North Fork Sound Year’s Best - 2008

Albums:
1. Bob Dylan: Tell Tale Signs: The Bootleg Series Vol 8
2. Gene Casey & The Lone Sharks: What Happened
3. Ed Sanders: Poems For New Orleans
4. Keith Gemmell: Unsafe Sax
5. Buddy Guy: Skin Deep
6. Lambchop: OH
7. The Wolfmen: Modernity Killed Every Night
8. The Jim Jones Revue: Jim Jones Revue
9. Eden and John’s East River String Band: Some Cold Rainy Day
10. Brother Tyrone: Mindbender

Tracks:
1. Duffy: Distant Dreamer
2. Bruce Springsteen: Dream Baby Dream
3. James Hunter: Carina
4. M.I.A.: Paper Planes
5. Robyn Hitchcock: Up To Our Nex
6. Little Barrie: Pin That Badge
7. Randy Newman: A Few Words
8. Dion: Sweet Little Rock And Roller
9. Ian McLagan: When The Crying Is Over
10. Motörhead: Rock Out
11. Rodney Crowell: Sex And Gasoline
12. Glasvegas: Everybody’s Got To Learn Sometime
13. Levon Helm, Amy Helm & Theresa Williams: Anna Lee
14. Mike Edison: Pornography Pt. 1
15. The Baseball Project: The Closer
16. Wreckless Eric & Amy Rigby: The Downside Of Being A Fuck-Up
17. Marianne Nowottny & The All American Band: Love Is Just A Dream
18. Amanda Thorpe: Life Is Great
19. Paul Thorn: Long Way From Tupelo
20. Black Kids: I’m Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance With You

Compilation/Reissue:
1. V/A: Take Me To The River - A Southern Soul Story 1961 – 1977
2. Bo Diddley: I’m A Man – The Chess Masters 1955 – 1958
3. Robyn Hitchcock: Shadow Cat
4. Ry Cooder: Anthology - The UFO Has Landed
5. Christine Ohlman & Rebel Montez: Rehive
6. Suicide: Live 1977/1978
7. The Move: Anthology 1966-1972
8. V/A: On Vine Street – The Early Songs of Randy Newman
9. V/A: Rock On
10. Darlene Love: So Much Love – A Darlene Love Anthology 1958 - 1998

Gig (Long Island):
1. Chris Isaak & James Hunter: CapOne Theater at Westbury
2. Gene Casey & The Lone Sharks/Eden and John’s East River String Band/Otis Brothers: Pleasure Lounge, Shelter Island
3. Robyn Hitchcock: Stephen Talkhouse, Amagansett
4. English Beat: Stephen Talkhouse, Amagansett
5. Yellowman: Stephen Talkhouse, Amagansett
6. Mary Gauthier: Stephen Talkhouse, Amagansett
7. Sleepy LaBeef/Gene Casey & The Lone Sharks/The Blaggards: Shelter Island Beach Blast
8. Gene Casey & The Lone Sharks Two: The Old Mill, Mattituck
9. Gene Casey & The Lone Sharks: Osprey’s Dominion, Peconic
10. Gene Casey & The Lone Sharks/The Blaggards: Shelter Island Boat Party

Gig (up island):
1. Suicide: Europa, Brooklyn
2. Motörhead, Roseland, NYC
3. Nick Lowe/Robyn Hitchcock/(Elvis Costello): Manhattan Center, NYC
4. Billy Bragg: Manhattan Center, NYC
5. Gene Casey & The Lone Sharks: Rodeo Bar, NYC

Book:
1. Pete Frame: The Restless Generation
2. Dean Wareham: Black Postcards - A Rock & Roll Romance
3. Eric Goulden: A Dysfunctional Success
4. Josh Alan Friedman: Tell The Truth Until They Bleed
5. Mike Edison: I Have Fun Everywhere I Go

Last Week’s Listener Favourites:
Alan Vega: Wipeout Beat
Can: She Brings The Rain
The Kinks: Where Have All The Good Times Gone
Them: Gloria
Lyle Lovett: Friend Of The Devil
Glasvegas: Daddy’s Gone
Ian Hunter: Too Much
Billy Storm: Baby Don’t Look Down
The Cookies: Buzz Saw
Black Grape (feat: Joe Strummer & Keith Allen): England’s Irie
Duffy: Distant Dreamer
Angie: Peppermint Lump
Billy Bragg & The Blokes: NPWA
Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band: Clear Spot
The Collins Kids: Hoy Hoy
East River String Band: Ain’t No Tellin’
Elvis Presley: Way Down
George Bean: She Belongs To Me
Jeri Bo Keno: Here It Comes (And Here I Go Again)
Kevin Ayres: Thank You Very Much
LCD Soundsystem: Us v Them
Martin Rev: Baby Oh Baby
XTC: Greenman
Gene Casey & The Lone Sharks: It Should Rain
Mattias Hellberg & The White Moose: Black Cat Fever
Lou Reed: I Remember You
The Yayhoos: Fittin’ To Do
Laurie Anderson: O Superman
The Nips: Gabrielle
Huw Gower: Lightning Over Montauk
Lee “Scratch” Perry:
Lonnie Mack: Why
Chris Isaak: Can’t Do A Thing (To Stop Me)
Frankie Paul: Pass The Tushung Peng
The Star Spangles: Which Of The Two Of Us Is Gonna Burn This House Down
Bo Diddley: Bo Diddley Is Crazy
Killer B’s: Fascinating Bob
http://www.live365.com/stations/thespangler
http://www.facebook.com/people/Howard-Thompson/659208571

Letter From God

Spiritualized

Spiritualized
Kate Radley & Jason Pierce
Terry's roof
photo: ht
scanned from a 3-D lenticular print

MORE photos

North Fork Sound Top 20 December 21st 08

1. Robyn Hitchcock & The Venus 3: Saturday Groovers
2. Mark Bingham: Na-Na-Na-Na-Na
3. False Virgins: Constant State (Of Desire)
4. Gene Casey & The Lone Sharks: It Should Rain
5. Bo Diddley (w/Keith Richards & The Shirelles): Bo Diddley Is Crazy
6. The Velvet Underground: Foggy Notion
7. Chris Isaak: Can’t Do A Thing (To Stop Me)
8. Lonnie Mack: Why
9. Ijahman: Africa
10. Marianne Faithfull: Is This What I Get For Loving You
11. M/W: Good Intent
12. Kim Fowley: Animal Man
13. Johnny Thunders: You Can’t Put Your Arms Around A Memory
14. Sade: By Your Side
15. Tanya Donelly & Dylan In The Movies: The Lovecats
16. The Residents: Dumbo The Clown (Who Loved Christmas)
17. The Leroi Brothers: Pretty Little Lights Of Town
18. Love: Alone Again Or
19. Lydia Lunch: Bowery Blues
20. Institute Of Formal Research (feat: Zoot Horn Rollo): The Navigator

Album Of The Week:
Lee “Scratch” Perry: Scratch Came Scratch Saw Scratch Conquered (Megawave Records)

The 7” B-side:
Faster Pussycat: Cathouse (Elektra)

The Guilty Pleasure:
Billie Davis: Tell Him (Decca)

Last Week’s Listener Favourites:
The Call: Become America
The Psychedelic Furs: India
Peter C Johnson: 9 O’Clock
Yvonne Fair: It Should Have Been Me
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers: Jaguar & Thunderbird (live)
The Inmates: Dirty Water
Sex Patels: Life During Wartime
Johnny Dynell & Rocket 88: Jam Hot
Pete Townshend: Rough Boys
The Fabulous Thunderbirds: Winter Wonderland
The Kinks: Where Have All The Good Times Gone
The Pursuit Of Happiness: Nobody But Me
Joy Zipper: Just Like Heaven
Billy Edd Wheeler: You Fight Your Fight And I’ll Fight Me
Little Feat: Hamburger Midnight
Them: Gloria
Ryan Shaw: Do The 45
The Social Climbers: Palm Springs
The Flashcubes: Hello Suzie
Chinaboise: Take Two
Sam Cooke: Chain Gang
The Rolling Stones: Can’t You Hear Me Kocking
Public Image Ltd: Seattle
Balls: Fight For My Country
Ray Baretto: El Watusi
Big Youth: Screaming Target

Happy Holidays...and thanks for all the feedback

MX-80 Sound

MX-80 Sound
Island Records publicity pic
photo: Kim Torgerson

After reading a review - by Caroline Coon - of their Big Hits e.p. in Melody Maker, I sent the required money to MX-80 Sound in Bloomington, Indiana, for a copy. One duly arrived at the Island Records offices in Hammersmith wrapped in a 'songbook' and enclosed in a customized envelope

The record sounded very different to what was going on in England - anywhere, actually - at the time, so I called Rich Stim, their singer/contact man and after two or three phone calls, got to licence their ‘Hard Attack’ lp for a sum so small that nobody 'upstairs' even asked any questions about the band. Just like that, along with Eddie & The Hot Rods and The Snivelling Shits, they became my 3rd signing. More photos here

MX-80 Sound
Bruce Anderson, Rich Stim, Jeff Armour, Dave Mahoney, Dale Sophiea

MX had been described by Glenn O’Brien as “either the most Heavy Metal Art Band or the most Arty Heavy Metal Band” so when I found myself working for Bronze Records a year later, I thought a second round with these guys might be worth a trip. Asking my boss David Betteridge if he'd "uh, like to go to to Bloomington?" I was, frankly, a bit surprised when he said "yes". So we found ourselves de-planing in Indianapolis and being driven for roughly an hour to a coffee bar/health-food joint (with ashram attached) in Bloomington called Tao. There, we met up with Rich and his wife Andrea. I'm not lying when I say there's no better hostess. Andrea is many things, some of them to be recounted at a later date, but right now, we're in 1978 and my knowledge of 'health food' was pretty much confined to the stuff they served up at Cranks, a funky but pricey veggie restaurant near Carnaby Street where hippies, Cliff Richard, Hayley Mills, the Beatles and a few Scandinavian chicks chewed on the soups of the day. Aside from that, there was a joint we called the Hare Krishna Curry House on Soho Street where orange-draped baldies scooped rice and lentils onto plates (for free, if you were homeless) and that was IT for healthy eating in London. So being offered “bran muffins”, “rice cakes” or “granola” was mildly confusing. Crumpets and corn flakes, I knew. This stuff...wuh? What the hell was a blueberry, anyway? I knew raspberries, strawberries, gooseberries and blackberries. Furthermore, in the UK we had 2 types of coffee...regular or decaf...but at least it was INSTANT! If you lived in the city, you might find a cafe that had a contraption that could (when it wasn't broken) cough out a cappuccino but those places mainly used them to appear more Italian or Continental, which didn’t really cut it in Muswell Hill or Shepherd’s Bush. Anyway, stuff we never saw in the UK was taken for granted here and, best of all, served up by knockouts like Andrea. It didn’t take long to acclimatize and, once again, wish I lived in America.
Despite its relaxed and rather groovy ambience, Bloomington's general population wasn’t very switched-on, musically speaking. Even local boy, Johnny Cougar was deemed too ‘punk’. 'Proper' gigs were hard to come by, so they’d play wherever they could. Like the Munroe County Public Library, for instance, indelibly preserved on the Gulcher CD “Live At The Library”. David and I had to settle for seeing the band in the basement of (bass player) Dale Sophiea’s house.
It’s all a bit of a blur, but I remember how struck I was with Bruce Anderson's guitar playing. His tone was distinctive. I was already a fan from the tapes Rich had sent me but in a live context, he was extraordinary. Possessing a beatific presence, he wrung new notes and chords out of his instrument. He was one of the best guitarists I’d seen and there wasn't really anyone you could compare him to. That was something I tried to look for in my potential signings. He made it all seem so effortless.
I have a tendency to not notice bass players unless they’re Lemmy or Ronnie Lane but you couldn’t miss Dale. He has this zen-like, all-encompassing, gentle giant vibe and, without fuss, he anchored the band with an instrument that looked like a balsa-wood toy in his hands, while Dave Mahoney and Jeff Armour gave it plenty of stick in the back. Bands with 2 drummers? I love ‘em. Since I'd seen The Pink Fairies at Hornsey Town Hall and Ginger Baker’s Airforce at the Marquee, I'd always wanted a band with two drummers. MX employed the idea to great effect and on top of all this was Rich, deadpanning his way through the songs and playing his silver sax. Rich was something else. Talk about a sharp wit. He seemed at ease doing several different things at once. He was the ‘obit-man’ for the Bloomington Herald-Telephone where he'd sometimes embellish the facts about a recently deceased person. He was also in charge of its "Hotline", which found him answering random questions from the paper's readers and printing the best ones. He kept the best voicemails and used to edit them together for the amusement of his friends. One featured a lady who'd called in to report a "whole mess of birds" in her yard acting "doped up". She'd called to see if "somebody that's interested in birds..or...dope - or something like that - might like to notice these things, to act on it." He'd cycle everywhere. He was writing his first novel, "Butterworth" and gave me a manuscript. He was always on top of all the latest technology. This guy just didn't quit. And here's proof.
As always, just as things got warmed up, after 35 minutes or so, the showcase was over. It seemed an awful long way to come for just over half an hour and I could have used a whole lot more, but that's not really how it works. I was very happy to have finally seen them but I could tell this wasn’t really David's cup of tea. It was finished and Andrea, Rich and I walked David back to his hotel in the snow.
At some point, I went to Rich’s house where he and Bruce had painted his wood floor white and, in a Pollock-y style, dripped and splattered black paint over it. I had been invited to stay an extra day or two for a further taste of the Midwest and was totally up for it. The following morning, I met the band’s friends and wives, several of whom turned up bearing gifts. Mark Bingham, the band's producer seemed to have a huge appetite for 'college hoops' and carrot juice. The Hoosiers were his team, and their coach, Bobby Knight, later became the subject of an MX song, 'White Knight'. There was a sack of carrots in the kitchen so he stuffed a huge bunch of them, tops and all, into something called a 'juicer'. Tasted foul. Still, he was friendly and we connected through music and film. He told me about ‘Eraserhead’, a film he’d just seen in Greenwich Village at Cinema Village on E. 12th Street. He spoke of this new director, David Lynch, and described the film in a way that made it sound like either it was the best film ever made, or possibly the worst. It sounded fascinating and I made a mental note to check it out next time I was in New York. When I finally saw it at Cinema Village on 12th St., it gave me horrific nightmares so I had to go back to see it again the following day only, this time, not high.

Dave and his wife, Kim Torgensen, came over and presented me with a 'clay record' she’d thrown with an MX-80 logo stamped into it. For years, my electric kettle sat on it...now, it's in my office.

MX-80 Sound clay record 'award'
by Kim Torgerson

Jeff stopped by to watch the basketball and hang out. Bruce practiced guitar (unplugged) on the sofa and told me about Lonnie Mack, a guitarist from Dearborn County, Indiana, who'd never made it to England. His 'Wham Of That Memphis man' lp (Fraternity Records) is a classic.
A friend of theirs called Steve Hoy showed up. I never really knew what he did (other than appear in a photo on the front cover of Hard Attack) but he was funny, and easy to talk to. Dale’s wife, Elana, gave me a t-shirt that she’d silk-screened.

ht
Bloomington, IN
photo: Andrea Ross Stim

Bruce and Dale both had jobs at the Von Lee, a local cinema, and I was invited to that night's screening of John Waters’ follow-up to Pink Flamingos, ‘Female Trouble’, a film Dale had booked as part of his midnight movie series. Well, everybody knows about John Waters now, but back then he was a tiny cult figure/underground film director, at best. After the initial shock, I thought it was one of the funniest things I'd ever seen. You can make your mind up here. It took a while for (even) Pink Flamingos to make it to the UK but I remember taking a date to see it at The Screen On The Green in Islington. Never saw her again.
That afternoon, I got to meet Gulcher Records owner Bob Richert who loaded me up with Gizmos stuff and Gulcher Magazines. Everywhere I went, people were laidback, generous and extremely friendly. Too bad it wasn't like this where I came from.
Sadly, I never did get to work with the band again. 10 months later, David Betteridge took me with him to CBS, while MX-80 moved en masse to San Francisco/Berkeley where they found a home with Ralph Records. It would appear they retained the rights to most of their releases, so go visit their own Quadruped Media outlet for those, and much much more...

poster for 'Out Of Tunnel' (Ralph Records)

Mark Bingham

Mark Bingham
photo machine, late -70's

I like New Orleans. I like its music, its vibe, the ‘debris’ at Mother’s, the architecture, the crawfish, the Circle Bar and much of what comes out of Piety Street - Mark Bingham’s recording studio in the 9th Ward. If you want Pro-Tools or 2 inch analog, orchestra or solo, modern or vintage equipment, Piety's got it all, plus a squad of in-house talent that help make things sound like records used to, before they all got weedy and naff. Mark’s an accomplished arranger, producer, instrumentalist and writer whose resumé lists stints with The Screaming Gypsy Bandits, The Brain Sisters, The Social Climbers, the Glenn Branca Orchestra, Shannon MacNally and sessions with Natalie Merchant, Jon Cleary, Dr. John, Ed Sanders, Peter Stampfel, MX-80, Hal Willner, Wharton Tiers and the Nevilles to name but a diverse, yet glorious few. The studio’s seen Harry Connick Jr., Korn, Lennie Kravitz, Mudvayne, Ryan Adams, Robin Thicke, Bobby Charles and Ray Davies all pass through its doors in the last few years, though (unfortunately) not all at once.

Natalie Merchant, Mark Bingham
photo machine, 1988

The first time I met him was in Bloomington, Indiana when I flew there to see MX-80 Sound. He was the first person I ever saw drink carrot juice. There, he gave me a couple of albums he'd produced - Caroline Peyton, a sampler of Bloomington artists he'd produced, Bloomington 1 (BRBQ Records), a reel-to-reel quarter-track tape of the unreleased Chinaboise album, featuring MX-80's Rich Stim and Dave Mahoney and Andrea Ross (who went on to become Mrs. Stim and Angel Corpus Christi) and 3 albums' worth of tapes by his own band, The Screamin' Gypsy Bandits - a sort of Tubes-meets-Zappa psychedelic, funk-rock outfit (with marvelous horns) which occasionally featured Bruce Anderson and a terrific Dale Sopheia vocal on 'Foggy Windows' - both also members of MX-80. Tune into the station to hear the 'Bloomington Sound'.

Social Climbers
A. Leroy (Dick Connette), Jean Seaton Shaw, Mark Bingham
Gulcher Records' publicity photo

From Bloomington, Mark moved to New York where partnered with Philip Glass in a downtown loft studio, near the Mudd Club, calling it The Living Room. During an early visit, I was impressed to see Mark actually building the interior walls, hammer in hand.
In the late 80's, I went slightly off the rails and Mark sent me a letter that cut clean to the quick. It told me to shape up and get it together or I'd lose him as a friend. It seems my vices were getting the better of me. He shocked me back to reality. I was grateful for the warning.

Eddie Murphy, Mark Bingham
photo: Patti Perret

Mark always sent copies of what he was working on and I have a ton of tapes containing his own music that regularly gets featured on the station. Now, much of it has been collected onto several cds which will, hopefully, see a release someday. As a rapacious consumer of all sorts of interesting music, he turned me on to Xenakis, Bonerama, Kurt Weill, Morning 40 Federation, Brother Tyrone, Rudy Ray Moore and he introduced me to the considerable delights of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Mother’s Restaurant, the incredible brass bands and fabulously greasy menu at Donna’s Bar & Grill, Ernie K-Doe’s Mother-In-Law Lounge and all sorts of wild hangouts in New Orleans.

Mark Bingham, John Sinclair
New Orleans
photo: Patti Perret

Mark Bingham
New Orleans
photo: ht

North Fork Sound Top 20 December 14th 08

1. B. B. King: Back Door Santa
2. The Shoes: This Christmas
3. Lemmy, Billy Gibbons & Dave Grohl: Run Rudolph Run
4. Mary-Margaret O’Hara: Blue Christmas
5. Graham Parker & Nona Hendryx: Soul Christmas
6. Martin Newell: Christmas In Suburbia
7. John Prine: Christmas In Prison
8. James Brown: Santa Claus, Santa Claus
9. Mary Gauthier: Christmas In Paradise
10. Dion: Merry Christmas Baby
11. The Ramones: Merry Christmas (I Don’t Wanna Fight Tonight)
12. Amy Allison: Drinkin’ Thru Xmas
13. Dean & Britta: He’s Coming Home
14. Chuck Berry: Christmas
15. The Prissteens: Christmas Is A Time For Giving
16. MX-80: Christmas With The Devil
17. Jimmy McCracklin: Christmas Time
18. Little Eva & Pigmeat Markham: The Christmas Song
19. Bob Seger & The Last Heard: Sock It To Me Santa
20. Johnny Guarnierii & Slam Stewart: Santa’s Secret

Album Of The Week:
Billy Edd Wheeler: Nashville Zodiac (United Artists)

The 7” B-side:
Little Barrie: Burned Out (DJ Nu-Mark remix) (Genuine Records)

The Guilty Pleasure:
The Kasenatz/Katz Super Circus: Quick Joey Small (Buddah Records)

Last Week’s Listener Favourites:
Angelo Badalamenti: Laurens, Iowa
Stevie Ray Vaughan: The Things (That) I Used To Do
Jeremy Gluck: Threw This Away
Katrina Leskanich: Hitsville UK
The Kinks: Did Ya
Chuck Berry: Let it Rock
The Wolfmen: Needle In The Camel’s Eye
Terry Edwards & The Scapegoats: Spill The Beans
Bits & Pieces: Don’t Stop The Music 12”
Desmond Dekker: 007 (Shanty Town)
Mickey Jupp: Down To The Doctor’s
Flamin’ Groovies: Slow Death
Fats Domino: Ain’t That A Shame
Buddy Holly & The Crickets: Not Fade Away
R Dean Taylor: Gotta See Jane
Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson: H2OGate Blues
The Firecharmers: The Rainbow Song
Department S: Is Vic There?
Dave Edmunds: Run Rudolph Run
Aubrey Small: Country Road
The Who: I Can’t Explain
Julian Cope: World Shut Your Mouth
Man: Bananas (early instrumental version)
The Googie Rene Combo: Wild Bird
The Heptones: Hypocrite
The Ronettes: Baby I Love You
Ane Brun: Linger With Pleasure
James Hunter: Night Bus
East River String Band: One Dime Blues
Lightnin’ Hopkins: Mojo Hand
Nick Lowe: Little Hitler
Ornette Coleman: Ramblin’
The Rolling Stones: Fingerprint File
Eddie Cochran: Cut Across Shorty
Little Joe Cook (Chris Farlowe): Stormy Monday (pts 1&2)
SWAG: Everyday Is Christmas
The Wolfgang:Deisel: Horsemeat Pie
Willie Loco Alexander: Hit Her Wid De Axe
Trevor White: Crazy Kids

the station: North Fork Sound