bounce (Sprite) [Vocal]” 27. “Stop At The Esso Sign [Rehearsal 2]” 28. “Watch The Vibrations Of A Tuning Fork (Bulova Accutron)” 29. “Breeze Along With Ease” 30. “Have A Duke (Duquesne Beer)” 31. “RCA Victor High Fidelity Theme” 32. “RFK, Liz & Dick, Nudity In Movies (Look Magazine)” 33. “When You Shop At A Food Town Store [Instrumental]” 34. “Good News–Here’s Hamm’s Beer (Mel Tormé)” 35. “Best Looking Buys In Each Size (Mercury)” 36. “New Sensations In Sound (RCA Victor TV)” 37. “Make Him A Legend In His Own Time (British Sterling)” 38. “Living Curl / They Did It! (Revlon Hair Spray)” 39. “Lady Gaylord (Ideal Toys) [Trumpet Effects Instrumental]” 40. “Keep On The Go With Atlantic (Atlantic Imperial)” 41. “Look At That Sunbeam Bread! [Demo]” 42. “Tart And Tingling [French Version]” 43. “Trushay Theme 2 [Instrumental]”
The ever-intrepid Samy Ben Redjeb has dug up a fantastic selection of rare dancefloor gems from Mogadishu.
After being blown away by a few tunes – probably just as you will be after listening to this - Samy Ben Redjeb travelled to the infamous capital city of Somalia in November of 2016, making Analog Africa the first music label to set foot in Mogadishu.
On his arrival in Somalia Samy began rifling through piles of cassettes and listening to reel-to-reel tapes in the dusty archives of Radio Mogadishu, looking for music that "swam against the current".
The stars were aligned: an uncovered and unmarked pile of discarded recordings was discovered in a cluttered corner of the building. Colonel Abshir - the senior employee and protector of Radio Mogadishu's archives - clarified that the pile consisted mostly of music nobody had manage to identify, or music he described as being "mainly instrumental and strange music". At the words "strange music" Samy was hooked, the return flight to Tunisia was cancelled.
The pile turned out to be a cornucopia of different sounds: radio jingles, background music, interludes for radio programmes, television shows and theatre plays. There were also a good number of disco tunes, some had been stripped of their lyrics, the interesting parts had been recorded multiple times then cut, taped together and spliced into a long groovy instrumental loop. Over the next three weeks, often in watermelon, grapefruit juice and shisha-fuelled night-time sessions behind the fortified walls of Radio Mogadishu, Samy and the archive staff put together "Mogadisco: Dancing Mogadishu, 1974–1991".
Like everywhere in Africa during the 1970s, both men and women sported huge afros, bell-bottom trousers and platform shoes. James Brown, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and The Temptations' funk were the talk of the town.
In 1977, Iftin Band were invited to perform at the Festac festival in Lagos where they represented Somalia at the Second World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture. Not only did they come back with an award but they also returned with Afrobeat. While Fela Kuti's 'Shakara' had taken over the continent and was spreading like wildfire throughout Latin America, it was the track 'Lady' that would become the hit in Mogadishu.
At the same time Bob Marley was busy kick-starting reggae-mania in Somalia, which became such a phenomenon that even the police and military bands began playing it. Some say that it was adopted so quickly because of the strong similarities with the traditional beat from the western region of Somalia, called Dhaanto.
But then suddenly the trousers got tighter as the disco tsunami hit the country. Michael Jackson appeared with a new sound that would revolutionise Somalia's live music scene. You couldn't walk the streets of Mogadishu without seeing kids trying to moonwalk.
"Somalia had several nightclubs and although most use DJs to play records, some hotels like Jubba, Al-Uruba and Al Jazeera showcased live bands such as Iftin and Shareero" - so ran a quote from a 1981 article about the explosion of Mogadishu's live music scene. The venues mentioned in that article were the luxury hotels that had been built to cover the growing demands of the tourist industry. The state-of-the-art hotel Al-Uruba, with its oriental ornaments and white plastered walls, was a wonder of modern architecture. All of Mogadishu's top bands performed there at some point or another, and many of the songs presented in this compilation were created in such venues.
Mogadisco was not Analog Africa's easiest project. Tracking down the musicians - often in exile in the diaspora - to interview them and gather anecdotes of golden-era Mogadishu has been an undertaking that took three years. Tales of Dur-Dur Band's kidnapping, movie soundtracks recorded in the basements of hotels, musicians getting electrocuted on stage, others jumping from one band to another under dramatic circumstances, and soul singers competing against each other, are all stories included in the massive booklet that accompanies the compilation - adorned with no less then 50 pictures from the '70s and '80s.
As Colonel Abshir Hashi Ali, chief don at the Radio Mogadishu archive - someone who once wrestled a bomber wielding an unpinned hand-grenade to the floor - put it: "I have dedicated my life to this place. I'm doing this so it can get to the next generation; so that the culture, the heritage and the songs of Somalia don't disappear."
The My Rival 10" EP – out today – is a previously unissued Alex Chilton session engineered by Big Star pal Chris Bell from 1975.
It’s mid- to late-1975, what remained of Big Star is no longer, Third/Sister Lovers was sitting on a shelf and Alex Chilton was in Memphis at a very low point. Chris Bell spent a large part of the year in London trying to get a solo record deal, but turned up empty and flew home to visit family in late summer. While at home, Bell was cutting more solo tracks at Ardent, one of which, “You And Your Sister” needed a harmony vocal, so he called in Alex.
Fans have long thought that was the last recording of Bell and Chilton collaborating in the studio, but within what was probably a few days of that session, they were in the studio together again, with Bell engineering a set of demos for Alex.
Chilton laid down early takes of “My Rival” (later re-cut for the Like Flies On Sherbert album) and “All Of The Time” (later re-cut for the Singer Not The Song EP and Bach’s Bottom album) as well as the then unissued tracks, “She Might Look My Way” (which first appeared on co-writer Tommy Hoehn’s 1978 album, Losing You To Sleep) and “Windows Hotel” (which finally saw release in 2015 on the live album, Ocean Club ’77). Unfortunately, working together was not in the cards, nor was a Big Star reunion of any sort.
From the liner notes by Rich Tupica: “If Big Star could overcome some personal difficulties, if we could get it together, I know we could do something very well,” an optimistic Chris Bell told journalist Barry Ballard in 1975. “I don’t know if (Chris) wanted to work together again or not,” Chilton reflected years later with journalist Russell Hall. “I don’t remember that being the case. I mean, musicians get together to do things all the time, on all sorts of bases. I personally had no intentions of ever getting back together in a band with anybody again, pretty much.”
All that’s left is the music, and that’s surely something to celebrate. In some alternate universe, this could’ve been the next chapter for Big Star, and it sounds beautiful.
All versions on this special Record Store Day/Black Friday 10″ are previously unissued and presented here for the first time. Available digitally right here on December 6th. Check out an alternate version of "She Might Look My Way" below followed by the My Rival EP track listing.
MY RIVAL EP
SIDE 1:
My Rival
All of The Time
Windows Hotel
SIDE 2:
She Might Look My Way (take 1)
She Might Look My Way (take 2)
