Santo & Johnny Hawaii

Santo & Johnny - "Hawaii" (1961) - Canadian American

Aloha friends!

Put down that rigatoni and pick up that pineapple chicken!  Our favorite Italian-American guitar-playing brothers are back with their third LP-- taking us on a one way trip to the Hawaiian islands by way of Brooklyn, NY!

On Hawaii, the Farina boys are backed by the inconspicuous Hutch Davie orchestra and chorus, but once again the clear star of the album is the haunting and precise pedal steel guitar playing.  Its sound is strange & familiar, tropical and other-worldly, all at the same time! 

The Hawaiian-themed album contains such classics as "Blue Hawaii", "Sweet Lelani", "Hawaiian War Chant" and "The Hawaiian Wedding Song".    


RATING: 4 Pineapple Princesses out of a possible 5

Poking the Starfish

Les Baxter's Jewels of the Sea

As the LP Cover says, "Titillating Orchestrations for Listening and Loving"... well I for one AM titillated after these deep sea adventures of Mr. Baxter's.

The music here is lush and very cinematic.  Its like a soundtrack for a movie that doesn't exist! 

Jewels of the Sea stars Steve McQueen as "Decker" and Ernest Borgnine as his bumbling sidekick, "Spence".  Its the tale of two lovelorn sailors on leave on the South Pacific island of Vanuatu.  One night, after breaking up a fight at the local cantina, these two meet a beautiful woman wading in the water.  As they approach her, a thick, mysterious fog rolls in and when it clears, the woman is gone.  Thinking her drowned, Decker dives in tries to save her and he too is pulled down by the tide.  What he sees next, he can't believe!  Is he hallucinating from a blow to the head that he received in the bar fight? Or, is the woman a mermaid who tells him that the military's presence is disturbing their otherwise tranquil underwater kingdom?            

Sounds like something I'd get in line for! 

Also, I'm not sure if the girl on the cover is a mermaid or just a regular girl who can still look sexy while holding her breath?  Though I guess it really doesn't matter!

RATING: 3.5 sea monkeys out of a possible 5  

Prog Rock Saturday: In the Court of the Crimson King

King Crimson - In the Court of the Crimson King (1969)

Summer's here kids and we all know what that means!  Its time for Prog Rock Saturdays at "Vinyl in the Valley"!  


And what a way to start things off with King Crimson's debut, the incomparable In the Court of the Crimson King.  


The opener, "21st Century Schizoid Man" is a heavy metal, prog-rock masterpiece.  From Robert Fripp's chainsaw-sounding guitars, to Greg Lake's distorted vocal, with lyrics like "politicians funeral pyre / innocents raped with napalm fire", the song is a futuristic epic thinly veiled as a Vietnam-era protest song.  What a way to kick things off!


Immediately following the shit storm of "Schizoid Man" is the genteel and harmonious (and flute-filled!), "I Talk To The WInd" that morphs into the the wailing and mellotron-heavy, "Epitaph" which sounds like the soundtrack to some apocalyptic spaghetti western!   


Time to flip!

PROG ROCK SATURDAYS HAVE RETURNED!

At the close of our last Vinyl in the Valley staff meeting, I was given the fortunate task of advising you all that....PROG ROCK SATURDAYS ARE BACK!

Yes friends, back by popular demand, starting this Saturday we'll be blowing the dust off of some fine pieces of progressive music and spinning them into the wee hours. 

We'll be delving into the abyss of late 60s and 70s innovation and savoring some of England's strangest musical offerings!

King Crimson! Yes! Early Pink Floyd! Early Genesis with Peter Gabriel!

I know, I know. You can hardly contain yourself, right?

I'm not going to pretend that this is some of the sexiest shit in the world, but it's definitely worth a listen!

And I'll be behind the bar concocting equally weird drinks to wet your proggy whistle!

So join us this Saturday in the Court of the Crimson King!

XO,
Tiki T.

Monkee Punch!

Hello Friends,

There's a lot to be said when it comes to the first two records by the Monkees!

On the one hand, there's some really great melodies, some solidly written songs and some really fun, Beatles-influenced bubblegum pop!  On the other, music purists might argue that these two albums are more representative of clever marketing rather than artistic music-making.  Hmmm?

Here on "Vinyl in the Valley" we'll leave these arguments to the intellectuals because tonight we know what side of the Monkee Bars we're swinging on!

The Monkees - The Monkees (1966)

Eleven of the twelve songs on the The Monkees' eponymous debut are written by non-Monkees. Pretty much every track features either Micky Dolenz or Davy Jones singing with a band of session musicians who provide the backing music.  It does have the superhits: "(Theme from) The Monkees" and "Last Train to Clarksville"; the sappy, "I Wanna Be Free"; the sole Nesmith composition, "Papa Gene's Blues"; and the fantastic, Stonesy, "Saturday's Child" (written by David Gates of Bread fame.)

Plus, I always enjoyed Mike Nesmith's scowl on the otherwise smiley cover photo! What's wrong Mike Nesmith?  Is that hat making you itchy? 

RATING: 4 itchy hats out of 5




Click for More of the Monkees...

Champagne, Candlelight & Kisses

 Jackie Gleason - Champagne, Candlelight and Kisses (1963)

Hello Friends,

Tonight on "Vinyl in the Valley" we're enjoying the swooning sounds of our favorite fat bastard, Jackie Gleason.

Actually, by this point in his music career, I don't think Gleason had much to do with the recording of these albums and instead let producers and arrangers handle most of the workload.  Hey, why conduct an orchestra when you could be drinking?

"Let me show you what you can do..."

In any case, like most of his Capitol LP's this one plays out like the soundtrack to a Woody Allen movie.  There's the familiar-sounding arrangements complete with lush strings and muted horns ("Theme from Bus Stop", "Its Been a Long, Long Time", "Everything Happens to Me"), but there's also some uncharacteristically bouncy, upbeat and even dixieland-inspired jazzier tunes ("Undecided", "All By Myself", "Just You, Just Me").  I guess between the champagne, candlelight & kisses we're supposed to squeeze in some calisthenics!  

The album cover looks like a service cart in James Bond's hotel room:  Champagne on ice, vintage-looking crystal goblets, a glass tumbler with hand-rolled cigarettes,  softly burning candles and... OMG is that a Pu-Pu platter?!?!?

RATING:

3.5 Trips to the Moon out of a possible 5

Tiki Tips: 2,000 Light Years from Home Punch

When listening to old Stones records, I like a cocktail that can be ladled sloppily into my cup as I stumble back and forth between tiki bar and turntable. What finer than a stiff-n-sturdy punch? A classic and versatile little number that can feed a crowd or just you alone.


This one is pretty strong, so be sure your guests can handle it. Or else you could end up with a real "Altamont" situation on your hands!


I share the following recipe because it has brought me years of unbridled joy and bad decisions.


It's my own doing too! (Or shall I say un-doing?)

Tiki's 2,000 Light Years from Home Punch
1) maraschino cherries that have been soaked overnight in a bath of white rum, almond extract and cinnamon (the rum bath goes in the punch, too!)
2) thin orange slices
3) large bottle white rum
4) large bottle lightly spiced rum
5) pineapple juice
6) few shakes of almond extract (to your liking)
7) tangerine juice
8) 1 can lemon soda (I prefer San Pellagrino)
9) cranberry juice
10) dash allspice
11) dash cinnamon
12) cinnamon sticks

Combine it all in a glass bowl and pop a cinnamon stick in each guest's glass.
That's all the guidance I can give you on this one. Taste as you pour and adjust to your liking. I've given you the building blocks, what you do with it is your own sordid business.


Keep it cool babies, until next time....
XO,
Tiki T.

Metamorphosis

The Rolling Stones - Metamorphosis (1975)

Hello friends!

This oft-overlooked Rolling Stones outtakes compilation has got us buzzing! (get it?) 

Tracks are compiled from their fertile period of '64 to '70 and include a demo version of "Out of Time"; an alternate version of "Heart of Stone" with Jimmy Page(!) playing lead; a great Bill Wyman original, "Downtown Suzie"; and a cover of the Stevie Wonder song,  "I Don't Know Why" which was reportedly recorded on July 3, 1969-- the same night that Brian Jones was murdered died.  

Great Franz Kafka-themed album cover, too!  If you haven't yet read Kafka's novella, "The Metamorphosis" you should stop playing on the computer and read it dummy!

RATING: 3.5 Memos from Turner out of a possible 5

The Night We Called It a Day

Frank Sinatra - Where Are You? (1957)

Hello friends!

Feeling a little lonely this evening?  Feeling like the world has beat you down?  Do you just not care anymore?

Well then, you've come to the right place! 

On tonight's "Vinyl in the Valley", we're pouring our scotch & sodas on the stiff side while our favorite blue-eyed crooner woos us with some of his most melancholy ballads.

Now be warned, this is ain't the upbeat, globe-trottin', swingin' Sinatra style that we've come to know and love.  This is the morose, end-of-his-line torch singer who goes home to a dark apartment-- smelling of booze and stale cigarettes-- with two dollars left in his pocket, some dame's number illegibly scribbled on a book of matches and with enough personal regrets to keep him sleeping 'til Tuesday!

Where Are You?-- which was later re-released as The Night We Called It A Day-- is a lesser-known LP from Sinatra's incredible Capitol Years.  Here, the orchestra is conducted by Gordon Jenkins (a departure from frequent Sinatra collaborator, Nelson Riddle) whose lush arrangements only accentuate the loneliness and fragility heard in the great singer's voice.  From the longing strings on the opening title track to the bluesy, yearning closing number-- "Baby, Won't You Please Come Home?"-- this is some heartbreaking shit!

RATING:
5 too many drinks after 'last call' out of a possible 5