Here we are on a Saturday and I am working BUT listening to my next piece of vinyl at the same time. Just read an ad logo saying 'There's a 5 till 9 as well as a 9 till 5', quite agree.

My next treat is a Quincy Jones LP called AROUND THE WORLD. And it's a fave 60's theme for albums, diffrent pieces of music flavouring countries from around the world.

The cover is also typical of the 60's, in fact name me a 60's LP that has not got scattily dress females on the front. This is an orchstral LP and is very lush in part and very listenable and cosy altogether. Another fact, if we listened now to these orchestral lead albums of very sophisticated and warn tracks as we did then, would we not all feel a little better about things? Even the titles are cosy: Sedish Warmlands [as daft a title as England In The Dry Season]. No, I am not getting old [only older] and no, I am not advocating that we get comatose listening to elevator muzak. This LP is well removed from prozac induced tones.

Starts with a fantastic Japanese track Hot Sake. African is ablaze with drums and testament to Jones having studied tribal rhythms. The glorious Meadlands depicts Russia and was a song he use to sing at school [wonder why in cold-war USA?]. The twist is the jazz crve he puts in it.

Side2 not quite as good as 1 but has a beautiful Brazilian track Baia which Edmundo Ross could not have arranged better. Mack The Knife is a curiousity as he does in Oompah style!!

The whole lot has been burnt onto CD for many a spin.

AROUND THE WORLD
Quincy Jones and his orchestra.
Mercury Records 1961
SIDE ONE
Hot Sake
Strike Up the Band
Africana
Meadowlands
Rico Vacilon
Under Paris Skies
SIDE TWO
Mack The Knife
Manolete De Espana
Baia
Come Back To Sorrento
Swedist Warmland

My sister and I have not really had any time together since my August Wedding. In the euphoric rush up to it we saw a lot of each other but we were loosing valuable work time and so in the 'catch up' period we've had no quality time.

My partner is away tomorrow night at a Conference so Jac [sis] and I are going to spend the evening together and no doubt talk ourselves silly. It's blighted a little as my mum is in hospital yet again so we'll have to do the visit before we settle down.

We have a common love of music and I regularly make CD samplers for her. So just managed to burn the latest which is the most eclectic I have done. Has blues, reels, soul, The Stones, Borneo Horns and a drum track [Jac has a kit]. Here's the rundown:-

1. I Wish I Was A Punk Rocker - Sandi Thom
2. Is It Any Wonder? - Keane
3. What So Never The Dance - Bootsy Collins
4. Garden Of Eden - Heather Small
5. Respect Yourself - The Staple Singers
6. Dance Music For The Borneo Horns - Lenny Pickett
7. The Real Blues Reel - Brendan Power & Mick Kinsella
8. Twice A Week - Miles Gloriosus
9. If You Don’t Give Me What I Want - Vicki Anderson
10. Elemental Force : Xing To - Various
11. Crazy - Alanis Morrisette
12. The Green Fields Of Antrim - Paddy Fahy
13. Rain Will Fall - The Rolling Stones
14. You Are In My System - Robert Palmer

I just can't seem to narrow the gap between my blogs at the moment which is a real drag. Work, life and trying to swim straight and upright through out it, takes it's time. But why am I typing this as you all know it. Onwards to the music.

Next LP to get the ipod or onto CD treatment is the brilliant 1983 album Pride by the late Robert Palmer. Sound so bad typing 'the late', still cannot belive he has gone and was it my imagination or was his parting only lightly covered. Where were the tribute programmes?

I started to record this onto my hard disk as I wanted to do a straight transfer to a CD but horror of horrors, it's not in good condition which doesn't really surprise me as I played it to death.
Got most of the tracks I really liked so have dropped them onto my hard disk.

I didn't like his Jamaican influenced track but was always amazed that he got away with them. The guy really had 'groove' and it was double attractive because of the sharp suits and haircuts he inhabited. Loved all the layers of this album, the drama of Want You More. The sex in Dance For Me. The enigmatic Silver Gun and the classic You Are In My System. Strangelt on hearing it for the first time in a while I thought that Side 1 is timeless but Side 2 is very 80's.

Here goes:
PRIDE Island Record Label 1983
SIDE ONE
Pride
Deadline
Want You More
Dance For Me
You Are In My System

SIDE TWO
It's Not Difficult
Say You Will
You Can Have It [Take My Heart]
What You waiting For
The Silver Gun

If you are a Palmer fan treat yourself to his last album which is bluesy and one where he just recorded for himself knowing it wouldn't be a chart topper. It's a gem, it's called DRIVE.

1949 - 2003

Vinyl LP number 3 for the 'treatment' All Systems Go is probably her weakest LP. For me it has one fab track and that's Dinner With Gershwin, love the lyrics. The rest is 80's dross. Shame but I think she is only really best remembered for those breathy Moroder produced number Lover To Love You Baby', all of which were quite something at the time but today seem quite tame [though I still love them]. For a real treat check out her version of McArthur Park!

A quick surf didn't show a direct website but there are a host of fan based ones and apparently she is still out there doing her stuff though one of the websites referred to her high years as 'smut fest' tracks!

ALL SYSTEMS GO
Warner Brothers Label 1987
SIDE ONE
All Systems Go
Bad Reputation
Love Shock
Jeremy
Only the Fool Survives
SIDE TWO
Dinner With gershwin [only track to make it to the ipod]
Fascination
Voices Cryin' Out
Thinkin' Bout My Baby

I'm obviously on a mission tonight - number 2 LP to get the ipod treatment is DREAM INTO ACTION Howard Jones. I loved this guy and I clearly remember seeing him in concert with my sister. He was wearing his orange jumpsuit and went barefoot. I always admired his ethics and have just gone onto his website www.howardjones.com and read that he is a Buddhist, which is no surprise. It influenced a lot of his lyrics. He is also still composing and still looks good.

OK ENOUGH of saying I have no time, I am never going to whip this music collection together if I just do not crack on with it. I have a couple of evenings work this week for the radio station - so I am going to try and multitask.

Whilst working I am going to take the first LP in line, listen and decide what to do with it. First up is:

MAKE IT EASY ON YOURSELF The Walker Brothers.
Contour label/Recorded in 1966/67
It has a couple of Scott Walker penned tunes on it and altogether, apart from the 2 chart hits and one little gem - it is very, very odd. Not even an ecletic mix. Just a strange one.

Track listing:
Side 1
Make It Easy On Yourself
Dancing In The Street
Land of 1,000 Dances
Here Comes The Night
In My Room
Side 2
Just For A Thrill
I Can See It Now
Living Aboive Your Head
Genevieve

I Can See It Now and Genevieve are the 2 Scott W tunes and reek of the weird stuff to come. The title Bacharch and David track still works as does Here Comes The Night. But the real treasure is their credible is, even though it's tempo is a tad slower than the original, Dancing In the Street. What a find!

3 tracks will make it to the ipod then it's chuck out as 2 tracks are scratched enough to make 'sticky needle.

Sleeve Note:
"...they left behind them a host of hit sounds that helped make an era that was the Swinging 'Sixties. Here is a sample of some of those sounds ..."
Oh no it's not believe me.

Having a couple of weeks away has taken me this long to catch up, hence the gap in blogs.

At the hospital radio station I volunteer with, we have an Annual Awards and Quiz Night which includes a huge CD sale where we raise quite a lot of money. I am lucky enough to have a ferret through the CD's first to see if there is anything I can upload to my ipod. So I was quite excited to get my paws on 30 singles to have a listenin to....here are the results:-

LOVELY DAY/Bill Withers [Full Phat remix] - not worth the remix as the original is perfect!
MAS QUE NADA Sergio Mendez & Black Eyed Peas - ditto as above plus this cover is awful.
NO MORE COULDY DAYS The Eagles - numb and dross
THE BLUES ARE STILL BLUS Belle & Sebastian - very good plus includes a credible cover of WHISKY IN THE JAR
REASONS UB40 - Predictable
THE ROSE OF MY COLOGNEW Beautiful South - Samey
PIECES OF A DREAM Anastacia - Great voice, OKish track
JUST FEEL BETTER Santan - OK
RAIN FALL DOWN Rolling Stones - Great and on the ipod
STREETS OF LOVE Rolling Stones - OK
EVEN GOD Charlotte Church - OK
WORDS JUST GET IN THE WAY Richard Ashcroft - Haunting, v good
ANOTHER PLACE TO FALL KT Tunstall - v good
SIN SIN SIN Robbie Williams - Rubbish
CRAZY Alanis Morrisette - Excellent ipod addition
STANDING IN THE SHADOWS OF LOVE Janis Ian - Mature, good
BIGGEST MISTAKE Rolling Stones - Yuk
AINT GOT NO, I GOT LIFE Nina Simone V Groove - surprisingly good and on the ipod
MODERN WAY Kaiser Chiefs -bit like everything else
DO YOU WANT TO Franz Ferdinand - Fab ipod addition
TURNING AWAY The Proclaimers - quirky and good
WHAT I REALLY WANT FOR CHRISTMAS Brian Wilson - truly awful
LAST MAN ALIVE Levellers - Yuk
WRAP MY WORDS AROUND YOU Daniel Bedingfield - could do better as they say
CELTIC NEW YEAR Van Morrison - why bother
WHO YOU FIGHTING FOR UB40 - same as everything else they do
GOOD IS GOOD Sheryl Crow - samey
ONE WORD Kelly Osbourne - OKish
ELECTRICITY Elton John - From stage show Billy
I PREDICT A RIOT Kaiser Chiefs - brilliant

Here endeth my assessment.