Old Man Riva

Excellent! We’re no longer a club, we’re now a movement!

Well, if there’s at least two of us, I think we can officially call that a club!

On the subject of Bill Laswell, he’s responsible for an album that I really like, that seems to float under the radar a bit; Panthalassa: The Music of Miles Davis 1969-1974. It’s an album of his “reconstruction and mix translation” (yes, really!) of some of the tracks off On The Corner, In a Silent Way etc. The electric/funky period of MD’s early 70s work. I remember it getting a bit of a slating when it came out from certain quarters - “you can’t remix Miles Davis!”. I think it’s a terrific piece of work, where Bill Laswell’s quality control on which tracks (or even parts of tracks) would work best, and also looking to genuinely add something extra, rather than simply piddling around with EQs, to try and make it sound more ‘modern’. It also holds a special place in my heart, as it was one of the only two albums I ever bought on MiniDisc, in that short-lived period where that particular format was going to become the absolute future, in terms of how we listened to music. Yeah, right!

Yes, Rhythm Killers is ace! Thanks for posting the Material record. I wasn’t aware of the album, but just over a minute in and there’s a Sly/In Time sample, so I’ll definitely be checking it out! I also really like the Strip To The Bone album they did with Howie B, in the 90s…

Same here! I actually really like the whole album, which can be acquired taste, to say the least. The odd things that resonate as a younger person (I was early twenties when this came out); the album inner sleeve was like a plastic transparent affair, rather than the cardboard type that I was used to. It baffled me then, and it still baffles me to this day! It was through her albums that I became aware of Sly & Robbie - I was a little obsessed with their Language Barrier record, which was out in the same year (see also the first Big Audio Dynamite album, and Scritti Politti’s Cupid & Psych ‘85)…

Not heard that before. I prefer it to the album version, which I wasn’t really a massive fan of. I think this version has an airiness that suits the song better. Liam’s vocal sounds really good. Thanks for posting…

This is a good read… https://www.theguardian.com/film/2024/feb/14/getting-it-back-the-story-of-cymande-review-the-second-life-of-a-cruelly-ignored-uk-funk-band As others have said, they’re well worth checking out, and, yes, you probably have unknowingly heard them before!

From 1985, I really love how he approaches this track…

For me, watching/listening to Neil Young play electric guitar is one of life’s greatest musical pleasures…

The first time Marcus Miller (knowingly) came onto my musical radar was in 1985, when he appeared as a session player on Bryan Ferry’s Boys and Girls, and Cupid & Psyche 85 by Scritti Politti. His bass line on The Chosen One is fab (though Wikipedia credits it to Alan Spenner, which I’m pretty sure isn’t correct), and is well worth a listen for anyone who hasn’t heard it. For full disclosure, I know it may be considered heresy, but I’m not really a fan of Marcus Miller (sorry!), but his playing on The Chosen One I could listen to all day…

My formative music years began in the early 70s, through Radio1 and Top of The Pops. I personally think the quality of the ‘pop’ music (i.e. 45s heard on the radio and seen on a Thursday night on the telly) were as high as in any era. Many years later artists like Bowie, Roxy, Mott the Hoople etc. are viewed as seminal and influential acts, but to me and my mates at the time, they were the just some of the pop stars of the day. Other than Slade Alive and the first Roxy album, all I’d heard at that point were singles. So there’d be the aforementioned, along with the likes of Alice Cooper, T Rex, Sweet, The Faces regularly appearing on the telly on a Thursday evening. It was all we knew, so felt the norm. And then it would be discussed next day at school, in some detail! This is not to denigrate or dismiss other eras (and most folk probably feel their generation was/is the best) but I feel blessed that I grew up when I did, for many reasons, but especially for my first steps into music. That’s a long-winded way of saying “I agree”!

Pretty much mirrors my thoughts! Seeing Roxy on Top of The Pops was amazing. My uncle and aunty went to see them in Coventry on their first tour at Lanchester Polytechnic (now Coventry University). There was an old motel (The Chase) on the outskirts of Cov near where my uncle lived, that had a late bar, and was a stopping off place for bands at the time. By chance Roxy were staying there so my uncle got me their autographs (on an old brown envelope that had his gas bill in it - no idea why he was carrying that around with him!). I put it away somewhere safe at my mum’s, so safe I’ve not seen it for over fifty years! I can’t really put into words how their music changed my world as a kid. The first two albums were so influential. The Bogus Man used to genuinely scare me (so much so, when I was playing side two I’d skip to the second track!). An amazing piece of music. A wonderful band, whose music I still love as much today as I did when I was a kid…

Even though it doesn’t say it’s a Refin in the description, based on The Gallery’s previous/recent prices for similar pre-CBS refinished Precisions, I think it’s safe to say it is…

No sir! It’s positively spiritually uplifting, is what it is! (not to mention the fabulous JMJ on Guild Starfire)

… who says there’s no fun in music anymore?!

I’ve lost count of the amount of original tracks I’ve ‘discovered’ due to them being sampled by someone else. The Ramsey Lewis track being a case in point. I’d not heard (of) it until someone told me it was where Beck took the bass line for Debra from. As I say, I think sampling can be hugely creative…

One of the things I really like about his music (especially earlier records) is the sampling/re-cycling of other tracks. He’s never hidden it, and I personally think sampling etc. can be hugely creative in the right hands. I must admit, in most cases it was only some years later that I found out which tracks had been sampled etc. - Devil’s Haircut intro is taken from a track by Them (featuring Van Morrison), but at the time I just thought it was a killer guitar riff, that sounded like a 60s garage band! Again, it doesn’t diminish it in any way, in my humble opinion. If you haven’t done so already, I implore you to have a listen to the Sea Change album. Best listened to alone, and through headphones, it’s his ‘heartbreak’ album, and can be uncomfortable to listen to at times, as it’s so obviously personal. Doesn’t matter how many times I hear it, Already Dead reduces me to a blubbering wreck every time… Though most things do that these days!

I’m a big fan of Beck, and agree, his creative talent is off the chart at times. I once saw him doing an acoustic set at Cambridge Corn Exchange. I wasn’t really looking forward to it, in the way I would have been had it been a band gig, but it was a fabulous night. Just him and acoustic laid bare just how wonderful the songs were - gorgeous melodies, interesting lyrics, showcasing a genuine songwriting talent. Debra is cool as, but the bass line is actually taken from My Love For You, by Ramsey Lewis. Doesn’t make it any less brilliant, but always good to know where certain parts originate from!

I bought a Serek bass from Marc. Such an easy transaction. Great comms, and the bass arrived the next day, safe and securely packed. An absolute pleasure to deal with Marc…