Monday 28 July 2008

The Black Version




Just been recording some Soul and Funk to burn onto C.D. for the car and realized half way through the day that a lot of the tracks I was converting are covers, or 'versions' of other peoples music. So, I've decided to put 60 minutes worth of these versions together for your downloading pleasure. Nothing mega rare or particularly hard to find on the internet but some nice bits that I've picked up at the boot-sales and charity shops over the years. I was gonna write about each individual song but you can find out anything you need to know with a quick google search. There's a few Bill Withers tunes, some Sly & The Family Stone, a couple of Beatles tracks, and a whole bunch of other artists music. Break spotters will pick up on some of the samples used by Buckwild, Lord Finesse, Rza, DJ Spinna, Dr Dre, and T-Ray. Check back next week for the 'Secret Squirrel' edition where I'm gonna go deep with some crazy 'white boy' versions. You'll have to forgive the odd crackle here and there, all songs are recorded from the ORIGINAL vinyl pressings...


1. The Shirelles "Ain't No Sunshine" (1972 RCA Records U.K.)
2. Ike Turner, Tina Turner & Home Grown Funk "Use Me" (1980 Fantasy Records U.S.)
3. Al Jarreau "Kissing My Love" (1976 Timewind Germany)
4. Gladys Knight and the Pips "Thank You" (1973 Motown Soul U.S.)
5. Clydie King & Brown Sugar "Dance To The Music" (1973 Chelsea Records U.S.)
6. John L. Watson with White Mouse "I Get Lifted" (1975 Spark U.K.)
7. O.V. Wright "Let's Straighten It Out" (1978 Hi U.S.)
8. Brook Benton "Born Under A Bad Sign" (1970 Cotillion U.S.)
9. O.C. Smith "Hey Jude" (1969 CBS U.K.)
10. The 5th Dimension "Ticket To Ride" (1971 Bell U.S.)
11. Melba Moore "Walk A Mile In My Shoes/25 Miles" (1971 Mercury U.S.)
12. Little Royal "Another Woman's Man" (1972 Tri Us / King U.S.)
13. King Curtis "You're The One" (1972 Atlantic U.K.)
14. Jackie Wilson "Light My Fire" (1968 Brunswick U.S.)
15. The Chequers "Get Up Stand Up" (1970 Creole U.K.)
16. Melvin Van Pebbles "Superstition" (1973 Atlantic U.S.)


Mr Krum "The Black Version"



Wednesday 23 July 2008

John O'Hara and the Playboys


Initially for this post, I was only gonna write about John O'Hara and the Playboys' "Both Sides" LP, but since it's pretty much a one tracker I've decided to focus on the song rather than the whole album. The track in question is "Why Did You Do It?" by Stretch. A classic mid '70s club tune, which I'm not gonna describe as straight up funk, as it was made by a white Rock group from England. It definitely has a funky groove though and never fails to fill a dance-floor. I always assumed the song was about a cheating girlfriend but after some brief research turned up a more interesting story...

The band was put together on the initiation of Mick Fleetwood, to perform as Fleetwood Mac on a US tour, because of outstanding contractual obligations. Unfortunately, Fleetwood was unable to join the band for personal reasons, and part way through the tour it was realised that there was no original member of Fleetwood Mac in the band. The tour collapsed because the band was declaimed as a bogus Fleetwood Mac. The lyric of "Why Did You Did It?" was actually a direct attack on Mick Fleetwood for his failure to join the band on the ill-fated Fleetwood Mac tour.

The 45 of this track reached No.2 in the U.K. charts and is obviously as common as any other hit single. I've had it for years and see it at nearly every boot-sale I go to, so if you need a copy just head down to your local Sunday morning gathering and grab one for 25 pence or so. A couple of years ago, I picked up another version by South African singer Margaret Singana. Her album "Tribal Fence" features a cover of James Brown's "It's A Man's Man's World" which is what attracted my attention, but it wasn't until I got home and played it that I noticed the Stretch song. And what a great version it is too. All the dance-floor appeal of the original but with a smoother groove and lovely vocals. Turns out this is only fairly well known, so I was pleased to have an alternative version to play out.

Not long after I found the Margaret Singana album, I picked up this John O'Hara and the Playboys set - "Both Sides". Released in 1977 on the obscure U.K. label 'Look Records'. Signed on the back 'To Jean, Reg & Carol...from John O'Hara...be good...XXX'. It was obviously an album they used to sell at gigs, so I always assumed them to be a cabaret act. If you check Popsike though you'll see an early album on Fontana that fetches big money. This record however, was made nearly 15 years later, and by the late '70s it looks like they'd fallen back to the club circuit after some initial success in the big time recording industry. The album as a whole is your typical cabaret selection with everything from light Easy Listening to current Pop hits of the time. There's a version of 'Superstition' (which was why I took a gamble on the album in the first place), but the drum break is weak and the rest of the song isn't much better either. The Stretch cover kills it though. Really raw production and a great instrumental workout in the second half. It's also quite amusing to hear John's Scottish accent creeping through at times. Licorice Soul included a version of "Funky Nassau" by the band on the superb "Working Man's Soul" compilation a couple of years back but I've yet to find the album it originally came from.


So there you have it, three different versions of one classic song. If you know of any others, let me know...


Stretch "Why Did You Did It?" (1975 Anchor U.K. 45)



Margaret Singana "Why Did You Do It?" (1977 Jo'Burg African L.P. track)



John O'Hara and the Playboys "Why Did You Do It?" (1977 Look Records U.K. L.P. track)



Sunday 20 July 2008

The Wallabee Champ


The only trainers I buy are Nikes, and the only 'proper' shoes I buy are Clarks. Clarks' Wallabees to be precise. Effortlessly stylish, never dated and comfy as you like. Ghostface, amongst others, has a particular soft spot for the luxury suede footwear, naming an entire album after them and also concocting some of the most hideous colour combos known to man for the sleeve of his 'Ironman' LP. I prefer to stick with the standard tan or 'chestnut' brown hi-tops, but Ghost obviously has a more flamboyant approach. Anyway, here's a little promotional 45 probably released in the late 60's or early 70's (no date on label), dedicated the classic British comfort shoe. 'Walking Free' is a soft pop groove very typical of advertising jingles of the time. Bright and chirpy with a positive message...lovely Sunday morning driving music. Enjoy.





Unknown artist 'Walking Free' (196/7? Clarks promo 45)



Saturday 19 July 2008

Blank Cassette Tapes


A friend of mine recently put me up on some really dope artwork that featured on blank audio cassettes made in the 70's and early 80's, so as well as searching for vinyl on my travels, I have now taken to keeping an eye out for tapes as well. The beauty is, hardly anybody wants them, so when they do turn up people are normally happy to give them away. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not into this from some nerdy collectors point of view (and there are serious tape collectors out there), this is strictly about the graphics. Here's a few examples I picked up this morning. Bought all 6 tapes along with '3 Feet High & Rising' (on CD for the car), and a sh*tty Easy Listening LP for £1.00. Can't complain about that...















































I'm gonna update this post from time to time whenever I pick up more goodies, so keep checking back...

Thursday 17 July 2008

No Serato? (part 2)




If you're still using vinyl, you gotta keep them babies clean, and what better way to do it than with Bib's 'Record Care Kit'? The complete package for the connoisseur, it includes a 'record dust-off', a 'turntable cleaning cloth', 'stylus & turntable liquid', a 'stylus cleaning brush' and even a 'turntable spirit level'! The main feature, a 'GROOVE-KLEEN modern automatic record cleaner' is unfortunately missing, but everything else is untouched and box fresh. I totally forgot I had this, but whilst trying to locate my 'Record Vacuum' found it at the back of a cupboard with some other bits I'll post later. I bought this about 5 years ago from a house clearance bloke down at the train station boot-sale (R.I.P). It's quite sad sieving through someones lifetime belongings and even sadder to come across hundreds of family photos, holiday slides, cine films, etc, that nobody apparently wanted. Anyway, I bought this and a batch of Easy Listening LP's for a couple of quid. The records were all sh*t, but this box and it's contents are dope - just a shame the 'GROOV-KLEEN' is M.I.A.



Tuesday 15 July 2008

Raw Breed - Rollin' Deep


It's about that time again for a 'serious' Hip-Hop post, and this week I've pulled out a nice slab of black wax made in the Bronx. Raw Breed's "Rollin' Deep" 12" single - released in 1992 on what I'm presuming is their own label, PSK Records. Six tracks in all with Street, Radio and Instrumentals for both "Rollin' Deep" and the flip side track "Hard Life". Although the Street versions are credited on the labels as 'remixes', they are in fact, exactly the same as the Radio edits, obviously with the offending lyrics included.

I picked this up at a boot-sale around a year ago along with their "Rabbit Stew" 12", both sealed and for 50p a piece. To be honest, if they'd have been much more I probably would have left them. I already had the "Lune Tunz" album (also purchased at a boot-sale) and although the beats are pretty dope, the rapping really grinds on me. Alexander The Great, Marc Rippin' and Nick Swift were all trying to sound like other 'popular' rappers from that early '90s period (think Onyx, etc...) and nearly every track features the entire crew chanting a repeated hook for the chorus' which hasn't dated well. It also includes some of the worstcover artwork I've ever seen - definitely up there with Snoop's horrendous "Doggy Style" sleeve - see the picture below! Anyway, I'll give it a rest on the "Lune Tunz" criticism, just wanted to explain the reason I could easily have overlooked this 12".

So, back to the "Rollin' Deep" record. Both tracks on here are in that classic, New York underground mould with deep bass lines and rattling drums. The lyrics are your typical tales of life in the 'hood', gun talk, hustling, etc, but the rappers still have their own identity on this release (although one of them does remind me of Daddy-O a little) so everything works well. The Run DMC cuts on "Hard Life" could have been tighter and the group chanting for the chorus on "Rollin' Deep", again, sounds dated, but these are minor glitches and maybe just me being fussy. I play this 12" quite regularly so I must like it a lot and would definitely pick it up again if I saw it. No idea how much it goes for as I've never seen a copy for sale. It's one of those records that won't be expensive but just doesn't seem to turn up very often.

'Dedicated to Paul C. "The Legend & Undisputed King of Hip-Hop"


Raw Breed "Rollin' Deep" (1992 PKS Records 12")



Raw Breed "Hard Life" (1992 PKS Records 12")



Monday 14 July 2008

Computer games on vinyl


Whilst trawling through the collection trying to find my weirdest records to post on here, I came across this little flexi-disc 45. Where it came from I'm not quite sure. I definitely don't remember buying it so I'm presuming it must have been tucked away in an album I'd bought at some point. Anyway, what I thought to be, the strangest record in my collection, turns out to have a perfectly reasonable explanation for it's existence...

Remember Sinclair's ZX-81 or ZX Spectrum? Pretty much the first commercially successful home computers in the U.K. I was 7 years old when the Spectrum came out and can remember going round a friends house to play games on it. He was one of the lucky kids whose Dad worked with computers and was always up to date with the latest technology. What I specifically remember though, probably more than the actual games, was the f*cking awful sound it made when loading. I hated it. So to find, what I thought was, a record duplicating that sound seemed pretty amazing - and in a very bad way. Turns out that this 'record' actually is software. I only remember games coming on tape and later on 'floppy disc', but after a quick Wikipedia search all was revealed. They were called 'Floppy-ROMs'...

In August 1976 at the Personal Computing show in Atlantic City, Bob Marsh of Processor Technology approached Bob Jones, the publisher of Interface Age magazine, about pressing software onto vinyl records. Processor Technology provided an 8080 program to be recorded. This test record did not work and they were unable to devote more time to the effort. Daniel Meyer and Gary Kay of Southwest Technical Products arranged for Robert Uiterwyk to provide his 4K BASIC interpreter program for the 6800 microprocessor. The idea was to record the program on audio tape in the "Kansas City Standard" format then make a master record from the tape. EVA-TONE made "sound sheets" on thin vinyl that would hold one song. These were inexpensive and could be bound in a magazine. Bill Turner and Bill Blomgren of MicroComputerSystems Inc. worked with EVA-TONE and developed a successful process. The intermediate stage of recording to tape produced dropouts so a SWTPC AC-30 cassette interface was connected directly to the record cutting equipment. The May 1977 issue of Interface Age contained the first "Floppy-ROM", a 33 1/3 RPM record with about 6 minutes of "Kansas City Standard" audio.

There's me thinking it was some proper computer nerd business. For those kids so obsessed that they'd happily just listen to the sounds of a game loading!!! Twat.

I played this record to my daughters on one of those "you don't know how lucky you are..." tips the other day. Explained to them how we had to sit through about 10 minutes of that noise until we could eventually play the most basic computer game for as long as possible before it crashed. They didn't really care and told me to turn it off.



Sinclair ZX-81 'Galactic Hitch-Hiker' (1982 Your Computer flexi-disc 45)



Sunday 13 July 2008

Give The Drummer Some


Whenever I get back from the boot-sales or charity shops with a fresh batch of records, the first thing I listen for is a drum-break. There's nothing better than finding some dope drums, and the more obscure the record, the more satisfying the feeling. Now obviously there's drum-breaks on near enough all genres of music, but what could be better than a whole album of nothing but drum-breaks? I've picked up a few 'drum tuition' L.P.'s over the years, but this is probably my favourite. Lloyd Ryan's 1978 album - "Prelude To The Pulse Of Time", released only in the U.K. on 'The Label' (TLED 2). There's also a 'part one' titled "The Pulse Of Time - Rock Drumming" (TLED 1) which I have never seen or heard, but judging by this release should also be a sampling producers dream. The cover alone on this one is worth every penny of the £1.00 it cost me, and the record itself does not disappoint. A very basic, beginners guide to drumming, broken down in to 32 short exercises, ranging from individual drum sound demonstrations to playing different rhythms (dance beat, rhumba and pop). So to start with, you've already got a nice little drum kit to sample with all the separate hits, clean and with plenty of breathing space, and then you've got the loops - and the 'pop' beats are where it's at. I've uploaded one example below so you can get a taster, but there's plenty more on here, so keep your eyes peeled for a copy. I put this in my eBay search soon after I got it, which was about two and a half years ago. Not one single listing has appeared yet!

The only other record I have by Lloyd Ryan is "Kendo's Theme", a U.K. 45 on PVK which was actually the song British wrestling legend Kendo Nagasaki used for his entrance to the ring. It's a spacey Disco-Funk type of tune that kinda reminds me of Rah Band's "Messages From The Stars". There's a break on this as well but nothing amazing - the 12" version though, is extended and harder hitting. Try finding that!



Lloyd Ryan 'Exercise 10b' (1977 The Label L.P. track)



Lloyd Ryan's Express 'Kendo's Theme' (1975 PVK Records U.K. 45)



Pump up the petrol




Just picked up this album cover without the vinyl and I'm hoping somebody can put me out of my misery and let me know what the actual record is like?!! It's a promotional item for Regent Petrol which features some beautiful photography and graphic design set out across twelve sides of a gatefold sleeve and inner pages. Featuring photos of the 'Regent Girl', (a model named Caroline Sanders who at the time lived in Kensington, London) the packaging is stunning. The L.P. is titled "The Lively One '67", and from what I can make out, was sent to Regent garages as a part of a package to use for in-house promotion. Also included in these packages were, 'sensational' new posters in various sizes, a new pump bezel, a 'fabulous' life-size cut-out of the Regent Girl and 'bullet hole' stickers and T-shirts. The album liner notes gives suggestions for garage managers to help run their new promotion campaign. Here are some of their ideas...'Dress your attendants in Caroline kit', Play the "Lively One" record', Use water pistol window washers', 'Have holsters round pumps to hold nozzles'..

So, Can anyone help? I'd like to think the music has that 60's British Big Band pop sound with a funky twist to it, maybe even some licensed Library tracks by Alan Moorhouse, Keith Mansfield, or the like. Better still, original numbers by these sort of artists, that were exclusively written for this L.P. Then again, I think I'd prefer to be told it's completely sh*t, as the chances of finding another copy are pretty slim to say the least.

Friday 11 July 2008

Library Hip-Hop...


...not a sub-genre or common descriptive you might normally see. 'Library-Funk', 'Library-Breaks', 'Drama-Suspense', etc, are some of the more usual titles you would come across when searching eBay or the like.
Now, I'm not gonna break down what 'Library' music actually is, because if you're reading this you'll probably already know. If you don't know, do a google search for any of the following titles and you'll get the gist - KPM, Music De Wolfe, Bruton, Chappel.

As any collector will tell you, there is some seriously dope music within this field, and also an abundance of absolute sh*t. This album falls into the second category but for comedy value is priceless.

'Flash Music', composed by James Asher and Alvin Christie was produced in 1984 and obviously made to supply T.V. production companies with the latest, cutting edge, style of music that was breaking into mainstream England around that time. This album is a result of somebody who knows nothing about that music or culture, trying to emulate it purely for commercial gain. The track titles are about as unimaginative and corny as you can get - 'The Breakers' ("Rockit" style funk), 'Scratch Robotniks' (mechanised dance rhythm), 'Scratch City' (electro-percussion feature), etc...and the music itself is terrible. I've included 'Flash Man' (scratch sounds) below as an example of just how bad it really is, although I can picture Neil Buchanan having an 'Art Attack' to it. And by the way, it does actually start as you hear it - that's not my 7 year old daughter cutting it in.



James Asher 'Flash Man' (1984 Bruton Music L.P. track)



A World of Glass


Another record I picked up on yesterday's outing with DJ Extract is this extreme curio - 'Glass World Of Anna Lockwood'. Released in 1970 on Tangent Records (U.K.), an independent label which specialised in avante-garde recordings. The album consists entirely of sounds made with glass - 'many types, shapes, and sizes are used, singly or combined, and are manipulated in a variety of ways so as to extract from them their latent sounds. The glass used has not been specially prepared or shaped as with musical instruments; pieces of glass have been used which are not normally seen - fragments picked up from factory floors, such as small glass discs which are rubbed together, and sea-green glass rocks which are knocked against each other'. Some of the sounds achieved on this recording really are amazing considering, and for sampling potential it's endless - DJ Premier would love this for those little end of bar 'fills' he adds. I've recorded a 6 minute segment below, but there is literally hundreds of different sounds throughout, which, incidentally, I found quite therapeutic when listening to as a complete piece. I'll leave you with the interesting words of the artist lifted from the liner notes...

"I have treated each sound as if it were a piece of music in itself. For me, every sound has it's own minute form - is composed of small flashing rhythms, shifting tones, has momentum, comes, vanishes, lives out its own structure, and since we are used to hearing sounds together, either juxtaposed or compared, one sound alone seems simple - but so are the round scruffed stones lying about everywhere, until you crack one apart and all it's intricate beauty takes you by surprise".



Anna Lockwood 'Glass World' (1970 Tangent Records L.P. tracks)



Thursday 10 July 2008

XXX Rated Funk


This morning I picked up two battered copies of this here 12" - a record I had never heard, or heard of before. Only 50p a piece so worth a shot. At best I was hoping for a nice Disco-Funk tune, maybe a break, but definitely wasn't ready for what I was about to hear. I suppose the warning on the label was a bit of a clue - 'RESTRICTED FROM AIRPLAY - X RATED'. And Madam Funkyfly is without doubt, one X-Rated b*tch. Millie Jackson's got nothing on this little hoe. 'The Crazy Mule Saloon' is a tale of, well, basically just down and dirty f*cking. Profanity, purely for the sake of it. Blowfly is obviously a big influence here with that loose, street rap delivery, set to a sleazy laid back Funk groove. You'll tire of this after one listen, maybe two depending on your sense of humour, but give it a go...it's pretty funny if you've got nothing better to do.

Madam Funkyfly 'The Crazy Mule Saloon' (1980 T.K. Disco 12")



Wednesday 9 July 2008

Mr. Melody - Funk Motor


OK. Just so you don't all think I'm a complete crackpot, who collects nothing but useless record paraphernalia and oddball vinyl, I'm gonna try and do a regular weekly post on straight up Hip-Hop. No particular sub-genre or time period, just good music that has either been slept on or is fairly unknown. I'll try not to cover anything that has been talked about too much elsewhere but stuff I do think deserves a little bit more shine.

So. I'm gonna kick off with this slightly obscure 12" out of Philly from 1989 - "Funk Motor" by Mr. Melody. As far as I know this is his only release and the only release on the label - 'On The Rap Side Records'. Vocal and instrumental are included for this one track. The music's very typical of the period, with an obvious J.B. sample, but really well put together by producer, MAD. There's nice tight cuts and an underlying keyboard bassline (not annoying in any way), which Mr. Melody rides well with a smooth delivery and good freestyle lyrics. Nothing super outstanding or ground breaking, but definitely a solid Hip-Hop record that's well worth adding to the collection, and easily as good as at least 50% of the stuff on all the 'Golden Age' mixes that have come out over the last 5 years or so.

I actually scored this blind on eBay for 49p, just to bump up on combined shipping. I had no idea what it was, and the fact nobody else bid on it didn't encourage too much anticipation. I was pleasantly surprised though. In fact, it turned out to be my favourite record from the batch. This is the sort of 'Random' Rap record that, had Ivory, Muro, Shadow, or any of the like, included on a mix, would probably now be commanding high prices. As it is, you should be able to pick it up pretty cheap and without too much effort.



Mr. Melody "Funk Motor" (1989 On The Rap Side Records 12")



No Serato?




If like me, you still haven't bought Serato, you probably got a bad back and bruised knees from carrying boxes of records. Well what you need to do is pop down your local Scope charity shop and get yourself one of these. A 'Pompette'. They're on sale at the moment, reduced from £2.95 to a bargain price of 99p. It says on the box 'wheels for luggage' but that translates to me as 'wheels for records'. Simply wrap the straps around your crate, tighten them up, and you're off. Vinyl on wheels. Definitely takes the strain out of getting to and from the car. As it says on the instruction leaflet - 'Wheel It - Don't Carry It'.



Hip Hop & Rappin' In The House


Remember Hip-House? Of course you do. It was damn near impossible to avoid during the late 80's. Every Euro-pop producer and their crackhead daughter were giving it a go, a lot of them achieving chart success with some of the worst songs ever recorded. But as any Hip-Hop collector will know, most of their favourite artists also jumped on the Hip-House bandwagon, be it with the compulsory 'last track on the album' or B-side remixes. And I'm not talking about those shitty CJ Wackintosh mixes, I'm talking Marley Marl, Ced-Gee, Erick & Parrish, 45 King, productions. Obviously with the visible chart success dollars signs were flashing, and they all cashed in. Now I don't mind some of the old Chicago and Detroit House music, and obviously I love my Hip-Hop, but not together. Leave that to Rob-N-Raz or Bettie Boo.

Anyway, last November I put this mix together for a spoof radio show I was meant to be doing with a local stand up comedian. Two half hour segments - Hip-House and Rap Ballads. For one reason or another nothing came of it, so I thought I may as well put it up on here. If Shortcut can get away with a New Jack Swing mix, then f*ck it.


Mr Krum "Hip-Hop and Rappin' In The House"

E.P.M.D. 'It's Time 2 Party' (1989 Fresh Records L.P. track)
Side F-X 'Rock The House' (1990 Nastymix L.P. track)
Dismasters 'Scrum - And Then Some' (1989 Urban Rock 12")
Ultramagnetic MC's 'Travelling At The Speed Of Thought (Hip-House Club Mix)' (1989 Next Plateau 12")
Jaz 'Let's Play House' (1989 EMI L.P. track)
MC Lyte & King Of Chill 'Lyte As A Rock (House Mix)' (1988 First Priority Music 12")
L.L. Cool J 'Mama Said Knock You Out (Hot Mix)' (1991 Def Jam 12")
Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock 'Get On The Dance Floor' (1988 Profile 12")
Jungle Brothers 'I'll House You' (1988 Idlers 12")
Craig G 'Turn This House Into A Home' (1989 Atlantic 12")
Slick Rick 'Slick Rick - The Ruler' (1991 Def Jam L.P. track)
Chill Rob G 'Make It' (1989 Wild Pitch L.P. track)
Tuff Crew 'What You Don't House' (1989 Soo Deff Recordings 12")




Tuesday 8 July 2008

DJ Tools...


Around the same time as scratching was invented by Grandwizard Theodore in the Bronx, records were being produced specifically for Radio and Mobile DJ's to use by a company called EAP, over here in East Anglia! I'm sure there was probably the same type of service available in the States, where albums with jingles, sound effects and voice-overs were being manufactured for licensing to Radio Stations and individual DJ's, but as of yet I haven't come across any. I've picked up a few different U.K. ones over the years though, which to be honest, are hilarious at best and the thought of any DJ actually using them is cringe worthy. The novelty of having your own name on a record to play during sets must have been pretty exciting though, especially for the Mobile Disc-Jockey. And that is exactly what EAP were offering - personalised voice overs and jingles. I'd like to know how much they charged but I shouldn't think it was cheap. Of course, nowadays you've got Serato, so it's pretty easy to do your own 'scratch sentences' for absolutely nothing. In the 70's though, I think it must have felt pretty special to be lacing the latest chart hits with your own name drops at John and Wendy's wedding reception down the local social club.

This little 45 is a promo, showcasing everything EAP had to offer. Make sure you check both sides. Pure comedy gold, which is completely unintended.



EAP's Demonstration Disc 'Side 1' (1978 EAP promo 45)



EAP's Demonstration Disc 'Side 2' (1978 EAP promo 45)



Earth Rot


Environmental awareness is nothing new. The media has 'exposed' huge problems with climate change, dwindling natural resources, pollution, etc, over the last decade or so, but we have actually been receiving Warnings for well over 30 years now. On April 22nd 1970 'Earth Day' was launched. This album, 'Listen In Good Health - Songs of Celebration and Decay' was 'dedicated to the spirit of that day - in celebration of the planet and concern for its decay'. Sent out to College radio stations and only ever available as a promotion record, it includes eleven songs chosen to highlight the cause. One of the artists on this album is David Axelrod. Now, everybody knows about David Axelrod. His music's been sampled to death within the Hip Hop community and over the last few years has been receiving well justified acclaim in it's own right. Unfortunately I don't have any of Axelrod's solo albums in my collection - they never seem to turn up in the Charity Shops or Carboot Sales round my way, but this particular record did. In a British Heart Foundation to be precise. And I'm more than happy to own just this one piece of his music.


'Warnings', is originally from the L.P. - 'Earth Rot', which was also released in University bookshops to coincide with Earth Day but flunked due to a two week student protest. 'Listen In Good Health' features tracks by Pink Floyd, The Beatles, Buddy Miles, The Sons, Fred Neil, The Steve Miller Band, Quicksilver Messenger Service, Roy Harper, John Stewart and The Band. And a sick sleeve too.



David Axelrod 'Warnings' (1970 Capitol Records L.P. track)



6 million records


A simple picture post for this amazing promotional record featuring a step by step guide to the manufacturing and distribution process involved at EMI's Middlesex production plant in 1972 (spread out over the four sides of a gatefold sleeve). These were obviously given out to anyone visiting the factory, most probably children on school day drips and workers' families or friends. I've copied down the text from the sleeve and included a few of the more interesting photos...

EMI Records' new Production & Distribution Centre at Hayes, Middlesex is the largest of it's kind in Europe. The statistics of this 16 acre site are impressive. There are 413,000 square feet of floor space, divided more or less equally between production and distribution. The equipment and it's installation alone cost £4 million. The factory can produce up to 5 million records a month. There's a quarter-mile long warehouse, which houses a stock of 6 million records and distributes EMI's fast moving products overseas and to any part of the United Kingdom at 24 hours' notice. But it's more than that. It's also 2000 people, all of whom are dedicated to providing the dealer with the best service, and the public with the highest standard of recorded music. It is the efforts of these people, as well as the plant and modern technology, that keeps EMI Records in the forefront of recorded industry today.

The manufacturing and distribution sequence.

When the master of the original recording arrives at the factory from EMI's Abbey Road studios, it is taken to the matrix department (1) where it is plated and stampers are 'grown' for the various presses. Simultaneously the different raw materials, from which records are made, are fed from the silos (2) to the presses by an electronic control panel (3) & (4). Most records are pressed on new automatic presses (5), but some of the older manual presses (6) have been retained for specialist classical releases.After inspection and sleeving (7) & (8), they are taken by conveyor to the bulk store (9). At the same time, the distribution centre's telephone sales girls (10) are taking orders from dealers all over the country. The orders are fed into EMI's computer, by video terminals (11) and punch card machines (12) for accounting and stock control purposes. The dealers' requirements for records and tapes are passed to the picking lanes (13) where the stocks of some 8000 current catalogue items are kept. The completed orders are then packed (14) and conveyed to dispatch (15), where they are routed through EMI's extensive distribution network to their destination at home or overseas and finally loaded into waiting vans (16).



Monday 7 July 2008

Skip to my loop...


A couple of years ago a friend of mine studied Sound Production at a University down in Australia. During a conversation on MSN one night, I half heartedly asked if they had any 'Library' LP's, and after briefly explaining to her what they were, Sarah replied, "oh yeah, they've got hundreds". So I gave her a list of composers and a rough guide of the type of titles to look for and asked if she thought it was possible to 'borrow' any. On her return at Christmas I was more than surprised to receive a nice little stack of KPMs. And not a batch of the shitty titles either. Nope - these are some of the heavy hitters from the 1000 series.

Amongst them was 'Beat Incidental' (KPM 1043) by Keith Mansfield and Alan Hawkshaw - a killer album that includes some well known breaks and club tunes. Anyway, after briefly skimming through them all I settle down to a more in depth listen - this album being first off the pile. Side A's all good, loads of samples and above all some really great music. Side B kicks off with 'Funky Fanfare', a very well know Library cut that's been comped a few times over the years. Nice. I'm now on to track 3, 'Funky Flight', which is basically an uptempo variation of 'Funky Fanfare'. I'm working on the computer at the same time and after a while notice something a bit strange. Library cuts are normally only about 2 to 3 minutes long yet this had been playing for well over 10 minutes! I get up to inspect the grooves, and, there it is - the needle skipping on every rotation about half way through the song, creating a damn near perfect loop! Normally I'd be pissed with a skip on a record but on this occasion I found something quite satisfying about it.

Check it out...


Keith Mansfield 'Funky Flight' (1969 KPM L.P. track)



Protectection for your records


I don't only collect vinyl. I collect all sorts of sh*t that relates to it as well. Like this Scotch 'Dustguard' turntable mat. I bought this for the artwork. The actual mat is about a quarter of an inch thick and completely useless, but take a look at that sleeve. Beautiful.

So what is the Scotch 'Dustguard' and how does it work? Well, it is scientifically designed for record protection, developed at 3M Technical Laboratories. The product is a result of years of experience by 3M in producing static control products for Industry. It is a unique formulation of conductive polyethylene, and by contacting the surface of a normally charged record the mat reduces the external electrostatic field, resulting in negligible dust attraction. Simple as that. What's more, it also includes an extra feature. A built in STROBOSCOPE which makes sure your turntable is running at the correct speed. Amazing!

Produced in 1977 and at a cost of £1.99. Bargain.


Dustguard 'Turntable Mat' (1977 Scotch U.K. 12")




UPDATE!!! Just picked up W.H.Smith's version of the Dustguard, complete with rip-off graphics (it also includes the amazing 'Stroboscope')! Interestingly, Smith's version was priced up at £2.50 which is 51 pence more expensive than the original Scotch product.