Smashed

10.09.05

Every time I venture out to Smashed! Blocked!, I return with another four billion dollar soul record to add to my want list. DJ Michael Robinson turned me onto the Chantels "Indian Giver" on Verve, which is listed on Gemm for $500. "Oh, I had about five spares of that 45 just a few weeks ago," Michael kindly informed me on Friday night. "But they're all gone." Uuurrgh..... why did you have to tell me that? Jesus! And if I wasn't suffering enough already, my pal Lex Marsh added fire to the flame by informing me of his Yvonne Carroll "Mister Loveman" find- on e-bay for $40! He knew I'd be fuming, so he quickly presented me with a Julie Driscoll + Brian Auger CD sampler. That calmed me down. Thanks Lex.

All the Smashed! Blocked! regulars were present- Peter Tork, Sunrays die-hard (sporting a denim vest and police cap no less), Layla, Cassandra, and Jamie (shakin' her thing in a blonde wig + tassle bikini as the night's go-go girl). Ran into Justin Simon, a fellow kayoukyoku fanatic who is currently producing the love of my life- kayoukyoku revivalist Nagisa Yoko. He tells me plans are in the works to bring Yoko to NY for some gigs. Trust me, this is some seriously good news. He gave me the 12" he recently produced for Yoko, but when I took out the insert and started reading it upside down, I knew it was probably time to go home.

Smashed! Blocked! King Josh and Queen Layla will be throwing a '60s weekender in February with three days of DJs, live bands, and record swaps. For more info on REACTION, go here.

I've been spending Sunday in total nerd mode after discovering the Rock's Backpages, a massive online collection of articles from rock's finest journos- Lester Bangs, Alan Betrock, Al Aronowitz, Sylvie Simmons. I'm really into Ken Barnes at the moment- namely his reviews from Phonograph Record in the early '70s. There's a real thrill that comes with reading a review of say, Waterloo from 1974. And you'll also find the works of writers-turned-pop stars like Chrissie Hynde and Neil Tennant. There goes my social life.....

Sheila

Photo: Cute girl in blue, Sheila, Cassandra, Layla

Posted by Sheila at 04:53 PM

Is it true?

10.04.05

This is my quiet celebration of a dream-come-true project finally seeing the light of day. One Kiss Can Lead To Another: Girl Group Sounds Lost & Found- the BOX SET. A most glamorous and long-overdue tribute to the many mind-blowing contributions the sixties girl groups made to music history. Rather than reissue the obvious Be My Babys and Chapel Of Loves, One Kiss honors the obscure gems- the Cookies "I Never Dreamed," The Honeys "The One You Can't Have," Yvonne Carroll "Mister Loveman." And as you can see in the photo above, the 120 tracks come packaged in a black + white mod hatbox with makeup case-inspired digipacks and a 200-paged "diary" worth of liner notes and rare photos.

It's perfect, but of course I am totally biased.

From August 2004 through June 2005 I fell asleep to Dusty Springfield and woke up with the Shirelles. My job was to write 150-word descriptions for each of the featured 120 tracks- in short, I was writing half a book, only with 120 introductions and 120 conclusions. In airport lounges, friend's apartments, loud clubs, London cafes, Texan motels, and mostly, at home on the couch, I sat with either a notebook or a laptop, trying to translate my love for music into beautiful prose. Sometimes it worked (Lesley Gore's "What Am I Gonna Do With You"- my favorite entry) and sometimes it didn't (The Emeralds "Wanna Make Him Mine"- so little info, so little time). But none of that matters now- the box is out, with four and five star reviews in Vanity Fair, Blender, Uncut, the Guardian, Oprah, USA Today, and hopefully more in the coming weeks.

Cheers to that!

One Kiss Can Lead To Another@ Amazon.

Sheila

Posted by Sheila at 11:43 PM