Good one @kacomess! I haven't thought about The Rev in years. Another like him in spirit is Wayne "The Train" Hancock, a real Hillbilly singer. An old friend and bandmate of mine (Paul Skelton) played guitar on his first album, and taking his place on the road was another guy I worked with, Evan Johns. They're both dead now, from lung cancer and liver failure, respectively. Both great Telecaster players.
What unknown musical artist would you like to share with your fellow audiophiles?
When it comes to music, about half of my friends are "collectors" and the other half are true audiophiles. It seems the collectors are so obsessed with the size of their collections, that they leave no room in their budget for quality audio equipment. I think the audiophiles, with their focus on quality over quantity, are the ones with their priorities straight. So, unless you are on an unlimited budget, I'm guessing that audiophiles are more selective in their musical purchases. That being the case, I'm curious about what "buried treasures" have you been able to find? Thanks for responding and I look forward to discovering some good music, based on your suggestions.
I'll lead off with the band Crack The Sky, most notably their first two albums: "Crack The Sky" (1975) and "Animal Notes" (1976). I would describe them as a cross between Be Bop Deluxe and Frank Zappa. Their music is unique and totally unmistakable with anyone else. Choice cuts from the debut album are: "Ice;" She's a Dancer;" "Mind Baby" & "Sleep." Choice cuts from Animal Notes are: "Animal Skins;" "Wet Teenager;" Virgin....No" & "Maybe I Can Fool Everybody."
I'll lead off with the band Crack The Sky, most notably their first two albums: "Crack The Sky" (1975) and "Animal Notes" (1976). I would describe them as a cross between Be Bop Deluxe and Frank Zappa. Their music is unique and totally unmistakable with anyone else. Choice cuts from the debut album are: "Ice;" She's a Dancer;" "Mind Baby" & "Sleep." Choice cuts from Animal Notes are: "Animal Skins;" "Wet Teenager;" Virgin....No" & "Maybe I Can Fool Everybody."
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Not unknown, but I am surprised that I have not seen a mention of the great American songbook jazz guitarist John Pizzarelli. Not only is he, in my opinion, a consummately talented guitarist (recently accompanied John Lennon at Lennon's request) but he has released so many audiophile quality CDs and SACDs that are superbly engineered recordings. Many are classics and Grammy nominees. His father, Bucky Pizzarelli, is a jazz icon and still performing as well. |
I see no one so far has mentioned Judy Henske; people younger than maybe 60 or 65 might not have heard of her. She had a voice like no one else. She did different styles - folk, blues, jazzy stuff. One reviewer rather recently said something like that if Linda Ronstadt was on fire, Judy Henske was an explosion. She recorded some stuff when she was older, but none of it moved me. Her Elektra albums (from the early 60s; I think there were only two) are really exceptionally good. |
Here is a really good one- Black Swan Lane. Formed in 2007 in Atlanta, Black Swan Lane included Mark Burgess from The Chameleons and The Sun and the Moon. They have seven albums out and rarely tour. I think they sound like a cross between the Chameleons and the Church. Their albums always feature a very layered "wall of sound" and are always recorded with the highest fidelity. Here is the link to their website: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&... I will post a youtube video next. Highly recommended. |
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https://youtu.be/my3N2vK-kh8 Here is a youtube video of one of Black Swan Lane's rare live performances. Several of their albums have received album of the year accolades from the NME. |
The Disco Biscuits links here! It says shows start 8:45 eastern. 28th https://youtu.be/gDBMZ_uLMfE 29th https://youtu.be/CFjHYBNV670 30th https://youtu.be/0gQTkOIfqTU 31st might start earlier. 3 sets https://youtu.be/-moJJ5LryJg Make sure to have your party favors 🎉 for this! |
A great early-70's artist almost forgotten by all but the most ardent Pop fans is Emitt Rhodes, whose self-titled debut album is fantastic. Everybody knows Crazy Horse as Neil Young's band, but they made a great album of their own in 1971, when guitarist Danny Whitten was still alive. Also on the album are Nils Lofgren and Jack Nitzsche (who did all Phil Spector's orchestrations, as well as a lot of soundtrack work. His own St. Giles Cripplegate album from 1974 is semi-Classical, and very interesting. He is also on Neil's Harvest album, and produced this Crazy Horse debut. Other production work he did was Graham Parker's Squeezing Out Sparks album, and three for Willy DeVille, a great singer), as well as Ry Cooder on a few tracks. Great album. Martin Mull is now known more as an actor (he was on the original Rosanne TV show), but he made some great albums in the 70's. His turf was similar to another interesting songwriter, Dan Hicks---ironic humor. I find both much more clever than the better known Frank Zappa. |
@maxnewid interesting on Black Swan Lane. I went to the Burgess show right before this, I think maybe 2006 at the The Earl? Never knew he went into this project afterwards. They definitely have that "Up the Down Escalator" vibe in some tracks. (Never got to see Chameleons UK unfortunately.) Following along. |
I was listening to one of my favorite Sunday Morning mix tapes today and I remembered a little known band called SPAIN. The band is fronted by bassist Josh Haden, who is the son of jazz legend Charlie Haden and the brother of vocalist Petra Haden. I'd say they are a jazzier version of The Red House Painters. I'm partial to their early and darker material, particularly "She Haunts My Dreams." Most of their other albums are good, but a bit inconsistent. Plus, I like the fact that most of their album covers are either arty or alluring, since the prevalence of interesting album cover art seems to be waning. |
@boxer12: In 1982,I asked a British exchange student what was the next UK band that I should be on the lookout for. He recommended THE THE. I laughed and said that I liked them already, just based on their name. The following year Soul Mining came out. I'd rate that as one of their best albums, along with Mind Bomb and Dusk. All of their albums typically have some great songs that will also test out the limits of your audio system. I'll check out Naked Self again. I recall it being a little bit stark and low key; so, I maybe it needs another listen to truly appreciate it. |
Tony Bird, Tony Bird, Tony Bird! Tony was a fixture on the coffeehouse folk scene. He still around though he's battling cancer these days. He was a most unique performer. There aren't many videos of him and only three albums. It's a pity. He wrote beautiful songs. All you had to do was accept or embrace his voice. He is a white man from Africa. He emulates an African sound that isn't appealing to some. Stick with it if you decide to give a listen. Bob Dylan ( with whom he can be compared) dropped in on one of Tony's shows for a listen. Harry Belafonte put one of Tony's songs in his own show for awhile. Any lovers of Tony's music here? Joe |
Jimbo Mathis and the Tri-State Coalition - Americana/Alt-Country/Hillbilly Rock - Check out "Dark Night of the Soul" and "White Buffalo", both great albums Ass Ponys - "Electric Rock Music" is a masterpiece album. Hometown Cincinnati boys. Hollie Smith - "Long Player" Really good album. Morcheeba - "Big Calm" Smooooooth....... |
Greg Brown https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HVYvp9jCMZQ |
Love Greg Brown's album "The Poet Game". Brand New '64 Dodge is cut that got a bit of college/indy airplay. Great lyrics. The Spring Standards are a band I have to recommend. Three great songwriters who all sing lead and play multiple instruments. Folky, rockers and ballads. Harmony is a strong suit. If you like Fleetwood Mac, CSN&Y, Jefferson Airplane, check 'em out. Rhett Miller of Old '97s produced their first major label LP. Yellow/Gold double EP is a good starting point. Cheers, Spencer |
Well, what a surprise it is to have a thread from December of 2018 come back to life. At that time, Gord Downie of The Tragically Hip had recently passed away. This year in March we lost Michael Stanley (Michael Stanley Band), who I did not see get mentioned in any of the previous posts on this thread. We also lost Pat DiNizio of the Smithereens in 2017. But, I recently saw that the Smithereens are currently doing some shows and using either Marshall Crenshaw or Robin Wilson (Gin Blossoms) as the lead vocalist. |
Another big recent surprise for me was discovering Don Was radio show on WDET in Detroit. The show is called "Don Was Motor City Playlist," and you can listen to it on either WDET's website (WDET.org) or Spotify [WDET only has access to the 2 most recent shows, while Spotify has archived all of the shows, which started back in April of this year]. Don is not only a master storyteller; but, he is freaking hilarious! He plays music from many genres; so, it should remind many of you who remember "free form FM radio from the 60's & 70's. Also, on the most recent episode (10/1) I discovered that Leonard Cohen has a son (Adam) who is also a recording artist. So, this show is full of surprises. |
