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What’s up everyone? How was your week? Hopefully good. Another rollercoaster one for me which saw me crying into my cornflakes in despair over my life one minute and then crying with joy the next as the Reds notched up another impressive victory. Wild mood swings for sure, which demand vastly different soundtracks.
Here in the store, I have been enjoying listening to some of the hip-hop albums and 12”s we recently bought. There are still lots more good titles to snag if that’s your bag and you are local. Besides the hip-hop 12”s, check out some of the disco singles we have too. I love a 12” single personally. They seem to be somewhat under appreciated by the wider record buying public, but I always found them great value for money and an indispensable DJ tool. You typically get at least two versions of the main tune, maybe a non-LP B-side and the best part, an instrumental version. Particularly for hip-hop, I often find myself loving the beat but not liking the rap. Language and use of certain words being the prime reason. Often with 12”s you’ll also get a clean or radio mix included, especially if it’s a promo. With prices on albums ever climbing, a closer look at whether there is a 12” single might be an option and a way to get some of the music you are looking for. I used to suggest to people on a budget to look for a cassette version of records that were getting expensive, but even that doesn’t seem to be much of a help these days. Prices on in demand albums are high for tapes too. We scored a small collection of cool things recently and there were some good tapes in amongst them, including a Beastie Boys Paul’s Boutique which we played in the store yesterday. Sounded great too.
We had a bunch of cool things come in the last week or two. Some have already sold out, so I don’t want to talk about them here but if we restock this Cumbia compilation called Sonido Tumi Vol. II ever again, then join me on grabbing a copy. We got in just a few and Jeff and I were digging listening to it in the store. We had the first volume a while back and as of now, just like that first volume, the track listing on the second is a mystery. I believe someone at Mississippi Records is behind compiling these comps. I understand the mystery and under the counter nature of things, but it would be kind of cool knowing who the artists were and what the song titles are.
I’ve been digging the 45 from London’s Violin that is out on Iron Lung. Good sounding HC. We have an album from them on La Vida Es Un Mus and I believe the “group” is essentially a one-man band with a drummer. Good tunes and well recorded and still currently in stock if you fancy checking it out.
It’s no secret that I am a big Jimi Hendrix fan and never need an excuse to listen to his music. We recently bought a collection that had a lot of Jimi and have sold a good amount of them already. In amongst the sealed copies of Electric Ladyland girls cover albums were quite a few of those quasi-legit live records and studio outtakes. After his death, until his family finally got control of his estate, it was the wild west as far as Hendrix records were concerned. So many different versions of the same thing with different covers and varying quality. During his lifetime, Jimi recorded constantly. Whether it was in the studio or at home or live on stage, there was tape running. Before he became famous in his own right, he played as sideman for several top R&B and soul artists, including the Isley Brothers.
One artist that he played with was Curtis Knight, and it was with him that several studio recordings, known as the PPX sessions, were recorded by producer Ed Chalpin in late 1965 and early 1966. It was the legal repercussions of signing a deal with Chalpin before moving to England that resulted in The Band Of Gypsys album being recorded and given to Capital Records as settlement for that earlier contract. Jimi and the group with Curtis Knight, called The Lovelights and later to switched to The Squires, were also captured on tape playing live in Hackensack, New Jersey at a club called George’s Club 20 at the end of December 1965 and in January 1966. Just a few months before Chas Chandler saw him and whisked Jimi off to London, England and stardom. These live recordings have appeared in many forms over the years with different covers and track listings and more recently were given a redux by Hendrix’s main recording engineer Eddie Kramer for Experience Hendrix’s sub-label Dagger Records. It’s cool getting the performances properly packaged with correct liner note details etc. Kramer cleaned up the sound a little and removed audience noise, some of which were dubbed after the fact, and the studio postproduction that Chalpin did at the time.
In among the albums we bought in the collection was a German version of the George’s Club 20 tapes and to my ears it sounds great despite all its technical limitations and “crappy” sound. The show itself is killer and may or may not have been recorded on Boxing Day (December 26th) 1965, depending on which source of information you take. The set is Blues and R&B numbers. Great versions of Driving South by Albert Collins, I’m A Man by Bo Diddley, and Killin’ Floor by Howlin’ Wolf. Jimi is already the star of the show and throws in a lot of his party tricks, playing with his teeth, behind his head and delivering blistering solos. The second side finishes up with covers of Ray Charles’s What’d I Say and Bright Lights, Big City by Jimmy Reed. Like most bands playing club gigs like this at the time, their sets would be mostly covers of current hits and classics. Curtis Knight sings most of the tunes, but Jimi (or Jimmy as he was still known as then) can be heard joking and providing backup vocals. It’s easy to see why Chas Chandler and everyone else for that matter were so blown away by Jimi. His playing, looks and personality were unmistakable and so unique.
When the remastered version of the George’s Club 20 tapes was released a few years back, I wrongly assumed that I had all these recordings already and didn’t need them. Even some reviewers seemed less than enthusiastic and talked about the sound quality etc. Sure, the quality isn’t studio level and there are better sounding live recordings out there, but as a document of his pre-fame era, this stuff still kicks ass. If you are a fan, you should check them out. Here’s a link to hear Driving South. Then if you liked what you heard and you see one of these records titled Early Hendrix or Live In New Jersey in your record store, you’ll know what you are getting. I’ll be on the lookout for the Dagger Records version now as I want the songs left off my single disc version and to hear them without the overdubs. Plus, the superior packaging with photos and liner notes.
As we celebrate African American History month this February, there’s plenty of great music to get inspired by and to enjoy, but for a taste of a typical Friday or Saturday night, mid 1960s, in a club there’s probably not a better example than these recordings.
Thanks for reading. Cheers and see you next time.
-Dom
R.I.P. Wayne Kramer