Received this comment on my review for Steve Vai’s Sex & Religion CD:
Nicolas: hey steve this your friend oliver …your life is at paper vision at santa cruz california its you home thanks big brother…..
If you’re reading this, Steve, then be aware that…Oliver…or Nicolas…is asking…something…
TALAS – If We Only Knew Then What We Know Now… (1998 Warner Music Japan)
The Japanese edition of this Talas live album is something to behold. It comes with lots of extras:
The first bonus track is just a shorty, a message from Billy Sheehan. He briefly explains the history of the band, as much as one can in 34 seconds anyway. The second bonus track is more interesting and valuable. It is a vintage studio track called “Doin’ It Right”. Very pop, but also paradoxically pounding. It’s not available anywhere else, and it’s not bad at all! It recalls other early poppy rock tunes by metal bands, such as Quiet Riot and Kick Axe’s obscurities. One of those Japanese bonus tracks that is worth shelling out for. But that’s just Common Knowledge!
(The rest of this review was previously publish in 2016)
The Talas story did not end with the breakup of the band.  Of course not; bands both famous and obscure like to reunite for nostalgia shows.  Talas did that in 1997 with the original power trio lineup:  Billy Sheehan on bass, Paul Varga on drums, and Dave Constantino on electric guitar.  With classic material (from the first two Talas albums) and a few unreleased songs, they memorialized their reunion with a brand new live CD.  Billy even pulled his old platform boots out of the closet for this one.
As usual the set opens with “Sink Your Teeth Into That” and an enthusiastic home town crowd. Â Talas only sounded better with age. Â The original voices are there and just as strong as they were in 1982. Â It actually sounds like everyone has improved over the years. Â A speedy “High Speed on Ice” is in the second spot ensuring no loss of momentum. Â Material from the first self-titled Talas album is included too (unlike the last live album Live Speed on Ice). Â “Expert on Me” is very pop in construction, but clearly not as great as the songs from album #2, Sink Your Teeth Into That. Â Speaking of which, the slow rumbler “Never See Me Cry” is brilliantly adapted to the stage.
“Power to Break Away” is one of the previously unrecorded songs, and it kicks it just as hot as anything from Sink Your Teeth Into That.  It’s taut with hooks and the prerequisite bass workouts.  “Tell Me True” is the second unreleased song, a slow non-descript dirge ballad that takes a while to get going.
Imagine Billy Sheehan plowing his bass right through a funky Led Zeppelin riff. Â That’s “Thick Head”, an awesome track from Talas (1979). Â “You” has a cool vibe, almost like an unheard Aerosmith demo from the Done With Mirrors era. Â A few other tunes from the first Talas (“Most People”, “Any Other Day” and “See Saw”) are adequately entertaining. Â Back to Sink Your Teeth Into That, “King of the World” is still one of the best Talas tunes, overshadowed by only a few like “Shy Boy”. Â Here, “Shy Boy” is preceded by a Paul Varga drum solo. Â The sheer velocity of “Shy Boy” itself makes me wonder how Varga did it. Â It’s just pedal to the metal, blurring the lines and smoking the minds.
Nothing like a good cover to help draw a live album to a close. Â Talas did two: Â “21st Century Schizoid Man” and “Battle Scar”. Â The King Crimson cover is a daring one to attempt. Â They somehow manage to strip it down and pull it off with integrity. Â As for “Battle Scar”? Â Total surprise there! Â Max Webster were just across the border from Buffalo, and Billy Sheehan nearly joined Max at one point late in their career. Â Introduced by a Billy Sheehan bass solo, this Max/Rush cover is the set closer. Â As a final addition, “Battle Scar” surely makes this one hell of an album for the history books.
Since this is a more recent release on a well known label (Metal Blade), it turns out that If We Knew Then What We Know Now is an easy CD to find in the shops. Fortunately this is a good first Talas album to add to any collection.
4/5 battle scars
I love getting a musical education from Todd in the Shadows! He’s musically educated and far more knowledgeable about pop and hip-hop than I’ll ever be.
Run DMC are not my thing, and I was largely ignorant of their influence and their unique style. Todd demonstrates their beats and importance with plenty of video clips. But his main focus this time was their “comeback” album Crown Royal. An album that took years to make and release, due to legal wranglings over guest appearances and DMC’s lack of involvement. Todd conjectures that a disapproving D didn’t record a single note for this album. He could be right. A trainwreckord indeed, Crown Royal sounds like a desperate attempt to meet Y2k head on, and failing. No amount of Fred Dursts or Third Eyes Blind could save this record commercially and artistically.
This was a 30 minute viewing that flew right by. Entertaining and educational.
RECORD STORE TALES #1060: Max the Axe’s Garage Sale
A huge thank-you to my host Max the Axe today at a fantastic garage sale! BEHOLD!
“9:00 AM!” he said. “Serving shots and weed to my Facebook friends starting at 9 AM!”
There was no way I was missing this garage sale.
I only had four hours sleep, and a large Tim Horton’s coffee, to prepare me. I didn’t think I could make it. After the events of last night, which left me rocked (in a bad way), I didn’t think I was up for it. But at 9:00 AM I said “to hell with it, let’s go,” and Jen and I were in the car off to the Trillion Dollar Treats that Max had on offer.
First up: cassettes! I picked up six:
You can blame Tim Durling for my sudden interest in buying Cassettes That I Already Own On Remastered CDs. He did point out the Diver Down cassette was an unusual cover variant, with the image slanted taking up the whole cover.
Speaking of Tim Durling…
I’ve caught the 8-track bug, baby! Tim remarked that my copy was in better condition than his. Max had more 8-tracks but none from bands that I collected.
So that’s cassette and 8-track. What about CD and vinyl? Maxie has plenty of both, but my tab was starting to rack up. I gave him $20 for this rare AC/DC longbox, still sealed.
It’s the live “Highway to Hell” single, with long box intact and not in terrible shape. I used to have CD longboxes, but I foolishly tossed them when I moved, assuming their were worth next to nothing. Just paper. But now…
Next up: Max has been trying to sell me a tape deck for years. This one was $20, a Kenwood. My old Sony has seen the better of days, and Max says this one runs perfectly. I guess we’ll find out soon enough, to try out these new tapes I just bought, huh?
Finally, we have the magazine scores. Some MAD, some Cracked, some Star Wars, and some music! Even a M.E.A.T Magazine! A little bit of everything, and…woah, that’s Lee Aaron!!
Max has so much stuff, and you still have time to get down there. Kites, speakers, tape decks, collectables, magazines, all killer deals! Blank media galore.
Am I ever glad I went to Trillion Dollar Treats to see Max the Axe on my Saturday morning. My Friday was brutal – absolutely brutal. I am sure you will eventually be reading about it in one way or another. My real life has a habit of becoming public knowledge, because when I’m hurting inside, I need to get it out. My only weakness. Thank you to everyone who sent helpful messages and offered to talk. I need to single out Boppin, Jex, Tim, James and especially Jen for talking to me last night and this morning. I love you all.
On April 28 2023, our co-host MarriedAndHeels went topless for the first time on her OnlyFans live stream. Jex and I decided to poke a little fun at her, all in good humour. I have a feeling we’re going to see a lot of topless jokes this summer.
May 4, 1959 – the 1st Annual Grammy Awards
Record of the Year:  “Nel Blu Dipinto di Blu (Volare)” – Domenico Modugno
Album of the Year:  The Music from Peter Gunn – Henry Mancini
Song of the Year:  “Nel Blu Dipinto di Blu (Volare)” – Franco Migliacci and Domenico Modugno, songwriters (Domenico Modugno)
RECORD STORE TALES #1059: Dear D
Nine years ago, after the explosive finale of Record Store Tales where I revealed why I quit for the very first time, the fallout was pretty epic. I had to end two friendships over it. One of them sent me an email about it all, that I never read until today. I was searching through my old email address, looking for unpublished Record Store Tales that I could use for something. Boy did I find one.
The sender said that I wasn’t allowed to use his email for story content, so I’ll paraphrase.
This former Record Store employee seemed to be primarily upset about the fact that I wasn’t cool with the Record Store demanding that I keep my personal cell phone on 24/7. I spoke to a lawyer; they can’t do that. It’s funny how upset these guys were about that. “Oh, your boss that you hated always kept her cell phone on 24/7.” Yeah. Because it was her work phone. She didn’t pay for it. She had to keep it on. It was for work. My phone was for getting lost on road trips into the GTA. Came in handy a lot for that.
This sender also engaged in some one-upmanship. “Oh if you think you had it bad, you should see what I see in my current field of work.”
Never was a competition, dude. Although he seemed to like to make it one in a lot of his past comments.
“Oh wow, you had an alarm company call you at night? I had one call me three times in one night.”
That kind of thing. Competitive.
He loses all credibility by referring to Spoogecakes’ legendary hateful comment as as “constructive feedback”. You be the judge. Seriously? Biased much? No grip on reality? If I had been the one to send that “feedback”, you’d be singing a different tune, Bub.
My nine-year belated response:
Hi D! Long time no chat. It appears that nine years ago, you sent me this email that I never read. I stumbled upon it just now.
I can’t help but notice that both you and your buddy ignored the fact that my cell phone was my own personal phone, nothing to do with the Store, paid for by me, for my own personal use. As you know, an employer can’t suddenly demand that you keep a personal cell phone on 24/7. If I did not tell anyone that I had a cell phone, nobody could have called it, and nothing could have been done about it. It would have been my personal secret. The manager of our biggest store, Joe, did not have a cell phone at all, as you well know. Why was that OK for him, but I had to leave my personal phone on 24/7?
You know all this because you’re an expert on such matters. You didn’t have to consult a lawyer on such things, like I did.
It’s funny that both of you ignored that unethical behaviour from our old boss. Wouldn’t have anything to do with her being your friend, would it? She was at your wedding, as I recall. Both you and your buddy’s weddings, in fact. You wouldn’t have a bias here, would you?
Hope you’re well,
Mike
“Write a letter, you’ll feel better”
GORDON LIGHTFOOT – Summertime Dream (1976 Reprise)
Immediately after Gord’s Gold provided Lightfoot fans with a collection of old and re-recorded hits, Gord made another one: “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald“. This mighty song dominated the radiowaves for years over all over the Great White North, arguably granting Lightfoot his most memorable song in his history. His earlier material from Gord’s Gold and before might be considered the pinnacle of his album-making career, but Summertime Dream isn’t too shabby.
Opening with the musically upbeat “Race Among the Ruins”, but lyrically there is warning here. “If you plan to face tomorrow, do it soon.” Don’t let time pass you by.
The nautical disaster song “Edmund Fitzgerald” is second, a mostly historically accurate accounting (within reason) of a great lakes shipwreck. The great lakes shipwreck. The stinging guitar lick repeats while the harrowing lyrics induce chills. Guitarist Terry Clements performed that unmistakable, haunting guitar part, the one that little Canadian kids were dying to learn how to play in their youths. Did they have any idea they were recording such a timeless song when they were laying down the tracks? Every feeling, every emotion, every creak of steel and wood can be absorbed through the grooves. The way Lightfoot paints a picture with words, you feel as if were there. Gene Martynec, who played synth on Lou Reed’s Berlin album, provided light keyboard accents here. You’d miss them if they were gone.
A tender ballad, “I’m Not Supposed to Care”, gently caresses the soul with its light backdrop of pedal steel guitar. Then, edgier electric guitars back up “I’d Do It Again”, a laid back groove with a country foundation and a rock veneer. “Never Too Close” also shines with shimmery guitar melodies and a stunning chorus. Then the somber “Protocol” is a war ballad ranging from days past to the Vietnam War. “The House You Live In” showcases more pedal steel tones with a warm tune and laid back tempo. The single “Summertime Dream” is upbeat and bright, recalling hot happy youthful days. “Spanish Moss” is another lovely song, painting pictures of landscapes we’d like to see. Finally, “Too Many Clues In This Room” closes the album on a dark note, with lyrics aluding to both space and sea exploration.
Not Gordon’s most captivating album, but one without any skips, and one absolute monster of a song.
3.5/5 stars
When I saw Gordon Meredith Lightfoot Jr. live for the first and only time about 15 years ago, I thought he was a goner! He looked so thin and frail, and when he tripped over a cord onstage I feared, “Well, that’s it.” The air went completely out of the room. Fortunately and obviously it wasn’t the end, but it was also obvious that Lightfoot had been battling health issues. His voice was thin and whispery; very different from those booming old 1960s folk records.
Gordon Lightfoot and I bonded over “Edmund Fitzgerald” like many others did. The nautical theme struck a chord, and of course that guitar riff was unforgettable.
Even more than that unmistakable voice, Lightfoot might be better recognized for his songwriting. “Early Morning Rain”, “Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” and “If You Could Read My Mind” are prime examples of perfect songwriting. Elvis, Johnny Cash, Neil Young, and Bob Dylan all knew it. That’s why they covered his songs.
Gordon Lightfoot will forever remain not just one of my favourite Canadian artists, but one of my favourite singers, period. His lyrics will forever remain poems with dusty, buried layers of story that some of us will never even notice. He educated me. Without Lightfoot I would have been ignorant of the name gichi-gumi, and possibly much of Canada’s history. His records will be played infinitely. He will live forever.
Rest in peace, Gordon Lightfoot.
Weaksauce, Watch Mojo! Weaksauce! Never trust non-music people to come up with decent music lists. Is that gatekeeping? Damn right – and Davey 504 is the gatekeeper. There were a couple songs that he considered worthy of the list…and many he just made mincemeat of.
Watch and learn.
mikeladano.com 