Dr. Hook
"The Best of Dr. Hook" (Vinyl)

The first of many compilation album from Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show was released in 1976.

These guys didn't take too many things seriously as evident by their lyrics, musical arrangements and album artwork.
How many bands get a one-eyed cowboy for their frontman?
His voice is as distinctive and interesting as any I've heard.

Ruth Welcome
"Zither Magic!" (Vinyl)

This album is exactly what it looks like.
I can't honestly say I would ever listen to this again, but because of the album artwork, I can't really bear to get rid of it.

Some things are just worth hanging up on the wall.
This isn't one of those things.

But it makes me laugh.

.38 Special
"Rockin' Into the Night" (Vinyl)

The Southern rocker's third album was released in 1980.  It also yielded the band their first big hit, the title track "Rockin' Into the Night" which resembles most closely KISS-worthy arena rock.

Lead singer Donnie Van Zandt is brother to Skynyrd vocalists Johnny and Ronnie Van Zandt.  Imagine calling someone's name around the dinner table in that house.

Unlike Lynyrd Skynyrd, this album feels more closely tied to arena and riff-heavy rock than any Southern-fried Bayou-born boogie.  Whether or not it's memorable is another question...

The Climax Blues Band
"Gold Plated" (Vinyl)

Released in 1976, this was the Climax Blues Band's highest-charting album.  The band, formed in England, helped the UK revival of the American Blues tradition in the 60's.

This album contained the group's biggest hit, "Couldn't Get it Right" and saw their height of popularity in the United States.

Changing tastes in music saw the early demise of Climax's popularity and although the band has never stopped recording or touring, this album probably represented the zenith of their power.

David LaFlamme
"Whitebird" (Vinyl)

Released in 1976, this is an album released by violinist, composer, singer and songwriter David LaFlamme after his time as leader of the San Fransisco-based hippy band It's a Beautiful Day.

The information is so spotty online, it's hard to trace a genesis for this particular album.  Credited as "solo violinist" for the Utah Symphony (huh?), David LaFlamme then participated in the Summer of Love and out of it came It's a Beautiful Day.

Beyond that, I'm not sure where/when this album fits in, but I don't think it'll remain in the collections.  I've got a lot of other records to get to, let's go!

Tir na nOg
"A Tear and a Smile" (Vinyl)

This album was in a stack I uncovered in a random thrift shop in St. Louis. Many of the records are obscure Canadian albums from the 1970's and 80's.

Released in 1972, this was Tir na nOg's first international release.  The Irish duo formed in 1969 and disbanded in 1974, but were together long enough to put out three LP albums.

The songwriting on this album is notable for it's forward-looking acoustic folk styling. Close vocal harmonies and beautiful acoustic guitar playing make this a very easy to listen to album.  After a few minutes you realize that their song construction is much more interesting than what we usually hear from this vein.

Lynyrd Skynyrd
"Pronounced 'leh-nerd 'skin-herd" (Vinyl)

Released in 1973, this was the album that pushed the southern hard rockers to superstardom.  It also contains one of the two songs the band's best known for, ("Free Bird") the other being released on their 1974 album 'Second Helping' ("Sweet Home Alabama.")

The band's hefty line-up was desired to replicate the triple-lead guitar sound live in concert.  The sound is distinctive.

While the southern-fried rock thing isn't terribly in my milieu, a few bands (Allman Bros. and Skynyrd) were intuitive enough to keep enough hard rock roots in the ground that their appeal was wider than the deep south.

For a debut album, their concept and execution is impressive. In contrast to today's test tube acts born in a laboratory, this album has the feel of musicians that were very used to playing with each other in countless bars.

Van Halen
"Van Halen" (CD)

Released in 1978, this debut album received mixed reaction initially, but has come to be regarded as one of the most important, groundshaking debuts ever recorded.   When put into its historical context, it's musical language may even be more immediately groundbreaking than any who had come before.

At the tail end of Led Zeppelin's lifespan the public had become weary of the bloated shadow Page, Plant & co. had become.  A digital revolution in the recording industry was afoot and young ears were itching for a "new" sound.

Enter Eddie Van Halen and his noisy brood of bar music.  It was a harbinger of things to come.  Behind Van Halen would be a host of hair metal glam rockers that would dominate the next decade.

But it all started here.  While I'm not the biggest fan of a lot of Van Halen's output, this album is particularly ear-catching. There's a healthy homage to the riff-driven heavy rock from before, but Van Halen's screaming guitar antics were unlike anything previously attempted.  The classic track "Eruption" would quiet any doubts about the band's raw ability.

The Rumour
"Frogs, Sprouts, Clogs & Krauts" (Vinyl)

In an attempt to work through a reasonable stack of vinyl that I've accumulated over the past several months (and rid myself of that which I don't want) I'm trying to give a couple of titles I've never seen/heard of before a quick listen to see if they can find a home.

The Rumour were Graham Parker's back-up band and recorded several of their own albums in addition to many of Mr. Parker's notable albums in the 70's and 80's.  The album has the glossy, tight production value to it, but nothing terribly interesting, musically speaking.

Vangelis
"Direct" (Vinyl)

Greek composer Vangelis has had quite a storied career (his highest accomplishment being the "Chariots of Fire" soundtrack) and this album is an instrumental odyssey through mountains of synthesized samples and textures.
The sincerity with which Vangelis approaches his music is giving me cause to listen carefully to this album; the verdict is still out on it's ultimate fate in my collection.

Suzuki Isao Quartet
"Blue City" (Vinyl)

Part of the Saito collection, I wasn't quite sure what was going to play through the hi-fi when it started spinning.  There's limited information (in English) on the interweb about Mr. Isao and his jazz combos, so it was something of an adventure.

As it turns out, this is jazz in a pretty traditional vein although it is fun to see how the combo gets in and out of grooves; their methods are a bit more obscure than what we're used to hearing in the American jazz tradition.

Be that as it may, this is a nice sounding record that was originally released in 1974.  This is one of two albums from the era that are notably mentioned around the webosphere.  Aside from this, it would appear Mr. Isao has enjoyed a long and productive career elsewhere in the world.  There is still so much I do not know.

Beaux Art Trio, George Pieterson
"Brahms, Beethoven: Clarinet Trios" (Vinyl)

Among the catalog of odd chamber music composed, the clarinet trio is a funny bird that has enjoyed attention by two of music's greatest titans. Brahms wrote his trio for the clarinetist Richard Mühlfeld (to which the two sonatas and clarinet quintet are also dedicated) and Beethoven indicated in his score that the two higher voices in his trio could be played either by violin or clarinet, or by a bassoon or cello (respectively.)

Brahms' work benefits from being amongst his late output, emerging from retirement to compose these works for Muhlfeld while Beethoven's work is relatively early in his development.  The imaginative and creative use of instruments seemed to be a trademark of Beethoven's phase as a developing composer. (Think: septet)

The performance here is beautiful.  Bernard Greenhouse and Pressler are as wonderful as in any Beaux Art recording. I am able to learn little about George Pieterson except of his one-time position with the Royal Amsterdam Concertgebouworkest.

Otto Klemperer, New Philharmonia Orchestra
"Beethoven: Symphony no. 7" (Vinyl)

Angel packaged some beautiful, resilient vinyl back in the day.  This cycle of Beethoven's symphonies, which dates from the late 50's enjoyed protection inside thick cardboard sleeves which are the sturdiest I've seen (next to older Everest recordings.)

Klemperer was personal friends with Mahler and probably only three handshakes away from Beethoven himself.  Regarded as one of the best conductors of the 20th century, he did not enjoy a particular notoriety in the United States (overshadowed by the superstar status of Bernstein, Ormandy and Szell.)

His tempos in this recording of Beethoven's 7th are deliberate, bordering on slow compared to the sometimes frantic tempos I hear today.  There is a control and sublime wisdom that comes through in this performance.

Al Kealoha Perry
"Favorite Instrumentals of the Islands" (Vinyl)

Sometimes I just pick up a record not so much for its content, but because of when it was produced.  Often times, the quality of the recording and production is worth the 25 cents.

At some point in the 50's and 60's, along with Latin bands, America had a taste for the exotic.  Perhaps they didn't realize by this point, Hawaii was part of America and therefore not terribly exotic any more.

Whatever.

This album, (claiming to have been recorded on the beaches of Waikiki) is two sides of languid, relaxing pedal steel and ukelele strumming, no doubt intended to call to mind the soft rushing of waves as they lapped against the shore, the undulating hula girls and the mild weather.  It's all very beautiful, I suppose.  I may not keep this one around...

The Allman Brothers Band
"Eat a Peach" (Vinyl)

Released in 1972, this was a difficult period for the Southern Rock legends.  Following the break-through success of the band's "Live at Fillmore East" the band returned to the studio to record the tracks that would become "Eat a Peach" when slide guitarist Duane Allman was killed in a car accident.  Some tracks were re-recorded, some were added in homage to the bandmember's death.

This album is full of the country-fried Southern rock and improvisations that the band became famous for.  While the band carried on after Duane Allman's untimely death, it was these early records for which they are still most highly regarded.

I'll consider this part of the Saito Collection (which I'll hopefully refer to again and again.)

Paul Simon
"Graceland" (Vinyl)

This was a monster hit in 1986 when it was released.  Not only did it clean up the Grammy awards for "best" everything, but it's subsequently been included on many "best of" or "greatest ever" lists.

1) This is a beautifully recorded record.  There is an uncommon range of musical textures and instruments included on this record, and they are all captured beautifully, creating a tapestry uncommon to pop records of any age.

2) This record made music in a new (and still unique) way. Combining a diverse range of musical styles, this record (in my opinion) took the mold of hip-hop music and applied it to a completely unexpected genre.  Sampling from a plethora of musical cultures (Zydeco, African and Caribbean drumming, Ladysmith Black Mambazo) and then crafting his light-hearted lyrics on top of it, Paul Simon created a whole new musical language.

Howlin' Wolf
"The Howlin' Wolf Album" (Vinyl)

The Rolling Stones were part of the British Invasion in 1964.  Among other things, the Stones brought with them a revival of interest in American Blues music.  Suddenly musicians like John Lee Hooker, Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf had people's ears in ways they hadn't in decades.

Chess Records decided to experiment with "contemporizing" the traditional blues sound with Hendrix-inspired psychadelic rock arrangements of the music of Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf.  Both blues legends were brought into the studio to re-record their popular tunes with a backing ensemble of musicians.
The stories persist that Howlin' Wolf strongly disliked the sound that was achieved with these "updates" of his music and didn't regard the music as the blues.

The album artwork has to rank high on the frank honesty scale.  It was a lesson in marketing: don't use negativity to sell.

Original Soundtrack
"The Muppet Movie" (Vinyl)

If there was a soundtrack to my youth, this would make the shortlist.
This film is older than I, but it was ubiquitous with my upbringing.  (Having parents who were huge fans of 'the Muppet Show' helped)

Not being the most attentive listener when it comes to lyrical content, I was shocked when I realized how many lyrics I knew from these songs.  Finally, decades later, the songwriting teams that crafted tunes for the films and television (including Sesame Street) are beginning to get credit for the genuinely good songs they wrote.  Yes, they're goofy and mercilessly innocent, but the music was part of the 'song and dance' idea that Jim Henson wanted. These songs lend as much character to the film as any of the actors that brought the Muppets to life.

Fitzwilliam Quartet
"Shostakovich: String Quartet nos. 1, 2" (CD)

The Fitzwilliam Quartet has the distinction (from only basic research) of having recorded the first complete cycle of Shostakovich's string quartets, plus having given the western premiere of his three final quartets.

The quartet was founded in 1968 while students at Cambridge and were befriended by Shostakovich during a visit by the composer to New York.  Their recording of his 15th string quartet was personally supervised by Shostakovich himself.

Their playing is markedly different from how many quartets would perform today.  The first violinist on these records takes a striking, almost offensive approach, removing what we would consider "beauty" from his approach to the music and instead tries to translate Shostakovich's emotional grappling with more visceral, violent techniques.  Its a nice change from so many quartets that can play everything well, but often say anything unique.

The Cleveland Quartet
"Beethoven: String Quartets op. 18 no. 4, 5" (CD)

I played a movement of op. 18 no. 4 a few weeks ago as part of a summer music festival.  As usual, when it comes to Beethoven string quartets, these are my go-to recordings.  (That may be because they're the only recordings on my iPod, but we won't trifle with the details.)

Bill Preucil has logged some of the most impressive, effortless sounding performances I've ever heard.  I've had the privilege of performing with him in a performance of Mozart's fourth violin concerto and his ability to make these notes sound so weightless and buoyant is amazing.

This entire cycle of Beethoven's string quartets I regard to be amongst the best.  By the time the Cleveland Quartet recorded them, the ensemble was a well-oiled, well-rehearsed machine very comfortable in its own skin.  While their cycle recorded with Weilerstein (and Martha Strongin-Katz) is also important, I'll always have an affectation for this particular incarnation.

Soul Coughing
"Irresistible Bliss" (CD)

Released in 1996, this was the New York-based "slacker jazz" trio's sophomore album.

While not quite as organized or clear in concept when compared with the preceding "Ruby Vroom," "Irresistible" lacked nothing in the weirdo department.  Full of bizarre samples and deep bass lines, the whole disgusting sundae was topped by Doughty's trippy lyrics.

While never a mainstream success, the single "Super Bon Bon" did continue their moment of fame amongst the college radio circuit.