Your DailyCrack

George Harrison - Red Lady Too

I am completely bewitched by this album Wonderwall Music—this song in particular “Red Lady Too”— and desperate to find a copy of the out-of-print limited release DVD set of the accompanying film Wonderwall.  I had heard of this album during the Beatles Anthology heyday in the mid 90s, and being a huge fan, was intrigued.  I was especially intrigued, when during that same period, Oasis came out with their song Wonderwall which sounds absolutely nothing like the George Harrison music, but the infamous Gallager brothers said that the word/concept was inspired by their favorite album of all time, Wonderwall Music.    

This little-known album is actually the first solo album from a Beatles member.  Composed between 1967 and 1968, just around the time the Beatles head to India, it corresponds with George Harrison’s emmersion into Eastern music.  The entire record is instrumental (with some non english singing/chanting on a couple of tracks) and the majority of the record features Indian instruments in non-traditional orchestration, mixed with Western instruments and used in less conventional ways.   Secretly, Eric Clapton and Ringo Starr contributed to the instrumentation under the psuedonyms Eddie Clayton and Richie Snare, and Peter Tork of the Monkees also contributed to Banjo melodies without credit.  The album was initially released on the Beatles’ newly opened Apple Records, and reached number #49 on the ‘68 American charts, but was also the first Apple album to be deleted from their records!  Luckily it was remastered and rereleased in 1992.

I just came across this album this week.  I can’t remember how I was reminded of it, but I saw the album cover for the first time and had to have it.  I also checked out a summary of the film plot its based on.  Its an indie psychedelic film, starring Jane Birkin (which is a good reason to look in to it) and the Wikipedia plot summary goes like this:

“The story of the film revolves around the reclusive, eccentric scientist Oscar Collins (MacGowran), whose next-door neighbours are a pop photographer  (Quarrier) and his girlfriend/model (Birkin), named Penny Lane. Discovering a beam of light streaming through a hole in the wall between them, Collins follows the light and spots Penny modelling for a photo shoot. Intrigued, he begins to make more holes, as days go by and they do more photo sessions. Oscar gradually becomes infatuated with the girl, and feels a part of the couple’s lives, even forsaking work to observe them. When they quarrel and the couple split, Penny takes an overdose of pills and passes out, but Oscar comes to her rescue.”

The album is a bit inconvenient to get: Its mostly out-of-print, imported, and expensive to get your hands on for a CD, so there’s much more incentive to grab via free download than buy on CD; But the film on DVD is nearly impossible to get.  Most copies go for hundreds, though you can get a VHS copy on ebay occasionally for cheap.
The album has an magical, hypnotic sound.   It’s very unconventional, somewhere between Eastern and Western, and is ambient and very animated like a soundtrack. I love how obscure it is, it feels like a ancient lost gem that you want to keep secret.  Even the track titles of the album hint at its mysterious quality:

- ex libris

My Bloody Valentine - Soon

This song is one of my favorite songs from one of my top 10 all time favorite albums, Loveless.  The basis of the group is Kevin Shields (who more recently composed the Lost in Translation soundtrack) as lead guitarist and vocalist.  I was inspired to post this song right now because I thought it so strange to hear about the recent slasher film by the same name as the band.  Ironically, the band got its name from a B-movie slasher film from 1981 also called My Bloody Valentine.  Don’t have time at the moment to cross-check this, but maybe the recent movie was a remake of the ‘81 Valentine? (I steer clear of the horror genre so I have no clue) 
In any case, this song, like the rest of the album is classic Shoegazing— a brief sub-genre emerging with My Bloody Valentine and other UK groups in the late 80s and most popular until the mid-90s.  Shoegazing utilizes heavy distortion— creating a wall of shimmering guitar sounds, and usually low, muddled vocal tracks.  Loveless is also legendary because the album, with a half a million dollar price tag accumulated over the 2 years of production, is reportedly one of the most expensive, slowest recorded albums in history.  It had a huge influence on other artists in the 90s including Radiohead, The Cure, and Brian Eno, as it completely dumbfounded, even industry insiders, as to how some of the sounds were created.

Wake up
Don’t fear
I want to
Love you
Yeah don’t go there
I let you get to me
Yeah yeah

Come back
Don’t be
Afraid of me
Soon
That (I’ll harm you)
Your eyes are blue
Blue jewels
Yeah yeah
Come back
Have faith
Someone like you
Can find the reason
Of what I did to you
Yeah yeah

Wake up
Don’t fear
I want to
Love you
Yeah don’t go there
I let you get to me
Yeah yeah

- ex libris

Arcade Fire - Haiti

Aside from their more recent album, Neon Bible, Arcade Fire albums are at the top of my favorites list.  The reason I love them (which is exactly the recent Neon Bible falls short) is the spontaneous, unpolished quality.  Its charm is in the deceivingly naive and unsophisticated, pure, raw sound— as if some completely spontaneous hits were created by a gang of anarchist children in some far off place a la Lord of the Flies.  I love how they’ve created this ragtag sound, merging orchestral instruments (cello, flute, etc) crudely played with marching band-esque drums and with a choir of raucuous yelling, as if they just took what ever they had and who ever was around, and just made music.

I live on a French speaking island right now, so I really appreciate how they’ve merged French and English— though its really hard for me to make out the French parts in their singing, as it is the English sometimes.  The song “Haiti” is their most powerful song for me—especially after learning the backstory.  Arcade Fire is rooted in a husband-wife duo (the lead male and female singers), Win Butler and Regine Chassagne who met in Quebec.   Régine is originally from Haiti but fled to Quebec during the rule of the oppressive dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier dictatorship (1971-86), known as Baby Doc, in which tens of thousands were murdered and tortured.  After reading Tracy Kidders, Mountains beyond Mountains, they became involved with the now famous humanitarian Dr. Paul Farmer and the Partners in Health Organization to bring health care to Haitian people.  The PIH cause is a big part of the band’s message during tours and on their website.

(In parathesis I translated the French lyrics)
Haïti, mon pays, (my country)
wounded mother I’ll never see.
Ma famille (my family) set me free.
Throw my ashes into the sea.

Mes cousins jamais nés (my cousins never born)
hantent les nuits de Duvalier. (they haunt the nights of Duvalier)
Rien n’arrete nos esprits. (nothing stops our spirits)
Guns can’t kill what soldiers can’t see.

In the forest we lie hiding,
unmarked graves where flowers grow.
Hear the soldiers angry yelling,
in the river we will go.

Tous les morts-nés forment une armée, (all the still-born form an army)
soon we will reclaim the earth.
All the tears and all the bodies
bring about our second birth.

Haïti, never free,
n’aie pas peur de sonner l’alarme.  (I’m not scared? to sound the alarm)
Tes enfants sont partis,  (your children left)
In those days their blood was still warm

- ex libris

Animal Collective - Winter’s Love

Animal Collective sounds are naive and liberated.  They write the most ambient songs, filled with chirps and string slips, animal noises, and taps and hissing.  Although I’m crazy about Animal Collective, it can be a bit much listening to an entire album without breaks.  For me, its the perfect group to break up a mix.  Adding a couple Animal Collecive songs perks up your ears and keep a mix from taking itself too seriously.  I like to pair Animal Collective songs up against Pet Sounds, Astrud Gilberto, Air, Juno Soundrack tracks, The Byrds Preflyte, The Lost in Translation soundtrack, etc…  Basically, things that are playful and either stripped down or ambient sounding.

I’m not sure how I would think of this song if I didnt know the title, but knowing that ‘winter’ is in the title, I complete associate it with your average post-holiday winter day.  I see my breath and hear the echoes against the snow when i hear it.

If you like WINTER’S LOVE you’ll also love…

Leaf House — also by Animal Collective on the Sung Tongs album

- ex libris

I love this light in winter time,
The frost cakes in the carpet
in winter time we’ll have our ways
tombstones the mean belong in
No falls snowfalls that ruin my day
It’s masked up from the street wire
and winter’s glow where could she be
She’s warm underneath my pocket
Just a calm and modern day
In early, early morning
Rush to her, and rush to him,
Am I a better person?
even in the whole take on
the loss is better said
I pulled the boy out of above
She made that boy a man

Vince Guaraldi Trio - Heartburn Waltz

Although this is really a Thanksgiving tune (from the Charlie Brown Thanksgiving movie), I completely associate it with Christmas and winter weather.  I’m a sucker for a songs with jazzy keyboard (Booker T and the MGs, 60s Brazilian bossa nova/ jazz, late beatles, most late 60s soul, The Roots, and of course, Guaraldi), and the tinkling notes make me picture— while looking down on a giant outdoor ice skating rink like Central Park—  people whirling on ice…  retro knit scarves and hats and whirling and stumbling and laughing and shivering in the 1960s.  I think the simple and stripped down feel, makes it seem wintery to me.  Its a great holiday ambiance song without an heavyhanded holiday message.

If you like HEARTBURN WALTZ, you’ll also love…

Skating,  also by Guaraldi on the Charlie Brown Christmas Album

- ex libris