Sunday Shoppin'

So I wound up going to the Earl yesterday afternoon for a record show, and I wound up walking away with a pretty impressive haul. I went in with low expectations; I really just wanted to flip through some crates while I killed a few beers on a Sunday afternoon, but I found tons of stuff that I wanted, and a few things I absolutely needed. Here is what I ended up buying:


The Beat
Self-titled

This is a power-pop masterpiece, for sure, and the record I was happiest about coming away with. Most of the songs on this record (as well as a few songs from the Nerves era) are still the centerpiece of Paul Collins' brilliant live show. "Rock N Roll Girl", "I Don't Fit In" and "Don't Wait up for Me" are way better than anything the Knack ever even thought about writing, so I consider it a crime that this band toiled away in obscurity the way they did.






Tom Waits
Rain Dogs

Didn't have it. Needed to have it. Bought it. And it was only 4 bucks and doesn't skip.









Jeff Beck
Truth

I've acquired pretty much every song on this album through various mp3 downloads over the years, but I've never listened to it in its entirety, in order until now. It's too bad that when the American male starts discovering all the early hard rock/heavy metal that this one doesn't seem to be one of those records included in the mix. It's usually the first four Zeppelin albums, Black Sabbath Paranoid, and some combination of Cream and Hendrix. Truth really belongs in that group. Rod Stewart creates the template for the hard rock singer on this record and Beck's work is otherworldly. Just hearing what Jeff does with a wah pedal on Willie Dixon's "Ain't Superstitious" makes it worth owning. In the grand scheme of things, it's not as important as Cream, but it's not all that far behind. And to me it sounds a lot more like what the MC5 was trying to sound like than anything else I've heard.


Husker Du
Zen Arcade

This one was another no brainer. I've had it on CD and MP3 for quite some time, but I never really was on the hunt for it on LP. I found a copy of it in good shape for a decent price and I decided that it makes little sense to own Double Nickels on the Dime on vinyl and not own Zen Arcade, so I pulled the trigger on it. I'm not going to regret this one.








Pete Townshend
Empty Glass

This a very solid record, and it's certainly the best thing any member of The Who did as a solo project. There's some not-so-stellar filler material on here, but it includes "Rough Boys", "Let My Love Open the Door" and "Jools and Jim", so it's definitey worth owning.







Sly and the Family Stone
Stand!

This was another no-brainer. I couldn't think of one good reason not to pick this one up. This is one of the best funk records ever, and even though I already own it on CD and probably have the cassette somewhere, this one needs to be in my vinyl collection. And now it is.









Prince
Self-titled

This one isn't necessarily a must-own, but there are a few really good tracks on it, and it was only four bucks. I would probably pay four dollars the 7" of "I Wanna Be Your Lover" alone, so why not just buy the LP? Plus it comes with the blurry, homoerotic back cover art of a probably nude Prince riding a winged horse at no extra charge!







Charlie Rich
Behind Closed Doors

I'm really only familiar with the titular track on this one, but I really love that song, so this also needs to be in my collection. I'm looking forward to listening to this from start to finish, but I don't have Hank-like expectations for it. I'm sure it will turn out to be worth at least the two dollars I shelled out for it.










G.G. Allin and the Southern Baptists
Look into my Eyes and Hate Me b/w
Hotel Clermont (7")

I bought this one for the cover art alone. The back cover features a great picture of the signage for the infamous Clermont Hotel, where Mr. Allin was hanging his presumably smelly hat while this was being recorded. I actually expect this is going to sound like shit, as only the very early recordings of his even closely resemble music and this was near the end of the line for ol' G.G. This is just another one of those things I couldn't pass up.






All in all, it was a pretty good haul for a Sunday afternoon. And if I had wound up going to the quarterly Atlanta Record Show, which was also going on yesterday, I'm sure I would have spent at least three times as much money. That was the rationale that I used for getting piss drunk at the bar after I finished my record purchases. This morning was a little rough.

See ya.