dfbm #72
Smoke and Strings

Two hours of smoke and strings. Better open your window afterwards or leave the house! Lots of obscure and already dead folks. Others are very alive, but probably are not so well known either. 

In times of the internet, nothing is really lost. Many rare records are digitally available or got re-released. At least the good ones. Perry Leopold is almost mainstream, since almost everybody with an interest in psych folk or obscure music in general, stumbled upon his masterpiece "Experiments in Metaphysics". That's not the case for John Hulbert. So far he remains obscure and the only available song is the teaser for the reissue on Tompkins Square and some footage from the eighties, where he performs cover songs in the No Exit Cafe in Chicago (I suppose - the name and the stach matches).

Langtry is the solo project by one of the Iron & Wine members. Solo guitar/American Primitive, released and overlooked in 2004 on Soft Abuse.

Kenneth Higney and Kenny Knight are two examples of lost music that got reissued, so is Cathy Viger, even if she just got a ultra limited Lathe Cut reissue on One Kind Favor.

OCS is an early incarnation of Thee Oh Sees. Dwyer relased some really nice rough guitar/psych folk albums in the beginning of Thee Oh Sees.

The Family Jams were recorded while Robert Hendrickson made the documentary Manson (1973) (trailer). It's the remaining members of the Family singing Charles Manson's songs. This got reissued in 1997 and is pretty rare now. Community Spook Folk.

Johnny Young and Moon Bros. aka Matthew Schneider are two guitarists from Chicago and out of the same group of people that shared beers and bags of tobacco with Ryley Walker.

Into my Heart is my favorite song from Kyle Fosburgh's new album One Night which just got released. On this album, Fosburgh channels Robbie Basho like nobody before him (beside Steffen-basho-Junghans, who doesn't sing).

Sad story about Alexander "Skip" Spence, he's a similar tragical character like Syd Barrett. His last solo album was a failure and got removed from the labels catalog shortly after the release. It got reissued and there is even a hommage by Beck, Tom Waits and other "stars".

Joan O'Bryant is my favorite discovery. She's similar to lost singer-singwriter Connie Converse. Since her two albums are released by Folkway Records back in 1958, they are available from the Smithsonian Institute website.

Similar to Joan O'Bryant is Janet Smith who released a folk album on Takoma records in 1970 and then she disappeared. I am not 100% positive, but I think she is performing ancient music on the lyra now. 

Black Mountain/Asheville troubadour Wes Tirey sent me some demo recordings the other day and I thought he would fit in perfectly, so i just included him, without asking. Thanks Wes! He's working on new material which might be a step away from the lofi, loner vibe. Sounds good.

In the archive of the great Aquarium Drunkard blog, I found a feature about A.A. Bondy's cover version of I'm on Fire by Bruce Springsteen along with a nice interview. If I am not wrong this song appeared 2007 on a tour CD-r.

I could try to tell you more, but I run out of words and I should spare you my humble writing now. Links are included if available, else it's all a google search away.

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Playlist

1. Perry Leopold ~ The Absurd Paranoid – (from Experiment In Metaphysics, 1970) amazon
2. Andy Robbins ~ Pink Screen and the O-Mind – (from Two Horses, 2009) web
3. Johnny Flynn ~ Rambleaway – (from Shirley Inspired, 2015) web
4. Nick Castell ~ Abney Park – (from The Firefly Hunt, 2010) web
5. Sister Irene O'Connor ~ Keshukoran – (from Fire Of God's Love, 1976) amazon
6. Johnny Young ~ Magnolia Blues – (from II, 2015) web
7. Whisler Collier & Price ~ Rambling Boy – (from Strawbale Session, 2015) web
8. A.A. Bondy ~ I'm On Fire (Bruce Springsteen Cover) – (from Tour CDR, 2007) amazon
9. Machingbyrd ~ Mary B. Reel – (from The Road To Forbidden Ecstacy, 1980) web
10. Tom Smith ~ If I Had Wings – (from Still Lifes, 1978) web
11. Peter Bonneman ~ Jeg Var Allerede Gdet – (from Split, 2009) web
12. Kenny Knight ~ One Down – (from Crossroads, 1980) amazon
13. Andy Zwerling ~ Downwaters/Crosswaters – (from Spiders In The Night, 1971) amazon
14. Moon Bros. ~ Wool Blankets – (from Frijolillo, 2013) web
15. Kenneth Higney ~ Children Of Sound – (from Attic Demonstration, 1976) amazon
16. Langtry ~ Smylax – (from As Upon The Road Thereto, 2004) amazon
17. Tucker Zimmerman ~ Another Normal Day – (from Tucker Zimmerman, 1972) amazon
18. Janet Smith ~ Maple Leaf Rag – (from Vol. I: The Unicorn and Other Songs Both Old & New, ) web
19. Wes Tirey ~ Lois – (from Wes Tirey's Album, 2015) web
20. Cathy Viger ~ Have Faith – (from Have Faith 7" Lathe Cut, 1973) web
21. The Great Park ~ Make A Dead One Of It – (from Make A Dead One Of It, 2011) web
22. The Family Jams ~ No Wrong - Come Along – (from The Family Jams, 1997) amazon
23. Henry Flynt ~ Sky Turned Red – (from Back Porch Hillbilly Blues Vol. 1, ) amazon
24. John Hulburt ~ The Freak On The Black Harley – (from Opus III, 1972) web
25. OCS ~ Mike D. – (from 2, 2004) amazon
26. Seed Wire ~ Favored Man – (from Preliminary Sounds, 2015) web
27. Chris Lyons ~ Breath of Death – (from Dead Dog Drowning, 2011) web
28. Mountainhood ~ almost ded again – (from Goldeness (Being Part 1 In The Multivisorial Dream Saga Called "The Light"), 2009) amazon
29. Bob Gebelein ~ John Henry 1962 – (from Uncle Bobby's Record, 1974) web
30. Joan O'Bryant ~ Single Girl – (from American Ballads And Folksongs, 1958) web
31. Phillip Lewin ~ Back Home, To You – (from Am I Really All Alone, 1975) amazon
32. Washington Phillips ~ Lift Him Up That's All – (from The Key To The Kingdom, 2005) amazon
33. Kyle Fosburgh ~ Into My Heart – (from One Night, 2015) web
34. Les Moore ~ Silver Spoons – (from Yesterday, 1973) web
35. Alexander "Skip" Spence ~ Dixie Peach Promenade (Yin For Yang) – (from Oar, ) amazon