ITEM! SNL vets Chevy Chase and Dan Ackroyd will appear in a new film based on a R.L. Stine YA novel.
ITEM! Al Williamson draws Jann of the Jungle!
Details:
Summer’s here and the time is right . . . for a carefully-curated compendium of late 1960s California sunshine from the vaults of several hallowed West Coast indie labels and production houses.
Big Beat’s Trip On Me: Soft Psych & Sunshine 1966-69 features 24 pop-psych nuggets replete with a healthy dose of dulcet harmony, jazz-tinged charts and studio freakery. All were recorded in Hollywood or the San Francisco Bay Area for collectable labels like Mira and Era or maverick outfits such as producer Gary S Paxton and SF’s Trident Productions.
The legendary Curt Boettcher appears not only as producer but also as backing vocalist on several cuts, as well as featured artist on a fascinating demo. Collectable obscurities such JP Rags, the Pretty People and A Thousand Faces are joined by sunshine pop staples The Forum, Primrose Circus and Filipino female quintet The Third Wave, who are represented by two rare early recordings.
Drawn from unreleased masters and session tapes with top-notch sound quality, and detailed liner notes revealing the facts behind such unheralded acts as the Lollipop Fantasy, Candy Company and A Small World, Trip On Me is an essential purchase for 60s pop fanciers of all persuasions.
Tracklist:
Details:
DC Comics Retro Batman 66 with Lunchbox set. The set is released as an NYCC Exclusive and will consist of Batman, Robin, Joker, and Penguin figures bundled all together. New retro cards are included along with punching sound effects and placed in a themed Batman 1966 metal lunch box.
Details:
"We shall play endless games together, your brain against mine." Demon Records presents the narrated TV soundtrack of a 'lost' Doctor Who TV serial, starring William Hartnell as the Doctor.
When the TARDIS lands in the Celestial Toyroom, it's occupants meet a new and deadly opponent. The Toymaker rules this ethereal kingdom, and he desires the Doctor, Steven and Dodo to become his perpetual playthings.
While Steven and Dodo face a series of challenges posed by clowns, ballerinas and living playing cards, the Doctor is challenged to play the fiendish Trilogic Game against the Toymaker himself. His only hope of escape is to beat the powerful entity at his own game...
Presented across 2 x 140g 'King & Queen' red & blue coloured vinyl discs, this 1966 TV adventure is narrated by Peter Purves, who also plays Steven. It stars Michael Gough as the Toymaker, with Jackie Lane as Dodo and a supporting cast including Carmen Silvera, Campbell Singer and Peter Stephens. Incidental music is composed by Dudley Simpson, and the familiar strains of the Doctor Who theme are courtesy of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop.
The LPs are presented in a fully illustrated gatefold sleeve showing cast and credits, and inner bags featuring complete episode billings.
Out Oct. 7 from Ace Records. Available for $12.59 from Import CDs.
Details:
Back in September 1962, the only Beatles records in the shops saw them backing Tony Sheridan on a goosed-up version of My Bonnie, Their debut single Love Me Do would be released in October 1962 and the seismic change they brought to music worldwide would occur once the band achieved light speed in 1963. There was, however, before Beatlemania a thriving music culture that dropped anchor in a number of ports. Proto pop charts might be dominated by the likes of Cliff and his Shadows, crooners and sweet looking pop idols who brushed their teeth but R&B was gently finding its way into record racks either through imports or a growing number of home grown cover versions. The Motown sound was taking root in Detroit, America and already filtering into the UK on poor selling 7” singles on London and Fontana.
The twist might be considered an old dance but in political circles no one twisted in the wind harder than John Profumo undone in 1961 for a triangular relationship where the other two parties were Christine Keeler and a Russian spy. Politicians and the establishment lived by the dictum of do what I say rather than what I do. Until they got caught with their pants down. This was a situation Patrick McGoohan in Danger Man always avoided although after 1963 part of James Bond's appeal on the big screen was his ability to drop his pants and bed Russian spies.
To say that before the Beatles, before the Stones, before the Who, before the blues explosion there was no good music being recorded in the UK is untrue. There was plenty of great records put out in 1960, 1961 and 1962. You simply had to find the gems.
The problem with the Beatles, and the coverage of their music, was that it built a musical dam that formed a reservoir that covered previous audio hills that were submerged by time and history. Why care about Otillie Patterson singing the blues when you had Please Please Me? Why care about Chris Farlowe’s Air Travel when you had I Want To Hold Your Hand? Whereas 50 years later Beatles music is endlessly recycled, much of the music recorded between 1960 and 1963 remains ignored and submerged under water. But, as you will discover on A Snapshot in Time there were some cracking gems like the Blue Flames R&B swagger of Orange Street, Lynne Cornell’s Moanin’ and Sounds Inc Sounds Like Locomotion. Better still, they sound fresh and invigorating showing that the 60s swung earlier than everybody would have you believe.
Tracklist:
Available for $12.59 at Import CDs. (I don't get a commission for plugging them. I have had good experience ordering items personally and find their prices much lower than elsewhere).
Details:
Ace’s highly regarded and highly popular Songwriter Series continues apace, with several exciting projects in place for release in the second half of 2022 and beyond. This month we welcome Jimmy Webb onto our expanding list with “Clowns Exit Laughing”, a deep dip into this prolific tunesmith’s extensive catalogue of the past six decades.
After a period of establishing his credentials as a writer with Motown’s West Coast office, Jimmy really came into his own in the mid-60s with classic songs like ‘By The Time I Get To Phoenix’, ‘Wichita Lineman’ and ‘Up Up And Away’. Everyone wanted to record a Jimmy Webb copyright, and a great many people did as this CD demonstrates.
Although Jimmy has never stopped writing, “Clowns Exit Laughing” naturally concentrates on a time when a new Jimmy Webb classic seemed to appear every other week. As is always Ace’s policy with the Songwriter Series, each featured artist performs only one song but we are sure that inclusions by the likes of Tony Joe White, Dionne Warwick, Dusty Springfield and other major names will disappoint nobody.
Also included for collectors are several rare, seldom heard original versions of songs primarily associated with other artists, such as Don Ho’s original of ‘Galveston’ and James Darren’s first recording of ‘Didn’t We’.
As ever, comprehensive annotation and copious illustration are part and parcel of the CD package. We are delighted to bring this magical collection to you, and equally delighted to add this stellar songwriter to our ever-growing series.
Track list:
Details:
Gotham City’s Caped Crusader springs into action as the criminals of Gotham City run rampant! A burglary at the Gotham City Museum, a hostage situation at the courthouse, and an explosion at the chemical processing plant. Can Batman keep the people of Gotham safe?
Batman wears a Golden Age-inspired Bat Suit with a bat insignia, integrated posing wire in his cape, and utility belt that houses his two-way Bat-radio. Five head portraits are included with one unmasked ‘Bruce Wayne’ portrait, as well as a mask that he can hold in his hands or over his shoulders.
The Dark Knight comes equipped with loads of crime fighting equipment including two Bat bolas, a variety of Batarangs, two-way Bat-radio belt buckle that attaches to his belt, a Rebreather breathing apparatus, and more.
THE ONE:12 COLLECTIVE BATMAN FEATURES:
COSTUME:
ACCESSORIES:
New songs on the charts 50 years ago this week.
Our picks this week. Click the links to order from Amazon.
