The Kinks - Better Things

Arista (UK) 415, 1981

A late-period classic. Throughout their tenure with Arista, The Kinks seemed perpetually on the verge of reclaiming their former greatness. The albums from this period were uneven (with the exception of the near-perfect Sleepwalker), but each one contained at least a few solid gems - such as the song presented here for 1981's Give The People What They Want.

This tune is vintage Ray Davies. A deceptively upbeat opening verse (clever how it's the only part that repeats) gives way to the song's more bittersweet sentiments as the melody builds to a stadium-size chorus. I can't imagine this song being much out of place on one of their early LPs- Kontroversy, perhaps.

Released as a single in early '81 in advance of the upcoming LP, apparently without much notice in the charts anywhere.  The single version here is slightly longer than the LP - longer fade.

listen

Del Shannon - Led Along

Liberty 55961, 1966

An advance release from an album Del was recording in England, with Andrew Loog Oldham producing. Unfortunately, the single failed to chart, and the label shelved the finished LP (which would remain unreleased for another ten years).

It's a great song, written for Del by Immediate Records staff writer Billy Nicholls. A classic slice of mid-'60s pop, with production reminiscent of Andrew's other project at the time (see Between The Buttons).

Loy Clingman - It's Nothing To Me

Dot 15567, 1957

Another Lee Hazlewood-related entry. This one from Lee's sometime record engineer/songwriter/business partner Loy Clingman.

The song is a classic '50s Country ballad, full of barroom badassery and menace, wherein our gentle protagonist's cautionary advice goes unheeded. Tragedy ensues.

The song, written by Leon Payne under a pseudonym, would eventually be covered by many other artists - most notably Johnny Winter, in the early '70s.

John Kongos - He's Gonna Step On You Again

Elektra 45729, 1971

Most of you will recognize this from the Happy Mondays cover, though it may take a while. It's interesting how Happy Mondays internalized the original's anti-colonialist political message (Kongos is South African) and reinterpreted it as an anthem of junkie paranoia - in other words, making it their own.



The original presented here is pretty incredible. An international hit in its time, an ingenious mash-up of Glam and World pop and likely the first hit single ever to have used a sample-based beat (the entire track seems to be built around a tape loop of African drumming).

Sanford Clark

Here's some choice sides from rockabilly pioneer Sanford Clark.

A protege of Lee Hazlewood, Sanford had success early on with his recording of "The Fool", landing him a contract with Dot Records. Unfortunately, it turned out to be his only hit. He continued to release a string of singles throughout the late '50s / early 60s, switching to Jaime records for a while, then landing on Hazlewood's own LHI label before disappearing from the music scene.

"A Cheat"

Dot 15516, 1956

One of his last sides for the Dot label. I like the gloomy, noirish vibe on this one - sounds like something The Cramps would have covered. Maybe they did.




"Still As The Night"

Jaime 1107, 1958

I believe this was his first one after leaving Dot for Jaime Records, though information on this is pretty hard to find. The guitar work sounds more than a little like Duane Eddy's signature sound at the time. Clark's long-time lead guitarist Al Casey had in fact played on Eddy's touring band and did many sessions for him and Lee Hazlewood.



"Run Boy Run"

Jaime 1129, 1959

This one reminds me of something Johnny Cash would have done at Sun around this time. Doomed outlaw ballad, sung over minimalist instrumentation.



"Son Of A Gun"

Jaime 1139, 1959

Nice use of strings.

The character in this song could have been the offspring of the doomed gunslinger of the previous single. Lee Hazlewood recorded his own versions of both of these songs for his 1963 LP Trouble Is a Lonesome Town.

Red Crayola - Hurricane Fighter Plane (Sonic Boom remix)

International Artists IA-143, 2011

Limited Record Store Day release of the psychedelic classic, given an extra layer of haze from Shoegaze pioneer / Spacemen 3 founder Pete Kember (a/k/a "Sonic Boom"). Interesting how his treatment actually pulls this song closer to mainstream territory - but not too close.

The Velvet Underground - I Heard Her Call My Name

 
Verve VK-10560, 1968 (withdrawn) / Sundazed "Singles 1966-69" 7" box set, 2011

Original pick for the B-side of "White Light/White Heat". It was pulled just before release and replaced with the more subdued "Here She Comes Now", but now appears as part of Sundazed's deluxe VU singles box.

Hard to imagine, but this mix is even more primitive and abrasive than the stereo LP version - which is a good thing, I think. Rhythm guitar and bass are way up front here (sounds like Cale quit the band at least twice during the final minute of this song). The drums, when audible, still sound like cardboard.

The Everly Brothers - Don't Let The Whole World Know

 
Warner Brothers 5600, 1965 (B-side of "You're My Girl")

A nice UK press by Decca. No idea why neither of these tracks ever made it to a proper LP. The B-side is one of their best vocal performances.

Johnny Rivers - Rewind Medley

 
Imperial 66244, 1967

If you flip over Johnny Rivers' hit cover of "The Tracks Of My Tears", you'll find this: an album side's worth of song clips from his Rewind LP. All of them Jim Webb tracks, no less.

A pretty clever idea for its time, I think. It's sort of like the 30 second samples you can click on at any online store today, but without the clicking.



The Psychedelic Furs did something similar for their Talk Talk Talk LP, which I wrote about earlier. The main difference was pressing the teaser tracks on the single's cover sleeve instead of the B-side.

Harmonia - De Luxe

 
Metronome BB16 (Germany), 1975

The ultimate Krautrock anthem, presented in radio-friendly edited form.

Somewhere, sometime, this existed in a jukebox. The very idea blows my mind.

Thin Lizzy - Cowboy Song

 
Mercury 73841, 1976

The third single from their breakthrough LP Jailbreak. This is a US-only release, I've come to find out. It didn't crack the top 40, but I do remember hearing it on WLS-AM at the time, so kudos to their American label for stepping to the plate for this song.

This was the one that got me, and it's still my favorite Thin Lizzy track. It's amazing how much Van Morrison you can pack into a hard rock song without sounding anything like Van Morrison.

The edit does get a bit choppy in the middle, but it keeps all the best parts.

Bobby Bare / Johnny Cash sides

Here's a few Country sides, both of them crossover hits in their day:


Bobby Bare - 500 Miles Away From Home

 
RCA 47-8238, 1963

An overplayed folk tune by the mid '60s to be sure, apparently "written" by dozens of people over several decades. Bobby Bare's rewrite has a vaguely hippie vibe to it which I like a lot. I imagine the protagonist being the same guy who later got a ride from Red Sovine's "Big Joe and Phantom 309".




Johnny Cash - Tennessee Flat-Top Box

 
Columbia 4-42147, 1961

One of my favorite Johnny Cash singles. It's great songwriting, and a rare treat to hear Johnny take the guitar lead.

The Byrds - Eight Miles High

 
Sundazed 238, 2011

This is Sundazed's Record Store Day / Black Friday release of the original "Hollywood" version of this tune, recorded in late '65 when Gene Clark was still with the band.



This recording has been available in remixed form since the '80s, but this is the first time the original mono mix has ever been used.

Lifeguards - Product Head

 
Serious Business SBR44, 2011

This is what it might sound like if Paul McCartney fronted Wire in the '80s. Or something like that.



Different mix from the Waving At The Astronauts CD version, with a longer (and much cooler) fade-out.

Buchanan Brothers - Medicine Man (Pts. 1 & 2)

Not brothers, not named Buchanan...
 
 
Event 3302, 1969

Pure bubblegum, destined for a K-Tel compilation in the cut-out bin of your mind.  This was a one-off moment of inspiration from New York producers Terry Cashman and Tommy West (who normally recorded under the clever name "Cashman & West").  Peaked at #23, dontcha know (WLS, May '69).
 
the hit:


wait - there's more:

some Fleetwood Mac sides

The Green Manalishi (With The Two Prong Crown) / World In Harmony 
    
 
Reprise 925, 1969

Really nice mono mixes on this single, and a surprisingly good mastering job (cut at Columbia, NY) - especially considering the track length of "Manalishi".

The A-side:
The B-side:


Man Of The World 



DJM 1007 (US), 1975 - (originally Immediate UK IM80, 1969) 

This track didn't make it to the US until six years after its UK release, put out by independent label DJM, for reasons unknown.

J. J. Barnes - Baby Please Come Back Home

 
Groovesville GV 1006, 1967

The A-side, "Chains Of Love", got some attention a few years back due to The Dirtbombs' excellent cover.

The original is great, of course - but even better is this forgotten B-side. Not too far removed from standard Mowtown formula, but it has a harder, grittier delivery.

Barnes had some success in the UK with this single, and a few others, but seems to have remained off the radar completely in the US - save for a few sides he wrote for other Motown artists.

Glen Campbell - Hey Little One

 
Capitol 2076, 1968

Out of Glen's string of classic singles from the late '60s, this is the only one that didn't crack the top 40, which means it doesn't get played to death on oldies radio. It deserves a listen though, as it's about as close to pop perfection as you can get. It's co-written by Dorsey Burnette, and I can now recognize his style as I've been digging into a lot of the Burnette brothers' '60s demos lately.  There's that trace of Rockabilly in the pop creaminess.

It's hard to accept this as a Country record - unless 'Country' means Del Shannon singing lead with Buffalo Springfield. Or something like that.

The Move - Tonight

 
Capitol 3126, 1971

A late period, non-LP single that preceded Message From The Country. It's a fantastic track - mixing power pop and folk goodness, with some tasty guitar leads from both Roy Wood and Jeff Lynne.  

This does seem to be the earliest hint of what would become ELO. The heavy psych sound that was The Move's DNA has given way to a more Beatlesque style (as it was called then). It's Roy's song, but Jeff Lynne's production sensibilities dominate. Just a few more 45s left in this band before the name change / split.

The Smithereens - Gotti

Tell me there's a Mafia
I'll tell you there's a Santa Claus...

 
from side 5 of A Date With The Smithereens promotional box set - RCA/BMG 07863-62807, 1994

I have no idea whether Pat DiNizio is being serious or not with this song, but I do like the snotty vibe. Maybe it's a New Jersey thing. Really nice bass line throughout - somebody listens to a lot of mid-period Beatles...  

This sounds a bit different from the CD version, as do most of the tracks. For this promo release, they pulled some different mixes, and added some good old fashioned compression mojo so they could cram some considerably long running times on these sides (as stated on the back of the box).