I was unable to get to Santa Cruz’s Streetlight Records today in spite of my best intentions. So, I glanced at Amoeba’s online Record Store Day catalog in the afternoon. Did I enter a bad search, or did most of today’s wares sell out early? Either way, it was probably just as well, since I blew my RSD budget on the surprise release of Sloan’s B Sides Win, Volume 2 the other day. Sorry, everybody. Next month’s RSD drop should produce a real saga, thanks to a UK-only offering that will add several degrees of difficulty for this Stateside collector. In the meantime, feel free to regale me with tales of your RSD finds in the comments!
Sloan
RSD 2019: The Struggle Continues
I had every intention of getting in line early for Record Store Day, but a last-minute invitation to a dim sum luncheon in Palo Alto changed my plans. The combination of a long day on public transit and erratic coffee consumption left me ill-equipped to face Streetlight’s bins when I arrived in Santa Cruz that afternoon. Two DJs (including a store employee/fellow Sloan fan I recognized) were spinning some groovy vintage Spanish-language soul tunes. (I assumed the cover of Joe Tex’s “Show Me” was by Luis Moreno, but his version I found on YouTube sounds different. Hmm.) What was left at 4 o’clock, you ask? I didn’t see Lone Justice’s Live at the Palomino, but with a CD release on tap I wasn’t worried. My head was turned by Badfinger’s So Fine: The Warner Bros. Rarities, which I debated for a while. The price tag deterred me, but I was more worried about duplicating things I already had. (It’s a dilemma I face often as a Big Star fan. For years I believed they made a mere handful of recordings, but now I see new albums of unreleased mixes every few months. They weren’t together that long, how many more undiscovered tapes can there be? I’m not being snarky, I really want to know.) I put it back, but Pete Ham and company still call to me this morning. Did anyone out there succumb yesterday? Please tell me if I need to nab a copy after all…
Today in History (October 29, 1976)
Forty years ago tonight, ABC presented its sole airing of The Paul Lynde Halloween Special. Directed by Sidney Smith and co-written by Bruce Vilanch, the show features such ’70s mainstays as Tim Conway, Betty White, and Florence Henderson. It’s most renowned as the network television debut of the band KISS, and was a sought-after bootleg for decades before its DVD release in 2007.
The Paul Lynde Halloween Special holds a certain mystique for Sloan fans as well as KISS devotees. Legend has it that when the show aired in 1976, seven-year-old Chris Murphy and eight-year-old Jay Ferguson were dazzled by the presence of KISS on their TV screens. While the Halifax, Nova Scotia youngsters wouldn’t become acquainted until they were teenagers, supposedly both vowed to become rock musicians after watching the special.
Since I was a mere one-year-old when the show aired, I couldn’t experience a similar epiphany. Even so, I’ve long been curious about the special that indirectly led to my favorite band’s formation. The verdict? I enjoy cognitive dissonance, and The Paul Lynde Halloween Special will always inspire that with a vengeance. Admittedly, the pacing is a little slow here and there, and the staged numbers seem oddly subdued. (I’m not sure if that has to do with potential budget issues in the production, or network censors fearing the emergence of Gene Simmons’ tongue.) What’s more, the show missed a few musical opportunities. (I would have given Donny and Marie a song with KISS, and replaced Roz “Pinky Tuscadero” Kelly with Suzi “Leather Tuscadero” Quatro.) On the other hand, Lynde’s snark seems strangely appropriate here, and Margaret Hamilton’s charming performance will provide closure for those traumatized by The Wizard of Oz. So, why not check it out? Happy Halloween, everybody!
Song In My Head #64: “Mind Over Matter” by TUNS
TUNS features Sloan’s Chris Murphy, the Inbreds’ Mike O’Neill, and Matt Murphy of The Super Friendz and The Flashing Lights. While their self-titled debut is coming out in the U.S. today on Royal Mountain Records, I’ve had a Canadian import copy on repeat for a couple of weeks. (Such is the life of a Sloan superfan Stateside.) The songs blend ultra-glammy arrangements with supremely poppy harmonies in truly addictive style. Even though the video will give you the creeps the first time you see it (at least if you’re a tender soul like me), check out “Mind Over Matter”:
Song In My Head #54: “Rumble” by You Am I
When I was in college, I always noticed the raves about this Australian band in music magazines. I didn’t really understand what the fuss was about until I fell hard for You Am I’s #4 Record upon its 1998 release. “Rumble” is my favorite You Am I tune, yet I always forget its title. When you hear the shouts of “R-A-D-I-O!” in the chorus, you also will wonder why the band didn’t just call it “Radio” instead. (I have always been powerless before a song that employs spelling. I still cringe when I remember informing Sloan’s Jay Ferguson that there weren’t enough songs with spelling in them when I interviewed him years ago. I was so nervous that I’d forgotten that his “I Hate My Generation,” off Sloan’s Twice Removed, has one of my all-time favorite spelling sequences in its bridge. Sigh!)
While searching for this song on YouTube, I discovered the “Rumble” video below. What do I think of it? Let’s just say that I would have discussed it in this post, had I known about it then. Then again, I really dig the fab black feather boa that lead singer Tim Rogers is wearing, so things do balance each other out…
Song In My Head #48: “13 (Under A Bad Sign)” by Sloan
I’ve never really suffered from triskaidekaphobia (fear of the number 13). Before now, I never knew that there are two specific terms for the fear of Friday the 13th. (I hesitate to reveal them, since I’m convinced that no one would ever use them in normal conversation. They are friggatriskaidekaphobia, referring to the Norse goddess for whom Friday is named, and the more recent paraskevidekatriaphobia.) Then again, what song has been swirling through my brain since Sloan’s triumphant San Francisco appearance last month? None other than guitarist Patrick Pentland’s “13 (Under A Bad Sign),” from the band’s 2014 epic Commonwealth. Spooky coincidence? Who knows? Just turn it up…
Song In My Head #20: “Step On It, Jean” by Sloan
After all these months, the question is obvious. What took me so long to feature my favorite band in the “Song In My Head” slot? In my defense, I did include some Sloan-related Easter eggs in earlier posts. (Green Gables, King Library, and the Beach Boardwalk are promising places to search, hint, hint.) Honestly, it’s hard to know where to begin with the quartet, and I mean that in the best of ways. Since forming in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1991, Sloan has shown remarkable consistency over the course of eleven studio albums. All four (original!) members write and sing, so there tend to be intriguing stylistic jumps from album to album, and from song to song on each record. From the shoegaziness of 1992’s Smeared to the experimental solo suites of last year’s Commonwealth, there are many delights to explore. Happily, the glorious harmonies and catchy songcraft are constants in any era.
Today’s choice is a bonus track from a fairly atypical Sloan album, 2003’s Action Pact. I love “Step On It, Jean” for Jay Ferguson’s sparkling vocal, a shockingly Muppety drum break from Andrew Scott, and beautiful harmonies by Chris Murphy and Patrick Pentland. That ascending “ah” at the end makes me sigh without fail. (In 2004, I had the distinct pleasure of co-interviewing Ferguson for Scram. I asked him if that part was a nod to the Brazilian Tropicalia genre. He replied that Murphy and co-producer Ian McGettigan thought of the “ah,” so I’d have to ask one of them. Sadly, I become so goofily starstruck whenever I see the band after a show that I have forgotten to ask on multiple occasions.) I have no idea where the following video came from (I imagine it’s made by a fan, as the images cut out with forty seconds remaining), but since the mix sounds perfect, I’m happy to have it nonetheless. Enjoy!
Every time I try to get out…
While I normally shun retail holidays, I’ve always made an exception for Record Store Day. I’ve been known to stand in line for a good 90 minutes to shop for the special releases. Given the prediction of crushing heat this weekend and the fact that my beloved local stores resemble hipster DMVs on this day, I was tempted to just sleep in this coming Saturday (fully intending to stop by later, of course).
Then I saw this. It’s on green vinyl, no less.
See you all in line bright and early this Saturday. Sheesh!
Coastal Book Gal 