Lots of Obscure Psychedelia, Some Classic Rock & Some New Indies

I've recently added four volumes of the "Love, Peace & Poetry" series- a very cool series of anthologies collecting psychedelic music from various countries. I've added the volumes collecting Brazilian, Mexican, Latin American and Japanese music from the 1960s and 1970s. Really cool stuff that shows United States and Europe were not the only places to feel the psychedelic influence.



Also added three volumes of the Girls in the Garage series showcasing early rock n roll by women.

Stone the Crows - Teenage Licks
Great bluesy/hard rocking band from the 60s with vocals by Maggie Bell.

Frank Zappa - Cruising With Ruben and The Jets
When this album was originally released there was no indication it was a Frank Zappa album.It was simply released as "Cruising" by some band named Ruben and The Jets. If you were a Zappa fan, however, there was no mistaking his twisted take on doo wop music.

Casey Redmond - Real Life Adventures of a One Man Band
Cool five song EP from crazy man Casey Redmond who pens songs like Ian King of Beers and Rockin' the PTA. Reminds me a bit of an acoustic Link Wray. He promises a full album of monster songs for Halloween! I'm waiting!


Jennings - Storybook EP & Femtastic
Powerful singer/songwriter Mary Jennings has a strong voice and a varied musical palate to enthrall us. Her Femtastic release includes two discs- one fully produced and one "stripped down." It's an interesting and revealing technique. We get to evaluate the songs on several levels. The more recent Storybook Ep reveals songwriting just as strong, but with a somewhat more polished production. Both worth a listen.

Korla Pandit - Exotica 2000
Korla Pandit, who, like Yma Sumac had created an elaborate alternate identity for himself, was one of the founding father of Exotica music. Unlike other Exotica practitioners like Martin Denny or Richard Lyman, Pandit didn't pepper his music with musical tricks and sound effects- it was just him and his Hammond B3. He came to fame in a daily 15 minute TV show in which he simply played his unusual arrangements of songs on his organ while he stared intently at the camera. He was a sensation.

I've also been beefing up my selection of Summer music. We switch to our Summer music lineup on June 1st and we've got some great surprises for you!

You can hear all this music on NeverEndingWonder Radio
Or tune in via iTunes by going to the radio section and finding us in the Eclectic section.

Eclectic Offerings!

Lots of new music added to NeverEndingWonder Radio in the past few weeks. Here we go:

The Barbarians
Fine band who had a short career from 1964 - 1968. The novelty tune "Are You a Boy or Are You a Girl?" mirrored the sentiments of the nation perfectly. I distinctly remember my mother disparagingly asking if a passing hippie was a boy or a girl one day. How disappointed she must have been when I started growing my hair long. Anyway, The Barbarians are remembered today for their drummer- Victor "Moulty" Moulton- who had one arm!


The Bantams - Beware The Bantams
How cute. Three brothers- Jeff, Mike, & Fritz Bantam, and they're kids, see? And they sing and play and have their own band. Yes, it's the Broadway Kids of rock. Covering such tunes as Ticket To Ride, Please Mr. Postman and Susie Q it's as off-kilter and disturbing as it sounds.


Things To Come - I Want Out
Great psychedelic outfit from LA. Their only album was supposedly only released as a tax dodge- only 50 copies were pressed. It's a shame they never got a break, as their material is really nice. Mostly remembered today for their drummer- Russ Kunkel- a top session man of the 60s-70s and member of The Section. He continues to work to this day. His pedigree reads like a who's who of the music scene. Artist's albums he has appeared on include Crosby Stills & Nash, Warren Zevon, James Taylor, Carly Simon, Bob Seger, Joni Mitchell, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Carol King, BB King, Bob Dylan, Jackson Brown and dozens of others. That's not the only reason to listen to Things To Come, though. They're a great band all around.


Who's Afraid of The Art of Noise?
The first full album released by electronic sample artists The Art of Noise. Formed by producer Trevor Horn in 1983 to showcase the then revolutionary instrument Fairlight CMI sampler, which could take audio samples and play them back via a keyboard. While other groups were using samples as embellishment, Art of Noise was the first high-profile band to base their compositions solely on samples. This album is a great example of experimentalism finding its way into the mainstream.


Cream - Wheels of Fire
What can be said of Cream? The first power trio. They were so innovative and accomplished they became superstars. Though Ginger Baker and Jack Bruce never had the amazing career that Eric Clapton did after Cream broke up, they both continued to produce fine work. This double album contained one studio disc and one live disc. Included herein are the classics White Room, Toad, Crossroads and much more amazing music.


Wheat - Per Second, Per Second, Per Second... Every Second
Major label debut of indie band Wheat went through many hardships and delays before it was released. I don't know why but I just love this band's sound.


Wreckless Eric - Donovan of Trash
Eric Goulden, who records and performs as Wreckless Eric, has been a cult figure for decades. Part of the original Stiff lineup of artists, he left the label due to artistic differences. Donovan of Trash is one of Eric's best albums- presenting him in an unadulterated, spare form. Don't miss his tribute to Joe Meek.


Steve Reich - Early Works
Just like it says- early works from experimental electronic pioneer Steve Reich, several of which feature experiments in phase shifting.


Conlon Nancarrow - Studies for Player Piano
It doesn't get any more creative than this. Experimental compositions for the player piano, recorded in 1948. Nancarrow built his own device for punching the piano rolls and composed his pieces directly onto the rolls.


The Bevis Frond - Vavona Burr
Exemplary collection by lo-fi pioneer Bevis Frond.


Only in America Volume 2
Another collection of audio oddities released by bold label Arf Arf. Stunning original tunes such as Stinky Poodle and Cheese Eating Flea Market Cowboy as well as a truly inept cover of Purple Haze and many other lost and forgotten recordings from the annals of music. Beautiful.


Trevor Wishart - Red Bird/Anticredos
What is it about bird songs that compels people to compose music for bird songs they've recorded? This is like an entire sub-genre of experimental music. It's fascinating work. Anticredos is an experimental work for human voice.


Also entering the library this week are more comedy bits from Otis 12, former member of Ogden Edsl and a selection of New Age, Blues and Jazz tunes by a variety of indie artists. Enjoy!

It can all be heard here:



NeverEndingWonder Radio

Back From the Dead!

It's been quite a while since a proper post. I got ill this Winter and it just seemed to linger, sapping my energy for a month or so. Seems to happen to me every Winter now. After that I was having some connectivity issues and after that our city manager went on vacation, and as assistant city manager I had to work very long hours. On top of that, I've discovered and become obsessed with an online role playing game called Popmundo, where you try and become a rock star. It's a long term game and I'm sucked into the whole world. You can check it out here:

Popmundo

That doesn't mean I've been completely inactive as far as NeverEndingWonder Radio goes. Here's a rundown of some cool stuff recently added:

Tom Dissevelt & Kid Baltan - Song of the Second Moon
Classic electronic weirdness from 1968. Has that 1960s primitive electronic sound I love so much.

Graffiti - Graffiti
Proto-psychedelic grooviness from 1968. Some really nice touched and a really off-kilter vocal arrangement make this band quite interesting.

Widespread Panic - Uber Cobra
Live album from one of my favorite modern bands.

Beatrice Kay
A selection of fun tunes by burlesque dancer, actress and singer Beatrice Kay, who had a lengthy career on the stage, in movies & TV and recordings.

Red Racan
Really cool eclectic experimental band. Love their stuff! Check out their Myspace page:
Red Racan

Savage Resurrection
Another great psychedelic gem from the 60s.

Tingstad & Rumbel - Leap of Faith
Another flawless release from New Age tunesmiths Tingstad & Rumbel.

Martha Reich - Evidence of Life
Beautiful heartfelt songs by singer/songwriter Reich.
Martha Reich

Goodluck Boys - A Gift of Time
Lo-fi, electronic noise ritualistic freakout experimental tribal psychedelic greatness from Japan!
Goodluck Boys

Spencer Hoveskeland Trio - Harbinger
Guitar, violin, bass. Jazz. Perfection.

Bernie Journey - The World in the Eye of the Beholder
Pop electronic tunes with soulful vocals and just a touch of weirdness.
Bernie Journey

And those are just highlights! Tune in please- I miss you all!

NeverEndingWonder Radio
Also available on iTunes in the radio section under "eclectic."

Pink Floyd & Richard Wright Marathon Today!

I was very sad to read of Pink Floyd keyboard player Richard Wright's death on Monday at the age of 65, from cancer.

While he never got as much attention as Roger Waters, David Gilmore or even Syd Barrett, like the "quiet Beatle" George Harrison, Wright's immense talent was very much a core element of Pink Floyd's sound. Additionally, his vocals are very much characteristic of the Pink Floyd sound and can be heard on such memorable numbers as "Time," "Comfortably Numb," and "Astronomy Dominae."

To mark his passing, NeverEndingWonder Radio will present a six hour Pink Floyd & Richard Wright Marathon today, Tuesday, September 16, from 12 noon to 6 PM Pacific time. I'll also include some Polka Floyd songs!

You can tune in here:

NeverEndingWonder Radio

The Naked Carmen and Ragnarok

Well, even the blog is getting the best of me despite all intentions to keep current. I'm now backlogged on two weeks of activity on the station. On to business.

I've recently added two of my favorite albums from my record collection to NeverEndingWonder Radio. I've featured selections from these albums in the years past but now both albums have been added to the library in their entireties. First up is The Naked Carmen.

The Naked Carmen was an "Electric Rock Opera" composed by John Corigliano and David Hess in 1968. It was released on Mercury Records in 1970 and I picked it up for a dollar in a cutout bin somewhere around 1973 or so. It fit nicely with my penchant for odd and unusual music. Pairings of Classical music and pop was still pretty rare back then. There had been Deep Purple's Concerto for Group & Orchestra, Days of Future Passed and a few others. IMO The Naked Carmen was the most successful attempt at melding Classical music with modern pop music, yet it remains a little known footnote in musical history.
I don't know why it never made more of a splash- perhaps it was TOO original- but it was a great composition expertly realized by a wealth of talented artists: David Hess himself, Melba Moore, The Detroit Symphony, Pig Iron and more. The Naked Carmen was conceived of as an updating of Bizet's popular opera, both musically and thematically. Updating the music side meant featuring the Detroit Symphony performing selections from Carmen with the addition of Moog Synthesizer, rock band and even a kazoo, as well as introducing some pop/folk numbers performed by Hess & Moore and other numbers set to tunes from Carmen with new lyrics.
Updating Carmen thematically meant creating a new role for Carmen herself. From the liner notes: "In this modern version of the opera written by Georges Bizet, the traditional vision of Carmen as temptress is rejected. Today, she is a heroine.
In the last 10 years, Carmen has emerged as a compelling spokesman, not only for the concept of women's liberation, but for the whole prospect of an exciting life of free morality; a life in which new concepts of human purpose and tolerance will permit man to refashion his institutions to permit the full development of every individual." Yes, this was the 70s, focused very much on individuality, as well as class issues. This was deftly illuminated using tape montage featuring clips of Adolf Hitler's speeches and Spiro Agnew's infamous "effete intellectual snobs" quote.
The album itself got a deluxe treatment with a booklet that included full lyrics and a series of bizarre collages. Here is one:

John Corigliano went on many other accomplishments, such as penning the soundtracks for "Altered States" and "The Red Violin" for which he won an Academy Award. David Hess went on to star in Wes Craven's infamous "The Last House on the Left," as well as writing the soundtrack for that film. Hess has appeared in many film roles including parts in Zombie Nation and Zodiac Killer. He has also remained active in the music industry.

Here is a link to a webpage with a wealth of info on The Naked Carmen:
The Naked Carmen
Here's a link to David Hess' website:
David Hess


Ragnarok: Electronic Funk by Beaver & Krause was one of the first albums I bought after becoming mesmerized by electronic music. Bernard Krause was an unlikely figure to be part of the electronic music vanguard- he was a former member of The Weavers and was acting as a staff producer for Elektra Records when he met jazz musician Paul Beaver. How these two managed to collaborate on some of the most interesting electronic music to come out of the 60s and 70s is any one's guess. Ragnarok was their second album together (the first was The Nonesuch Guide to Electronic Music- intended as a showcase of the Moog Synthesizer's capabilities) and it's an amazing document of electronic music in 1969. Several numbers display the sheer fascination with electronic sound one could have in the 60s when all of this was still new to us. There are a couple of novelty numbers- Dill Piccolo and Dr. Fox that remind me of Perrey & Kingsley if the had made SIDs. There are also some hauntingly beautiful melodies. Altogether a well rounded example of what electronic musicians were capable of in 1969.
Beaver & Krause recorded four albums together. Paul Beaver recorded one solo album of electronic music before suffering from a heart attack. Bernard Krause went on to pioneer the field of bio-acoustics and released many albums of environmental recordings.

Both of these wonderful oddball albums lost in the cracks of musical history can be heard on NeverEndingWonder Radio