Chet Atkins "Hi-Fi In Focus"
(RCA Victor, 1957)
JOE KORAN: This one caught us by surprise. At first glance I thought "oh great this record is going to suck" but after a listen I developed a new found respect for Chet Atkins. This one has a cool mid-western style to it, which does not match up to the trippy artwork on the cover. The song "Anna" on the A-side sounded real familiar. That is because it was sampled by the Avalanches.
HAPP G: This record is better than I thought it would be. The first track "El Cumbanchero" has a cool, funky vibe that I definitely wasn't expecting. The cover image has also grown on me in a similar way to how the music crept up on me, although I cannot help but see a deranged smiley face at the center point of the spiral, and it kind of creeps me out.
Finsta Bundy "Don't Stress Tomorrow" 12" single
(Tape Kingz, 1998)
HAPP G: I remember playing this record a lot in college. The A-Side is definitely the winner here with a chill mellow musical groove, but upon listening to it again it's definitely nothing too special. The B-Side is a pretty generic weed anthem, which is especially underwhelming considering it was produced by DJ Evil Dee. The thing that jumps out to me all these years later is that I can't remember one other record that was released by Tape Kingz, I mostly knew them for their mix tapes, and yes I mean actual cassette tapes. I was also kind of surprised to see The Arsonists, Pitch Black, and Shadez of Brooklyn pictured on the back cover as part of the Tape Kingz roster. Strange.
JOE KORAN: Im sure we are going to stumble across many records that are just like this one, run of the mill late 90's hip-hop. There really isn’t anything too unique about this record.
Jane Olivor "The Best Side Of Goodbye"
(Columbia Records, 1980)
JOE KORAN: A lot of the tracks on this record reminded me of montages from 80's movies. Im not sure if Olivor is related to Barbara Streisand, but if she is the resemblance is striking!
HAPP G: I could have sworn that she actually was Barbara Streisand's sister, but I don't think that's the case. Her vocal tone kind of reminded me of Madonna on a couple songs, but overall this record is pretty boring. It's too bad that she's not Babs' sister because I was going to say that she's living so much in the shadow of her sister that she actually printed a shadow over herself on the front cover of her album. Her facial expression on the cover and the way she's holding her head up actually perfectly reflected the way Joe and I felt after listening to this one.
Chas Jankel:
(A&M Records, 1981)
HAPP G: This is a great example of not judging a book by it's cover. I was sure when looking at this cover that this would suck. The overly-minimalist-attempting-to-be-abstract-artistic cover art definitely did not accurately reflect the vibe of the music. Chas Jankel was definitely ahead of his time! "Ai No Corida" is a song that could definitely be a hit today, and the song "Am I Honest With Myself Really?", besides being a genius song title, is a good, slow building jam.
JOE KORAN: When Happ and I first put this record on we both had the same "MEH" feeling. After a while I started nodding my head, feeling the music, and I looked across the room to find my co-blogger doing the exact same thing. This record could be put on shelves today and sell many copies. It has a dancy/hipster sound to it, reminiscent of MGMT and Foster the People. Not bad for 1981!
Sway & King Tech "Hip Hop Wars" 12" single
(Ground Level, 1999)
HAPP G: This came from The Wake Up Show crew, which featured Sway before he became an MTV correspondent. The main track from this record, "The Anthem", features the all star lineup of RZA, Tech9, Eminem, Xzibit, Pharoahe Monch, Kool G Rap, Jayo Felony, Chino XL, and KRS-One. Although the track itself is a bit disjointed and not as dope as you might think given that powerhouse lineup, it contains one of my favorite KRS lines "The bigger the budget the bigger the debt". The B-Side wins big on this with an amazing Styles Of Beyond track big upping The Wake Up Show, a DJ Revolution scratch track giving the history of the legendary radio show, and a killer freestyle from both Eminem and Biggie. The Biggie freestyle was recorded during his visit to the show just days before he was murdered.
JOE KORAN: I would have bought this record simply for the Eminem freestyle. He has a pre-MTV, "Marshall Mathers" flow and sound to him. Biggie is also on this vinyl and in true Biggie style he absolutely kills his freestyle.
Sesame Street "The Gang's All Here" Original Cast Recording
(Children's Television Workshop, 1983)
HAPP G: It's cool to see that some of the Muppet characters appear on this record, which also had Jim Henson and Frank Oz doing some of the classic voices. Some of the song titles are absolutely hilarious; "I'm Sad Because I'm Happy", "If Moon Was Cookie", and "Hunter Ducky Dinger Jamboree".
JOE KORAN: This cover is awesome. I think about how funny it would be to see all of the Sesame Street characters and Muppets standing around talking. I wonder what their conversation would be about.
MHz "World Premier" 12" single
(Fondle 'Em Records, 1998)
HAPP G: The A-Side track is a classic burner, with an eery, funky, slow brooding guitar loop. This record marks the starting point career-wise for Camu Tao (RIP), Copywrite, and RJD2 (although RJ doesn't appear on this record, he was apparently their DJ from the beginning).
JOE KORAN: This is an underground hip-hop record that would be of interest for fans of RJD2 and Copywrite.
The Alan Parsons Project "I Robot"
(Arista, 1977)
JOE KORAN: This record was obviously heavily influenced by Pink Floyd’s "Dark Side of the Moon". It has a trippy electronic/funk sound to it. Not even close to being as good as "Dark Side of the Moon".
HAPP G: I can't believe how long it took me to notice the robot on the front cover! This was definitely more poppy than I expected, even though we could feel him trying to tap into some of the trippy sonics of the "Dark Side" vibe.
Lady And The Tramp "All The Songs From The Motion Picture"
(Disneyland Records, year unknown)
HAPP G: I think this movie is the reason that most Siamese cats have a bad rap.
JOE KORAN:Wait, being a tramp is a good thing? All my life I thought being a tramp was a terribly bad thing.
HAPP G: "He's A Tramp" is a classic song that is hilarious because it's basically a celebration of a terrible boyfriend, and speaks to the fact that many women are attracted to the 'bad boy' types. Apparently Peggy Lee, who sang on the soundtrack, sued Disney in 1988 and was awarded $2.3M in 1991. Still all in all, you've got to give it up for Tramp for that spaghetti-kiss move, that was pretty slick!
Sting "The Dream Of The Blue Turtles"
(A&M, 1985)
JOE KORAN:
This album was recorded after Sting’s Police days. I have always been a Sting fan. He has a unique sounding voice and plus he has put out some hits.
HAPP G: My brother and I were always big fans of the song "Russians", which is a haunting and powerful song that kind of speaks to the tensions felt during the height of the Cold War.
"Stop The World I Want To Get Off" Original Broadway Cast Recording
(Polydor, 1963)
HAPP G: I can relate to the sentiment of the title.
JOE KORAN: Why didn’t anyone inform me of how creepy mimes are?
Barbara Mandrell "Just For The Record"
(MCA, 1979)
HAPP G: Nothing offensive about this record, but also nothing endearing about it either.
JOE KORAN: For the record this is a pretty boring album. It has a disco sound to it but has nothing unique about it.
Pat Benatar "Crimes Of Passion"
(Chrysalis, 1980)
JOE KORAN: Ill admit I use to shred "Hit me with your best shot" on Guitar Hero. It was the song with the easiest chord and its mad catchy.
HAPP G: She has a lot of infectious energy, and "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" is really an undeniable 80s classic! I also really like the label on the actual record, with her stretching on a ballet pole. As the record spins she goes round and round riding that pole, all the while staring you down!
