Most of my recreational reading focuses on music related
themes, although over the course of the last 12 months, I had developed quite
an interest in developing my knowledge about the holocaust and its
aftermath. But that hasn’t stopped me
increasing my music collection. Over the
last couple of years a firm called Books 4 Less started operating, selling
books including hard covers for $AUD 5 -10 with a small number of more expensive
items. It appears as though it sourced
its stock from unsold remainders overseas meaning that I really didn’t need to
go to the internet to find items. Alas,
all good things come to an end, and the firm and all stores were closed
recently and stock liquated. Therefore the
Readings sale was a welcome opportunity to hopefully stock up and I got a
couple of good items including a book about the music in James Bond flicks and
a coffee table item about fan mail received by the Grateful Dead. Many of the Deadheads sent letters in
envelopes reproduced in the book that are more insanely psychedelic than any
tie dye shirt could hope to achieve.
But in my eagerness to find books I had forgotten that
Readings also stocks a fine selection of soul, blues, roots, jazz and world music CDs and the items on sale were even cheaper in comparison
to the book savings. In the end I bought
about a dozen items, including some prime reggae releases that are ordinarily
difficult to find here and quite expensive.
And there was also:
(# 548) Prince Buster
– Sings His Hit Song Ten Commandments (2009 reissue of 1967 album)
Prince Buster is regarded as one of the fathers of ska and
his single Ten Commandments was one of the music’s first hits. The song itself has an infectious tune that would
be instantly recognisable by fans of The Specials and The Selecter but it is
arguable whether many people today would agree with the lyrics which would probably
be regarded as sexist. The original
album was thrown together for the US market and contains some great
material. Wings Of A Dove has a nice
calypso feel and Is Life Worth Living is
based on what could be described as an emergent reggae rhythm. The other outstanding item is the sole
additional bonus track on the CD release.
Ten Commandments From Woman To Man is an answer song to the original hit
and his sung (or rather read) by a woman identified as Princess Buster. The
album is a short, though intriguing slice of Jamaican music history.
(#549) Joy Division – University Of London Union
Live, 8 February 1980 (bonus disc with 2007 reissue of Closer)
A lot of Joy Division live material has been released after
the demise of the band in 1980 including standalone albums, box sets and the
2007 reissued versions of the band’s albums.
This might very well be the best of all of them. Although it appears to be an audience tape
(one audience member’s voice is way too loud in the mix during the early
tracks) the sound is quite magnificent and the band’s performance is simply sensation. No doubt this show was selected for inclusion
as it consists exclusively of Closer tracks and tracks not associated with its
predecessor Unknown Pleasures. It’s a brilliantly
sequenced show that continually builds in power. The closing quartet of Love Will Tear Us
Apart, Isolation, The Eternal and Digital is simply astonishing and Ian Curtis’
vocals are strong and confident.
(#550) Collard Greens
& Gravy – Juke Joint Boogie! (2010)
One of the great things associated with Melbourne’s music
scene is its undoubted love of gritty, primal 50’s country blues. It’s seen in the way that so many acts such
as The Parmount Trio and Chris Wilson have been able to maintain long careers through
regular gigging and residencies in our pubs. Another such act is Collard Greens & Gravy,
a three piece that’s been playing now since 1995. This album is a collection of mostly self
penned tunes that could easily be mistaken for covers of long lost blues
classics. It’s great stuff and if you
check their website you can sample the album and download it for an incredibly
reasonable price.
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