Bob Brookmeyer And Friends Columbia 1965

Bob Brookmeyer And Friends Columbia 1965 CAT #CL 2237

Pretty outstanding list of players for KC trombonist, Bob Brookmeyer. This album was a reunion for Stan Getz and Bob Brookmeyer who had worked together at length for years prior to 1965. It features standards and some Brookmeyer originals.

In 1965, Getz and Brookmeyer were aging and through being cool. What saves the album from standard, boring, white-guy jazz is the young players they brought aboard to fill out the sessions. Namely, a young Herbie Hancock filling out the tunes with some interesting keyboard runs. It also, as the cover indicates, includes Gary Burton, who had done plenty up to this point, but was still young at the time of this release. Hancock and Burton's imagination was allowed to carry the album. Without them, the album would still be top notch, just not as memorable.

Brookmeyer's Jive Hoot

Get Smart! Swimming With Sharks Restless/Fever Records 1986

Get Smart! Swimming With Sharks Restless/Fever Records 1986 CAT# 72111-1

Great band that came out of the Lawrence, KS scene of the 1980's. This album represents their second full length on the Fever Records imprint of independent label, Restless Records. It's also representative of the band after their relocation to Chicago, IL. Still, listening to it, it's straight Lawrence 80's scene.

Get Smart! pal'd around with the likes of the Embarrassment, the Micronotz, and other like college bands in Lawrence. Clever, choppy, dance-rock, not too far off from what groups like Pylon were doing in another college scene in Georgia and like Pylon, Get Smart! featured female vocals as well.

This album is basically stripped down new-wave. No synth, more guitar, but dance-able. It's punk at it's heart, but Get Smart! is a bit past the hardcore kids that were rolling through towns in the 80s. They served the college scene well.

Gold to Rust

Kansas City Jazz Spectrum Kaycee Jazz 1978

Kansas City Jazz Spectrum Kaycee Jazz 1978 CAT #KC-7801

The players here kind of flooded the scene with a number of Kansas City Jazz releases. The big draw featured here is Pat Metheny's brother, Mike Metheny on flugelhorn. Other than that, it's just another from a batch of LPs that are scattered throughout KC featuring these artists.

Overall, this isn't as cheesy or soaked in lounge as it looks. The players attempt to recreate a KC Jazz scene that had died decades prior and was only a matter of pride and history by 1978. The first track is "Perdido" which was made famous by Duke Ellington, but the Kansas City Jazz Spectrum is doing it as a nod to Charlie Parker. The track does showcase each player as competent and isn't drenched in late 70's lounge sound, it could be mistaken for period by a casual listener.

The remainder of the LP features a more covers, some of which are restaurant friendly, others are a bit cooler such as "Stella By Starlight" which was a popular track performed by Miles Davis. There are originals, a vocal track written and performed by Carol Cox Comer which is clever. Mike Ning (who I believe was a transplant to KC) attempts a bit of Cool Jazz on "Grable's Able (Milt Abel)". And the saxophonist, Bill Perkins, contributed a tune called "Lost Moments," which attempts to get almost Kenton-like in sophistication, but mind you, can't reach that level.

Other points are awarded to the cover collage, which does seem a bit hokey, but has great references to KC. And the label name, Kaycee Jazz, is kind of fun.

Smoke Risin' J. Bridge Records 1976

Smoke Risin' J. Bridge Records 1976 CAT# 7544

This will likely be my top find of the year as I've been searching for this at a reasonable price for the past two years. Finding it for $1 at a Goodwill in Olathe, KS, that's perfect for my budget. I was searching through a pretty solid collection of beat up soul albums at the Goodwill flipping past some Earth, Wind & Fire I didn't need, some O'Jays had it been in better condition I wouldn't have minded owning, and some Donald Byrd LPs I did need despite a few scuffs. Then, this shows up, still in shrink and looking super-clean. There was a lady looking at the opposite side of the record bin and she looked up at me when I said out loud, "Oh man, I can't believe this is here!" I then had to explain myself somewhat embarrassed the rarity behind the record and that I've been trying to track this down for a couple years now. She didn't care much. She had a few Disney LPs and a Carperntars album in her stack, so naturally I said, "There's some really great Earth, Wind & Fire LPs in here if you need some."

This album is a throwback and when you put up to all things 1976, it's not surprising that the group didn't bust out of Kansas City. The LP is very rooted in the popular 60's and early 70's sound of Motown. It four male vocalists surrounded by lush strings, brass, and some modestly funky guitar, bass and drums. The primary songwriter was Elmer Overton (he also produced the record along with Les Mathews) and it's pretty clear Overton was heavily influenced by the likes of the Impressions and the Temptations. It's not disco enough for 1976 dance floors and wasn't funky enough to catch on to the live scenes.

However, despite the album being a few years too late, it sounds fucking great now. Overton's tunes recall the greatest bits of the Motown catalog and some of these tracks could burn down a Northern Soul dance floor and probably have. That kind of sentimental, uptempo, dance number that the likes of Stevie Wonder and Smokey Robinson perfected for Motown, Overton gets close. Even the over-the-top, drenched in string ballads work for this guy, mostly because of the falsetto and the rest of the vocals in Smoke have the talent to carry it out and make it interesting.

Also, the amount of energy that went into this release is impressive. There's a complete string, horn and reed section along with your standard band backing. So 4 male vocalists and an impressive 16 member studio cast. Not to mention, a full production team. This was put out on J. Bridge Records, which only put out one other release, a single from the same band. So it's a basically a private press and the money that was put into this release is probably what killed any chance of the label continuing. But man, what a way to go out...dare I say in a blaze (get it, Smoke?).

I'm So Glad You Came Along

Dactyls S/T 7" Blanket Records 2008

Dactyls S/T 7" Blanket Records 2008 NO CAT#

Dig this 7", a lot. The Dactyls are/were a Lawrence band formed in 2001. They sound like mid-90's North Carolina. Just crunchy, guitar driven indie rock, recorded as best they could, probably in a basement. At the time of the release of this 7", the band was still pretty active doing shows in Lawrence and KC. Even did a tour releasing a split 7" for the road. However, I don't think they're around anymore.

The 7" is a pretty homespun package. But, the sleeve is hand numbered indicating the band only pressed 300 copies. The sleeve has screen pressed artwork and the vinyl is quality, don't know the gram weight on a 7", but if it was a 12", it'd be 180 gram vinyl. Also cool, the band provided a CDR of the tunes to you know, listen to in your car or on a CD Walkmen.

The tunes are great. Again, very much a product of the North Carolina in the 90's. But, that's a scene that should still exist. Apparently, Dan Benson formerly of Vitreous Humor once sat behind the drums for these guys, which, yeah, considering what Vitreous Humor sounded like, he fits in perfectly. However, he's not featured on this release.

Bandcamp Page, new stuff up until 2012, except the album was recorded in 2010

The Uncouth! KC United B/W Gudbuy T' Jane Too Much Rock 2015

The Uncouth! KC United B/W Gudbuy T' Jane Too Much Rock 2015 CAT# TMR-SS-04

I was stalking the Too Much Rock for a considerable amount of time trying to get more info on the next release, because it's one thing I actually like. Totally punk rock, dude just makes records for a band to do whatever with. After a while, I gave up, thinking the idea of basically giving away 7"s isn't a sound business plan and Too Much Rock had gave up after 3 releases.

I stole this pic from the band's Facebook page...jerkmove.
An updated review to follow once I have the release.

But, just when I go to sleep on it, Sid Sowder woke me up to advise about release #4. The featured band is the Uncouth! who've been playing their working class Oi! around town for the last few years. They look pretty mean; like soccer hooligans. They play pretty mean, too. The band's own cut is titled "KC United," which you know, is another unity song, this one calling for KC's punks and skins (the working class skins and not the neo-Nazi variety). The flip side is a cover of "Gudbuy T'Jane" by Slade. It's not as pretty as Slade, though. However, listening to it knocks out a front teeth and they kept the hooks, y'know, cause punks like chanting a chorus.

I've been listening to the tracks and it's good, but I haven't got my hands on the vinyl. It's street date is set for May 15th and a release party will be held at Mills Records. 500 are pressed and ready, 100 will be random colors, the other 400 standard black.

                                                                         ***UPDATED***

Got my own copy of this from Too Much Rock and glad to have it. Much better fidelity than the internet stream I was enjoying last week. It appears most of the colored variants are being sold at Teenage Heart Distro, but again, release party as far as I know is set for May 15th, 2015 at Mills Records.

I'm really digging the cover of Slade's "Gudbye T'Jane," the "KC United" track is fine (a little obvious, again, every punk scene needs a Unity song), but I love that this band has the chops to do some guitar solos, yet manage to keep things punk rock. You can tell by the photo, these aren't kids kicking around in boots, these guys won't get carded for the cigarettes they're smoking.

The Uncouth! on Facebook

The Get Up Kids Woodson B/W Second Place Doghouse 1997

The Get Up Kids Woodson B/W Second Place Doghouse CAT #DOG-045

The fans now refer to this early release as 'All Stars' or the 'Woodson EP', however I believe it's just a self-titled 7". The artwork appears on a CD EP that also featured two extra tracks that are found on the 'Love Teller' 7".

On CD is the way the tunes first came to me. I had the early 7", but was in my senior year of high school when this was released. This was a big deal, the band's first release for a record label that wasn't their own. Friends of the band had been waiting forever for the real-deal. I remember the day it came out, I was working at Schnucks on Murlen in Olathe, Kansas, as an after school job. My friend Donald busted into the backroom with it screaming at me, "It's here! I got your copy!"

As soon as we could, Donald and I ran out to a car to put it in the CD player. It was so fucking great... There wasn't any pre-conceived notions of what emo should sound like, what the Get Up Kids were or should be, there was no expectations other than we wanted to hear what our friends had done.

It didn't disappoint. And I still won't take my blinders off for it. It's still fucking great. I could listen to it everyday for the rest of my life. It's that good.

Second Place