Digging for Vinyl…..Look People Small Fish, Big Pond

    I actually had some time to myself Friday so I made my way downtown to Alleycats Music & Art to see what vinyl gems I could unearth from the bins. I walked in the door; said hey to Krista and within minutes my fingers were fondling a 1971 copy of Live at the Horseshoe from the Canadian legend Stompin' Tom Connors, you just can't get any more Canadian this this guy. Now to throw a complete 360 degree spin on the bin pickin' I come across a copy of My Life in the Bush of Ghosts the 1981 album by Brian Eno and David Byrne, this is a ground-breaking album on so many different levels as far as electronic music is concerned, also the use of samples on the record was way ahead of its time. I then jump across the aisle to the R&B section and I find a long lost memory, it was the 1985 record from Hall & Oates titled Live at the Apollo. I was 15 when this was released and just starting to find my way around the world of music and the 'Nations Music Station' Much Music would air the concert that accompanied the album, the show featured not only Hall & Oates but the legendary David Ruffin & Eddie Kendrick's of The Temptations, watching these guys move and groove on stage taught me not to be afraid to experiment with different sounds, something that sticks with me today. 

    So you're all probably wondering what piece of vinyl stopped me dead in my tracks this week to make me wanna bring it home to spin, well I was going to snag that My Life in the Bush of Ghosts record I had been carrying around since I found it but while going through the Various L's I found an album that could have only been produced by a group of individuals that made the Chili Peppers look boring, it was the Look People, and the album was their 1990 release Small Fish, Big Pond. Going way back to the middle 80's the Look People put out an EP called Stop Making Cheese, to this day I still have that stuck in my head (and if anyone can find me a copy I'll sing at their wedding). The band led by the JaymzBee lasted from 1985 to 1994, they produced 5 albums in total and in 1992, Look People became the house band for the CBC Television variety show Friday Night with Ralph Benmergui, not long after the show ended the Look People also ended.  Small Fish, Big Pond is one long running party on vinyl; you won't find any ballads on this black disc only some of the strangest music your ears will ever have the pleasure of listening to. While studying the back cover of the sleeve (I'm one of those that do that) I found out that Bob Wiseman appeared on this record, and for some reason I don't find that all to difficult to believe.  After giving Small Fish, Big Pond a couple of spins I got wondering if I'd made the right choice,  should I have brought the My Life in the Bush of Ghosts record home ?, no in the end I stand by my decision….and my son seems to enjoy it also.

See you next Wednesday in the Vinyl Bins

Joe Cornelisse-SMM

                                                                                                                     

Alleycats Music & Art

95 Mississauga St. E, Orillia, Ontario

Hours   

Tue - Sat: 11:00 - 5:00 PM

Sun: 12:00 - 4:00 PM

You can also find Alleycats Music & Art on Facebook

Some other finds I came across this week while perusing the bins at Alleycats Music & Art in downtown Orillia are:

Severed Heads-Greater Reward 12"

New York Dolls

P.I.L-Album

XTC-Black Sea (packaged in a black plastic bag with the XTC logo in silver printed on one side)

Ministry-Work For Love 12"

Mendelson Joe-Some of The Best of Mendelson Joe/The Name of The Game Ain’t Schmaltz

Bob Wiseman set to release new album Giulietta Masina at the Oscars Crying

TORONTO - Bob Wiseman brings in the new year releasing his new album Giulietta Masina at the Oscars Crying on January 24, 2013 via Blocks Recording Club/God Finds Cats.

Giulietta Masina at the Oscars Crying is, at its bare essence, a document of death and deceit. The songs bring forward stories and musings about the late Toronto actress Tracy Wright, Haiti's first democratically elected President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, Phillip Guberman, Prime Minister Stephen Harper, The Scottsboro Boys, Bo Didley and, of course, (the reference in the album title) the great filmmaker Frederico Fellini.

Wiseman's friends never cease to surprise. Album guests include Mary Margaret O'Hara, Basia Bulat, Serena Ryder and jazz genius Mark Hundevad. The disc is mixed and mastered by Juno award-winner L. Stu Young who also has the distinction of having worked with both Princes. 

"Neil Young at the Junos" is available as a free legal download via Soundcloud.

Wiseman celebrates the release of Giulietta Masina at the Oscars Crying on January 24 at the Tranzac Club in his adopted hometown of Toronto, with an evening of song and a cast of incredible special guests including Mary Margaret O'Hara, Aidan Closs, Drew Smith, Steve Caston, Dwayne Gretzky, Ronley Tepler, Magali Meagher, Jim Guthrie, Mamabolo, Garrett Jamieson, John Southworth, Anne Bourne, Mark Hundevad and more.

The vinyl editions of the record are designed by New York artist Mark Lerner with whom Wiseman worked when his records were on Atlantic and Bar/None.The CD art is designed by Canadian activist artist Mendelson Joe (whose own record Stink was recently included on NOW Toronto's 50 Best Toronto albums ever.)

Show Details

Thursday, January 24, 2013

The Tranzac (292 Brunswick Avenue)

Doors 8 p.m. - PWYC

Track Listing
1. Giulietta Masina at the Oscars Crying
2. Lobbyists at Parliament
3. Mothface @ yahoo . ca
4. The Reform Party at Burning Man
5. Robert Dziekanski at the Vancouver Airport
6. Children at Play
7. Aristide at the Press Conference
8. Neil Young at the Junos
9. Portrait of Phil at Various Times in a Closet
10. Ruby Bates at School

Joe Cornelisse-SMM

*information courtesy of Webster Media Consulting