November Thoughts

There seems to be some viewers coming in from the cold.  So thought I pop in to let the world know the Crab Curator of Record World is still around.

The major story is the major winter storm that dumped a foot of snow, an all time record in November in the Quad Cities and Iowa City got 7 inches of the lovely white crap but up here in Cedar Rapids we missed out.  Which doesn't break my heart.  The car doesn't do well trying to get up an icy 2 inch snow cover that we had two weeks ago.  We missed out but rest assured I saw the storm from afar as I made my way to Stone City to play in the Acoustic Showcase Sunday.  Snowstorms do glow in the darkness.  We were supposed to have 4 to 6 and a Winter Storm Warning was issued, but as Saturday Night progressed on and waking up to take pee breaks and looking outside, all I saw was brown grounds and howling winds.  But no snow. Sunday Morning, the storm teased and threatened us but nothing came of it.  But I was watching the Rochelle Train cam and watching that turned into the nightmarish scene from the Shining of blurry lights and a blinding snow with an occasional snow covered train coming in from time to time.  In the meantime, Oskaloosa got 17 inches of snow and traffic stalled on the I-80, but up here, the winds howl and nothing came out of the skies.    On Monday, The Quad Cities continue to dig themselves out of a foot of snow and traffic is still not recommended.  But this does seem to signal that winter, it will be a lot more snowy and colder than previous.  And, as most people know, I'm no fan of the snow or cold.  But we did managed to miss this storm,

If Kane Brown was pop he'd be taken more seriously than his "country" album.  I have no use for him, autotuned rap masquerading as country isn't for me but the folks at Saving Country Music wrote up the review.  We'll take them at their word on this forgettable album that nobody will remember a year from now.  As with new music anyway.  https://www.savingcountrymusic.com/album-review-kane-browns-experiment/?fbclid=IwAR2BMTdvFiFSF8PVckKJK0QEB-SNiQre3SdRZnHzu_KJQ-MNgwGtpOD44J0

I'm surprised at the ratings jump for the month here since Record World is no longer an active blog, unless I find a bunch of 45s to write about.   12 years ago, Record World came into being after My Space decided to drop the blog and I toiled around in another obscure website before using Blogspot.  So far the archives are full of forgotten songs, thoughts and sports related nonsense and some eye candy.  And some of the old pictures have disappeared, never to be seen again.  I try my best to keep things up for use and replace the old deleted pictures but nowadays it seems like a lost cause.  Time flies and yes I spend too much time on the internet, 12 years gone just like that.  I do have a special friend (not GF) that I get together every now and then and go watch a movie with or hang at the house.  As they say, It's complicated.  Like you and yours.

The big story and reissue is The Beatles White Album which has loads of outtakes but that has never been one of my favorite albums and most of the highlights were on Anthology anyway.  I have gotten burned out of rebuying these albums back in the past. I did decide on the single CD of More Blood More Tracks, rather than buying the complete coffee table 6 CD box set of the Blood On The Tracks sessions.    Probably would have been better had Columbia issued the first edition of BOTT but for a different view, the single CD More Blood will do.  But it won't replace the original go to album.

Samantha Fish, the Kansas City dynamo guitar blues slinger has been signed to Rounder Records after many years on Ruf.  Fish has managed to play in this neighborhood on a regular basis for close to 8 years now and continues to get better.

Paste Magazine has already put together a the best of 2018 albums and I don't have any of the top 50 albums at all.  Kinda like that in 2017.  I have no use for Father John Misty, he tends to be one of those overblown critics darlings and the last album I heard I didn't care much for.  The only album I thought about was Ashley McBridye Girl Going Nowhere, and it's more country than Kasey Musgraves last album, which Kasey made her pop move.  From what I heard on You Tube, Ashley's songs are more folk than country and make nice background music at coffee houses.  A bit too mellow for my listening consumption.

RIP Steve Hillenburg https://variety.com/2018/tv/news/spongebob-squarepants-creator-dead-dies-stephen-hillenburg-1203037362/?fbclid=IwAR2gWdoOorvfqJzM9GLqCDUMKMXRlar6CWvK84JU3aX70tit1xQKB19HJkk


In decemeber I'll try to put together the best of 2018 in music and of course the famed Crabby Awards for best places but that list is also shorter than usual.   Plus we await who will be the next Rock and Roll Hall Of Famers for next year, but the interest is waning on that too.  But I am surprised at the surge of readership this month  Even when this was dormant for a while.

Sit back, do nothing and watch the ratings rise.  But we're  back to only 40 or less views per day.

Back to normal again.

2018 Worst Country Singles: https://www.savingcountrymusic.com/saving-country-musics-worst-songs-of-2018/?fbclid=IwAR3xAWWmjURipJ4f_TNRglxh0VYmB94hjz1FqJrXiKAzbLMFVnbINzsIptM



Reissues:

10 Years After:  A Space In Time, Going Home, Live At The Fillmore East (Chrysalis)

Remastered for the digipack era,  A Space In Time Returns back in print and it still might be their best overall album, tho' time has treated Rock N Roll Music To The World better it seems but that record lacks I'd Love To Change The World.  It's not the B minus album that Robert Christgau claimed it is (Not enough hip hop or African World Music to his liking) but it still remains a solid listening especially on the second side with I've Been There Too, or Once Upon A Time.  In theory, Alvin Lee was never much of a lyricist and he does recycle the Good Morning Little Schoolgirl riff on Let The Sky Fall.  His jams are hit and miss but One Of These Days is solid boogie and Baby Let Me Rock And Roll You is 2 minutes of boogie fun.

In 1978 London Records in the US, on their death bed issued Going Home, a very spotty best of, that is about as half assed as they come, taking three songs off Stonedhedge (at that time out of print in the us), the single edit of Love Like A Man and side two started with I Woke Up This Morning and a cut from Undead and then the crowd pleasing I'm Going Home from Woodstock, Lee's signature song.  10 Minutes of in your face boogie rock, then after the 2 minute mark extending the song to boring proportions.  Better seen live when trying to hear it fifty years after the fact.  I have good memories of Going Home, I bought it on a sky blue cassette,cheaply made that sounded like crap in the car, especially on cold winter days which was the winter of 78-79.  Unless you're a completest, Going Home isn't essential and since Stonedhedge  is still in print, redundant.  However, this is the first time it has been issued on CD and under the Chrysalis banner to which most if not all 10 years after albums are now under.

Which leaves us to Live At The Fillmore East, which Capitol issued in 2002.  Before that, we had Recorded Live, a bloated 1973 2 LP set that Columbia released and to these ears a better way to check out the Alvin Lee Guitar show, but that album is much more polished than the rough drafts of the 1970 set. Lee and company go through a 20 minute I Can't Keep From Cryin Sometimes and a 16 minute blistering Help Me, to which I'm Going Home in it's 11:57 glory seems to be a Ramones type run through.  Make no mistake, Alvin Lee cooks on lead guitar but fifty years on, droning 10 plus minute guitar tend to lose favor and attention spans and on Ric Lee's 10 minute drum soloing on The Hobbit still remains boring as hell, a bathroom break for all of the other guys.  Another complaint: Alvin can't remember the words to Sweet Little 16 to save his ass, it didn't help him on Watt (which might be the same version as the Fillmore). And if you make it past the other blotched Chuck Berry cover, you get a new run through on I Woke Up This Morning and the concluding Spoonful . In the long run, Recorded Live was the better and more tolerable effort.  For excessive rock noodling Live At The Fillmore East is Lee's grand statement.

Grades:
A Space In Time:  A-
Recorded Live B-
Going Home: Greatest Hits: C+
Live At The Fillmore East C+