Amazon Delivers! Or at least,
Amazon Delivers! Or at least, it did today. Albeit not all of the things I’d ordered (they’re still waiting on the 2 Material CDs, which they’ve been trying to get hold of for 2 months now, but they were good enough to send me everything else on the order).
Got to listen, at last, to Greatest Hits by Marvin Pontiac. Allegedly. Or, to quote Amazon:
You might not remember these Greatest Hits by the so-called Legendary Marvin Pontiac. That’s because Pontiac is the alter ego of alternative movie star and Lounge Lizards saxophonist John Lurie. We’re told that Pontiac was an itinerant bluesman who spent his last years in the Esmereld, a State Mental Institution, and ended up being hit by a bus in 1977. However, his backing musicians are clearly planted in today’s New York and include Marc Ribot, John Medeski, members of Sex Mob and Lurie’s own Lizards. These concise cuts don’t even attempt to evoke the sound of the 1950s, 1960s or 1970s: Luriac also blows contaminated mouth-harp, chops funky wah-wah guitar or noodles on cheap keyboards, rarely picking up the alto when he’s got sitar or banjo to hand. He also concentrates on a new vocal expression, oozing like a deep-sleaze Frank Zappa on the opening “I’m a Doggy”, his lyrics invariably profound via the route of absurd triviality. He’s the urbane brother of Wild Man Fischer, his key phrases always snagged by an infectiously childlike backing chorus.
It is absolutely wonderful - best thing I’ve heard from John Lurie since the Lounge Lizards first album (and, in many ways, better). Awesome. Gotta go listen to I’m a Doggy again…
(”I’ve got a bone for you… I’ve got a bone for you… I’ve got a little bone for you… ’cause I’m a doggy, and I make it, almost all the time. Y’know I stink when I’m wet…” fucking awesome slower-than-slow-blues-crumble inverted harmonica ambulance sounds)
…Right, I’m back now. Second out of the box was Archive Cardiacs (hmm… one of those many Amazon pages with the wrong picture on them) by The Cardiacs - I’ve had this on tape for many years, but so SOOOoooo happy to hear it again. Too much hassle getting MP3s offa tapes, so I bought the CD. I love it. Amazing to think that Tim Smith was only about 16 when he wrote some of this zappa-esque stuff like Piffol 3 Times. Hmm… must go and listen to Piffol 4 Times again…
…back again. OK, the other thing in the box was The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding. Hmmm. Well, Mark wanted me to read more stuff on branding. Think I’ll leave that one a bit (besides, I’m already reading The Internet Weather, which I have to review for Brand Republic).