B. Brock And The Sultans Do The Beetle

Whoever these guys were, they ripped.

Crown Records put out a fair amount of schlock in their day, but this 1964 LP release to capitalize on Beatlemania is in an entire league of its own.

"Do The Beetle" "30 LB. Beetle" and "Feed The Beetle" are all wild surf instro-burners worthy of single releases, but the off-key, unassured vocal cover of "I Want To Hold Your Hand" seals the deal that this off-the-rails kitsch long player would fade into record buying obscurity for years to come.

Happy birthday Herschell Gordon Lewis!

The great Herschell Gordon Lewis celebrates his 85th birthday today, enjoy this 2010 documentary on the one and only "godfather of gore"!

Crime Stoppers Atlanta

Red Dodge Nitro

Our dear pal and Ichiban co-founder, Greg G was the victim of a horrific hit and run on his bicycle this week in Atlanta, Georgia.  He is in stable but critical condition in the ICU at Grady Hospital.  Please keep him in your thoughts for a speedy recovery.  If you know anyone that lives in Georgia, please send them a link to this story.  The driver is still at large and there is a Reward fund that you can donate to.  If you'd like to send get well greetings, email ghostwave@comcast.net.

Ray Price - Invitation To The Blues (2:51)

Vocal Group 45 of the Week!

 

Hungry!

 

Crayons To Perfume Girl of the week - Miriam Linna: She's Everybody's Baby Now!

Miriam Linna has a brand new single and LP out NOW on Norton Records! The fab gal of Norton, Kicks Books, The A-Bones (who also have a new LP out on Norton), Kicks Magazine and yes, of course, The Cramps has knocked it out of the ballpark with a sweep of Spector/Mortonish 60's pop that will be music to your ears.
Here's a taste of Miriam's smashing live debut performance!




Out NOW is Miriam's first solo 45, 'My Love Has Gone' (Del Shannon) backed with an amazingly lush 'There Goes My Babe' - a cover of an early Neil Young composition.

Look for the new LP out June 10th, 2014 - "We tried to do meaningful songs that people may not have ever heard, a lot of 'em are lesser known songs" said Miriam when I spoke to her a few weeks ago. All of the songs are covers except for one, and all of you will be surprised at her choice of material, which is perfect for her style, and her voice such as the Ramones 'Questioningly' and Reparata & The Delron's 'I'm Nobody's Baby Now' which Miriam makes sound more like a Shangri-La's song.

Crayons to Perfume is coming soon to WFMU's Ichiban Soul, hosted by Glynis Ward, DJ girlgroupgirl  
thanks to Rare Meat for the footage!

Freddie King Shows Us What It's All About

King Freddy Shows Us What It's All About

Freddy Cannon! (From Village Of The Giants, 1965).

Vocal Group 45 of the Week!

 

 

Service_with_a_Smile!

Trouble In My Arms (MP3)

Johnny & Jonie Mosby  -  Trouble In My Arm

How 'bout a few minutes of ultra-catchy honky-tonk for your Tuesday night?

Run, Run, Run

1 The Who: Run Run Run
2 The Gestures: Run, Run, Run
3 Ronny Douglas: Run, Run, Run
4 Thom Kelling: Run Run Run
5 The Supremes: Run, Run, Run
6 Giorgio & Marco's Men: Run Run
7 Third Rail: Run, Run, Run
8 Norma Tanega: Run, On The Run
9 The Mourning Reign: Run Run Run
10 The McCoys: Runaway
11 Flanagan & Allen: Run Rabbit Run
12 Amen Corner: Run, Run, Run
13 The Velvet Underground: Run, Run, Run
14 Yuya Uchida & The Blue Jeans: Run, Run, Run
15 Jo Jo Gunne: Run Run Run
16 Ann Peebles: Run, Run, Run
17 Tim Dandy: Run, Run, Run, Run, Run
18 Tommy James & The Shondells: Run, Run, Baby, Run
19 Delroy Wilson: Run Run
20 Jim Webb: Run, Run, Run
21 Orval Prophet: Run Run Run
22 The Riats: Run Run Run
23 Darlene Love: Run, Run, Runaway
24 Bo Diddley: Run Diddley Daddy
25 Jerry Williams: Run Run Roadrunner
26 Stonewall Jackson: Run
27 The Great Scots: Run, Run For Your Life
28 The Teen Turbans: Didn't He Run
29 The Carousels: The Run-Run
30 The Illusion: Run, Run, Run
31 Yoko Ono: Run, Run, Run
32 Cheater Slicks: Run, Run, Run

RUN RUN RUN

Crayons to Perfume Girls of the Week: The Beat Chics! One Single Wonders

The Beat-Chics released just one double sided swingin' single on Decca Records in 1964. This all-girl group was founded by drummer Chrstine Lee (blonde)in 1964 when she was just 18 years old. Joining her were Moira Page playing saxophone, Mary Cullen on organ, Lesley Arden and Anne Bridgeman on guitar and Una Mellor playing bass.

 In November of 1964 they released the double sider: 'Skinnie Minnie' and 'Now I Know' on Decca, featuring Jimmy Page on lead guitar.

Both Jimmy Page and the Beatles? Oh, Now I Know (wink wink!!)

Crayons to Perfume is coming soon to WFMU's Ichiban Soul, hosted by Glynis Ward, DJ girlgroupgirl

Crayons to Perfume Girl of The Week: TAMMY! The Puerto Rician Dynamo

Tammy (no last name known) was a child recording star in her homeland of Puerto Rico. She has two LP's and a half of her own (one half shared with Julio Angel, the Puerto Rican equivellent of Paul Anka in the 60's). The records are a mixture of popular songs, some traditional music and amazingly rockin' tunes.


 I think her best is 'Perro Que Ladra (no muerde)' - a dog that barks does not bite - (pretty much a cover of  'Shaggy Dog').

'Una Chica Ye Ye' is another goodie!

I found the 2 a Go Go LP in a thrift store for .25 cents on my honeymoon, I'd say it was a pretty good deal.

Crayons to Perfume is coming soon to WFMU's Ichiban Soul, hosted by Glynis Ward, DJ girlgroupgirl

 

 

Jim Burgett on the ORO Label

When one thinks about great rockabilly records of the late 50's & early 60's, more often than not "Lake Tahoe" does not come to mind.

But that's exactly where Jim Burgett & his band first set up shop at the American Legion hall in 1957.

The boys gained enough notoriety on the scene that Columbia came calling, and in 1961 Burgett released the spooky minor-key ballad "The Living Dead" b/w "Let's Investigate."

After this, Burgett returned to cut two discs on the Modesto, California ORO label that released his first single "I Believe In You" b/w "Live It Up" in February 1960.

These recording sessions produced his arguably most well-known track "Scene Of The Crime" b/w "I Wouldn't Dare" in 1963. The same year saw the release of "Pauline" b/w "This Is The Night."

Burgett's only other major label 45rpm release was " Now I Taste The Tears" b/w "Innocence Is To Blame" on MGM in 1969.

Jim Burgett now lives in Las Vegas, where he still performs on a regular basis.

Vocal Group 45 of the Week!

You_Gotta_Be_Bohemian!

 

WFMU Record Fair

Fool's Paradise Saturday 1-3

See you this weekend at the WFMU record fair!!!  Come by Sunday for Rock, Soul, Hillbilly AND Western LPs and 45s priced to move!

Sun Ra Centenary

Today, May 22, marks the 100th anniversary of the day that the immortal Sun Ra first arrived on Earth. To celebrate his centenary, here is a collection of links that will both entertain long time acolytes of the intergalactic one as well as inform those who are just discovering this titan for the ages.

First up, you can listen to last Sunday's broadcast on WNYC when David Garland welcomed Michael D. Anderson (aka the Good Doctor and Dr Bop) and WFMU's Irwin Chusid to talk about the legacy of Sun Ra and the new reissues of his music that the two of them are overseeing. An informative and entertaining hour of music and conversation that should not be missed.

WNYC: Musical Messages from Saturn: 100 years of Sun Ra

Type "Sun Ra" in the search box on YouTube and you will find an endless supply of music and video clips. But here are a few longer videos that will give you a fuller picture of his singular genius.

Sun Ra: Brother from Another Planet is a one hour BBC documentary from 2005 directed by Don Letts, an excellent overview of his life and career, featuring interviews with Wayne Kramer, John Sinclair, Archie Shepp, members of the Sun Ra Arkestra, and many others along with lots of vintage performance footage.

Sun-Ra: A Joyful Noise is a 1980 jazz film by Robert Mugge documenting performances by Sun Ra and His Arkestra in Philadelphia, Washington D.C., and Baltimore, along with interviews and rehearsal footage.

Sun Ra: Prophet of Music is a half-hour episode of Detroit Black Journal, originally broadcast on WTVS television in 1981.

Space is the Place, filmed in 1972 and released in 1974, is Sun Ra's feature film. An utterly unique blend of science fiction, surrealism, comedy and jazz, Space is the Place is essential viewing for fans of Sun Ra's music and psychotronic movie fans alike. (edit: upon revisiting this post a year later, the YouTube link I originally provided has been removed. I have replaced it with a version of the movie which is split into six parts, below is Part 1).

All of this audio and video should be plenty to keep everyone busy on this most holy of days. But to continue keeping up on all news Sun Ra, bookmark the Sun Ra Arkive and follow it on Facebook. I also recommend a new paperback published by the good folks over at KICKS Books, This Planet is Doomed: The Science Fiction Poetry of Sun Ra, collected from tape recordings and transcriptions culled from the Sun Ra Archives. 

Sun Ra left this astral plane on May 30, 1993, but there is no doubt that he is still out there, perhaps living on his native Saturn, watching us from afar, or more likely zigzagging across the universe and spreading his message to interplanetary life in galaxies we mere mortals don't even know about yet. 

Vocal Group 45 of the Week!

 

 



Bohemian!

The Liquid Guitar of Vinnie Bell

1 Ferrante & Teicher: Midnight Cowboy
2 Frankie Calen: (Help Me) Telstar
3 Diane Renay: The Company You Keep
4 The Chanters: Bongo, Bongo
5 Bob Crewe: An Angel Is Love
6 The Moons: Gammera
7 The Baby Dolls: Now That I've Lost You
8 Kai Winding feat. Kenny Burrell: Surf Bird
9 The Cheese Cakes: Heading For A Heartbreak
10 Ichabod & The Cranes: Supermarket Of Love
11 The Vampires: The Creep
12 Johnny Thunder: Horror Show
13 The Crystals: My Place
14 Tracey Dey: Any Kind Of Love
15 The Tymes: Street Talk
16 Carmen Taylor: My Son
17 The Archies: The Weatherbee
18 Frankie Valli: Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You
19 The Bob Crewe Generation: The Black Queen's Beads
20 Johnny Cymbal: Robinson Crusoe On Mars
21 Gene Pitney: The Last Two People On Earth
22 Robert Mosley: Goodbye My Lover Goodbye
23 Bobby Shad & The Bad Men: I Want You Back
24 Rita Pavone: Don't Tell Me Not To Love You
25 Declaration Of Independence: Morning Glory Man
26 The Cinderellas: Please Don't Wake Me
27 Reparata & The Delrons: Saturday Night Didn't Happen
28 Quadrangle: She's Too Familiar Now
29 Errma Franklin: Abracadabra
30 Eddie Rambeau: The Train
31 The Cherry People: Don't Hang Me Up Girl
32 Ferrante & Teicher: Lay Lady Lay
33 Gene Pitney: Just One Smile
34 The Shangri: Las: Past, Present And Future
35 Teri Thornton: Why Don't You Love Me
36 Tracey Dey: I Won't Tell
37 Gene Stridel: Where Does That Leave Me
38 Shirley Ellis: I See It, I Like It, I Want It
39 Steve Karmen: Let's Get Down To It
40 The Heatwaves: Nowhere To Go
41 The Unclaimed: Memories Of Green Eyes
42 Diane Christian: It Happened One Night
43 The Brass Ring: Rosemary's Baby
44 Donna Lynn: When Your Heart Rings, Answer (Don't Hang Up On Love)
45 Vinnie Bell: Shindig

VINNIE BELL

Wolf Call

Mrs. Illinois Jacquet hits the dance floor with the big bad wolf, via JET magazine, 1958.

Earl Washington  -  Wolf Call  (2:07)

The Rainmaker: Some Songs of Harry Nilsson

1 Little Richard: Groovy Little Suzy

2 Mary Hopkin: The Puppy Song

3 Micky Dolenz: Daybreak

4 Ella Fitzgerald: Open Your Window

5 New Christy Minstrels: A Travelin' Man

6 Modern Folk Quartet: This Could Be The Night

7 Mike Melvoin: One

8 The Mystic Moods Orch.: I Guess The Lord Must Be In New York City

9 The Ronettes: Paradise

10 Tom Northcott: 1941

11 Patty Pravo: 1941

12 Kenny Everett: It's Been So Long

13 Kenny Everett: Without Her

14 Lulu: Without Him

15 Collage: Story Of Rock And Roll

16 The Yardbirds: Ten Little Indians

17 Cryan' Shames: Rainmaker

18 Rosyln Kind: (I Guess) The Lord Must Be In New York City

19 David Cassidy: The Puppy Song

20 The Shangri-Las: Paradise

21 The Turtles: The Battle Of The Bands

22 Astrud Gilberto: Without Him

23 The Ronettes: Here I Sit

24 Tom Northcott: The Rainmaker

25 Pandemonium: 1941

26 Astrud Gilberto: Wailing Of The Willow

27 Herb Alpert: Without Her

28 Eternal Triangle: I Guess The Lord Must Be In New York City

THE RAINMAKER

Vocal Group 45 of the Week!

 

Little_Richard!





Vocal Group 45 of the Week!

 

AY_SI_SI!

Shangri-Las, 1966

The Shangri-Las in Valdosta, Georgia, 1966.

Via the Valdosta State University's Flickr page.

The World's Most Popular Instrument

Billboard magazine ad, 10/14/1966.

Pure Country

Here's the Billboard magazine (10/08/1966) promoting Johnny Dollar's then-new 45rpm recording of Windburn. What tickles me is the reference to "pure country" which is perhaps a little surprising in light of the fact that the recording was positively saturated with the sounds of country fuzztone guitar!  And that is, to be sure, a fine thing.

Johnny Dollar - Windburn

Gin & Bourbon

Gin And Bourbon
My Babe

Here's both sides of a solidly rockin' mid-1960s effort from the Atlanta suburb of Marietta, Georgia.  The top side's a booze-oriented tribute to / rip-off of The Newbeats' big 1964 hit Bread And Butter and the flip's the Little Walter standard.

Vocal Group 45 of the Week!

 

Bottle_Up_and_Go!

King Solomon

Solomon Burke, 1964.  Via the JET magazine archives.

I Put A Spell On You

make animated gifs like this at MakeAGif

make animated gifs like this at MakeAGif

The Neighborhood Vs. Wynonie Harris

Here are a couple of news items via the Jet magazine archives (02/24/1955 and 11/03/1955, respectively) detailing wildman Wynonie Harris's clashes with touchy neighbors in Brooklyn and Long Island.

I'd give just about anything to see a photo of the flashing sign on his Long Island lawn reading "The World's Greatest Blues Singer Lives Here."  As the great Dizzy Dean once said, "it ain't bragging if you can do it."

Below: Wynonie Harris, via ACE records.

Vocal Group 45 of the Week!

 

 

Let's_Do_The_Hunch!

 

Happy Record Store Day!

Harvey Pekar (and not R. Crumb as I originally said), via Kicks magazine.  Thanks to The In Crowd for setting me straight in the comments.

UPDATE: Third and final try...what we see here is R. Crumb's artwork, accompanying a story by Harvey Pekar.  Thanks to Matt Fiveash for illuminating me.

Vocal Group 45 of the Week!

Aw_Aw_Baby!

Sly Stone

Via Tumbler (This Isn't Happiness).

Vocal Group 45 of the Week!

 

Chickie_Um_Bah!

Vocal Group 45 of the Week!

 

Oo_Wee_Baby!

The Iceman Cometh To Atlanta

Jerry Butler, St. John & The Cardinals and Grover Mitchell at Atlanta's Kitten's Korner, Februrary, 1968.

Things could be far, far worse.

Slim Gaillard suits up for blast-off, 1953

Photo by Isaac Sutton, via the Jet magazine archives.

Vocal Group 45 of the Week!

Q_Bop_She_-_Bop

Black Sand Beach