Spoken Word

Instructional Recordings, Poetry, Speeches, Lectures, Sermons, etc, etc, etc…

Friends Roadshow – Live at the Melkweg

A year and a half ago, I had the pleasure of digging in Amsterdam.  On the advice of some Dutch collectors, I found myself at the flea markets of Waterlooplein on a rainy day, where I stumbled upon this gem.  In my book, passing on a record with a cover like this is not an […]

Evangelist Eva L. Orange – Mother Don’t Look Back Go Forward

This record came out on the Tropical label out of Miami (better known  for Frankie Sea & The Soul Riders). Most of it consists of a sermon but the album is bookended by a couple of songs on each side. The most unusual is the one opening side A, with its raw, lo-fi sound. It […]

Problems of Adolescence: A Guide For Teacher-Led Discussion

Unintentionally(?) over the top and hilarious Teacher’s Aid lp from the 60’s highlighting various “problems” the modern teacher/parent might face. It’s all acted out in skits which have a bizarre, stilted, almost John Waters-esque melodrama factor, and few if any seem to actually have any closure or teach any lesson. I’d give anything to be […]

Teen Challenge: Praise-In

As a second generation Orange Countian who squandered his youth on drugs I can’t help but identify with these youngsters in some strange way. Who knows, it could have totally been Rick from Anaheim* who rode shotgun that one time my Dad, hopped up on Angel Dust, hot-wired a car and cruised to the Long […]

Randy Loyd: The Moment

What an incredible record…fans of The Youngbloods and Poco should check this out. I was looking for good christian records at a St. Vincent De Paul, found this and took a fifty cent chance. He writes most of the songs and they’re all over the map stylistically. They all gel quite well. Check out the […]

OPERATION DROPOUT

Picked this one up for the great cover. It’s a two record set put out by the Chicago Daily News and WLS Radio in conjunction with forums and broadcasts addressing the problem of school dropout in  1966. Three out of the four sides are dry and boring press conferences. The remaining side contains excerpts from […]

Norgine 45

http://waxidermy.com/images/a_representative_visit_clip.mp3
http://waxidermy.com/images/Tableau_of_a_Lithotomy.mp3

Hugh Romney (Wavy Gravy)

Before transforming himself into performance artist, westcoast scenemaker, and hippie commune godfather Wavy Gravy, Hugh Romney hung around the beat scene on both coasts, and made some recordings. This poorly documented album, titled “Third Stream Humour”, dates from 1962 and is a live recording (at least partly) from a standup performance at the Renaissance in […]

Art Of The Gifted

There’s lots of records by crazy people out there, but albums made by real mental patients are considerably fewer. Here’s one, recorded in 1985 by clients at various mental health facilities in Colorado. The project was the brainchild of Dr Alan Melinger, and upon scrutiny it appears to be a partial vanity trip for the […]

Yogi Adonaiasis: Gettingittogether

Truly bizarre double lp made by this lounge singer turned self styled yogi. Side one is deep thoughts about being, spoken through super echoed-out effects. Much like what you’d expect to find on a Timothy Leary lp or some other such psychedelic guru of the time. The weird part is that the other 3 sides […]

Impossible Theater and John Schneider – Social Amnesia

Just over a hour and twenty minutes long, this double lp from 1986 is the soundtrack to the Impossible Theater’s performance of their “live movie” Social Amneisa. The soundtrack is made up of the majority (if not all) of the dialouge from the performance as well as songs written and arranged by the Impossible Theater […]

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 […]

Yves Klein – Conference A La Sorbonne 1959

Edition limitee numero 448/500 no label but marked R.P.M. Paris in tiny print on the inner of the beautiful blue gatefold. Spoken word pressure direct from the sweat lodge of the Sorbonne June ’59. The anthropologists who recorded this go uncredited but no doubt they will have canoed up the Boulevard St. Michel and negotiated […]

L’Evangile Selon Saint Luc et les Recits de l’Enfance St. Matthieu St. Luc

A 1963 edition from the Office Catholique Du Disque with sleek cloth-bound good looks, chunky 24-page papyrus booklet insert and 5 discs all in superb condition despite coming from a dank junkshop corner amongst other stuff that was badly water-damaged. Imagine my delight when I open the box and see the fine print: Musique – Pierre […]

Victor Lundberg – An Open Letter

10 pieces of old fogey Victor’s mind, seems he is not up on the changes in these modern times. “On Censorship”, “To The Flower Power”, “Dear Parents”, “To The Destroyers”, etc. 2 tracks were issued on 7″ by Liberty listen to “My Buddy Carl” + “An Open Letter To My Teenage Son”

A Child’s Cry – A Clue To Diagnosis

Pfizer must have handed these out with their pills, wacky Dr Weinberg from Capetown S.A. leads you through baby cries & their meaning. Troubling gatefold inner cover will not be shown, here are some diagnosis Crying Babies

Fundamentals of Chemistry

“Learn 475 basic facts quickly and easily through this new audio learning method”. 17 tracks, including “The Atom part 1” and “part 2”, “Halogens”, “Commercial Preparation”, etc. Dare to hear “Metals”?

KYC 64 – Know Your Car and Get The Best Out Of It

“This Noise Means Danger!” – a TV tie-in 7″ single from BBC records in 1964. Know Your Car had a signature tune by the BBC Radiophonic Workshop, but sadly it’s not to be heard on this peculiar mix of deadpan narration and the sounds of ailing motorcars. The commentary is by John F. Miles, manager […]

Teenage Talk-In

Strange 60’s Christian lp that has one of my favorite covers of all time. It depicts youthful scenes of of the era; playing baseball, dancing, riding on a motorcycle, holding a portable radio dangerously close to your ear and screaming, getting maced by the cops, hallucinating the Beatles’ disembodied heads, etc. And the message, delivered […]

Pin Points – No Dressing

Stock cover, late 70’s, DIY looking from Southeast Washington DC, the song titles stood out, looking mostly gospel, with “It’s Got To Be That Dope” raising curiosity. The sounds impressed, gospel, modern soul, drum and rap. With further research i discovered their web site, Pin Points is an activist inner city theatre group that works […]

NRA – Legacy

Found two years ago in a thrift, sealed, wasn’t untill this spring that i cracked it open to discover a dozen public service announcements promoting not the shoot em up unregistered bill of rights side of the organization, but the kinder, gentler conservation side of the group. Among the usual suspects are Ed Ames, Walter […]

Bobby And Betty Go To The Moon

Way in the future, 1985, these 2 kids are the first to fly solo to the moon. Loads of fun science facts and cheesy effects, girls don’t care much for engineering in the future, where scientists sound like cheap impersonations of Bela & Boris. More fun on side two, tame library versions of soul and […]