News

What’s up Sorry Staters? Cheers for checking in with us again this week. There’s quite a bit of news on new releases in this week’s letter. Not that there isn’t always, but with a couple of our own label releases in the mix, there’s plenty to get excited about.

I’ll just pick one thing that caught my eye this week, and that’s a cool 45 by L.A. punks Psychoactive. There’s only a few of these out there and we got a handful, so move quickly if you are into snappy ’77 style punk rock.

The single comes as number one on their own Psychoactive label and is issued in hand stamped and numbered paper sleeves in an edition of 200 and with a sticker. Mine’s number 19. Two tunes, Don’t Wanna Wait b/w Seditionaries.

Jeff and I were giving it a spin in the store, and I had mentioned that I had liked it a lot as it appealed to my taste in punk rock styles, namely that classic 77 sound well routed in rock and roll’s past. Jeff told me that wasn’t a coincidence as the band features Paul and Tsubasa from L.A. punk band Rough Kids. The very same Rough Kids that Sorry State had the honor of putting out their first couple of platters. No wonder the record sounded so seasoned and on point. Jeff also reminded me that Rough Kids have been backing T.V. Smith on his current Adverts tour. Very fucking cool. So yeah, there is plenty of pedigree in Psychoactive.

Whether they will stick with the name remains to be seen, as a quick google brought up several other bands with the same name around the world which they’ll have to contend with. Also, anything with “psycho” in the name brings up all kinds of results. But what do I know? I am certainly not giving unsolicited advice to the band. LoL. May the best Psychoactive win.

Talking of Rough Kids, I gave their The Black And White And Gray album on Dirt Cult Records a spin over the weekend and had a fun time listening to it. They really are a tight, sharp band with plenty of good tunes and riffs. Do yourselves a favor and check out their records if you aren’t familiar. We should have copies of at least their second I believe.

Okay, that’s about all my noggin can handle for this week as far as writing goes. Back to my other chores. Thanks for reading and supporting the scene.

Cheers - Dom

Hey everyone! Thanks for clicking on our newsletter. Hopefully, a few minutes reading about cool shnazz will distract from the doom scrolling. It’s been another bonkers week with more extreme weather events, economic upheaval and horrible hateful actions from the current regime here in the U.S. Thank God for music. We need it more than ever.

Whilst working with Jeff last week at the store we were listening to a bunch of different things and at some point, via YouTube suggestions, we found ourselves playing a few tracks by Californian garage band Public Nuisance. At first Jeff thought I was playing more from my favorite Arizonans, The Resonars, who totally nail that sixties sound. He wasn’t wrong in thinking that the recordings had a more modern feel to them, however Public Nuisance was indeed a sixties band and the tracks we were playing were recorded in the winter of 1968 and January 1969. They do sound great, full and powerful and loud and rocking. What’s even more astounding is that these tracks remained unreleased and virtually unheard until the early 00s. There have been lots of obscure records rediscovered over the years and lots of unreleased recordings such as acetates have had a second chance to reach appreciative ears, but there probably hasn’t been a group that had so much strong material as these guys, and had it remain unreleased for decades. The reason is a bit of a story, which is worth hearing, but more importantly for lovers of late sixties garage and psych. This is one set of tunes you need to hear.

Public Nuisance was from Sacramento, California and shared a similar story to countless other garage bands. They began as high school friends who, just like everyone else, got swept up by the British Invasion and Surf music. They were more Anglophile than most, and first started playing gigs as The Jaguars and mixed in more obscure British bands’ material into their sets. They were big Pretty Things fans. Throughout 1964 and 1965, they would play the typical teen dances and fairs up and down the valley, honing their craft. In early 1966, an opportunity to record came up and they cut two songs at Ikon in Sacramento and a 45 was issued under the new name of Moss & The Rocks. It’s a decent but typical teen folk rocker single and didn’t make much of an impact. Six months later, the band, bankrolled by one of their parents, travelled to Gold Star Studios in Hollywood and re-recorded the same two songs. They were released on the Chattahoochee label, but again failed to have much of an impact.

Soon after that, in the fall of 1966, the guys decided to change their name to Public Nuisance and continue in a heavier direction. Their image also changed along with the heavier sound, and they began appearing all in black with the hair getting longer on at least two of them.

The area had quite a few notable bands they would share stages with. The New Breed, Oxford Circle and Kak were locals and part of the scene, and Public Nuisance held their own alongside those groups besides opening for touring national acts like The Doors, who Public Nuisance opened for in July 1967 at the State Fairgrounds and by all accounts blew the headliners of the stage. Other big names the band opened for were Buffalo Springfield and Sonny & Cher, plus a set at the Fillmore East with The Grateful Dead on the same bill.

During the fall of 1967, the group made three trips to San Francisco where they recorded a bunch of tracks that supposedly had them sounding like a cross between The Seeds and The Pretty Things. Unfortunately, those tapes have been missing almost from the time they were made, and very few can testify to the contents of them, but judging by what was to come a year later it seems more than likely that they might be good.

Meanwhile, a friend of theirs, Gary Shiro, along with DJ Johnny Hyde, had a record label called World United that had released records from Oxford Circle and The New Breed. That label folded, but Shiro got The New Breed signed to famous producer Terry Melcher’s new label called Equinox, and it was through these connections that Public Nuisance were given the chance to record demos for Melcher’s consideration. Thus, in September and October 1968, the group travelled to Sound Recorders in Hollywood for two sessions. Melcher liked what they recorded and signed them in November. The band (now down to a trio) recorded a dozen new songs during December of that year and continued with sessions in January 1969. As strong as the demos are, it’s a testament to the band and their ambitions that they so quickly had even better fresh songs for what was intended as their debut album. Aided by engineer Eirik Wangberg, who really made them sound big and full and seasoned, the record was mixed and mastered and ready for release.

Here’s where the story comes to an abrupt halt. In August, the Manson murders took place. Sharon Tate and her guests were staying in a house that belonged to Terry Melcher. He had been Manson’s intended target, the lunatic being angry that Melcher hadn’t come through with a supposed record deal for Manson. Naturally, Melcher was scared shitless and went into hiding and along with that went all the projects and business that he was involved with. So, no more Equinox and no more record deal and album release for Public Nuisance. The guys soldiered on totally dejected for the rest of 1969 with a couple of different rhythm guitarists, but finally packed it in as the new decade dawned.

That might have been the end of their story and the world might not have heard them had it not been for the championing done by Joey D at Frantic Records, who for years was shouting from the rooftops about how great Public Nuisance was. It was through his efforts, along with other key names in the sixties garage psych world such as Alec Palao and the band themselves, that a super double album set titled Gotta Survive was released in 2002. The CD was out on Frantic, and the vinyl version was released via Shadoks Music, the fine German label that specialized in rare psychedelic reissues. That double vinyl release also came with a bonus 7” E.P. with the four Moss & The Rocks cuts.

At the time of this rediscovery of Public Nuisance, I was working at Rockit Scientist in New York City and can vouch that everyone was going nuts when they heard the music. We sold loads of the CD and vinyl version. It’s justified. The unreleased album and the previous demos are all so good. Banger after banger. It’s hard to pick a favorite. I know I was blown away. So too was Jack White, who would go on to reissue a version of the intended album on his Third Man label ten years later in 2012.

I’m the worst at trying to describe music and how it sounds, but also subscribe to the opinion that everyone should just listen and discover for themselves. You don’t need some journo telling you when to appreciate a guitar riff or drum roll or whatever. Suffice to say, there’s plenty to love and enjoy about Public Nuisance. If you dig sixties garage with an Anglophile influence, then these guys should be right up your street. Maybe you have been turned on to them already, but it has been twenty-plus years since the first rediscovery, so perhaps there are some of you out there not aware of them that will appreciate the steer. Either way, go check them out. Here’s a YouTube link to play the full CD release.

For the record, my favorite Public Nuisance songs are Gotta Survive, Love Is A Feeling, Small Faces and America.

Okay, deadline approaching. Happy listening everyone.

Sláinte – Dom

Hey there Sorry Staters! What’s cooking’? It sure is a messed-up world right now. Not that it hasn’t always been, but at least up to now we could all agree on what was up and what was down and whether the sky is blue, and grass is green. Not anymore. We’re truly in the upside down or Bizarro World. My anxiety increases daily. I’m just hoping that I won’t be affected negatively in my musical taste and will still be able to tell a good tune from a duff one, no matter what the genre.

These past few weeks have certainly found me spinning a wider variety of records for my listening pleasure. My recent revisit to my Sound Library records and particularly the section devoted to Italian recordings took me on some nice little journeys. I also found myself finally being able to appreciate some of the more adventurous tunes on records that I had previously found tough going. It really is true that you often must be in a certain place in life and have certain experiences and exposure to a wide spectrum of sounds to appreciate a particular piece of music. I would have never listened to half the stuff I do now when I was a teenager. Jazz Fusion? Progressive Rock? Are you serious? Do me a favor. Yet here I am this week playing some rare Italian Prog and digging it.

With that said, my pick for you this week is a record that came out in 1970 in Italy on RCA called The Feed-Back. Credited at the time as self-titled, it soon became known that it was a recording by Il Gruppo or The Group. They are the Gruppo D’Improvviazione Nuova Consonaza, an all-star collective formed in 1964 by experimental composers of the avant-garde. They had in their ranks Ennio Morricone, to throw a name out there that most will recognize. Their mission was to develop new techniques in playing and recording music through improvisation and experimentalism. Generally speaking, musique concrete, free jazz and modern classical are not my jams and this is what you’ll find on the majority of The Group’s recordings, but on The Feed-Back they got a little funky and hip and tapped into the “underground” sound. They weren’t young dudes though by 1970, with most of the players approaching their 40s or older.

The star of the show on the session was without doubt the drummer. Everything is built around his very upfront tight and groovy patterns. Many have compared the beats here to those on Krautrock records from the likes of Neu! And Can. That’s fair, but I wouldn’t want to say they were as good or better. It’s a journalistic kind of thing to say, but does fit. The drummer here was Enzo Restuccia, who was a session man at RCA Italiana and who frequently played on scores for Ennio Morricone, among others.

The rest of the musicians, including Morricone on trumpet, jam around the drum patterns. There’s guitar, bass and piano, along with various percussion to fill out the sound. Only three tracks and done within thirty minutes. It won’t change your life, but whilst it’s spinning it sort of hits the spot.

Original copies of this record fetch high price tags, which is understandable as it didn’t get a huge release back in 1970 and copies are scarce. The pedigree of the players behind the album certainly adds to the allure and brings more people into the chase, and because it has beats you also had producers and DJs on the hunt for it. I first heard a cut from the record years ago in a DJ set that this fellow was playing, and sometime after got a track on a compilation of rare tracks aimed at the DJ and collectors looking for beats and deep cuts. I pretty much gave up on ever finding a copy or being able to afford one if I did, and had forgotten about it. Fast forward to last year and whilst window shopping on Discogs I stumbled upon a guy in the US who had a reissue for sale at a very nice price. So, I bought it and am glad I did as even this reissue isn’t that easy to find stateside, and typically sells for more than what I paid for it. The repress was done by the fantastic Italian label Schema in 2014. They did a great job. Remastered from original tapes, it sounds fine to my ears, although I don’t have an original to compare it to. They did a nice job with the sleeve repro and even chuck in a CD copy for you to go digital. Cheers. An OBI is included with some brief notes and credits the musicians, which the original never did. I need to search for an English translation to the Italian liner notes, however. That might have been a nice touch as a small insert perhaps on the repress, but I quibble. The internet will have the translation somewhere.

Like I said, this won’t change your life, but if you have found that life has twisted your melon recently and you are partial already to some 70s prog and krautrock, then there might be something for you here. Either way, it’s a quick listen and still worth it and that’s my final answer.

Okay, deadline approaches. Back to listening to more Roy Ayers and New York Dolls records.

Cheers and see you next time - Dom

Hi Sorry Staters, thanks for clicking on our newsletter and checking in with us.

It’s been another crazy week and honestly what happened in the White House on Friday still has me in shock. Really? This is the America we live in now? Aligning with the dictators of the world. My God! To think of all the people who have given their lives for their country to protect democracy here and around the world only to have these horrible traitors act so shamefully. It is beyond comprehension. We are in a constitutional crisis in America and a third of the population at least seems to be cheering on as the place burns. Sad. Very sad.

With all that in mind, trying to think straight and write a pick for the newsletter is even tougher than normal. I honestly couldn’t even write home for money right now, but I’ll give it a go.

Just quickly first, a mention about a record that has been out for a few months now but was missed by me when it came to the store originally. It seems we had a color variant which sold out quickly and a black vinyl version which, although listed on our webstore, didn’t make its way to the store bins. Shame on us for missing that. Anyway, last week Jeff and I were talking about the popularity of the Alvilda record, and he mentioned he thought that another French language record we got in was just as good or even, dare he say, better. That was Coeur A L’Index from Belgium and their debut titled Adieu Minette. As soon as I put it on, I knew instantly that I liked it. Great C86 style DIY pop-punk which should easily appeal to fans of Chin Chin, Dolly Mixture and bands on Slumberland Records, just to give you a rough idea. As always, Jeff called it. If you were slow on the ball like I was, we still have copies on black vinyl in stock. Check it out.

Okay, for my main pick this week I had to go with a terrific collection of reggae and dub that is focused on the productions of Dennis Bovell. It’s called Sufferrer Sounds and is out on the Disciples label, a subsidiary of Warp Records in the U.K. The compilation concentrates on tracks that were produced and released during and around the time that Dennis Bovell was involved with the South London sound system known as Sufferer Sound in the late 1970s. It’s a wonderfully curated compilation and sequenced to play as an album almost, even though tracks are pulled from different releases. There are rare B-side version dubs, lovers rock beauties, powerful rockers and roots cuts, all with the genius production touch from Dennis Bovell. I think it is great and will certainly be one of my faves of the year, I am sure. I won’t go into a deep dive on Bovell here, as I have neither the time nor the brain power to do him justice, but Lord Daniel is a big fan also and I know he picked a Dennis Bovell record before for a staff pick here in the Sorry State newsletter, so perhaps pull that one up to read a more in-depth history. Suffice to say, if you have listened to a Slits record or watched the film Babylon or loved the dub poetry of Linton Kwesi Johnson, then, whether you realized it or not, you have experienced the magic of Dennis Bovell.

Back to this collection. The label has done a great job in the sound restoration and the pressing is a good one. I have been cranking it at home and at the store and can testify to the top job done by the mastering engineer. These cuts potentially have never sounded so good. Many of them are rare and hard to find (and expensive) so it’s a blessing to have them compiled here. For those wondering how things might have played and sounded at Sufferer Sound with DB at the controls all those years ago, this is a fantastic approximation. Comes with liner notes and a few photos along with track-by-track recollections from Dennis himself. Killer stuff and essential for all lovers of 70s dub reggae. I’m loving the dub version of Take Five and Angelique’s Cry with the DB version that closes out the album. Beauty and toughness combined.

Okay, short and to the point this week. Thanks for reading and supporting music and the arts.

Cheers - Dom

What’s up Sorry Staters? How’s the weather where you are? Unfortunately for us here in the south, just a few inches of snow, cold weather and ice can shut down the whole place. Unlike our friends in the north where it’s business as usual. As a result of the recent storm, we had to remain closed for a couple of days and stay home, but it gave us all a chance to catch up on some record listening, book reading, film watching and to get some rest. That’s at least how I spent my snow days, besides taking care of my poorly kitty cat. Oh, and I got to watch a couple of football games on TV live, which is always a bonus. Not that my team quite got the result we were looking for, but enough of that for the time being.

A big part of taking care of the cat involves sitting down on the couch with a blanket over my legs and her curled up on my lap, often trapping me there for long periods of time. Ideal for watching TV and reading, but a bit of problem when I want to listen to records and need to get up every twenty minutes or so to change the record. One of the advantages of vinyl, right? I have often had to throw on a CD or switch to streaming something from the internet. Again, not such a bad thing as I have loads of radio shows and podcasts to listen to. There simply isn’t enough time to listen to everything, watch everything and read everything in my queue. To that point, I was determined to have a good dip into a book that has been patiently waiting for me since I picked it up a while back. I have been enjoying reading it and would like to recommend it to you all for my pick this week in the newsletter. Be warned though, reading it will cause you to fall down many rabbit holes and could end up costing you a small fortune. The book is called Unusual Sounds—The Hidden History Of Library Music. It was written by David Hollander and published in 2018 by Anthology Editions.

At this stage, 2025, Library Music isn’t exactly a secret anymore. I’m sure many of you are aware of these records, but for a time they were hidden from general public consumption, only known by industry insiders and then later by progressive producers and DJs looking for new beats and samples yet to be mined. The 1990s saw a renewed interest in these records made twenty or thirty-plus years prior, as retro culture got into full swing. By the turn of the millennium, Library records were fetching good money on the collector’s scene as more and more people got turned on to them and realized how good they were. Producers looking for beats and samples other than from their parents’ James Brown records found a whole new frontier of discovery in Library music. DJs wanting to stand out and play stuff that others didn’t have would also be on the hunt for these elusive gems. There would be boutique stores opening that catered to just these types of customers. The Sound Library in New York is a good example. Although they, of course, stocked lots of cool records other than Library music, the emphasis was on servicing producers and DJs, hence the name of the store.

Fortunately, during this period of reappraisal in the late 90s and early 00s, there were a few labels reissuing some of this great music. Mostly as compilations, but occasionally whole albums. This was when I got hip to it. I gobbled up as many of them as I could find. As a DJ on a budget, I was already into collecting soundtracks as they were a great source for lesser heard tracks and unusual sounding stuff, so these compilations of cool sounding music were ideal for me. Over time, even these reissues have become valuable and collectable. I’m glad I got the ones I did and have kept hold of them. Not as cool as owning the originals, but still cooler than not having anything and not hearing the music.

So, what are Library Music records? They are records of stock music created expressly for the use in film, radio and television. Each one would have music to suit different moods and situations and were aimed at producers and productions that didn’t have the budget to hire their own composers and musicians and to pay for studio time. These recordings were ready for use off the shelf at a fraction of the cost and came pre-licensed. The heyday for these records was the mid-1960s through the 1970s. There were many different production houses, publishers and labels and several became very successful financially and produced extremely high-quality music that was above and beyond the mainstream and much more progressive. That’s why, decades later, the world is still catching up. Although North America had some Library music houses, they didn’t catch on as in Europe, due mostly to performance rights and objections from musicians’ unions. The big centers for Library music were France, Italy, Germany and the U.K., each bringing their own unique regional and cultural take on whatever musical style was being invoked.

As these records initially were not for public consumption, they mostly came in plain covered sleeves with perhaps a color scheme and/or company logo and title. On the back were the list of cues (usually with titles), their length and a brief description of style. If you were a producer looking for appropriate music for your production, you could easily listen and choose the right cues from the records, with the idea being that you then purchased those from the Library House, who would dub you a tape of your selections. The records themselves were purely a demonstration sample tool and were often returned to the library or discarded. However, as time went on, most music libraries began issuing these records with cover art of some sort. Usually something simple to obviously suggest the type of music within, but sometimes with imaginative and wonderful images that truly spark the imagination. Occasionally some of these records were made commercially available to the public, but even those are tough to find.

Obviously in the book the author gives a much better description than I am giving, and his introduction chapter is perfect. There’s a great foreword by George A. Romero, who writes about his use of library music for his classic genre defining film Night Of The Living Dead, and throughout there are incredible full color reproductions of some of the best library record cover art, along with photos of many of the key players, etc.

The author sets out the chapters with each concentrating on a particular country’s libraries. He chose British, German, French, Italian and North American libraries as being the main players, and each country chapter has a brief history of their respective labels/libraries along with some pictures of the records they produced. The artwork is so cool and often stunning on these records, and it’s great to see them reproduced in the book. There is a definite acknowledgment from the author that other countries had good music libraries too, many of the eastern European countries, for instance, and Brazil also. There’s a final chapter displaying film posters and advertising for TV shows which have famously used library music. Some are very well known and recognizable and others more obscure. Again, great color reproductions which are so fun to look at.

During his introduction chapter, the author talks about doing his best to visit many of the library houses that still exist or to contact whoever may still have ownership of now defunct ones. Many have been swallowed up by bigger companies and are owned in name only. He speaks of the still massive amounts of music that has barely seen the light of day since first being made years ago, and how a lot of it is getting saved and digitized, but that a lot isn’t and is either rotting away on magnetic tape or, in many cases, has already been dumped. He tells of arriving at a British library to discover that they had dumped master tapes just the week before. So now the only place that some of this music may exist is on those original vinyl records and, as was mentioned before, these were often thrown out too. It goes to explain how prices for many of these records are through the roof and in a league of their own when it comes to rare records and big number price tags. Again, I’m so glad to own the few I do, even if they are mostly reissues. It’s sad that music, just like film and television, hasn’t been preserved and, in some cases, has been lost forever.

Not that I have ever had the dough to buy expensive originals, but even if I did the opportunity rarely presents itself. You can trust me when I say that you hardly ever see these records. Maybe for a brief period back in the day if you knew what you were looking for and could dig in major cities around the world where they were likely to have been circulated, you might have found a few. Certainly, at record shows or stores that knew what they were doing, you wouldn’t get them cheap. However, there’s always stories of people finding them in the wild, which is cool. I recently saw that Noble Records here in North Carolina had scored complete runs of many major music libraries as part of an even larger collection they bought. So cool. I’m so happy for them and so jealous. I am not sure whether they have been put out for sale in their store yet though, and am almost afraid to know if they have. Not that I get that way often, but if you find yourself in the Charlotte area you should check out their store. They do a great job.

As I have been typing this, I’ve been spinning a cross section of my library records and trying to see whether I prefer any production house or country. The short answer is no, but I love the Italian stuff from the 1970s a lot. The UK houses like KPM, Music DeWolfe and Themes International are all ace too and supplied tons of groovy, cool music. I love a good cop show theme and there are so many cool ones throughout these libraries. I also love that lush space-age bachelor pad sound and easy listening kind of vibe and there is so much virgin timber of this ilk to be found on library records. If you like the vibe of Air’s Moon Safari or any Stereolab record, which I absolutely do, then you should start investigating these types of records. As I have been playing the few records I pulled from the shelf, there’s one thing I can say for sure: there are tons of cool sounding beats and head nodding potential samples to jam on.

One series of library and soundtrack reissues I like is called Easy Tempo. They pick from Italian library records and have released several volumes of great music. I like the Italian stuff because they are well produced and recorded and because they tackle all sorts of genres. You get cool jazz, funky cop show themes, weird electro and horror stuff, poppy easy listening and even takes on Brazilian samba and Afro-Latin sounds. At the store, John Scott often plays from a YouTube channel where a dude offers needle drops of a lot of the Easy Tempo titles, so they are available to check out. It’s cool knowing he digs them as much as I did when I first heard them years ago.

I could drone on for much longer and still not do this genre proper justice. I guess the basic point is if you have a love for film and television and always wanted to know what the music was that soundtracked the night club party scene or the trippy druggy scene or the zombie attack scene in one of your favorite cult films or shows, chances are it was music sourced from a music library. Even the famous intro music to The People’s Court is library music, shared with a 70s UK TV show called The Hanged Man and used in several other TV shows and sampled in music. That piece, called The Big One, was composed by Alan Tew and his is a name that turns up again and again on UK produced library music. Growing up, I loved the 70s UK cop show The Sweeney, and they used library music to soundtrack the action. Perhaps that’s where my interest began? One of my favorite records is a double set that came out a while ago, which collects a lot of the best cues used for the show. It’s great.

Before I sign off, a quick couple of additional library music recommendations. For more Italian grooves, check out one called Souno Libero on the Irma label. One of my faves. There’s a nice set of mostly French library recordings called Space Oddities which is great, especially volume two. That one’s put together well and concentrates more on psychedelic and progressive type stuff, but keeps it groovy at the same time. A label in Germany called Show Up did a nice series of compilations from the Themes International library, picking some of the best funky cop show type cues. That’s called Dramatic Funk Themes. I have three volumes and they’re all ace. British label BBE has a couple of volumes compiling music made for the De Wolfe library called Bite Hard and they are worth seeking out also.

Just the tip of the tip of the iceberg when it comes to library music. As I said previously, there has been so much music made. Some of it has been reissued, some of it remains on those original records still left barely heard by the greater listening public, and sadly some of it has been lost forever as the master tapes are gone, taking with them music that didn’t even make it to an actual record. But that’s the case in the regular music world too. There are countless examples of songs, tunes, takes, even whole albums that never saw release at the time for whatever reason and remained on old reels of tape for years, sometimes being discovered later and finally getting appreciation, but sometimes not. Regardless, because of the nature of its creation, covering all aspects of life, there will always be a piece of library music to suit your mood. If you enjoy instrumental music (mostly) and dig soundtracks particularly, then the world of library music awaits you. Enjoy your journey.

Before I go, a reminder that we got a ton of brilliant titles in last week. Even with snow days we (Jeff mostly) were busy behind the scenes opening boxes and getting stuff up on to our webstore and in the bins of the shop. I’m excited about the Dark Entries label new comps, especially the second volume of 80s Mexican synth-pop called Back Up Dos. I’m very excited about getting a vinyl pressing of Diamond Jubilee, the Cindy Lee album from last year. That’s one of my highlights from 2024 and it’s still growing on me, and it has been great to connect with the record in physical form. We got in a bunch of cool reissues of seminal and more obscure albums too, covering everything from country through jazz to punk. Look at the webstore or pop into the store in person, where of course you will find much more. Some titles, like the dub albums from Scientist, sold out immediately, and others may be close to selling out, but we’ll be restocking what we can as quickly as possible. The stock notification alert is your best friend if you are looking at a title that shows out of stock.

Okay, that’s enough for now. I’m out of here. Cheers everyone.

-Dom

Hey there Sorry Staters! Thanks for checking us out this week. We hope we find you well? It’s been another full and exciting week here at Sorry State. We continued to put more of the great records from our recent big collection purchase into your hands. Folks have been loving all these nice clean promo copies, especially all the copies still in the shrink with the hype stickers. You’d need a time machine to go back and find fresher looking copies. Still plenty more being added to the shop bins and our online stores.

This week saw the delivery of test pressings for the second Fugitive Bubble record, and we are all buzzing. It sounds great. Nice job, guys. Judging by responses from customers hearing it in the store, we think it should be a hit with a lot of you out there. Fingers crossed.

I was happy to finally get my hands on a copy of the Alvilda record, which has proved to be a hot nugget. Congratulations to the band and their label Static Shock on the hit. If you are still needing a copy for yourself, I believe we have secured more, and they should be with us soon. Keep an eye out and click on the notification update button by the record description on our webstore so you don’t miss out.

My personal listening has again been taken up with checking out more of the jazz albums we purchased in that big collection. This week I added a box of Pablo Jazz titles to our inventory, and although these 70s era jazz dates aren’t considered as desirable as some others, there is plenty of gold to be mined in these records. I am a huge Dizzy Gillespie fan and he cut some great progressive records for Pablo. He was an originator of the fusion of jazz with Afro-Cuban sounds and thirty-plus years later, he was still ahead of the curve. I have long been aware of how hip and funky Dizzy was in the 70s. His records on Perception are terrific, but for whatever reason I hadn’t heard all these later 1970s recordings. I’d highly recommend checking out one called Bahiana and another titled Afro-Cuban Jazz Moods. Both are terrific and feature wonderful playing from Dizzy and the assembled musicians. John Scott and I played one in the store that featured Dizzy alongside Lalo Schifrin, the wonderful pianist and composer from Argentina who has a resume as long as both my arms, but will be recognized as being the composer of soundtracks to films such as Bullitt, Dirty Harry, Enter The Dragon and for the original theme to TV show Starsky And Hutch. He has a ton of good records that typically incorporate Latin rhythms and styles, and he often gets funky. The one we listened to is called Free Ride and it was cut in early 1977. Worth checking out.

A lot of the best stuff we get at the store comes from the discerning taste of you, our friends, who will occasionally sell or trade with us. This week several interesting pieces came to us this way, and I thought I would stray from my jazz picks and talk about one record I had to pluck from a collection I was processing. It’s a repress of a record called Yes It Is, by Rockin’ Horse, that was originally released in the UK back in 1971 on Philips. This repress was done by a Spanish label a few years back. I can’t comment on how legit or not it may be, but they did a decent enough job, and it sounds fine. No extra bells and whistles, just a close repro of the original.

I was aware of this record from a CD reissue about twenty years ago and because by that time I was a fan of the main players and artists behind the album, namely Jimmy Campbell and Billy Kinsley. Both are from Liverpool and are rightfully considered legendary among those who dig 60s Merseybeat, Pop and Psych. Billy Kinsley is best known for being a member of the Merseybeats and then with band mate Tony Crane in The Merseys, who had a hit with the song Sorrow, later covered by David Bowie. Jimmy Campbell began with the beat group The Kirkbys, named after their locale in Merseyside. They put out a cracking song called It’s A Crime that demands top dollar on the collector’s circuit. I made do with a repro at DJ gigs in the past and always enjoyed spinning it out. Campbell later formed a psych group called The 23rd Turnoff, again a nod to their hometown. When driving up north on the M-6, Liverpool was the 23rd turnoff. Get it? Anyway, they released a nice pop-sike single called Michael Angelo that should have been a hit and a whole bunch of other songs that didn’t see the light of day until years later. There are a few different LP, CD and 7” EPs out there that gather up all these recordings. I have a CD which is cool, but it would be nice to pick up one or two of these other versions as there are improved fidelity and alternates on one or two songs.

Jimmy and Billy formed Rockin’ Horse in 1971 and put a band together to record just this one album. Label Philips also issued two singles. The group was purely a studio creation. Kinsley had been working for Apple Records, recording with Jackie Lomax and George Harrison, and was keeping busy recording cover versions of hit songs for the popular Top Of The Pops budget series of albums. The idea behind Rockin’ Horse was to say goodbye to the mop top sixties and usher in a more rocking seventies.

The album has been described as a continuation of the sound of Abbey Road and Let It Be by The Beatles and a missing link between Badfinger, The Aerovons and the power pop sounds of later 1970s groups. It certainly has that vibe, and if that’s what floats your boat you’ll find plenty to like here. I know the term power pop can turn some people off, but there is enough pedigree and good songwriting to make this an enjoyable listen. I’m obviously biased to begin with, having known and liked the artists previously, and am not afraid to say I like The Beatles and Badfinger and the like. But it really is a decent record. Naturally, it sunk without trace on release and its creators had already moved on to other ventures. Jimmy and Billy were part of the backing band for Chuck Berry’s European tour and then began working on their separate projects. Kinsley formed Liverpool Express and had success, particularly in South America.

Campbell released more solo albums. He had previously recorded an acoustic folk record at the tail end of the 60s for the Fontana label and after Rockin’ Horse had a couple of good ones on Vertigo and again Philips. I remember whilst working in the store in New York a guy selling us a box of sealed copies of Jimmy’s album Half Baked, which was cool. I like the song Green Eyed American Actress from that record, which has a bit more of a groove to it compared to the more folky and pop sounds of the rest of the album.

Whilst looking online for information about Rockin’ Horse. I discovered that an unreleased song called Lonely Norman had been issued as a reissue single recently. It’s a good tune and features Eddy Grant of The Equals on lead guitar. I shall have to find myself a copy of that at some point, I think. Meanwhile, there is plenty to enjoy for me on the album. Opener Biggest Gossip In Town is a great Beatlesque pop song. Closer Julian The Hooligan is a cool rocking one, and the love song Don’t You Think I Ever Cry is terrific also. Honestly, there isn’t a duff tune on the whole record. Jimmy Campbell writes most of the songs, with Billy Kinsley penning the remaining, making it an all-original song affair.

I’ve added a few YouTube links to some tunes for you to check them out. It doesn’t appear that the whole album is available, although I could be wrong. Regardless, these four songs should give you all you need to know and a decent taste of what to find on the rest of the album should you care.

Thanks for reading and a big thank you to Jordan who sold us his copy. I’m going to have to snag this copy, but it seems like the reissues are cheap and easy to find, although an original might set you back a little more.

Cheers - Dom

Greetings all in Sorry State Newsletter land. It’s Super Bowl Sunday as I write, not that I have much interest in that, other than perhaps the halftime show. Earlier today I was left feeling flat as the Reds got knocked out of the F.A. Cup by Plymouth Argyle. Good on them for having their day. The prospect of giant-killing has always made the F.A. Cup a compelling competition. There’s not much like it. So, for Liverpool another chance at the quadruple has ended for this season. LoL. Still three more trophies to play for, and even if you don’t win anything, surely it’s better to be in with a chance than none. Unless you revel in misery, of course, which some do, but most of us who support a team want them to win.

Anyway, back to the Superbowl halftime show, which will have featured Kendrick Lamar performing. We sold a few copies of his new one over the weekend and I took a listen. I like the Spanish/Latin influences on it. I had a chuckle with some customers in the store, talking about how this will hopefully drive the Maga crowd mad as now that they are fully out as racists and hate Spanish-speaking people, they won’t be able to like any of it. Hell, they can’t like anything now. No Taco Tuesday for Maga now. No anything that can’t be claimed to be completely “white.” That doesn’t leave an awful lot left, does it? Certainly, music wise, the Maga record shelves will have to be very bare going forward as 99.99% of all music we enjoy has roots or influences or is played on instruments that came from people of color. Enjoy your a cappella barber shop quartet music you fuckers, because there’s not much else left for you.

For the rest of us who aren’t asshats and can appreciate people of all colors, creeds, religions and nationalities and who find that diversity enriches rather than dilutes, let’s continue and talk about some music. I spent another week adding more records to our system that we scored from the collection I mentioned last week. There is still much more great stuff to add, but so far, we have been delighting our local shoppers with the quality and the array of titles hitting the bins. This past weekend, Jeff put together some of the Rock and Metal highlights and backed them up with tons of solid copies of so many classics. It was like a field day for our shoppers, and I was psyched to see people so excited about their pick-ups. Look out for more next Friday. I expect a lot of the Jazz, Blues, Reggae and Soundtracks will feature.

I’ve been enjoying checking out so many records from this collection that I was unfamiliar with and refreshing my memory on those I was aware of. For my pick this week, it’s a combination of the two: an artist that I have loved for many years and a couple of records by him I didn’t have. I’m referring to the jazz legend Cal Tjader. Master of the vibraphone and a decent drummer also, he is best known as being the most famous non-Latino Latin musician. Born to Swedish parents in St. Louis and raised in the Bay Area of California, he spent thirty-odd years as a successful musician before passing away suddenly in 1982 from a heart attack whilst touring the Philippines. He was only 56.

His resume is long and includes his beginnings with Dave Brubeck, being a part of George Shearing’s band and embracing the Latin Jazz sound that was exploding in the early 1950s. During his time in New York, he met up with the likes of Mongo Santamaria and Willie Bobo and soon after formed his own group, The Cal Tjader Modern Mambo Quintet and began a long run of releasing quality albums on the Fantasy label. These records all feature top notch Afro-Cuban musician talent and really cook in places. The 1960s saw Cal switch to Verve Records, where he enjoyed his most successful period. The album Soul Source from 1964 was huge and was probably my first exposure to his music years later. The title track was a cover of a Dizzy Gillespie tune and where the term “Salsa” was coined to describe the new Latin sound.

I can’t rave about how good Cal Tjader is enough and always pick up any record that has his name on it. For a while, you could pick these up cheaply and easily, but that’s getting a little tougher now for certain titles. These records are known for being cheap heat. Records that punch way above their weight. I would add the likes of Herbie Mann and Ramsey Lewis into this camp, too. Artists that were popular and sold loads of records, but always kept the quality high, especially when it came to picking the musicians who played on their albums.

After all the success of the Fantasy Records period, a time that also saw Cal help save the Monterey Music Festival, which obviously a few years later hosted Jimi Hendrix, The Who, Otis Redding and Janis Joplin for those famous shows, and then the Verve Records era where he really took off, Tjader joined fellow musicians Gary McFarland and Gabor Szabo to found Skye Records. That label only lasted a few years, but put out great records by all three of them and others, particularly the awesome soft-psych gem by Wendy & Bonnie. Come the mid-1970s and Tjader found himself back on Fantasy and there released some tasty Jazz-Funk albums. The two I picked were from that time. One called Amazonas from 1976 and the other titled At Grace Cathedral released the following year in 1977.

Amazonas features terrific playing from the Brazilian group assembled for the session by producer Airto Moreira and of course great work from Cal himself on vibes and marimba. George Duke is also on hand to help with arrangements and song writing duties. So, there is pedigree a plenty. The album was recorded in L.A., but has a strong Latin and South American feel, is funky in places and sounds great. I’m digging the cut Mindoro the most.

At Grace Cathedral is a live album recorded at the San Francisco church in May 1976 and was a benefit for the hungry. Cal was a replacement for the intended Vince Guaraldi who, like Tjader would later, had just recently passed away unexpectedly from a heart attack. Vince and Cal were close friends, and the recording is dedicated to Guaraldi, who played there himself years earlier. The album is a good one and starts strongly with I Showed Them, followed by a Milt Jackson tune called Bluesology and then on side two opens with a nice medley from Black Orpheus, a nod to Vince Guaraldi, who released Jazz Impressions Of Black Orpheus back in 1962, also on Fantasy Records. As with Amazonas, the musicians playing on this date are all outstanding. Long time Tjader associate Pancho Sanchez excels on the congas and Lonnie Hewitt adds some nice electric keyboards. Rob Fisher plays bass and Pete Riso is on drums.

Are either of these albums the essential Cal Tjader? Perhaps not. Those ones from the 1950s and 1960s are probably the place to start, but for lovers of good Latin inspired 70s fusion, these are highly enjoyable records to check out. Give ‘em a listen if that is your bag.

Okay, deadline approaching… I need to cut things off here. Thanks for reading and we’ll see you around these parts next time or even better in the store itself.

Cheers - Dom

Greetings to you all. Thanks for taking the time to read the Sorry State Newsletter. It’s greatly appreciated and hopefully you get some useful information out of it and a brief distraction from “other stuff” that is going on. Music and the arts in general are especially important right now and have real power to unify, to soothe, to entertain, to inspire and to communicate truth. For our small part, it is an honour to pass on information and to highlight cool shit that you might like.

Writing for the newsletter is fun and a privilege, but in the company of my colleagues can be a little tough sometimes. We boast some bona fide credentials and talent amongst the team, and attempting to pen anything as interesting as theirs is always a challenge. Speaking for myself only, but I really struggle to pull the words out of my head sometimes, and can stare at a blank screen for a while. Partly because my head is full of too many other “life” things, which makes it difficult for me to concentrate, and partly because I love music and the artists that created it so much that I don’t want to do a poor job talking about something (especially if others have done it way better) or simply “phone in” a review of a record or whatever. Believe it or not, it matters to me. As it does all of us here. You don’t work at a record store and small label thinking you’re going to be super rich. If anything, it’s the complete opposite. As Daniel says, a vow of poverty. I have committed to that philosophy over the years and have chosen records over almost everything else in my life. Clearly that has been to my detriment, but at least my soul got to take in some killer shit, and hopefully I enriched other peoples’ souls by sharing and passing on knowledge of good stuff. Whether that’s been as a DJ or as a shopkeeper, the goal has always been to evangelize and pass on and to keep alive quality human artistic expression. I’m happy to play a minuscule part in that and always will.

One of the best and most exciting parts of buying and selling records is when you score a great collection. Sorry State (touch wood) has historically had good luck with that, but we’re always looking for the next cool pick up. The holiday period cleared out the bins significantly at the store and we needed replacements. I love seeing our compatriots at other record stores picking up cool collections, but admit to getting envious sometimes. So, it was a blessing from the vinyl gods that delivered a large collection to us just recently. From the collection of a music industry insider who worked from the mid 1970s through to the late 1990s and acquired, multiple in many cases, promo copies of records he was involved with. We have tons of (mostly) un-played promo copies of cool Jazz, Rock, Pop, Country, Classical, Soundtracks and more besides, which we will work on pricing and getting into the store and listing directly to our online channels as well. The store saw the first fruits of that collection hit the bins last Friday and will see more to come over the next few weeks, but many titles will go straight up online, so make sure to scan our listings. A lot of these will be sealed or unplayed copies too.

Over the weekend, I filled up a few boxes of more potential sellers for the store, but because we got busy with other things they remained in the trunk of my car, and I ended up bringing them home. The temperature has been in the 60s this weekend, so there are no worries of them being too hot or cold. However, I brought them inside just in case. That gave me a chance to pull out one or two that I didn’t know and that looked interesting to check out. The perfect way to spend my Sunday between watching the football. I only had time to listen a few of the many cool records and have gone with something new to me for my “pick” this week. I could have easily picked one of several more obviously cool and known titles. There are loads of those in this collection, and many that come with a price tag reflecting their desirability. But instead I’ve gone with a cheaper one. I have a soft spot for records that aren’t too expensive but still pack a punch and provide for some good listening. Also, like Daniel, I don’t mind having lower grade copies of records that would otherwise be a lot more expensive. If the vinyl is mostly clean and decent and plays without major noise and/or skips, I’m okay. Certainly, jackets don’t have to be spotless for me. Obviously, I prefer a nice copy without damage, but I can live with a seam split or some writing on the back, etc. Just no mold from moisture exposure. I can’t do that. The copy I am about to talk about is decent, has a punch hole and plays well. I only pulled jazz records from the collection, so if that’s not your bag, you can be excused. LoL.

Up is pianist Rupert Cobbett and a record he released in 1976 called Sensitive Cat on the independent Soul Deep label out of Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

I was drawn to the title first. I consider myself a sensitive cat and have a poorly sensitive cat at home currently. Then there was a cartoon sketch on the back of the jacket depicting a cat playing keyboards with the black keys spelling out progressive. Cool. That and the nature of the Soul Deep private label intrigue coupled with the photo of Mr. Cobbett on the cover and the dedication to the “Jazz Freaks” of the industry on the back all shouted out to me to drop the needle and see what sounds came out of the speakers. I’m happy to report a winner. Not an out and out classic or an essential banger, but a decent record that would appeal to anyone who likes 70s Jazz Funk and electric keyboard led music. I was a little skeptical as the first track began as it sounded mainstream, and I was fearful this might be a lame cocktail lounge record. This song called Just One Reason was hyped on the front cover as being a hit single. I don’t know about that. Maybe on the Holiday Inn bar scene it was. LoL. Although at halfway through that song, I heard some cool percussion and signs that there might be better to come. The second track, On Three Legs, quickly proves that to be the case. Producers might want to get their samplers out for elements of this track. There were some tasty beats in parts, and the piano playing was top-notch. Rupert has the chops to be spoken about alongside big names like Ramsey Lewis and Herbie Hancock when it comes to this particular period of piano based jazz.

The rest of the musicians on the date are allowed to demonstrate their talents as the album continues. The third song, Ultra Wave, gives both the drummer some and the bassist space to groove and show what they can do. Side one ends with my favorite cut so far. Called Seven Heaven, it has an Afro-Funk sort of groove going on and would appeal to fans of groups like Cymande and War, or perhaps even Mandrill. Not as heavy or overtly funky, but the song has a nice groove to it and features some tasty flute work.

Side two opens with Bad Rooster and more tasty drums that surely have been sampled (or need to be) and progresses in a Stanley Turrentine and Freddie Hubbard on CTI records sort of fashion. The drummer keeps the groove going throughout and would make Steve Gadd proud. As the song gets into a bit of a breakdown, this sweet synth sound comes in. Really cool.

The next song, Play The Game, gets into a Latin Funk light type of groove. There’s some more tasty flute and bass parts and consistent percussion and drums.

They lose me a little on the third track called Ballad Acoustics, as they take their foot off the gas a little, but it’s still a nice track in the vein of something Vince Guaraldi might play on one of the Charlie Brown TV Specials soundtracks that I love so much. Beautiful piano playing and deft bass lines.

The album closer is called What It Is, and is the only song with vocals. The song has a Caribbean sounding vibe to it and doesn’t quite fit in with everything that proceeded it. It isn’t that bad of a song, but it isn’t that great either, and seems to be an odd addition. I wonder what the thought process was behind including that, and whether it was recorded at a different time to the rest of the album.

So yeah, there you have it. Worth checking out and keeping an eye out for if you like the type of Soul Jazz that labels such as Muse or Black Jazz were releasing at the same time. You can click here for a link to listen to the song Seven Heaven and get a taste.

Rupert Cobbett released a second record on the same Soul Deep label, his own I believe, the following year in 1977 called Peaceful Morning that’s in the same vein as Sensitive Cat. Looking at Discogs, it seems like people are paying good money for a copy of that one, and the same might be said about the first one now too, although the median on that one is still at $20. I think tracks from the second album have been sampled and compiled on to mix tapes, which has raised their profile and hence has more people on the hunt which, in turn, raises the price.

I’ve checked that album online and liked it too. Maybe I’ll find a copy in this current collection we are still going through. There might be one. If he had the first, why not the second? It would make sense. Keeping my fingers crossed. In the meantime, I’ll enjoy listening to Sensitive Cat with my sensitive self and my actual sensitive kitty cat.

Cheers everyone. Thanks for reading and supporting us and supporting everyone else that is trying to put the good word out and do good things. We’re in this together. It’s going to be rough, but if we find community in music and other interests, then we might just make it. Keep the faith.

-Dom

Hey there Sorry Staters, what’s up?

Writing to you today on Martin Luther King Day here in the US, which is corresponding with the Inauguration Ceremony for the new President. God help us all. Thankfully, I had an excuse to get out of the house and not wallow in despair, as I had my radio show to do, and we made it all about celebrating MLK. Hopefully spinning some Soul and Gospel records and putting that good music and positive messages out into the air can be considered my act of service for the day.

One record I brought along and was glad to include on the show was the album by Arrested Development called Don’t Fight Your Demons, released in 2020.

I missed getting a vinyl copy when it first came out, but a couple of years ago it got a reissue and I made sure to snag myself one. I think around that time I was fortunate enough to see them perform live here in Raleigh at a special one-off benefit show. They were incredible, and just as memorable and impactful as they were when I first saw them some twenty-five or so years ago.

I wouldn’t claim to be a super-fan of theirs, but still have their first couple of records and a few 12”s in my collection. Their brand of socially conscious hip-hop combined with a pop sensibility and good times vibes always hits the spot.

Don’t Fight Your Demons is packed full of great tracks. I played one called Young Americans on the show today, but could have gone with any of several others that would have fitted in and been appropriate for the day. There’s a little bit of something for everyone on this record. You get the politics; this record came out in the tumult of 2020, and coincidentally at the same time as Public Enemy came out with a new record. You get the intelligence, you get humor, you get club bangers and head-nodders, all on the same record. What a good Hip-Hop record is all about. Credit to the group, in particular Speech and to producer Configa, who give the record a contemporary and current sound. Aided by some guest MCs and vocalists, the result is a very satisfying album that was perfect for the moment it was released and still sounds fresh these few years later. Arrested Development certainly do not have any expiration date. They’ve been at it solidly these past thirty years or so, releasing quality records and rocking any stage they perform on.

With what promises to be in our future these next few years, we need groups like Arrested Development more than ever. Pull this one up and give it a listen if you haven’t in a while or let it slip by you first time around.

Cheers – Dom

Hey there Sorry Staters. We hope you are all safe and well out there. Here in North Carolina, we had a minor ice storm the other night and have been experiencing some cold weather, but our hearts go out to any of you in areas affected by severe weather and particularly right now the dreadful fires in California. Just so sad to see so much devastation and poor folks losing everything they have. I get broken up thinking about all the animals killed or now displaced that might not end up living. We obviously had a tragedy here last year with the flooding, so to be seeing communities being wiped out again so soon is doubly hard to take. Just like then, it appears that a certain shit ball and his followers are using the fires to score political points. What a bunch of scumbags. Anyway, fuck them, and much peace and love to those suffering.

We hope that our 2024 round up newsletter last week made for interesting reading. I always enjoy seeing what my colleagues write about and what they rated. I wonder how much or not you agreed with us. I must stress again that all of us felt we had forgotten something or felt bad about leaving an artist, album or single off our lists. Apologies to anyone we didn’t include or mention. We weren’t trying to make definitive statements, but rather just celebrate music and the arts in general and support the scene that supports us. Music hits us all in different ways and what works for one may not work for the other. All I conclude each year when we do these things is that a lot of music is made each year and it’s only possible to listen to a fraction of it and each of our tastes are different.

A quick mention about a record that we just got in before I get into my “pick” for this week. Technically it’s a 2024 release, but for us and most folks, this year will be the first we are hearing about the group Gossip Collar and their debut LP Spinning Silk For Parasites. They’re a post-punk group from Boston and should appeal to anyone that enjoys a Deathrock edge in their music. I’ve been spinning this one and liking it. Check ‘em out.

Okay, this week I am going to write about an artist whose records I had not heard about until last week, even though they have been making music since the late 1990s. I feel almost embarrassed that I was unaware of these records, as the sound is right up my proverbial alley. Just goes to the show that the more you know, the more you find out you don’t know. The artist I am referring to here is Matt Rendon, talented multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, producer and main man behind the Tucson, Arizona Garage band The Resonars.

My main love, music-wise, will always be guitar-based made in the golden era of Rock And Roll that was 1957 through 1977. From Elvis to The Sex Pistols, those twenty years saw the best of the best. Rock ‘N Roll, Rockabilly, Country, Blues, R & B, Merseybeat, British Invasion, Garage, Psych, Soul, Funk, Glam, Bubblegum, Prog, Krautrock, Reggae and Punk. So much quality music and those tags only scratch the surface. I particularly love that period of the mid 1960s where groups in the UK who were inspired by earlier US groups and artists were now influencing the current crop of musicians in America and then how quickly they, in turn, were again inspiring the Brits (and the rest of the world) and changing their sounds. Things progressed at such a rapid rate during that period. But I’m not here to give a history of music. You all know how it went down and have the internet to tell you more if you’re interested. The point is, I love original 1960s music and culture and all the subsequent waves of revival that followed. Any band that plays a 60s inspired style of music will always get my attention. Some I like and some I like less so, but if I see a record with a 60s Mod aesthetic and the band have a good look and there’s at least one Rickenbacker in sight, I’ll give them a listen.

So, at the store last week I was going through the bins and boxes of records we have on the back shelves, looking for titles that hadn’t sold or might get a better shot if listed online, and I came across a record that instantly caught my eye. It was the 1998 self-titled album by The Resonars on Star Time Records. It has a very 60s psych inspired look and l felt like it might be a decent Garage record. My hunches were confirmed the moment I put the needle on the record and the music burst forth. Total 60s garage pop-psych with vocals that recall a few British Invasion bands, but particularly The Hollies. Great tunes and songs, all written by Matt Rendon apart from a choice cover of The Peanut Butter Conspiracy’s Dark On You Now. I was hooked instantly and played the record at least two more times, asking myself why I had never heard of it before. As I started to research, I learned that the group was essentially Matt Rendon and assorted other players and band members rotated over the years, and that the records were mostly recorded at his own studio, Coma Cave Studios, that he has been steadily building these past twenty-odd years. I also learnt that there were a lot of records made since that 1998 debut, and that they were all good. We had a few here. Sorry, but I have snagged them. Hey, I don’t like to be one of those record store clerks who do that, but locals had a few months to buy them and although we sold one or two, these others were still here.

I’ve been playing them these past few days and have been enjoying them all. The sound on the records might change a little due to players, better equipment and instruments, and in a couple of cases different studio locations, but essentially, they stick to the blueprint of pop-psych garage. If you love The Hollies, The Who, The Yardbirds, The Rolling Stones, The Kinks, The Byrds, The Electric Prunes, Big Star, Badfinger and all the rest of the Nuggets type groups then you probably will like The Resonars. If you like the kind of bands talked about in Bomp! Magazine and the bands who had records released on Big Beat, Get Hip, Norton, Dionysus, Sundazed, and Voxx, to name a few labels as examples, you’ll probably like The Resonars.

I admit I fell down a rabbit hole as I read more and more about Matt Rendon and listened to the records. For a fellow that has kept a regular job during most of his bands’ lives, he sure keeps busy. Not only writing, playing, recording and producing for his own band, but also doing the same with other local groups in the Tucson area and having a few side projects and other groups going at certain times too. He was in a band called The Knockout Pills that played a punkier style of music that has correctly been compared to the sound of Australian punk legends The Saints. That band released two albums in 2003 and 2004. Jeff and I listened to both in the store the other day and thought they were both good. I scored the first one online cheaply and easily, but the second one called 1+1+Ate might take a bit more work to find. If anyone reading this is from Tucson (or anywhere else) and can find me a copy for a reasonable price, get in touch.

I went nuts on Discogs and have now bought several Resonars albums, along with another of the side projects called The Butterscotch Cathedral, which was a one off, more psychedelic record but essentially The Resonars under a different name, plus a couple of records by a group called The Marshmallow Overcoat, who Matt was in for a while and who are part of that same Arizona scene. That last group has an interesting documentary made about them called ALL YOU NEED IS FUZZ: 30 Years In A Garage Band. Click here to watch a trailer. The Overcoat was yet another name unbeknownst to me, despite having hits and worldwide success. I really like their album from 1993 called A Touch Of Evil, which has a more of a darker, Goth-like sound to it. On that one, they dropped the marshmallow and are just The Overcoat.

If that wasn’t enough new-to-me music to discover, there are still yet other bands that Matt Rendon is or was involved with for me to check out. There’s one called Lenguas Largas who, since 2011, have four albums and a bunch of singles to their credit. This band plays in a psychedelic garage punk style with Indie Rock leanings from what I have heard so far. I’ll need to investigate further, but will most likely be seeking at least one or two of their records once I’m done.

He’s also in Freezing Hands, playing drums, who since 2014 have released four albums, described as psychedelic Garage/Power Pop, along with one of his bandmates from The Knockout Pills. As I write this, I have only listened to a few songs and watched some live video clips. I liked what I heard.

Additionally, he played in a Garage group called The Vultures, who have an album from 2004. He played in a one-off psychedelic project from 2020 called The Green Children and has recorded and appears on records by The Exbats. Then there are lots of other groups that have recorded at his studio where he produces, engineers and/or adds vocals and instrumentation. Like I said, a busy chap.

Who knew there was such a great vibrant scene coming out of Tucson? Err, lots of people Dominic, not least the good folk that live there. I am joking of course. The city of Tucson and the rest of the State of Arizona have produced countless great artists and bands throughout the years. Green On Red comes to mind straight away. I like them. Didn’t the pre- Alice Cooper garage band The Spiders come from Phoenix? Linda Ronstadt, Meat Puppets, Gin Blossoms, the list goes on.

There’s a good interview with Matt Rendon done by It’s Psychedelic Baby Magazine that I would recommend you reading. In it, he briefly talks about each of the records and some of these other projects. Click here for a link.

I still need to track down copies of the last two full lengths from The Resonars, along with a few 7” singles that are out there. I’m sure I’ll get to those at some point. I’ve given them a listen to online and they all sound good. Then there are those other bands, such as Freezing Hands, whose records it would be cool to have. Maybe I’ve gone too deep down the rabbit hole, but who cares? It’s a fun trip and recommended. I would be hard-pressed to pick a favorite record quite yet, but the self-titled debut is a good place to start. I liked That Evil Drone from 2008 and Nonetheless Blue from 2007 and Bright And Dark from 1999. All three have good, well produced, catchy tunes. You should also for sure check out The Knockout Pills albums from 2003/4 for a more pop-punk sound. Bottom line, Tucson has a great musical heritage and if you want to travel back to a place where it’s always 1967, then choose The Resonars as your soundtrack. They’ll deliver.

Cheers and happy listening - Dom

Greetings Sorry Staters. Happy New Year to you. I can’t believe the holidays came and went already. It feels as if we only just got through with Halloween. Time flies. I hope you all had a good festive period and that 2024 was a good year for you. Totally understand if it wasn’t, or if your Christmas wasn’t so merry. I totally get that. I did my best to distract myself from my lack of Christmas cheer by watching as many holidays themed movies as I could over the festive week. That and all the Premier League games that take place over Christmas and spinning records kept me occupied. Not that I had too much free time as we’ve been busy here at Sorry State and it’s been all hands on deck. Which of course we are not complaining about. It was fantastic seeing so many folks come through the store and be excited about their records. A big thank you to any of you reading that came in or bought online and helped thin out our inventory. As I type, Daniel is out on a used record buy, already working to replenish our supply of good classic rock and pop staples. Always digging.

Okay, so 2024 is done with, but before we get stuck into the new year, it’s customary to take a quick glance back over the previous year and mention some records that we liked. We’re giving you our top ten, but like anyone else doing these types of things there’s always way more than just ten to pick from. I hate to leave so many out. We’ll have to have an honorable mentions section, too. My rules were, it had to be a record I have a physical copy of, even though I have been enjoying several albums digitally, and had I owned a vinyl copy they would have made my list. Probably top of the list for albums that many people rate as one of the best but don’t have a copy of is Cindy Lee’s Diamond Jubilee. That’s because it doesn’t yet exist. A physical vinyl edition will finally see release in a few weeks’ time. I’ll be getting one as I really loved this album. Go investigate if you haven’t heard it yet. It’s a long one, but for those of a certain soulful disposition you’ll dig every minute.

Before I start my list, here are a few other albums that came out in 2024 that I have streamed, don’t yet own a copy of, but enjoyed. Paul Weller’s 66 album continues his run of always interesting records. Tindersticks released another good one this year tilted Soft Tissue which if you follow them you should enjoy. I try to pick up any of theirs that I see on vinyl. They do a lot of soundtracks also, which are good, but this new one is a solid actual Tindersticks album. Another artist that I try to pick up anything they do is Michael Head. His current band is called the Red Elastic Band, and their latest album is Loophole. The city of Liverpool has much to boast about and Mick is someone whose name is praised highly and rightfully so.

Lo-fi Americana group Grandaddy released a new album this year called Blu Wav which I still haven’t fully listened to, but I always had a soft spot for their country-fried electronica lo-fi sound. My radio partner Matt introduced me to French pop group Juniore through our show Worldy on The Face Radio, and 2024 saw them release Trois/Deux/Un. If you like La Femme, you’ll like them just as much. Talking of whom, La Femme released a good one called Rock Machine last year, which follows on with their run of very enjoyable albums. Cool, retro-futuristic Franco pop. Oui, oui.

Lastly, I might have included another French group Alvida in my list, but unfortunately the first two pressings of their album C’est Deja L’Heure sold out before I could snag me one. Third pressing will hopefully be the charm and I can finally own a physical copy.

2024 saw new music releases from a lot of established names, some of whom hadn’t released anything in several years. So, it was a welcome back to them, as across the board, they all came back with strong releases. For fans of 80s and 90s Brit Pop etc. 2024 was a bumper year. My favorites for the year lean heavy in that direction. I’m showing bias towards bands whose music I have known and loved for years. Whatever. Just trying to be honest, but if the records hadn’t been any good, I wouldn’t be including them. It should also be noted that for the most part my year hasn’t been that great and my mood on the downside, so consequently I have found myself listening to more melancholy music and stuff with deeper themes than just let’s get wasted and party. Not that I don’t enjoy loud and dumb rock ‘n roll or pop music, but this year wasn’t the year for too much of that for me personally. No brat summer here. Although I really enjoyed watching the Olympics over the summer and found myself buoyed and feeling more upbeat during that period. I’ve seen a few good shows during the year and Liverpool finished the year top of the league, so plenty to be happy about. I won’t dwell on the sadder aspects of the year. We all know the election results here in America sucked and unfortunately as in any year we lost loved ones and heroes. We just have to keep fighting the fight and keeping the memory of those loved ones alive in whatever way we can. I’ll leave it at that.

In non-ranking order, here are my favorites from 2024.

The Cure – Songs Of A Lost World
The world needed a new Cure album. We’ve been waiting years for one and now just like buses, three are apparently on the way. Robert Smith has told us that Songs is the first in a trilogy with the second album due before summer of this year. Give thanks. What a great record it is and sounding like classic Cure from the 80s. They haven’t missed a beat or lost any of their magic. There’s a reason they are so well loved by several generations of fans. The wait was worth it. Favorite song? End Song.

Gruff Rhys – Sadness Sets Me Free
If he puts out a record, then chances are it will be in my best of the year list. For 2023, he featured with a soundtrack and for 2024 his album Sadness Set Me Free became an early contender for the best of the year. Coupled with the privilege of seeing him and his band perform the record live here in town made for a good start to the year. Or was it springtime already? Maybe, but that doesn’t matter. This is a great record that deals with melancholy and heavy subject matters in some cases, but with lightness and a pop sensibility that is uplifting and comforting. Long time fans will find his usual sense of humor and wordplay in full effect. Another fine addition to his discography.

Primal Scream – Come Ahead
The group’s twelfth album and one that some fans liked, and others didn’t. I’m in the former camp, obviously. This one has production from David Holmes, an artist and producer I have a lot of time for and takes in rock, gospel, funk and pop in equal measures. It’s no Screamadelica (what is?) but it has enough merits to make it a worthy addition to their catalogue. As with my other picks, I just connected to the lyrics, politics and vibe of this one.

Bill Ryder-Jones – Lechyd Da
Former Coral man Ryder-Jones has been releasing solo music for several years now. Those earlier albums have been hard to find here stateside on vinyl, and as a result I haven’t listened to them much, but when this record was released at the beginning of the year, I was determined to get a copy as the pre-release buzz was extremely positive. That praise was deserved. This is a beautiful record that has been tugging on my heart strings all year. It’s no surprise that it has topped many best of the year lists. Any record that can begin with incorporating Rita Lee singing Baby has my immediate attention. I’ve read people comparing the album to Mercury Rev’s Deserter’s Songs from 1998 and I certainly get that, especially on songs like This Can’t Go On. If I had to pick just one record that soundtracked my year this would be it.

The Hamiltones – In Space
These upstate New Yorkers play a retro space-aged 60s surf sound a la The Ventures, etc., and released this “concept” album that was a soundtrack to a movie not yet made about moon missions, aliens and Elvis. It came packaged with secret CIA documents, a bonus 45, and ticked all the right boxes for my sci-fi geek self. These guys aren’t reinventing the wheel, but deliver an authentic take on the genre that if you told me was released fifty years ago, I probably would believe you. That is meant as a compliment to them btw.

Neutrals – New Town Dream
San Francisco based Post-Punk DIY Indie band Neutrals have a bunch of great singles and a previous album to their credit and are the perfect band for anyone wishing that Television Personalities, The Jam, and Belle And Sebastian were making records together. Smart and witty pop songs that recall late 70s and early 80s Indie and Punk with a UK slant. Another hit from the great Slumberland Records label.

The Smashing Times - Mrs. Ladyships And The Cleanerhouse Boys
Ploughing a similar turf to Neutrals are Smashing Times from Baltimore. This was their third album and again, if you dig 80s UK DIY and indie, then this should appeal. Their sound takes cues from 80s bands in love with 60s culture and comes with a Psych and Mod edge. If you like Comet Gain you would like these guys. I do and I do.

Fontaines D.C. – Romance
I still remember a cool friend and Raleigh musician telling me years ago to look out for these guys and sure enough, over the years their stature has risen to headliner status. No need for me to run down their resume as hopefully these Irish lads have appeared on your radar by this point. Romance saw them moving to XL Recordings and working with producer/artist James Ford, known for many credits but perhaps mostly as being Arctic Monkeys’ producer. Romance is more of a polished pop record than their previous, but has lost none of the wit and charm. Elton John gave them his thumbs up and endorsement, proclaiming them the best band currently around. So there you go. Certainly, the audiences at Glastonbury and Reading agreed. I just love the track In The Modern World. Massive tune.

Nala Sinephro - Endlessness
We were big fans of her first album Space 1:8 here at Sorry State, and the followup did not disappoint. Ambient Electro Jazz on Warp Records? Absolutely. Sign me up. This has been a great record to put on and read to, meditate to, and do the dishes to in equal measure. Just good mood music that would appeal to lovers of Music Library records and fans of labels like ECM from the 70s. File somewhere between your Pharoah Sanders records and Aphex Twin.

Peace De Résistance - Lullaby For the Debris
I think I included the first album by Moses Brown of Institute’s side project Peace De Resistance in a previous year’s best of list, and the follow up makes the top ten cut again this time around. I just love the 70s New York/Berlin inspired gritty Art-Rock Glam sound that is in the grooves here. Coupled with the sharp, smart lyrics, it’s an all-win situation. Lou Reed is smiling.

Honourable Mentions

I really could have chosen one of at least another two dozen records to be in my top ten, and it was hard to decide which made the cut (purely for space). Here are some more that I have been enjoying throughout the year.

Beth Gibbons – Lives Outgrown – Portishead frontwoman came out with a mature and personal album. Ten songs written over the last decade. Don’t expect a Trip-Hop album here. If you love her voice though, you’ll be drawn in and connect with this record.

Lady Blackbird – Slang Spirituals – Her sophomore album and a cool collection of Modern Soul-Jazz. Real name Marley Munroe, she made an impact with her debut album Black Acid Soul. I loved her version of the song Collage, a Joe Walsh composition that The Three Degrees covered so well back in the day. In fact, she has a knack for covers and even took her name from the Nina Simone song Blackbird. Although no one can compare to Nina, Lady Blackbird deserves your attention if you seek a contemporary soul voice who channels the spirit of the greats like Nina Simone.

De()t – Think Of Your Future – Raleigh/Richmond all-star band that finally came out with their debut record. Snappy synth-punk, good songs and a nice sounding record. Cool.

Kula Shaker – Natural Magick – Britpop stars reformed and releasing a fun “classic” sounding Kula Shaker album. That being, a 90s take on 60s Eastern influenced psych with a pop edge. This is a good record. Nothing “new” maybe, but good tunes and true to their original style and spirit.

The Libertines - All Quiet On The Eastern Esplanade – The second album of the reunion period. The Likely Lads returned with a decent, if not great record. Worth checking out if you are a fan. Perhaps not the best endorsement, but it was never going to be like it was twenty-five years ago. A lot of drugs have gone under the bridge and pies eaten since then. Still, for those of us who loved the early ‘Libs and Babyshambles and Dirty Pretty Things, it was good to hear the lads back together again. Again, my biases showing through. Perhaps I’m too forgiving. I didn’t think it was such a poor record despite less than stellar reviews. Not sure about Pete’s tash though.

The Jesus And Mary Chain – Glasgow Eyes – Another strong album late in the game for these guys. I was on the fence about whether to include this record over fellow Glaswegians Primal Scream’s album. I love both groups equally and as Bobby Gillespie started in JAMC back in the day, they still kind of got my vote.

Jack White – No Name – This was another good album. I admit to getting diminishing returns from some of his solo albums but still love the man. He’s truly a national treasure and has done more for the good of music than can be listed here. This album had more of the straight-ahead garage rock sound of the White Stripes, and I liked it. Favorite track – That’s How I’m Feeling.

Straw Man Army – Earth Works – The third in a trilogy of albums from this NYC duo that takes a good look at the state of America. It’s post-punk in a 90s vein that could well have been released on Dischord back in the day. That’s a very simple description, but the music and lyrics are far from simple. There’s a lot going on here. This is a mature and accomplished album, and if I had been living with it a little longer probably would have made my top ten.

Johnny Marr & The Healers – Boomslang – Technically not a new record, it originally came out in 2004, but never received a vinyl pressing. That was corrected in 2024 with a nice deluxe double disc release that included equally strong tracks that were left off the album. I can’t praise Johnny Marr enough. He’s the coolest dude ever, and this record is a good one. Check it out if you haven’t heard it.

Okay, I had better end there. Apologies for everyone that was left out. Like I’m sure Billy Strings is crying because I didn’t include his album or Thee Retail Simps are going to be mad because I forgot them. Doubtful, but just in case, sorry chaps, I liked your records too. 2024 was a great year for music. Just too much to include all of it, and we didn’t even get in to the ton of great albums and music on compilations that saw a reissue.

Thanks for reading, thanks for supporting us and all the artists and bands and labels that helped produce these records. Music is the great healer and will always be one of the most important non-important things in life. Enjoy whatever you enjoy and if between all of us here at Sorry State we steered you towards some good stuff, then we’ll consider our jobs well done.

Cheers to you all and here’s to 2025, whatever that may bring.

Dom

Hi there Sorry Staters. Here we are with a newsletter coming out on the eve of the US election. Is this the eve of destruction or the beginning of a new era of hope and positivity? I’m feeling election anxiety and fear for the future. As a legal resident but non-citizen (yet) of the United States, I unfortunately do not have the right to vote, although I get to pay taxes. Let’s hope that enough of the people that can vote do and the world can finally be rid of the orange scum that has been poisoning our lives for the last ten years or so.

I missed the deadline for the Halloween week newsletter last time out, but am writing this on Halloween day here at the store, where Jeff has a custom themed video playlist set up with a TV screen on the counter so customers can shop and watch and listen to cool horror videos. Nice. For the record, my favorite horror character is Dracula. I like the Hammer House Of Horror films best, but also love horror comedies like Shaun Of The Dead and Young Frankenstein.

For my pick this week I’d like to recommend The Disposable Heroes Of Hiphoprisy: Hypocrisy Is The Greatest Luxury album released in 1992. I’ve been listening to it recently, inspired by the current political and social landscape and because we recently had a used copy come through the store. What a great mix of hip-hop and rock this record is. Perhaps you’ll remember the MTV “hit” Television, The Drug Of The Nation, which continued from where Gil Scott-Heron left off with his The Revolution Will Not Be Televised from two decades previously. Both songs were ahead of their time and stand up equally today as they did when first recorded.

Heroes consisted of Michael Franti and Rono Tse, who formed after the end of their previous group the Beatnigs, which were an experimental industrial group who also fused rock with hip-hop. Michael Franti, of course, became more widely known with his next band, Spearhead.

Undoubtedly, the brilliant Television track stands out as a highlight of the album, a song they brought with them from The Beatnigs, but they cover other social and political issues across the other cuts on the record. Racial identity and sexual identity are subjects tackled and done well. Many people have written that they were inspired and changed after hearing these songs. I’ve read that college professors would quote lyrics from the album to demonstrate a point that they were trying to get across to their students. Certainly, one could still learn a lot from playing this album. Music, be it hip-hop or punk or whatever else, can be like a newspaper or a textbook teaching us and informing us. As a dumb white kid coming up during this era, I can certainly vouch for the educational benefit of listening to records like this.

There is also a cover on the album. A nice working of Dead Kennedys’ California Über Alles updated to reference the then Governor of California Pete Wilson. Added to some copies of the album was an additional one sided 12” with the track Rock The Vote (Exercise Your Rights), which was to encourage voter turnout in the 1992 elections. It’s a bangin’ cut and hopefully influenced some would-be voters. I’m not sure whether the track targeted the US elections or worldwide, but the 12” and vinyl editions of the album only appeared in the UK and Europe. As far as I can tell, there is no US vinyl pressing. Although I remember buying the album on CD when it came out, I can’t recall hearing the Rock The Vote track until I found a vinyl copy years later.

The group, although being critically well received, didn’t break through to big commercial heights, although as mentioned before, the track Television was a minor hit. During this period, they toured with a lot of big groups and opened for U2 on their Zoo TV tour and featured prominently. They also opened for Nirvana and Rage Against The Machine.

Fans of guitarist Charlie Hunter might know that he got his professional start with the group. He’s featured on the album and played for a while in their touring band before moving on to his own projects.

If you dig sample based hip-hop from the golden age with a production value like the Bomb Squad or Public Enemy mixed with Alternative Tentacles vibes, then this album will be right up your street. If you aren’t already familiar, of course. Even if you are familiar, now is a good time to pull this one off the shelf and give it a spin or to dial it up on your preferred streaming platform. I’ve added a couple of YouTube links there for you to check out and will leave you with a great clip taken from the Save Our Cities Rally in Washington, D.C. back in 1992, which has the group play Rock The Vote, California Uber Alles and Hypocrisy Is The Greatest Luxury, another key cut from the album. Click here to watch that.

Alright, that’s all from me. The rest of the world, please pray for us all over here in America that our national nightmare ends this Tuesday. Probably going to be a shit show, but wish us luck anyway.

Cheers - Dom