ROCK A RAMA

ROCK A RAMA

RECORDS

SKYBAND - (RCA) •• “Bang! Ooh! Ya Got Me!’’ Now ain’t that a stupid title for an opening song? You betcha and the rest of the ablum follows suit. The 1910 Fruit Gum Co. could do better with Gene Cornish on guitar and Sylvia writing lyrics. For Elf and Rare Bird fans only. T.M. NEIL MERRYWEATHER - Kryptonite (Mercury) •• This guy is perhaps the most banal acid-head ever recorded. And now that his psuedo-blues music has gone out of style some seven years too late, he’s stardrivin’ his way into the glam-rock genre two years after it gasped its last breath. Sounds like Black Oak Arkansas’s come East to imitate Mountain, and make no mistake about it, this is terrible. T.M.

DOG SOLDIER (UA) •• Keef Hartley has always been a tasteless bore and this is no exception. Like Buddy Miles, he churns out the most insipid albums on the market. Dressin’ like he was RAIN IN THE FACE or somethin’, the Peyote slob has conjured up his worst bunch of musicians ever. Forget’m. T.M.

ERIC BURDON BAND - Sun Secrets (Capitol) •• The Houdini of rock is back again with his most powerful band ever. And he can still outsing any of dem scrawny faggots. Guitarist Aalon Butler takes Burdon on a tour de force through his vintaged Animal days. Holocaustic. Turbulent. Vile. Naked power! T.M.

BLUE OYSTER CULT - On Yonr Feet Or On Your Knees (Columbia) ** This is the fourth great live rock LP ever recorded. The first three being Ya Ya’s, Live Johnny Winter And, Rock ‘n' Roll Animal (Sorry David). It may be the finest ever, cause Roxy Music will probably never record one. Not only does this capture the vociferous live aggression of a BOC concert, but their version of “Born To Be Wild” makes ya want to be 18 again, ridin’ down the highway with a tape of this jammed between yer favorite gal’s legs.

SADISTIC MIKA BAND - (Harvest) •• And you thought they’d forget We dump two Abombs on ’em and you expect them to laugh it off. Ha!! First it was tinny transistor radios and twotoned Toyota Bluebirds, now the Sadistic Mika Band. Suffer!! This stuff would be all the music we’d ever have if it weren’t for Dougie MacArthur and John Waynei C.W.B.

ENO -Seven Deadly Finns (Island) (import single) •• Seared by the back-blast of Mere Come The Warrh Jets? Confused with the cunning of Taking Tiger Mountain By Strategy, annoyed by the Portsmith Sinfonia, did YOU sleep thru FrippEno (I did)?? Well here’s another mouthful of bubbly Eno for all you constipated constitutents in the audience. Free that Bryan Ferry backlog in your lower rectal area with this quick-relief 45 of one blonde bombshell’s experiences in a Paris whorehouse. (You must be 21 to purchase this record.) Send two dollars in care of this reviewer for the TRUE and (no shit) honest lyrics to this song divulged in a special “ears only” conference with the ONE (ha-ha) hisself. (And you can get it from Jem Records -Ed.) C.W.B.

JOHN LENNON -Rock V RoU (Apple) •• At least Nillson’s version of “Crazy Little Mama” had some humor in it. Who can we trust with this kind of album? Maybe nobody. Lennon also goes Bette Midler one better by trying to out-disco “Do You Wanna Dance.” Phil Spector should be made to wear earphones. P.L.

JAY GATSBY - The Most Wasted Boy Alive (Arista) •• This kid is so much more wasted than even David Werner that the disc hangs limp when removed from the cardboard. Those who missed his last, a concept album on ESP about the death of Jean Harlow, should be sure to miss this gem. The title cut and “Mutant Spew” make up for the orchestral excesses. Who Needs Pierre LaRouche Anyway? P.L.

DAVID BOWIE -The Man Who Sold The World (RCA or Mercury) •* Twenty points if you’ve got a copy of this on Mercury that doesn’t have a hole punched in the jacket. Fifty points if you’ve got a copy with a picture of Bowie playing solitaire in a dress. Minus thirty if you paid for a copy of “Young Americans.” Ain’t games fun? P.L.

ROXY MUSIC - Country Life (Atco) •• No fault of Roxy’s that the company has destroyed their cover concept, but who do we blame for the inclusion of a lyric sheet? I was told that I’d fully belieye in Bryan Ferry’s “seriousness” once I’d seen him live, which I did, and I still dbn’t. Without synthesizer, sax and Manzanera, there would be little if anything to interest an audience, ’cause face it, the guy not only can’t sing so hot, he’s not even a very interesting stylist, and his attempt to establish a persona has persisted to the point of irritation. If the records don’t sell he can always become the new P.J.Proby. P.L.

CIRCLE -Paris Concert (ECM) •• A fantastic legacy, recorded in early ’71 with Chick Corea, piano; Dave Holland, bass & cello; Anthony Braxton, reeds & percussion; and Barry Altschul, percussion. Direct descendants of the second wave avant-garde explosion of the mid-60s (start with Miles’ rhythm section of Hancock-CarterWilliamsthen spread out, directly), these acoustic madmen create a music that sometimes flows with grace, sometimes lumbers with bluster, sometimes explodes. They even have damp spots-you take risks & sometimes you’re gonna fall down. Exciting, even fun if you’re up for it. And to think Corea disbanded this group for the electronic ready whip Return To Forever, which doesn’t blitz, boogie, or even bother. But then, he’s gotta eat, I suppose. R.C.W.

LESTER YOUNG - Newly Discovered Performances Vol. 1 (ESP-Disk) ** Considering that it’s a live broadcast from ’48 and an ESP-Disk the sound quality is very good. There’s a definitive version of “Lester Leaps In” and a nice sloppy jam on “How High The Moon” (with the obligatory bow to “Ornithology”). If you’re a Prez fan or a sucker for good bop, then cop it. Real gone Symphony Sid is your host. R.C.W. PAUL BLEY - Open, To Love (ECM) •• Patience is a virtue but even a saint would have trouble listening to this record without wandering into tomorrow’s agenda. It’s labeled solo piano but it’s more like duets with Silence - the pauses are excruciating. The music doesn’t just breathe, it hyperventilates. Bley’s a fine pianist but without Corea’s flow or Jarrett’s energy & humor, he makes the solo trek more demanding than rewarding. There are exceptions like the neo-stride piece called “Harlem” and some unexpected panache here & there but overall it’s hardcore introspection. A must for ambiguity buffs. R.C.W. HITLER’S INFERNO -Marching Songs of Nazi Germany 1932*1945 (Audio Rarities) •• Used as a musical bed for songs like BOC’s “M.E. 262,” this kind of tasteless fashionability is ho-k. Somehow it loses its initial purity when taken out of generic purity, but so what, why be picky at this point. C’mon kids, let’s get down to brass roots: this here is the stuff which spawned rock ‘n’ roll. This is the stuff which eliminates constant acedia and gets ya off your duffs an out inta the streets where ya belong. Too bad it’s seemingly the joyful domain of critics, ’cause everyone’s got that wish to get those ovens afire once again jus’ so’s we can get rid of the rock ‘n’ varletry and get pukin’ too high on the meat of the cosmic beat. How could ya miss with an LP like this, not only does the cover predate Peelaert’s Stones cover-hmmmm-but what ya get musically makes all that Lynyrd Syknyrd notonastitude look like fairies wearin’ boots. Hear such all time teethgnashers as “Die Fahne Hoch,” “Heil Deutschland” and the ever popular beer hall ballad, “Wenn Die S.S. Und Die S.A. Aufmarschiert.” The best however is left till last as usual, the click of the heels on this LP goes to a dumpling-dasher called “Die Jugend Fuehrer.” Reports are coming in daily that BOC has obtained the rights to this song and it’ll be in their forthcoming musical opera, The Rise And Fall Of The Third Reich -rumored to be a nine record package dressed in a plain flesh wrapper. The lyrics to this song are stunners: “I’m a bunker child - runnin’ wild, Smooching sisters boots as they click-sick, Beer hall slick, Say Ann let’s be Frank...” It’s a rawker. Yes kiddies, rock ‘n’ roll is definitely Aryan!!! J.F. THE PRODUCERS - Soundtrack (RCA Victor) •• Aside from being the most hilarious film ever concieved, Mel Brooks being the acknowledged crazie of this here time-warp, and an LP’s worth of dialog notwithstanding, the essential protein of this collection are the recorded-forposterity’s-sake “Springtime for Hitler” and the quintessential ode to the Luv Generation, “Love Power,” belted out by that dictator of hilarity, Lorenzo Se DuBois, aka LSD, aka Dick Shawn. What Hitler’s Inferno proclaims in intellectualization, The Producers makes up in crystal clear satire. Worth $.39 anyday. A true collector’s prize. J.F. THE WORLD OF THE PARTRIDGE FAMILY (Bell). ••Tot-rock, tot-power, tot-terror, with a viscidity hard to match even in Burroughs’ Wild Boys. The Partridge Family, while not exactly the paramount in tot-consciousness, certainly have a special niche carved out for themselves. Why? Could it be the overpowering urge to despoil Susan Dey’s eye make-up, or the mischievousness of David Cassidy’s omphalos wink, or how about the possibility of getting your biscuits into Shirley Jones’ buns - gourmet delight. This is perfect background music for when you’re staring out your front window watphing all those young puberulent queen ogresses sashaying down (he boulevard with their soft blond Eloilike hair flowing in the warm breeze - thank god for latent pedophilia. Hubba, hubba. J.F.

This month’s rockaramas were written by Tony Mastrianni, Craig W. Bell, Peter Laughner, Richard C. Walls and Joe Fernbacher.