Marilyn Maye Step to the Rear RCA 1967

Marilyn Maye Step to the Rear RCA 1967 CAT# LSP 3897

Accidentally bought two copies of this LP, but to my surprise, I ended up with two different variants. One of which would appear to be an original 1967 black label RCA, the other, a later pressing on an orange RCA label. The later pressing would speak volumes to the Kansas City singers popularity, I mean, if they had to repress LPS, apparently there was once a substantial market for the singer.

The differences between these two are minimal, but as you can see in the photo, the original has a green backdrop while the other has a blueish color used in the backdrop. What's also odd is the label on the repress reads, "Make Mine Marilyn Maye" rather than the title, 'Step to the Rear.' The track listing and everything else is the same. Even the stampers in the dead wax read the same. Makes you wonder if perhaps RCA was initially going to repackage the LP as a budget title in a separate cover to capitalize on some television appearance or jump in popularity for the singer, but at the last second, just decided to use the same cover with a slight alteration.

It's not a bad album, in her show tunes style, she covers some hits of the day. "Ode to Billy Joe" is well, groovy. There's also this over-the-top, sultry, version of Bobby Hebb's "Sunny", which is kind of fun.

Step to the Rear

James Brown Live At the Garden King 1967

James Brown Live At the Garden King 1967 CAT# 1018

Have not wrote in this thing for ages...been busy and shit. So I figured the best artist to blog about is a guy who lived at or near KC for like 30 minutes per an obscure interview that was cited by the label, Numero Group.

This LP is pretty great, it's the soulful James Brown before he went straight funk. Odd thing about James Brown records, they are almost always beat to death. You find them, get excited, look at it and the vinyl is tore up and barely playable.

They were party records. You put on James Brown when you wanted to get down with friends. Which also meant you were probably tipping a few back with friends. Which means, especially when records weren't thought of as fetish items, people just took them right off the platter and probably laid them on stack of other played through records, no sleeve or inner. Just out there, getting torn up.

Here's the thing though, that all makes sense; party records. But, next time you're out digging, look at a popular Joni Mitchell album. It's also tore up. Odd, because unlike James Brown, Joni isn't for partying. I have this romantic notion that it is because some girl in the 70's got her heart broken and for comfort, just played the crap out of Joni Mitchell...but, Joni is not from KC, not even for 30 minutes like Brown, so I'm not going into how great she is.

Marcy Tinger Marcy Sings Nursery Rhymes Word 1967

Marcy Tigner Marcy Sings Nursery Rhymes Word 1967 CAT# K-702

There is a full post on the artist behind the ventriloquist doll, Little Marcy or by this LP, simply Marcy. The voice was Marcy Tigner who prior to going to the great Northwest for music fame was a Wichita, Kansas native. Prior to putting out a kajillion weirdo children's religious albums, she actually did a few albums of her own as a trombone player.

All her Little Marcy albums (and there's an insane amount) are equally as creepy and in today are awful confusing. Why was the idea of a ventriloquist doll on record a good thing? Isn't the entertainment value in watching the actual ventriloquist hide their vocals?

Anyway, as far as Little Marcy's deep catalog is concerned, this is the album that gets the hype. Pretty sure it was once featured on David Letterman's Dave's Record Collection bit and it's also the topic of numerous blog posts. It doesn't have the creepy stage banter between the actual Marcy Tigner and her doll as the album is just the doll doing well-known nursery rhymes with basic back musical drops (oddly all of which are copyrighted despite being open to everyone even in 1967). What it does have though is the a rendition of "I Love Little Pussy." Because, as a traditional nursery rhyme, "I Love Little Pussy" already ranks up there with the best dick and fart jokes, but a creepy doll singing it, that's next level stuff.

The Morning Dew No More B/W Look At Me Now Fairyland Records 1967

The Morning Dew No More B/W Look At Me Now Fairyland Records 1967 CAT# F-51567

Pretty stoked to come across this at a thrift store.  The Morning Dew were a Topeka group of teenagers caught up in the garage rock scene.  Like other Kansas bands of their time, they weren't reliant on the snappy tunes of the Beatles to fill out their sound, they wanted to be sure to keep their Midwest roots.  This band, at least on this record, focused their sound around Dylan's Highway 61 and fuzzed out guitars.  Similar to what Texas band, Mouse and the Traps, were doing down South.

The result on this 45 is decent.  Both songs were penned by band leader, Mal Robinson.  The record was pressed by a regional label in Columbia, Missouri, called Fairyland.  Apparently, despite an actual deal with Fairyland, the band footed their own bills to put it out.  The band paid for recording and 2000 of these records to pressed.  Fairyland took it to radio and attempted to distribute copies regionally, only 500 were reported to stay in the Topeka area for purchase.

The A-Side, "No More", must have caught onto some extent.  The band was able to tour the Midwest on it's airplay and open some pretty big shows locally.  It's got a crunchy rhythm, but twee in comparison to the Dylan sound they were after, it does have a stellar guitar solo drenched in fuzz and psychedelia thrown in.  The B-Side, "Look At Me Now" is decent, in fact, compared to the crap that ends up on most obscure garage rock singles, it's fantastic.  It's definitely the band's panty-dropper as it's over the top with teenage heartbreak.  It's got a nifty fuzz guitar break and draws heavily a R&B/doo-wop influence that was filtered down to the Topeka natives by the British Invasion.

The 45 is sought after by garage collectors, but not to the extent psych collectors hunt the band's obscure 1970 Roulette full length.  The LP will bring in excess of $500 if you can find a copy.  There's a bootleg out there, though, if it's something you got to have.

No More

Count Basie & His Orchestra Green Onions B/W Hang On Sloopy Brunswick 1967

Count Basie & His Orchestra Green Onions B/W Hang On Sloopy Brunswick 1967 CAT# 55352

Couldn't resist this one, latter era Basie doing some soul sides.  Not really familiar with this era of Basie.  He had several successful phases when Jazz was a dominant musical form.  In the 70's near the end of his career he cut some enjoyable albums for Pablo that are loose, but still very much Jazz.

This is very cool, though.  Jazz Soul with Basie throwing in big band elements.  The horns scream and there's a nifty beatnik bass line on "Green Onions".  "Hang On Sloopy," is another uptempo side with some jazz flute thrown in there to give it a 60's jazz sound.  It's all funky without being funk, soulful without crossing over.

Hang On Sloopy