News

What’s going on? Cheers to you for reading our newsletter. We appreciate it and always hope that you find something new and/or cool to you.

As I write this week, it is with a sore arm after getting my Covid booster and flu shot. Hopefully I don’t get knocked down like I did with the previous booster. So far so good, although the symptoms probably won’t kick in until tomorrow. I’m sure I’ll be okay.

With the newsletter coming out on Monday now and our submission deadline on Thursday, we are somewhat writing for the future for our staff picks, particularly if we have anything topical to talk about. Often the holiday or occasion has passed by the time you guys get to read and that is going to be the case this week with my pick. This coming Sunday marks the high point of the Diwali or Divali (each is correct) festival that is celebrated throughout India and the world. The Festival Of Lights is primarily a Hindu religious festival, but variations are celebrated by other faiths. If you are from India or live in a community with folks from that part of the world, you will be more than familiar with Diwali and have seen the lights and decorations that go up and most likely attended a typical feast of food that is served in people’s homes. I was raised with different faith and traditions, but have always tried to appreciate and respect those of other cultures. Certainly not as a cultural tourist, yuk, but as someone who wants to be a world citizen. On our radio show Worldy, Matt and I have dedicated past shows to the festival by playing some of our favorite Bollywood soundtracks and sitar-based music. We plan to do something similar this week.

Rather timely, one of our customers recently sold us some records and amongst them were a few Bollywood soundtrack LPs. Not all were great, and the condition was less than stellar, but I did find a couple that had some cool sounds on them. The pick of the bunch, though, was the soundtrack to the 1981 film Armaan with music composed by the legendary Bappi Lahiri. To even the casual fan of Bollywood and Indian music, he is almost a household name. Entering the industry in the early 1970s, he soon became one of the most prodigious producers and artists in Bollywood, earning himself the nickname The Disco King due to his extensive use of synthesizers and incorporating the current en vogue western disco sounds into his music scores.

Bappi Lahiri was so popular that in the 1980s even the Guinness Book Of World Records acknowledged him for, up to then, having scored over 180 songs for 33 different films. He was quite the character, and was famous not only for his music but also his appearance, always looking flash and wearing lots of gold.

Almost all the music he scored for films was for nightclub scenes and dance numbers. Not too many slow ballads in his repertoire, although there are a couple on the Armaan soundtrack. He was also a singer himself and is often the featured vocalist on many of the songs he wrote for the movies. I haven’t seen this film, but the cover art definitely caught my eye and told me that there might be something cool on here. Two girls dressed sexily, dancing together superimposed over an image of what looks like a desolate snow-covered mountain. That probably makes sense if you have seen the film.

On listening to the record, the first track, Ramba Ho-Ho-Ho, Samba Ho-Ho-Ho is the money cut. A cool mash up of Donna Summer’s I Feel Love and Euro disco hitmakers The Gibson Brothers’ If You Should Go. The latter tune I had to look up and listen to, as someone on Discogs had mentioned it. They were right. Anyway, it’s a fun tune and should go down well mixed in with other similar sounds. On side two, the record begins with another fun cut called Mere Jaesi Haseena, which features some interesting synth sounds and percussion. Unfortunately, this copy has a couple of skips at the beginning of the song, although it does play through. Oddly, for a producer who preferred mostly upbeat productions, the rest of the record is more in the slower ballad territory.

So, not an amazing record and probably not the best example of Bollywood soundtracks or the work of the producer, but a fun find and worth it for the cover and the first songs on each side. Chosen with the topicality in mind. Thanks for reading and happy Diwali to you.

See you next time. Cheers - Dom

What’s up Sorry Staters? Shit, it’s been so long since I wrote anything for the newsletter. Whether that’s a good or bad thing, I’ll leave for you to decide. I do try to pass on my enthusiasm for good music and hopefully that comes across regardless of how eloquent.

So, since the last time we met here so much has happened. I was finally able to make the great trip back home to England and Scotland to see my mum, my sister and her family and my aunt and my long-lost cousins. It was a magical month, and I had a great time. It had been way too long since I had seen my loved ones and some of the places that I grew up around. It was a bit of a head fuck to be honest, being away for so long and back in a land and culture I hadn’t experienced for almost a decade. A lot has changed in that time, but a lot has remained the same. It felt good to be back and my batteries were recharged. A lot of the time was spent walking dogs along beaches and country paths and honestly, I couldn’t have been happier. My mum lives a mile from the sea and on the edge of the New Forest, a beautiful part of Southern England, so there’s plenty of great places for nice walks and I surely don’t have to tell you how gorgeous the Scottish Highlands and coastlines are. Growing up, I used to spend every summer holiday up there and the experience shaped me in so many ways. I was very emotional when it came time to leave to say the least. I must make sure it’s not so long before I return next time.

Believe it or not I didn’t do much record shopping and only visited a few spots. The best of which was one in my very own hometown of New Milton in Hampshire. An ex Royal Navy man and punk called Simon has a fabulous shop in the back of an antique and collectors’ emporium. His place was small, but not an inch was wasted. All killer and no filler titles and in top shape. He wasn’t giving stuff away and his prices were appropriate for top shelf items, but there were plenty of great affordable records in there. I couldn’t fit LPs into my luggage, so resisted the temptation on a few things, but did end up going through some of his singles and ended up buying a few picture sleeve 45s and bringing them back here to Sorry State. Some of you who came to shop during the anniversary festival snatched up most of them and I was happy to see them go to good homes. Just cheap and cheerful stuff, but you don’t often see UK singles over here.

Now that I have mentioned it, I must talk about the Sorry State Shop 10th Anniversary Festival. Wow! Simply fantastic. What an amazing experience. Such fun. So cool having so many incredible bands and punks in town. Thank you, thank you to everyone who played, worked and partied with us. Thank you to all that came by the store during the weekend and especially on Saturday when Jeff filled the bins with punk banger after punk banger. So many great records. Big shout out to him for making that happen. What a guy. He really worked so hard on making the festival a success and of course played in several of the bands throughout the weekend. And worked the store the day after. A true punk warrior.

The same can be said about Usman. I can’t tell you how much I love and respect these guys. Usman has the energy of a thousand Energizer bunnies and is still out on the road with our friends from Italy, Golpe. God bless him.

I love my brothers and sisters here at Sorry State so much and they all worked so hard preparing for the festival whilst I was away. I felt bad about being gone for so long, but contributed some ideas and did my best to pitch in and get up to speed once I returned. For my part, I of course worked the store and did get to play some records between bands as the DJ for the shows at Kings. Big shout out to Kelcy for her usual stellar job running sound and the bar tenders who looked after everyone.

Naturally, the biggest thank you must go to our illustrious leader, the Lord Daniel, the Doctor, the Professor, the coolest and kindest guy on the planet who created all of this in the first place. I’m honored to be a small part of the Sorry State world and so massive thanks to him for everything he does, big and small, every single day. I’m so glad the festival went off so well and it really warmed the cockles of my heart to see Daniel having so much fun and enjoying being around his people. It certainly was a terrific gathering of the tribes and hopefully something that might happen again. Cheers again to everyone involved.

Now that we are back to normal? Are we ever? There’s always something happening. We are still celebrating Halloween, All Saints and Day of The Dead as I write and before we know what we’ll be talking about Thanksgiving and Black Friday Record Store Day releases. However, there are loads of new releases and reissues of older gems that are already here in the store that we can talk about. Where to start? The mini newsletters of the past couple of weeks have highlighted a few standouts. We are all fans of Institute here at SSR, some longer than others. I’m still catching up on the back catalogue, but their latest titled Ragdoll Dance is a winner. If you loved member Mose(s) Brown’s side project Peace De Resistance as much as we did, then you’ll find lots to enjoy on Ragdoll Dance.

Another band whose previous releases I am catching up on is The Serfs. They have just released their third LP on Trouble in Mind and it is excellent. From Cincinnati, Ohio, they play a cool blend of synth-punk and industrial leaning electro sounds. The first one or two tracks are more guitar based punk songs, not a million miles away from the type of thing Institute are doing, but by third track Beat Me Down the electro side of the band takes over. There’s some really nice synth sounds on that song and next one Spectral Analysis. That vibe continues on side two, and for DJ’s playing to a more progressive dance floor they should find some new faves here. Songs Club Deuce and Electric Like An Eel caught my ear. Good stuff from these guys. Check them out.

Whilst we’re in the synth mindset and if that’s your bag then you should check out a nifty new compilation called Yu Wave. It features long lost tracks recorded in the former Yugoslavia during the early 1980s. Lovingly put together with informative liner notes (why such a small font though?) by the Castra label, there are gems a-plenty on here. Nice minimal synth-pop and new wave goodies that I am still familiarizing myself with, but will be dipping into for our Worldy radio show. It’s so cool that records and recordings (often only on tapes) like these are getting wider recognition. There really is still so much great music from around the world that is only recently getting heard and appreciated by us the modern audience. Pretty cool for us.

I’ve been loving how much new music we have been getting in, but really dig being turned on to older stuff that I was unfamiliar with. Perhaps I should have known better, but you can’t keep up with everything. Case in point, I wasn’t aware of Japanese band Slicks from the 90s, but was enjoying a used copy we had of a compilation of their records. Very Sex Pistols influenced, and the production is clearly 1990s, but as someone who lived through that era, not a bad thing at all. I liked what these guys were doing in the same way that I enjoyed another 90s era band that Jeff and I were playing recently, The Briefs. Their Hit After Hit LP is a lot of fun and worth checking out if you are not familiar. But don’t take my word; read Jeff’s pick.

What I would like to recommend to you in the spirit of lost treasures and mentioning Japanese punk bands is the reissue of INU: Don’t Eat Food! LP. Again, lovingly reissued with liner notes and photos by label Mesh Key Records, this is a must listen to anyone interested in the Japanese scene and great post-punk sounds. Originally released in 1981 by the final incarnation of the short-lived band, the album is touted as being one of the greatest Japanese punk albums of all time, and yet has remained almost unknown by the rest of the world. Unless you have an encyclopedic knowledge of Japanese punk like some of the Sorry State staff, that is. I obviously had never heard or seen the record, so have been loving getting to know it these past couple of weeks. I don’t want to regurgitate copy taken from other reviews, but suffice to say it lives up to its reputation. The band came from Osaka and the same scene that Aunt Sally came out of, so if you have been intrigued by Daniel’s love of Aunt Sally and Phew and his great writing on those records you should probably add Don’t Eat Food to your playlist.

The reissue sounds great and again comes with terrific liner notes, lyrics and photos. Very informative. This is the sound of a young band, out of step with the mainstream and forging their own path. Leader and songwriter Kou Machida was still a teenager, as were the band, but he was writing clever and witty lyrics and singing them in the distinctive local dialect, deliberately going against the grain. You’ve got to love characters like this.

I’m the worst person to articulate properly what a record sounds like and perhaps Doctor D can break down the musical aspects of the songs in a way that you can hear the music through his words, but the record is a punk record, post-punk/new wave, being strictly more accurate and will no doubt please many of you out there if you aren’t hip already. I liked the tracks Dumdum Bullet and Old Man, Old Woman to name two. It’s a grower though, and repeated listening is revealing the nuances and new favorites. Worth investigating for sure.

Okay, that’s enough blather from me, although I feel there’s so much more to talk about. Thanks for taking time to read, thanks for supporting us and thanks for loving good music.

We love you. Cheers – Dom

Hey there everyone! Thanks for clicking on our newsletter and taking a read. We hope you are doing well and are getting excited about all the cool stuff going on in the world of music and particularly here at SSR. We have so many brilliant things to share with you. New releases, re-releases and, of course, the Sorry State Festival coming up next month. That will be upon us before we know it and will be a weekend to remember. Check all the details elsewhere here in the newsletter and get your tickets and travel plans sorted.

Talking about travel plans, I am on the verge of leaving for my trip back to the UK and I am a mix of anxious nerves and excitement. It’s been ten years since I was home, and in the meantime I have barely left Raleigh or NC, let alone the country. My head is spinning. I’ll be back for SSR Fest, though. While away, I’ll miss the Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival and the Bluegrass Festival here in town but was fortunate to be here for this past weekend’s Hopscotch Festival, which was an absolute blast. Kudos to all involved in making this little fest such a success. As with any festival, you don’t always get to see everyone you want to, but you often end up seeing something that you weren’t familiar with that blows you away. On the latter point, I was so glad that I caught spiritual free jazz group Irreversible Entanglements. They were amazing and we should be stocking their new record very soon.

I had to man the fort here at the shop whilst ESG played, but Daniel went along to represent Sorry State and reported back how good they were. The classic hip-hop element was very strong this year with Digable Planets, Kool Keith, Denzel Curry and Prince Paul all performing. On the country music side of things, I caught a little of Margo Price’s set. She’s one of the fewer new country artists that I have followed, and it was cool seeing her live. Tight, pro band backing her too. However, for me, the highlight of the weekend was having my wig blown off by the sheer volume and power of Dinosaur Jr. They were magnificent, and I loved every second of their killer set. Next to My Bloody Valentine, the loudest group I have witnessed. I’ve been fortunate enough to have seen them a few times over the years, as well as some of the J. Mascis solo projects and collaborations, and although I won’t front and say I am a super fan, I will say that Dinosaur Jr. were one of the new breed of American bands that I got into when I began spending more time this side of the pond in the late 80s. Them and Fugazi were door openers to a whole new world to me at the time. The UK scene was a little flat around that time, with shoegaze just beginning and Britpop a few years away. Everything coming out of the US, rock and hip-hop, seemed much more interesting. To my ears anyway.

Dinosaur Jr. don’t require any deep dive from me here as I am sure you are fans or at least familiar with them, but I will say that it was beyond dope seeing them again and they played a lot of the “hits,” including finishing their set with their version of The Cure’s Just Like Heaven, one of my favorite covers even with the sudden ending. A tough record to DJ if you aren’t ready. I still have my 12” of that song, which was a hit back in the UK when released, and it came with a cool etched B-side. Worth noting about the show was the equipment set up. Gear heads will know more about it than I do, but I believe J was playing through four Marshall stacks with vintage heads and was even using a twin reverb at ear level for a monitor. It was loud, but in an awesome way. For the exact set up, I’ll refer you to Jeff or our good friend Mike, who were both there and know all about this type of stuff. It was impressive, that’s all I can say.

All told, a fun but busy and hectic weekend, which also included a little bit of festival magic for me. I ran into friends I hadn’t seen in years, and we got to hang out and that really capped the weekend off. Good times.

Not exactly a “staff pick” this week, but I hope that you’ll forgive me. My mind is overflowing with way too much stuff right now. If nothing else, maybe I’ll inspire one of you to pull out an old Dinosaur Jr. record and give it a blast.

Cheers everyone – Dom

Happy Newsletter day Sorry Staters. Even though we have switched our drop day to Mondays, we’ve still kept our deadline for our picks to Thursdays, which isn’t anything odd, but writing for the future this week is a little weird. Today, Thursday, is the first day of the Hopscotch Music Festival here in Raleigh and this year’s line-up is particularly strong. I’m hoping that by the time you read this, if you went, you had a killer time. Not even sure who I’ll end up catching, but it doesn’t really matter. Live music. It’s ace.

If you were in town and had a chance to stop by our store and pick up something tasty, thank you. Thank you everyone for your support. You keep the wheels rolling and the lights on, which means that we can keep stocking more new records by more bands and in turn support them.

There’s so much new stuff coming through our store, let alone elsewhere, that it is literally impossible to keep on top of it all. Two examples I would like to use as my picks for you readers this week are the bands Heavenly Blue and Tha Retail Simps. Both bands from Canada and although a little different in sound, both following the long lineage of garage and punk bands that have kept the original spirit of teenage rock ‘n roll alive and well. As someone raised on Pebbles, Back From The Grave and KBD comps, I hear a lot to like in both bands.

Prompted by the recent arrival of the latest Retail Simps record Live On Cool Street and a 45 from Heavenly Blue, I gave a good listen to everything we had by both bands. Retail Simps changed their Tha to Thee and might be adding an extra e with each new release. Very Oh Sees and Headcoats of them. This is the first slice of wax that we have had from Heavenly Blue, carrying their two previous cassette releases. They are out on the Sewercide label whilst the Simps are currently on Total Punk. That should be the end of anyone’s review saying they’re on the Total Punk label. I mean, what can you say? Those guys have a deserved reputation akin to Crypt, Sympathy For The Record Industry, Bomp, Stiff and many other fine labels for high-level quality releases. You almost don’t need to hear it before you buy it. The best compliment one can give a label.

I liked the new Heavenly Blue 45. The simple garage aesthetic of the plain brown sleeve and stamped band logo appealed to me. It looks like an old single from the late sixties or early seventies. Sound wise, the band have added a little fidelity polish to proceedings, but keep to the garage punk of their demo tape, although as Jeff and I listened we wondered whether there was a different vocalist. The singer seemed to be less growly, we thought. Good stuff though. Four tracks, with the first Push On Thru reminding me of a slowed down take on The Wailers’ Out Of Our Tree. Slightly. I can’t tell you too much about the band other than they come from Halifax, Nova Scotia and that you should give them a listen and check ‘em out live if they come to your town or you are in their neck of the woods.

As for Thee Retail Simps? Do you like garage punk? Have you attended a Goner Fest? Do bands like Dead Moon, The Make-Up, Thee Oh Sees, Smirk, Blues Explosion, King Khan & The Shrines float yer boat? If you answered yes to any of those questions, then you probably are already hip to what these guys are doing. For those playing catch up like myself, don’t sweat; we have both their records currently in stock and you should check ‘em out. Two winners I think.

These guys are from Montreal, Canada, but if you told me Memphis, it would make total sense. The music is very much American but with the Euro X factor going on, which makes for an interesting and fun listen. On the latest record, they expand on their sound and throw in a few curve balls. When I was listening, I had to check once or twice to make sure it was the same record. Not that the stylistic changes are so dramatic, but there is more going on than just simple, drunken garage rock. You get some of that for sure, but you also get some clever song writing and mood setters for your money too. Neato packaging too with a poster included.

Whether you are an old school head or not, these guys might well become your new favorite band. Maybe.

Okay, I must finish this and get on with work and then get out and see some music. Thanks for reading. See you next time.

Cheers - Dom

Hey! What’s up everyone? We’ve gone from Memorial Day to Labor Day and another summer is ending. The seasons change as the world turns and we all get another year older. The only thing any of us can’t do is stop, delay or stockpile time. We must make the best of what we are given. Try to leave the world a better place for having been here and hopefully have a few laughs along the way. I’ve been thinking about the passing of time a lot lately and how years can go by one after the other in what seems like the blink of an eye. I’m just a few weeks away from taking my first trip back to the UK in ten years. The last time I went over was for my Dad’s funeral and unfortunately circumstances and finances haven’t allowed me to go back since. It hasn’t been good for me to be honest. Not seeing your family for so long, if you are lucky enough to have one, does a number on you. Thankfully that will all be done with very soon. I can’t wait to see everyone and the ol’ country again. I will be back in time for Sorry State’s ten-year store anniversary and Sorry State Fest though. That’s going to be awesome, and I am so proud to be a part of this beautiful family also.

Another reminder about time flying by was given to me when I came to work on Tuesday and saw that we had got in the Lush reissues. I might have let out a shout of delight when I saw them in the new arrivals section. It’s been tough and expensive finding Lush records, as it is with many 90s vinyl. I have been holding on to my CD copies since buying them when they first came out. Lush were a special band for sure and I was fortunate enough to see them live back in the day. Lumped into the Shoegaze category of bands around at the time, and although from the UK were more popular in the US. That worked out great for me as I was over in America more than Britain during the 1990s and got to see many touring UK bands play smaller venues here. I was working on the ships from the late 80s through the 90s and was in Miami a lot. Back then South Florida had a healthy live music scene. There were a lot of clubs to go see bands at. It seemed like I was always catching something good, although if I remember rightly it was at Lollapalooza that I saw Lush in Miami. Anyway, a great band that made the move from Shoegaze to Britpop successfully with the Lovelife album in 1996 but ended shortly after with the tragic death of drummer Chris Acland. My personal favorite album is probably Spooky from 1991 along with Gala from the previous year. The latter was a compilation made for the US market which combined their debut mini album with single sides and tracks exclusive to that collection. Again, I still have the CD of that release and perhaps one day will score an original vinyl but hopefully it might also get the reissue treatment. We have Spooky, Lovelife and Split in stock currently and they are reasonably priced. So, if you are a longtime fan or just discovering them, now is the time to take the plunge.

As an additional “pick” this week I must give a mention to the limited repress that label Goodbye Boozy gave to the Sick Thoughts 45 from 2021 called Poor Boys b/w Drug Rock. If you missed it the first time around make sure to snag yourself one. That is, if you want two sides of fun, catchy, kick ass rock ‘n roll. This is the type of punk, garage, rock, call it whatever you like, stuff I love best. Although essentially a one-man band, Drew Owen has released a couple of dozen records over the past decade across multiple labels and the easiest comparison would be to the late great Jay Reatard or to someone like Billy Childish. Sick Thoughts play that Oblivions, Carbonas, style of punk garage with a big dash of 70s Heartbreakers and Saints for good measure. You can catch them soon at the upcoming Goner Fest, which seems like the perfect surroundings for this type of sound. In the meantime, snag yourself a copy of the single and make sure to watch the official videos for both tunes. Worth watching.

Okay, back to work. I’ve got boxes and boxes of used records to price. See you here next time or in the store itself if you get a chance. Thanks for reading and supporting us. We really appreciate it. Cheers!

-Dom

Hey there Sorry Staters! It’s been a long hot summer here in North Carolina and the heat hasn’t let up yet. We are doing our best to keep cool and hope that wherever you are in the world things aren’t too bad. Obviously our southern hemisphere readers are in their winter, but certainly know all about scorching summers. Extreme weather events are becoming the norm and yet here in America just this week during their debate, Republican candidates for president to a man all denied climate change was even real or an issue. Shameful and disgusting. The lot of them. But whatever, we all know they’re assholes. Let’s talk about music and records instead. It’s been a minute since we did one of these and honestly evangelizing about music and turning folks on to cool records is what we love to do most here at Sorry State. That and bringing the music to you directly, like when Scarecrow play live.

Talking about Scarecrow playing live, I hope that some of you got a chance to see them play on their recent tour with Vidro. I really enjoyed the show here in Raleigh and was particularly impressed with Vidro from Sweden. We should still have copies of their LP in stock, and I can highly recommend it. Also playing that evening was Yellowcake and Pig City. We missed Pig City as we were closing the shop, but had the pleasure of meeting the bands in the store and took the opportunity to take some copies of records and tapes that both had with them. The Yellowcake tapes sold already, but we do still have copies of the Pig City LP if you would like to support them.

This week I would like to use my space in the newsletter to talk about an artist who in the country music world is a household name, but might be new to some of you reading. His name is John Hartford, and although sadly not with us anymore, left a body of work behind him to guarantee his legendary status for years to come. I’m not sure how many of you punks out there appreciate county, folk and bluegrass music, but if you do, then John Hartford is someone you should investigate in addition to the countless other cool artists and records that come under the country and bluegrass banner. Don’t forget the Ramones played at a place called CBGB & OMFUG, which literally has the name of the music in the name. As I write this, Jeff and I are listening to Rocket to Russia. Everything is connected. LoL.

So, back to John Hartford. His career would take a couple of pages to write about and I would encourage a deeper look at his Wiki page for starters. He was born in New York, raised in St. Louis and moved to Nashville to begin his career in the early 1960s. His early records were in the then current country folk style, but his big break came with a tune called Gentle On My Mind, which he wrote. It became a small hit for him but an even bigger one for Glen Campbell, who heard it and covered it himself and turned the song into an international hit song. Years later, Hartford would credit that early break in financing his whole career and affording him the luxury to experiment and be true to himself as an artist.

Harford was a multi-instrumentalist and could play banjo, fiddle and guitar equally well. He also developed a clogging technique where he would stomp on wood boards to provide his own beat. A true one-man band. His music caught the ear of many as he became popular, and this led to him becoming a regular on the Smothers Brothers TV show and on Glen Campbell’s TV show. A label switch to Warner Brothers and then Flying Fish in the 70s began a run of releases that were far more experimental in their approach to bluegrass and would be later be dubbed as Newgrass. For many, the defining record in his catalogue is one titled Aero-Plane, released in 1971. I have become slightly obsessed with this record recently and was delighted to find it in a collection that we bought a while back. I had a strong feeling that I was going to find a copy and was convinced that there would be one in this collection. Sure enough, in the very last box (out of dozens) that we had been going through, there was a copy. Sweet. I love it when that happens. The main reason that I have fallen in love with this record is for the song Steam Powered Aero-plane, which is just so good and probably the reason why people seek out this particular title. I must thank Rachel (who used to work for us) and John Scott for reviving my interest in country and bluegrass. John Scott introduced me to Billy Strings, a real generational talent btw, and his band cover some John Hartford songs. We listen to Billy Strings live shows while we work and had been enjoying hearing their take on the Aero-Plane song and so it was great to see them perform the song live at one of the shows the band played here in North Carolina recently. There were many other great moments that night in Cary, but that one really made it for me. Kudos to banjo player Billy Failing who sings the song in their sets.

Looking at Discogs, it seems that the Aero-Plane album commands the highest price amongst his albums. His other Warner Brothers record called Morning Bugle, which was released the year after, is also a good record and in demand, but most of his other albums shouldn’t make a big dent in your wallet should you start to seek them out. He recorded over thirty albums throughout his career, so there are lots to find. I’ve managed to score a few so far and have found something cool on all of them. I love Hartford’s voice and his lyrics. He’s a character for sure and supremely smart and talented. Apparently, though, amongst some bluegrass purists, his Newgrass style wasn’t universally appreciated. Their loss I say. However, for most people, his music is something to cherish and celebrate. The more I read about him, the more I like him. He was fascinated with the Mississippi River and the stories through history associated with it, for instance, and recorded a cool record in tribute to it titled Mark Twang. I found this one too, and it’s another good one. Hopefully I’ll come across a couple of those earlier sixties albums soon, but I am extremely happy to snag a copy of Aero-Plane.

Rock ‘n’ Roll and loud guitar music will always rule, but there’s plenty of punk attitude to be found in Bluegrass music, just as there is in other styles. Cumbia is a great example. Remember it’s not your clothes or your haircut that makes you punk. Thanks for reading and your support. Go play some records.

Cheers - Dom

Hi there, how’s your summer going? Apparently, in some parts, there hasn’t been much of a summer so far for you, but down here in North Carolina we are currently chilling with temps in the high 90s and not much change in sight. The good news is that the UPS driver’s union won their dispute and there will now be a/c units in the delivery vans, so they don’t have to drop from heat exhaustion and hopefully the shipments of vinyl they are carrying won’t be exposed to 100+ degrees also. Always a big concern shipping and receiving records in the height of summer. A good time to listen to Billy Bragg’s There’s Power In A Union.

We’ve been keeping busy here at Sorry State with plenty of new and used records coming through the doors each week, but have taken a brief break from writing our staff picks. Not that there hasn’t been plenty to write about. As I type, we are receiving the latest releases from Iron Lung Records and Static Shock Records. I’m curious to hear The Steves singles and am excited to see new ones from The Hazmats and Powerplant. We’re constantly adding good, cool used records to our inventory and have been keeping the store as full as possible and not slowing down on the used new arrivals drops each week. It truly is so satisfying and rewarding seeing good records being appreciated and bought by you, our fantastic customers. We thank you for your continued support.

In a recent social media post, we had the old man of the place (me) with his nose in a pile of books wearing his cheaters. Apparently that made some of you smile, but there were some excellent books in that stack, and with that in mind I thought I would recommend a book for you today. If you are lucky to be taking a summer vacation this year at the beach or somewhere else where the plan is to relax and do very little, you might need something good to read. It’s been a few years since I have had a “vacation”, but I can recall how I used to get through several books during a typical week’s holiday. One decent read that I could recommend to you which I am just finishing up is Music Is History by Questlove with Ben Greenman, published by Abrams Image. It’s an easy, fun and informative read covering the years 1971 to the present in musical history as seen through the eyes of Questlove. Each short chapter covers a year and begins with a bullet point list of the year’s key events and happenings and then has Questlove’s thoughts regarding records that came out that year and how the music and news events connect and affect each other along with plenty of other interesting factoids and asides. The focus is almost entirely on America and the American experience, but that shouldn’t make it any less appealing to folks from other parts of the world. Assuming, that is, that you have more than a passing interest in American history, music and politics and know and care who Questlove is.

I, as a fan of The Roots and Questlove and a resident of America and a lover of music and history found plenty to be amused and informed by.

One of the chapters talks about Michael Jackson’s Thriller album, where there’s an interesting story about how Thomas Dolby almost contributed a cut to the record, but things didn’t work out, so he took the song, Hyperactive, and recorded it himself. Questlove tells it much better, but the real point of the story was how it was around this time in his life that the author was experiencing music directly and not second hand via his parents or from the established gatekeepers telling him what mattered and what was or was not good. I’m just a couple of years older than him and can relate to that emotion. The feeling of discovering music yourself and experiencing things directly as they happen as opposed to reading about the past or watching it told back in a documentary or something. Also, being of age that you could participate in some way was the crucial factor. Being able to claim music, bands, artists as your own.

I’m not as avid a reader as I used to be, and I’ve held on to this book for too long since we were gifted one here at the store from the publishers, and I know Daniel wants to read it also. Our copy came with a doodle graph signed by Questlove, too. Pretty cool. Grab yourself a copy for your beach holiday. Sorry Daniel for holding on to it for so long to miss your beach getaway, but you probably had plenty of other good reads with you, right?

Cheers everyone, enjoy your summer and stay cool.

-Dom

Hello guys, we hope we find you well as we close out another week here with the ol’ Sorry State Newsletter. As always, thank you for reading and hopefully you come away with some good steers towards cool and fun shit. As music lovers, we come to you again with heavy hearts saddened by more passings in the world of music. This week we lost Astrud Gilberto and Tony McPhee, the former the world’s forever girl from Ipanema and the latter the UK blues guitar hero who gave Peter Green a run for his money. I hate turning the newsletter into an obituary and quite honestly there are far more eloquent tributes being made than I could ever come up with, but damn it sucks losing more great artists and makes you feel old and think about your own mortality. Certainly, in this old geezer’s case.

Astrud Gilberto helped bring the sound of bossa nova to the world and was key to my entry into the music of Brazil. A friend of ours here at Sorry State posted on his social media a story of his introduction to Astrud via the exchanging of mixtapes with an old girlfriend and how hearing her voice and music changed his life and had such a profound effect on him. That’s the power of music. Gilberto cut a slew of fun, bright, romantic and groovy records throughout the 1960s and into the 70s. Mostly sticking to the jazzy bossa format, but adding in some interesting songs and sounds along the way. She always had top writers, arrangers, producers and musicians contributing to her records, making each one different and desirable. I dig them all, but really like the ones she cut at the end of the sixties most. Namely, I Haven’t Got Anything Better To Do from 1969, which sports a close-up shot of Astrud with a tear in her eye and from the following year, September 17, 1969. These were both produced and arranged by Brooks Arthur, whose New York City-based studio Century Sound would see everyone from Neil Diamond to Van Morrison record there. Arthur was a huge talent. He could write quality songs, sing them and record them in equal measure, and often did all three at once. In the 1970s he would have hits with singer Janis Ian and then later went on to have success with recording comedy albums, notably with Robin Williams. He sadly passed away last year.

On these two Gilberto albums, the sound is a little more “mature” in nature with elements of melancholy in particular on I Haven’t Got Anything Better To Do. There are also some top tunes. The song Beginnings from September 17, 1969 is a banger and a great start to the record. Her record on Perception from a couple of years later called Now is a good one too, and she is credited as producer. The opener on that one called Zigy Zigy Za is a fun tune and makes me smile. Again, she is assisted by a who's who of talented musicians too long to list here. Check these records out if you dig her and need more than The Girl From Ipanema.

Tony McPhee might not be known to as many around the world as Astrud Gilberto, but his contribution to music is massive. His group The Groundhogs were active across five decades, although he was the only constant member. A killer guitarist who alongside others like Peter Green brought fresh life into blues music and was instrumental in the blues boom of the sixties. His group backed John Lee Hooker and Champion Jack Dupree on their tours. Whilst recording a single with Dupree, McPhee was given the nickname T.S. which stood for “Tough Shit” by producer Mike Vernon and at his suggestion added the initials to his name to make him sound more blues like. If you like the early Fleetwood Mac records, then you’ll enjoy the early Groundhogs albums too. The album that most people know by them is Split, featuring the song Cherry Red. That is a good album and recommended. As too are the albums proceeding it. Thank Christ For The Bomb is a good one and so is Who Will Save The World? The Mighty Groundhogs which came out the year after Split. McPhee maintained an everyman’s approach to music and life, never playing overly complicated parts or acting and looking flash. It’s no wonder that the likes of Mark E. Smith and Peter Hook admired him. Over the years, it seems more and more artists have claimed McPhee and The Groundhogs as inspiration and influence for their own music. Although his solo records and later group works might not have reached critical and commercial highs, those from the sixties and early seventies are all close to essential listening, in my opinion, and you are highly encouraged to dive in and explore.

Lastly, before I go, I would like to steer you all towards a cool reissue that we recently stocked from the good folks at Iron Lung Records. It’s the 1981 single Living Underground from an Australian group called The Vacant Lot. I dig it. Four very distinct tracks that straddle the Punk, Post Punk divide. Check out the story and our take here. John Scott was spinning it the other day and at first I thought he was changing the record between songs as the sound varies so much. The last song, Multinationals, I recognized but couldn’t place. Turns out it was on the compilation Bloodstains Across Australia. I love the keyboard on this song. Those into KBD type stuff are probably already hip to this one, but if you aren’t, go check it. Being an obscure release, naturally originals go for three figures, so a big thank you to Iron Lung for this affordable reissue. Any plans to do a stateside issue of the group’s recent album?

Okay, that’s all I got for you. Back to work. Thanks for reading and supporting us and loving your music as much as we do. See you next time.

Cheers - Dom

Hey there everyone, I hope all is well with you. Thanks for tuning in again and checking out the ‘ol newsletter. We appreciate it.

Like any head into music, I love witnessing live music. That’s where it’s at for sure. Seeing, hearing and feeling great music performed in person is the best. In recent years, that has been something that I haven’t been doing a lot of and it sucks. Partly due to the covid years and not wanting to be in crowds again too soon, but mostly down to my old broken-down body not being able to take it anymore. My legs, knees and feet are usually giving me a lot of pain by the end of any given day and so standing for long periods of time, especially in place, amongst a crowd is verging on agony now for me. As a result, I barely go out much at all now let alone go to shows and stuff. I’m saying this not for pity but as a lead into my pick for you all this week. Because I have not been attending shows, I have been going through my record collection and spinning some of the live albums I have. That and watching concert footage on TV and streaming live audio via the internet. Here at Sorry State, whenever I work with John Scott, we typically play at least one live show during a shift. It has started to become our ritual to fire up his Nugs account during the last hour and play a Billy Strings show or something similar.

One live album that I did pull from my jazz shelf this past weekend was the fabulous double by Grant Green titled Live At The Lighthouse, on Blue Note Records from 1972. What a killer record and thoroughly recommended for fans of Jazz, Soul and Funk music. To paraphrase Big Daddy Digs, this one is so hot it smokes across all four sides; you’ll need a fire extinguisher standing by.

Jazz fans will not need any introduction to ace guitar slinger Grant Green, but if you are new to him, then this record is a fine place to begin. This was his last album for the great Blue Note label, one that he had been with since the early sixties, with a couple of excursions to other labels here and there, and for which he had cut nearly two dozen albums. These records are great, but many have argued that Green really excelled in the live environment. Perhaps a case that could be made for many a performer. Two years previously to the Lighthouse session, Blue Note released another album by Green recorded live at a club in New Jersey called the Cliché Lounge. This, Alive! is a great record too, capturing Green and fellow musicians in fine form. You really can feel the atmosphere of the room in the recording. Soul Jazz in its purest and simplest form. Funky and groovy and current but with the jazz and blues roots upfront instead of perhaps the new fusion and psychedelic elements that were now becoming in vogue. Highlight of that set for me being the cover of the Don Covay tune Sookie Sookie that rockers Steppenwolf helped popularize a couple of years previously. On Alive!, Green is supported by the ace drumming of Idris Muhammed and by Ronnie Foster on keys. Those names alone should be enough to convince you of the pedigree of the record.

However, in my opinion, and I don’t think I am alone in saying this, Live At The Lighthouse is even better than Alive! Two years later and a change of coasts and venue and with a different line up, albeit just as talented. This time around the drummer’s stool is occupied by Greg Williams, a young cat at the beginning of his career who started with Lou Donaldson and in the same year as the Lighthouse session would play drums on Jack McDuff’s great Heatin’ System album, ably demonstrating his ability to keep it funky. Shout outs and mentions must be given to all the musicians, so on vibes was Gary Coleman who had played on dates for everyone from David Axelrod to Quincy Jones. On organ was Shelton Laster who gets a writing credit for the tune Flood In Franklin Park. Bass duties were filled by Wilton Felder of the Jazz Crusaders. On tenor and soprano sax was Claude Bartee who had previously been playing with Pucho And The Latin Soul Brothers. Lastly, special mention must be made for Bobbye Porter Hall on percussion. A native of Detroit who played, often uncredited, on countless Motown recordings alongside the Funk Brothers in Detroit and the Wrecking Crew in Los Angeles. She changed the spelling of her first name to distinguish herself as a female musician. Her bongo skills can be heard on Marvin Gaye’s Inner City Blues (Makes Me Wanna Holler) for one example. She has played with everyone from Marvin Gaye to Bill Withers, Gene Clark to Carole King and many, many more.

Green selected his bandmates well, and together they put on a barnstormer of a performance for the lucky folks crammed into the Lighthouse for these recordings. The Lighthouse is an historic venue that started as a restaurant and then became a bar in the 1940s and beginning in the 1950s a venue for jazz music. Located at 30 Pier Avenue in Hermosa Beach, it became a hub for the burgeoning West Coast Jazz scene and a must play venue for touring musicians. It’s still there, although it’s added Café to its name. Years ago, after I left college, I flew to California with a view to try and get a job and stayed in Hermosa Beach with a friend of my old boss. The job didn’t pan out, but I was staying just up the street from Pier Avenue and the famous Lighthouse venue and would walk past often and did catch a show there. I was just beginning my journeys into jazz back then so wasn’t hip to the history of the club necessarily, but it was cool to have been there.

On the recordings, each tune is introduced by announcers Hank Stewart and Ed Hamilton and throughout the audience plays their part also. You hear quite a few shouts of “Right On!” and rightfully so. There isn’t a dull moment on any of the four sides of the album, but I really dig their interpretation of the Donald Byrd tune Fancy Free along with the workout they give to the song Jan Jan from The Fabulous Counts. Both stellar performances worth the price of admission alone. This is top-notch stuff, funky and groovy, right on and just plain fun. Green’s guitar playing here is some of the best you’ll ever hear. With the band cooking behind him, his solos are sublime. Funky, bluesy and driving, yet simple and always soulful. He doesn’t need to be flash and doesn’t hog the spotlight, giving plenty of room for all the musicians to soar on their solos. Almost all the numbers are stretched out to ten plus minutes, but you could easily see and want them to keep going on longer. Reading a few reviews from then and now, it seems that in not following the rush to fusion territory this record has perhaps aged better than some of those that did. Funny how things circle around, although in more recent years, fusion is becoming more popular again. Whatever. Just enjoy it all I say.

Grant Green has left us. He tragically died in his car of a heart attack aged 43 whilst in New York to play at George Benson’s Breezin’ Lounge. He had gone back out on the road against doctor’s orders after having spent much of the previous year in hospital. Since his death there has been more music released in his name than when he was alive. He literally recorded on hundreds of sessions whether as a leader or sideman and his legacy is as one of the greats. Several of his recordings have been sampled in the hip-hop world and the Acid Jazz boom of the late 80s and early 90s picked up on his rare groove classics, keeping his name alive with the next generations of music lovers. One of his six children, Grant Green Jr., is an accomplished jazz guitarist himself and plays in a similar style. In addition, his daughter-in-law Sharony Andrews Green has authored an informative and heartfelt book titled Grant Green: Rediscovering The Forgotten Genius Of Jazz Guitar. The book concentrates more on Green the man rather than being a dry diary of recording sessions, etc.

If after listening to Alive! and Live At The Lighthouse and are hungry for more jazz guitar, then you will be in for a treat with pretty much any Green album you pick next. Released the same year is the soundtrack to The Final Comedown, which Green provides the music for. A good movie and a great soundtrack, which has the distinction of being the first soundtrack on Blue Note. A record that is popular with the samplers and rare groove guys is The Main Attraction, released in 1976 on Kudu. You can dip in with confidence to any of his 60s recordings. Street Of Dreams from 1967 is a good one. The Latin Bit from 1963 is a favorite too.

Personally, as far as instrumentation in jazz goes, I love the guitar and vibes the most. Add in some Afro-Cuban percussion and a funky drummer and we’re off to the races. My collection features a lot of albums with guitar and my favorite artists other than Grant Green are many. George Benson, Boogaloo Joe Jones, O’Donel Levy, Jim Hall, Wes Montgomery, Gabor Szabo, Kenny Burrell, Pat Martino, Larry Coryell, Sonny Sharrock, Charlie Christian, Joe Pass, Django Reinhardt, Les Paul and John McLaughlin are the first few names off the top of my head, and I know I’m missing many more. You get the point. If you dig the sound of guitar in your music and see any of those names in the credits, you’re guaranteed some top playing no questions asked. Go explore.

Signing off now and getting back to work. Tonight, John Scott is going to see the Dead in concert and Jeff is preparing for his weekend of gigs and as I have been writing I’ve been spinning The Great Society live at The Matrix from 1966. It’s all live music action around here and always where it’s at.

Cheers - Dom

Greetings Sorry Staters, thanks for clicking on us and reading. Thanks also for the nice comments and support that we received from many of you this past week. As you may have noticed, we had the hump and were annoyed by certain comments directed towards us. Regardless, we are moving on and will continue to work hard and do our best for you out there and hope that if we slip and make a mistake, you will understand and give us the benefit of the doubt instead of slagging us off and being that guy. Of course, if we deserve to be told off, we’ll take it, but fortunately those types of situations don’t happen that often.

Moving on. Writing anything today is with heavy heart after the sad news of yet another legend leaving us. I’m speaking of Tina Turner. Rest in power Queen. I’m of the age where I grew up with her music and presence in the popular culture. One of the first records I owned as a kid was the River Deep Mountain High album on A&M. That was the Phil Specter produced album she did with Ike. The title tune being a song that originally did not hit in the US, but went massive in the UK. Great album with a bunch of great tunes. Title track of course, but I Idolize You being my next favorite. Lovers of Soul and R & B music have been following Tina since the early 1960s and I joined her rank of fans as a kid in the 70s and 80s. I don’t need to tell you about her remarkable story, but suffice to say she truly earned her legendary status.

I was thinking about the book that Daniel talked about last week in the newsletter on celebrities that fall from grace and whether it is possible to separate the art from the artist etc. Can we still listen to Ike & Tina records? Don’t get me wrong, I love Private Dancer as much as the next person and can dig the Mad Max movie, but the records she made with Ike in the 1960s are so good. Not to ignore all the horrible things that Ike was, but he wasn’t the only person in the studio when all those fantastic records were made. He may have been the main catalyst for the music’s creation, but many others worked hard to make them happen. Should their efforts and talent be ignored? Big questions and answers don’t come easy. As the writer of the book points out. I’m going to continue enjoying the music Tina made with Ike in celebration of her and for the power of the music itself and nothing more.

I hate to make this column an obituary, but I couldn’t talk about one legend passing without also mentioning the sad departure of Andy Rourke last week also. Bass player for The Smiths and all-around top bloke. Those records would not have sounded as great as they were without his inspired playing. When your band mate is Johnny Marr and he is in awe of the lines you played, you must be damn good. Andy, in later life, lived in New York City and was a fantastic DJ. His show on East Village Radio was terrific and that show and the station were influential on many, including The Face Radio, who I am with now. God bless you Andy, rest in peace.

As for my “staff pick” selection this week? Other than plenty of Smiths and Tina? How about a great 45 that finally made its way to us here from the UK? We have been proud to be carrying releases from a fabulous small label in England called The Big AC Records. Among a talented roster of artists, they are championing the career of an incredible vocalist called Carmy Love. We have one of her previous records, Rebel, here in stock. This new one is titled In The Morning, although officially a few months old from release date it’s new to us and I imagine you. This is modern sophisticated soul music that manages to maintain a retro feel whilst still sounding current. Not as easy as it might seem. Carmy Love may not be in Tina Turner territory quite yet, but critics and fans are falling over themselves to heap praise on her vocal talent. All her previous singles have sold out at the label, so this is a good chance for you to snag a copy before they disappear. She has a new single out next month which we should be stocking, so keep your eyes peeled for that but in the meantime go take a listen to In The Morning and see what you think for yourselves.

Okay, back to work. These boxes won’t open themselves. Plenty of incoming goodness along with a nice new batch of cool used records are awaiting my attendance. Better hop to it. Cheers and see you next time.

• Dom

It’s Thursday and Newsletter time once again. Hi there everyone. Thank you so much for reading and supporting the store. We truly appreciate it. You have more than enough options for your screen time and buying needs, so any of it you throw our way means a lot. Cheers to you all. I always say the same thing each week, but it’s true, records are coming at us (thankfully) at a continued deluge rate. All sorts of stuff: cheap, expensive, rare, common, but all good. At least we think so. This week we worked on a nice collection that had some cool 70s Prog along with a lot of interesting UK pressed 45s from the Post Punk era. Those will be hitting the floor in the weeks to come. I bought another bunch of records the other day from a chap which we had to brush off outside first before bringing them inside due to the heavy layer of dust and fluff covering them all. I spent a couple of days dusting and cleaning them, getting black hands and sneezing constantly, but at the end came out with some nice records. So, although it may seem to some that we’re spending our time taking selfies and eating bonbons, we are working hard to make these records with all this great music available to you at a fair price. Sometimes we may pose on social media holding a record. This apparently annoys some, but guess what? That’s the game and how things work.

One of the rewards for going home with dust in your hair and lungs is that occasionally, as a record store jerk, you get to bring home a cool record. From the bunch of post punk 45s that I mentioned, I did grab a Wire—Dot Dash single. We are all big Wire fans here at Sorry State manors, as are you probably. I won’t front and say that I was hip to them out of the gate. I was just a kid in 1977, but sometime in the mid 1980s or so, I was introduced to their first two records and later the third. During the Brit Pop era of the 1990s, Wire became quite the influencers, to the point that they had to take bands to court for ripping them off. Anyhow, over the years, I have collected those first three albums and surrounding singles whenever I found a copy I could afford at the time. I still need a Mannequin single (don’t we all) but crossing off the Dot Dash one from the ol’ want list does feel good. What a crackin’ tune it is too and not an album track to boot, along with the B-side song Options R. For the last few decades, I have thankfully owned the Wire Play Pop compilation that had Dot Dash and Mannequin on it, so wasn’t without a version, but as all record nerds know, that’s not the same as owning the original singles. Who doesn’t love a picture sleeve with exclusive tracks?

As I said, Dot Dash is a cracking tune. Great catchy chorus—something about not crashing, with the trademark Wire guitar sound over a boppy beat. I had always thought the dot dash was a morse code reference, but now looking at the sleeve and listening again to the lyrics, it’s apparently about car headlights and their fog settings. Fair enough. Genius stuff and all under two and a half minutes. A proper length for a pop song.

Daniel and I were talking about some of the later Wire records and in particular A Bell Is A Cup…Until It Is Struck from 1988, as there was a copy of that one in this one collection. I admit to not being familiar with that one, along with The Drill from the 1990s. Daniel gave a big thumbs up to A Bell and so Jeff and I gave it a spin earlier. Naturally it’s a good record and of course I want it, but might have to be good and spend my money on food or rent or some other waste of finances. We promise we don’t take all the good stuff home ourselves. That’s called getting high on your own supply. Lol. Although I did have to convince Daniel that he shouldn’t feel bad about taking a couple of Prog and Krautrock records for himself.

So yeah, Wire, they’re awesome and you should listen to their records. That’s all I got on that for this week. Get to discovering them if you are new to the group and don’t forget the later albums too, there’s plenty to enjoy.

Cheers -Dom

Greetings Sorry Staters. How was your week? Good, I hope. There certainly has been plenty going on since I last wrote in these pages. A new king crowned in Britain, an ex-president further disgraced in America, excitement and drama in sports and our favorite band from Brazil, Lasso are stateside and playing gigs. I would like to use this space to apologize to Lasso for not being able to make it out to their gig in Durham last night. I am unfortunately suffering from lower back and shoulder pain (among other ailments) and am basically toast by the end of the day. I had to call out for a couple of days last week, hence missing the newsletter. Anyway, we all have our problems so not to moan about it. Good luck to Lasso on the rest of their tour here. If they are hitting your town, get along and check ‘em out. Tour details posted in the gig section of the newsletter.

Here at the store, new and used records are coming at us thick and fast. If we tripled our floor space, there still wouldn’t be enough room for everything. You can be guaranteed that whenever you visit the store, there will be plenty of cool stuff to browse. So many awesome used records across multiple genres and as always we endeavor to keep all those classic titles that are still in print available for you too. If Dischord, SST, etc. keep making ‘em, we’ll keep stocking ‘em.

Talking of keeping titles in print, I, along with millions of others, have been so happy to have the De La Soul records back in print again. This month saw my personal favorite from them finally becoming available once more. Buhloone Mindstate was the group’s third album and has been hard to score on vinyl even when it first came out in 1993. I’ve been lovingly holding onto my CD copy since then, hoping to find a copy. Finally, the day came. I’ll take a reissue on this one, having only seen an original on a few occasions. Since De La Soul has retained ownership of their catalogue, they have been releasing a title a month. Next month should be Stakes Is High. I love that record too; it was the first that wasn’t produced by Prince Paul and at the time it seemed like a new era and sound for the group. My affection for Buhloone Mindstate has endured over the years and only grown stronger. Perhaps it is because of the jazz samples used, the guests–Guru from Gang Starr, Maceo Parker blowing sax, Biz Markie being Biz and a female MC called Shortie No Mas who was Posdnous’s cousin. It all mixes and comes together to form a perfect record. We have copies in stock currently—go grab yourself one.

Listening wise this week, I pulled out a few selections for my radio show Worldy this past week as a nod to the coronation of King Charles. Some of you may have heard that over the weekend football games in England began with the playing of the National Anthem, and that at Liverpool the sound was drowned out by the fans in protest. As a Liverpool supporter, I know why that happened, but many don’t and are unaware of the history the club and the city have with the British government and the relationship with the rest of the country. If any of you are curious, please google and read up. Start with the Hillsborough disaster. Anyway, one of the records I pulled for play was the debut by Liverpool band The La’s. Easily a contender for my all-time top ten albums list. So much has been written about this record and the circumstances and trials behind its creation that I couldn’t do it justice here. Suffice to say, for many of us who were around in the late 80s, this was an important record. Of course, most folks only know the band for the global hit they had with the song There She Goes, although even that tune didn’t hit at first and went through a couple of re-recordings. As did the whole album. The group spent close to two years recording and re-recording the songs, going through line up changes, producers and studios at a rate that wouldn’t be tolerated today and barely was back then. Critical praise and acclaim did come once the album finally saw release in 1990, although overall sales were not massive by comparative standards. Front man Lee Mavers described their sound as rootsy, raw and organic. They were certainly more retro than most of their contemporaries, with a distinct Merseybeat and sixties influence in their sound. Throw in a dash of Captain Beefheart, Bo Diddley, Beatles and Kinks for good measure and you just about have it. Those are all great influences, as far as I am concerned.

Have a read about the band and their story if you have the time and interest, but certainly give the album a listen if you haven’t heard it before and even if you have. I have heard these songs so many times now that they are almost in my DNA. Over the years, all sorts of alternate versions of the songs have come out, and I have gobbled them all up. It is interesting hearing the earlier demo versions and alternate takes. Just like classic folk songs, the song remains the same, just the interpretation differs. Or something like that.

I can tell you that among the many, many things that make working with Jeff here at SSR so cool is that he is also a fan of The La’s and rates this record as much as I do. When I discovered that fact, I knew for absolute certainty that I was in the right place. For a lad from England to end up working in a store in Raleigh, North Carolina where The Fall, Wire and The La’s are held in high regard is a beautiful thing. Here’s a link to the album if you need one. Enjoy it. If you need more, I would highly recommend listening to the BBC sessions and a collection titled Callin’ All. The BBC sessions is great. The songs flow with urgency and, dare I say, rock. Check it.

Up the Reds. Cheers - Dom