Hi friends, here goes…
As some of you may know, my partner and I have been trying for a baby for some time. It’s proven to be a lot more difficult than anticipated, and we will soon be starting another round of IVF. This round won’t be covered by OHIP or work benefits, and a Gofundme has been set up to help us with costs. Anything you’d be open to contributing would mean a lot!
Link in Bio.
🐕🐕🦺🐕🐕🦺New dog/family member alert! Meet Mizu - a real ball of energy. Hopefully, Dashi will start showing her the ropes instead of growling every time she is within two feet of his personal space…
NOT FOR SALE: another slightly under-the-radar (at least in North America) MPB 🇧🇷 classic from Novos Baianos. The follow-up to their all-time best Acabou Chorare, this album is (almost) as good, with equal parts reverance to bossa nova and wild prog workouts. I’m pretty sure I got this from the same Japanese seller as my Alceu Valenca post a couple of days ago. Comes with a fun booklet showing film stills from the Novos Baianos FC tv special (I think the whole thing is on YT for those who are interested). While most pressings on Continental during this period are pretty meh -
Recycled vinyl et al, this one is quite good! #novosbaianos #babyconsuelo #pepeugomes #moraesmoreira #paulinhobocadecantor
FOR SALE: 1972 swedish pressing, VG+ cover / strong VG+ vinyl. Rare! Asking 75 canadian or best offer. Local pickup/dropoff prefered. DM if interested!
Over the late 2000s and 2010s, (mostly pre-pandemic, before prices skyrocketed and shipping got out of control 🤯🤯🤯), I was fortunate to have amassed a small but respectable collection of Brazilian LPs from the Tropicalia/early MPB era. Nothing too earth shattering, but some interesting and unique stuff nonnetheless. This is one of them - a promo copy of Alceu Valenca’s first solo LP (featruing Geraldo Azevedo and Lula Cortes + Katia Mesel of “Paebiru” fame on the artwork) that I bought from a Japanese seller in 2018. North-eastern Brazilian music (esp. its maracatu, frevo and baiao-derived rhythms) is really like nothing else, and when you throw in the psychedelic influences and Dylan-esque lyricism of Valenca it’s game over - one eye on the past, and one eye on the present/future. Any of the albums he put out in the 70s are untouchable - and some (not this one, unfortunately) are still pretty cheap. #alceuvalenca #lulacortes #geraldoazevedo #musicadepernambuco #waltelbranco
There were a lot of things Vinyl Me, Please did wrong, but one thing they did right was reissue this 90s free-ish jazz masterpiece, produced by Bill Laswell (also the guy who produced some of the best P-Funk material of the 1990s under the aegis AxiomFunk). I took a chance on this as a VMP preorder in spring/summer 2020, while I was the throes of the pandemic, and didn’t receive it until just under a year later (I had forgotten about it by that point lol), but thank god I did, and thank god I never subscribed to the VMP subscription service! #sonnysharrock #pharoahsanders #elvinjones #billlaswell #vinyl
A couple of weeks ago, after promising myself I wouldn’t make any frivolous purchases, I ended up at the Toronto Downtown Record Fair just before closing time because I happened to be in the area running errands. I didn’t pick up anything rare or expensive, but I picked up a handful of things I’ve wanted for a while, like this 1977 pressing of Michael Nesmith’s “The Prison”, which comes with a 12’ x 12’ illustrated novel. Nothing really like it out there, at least amongst his 1970s discography. The country-rock of his first six albums has been moulded into something else entirely - an extended progressive work, full of obtuse + philosophical lyrics. A wild one. #michaelnesmith #themonkees #pacificarts #countryrock #vinyl
Awful cover, masterful box set. John Lee Hooker’s recordings circa 1948-52 for the Detroit-based Sensation label (he was signed to another label at the time), so most of these recordings went unreleased, or were put out under a pseudonym. Wild overdubbing on most of these tracks is quite akin to what Les Paul was doing at the time. Liner notes by Greg Shaw of Bomp! Records fame. If you see it, don’t hesitate to grab it! #johnleehooker #detroitblues #danielbourgoise #gregshaw #vinyl
Today, after work, I traded some LPs in that weren’t valuable/desirable enough to sell online, and picked up this 3-LP box set with the trade credit. A Speaker’s Corner pressing, it has recently become available again (not sure if its a repress or warehouse stock) after being out of print for the last 5-6 years. IMHO, it is a crown jewel of the Mercury Living Presence series - and, maybe, my favourite classical piece and performance. #janosstarker #johannsebastianbach #mercurylivingpresence #speakerscornerrecords #vinyl
As some of you may know, I’m a huge Robbie Basho head. Unique in vision and execution, his music is definitely not for everyone (think ravi shankar + john fahey + yma sumac + peter lafarge + medieval asian / persian cosplay). Nevertheless, this LP, The Falconer’s Arm, Vol. 1 (1967) is one of his best albums, alongside other favourites like The Falconer’s Arm, Vol. 2, 1970’s Venus In Cancer, and 1972’s Song of the Stallion. Check out the documentary about his life, “Voice Of The Eagle”, available on tubi, if you haven’t yet. They definitely broke the mold when they made him. #robbiebasho #johnfahey #takomarecords #americanprimitiveguitar #vinyl
