SPECIAL REVIEW BY BRAD KOHLER! UGLY THINGS #43!

Everyone and their Aunt Petunia knows UGLY THINGS is the tops. Every issue makes me dig out recordings of whatever bands are featured so that I can sort of rediscover 'em as their saga unfolds. This time around I found out that my Kissing Spell reissue of Bend Wind's LP has a glitch in it. Well, I've had that CD longer than a couple of my cats, so...

Highlights include Ron Swart talking himself into the home of a pleasant if bewildered senior citizen husband and wife on the suspicion that the Music Machine used to rehearse in the basement. Turns out his sleuthing was correct, and you would have thought it was King Phooey's royal chamber pot when he finds the band's name spray painted down below. One day every high energy recording of yore will have been exposed, every reissue reissued, every band practice space rediscovered, and there will be nothing but the slimmest of pickings. You'll have to content yourself with a discography of Mystic Records, maybe the only 80s punk records to DECREASE in value, and there will be nothing but the slimmest of pickings.

Until then, dig into the first part of the story of the Things to Come and the talented and tragic Steve Runolfsson. Right up there with the best the mag has done, and some head spinning twists and turns. Unnatural Axe were a second rate overall outfit, but still enter punk rock Valhalla on the strength of "They Saved Hitler's Brain". The two members of the band sound so excited to recount it all that it might as well be 1978 and they just got some new promo badges. Even better is an interview with Jesse Sublett of Texas punk and rollers the Skunks, someone who has truly earbed the epilet "renaissance man". Harvey Kubernick talks to Travis Pike, who is in the recently rediscovered 1966 movie FEELIN' GOOD. There is a great photo of the gala opening at Boston's Paramount Theater. complete with marching band!

Long Beach garage band Mud talk about their run in with Kim Fowley and being awe stricken  that he had recorded the Belfast Gypsies. And hey, can you ever get enough info on San Fran's ONLY rock 'n roll band, Crime?

About the only thing that didn't grab me by the medulla oblongata was a feature on Ted Newman Jones III who was an ace guitar fashioner for Keith Richards and others. I'm sure Greg Prevost can get excited about the specifics discussed therein but as for me, an auctioneer might as well be describing the subtle differences in Faberge eggs. I'd be thinking the whole time I'd rather have a Cadbury one anyway.

Given that the Fantagraphics published NANCY daily strip series seems to have ground to a stultifying halt it's really hard getting my Ernie Bushmiller fix these days. Thankfully the folks at Golden Age Reprints have come to the aid of many a comic strip fan by reprinting a number of old FRITZI RITZ comic books which, for some extremely odd reason, have fallen into the public domain which only goes to prove that even the eagle eyes at United Features sometimes let these little details slip in the cracks which is their loss but definitely our gain!

Most NANCY fans that I'm aware of don't even know that for many years Bushmiller was concurrently doing a solo Fritzi strip. Heck, even I didn't know until I happened to see a mention of it when I was like a mere ten years old! From what I can tell most papers that were running NANCY didn't even carry FRITZI which only ran on Sundays (Saturday if you're in Canada), and judging from some examples that eventually got reprinted in various NANCY books it was kinda obvious by the comparatively slapdash artwork that Bushmiller probably wasn't even involved with the later comics!

FRITZI RITZ lasted into the mid-sixties and died without anyone noticing. It was more than obvious that NANCY was Bushmiller's bailiwick and like, why exert too much effort on a Sunday only strip that wasn't even getting into many papers and wasn't even being drawn by its creator. But for a comic strip kiddo like me who gobbled up every history of the form book as soon as it hit the library, matters such as a solo FRITZI comic were more'n just "crucial". You can bet that I was on the go for whatever of these comics were available to me, usually via old and tattered copies of SPARKLER, TIP TOP and other reprint titles which thankfully helped fill a dark void that existed in my life.

These comic book reprints are taken from rather beat up (maybe VG- to G+) originals that I assume the people at Golden Age Reprints picked up at some flea market-y antique show recently (the originals don't go for that much lucre). Thus the pages are cream colored and occasionally have those blotches which I usually tend think are age-old food sputters or flicked boogers from some sloppy nine-year-old's nostrils. But you still get the funny stories and even though the color job on these can be atrocious (with totally red faces and blurred lines) you still can osmose all of those great old-timey ranch house fun 'n jamz with these books that remind you of what you used to read during those off times between favorite tee-vee shows and the like.

The United Features titles date from the late-forties and early-fifties and they present a good smattering of old comics, some dating from the late-thirties if my judgement of Bushmiller's artistic de-evolution is accurate. Most feature Fritzi's boyfriend Phil Fumble, a guy who never made it into the original NANCY strip and  has only recently re-appeared along with the likes of Oona who never was in the papers and only existed in the John Stanley-drawn comic books of the sixties. But Phil is a perfect foil for Fritzi, and although Nancy is only occasionally referred to in these strips (I believe I saw her make a brief cameo only once) they are classic bad gag funny and catch you off-guard as true blue fan Bill Griffith said in one of his mid-seventies ZIPPY strips in praise of the then still-pumping on all cylinders Bushmiller.

The same sorta surprise snap is to be found here and anyone who grew up with the Bushmiller NANCY is bound to go fanabla over these. And not only that but United Features decided to pad these books out with other titles from their stable from PEANUTS and ABBIE AND SLATS to such long-forgotten yet still good enough titles like Russell Patterson's MAMIE and the BELIEVE IT OR NOT swipe STRANGE AS IT MAY SEEM. In all a nice li'l bit of comic history that will remind you of just how good the funny pages used to be before the onslaught of the hippie generation and their quotas over quality mindset. The only thing about these I didn't go for were the new stories done up by some guy going by the name of "Dib", whose various characters such as "Bill Bumble" come off as common comic book filler that lacks the verve 'n imagination we actually bought these comics for!

The Dell comics entry dates from '58 and, like the NANCY title from the same time, features nothing but all new stories that were probably (most likely definitely) delineated by longtime comic book veteran John Stanley who was also being overworked on a variety of Dell titles such as LITTLE LULU, MILTON THE MONSTER and naturally NANCY at approximately the same time. But don't worry, the art is impeccable Bushmillerian and the stories match up with anything NANCY's creator cooked up for the papers and if you get these either from Golden Age or by raiding your cousin's comic book stash you're bound to come up with some good reading for those boring Sunday afternoons when you should be out there riding bikes and doing alla that kid stuff the parents sez is good for ya (but we know better, 'eh?).

Lets just say that comes next payday I know where a good hunk of my next check is goin' and it ain't towards a nose hair trimmer that's for sure! And not only that but these are guaranteed to have more staying power than anything Lynda Barry has come up with! FRITZI RITZ or RHYMES WITH ORANGE...the choice is up to YOU!!!!!

COMIC BOOK REVIEW BY BILL SHUTE! TEX RITTER WESTERN #25 (Charlton Comics, October 1954)

Those who were the stars of the classic B-Westerns of the 1930’s and 1940’s came to their positions from a number of different routes--some such as Buster Crabbe (USC), Johnny Mack Brown (University of Alabama), and Tex Ritter (University of Texas, then Northwestern University Law School) were successful college men. Among those, TEX RITTER always had a unique persona as a Western personality, both in his films and in his even longer and more successful career as a recording artist. Ritter had studied Western History and Folklore at UT with legendary folklorist J. Frank Dobie and was quite an authority on original cowboy songs of the 1800’s. After his college and law school days were over, he went to New York where he was a pioneer in early radio broadcasting and, like Will Rogers before him, appeared on Broadway, milking his western persona. Although he had many records in the country charts over a 30-year period, he sounded like no one else, with his well-worn baritone delivering songs and recitations that truly sounded like they were from an earlier age. His lugubrious (I’ve been waiting to use that word) delivery on his best known song, the ‘Do Not Forsake Me....” theme from the film HIGH NOON, is typical of his “western balladeer” style. No one would ever describe Tex Ritter’s voice as “pretty” (as they might for Roy Rogers, who also trafficked in songs rooted in the West), but it had a gritty authenticity and could be very moving.

Like Ernest Tubb or Wilf “Montana Slim” Carter, Ritter had an uncommercial voice, but a voice that was trusted.

Although Ritter’s B-Western starring career lasted just under ten years, he worked steadily...starring in 52 features....first with his own series at Grand National. GN was an odd studio, best known (if known at all) as the studio that James Cagney retreated to for two films while he was on strike against Warner Brothers. Those were GN’s most successful releases, but when Cagney went back to WB, Grand National began to flounder and only lasted a few years. One odd thing about much of GN’s product is that, unlike the usual low budget studio such as Monogram, which tended to favor action and comedy to mask their poverty row economy, Grand National’s features tended to be talky and stage-bound. They really needed the quickie location shooting one would find in other low-budget films in order to give the films some grit and rawness. Tex Ritter’s films for GN, independently made by producer Edward Alperson, were unlike most of the studio’s product and resembled the typical B-Western product made by other indies....except for the persona of their star.

While Tex could be authentically tough and was quick with a gun, he had a laconic and cerebral quality....so you had a man whose songs (he sang in most of his features) were old-fashioned cowboy- themed material echoing an earlier age, a man who was slow to anger and in his thick Texas accent spoke slowly and carefully, and a man who was both the ultimate good ole boy yet also had something of the intellectual about him--in fact, in his final run with eight films at PRC in the Texas Rangers series, with Dave O’Brien (one of the great leading men of low budget movies of the 30s and 40s, now best known as the psycho “Ralph” in Reefer Madness) and BTC-fave Guy Wilkerson as the comedic “Panhandle Perkins,” Ritter played an attorney (Tex Haines), fast on the draw but pursuing justice. He would often be perusing his law books and take a break to launch into a song! However, three things Tex Ritter ALWAYS had in his films were qualities that could not be faked: gravitas and presence and authenticity.

As with most B-Western stars of the 30’s and 40’s, early TV gave their careers a shot in the arm as their old movies were played constantly as cheap filler and brought them legions of young fans, the kind of people who bought comic books. That’s why comic books emerged in the 1950s for people like Bob Steele and Tex Ritter, both of whom had stopped making B-Westerns in the mid-1940’s. In Ritter’s case, his continued success as a recording artist and as a radio and television figure kept his name current, so he actually had a comic book of his own as late as 1959, which was 14 (!!!!) years after his last western at PRC.

Tex was a unique figure in both western films and in country music, and while this comic under review is no classic, it does manage to capture some of his unique qualities--in the parts of the comic devoted to him, that is.

On the masthead on page one of the comic, we learn that it is produced by the Al Fago Studio….and regular BTC readers will remember Mr. Fago as the man behind ATOMIC MOUSE. Although I have no evidence to support this, considering Charlton’s modest page rates, I would not be surprised if Fago delivered a complete magazine to Charlton for a set fee. So many of the comics professionals back in that day were able to work equally well in any number of styles—they had to as it was a job, and the more eclectic you were, the more work came your way.

One aspect of country music that died decades ago (for the most part it died in the 70’s, when country music started trying for "respectability,” not realizing that its strength was its unique rural and heartland identity) was the “show” aspect. It was not just a concert. You got with your show ticket baggypants rural comedy and maybe even horse performances, perhaps a Gospel mini-set, some recitations, etc. Even Elvis—in his pre-RCA days—followed this tradition, as bassist Bill Black would do comedy skits, “ride” his bass, etc. as part of the “show.” In a sense this comic book follows in that tradition….although I’m not sure if that’s intentional or just an outgrowth of padding a comic book with unrelated filler to get it up to the required length (if I were a betting man, I’d bet on the latter—but that certainly does not take away from my appreciating it as if it were for the former reason).

The two long stories featuring Tex Ritter are exciting, seem to capture his screen persona adequately, and could be plots from one of his films (though, obviously, there's no songs in them). We also get a "note" from Tex (see pic) telling us a story. The odds are 100-to-1 that Tex never even saw that note, let alone wrote it, but it would be fine for a 12 year old fan....and considering how most press releases from the film studios of the day were composed by the PR department and put into the mouths of the stars, it probably reads like something Grand National might have issued on behalf of Tex, had they bothered to do that!

The issue also features (is padded with) a 3-page story featuring Indian hero Young Falcon, two half-page western slapstick strips featuring Whiz Banks, another half-page humor piece featuring Wagon Wheels, another half-page humor piece featuring Wilbur The Waiter which is funny but not even a western (!!!), a six-page western comedy piece featuring Denver Mudd and Bushy Barnes (imagine Vince Barnett meets Al Fuzzy St. John), another non-western half-page comedy strip from Vita Min (a young girl), a half-page from Tumbleweed Jr., and finally a full-page black and white strip from Happy Homer (see pic) which has a style not unlike that later made famous by Robert Crumb. Oh, the back cover has a black and white still from one of Tex Ritter's films.


Well, you be the judge....either this comic book presents a wide variety of entertaining and diverse selections, anchored by the great Tex Ritter....or Tex is a guest star in his own comic book! The two Ritter stories are relatively long----8 and 10 pages, respectively----so I'm not complaining.

You can read and download this entire issue at comicbookplus.com----if you enjoy it, check out one of Tex Ritter's PRC "Texas Rangers" westerns (there were 8 of them). GANGSTERS OF THE FRONTIER (see poster) is available for free on You Tube. Ditch the Netflix and Amazon series and let Tex Ritter, Dave O'Brien, and Guy Wilkerson entertain you in classic B-minus-western style! You get THREE songs from Tex AND the comic genius of Wilkerson as Panhandle Perkins. That, my friends, is entertainment!

I'm printing the certificate on the left only to let you know that it's OFFICIAL.

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Other'n that I hope that you're all set for another weekend post filled with the same ol' kinda (no...definitely!) boring reviews of material you probably couldn't give a whit about, all done up in my usually listless and downright trite style, right? Of course not, and I gotta agree that not only is the selection of disques I selected for perusal not anything that would be up your expansive alley, but my writing abilities don't exactly produce the kind of material that would get me an "A+" in any junior college nationwide!

And (of course) the material I am writing about ain't anything that would elicit raves from true blue rockists world-wide now, would it? But then again, I lay a good portion of the blame, at least for the lack of fresh sounds for me to "get into its universe" on none other than  you! Yes you, dear reader, for if you would only go out and RELEASE some hotcha music or maybe even MAKE IT YOURSELF then maybe I would have something fresh to write about and wouldn't have to rely on handouts and the occasional Forced Exposure and ebay purchases to help fill out these pitiful pages now, would I? All I have to say at this sad, definitely anti-rock/anti-jazz/anti-MUSIC time in life is...aren't you  ASHAMED of yourselves?!?!?!!!!

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Nothing much to scribble on about this week. As usual things are kinda slow (which you can tell by the usual lack of reviews to be found this go 'round) but I did my durndest to make what I have written not look like the usual slop that gets posted on these weekend get-togethers. Anyway hope you dig it, because for the life of me I sure don't!

The Rolling Stones-NECROPHILIA CD-r burn

If this is indeed the platter that almost got released as METAMORPHOSIS its no wonder that 'un got deleted! All kidding aside yet another interesting hodgepodge of early Stones outtakes including a kinda/sorta take on "Street Fighting Man" goin' under the name "Pay Your Dues", a version of "Out of Time" which might not be the same as the one popping up on other Stones platters legit or not, and the infamous blues rouser "Andrew's Blues" complete with all of the unexpurgated expletives that made it a hot bootleg item in the late seventies. The rest warbles between the usual Stones soul swipes, blooze choose, pop-slop misfires and other things the Flamin' Groovies seemed to work out a whole lot better. A take or leave affair, and unlike many high energy rockers I've done the latter.

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Sheetah et les Weissmueller-HOLA YE YEAH CD-r burn (originally on Screaming Apple)

Bill thinks I've been giving these nuevo-retro garage band revival recordings way better write ups than they most certainly deserve. Maybe he's right, but sheesh I gotta say that these guys do a good job at it---for being a buncha post-post-post garage band guys from France who still don't get the sixties sound down 100%. At least Sheetah et. al. still get the main idea of what the beat was all about and maybe for that I oughtta give 'em that BIG PASS that I give to way too many acts. Sorry about that Bill.

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The Shivas-WHITEOUT CD-r burn (originally on K Records)

Again it ain't a bad one even though I haven't really heard or bought or digested anything from the K label since the late-eighties or so. Nice glossy psychedelic music here that thankfully avoids any twee connotations that label has unfairly (well, at least some of the time) accrued ever since those rather upside down times. Good usage of early-sixties pop rock modes psyched up and rehashed with various punk rock sensibilities, then regurgitated for what I assume is modern consumption. I'm surprised to say I like this...but please don't quote me!

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Rafter-IT'S REGGAE CD-r burn (originally on Asthmatic Kitty)

It's also boring, non-engaging and doesn't quite jab at my sense of rockism, but it would sound good as background music for some over-brainy science program seen on cable tee-vee. Readers, write to your

favorite cable channel and see if they can get Rafter to add their dazzling riffage to the next NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC special on technology gone wild. It  sure feels cathartic doing good deeds like this now, don't it!

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Various Artists-TOXIC INCENSE MONKEY MILES CD-r burn (Bill Shute)

I always get a kick outta these Bill Shute slap together Cee-Dee-Ares because frankly, you never know what you're in store for! And as you'd expect this particular one is a mixed bag what with the selection of rare records and whatnot that are presented for your approval here. The hardcore punk of Toxic Reasons and the Fix really doesn't make me wanna tear down any Major Corporations (and why would them protesters wanna bite the hand that feeds 'em anyway?) and Bobby Sty lives up to his last name with a stinky version of "Incense and Peppermints", but I kinda liked the tracks by the Tidal Waves (the same Detroit band that later teamed up with MC5's Dennis Thompson as the Secrets???) and even Winter's Green's bad enough Doors imitation. Heck I thought Alan Lorber's "Flute Thing" was good enough even though I should know better'n to like it, and Mike Landers' version of "I Can See For Miles" kinda reminds me of the original if Richie from THE PATTY DUKE SHOW was singing it!

There's also an old radio program featuring the famous magician Blackstone who solves crimes with his extensive knowledge of how trix are done, even going to show you how to do 'em yourself even if radio ain't exactly the right medium for such a thing! And yes, you may laugh at the old timeiness of it all patting yourself on the back for being so advanced and all, but then again did YOU ever have a EC comic book devoted to you even if the thing only lasted one issue?

COMIC BOOK REVIEW! MOON GIRL #3, Spring 1948 issue (available from Canton Street Press)

It's been around a year since I got hold of any MOON GIRL reprints, but given I had a little bit of cash left over from my last paycheck and rather than blow it on such non-essentials as down payments or food I thought I'd hand it over to the fine folk at Canton Street Press for this recent addition to the famed EC WONDER WOMAN ripoff series (but oh what a ripoff!).

As usual, a grand issue this is making all of those anti-MOON GIRL types who've been opening their evil traps these past few decades look like the total idjits they are and most surely will remain. There are four great stories cropping up here, the first dealing with Moon Girl's sworn enemy Satana threatening a hand-picked batch of millionaires with actual drones just like the kind that are knocking out certain undesirable elements as we even now speak! Talk about steampunk predictions of things that are now considered everyday ordinary!!! The second's got Moon Girl helping out a failing flying company whose every move is being sabotaged, most likely by some shady dealers who want to use the land the company's on for their own nefarious means.

The third one actually has our heroine (yes, I STILL used that word and will continue to for the rest of my life!) returning to her home kingdom of Samarkand to quell an uprising being led by the Royal Visier who obviously has no Pink Floyd-styled garden party on his mind, while the last one's got that old yet tried and true plot where a lookalike Moon Girl gets involved in a whole load of robbery and murder and guess who gets the blame!

Oh yeah, and keeping true to Canton Street Press form this mag reprints the original ads including one for the then-current EC roster featuring such titles as DANDY and THE HAPPY HOULIHANS, not to mention two pages of Ed Wheelan's FAT AND SLAT comic, one example of which can been seen at your very right. I always wondered why this particular MUTT AND JEFF swipe didn't lead to any lawsuits down the line considering just how close to the original intent this MINUTE MOVIES creator came, but since SHRIMPY and PETER THE LITTLE PEST lasted so long without any legal ramifications perhaps it was just soo small a target to go after. What's even stranger is that the series began at Max Gaines' "All American" DC line which was also home to MUTT AND JEFF in the forties, appearing in pages in between the likes of Green Lantern and Wonder Woman! I guess FAT AND SLAT was so under-the-radar that it could not only survive for a good six or so years in the comic book idiom, but make the smooth transition from DC to EC along with PICTURE STORIES FROM THE BIBLE!

After reading MOON GIRL #3 and a whole slew of new comic arrivals here in the dead and dank days of the late teens, all I gotta say is I can sure rest easily at night knowing that the spirit of good ol' timey kick up yer feet suburban slobdom still has some faint if effectual meaning. And that's even if we all have to get it from seventysome-year-old comics, moom pitchers and other lowbrow thrills such as these which never did date despite what your phony intellectual friends might have told you! If your "inner child" is more Peter the Pest than whatever John Bradshaw thought it should be, maybe you should pick up a copy of MOON GIRL in between mixing gunpowder with the chicken feed and watching those li'l beaks blast right off!

COMIC BOOK REVIEW BY BILL SHUTE! JACKIE GLEASON #4 (St. John, December 1955)

The world is a more boring and less fun place since the passing of Jackie Gleason in 1987. “The Great One,” as he was known (the tag might have been created by Gleason himself, but he more than lived up to it), started with nothing (36 cents to his name, when he attempted to get his start in show business), took a $19 a week comedy job at a podunk club in Pennsylvania for which his agent had to loan him busfare, worked his way up through club and vaudeville dates, had some supporting roles in movies, and got his big break when he did the LIFE OF RILEY tv series, when the radio show’s star William Bendix was unable to do it due to film commitments. Gleason then got his own variety show, and one of the skits on the show was THE HONEYMOONERS, which he then spun off as a separate series. Beyond his TV program, Gleason was an acclaimed dramatic actor (THE HUSTLER, GIGOT), music entrepreneur (his “mood music” albums sold millions, and we’ve reviewed a number of them here at BTC), and producer. In that latter role, it was Gleason who approved the choice of Elvis Presley to perform on the Dorsey Brothers Stage Show (which he produced as a summer replacement for his own show), which was Elvis’ first national TV exposure and pretty much made him a star. Thank Jackie Gleason for that.

Gleason’s larger-than-life persona always surrounded whatever he was doing at a particular moment. He composed his own theme music, used to introduce his weekly show, and he came up with brilliant catch-phrases he could use to bring down the house. “And awaaaayyyyyy we go….” and the classic “how sweeeeeet it is” were immediately recognizable to millions. He also moved his show and his entire operation to Florida in the early 1960’s so he could golf year round, and he brought Miami Beach into millions of homes each week. His 60s TV show began with a shot from the perspective of a speedboat off the beautiful Florida Coast. And when Gleason came out every week on his variety show, he would take a sip from a coffee cup and make a face to indicate that it was spiked with some kind of alcohol. Like Dean Martin, drinking was a big part of Gleason’s persona. Gleason’s persona enjoyed THE GOOD LIFE. I could easily imagine him inhaling a plate of linguine with white clam sauce then enjoying two rare steaks and washing it all down with a quart of bourbon.

Although he never had the opportunity to go to college, Gleason was widely read and a brilliant man—creating a character as universal as Ralph Kramden on the Honeymooners showed great insight. And let’s not forget that he engaged Salvador Dali to do the cover art for one of his Capitol albums. Gleason’s albums—which created sales records that have never been beaten even today—were pioneering in their day and set the standard for “lounge” music. Having jazzman Bobby Hackett play on the trumpet/cornet dreamy melodies, slightly echoed, over a pillow of mellow, swirling sound was a genius move.

Gleason was also an admirer of silent comedy, and truly “got” the pathos of silent comedians. He created many characters which he would play in blackout sketches on his variety shows: Reginald Van Gleason III, The Poor Soul, Charlie Bratton, Rum Dum, Joe the Bartender, etc. His role in the film drama GIGOT (which he wrote and produced, and did the music for, as well as starring in it—it was directed by Gene Kelly—he’d originally wanted Orson Welles, but the studio balked at that), where his character was mute, had its roots in silent comedy.

Gleason’s standing back in the day is also clear from the fact that THE FLINTSTONES is pretty much a cartoon re-write of THE HONEYMOONERS, with Fred in the Jackie Gleason role and Barney in the Art Carney role.

Gleason stopped doing his TV show in 1970 but was still seen on TV with the occasional Honeymooners reunion and the occasional film (he was the main star of SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT PART 3 (the one WITHOUT Burt Reynolds), which was a huge hit in my home with my children when they were growing up--even today, the kids and I still quote lines from the film, such as having "enough gas to get to Pittsburgh" after eating a big meal). He even acted opposite Lawrence Olivier and more than held his own.

When I was a child and then teenager, people like Gleason and Dean Martin seemed so much more “cool” and “hip” than the phony counter-culture figures the media would throw at us. I remember once some magazine had a radio ad saying they had an exclusive interview with Mick Jagger—and I thought, “who the **** cares about what Jagger has to say on any subject other than his influences in blues music.” No, the people I aspired to be like were The Great One and Dino. I imagined Gleason at the racetrack, drink in hand, holding court and making sarcastic comments, lighting a cigar with a ten-dollar bill, and ENJOYING LIFE.

With Gleason being master of all media in the 1950’s, it was inevitable that he’d have his own comic book, and he actually had TWO different ones (now, if that’s not a sign of being a superstar, I don’t know what is!). The series JACKIE GLEASON AND THE HONEYMOONERS ran at DC for 12 issues, and the JACKIE GLEASON comic at the smaller St. John imprint ran for four issues in late 1955. We are reviewing here the final issue of the St. John comic.

The issue begins with a 13-page Honeymooners story, where the two families are visiting Paris, and some French swindlers sell Ralph and Ed Norton the Eiffel Tower. The jokes are very much like a real Kramden-Norton routine, and the characters are drawn in a way that captures their essence. However, this is not just a Honeymooners comic book. Gleason’s other characters are presented too. The Poor Soul, Reginald Van Gleason, and Charlie Bratton all get their own stories, which also capture those characters well. For those who could not get enough Gleason on his weekly show, this comic book is a 151 Proof serving of The Great One.

You can find this issue for free online at comicbookplus.com, and you can purchase an attractive re-print from Golden Age Reprints. Either way, it’s a great way to bring The Great One into YOUR life. You’ll wonder how you ever got by without him!

Well, spring has sprung like a pile of dung, and dung-like is perhaps the best description of just how I feel right now! All kidding aside, I have been enjoying the past week or so about as much as I can under the conditions that I exist in and all that, and gosh it all but the sunny spring weather we've been having is enough to flash me back to them days of yore! And by that I don't mean days like the first time I fell in love (never happened, at least reciprocal-wise) or made my first millyun (never happ'd either!) but similarly-weathered days where I would go record shopping and purchase some of those platters that MADE ME THE MAN THAT I AM TODAY which are the just some of the BEST memories that cling into my ever-decaying brain! Well, the joy of snatching up some hard-to-get Velvet Underground album or Flamin' Groovies recording of any configuration sure beats (at least by my standards, and you must remember you are treading upon MY world!) falling in love or making a millyun, unless your sweetie is willing to share her record collection with you and come to think of it you sure can buy a lotta music with that much money! Now if only there would be some recently-unearthed Velvets platter or Groovies collection for me to sink my gums into, not to mention a record store that I could go 'n buy 'em at...

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R.I.P. GAME SHOW GREAT CHUCK BARRIS, a bloke who I used to get confused with Chuck Berry when I was much younger and even more autistic than I tend to be even this late down the line. And really, don't you find it peculiar that two guys with very similar names who I used to jumble together have died within such close proximity? Talk about my strange mental capabilities (as I said last week, I had been thinking about Chuck Berry and wondering what he was up to for a few days before I heard the news about his passing!). Sheesh, it kinda reminds me of that one episode of OUTER LIMITS where Donald Pleasance had that brain implant which would cause uncontrollable disasters upon those he would get angry at 'r somethin' like that! Gee, if I could only master my sublime mental capacities think of all the things I could do, and maybe even get away with for all I know and who knows...a few nights back I actually had a dream where I was fighting with, and winning it mind you, with a certain BLOG TO COMM adversary who was working as a short order cook for some reason which ended when I woke up after rolling right outta my bed 'n onto the floor like I used to do when I was five years old! I wonder if this so-and-so got stabbed with a blunt scissors as well, though I haven't read about it in the papers so I guess not.

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Not much else to gab about ot here other'n by saying a hefty and hearty THANK YOU to Paul and Bill for the burns for me to listen to and enjoy on my own suburban slob level. You guys are keeping this blog goin' a whole lot more'n you realize, and frankly if it weren't for you two well...how many times can one talk about CHAMPAGNE AND NOVOCAINE anyway??? So, as Ethel Merman once said...ON WITH DA SHOW!

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But before we start in earnest...in case you wonder why the pics look so turdlike this week it's because I got a new picture scanner and sheesh, I am having a hard time working out the bugs, bunny! Bear with me while I attempt to work 'em out willya, Yogi (yes, the blogschpieler must always insert his little bad gags)???

Bob Dylan-FIDDLER'S GREEN AMPHITHEATRE, DENVER COLORADO June 15, 1988 CD-r burn

It sure ain't no ROYAL ALBERT HALL. Heck, it ain't even HARD RAIN or the Rolling D-Cup Review for that matter. I never heard LIVE AT BUDOKAN so I can't judge it by that famous misfire. But what it is (at least to this decidedly non-Dylanophile who always pegged the guy as "older kid music" even if I do kinda like the fanabla) its sure sounds like one of those rake the moolah letting the rubes see a living legend before he dies concerts he's been doing for ages .Unlike Frank Sinatra's rake ins, Dylan ain't missing the notes and goofing up all over the place but man, he should have removed those tampons from his nose before going on-stage! For hardcore devotees and neophytes who can't find the real thing.

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Various Artists-ASSEMBLEE GENERALE 5 CD-r burn (originally on Ptose Production Presente cassettes, France)

Like a good portion of these old time cassette culture samplers there's a lotta music you have to wade through, and at times it's kinda like wading through one of those New Jersey beaches where syringes and other hospital waste would wash up with the tide. Some straightforward-ish if too electronic-wavey numbers here might have some BLOG TO COMM-ish value to ya, but a whole load of this comes off more like the usual bedroom collage-y art projects of the day gathered together for some reason or another which I can't quite fathom at this time. Like Smegma, this makes for some interesting and braincell-engaging sounds. Unlike Smegma there's little humor or rock 'n roll flash to give that space between your ears a joy jolt!

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The Richmond Sluts-60 CYCLES OF LOVE CD-r burn (originally on Rock Box)

It's surprising for me to hear a rock 'n roll album by a currently up-and-running group that actually sounds as good as something I might have enjoyed back 1979 way! The Sluts got some hard rock moves and song writing abilities that put most competitors to shame, and frankly these guys are so good that had they been around during the early-seventies days of heavy metal thunder Jymn Parrett would have been giving 'em ample DENIM DELINQUENT space in between the Stooges and Mott the Hoople coverage! However, as expected the energy doesn't quite drive its way throughout the entire album and after awhile my mind began to wander a tad which is something that NEVER happens when I am engaged in a total rock 'n roll soundscapading experience. Maybe the other ones are a li'l better? Wouldn't mind finding out but somehow I get the feeling that they ain't.

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The Ripe-INTO YOUR EARS CD-r burn (originally on Get Hip)

With a name like the Ripe I kept thinking of spotted bananas all bruised and yukky-like. Well don't let a band's moniker always get in the way of your listening enjoyment because this particular group is pretty snat if I do say so myself. The opening track reminds me of the Droogs on their fantastic KINGDOM DAY album while other moments recall everything from the Stories back when Mike Brown was in the band to the even the Raspberries at their less ballad-y and more rocking moments. Only thing I didn't care for were the horns which conjured up the kinda music they used to pipe into Holiday Inn restaurants back when the fambly would go on vacation. Overall a much better example of what rock in the teens can do, as long as it apes fortysome-year-old accomplishments.

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Deniz Tek and Scott Morgan-3 ASSASSINS CD-r burn (originally on Career Records)

I haven't been paying attention to either one of 'em in fifteen or even more years so it was like meeting some old friends for the second time, or something like that. The duo of Tek and Morgan romp through a number of old Stooges and Sonics Rendezvous Band tracks and for all I know numbers created especially for this album, and it's all done up in that great if oft-ignored Detroit high energy style that nobody seems to want to talk about anymore. Given the comparatively dead reaction this must have been recorded live in front of an audience that was probably there under the mistaken pretense that Royal Behind, a Prince tribute band, was supposed to be playing that night.

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Johnny Winter-WINTER ESSENTIALS 2-CD-r burn set (originally on Fuel 2000)

Dunno how much of this has been previously released on alla those platters that came out cashing in on Winter's late-sixties success (y'know, the ones that Lester Bangs said contained nothing but terrible music that someone out there was banking a lotta bucks on, an opinion I hope he 180'd on like he did with the MC5 and Amon Duul), but given the overall good quality and jamz to be found I wouldn't be surprised if all of this had come out on a variety of fly-by-night labels. Good selection/sampling/what-have-ya featuring Winter in the years prior to his long locked fame when the the guy tackled a variety of music styles from rhythm and blues, instrumental pounce, Dylan, psychedelic pop to even some early-sixties-styled teen heart-throb schmoozers as if the gals these songs were meant for would ever have wanted to cuddle up to a bleached one such as he. Pretty good even to a guy who hates a lotta late-sixties heavy blues rock such as I, and you can just feel that it really wasn't that far as step from this to Johnny Winter And...

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Deniz Tek-MEAN OLD TWISTER CD-r burn (originally on Citadel, Australia)

Gee, I gotta admit that Tek sure sounds old now, but then again since I WRITE old should I be talking? More of that post-Detroit high energy rock that Australia was known for at least until the nineties brought about a huge miasma across the continent. Continues on that fine Birdman style which is good, and even though I can't get the fact that this guy is AGED outta my brain I gotta admit that it's sure nice knowin' that SOMEONE is continuing on the fine tradition of over-the-top hard rock. Standout track..."Free At Last" which is an out and out swipe of "Cold Turkey" with a few minor twitches but if Alex Chilton could get away with "Holocaust" a.k.a. "Mrs Lennon" I think Tek can as well.

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ELLIOT QUEEN'S MINUTE MYSTERIES CD-r burn

Once again I got to hear more of those great radio time fillers from the sixties (which were being run on stations as late as the mid-eighties!) and not only that but once again I get to match wits with the famous Ellery Queen, a man whom Bill Shute wrote quite a bit about a few weeks back. Short sweet and snappy, listen to Ellery solve some pretty tricky crimes with almost no real effort though frankly I sure wouldn't wanna be on the other end of the man's abilities that's for sure. Some of the people here actually got convicted on the flimsiest of evidence and who knows...maybe the fact that I turned out my lights five minutes later than usual or forgot that the personal vibrator was invented in 1895 instead of 1890 is enough to get me huffing gas more sooner 'n later!

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Various Artists-SUPERSONIC PINBALL MELODRAMA CD-r (Bill Shute)

Dug deeper'n Vanessa Del Rio's cavity to find this old burn, and it's a pretty snat 'un if I do say so myself. Bill kinda/sorta cheated as in this one's mostly made up of an old album by Billy Mure's Super Sonic Guitars (nice e-z listening for those tension-packed days) where the guy romps through a whole number of old faves done up hula bula style, but even if you don't particularly care for that 'un you might like Lonnie Irving's hardcore country single on Starday which straddles the boundaries between old time C&W and rockabilly. I sure dug that but I didn't care one whit for the two FRONT PAGE DRAMAS radio programs which feature stories that will appear later in the pages of THE AMERICAN WEEKLY MAGAZINE...they're just too dull and boring for being a good radio drama and kinda sound like something that an old maid kinda aunt you knew as a kid who was ancient by that time woulda loved listening to way back when. Good for her true, but I'm sure you woulda been too suburban slob to even go near a radio show such as this!

BOOK REVIEW! FRECKLES AND HIS FRIENDS SUNDAYS 1937 (Golden Age Reprints)

Given all of the changes that the FRECKLES comic strip went through from its 1915 inception as a funny kid strip to its early seventies teenage hijinx demise, it's sure fun reading a good sampling of 'em scattered throughout the years and watching the comings and goings pass right before your eyes faster than GASOLINE VALLEY! These 1937 Sunday funnies are a fantab example where FRECKLES was at this particular point in comic strip history, and if you're just as ANAL RETENTIVE about your comics entomology as I am this book will help relax them ol' bowels meaning...IT'S BEST TO READ THIS ONE ONNA TOILET AND I'M NOT KIDDING!!!

As far as I remember the daily strips at this time were more of an adventurous and semi-serious continuing saga demeanor far from the neo-ARCHIE joke-a-day ones FRECKLES eventually became. In contrast, these particular Sunday comics are strictly gag-ridden, showing a lighter side to the strip that I don't believe was exactly being touted in the dailies at the time!

Oddly enough Freckles himself is rarely if ever in these perhaps because he's too busy getting into those serious scrapes during the rest of the week, so in these Sunday installments the action's mostly focused on either his kid brother "Tag" (who seemed to have gone AWOL from the strip by the late-sixties) or Tag's friend "Ossie", a strange looking kid who has this large round nose which makes him look rather Koala-esque. Not that some aspects of the teenage comedy-era FRECKLES don't pop up since I actually espied an early appearance of the proto-Dilton Doileyesque Nutty in one of 'em which happens to boast an appearance by the title character himself, but otherwise it's Ossie and Tag alla way!

The jokes are kid-oriented and rather well done at that, usually ending with a surprise punchline that even an old fan such as I could be surprised at. And like that and many other classic 20th Century pre-"relevance" offerings the "groaners" that are often used are sure used to their fullest potential (wordplay confusions, bizarre site gags) making this kinda humor rather unique especially in these days of NOTHING being funny unless you love hearing people rant and rave at you.  IN OTHER WORDS, after a hard day of real-life struggles and having your senses assaulted by evil forces beyond your control, these strips really go down nice and smooth like they did on mid-aged office workers a good eighty years back!

Along with OUT OUR WAY (yet another entry from the once-boffo NEA Services syndicate) FRECKLES will be getting a nice little scrutiny in these pages more later than sooner I would surmise. Whatever, watch out.

BOOK REVIEW BY BILL SHUTE! NAPOLEON COMIC STRIPS, SUNDAYS 1937 (Golden Age Reprints)

Written and drawn by Clifford McBride, the newspaper comic strip NAPOLEON grew out of earlier McBride strips. He introduced a character named UNCLE ELBY in two strips in the late 20s and early 30s and gave Elby a dog named Napoleon. The dog became quite popular with readers and got his own strip in 1932 and his own larger color Sunday strip in 1933. As Don Markstein of Toonopedia writes, “Napoleon was a big, clumsy, ungainly dog, most likely an approximation of an Irish wolfhound. As dogs go, he had a remarkably broad facial range, able to convey surprise, dismay, haughty disdain, grudging satisfaction and much more, as recognizable to readers as the expressions of any human character, and yet completely dog-like in every panel.” His would-be master, Uncle Elby, was a stocky older man, one who was enthusiastic (he was always coming up with projects around the house for Napoleon to spoil and wanting to go camping or boating or on other vacations that Napoleon would disrupt) but somewhat bumbling. If you could imagine a more laid-back Oliver Hardy but played by Wilford Brimley, that’s how I see the Elby character.

Napoleon became quite a comics phenomenon and was featured as a commercial mascot for Red Heart Dog Food in the 1940’s (see ad), with the strip continuing on past McBride’s 1951 death until 1961! That’s a 29-year run (longer if you count his “supporting appearances” before he had his own strip), quite impressive in the comics world.

Dogs often come to resemble their owners--or is it that the owners often come to resemble their dogs? In other situations, a give-and-take dynamic is created between dog and owner, where each plays a role, much like a married couple or people who are forced to work together for years. I won’t say that the dogs in comics and popular entertainment are smarter than their human keepers; let’s just say that they are not as easily taken in, they have a better BS-detector, and they tend to enjoy life more. They are also good at exposing the arbitrary and inconsistent aspects of human culture. Many times Napoleon gets in trouble by making some totally logical extension of one human behavior into another realm and acts accordingly.

Each Sunday installment of Napoleon runs about 12 panels (it varies according to the panel size), three across and four down. As I thumb through this book, I see some sample situations which should give you a good idea about how each page-long strip is developed: Elby goes on a picnic; he decides to go boating; he tries to paint a room; he goes skiing; he buys and tries to use a new shaving brush; he tries to water the lawn; he takes his old banjo out of storage and starts to get back into playing; he tries to get some spring water, etc.

Generally the first 40-50% of the strip involves setting up the situation, and then Napoleon steps in and tries to help or tries to have some fun since he sees his master having fun. Elby’s plans get disrupted, Napoleon does not understand what the trouble is or why there is a problem, and things fall apart.

That’s pretty much the formula, but it’s a winning formula, and when you have a winning comedy formula, you can bring it to many different life situations, and people will still enjoy it--the familiarity is comforting (and comfortable), while they enjoy seeing characters they like in new situations. That’s what kept Napoleon on top for such a long time. Remember, people did not seek out and buy a Napoleon comic book--Napoleon was there for their enjoyment in the Sunday newspaper they already bought and paid for. They would have bought the paper anyway had he NOT been in it (oh, maybe a few super-fans would have cancelled their subscriptions if he’d been dropped, but not many), so his pleasant comedy situations were like the free chips and salsa with your meal here in San Antonio--not what you came in for, necessarily, but an extra that puts a smile on your face.

There is very little dialogue in the strips--sometimes Uncle Elby will announce what they are doing, sometimes he will talk to another human character, but most often, it’s clear what the situation is and no dialogue is used. Napoleon has a VERY expressive face, and like the great human comedians, he is a master of mugging and exasperated eye movements and quizzical glances.

Golden Age Reprints offers a few different year-long collections of Napoleon. I chose this 1937 one because the strip had already been running for five years at this point, and I assumed it would be in its prime by then...and it certainly was.

Fred Basset is mining a similar vein on today’s newspaper comics page, but like society in general, he is more cerebral and ironic than his 1930’s counterpart. I like Fred Basset, but Napoleon is to the 1930’s what comedians such as, say, Andy Clyde or Harry Langdon were to that same Depression era. People who enjoy 1930’s comedy shorts and who are dog-lovers would probably be glad to discover Napoleon comic strips.

The only flaw with this collection is that the Sunday comics were done in color, but this book is reproduced in black and white to save money (comic reprint books in color usually cost about three times as much as those in black and white). That’s unfortunate, but the humor and the subtle artwork--which truly captures the facial expressions and body language of both Uncle Elby and Napoleon--come through just fine in black and white, and I don’t think I would have paid three times as much for this just to get the color reproduction. Should you not want to buy this book, there are a number of free 1937 strips available online--a little Googling of the strip’s name and the artist’s name and “1937 Sundays” should bring some your way.

The affectionate and often comic relationship between dog and human is timeless, so the humor here is timeless too. Check it out!

I knew it just hadda happen (if only because I have been thinking a whole lot about him these past few weeks--my psychic powers work in strange ways) but r.i.p. Chuck Berry at the r.i.p.e. old age of ninety. Really, what can be said about him that's not already been said by load of snobbish one-dimensional Big City Rock Critics over and over to the point of puke pail time---other'n yeah, he was another one of those fifties rock sickos but he was still fine enough even if his only number one hit was well, about his number one! Not to mention the fact that a whole load of inferior rock 'n roll "fans" had milked his act for eons already including the "duck walk" which was already a hackneyed prop by the time BACK TO THE FUTURE came out. (And considering this time of sorrow I'll refrain from bringing up the infamous "Wee Wee Hours" video not to mention the legendary poop parties where he coaxed young gals into his hotel room and loaded 'em up on Ex-Lax.)  Just keep those condescending raves from the aforementioned Dave Marsh wannabes who can't refrain from bringing up subjects like racism and oppression no matter how hard they try (not to mention that he 'n not Elvis is "The King of Rock 'n Roll" because...well, you know why!) outta your mind and who knows...maybe you too will enjoy his recordings for what they are and shall remain. Mainly some pretty hotcha early rock that has been imitated and ruined by over-emulation since who knows when but then again, so what else is new???

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Life has ground to a stultifying still here at BLOG TO COMM headquarters to the point where even a loudmouth blowhard as I really don't know how to start off this typically traumatic post. As usual "real life" (ech!) tends to creep into my usual fun 'n jamz time with an alarming reality, and come to think of it what I'm subjected to when I do get a few hours of free time ain't anything to crow about either!

Thankfully I've discovered that my idea of having a fun time, when I do get some tossed my way that is, ain't anything that's gonna clear out the wallet which does come in handy for the day when Medicaid will not be covering my colostomy bags. Lez just say that at this point in time I'm happy enough just starin' out the bedroom window (with or without music spinnin' on the bedside box) watching the wind blowing the tree limbs (the more violently the better), at least until I get the energy up to pick one of those great comic strip/book reprints I've been getting hold of  via Golden Age Reprints and read/re-read some crucial saga that will undoubtedly be written up in these pages one of these days. Just doing this (usually in my stocking feet or what passes for my pajamas during the night hours when it's harder to see outside but wha' th' 'eh!) is enough to keep me in Suburban Slob heaven for a longer time than  anyone could imagine!

Also managed to squeeze some good sounds into my off-hours of relaxation, some of which are written about on this very post (look below, dumbkopf!). Thanks to Bill Shute, Paul McGarry, P D. Fadensonnen (or "Totensonnen" in this case) and Bob Forward March for these items, and as usual keep those cards and letters (and parcels) comin'! Give these a read, and as Bill Cosby once said if you're not careful you might learn something, something that I'm sure Bill sure wished you wouldn't have learned inna first place but that's his problem!

Totensonnen-WINTER SOLSTICE cassette (Fadensonnen)

Hey kids, cassettes are back in style! And what better way to celebrate this sacred technology which had recorded millions of C+-quality tapes since the sixties than with this release from Fadensonnen now going under the name Totensonnen who's dished out a couple more winners with this 'un. Side one's "Daybreak" is an acoustic effort featuring a rambling guitar and bongos wailing on and on. Kinda reminds me of Malachi's HOLY MUSIC in spots as well as some of those early Robbie Basho efforts that were all the rage about twenny years back. "A Night Gaunt Stares" features a return to electric guitar which wails on nicely like some of those Bruce Anderson affairs which I might have said about earlier Fadensonnen efforts but SO WHAT! Another nice addition to the Fadensonnen canon which I'm sure most of you readers have been following as intently as I have been.

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John "Inzane" Olson-SOLO SESSIONS VOLUME 1 + STARE CASE/WOLF EYES/STARE CASE CD-r burn; SOLO SESSIONS VOLUME 2 cassette

On the same day I received the above wonder I also got these items for my perusal. Yes, its none other than the LIFE IS A RIP OFF guy himself John "Inzane" Olson doing the music thing with or without the aid of Wolf Eyes, and it's an eye-opener whether you have wolf eyes or not. The Cee-Dee-Are features Olson doing the solo thing  mostly using woodwinds while banging a tambourine or some other item with the other hand making a great (though not joyous, thankfully!) noise. On some tracks it sounds as if some infant is wailing along, perhaps in protest but who knows. I know it's difficult for me to describe such records without mentioning various AACM-related items of the late-sixties and seventies (just read a few of my Kendra Steiner Editions writeups!), but man does this one sound like some obscure Anthony Braxton session that came and went with a flash during that man's brief spotlight in the jazz sun back inna seventies!


The disque runs its way off with some Wolf Eyes and other ensemble recordings that are fuller in sound and will help ease your way back to sanity before you pick up the cassette tape and it's MORE solo John Olson horn, percussion and even kid sounds continuing with the first 'un left off! If you've read the man's writing this is more of the same only transcribed to sound, and I'll bet you'll pass these up as well because...for the life of me these were sent gratis and I don't know if they're even available commercially or not!

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The Brian Jonestown Massacre-THIRD WORLD PYRAMID CD-r burn (originally on A Recordings)

Hmmmm....nice. Pleasant. Really went down well while reading old fanzines on a snow day such as this (Wednesday in case you care). A whole lot of it has that modern-day (which for me is like post-1981) dinginess to it what with the drone electronic sound and vocals to match (which is one reason I can't bear to spin my old Stereolab and Spaceman 3 albums anymore) but I find the whole shebang rather exhilarating. If you can't take your psychedelic music in its original form, these guys might just have the right prescription for your stuffed mind woes.

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The Shamrock-THE MODS ARE ALRIGHT CD-r burn (originally on Smog Veil)

Considerin' that I'm writin' this on St. Paddy's Day I thought I'd drag this particularly Irish-y named band outta the Paul McGarry box. Sheesh, despite their moniker it turns out that the Shamrock are Japanese which really adds to the overall confusion, but I'm not gonna let that stop me from enjoying this collection of early-eighties songs recorded during that big hunkerin' mod revival that was goin' on at the time. However, I will let the fact that this is just more of that pale imitation of mid-sixties accomplishment get in the way, for the Shamrock really don't dig in hard like their inspirations most surely did. Good light listening, and if you were one of those guys who used to ape the whole QUADROPHENIA style 'n swerve you know what to do and I don't have to tell you to do it, right?

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Imperial Teen-SEASICK CD-r burn (originally on Polygram)

Sheesh, with a name like Imperial Teen I was thinkin' this was gonna be some seventies-styled hard rock murderanza knock your socks off album. I mean, how far of a step is it from the name Imperial Dogs to Imperial Teen anyway?  Turns out that this Imperial Teen's just one of those upstart (or at least he was back in 1996 when this platter came out) ameraltie types of guy who deals in the twee-er side of underground pop. Some Velvet Underground refs only serve to remind me as to how that band had gone from being the standard bearer for late-sixties/seventies hard-edge gnarl to something that wouldn't be able to stand by itself even if a faint wind should blow by. I'm sure Paul McGarry had a good reason for send a burn of this my way. For the life of me I can't figure out what it is.

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The Turtles-ALL THE SINGLES 2 CD-r burn (originally on Manifesto)

Mark Volman, Howard Kaylan and company have been subject to more "greatest hits" collections than George Takei has been subjected to Klingons on Uranus (well, actually his), so what is one more of 'em to subject a newer generation that couldn't care less into listening to these one-time hits by these one-time charttoppers. Well, all of the biggies are here as are the almost made its and the losers, but you be the judge as Mark, Howard and company careen from folk rock to Southern Californian sunshine pop and even some pre-Zappa satire with the sleek production standards that were oh-so-common back inna late sixties. You might have to do a lotta wadin' to make it from the pedestrian to the goodies,but it's a good wade and you'll be introduced to a whole load of new wonders if this is your first time around, or be re-introduced to some old familiars if you've been in on the game for quite awhile.

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John Coltrane-SUN SHIP: THE COMPLETE SESSION 2-CD-r burn (originally on Impulse)

Another long-needed release featuring all of the ins and outtakes from one-a-them infamous Coltrane quartet platters that have long reached their infamous status in whatever circles albums like these are considered infamous in. Alternate takes, false starts, Elvin Jones drum tracks, control room to Coltrane patter etc. A nice little peek behind the scenes fly on the wall sorta affair that I get the impression most of you regular readers wouldn't give the time of day to,but I personally find it all to be a whole lot interesting on a variety of levels that I won't bother telling you about because hey, what do you care!

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The Waldos-RENT PARTY CD-r burn (originally on Sympathy For The Record Industry)

It's all you would expect outta some post-Heartbreakers elpee complete with the designated cover tunes and a whole lot more. Really good even if it was predictable. At the time of its release I probably would have wooshed over it considering what else there was available at the time (which wasn't much mind you) but for a bunch of guys who were around forever and still cranking it out long after a whole slew of people on this planet could have cared less I sure give 'em ALL THE STARS IN THE WORLD and I do mean it!

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Various Artists-BLINKY OUTRAGE FASTPACED SNOOKUMS CD-r burn (Bill Shute)

Given there are no notes to this and I have to guess what's on here maybe I should let my imagination go wild and see what fun and clever puns I can come up with. Eh, that idea stinks, though I can tell you that there are some weird avant garde guitar type things that remind me of Derek Bailey, a number of Japanese pop numbers that have such a sparkling approach to 'em you get the idea that most Sadistic Mika Band fans woulda gobbled 'em up, and some radio and tee-vee ads including a couple with Jack Benny battling it out with Frank Nelson and Dennis Day! Heck there are even a couple of song poems here including yet another one dealing with that tragic and fateful day (though I forget the reason why) of November 22, 1963.

But what really got me to pluck this precious petunia outta the garden was the cover snap featuring none other than the comedy team of Tom Howard and George Shelton! These guys did some pretty hot (and a few not) comedies for the old Educational Pictures company in the thirties, and not only that but in the forties both were to be found on that classic radio program IT PAYS TO BE IGNORANT. I don't remember the television revival of this series starring Joe Flynn from the seventies (though I did discover that it ran in our area on Saturday afternoons which is why I missed it!), but it was a fave of none other than Bill Shute who taped the audio portion of it in those pre-VCR days! Hey Bill, if you have any of those lying around howzbout sending a few of 'em my way???