Beat Goes On... ( #AtoZChallenge )

 

       Big deal--so I got rid of a bunch of my vinyl records.  In a way I wish I hadn't, but sometimes we just do things that we somewhat regret later.  My blogging theme for 2022 A to Z is "My Vinyl Collection"--what remains of it.  There's still some good stuff here.  Wanna take a look?

        I sold off many of my albums in two waves.  The first wave was around 1990 when I made up a catalog of all of my record collection and put an advertisement in Rolling Stone magazine selling the catalog for $3.  I didn't sell anywhere near the number of catalogs that I figured that I would, but of those that I sold I managed to get some customers who bought that first wave of albums that I had decided to liquidate.  Some of the earliest to go were my Beatles, Beach Boys, and Badfinger--albums that I treasured, but at the time the money seemed more important.  I later replaced several of those vinyls with CD versions.  The tangible memories were gone, but at least I had most of the music again.

        In 2014 I put up an ad on Craigslist in order to sell more vinyl LPs.  I boxed up 200 records and kept the remaining 300 or so.  There were some excellent albums in that 200 and I'm not sure what exactly I was thinking other than the ones that remained were ones that I felt a strong need to keep in my collection.  In that batch that I sold were all of my Bach, Beethoven, and Brahms albums--since I had them on CD I felt like those records could go.  There was a collectible David Bowie bootleg concert album that I probably should have kept.  I don't recall off hand if there were any other records in the B category, but there were albums that I somewhat wish I had kept.  But it's only stuff.  I was getting rid of stuff.  I'm always thinking about stuff I can get rid of.  At least I did keep a few of my B albums, a sampling of which follows...

   The Band "Music from Big Pink"  (1968)   My mother bought this album for me as a Christmas present in 1968.  I had seen it while perusing the albums at the small record department at my local J C Penney's store in Maryville TN.  There weren't many stores in town that had very big selections of music, but Penney's had a respectable small selection which included major current releases.  When I saw this album by The Band I didn't know anything about it or the group, but it seemed so mysterious that I figured it must be good.  I guess sometimes you can judge an album by its cover.  This is one of the best rock and roll albums of all time.  That's not just me saying that either--many critics have agreed.  This was an album I felt I had to keep in my collection.

Leonard Bernstein "Mass" (1971)  My mother gave me this boxed album set for Christmas of 1971.  I was attending University of Tennessee in Knoxville at the time and had read about this Bernstein musical production.  It was controversial at the time because of potential subversive messages in the musical.  From what I read about Mass I was put in mind of Jesus Christ Superstar which I already owned and liked a great deal.  Without knowing about the actual musical content I put it on my Christmas list for my mother.  It was a somewhat expensive box set that I didn't want to spend my meager funds on, but my mother was happy to buy it for me as a gift.  It's an interesting work of music, not Bernstein's best, but decent listening nevertheless.  Not that I've listened to it as many times as something like Music from Big Pink, but an album that provided me a number of hours of listening pleasure.

Dave Brubeck "In Amsterdam"  (1969)  The Allmusic web site calls this album "a bit of a collector's item" so I guess it was a good call for me to keep it.  I don't exactly recall how I came upon this album, but it was a cut-out that I quite possibly got from a mail clearance catalog that I used to get frequently in the mail.  Or I might have got it from someplace like the University of Tennessee bookstore.  At the time I certainly had an awareness of who Brubeck was and had some knowledge of his music so I figured the album was worth spending a pittance on.  This is a fantastic album of a 1962 concert.  I figure you can't go wrong with Dave Brubeck and this album is proof.  

J D Blackfoot "The Ultimate Prophecy"  (1970)  I can't say for sure, but I think I may have discovered this album in the cutout bin at the old Atlantic Mills discount store in Knoxville TN.  I know I found a number of interesting records at that strange store, a hodgepodge of values and closeouts contained in what had been some kind of old textile factory.  No matter where I found this record I'm sure glad that I did.  The band included Craig Fuller who later went on to found the country rock group Pure Prairie League and his song "Angel" has its first appearance on this Blackfoot album.  There are similarities to Pure Prairie League and well as Creedence Clearwater Revival and others.  The tour de force of this album is the rock epic "Ultimate Prophecy" suite which takes up all of side two.  The album title was likely what inspired me to buy this album.  I'm glad I did.  I have listened to this album many, many, and many times.

Buckwheat "Hot Tracks"  (1973)  This is a solid collection of funky, country, roots rock.  No specific personal memories that I can connect with this album.  I think I bought it at some discount book store in West Knoxville in the late eighties.  I probably saw the credits that included a violin player--that always catches my attention.  And then there's that cover illustration.  It's no whipped cream covered woman, but, heck, a stack of pancakes dripping with syrup--what's not to like about that?  The music matches those pancakes.

The Baroques  "The Baroques" (1967)  I picked this up from some cutout bin--possibly at the sprawling Green Acres discount store on Alcoa Highway in Louisville TN.  The store was only open for a few years and eventually became what it is today--a giant flea market.  Back in the discount store days they carried a lot of cutout records for $1 or less.  I bought a lot of unusual records there.  Listening to this album years later has made me reevaluate it.  Years ago I would have said it was among the worst records I have heard.  And it is a bit odd, but really it is a psychedelic artifact of its time.  And I do like psychedelic music.  And I like harpsichord and baroque style.  Now the music sounds better to me. Not great, but interesting and listenable.  Originally the group called itself  The Complete Unknowns.  They may have changed their name, but they have remained relatively unknown.  To their credit. they have managed to become a bit more appreciated by others like me who like this style of music. This album was repackaged in a compilation album in the nineties as the band experienced a mild resurgence of interest in their music.  Nostalgia perhaps?  Nevertheless the band remains fairly unknown.

Do you recognize any of these albums?   Did you buy many albums from the cutout bins?  Have you been gifted many record albums?