Select audio from my recent Hermiston trip

As promised, here are some sound files of some of the records I bought from my last entry:

Elmer Bernstein - Poi And Juice (2.83mb)
From the Staccato soundtrack, nice jazz here. "Poi And Juice"? I don't get it either.

Biddu & The Orchestra - Girl You'll Be A Woman Soon (4.87mb)
Biddu offering Indian good vibes to disco. Good? You be the judge.

The Brass Explosion Orchestra - Oh Girl (2.54mb)
This one is nice, actually.

Bill Doggett - Soft (3.33mb)
Not as heavy as Jimmy Smith, but some niec and pleasant B-3 goodness here.

Jackie Gleason - Yesterday (4.29mb)
Was Jackie Gleason one of the first TV stars to "loan" his name to countless albums, even if he really didn't have anything to do with them? This one is from an album offering "new" sounds to the "now sound". In this case, it's adding a sitar and tabla to The Beatles' "Yesterday", which Paul wouldn't have done. This is one of 3000+ versions of "Yesterday", collect them all.

Henry Mancini - What's Happening!! Theme (2.89mb)
A harmonica solo? Is this supposed to give the song a "down home" feel, or did they just have a guy in the studio who was waiting for his ride home? It still works.

Joe Pass - Nowhere Man (3.59mb)
Light-hearted Beatles cover from the World Pacific vaults. I like how Pass adds a few extra touches in his solo, as if to say "these Beatles guys STILL have nothing."

Howard Roberts - Cantaloupe Island (4.61mb)
Produced by the one and only David Axelrod, Howard Roberts' Spinning Wheel album produces a great performance of a Herbie Hancock hit, and the band allow themselves to look outward.

Thrift Store Adventures: October 26, 2007: Hermiston, Oregon

I visited Hermiston, Oregon, which is a short drive from here. One thrift store, and that's it. I come into Hermiston a few times a year and sometimes the selection is embarrassing. Lots of gospel records that I have no time for, and pop that I wouldn't want to hear.

I went in this particular morning and saw only one album, a still sealed gospel record from Eugene, Oregon. I would have been happy with that. I then started to see some familiar names. One jazz album. Then two, maybe three. I looked at the other section and as a collector, you can determine if a record is good or not just by looking at the upper edge. I saw a lot of Capitol albums, but I kept on looking and had 20 albums in my pile. This would be my limit, but I only went through one of three rows of records. I eventually lost count and I would pay for the damages later.

The damage:

Badfinger-s/t (Warner Bros.; 1974)
The Believers-Get All Excited...Because He Lives! (Doxa; 1974)
Louie Bellson-Side Track (Concord Jazz; 1981)
Elmer Bernstein-Staccato (soundtrack) (Capitol)
Biddu & The Orchestra-Eastern Man (Epic; 1977)
The Brass Explosion Orchestra and Chorus-Nineteen Seventy Two's Greatest Hits (Longines Symphonette Society: 1973)
The Dave Brubeck Quartet-Time Out (Columbia)
Donald Byrd-Takin' Care Of Business (TCB)
Jackie Cain & Roy Kral-A Wilder Alias (CTI; 1974)
The Serge Chaloff Sextet-Boston Blow-Up! (Capitol; 1955)
Ray Charles-A Portrait Of Ray (ABC/Tangerine)
Jackie Davis-Jumpin' Jackie (Capitol)
Jackie Davis-Big Beat Hammond (Capitol)
Bill Doggett-Soft (King)
Jackie Gleason-The Now Sound...For Today's Lovers (Capitol)
Groove Holmes-Hunk-A-Funk (Groove Merchant; 1975)
Jonah Jones/Glen Gray-s/t (Capitol)
Henry Mancini-Mancini's Angels (RCA; 1977)
Herbie Mann-Memphis Underground (Atlantic, 1969)
Shelly Manne & His Men-Checkmate (Contemporary; wrong LP)
Jimmy McGriff-Soul Organ (Quintessence Jazz Series/Pickwick; 1978)
Wes Montgomery-Goin' Out Of My Head (Verve; 1966)
Tony Mottola-Roma Oggi (Project 3; 1968)
Red Nichols-Hot Pennies (Capitol)
Red Norvo-VIbe-Rations (Liberty; 1956)
Johnny Oahu & His Orchestra-Hawaiian Magic (International Award Series)
Chico O'Farrill & His Orchestra-Torrid Zone (Columbia)
Joe Pass-A Sign Of The Times (World Pacific)
Passport-Cross-Collateral (Atco; 1975)
Bud Powell-s/t (Quintessence Jazz Series/Pickwick; 1979)
Nelson Riddle-Cole Porter's Can-Can (soundtrack) (Capitol)
The Howard Roberts Quartet-Whatever's Fair! (Capitol)
Howard Roberts-Spinning Wheel (Capitol)
David Shire-The Promise (soundtrack) (MCA; 1978)
Jimmy Smith-Off The Top (Elektra Musician; 1982)
Gabor Szabo & The California Dreamers-Wind Sky and Diamonds (Impulse; 1968)
Jack Teagarden-Shades Of Night (Capitol)
Richard Tee-Strokin' (Tappan Zee/Columbia; 1979)
Johnny Ukulele-s/t (Capitol)
Earl Hines//Teddy Wilson/Clark Terry Quintet-Europa Jazz (Europa Jazz; 1982)
Various Artists-Great Songs Of Bacharach & David (Quadraphonic) (Capitol Special Markets; 1972)
Various Artists-!Wild! Stereo Drums (Capitol)

At one dollar each, I made it out by only spending $42, w/o tax (since Oregon is tax free). I did find a country/rock 45 on the Hot Poop label, created by the great Walla Walla record store of the same name, so in total I spent $42.25.

I had a chance to listen to most of the albums, and for the most part they sound great. Two of the albums (Badfinger and Bill Doggett) had slight warps. I can do without the Badfinger, the Doggett album (featuring some decent Hammond B-3 jazz fare ) isn't too bad so I'll find a way to unwarp it and make it a keeper.

I'll have some MP3 samples very soon.

Thrift Store Adventures: October 17, 2006, Kennewick, Washington

Today's trip? The Goodwill in Kennewick. This is the same Goodwill that had a Ruben Studdard CD in the racks. I didn't expect to find anything, but did take home one album.

The Music Of Saint Catherines Church (Kapa'a, Kauai, Hawai'i)-Hawaiian Madonna (Coco Palms LPS-1279)
I was more surprised to see an album named Hawaiian Madonna here, and that's why I bought it. It's a church record, an on-the-spot location recording of people singing various songs. The one song I liked was "What Aloha Means", and what struck me was not just the sentiment of the Hawaiian people and our spirit for life, but the vocal harmonies, particularly the male voice that you hear in front of everyone else's. Is this the Larry Rivera credited on the cover? Why I like it so much is that his melody sounds a lot like how my grandfather used to sing when he did harmonies. Anytime he would come over for parties and it was time for kanikapila, he would bust out his 'ukulele or simple sing. I could never understand how he did it, and in his final years when he was still healthy enough to sing, the harmonies were still strong. It's very "old style" Hawai'i, something you don't hear too much of unless you know where to go.

Saint Catherine's Church Choir, Kapa'a, Kaua'i, Hawai'i - What Aloha Means (1mb)

Thrift Store Adventures: October 11, 2007, Pasco, Washington

You read that right, Thrift Store Adventures. The withdrawals are over!

Just a quick list as I haven't listened to all of them in full.:

Fania All-Stars-Spanish Fever (Columbia JC 35336)
This was almost a let down, as the first side is disco-ized Fania. Nothing against disco, because there's a lot of disco that's good, but upon first listen I wasn't impressed. For the goods you have to flip it to Side 2. Sexy ladies on the front and back cover. Silver pants and no panty line: BOO-YAA!

Fania All-Stars - Te Pareces A Juda (4.82mb)

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Freddie Hubbard-Bundle Of Joy (Columbia KC 34902)
Like the Fania album, this Hubbard LP was a white label promo. Old radio station stock? Record store stash? Don't know, but I bought it blindly. The album came out in 1977, and in his case it wasn't about disco (*phew*) but the quiet storm. Lush productions and arrangements. Surprise surprise, a smoothed out jazz album WITHOUT Bob James. A miracle.

Freddie Hubbard - Rainy Day Song (5.4mb)

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Harvey Mandel-Cristo Redentor (Philips PHS 600-281)
I about freaked when I saw this album. I had seen Mandel's name many times on other albums, and didn't know he had albums of his own (never looked to find out). The album cover is very psychedelic, and true to Mandel's work, it's heavy on the blues. Yes, it's also blues on the heavy.

The album features such friends as Steve Miller, Pete Drake, Charlie Musselwhite, Graham Bond, Nick De Caro, and many more. This is one that I think I'll enjoy a lot.

Harvey Mandel (featuring Charlie Musselwhite) - The Lark (6.29mb)

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Silver Burdett-Music (Grades 7 and 8) (sample) (Silver Burdett P 16412)
Silver Burdett-Music: Centennial Edition (sample recording/Grades K-6) (Silver Burdett P 17925)
Silver Burdett-Music: Centennial Edition (sample recording/Grades 6-8) (Silver Burdett P 17926)
Silver Burdett were a company that produced a wide range of records for educational purposes. I became aware of them a few years ago when I was at a local school auction and won a literal heap of audio and visual goodies, including a number of 7" EP's produced by Silver Burdett. Eventually I found another album with some interesting sounds. Yet again, one thrift store had a full educational kit, where an album, instructional papers, and a guide were enclosed in a plastic suitcase, not unlike the infamous CTI promotional suitcase made infamous by Biz Markie.

So what are on these records? Various excerpts of a wide range of music, which help teach young students about what to look for in music, what makes them interesting, and how to make music themselves. One of the albums I picked up is still sealed, I may open it and then again I might now.

Most of it is classical in nature or features vocal choirs, but as someone who always looks for interesting sounds, I'm willing to take chances. I've already found a sample worth using. Stay tuned.

The Silver Sound - Introduction To Silver Burdett Music (8.99mb)
The Merrill Staton Voices - Music Makes My Day Seem Right (3.18mb)

Thrift Store Archives: Animated Egg/Jiminy Cricket/Leo Teel & His Teel Billies

First off, I'm sure a few of you are saying "okay, you promised to upload one new song a day throughout September, and you failed to do so." Okay, I missed a day, so for today you have THREE, count 'em, 'EKOLU songs for you to download and listen to. I will continue with more music, and I'll update them on a regular basis.

Also, there will be brand new Thrift Store Adventures coming up very soon, so please stay tuned for more stories and audio along with it. Let's begin:

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Animated Egg-I Said, She Said, Ah Cid (2.97mb)
Far out, dude. I became a fan of the 101 Strings when I read an article about them in a great fanzine from the early 90's called Breakfast Without Meat, written by Gregg Turkington. In it he spoke of always being able to find 101 Strings albums at thrift stores, yard and garage sales. I too had seem them but ignored them because it wasn't what I would listen to on a regular basis, with album upon album upon album of classical schmaltz. Turkington would not only buy the junk, but also discover some of the oddities of the 101 Strings catalog. By association, he would also purchase some of the albums on the same labels (Somerset and Alshire) and discovered something. In time, the 101 Strings would move from releasing classical records and recording "adult" cover versions of pop songs to doing weird, trippy hippie stuff, especially in the late 70's. How does a full orchestra end up doing songs about peace, love, and weed? Well, they didn't.

Enter the Animated Egg. The name itself seems fitting in the era of "Incense And Peppermints", and this band released an album of far-out instrumentals for grooving and loving. "I Said, She Said, Ah Cid" may sound Beatlesque but the truth is the title refers to acid. WOW, FAR OUT!!! To be honest, the album is not bad, probably from a bunch of unknown studio musicians in L.A., although knowing how session musicians worked back then, maybe they were well known after all.

The story would have stopped there if it wasn't for the fact that the album would be repackaged, renamed, and resold as a 101 Strings record, the infamous Astro Sounds From Beyond The Year 2000. While the 101 Strings were far from being "holy grail" material, that album would become the hardest 101 Strings record to find. Meanwhile, the Animated Egg album collected dust in bins across the nation, without anyone realizing both albums were one and the same. Blame it on Al Sherman, the man behind Alshire Records and the guy who actually purchased the rights to the 101 Strings name and recordings.

As for the previously mentioned Turkington, he made a 45 under the name The Easy Goings and would press up the 45's at Alshire, the same company responsible for, that's right, Animated Egg. Far out.

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Jiminy Cricket - The Cannibal Song (3.51mb)
When I found this record, someone e-mailed me and said "you have to upload The Cannibal Song, I haven't heard that since I was a kid." Here it is, a Disney character talking about eating people. Nice.

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Leo Teel And His Teel Billies - Fertilizer (3.27mb)
This record and I go way back, as it was a record I had found at a pawn shop when I would skip class in high school. I was fed up with school and would spend hours looking for records. To this day, my mom has not seen my report carts from my senior year. I was stubborn, basically.

This was a random 45 on Decca that I had found, and I probably bought it because I thought the name "Leo Teel & His Teel Billies" was funny. I was also in radio/TV production class at the time (the one class I did go to daily), and that involved being a radio DJ heard around town. While the format of the station was (at the time) heavy metal, the only time I could play anything else was during April Fool's. I played it, and some of my friends came up to me and said "what was that record, that was great?" Years later when I was a news producer, a lady who worked with me said she remembered me from my radio show and also remembered "Fertilizer". She asked if I still had the record, and of course I certainly did.

A few years ago I received an e-mail from one Leo Teel, who said he was proud to know that someone still remembered him. He said he wanted to do an interview, and when I told him I'd be more than happy to, I never heard from him again. So Mr. Teel, if you are still around and this webpage somehow gets to you, please e-mail me as I am very interested in speaking with you about this record.

Thrift Store Archives: Trinidad Cavaliers

Trinidad Cavaliers-Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In (3.63mb)
Go thrifting enough times and you are bound to find a wealth of records created by steel drum bands from Trinidad, enough to where it moved someone to write a book about those albums. The Trinidad Cavaliers were one of those bands, and for hip-hop fiends and sample addicts they will know the Cavaliers as the source of the steel drum samples in the Beastie Boys' "Body Movin'" (the song in question being a cover of Tito Puente's "Oye Como Va", at the time a hit by Santana).

This one was from a different album, which featured a cover of the 5th Dimension's big hit "Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In", complete with a tight transition from the first half of the song to the other.

Thrift Store Archives: Slim Goodbody

Slim Goodbody-Your Mouth Is A House (2mb)
Interesting artifact from my childhood, not so much this record (which I didn't find until seven years ago). For the younger people, Slim Goodbody was a physically fit man who dressed up in a nylon-type suit so it looked like you could see the inside of his body. The point was that you, the kid, would be able to see how you look from the inside, and that being physically fit will help keep your body strong. It seemed a bit scary, if not outright goofy, but for awhile the concept worked, and Mr. Goodbody would travel across the nation to elementary schools telling kids about how to have better eating and exercising habits. According to his website, John Burstein started the Slim Goodbody character in 1975, at a time when physical fitness was not in vogue, so in many ways he paved the way for the fitness craze that would come in the 80's, one that remains to this day.

It always seemed odd to me that Slim Goodbody found himself on the box of Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, where if you bought a few boxes, you could turn in the proofs of purchase + a few dollars and get a free record album. Yes my friend, that's the reason I'm talking about him here. Goodbody had actually come out with a record before, with songs aimed at kids about keeping your body in tune. This one for Kraft was done with a number of puppet characters, with him doing the voices for some of them. I believe there may have been a TV special. Anyway, the Kraft album had a lot of interesting songs, but the one I liked the most was called "Your Mouth Is House". As an adult you might be having some nasty thoughts about that one, but this is not one of those songs. It's about maintaining your teeth and chewing your food properly. What's more interesting about the song, at least for me, is the first two seconds, featuring a nice guitar and bass riff, perfect for sampling (and I should know.) Anyway, perhaps being sponsored by Kraft was the easiest way to find his target audience.

As foolish as he seemed to some of us back then, Slim Goodbody has become a role model for children and adults alike, especially today at a time when child obesity is at an all time high. Laugh with him, not at him. Then get funky and make your mouth a house. Chew.

Thrift Store Archives: Sharron Lucky

Sharron Lucky - Finger Play (2.39mb)
Keep in mind, this is a children's record. Thank you.

Thrift Store Archives: Clyde Wilson

Clyde Wilson - Open Up (4mb)
This one I did not find at a thrift store, but at the only used record store in town, R&B. The guy has boxes of 45's that collect dust more than anything, and I decided to take a look at a few of them. Aside from finding The Winstons' "Amen Brother", I found this. I didn't know who Clyde Wilson was or the song, but I had one of those instincts. Northern soul?

No, this is more late 60's soul. With a title like "Open Up", one would expect to hear a song about a man singing open up your heart to me, right? No, this is about a completely type of opening up, where he proudly sings open up your lips, girl, wider, wider, wider, baby, are you comin'?/yeah, are you comin'?, let's do it right, baby/while I'm standing tall. It gets quite explicit without reaching into P. Vert's "Stickball" territory, and Wilson? Well, sometimes he misses a few notes but I wonder if he was ever able to get a few ladies to "open up" after performances.

Thrift Store Archives: Reino Moisio

Reino Moisio - World, Take My Son By The Hand (3.68mb)
I think this is from the Seattle area, but I don't know. It's about a man who now has to see his son start his first day of school, but knows that this is also the beginning of the growth of a boy who will become a man and see heartache and tragedy. As innocent as it sounds, perhaps it's something that all parents should hear. It is mostly a spoken word record, and when he sings... well, listen for yourself.

Just remember, the bullies are the easier people to lick.

Thrift Store Archives: Jiminy Cricket & Rica Moore

Jiminy Cricket & Rica Moore - The Switch-Hitch (3.29mb)
I remember when I found this album, I thought "oh shit, that Star Wars nut sampled this!" Here it is in its original form. Okay, let's begin.

Thrift Store Archives: Ben Sidran

Ben Sidran-I Lead A Life (3mb)
This is on Blue Thumb, which has been a great label to find great music. This is a nice jazzy rock track with a hint of funk, featuring The Pointer Sisters (fellow Blue Thumb artists back then) on background vocals.

Thrift Store Archives: Bubber Johnson

Bubber Johnson - My One Desire (2mb)
I bought this because it was on King, and I had never heard of a Bubber Johnson. Not Bubba, but Bubber. No date on it, but it sounds like a nice soulful ballad, maybe late 50's or early 60's.

Thrift Store Archives: Kathy Dalton

Kathy Dalton - Pour Your Wine All Over Me (3.97mb)
I bought this 45 because it was on DiscReet Records, which I had known as being a Frank Zappa label. The song was the B-side to the title track of her album Boogie Bands & One Night Stands (the album of which was a repressing of her debut album Amazing, with the addition of the "Boogie Bands & One Night Stands" song. I didn't know any of this when I saw the 45, but with titles like that, and the record being on DiscReet, I wasn't sure if it was going to be Zappa-esque or something unexpected. It was very much the latter.

Instead of trippy tales of yellow snow or the Central Scrutinizer, it was some nice country/pop. As a kid I hated country music, and yet I liked country music played by rock bands. It would be years, a number of heartbreaks and hard times later, that I finally realized "wow, some of those records I've been finding and throwing in the trash, they're not so bad."

Back to the 45. A woman pleading "please, pour your wine all over me." Who would resist that request? This is a country ballad, with the classic line "And now I'm strung out like a chick on junk, 'cause you're the kiss of God to me" Maybe husbands who were truckers were heading on the road, leaving their ladies behind for months at a time, and it moved these singers to make songs like this, and there are many others, such as the great "Tell Me A Lie" by Sami Jo on MGM South.

Anyway, what I did not know until a few minutes ago was that the band backing up Dalton on this song and the rest of the album were none other than Little Feat.

Thrift Store Archives: Chris Hills

Chris Hills - My Baby Said She Loved Me This Morning (4.01mb)
Is this a pre-cursor to Beck Hansen?

Chris Hills had an album out on Vanguard, featuring one Jim Pepper. When the late Herbie Mann was given the luxury of having his own label, Pepper was one of the artists he considered. The label was the great Embryo Records, which released both jazz and rock recordings. If you weren't into William S. Fischer, you could buy Air. Or Chris Hills.

The album is credited to Chris Hills/Everything Is Everything, the name of his band. The music mixes up soul with blues and rock, and this one takes a huge risk by being EXTRA soulful. You hear that first high note and you may say OUCH!, but it's funny but you're laughing with him to the point where you end up dancing.

Thrift Store Archives: Tyrone Ashley & The Funky Music Machine

Tyrone Ashley & The Funky Music Machine - I Want My Baby Back (4.02mb)
It was a bit of a shock when I found this 45. I saw it, a Phil-L.A. white label promo, and wanted to run home without paying 25 cents for it. But it would have been faster for them to take a quarter out of my pocket than it would have been for me to run. Oh well.

Got this home, and I knew I had a gem. At the time I had not heard of this song, but when it got to the 1:30 mark, I was smiling from ear to ear. There are moments when their playing is slightly off-key, but this Funky Music Machine keeps on going.

(If you are interested in hearing more, pick up a brand new compilation called Let Me Be Your Mand, featuring 12 previously unreleased tracks from Tyrone Ashley & The Funky Music Machine. You can order a copy through Fat Beats.)

Thrift Store Archives: The Ray Bloch Singers

The Ray Bloch Singers - Everyday People (3.55mb)
This song, in its original form by Sly & The Family Stone, is an oldies radio staple.

This cover, however, is not.

I had hoped to find some unknown beat when I spotted this, on an album featuring various covers of the day (it might have had "Spinning Wheel" on it too), but this album is far from funky, and the same can be said about The Ray Bloch Singers too. It is funny to hear this group try to "play it hip" when half the time it seems they aren't sure what they're singing or singing about. Not unlike anyone who was a special guest on a Dora Hall special.

Thrift Store Archives: Moe Koffman

Moe Koffman - Days Gone By (Egyptology) (5.68mb)
When I came across this album, I didn't know who Moe Koffman was or what kind of music it could be. It was on Janus Records, so there was a 50/50 chance of it being decent. In this case it was some pretty decent mid-70's jazz, and I would discover that Koffman was a musician from Canada. Then I came across this song. Fans of Jill Scott will recognize this as the source of the sample in her "Slowly, Surely" from her first album.

Those who seek this album will also find a nice break, which I believe I had heard on an album of the Chemical persuasion.

Thrift Store Archives: The Spiritual Wonders

The Spiritual Wonders - Use Me Lord (3.33mb)
The Spiritual Wonders - I'll Range For Him (3.89mb)
I found this 45 at the Goodwill in trusty Pasco, WA, and it surprised me because I had a feeling that it might be some good gospel music instead of some of th junk I have come across over the years. The actual credit reads The Spiritual Wonders of Detroit, Michigan, so I had to take this home.

The Spiritual Wonders seem to be a vocal group with full band backing, and this band is quite funky, at least in a gospel manner, as indicated by the A-side, "Use Me Lord". No date is given, but since the songs are mixed in stereo, I would say it is of early 70's vintage (with the exception of jazz, record labels didn't place stereo mixes on 45's until 1969, as they began to phase out mono).

"I'll Range For Him" is a bit more low-key but still retains the power that the group tries to present and share with its listeners.

If anyone has information on this group or the band, please contact me.

Thrift Store Archives: Mystery Tape (Reel-To-Reel)

Mystery Tape-Go Away Little Girl (excerpt) (1mb)
Music and music formats were always a part of my childhood. We always had records, 8-track tapes were plentiful, most cassette decks had one speaker, except for the Sony component deck my dad had with his quadraphonic record player. The cassette deck was in stereo though, but it had one of the BEST pause buttons I had ever seen. I say this because I would fool around and make my own mix tapes, and in time some of my Saturday fun would involve making goofy edits of whatever records I had nearby. It would be awhile before I did those edits rhythmically, and for years I thought I had invented this style of song extension, where a five section portion of a song could go on for five minutes, ten minutes. It may have taken three hours, but it was great to play the final tape and have them hear something that had not existed. Little did I know that there were thousands of music geeks like myself doing this thing called pause tape mixing, and that many of us who produce/make beats started out this way.

In my childhood, I also saw my share of reel-to-reel tape machines. My uncle had one and he would use it for "special listening". Unlike a record player, which I was allowed to use at home, I was never allowed to use my uncle's reels. NEVER. This was high pro, at least to my eyes. A few of my dad's friends had reel machines in the living room next to the turntable, and I always wondered why my dad never picked up one. My dad was a big car and motorcycle buff, but he also loved his music, but any money he had extra would go into fixing cars and bikes. When there was a bit more, he would buy a new album. In a good month we'd have about four to five new records, my mom would be the one to buy me 45's behind his back, because at a young age I was already becoming a music junkie. However, reel-to-reel tape machines were way beyond our means, and I would later find out why: they were very expensive.

The first time I would have a chance to play with reel-to-reel tape machines was when I was in Radio/TV Production Class in high school. Between 1986-1988, everything was of course done in analog, including the production of commercials and promotional service announcements (PSA's). Being a Beatles junkie, the thing I wanted to do was record my voice, then flip the tape around so I could hear myself backwards. In truth this was nothing new, since in intermediate school I had a friend who was of the church, and he taught me a way to unscrew a cassette, flip the tape upside-down, and do it that way. By flipping it upside-town, we are now hearing the other, unplayable side of the tape, and it sounds completely muffled. By doing this, you can hear a muffled version of what was recorded, but backwards. Apparently for the church, this was a revelation, and it was possible to hear those messages from Satan himself.

Anyway, back to school. I had already made tapes of myself at home, so working with a reel-to-reel tape machine meant "professional". I wanted to be a recording engineer once I got out of high school, and this was a chance to play with the tools of the trade. I made a few interesting tapes, especially when I was able to make the tape feedback upon itself. I thought it was cool, I could now make my own "Revolution No. 9".

Well, I didn't go to the Art Institute Of Seattle to become a recording engineer. Instead, I bought a hell of a lot of music. Being a fan of experimental and avant-garde sounds coincided with me becoming a genuine thrift store junkie. This would involve exploring the world of dead formats, which included 8-track tapes and reel-to-reel tape machines. I eventually found a Sony mono reel-to-reel machine from the 1950's or 1960's for under $10, and with the abundance of discarded reels for sale, it would end up being my way of making the music on some of my first albums.

I would also look for 8-tracks and reels not only for music, but to find custom made tapes that may have home recordings, anything odd and unusual. I did this not only for my curiosity, but if they were good I could sample them in my own music. This is when I came across a random 3 inch reel.

With any tape I bought, I would play it to see if there was anything worthy. Most of the time it was familiar music, but there was one 8-track tape which featured a young woman singing to a Kansas song. I put this on one of my tapes, and that was that. A few years ago I discovered that an MP3 of a woman doing the exact same thing had been widely circulated online. I am almost certain that the source of that recording was from my album which used the tape.

But back to the random 3 inch reel. I put it on the machine and played it. Silence for about a minute, and then the sound comes on. A girl (age unknown) says she is going to sing "Go Away Little Girl". She and her sister begin to sing, and it's a bit cute, as they stay on key and tempo. Before the song completes itself, it is interrupted by the girl in question, who now sings a very different tune, a more sinister tune to the sister who was just heard on the tape. The sister is calling her sibling a pig, "Piggy Renee". She stops singing, and now we hear what seems to have been recorded as a personal message to her sister: "you know what Renee?" For the next few seconds this girl rips her sister verbally. No "swear words" or anything, but she's steamed and she lets it all out. We hear the reason for her anger, and this MP3 is an excerpt of that tape, and in truth it is most of the recording that was on the tape. It goes on for another 15 seconds and I can only assume that as she was recording this message, her sister walks in the room and she begins to sing a few lines of "Go Away Little Girl" again, before concluding with and that's all, thank you.

The tape and the box it was in had no handwriting or date, so I have no idea who this girl is, where it was recorded, or when. This is very different from those Recordios with personal messages for family members and/or friends, this is a homemade recording made by an angry girl because her sister... well, you'll have to find out.

And that's all, thank you.