R.I.P. SKY SAXON

Sky, your Full Spoon of Seedy Wonders will be sorely missed here at PS Recon. We bid you godspeed.

RITCHIE MARSH aka Sky Saxon – “They Say” (originally recorded in 1963, now available on the A Starlight Date With . . . Richard Marsh LP, Norton Records, 2003)

Thanks to Mark Berry for the wonderful portrait

One Man and His Toupee

There’s a man in New Orleans with a voice. It’s a voice that you could get lost in, that’ll get you drunker than you’ve ever been before, that’ll take you away from all the sick, horrible nonsense you gotta endure every single goddamn day of your life. But it’s also a voice that’ll sucker-punch you, shove you into the gutter, and steal your girlfriend away into the night. Laughing all the while.

But don’t worry: that voice has its own issues, ones your girlfriend wasn’t banking on and won’t be able to handle without spiralling down into sick, horrible nonsense herself. So she’ll leave that voice, and come back home. Leaving the voice more alone than ever.

That voice is owned by GLYN STYLER. He’s a man possessed, when he’s not trying to sell you orthopedic mattresses. He’s done what Lou Reed woulda been capable of, if only Lou had never ever left home for money-driven Manhattan; what Scott Walker coulda been, if only Scott’d had found a sense of humor; what Frank Sinatra might’ve accomplished, if like the Tinman, he’d found his heart.

The good news is that EVERYTHING this man has recorded (The Desperate Ones EP featuring Lydia Lunch, the solo Live at the Mermaid Lounge EP, plus a few stray compilation cuts) sparkles out of a musical void not unlike a lost gold cufflink winking up at you from a trash-strewn stormdrain. The bad news? Well, his total output numbers less that a dozen tracks, and a number of those are quite difficult to come by. Need I say: we want more!

For those starting out, your best bets are the EPs, available through Truckstop Records. If you don’t happen to live within stumbling distance from the Circle Bar in New Orleans, you’ll have to settle for seeing him lipsync to his hits in Doris Wishman’s Satan Is A Lady DVD, or check out the short PBS video interview clip included here. But come you must; his hungry voice is waiting.

Q: Glyn Styler would seem to be equally motivated by equal parts beauty and perversity. Who or what gave you the idea that this would be such a winning combination?

GS: Rene Coman and I were hired to tour with an 80’s band called GREEN ON RED – I was the drummer and Rene played bass. During the tedious soundchecking of the drum kit, Rene would sit at the organ and I’d sing absurdly as a distraction. We started writing intentionally tasteless jazz/pop songs. We decided to do a public access TV talk show with an obnoxious singing host (like Mike Douglas or Merv Griffin) and named him Glyn Styler (with sidekick Tommy Baldwin on the piano). This is how GS got started.

Q: Give us an idea of who your influences are/were.

GS: Isn’t it obvious? Lou Reed, David Bowie, Jacques Brel, Frank Sinatra, sex, love, life itself. It’s a tradition. Everything is beautiful and everything is horrible.

Q: Authenticity is clearly an important concept down in New Orleans—I’m thinking here of all the original blues, jazz & zydeco music that folks associate with that part of the world. Yet Glyn Styler seems fly in directly the face of all that. What are your thoughts on this?

The only thing authentic in New Orleans is the crime and stupidity. There’s no good music here. Louis Armstrong would have loved me but I’m not appreciated here. I do understand your comment and agree with you – I am subverting tradition, but these morons don’t get it.

Q: How do audiences react to you?

GS: Most people just love the live show. I light the fuse and there’s an explosion of emotions and everyone basks in the fallout. Everybody understands a nervous breakdown. Only single guys get upset with my show which makes sense.

Q: How did you come to hook up with Ray Davies, and what is your favorite post-Muswell Hillbillies Kinks record?

GS: Ray’s girlfriend saw me perform at the South by Southwest showcase in Austin a few years ago and told Ray about me. He came to see me in New York and we’ve been friends ever since. The music industry doesn’t give a fuck about either one of us. Nobody wanted to fund a Ray Davies produced Glyn Styler album. My favorite post Muswell album would be (definitely) Preservation (Acts 1 & 2)!

Q: What’s going on with your new recordings?

GS: I have three albums worth of demos that I want to record, but can’t find a record deal. I have no manager, no help whatsoever. Ray did all he could. The industry doesn’t want me. They want Justin Timberlake. I refuse to put out my own record. I’ll sell mattresses instead.

Q: How does Rene Coman figure in to Glyn Styler?

GS: Rene is my songwriting partner and bassist.

Q: Some of us heard a great protest song “No Newts” you did for an obscure Mermaid Lounge compilation in the mid-90’s. What motivated you to record that?

GS: I hate what has happened in the last 20 years. Everyone has accepted so many blatant lies and stood silent. The media is so demented. The empire is falling AND IT SHOULD but I’m terrified because I’m so much a part of it…

Q: There’s been talk that you may be headed overseas, this time for good. Are you still making plans to leave this sinking-ship-of-a-nation of ours?

GS: The entire world is saturated with American anti-culture. There’s nowhere to run now. One can only hide.

———-

*originally published in the now-defunct DIE CAST GARDEN webzine in 2004, hence the slightly dated questions. But my love for GLYN still stands.

Tribute Madness

If you wanna talk lowest common denominator, tribute records just gotta be among the easiest to grok. We’ve all heard great cover tunes in our lives – the glorious JIMI HENDRIX reinvention of BOB DYLAN’s “All Along the Watchtower” immediately comes to mind for me. We know: the right song in the right hands can absolutely slay. And the suits know this too. Like all those remakes of classic films Hollywood churns out these days, tribute records have readymade audiences and built-in sales potential.

When those early tribute records to VELVET UNDERGROUND/KINKS/BYRDS etc. first began appearing on the UK Imaginary Records label in the later 80’s, I found myself curious to find out what kinda of ingenious updates might lay in such grooves. But within a few years, major labels had run this new tribute concept into the ground. Damn near every artist of note saw their catalogue plundered by whatever half-assed pop/rock act was being pushed at the time. By the end of the millennium, somebody with record sales on par with, say, GUNS ‘N’ ROSES could expect to have a half-dozen tribute CDs to their name. And if you were a BEATLES or a BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN, god help you – the tribute albums by bluegrass and country artists alone could number in the double digits.

Still, reinterpreting someone else’s work has the potential for great and wonderous things, and I’ve stumbled across more than a few really great tribute recs in my time. In no particular order, I give you my favorites:

CLAWHAMMER - Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are NOT Devo! (Sympathy For The Record Industry, 1991) What do you get when one of the original Fullerton Kids of the Black Hole hooks up with a DOWN BY LAW gtrist, a deadhead bassist, and the best Keith Moon impostor LA ever gave the world? That’s right, ya get CLAW HAMMER. For once I wholeheartedly agree with what Jay over at Detailed Twang had to say about em: “When Jon Wahl and Chris Bagarozzi played guitar together, I swear to god at times it was like what everyone said Tom Verlaine & Richard Lloyd were supposed to have sounded like live – unpredictable bits of chaos, pure unbridled energy and extremely amplified sound.” Yep every time I saw these fellas play (a half dozen times at least!) I felt like I was witnessing some beautiful vestige of longgone Hollywood punk rock spirit revealing itself, for the very last time, right there in front of me. But the way CLAW HAMMER rock the fuck outta DEVO’s first and weirdest album, live and unedited in the studio (I’ll give you “Space Junk” now but the whole album demands to be heard) always reminds me of why I dug them Akron spudboys in the first place. I swear: what DEVO sounded like to my 11 year old ears in 1981 is damn near exactly how CLAW HAMMER’s revisitation hit my 21 year old years in 1991. No kidding.

VARIOUS ARTISTS – Our Band Could Be Your Life (Little Brother Records, 1994) No no my SST Records bias is not getting the best of me here. Yes there’s a busload of NeareSST Relatives on this thing (Joe Baiza, Lou Barlow, VIDA, Joe Boon & Tony Platon, etc.) but there’s also all manner of indie detritus that I wouldn’t normally expect to give a thumbs up to. Clearly, THE MINUTEMEN held magical qualities that transcend space, time, and subculture divisions, ones that everyone from balding BÖC spin-offs (THE BRAIN SURGEONS) to 90’s shimmer/fuzz titans (SEAM, HAZEL) could relate to equally deeply, in turn drawing new and inspired musical ideas out of.

Few bands here attempt to match the Boon/Watt/Hurley rhythm combustion step for step – a wise move too, as damn near no one has ever rocked with such authority upon this Earth. What this comp is really about is the experiments, the polemics, the intimacy, and those wonderful little tunes that San Pedro once gave us. And if you were one of those folks who felt THE MINUTEMEN could improve things by ditching all that ornery ‘n’ jagged jazzfunk, then this rec will be a godsend. Dare I admit that in recent years I’ve listened to this comp more than any actual MINUTEMEN album proper? Not unlike THE MINUTEMEN themselves once did with their brilliant covers of CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL’s “Have You Ever Seen the Rain?” and STEELY DAN’s “Dr. Wu”, turning the familiar on it’s head – like Tom Watson’s OVERPASS does here with their great version of “Fake Contest” – has helped me rethink damn near all these tracks in new and unexpected ways.

MEDIUM COOL – Imagination (Rough Trade/New Routes, 1991) This is actually nothing but a quiet, unassuming tribute to 50’s counterculture icon Chet Baker, and many of you will find it too straight-up/EZ for comfort. But since the project was led by ex-PANTHER BURN Ron Miller and most other folks involved (Alex Chilton, Adele Bertei, James White/Chance, and some other ex-CONTORTIONS) have trod crooked paths for longer than many of us have been alive . . . this never feels anything less than totally individual and heartfelt. My hero James White effortlessly takes the cake with his sweetly off-key versions of “Let’s Get Lost” and “Imagination”, proving definitively that his unique talents were otherwise wasted during the 90’s. And though I coulda done without Angel Torsen on the mic, it all helps me better understand the true beauty of Chet Baker in relation to the grim backdrop of America in the 1950’s. John Giorno’s liner notes sum up the context better than I can: “It was before Allen Ginsberg wrote Howl, before there was a possibility of a way out, other than suicide, and before the possibility of Enlightenment. The only way out was booze and sex, and whatever few drugs were available; and music, medium cool and CHET BAKER.”

VARIOUS ARTISTS – Matter Dominates Spirit?: A Jim Shepard Tribute (Meta Records, 2001) – The passing of long-time Columbus, OH resident Jim Shepard (VERTICAL SLIT, V-3, LAQUER, EGO SUMMIT, etc.) left an ugly, gaping wound on the face of underground rock that I don’t imagine will ever heal properly. But as tributes go, Charles Cicirella really outdid himself here. This double album, hand painted/crafted with nice inserts (including a lengthly essay by ex-THOMAS JEFFERSON SLAVE APARTMENTS leader Ron House) is about as loving as they come. Though it’s mostly close friends who are tackling Jim’s material (Don Howland, Robert Pollard, Mike Rep, former V-3er Nudge Squidfish etc.), there’s also alot of stray songs/noise/poetry by Jim himself, reminding you of just how diverse his commitment to expressive sonic beauty actual was. This is one guy who lived, created, and died at the edges of that anonymous, lower-middle class life tedium most of us are unwillingly exiled to. The spaces he occupied were ever shrinking, sometimes ugly, but always beautifully vibrant and alive. The note from Jim gracing the back of this record admits to it: “3:53 am 9/11. I’ve headed into The Sniper Zone – Hopefully, I’ll get back safe – J-Man”. Yep anyone who has ever tried to navigate that particular purgatory would do well to dig into Jim’s art. And since my turntable’s not working right now, we’ll end this with Jim and his VERTICAL SLIT doing “All“.

Dandelion Wine

While I’ve been kinda ignoring this blog lately, I certainly haven’t been ignoring loud rock and roll as of late, no sireebob. It’s an everpresent reality at Chez PS Recon, and my wife will testify to this. So tonight I’m back to yammer on excitedly about a bunch of music that’s been rocking my world as of late. Don’t dawdle, step to it:

JOHN PEEL’S DANDELION RECORDS DVD (Ozit/Morpheus Records, 2008) As far as unwieldy DVDs go, this one takes the cake. Ostensibly the story of John Peel and Clive Selwood’s great Dandelion Records UK label from ‘68 – ‘72, this is everything producers/directors Chris and Tom Hewitt had stored up. And lemme tell ya, it’s a pantload. With no real rhyme or reason at work to the organisation, at times it’s like trying to get your head around an attic full of old photos, nick-knacks, and personal objects left behind by a crazy dead uncle. There’s no way this can be called a success in the conventional sense – anyone with only a passing interest in the label or mild curiosity about any of the artists included herein would turn this off halfway through the 45 minute(!) intro.

That said . . . there is an endearing, ragtag charm to this missing from most pro DVDs these days, and for those who persist, there’s any number of minor revelations: an intense KEVIN COYNE (RIP) fronting SIREN in one of his last performances; neat footage of the amazing TRACTOR in their homemade studio ca. ‘71; a recent interview with proto-punk heroes STACK WADDY proving them bricklayers are still the kind of earthy, down to earth drunkards you always hoped they’d be, etc. etc. At 6+ hours, I could literally spend weeks with this and still not actually watch it all – maybe I never will. But not unlike a certain crazy uncle of mine this rambling DVD is growing on me, so I’m gonna say if Lost English Hippie is your bag, you could do alot worse than picking this one up. But don’t say I didn’t warn you.

ASYLUM – The Earth Is The Insane Asylum Of The Universe (Shadow Kingdom Records, 2008) ‘85 demo by this foundation-building heavy Maryland band, proving from the get go Dale Flood was a impressive musical talent. Later recordings under the UNORTHODOX moniker were better produced, but the glorious homegrown DIY crunch at work here could never again be replicated – the sound/feel puts me in mind of those bitchen BLACK FLAG ‘83 demos floating around out there. Curious to note how wide the influences were on these guys back then. Yes, WINO looms large and there are some slow, crushing ST. VITUS moments, but elsewhere the band dives through proggy riff change-ups worthy of vintage CAPTAIN BEYOND and then surfaces to rage in early CORROSION OF CONFORMITY/DIE KREUZEN fashion – with Dale bringing a deeply felt bluesiness to the proceedings even at his most aggro. God, how I wish more of today’s doom bands displayed such musical breadth/scope.

GOTHIC HUT – Big Holes! (Show Me Records and Tapes, 1989) Always avoided their Posh Boy Records LP from ‘82, as I imagined it might sound horrid like CATHEDRAL OF TEARS or somebody. Whatever their origins, by the late 80’s John Dyer’s GOTHIC HUT weren’t gothic at all but as singular an underground art rock act as you might find in LA at the time. They’d layer on effects-laden, surf-inspired gtrs thick and sometimes impenetrably atop a laidback rhythm section, then cut it with John Dyer’s vocals that were alternatingly humorous or cooly detached. There’s also an appealing soporific quality to the proceedings that makes me think everyone involved was ordered to pop a few benzos before walking into the studio. All this somehow lent an accessibility to what otherwise would be called avant chamber rock. Los Angeles Free Music Society alum Rick Potts is a big part of the sound here, and in fact some of these tunes turned up (in slightly different versions?) on that sprawling 10-CD LAFMS box the Cortical Foundation released in the ’90s. But this doesn’t necessarily mean you gotta wear your LE FORTE FOUR ears to appreciate this; this blogger likened them to HUMAN HANDS and BPEOPLE – well worth searching out. John now lends his talents to X-RAY ACTRESS.

FREE – Live! (Island Records, 1971) Just to prove I don’t spend all my time listening to obscure and out-of-print records, I give you FREE. Simply the best hard rock band England will ever give the world. That’s EVER. Yeah ZEPP & SABBATH were cool as shit and all, but ohhh man nobody but nobody could beat the bros Paul (Rogers and Kossoff) when backed by this strong a rhythm engine. Unlike in spinoffs BAD COMPANY, every member here was a fullbore believer in the cause, living the beat day-in, day-out. Didn’t hurt that at this point no one had yet to succumb to liver burnout. The way these guys’d crawl all over often the quite simple melodies in that hard, slow, and precise way of theirs, with Koss divebombing in with intensely restrained, soulful solos . . . it’s blues rock made by a whole band of 6 Million Dollar Steve Austins, who’s collective sense of hearing/playing is so finely tuned they’re attempting music to rock even itty-bitty cicadas. We all know ”All Right Now” stuck but this entire record hammers home dozens of subtle points to the body/mind/soul if you let it.

You want in? Start with this bitchen Live disc wherein FREE come at you warts and all, and then work yr way backwards/forwards in their discography to really understand their particular form of genius. Then I promise you, too, will come to understand the beautiful wisdom of slowing the beat down for fucking eeeeevea.