A Musical Interlude, because "Man" Can't Live on Politics Alone...

Some of the best things I heard in 2024

There is more to life than politics, which is a fancy way of saying, “I don’t really know what to write on today. I have ideas, but I need to flush them out. Besides, the point of this Circus is to ramble on about more than politics, because just focusing on politics is not the healthiest thing in the world, so, yeah, there is more to life than politics – music, for instance.”

Twenty-twenty-four was a big music year for me. Not because I listened to more music than ever. No, last year I started writing about music again, specifically in a new magazine I created called Record Time, which focuses on obscure, forgotten, neglected, and unusual records and the people who made them. Producing well-researched, well-written music writing – and publishing the same by others – is a gas, the most fun I’ve had writing in a long while. It makes writing about politics easier, and bearable, as dwelling on power struggles is a drag, especially when so many of the people I write about are despicable human beings.

Still, music is not an escape for me. It is a core part of my existence and has been since I was a kid. I need music and I need to talk about music. And, so that is what I am going to do today. Below are fourteen records that I most enjoyed over 2024. They are also records that were new to me and that I (mostly) found “in the wild,” digging through bins at record stores, looking for stuff I’ve never heard or heard of, at affordable prices. If any of the artists or labels below have a Bandcamp page, I’ve provided the link. Otherwise, you’ll have to dig around for whatever perks your interest.

Roy Harper Flat Baroque & Berserk LP (Harvest 1970 UK)

I’ve known about Roy Harper since I listened to Led Zeppelin III’s “Hats Off to Roy Harper,” but, until recently, had only found one of his records, a later work of no importance. And, because I never got into CDs or digital, I hadn’t revisited Harper until this year, when at work I streamed Stormcock, a mind-blowing album of not-quite folk music, not-quite psychedelia, not-quite anything but Roy Harper. Flat Baroque… is not Stormcock, but, released one year earlier, it is a fantastic record, which with 1967’s Sophisticated Beggar, stands as one of Harper’s best.

National Flag Thank You & Good Night LP (Sommor 2021 Spain)

A great pub rock band, National Flag played around under different names for years, hoping to score a record contract. No one offered so they self-released their one-and-only, Thank You & Good Night. Unfortunately, it came out in 1977, the year punk rock owned England. Lost to time, Thank You… hit bargain bins and then started circulating in collector’s circles for decent money. It got a second life thanks to this reissue, which does a fine job showcasing National Flag’s pub rock meets Pink Floyd meets Mott the Hoople sound.

Celebrity Handshake Earth Last LP (Eastern Prawn 2024)

Maine is a very odd state, one of the most idiosyncratic states that we have. I’ve been there several times and would move there if it the winters weren’t so damn cold. That coldness, though, has Mainers indoors a lot, a place that they have to figure out something to do. When those Mainers are Hotdog, Will, and Jose that means that making noise, and it’s a gloriously weird noise, as well as some of the most original rock & roll being made right now. Impossible to describe in words, better to give Celebrity Handshake a good listen.

Mal Waldron & Marion Brown Songs of Love & Regret LP (Free Lance 1987 France)

Mal Waldron is one of my favorite jazz pianists. Marion Brown is one of my favorite sax players. So, when I saw their two names together, staring at me in a record bin, I got very excited, even though 1987 was not a grand year for jazz and Song of... came at the end of their careers. No reservations: My excitement was warranted. This is a stunner of a record, worthy of both these jazz masters’ discographies. Great solid jazz.

Minnie Riperton Perfect Angel LP (Epic 1974)

When I was a kid, it was impossible to escape Minnie Ripperton’s 1975 smash, “Lovin’ You,” a phenomenal and strange love song that showcases Ripperton’s five-octave range and her mastery of the “whistle register,” a vocal register that I didn’t know of until today. With Ripperton’s special talent is a sublime understanding of soul music, something that her fans understand and which makes finding records of hers out in the wild difficult. Fortunately, I lucked into a few in a collection. Perfect Angel is one of her best.

Various Artists San Francisco Roots LP (Vault 1968)

I’m a sucker for a good compilation, so when I find one that looks promising, I will buy it even if the condition is a bit dodgy, as long as it is cheap. This fine San Francisco comp was sitting in the bargain bin at Down Home Music, looking dodgy and definitely cheap. So, I stacked it and brought it home. Unless you are into San Francisco ‘60s music, most if not all the names here are unknowns. Beau Brummels, you might have heard of. Because Grace Slick was in the Great Society, that name might be familiar. As far as the Mojo Men, Veitables, and the Tikis, well, that’s freak knowledge. No matter how obscure, the bands on this comp are very good if not great (Great Society better, by my ears, than Jefferson Airplane). As vital, its bands like these that were the foundation of that legendary scene.

Lew Lewis Reformer Save the Wail LP (Stiff 1979 UK)

Lew Lewis was a pub rocker who started playing in Southern England with future members of Dr. Feelgood. As a solo artist, he made a few singles – some with Dr. Feelgood backing – before handing Stiff one of the best pub albums ever. Strong Feelgood/Duck Deluxe/Bishops-level rock & roll, Save the Wail bombed, pretty much ending Lewis’ solo career. Talented, respected, and well-liked he wound up guesting on albums by The Stranglers, The Clash, and Wilko Johnson.

CCCP - Fedeli Alla Linea 1964-1985 Affinità-Divergenze Fra Il Compagno Togliatti E Noi Del Conseguimento Della Maggiore Età LP (UMG 2023 Italy).

I’d read about CCCP, legendary 1980/90s Italian avant-punk band, for years but because they released records only in Italy, I neve had a chance to hear them. That changed this spring, when in a Naples record store an affordable reissue if their 1985 debut winked at me. So, I took it home, with a stack of other records that I would have regretted buying had it not been on vacation. 1964-1985 is a magnificent album. It’s guitars and drum machine with vocals that occasionally remind me of the Sleaford Mods. The sound is so far ahead its time that I could have put this out on my early ‘00s record label and it would have sound contemporary. Hell, if it was released now, few would peg it as 40-year-old album.

Jonathan Richman Want to Visit My Inner House P (Blue Arrow 2022).

I shouldn’t have to tell you about Jonathan Richman. I also shouldn’t have to tell you that the man still makes great records. This one came out a couple years ago and it sounds as fresh as anything released today as well as just like Jonathan Richman.

Chaco & Hell's Angel Young Idol Vol 1 LP (RCA 1974 Japan).

Listen, I have a pretty broad range of musical interest and knowledge, but it doesn’t come from any grand insight or special talent. I’ve picked up a few tips from reading music histories, but my go to tactic for record buying/music discovery is pretty basic: The record cover. Something about the cover has to grab me. Obviously, there’s the cover art – which can be stunning, weird, homemade-looking, or enticingly shitty. Song titles are important. Copyright dates matter. There’s also obscurity. If I’ve never seen the artist or album before, I will linger on a record before stacking it and, if it is cheap, I stack. This Chaco & Hell’s Angel album has very little English on the cover or label. The band name is in Japanese, so the cool name didn’t grab me. What did make me pause was the band photo, which shows a group of hip young guys, and that one of the band members wears and eye patch, the tipping point for me. Drop needle and what I heard was prime bubblegum music with some power pop, something akin to Japan’s Raspberries. I love this record. Thanks, Eye Patch!

Marianne Faithful Strange Weather LP (Island 1987).

My first intro to Marianne Faithful was “Broken English,” a song I first heard when it came out, on KDVS, in a set that included the Raincoats, Delta 5, Gang of Four, and Grace Jones. It fit seamlessly in that set. I bought the album and was kinda disappointed. Still, when I found early Faithful records, those made when she was hanging out with the Rolling Stones, I picked them up and was half impressed. As good as her albums could be, there was always something missing, soul, maybe? Well, there’s nothing missing on Strange Weather, a record that sounds like the album title suggests. This is music for strange weather, nights when the rain pulses as if Noah is loading up the ark. My favorite of her records and one I nearly missed because I had pretty much lost faith in Ms. Faithful.

Sugar Minott Rydim LP (Greensleeves 1985). Reggae artist Sugar Minott made a lot of records and by brother Tim seemed to own them all. Since Tim’s death, I’ve been selling off his record collection, which is/was full of prime reggae. And some of the records I listen to. Often, I go back to Sugar Minott, one of Tim’s favorites. Any album will do.

14 Bis s/t LP (EMI 1979 Brazil).

Here is another album and group that I was ignorant of until I stumbled on this record. I bought it because the name interested me, the album cover is good enough, its from Brazil, and it was five bucks. What I got was very much worth the “risk”: MPB (Brazilian pop) cut with ELO, early BeeGees, and Free Design. Yeah, it is that good.

Kelley Stoltz La Fleur LP (Agitated 2024).

Kelley Stoltz has been making records since the late 1990s and if this was a just world, he’d be a household name and a very wealthy man. As it is, despite guesting with Echo & the Bunnymen and Robin Hitchcock, Kelley is mostly known to a strong core of fans, a cult audience really. Still, he makes and releases records regularly and the records are as good as any really good or great record being pushed today. La Fluer is a refence to Kelley’s daughter, who was born a year or two ago. In this set of songs are some of Kelley’s first on watching his kid grow. The songs are fantastic, some of the most beautiful lyrics Kelley’s ever written. And the music is tops, too: Gorgeous indie pop with a strong nod to the past. You can’t go wrong with this guy.