The Care Package

Sending you a special care package.
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Jonah

I picked up this one for two reasons: the mustaches and Ron "Sugar Sugar" Dante's production. Turns out, it's really a sweet little record. Give it a spin.

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Skymonters

By request, here's the Skymonters record, which features singer and sometime actor Hamilton Camp.

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Social Studies

Nowadays everyone's got a window
A clear and unobstructed view
You'd think with all that information
That we would know
We would know what to do
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Hamilton Affair

Would anyone out there in Mondoland have this record to share? I tried to snag it on Soulseek, but the ungenerous uploader disallowed me from downloading it. You know, I've posted hundreds of albums over years and have answered as many of your requests as best I can. Now's your chance to return the favor.

Soul Concern

It's likely your soul was their sole concern. Either that, or your money.

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End of the Road

There comes a time when a certain relationship reaches an end, but one of the parties seems to be unaware that this has happened. Or maybe that person lives in a state of denial. Or is oblivious. Or just wants to pretend that what's has gone on for the last decade or two or three is hunky dory, even though no effort or energy whatsoever has been put into keeping the relationship alive. It's just this thing, this entity - but it is not true; it does not breathe, it does not move, it is not about anything at all. And what do you say to this person? How do you tell him or her that you are at the end of the road?

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Speak, Memory

This album, originally recorded in 2010, has several of my favorite tracks on it, including "Crossing the Line," "Midnight Town" and "The Devil Ain't Got No Music," which was inspired by a line that Mavis Staples uttered on "The Colbert Report" when asked how she felt about singing the devil's music. (Subsequently, in the past year, the blues singer Lurrie Bell has recorded a tune using the same title, but I got there first!). At any rate, after listening to this record recently, I thought it could be better - not only the mix, but the vocals as well. So I've given it a fresh coat of paint.

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The Young Generation

Leave it to the Young Generation to tell us where it's at.

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Bad Side

It's a miracle I did not lose you
It's a miracle you let me speak
I gave you cause to punch me in the face
And yet you turned the other cheek
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A Taste of A&M

By request, here's a re-up of this tasty A&M comp.

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Jackie Jackson

Along with Bongo, Sneezy and Pete, Jackie is one of the forgotten Jackson brothers - but this album is very much worth hearing. In the mode of the Five Stairsteps and the Delfonics, this is a rare, sweet-soul treat.

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Fear

Drapes are drawn
All over this land
Everyone is sleeping sound
The wheel's unmanned
Goose is cooked
Pretty spooked
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Hamilton Face Band

By request, here's a curio that features a pre-Zappa Ruth Komanoff on drums, as well as Steve Margoshes, who would go on to write music for broadway shows.

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A Good Man

So I am a peephole
Into a windowless room
Where the sweat on the tiles
Is the only perfume
On the desk is diary
And next to it a vase
The rose draws blood
And it drips on the lace
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Brian Browne

Canuck jazz pianist takes on rock-ish tunes.

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Acapulco Marimbas

Some mellow vibes for your Sunday morning.

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You Are What You Eat

Just prior to his involvement with the Band, John Simon moved up to Woodstock, tossed out his suit and tie and cobbled together this late-hippie-era soundtrack that features the likes of Tiny Tim, Peter Yarrow and other assorted oddball scenesters. It's a true document of a time that is now long gone.

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Super Soul

Nifty exploito soul, brother.

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Biscuit Davis

Nice roots-rock album. Imagine James Taylor fronting the Dead.

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David Forman

By request, here's a singer/songwriter album that's reminiscent of Andy Pratt.

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The Hillside Singers

Kinda makes you wanna do some coke.

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The Hubbels

The White Stripes of their day.

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Heads of Our Time

Feed your head.

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Fire & Ice Ltd.

What's happening with this happening? Sounds like a bunch of stoners jamming, frankly. What makes it fun is that they seem serious about it.

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Hoover

An album of countrified folk tunes by a guy whose songs have been recorded by Tina Turner, Eddy Arnold and country music outlaws Tompall Glaser and Waylon Jennings.

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Prairie Madness

Some rare Chris Ducey for you. Check the comments for more info.

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The Doodletown Pipers

Don't know 'bout you, but I'm packing my bags and heading off to Doodletown.

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A Treasury of Great Contemporary Hits

More Dunhill classics.

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Keith Mansfield

By request, here is Keith Mansfield, which features U.K. session singers Lesley Duncan and Tony Burrows.

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Ghosting

I am not here
And you are not there
Nobody is anywhere, anywhere
I thought that I knew you
A humble boast
I thought that I knew you
But you're a ghost

Cover girl: Susan Gil, whereabouts unknown
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Quincy Jones

Here's a piece I wrote for The Vinyl Factory about my favorite Quincy Jones soundtracks.

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Sanford and Son

Thanks to Jimmy Holcomb, here's the super rare "Sanford and Son" soundtrack, which features the title theme song along with comedy sketches from the show.

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Faces

Obscure John Cassavettes soundtrack, which features Charlie Smalls, who once tried to teach Davy Jones a thing or three about rhythm.

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David Briggs

Yes, this is that David Briggs, the scary-ass mofo who worked with such greats as Elvis Presley, J.J. Cale, Johnny Cash, and, of course, Neil Young. He made this one solo record, and it's a pretty funky collection of hits-of-the-day.

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California Brass

Apparently Buck Owens and his cohorts wanted in on the Tijuana Brass craze. But in its way this is actually a pretty cool little record - little in that it's only 20 minutes long. They probably knocked out the whole shebang between 11:30 and lunchtime.

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Ellie Greenwich

Another one of Ellie's solo records, in which the former Brill Building songstress attempted to stake out her own identity as a solo performer. Alas, this came and went with barely a ripple. A shame.

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Ellie Greenwich

By request, here is one of Ellie's rare solo outings.

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Joyce Everson

Female singer/songwriter from the '70s with connections to Peter Frampton and Chevy Chase.

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Something Strange

Never fit in here
Never fit in there
No matter how I tried
I never fit in anywhere
Did what I could
To accomodate
But all of my efforts were in vain
And that's how it always will remain
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The Great Metropolitan Steam Band

If ragtime and vaudeville are your thing, then this record is for you. By request.

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Alex Harvey

Here are two records by U.S. artist Alexander Harvey, responsible for penning such songs as "Delta Dawn" (by Tanya Tucker), "Reuben James" (by Kenny Rogers), and "Rings" (a country hit by the Glaser Brothers and a pop hit by Cymarron). Sourced from my vinyl. Still hoping for someone to come through with his other solo releases (see wish list below).

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Alex Harvey

Finally managed to track down Alex Harvey's fantastic self-titled album. The vinyl was a little scratchy, but I tried to clean it up the best I could. Enjoy.

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Alex Harvey

Yet another wonderful Alex Harvey record, freshly ripped. Still looking for his self-titled album. If you have it, please put a link in the comments.

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Wolves

I stand accused
Of a wrong I did not do
And I sound nervous in my deposition
You see, innocence's a trick of paperwork
Whereas guilt is the human condition
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Joanne Vent

Pretty awesome and very obscure soul-mama record from Ms. Vent.

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The Soul Society

Here's an exploito album that doesn't sound like an exploito album. Very well played funky beats and breaks.

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Joe Beck

This one has an interesting backstory. Beck negotiated a $100,000 advance from Verve Forecast, but squandered it all on partying during the month that the album was supposed to have been completed. Necessity being the mother of invention, he forged ahead almost single-handedly, recording nearly all the of vocal, guitar, bass, and piano parts on his own. Drummer Donald McDonald, who also played with Tim Hardin, was the only other full-time musician on the album, although trumpeter Randy Brecker, bassist Don Payne, and guitarist Danny Whitten from Crazy Horse make appearances as well. "Nature Boy" mixes a number of disparate ingredients, but does an excellent job of blending them all together. Overall, the sound of this album can best be described as psychedelic rock played with a jazz sensibility.

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Leon Russell

Released in 1973, shortly after the success of his single "Tightrope," "Looking Back" contains instrumental tracks that were recorded in the mid-1960s, featuring Russell on harpsichord, Tommy Tedesco on guitar, Jimmy Bend on bass, and Earl Palmer on drums. Neither the record nor album sleeve give writing credits for any of the songs.

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