Recommendations - November 11

Cal Tjader – The Prophet

About eight years ago a bloke who worked in animation asked me if I could find him a copy of the Prophet by Cal Tjader. I said “yeah, dead easy”. Since then I have never found a copy, then one turned up in this big jazz collection. Bargain. Brilliant. Great record. Big sample on it apparently but I have no idea where. And Harv, aged one and a half thinks it’s me on the cover. He refers to the album as “Daddy Hat”.

The Sound Of Music – Paul Smith Quartet

Any regulars to these pages or the OST Radio Show will be aware of my slight and ongoing obsession with cover versions of The Sound Of The Music film, or songs from that musical. This is probably the best album I have ever found within this mini micro genre, and I say this as it has a sense of humour, it is cunning, a touch pompous, sounds a bit like Bond music (before the films were even thought up) and is beautifully played most of the time. Has an inspired take on the Lonely Goatherd too.

Here Comes Carole Creveling

I’d been researching a rare set of speakers. I didn’t want to buy them as they cost about £20,000, I just wanted to find out why they were so expensive and what made them so exceptional. During this daft investigation I came across a Japanese YouTube clip where this man has a pair of these speakers, and in his little video clip is playing the Carole Creveling album. I instantly fell in love with her voice. It’s about £1000 to get one, so I shall never find an original. I think most copies are in Japan. The album was the only full album she made, even though the album has the subtitle of Volume One. It’s a beguiling record, especially the track Star Eyes which is perfect in everyway possible. I have now issued the album digitally.

Mr Magoo In Hi Fi

This looks like a joke album. And indeed Side One is trying to be funny with Mr Magoo going all Hi Fi and jargon-like, but it fails. However the music on Side Two, without Mr Magoo wittering on is brilliant. It’s twisted musical interpretations of nursery rhymes, composed by Dennis Farnon who wrote for Conroy, and features the soaring crazy vocals of Marni Nixon who used to replace the voices of stresses like Audrey Hepburn when they had to sing. We listen to it at breakfast if everyone is in a bad mood.

Gil Melle - Tome IV

The jazz giant goes all electronic. According to the sleevenotes, it’s the first ever album of electronic jazz. I’m not going to argue with that statement but I might do some research. Anyway, 4 tracks here, all pretty bonkers, blippy bloppy noises, loads of squeaky 60s sax.

William Holden Presents A Touch Of Faraway Places

Holden has bugger all to do with this, apart from being on the cover and looking cool in that petrol blue suit. Wow, do I want one those. As for the sounds, it’s bloody marvellous. Possibly one of the great underrated exotic LPs of the late 50s, put together with a slightly oriental bent. I love this album. And it’s now available in ye olde trunk shoppe.

Pop In Pop

Now what does that title mean. I have no idea, and it’s not the first time I have come across a library album with title that makes bugger all sense to anyone except the composer. An illusive beast this one, all the way from France. Possibly came over on the Eurostar. Includes an average Side One and an exciting Side Two with some la la la vocals and fast things. Also includes the track Not Why Not, which suggests that Claude Dauray was mental.

Scratches

This is a 7 inch record all about scratches.

An Album With A Pop Up Doggy Inside

Coming out of Italy in 1970 this was one of a peculiar series of gift albums, all with amazing unreleased film music on them. I have another in the series with a pop up Polar bear drinking fizzy drink inside. This album includes three tracks I have been trying to find for about ten years. It is the 3rd most I have ever paid for an album, which isn’t that much for some people out there, but is quite enough for me. And it is the first time in ten years I have ever come across these tracks. I could tell you more about the music but it’s not really that interesting, however it does involve Tim Brooke Taylor.

Modern Jazz Concert

Not often you find yourself with a Charles Eames sleeve. Yeah all you mid century modern types – this is his Solar Energy Toy, one of the few Eames pieces not yet reproduced. Although someone might tell me that now it is. It was utterly useless apparently, and you can see it in action here: Anyway, musically this album is heaven, embracing Schuller’s idea of the Third Stream, which is music that is both classical and jazz. Or something like that. So for me, and at this particular musical stage in my life, is almost as good as Raquel Welsh turning up at my front door dressed in a white wetsuit (or cow girl thing) to do the cleaning. And boy do I have a dirty house.

Fred Katz And His Jammers

Famous for providing the hip jazz backgrounds for Ken Nordine, Katz made a few Lps himself. This is the best, not just from a cover point of view, but also from a jazz angle. It’s full of hundreds of little musical ideas that come at you all the time and make your head go all wowsy. Like the lovely lady on the front.

Gone Native

Herbie Mann here turns tribal, and gets away with it. Deep, interesting, groovy, this could easily be the background to something sinister and in the jungle. It was actually the background to something sinister in a garden in Dalston recently when Mrs Trunk accidentally set fire to the barbeque scrubbing brush on Halloween evening.

Dead In Tune

This is here because it’s a rare charity shop find. It’s only rare as I hardly ever go into to Charity shop now, but I bagged this is Essex. I don’t know what it’s like yet but it is hanging around the deck waiting its turn. It’s on Argo and looks like it includes a kid’s orchestra conducted by none other than Herbert Chappell. It’s could well be shit.

Trunk Update: It is shit. Well Side One is.

Attic Demonstration

While we are on the subject of shit, this is top of the pile. A truck driver thinks he can sing and can write a good tune or two, then makes demo album, issues it, turns into cult terrible thing. It’s really really bad and I love it.