June 2018 Finds

[Turboellis]

My 3 to start the month ...

- Beyond The Wizards Sleeve – The Soft Bounce (2016) - I love half of this but the other half either annoys me or does nothing

- The Long Lost - Woebegone (2008) - Bought because it was super cheap & I thought the Flying Lotus mix might be good. If it was, I can't remember. Also it was on Ninja Tune.
- Jun Mayuzumi (1967) - I owned this for 3 days but returned it to the seller, who lied about its condition. Sad but it had a nasty gash so was no point in keeping it. A couple of Beatles songs, which are quite nice, a cracker called Koi No Kisetsu ... I'll find another (playable) copy. When I complained the seller said that he had increased the weight on the stylus in order to play it without jumping. That was a sneaky lie. No way would a nasty gash like that play, not even if you stood on the stylus while it was playing.

[Turboellis]

OK, here's another 3:
1. Laika – Good Looking Blues (2000) via Disk Union. Always loved Laika. All that poly-rhythmic stuff was and is right up my cuppa. Sounds amazing on vinyl. Took about an hour to clean up. I think the previous owner must have been allergic to brushes, soft cloths AND cleaning fluids. I've rarely seen such a neglected record. But as long as they clean up OK, I don't send them back. It sounds great now.
2. Christiane Legrand – Of Smiles (2001) Bought on impulse after hearing one track. Hasn't arrived yet. Probably because I haven't paid for it yet ...
3. Fred Frith – Guitar Solos (1974). Was given this about 6 months ago, and have only just got around to listening to it. It's great! Super imaginative playing. Took me completely by surprise. I didn't think I'd want to keep it, but I'm pondering that one. And it's an OG.

[bongolia]

Saw Laika live at Dingwalls in Camden when the second album came out. Can't remember the gig at all, but I do remember buying one of the snowglobes (as on the cover) but ended up throwing it away a few years back because the liquid had all leaked out or evaporated. I like the first two albums, but didn't like or buy Good Looking Blues at the time. Nice that it sounds good though, LPs from the period can be very hit or miss in quality

[bongolia]

The Long Lost - Woebegone (2008) - Bought because it was super cheap & I thought the Flying Lotus mix might be good. If it was, I can't remember. Also it was on Ninja Tune.

I bought the album those tracks are from (their only album I think?) ages ago because it was very cheap, on Ninjatune, and I liked Daedelus's first album. Hovers around in that "should I keep" space, but it's alright.

[Shere Khan]

OK, here's another 3:
1. Laika – Good Looking Blues (2000) via Disk Union. Always loved Laika. All that poly-rhythmic stuff was and is right up my cuppa. Sounds amazing on vinyl. Took about an hour to clean up. I think the previous owner must have been allergic to brushes, soft cloths AND cleaning fluids. I've rarely seen such a neglected record. But as long as they clean up OK, I don't send them back. It sounds great now.
2. Christiane Legrand – Of Smiles (2001) Bought on impulse after hearing one track. Hasn't arrived yet. Probably because I haven't paid for it yet ...
3. Fred Frith – Guitar Solos (1974). Was given this about 6 months ago, and have only just got around to listening to it. It's great! Super imaginative playing. Took me completely by surprise. I didn't think I'd want to keep it, but I'm pondering that one. And it's an OG.

The Fred Frith record is super. You say it's an OG but as far as I know it's the only version (apart from CDs). I've been on the look out for a cheap Christiane Legrand for years. They are often in Japan, of course, with associated postage costs and import fees.

[Grim Lounge Cowboy]

Ms Legrand spreading her wings post-Swingles!

At least one web voice uses the word "masterpiece". What do you say SK? Turbo (when you've heard it)?

OGs not cheap on discogs.

[Shere Khan]

Ms Legrand spreading her wings post-Swingles!

At least one web voice uses the word "masterpiece". What do you say SK? Turbo (when you've heard it)?

OGs not cheap on discogs.

Well I'm sure a lot of people might find it quite ordinary but as a youth I was pretty obsessed with the soundtrack for 'A Man And A Woman' and therefore French Bossa has always been a real boat-floater for me. It's very nicely orchestrated. I don't need an OG, a Japanese press will do me and they're not expensive it's just the post. There's one on discogs now for £15, which is nothing really, but then you've got £10 to post it. What a skinflint I am!

[Carlitos]

Nice finds this Sunday at the carboot. A guy was selling his father's collection, mainly trad jazz, folk and blues. Lately I am listening to these styles quite a lot so, I am over the moon with this bunch.

[Head Gardener]

I was pleased to finally pick up a copy of this album, I've had others in this Co*Star series
with actors that were never going to be as good as one with Vincent talking on it, and I was right!



in the same carrier bag as the Vincent Price album was this soundtrack, someone had good taste









A very odd Swedish compilation album that despite a half hearted search online
turned up with nothing on P.I.E. 3722 Airways but it does have a cover of Typically Tropical's Barbados





a small selection of cheap cheese, some signed














a great old Breakbeat 12"






3 great Scott Walker albums at one car boot was a bit of a result, the 2 below were sealed and new copies from
the guy who turns up at the car boot with boxes of vinyl at £10 a go, I didn't have 2 + 3 so how could I say no?



I also picked up the 2 x 45rpm re-master of this beauty







there were not many 7"s but this flexi-disc was a sweet find, complete with speed changing disc on the rear
like a low budget Led Zeppelin III

[smashingcheesegromit]

Well hello I'm back visiting...nothing this month...yet

[candiman]

Car boots were predictably depressing yesterday but my latest chart topping chazza delivered yet again today with a small cltuch of 45s this time.



The Animals - It's My Life You can pay a lot more for beat/garage that's half as good
The Animals - Inside-looking Out/ Outcast. Didn't know they had done a version of Eddie & Ernie's classic (of course all of Eddie & Ernies are classics).
Really chuffed with these

Gene Pitney - Train Of Thought Late era Gene. He is up there with that Dylan guy as a voice I cannot bear. So why did I buy it? I have no idea. But I'm glad I did because I really like it. The B side confirms why I usually run a mile from Gene.

Moody Blues - Nights In White Satin. Because it was minty.

[Viva Chiba]

What I am about to recount is a unremarkably incredible true story.

Park your disbelief here.

It had not been a great week for me, vinyl-wise. I'd won a small stack of 45s in an auction, some destined for t'interweb and a few keepers. The cream of the bunch was what appeared to be a decent, albeit grimy copy of this for just under a tenner ...

In the process of cleaning it however (using my patended rub a dub dub slap some washing up liquid on it and massage it in the sink method...) disaster struck. I'm not sure if it had a label crack or was an extremely brittle pressing (62?) but it basically snapped into pieces in my hands. This has never happened before, so either I was a bit too brutal with this fragile artifact or (I suspect) it was fucked anyway. Neither of which is a great consolation! Argrgh.

Needless to say I was absolutely gutted, and it looks like it'll take a while to excavate another cheapo copy. Onto the Ebay / Discogs fantasy wishlist it goes.

Saturday offered some small compensation - I found 5 (!!) sealed copies of this for a quid a go in bootland:

First track has some pleasant oriental sensibilities, and at about 25 mins in there's a long piece with lots of trippy manipulation and droning - not bad at all. Never leave anything behind which has 'tape' listed as an instrument!

So far, so reasonably decent. Also appears I forgot about the Colston Hall record fair. Whoops. Then Sunday happens.

I roll up to the car boot sale at a the sensible time of 9:40am. It's decidedly ho-hum. The guy with the big white van and crates of gubbins is nowhere to be seen. I once again endure the timeless mantra that is 'the dealers were 'ere at 6am....' Blah. And so it goes, like Vonnegut said.... And so through the dregs we rake.

And even though I've never seen him before, one of the local dealers is sighted. I've had it on good authority his does get there at 6am as well. His bag looks more than half full-

By the end of the exercise, I end up with a small but unremarkable hall, the highlights of which are ...

Cream reissue of this, actually pretty decent for 50p and possibly a keeper:

Plus some other bobbins destined for Discogs - lesser seen Ronnie Hazlehurst LP on Polydor, albeit VG, Producers OST, Johnny Kidd & Pirates reissue, Rah Band disco wotsit, Derek and Clive on Island, Hollyridge Strings Xmas LP (oddly seems sought after - some Stu Phillips involvement) - essentially a deep enough 14LP pile of chuff to convince me the drive had all somehow been worthwhile.

So it's now about 12:00 of the clock and I'm going through the final lot of sellers' stuff. I grow weary at the fruitless pursuit. And vexed when some chappie picks up a 45s box in front of me from a chap who doesn't usually have any records, but used to have a shop and has a lot at home, so he says. He has some rarer stuff he tells me, like Hot Chocolate LPs. These are more expensive. Not quite the lure to dangle. At this time I am tired, jaded, convinced the box is largely full of crap. It's the afternoon, almost, and it's the last box at the last shop at the dark and dusty end of the boot. I'm pirouetting on a knife edge and pondering whether twould be nobler to bugger off home, or if - being utterly exhaustive - I should fulfill my digging destiny and make this a clean sweep. I curse the faffing browser under my breath several times (unfairly) of course and decide, since this is all good wife alienating time, I have the minutes to spare. I shuffle through the box. It's full of cack as anticipated. I get to the back of the box. I espy a record. I withdraw the record. The record is surprising. My hands are tremulous and aquiver. I pretend to be interested in the Hot Chocolate LPs, which I am - gasp - not really that interested in after all (it's a ruse, a ruse...).

So I ask the gentlevendorperson the six million dollar question: how much is this? Trying all the while to conceal my barely concealed diggers jitters.

He picks it up, peers at it, hands it back to me. Then in another ancient, time honoured car boot sale ritual, he pronounced the immortal words:

"It's 50p".

I hand over my 50 pences and skidoodle, and silently thank the fates.

For the record, the record is this:



In retrospect I may have been ripped off, as the sleeve clearly says it's a 45p jobbie.

Not something I'd ever thought I'd own (I'd settled for the boot for the past 10 years). And bizarrely enough, this is my first visit back to the booter since I scored that Fairies 45 the other week!!! Madness. This has never happened before. My expectations have risen to the state where I will be appalled if I don't leave the next one with an Open Mind, Wimple Winch or Mike Stuart Span disc. It means this year of digging in bootland has probably eclipsed last year already as well (previous annual highlights: Paul Gonsalves & Tubby Hayes LP for £1.50, knackered and possibly signed Baris Manco on Dutch CBS for a squid).

It's visually in the VG camp and alarmingly the 'Garden' side has a scratch almost across the entire side which was pop-tastic in the wrong way. However a bit of massaging of the grooves and judiciopus cocktail stick scratch clearance has elevated the play grade on this monster to near EX! It oozes and throbs and pounds with uptempo delirium and is best enjoyed played reallyfuckingloud.

What can you say except, wow: and the vinyl is out there, somewhere.

[candiman]

Nice find!

So this was either Cheddar or Trench Lane? Don't tell me it was Trench Lane, it was a toss up between there and Lansdown for me. Lansdown won mostly on the nostalgia ticket. I used to like it there but it is now alas a shadow of its former self.

I am not a psych or beat expert so admit to not being familiar with TMF but I would have picked that up for the label and title alone.

you are still finding some bits at the car boots then? It sort of feels like game over in my recent experience , or I'm going to the wrong ones.

[Viva Chiba]

Cheddar. I've never actually been to either Trench Lane or Lansdown... I also live about 5 mins from Whitchurch so I do that most weekends as well! To be honest a lot of what I buy is just cheap stuff to punt on via Discogs so I can buy tastier 45s ...my expectations are accordingly low. It's sadly not very often I find anything I want to keep at the booties. I used to go out every weekend in t'early 00's dreaming about finding an amazing funk haul and came home disheartened countless bloody Sundays! I noted that the Clifton Car Boot is also still on, but I haven't been there for a couple of years now either; I've also sort of given up on the chazzas, although I might give 'em a go this weekend. Strangely enough, record fairs and record shops seem to be better places for finding records....

I'm finding 'bits', yeah, I've found two stonking freakbeat 45s at Cheddar this year but no massive hauls. Remember, 'the dealers' are there at 6am! Strangely getting anywhere early has never really seemed to impact on my hit rate. I guess I'm happier filtering through the chud everyone else leaves behind and picking out the oddities therein. I also reckon 'the dealers' don't really do 45s, or not as meticulously as I do. I suppose the whole point of getting there at 6am is to be there first, so I'm assuming they probably dash around looking for really obvious collections of nice LPs, which are generally quicker to flip through and worth more $$$$$.

[candiman]

Cheddar is a bit of a trek for me so don't go. Went once when I had to drop daughter off at the airport super early and on that one visit reckon it is probably the best of them round Brissle areal now. Had good luck at Clifton in the 1st year or two it was on, but it's been mostly crap since. Do Whitchurch sometimes but increasingly the traffic / finds ratio is putting me off - the traffic gets worse, the finds fewer. Rekkids seem to be drying up at the booters in the last couple of years. Although I don't get up as early as I used to so might have something to do with it.

I've been happy with my finds at the chazzas though this year.