Category: Music

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I Remember You

This was playing when we walked into Starbucks this afternoon. I haven't heard the song in years.

I always associated it with my life in San Francisco, especially in regard to my 1998 return to The City. It was pumping out of my car stereo as I first crossed the Bay Bridge that one particular afternoon, and is forever burned into memory in that context.

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Damn You, Discogs!

As I wrote on Instagram, it's so nice to buy a sealed, never-played piece of vinyl! (Especially considering some of my recent luck in buying used.) And how can you not love ABBA? I was grinning through all four sides of this record yesterday.

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My Latest Acquisition

Kind of disappointed with this one too. The seller rated the media as NM/NM+ (near mint, meaning it essentially plays and sounds like a new record). It most definitely is not. Of the two disk set, Disk One Side One is, indeed, nearly flawless. Disk One Side Two skips on one song (it's not a piece of gunk on the disk; I already ran a fingernail to verify). Disk Two Side One is horrific pops and clicks from beginning to end. Disk Two Side Two is good until about halfway and then it's as bad as the other side. I think that the seller either (a) did a visual inspection and didn't see any scratches so decided it was all good, or (b) listened to only the first side and assumed the entire album was that same condition.

I've notified him of my concerns. He's got a 100% satisfaction rating, so I'm  waiting to see what he has to say.

And yes, it came from overseas again, this time from the UK, so—like True Blue—it wasn't cheap.

I haven't heard this record in years, yet it was my go-to Elton John album when I was in high school (at least until Captain Fantastic came out). At the time the depth of the misogyny in most of Bernie Taupin's lyrics here was unapparent because no one was "woke," but now…oh my god, they scream off the vinyl and make half the songs on this record cringe-worthy at best and nearly unlistenable at worst.

UPDATE: The seller refunded the purchase price. Didn't even ask that the record be returned.

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Late To The Party, As Usual

I finally saw Bohemian Rhapsody the other day. Yeah, I know. I know.

I will readily admit that after reading early reviews that claimed Mercury's sex life had been horrifically whitewashed and the whole gay thing had been swept under the rug, I had been consciously boycotting the film.

But when I saw it pop up on HBO or Showtime or wherever it was, I said, "Fuck it" and set it to record.

I was pleasantly surprised. Whitewashed? I didn't see it. Freddie's sexuality was pretty clearcut (he followed a trucker into a t-room, for chrissake!) and presented in a non-judgmental fashion. Maybe he was a bigger freak in the sack than portrayed on screen, but in no way was I confused about where he wanted to bury his pole or felt that it had been glossed over.

More interesting for me was how the song the film is named after had such a horrific initial reception—something I don't remember at all—rapidly turning into something that will far outlive any member of the group who spawned it. As I told Ben the other day, I fully expect Bohemian Rhapsody to be played as "classical" music in centuries to come.

My biggest complaint about the film was that I never saw Freddie. I only saw Rami Malek. The three other members of Queen, seemed spot on, but Freddie was just…missing.

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August 1986

In addition to True Blue (post below), the other main component of the soundtrack of transitioning from Tucson to my new life in San Francisco was Pet Shop Boys' Please. It was also one of those albums (along with True Blue) that I only ever owned on CD from that period.

I rectified that last April.

I'm really amazed it sounds as good as it does on vinyl because until this purchase, I'd only ever heard it digitally.

Although it doesn't happen any more, for many, many years after purchasing Please I would jump out of my skin at the PC beep in Two Divided By Zero because at that time the sound was so…unexpected. Now I don't even consciously hear it.

Still my favorite PSB album.

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FINALLY!

It arrived today, and it's perfect.  One of four personal Holy Gails acquired.

Next up, Kraftwerk: Man Machine (in red), then—of course—Prince: Purple Rain (in purple), and then maybe—if I have money to burn—Madonna: Bedtime Stories (in pink)*.

*after finally seeing photos of the 2-disk Bedtime Stories album, I've kind of lost my hard-on for getting them. I wasn't expecting Dolly Parton Baby I'm Burnin pink; I was thinking it would be more of a powder pink like was used on the Bedtime Story CD Single.

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Blue or Gold?

Just a bit of a rant…

Does this record look blue to you?


This is the "blue" vinyl pressing of Madonna's True Blue I mentioned a while back that finally arrived.

Disappointed does not begin to describe it.

I immediately contacted the buyer who agreed to a return:

"If you wish. I did not manufacture the record so I am not sure what you expected."

Excuse me? Then, in an attempt to make me the bad guy in this transaction, sent several followup emails, including one from someone not even involved in the transaction, dated September 2016!:

"Does anyone know why there were such variations in the colour of the Vinyl in the Aust edition? I have one that when not held against the light almost looks black and has a marble effect, and another that is perfect blue. Happy to post a pic if someone could help."

The seller followed that up with, "Did you look at the photos?"

You mean the one you just sent with that two-and-a-half year old email?

And the final email received:

"A buyer asked me to send photos so I did. If you ask for photos of the item I can sedn them. Please remember that I DID NOT MANUFACTURE THE ALBUM"

If that weren't enough, the vinyl grade of VG+ he assigned to the record itself was more than a bit overstated. The surface noise was horrific.

Even though he agreed to cover the cost of the disk itself, I was out on shipping. Considering it cost me an additional $25 to send the record back to Australia, honey, that ain't happening. I lodged a complaint with Paypal, so I'm hoping to get the initial shipping fee refunded as well.

In the meantime, I discovered that True Blue had been reissued in 2016 by Sainsbury's in the UK:

As you can see, the vinyl is truly blue.

It was a couple dollars more than I paid for the 1986 pressing, but this one is brand new and unplayed. Fingers crossed. It's somewhere over the Atlantic as we speak…

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Released 33 Years Ago Today

Madonna: True Blue (1986)

From Behind the Grooves:

"True Blue", the third album by Madonna is released. Produced by Madonna, Patrick Leonard and Stephen Bray, it is recorded at Channel Recording in Los Angeles, CA from December 1985 – April 1986. After the massive whirlwind success of the "Like A Virgin" album and "The Virgin Tour", the pop superstar does not rest on her laurels, beginning work on the crucial follow up at the end of 1985. Working with long time collaborator Stephen Bray and new producer Patrick Leonard (Michael Jackson, Jody Watley), the album is praised upon its release as her strongest effort to date, and is widely regarded today as one of the best albums of her career. It spins off five top five hits including "Live To Tell" (#1 Pop), "Papa Don't Preach" (#1 Pop), "Open Your Heart" (#1 Pop) and the title track (#3 Pop). "True Blue" also marks the beginning Madonna's long association with famed fashion photographer Herb Ritts who shoots the LP's iconic cover photo. The original LP package also includes a poster of the album cover shot. As a promotion for the album, MTV sponsors the "Make My Video" contest, inviting viewers to submit their own visual interpretations of the title track. The winning entry comes from Angel Gracia and Cliff Guest, whose black & white clip is rotated heavily on the video channel. The pair are awarded a check for $25,000 by the pop superstar herself at MTV's New York studios. The alternate video directed by James Foley, featuring Madonna with close friends actress Debi Mazur and fashion designer Erika Belle is shown largely outside the US. Madonna also supports the album with the worldwide "Who's That Girl Tour" beginning in June of 1987. It is remastered and reissued on CD in 2001, with the extended 12" mixes of "La Isla Bonita" and the title track included as bonus tracks. The vinyl LP is reissued in Europe in 2012, including the original inner sleeve lyric sheet and poster featured in the original release. In October of 2016, a limited edition release of the LP pressed on blue vinyl, is issued as exclusive through the European supermarket chain Sainsbury's. "True Blue" spends five weeks at number one on the Billboard Top 200, and is certified 7x Platinum in the US by the RIAA.

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Released 35 Years Ago Today

Prince: Purple Rain (1984)

I was not a fan of this record (or, for that matter, Prince in general) back in the day. Over the years however, I developed a great appreciation for the music and now consider Prince one of the greatest pop musicians of the last century and find myself wistfully eyeing the listings for the purple vinyl version of this recording on Discogs.

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At The Risk Of Having My Gay Card Revoked…

Meh. Just meh.

This, on the other hand…

I listened to this on my morning commute today, and I actually arrived at work in a really good mood. There's just something about this album that puts a smile on my face, no matter how cranky I might be otherwise. There's an exuberance, a life in the music that is sadly lacking from Madge's more recent work.

And I may have just spent a ridiculous—at least for me—amount of money to secure a copy of True Blue on true blue vinyl. Just sayin'…

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Released 21 Years Ago Today

Grace Jones: The Compass Point Sessions (1998)

I remember when this was the "new" Grace Jones album! Jesus…even Hurricane is 11 years old this year!