WFMU's Beware of the Blog

A 1953 CBS Radio Sales Presentation (Exploring My Reel-to-Reel Catacombs, Volume 33) (MP3's)

In one corner of my basement archives, there is a large stack of tapes I bought two or three years ago, which have proven especially fascinating, to the point that I'm deliberately parceling them out to myself, as sort of periodic "gifts" of really special listening. These are media tapes, many of them raw audio from television or film, and most of those having something to do with the CBS networks.  I previously shared a tape of Howard K. Smith and Sen. Albert Gore, Sr., from this same collection (which contains a lot of Howard K. Smith tapes). 

Today's tape is different than the others that I've listened to in that it is the soundtrack for a film, specifically, a film meant to drum up advertising business for CBS radio. There are enough moments of background music, and even a few sound effects, to make it clear that there was a visual element to this presentation. And this tape is undoubtably the final raw source tape for the soundtrack - there are upwards of 50 splices in the tape, where various recorded elements were stitched together from what were probably multiple takes, some of which are visible in the scan of the tape. There's even a cut in the middle where a very non-announcer-like voice tells us that there would be a switching of film reels. 

It's an interesting presentation, even without the visuals. After a brief, catchy introductory piece, there is a lengthy discussion of how prosperous America has become in the last 15 years (and I'm sure those who were in abject poverty in 1953, and/or fighting racism would love to hear how the country was one big middle class at that point, with very few people living at the fringes). It ties this in with the increased buying power of Americans. Then it moves into the sales pitch.

I was sort of fascinated by the fact that although the subject becomes RADIO at about the six minute point, the word "radio" is not mentioned until more than three minutes later (although there are clips from radio programs, and there may have been many visuals of radios, of course), and even more interested in the fact that CBS is not mentioned until about 3/4 of the way through, and initially, it's mentioned as an example of a network, rather than the focus of the presentation. 

The presentation concerns itself largely with the omnipresence of radio in the country, its varied uses and its mobility, and finally, the value of advertising on radio, versus print or television, especially the lower cost for what had been proven to be greater audience attention. There is a funny series of short ads for a fake hair care product in the mix, too.

A odd point is made about CBS having "more of the top 29 programs than all other networks combined", which made me wonder if that "more" number was 15, making the the more typical statement, which would be about the top 30 shows, impossible. Or perhaps there were only 29 network shows left by 1953 - whether the CBS honchos knew it or not, national radio programming of the sort being promoted here was quickly leaving our world. Before the end of 1957, the very last radio network comedy show (Stan Freberg's masterful half-hour) would go off the air, and by 1960, there were precious few dramas, and few, if any, variety shows. 

A 1953 CBS Radio Sales Presentation (Film Soundtrack) (MP3)  | Tape (JPG)  | Tape Box (JPG)

Dr. Reginald D. MacNitt Brings You 'Psycholaxation' - Side One

"Now, let's check your breathing..."     Today I have a lovely little bit of self-help that should be useful to one and all;  step one of learning 'Psycholaxation', which is all the rage these days. You didn't know that you could learn something about it for free from WFMU, did you? Well, worry no more. Relaxation can be yours.  

  Some time ago, rummaging through some dusty old cassette tapes that my mother owned but hadn't played in years and years I came across one entitled "Dr. MacNitt - Psycholaxation", hand-written in someone else's hand, most likely given to my mom as a helpful tool of some sort.  It was clearly copied from a vinyl record, which I've been unable to locate a picture of, or any detailed info about. Upon playing it for the first time, I fell in love with the fellow's voice - he sounds almost like a cartoon character. No insult to the guy - even compared to lots of hypnosis and sleep-training records that I've heard over the years, his pipes and his delivery are priceless!  I think you'll hear what I mean. A more marble-mouthed and nebbish-ey spoken style I can barely accomplish myself - but he's a fun model to imitate.

     Here's some things that I did manage to find out about this technique: The good doctor apparently published a lot of small-press self-help books and articles, including this one attributed to his wife, Mildred L. MacNitt - "Psycholaxation: A New Dimension for Living", as told to Mildred L. MacNitt, 93 pages, published by the Living Arts Foundation in December, 1955. On the record he mentions the book "Three Steps to Better Living", and he also worked up a "Personality and Vocational Guidance Test" course in 1943, which fits him.  

I think you'll find his dialog and vocal style as charming as I did, despite the low-grade old cassette and the scratchy record it was sourced from. Settle back -don't cross your legs or arms - and enjoy the flow of the wonderful Doctor MacNutt. Ooops - I mean MacNitt.                              PSYCHOLAXATION - side one

Mining the Audio Motherlode, Volume 184

Give the Drummer Some's
Favorite Downloads from the MP3 Blogosphere

Reports of the demise of the music-sharing blogosphere have been greatly exaggerated. To be sure, the abrupt disappearance of beloved sites is upsetting, but the reality is that far more blogs that reach the end of the line, do so voluntarily. And the good news, if the current climate is indicative of a trend, is that a number of excellent blogs in recent days have come back to life! Last week I mentioned the return of Aduna Blog. Now I'm cheered to see FM Shades back in business and even Voodoo Vault is making a comeback (though finding the "way in" the front door remains a puzzle). Even ProgNotFrog's terrific blog aggregation site is back. You can use it as a search engine, or just scroll through the recent posts from hundreds of blogs.

Welcome back!

 [Ed: Thanks to reader Hammer for reminding me about the return of Turkish Psychedelic Music! Please acknowledge your favorite reanimated blogs in the comments below.]

 

    
Barbara Mason  ~  Transition
(Blog: Porco's Hideaway)

Did Buddah Records Know They Spelled the Name Wrong?
"A quite dark collection of soul/funk tunes dealing with war, violence, religion, the 'popularity' of the devil and other problems of American society of the 1970s. Barbara Mason is best known for love songs like her first hit, 'Yes I'm Ready,' from the beginning of her career in 1964. For Transition she abandoned the matters of the heart and tackled social issues. She wrote all tunes here which suggest that this project was very close to her heart. But the album flopped, maybe because it missed a hit single, maybe because it missed the optimistic outlook offered by other soul artists that sang about social issues."  (Description by El Puerco Rojo)

Mining the Audio Motherlode, Volume 183

Give the Drummer Some's
Favorite Downloads from the MP3 Blogosphere

This post is for those 47% of readers who are dependent on Mining the Audio Motherlode, who believe that they are victims, who believe Mining the Audio Motherlode has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to great free downloadable music. That that's an entitlement. And that Mining the Audio Motherlode should give it to them. And they will support the Miner no matter what and will never be convinced to take personal responsibilities for their lives.

My job is to worry about those people.

 

    
Emanuel Lasky  ~  Welfare Cheese
(Blog: The Singing Bones)

A Good Source of Protein
Here's a topically relevant groover for all you Freddie Freeloaders and Minnie Moochers just standing around waiting to be handed sonic thrills on a silver platter.

The Cry Of My Lai (MP3)

Ivan Lee  -  The Cry Of My Lai  (2:51)

The My Lai Massacre was surely the ugliest incident of the entire Vietnam war. The event took place in March 1968 and involved members of the U.S. Army murdering hundreds of unarmed civilians in the Vietnamese village of My Lai.  Estimates place the number of victims at somewhere between approximately 350 and 500 people, many of them women, children and the elderly.

The awful killings inspired a number of topical country songs about the event, almost all of which, in a position that doesn't seem too defensible in hindsight, defended William Calley, the Leiutenant who ordered the killings.

Ivan Lee's The Cry Of My Lai, however, is an exception in that it offers Calley no support and, in fact, decisively condemns his actions.  In case you missed it, this event was the subject of an earlier Beware Of The Blog post, one that included 9 other records about the massacre.

Walter Brennan Reads Mark Twain - Redux

frog          general: 1. being amphibious, its meaning also is often ambivalent;  2. its natural enemy is the serpent: e.g. Dante (Inf. C. 9, 76f.);

               special meanings: 1. frogs are often found on sign-boards and on stone tablets of facades; most probably they symbolize fertility and evolution;  2. D. Thomas: embryo: swimming in the uterus, 'spinning' his body ("a grief ago");

              folklore:  A. curative: esp. against diseases for which witches may be responsible; B. magic: 1. frogs can be used as effigies to work the harm on meant for a human being;  2. frog-bones (or a portion of them) of a slowly killed frog, have great magical power; 3. a frog's toe is a talisman against disease and evil;  4. frog-skin is a protective charm because of its slipperiness; cf. the "rabbit-foot" for speed; C. a frog coming into the house is a bad omen; D. frog-stones (cf. toad-stones): yellowish stones having the shape of a frog, found near lakes: lucky;   E. proverbs: a. "the frog cannot out of her bog";  b. "the frog said to the harrow: Cursed be so many lords";

             vinyl albums:  recording of famous Mark Twain short story as read by Oscar-winning thespian Walter Brennan during the glow of his long run on the Emmy Award-winning TV program 'The Real McCoys'.  Presented here in MP3 format for your edification.

The Jumping Frog of Calaveras County

 

 

Mining the Audio Motherlode, Volume 182

Give the Drummer Some's
Favorite Downloads from the MP3 Blogosphere

Who is Hervé Lemaire (LinkedIN / Wikipedia / Twitter) and why does he hate music? Though some Internet chatter speculates that there is no such person, someone with this name has been operating as an anti-piracy mercenary via LeakID, apparently since 2007.

During the past several weeks, numerous blogs across the Internet have had their accounts suspended at file storage site Mediafire due to a mass mailing of copyright complaints filed by Lemaire. Clearly something nefarious is afoot because many affected blogs have posted exclusively out-of-print recordings, and others had merely been sharing their own recordings. It's not clear yet if Lemaire has deployed some sort of automated DCMA-bot intent on maximzing blogosphere entropy, but his ability to wreak widespread havoc is clearly thanks to Mediafire, which is suspending accounts purely on the basis of unproven accusations of copyright infringement.

You can follow a running discussion about this ongoing controversy here in the comments to a post at the iamtheleastmachiavellian.

    
Orchestre du Bawobab ~ Visages du Senegaal
(Blog: Blue Beat in My Soul)

Specialist in All Styles
"Amongst certain circles of Afro-funk fans, 'Kelen Ati Len' is probably the best-known song by this Dakar band but this LP is hardly a one-tracker. No doubt, 'Kelen Ati Len' is killer with its crashing drums and angular guitar work. It’s like Bawobab/Baobab members had spent a few years jamming with the Kashmere Stage Band before returning to Senegal."  (Descriptions by O-Dub, at Soul-Sides)

This Is The Plague & This Is The Punk

New York City college students decide to make a record.  In the eighties. 

When was the last time this particular arithmetic resulted in anything less than embarrassment or a Pavlovian gag reflex? 

And the db’s don’t count cos they were from Winston-Salem. 

Maybe The Speedies? Certainly well before the Feelies made the world safe for jumpy rhythms and nerd glasses. And I haven’t ever even heard the Feelies!

What I have heard though is The Plague:  two guys from Long Island attending The University Of West Hartford Connecticut who are seemingly pissed off at just about everything happening in America circa 1983. 

The Cold War, MTV, Jewish American Princesses, gonorrhea  - all this has gotta go says The Plague (no ‘hey-hey’s’, no ‘ho-ho’s’, no Ramones and thankfully also no trace of hardcore)!  While pursuing their academic studies in the Nutmeg State, our bubonic duo spent their summers back home in the loving embrace of Strong Island (birthplace of Lou Reed AND Eddie Money) and, as legend has it, aired out all their many grievances in the guitar-player-slash-singer’s parents’ house over the course of two days. 

First take, last take, good enough (not sure who played the piano parts).

What you’re left with is nothing less than a cruddy milestone mess of a record.  Giving O.Rex, Afrika Korps and The Screamin’ Mee-Mee’s a run for their money, the ineptitude and bile of The Plague burns brighter than a thousand tanning bed lamps and alone more than compensates for the existence and career of Vinny Testaverde.  Even Maximum Rock ‘N’ Roll agreed, calling ‘Catch The Plague’ “A great example of the true spirit of D.I.Y. punk, the likes of which haven't been heard in many a year.”

But please - don’t allow the imprimatur of MRR to dissuade you from enjoying these wonderful sounds.  Everyone knows they’re lame and the Plague are the furthest thing from MDC.

As a final uninteresting aside as to how a perpetual low-hanging-fruit grabber like myself reached up to fondle this particular top-shelf teet that has in the past changed hands for multiple of hundreds of dollars, I employed the ole ‘my uncle/dad/near relation was in the band and is sick/is dying/is dying to have a copy before he dies’ end-the-auction-early ebay gambit.  May not be Colt 45, but it works more-than-most of the time and it did here.  More importantly, this time it allowed me to catch and now to spread The Plague.

It's My Life | Kill All Japs | Superheroes | Addiction | This Is The Punk | Resting On Your Laurels | Getting Ready | The Clap | War Dreams | World War III | Do The Garbarge | MTV

Mining the Audio Motherlode, Volume 181

Give the Drummer Some's
Favorite Downloads from the MP3 Blogosphere 

Like buying a used record with a previous owner's name on it, sometimes MP3 files for an album appearing on one blog are traceable — through the unique set of pops and clicks heard on the original vinyl — to a posting of the same recording at another. This usurping of someone else's links (not to mention their efforts to rip the tracks and scan the cover art) is generally frowned upon in the blog world, but sometimes a new blogger will step in to resurrect access to a great old record whose original link is no longer working.

Occasionally, you can follow the MP3 files for the same slab of vinyl as it gets shared and re-shared at different blogs over time. Take for example the lead item in today's Motherlode. Originally posted in 2010 at  A Pyrex Scholar, it was almost immediately re-posted at another blog called Smokin' Drops (whose proprietor apologized for the breach of blog etiquette, then never posted another record!). At some point during the past two years, the original Pyrex link were removed, but Smokin' Drops' offering of the same files is still available. Now stepping into the fray is a new blog called An Ism to Horns and Beats, which has served up the very same record — and the same MP3 files — all over again. One imagines that someday soon, the Smokin' Drops link will die and the new blog will continue carrying the torch.

Whenever and from whomever you satisfy your music Jones online, just be sure to grab this gem before all links are gone for good.

Tommy McGee  ~  Positive-Negative
(Blog: An Ism to Horns and Beats)

Bi-Polar
"Basically it's stupid rare and your never gonna see let alone own a copy!  (Description by The Purist, at A Pyrex Scholar)

 

 

 

Chew Tobacco Rag (MP3s)

What was 1951's loopiest and most contagious hillbilly novelty song?  Judging by the number of cover versions it spawned, it had to be Chew Tobacco Rag, written and originally recorded by Texan Billy Briggs for the Imperial label.  Briggs' version never managed to chart, but Zeb Turner's version, released on King, made it all the way to within spitting distance of topping the charts, finally losing momentum at #8.

 Pictured: Billy Briggs.

 

 

Billy Briggs  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

Zeb Turner  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

Sandy Nelson  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

Spade Cooley  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

Billy Jack Wills  -  Tobacco Chewing Boogie

Lucky Millinder  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

Arthur Smith  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

Dave & Deke Combo  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

Rex Turner  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

Pee Wee King  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

Ray Campi  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

Al Trace & His Orchestra  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

Los Carayos  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

Red Ingle  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

Don Johnson  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

Mack Burgess  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

Jim Pipkins  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

Bon Ton Roulet  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

Six String Eric & His Lazy Ranch Hands  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

Del Gillman  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

Buz Butler  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

"Doc" Tommy Scott  -  Chew Tobacco Rag

Billy Briggs  -  Chew Tobacco Rag #2

Marlo & Slim  -  Chew Tobacco Rag #2

Eddie Ware  -  Lima Beans

JFK Tribute 45's from the Fringes (MP3's)

November 22, 1963, saw the end of John F. Kennedy's life, and, as many have observed, the end of many hopes, dreams and wishes, of a certain innocence, and of any success for Vaughn Meader. But literally within days, the events on that Dallas afternoon had given birth to a new cottage industry, that of JFK tribute records. Has anyone been to a rummage sale, estate sale or used record sale without coming across at least a few copies of Kennedy tribute LP's?  

More interesting to me than the mass produced big budget albums from the major labels are the one-off singles done with perhaps more sincerity than talent. For your consideration today, here are two of them. 

Johnny Tucker appears to have made only one single for the obscure Sonic label. The record is undated, but one online source indicates that the backing band heard here is listed on some copies (although not mine) as The Pastels, aka The Vigilantes. Johnny's tribute is simply titled "Mr. Kennedy", and is straightforward enough until about the halfway point, where someone made the bizarre decision - one I can't remember ever hearing on a record - of having a spoken word section double tracked, made even weirder by the fact that the two vocals are ever so slightly out of synch with each other! 

I've included the flip side, "Walk With Me" (which does not related in any way to Kennedy) for completists: 

Johnny Tucker - Mr Kennedy (MP3)  |  Johnny Tucker - Walk With Me (MP3)  | Johnny Tucker A-side Label  |  Johnny Tucker B-side Label

Song-Poem companies also made hay off of the Kennedy tragedy. Today's other record came from the Sterling song-poem factory in Boston, and features one of my favorite song-poem singers, Norm Burns. My particular love for this singer is fairly hard to explain, if all you have in evidence is this record, which is fairly awful in both writing and performance, but there are enough examples of his gifts here to demonstrate why I think so highly of him.

This record, however, is more entertaining for its deficits, particularly some of the choices made by the songwriter, who contributed the lyrics to both sides. The more famous song here is "John F. Kennedy Was Called Away", which was included in both the first (LP) and second (CD) song-poem compilations released, back in the '90's, and again, I'll include that here, both because it fits the topic, and because there may be some who haven't heard it. The flip side has not been heard outside of those of us obsessives in the song-poem collecting world, and it shares some of the same qualities with its more famous record-mate. It's called "John F. Kennedy's Election Race". 

The laziness (or perhaps incompetence) of the songwriter really calls attention to itself. I particularly like: 

 "And now he is gone, and all we can do is sing these songs" (did the obvious and more effective rhyme "carry on" really not occur to the writer?)

(about Oswald): "He saw that there's really no use, because there's nothing anyone wanted to do."   (um...huh?)

"He did not discriminate any race.... (he) tried to keep each and every one in his place" (well, which was it?)

"Now in West Berlin, he had been"

And my favorite is the way the lyrics to "Election Race" build up to the big finish, that last important line, in which we learn that: 

"John F. Kennedy loved our air force base!"

This record, by the way, came out nowhere near time of the events it describes, but rather, was produced some time around 1972. 

Norm Burns and the Five Stars - John F Kennedys Election Race (MP3)  |  Norm Burns and the Five Stars - John F Kennedy Was Called Away (MP3)  |  "Election Race" Label  |  "Called Away" Label 

 

David Carradine Sings Gilbert Shelton

Gilbert Shelton, gifted storyteller, cartoonist and illustrator, was another of the small party of terrific early 'underground'   creators of the 1960's and '70's who influenced not only my visual design education but my ideas of plot construction and even my perceptions of radio and record collecting. I've tried to locate where and why David Carradine decided to record a solo version of a cute and memorable (even though I was at first confused about the page - not  having a hard copy of it in a book conviniently available, I was thinking it was a Robert Crumb page {sorry Gilbert!}, and finally remembered that it was a rare Shelton one-off page) Gilbert Shelton strip from Bijou Funnies # 01, 1968, but have not yet found a first-hand account by Carradine; his discography is rather spottily documented, it appears.  I must have discovered this strip through the very rare, and probably bootleg, or at least grey-market, 1970's reprint paperback my father gave me, and like so many of the better-executed underground works (the first book my dad pointed me to was Justin Green's incredible and rightly acclaimed 'Binky Brown Meets the Holy Virgin Mary'- a mind-bender at nine or less years old...), these stories really rattled your cage in those days of less/less extreme media saturation. When I've read more about the story behind this record I'll post it here, but in the meantime, enjoy this short piece by David Carradine, music-lover and guitar collector, doing a lovely and letter-perfect version of this bit of funky Texan hippie poetry.

 Set My Chickens Free

Mining the Audio Motherlode, Volume 180

Give the Drummer Some's
Favorite Downloads from the MP3 Blogosphere 

This past Monday I took part in a panel discussion as part of WFMU's series of Radio Free Culture broadcasts. Titled The Rise and Fall of MP3 Blogs, the confab posed the following question: "Has the music blogosphere's golden age already passed us by?"

My fellow panelists seemed for the most part ready to embrace the notion that our best days of free and unfettered music sharing are behind us. But from my perspective, there's just no time to mourn the loss of excellent blogs when there are so many more passionate and creative music obsessives clamoring online to share their record collections!

And while there is plenty to lament about the state of the blogging landscape, as long as great records keep getting posted, I'll keep bathing them in the warm glow of my miner's helmet.

 

Ruth Ben-Zvi  ~  Israeli Percussion
(Blog: Sun Ship)

The Chosen Drum
"Using her fingertips, open palms, elbows and clenched fists, Ruth creates a whole new world of music from a primitive drum whose sound is powerful yet delicate, caressing and wild, capable of imitating human speech when in the hands of a master player."  (From the liner notes)

[Some may find it noteworthy that Spike Lee's father, Bill, plays bass on this record.]

 

Paul Weston & His Orchestra - Reflections Of An Indian Boy [1955]

Issued in 1955 on the Columbia label, Reflections Of An Indian Boy is an homage to composer Carl Fischer's ethnicity, which, when spun, comes to life as an intriguing entry in the catalog of '50s popular music.

First off, I want to say a few words about Paul Weston. A well-known conductor, Weston was probably one of the most prolific names in Light Music from the '40s and '50s. During the last few years of the 1950s and into the '60s, he also contributed some very unique albums to the "Exotica" repertory. In the early days of his career, Paul Weston was associated, to an extent, with Johnny Mercer (the man behind Capitol Records), and Jo Stafford (a '40s and '50s vocalist). As turns out, Weston was the Musical Director and Repertoire consultant for Capitol during its earliest years, as well as a recording artist for the label. In 1950, both Weston and Stafford switched over to Columbia Records and both continued to release album after album throughout the decade. Then, in the late '50s and early '60s, Weston's albums began to feature more provocative cover art and weirder arrangement/recording styles. It's my impression that he was actually the creator of the mood music style, the likes of which dominated popular music produced during the '50s and gradually evolved into the much more sensational sounds we know of as Exotica, Space Age Pop, and most Incredibly Strange Music.

Reflections of an Indian Boy | At The Pool | Maiden's Prayer | Loma | Wedding Feast | Lullaby | Big Brave Song | Squaw's Lament | Ceremonial War Dance

Northern Haze: Badass Inuit Heavies

Igloolik, way up in the Canadian arctic some 1,800 miles north of Ottawa, seems to be an unlikely place for a heavy rock band to flourish, but Northern Haze have played a proud, uncompromised Sabbath-tinged catalogue of songs since 1978. In their native Inuit tongue. As the story goes, the four friends took up instruments provided by a local community center, most songs written by singer/guitarist Kolitalik Inukshuk. With cofounder Naisana Qamaniq they started up weekends gigs channeling faves like Pink Floyd, Hendrix, and Zep, but a clear vision started to develop quickly and the CBC took notice and ushered them into studios for demos and recording. Travel grants and growing notoriety allowed the band (at first called Northern Lights) to travel around Canada, and throughout they remained true to their wish to deliver their music to Northern communities with occasional festival shows in larger cities. CBC serviced limited edition LPs to stations and libraries and broadcast their music nationwide. Their activity slowed down in 1987 with a restart in 1999, then Elijah passed away from cancer in 2007, and Kolitalik was murdered only days later. The group revamped with a few new members, and in 2009 Jason Flower of Supreme Echo Records discovered their music while researching Canadian Inuit recordings. Flower trekked out to the Arctic with a documentary filmmaker in tow, three weeks of rekindled rock, nature treks and raw meat consumption ensued and now an amazing LP Sinnaktuq comprised of 1985-2010 recordings is out. Thanks to Jason for letting us share an MP3: "Qaina". Killer! Copies are fleeting, but we're told Numero and Fusetron have some.

Mining the Audio Motherlode, Volume 179

Give the Drummer Some's
Favorite Downloads from the MP3 Blogosphere 

If you enjoy the survey of sounds covered in these weekly Motherlodes, you should check out Give the Drummer Radio, a 24-hour webstream I created for WFMU in the summer of 2010. Initially, the stream was intended as a platform for continuing to broadcast my radio show after a move to Pittsburgh mandated that it come off WFMU's main broadcast schedule. After establishing my show on the stream, it occurred to me that I could use the stream as a means for presenting other great radio shows as well, and now the thing serves up a half dozen additional genius music obsessives on a weekly basis.

In its default mode—listen anytime here or via mobile device (info here)—Give the Drummer Radio plays a continuous flow of adventurous, unusual and lovely sounds such as you find here in Mining the Audio Motherlode. The schedule for hosted programs on the stream is here. You can hear all of the shows live on the stream, or archived for listening when its convenient. For updates and alerts, follow the stream on Twitter, like it on Facebook or email (send a request here).

 

Nitin Mangesh  ~  Aafat
(Blog: Music from the Third Floor)

Phat
"...great title music; multi-faceted like a miniature suite and dramatic throughout, the action packed 'Koi Kahe Main Khanjar Hoon,' the funky, druggy and decidedly Burmanesque 'Yeh Nasha Jaan Meri Hai,' and finally the fabulous effect filled and fun sounding 'Rajni Hai Mera Naam.' I'm no expert on Bollywood movies, but I doubt there are that many song & dance numbers featuring disembodied singing heads. I approve."  (Description by PC, at Music from the Third Floor)

 

George Jones & Tammy Wynette

Upon returning from a trip to Mexico on August 22, 1968, Tammy Wynette formally announced her marriage to George Jones.  If Tammy hadn't been lying, today would be the 44th anniversary of their marriage.  In reality, however, the couple got hitched six months later, on February 16, 1969 in Ringgold, Georgia, a frequent destination for Nashville elopers in those days.

Following their marriage, the couple relocated to Lakeland, Florida, where, adjacent to their home on Central Barn Road, they opened a short-lived outdoor country music venue called the Old Plantation Music Park.

Speaking of country music shows, George Jones recently announced that next year he's officially retiring from the road following a farewell tour that will take him to approximately 60 cities.  If he comes to your town, you should probably go.

George Jones & Tammy Wynette  -  Just Someone I Used To Know

George Jones & Tammy Wynette  -  Two Story House

Notes: 1.  Unlike most of the MP3s I post here, these two songs are still very findable in the marketplace, so they're offered here in truncated versions.  2.  The photo above was borrowed from the 2010 book Tammy Wynette: Tragic Country Queen by Jimmy McDonough.

The Rise & Fall of MP3 Blogs — guest post by Casey Rae

The history of the MP3 is one of technological innovation, consumer demand and all-too-persistent litigation, often against those very consumers who embraced the format in the heady post-Napster days. The story of this resilient digital audio file has been recounted many times — from the recording industry’s early wars of attrition to the MP3s role in the filesharing explosion to the bloggers who help curate an oversaturated music marketplace.

What doesn’t garner as much discussion is how the MP3 format — celebrated, reviled or somewhere in-between — has come to define the digital music experience, both for millions of listeners, and for those who help drive discovery. At one point, not so long ago, music bloggers sat near the top of the curatorial heap, using MP3s to help create overnight stars out of teenage indie rockers. Others highlighted niche genres and aural nuggets from decades past.

At first, MP3 bloggers were seen by the industry as freeloading pariahs, but eventually even the major labels came to embrace this segment of the online music community. Seeking a promotional fast track, the PR flaks hit the blogosphere hard, cultivating relationships with known tastemakers. Eventually, the pursuit of musical passion became a business concern, or at worse, a hassle.

I was a full-time music writer back when CDs were the promotional norm. Over the course of time, the padded envelopes slowed to a trickle and my inbox was flooded with MP3s from labels and publicists. It was frankly hard to keep up. The annoyance factor eventually contributed to my decision to do something different with my life.

I know I’m not alone. Looking around these days, you could be forgiven for thinking the “music blogger bubble” has popped. There are likely several reasons beyond inbox fatigue. The rise of “social music” — where friend networks replace curation via instant “recommendations” on platforms like Facebook — surely has something to do with it. But listening habits are also changing. No longer is downloading necessarily the fastest and most convenient way to get your musical fix.

When thinking about the future for MP3 blogging, it’s instructive to consider how younger generations discover and access music. The listening behaviors of those under 20 can tell us a lot about how aspects of our networked world might evolve. A new Nielsen survey suggests that YouTube has overtaken radio and CDs as the primary way American teens listen to music. At 64 percent, YouTube listening is even ahead of iTunes, which comes in at just over 50 percent. YouTube, is of course, a “streaming” platform, which presents a potential challenge to downloading culture.

In other words, streaming access is rapidly becoming a norm. Recent reports show that Warner Music now counts streaming as 25 percent of its overall digital music revenue. This is certainly significant for a sector that has struggled for more than a decade with the implications of online music.

A Small Gatherings of Friends (Exploring My Reel-to-Reel Catacombs, Volume 32) (MP3's)

Time was, when a group of friends would get together, they'd fire up the reel to reel recorder and spend a few minutes recording the visit for posterity. Sometimes it might be conversation, sometimes it might be skits, sometimes it might be music. For me, finding such recordings on a secondhand reels of tape is like successfully panning for gold must be for a prospector. There is something special about hearing people enjoying each others company, and listening to the full throated, untrained but enthusiastic singing that rises up on such occasions. Today, two significantly different groups of people, recorded (mostly likely) not so many years apart from each other, enjoying fellowship and singing around the piano. 

In the first tape, features a group of perhaps a half-dozen young adults. I believe this tape was in the same batch of tapes from which I excerpted the off color fairy tales two months ago, and two of the voices here sound to me like the same people who were on that tape. Don't be put off by the fairly out-of-tune rendition of "Row Row Row Your Boat" that leads off this segment - it gets more interesting, as they spend about 15 minutes going through a surprisingly wide variety of music. Throughout the eight or so songs, there is a great, infectious energy and a strong feeling of friendship. 

My favorite point is probably when they veer from the traditional hymn "Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty" directly into Tom Lehrer's wonderfully macabre "I Hold Your Hand in Mind". Another highlight is a version of "Jamaica Farewell" which manages to feature moments both of lovely harmony at some points and of seemingly tone-deaf singing at others. Then there's the moment that everyone in the group repeats an off color phrase, moments before launching into yet another hymn ("For the Beauty of the Earth"). If you stick around until the end, you'll hear a switch from piano to some nice acoustic guitar playing and a spirited rendition of "Bill Bailey". 

Unknown Group of Friends - Hymns and Folk Songs (MP3)

The second recording features another group of friends, older than the first group, and made up of three couples, I believe, named (if I've heard things right) The Beaumonts, the Curtises and the Cohens, and a seventh person named Clara (another couple is mentioned later, but they do not seem to be heard on the recording). The recording here lasts about ten minutes. After the host couple engage in a bit of banter about recording their friends, and some giving of thanks, the other couples arrive, and more bantering for the microphone ensues. 

A brief, sweet rendition of "Always" is followed by some joking comments about the performance, then a longer version of a song I don't recognize, and more jolly comments.

The remainder of the tape, as you'll hear, is poorly recorded, and I have cut out a lengthy solo version of the song "Some Enchanted Evening", sung by one of the women, due to it being particularly badly recorded. This rendition is referenced in the closing two minutes of the tape, in which various people present make some closing comments and thank their hosts for a nice evening. 

The Beaumonts, The Curtises, and the Cohens - Conversation and Songs (MP3)

Mining the Audio Motherlode, Volume 178

Give the Drummer Some's
Favorite Downloads from the MP3 Blogosphere 

If you're new to the Motherlode, let me take a moment out of my maniacal head-long search for great music to explain. For the past 25 years I've produced a radio show for WFMU. The station's format is nominally freeform, which essentially means there is no predetermined format. Each DJ on the air makes their own idiosyncratic choices of what to say and play, and for the duration of that show represents exactly what WFMU is. For me, WFMU represents the opportunity to share my own personal musical epiphanies in a communal setting.

In recent years, my search for sounds to share on the radio has led to the ever-widening online universe of music-sharing blogs. Mining the Audio Motherlode is weekly survey of my favorite such discoveries. Let me know what you think.

 

Getatchew Mèkurya  ~  ???
(Blog: Awesome Tapes from Africa)

Titanic Tenor
Listen for ten seconds to any solo by this titan of Ethiopian saxophone and his primary influence seems obvious: free-jazz apostle Albert Ayler. But Mèkurya, only a year older than Ayler, actually began playing professionally when his American counterpart—whom he has never heard—was still taking private lessons. Chronologies aside, the abundant points of comparison are separated-at-birth spooky. They both play with a strained, breathless attack; a chanted-not-sung delivery; a wildly oscillating vibrato; and a pacific lyricism thinly veiling a molten spirit.  (Description from my Favorites of '03 page)