Bozo Mark's Hot Picks In The CD Player For Summer

1. Nuggets (box set)

Various

Rhino

I got my first guitar (a $19.95 Sears Silvertone) in 1963. Learned to play "Red River Valley". In 1964 I met The Beatles, and got my first electric (a red, hollow-body Harmony that I wish I still had). Shortly thereafter, I started playing in bands, and learned how to do it by covering many of the songs on this four-disc set. It probably won't mean much to people who didn't grow up with it, but if the names The Electric Prunes, The Standells, The Blues Magoos, Count Five, The Swingin' Medallions, The Kingsmen, The Amboy Dukes, The Shadows Of Knight, and Paul Revere & The Raiders strike any nostalgic chords... Or how 'bout these songs: "Farmer John", "Little Black Egg", "Liar, Liar", "Lies", "Time Won't Let Me", "Wooly Bully", "Little Bit O' Soul", "Beg, Borrow, And Steal", "Hey Joe", "Talk Talk"... These are the seminal sounds of my musical youth: snotty vocals, wailing harmonica, fuzz-tone guitar, pounding drums, two-and-a-half minutes of barely controlled mayhem. Call it garage rock, call it punk, call it whatever you want - this is the music that made thousands of kids like me say "Hey, I could do that!" (Best previously unheard tune: The Lyrics' "So What!!" - unbelieveable attitude!)

2. Gravity!!! & Right Now!

Howard Johnson & Gravity

Verve

Howard Johnson formed the tuba band Gravity in 1968, but these two discs, from 1996 and 1997, are their first recordings. Man, what took so long??!? These are as cool as cool can be: up to six tubaists and a rhythm section on a track, jazz, R & B, funk - they do it all. The ensemble writing sounds like trombones with head colds, and I mean that as a compliment. On one track on each disc Johnson solos on penny whistle (Isn't it perfect that a tubaist would double on penny whistle? I love it!), including a lovely version of Herbie Hancock's gorgeous "Tell Me A Bedtime Story". Guest appearances by Taj Mahal (Gravity appeared with him on his Live Filmore album) and Paul Shaffer. This is the hidden pleasures pick of the month.

3. The Best Of King Curtis

King Curtis

Capitol

I don't think I've ever worked with a sax player to whom I did not say, "Can you get more of a King Curtis sound?" He was Texas tenor at its best, and whether he was the featured soloist (as he was for The Coasters, Aretha, Wilson Pickett, and so many more) or leading his own band, he had the biggest, fattest, sexiest sound I ever heard come out of a sax. This is a good introduction to him. Almost every tune is under three minutes, but what music gets crammed into those less-than-180 seconds! And not just funky soul either - listen to him whip through Horace Silver's "Sister Sadie" at a furious pace and you'll see that the man had more than a fair share of jazz chops, too! Rave on!

4. Song With Legs

Carla Bley

Watt

I've generally avoided Carla's duet albums with Steve Swallow, because as much as I like her writing, I don't think of her as much of a soloist per se, and usually those albums don't contain many new tunes. However, with the addition of Andy Sheppard on sax, this trio album is very, very nice. With two soloists to share with, Carla's sparse improvisations take on a lovely, elegaic beauty that stand in gorgeously stark contrast to Sheppard's and Swallow's more note-laden statements. All tunes are Bley compositions except a cover of Monk's "Misterioso", and both that tune and "Wrong Key Donkey" (the two longest tracks) spend more time exploring the blues than any of Carla's bands usually do. Maybe I'll go recheck out some of those duet albums...

5. Gone, Just Like A Train

Bill Frisell

Nonesuch

The man simply knows no limits. A few picks ago I raved about his Nashville album, and now this: a simple guitar trio, but with bluegrass bassist Victor Krauss (whom he met on Nashville) and - ready for this? - Jim Keltner on drums. Now, Keltner has played with John Hiatt, Ringo Starr, The Traveling Wilburys, Brian Wilson, Eric Clapton, Randy Newman - only Frisell would have the crazy notion of bringing Jim Keltner into his fairly avant-garde world. And - of course! - it's great! I think Frisell likes to pick unlikely sidemen so he can further stretch his own playing. He never asks these people to come strictly to where he is, but rather they all go someplace together, and it's a someplace none of them has ever been before. This album sometimes sounds folk, sometimes pop, sometimes screaming rock 'n' roll, sometimes sorta jazz... Well, it sounds like Frisell, and that's getting to be a reliably cool sound. Maybe this all started when Ginger Baker chose Frisell and Charlie Haden for his album Going Back Home (very highly recommended!). As far as I know, this was the first time Frisell played with anybody out of the jazz circles, but since then he's brought more and more nonjazz players into his projects. If they keep turning out like this, his latest, I hope he never stops!