Monday, March 23, 2009

The Boulders Series: Vol. 1-7 (Rest Of The Volumes Coming Soon)




Another bit of a history lesson, kids.

This is the legendary series of DIY discs put out by one David Gibson, originally of Los Angeles, then Springfield, Oregon. In early 1977, a friend gave him an old record-cutting lathe. Wanting to play around with it, Dave decided to start a label. Thus was conceived,
Moxie Records. The first releases were old '60s favourites, such as The Chocolate Watchband, The Tongues of Truth, The Sons of Adam, and The Rogues. Each came with a cheaply-printed picture sleeve. As Dave dug deeper and deeper into '60s Garage Punk records at swap meets and collectors' shows, he subsequently released various EP's on Moxie: a Surf EP, a Folk Rock EP, rare early Frank Zappa productions, etc. But of course, the reason we're here is for the collection mentioned in the header. The chronology, is pretty simple: in 1973, Jac Holzman and Lenny Kaye release Nuggets. In 1979, Greg Shaw put out Pebbles. A year later, came Dave Gibson's Boulders. They were raw; they were crude. Instead of remastering the cuts in a studio, Dave used the cheapest vinyl he could find. The sound quality was atrocious, and the cover art was nothing but photocopies of Polaroids and photocopies. Many of the albums weren't even sequenced. Having said that, tough, Dave was the first to uncover a lot of extremely rare, one-off '60s punk rarities. Many of the gems found here were later reissued elsewhere.


Once again, I got lazy and decided to crib the following descriptions from another site (hey...at least I'm honest about lying).


BTW: I'll post Volumes 8-11 as soon as I get the chance.

Cheers.





(VA) Boulders - Vol. 1 (1980):
One of the earliest series, dating from '79-80 and issued by Cal collector Dave Gibson. Hasn't got the best reputation but this first volume is a classic with every track a winner. A reissue is or was available. Essential to any punk fan.

1The Jolly Green GiantsCaught You Red Handed2:11






2The Beatin' PathOriginal Nothing People2:03






3The ChyldsHay Girl2:25






4The HystericsWon't Get Far2:03






5The HystericsEverything's There2:13






6The AvengersBe A Caveman1:53






7The Fifth OrderGoin' Too Far2:41






8Smoke RingsLove's The Thing2:00






9The New WingI Need Love1:59






10Sur Royal Da Count & The ParliamentsScream Mother Scream2:49






11The CenturysHard Times2:26






12The ColonyAll I Want2:32






13The CaravellesLovin' Just My Style3:03






14The Chocolate MooseThe Chocolate Moose Theme2:20






15The ChaynsWhy Did You Hurt Me2:07






16The RumorsHold Me Now2:27






17The ShagStop & Listen2:31






1849th ParallelYou Do Things2:21













(VA) Boulders - Vol. 2 (1980):

Trackswise almost as good as vol 1 but with the worst sound quality you'll ever hear. Literally unlistenable. Most of the best cuts have been re-ished elsewhere but a few are only available on this. Too bad. It seems the reason some of the Boulders sound so bad is that Dave G insisted on manufacturing them with his own old equipment rather than at a professional plant.

1Teddy and His PatchesHaight-Ashbury2:39






2Something WildShe's Kinda Weird2:22






3The Gentle-MenCome On2:06






4The Other SideStreetcar2:23






5The PremiersGet On This Plane2:30






6RainESP1:41






7RainOutta My Life1:57






8The Early RationalsI Need You2:21






9The Old Exciting Scot Richard CaseGet The Picture2:13






10The BougalieuLet's Do Wrong2:25






11The ReboundsSteppin' Stone2:49






12The Country Classic EsquiresNashville Blues3:20






13The Chocolate MooseTake a Ride2:20






14The Canadian SquiresLeave Me Alone2:37






15The Odds and EndsCause You Don't Love Me2:25






16Samy PhillipWhen I Say I Love You I Mean It3:07






17The Magic MushroomsNever Let Go2:34











(VA) Boulders - Vol. 3 (1982):
Again an excellent selection and with decent sound quality. Well worth getting. A close inspection of the sleeve will also reveal Mr Gibson's true source of inspiration...

1Topsy TurbysHey Tiger2:31






2Good FeelinsShattered2:19






3SpatsShe Done Moved2:28






4Red DogsOpen Up2:03






5Sounds Like UsClock On The Wall2:55






6Sounds Like UsOutside Chance1:58






7CheckerladsBaby Send For Me2:10






8W.C. Fields Memorial Electric String BandHippy Elevator Operator3:05






9Beaux JensShe Was Mine3:09






10EvilWhatcha Gonna Do 'Bout It2:13






11MustangsThat's For Sure2:08






12EvilAlways Running Around1:48






13Dave Myers & The DisciplesCome On Love1:53






14WyldLost One2:18






15Mr. Lucky & The GamblersTake A Look At Me2:49






16Myddle ClassDon't Let Me Sleep Too Long3:28






17Gentlemen WildYou Gotta Leave2:45






18SheepThinkin' About It2:58










(VA) Boulders - Vol. 4 (1982):
...which could account for the bizarre scheme of alphabetical recycling that begins with this volume. In addition to the inevitable drop in quality there's fewer tracks here than before. Sound quality OK.


1The BrymersSacrifice2:16






2The CaretakersHidden Steps2:10






3The Beaten PathDoctor Stone2:10






4The Badd BoysNever Going Back to Georgia2:14






5The BanBye Bye2:48






6AmbertonesI Can Only Give You Everything2:57






7The BansheesThey Prefer Blondes2:24






8The Beaver PatrolESP2:38






9BeerSome Kinda Rich Girl2:28






10The Balloon FarmA Question of Temperature2:42






11The Big Town BoysAugust 32nd2:30






12Al's UntouchablesCome On Baby2:07






13Al's UntouchablesStick Around2:32








(VA) Boulders - Vol. 5 (1983):

Some good tracks and some fillers. Pretty good sound quality.


1Cast Of ThousandsGirl Do What You Gonna Do1:50






2The CaretakersEast Side Story2:03






3The CobrasIf I Can't Believe Her2:12






4The ClaytonsPuttin' Me On2:17






5Brand _X_She Lied2:28






6Cherry SlushI Cannot Stop You2:25






7The Cellar DwellersWorking Man1:35






8Chocolate Balloon CompanyGotta Get This1:55






9The BassmenThe Last Laugh2:10






10Danny Belline & The Rich KidsMoney Isn't Everything2:11






11The CollectorsMake It Easy2:32






12Dan CurryYou'd Better Change2:27






13ChildrenThis Sportin' Life2:44








(VA) Boulders - Vol. 6 (1983):
This one's pretty good. Several classic punkers and some spooky psych tracks. Could be worth it. OK sound.

1The Deepest BluePretty Little Thing2:38






2The David40 Miles1:55






3The Deepest BlueSomebody's Girl2:05






4Evergreen BluesThree's A Crowd2:59






5The Ethics(A Whole Lot Of) Confusion2:36






6Chapter VIFear3:08






7Cave DwellersMeditation3:53






8The Dearly BelovedFlight Thirteen1:43






9The DavidI'm Not Alone1:44






10Ebb TidesSeance1:58






11Ritchie DeanTime (Can't Heal This Pain Of Mine)1:58






12The DinksNina-Kocka-Nina1:51






13The Edge Of DarknessMean Town1:44








(VA) Boulders - Vol. 7 (1983):
Again a decent selection of punk/psych but with too many fillers. Sound quality below average.


1The MopsPlease Kill Me2:50






2JackassesSugaree2:39






3Country GentlemenSaturday Night1:51






4CindermenDon't Knock It2:10






5CleaseThe Weird One3:05






6Chosen FewAsian Chrome2:20






7ChequesTo Stone2:36






8Del VettsEverytime2:20






9Dewayne And The BeldettasHurtin1:47






10Don And The AgitatorsGoing Back Home2:33






11EscapadesMad Mad Mad2:05






12John English III Need You Near2:07






13Butch Engle And The StyxGoing Home2:00






Thursday, March 5, 2009

(VA) White Hot: An All Out Metal Assault

(Megaupload Link)

I remember buying this collection on cassette round about 1985 when it first came out, about a year after I first got into Hard Rock/Heavy Metal. Most of the songs and artists I had already been familiar with from the previous year, whether it's yer Kiss, your Rush, Scorpions, Lee Aaron or Slade (or even Krokus, whom I had only been familiar with by virtue of Hit Parader magazine and Midnite Maniac's brief appearance on Toronto radio station Q107's Top Ten At Ten in the Summer of 1984). But the others, were pleasant discoveries. And note the requisite inclusion of Canadian Content here: Rush, Lee Aaaron, Kick Axe, Fist.

All tracks on this collection are winners. And that's a rare thing to happen, even on Various Artist compilations.


(Rapidshare Link)

I recently got back into the whole HR/HM thing and thought I'd post this album. Leave it to K-Tel/PolyTel to come out with cheesy, yet delighful collections.

And to think they went out of business.

(VA) White Hot: An All Out Metal Assault (1985):

1ScorpionsRock You Like A Hurricane4:11






2RushDistant Early Warning4:58






3AutographTurn Up The Radio4:42






4KrokusMidnite Maniac4:01






5Y & TDon't Stop Runnin'4:21






6Bon JoviIn and Out Of Love4:23






7SladeRun Runaway3:46






8Kick AxeHeavy Metal Shuffle3:14






9Lee AaronMetal Queen5:00






10FastwaySay What You Will3:20






11FistThunder In Rock.MP31:41






12KissHeaven's On Fire3:17