Betty had just entered an L.A. studio to record her fifth and final album but was reeling from a series of setbacks. Looking for a fresh start, Davis relocated to Hollywood to focus on songwriting. Before long, she found funding for her next project, and with renewed vigor, Davis reunited with former Funk House guitarist Carlos Morales and industry veterans, fusion drummer Alphonse Mouzon and session bassist Chuck Rainey. Old friends Anita and Bonnie Pointer (The Pointer Sisters) and Patryce “Choc’let” Banks joined Davis on vocals as did Motown legend Martha Reeves. The resulting album, Crashin' From Passion, was Betty's most musically diverse, blending elements of reggae and calypso, jazz, dark synth-pop, and even disco. Equally exploratory are Davis’ vocals as she trades in her signature sass and snarls for more nuanced stylings. Among the album’s few funk tracks is “Quintessence of Hip,” in which Davis hails musicians like Bob Dylan, Billie Holiday, Stevie Wonder, and John Coltrane, while deftly integrating elements of their work. The song also offers a moment of stark vulnerability, as she sings, “Isn’t rich? Isn’t it queer? Losing my timing so late in my career.” It would prove to be a prophetic line in the months to follow.More on Crashin' From Passion at lightintheattic.net
Liner Notes is a co-production of Light in the Attic and Ruinous Media. Edited and Mixed by Chris Duryee and Joe Plummer.2xLP, CD, & Digital available at lightintheattic.net
Pacific Northwest isolation mixed with wide-eyed ambition, a strong sense of family, and the gift of music proved to be quite the combination for teenage brothers Donnie and Joe Emerson. Originally released in 1979, Dreamin’ Wild is the sonic vision of the talented Emerson boys, recorded in a family-built home studio in rural Washington State. Situated in the unlikely blink-and-you-missed-it town of Fruitland and far removed from the late 1970s punk movement and the larger disco boom, Donnie and Joe tilled their own musical soil, channeling bedroom pop jams, raw funk, and yacht rock.Spurred on by their high school’s music program, Donnie and Joe received a further push from their lifelong farmer father, who drew up a contract stating that he’d support his sons lofty ambitions with their very own recording studio as long as they focused on original material, sage advice for a man with zero experience in the music business. After taking out a second mortgage to help cover costs, Don Sr. also built his children a 300-capacity concert hall (dubbed Camp Jammin’) replete with ticket booth, stage, and fully functioning snack bar. The only problem was that the projected audience never quite materialized, despite a prime time TV profile entitled “The Rock And Roll Farmers” from nearby Spokane, Washington. Even the Emerson brothers' school pals were nonplussed at their privately pressed long player, hand-distributed to local music stores but not quite so far as Seattle, five hours away from their rural home. Somewhat dejected by the muted response but never surrendering, both Donnie and Joe continued down a musical path and are still active as performers today.Be sure to also check out the short documentary, The Rock-n-Roll Farmers: Donnie & Joe Emerson.
Organic, electric, freeform. Pete Jolly's Seasons is an unsung masterpiece of ensemble groove and stellar musicianship, equally unsurpassed and inspired in its quiet excellence. Recorded in 1970, Seasons never had significant commercial success upon its release but has since amassed a cult following, leading collectors to pay top dollar for copies of the rare record, whose tracks would eventually be sampled by Cypress Hill, Jay Dee, & Busta Rhymes. Legendary Bassist Chuck Berghofer (The Wrecking Crew) not only plays on Seasons but was also a close friend of Pete Jolly. In this episode of Light in the Attic's Liner Notes, we hear from Chuck Berghofer himself along with music journalist & liner notes writer Dave Segal (The Stranger) to discuss the making of this improvisational masterpiece and celebrate the visionary talent of West Coast jazz keyboardist Pete Jolly. Liner Notes is a co-production of Light in the Attic and Ruinous Media. Edited and Mixed by Chris Duryee and Joe Plummer.
The Power of the Heart: A Tribute to Lou Reed (RSD 2024 World Exclusive)It goes without saying that the legendary Lou Reed was a true rock ’n’ roll pioneer. From The Velvet Underground’s debut in 1967 all the way through the end of his days, Reed sang truth from his heart. He lived life to the limit—and then some. On this episode of Light in the Attic's Liner Notes, we sit down with album producer Bill Bentley to talk about our new release, The Power of the Heart: A Tribute to Lou Reed. Bentley, who was Reed's publicist and friend, shares his personal stories and insights into the making of this compilation. The album is a tribute to Reed’s freedom of expression with new covers spanning his ground-breaking years with the Velvets into his majestic solo career. Featuring newly recorded covers from Keith Richards, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Rufus Wainwright, Lucinda Williams, Maxim Ludwig & Angel Olsen, Rickie Lee Jones, Mary Gauthier, Bobby Rush, Automatic, The Afghan Whigs, Rosanne Cash, and Brogan Bentley, The Power of the Heart: A Tribute to Lou Reed (Light in the Attic Records) is available at fine independent record shops worldwide on Record Store Day (4/20/24) and streaming everywhere you get your digital music.Tracklist:Keith Richards - I'm Waiting for the ManMaxim Ludwig & Angel Olsen - I Can't Stand ItRufus Wainwright - Perfect DayJoan Jett and the Blackhearts - I'm So FreeBobby Rush - Sally Can't DanceRickie Lee Jones - Walk on the Wild SideThe Afghan Whigs - I Love You, SuzanneMary Gauthier - Coney Island BabyLucinda Williams - Legendary HeartsAutomatic - New SensationsRosanne Cash - MagicianBrogan Bentley - The Power of the Heart (Bonus track CD/Digital Only)
Hudson River Wind Meditations combines Reed's love of creating drone music with his passion for Tai Chi, yoga, and meditation. The album's ambient soundscapes have been described as a counterpoint to his intense Metal Machine Music album—but they are similar outliers in Reed's 40+ year exploration of drone music and feedback harmonics, music created specifically for a certain time and place of mind.Liner Notes is a co-production of Light in the Attic and Ruinous Media. Edited and Mixed by Chris Duryee and Joe Plummer.Explore our Lou Reed Archive Series & stay tuned for more to come in 2024!
This companion piece to the first-time vinyl releases of the albums Like Swimming and The Night from the band MORPHINE features host Ryan H. Walsh, whose insightful liner notes were included in the recent reissues. Walsh is a Boston-based journalist, musician, visual artist, and author of the acclaimed 2018 book Astral Weeks: A Secret History of 1968. Liner Notes is a co-production of Light in the Attic and Ruinous Media. Edited and Mixed by Chris Duryee and Joe Plummer.Explore the Morphine archival releases - The NightLike Swimming
This Light in the Attic podcast episode is a companion piece to Pacific Breeze, the acclaimed series of Japanese City Pop compilations.Mark “Frosty” McNeil and Yosuke Kitazawa, co-producers of the Pacific Breeze series, delve into the origins of City Pop as well as breaking down specific tracks throughout the history of the genre. To learn more about Pacific Breeze and to pick up a copy of the record, visit the Light in the Attic siteLiner Notes is a co-production of LITA and Ruinous Media. Edited and Mixed by Chris Duryee and Joe Plummer
This Light in the Attic podcast is a companion piece to Words and Music, May 1965, an album of previously unreleased songs recorded by a young Lou Reed with future Velvet Underground bandmate, John Cale. It includes first known recordings of such iconic songs as "I'm Waiting for the Man" and "Heroin." These recordings will be released to the public for the first time on Light in the Attic Records.Our host, Tunde Adebimpe sits down with Matt Sullivan (co-owner and founder of Light in the Attic Records) and Lou Reed archivists Jason Stern and Don Fleming to get their insights into how the tape was discovered and how the songs were recorded by Cale and Reed in the spring of 1965.Listen along with Matt, Don and Jason as they share their appreciation and knowledge of these extraordinary recordings. Produced by Light in the Attic, Ruinous Media and Dann Gallucci. Explore Light in the Attic's Lou Reed archive.Listen to more podcasts at Ruinous Media.
Light In The Attic Podcast Episode 18 is out now! For this episode, LITA's Matt Sullivan sits down with David Buttle and Graham Luckhurst from UK-based label Mr Bongo to discuss the label's history, their reissue process and classics from Tim Maia and Terry Callier.
Jeff Powell has been recording, mixing and producing records for more than 30 years – working with a who’s who of musical legends, from Bob Dylan and B.B. King to Glyn Johns and Eddie Kramer. Powell served as staff assistant engineer, then engineer/ mixer and finally producer at Memphis’ legendary Ardent Studios from ’89-’97. He has been working independently since then, and now makes his home base at Sam Phillips Recording Service. Beyond his work as a producer and engineer, Jeff has expanded his horizons over the last 10 years and is now cutting vinyl records on his Neumann VMS 70 lathe at Sam Phillips Recording Service. His company is called Take Out Vinyl, and he has cut over a thousand records to date.
In honor of our recent reissues of prolific musician and producer Haruomi Hosono’s essential albums, we teamed up with dublab and In Sheep’s Clothing’s, a hi-fi bar in downtown Los Angeles, for a night of celebration. Special guest Kuni Murai — famed producer, composer and founder of Alfa Records, joined dublab’s Mark “Frosty” McNeill for a chat about his decades-long working relationship with Hosono, from his days as a session player to his stratospheric success with Yellow Magic Orchestra and beyond. Please note, we have removed the music sections due to right's issues. Photo: Kuni Murai at his Alfa Records office, located directly below the label's famed Studio A in Shibaura, Tokyo.
On this episode of the Light In The Attic podcast we sit down for a chat with one of our favorite artists, Jarvis Cocker. Produced and Recorded by Matt Sullivan Edited and Mixed by Patrick McCarthy Keep up with all of Jarvis' activities at JarvisCocker.net
On this episode of the Light In The Attic podcast we visit the offices of Mojo Magazine in London, UK, to chat with Jenny Bulley (Reviews Editor), Ian Harrison (News Section & Back Section, Buried Treasure), Danny Eccleston (Senior Editor), and John Mulvey (Editor). Since 1995, Mojo Magazine has been a constant in the lives of music fans the world over. In the pre-internet days, we found ourselves driving around our home cities, going form news stand to news stand to find the latest issue. So many incredible reissues, new albums and new artists were discovered in these hallowed volumes. Back issues still bear repeated readings and are coveted till this day (the photo is just a portion of Matt Sullivan's collection). It was an immense pleasure to sit down with them and ask them about the history of the magazine, how issues are put together, as well as what they're currently listening too. Produced and Recorded by Matt Sullivan Edited and Mixed by Patrick McCarthy Learn more about Mojo Magazine and subscriber here.
Another highlight from our recent trip to England was getting to sit down with legendary artist Haruomi Hosono. LITA's Matt Sullivan and Yosuke Kitazawa were able to chat with Hosono before his concert at The Old Market (Brighton, UK) and discuss his recent show at London's Barbican as well as our upcoming series focused on Hosono's albums. Excerpts from "Bara To Yaju" and "Malabar Hotel Upper Floor ··· Moving Triangle" (courtesy of King Record Co. Ltd.). are featured in the podcast, as is "Pom Pom Joki," recorded live at the Barbican (courtesy of Medium Inc.). Recorded by Matt Sullivan Edited and Mixed by Patrick McCarthy Learn more about our Haruomi Hosono Archival Series below and be sure to check out our short doc on YouTube. Hosono Philharmony (LITA 170 - CD / LP) Hosono omni Sight Seeing (LITA 171 - CD / LP) Hosono Paraiso (LITA 172 - CD / LP) Hosono Hosono House (LITA 173 - CD / LP) Hosono Cochin Moon (LITA 174 - CD / LP)
On our recent trip to England, we found a cozy hallway in the back of London’s Cafe Oto to sit down with living legends Charles Bullen & Charles Hayward of This Heat. Over the course of the conversation, LITA's Matt Sullivan talks with C & C about their music, legacy, the formation of This Is Not This Heat, as well as what's currently on their turntables. For folks in the USA, a miracle will soon be hitting our shores – C & C will be performing This Is Not This Heat. These shows will mark the first ever US performances for both C & C in any incarnation. Hallelujah! Tour dates below. Formed in Brixton, a multicultural, and – at the time – down-at-heel part of south London, This Heat were born into a music scene in rapid flux, first thanks to the punk explosion and then via new wave and its myriad offshoots into pop, rock and art-rock. But while many sought to apply punk attitude to chart-friendly sounds, This Heat were concocting some of the most experimental ideas ever committed to tape, taking influence from musique concrète, krautrock, the burgeoning industrial scene and even the dub reggae blasting out in their home borough. Photo by Luis Carvajal. July 19 - Underground Arts (Philadelphia) July 21 - Pitchfork Festival (Chicago) July 23 - Pioneer Works (Brooklyn) Produced by Matt Sullivan and Patrick McCarthy Recorded by Matt Sullivan Edited and Mixed by Patrick McCarthy Thanks to Charles Bullen, Luis Carvajal, Charles Hayward, and everyone at Cafe Oto. Learn more about our This Heat reissues below. This Heat This Heat This Heat Deceit This Heat Health and Efficiency This Heat Made Available This Heat Repeat / Metal This Heat Live 80-81
Join us on a ride along with Mark Lightcap, guitarist of forgotten 90s band Acetone, as he tells us all about a Los Angeles that no longer exists and the band that disappeared along with it. In Los Angeles in the 90s, Acetone crafted a sultry California sound in their garage. They released an EP on Vernon Yard and two LPs on Neil Young's Vapor and toured with Spiritualized, Mazzy Star, Oasis, and The Verve. While their velvet sound remains absolutely beloved by figures in that scene, nowadays Acetone is surprisingly unknown. Thanks to: Our guests: Sam Sweet & Mark Lightcap Our producer: Michelle Lanz Learn more about our Acetone anthology, 1992-2001 here Stream the album on Spotify & on Apple Music!
This episode we highlight a few women who are doing awesome things in the music world. In the first half we talk to our favorite songstress, Lynn Castle. Lynn, who was known as Los Angeles' first "Lady Barber," recorded her beautiful songs back in the 60s with the help of Jack Nitzsche and Lee Hazelwood, but they've lain dormant ever since.. until now! In the second half we eavesdrop on a conversation between two experimental female musicians, Suzanne Doucet and Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith. We also read some user-submitted tales of what's it's like to be a woman in the male-dominated music world. Thanks To: Our Editor/Co-Producer: Michelle Lanz Our Guests: Lynn Castle (aka Madelyn Von Ritz), Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith, and Suzanne Doucet. Our listeners/followers who submitted their stories
The stories behind our wild bunch of Record Store Day Releases, including the soundtrack to the 1973 Edie Sedgwick film Ciao! Manhattan; a box set of transcendental, minimalist proto-new age piano music by George Gurdjieff and Thomas de Hartmann; and the trance-inducing soundtrack to the Volcom surf film Psychic Migrations. Track List: White Fence - "Only Man Alive" (Psychic Migrations) Gurdjieff/de Hartmann - "Prayer & Despair" Gurdjieff/de Hartmann - "Caucasian Dance" Gurdjieff/de Hartmann - "The Struggle Of The Magicians" (Fragment No. 5) Gino Piserchio - "Angel Shock" (Ciao! Manhattan) Edie Sedgwick - "Turn the whole world on just for a moment..." (Ciao! Manhattan - Dialogue Track) Richie Havens - "To Give All Your Love Away" (Ciao! Manhattan) John Phillips - "Malibu People" (Ciao! Manhattan) Skip Battin & Kim Fowley - "Citizen Kane" (Ciao! Manhattan) Al Lover - "Flight Patterns" (Psychic Migrations) Gurdjieff/de Hartmann - "The Struggle Of The Magicians" (Fragment No. 5)(Psychic Migrations) Bitchin Bajas - "Bajas Ragas" (Psychic Migrations) Cave - "Shikaakwa" (Psychic Migrations) Credits: Hosts/Producers: Hilary Staff & Jackie Allen Editor/Producer: Michelle Lanz Guests: Charles Ketcham, David Weisman, Kurt Midness, Ryan Thomas
Venice Lockjaw
wow another great interview where I get to listen someone's cat who has diabetes, AND NOTHING ABOUT THE ACTUAL FUCKING ART. you guys are really dropping the ball on these interviews
Venice Lockjaw
wow what a waste of an interview. none of these episodes have been enjoyable. they don't go below the surface. they don't talk about the art, they don't about the time in which the art was created, the ideas that influenced it, what they were trying to achieve..... just nothing. what a waste of an opportunity