Bruce Springsteen – Born to Run

The problem with growing old is that the older you get the faster time seems to speed up.  Today my girlfriend commented that the first decade of the new millennium was almost over, and I had to pause a second before I realized that she was right.

How in the hell did that happen?  It seems like the Bush-9/11 years went by in such a rush…not that I’ll miss them. I remember when I was young and a night could last indefinitely, a year as a lifetime and a decade was forever.

It makes you wonder if it’s time that’s changing or merely our perception of it, although I’ll  put my money on the latter…and no other artist that  I know of has been able to capture that feeling of expanded time quite like Bruce Springsteen did in his 1975 masterpiece, “Born to Run.”

Born in 1949 in New Jersey, Bruce had a hard time relating in school, but like most music legends of the time he heard Elvis Presley and knew he had to rock…getting his first guitar at age 13 for a whopping $18.  Three years later his mother would take out a loan to buy him a $60 Kent.  He languished in High School…never really fitting in to the point that he skipped his own graduation.  He spent some time in community college before deciding that school wasn’t for him and dropping out.  In 1965 he went to a local couple with a reputation for sponsoring new young bands, Tex and Marion Vinyard, who got him his first gig as head of a group called The Castiles where he was lead guitar…and soon became lead singer as well.

BY the late 60′s he was making waves with a power rock trio called Earth, where he earned his nickname “The Boss” for being the guy in charge of getting the bands money from the club owners and distributing it to the band.  Let it be noted that Bruce hates this nickname, so if you run into him try and refrain from calling him “The Boss” since he hates bosses. From 1969 to 1970 he played with a band called Steel Mill which included many future members of the E Street Band, but despite great reviews and a cult following in New Jersey Bruce was not satisfied.  He was a man in search of a sound who wouldn’t stop till he found it.

For the next few years he formed a number of bands as he hunted the sound and formed his core band…groups like Dr Zoom and the Sonic Boom, the Sundance Blues Band, and The Bruce Springsteen Band.  As word of his talent grew, he garnered the attention of Columbia records who signed him in 1972.

In the studio, Springsteen brought out the still yet to be named E Street Band to help record his debut album “Greetings From Ashbury Park, NJ” The album was a critical success, but was easily dismissed by many to be just another Dylan or Van Morrison knock off.  In 1973 he released his next album “The Wild, The Innocent and The E Street Shuffle” with the songs getting bigger and better and the band hitting a more soulful R&B vibe.  But as much critical acclaim as he was gathering…commercial viability still alluded Bruce and it was slowly draining him.

But in early 1974 Bruce found a new ally in music critic Jon Landau, who after seeing the band perform declared “I saw the future of rock and roll, and it’s name is Bruce Springsteen.”  Landau became Bruce’s new manger and the producer who would help him finish his last chance album “Born to Run.”  Bruce was given a huge budget but had gotten bogged down in the studio searching for the Phil Spector “Wall of Sound” feel. It took 14 months to record the album, with six of those months devoted to the title track alone.  A release of an early mix of the album to progressive rock stations was already beginning to grow the buzz, and Bruce was determined to get it right…becoming angry and frustrated by the fact he couldn’t translate the sounds in his head to the recording.  Steven Van Zandt came in the nick of time to help Springsteen polish his sound and get some of the sounds in his head on tape, but even the finished product didn’t please Bruce who chucked the album into an alley.

Luckily it didn’t stay there.  On August 13th, 1975 Bruce and the E Street Band began a five night ten show run at the Bottom Line Club in New York.  Broadcast on FM radio, the shows silenced any detractors once and for all and let everyone know that Bruce Springsteen was the real thing.  When the album dropped a few weeks later, the commercial success he had been searching for finally arrived with it.

I always knew I liked Springsteen, I just didn’t know much about him growing up because my sisters really didn’t listen to him and that was my only influx of modern music in the house.  Now after years of listening I feel safe pointing all non believers in the direction of this album because it’s such a pure example of  rock and roll.  I defy you to listen to it and not feel good.  Some may say “Darkness on the Edge of Town” was a better album, and I’d be inclined to agree with them…but it just doesn’t make you feel like “Born to Run.”

BTW: These videos are from Bruce’s performance at the Hammersmith Odeon Theater from November of 1975.  You should own that too.

I’m just sayin.

Young Holt Unlimited – On Stage

Welcome everyone to the 100th post here at Albums Everyone Should Own, I’m so glad you could make it! Did you remember to bring beer?

No?  Well, there’s still time to run to AM/PM.

You know, it was only seven months ago that I started this blog with a hope to not only fill the dead space during our off season, but to inform the general public of fucking awesome music that they need.  Along they way, I’ve tried to give props to the great albums out there that most people know about, but also to some albums that not everyone knows…records that may have slipped through the cracks.

So far, I think it’s going pretty well.

I’d like to take the time to thank those bloggers who have supported my cause, so shouts out to CorrinaCorrina, What The Deuce, And Ya Don’t Stop and The Musics Over for all the great linkage.  Come on down to my bar sometime and the drinks are on me.

But, I’d also like to take the time to thank you, the anonymous Internet reader for allowing me an audience.  If it weren’t for all the hits, I probably would have lost interest long ago and gone back to my other job…drinking until I can’t feel feelings.

So keep on visiting, and I’ll keep throwing up the bomb for all who care enough to dig for it. And speaking of digging, I dug up some dusty soul jazz grooves for you today by the name of Young-Holt Unlimited with their 1967 live release “On Stage.”

Drummer Isaac ‘Red” Holt and Bassist Eldee Young were a part of the famous Ramsey Lewis Trio in the early sixties where they had a hand in creating two of Lewis’s biggest hits of the day ‘The In Crowd’ and ‘Hang On Sloopy.’ In 1966, though, they left the group to pursue their own direction and hooked up with pianist Hysear Don Walker in 1966 to form The Young-Holt Trio.

Said trio only made one album, titled after their only hit ‘Wack Wack,’ after which Hysear left the group.  After a period with Ken Chaney on Piano, he was replaced by Floyd Morris and the group became Young-Holt Unlimited.  There seems to be some confusion as to when this happened, as all the information I’ve found says the name change didn’t happen until 1968, but our album “On Stage” was released in 1967 and clearly names the group as Young-Holt Unlimited…but then again does it really fucking matter?

No, but I’m a little hung over from celebrating, and it makes me testy.

(If you’ve heard of Young-Holt, it’s probably because of their famous backing track to the Barbara Acklin hit ‘Am I The Same Girl?’ Their arrangement was so hot that the group also released it as an instrumental called ‘Soulful Strut’ with Floyd’s piano replacing the vocals.)

I’ve always loved the soul jazz genre because it had a much smoother sound than the jazz funk era that was to come, and while it had a good run, I’ve always felt they could have dome more.  This is pretty self evident considering the raw energy captured in “On Stage.”  The recording captures more than the music, but also the feel of the famous Bohemian Cavern in which it was recorded …right down to the band’s banter with the audience and the screams of delight from the crowd. No track displays this better than the medley of ‘Wade In The Water/ Ain’t There Something That Money Can’t Buy,’ part of which you’ll hear above.

Truth be told, I’m not that thrilled with their version of Mellow Yellow, but the monster ‘Yon Gimme Thum’ that closes the set pretty much seals the deal for me anyways.

I got introduced to these guys in college and their Greatest Hits album was a staple of our pool room/bar/garage hangout for the three years that we had it.  This album is highly recommended to people who have hangouts and the folks that like to hang out in them.  Grab it HERE!

And next time bring beer.

Pump Up The Volume – OST

I find it kind of odd that people have grown nostalgic for the nineties and got a little tinge of loathing at the news that college kids are now having nineties parties. To me it just doesn’t seem that long ago that I was dressing grunge, listening to EMF, and enjoying the Clinton Administration with all their Lewisnky-ish antics.

Ah, those were the days.

So maybe I do miss it…except for Jesus Jones and Y2K mania. But if you want an excellent snapshot of the early nineties indie/alternative scene, you need look no further than the soundtrack to “Pump Up The Volume.”

First of all, let me explain that this was the movie that started the small fire in my soul than would, several years later, lead me to purchase my first  DJ set.  It’s like a superhero movie about pirate DJing, where an unpopular high school kid played by Christian Slater becomes an underground hero …fighting the system with his illegal pirate radio show of awesome tunes and anti-establishment invective. But aside from my awesome DJ set up, I have yet to get that all important radio transmitter and become the pirate sensation that I was always meant to be. And maybe also get to see Samantha Mathis’s breasts.
Sigh.

Yet, aside from the fact that the soundtrack was released in 1990, the selection of music has stood up incredibly well, probably due to the choice not to use the period pop music that so many other teen films of the era clung too. What you are left with is a moody, dark and twisted compilation of great and mysterious music music.  The compilation is sprinkled with some amazing covers such as the Henry Rollin’s and The Bad Brains cover of the MC5 classic ‘Kick Out The Jams,’ or the haunting cover of the Robert Johnson standard ‘Me and The Devil Blues’ by the Cowboy Junkies. Other strong tracks is the late eighties sound of Above The Law’s “Freedom of Speech,’ The Pixies ‘Wave of Mutilation’ and the smooth crooning of Ivan Neville’s ‘Why Can’t I Fall In Love.’

I won’t say that it’s a perfect soundtrack, as it does have it’s weak spots like the nearly un-listenable early Soundgarden’s ‘Heretic,’ which is the sonic equivalent of nails on a chalkboard, and the goofy ‘Tale of The Twister’ by Chagall Guevara.  But still, they get points for even knowing about Soundgarden in 1990 and the goofiness is not unbearable.

But What really sets this soundtrack apart isn’t what music it includes as much as the music it leaves out.  A good handful of awesome tunes figure prominently in the film, yet were left off the album.  Used as the DJ’s opening track throughout the movie is Leonard Cohen’s ‘Everybody Knows,’ yet the album only includes a Concrete Blonde cover of it.  It was a sad omission, but made me track down as much Leonard Cohen as I could find afterwards.

Also missing is Was Not Was ‘Hello, Dad, I’m in Jail’, which sets me laughing maniacally every time I hear it…and the frenetic ‘Weinerschnitzel’ by the Decendents.  It did take me years though, to locate the extremely rare Beastie Boy’s track called ‘The Scenario,’ as it was never released (WTF Beasties???) I’ve had a lot of fun collecting these songs and building the soundtrack out to be more complete.

What can I say? I’m a dork.

You can pick it up HERE for a pretty cheap price, and have your own 90′s party at home!

Backini – Threads

What the hell is wrong with people these days?

I went to an Obama fundraiser event the other day.  It was the first political event I’ve ever been too, but I mostly went because DJ Z-Trip was playing and they were giving away Sheperd Fairey prints. The big Obama “Hope” prints that you’ve probably seen around.

The first hundred folk to show up got one that was signed by the artist, and since I like Sheperd’s work I was down.

Problem was, so were a lot of other folk.

Turns out said posters were already fetching upwards of $500 on Ebay, so instead of a bunch of stoked music fans/ political supporters, you got a shitload of poseurs who showed up at noon to stand in line (I would have done the same, but I have a job.) These leeches got their posters and promptly left.

They didn’t stay for the show, they didn’t come to support, they came to make a buck…and something about that really pissed me off.

I might have been less annoyed if they had some extra posters about for the real fans, or even if they had some for sale.  But they didn’t…and all through the night I saw people walk up with their pre-appointed wrist bands grab their posters and then immediately walk off.

Wankers…

Or maybe I’m just jealous.

Back to the topic at hand, I give you the eclectic awesomeness that is Backini…and if you haven’t heard of him, then you aren’t alone.

The Brighton native’s real name is Rob Quickenden, and he’s a sound engineer as well as a crate digger of much renown.  While most sample based artists hunt for snippets of funk (Cut Chemist and DJ Shadow,) and others go for obscure dance music (The Avalanches,) Backini seems drawn towards the records that no one wants.

The kind of albums that even thrift stores tend to stuff into cardboard boxes and write “Free” on the side.

Backini’s creations are not meant as deep messages or strong statements, according to Rob, but rather what he calls “shallow, throw-away music.” This is due to his fascination with the world of pop music.  And pop is kind of what it is, if pop was constructed from old 78rpm swing music, kids records and other assorted jazz and easy listening records, but what the listener is left with is nothing short of wonderful.  With his engineering background, Rob deftly manages to bring all the sound together in ways that please and amaze.

After releasing a hand-full of acclaimed singles on the newly formed Lumenessence label (most of which can be found as a collection called Backini “Lumenessence” on some P2P networks), Backini released his first full length album in 2003 called “Threads.”

And it’s a really great little album.  The big hit that ended up on a lot of DJ playlists was the war time sampling ’Company B-Boy,’ which at first listen will explain it’s appeal.  Then you get the moody, interweaving noir of ‘Go Go Killer’ and the spaced “Close Encounters” sampling on ‘Dreamer.’  But you know what?  The rest of the album is pretty damn satisfying as well.

Will Backini ”Threads” change your life?  No, but it will live in your iPod, car stereo, or office computer for many days.

And you’ll look back and thank me.

Only $9 for a download on Amazon!

Bargain!

DJ Spinbad – Rock the Casbah

Eleven years ago, I had no idea what a real mixtape was, at least not in a way that didn’t entail making a tape full of songs that you like to give to a friend…or a girl…or a girlfriend.

Then came the internet boom, and I found myself stationed at a nice cushy graphics job.  One day I was walking past a programmer’s desk and saw him doing something odd.

“What is that?” I asked.

“Napster!”

“What’s Napster?”

“It’s a program that lets you download music from people on the web for free!”

“What Kind of music?”

“EVERYTHING!!! WHOO HOOOO!!!!”

So the next thing you know, I’m downloading away…and it’s even sanctioned by my company!

Needless to say I built up most of the original bulk of my digital collection in those heady days of the 1990′s.  But one day I came across something I hadn’t seen before. While searching for tracks by Cut Chemist, I found something called “Rare Equations” and it was, like, and hour long.  I wasn’t aware of any track by that name…or an album for that matter.

After a quick Google, I found out it was a mixtape; a professionally mixed compilation of music used by DJ’s as promo tools and give-aways.  After that I was hooked.   Now I have several hundred mixtapes, and even more live sets and radio sets.  The genre is great because it gives you stuff you want and stuff you need at the same time, all while making the delivery as fresh as possible.

I’ve often thought that all modern recorded music will one day be used in this fashion.  As a promotional tool to get people to come see you live.  And of all the people I want to see live, DJ Spinbad is at the top of my list. Spinbad, born Spencer Kitson, grew up in New York as a member of the infamous Cold Cutz Crew and can be heard on NY radio stations WWPR and WHTZ almost on the daily.  He also is one of the most prolific and collected mixtape makers in the world. (I own his entire collection)

In the mid-nineties, the mixtape game was kind of stale. As Spinbad puts it “A lot of the mixtapes that were coming out of New York at the time, were the Clue type of tapes, where things weren’t mixed together, there was no blending or scratching and they just shouted over the top. Basically they had only exclusive songs on DAT and they shouted over them. And I hated it, I couldn’t stand it and I wanted to do something that those people would absolutely despise.”

So what did he do?

He made an 80′s mixtape.  Originally done as a 15 minute joke, Spinbad showed it to fellow NY DJ, Jazzy Jeff, who thought it was awesome. With Jeff’s encouragement, Spinbad went back to the studio and finished the tape which, when it came out in 1995, looked like this:

Ahhh…remember cassettes?

Full of every corny 80′s song you can think of, Spinbad mixes them up in really cool ways and has a knack for dropping in 80′s movie and TV quotes.  Where else can you hear Chevy Chase shouting a line from “Vacation” only to have the track mix into The Go Gos ‘Vacation?’

Originally, only a few hundred copies were dropped off at Fatbeats NY, but the tape has been bootlegged more times that you can count and traveled around the world.  The CD version I have has a completely different cover than the one at the top of this page, and I’ve seen several legit and non-legit versions.  He has a sequel as well which is equally awesome on all counts.

If you see DJ Spinbad’s name on a mixtape, you can rest assured that your ears are in good hands.  And to keep the underground vibe going, download the fucker HERE! (right click, save as) Or just visit Spinbad’s site and have a look around his mixtape page.

Give it to a friend…or a girlfriend.

And check out the set list HERE!

De La Soul – 3 Feet High and Rising

You know what?  Looking back at the golden age of hip hop just makes me ever more aware of how much hip hop sucks in 2008.  I check the stores and the charts all the time as part of my daily DJ chores, and aside from a smattering of singles here and there…there really isn’t much going on.

It’s disgraceful.

Sure, there’s still some good noise being made in the indie hip hop underground (Atmosphere take a bow!)  but when was the last time a really big album hit?  2005???  Compare that to the early nineties when an amazing album full of hip hop dropped almost every month.  And not just an album with a good single or two, but with an assload of singles…and a bunch of tracks that weren’t singles but you loved anyways because they fucking rocked.

I’m beginning to think the hip hop era is coming to a close.

Maybe it’s time is up…maybe it’s time for a new popular genre to rise up and take over, or maybe the time for that is over too.  Maybe with all the internets and media sources out there, there isn’t room for a single dominant force any longer.

Which is too bad because I really love hip hop.

Especially when it is so undeniably fun and frenetic as De La Soul’s “3 Feet High and Rising.”

Listening to the album for the first time was like being shot out of a cannon into a pool of Jello, nerf balls and confetti.  I was freaking out to my walkman, desperate to show someone, anyone what I had found.  Because what I found seemed almost too good to be true.

Formed in high school, the trio of Posdanus, Maceo, and Trugoy (AKA:Plug One, Plug Two and Plug Three) hit paydirt when their demo of ‘Plug Tunin’ found it’s way to producer Price Paul’s (Plug Four) hands.  Together they helped form the base of the Native Tongue Posse that included The Jungle Brothers, A Tribe Called Quest, and later on Monie Love, Black Sheep, Queen Latifah and Chi Ali.

The Native tongues pretty much paved the way for new style of hip hop for the 1990′s …influencing fashion and lyrical style for years to come. But, I digress.

“3 Feet High and Rising” stands as an excellent companion to the Beastie Boy’s “Paul’s Boutique” for it’s innovative use of sampling.  It was also one of the last albums made before the sampling hammer came down on hip hop, forever changing the art.  Released in 1989, it showed and exuberance that few albums can match even to this day.  Even the group itself in all it’s varied forms has yet to top this effort.

But the day glow look and loose hippy feel would haunt the group for years as they felt they had been misunderstood and mislabeled as “hippies.” The D.A.I.S.Y. Age (DA Inner Sound Y’all) as they called it, would be short lived…but would thrive while it lasted.

Full of awesome hits like ‘Me, Myself and I,’(see below) the Steely Dan sampling ‘Eye Know’ or ‘Say No  Go’…even the misses feel like hits.  And Prince Paul’s skits were copied for, like a decade on numerous albums.  Why can’t people make shit this good anymore?

I blame Little Wayne.

In fact, I would like to take this chance to personally appeal to the boys of De La…If you’re listening, bring back Price Paul!!!  The streets are hungry for it!!!

Supa cheap off Amazon!