More akimbo

By request, here's another rerun:

Last week, Little Hits posted a song from Arms Akimbo's first EP. It's pretty good. So here's the two songs from the band's 1983 7". The sides of the record are labeled 'pop' and 'dance'. See if you can guess which side the songs are from.

Arms Akimbo went on to release a pretty good EP and a not as good LP on Atlanta's 688 records. Both records are pretty common in used bins. If Arms Akimbo had only released the first 45, I'd be happy. It's the only thing I ever listen to by the band.

St. James annex

Honey, where you been so long posted a huge list of versions of St. James Infirmary - some great, some not. Go listen to a few of 'em.

If that's not enough, here's a couple more:

Impala, from Memphis, recorded a string of great records in the mid-90s. This is from the sadly out-of-print SQUARE JUNGLE, released in 1996 on Estrus Records. There is a compilation available though. Impala has also played a few reunion shows this century. Here's hoping they do more.

And this one is from GHOST DANCES, the great LP that the Pine Hill Haints released last year.

I'd think it over twice

if I were you

I'll be a bridge over deep water

if you trust in my name

Balloon burning

The original idea was to post a Pretty Things song. Then I had trouble deciding which song I wanted to post.

House with a hundred rooms

The Chills HOUSE WITH A HUNDRED ROOMS was a great single, one that continued the string of brilliant songs recorded by the Chills in the early eighties. But I was really disappointed when songs were included on the CD of BRAVE WORDS, the Chills first real album.

It always bugged me that the 3 songs were thrown in the middle of the album. Bonus tracks should be at the end or the beginning of the record, not in the middle. Even worse, the songs on the CD were different versions from the original vinyl release that I was used to hearing. "House With A Hundred Rooms" is a different recording, the other two songs are alternate mixes. They sound good but they don't sound right to my ears.

So I burned my own copy of BRAVE WORDS using the 12" mixes at the beginning of the disc. I know its kinda nitpicky but I sure do prefer BRAVE WORDS my way.

Stand by

I'll be right back.

Considered a collector’s item

A few weeks ago, I was asked to re-post the Rittenhouse Square album. I said I would and then I forgot all about it. Sorry for the delay.

Rittenhouse Square was a short lived band that featured Mitch Easter, Chris Stamey, Peter Holsapple and Bobby Locke. The band formed sometime in 1971, played a few shows, recorded some songs and then broke up in 1972.

Without the other members knowledge, Locke pressed up 100 copies of an EP containing 6 Rittenhouse Square songs on his R-Squared Records in 1972. The record was packaged in a paper sleeve. Peter Holsapple says the record is a “considered a collector’s item by people that have obviously never heard it”.

I think it’s pretty good. There have been rumors of a re-issue. I sure hope there is one, all I have are these mp3's I got a while back.

We are sick and tired of hearing your song

telling how you are gonna change right from wrong

Noisy boys

It's usually not a big deal to anyone but a band's fans when a band makes a comeback album. Especially a band that released only a few records and played in primarily in their hometown the first time they were together. A rock & roll band that was playing all original material while The Beatles were still playing cover songs in a basement in Germany.

The band - Mike & The Ravens - split up over forty years ago. A compilation of the band's records a few years ago got the Ravens thinking that it might be fun to play rock & roll again. The guys got together, learned how to be a band again and wrote some great songs. How great? Sonics great, Monks great - this is terrific stuff.

Go buy a copy and buy one for your dad too. Then ask him why he's not as cool as Mike & The Ravens.

I'm going

to take a trip

Two things

Sorry I haven't posted much lately. Insert usual excuse here.

To make up for it, here's a few songs play on the fourth:

Blast 'em at your cookout or at the pool.

Also, I just found out that a copy of the KO 7" sold for 844 bucks on ebay. Some people have too much money! Here's the songs for free.