Author – Kris Holmes

The Bag – Red Purple & Blue

The Bag were a late sixties blue-eyed soul band from the New York area that made one full length LP for Decca that incorporates enough touches of psych to get mildly sweated by people who collect that stuff. Needless to say the LP sank without a trace upon release. This song is the B-side of […]

Banana Brothers – And Their Bunch

I have no information about this record whatsoever. The cover is just a generic blank white cardboard sleeve with the sticker of a bunch of bananas slapped on the front centre. The label is just as unhelpful, I can say it was released on TAB records as TAB7801, but that is it. It is basically […]

Slinger Community High School – Slinger, Wisconsin

A decidely uninspiring high school showcase record from the late sixties/early seventies. This record was pressed by the Universal Audio Corporation, 2541 Nicollet Avenue, Minneapolis, Minn. 55404. It features the Concert Band, Jazz Ensemble, Mixed Chorus, Owl Singers & Combined Chorus & band. The two best cuts are the Jazz Ensemble’s out of tune & […]

Kurt Van Arsdel – Golden Loneliness

Private press californian gospel LP from 1981. On the back cover Van Arsdel looked so much like the bearded Dennis Wilson that I had to give it a spin. I know this is the first pressing because it says so on the label, helpful. You can google Kurt van Arsdel and find his webpage, but […]

Rhythm Accompaniment – Rhythm Accompaniment

This record looks to be from the early sixties and was released on Columbia’s budget Harmony subsidiary. It provides rhythm accompaniment for dancers, singers, musicians, instructors and children. Essentially it is a record of drumbeats in a number of different styles. You get fox trots, rock and roll, polka and waltzes on side one.

Teddy & George – The Condor

Teddy Brown & George Hamilton were two refugees from Detroit who trekked to San Francisco in the early 60s. They started singing together in clubs in 1961 & recorded this live album on the Mammoth label in 1963. The show was recorded at the Condor, a nightclub that sat on the corner of Broadway & […]

Various Artists – Modern Jazz: At The Royal Festival Hall London

Presented by the UK’s National Jazz Federation, this is a live recording of three sets by some of the UK’s up & coming jazz modernists. Recorded in concert on October 30, 1954 at the Royal Festival Hall in London, the night was unprecendented in holding a festival of jazz in one of London’s Royal Festival […]

Jose Barroso – Flamenco

Another Crown atrocity that plays like total rubbish. This would actually be not a bad album of flamenco guitar. The guitarist Jose Barroso is really quite good although he only took up the guitar aged 39 & this album of Laurindo Almeida tunes is quite appealing if you are into that sort of thing. Everyone […]

Eddie Gomez – Caribbean Rendezvous

This album would be a perfectly OK record of mambos & cha chas but for one thing.  It was released on Crown, yuck. As is reasonably common knowledge, most of Crown’s records sounded G+ to VG- even before they had been played, their pressings are that low quality.  This album is no different unfortunately, looks […]

The Sounds Of Now – The Sounds Of Now

This LP was released in the late 1960s as a promotional album for Fanta soft drink here in New Zealand. I picked it up for a few cents at a thrift store a couple of years ago because one of the guys I work with (Wayne Senior) is listed as having produced/arranged/sang on it. I […]

Simple Image – Spinning Spinning Spinning

One of those frustrating LPs where the music can never live up to the awesome cover art. The Simple Image were a band from Wellington, New Zealand that formed in the mid 60s. This album is their debut from ’68 and the title track was a local number one single. There were a couple other […]

The Avengers – Electric Recording

The Avengers were a local New Zealand pop band of the late 60s. This was their first LP & was released in 1967. They came from Wellington & had the good fortune to hook up with US hippie hitch-hiker Chris Malcolm who went on to write over half of the songs on this record, playing […]

Various Artists – Anthology Of American Folk Music Vols.1-3

Probably the best known Folkways box sets around. These are really an outstanding overview of all genres of american folk music. It goes without saying that as usual with Folkways you get a highly informative booklet to accompany each volume. If you don’t have these you just aren’t folk music and could be a poser.

Various Artists – Folk Music USA Vol.1

Another Folkways box along the lines of the excellent “Anthologies” LPs. This double LP box dates from 1959 and focuses on field recordings from all genres of american folk music. The comprehensive liner note booklet (including lyrics) is written by Charles Edward Smith and the songs were compiled by Harold Courlander. One of several Folkways […]

Various Artists – A Night At The Apollo

A live recording on Vanguard of a night of performances from the Apollo Theatre in Harlem.  It sounds as though it is from the early-mid 50s.  I don’t remember where I got this LP from, but it is a UK press.  Liner notes are by Langston Hughes.  The artists featured are the Apollo Band Of […]

Various Artists – Opus Jazz

This was another one of those book fair “the records are only 10 cents & this looks interesting even though I have never heard of it before, so why not” purchases (actually the same fair as the Pete Seeger instructional LP I posted here previously). I assume it is a local white label promo or […]

Pair Extaordinaire – Recorded Live

I don’t know all that much about these guys or this record (so I hope it’s not super common in the US) but I do know that it is friggin’ cool. It’s essentially a musical comedy routine captured live performing versions of a number of pop hits of the day as well as some more […]

Jack Marshall & Shelly Manne – Sounds!

I forget where I got this record from, but I have probably had it for around 3 years & have listened to it about 3 times (two of those times were in preparation for this review). I do know that it was one of the records I “discovered” in my shelves when I had to […]

Los Admiradores – Bongos

This record is actually better than I remembered, which is always nice. It’s an Enoch Light production loosely disguised as a latin record. The bongo stylings are provided by Willie Rodriguez and Don Lamond who basically go bongo mad over backings provided by a pretty sweet jazzy Enoch Light band that features the usual suspects […]

Peter La Farge – Sings Of The Cowboys

Well if you are like me and consider yourself a bedroom cowboy, then you’re gonna need a helpful record such as this to get your cattle calls up to scratch.  Luckily this record comes will everything you need to get your cowpoke game down. This was released on Folkways in 1964 and in true Folkways […]

Muirlands Jazz/Rock Ensemble – 1973

I picked this 7″ up mainly because it has a Frank Zappa cover on it, but it actually turned out to be a solid record all the way through. I have no idea what the Muirlands Jazz/Rock Ensemble was (probably a High School Stage Band I am guessing) and from what the label tells me, […]

Lost & Found Dept – Let’s Just Praise The Lord

This record comes with pretty much everything you could ask for in a Private Press Gospel album. There’s the ugly chicks, long haired dudes, tubby inbred looking dudes and a bus within which to travel and spread the word. Just as well then that there’s a choice cover shot that incorporates all the ugliness of […]