thrifty music

Rock Town Hall’s Saturday Night Shut-In: A Rock Town Hall Companion, Our 1-Year Anniversary Episode

Nov 052011

Sounds of the Hall in roughly 33 1/3 minutes.

Can you believe it’s been a year of weekly Saturday Night Shut-In podcasts? Well, it has. This week Mr. Moderator and special guests bring you a very special broadcast coming at you LIVE from Urges in Atlantic City. He’ll share a rare, recently acquired slab of Thrifty Music and be joined by special guests Billy Bob Thornton, who’s written a fun, little ditty especially to commemorate our anniversary, and Andy Rooney.* He’ll end tonight’s episode with all the News From Rock Town Hall.

[audio:https://www.rocktownhall.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/RTH-Saturday-Night-Shut-In-52.mp3|titles=RTH Saturday Night Shut-In, episode 52]

Saturday Night Shut-In is the Hall’s attempt at creating a virtual listening party. We talk a lot about music, but how often do we get to listen to it anymore—together? To date Townsman Hrrundivbakshi has manned the board for a few Thrifty Music editions, and next week promises a very special episode curated by the Royales, ladymiss and Mr. with a playlist hand selected by Friend of the Hall Simon Reynolds. I know the Web is loaded with high-tech virtual playlists tapped into Facebook, Twitter, and whatnot, but I continue to invite Townspeople to put together their own SNSI episode to share here in the Hall.

Thanks to all who contributed to this week’s anniversary episode and to those of you who have contributed to shows in our first year. You’ll probably want to share tonight’s episode with the family, maybe even invite a few neighbors over while you’re at it. Enjoy.

[Note: The Rock Town Hall feed will enable you to easily download Saturday Night Shut-In episodes to your digital music player. In fact, you can even set your iTunes to search for an automatic download of each week’s podcast.]

*NOTE: It’s unlikely Mr. Rooney will be able to join us tonight.

Rock Town Hall’s Saturday Night Shut-In: The Minister of Thrifty Music Returns!

Posted by hrrundivbakshi

Feb 192011

Sounds of the Hall in roughly 33 1/3 minutes!

This week’s edition of Saturday Night Shut-In features the return of Townsman Hrrundivbakshi at the mic and his collection of “rescued” records. HVB’s penchant for trashpicking records from the dustbins of our nation’s capital proves to be a sound practice on both environmental and economic levels. Get this man a Cabinet position! Better yet, let’s let the man set up this week’s episode:

Greetings, seekers of the weird, the rare, the unusual, and the literally near-worthless! I come to you again in Saturday Night Shut-In form, bringing a wide variety of tunes culled from the thrift stores, yard sales, and garbage cans of our proud nation’s capitol.

This week, our installment features a wide variety of genres, from garage soul to pop to Latin boogaloo—and, as part of our ongoing effort to send mellow, peaceful healing vibes to our man Sammymaudlin, an unusually generous helping of tunes you can really RELAX to. So here’s to you, Samulah—get well soon!

HVB

[audio:https://www.rocktownhall.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/RTH-Saturday-Night-Shut-In-16.mp3|titles=RTH Saturday Night Shut-In, episode 16]

[Note: The Rock Town Hall feed will enable you to easily download Saturday Night Shut-In episodes to your digital music player. In fact, you can even set your iTunes to search for an automatic download of each week’s podcast.]

Rock Town Hall’s Saturday Night Shut-in: Thrifty Music Edition!

Posted by hrrundivbakshi

Feb 052011

Sounds of the Hall in roughly 33 1/3 minutes!

This very special Thrifty Music edition of Saturday Night Shut-In is manned—and I do mean manned—by founding one of our founding Townspeople, Hrrundivbakshi! Fans of HVB’s Thrifty Music series have long appreciated the man’s trash-picking accumen. Tonight we get to hear a pile of his recently recovered gems the way they were meant to be heard: TOTALLY LIVE, OCCASIONALLY SCRATCHY, AND MOSTLY DEVOID OF NERDY BACKSTORY. Listen to the music.

Mr. Mod’s been telling you since the beginning of this audio feature that we’d be hearing episodes hosted by your favorite Townspeople and friends of the Hall. Tonight he finally makes good on this promise, so lay off his case, OK? Now why don’t you sit back, press PLAY, and crank up the speakers for the next 33 1/3 minutes or so, taking a guided tour through the refuse of our nation’s capital and surrounding towns with guest host Hrrundivbakshi!

[audio:https://www.rocktownhall.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/RTH-Saturday-Night-Shut-In-14.mp3.mp3|titles=RTH Saturday Night Shut-In, episode 14]

[Note: The Rock Town Hall feed will enable you to easily download Saturday Night Shut-In episodes to your digital music player. In fact, you can even set your iTunes to search for an automatic download of each week’s podcast.]

Thrifty Music, Vol. 20.10: Is Anybody Better Than Gladys Knight?

Posted by hrrundivbakshi

May 132010

“Didn’t You Know (You’d Have to Cry Sometimes),” Gladys Knight & the Pips

Greetings, seekers of fine worthless music!

I come to you today with a new musical offering culled from the junk stores, flea markets, and garbage cans of our nation’s capitol. This time, it’s a fine old single by Gladys Knight & the Pips, entitled “Didn’t You Know (You’d Have to Cry Sometimes).”

I could go into nerdy detail about exactly why I think this song is so great, but really, all I want to do is fall down on my knees, raise my hands up to heaven, and thank the almighty God for giving us Gladys Knight. Seriously, that woman is/was the greatest soul music singer ever. You can have your Aretha Franklins, your Mavis Staples-es, even your (sentimental favorite) Candi Statons. For my money, Gladys Knight was the best — I can honestly say that she’s the only singer who gives me the chills every time I hear her sing. That voice! At the same time, huge and intimate; joyful and passionate; soft and righteous — just amazing. And “Midnight Train to Georgia”? Forget about it. True, that song may also benefit from one of the all-time greatest lyrics in the soul canon, but when Gladys sings “I’d rather live with him in his world, than live without him in mine”… well, it’s all over.

Anyhow, here’s a tune that may not scale the vast heights reached by “Midnight Train…”, but it’s a good’un for sure. Thanks mainly to Gladys Knight — and, God bless ’em, to a lesser extent, the Pips.

My question for you all is a simple one: Is anybody better than Gladys Knight? (Hint: NO.)

I look forward to your responses.

HVB

Thrifty Music, Vol. 20.9: Get Lifted With George McCrae

Posted by hrrundivbakshi

May 112010

“I Get Lifted,” George McCrae

Greetings, fellow seekers of the rare, the unusual, the…

Ah, screw it. The love of my life decided she’d had enough sleep at 5:30 this morning and woke me up in the process. So here I am, groggy and nappy-headed after having crawled out of the fart-sack a full three hours early, and I got nothing better to do than share another song I found in the garbage with you.

This one is by George McCrae, who had one giant smash in the 70s entitled “Rock Your Baby.” That’s a good little tune, for sure — but I think I prefer the slinky, sexy vibe of this one better. See what you think.

And while you’re grooving to McCrae, ask yourself this probing question: uh… uh… man, I can’t think of a probing question. I got woken up at 5:30, Jack!

HVB

Thrifty Music, Vol. 20.8: What’s the Deal, America? You Hate Stevie Wonder Or Something?

Posted by hrrundivbakshi

Apr 232010

“We’ll Have It Made,” The Spinners

Greetings, fellow scavengers of incredibly cheap music! I come before you with yet another scratchy old single, found abandoned in a junk store in the nation’s capitol. This time, it’s a wonderful non-hit performed by The Spinners — a band that helped make Philly Soul famous. But! This track, entitled “We’ll Have It Made,” was recorded for Motown, a few years before the Spinners and Motown gave up on each other.

There are a bunch of great Spinners songs in the soul canon — but their biggest smash was probably “It’s a Shame.” Why was it so great? Why did it shoot to #14 Pop in the blink of an eye? Because Stevie Wonder co-wrote it, that’s why! So: you’re Berry Gordy, and this is the first time the Detroit Spinners have ever amounted to anything. What do you do next? Easy! Have Stevie Wonder write another song for them!

Which is exactly what Wonder and his long-time lyrical collaborator Syreeta Wright did, and the results of their efforts you can hear above. I really dig this song, and it coulda, shoulda, WOULDA been a hit, except… except… it wasn’t. Reportedly, Stevie was genuinely disappointed (this was only the second time Gordy had let Stevie out of his cage to lead the writing/production duties on a Motown track) — and more than a little confused by what hadn’t happened. The song peaked — somewhat incredibly, sez me, at #89 on the pop charts.

Anyhow, I think it’s a winner. And it prompts the following Thrifty Music question: What, in your humble estimation, is the song or album that most sticks in your craw as an indisputable example of the poor taste shown by America’s music listening public? I don’t want the song or album that you like that the rest of the world isn’t smart enough to agree with you about; I want the song or album that coulda, shoulda and WOULDA been a hit, a popular sensation, had it not been for… for… well, who knows? It just shoulda, that’s all!

I look forward to your responses.

HVB

Thrifty Music, Vol. 20.7: Ray Charles Gets Funky!

Posted by hrrundivbakshi

Apr 192010

Ray Charles, “That’s a Lie”

Greetings, seekers of fine, funky, nearly free forty-fives! Today, as part of my ongoing effort to deliver 20 great Thrifty tracks in just twice that number of days, I present a track that immediately jumped off the turntable as a bona-fide WINNER. Released in 1968, this A-side saw modest success, charting at #11 on the soul charts, and peaking at #64 Pop. Whatever. All I know is that — as far as I can tell — it’s mysteriously unavailable on CD these days.

Which is a shame, ’cause it’s a funky tune of the highest caliber. Seriously, I totally dig this one, and it was a thrill to discover it, mouldering in a stack of throw-aways I discovered a few weeks ago. My musical life is definitely richer for having found it.

But here’s today’s funky, Ray Charles-inspired question: Are there any blind pop/soul/rockers who suck? Even Jose Feliciano’s got something going on that’s a damn, uh, sight better than, say, Journey. I’m just askin’.

I look forward to your responses.

HVB

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