Broadcast #03
Air Date: 01-16-07

Fanatics! Greetings from Toronto Canada. I got here yesterday from Tel Avis Israel. That was a long month out in the world but I had a great time and came back with some music from Israel that I have not had a chance to go through it all but I will and if it sounds interesting, I’ll bring it to the show. Please make note that this is the last of our pre-taped shows. I had another one done for next week, not knowing for sure when I was getting back to LA but seeing that I will be getting back there in time, we are going to scrub the pre-tape and go live. It’s much better live as you know. The other night in Tel Aviv, I was given two hours of air time on a local station and had a great time playing music. I think I might have been the Fanatic to be the first to put a track by The Evens on the air there. I also played Negative Trend, Soccer Team, Deerhoof, The Mark Of Cain and some others that I am forgetting at this moment. Since I have been out, I have been online when possible, looking for more interesting music for our show. I think I have found some good stuff and will explore it when I get a chance. I will be in DC for a couple of days later in the week which will give me a chance to catch up with Ian MacKaye, who is always listening to something interesting, hopefully I’ll pick up some good tips from him that I can drag onto the show. I think we will not have Engineer X for the last two Tuesdays of January as he is in a local madras seeking higher knowledge. We will have someone else to work the board though. I had an amazing time out here but am looking forward to getting back to the Indie 103 Rok Mosk and going live. It won’t be long. I hope you enjoyed tonight’s show and the shows Engineer X and I put together in the previous weeks. I have been working on some great broadcasts for this year so stay tuned because it’s going to be the show’s best year yet. I’ll be back with you live in a week so stay tuned and STAY FANATIC!!! --Henry

For you Europeans, Australians and New Zealand Fanatics, there is a re-broadcast time of Friday mornings, 0200 – 0400 hrs. West coast time so you all can check out the show and not have to set your alarms to too rude an hour.

Gunung Jati Ensemble Of Tegas - Gambang Kuta: From a CD of gamelan music from Bali that you are no doubt very familiar with called Gamelan Semarpegulingan II. I don’t know anything about this ensemble, at one point, I got very interested in gamelan music and checked out a lot of the CDs and still don’t know a lot about how it all works. For many years, I have wanted to go to Java and listen to some Javanese gamelan music being played live but have heard that it’s a more than a bit dangerous for travelers. I will have to re-check that and see if it’s not just some bs fear-filled information. In my experience, I have found that the gamelan players from Bali serve up a more percussive and noisy brand doesn’t always make for an enjoyable prolonged listening experience for me at least. I prefer the more spacey Javanese version but tonight I want you to stay awake for the entire show!

Laurie Anderson - Sharkey's Night: One of my more favorite Laurie songs from one of my more favorite Laurie albums: Mister Heartbreak. I think this was the one that came out after Big Science. I like that one as well. This track features the late William S Burroughs. He has such a great voice. The one time I saw him, he was on something and wasn’t all that together. I think that night, he and Jeffrey Lee Pierce were doing bad things. I gave JLP all my drink tickets that night and I remember sitting in the front row watching WSB shuffle paper a JLP tried to help him get things organized. Everyone in the place waited patiently and eventually he read some pieces but it wasn’t all as good as the hash he had ingested before the show but it was still pretty damn cool. I have tried but have been unable to finish a Burroughs book.

Dr. Alimantado - Mash It Up: A great track from the If Deejay Was Your Trade CD on Blood And Fire. We have listened to this track before. If this is your first time jumping in with us, we welcome you as a fellow Fanatic and I would be remiss if I did not take a moment to say something about the Blood And Fire label. Had it not been for my old friend Ian MacKaye, who played me tracks from this CD and told me about the label, we may not have had the good fortune of having the likes of the good Doctor on our show. I have picked up quite a few CDs from Blood And Fire and so far, they’re all great. It seems to be a Reggae and Dub label and they do it well. This CD is one of my favorites. Didn’t we finish last year’s final broadcast with a track from the Blood And Fire label? Let me see, yes we did, a King Tubby Track called Ethiopian Version. This is a very sturdy label and I always look forward to the next installment.

David Bowie - Look Back In Anger: From 1979’s Lodger album. I’m not going to say anything bad about David Bowie. I have almost all the albums and a lot of the bootlegs. I have seen the man play and it was a fantastic experience. That being said, to me, Bowie’s Lodger album is the 2nd to last really great album of his in this Fanatic’s opinion. The album that followed, Scary Monsters, is one of the best records I own. From the start to the aforementioned, all the albums are worth checking out. When one considers the Bowie catalog, it is a fairly flattening, awesome body of work. While post Scary albums have great songs, for me, none of them play great all the way through like the earlier stuff. Lodger was always an interesting album to me as the production seems to be a bit out of sync with the songs. I wish this album had the same production value as the one that came after it. There is a shine to the guitars on this album that always distract me. It’s that the songs and the playing are not great, it’s the degree of polish on some of the sounds that feels a bit too “normal” for Bowie’s work. Not to belabor the thing but sometimes it seems like this is the album he would have made after Scary Monsters. What is the most interesting things about this to me is that it’s Brian Eno producing. Perhaps they were wanting to make something more commercial than the previous two albums they had done together, Low and Heroes. Make no mistake, Lodger is a beautiful piece of work and the remastering of the Bowie catalog on Virgin is one of the best ever done. If you don’t have the new masterings of your favorite Bowie albums and are still checking out the Ryko versions, you should pick up the ones on Virgin.

Betty Davis - Don't Call Her No Tramp: The last time I played something from the They Say I'm Different album by Betty Davis, I had borrowed Engineer X’s copy. Finally I grew up and bought a copy of my own. What a wrecking ball this woman is. As you Fanatics know, she gets her last name from at one point, being married to another force of nature, Miles Davis. From one of the biogs I have read on Miles, she was the one who taught him how to dress so great in the 1970’s. I only have two of her albums, this one and another called Crashin’ From Passion that is not nearly as good as They Say. Many of you remember that at one point, we listened to one of her songs, He Was A Big Freak. They Say continues to be an import only item. It’s a shame it’s not released domestically.

Television – Venus: From the classic Marquee Moon album. As far as I’m concerned, MM should be heard by everyone who listens to this show. I have always been tempted to play the title track on our show but it’s a long one and I don’t want anyone to tune out so I have not . . . yet. The band’s most visible face, Tom Verlaine is one of the more talented guitar players out there I think and one of his newer albums, Songs And Other Things is great. We played a track from it last year. I should dig that one out again and get some more tracks from it on our show.

The Fall - Green Eyed Loco Man: This album was originally called Country On The Click and the original version of the album was partially scrapped and the band started again. After another round of recording, the band emerged from the studio with an album’s worth of material they released under the name The Real New Fall LP Formerly 'Country On The Click' in 2003 What is interesting is that floating around on the internet is the original version of this album. I managed to find some sound files that I somehow extracted from the Info Hwy. with my primitive computer abilities. The original is interesting but I don’t think it’s as good as the final version that was released. One of the tracks that was very interesting in its original form was Green Eyed Loco Man. We heard the regular release version tonight but at some point, I should bring in that alt. version and play it and let you Fanatics decide which one you like better. If you want more information on this band from Manchester UK, you might like to check this site out: http://www.visi.com/fall/

James Brown - There It Is (parts 1&2): I am writing these notes from Dubai and it’s been a few days since the Godfather Of Soul passed away. Everyone’s got to go I guess. It’s one hell of a passing though. The Godfather, the 28th President of the United States, Gerald Ford also passed away. Someone I overheard made the comment that one other big name was probably going to pass away as these things always come in three’s. I figured that maybe that would be Saddam Hussein. This track is taken from the There It Is album. I was lucky enough to see the man play and was able to meet him briefly many years ago and the memory is still with me now.

Buzzcocks - Harmony in My Head: This was the A-side of a single released 07-13-79 that had Something’s Gone Wrong Again as the b-side. This song is also the name of our show. It’s been a couple of decades since I first heard this song and it’s still working for me. This track is easily found on the Singles Going Steady CD. If you don’t have that one, you should take care of that problem ASAP.

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Red Right Hand: I think I read somewhere that this song is largely improvised lyrically. This song, as well as this album really struck me when I first heard it. It was an interesting move from the previous album Henry’s Dream, which was very loaded with instrumentation compared to the relatively stripped down album from Let Love In, from where we pulled tonight’s track. It’s a great song goes off really well in the live setting. I have seen the band play it several times live and it’s spectacular. Nick Cave never ceases to amaze me with songs like this. I have not yet heard a single note of his new thing, Grinder Man but there is limited edition single that was available on the Mute site that just ordered and we’ll see if it comes in. If it in fact shows up, I’ll bring it on the show and we can check it out.

Wire – I Am The Fly: This is from the band’s 2nd album Chairs Missing, perhaps my most played Wire album. I think we have been through this many times and you don’t need me to belabor the point but if you’re new to our show, we listen to Wire with fair frequency. The first three albums, Pink Flag, Chairs Missing and 154 are the ones I am most familiar with and those are some of the best listening I know of. I have been listening to these records for decades now and they still sound fresh and like no one else. Here’s the band’s site address. The 5CD box set is really cool and very limited, worth checking out. http://www.pinkflag.com/

PJ Harvey - Meet Ze Monsta: Yet again, we visit the To Bring You My Love album. How about this, the next time we listen to the remarkable Ms. Harvey, we’ll check out something from her latest album Uh Huh Her, sound good? I don’t have all her records but I have most of them and they’re all worth checking out. I have never seen her play live except on television and it was really great. Apparently she was outside one of our shows years ago and some of my bandmates were talking to her and they were going to bring me over so I could meet her and she bailed into a cab and took off. I have that effect on women.

Hanoi Rocks - Back To Mystery City: The great rock band from Finland. I first heard this album, All Those Wasted Years, I think in 1984. That was the summer I saw the band play in London at the Electric Circus. I still have not checked out that new Hanoi album, Another Hostile Takeover, the last one, Twelve Shots On The Rocks was really strong, I though. I had that one in the car for a couple of weeks.

Miles Davis - Directions II: Columbia has been treating us rather well over the last several years with their series of Miles Davis album session releases. I have been warned that soon, we will get the On The Corner sessions in a box set. I hope that one comes through. Tonight’s track comes from The Complete In A Silent Way Sessions box set. The album itself is one of the better things that will happen to your ears. The box set just gives you more of what you like. This line-up in Miles band for this recording is one of his most spectacular. Check it out:
Wayne Shorter – saxophone
Tony Williams – drums
Herbie Hancock – electric piano
Chick Corea – electric piano
Dave Holland – bass
Joe Zawinul – organ
John McLaughlin – guitar
That is like some kind of dream line-up. Miles always had a line-up that killed but this has to be one of his best. When you see what Miles and his bandmates were able to accomplish, it’s fairly staggering. Miles is one of the major musicians of all time. No one with any sense will dispute this. Those session box sets are pretty expensive but they’re all worth it. The Bitches Brew one is one of my favorites.

Newtown Neurotics – Hypocrite: From their Punk Singles Collection CD. We have played this song a couple of times before but I thought it was time to check it out again. It’s not like this is the only song they ever wrote but it is my favorite. I got to see them play once in 1984 in Leeds and they were great. I ran into one of the Neurotics in 2006 I believe it was, I guess it was Steve Drewett I spoke to. He remembered the show we did together, very cool. The Neurotics make very good, smart and angry music.

X - Blue Spark: From X’s 3rd album, Under The Big Black Sun. I wonder how the band felt when they came up with this song. What a riff. This song so perfectly displays what an amazing unit this band is. Separately, the members are all very talented but when they are together, it’s just incredible. I remember when I first heard this song and blown away I was. The hard and precise riff combined with the snare shots along with John’s verse vocals is just perfection to me. The whole album is great. Easily one of the best live bands of all time.

Cramps - I'm Cramped (original mix): From the Songs The Lord Taught Us album. I know, I play songs from this album too much. I will do it again, I can’t help it. I feel lucky to have seen The Cramps early on in small venues before they got big. I saw the big shows as well and they were great but in a club, The Cramps were the ultimate experience. While I am sure they have done many, I don’t recall if I have ever seen an interview with Lux or Ivy. They have always struck me as somewhat enigmatic, I don’t see pictures of them at award shows or trying to make any kind of scene. I think they are a scene unto themselves. I don’t have all their records. The ones that have me the most roped in are the first two singles, Songs, the follow-up Psychedelic Jungle.

Masanka Sankayi+Kasai All-stars - Wa Muluendu: I wish I could take credit for this find but I can’t. It was Engineer X who turned me onto Konono N1’s album Congotronics that inspired me to check out this compilation CD / DVD of more music from Congo called Congotronics 2. It’s all great stuff here. I was so excited when I bounded into the Indie Rok Mosk with this CD, hoping that there was a chance that I had something that X had not seen but it was not to be. I showed him the CD and asked him, “Have you seen this one?!” His face grew tired and he replied, “Yes.” The Mullah had spoken. Then he explained that he had the CD about nine years before it was made and it was then I realized I was never going to beat him to anything but the unemployment line.

The Clash – 1977: From the impossibly cool Super Black Market Clash CD. This might be my favorite single Clash release. I first heard this song when Ian played it. It’s from a single released in March 1977, White Riot on the A-side. What a song, what a band. As it’s noted on the Punk77 site, 1977 could have been the A-side, definitely. I have never played Cut The Crap, the album Joe Strummer did after he re-formed The Clash. I don’t think I’ve ever heard a song from it. I’ve never listened to one of the Damned’s MCA period albums either. I know, what a snob. I am in Amman Jordan at the moment in the coffee place in the lobby listening to 1977 in my ear plugs and it’s working for me big time.

Oil Tasters - That's When The Brick Goes Through The Window: How can you lose with a title like that? Great trio from Milwaukee WI. Their music back in print on a self-titled CD released on the Lexicon Devil label. I saw the band play in 1982 I think and see a member or two now and then in Milwaukee.

The Blood Brothers - Rat Rider: From the Young Machetes album. We’ve played them before and we will play them again. Wait until you see them play on my show later this year. They tore it up. I don’t have many of their records so I have to do some backwards recon on these guys. Looking forward to that.

Arak Music - Ni Maan: A great release from Celestial Harmonies, The Music Of Cambodia box set. I don’t know anything about music from Cambodia but I like this box set. I have a few different releases on this label and they’re all great. The big one, the Music Of Islam box set is my favorite so far.

Can - Tango Whiskyman: From the Soundtracks album. I have been slowly picking up Can albums in an effort to get more acquainted with the band. I heard their music a long time ago and I didn’t get it the first time around but am liking it more now. I am sometimes slow on the uptake. I am still absorbing the three CDs I have so far but I’m liking them a lot.