Pere Ubu -- The Modern Dance

  Theatrical abstract avant-Punk band Pere Ubu's first release is a mish mash of cool music with bizarre sounds, Non-Alignment Pact is the clear cut hit track on this record ... man oh man the 90's wouldn't have been the same if these guys didn't trail-blaze The Pixies first.  I could have lived without some of the noisiest moments, but who cares it's all part of the art of this album.  It's weird to think that Rocket Of The Tombs compromised a pre half Ubu and half Dead Boys line up, that would have been one interesting lp if they would have recorded anything, but whatever, we get two great bands instead of just one, that probably would have dissolved in ego driven paranoia.

Nuggets: Original Artyfacts from the First Psychedelic Era, 1965–1968

  Compiled by musician, collector, impresario Lenny Kaye.  Some are hits, some should have been, and some are just plain weird, but I wouldn't have it any other way.  The Nuggets Compilation is the first release to coin the term Punk Rock, in an official manner.  None of these tunes are cut and paste Garage Rock, they go even Furthur, drenched in fuzzed out psychedelia.  I was a little surprised that the Music Machine and The Sonics were left out.  Otherwise this is a must have in every record collection, and has been since it came out in 1972.  It has influenced countless musicians and collectors to dig deeper into the reaches of their minds to find more obscure 60's Garage tunes ....

The Kingsmen -- In Person

  The first Lp by the notorious Kingsmen.  In Person is a phony live album, with the crowd obviously dubbed in.  Even with the fake crowd it somehow doesn't take away from the music, which sounds just like Joey Dee and The Starliters, just more raw and raunchy.  Of course it features Louie Louie, which was popularized due to scandal.  Although after their scandalous popularity the band hit some internal troubles, one guys mom bought the band name because he wanted to sing, some of the others got cheesed and left, he realized he sucked, then they end up a lip sync band ... yadda yadda ... "we gotta go now!"

The Cramps -- ... Off The Bone

  ... Off The Bone is an off the cuff compilation of The Cramps early singles, like a best of.  This was put out right before Bad Music For Bad People, which is pretty much the same record minus a couple songs.  Why you ask would a label put out basically the same album twice, answer, contractual BS.  The Cramps tried to sue IRS Records, for what I hear was a million dollars, they had a shopping list of complaints, but didn't win; since the label still owned the material they released another best of compilation to cash in on their investment.

  The story goes, more like the legend goes ... Interior picked up Ivy while she was hitchhiking in 1972, they quickly realised they had the same obsession of music, art and collecting; they decided to become an item, then eventually a band -- The Cramps.  This comp covers their most important and crucial era, some of which was recorded with Alex Chilton in Memphis with the help, supposedly, of Sam Philips at Sun Studios.  Their sound seems to get lumped into two categories, Psychobilly and Garage Punk, but I disagree with that labeling.  What the Cramps did was mix the coolest elements of the 50`s, 60`s, and 70`s to make something new that became so unique, so awesome that no takers could copy or outdo!

  I bought this bad boy off the bay, and the damn thing skips even though looks good it skips, every song with the exception of Domino.  I was so pissed, I`ve been listening to this band since I was too young to know about them, and my very first real good Cramps record skips; I`ve been stuck with the same old tape that has this material on it for years, otherwise I have a couple albums of their later stuff, which doesn`t even touch their early brilliance.  I contacted my bayer, typing like a man with mad cow disease, thirsting for my money back to end my paranoid suffering.  My reply was to check for this and that, which I already knew, but there was a remedy as well, static cleaner, i`ve also heard distilled water who knows ... it could be my saving grace so I can finally play my holy grail, well until the next one ... I guess we`ll just have to see ....

Deep Purple -- Shades Of... & The Book Of Taliesyn

  I did these two together because they are basically the same disc, and was on a grandiose search of what could be their next great song of this period other than Hush, which by the way is their best tune, but my results came back nil.  What I did discover is a mix of the bad sides of Cream and The Doors all intertwined making two albums of complete over the top 60's garbage.

  Both albums feature some cheeseball originals, tasteless Beatles covers, and a couple of horrendous renditions.  The main offender is their version of Hey Joe, which they take full song credit for, and by the way isn't written by Hendrix either, but did he say, "that's mine", I don't think so, although Deep Purple did.  In order not to ruin my day with this stream of negativity, I won't go on about the Camelot references, or the annoying keyboard playing, etc ... Hush is a great hit, and if anyone wants these albums I'll let go of the pair for a couple dollars, at least there's one good song!

The English Beat -- I Just Can't Stop It

  Ska/ New Wave outfit The Beat are one of the best of the revival bands that came out of England.  Now I'm not just tossing them into New Wave gang because they're from the 80's, I have evidence to support my case.  Exhibit one, the song Best Friend is a basic New Wave song and is almost completely Skaless; exhibit two, is the large use of flange guitar which goes hand in hand with the New Wave Sound.  This record is filled with wall to wall classics, form the start, Mirror In The Bathroom, to some cool covers, including my personal favorite track, the most authentic Ska sounding tune, Can't Get Used To Losing You.  Plus they have a resident Sax virtuoso Saxa who is a luminary player from the old days in Jamaica playing with the greats, Buster and Dekker, just to name a few.  Call up the Special Beat Service 'cause Hands Off ... She's Mine!

Black Sabbath -- Master Of Reality

  I'm not sure what reality they are the masters of, but it certainly isn't the one that any of us live in (hopefully), who gives a f*ck if the lyrics are juvenile this guitar Grunge Sludgefest is goddamn great!  Here you've got the best riff based Heavy Metal tunes that screwheads are still worshiping.  They include weird little ditties, keeping the album interesting, for example the Lo-Fi Indian styled Embryo and the prettily vocaled Solitude.  I really liked the fact that they mix in juxtaposing elements to show their varied musicianship while keeping their fans on their toes.

Gene Loves Jezebel -- Desire

  This five song EP is the cross between The Bauhaus and The Cult ... I kinda thought I'd hate it once I put it on, but I didn't, it wasn't so bad, although it wasn't so good either.  Title track Desire was by far the best tune on the EP, you can definitely hear some Jane's Addiction roots buried in all these songs, and that's about all there is to say about it!

The Dictators -- Bloodbrothers

  I usually like the Dictators, but this 1978 release stinks.  Bloodbrothers sounds like the equivalent of British Pub Rock mixed with arena Kiss style anthems.  There wasn't much to like about the record other than the fact that it's from The Dictators.  Stay With Me is the album's only saving grace, but it simply wasn't good enough.  Otherwise these guys are a great band, their first release is irreplaceable, but this one is a total write-off!

Little Richard - Live! 10 Super Hits

  For starters this record is not a live album, it's got 10 of Richard's early Super Hits!  Every song on this short record is through the roof awesome!  I can't get over his poignant, matter of fact shout singing, with the R & B back-up which are borderline Funk by 50's standards.  Richard went on to be a preacher and made some pretty bad music later on in his career, but his beginnings are nothing short of sheer brilliance, Rock 'n' Roll wouldn't be the same without him, a pure artist.

Squeeze -- Argybargy

  What a piece of sh*t!  I tried to listen to this record but had to turn it off after a couple numbers, although I did check to see if there were any hidden gems -- no dice!  I feel bad for all the good New Wave bands out there who have been roped in the same category as these jokers.  I did hear that their next release is quite good, I might give it a try at the right price, but if it was left up to Argybargy would I ever buy another Squeeze album ever again, no chance in hell!

Alice Cooper -- Killer

  Glam Shock 1971 Killer album by Alice Cooper seems to break up into two camps, part good ol' Rock 'n' Roll hits, and part bad Prog Metal misses.  Although some of us associate Cooper with the 80's cheese ball image who doesn't like pizza, these early albums were brilliant, pre-dating the British Glam Rock scene by a couple years, and Marilyn Manson's corny wanna be rip-off by decades.  Personally I find the offensive tunes to be so over the top that it becomes tacky rather than shocking.  Otherwise Killer kicks ass, and if you are unfamiliar with Alice Cooper's radness, I'd go for 1974's Greatest Hits, which I normally wouldn't recommend these types of compilations, but it's got all the good stuff, minus the stinkers!

MC5 -- Babes In Arms

  Super charged Punk Rock band the MC5 are often cited as being a Proto-Punk outfit ... but seriously these guys make the Anarchist Punks of the 70's look like a bunch of babies in comparison to the White Panther Party, they did more than practice what they preach, they lived it like a religion!  Babes In Arms works like a Best Of/ Rarities compiled by Kramer's personal recordings, from early stuff, to reworked album tracks, to alternate takes.  Originally put out as a cassette only release in 1983, it finally made it to vinyl.  Anything by the 5 isn't short of being wild and great, meaning, "KICK OUT THE JAMS MOTHERF*CKERS!!!"

Modern Lovers -- The Original ...

  Recorded in 72' by Rock luminary Kim Fowley ... this album is a little rough around the edges, more like a demo than anything.  Richman had quite the pre-supergroup backing him, who went on to be in the Real Kids, Talking Heads and The Cars.  All in all the album is a cute artifact as well as a piece of shit.

The Beau Brummels -- The Golden Archives Series

  A collection of hits (64 to 68) by early Garage Rock outfit The Beau Brummels.  I hear they took their name so they'd be the next thing you'd find after The Beatles.  These songs are great artifacts of American Garage Folk masters, most are produced by Sylvester Stewart also know as Sly Stone.  However I do find these numbers mostly forgettable and vocally annoying.  They were a great influence on things to come in the 60's, but they were out done by their contemporaries like the Byrds.  Personally I'd rather stick with my Brummel 45's, a song here a song there, than an entire record ... but that's just my opinion!

The Moody Blues -- Go Now

  A couple years before their breakthrough summer of love hit record, the Moody Blues release this album, also known as The Magnificent Moodies in the UK.  The record works like a typical British Beat group, some old covers, some originals.  What I did like about the album is that they have a real cool Blue Eyed Soul sound with hints of Doo Wop from time to time, that became an unexpected surprise, as well as a message from Donovan telling us how awesome they are on the back cover ... I might not totally agree with the Mellow Yellow gnome ... but the record was/ is pretty damn good!

Roxy Music -- Stranded

  Spaced out Glam Rock, Roxy Music's third release is actually pretty good, even though it's Eno-less.  I can't imagine the cartoon rocker Brian Ferry winning in a battle of the ego's against Brian Eno.  Eno is so beyond Ferry, no wonder he left to pursue his own thing, nonetheless this is a great record by a great band!

Richard Hell & The Voidoids -- Blank Generation

  I found this record in a flea market, the owner of the place was always looking out for some kind of detail that would make anything that much more expensive ... so there it was unwrapped in a radio station's old collection, in a spot that I was told not to look, I knew the bastard would have ripped me off if he saw where I was standing and knew that the album was still in the plastic ... so I changed positions to where the regular crap was ... I quickly and silently took the wrapping off and stuffed it between a couple Charlie Pride records, then made my way towards the white haired penguin to make my deal.  The guy had no idea what he was looking at, I could see in his beady little eyes that he was looking for some detail that would scream valuable to him, but he didn't know squat, the odds were in my favor, and I was right ... the cheeky bastard let it go for a fiver, man was I relieved, I would have paid 20 bones for that goddamn thing, instead I practically stole it from him.

  Funny footnote: I used to think that Love Comes In Spurts, was Love Bombs In Space, listen to it, it's there, I can still hear 'em say it to this day ...

999 -- Concrete

    The fifth release for one of the original 77 Punk bands 999.  This album works more like a Garage Rock Revival record rather than a Punk album, featuring many 60's covers ... I'd like to say I liked it ... but I didn't ... I'll stick with my compilation with Homicide on it instead ...