Taylor Scott Band - Summer Moon (2017)

Taylor Scott Band are new to me, and I discovered them after checking out their latest album 'The Hang', and being blown away by how good it was. This was their second album, following on from 2019's 'All We Have', with both being produced by Los Lobos' Steve Berlin, but Scott has actually been around for quite a while. He grew up with a childhood appreciation for country music, and that soon gave way to an obsession with rebellious, guitar-driven rock 'n' roll, but by the age of 16 he'd found a new love: old-school blues music. It was a genre that suited his soulful vocals and hotshot guitar skills, and so he began playing regional festivals while still a high school student, and shortly after graduation he was recruited by Otis Taylor to join the blues legend's band, spending four years touring as Taylor's guitarist. In 2014 Scott met organist Jon Wirtz, and they joined forces in their own band, putting on lively performances throughout their native Colorado, North America, and Europe, and performing alongside greats like Gov't Mule’s Warren Haynes. The band did release a six-track EP titled 'A Closer Look, The Second Glance' in late 2015 and that would have been the first that the record-buying public became aware of Taylor's ability to play an impressive lead guitar, but it wasn't commercially successful, and so it was three years before they would release their debut album.After I'd listened to both albums I searched Youtube to see if I'd missed anything else by them, and what I found was the reason for this post, as in 2014 the band went into KMG Studios in Denver and laid down the most amazing version of William Devaughan's 'Be Thankful For What You Got' that you'll ever hear. For over ten minutes they don't put a foot wrong, and bearing in mind that they'd only just put the band together then it really is outstanding. I had to get this out to a bigger audience, so a bit more research uncovered a couple of singles from 2016 and 2017, neither of which were included on their album, and because the 2015 EP is so hard to find I thought that I'd lump them all together for a primer to the band for anyone who hasn't already heard of them. So if you're into the classic blues-rock sound of The Allmans, Gallagher/Taste and Free wrapped around the classic songwriting of Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt, and Jerry Jeff Walker then you need to check these guys out.  

Track listing

01 Scarlet Headed Woman (from 'A Closer Look, The Second Glance' 2015) 
02 Summer Moon (single 2016)
03 The Answer (To Your Question) (from 'A Closer Look, The Second Glance' 2015) 
04 & Then I Woke Up (extended version, from 'A Closer Look, The Second Glance' 2015) 
05 Learning Curve (single 2017)
06 Be Thankful For What You Got (live at KMG Studios, Denver 2014)
07 The Walk (from 'A Closer Look, The Second Glance' 2015) 
08 Second Glance (from 'A Closer Look, The Second Glance' 2015)  

Katy Perry - Fingerprints (2007)

As mentioned in the previous post for Katy Perry's '(A) Katy Perry' album, Glen Ballard's Java Records label severed ties with The Island Def Jam Music Group in 2006, and Perry was signed to Columbia Records, where she spent two years writing and recording new material for her first album for the label, to be called 'Fingerprints'. A few songs were left over from the '(A) Katy Perry' sessions, and so these were a starting point for the 'Fingerprints' recordings, and tracks which were confirmed as being on the album included 'Box', 'Fingerprints', 'Thinking Of You', 'Self Inflicted', 'Waking Up In Vegas', 'A Cup Of Coffee', plus 'Hook Up' and 'Wish You The Worst', both from the '(A) Katy Perry' sessions. Four of these songs would eventually end up on her official debut album 'One Of The Boys', while 'A Cup Of Coffee' was included as a bonus track on the re-issue that record. She collaborated with singer Ferras on a couple of songs around this time, but they were only ever performed at the SXSW music festival in Austin, Texas in 2007, but as they were from the right period I've included 'Rush' in the track listing. 'Box' was intended to be the first single from the '(A) Katy Perry' album, but when that was cancelled by Columbia as they couldn't figure out how to promote her, it was salvaged to form part of 'Fingerprints', and so now opens the album. 'Sex Sells' is a song that was written with David A Stewart in an effort to experiment with her image after she was dumped by Columbia and 'Fingerprints' was shelved, so I've included it on here are it's from the right time-frame, and remains unreleased. The title track is the un-mastered demo version, and that completes the second album from Katy Perry that her record company didn't feel worthy of release, and I bet they're kicking themselves now at their short-sightedness.

Track listing

01 Box
02 I Can 
03 Fingerprints
04 Psycho Love
05 Spend The Night
06 Rush (feat. Ferras)
07 The Driveway
08 A Cup Of Coffee
09 Sex Sells
10 Look But Don't Touch 
11 I Think I'm Ready 
12 Rock God

Embrace - Caught In A Rush (2004)

Following the release of 'Drawn From Memory', Embrace quickly recorded their third studio album 'If You've Never Been', which was released on 3 September 2001. It reached number 9 in the UK chart, but as before, the critical acclaim did not translate into acceptable sales by the label, and the band were dropped by Hut Records in 2002, amid the confusion caused as Virgin Records (Hut's parent company) were taken over by EMI. The final two singles on Hut included the usual non'album b-sides, but it was too late to save the band, and they needed a new label. Around this time frontman Danny McNamara became tabloid fodder due to a rumoured relationship with 90's pop diva Gina G, and he was also in a brief relationship with journalist Jayne Thompson. In 2004 they were signed by Andy McDonald to his Independiente Records label, and released the album 'Out Of Nothing', which reached number 1 on the UK charts. The 'comeback' single that preceded the album was 'Gravity', which had been written by Coldplay's Chris Martin, after Danny McNamara and Martin had become friends following their 2000 tour with Coldplay as support act. The single was a hit, reaching number seven in the UK Singles Chart, and Coldplay have since recorded 'Gravity' as a b-side for their single 'Talk'. This third collection of non-album tracks covers 2001 to 2004, including a three year period between labels when the band didn't release any new music.

Track listing

01 Anywhere You Go (b-side of 'Wonder' 2001)  
02 Everyday (b-side of 'Wonder' 2001)
03 Today (b-side of 'Wonder' 2001)
04 Caught In A Rush (b-side of 'Wonder' 2001)
05 Fight Yer Corner (b-side of 'Make It Last' 2001)
06 It's You I Make It For (b-side of 'Make It Last' 2001)
07 Giving, Forgiving And Giving In (b-side of 'Make It Last' 2001)
08 What You've Never Had You'll Never Have (b-side of 'Make It Last' 2001)
09 Wasted (b-side of 'Gravity' 2004)
10 Too Many Times (b-side of 'Gravity' 2004)
11 The Shot's Still Ringing (b-side of 'Gravity' 2004)
12 Waterfall (b-side of 'Gravity' 2004)

Monk - Monk (1971)

I stumbled on this incredibly rare acetate of an early 70's progressive rock album the other day on Youtube, and felt that it was a perfect candidate for the blog. I'm just reprinting the comments from undercoverwoo, who found and posted it, as there isn't really much more to add. 

This is an absurdly obscure psych / prog acetate which I found most unexpectedly in 2005 in a charity shop in Camberwell, London. It was hidden away in the cover of a highly generic poptastic sleeve for The Mike Morton Congregation's not particularly sought after 'Non Stop Hits – Volume 4'. The only reason I looked at it was because the contents felt a bit chunkier than usual – and I'm pleased I did. I'm not sure Mike's LPs are great sellers in charityland, so in all likelihood, if I hadn't found it, this music would likely be lying underground in about 5000 jagged shards beneath a tip somewhere on the outskirts of the capital. It was priced at £1 but I think (to my eternal shame) I managed to acquire the record for 50p, as I pointed out to the cashier it was scratched. If you listen to it all the way through, you'll hear that it was an incredible bargain, as I probably got £1000 rather than 50p worth of scratches for my small change. Plus more skips than your average primary school playground on lunchbreak. The record bears an IBC studios label, which is not insignificant. IBC (International Broadcasting Company) studios were used by a succession of A-list sixties musos, including such luminaries as Jimi Hendrix, The Who, The Kinks, mod gods The Action and a lesser group known as The Beatles. As such – and given there are some interesting production flourishes on the record – it'd be very interesting to learn about the talent involved, and why the record doesn't appear to have been released.

Content-wise, the LP is pleasingly eclectic. It ranges from flirtations with pastoral folkism - 'House In The Country' through trippy sound collage – 'Fantasy 2' – to ballsy rock – 'Lover' – and the pulsing reverberations of 'And So To Bed' '. 'Don't Talk To Me' is transcendent heavy cosmic prog. Datewise, I'm guessing this was recorded 1968-73? Given the name of the artist, and track titles like 'The Beast' and 'Jesu', I suspect that this might be a concept album too, and that the group could be of a religious inclination – but there's nothing else to evidence this. I'd be delighted to learn more about the music and the group – who from the evidence herein were a talented bunch and invested a lot of effort in this.
Apologies for the more than occasional pops / skips / jumps – and the irritating grinding background noise throughout side 2. Sadly the record has suffered some audible abuse! But the band plays on ...
So, through a audio haze of sizzling bacon, here's what is likely to be the premiere release of this curio. 

All I've done to it is split out the tracks, run it through my de-clicking programme (and, boy, what a difference that made), and put together a suitably enigmatic cover for it. I've given it a year of recording of 1971 as that what it sounds like to me, and as mentioned above, if anyone knows anything at all about this band then please let us all know.

Track listing

01 Fantasy 1: The Journey
02 Sit Back, Relax
03 House In The Country
04 Lazy Day
05 A Light In The Window
06 Fantasy 2: The Beast
07 Jesu 
08 Lover
09 And So To Bed
10 Intermezzo
11 Don't Talk About Me
12 Through An Electric Glass Darkly

Elvis Presley - Duets (1969)

Someone recently posed an intriguing question, and that is 'Did Elvis Presley ever record a duet on any of his albums'? I can't say that I was surprised that the answer was no, as I certainly couldn't recall one, but it was pointed out that he did record quite a few duets in his films, and some of them then appeared on the subsequent soundtrack albums. I might be a bit cynical here, but could it be that Colonel Tom thought that if Elvis recorded a duet then he'd have to split the royalties? Whatever the reason, you won't find any duets on his official albums, and so I thought that I should gather up the best of them from the films so that we can hear him sharing the spotlight with a variety of male and female artists. Not every duet from a film is worth more than one hearing, so this isn't a comprehensive collection, but all of these songs are good enough that you won't need to skip any when listening to what turned out to be a very enjoyable album. Three of the best tracks are those with Ann-Margret (who also features on the cover) from 1964's 'Viva Las Vegas', and you can just feel the chemistry between them. His duet with Kitty White from 'King Creole' is the earliest track here, from 1958, and we go right through to his penultimate film in 1969, with 'The Trouble With Girls'. Ray Walker features a couple of times from 1966 and 1967, while the duet with Nancy Sinatra from 1968's 'Speedway' is excellent as well, even though she only appears at the end. So enjoy this album of the best of these rarely heard songs from Presley's 60's films. 

Track listing    

 
01 Crawfish (with Kitty White from 'King Creole' 1958)
02 Pocketful Of Rainbows (with Juliet Prowse from 'G.I. Blues' 1960)
03 Aloha Oe (with The Surfers from 'Blue Hawaii' 1961)
04 How Would You Like To Be (with Vicki Tiu from 'It Happened At The World's Fair' 1963)
05 Happy Ending (with Joan O'Brien from 'It Happened At The World’s Fair' 1963)
06 Mexico (with Larry Domasin from 'Fun In Acapulco' 1963)

07 You’re The Boss (with Ann-Margret from 'Viva Las Vegas' 1964)

08 Today Tomorrow And Forever (with Ann-Margret from 'Viva Las Vegas' 1964)
09 The Lady Loves Me (with Ann-Margret from 'Viva Las Vegas' 1964)
10 Spring Fever (with Shelley Fabares from 'Girl Happy' 1965)
11 Frankie And Johnny (with Eileen Wilson & Ray Walker from 'Frankie And Johnny' 1966)
12 Scratch My Back (with Marianne Hill from 'Paradise Hawaiian Style' 1966)
13 Who Needs Money (with Ray Walker from 'Clambake' 1967)
14 There Ain't Nothing Like A Song (with Nancy Sinatra from 'Speedway' 1968)
15 Signs Of The Zodiac (with Marilyn Mason from 'The Trouble With Girls' 1969)

Katy Perry - (A) Katy Perry (2005)

Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson, a.k.a. Katy Perry, started her career in music at a very early age, briefly having music lessons in facilities rented from the Music Academy of the West, where her singing caught the attention of rock artists Steve Thomas and Jennifer Knapp from Nashville, Tennessee. They took her to Nashville to improve her writing skills, and it was there that she started recording demos, while learning how to write songs and play guitar. She signed with Red Hill Records and recorded her debut album, a contemporary Christian record titled 'Katy Hudson', which was released on 6 March 2001. The album received mixed reviews from critics and was commercially unsuccessful, selling an estimated 200 copies before the label ceased operations in December, so Perry transitioned from gospel to secular music, and started working with producer Glen Ballard, moving to Los Angeles at age 17. In 2003 she briefly performed as Katheryn Perry, to avoid confusion with actress Kate Hudson, and later adopted the stage name 'Katy Perry', using her mother's maiden name. In 2004, she signed to Ballard's label, Java Records, which was then affiliated with The Island Def Jam Music Group, and she began work on a solo record due for release in March 2005, under the working title of '(A) Katy Perry'. The music was to have been much more "rock" than her first album, but the record was shelved after Ballard severed ties with the parent company. He then introduced Perry to Tim Devine, an A&R executive at Columbia Records, and she was signed as a solo artist writing and recording material over the next two years for her Columbia debut. She worked with songwriters including Desmond Child, Greg Wells, Butch Walker, Scott Cutler/Anne Previn, The Matrix, Kara DioGuardi, and Max Martin and Dr. Luke, and the song 'Simple' was used on the official soundtrack for the 2005 film 'Sisterhood Of The Traveling Pants', but was not included on her debut album 'One Of The Boys' when it eventually appeared in 2008, even though it had the publicity of being used in a film. This means that none of these recordings from 2005 have officially seen the light of day since they were recorded, and so this can be viewed as a brand new, real debut 'rock' album from the singer, from a time before she 'kissed a girl'.  

Track listing

01 Agree To Disagree
02 Diamonds 
03 Hook Up 
04 Nothing Like The 1st Time 
05 Speed Diallin'
06 Long Shot
07 It's OK To Believe 
08 In Between 
09 Simple 
10 Takes One To Know One 
11 Wish You The Worst
12 The Better Half Of Me 
13 Weigh Me Down 

Embrace - Brothers And Sisters (2000)

After releasing the'Hooligan' single in 1999, Embrace followed this with their second album 'Drawn From Memory' in March 2000, which reached number 8 in the UK Albums Chart. Although the album was supported by a tour with the then-fledgling Coldplay, its sales were relatively low, although critical reception was good, with NME in particular praising the album.  They covered Bob Dorough's '3 Is A Magic Number' on the B-side of 'I Wouldn't Wanna Happen To You', and they also released two other Christmas cover versions of the traditional song 'Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire' and Greg Lake's 'I Believe In Father Christmas'. Three more singles were released from the album in 2000, and as before the b-sides of 'I Wouldn't Wanna Happen To You', 'You're Not Alone', and 'Save Me' were exclusive to the those releases, and so here they all are for a non-album collection from 1999 and 2000. 

Track listing

01 I've Been Running (b-side of 'Hooligan' 1999)
02 I Can't Feel Bad Anymore (b-side of 'Hooligan' 1999)
03 3 Is A Magic Number (b-side of 'I Wouldn't Wanna Happen To You' 2000)
04 Top Of The Heat (b-side of 'I Wouldn't Wanna Happen To You' 2000)
05 The First Cut (b-side of 'I Wouldn't Wanna Happen To You' 2000)
06 I Know What's Going On (b-side of 'I Wouldn't Wanna Happen To You' 2000)
07 Get On Board (b-side of 'Save Me' 2000)
08 Still So Young (b-side of 'Save Me' 2000)
09 Brothers And Sisters (b-side of 'You're Not Alone' 2000)
10 Happy And Lost (b-side of 'You're Not Alone' 2000)
11 Come On And Smile (b-side of 'You're Not Alone' 2000)
12 A Tap On Your Shoulder (b-side of 'You're Not Alone' 2000)

Ollie Halsall - ...and on guitar (1992)

Peter John "Ollie" Halsall was born on 14 March 1949, and began his musical career in 1964 playing drums with various local bands such as Pete and the Pawnees, the Gunslingers, the Music Students and Rhythm and Blues Incorporated. In 1965 he taught himself to play the vibraphone and was invited to London to join fellow Southport musicians bassist Clive Griffiths and keyboardist 'Professor' Chris Holmes in pop rock outfit Take Five, which became Timebox, and in 1967 Halsall took up guitar, while the band was augmented by adding Mike Patto on vocals and 'Admiral' John Halsey on drums. Timebox released a number of singles in 1968 and 1969 on the Deram label, but never managed to record an album, and in 1970, following the departure of Holmes, Timebox evolved into the progressive rock band Patto, featuring Halsall on both guitar and vibraphone. Patto were a well-respected band, and released three albums between 1970 and 1972, but in 1973 Halsall left to join Jon Hiseman's Tempest. Tempest were one of the very best jazz-rock fusion bands of the 1970's, and released two superb albums in 'Tempest' (1970) and 'Living In Fear' (1971), but after less than a year he quit, and became an in demand session guitarist, playing on a track for Kevin Ayers' 'The Confessions Of Dr. Dream' album in 1974 which led to a permanent position in Ayers' band the Soporifics. Halsall's UK session work included concerts and recordings with the Scaffold, GRIMMS, Neil Innes, Centipede, Andy Roberts, Mike de Albuquerque, John Otway, John Cale and Vivian Stanshall, and he was even briefly considered as a possible replacement for Mick Taylor following his departure from the Rolling Stones in December 1974. In 1975, Patto staged a brief reunion comprising just three benefit gigs, but the reuniting of Halsall and Patto sparked the formation of Boxer during 1975, and they released two albums on the Virgin label before Patto died of lymphoid leukemia in 1979. 

In 1978 he was invited to join Neil Innes and Eric Idle's spoof Beatles project The Rutles, recording their debut eponymous album in 1978, which reached the top 20 in the UK. He plays many of the instruments on the songs, and provides lead and backing vocals – most notably on the tracks 'Doubleback Alley', 'With A Girl Like You' and 'Get Up And Go'. Eric Idle was cast in his place in the accompanying film and Halsall only featured in a very minor cameo role as Leppo, the fifth Rutle who got lost in Hamburg. During 1976 Halsall had rejoined Ayers with whom he stayed for the next sixteen years, and for much of that time he frequented the town of Deià in the north of the Spanish island of Mallorca, commuting to Madrid on the mainland to produce and play for numerous Spanish artists, including El Primer Tercio, Ronni Urini, and his final work with pop rock bands Radio Futura and Hombres G. In the 1980's he was part of a Spanish synth-pop band Cinemaspop with vocalist Zanna Gregmar, and they released two studio albums, 'Cinemaspop' in 1983, which was a collection of synth-pop covers of classical movie tunes, and 'A Clockwork Orange' in 1984, which included some compositions and vocals by Halsall, as well as a bizarre electronic version of The Troggs' 'Wild Thing'. Halsall died in Madrid from a drug-induced heart attack on 29 May 1992 at the age of just 43. He has been described as an influence by a number of respected guitarists, including Alvin Lee of Ten Years After, Bill Nelson of Be-Bop Deluxe, Allan Holdsworth, Kee Marcello of Europe and Cheap Trick's guitarist Rick Nielsen. XTC's Andy Partridge cites Halsall as one of his top three influences, saying "He made the guitar sound more like Albert Ayler or John Coltrane, more like a sort of fluid piano player". The final word has to go to his friend John Halsey, who said "Ollie may not have been the best guitarist in the world, but he was certainly among the top two." 

Track listing

Disc One
01 If Your Love Don't Swing (b-side of 'Midnight Confessions' by Pete Kelly's Solution 1968)
01 Lover's Prayer (with Duffy Power 1970)
02 Speed Well (from 'Andy Roberts And The Great Stampede' by Andy Roberts 1973)
03 Take It While You Can (from 'Rockin' Duck' by GRIMMS 1973)
04 That Girl's Alright (b-side of 'Teenage Love Song' by John Hetherington 1973)
05 Nuclear Band (from 'Fresh Liver' by Scaffold 1973) 
06 Singing A Song Is Easy (from 'How Sweet To Be An Idiot' by Neil Innes 1973)
07 Keep On (from 'Manor Live' by Steve York's Camelo Pardalis 1973)
08 Sweet Mirth (from 'We May Be Cattle But We've All Got Names' by Michael de

                                                                                                                       Albuquerque 1973)
09 Overture (from 'Jesus Christ Superstar' film soundtrack by Rice/Lloyd Webber 1970)
10 This Is The Time To Get Merry (from 'Two Faced' by Bruce Epstein & Jack Fischer 1973)
11 Didn't Feel Lonely Till I Thought Of You (from 'The Confessions Of Dr. Dream' by 

                                                                                                                        Kevin Ayers 1974)

Disc Two
01 Shouting In A Bucket Blues (from 'June 1, 1974' by Kevin Ayers/John Cale/Eno/Nico 1974)
02 Itchy Feet (from 'Fatsticks' by Terry Stamp 1975)
03 The Elf Sires (from 'Some Things Never Change' by David Kubinec 1979)
04 It's A Pain (from 'Where Did I Go Right?' by John Otway 1979)
05 Bum Love (with John Halsey, from 'Miniatures' by Various Artists 1980) 
06 Don't Run Away (single by Zanna Gregmar & Ollie Halsall 1981)
07 Everyday, I Have The Blows (from 'Teddy Boys Don't Knit' by Vivian Stanshall 1981)
08 Sailship (single by Ronni Urini 1983)
09 Ely (from 'Teixido' by Teixido 1989)
10 Instrumental (from 'Veneno En La Piel' by Radio Futura 1990) 
11 Encima De Ti (from 'Historia Del Bikini' by Hombres G 1992)

Thanks to Auran for the suggestion.

For MAC users

Press command+shift+period (to show hidden files) and a grayed out folder '...and on guitar" will appear and the mp3s will be inside. Either drag those to another folder OR rename the folder without any periods at the beginning. Press command+shift+period to once again hide the hidden files.

Billie Eilish - Another Stupid Album (2019)

Following the recent collection of singles from Billie Eilish, here's an album of rare demos, cover versions, and out-takes from the young singer/songwriter. The covers show her eclectic musical tastes, including songs from Michael Jackson, The Strokes, Drake, and Rob Dickinson, while the out-takes were recorded during the sessions for her albums between 2016 and 2019. It also includes the legendary '6.18.18', which is a tribute to rapper XXXTENTACION, who was shot and killed on the 18th of June 2018. It was originally supposed to be on Eilish's debut album, but didn’t make it onto the tracklist, and in the end she performed the song just a single time in Oakland, on the first night of her sold-out 1 By 1 Tour. The song was then permanently removed from the setlist, supposedly due to the controversy surrounding the late rapper. Luckily that performance was taped, although it does have some annoying screams at the end of the intro, so I've managed to edit those out so that you can fully appreciate the raw power of the song. I must admit that I'd never really paid much attention to her before, thinking she was just another flash in the pan teen popster, but hearing these songs has given me an understanding of why she was popular enough to top the bill at this year's Glastonbury festival, and become their youngest ever solo headliner.  

Track listing

 
01 Maybe Don't Leave Me (previously unreleased 2016)
02 Another Stupid Song (previously unreleased 2016)
03 Ride (previously unreleased 2017)
04 You're Stoned (previously unreleased 2017)
05 True Blue (previously unreleased 2017)
06 Ex Files (previously unreleased 2017)
07 6.18.18 (live 2018)
08 Bad (Michael Jackson cover for Australian radio 2018)
09 Call Me Back (Strokes cover on 'The Tonight Show' 2018)
10 Hotline Bling (Drake cover 2018)  
11 Lyin 2 Ya (with CHASETHEMONEY, Valee and 10k.Caash) (previously unreleased 2019)
12 The End Of The World (Rob Dickinson cover for Radio 1 Piano Sessions 2019) 
13 Bad Company (previously unreleased 2019)

Embrace - Blind (1998)

Brothers singer Danny McNamara and guitarist Richard McNamara started creating songs with the aid of a cassette recorder in Bailiff Bridge, West Yorkshire in 1990. Soon a drum machine was added, and an initial set of Goth-influenced songs was written and recorded, but ultimately scrapped, before a second set of songs was written. They recruited Mickey Dale to play keyboards, and after various auditions, drummer Mike Heaton joined the band. A period of consolidation of existing songs and writing of new ones followed, but it proved hard to settle on a name, so gigs were initially performed from 1992 onwards under one-off names, such as Curious Orange, Christianne F, Shimmer, Lady Bum, and Mesmerise. Eventually they settled on 'Embrace', and although he was familiar with the American band Embrace, Richard thought it was a good name, despite it having been used already. The band wrote a letter to seek approval from Ian Mackaye who replied that it was alright for the English band to use the same name, though he said that it could possibly cause some confusion. Steve Firth joined the quartet in 1996 to add bass to the group, and their current and permanent line-up was in place. In 1996 the band recorded a three track demo in a recording studio in Huddersfield, which was sold at concerts in cassette form, and this now extremely rare demo consisted of the songs 'Overflowing', 'Say It With Bombs' and 'Sooner Than You Think'. 

A second spell in a Manchester recording studio yielded some rough mixes, one of which was deemed good enough to be released on a cassette attached to the Leeds fanzine The Expression She Pulled. In October 1996, the group signed with the Virgin subsidiary Hut Recordings, but eager to establish indie credibility, they released their debut single 'All You Good Good People' on the hip indie label Fierce Panda in February 1997. Over the next few months, it was followed by the singles 'Fireworks' and 'One Big Family', which were both released on Hut, and although those two singles were successful, it was the re-release of 'All You Good Good People' on Hut in October that proved to be their breakthrough, entering the charts at number eight. After building a following through the release of the singles, their debut album 'The Good Will Out' was released on 8 June 1998 and went to number 1 in the UK Albums Chart. The album achieved critical acclaim as well as success in terms of sales, going gold on its first day of release, becoming one of the fastest-ever-selling debut albums by a British artist, and going on to sell over 500,000 copies domestically. Right from the start the band were extremely prolific in the recording studio, and their early EP's included a number of songs that were not included on that debut album, so this first in a series of posts gathers up all those non-album songs from 1997 and 1998 into one place.  

Track listing

01 Blind (from the 'Fireworks' EP 1997)
02 Dry Kids (from the 'One Big Family' EP 1997)
03 You've Only Got To Stop To Get Better (from the 'One Big Family' EP 1997)
04 Butter Wouldn't Melt (from the 'One Big Family' EP 1997)
05 You Don't Amount To Anything - This Time (from the 'All You Good Good People' EP 1998)
06 The Way I Do (from the 'All You Good Good People' EP 1998)
07 Free Ride (from the 'All You Good Good People' EP 1998)
08 Feelings I Thought You Shared (b-side of 'My Weakness Is None Of Your Business' 1998)
09 Don't Turn Your Back On Love (b-side of 'My Weakness Is None Of Your Business' 1998)
10 Love Is Back (b-side of 'Come Back To What You Know' 1998)
11 If You Feel Like A Sinner (b-side of 'Come Back To What You Know' 1998)
12 Perfect Way (b-side of 'Come Back To What You Know' 1998)

Ruby Winters - Try Me (1969)

Ruby Forehand was born in Louisville, Kentucky, and from the age of five she was raised in Cincinnati by her grandmother following her mother's death. Her grandmother encouraged her singing, first expressed in church at age four, and by the age of 16 - by then a wife and mother - she was singing professionally. By 1966 she was singing in the Charlie Daniels band, as both she and Daniels were managed by Bill Sizemore, who also managed singer Ronnie Dove. and was able to interest Dove's label Diamond Records in offering Winters a record deal. Her debut single as Ruby Winters, 'In The Middle Of A Heartache' was a Charlie Daniels composition, and was released in July 1966, reaching the Top 30 on the hit parade for WAKY 790-Louisville. The regional interest in Winters' debut single led Diamond Records A&R head Phil Kahl to oversee Winters' next recording session himself, and before he left New York to join the sessions in Nashville early in 1967, label president Joe Kolsky suggested that Kahl record Winters and another Diamond artist Johnny Thunder as a duo. Kahl recorded Winters and Thunder as a duet remaking the 1950's pop hits 'Teach Me Tonight' and 'Make Love to Me', and the latter was released as the A-side of their February 1967 single, reaching #96 on the Billboard Hot 100. After Winters reached the national R&B chart in autumn 1967 with her third solo release 'I Want Action', Diamond Records brought her to New York City to work with George Kerr, who had recently produced R&B hits for the O'Jays and Linda Jones. With his regular collaborator/arranger Richard Tee, Kerr re-teamed Winters with Johnny Thunder for 'We Have Only One Life', which was released in February 1968. Kerr also had Winters record 'A Last Minute Miracle', which he'd recorded with the Shirelles, and also with Linda Jones, and all three versions apparently share a common backing track, although Winters' version remains unreleased. In 1969 she made a strong comeback with four R&B hits, beginning with her highest ranking U.S. solo hit, a remake of the 1961 Chuck Jackson hit 'I Don't Want to Cry', and then following that with two more remakes, of Jimmy Clanton's 'Just A Dream' and Jesse Belvin's 'Guess Who', plus the original 'Always David'. After this flurry of singles her recording schedule slowed, with no releases until January 1971 when her take on the hymn 'Great Speckled Bird' was issued by Certron, who had purchased Diamond Records in early 1970. Winters then had her first single release in almost three years in October 1973 when Polydor Records issued her version of 'I Will', which proved to be her most significant recording, reaching the R&B Top 40. She had one further single release on Polydor with 'Love Me Now', and she also issued a one-off Playboy Records version of the #1 1972 Nilsson hit 'Without You'. In the mid-1970's Winters in effect withdrew from recording, relocating in 1973 from Tennessee to Brevard County in Florida, and establishing herself as a top-rated Space Coast nightclub performer. However in 1977 the London-based independent label Creole Records re-released Winters' recording of 'I Will', which reached #4 on the UK Singles Chart in December 1977, prompting a reunion with producer Stan Shulman. This resulted in Winters recording and releasing the 'I Will' album, from which a follow-up single 'Come to Me' reached #11 on the UK chart. The 'Baby Lay Down' album followed in 1979 on Creole, and she was now enjoying the biggest success of her career, after releasing her music to little commercial success during the 60's. Winters died on 7 August 2016, as the age of 74, and this collection of those fine soul tracks that she recorded during the first half-decade of her career is a fitting tribute.

Track listing

01 In The Middle Of A Heartache (single 1966)
02 Act Three (b-side of 'In The Middle Of A Heartache')
03 Make Love To Me (single 1967, with Johnny Thunder)
04 Teach Me Tonight (b-side of 'Make Love To Me', with Johnny Thunder)
05 The Bells Of St. Mary's (single 1967)
06 Try Me (b-side of 'The Bells Of St. Mary's')
07 I Want Action (single 1967)
08 Better (b-side of 'I Want Action')
09 We Only Have One Life (Let's Live It Together) (single 1968, with Johnny Thunder)

10 A Last Minute Miracle (unreleased acetate 1968)
11 I Don't Want To Cry (single 1969)
12 Just Like A Yo Yo (b-side of 'I Don't Want To Cry')
13 Just A Dream (single 1969)
14 I Don't Want To Hurt Nobody (b-side of 'Just A Dream')
15 Always David (single 1969)
16 We're Living To Give (To Give To Each Other) (b-side of 'Always David')
17 Guess Who (single 1969)
18 Sweetheart Things (b-side of 'Guess Who')

Michael McDonald - ...featuring (2022)

Time for another post from Mike S, and this time he's been trawling his record collection for recordings that feature one particular vocalist, so over to Mike...

Michael Solof back with you for another round of fun tunes. I was inspired this time by pj's wonderful '...and on guitar' series. I was listening to an old Steely Dan album the other day and I followed it with Christopher Cross’s first album and realized that Michael McDonald was on both albums singing background vocals (and almost co-lead at times) and that got me thinking about how many songs I loved that he'd contributed to over the years. McDonald is known for his distinctive, soulful voice and was a member of two of the biggest bands of the 70's/80's, with stints in the Doobie Brothers from 1975–1982, and Steely Dan during 1973 and 1974. He wrote and sang several hit singles with the Doobie Brothers, including 'What A Fool Believes', 'Minute By Minute', and 'Takin' It To The Streets', and his solo career consists of nine studio albums and a number of singles, including the 1982 hit 'I Keep Forgettin' (Every Time You're Near)'. However, it's his session work that we're looking at here, as during his long career he's collaborated with a huge number of other artists, including James Ingram, David Cassidy, Van Halen, Patti LaBelle, Lee Ritenour, the Winans, Aretha Franklin, Toto, Grizzly Bear, Joni Mitchell, and Thundercat, and unlike almost all other background vocalists who literally do "disappear into the background", McDonald's voice always broke through that haze and became a unique, distinctive and very important part of each song he contributed to. His beautiful tone just added a lushness to the harmonies that you couldn’t help but notice. I therefore started going through his entire musical catalog and pulling out two different ways that he'd helped many wonderful fellow musicians throughout the years. One way was just as a background vocalist and the other was as a co-lead or guest vocalist (and often times songwriter), and then I broke up the collection accordingly. The first volume is his guest vocals on other artist's songs, while the other two volumes feature his backing vocals for a wide variety of artists over an extra-ordinary 46-year career. 

Track listing

Volume 1
01 Let Me Go, Love (from 'In The Nick Of Time' by Nicolette Larson 1979)
02 I've Got My Mind Made Up (from 'Together?' soundtrack with Jackie DeShannon 1979)
03 Heart To Heart (from 'Heart To Heart' by Kenny Loggins 1982)
04 Arcade (from 'Swing Street' by Patrick Simmons 1983)
05 Let's Stay Together (from 'Tribute To Jeff Porcaro' by Paulette Brown & David Pack 1997)
06 Moondance (from 'Nathan East' by Nathan East 2014)
07 Long Haul (from 'Unfinished Business' by Robben Ford 2014)
08 Night Of Our Own (from 'Someday, Somehow' by Steve Porcaro 2016)
09 Love In The World (from '2' by CWF 2020)
10 Higher Ground (mixed by Tomey Maguarfield, feat. McDonald/Red Hot Chilli Peppers 2022)

Volume 2
01 Any World (That I'm Welcome To) (from 'Katy Lied' by Steely Dan 1975)  
02 See What You Done (from 'Chunky, Novi And Ernie' by Chunky, Novi And Ernie 1977)
03 Strengthen My Love (from 'White Shadows' by Tim Moore 1977)
04 Red Streamliner ('Waiting For Columbus' out-take by Little Feat 1978) 
05 Losing Myself In You (from 'Bish' by Steven Bishop 1978)
06 I Really Don't Know Anymore (from 'Christopher Cross' by Christopher Cross 1979)
07 This Is It (from 'Keep The Fire' by Kenny Loggins 1979)
08 Please Don't Leave (from 'Lauren Wood' by Lauren Wood 1979)
09 Young Blood (from 'Rickie Lee Jones' by Ricky Lee Jones 1979)
10 One Fine Day (from 'Satisfied' by Rita Coolidge 1979)
11 Steal Away (from 'Robbie Dupree' by Robbie Dupree 1980)

Volume 3
01 Why You Givin' Up (from 'Arcade' by Patrick Simmons 1983)
02 I Just Can't Let Go (from 'Anywhere You Go' by David Pack 1985)
03 I'll Be Over You (from 'Fahrenheit' by Toto 1986)
04 A Fool And His Money (from 'Mosaic' by Wang Chung 1986)
05 Never Give Up (from 'Outrageous Temptations' by Tim Weisberg 1989)
06 Same World (from 'Same World' by Henry Kapono 1991)
07 Where Words End (from 'Just Across The River' by Jimmy Webb 2010) 
08 Some Children (from 'Holy Ghost!' by Holy Ghost! 2011)
09 The Best Of Me (from 'Starting Now' by Toad The Wet Sprocket 2021)

McDonald has one of the finest, smoothest, most mellow voices in All of Music. It’s the reason he is still in such high demand over 40 years after his debut.

I hope you like this collection as much as I do.

Mike S

For MAC users

Press command+shift+period (to show hidden files) and a grayed out folder '...and on guitar" will appear and the mp3s will be inside. Either drag those to another folder OR rename the folder without any periods at the beginning. Press command+shift+period to once again hide the hidden files.

Billie Eilish - Come Out And Play (2021)

Billie Eilish Pirate Baird O'Connell was born on 18 December 2001, and is better known by her stage name Billie Eilish. At age eleven she began writing and singing her own songs, taking after her brother Finneas, who was already performing his own songs with his band. In 2015, the siblings released 'sHE'S brOKen' and 'Fingers Crossed' on Soundcloud, just for fun, and for their friends to listen to. In October 2015, Finneas informed his sister of a song he had been playing with his band called 'Ocean Eyes', and after recording it, she released it as her debut single on SoundCloud in 2016, and it was a viral hit. Next she released 'Six Feet Under', which was not nearly as successful as 'Ocean Eyes', but got attention from listeners and was a success among the small fanbase that Eilish had earned. Following the success of an EP of 'Ocean Eyes' remixes, she released the single 'Bellyache' in 2017, which was produced and co-written by her and Finneas, and just over a week later she released the track 'Bored' as part of the soundtrack to the television series '13 Reasons Why'. On June 30th she released the single 'Watch', followed just two weeks later by another single 'COPYCAT'. Each Friday in July, Eilish would issue further singles, and the four tracks were then compiled into the 'Don't Smile At Me' EP, which was officially released on 11 August 2017. In July, she released the first single from her debut album, 'You Should See Me In A Crown', and followed this with a stand-alone single 'Bitches Broken Hearts'. Two more singles were released as teasers for the album, with 'When the Party's Over' coming out in October 2018, and 'Bury A Friend' appearing in January 2019. At the same time she issued the single 'Come Out And Play' for Apple's animated Holiday short 'Share Your Gifts', and 'When I Was Older' was included on the album 'Music Inspired By The Film "Roma"'. Her first album 'When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?' was released on 29 March 2019, and debuted at number one on both the Billboard 200 and the UK Albums Chart - becoming the youngest female artist ever to have a number one album in the United Kingdom. In January 2020 it was announced that she would be writing the theme song for the new James Bond movie 'No Time To Die', and the song was released in February 2020, but it was over a year before she announced via her Instagram that she would be releasing her second album 'Happier Than Ever' on 30 July 2021, and five singles were released from it over the next few months. A new album is on the cards for 2023, but in the meantime this post collects together some of those stand-alone singles that have been released over the past few years, plus a couple of collaborations, and both of those early Soundcloud uploads from 2015. 

Track listing

01 Fingers Crossed (Soundclud 2015)
02 sHE's brOKen (Soundcloud 2015)
03 Six Feet Under (single 2016)
04 Ocean Eyes (single 2016)
05 Bored (single 2017)
06 Come Out And Play (single 2018)
07 Bitches Broken Hearts (single 2018)
08 Lovely (single with Khalid 2018)
09 Everything I Wanted (single 2019)
10 When I Was Older (single 2019)
11 No Time To Die (single 2019)
12 Lo Vas A Olvidar (single with Rosalia 2021)