Air-Air    This is a stunning record. Composed and performed by a band with a long working relationship with Herbie Mann (who produced the album), its vocal parts shine with soulful beauty thanks to Googie Coppola, the professional moniker of Carol Brooks, whose writing, performance and voice are central to the magic of this album. The rest of the band—Tom Coppola (Googie’s partner), John Siegler and Mark Rosengarden achieve something remarkable—a jazz album that has soul but is not trapped by either genre; there is an ethereal quality to this record that is both uplifting and... Read More

Atomic Rooster- Death Walks Behind You Two pressings: US and UK   An interesting heavy rock record by an oft-overlooked band, this album—which was probably their best and most commercially successful– has gotten some play here lately. I decided to buy both early US and UK pressings—the price difference can be considerable for those of us in the States—to see how they compared. The UK clearly wins on artwork, with its disturbing William Blake image (above).   The band grew out of The Crazy World of Arthur Brown—a strange piece of wackiness that resulted in a radio... Read More

The National Reserve- Motel La Grange   You can listen to Sean Walsh and The National Reserve’s Motel La Grange and be reminded of so many different strands of music from the past without being quite able to put your finger on what memories are being tickled. There are elements of the old Bob Seger in the vocal parts, of The Band in their roots Americana vibe, of Little Feat in sheer funk but it’s nowise derivative of any of these; it stands on its own, even if it does bring back memories of something else.   If I were a musician, I’d hate to be compared to someone else, even if... Read More