REVIEW: Journey – In The Beginning (1979 CBS cassette)

JOURNEY – In The Beginning (1979 CBS cassette)

Journey began scoring hits when they acquired powerhouse vocalist Steve Perry on Infinity (1978) and Evolution (1979).  Why not issue a compilation sourced from the band’s first three Perry-less records, with new cover art that ties into their present?  Seems like a no-brainer.  And so we have Journey’s first compilation album (and a double length at that) called In The Beginning.  Thank you Tim Durling for gifting this copy for the collection and for review.

In The Beginning contains five of the seven tracks from Journey’s self-titled debut.  It begins with three.  As on the original LP, “Of A Lifetime” opens.  The long organ and guitar-drenched opening gives way to a slow and passionate Gregg Rolie lead vocal.  Were Iron Maiden influenced by this song when they wrote “Strange World” for their own debut?  Probably just coincidence, but it can be heard.  The main hook in “Of A Lifetime” was the unmistakable guitar hook.  At this early stage, Journey boasted two guitar players:  Neal Schon and the late George Tickner.  They have to share the spotlight with an absolutely raging Aynsley Dunbar on drums and Rolie tearing it up on the synth.  Undervalued bassist Ross Valory also must be mentioned, playing concrete but melodic foundations under the feature players.

George Tickner’s instrumental “Topaz” goes second, starting slow and then taking on a jamming, progressive jazz rock fusion vibe.  This complex track is not to be taken lightly.  Just absorb every different section as they hit you.  Once again, Dunbar is a monster.  Third is “Kohoutek”, the memorable Schon/Rolie instrumental that was also track three on the debut album.  On vinyl, in both cases, it closed Side One.  It’s another challenging track with a cool galloping section.  (There’s a reason I’ve heard Dunbar referred to as an octopus – he sounds like he’s playing with eight arms!)

Rolie’s “On A Saturday Night” from album #2, Look Into the Future is a completely different style from the first three progressive sprawls.  Under four minutes with a bopping piano, this is just great rock and roll!  Tickner was out and the band was reduced to a quartet with Schon as the sole six-stringer.  Shades here of where the band would head once they figured out their future direction.  Schon’s solo is an example of melodic composition.  The Beatles cover “It’s All Too Much” from Look Into the Future follows.  It fits this new concise straightforward Journey sound, and it is quite excellent.  Rolie was the perfect guy to sing a George Harrison song, and the backwards ending is suitably trippy.  The blues “In My Lonely Feeling/Conversations” takes us back to the debut album.  This Rolie/Valory composition scorches with passionate fretwork.  Not surprisingly, the bass is the foundation.  Also from the debut, “Mystery Mountain” closes side one.  A short, but jamming track with subtle use of the wah-wah pedal.

Opening (cassette) Side Two, “Spaceman” from Next (album #3) was a melodic single.  Journey were honing in on that simple pop rock ballad.  “Spaceman” is one of their first.  As it did on album, “People” follows “Spaceman”, featuring synth and acoustics.  Very psychedelic for Journey.  The back to album #2, “Anyway” rocks hard and slow, like a monumental Whitesnake track from the 70s.  (Dunbar later joined Coverdale & Co. for 1987.)  From the same record, “You’re On Your Own” switches from slow and bluesy verses to a pounding chorus, enabled by Aynsley.  There’s a Beatles influence here in “I Want You (She’s So Heavy”).

We’re into the last tracks here, as vinyl listeners would have been flipping to side four for “Look Into the Future”, a brilliant ballad and one of the band’s early best.  “Nickel and Dime”, a legendary jam from Next feels like a throwback to the first album and for good reason:  it’s a leftover Tickner co-write!  And finally, In The Beginning closes with the epic “I’m Gonna Leave You”, the same song that closed the debut Journey.  Coupling some killer organ with with a heavy riff, this bluesy rocker also boasts some of Rolie’s best vocalizin’.  Legendary!

For those who only know Journey as a lovin’, touchin’, squeezin’ band of crooners and balladeers, this compilation would come as a shock to the system.  But a shock can be a good thing.  In The Beginning is a great way to get many of the key tracks from the first phase of Journey in one purchase.  This stuff doesn’t usually make it onto regular Journey compilations.  It’s a good set to own.

4/5 stars

VIDEO: Late July and Early August at the Cottage 2023

Lots of great music for you here to rock out to, as you see the sights of Lake Huron:

  • Washington Wives – “Memoirs, Etc.” (from Raw M.E.A.T 1)
  • Brent Doerner’s Decibel – “Takin’ the Color Outta the Blooze” (from Bd=I0log(P₁/P₂)=dB)
  • My Wicked Twin – Maybe Love (from Decibel Music)
  • and a few hits by Tee Bone Erickson you might recognize.

You’ll also see my visit with Aaron KMA, and all the goodies he gave me, including the Iron Sheik.  You’ll see a 400,000,000 year old rock.  You’ll witness a cheeky chipmunk, a laser light show, a bonfire, some slow-mo waves, and lots more.

Please enjoy.

Rock Daydream Nation: Rock Court: In defence of Vinnie Vincent Invasion

One of the “super-secret” tapings I was involved with is finally ready for your viewing pleasure!

In this courtroom drama, I played the role of the prosecution, with Peter Kerr as the defense.  Judging was the honourable Reed Little (The Contrarians), who had to choose whether or not he was going to buy Vinnie Vincent Invasion, based on our testimony.

I have not seen the final episode myself, but I look forward to watching how I did with a couple weeks distance!  This show was a lot of fun, and I’ll be back on Rock Daydream Nation again this fall, defending a band I love!  (Or at least, an era I love from a band I like!)

#1078: Content Lost

RECORD STORE TALES #1078: Content Lost

It is inevitable, even in this digital age, that things get lost!  I’ve been writing about music since the early 1990s, with my first music reviews posted in 1994.  All of that stuff is gone now.  My earliest reviews were unpublished, just saved onto a disc or printed out and given to friends.  Those discs are long gone now, 5 – 1/4″ floppy discs that went corrupt, and later on 3 – 1/2″ floppies that met the same fate.

The very first review I posted was of the first three songs from Motley Crue’s self-titled album in 1994.  It was posted March 15 1994, the day of release, with a full album review that followed.  These were posted on a local computer bulletin board called the Wanderer’s Rest, run by a guy named Sheldon Parkes.  Incredible that I still remember his name 30 years later, but there are minimal records left.  The Wanderer’s Rest had a problem with its users, who tended to be antisemetic.  I bailed out, and posted Black Sabbath reviews on another board, called Arrakis.  It was run was a local home-schooled kid name Doug Pretorius.  Naturally, all those reviews are lost now.  Amazing how I can remember these guys’ names.  I met Doug once or twice for a few minutes, and never met Sheldon at all.  It would have been interesting to see how bad those old reviews were!  I know my Motley review has not changed in praise or enthusiasm.  I liked it just as much upon release as I do now.  I followed it with a review of Quaternary.  I remember praising the industrial flavours of some of the tracks, and the aggressive lyrics.

In the early 2000s, I began posting my reviews, rants and lists on a website called IAM, under the name Purpendicular.  Unfortunately all those reviews were lost when I deleted my account in 2004.  I don’t remember much of what I posted, but I worked on the content and I know there was some good stuff that I would have re-posted here, if I still had it.

In early 2006, I met and interviewed ex-Helix guitarist Brent Doerner.  That interview is still intact, rescued from a Maxell XLII 110 cassette.  Another tape was not so lucky.  A year or so following this, I talked to Brent’s live band, including guitarist Shane Schedler, now-retired drummer Brian Doerner (then doing double duty in Saga), and the late Ralph “Chick” Schumilas on rhythm guitar.  I lost the tape, and the interview was never transcribed.  I felt like shit.  I remember I wore a suit to the interview, which Brian asked me to take off as it made him uncomfortable!

I can only remember one quote from the whole interview.

Me:  “So Brian, I heard that you were singing lead vocals on ‘Billy Oxygen’ on the last Helix tour, is that true?”

Brian:  “Yah, so??”

I then went on to praise the song, and told him how happy I was that Helix were playing it live again.  That is unfortunately all I can remember.  Maybe I’ll find that tape one day, though I have tried mightily.  I could swear it was on a red TDK.

Even in the digital age, things get lost if you don’t own control of your context.

I recently lost two great interviews that I did with some incredible rock stars, because they were not on my channel, and that channel doesn’t seem to exist anymore.  On September 23, 2021 I interviewed Greg Fraser of Brighton Rock and Storm Force.  Andy Curran and Sean Kelly both dropped by for an episode that you could have called “This Is Your Life Greg Fraser”.  The Storm Force guitarist dropped tons of knowledge and great stories.  What a loss!  If I had known it would disappear, I would have downloaded it for my own records.  The other lost interview was with Slik Toxik’s Nick Walsh, which I called a “bucket list” interview.  This one happened on November 17, 2021 and included great stories about Nick sending his audition tapes to Ratt and Jimmy Page.  All lost forever now.

If I ever do another interview for a channel that is not mine, I will download it, and re-upload it to my own YouTube channel as an unlisted video.  That way, it’ll always be available, even if it’s not publicly available.  I will still be able to watch it and use it for research.

So, as we mourn the loss of content both great and insignificant, we look to the future and saving these things properly.  Loss prevention tactics for the digital age.

 

 

 

GUEST FILM REVIEW: My History with Flash Gordon (1980) by Jex Russell

This guest post comes courtesy of Jex Russell, in conjunction with his new WordPress site.  Give him a follow!

 

FLASH GORDON (1980)

My introduction to Flash Gordon goes back to the Fall of 2005. November, I believe it was. At this point in time, I worked at a gas station, and to kill time when it was slow, I would browse through the magazine rack. I would go through the TV Guide week after week and look for any airings of 80s movies for me to tape. My VCR was still very active in 2005, and I would constantly tape movies off of TV and cut out all of the commercials.

On this particular week, I saw that Boston-based network UPN 38 (a.k.a. “WSBK”) was airing a 1980 film called Flash Gordon that upcoming Saturday afternoon. I was familiar with the character and the name Flash Gordon, I was even familiar with FLESH Gordon at this point, but I had never heard of this adaptation from 1980.

So, that night after work, I went online to find a trailer of it to watch. Keep in mind, in 2005 YouTube hadn’t completely taken off yet, so I relied on IMDb to find these old movie trailers.

I was immediately hypnotised by the visuals I was seeing: Conflict, lasers, explosions, a villain with crazy eyebrows, hawk-like men flying in a brightly colored sky, and of course, Flash Gordon cruising through space on this flying scooter-looking thing. All of this accompanied by a song that went like so: “FLASH!! AHH-AHH!”. Then, after showing the title and credits, the trailer ends with a title card that reads these three words: Music by QUEEN.

That was it. I was instantly sold. I knew I’d be taping this movie. So, that Saturday afternoon, I sat in front of the TV in my parents’ basement, recordable VHS tape loaded in the VCR, remote control in hand, and I experienced Flash Gordon for the very first time.

Now, one thing I should note is that this specific airing was cut down to fit a two-hour time slot. I had cut out the commercials, and the final runtime was around 90 minutes. The actual runtime of Flash Gordon is 110 minutes, which means this version I saw for the first time, and that I now had on tape, was missing approximately 20 minutes of footage. I haven’t seen this cut in almost two decades, but I’d be curious to watch it again and see exactly what portions were cut out.

All cuts aside, my initial reaction upon watching this movie was generally positive. I thought the movie was quite cheesy, especially in the acting department, but that’s right up my alley. I was also impressed by the visual presentation of the movie: The sets, costume design, the use of colors… Flash Gordon is a visually beautiful movie, and I still feel that way when I watch it now.

I still had the desire to see the full, UNCUT version of Flash Gordon, so off to Ebay I went, in hopes to find an official copy. Unfortunately for me, in 2005 Flash Gordon hadn’t reached the cult status it holds today. Copies were few and far between on Ebay. VHS copies were pricey, as was the case with the initial DVD release, distributed by Image Entertainment, that came in a cardboard “snapper case” rather than the traditional plastic DVD case.

So, I gave up on trying to find an official copy of Flash. Fast Forward to 2007, and Universal Pictures announces that they’ll be releasing a new DVD edition of Flash Gordon, dubbed the Saviour of the Universe Edition. Now, by this time, my interest in finding a copy of the film had died down, but I would eventually pick up a copy for $9.99 at Zellers in 2009, and I’m glad I did: The presentation on this DVD is glorious, and the film looks absolutely fantastic.

In my opinion, I think that the availability of this edition, plus all of the Flash Gordon references in Seth MacFarlane’s 2012 film Ted (where Sam J. Jones appears in a cameo as an exaggerated version of himself) have introduced the film to a new generation, a new audience and have propelled it to super cult status.

Having recently watched the film again for this review, I can safely say that, while the film is not without its flaws (the aforementioned acting, not to mention occasional humor that feels forced), it’s still a highly enjoyable film that keeps the viewer’s attention all the way through, mainly due to the wonderful cinematography.

I definitely felt an Italian-style of filmmaking here, and while doing research I found out why I got this impression: much of the crew for the film was Italian. But to get more specific, I got vibes of Federico Fellini while I was watching. Which is funny, because I’ve never actually watched any of his films, but I know enough about him and his style of filmmaking to be able to detect a similarity. Come to find out, Fellini was actually one of the first choices (if not THE first choice) to direct the film. They even make a reference to him early on in the film: When we first see Princess Aura (Ornella Muti), she is pulling a little person (Deep Roy) using a leash, and she says “Come, Fellini”.

An important part of the film which is also worth mentioning is the fantastic soundtrack by Queen, which acts like a character on its own. It really helps amp up the action sequences, and the film wouldn’t have been the same without it.

I would recommend this film to any fan of science-fiction, particularly fans of the original Star Wars, a big inspiration for Flash Gordon, which incidentally was released almost six months after the release of The Empire Strikes Back.

 

My rating: 3/5

 

FLASH GORDON (1980)

Directed by: Mike Hodges

Produced by: Dino De Laurentiis

Starring: Sam J. Jones, Melody Anderson, Max Von Sydow, Topol, Ornella Muti, Timothy Dalton, and Brian Blessed.

Tim’s Vinyl Confessions: Ep. 445: Flash Gordon (Movie and Soundtrack review)

FLASH! AH-AH, SAVIOUR OF THE UNIVERSE!

Today we wish Sam J. Jones a happy birthday, on a very special Tim’s Vinyl Confessions. Join Tim, Jex and I with Robert Daniels in his first-ever Tim’s Vinyl Confessions. Only this time we’re not confessing vinyl! Not really anyway. Yes, Queen did the soundtrack, but our focus was more on the celluloid.

Apologies in advance for any Flash Gordon fans who will automatically hate my perspective on this show.  At least it was funny…

Top TV Show Theme Music on Grab A Stack of Rock with Robert Daniels, Harrison and Jex

Thank you Rob and Harrison for an awesome stack of lists tonight!  Jex could not make it, as having two young kids can tend to tire one out at the end of the day.  He did send in a Top 5 list which Harrison read, and the rest of us saluted!

The lists were awesome and diverse.  If you don’t want to watch the show, I recorded the lists for your reading pleasure below.  Note the minimal amount of crossover, but also note the similarities between Rob and Jex!

We fielded an “Ask Harrison” question tonight from Jazz King, who we hope will be asking more questions of the Mad Metal Man in the coming weeks!

Great lists, and almost as impressive were the runners up!  Check them out at the end of the show.

Cheers and see you next time!

MIKE

11. Trailer Park Boys (Blain Morris) – the Hawaiian guitar version from the Christmas Special
10. The Flinstones (Hoyt Curtin, Joseph Barbera and William Hanna)
9. The Simpsons (Danny Elfman)
8. Cheers – “Where Everybody Knows Your Name” (Gary Portnoy and Judy Hart-Angelo)
7. All In The Family – “Those Were the Days” (Lee Adams (lyrics) and Charles Strouse (music))
6. South Park (Primus) – it cost Matt Stone and Trek Parker only $74.
5. Beverly Hillbillies – “The Ballad of Jed Clampett” (Paul Henning, and recorded first by bluegrass musicians Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs – vocals)
4. Cops – “Bad Boys” (Inner Circle)
3. Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (Dennis McCarthy)
2. Star Trek: The Next Generation (Jerry Goldsmith)
1. Star Trek: the original series (Alexander Courage) – made immortal for me by Wayne’s World

JEX

5. The (Je)X-Files
4. Unsolved Mysteries
3. The Twilight Zone
2. Knight Rider
1. Stranger Things

HARRISON

11. Dilbert – “Forbidden Zone” by Oingo Boingo
10. Miniscule
9. Air Crash Investigation (Mayday)
8. Top Gear -“Jessica” by the Allman Brothers
7. The Transformers: Cybertron
6. Gotham
5. Walking With Dinosaurs
4. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2003-2009)
3. Deltoro Quest
2. Clone Wars
1. Primeval

ROB

11. S.W.A.T.
10. Game of Thrones
9. The Jeffersons
8. Mission: Impossible
7. Knight Rider
6. Space: 1999
5. Dr. Who
4. The X-Files
3. Hardcastle & McCormick
2. Battlestar Galactica (2003)
1. Star Trek: Voyager*

 

 

Top TV Show Theme Music on Grab A Stack of Rock with Robert Daniels, Harrison and Jex

GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man

Episode 31:  Top TV Show Theme Music on Grab A Stack of Rock with Robert Daniels, Harrison and Jex

DISCLAIMER:  Jen had a bad fall again this week, hit her head, and had to have staples put in.  Therefore this is likely to be one of those shows where I’m barely there.  I’ll be relying on the other guys to make the show happen.

Harrison suggested we get Rob back, and Rob suggested we do Top TV Show Themes.  I think we’re planning a Nigel Tufnel Top Ten.  As of this writing, I haven’t started my list.  But I’ll be there.

Thank you for caring and thanks to those who reached out!

 

Friday August 11 at 7:00 P.M. E.S.T. / 8:00 P.M. Atlantic.  Enjoy on YouTube or on Facebook!

August in Paradise

I have not had time to put together a new cottage video yet, due to the insane amount of photos and footage I’ve accumulated.

It was another very busy five day weekend!  I did two shows (one Grab A Stack of Rock, and one Tim’s Vinyl Confessions).  We listened to a lot of music – Arkells, Alice Cooper, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, Y&T, Night Ranger, and more.

In this photo set you can see:

  • My recording location for Tim’s Vinyl Confessions, by fireside.
  • Jen and I jamming some acoustic bass on the porch.
  • The Iron Sheik!
  • The beach at sunset.
  • A 400,000,000 year old rock!

 

The Writer’s Room: Summer Holidays!

Mike sat on the porch, sun beaming down bright, as he prepared for the first Writer’s Room teleconference!  Normally, the guys (except Holen) all met up in a big room to hash out story ideas and pick on Mike.  This time, everybody was meeting from their summer vacation spots.  Mike’s was at the cottage, beneath the trees, with birds and chipmunks alike visiting his quiet space.  He logged in and waited for the others to arrive.

The first to arrive was the aforementioned Holen Magroin.  As usual, his screen was fuzzy, revealing no details.

“Holen!” greeted Mike.  “You’re first.  What’s up man?”

Holen muttered something about a hangover, not quite distinguishable.  Mike could make out a figure fussing with his camera gear, but the image got no clearer.

“Not much is up, how’s life in Canada?  I’m still trying to get Harrison to get these new images for Noirison chapter two.  I have a very specific picture in my mind.  He’s close, but not quite there yet.”

Mike was afraid to ask his next question.  “How many revisions has he done so far?”

“Just seven,” answered Holen.  Mike smacked his head.  Holen was an artist, perhaps more than the others in the group.  It had to be just right.  It was his vision!

As if summoned by an unholy ritual, Harrison was next to arrive in the teleconference.  He was calling in from his car.

“Hello,” he said, his calm Australian demeanor revealing nothing of the seven revisions he finished for Holen.

With a flash, John T. Snow appeared on the screen, on holiday from sunny California!

“Hellooooo!” screamed the Snowman, with white sunscreen on his nose and a drink in hand.  “Welcome to California!”

“Fuck California!” Mike screamed back.  “I mean, welcome John!”

The last two participants emerged:  Aaron from a beach in Port Elgin, and 80’s Metal Man seemingly from a rock club somewhere in the UK!

“Welcome everyone!” Mike announced.  “I have a very important statement to make regarding the future of Tee Bone Man.  Are you ready?”

80s Metal Man plugged his ears as a band was soundchecking, but gave the thumbs up.  Aaron saluted from the beach with a “Wahoo!”  John sipped his drink, Harrison nodded stoically, and nobody knew how Holen responded since he was invisible.

Mike took a deep breath.  “You ready guys?  OK.  Here’s the news.  You all get the rest of the summer off!  All of you except Harrison, that is!”

Harrison was unsurprised and unmoved.

“Summer off?  Wahoo!!” said Aaron.  “Wait…why?”

“Well, we’re so far ahead on stories that we have enough to go for the next couple months!  Harrison just needs the art!  We have 80s Metal Man with his new story about the mole in Rock and Roll Heaven, that will be going up soon.  We have a second chapter of Holen’s Noirison series, written and waiting for art.  Personally, I have written the next three chapters of the Multiverse Saga, and Harrison has been working on the adventures of Moustachio and Shinzon separately from that.  We’re all set!  Enjoy the summer, boys!”

Everybody celebrated in their little teleconference windows!  Everyone but the calm and collected Harrison, and the invisible Holen, who may have been battling with a Kraken.  It was simply impossible to know!

“Are you OK, Harrison?” asked Aaron while building a sand castle.  “You aren’t smiling.”

“Yes I am,” responded Harrison.  “I’m overjoyed to be still working on Lego art this summer.  Can you not tell?”

“No!” responded everyone in unison.

“Enjoy the summer guys!” said Mike as he signed off.

He then leaned back in his chair on the porch.  This summer had not gone according to plan.  It had gone better!  He had shed the kryptonite he had been carrying around for the last year, and emerged a new man.  He smiled.  He looked at the schedule of stories ahead.  He nodded in approval.  Big stories.  Big changes.  Big drama.

Man, the readers will be freaked out when they see who dies!

 

The end.

 

THE ADVENTURES OF TEE BONE MAN:  PHASE ONE – THE SQUIRREL SAGA 

THE ADVENTURES OF TEE BONE MAN:  PHASE TWO – THE MULTIVERSE SAGA

  • Chapter Eighteen:  Shinzon – Origins (By LeBrain)
  • Chapter Nineteen:  Tee Bone Man and Superdekes vs. the Lego (By LeBrain) coming soon
  • Chapter Twenty:  The Death of… (By LeBrain) September
  • Chapter Twenty-One:  The Fate of… (By LeBrain) October

 

  • Noirison:  Chapter One (by Holen)
  • The Mole in Rock and Roll Heaven (by 80sMetalMan) TBA
  • Shinzon – Dread and the Fugitive Mind (By Harrison Kopp) TBA

 

THE COMPLETE ADVENTURES OF EDIE VAN HEELIN’

THE WRITER’S ROOM