Posts

Francis Bebey :: Douala, O Mulema

Francis BebeyPosted on

The late Cameroonian musician Francis Bebey has been the subject of two excellent compilations over the past several years, African Electronic Music 1975-1982 and the subsequent Psychedelic Sanza 1982-1984. While the former (an absolute party of a record) focuses on Bebey’s marriage of African rhythms with synth heavy funk, (songs like “New Track" and "Savannah Georgia" get super slinky), the following years . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Posted on Francis Bebey

SIRIUS/XMU :: Aquarium Drunkard Show (Noon EST, Channel 35)

SIRIUSPosted on

Our weekly two hour show on SIRIUS/XMU, channel 35, can now be heard twice, every Friday — Noon EST with an encore broadcast at Midnight EST.

SIRIUS 400: Jean Michel Bernard — Générique Stephane ++ Alain Goraguer - La Femme ++ Carsten Meinert Kvartet - One For Alice ++ Mad A - Aouh Aouh ++ Dr. John - I Walk On Guilded Splinters ++ Trinidad Steel All Stars - Do Your Thing ++ Larry Ellis & The Black Hammer - Funky Thing, Pt I ++ Sweet Breeze - Good Thing ++ Los . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Posted on SIRIUS

Los Sonidos De FM :: Tema De Los Adolescentes (1969)

Los Sonidos De FMPosted on

"Tema De Los Adolescentes", one of the all time grooviest slices of Latin Soul, was buried as the b-side of a very lightweight and downright forgettable instrumental. Los Sonidos De FM were a studio group that were the official house backing band for RCA Mexico, who released a few instrumental LPs between 1969-75.

Which brings us to "Tema": Not only does this track swing like crazy, but from the horn opening, through the bass riff, piano melody all the way to the dramatic ending, the track is a sampling producers dream.

The blurb on the back of their . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Posted on Los Sonidos De FM

Dave Davies :: Creeping Jean (1969)

Dave Davies Wax WondersPosted on

During a period when the Kinks commercial stock was at a particular low ebb, both Ray and Dave Davies were experiencing songwriting and performing peaks that, while appreciated early on by a core group of kult fans, saw greater acknowledgment with time influencing several generations of artists and writers.

While Dave’s "Death Of A Clown" is featured prominently on The Kinks 1967 masterpiece Something Else By The Kinks, the track was originally released as a Dave Davies solo single just a . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Posted on Dave Davies Wax Wonders

Nick Ashford :: I Don’t Need No Doctor (1966)

Wax WondersPosted on

A soul classic, the most famous recording of "I Don’t Need No Doctor" was cut by Ray Charles, and later, by many a rock & roller (Humble Pie and Chocolate Watchband being two notable examples). The track was penned by the NYC based songwriting team of Nick Ashford, Valerie Simpson and Jo Armstead  (one native New Yorker - Simpson - and two southerners), who also wrote "Let’s Go Get Stoned" -- itself famously cut by Ray Charles in 1966.

It's worth noting that while Valerie Simpson's birth date is reported to be either 1946 or 1948, she was . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Posted on Wax Wonders

The Lost Rhythm & Blues of Betty James

Betty JamesPosted on

Discovered on the Baltimore club scene in the 1960s, Betty James cut six original sides of raw, sizzling, rhythm and blues for Chess Records. Though largely obscure (she's been artistically dormant since her last recording in 1966), James best-known track was 1961's “I’m A Little Mixed Up”. With her husband on guitar and son on bass, Betty’s bold, brazen voice delivers a cool, sure-handed reproach of infidelity. As a band, the groove plays nice and loose, with a thumping bass line and scrappy electric guitar. Raw, gritty and cool.

become a member or log in.

Posted on Betty James

William Tyler: Live In Huntsville, Alabama / July 2015

Live Upload Series William TylerPosted on

On July 2nd, 2015, William Tyler, sidestepping I-65, drove his new-to-him Toyota south from his home in Nashville, down Hillsboro Pike and Highways 106 and 431, through Franklin, Lewisburg, Fayetteville, Hazel Green, and Meridianville, to downtown Huntsville, Alabama.

William, a guy who embodies everything that is good and authentic about Music City in the same way that Brown’s Diner does, then took up his Huntsville audience on a road trip–over to Vietnam, through the mountains outside Chattanooga, and inside a cathedral “for all faiths”, meeting a couple of girls and nodding to the Grateful Dead along the way–never taking the Interstate.   It was a nice trip, and Willy T is a great traveling partner. words / recording   p chesnut

William Tyler :: Live - Huntsville, Alabama / July 2015

setlist / notes after the jump. . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Posted on Live Upload Series William Tyler

Deloro :: S/T

DeloroPosted on

Having lurked in Toronto's shadows for a number of years, Deloro stepped into the light in 2011 with this, their self-titled debut, and only release to date. Along with visual artist Tony Romano, the five-piece is comprised of some of the biggest talents in Canadian music: Jennifer Castle, David Clarke (One Hundred Dollars), Paul Mortimer (One Hundred Dollars), and Dallas Wherle (Constantines). The group’s differing musical personalities bring out something remarkable in one another, and with songwriting and vocal contributions from all five members, Deloro . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Posted on Deloro

Bomboclat! Island Soak 6 :: Vintage Rocksteady II (A Mixtape)

Bomboclat! Mixtapes Reggae/DubPosted on

The return of Bomboclat!: Volume Six. A twenty-two track compilation of crate digging Jamaican vintage with just the right amount of soul and funk to move your feet and shake your seat.

Download: Bomboclat! Island Soak 6 :: Vintage Rocksteady II (A Mixtape)

1. Dave Barker and The Supersonics - Lock Jaw2. Glen & Dave - Festive Spirit3. The Bleechers - Your Gonna Feel It4. The Soulettes - A Deh Pon Dem5. Byron Lee And The Dragonaires - Baby Be True6. Mr. Foundation - All Rudies In Jail7. Lloyd & Glen - Rudies Give Up8. Lloyd . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Posted on Bomboclat! Mixtapes Reggae/Dub

SIRIUS/XMU :: Aquarium Drunkard Show (Noon EST, Channel 35)

SIRIUSPosted on

Our weekly two hour show on SIRIUS/XMU, channel 35, can now be heard twice, every Friday — Noon EST with an encore broadcast at Midnight EST.

SIRIUS 399:  JJean Michel Bernard — Générique Stephane ++ Kevin Morby - Wild Side (Oh The Places You'll Go) ++ B.F. Trike — Be Free ++ Dinosaurs — Sinister Purpose ++ Flaming Groovies — Golden Clouds ++ The Ramones — Oh Oh I Love Her So ++ The Nerves — Stand Back And Take A Good Look (Demo) ++ Chris Spedding . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Posted on SIRIUS

The Everly Brothers :: Roots

The Everly BrothersPosted on

The Everly Brothers released Roots in 1968, a pioneering country-rock album that found them covering material from their influences both past and present — including the likes of Merle Haggard, George Jones, Jimmie Rodgers and Randy Newman.

Bookended by clips from Everly Family's 1952 radio show, the album transcends time, bridging the past, present and future of both the group and the music that had traveled alongside them. An outlier in their catalog, the lp . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Posted on The Everly Brothers

Bill Dees :: Tennessee Owns My Soul (1969)

Bill DeesPosted on

Rough around the edges with driving drums, catchy guitar melodies, and even catchier harmonies and leads, the sound of Bill Dees' "Tennessee Owns My Soul" is not unlike Black Lips pre-Good Bad Not Evil material. Dees strong vocal lead with the two-part harmony brings X's John Doe and Exene to mind, only supplying the harmony on this tune is none other than Roy Orbison.

Which raises the question: who was Bill Dees? The man is virtually unsearchable online, with a scant Wikipedia page and not a single solo 45 or LP to his name, save . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Posted on Bill Dees

The Lagniappe Sessions :: Allah-Las

Lagniappe Sessions The Allah-LasPosted on

Lagniappe (la ·gniappe) noun ‘lan-ˌyap,’ — 1. An extra or unexpected gift or benefit. 2. Something given or obtained as a gratuity or bonus.

Matthew Correia, Miles Michaud, Pedrum Siadatian, and Spencer Dunham are Allah-Las. This week's session finds the band recording an inspired set in a Topanga Canyon pump house, covering three tracks spanning 1969-2004. The band, in their own words, below. . .

Allah-Las :: Come On (Jesus & Mary Chain)

We recorded these . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Posted on Lagniappe Sessions The Allah-Las

Tia Blake :: Wish I Was a Single Girl Again

Tia BlakePosted on

Christiana Wallman passed away in June in Pinehurst, North Carolina, at the age of 63. Those who know about the album she recorded under the name Tia Blake have long puzzled over her backstory, which in some ways, is just as hazy and enigmatic as the music she made. Here are some stray details: she was born in Georgia to a father who may have been a CIA agent and a mother, Joan Blake, who would go on to establish the Canadiana landmark that was Double Hook Bookstore in Montreal.   She herself spent most of . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Posted on Tia Blake

Walks On The Beach :: Adoption Tapes

Walks On The BeachPosted on

Summer isn't complete without a few walks on the beach, right? The vibrations of this bewitching LP from Mike Shiflet and Jerry David DeCicca are pretty far from Brian Wilson, though. Adoption Tapes is more of a misty morning ramble on a deserted, desolate shore. DeCicca, (who last year gave us Understanding Land, one of 2014's finest) provides muffled/muttered vocals which drift over disembodied guitar soundscapes that blend . . .

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by its patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support.

To continue reading, become a member or log in.

Posted on Walks On The Beach