The Reggae Banana Consolation

Has it really been 2 years? I tell ya, cloud computing disaster recovery is worse than online live roulette!

De Frank & His Professionals

Hey it's been a while. I had invested in a laser skin rejuvenation outfit that went bust almost before it opened. What a mess (literally)! But that's all behind me now. At least my skin is laser rejuvenated, I guess.

My buddy who is a car accident lawyer in Idaho was telling me the other day how he's done with Euro-centric music. Since he includes the descendants of Europeans living in North America, he's cut himself off from the mainstream. Is that so bad? His thing now is buying rare records and cassettes from Africa. He's become big fan of De Frank Professionals (or was it De Frank and His Professionals?) from Togo. Little of this stuff is digital so it's nice that some of it made it to the youtube. No way I'd be hearing this stuff otherwise. My buddy keeps sending me tapes, but my only cassette deck is in my old Chevy Malibu, which I rarely drive. Plus I'm pretty sure it's busted. It's never been the same after that drunk driver plowed into it at the SeaTac parking lot.

Rodan's Everyday World of Bodies

I was fortunate enough to see Rodan twice during their way-too-short existence, both times at Lounge Ax in 1994. This video was from a show in Athens, GA that same year and, well it turns out you didn't have to be there: you can watch this and you'll get why it was so disappointing when they broke up. Yes, Rodan's breakup was the most tragic of 1994, beating both Nirvana and Unrest. Why? Because Rodan was just getting started. It's like, what if My Bloody Valentine gave up after making "Isn't Anything"? Or if Pavement made no records after "Perfect Sound Forever". You know what I mean?

In the mean time, it's back to San Jose for more liposuction for me!

Back to Back to the Egg

I was talking to my buddy the other day, when the topic of Wings' ill-fated 1979 LP "Back to the Egg" came up. He's a personal injury attorney in Detroit, so he's well-acquainted with mishaps. Looking back, I think the "disasters" associated with "Back to the Egg" were mostly external, like Paul's pot bust in Japan and the band's breakup. Listening to what's actually on the record, I don't see what's so bad about it. Maybe I can chalk it up to familiarity.

I heard the album start-to-finish for the first time only recently when I picked it up on used vinyl. It was uncanny: I already knew this entire album. Every track on this thing must have gotten played on AOR radio enough that everything was familiar. Kind of like the Eagles' "The Long Run" or the first Boston album. The difference here is that the Boston and Eagles tracks are still in regular rotation on Classic Rock stations to this day. I don't know about "Back to the Egg," outside maybe "Rockestra Theme".

Here's a 1976 demo of one of those "Back to the Egg" non-hits, "Old Siam Sir":

The Curse of the Muppet Movie

Husker Du on "Good Company" April 1986

Been a while! You head to Cincinatti for a weekend, and on a whim get some liposuction. A weekend turns into a week, a week turns into 6... you know how it goes.

Do you remember seeing Husker Du on a local morning TV show back in 1986? I sure don't, but then I've never lived in or near the "twin cities". You?

Friday Playlist: An Ugly Death, It's So Easy

Reviving the "Friday Playlist" for the late Jay Reatard. Here he is with his what will be known as his "classic" touring band lineup running through two of my favorites just over a year ago: