Album: The Complete Motown Singles Vol. 9: 1969 (Hip-o-select 2008)

1968 may have been a bit of a bumpy ride for Motown, with the loss of Holland Dozier Holland, and Berry Gordy’s relocation to Los Angeles, but the company still ended the year with five 45s in the US top ten. 1969 was the year that the cracks really began to show, and these are [...]

Bobby Lee Trammell 1940-2008

Cult rockabilly figure Bobby Lee Trammell died at his home in Jonesboro, Arkansas on February 21st, aged 67.
He may never have had a hit, but Trammell had a recording career that lasted nearly 20 years beginning with his 1958 debut “Shirley Lee” (ABC-Paramount 9890). He is highly regarded by rockabilly aficionados. He was born in [...]

Teo Macero 1925-2008

Teo Macero, the legendary producer behind virtually all of Miles Davis’ classic albums died on February 19th after a long illness. He was 82. Macero and Miles first worked together on Kind Of Blue, but his greatest production work was probably on the groundbreaking albums In A Silent Way and Bitches Brew.
There’s a full obituary [...]

Song of the day: DEEP DISH / EVERYTHING BUT THE GIRL - The Future Of The Future (Stay Gold) (1998)

It’s astonishing that this track is ten years old. I heard it tonight for the first time in absolutely ages, and it still had the magic. I was never a major fan of Deep Dish, but I got this song totally the first time I heard it. Tracey Thorn was a contemporary of mine at [...]

We are one!

Crumbs. Almost missed it. Music Musings and Miscellany is one!
The blog didn’t start from any great impulse to impart my opinions to the world, but had a more mundane beginning as an exercise on a writing course I was doing at Glasgow Uni. The idea didn’t really interest me in the slightest, at first, until [...]

Album: GAVIN BRYARS / ALTER EGO / PHILIP JECK - The Sinking Of The Titanic (Touch Tone 34 2007)

“Sinking Of The Titanic” was written in 1969, but didn’t make its first appearance on record until 1975 when it shared an LP with Gavin Bryars’ other best known work, “Jesus’ Blood Never Failed Me Yet”. That recording was 25 minutes long. This live version, taped in Venice in October 2005, is more than 70. [...]

Gig: Instal 08 Day 3 (The Arches, Glasgow, 17/2/08)

So. All done and dusted for another year. As ever, it was the best of times; it was the worst of times. Perhaps even more so this year.
Wit, invention, humour, imagination, character, melody, originality, unpredictability. Just some of the things that last night’s debacle completely lacked. Today kicked off with another three hour improvised set, [...]

UK Music Magazine Circulation Figures

This makes moderately interesting reading. The Wire is conspicuous by its absence - presumably they don’t do anything so crass as boast about their circulation. The NME has lost 12% of its circulation - perhaps an indication that people are finally getting bored of identikit indie bands. Let’s hope so.
Classic Rock 67,399
Future Music 9,787
Hot Press [...]