THE RECORDCHANGER

THE END OF THE ROAD

     In the period since my last music post, I made the decision to stop collecting physical media. I did one final order for five CDs from a place called Collector’s Choice, a website I used often 5 to 10 years ago, but abandoned in recent years because they raised their CD prices quite a bit, and raised the minimum purchase for free shipping to $50. If you order less than that - even a single title, the shipping rate is $9.95 regardless. That means a $16 single CD would cost $26. That’s too high, and finding $75 worth of music to buy might be simple enough given the price hikes, but a lot of what they list is not in stock, and is listed as a backorder or special-order item. You can place an order for, say, 5 titles, and you’ll wind up getting maybe three separate shipments over several weeks. By the time the stuff arrives, you’ve almost forgotten you ordered it.

     But they were running a sale a few weeks ago. The prices were very low, and since I found 5 titles I wanted, in stock, I didn’t object to the $9.95 cost for shipping. Four of the titles arrived in a few days, and the fifth was coming from elsewhere, and was going to take 3-4 weeks. In the meantime, one of the titles was defective, and I had to contact customer service to get a pre-paid shipping label so I could return it. There were no complications. I had to get a mailing envelope, and take it to the post office, but they quickly issued a credit. The last CD arrived about a week later without any problems. I was happy with what I did get, but I realized I was getting very tired of online ordering, and the headaches that come with it.

     We have an Amazon Prime subscription because my wife buys a lot of books, and occasionally something else from Amazon. We also get the streaming service with it for Thursday Night Football, and whatever films or TV shows we might be interested in watching. I had almost completely stopped using Amazon for music because their delivery service to our apartment complex is awful. So, if I order from them, I have to have it delivered to the Amazon Locker across the street at the local drugstore. It’s not a great inconvenience to go get whatever I ordered, but It’s aggravating to me that they can’t make a simple delivery to the right building in an apartment complex. Beyond that, a lot of CDs have disappeared entirely from their website, and what’s left is often double in price from what it was a year or two ago. I get the impression they’re not interested in selling CDs any longer because they aren’t as profitable as selling vinyl (nearly all of which is ridiculously expensive now) or getting people to sign up for their music streaming service which is poorly maintained, and riddled with problems.

     The city in which I live is a mid-sized Midwestern city with a sizable population, and a number of nice suburbs. I live in one of those suburbs very close to a lot of restaurants, and shopping, (strip centers, a mall, and big box stores) and there is not a single record store anywhere near me. The closest one is about a 40-minute drive, and they only stock new vinyl, and some used vinyl that has been in the store since I moved here 40 years ago. (I’m not kidding. You’d think by now they’d have at least marked some of it down, but God forbid you don’t make 200% markup on everything you sell.) So, there are no stores in which to buy any new music, or interesting used either.

     Between rising costs, delivery issues, and generally negative experiences (see my previous post about the latest Rolling Stones album). I just decided I’d had enough. I’m still interested in finding and hearing, and even buying new music, but I can download whatever I want online at a much lower cost, or completely free in most cases, and have it instantly. It’s not as satisfying to me as having a physical copy of something, but I will not overpay for anything, and I won’t walk on hot coals, and then swim upstream to get something either. If you can’t make it easily available to me, at a reasonable price, you’ve lost a sale, and if I find a download I don’t have to pay for, you get nothing. I don’t like the new business model at all where everything is wildly overpriced, and hard to find, and I no longer want anything to do with it.

     There are a couple of things scheduled for release later in the year that I think I might want, and if I decide to buy a physical copy - if there even are any, I intend to order them directly from the artist, and take my chances. But my days of actively searching out music to add to my collection either by visiting stores, or searching the web for stores with a vast selection of titles is over. If I can download it, I can always burn it to a CD-R later.

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     The titles I bought recently included Ptooff! by The Deviants, a crazy bit of psychedelic, avant-garde art rock from 1968. I had a compilation on vinyl by the band, but I wanted to hear the original album. It’s trippy, and fun - exactly what I expected.

     I also picked up a Howlin’ Wolf CD of a live show in Germany recorded in 1964, Live in Europe 1964. It’s a great set. The sound is pretty good for the period, and Wolf is in terrific form doing some different things from what you usually find on live blues records from that era.

     The other two titles I picked up were both live albums from the late, great guitarist Michael Bloomfield. Live at Bill Graham’s Fillmore West is a blistering electric performance from 1969. San Francisco Nights is an all-acoustic club set from 1977 at The Old Waldorf that has Bloomfield’s ex-bandmate from The Electric Flag, Nick Gravenites helping out on vocals. This is not to be confused with Live at The Old Waldorf issued by Columbia from the same time period. That one is all-electric, and the setlist is entirely different. All of these are worth owning (as is the Howlin’ Wolf album) if you’re a fan of blues music. The Deviants album is for the adventurous.

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     I saw that some label called Moosicus has re-issued a solo piano concert from jazz pianist Chick Corea, Some Time Ago: Live in Germany 1972. You can hear it on YouTube or a variety of streaming services. I haven’t listened to all of it yet, but what I heard was excellent.

     I’ve been listening to a pair of Rory Gallagher albums that I was unaware of that were issued as RSD releases. Cleveland Calling, Pt. 1, and Pt. 2 are separate live radio broadcasts from 1973, and 1972 respectively. The first is acoustic, the second electric. They were recorded at WNCR in Cleveland, Ohio, and apart from the fact that Gallagher is brilliant on both, they bring back those amazing days (and especially nights) of FM rock radio. Turn the lights down, and you’d swear not a moment had passed. Crystal clear sound, too. Indispensable.

     A few other things I’ve found lately are a pair of Betty Wright records from the 1970s, Betty Wright Live, and Danger High-Voltage, a studio album. I put together a playlist that features those two as well as a collection of hit singles from the period. I’ve been a fan since I first heard “Clean Up Woman” in 1972. Fantastic voice. Great material. A great performer.

     Millie Jackson was another soul diva with a reputation for telling it like it is. She had a string of hit records throughout the 1970s, and into the 1980s. I found a collection titled 21 of the Best 1971-1983 that’s a killer from start to finish.

     Finally, I was able to track down some things from yet another 70s soul sensation Gwen McCrae. She had a huge hit in 1974 with a song called “Rockin’ Chair” and then proceeded to cut another two dozen or so great songs that I put together in a single playlist. They don’t make soul records like these anymore.

THEY SHOOT CULT FILMS, DON’T THEY?

The Wild Angels

The Trip

Quadrophenia

The Connection

Performance

     When I first retired in 2020, the one thing on my bucket list of things to do that I knew I could afford was to spend a lot of time watching Turner Classic Movies. I would get to see as many films as possible that I’d heard of, read about, and never seen along with films I saw only once decades ago, and wanted to see again. The first year or so, I must’ve seen at least 40 to 50 titles - everything from mainstream comedies, and dramas, big box office hits to commercial flops, domestic as well as foreign films, horror films, silent classics, etc. Then, our living situation changed suddenly, and TCM was no longer a part of our cable system, and for the next couple of years, I was reduced to watching what I could find on the streaming services. Those, of course, all had commercials (Turner never did), and very often weren’t the best quality prints either. Sometimes they were edited, too. And far too often, the service would remove something I wanted to see before I had the opportunity. They either vanished altogether, or were buried behind a pay wall.

     We finally found another internet service provider that gave us access to TCM again, and I resumed my viewing. As it happens, because I have always read a great deal, I have developed very broad tastes in all things - music certainly, but films every bit as much. And my interest in music has led me to a number of what I would call “cult” films that are not part of the mainstream, and are not always as accessible to the general audience, or boasting the quality of production, or acting that you hope to find whenever you invest a couple of hours watching something. In the past six months, I’ve had the opportunity to see five different “cult” films I’ve read, and heard about for, literally, decades. All thanks to TCM, and their commitment to presenting all sorts of films in the best quality possible.

     First up was a pair of Roger Corman films produced by his American International Pictures (A.I.P.) company, both starring Peter Fonda. The Wild Angels (1966) was a film designed to capture the audience interested in the sensationalism of the biker gangs that were then beginning to terrorize towns all over the country. Fonda starred with Bruce Dern, Nancy Sinatra, and Diane Ladd. Because the film, which cost about $360,000 to make grossed nearly $16 million dollars at the box office, Corman and Fonda teamed up again for The Trip (1967), an attempt at capturing on film for the uninitiated what an LSD trip might be like. It was written by Jack Nicholson. Fonda starred with Bruce Dern again, alongside Dennis Hopper, and Susan Strasberg. I’d heard about the film for decades. Various rock magazines referenced it whenever they were doing a piece on psychedelic music, or featuring an article about films aimed at the youth market.

     I also had the opportunity to see the cinematic adaptation of The Who’s rock opera Quadrophenia, a 1979 film that enjoyed saturation coverage from every rock publication, as you might expect, and is a favorite among rock audiences even today. The picture chronicles the short-lived, but influential British “Mod” movement. The Mods were a rebellious, fashion-conscious bunch of teenagers who rode Vespas, popped pills, listened to American soul records, and spent most of their waking hours refusing to grow up while lashing out at their parent’s rules, and lifestyle. I had both The Who’s original album, and the soundtrack to the film decades before I had the opportunity to see it.

     Speaking of soundtracks, I also had the soundtrack to the film The Connection (1961), long before I saw it on TCM just a couple of weeks ago. This indie cult favorite taken from a stage play, and directed by Shirley Clarke, takes place in a single room in a rundown apartment building in New York, and portrays a group of jazz musicians, and a hanger-on or two as they wait around all day for their drug dealer to arrive, and give them another reason to go on living another day. Most of them are heroin addicts, but some prefer pills. Either way, the sole purpose in life for each is to get high every day. There are some actual musicians playing some of the roles in the film including saxophonist Jackie McLean, and pianist Freddie Redd (under whose name the album was issued).

     Finally, just this past week, I watched Performance, a 1970 film starring Mick Jagger (I’m sure you’ve heard of him), and directed by both Donald Cammell, and Nicholas Roeg. Jagger plays a washed-up rock star living a decadent, and destructive lifestyle who takes in a hitman (James Fox) on the lam from the police, and his mobster bosses. I don’t know if I’ve ever read a Rolling Stones article from this period that didn’t mention the film, and every piece I’ve ever read on Jagger remembers to cite it as his film debut.

     So, what do all of these cult films have in common besides their reputation as cult films? All of them are awful. Plain, and simple, these are terrible films that feature lousy directing, non-existent stories that none but the most brain dead could find compelling, low budget production values, and acting that is of a lesser quality than you might find in any community theatre anywhere in the country. It was a chore to get through each of them, and the best thing I can say about the time I wasted watching all five of them is that I’ll never again wonder what I was missing. The Connection, and Quadrophenia at least have fine soundtracks. Beyond that, however, I couldn’t find a single compelling reason for any of these films to exist. The fact that some of them have been restored, and lauded, and been the subject of special showings astonishes me. They are all self-indulgent garbage, and if each was accidentally destroyed in a fire, I wouldn’t shed a tear. These films were made by people who were looking to exploit lifestyles (and not particularly interesting ones at that) for the purposes of making money. I’ve seen low budget exploitative drive-in movies that were better.

THE ROLLING STONES - BAD LUCK HIDEAWAY

FOREIGN TONGUES - THE ROLLING STONES

By now you've all either heard the new Rolling Stones album, and made up your own mind what you think of it, or you couldn't care less that there's a new Rolling Stones album. But as The Rolling Stones have been my favorite band since The Beatles broke up in 1969, and this is a music blog, I feel compelled to add my two cents to the discussion. I think the best way to do this is to keep it short and sweet, and very simple.

THINGS I LIKE ABOUT THE NEW ROLLING STONES ALBUM

The music. All 14 tracks are solid. There's not a bad track to be found on it. I like the anti-U.S. political rant "Ringing Hollow" and the one Charlie Watts track that made the album, "Hit Me in the Head" is an early favorite. "You Know I'm No Good" written by Amy Winehouse does her justice, and Chuck Berry's "Beautiful Delilah" done acoustically reminds one again just how good The Stones have always been with Berry's material.

The production by Andrew Watt updates the band's sound without any loss of identity.

The best appearance from a multitude of guest stars has to be Steve Winwood who appears on 9 of the 14 tracks, and brings something extra to every one.

THINGS I DON'T LIKE ABOUT THE NEW ROLLING STONES ALBUM

Though I like all the tracks, the album lacks a signature classic single - something that's been a feature of nearly every Rolling Stones album. Think "Satisfaction" "Brown Sugar" "Tumbling Dice" "It's Only Rock 'N' Roll' "Miss You" "Start Me Up" "Undercover of the Night"...you know what I'm talking about. There isn't one here.

The album cover - which is so ugly I chose not to even reproduce the cover for this review (although the picture on the right above is the back cover).

I bought the CD. It came in a digipak with a booklet with lyrics and credits, and there were nice photos in the gatefold, but none of this justified the exorbitant price of $22 I paid for it. If I'd had to pay shipping, I wouldn't have bought it at all. (The vinyl edition lists for $51.98.) No doubt when it came to marketing and packaging, there was no thought given to the fans except how to extract more money from them. Thanks guys. I've been spending money on your records for 62 years, but I guess it wasn't quite enough yet to meet the deductible. (And don't even get me started on that Cockroaches 12" single of "Rough and Twisted" that was so limited that almost no one was able to hear it, let alone buy it.) I don't know. The new Ella Langley album, the biggest album of the year so far, cost me about $14, and Kacey Musgraves managed to sell hers for about $13. So I guess greed is the only plausible explanation. Greed from octogenarian millionaires who won't live long enough to spend what they already have. Meanwhile, we're turning the thermostat up in the summer heat so we can pay our electric bill.

After I bought the CD, I discovered there was an exclusive bonus track made available only through iTunes that could not be purchased separately. To get it, fans would have to buy the album a second time for $12 if they wanted that one song, "Bad Luck Hideaway." And by way of rubbing salt in the wound, that particular track is the other track that features the late Charlie Watts on drums, and it's something every Stones fan would want. There's a lot of backlash online about it already. But, I refuse to be robbed again. I'm hoping someone will post it somewhere online, so fans can steal it.

LUCKY 7

     About a month ago, I decided to trim my collection of CDs. I went through the rock section, and pulled close to 50 CDs that I had not listened to in quite some time. When you have as many albums as I do, things fall through the cracks. There are, after all, only so many hours in the day. But, before I ever sell something, I give it one more listen, just to be certain I want to part with it. Was I not playing it because I was tired of it, or because my tastes had changed, or was I not playing it because it had gotten lost in the endless shuffle of my daily listening habits? Because CDs are getting scarce these days, getting rid of something is a roll of the dice. If you decide later that you’ve made a mistake, there’s a good chance you won’t find it again. Even if you do, you might have to sell a kidney to be able to afford another one (vinyl records aren’t the only things over-priced these days).

     In any case, of the titles I pulled to check, there were seven survivors – CDs that I played again, and asked myself, “Why the hell haven’t you played this in a dog’s age? This is great!” Below are the seven survivors of the great CD purge of 2026. If you own any of these, and haven’t listened to them lately, give them a spin. You might be surprised how good they sound.

Damnation – Opeth A very heavy progressive death metal band from Stockholm, Sweden, and you can imagine how they sound. Not my thing at all. Except, this one time they cut a quieter, prog-oriented album with soft, melodic vocals and lots of mellotron. And it’s brilliant. If they sounded like this all the time, they’d be one of my favorite bands. So, why did it fall through the cracks? Because it’s a one-off. (2003)

Relish – Joan Osbourne Joan Osbourne is a terrific singer-songwriter with an edgy sound, and an interesting perspective on the world. This is the album with the classic “One of Us” that became the theme song for the CBS TV series Joan of Arcadia. But the entire album is a gem. But, again, it’s the only one of hers I own. (1995)

Aquashow - Elliott Murphy Another of those singer-songwriters cursed because critics called him “The New Dylan.” Murphy wasn’t able to live up to that hype, but not because he wasn’t a great songwriter. Aquashow was one of the great debut albums of 1973, and it still sounds great today.

Infinite Soul: The Best of The Grip Weeds A very talented Pop/Psych outfit I originally discovered on a sampler CD from the now defunct Rainbow Quartz label. In the desert wasteland that was the 90s music scene, The Grip Weeds were an oasis. This compilation from Little Steven’s Wicked Cool record label was issued in 2008, and collects the best from four of their finest records.

Wide Awake in the Spirit World: The Best of Outrageous Cherry Grip Weeds fellow travelers Outrageous Cherry were working the same side of the musical street – pop with a psychedelic bent. They were also signed to Rainbow Quartz, and like The Grip Weeds, Wicked Cool licensed some of their best stuff, and issued this excellent collection hand-picked by the band.

Terry Radigan Another fine singer-songwriter with a good voice, and an engaging style. This self-titled debut was issued in 2000 by Vanguard Records. I got a promotional copy for in-store play when I was managing the music department of a Borders bookstore. We never got the album to sell, so I took the CD home with me, and got hooked on it. Wikipedia says she went country, and cut a second album, but details are sketchy. This is not a country album, though. Just a collection of good pop/folk/rock songs. She’s cute, too. Always a nice bonus – if you like girls, that is (which I do).

ACROSS THE TRACKS - NILS LOFGREN

THE ESSENTIAL RECORD LABELS, PART 2: VOXX

     In this second installment of The Essential Record Labels, we’ll highlight the Voxx label, a sister label to Bomp Records featured in the first of this series. Voxx was more focused on garage, psych, and pop, and less on punk. There were not as many records issued on Voxx as there were on Bomp, but Voxx was better when it came to various artist compilations, and anthologies. Included below are classic garage efforts by The Pandoras, an all-girl band from Los Angeles that played a garage pop style with the energy of the punks. The Embrooks, a trio from England, borrowed their style and sound from the 60s British Invasion groups. The Crawdaddys and Tell-Tale Hearts were garage bands with a heavy 60s R&B accent. The Barracudas were a surf-styled outfit. Blair 1523 (named after a song by garage legends The Outcasts), and Crawling Walls from Mexico were heavy on the psychedelic side of garage rock. San Francisco’s Flamin’ Groovies saw Voxx release their live KSAN-FM radio broadcast A Bucketful of Brains, a show the band played during the final week of Bill Graham’s Fillmore West before it closed. They were the opening act for Santana that evening, and shortly after, their front man Roy Loney departed, and the band transformed itself from 50s-style retro rockers to 60s jangle popmeisters under the leadership of Cyril Jordan. (This album was later re-issued by Norton Records under the title Flamin’ Groovies In Person! with much better sound, and a great cover that aped Capitol Records The Beatles Second Album.)

     The final four releases in our baker’s dozen from Voxx is a series titled Battle of the Garages which collects a treasure trove of 60s influenced garage, psych, and pop from young, and hungry 80s bands including some we’ve already mentioned. The series works as a kind of Nuggets for the 1980s. That entire scene was vibrant, fresh, and exciting, and Voxx had it covered. The best source for these releases is bompstore.com, with secondary sellers from Discogs or Amazon the place to look for the out-of-print stuff. Do yourself a favor if you haven’t already, and join the Voxx rebellion!

Voxx Records Essentials

It’s About Time – The Pandoras

Our New Day – The Embrooks

A Bucketful of Brains – Flamin’ Groovies

This Is The Event – The Event

Inner Limits – Crawling Walls

Here ‘Tis – The Crawdadddys

Beautiful Debris – Blair 1523

Big Noses & Pizza Faces – The Tell-Tale Hearts

Drop Out with The Barracudas – The Barracudas

JULY 4, 2026

O say, can you see, by the dawn's early light, ⁠What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming? Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight, ⁠O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming? And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air, Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there; O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave, ⁠O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

On the shore dimly seen through the mists of the deep, ⁠Where the foe's haughty host in dread silence reposes, What is that which the breeze, o'er the towering steep, ⁠As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses? Now it catches the gleam of the morning's first beam, In full glory reflected now shines on the stream: 'Tis the star-spangled banner, O long may it wave O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore ⁠That the havoc of war and the battle's confusion, A home and a country should leave us no more? ⁠Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps' pollution. No refuge could save the hireling and slave, From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave: And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave, O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

O thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand, ⁠Between their loved home and the war's desolation, Blessed with vict'ry and peace, may the heav'n rescued land, ⁠Praise the power that hath made and preserved us a nation! Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just, And this be our motto: "In God is our trust." And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave, O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

THE ESSENTIAL RECORD LABELS, PART 1: BOMP

     I thought I might use this space over the next several weeks to spotlight some of my favorite record labels. I’ll tell you a little bit about the label, and then provide a short list of some of the best records the label has released.  

     The Bomp label has been in business since the 1970s, and they still have an online store today, and even occasionally issue something new. I’ve been buying from them since the early 1990s when they were doing mail order catalogs. I would make a list of what I wanted, and mail that along with a check, and a week or so later, my records would arrive. They specialize in pop, garage, psych, and punk records. They have issued many original titles, but their focus these days is on compilations, and back catalog from their warehouse. They have an online store at bompstore.com that sells a variety of things, and I can vouch for the quality of the service. Prices have gone up in recent years, but they’re far more reasonable than much of what you’ll find elsewhere, and most of what they stock you won’t find elsewhere. Below is a baker’s dozen of some of my favorite titles. Most are on vinyl, but many have also been issued on CD – often in expanded editions. What’s available will be listed at their online store. What’s out of print can probably be found through secondary sellers (Discogs, Amazon, etc.).

Bomp Records Essentials

Nikki and The Corvettes An all-female pop trio with lots of hooks, and good melodies on this self-titled debut.

The Original Modern Lovers An early version of The Modern Lovers debut for the Sire label. Primitive, infectious quirky pop.

Kill City – Iggy Pop & James Williamson One of Iggy’s best records. Guitarist James Williamson is a good fit. If you’re a fan this won’t disappoint.

L.A. Explosion – The Last One of the best power pop albums (1979) to come out of Los Angeles.

Don’t Push Me Around – The Zeros Legendary Los Angeles late 70s punk outfit that made little impact elsewhere, but were beloved in the city of angels.

Destroy All Music – The Weirdos Another of the best punk groups to surface in the Golden State during the late 70s punk explosion.

Bad Times Good Times – The Sorrows Unreleased studio, live and demos from this pop outfit circa 1977.

The Nuns New Wave pop/punk from San Francisco issued in 1980, and featuring Jennifer Miro on vocals along with the great Alejandro Escovedo on guitar who was also a member of Rank & File, and True West before forging a long, and critically acclaimed solo career. This self-titled debut is the one to get.

Inside Out Your Mind – The Loons Garage/Psych band hailing from San Diego. Founder Mike Stax was a member of both The Tell-Tale Hearts, and The Crawdaddys, and he also publishes Ugly Things magazine, one of the best sources of information today on the garage/psych scene past and present.

Beachwood Sparks Self-titled debut also issued on SubPop features gorgeous harmonies, and shimmering guitars sounding like The Byrds, or The Flying Burrito Brothers on an acid trip.

Rough Power – Iggy & The Stooges A must have for Stooges fans. Before producer David Bowie got hold of the third Stooges album, Raw Power, this is what the original sounded like. Alternate takes, and mixes, along with some rehearsals, this tape was aired on Detroit’s WABX as an exclusive before Columbia’s Bowie-produced album hit the streets. Some of the tracks feature the DJ’s intros. A real piece of rock history from the heydays of FM radio.

Dig It the Most – DM3 Killer Australian power pop from the early 90s that proves that decade wasn’t as barren as it seemed at the time. These guys should’ve been bigger.

The Best of Bomp – Various If the Bomp label interests you at all, this should be your first purchase. It collects the label’s classic early singles (their specialty), and includes The Flamin’ Groovies, Shoes, DMZ, and several of the bands listed above along with a few one-hit wonders. A cornerstone of any collection of pop, punk, and garage music.

A THOUSAND DAYS OF YESTERDAYS - CAPTAIN BEYOND

MIRANDA LAMBERT - TILL THE GOING'S GONE

CLIVE DAVIS (1932-2026)

Among the generally unsung architects of the music business as it once was were the record label executives of the most influential, and impactful operations; the men that gave their labels vision, and direction, and were largely responsible for signing the past century's most important or commercial acts. Clive Davis was one such executive. He transformed Columbia Records into a rock powerhouse just as the label needed an infusion of new blood to carry it forward in the late 1960s and beyond. He was hardly unsung, though - he made certain of that. And after Columbia fired him, he created Arista Records, and made it tremendously successful as well. He wrote two autobiographies, and his imprint is on much of the greatest popular music of the last 75 years.

We live in an age now where the heads of record labels no longer wield the power they once did as artists have taken greater control of their own careers, and utilized the tools available to them to record and market their own work. The business model that enabled Clive Davis and others to make their mark no longer exists. But the music that surfaced as a result of their vision will be remembered as long as there are musicians (rather than a AI program) making music influenced by those who came before them.

Below is a list of just some of Davis's signings for both Columbia and Arista. Rest in peace, Clive Davis.

For Columbia

Janis Joplin

Bruce Springsteen

Santana

Aerosmith

Billy Joel

Chicago

Pink Floyd

Earth, Wind & Fire

Blood, Sweat & Tears

Loggins and Messina

Neil Diamond

For Arista

Whitney Houston

The Grateful Dead

Aretha Franklin

Barry Manilow

Alicia Keys

Kenny G

Patti Smith

The Kinks

Lou Reed

Dionne Warwick

Sarah McLachlan

Ace of Base

Taylor Dayne

STRAIGHT LIFE by ART and LAURIE PEPPER

     When you’ve read as many biographies of musicians as I have, you come to know what to expect as soon as you begin reading another one. Straight Life, the autobiography of jazz musician Art Pepper written by Pepper, and his third wife Laurie is probably the most notorious of them all. I had seen a great deal of press about the book in the years before I finally got around to reading it. It seemed to me to be the usual tale of addiction leading to years and years of misery and struggle, culminating in a happy ending that left you wanting to hear the music all over again. Well, not quite.

     Art Pepper’s miserable childhood helped set him on a path that made that childhood look like a day at Disneyland compared to what he would experience as an adult. Once Pepper reached the age of consent, he made one bad decision after another, a victim of his own weaknesses, and desires that ultimately led to his demise.

     Usually with such tales, there is some sort of resolution at the end that leaves one with a sense of sympathy, and understanding about the musician, and a greater appreciation of the wonderful music that resulted in spite of the trials and tribulations that always threatened it. That wasn’t the case with Art Pepper. He emerges here as a very weak-minded, dependent, selfish hedonist for whom the next high was always more important that any music ever could be. There is not even a satisfying conclusion to be found. After decades of addiction – heroin, cocaine, pills, and so much alcohol that his liver was nearly shot by the time he reached his mid-40s, Pepper, predictably, dies at the age of 56 from a stroke brought on by decades of misadventures.

     Pepper spent nearly all of his adult life addicted to drugs and alcohol. He was in and out of prison so often that he wound up spending nearly a dozen years of his adult life incarcerated. When he wasn’t locked up, he was out looking for the next high – and that high was never to be found in playing his instrument. By the time I finished reading Straight Life, all I could do was shake my head, and wonder how much wonderful music was lost as a result of his endless need to get high.

     He tried several times throughout to overcome his addictions, but he never tried very hard or for very long. He never accepted that his problems were of his own making. Right to the end he blamed others. He never seemed particularly concerned about the damage he inflicted on so many people who loved him. That was one of the greatest puzzles in reading Straight Life. How could any human being love such a man? Were they blinded by his talent? There were stories in the book that suggested that when sober, Art Pepper was a kind, and gentle soul with a wonderful sense of humor, and that those were the qualities that emerged when he picked up his horn. Yet, he was almost never sober. And when he was, he was so self-absorbed that I came away baffled that anyone had ever loved him at all.  

     This was the last biography of a musician on my bookshelf, and it might be the last one I read. I’ve accepted the fact that the people who make the music I love so much are most often people I wouldn’t care to know personally. If you love music as much as I do, you get past the awful tales, and learn to compartmentalize – separate the musician, and the music from the man (or woman). It’s more of a challenge in this case. But I knew Pepper’s music before I ever read the book, and I will continue to listen to it, and enjoy it. He really had an incredible gift. When he picked up his horn, he seemed the most centered, together person in the world. That comes through in all of his best records.

     His finest work is confined to brief periods in the 1950s, and the 1970s, with his very best work, paradoxically coming during the last few years of his life (1976 to 1982). I have a very logical mind, so I wasn’t able to work out why that was true, but that was certainly the case. I’ve listed those records below. My last comment would be that Art Pepper was someone better listened to than read about. You’ve been warned.

Selected Recommended Discography

Art Pepper Meets the Rhythm Section (1957)

Art Pepper + Eleven (1959)

The Trip (1976)

Straight Life (1979)

So in Love (1980)

Winter Moon (1981)

Tete-A-Tete (1982)

Art Pepper presents “West Coast Sessions” (Six volumes of music recorded between 1979, and 1982, issued in 2017 by Omnivore Records. Each volume features a different collaborator. Vol. 1: Sonny Stitt, Vol. 2: Pete Jolly, Vol. 3: Lee Konitz, Vol. 4: Bill Watrous, Vol. 5: Jack Sheldon, Vol. 6: Shelly Manne. These six volumes are my first choice when I want to listen to Art Pepper. It’s some of the best music (in any genre) in my entire collection.)

LOVE SENSATION - MADONNA