Classical Music of Iran

Classical Music of Iran, Volume One
Compiled by Ella Zonis
Folkways Records FW 8831
Made in New York, 1966

This gorgeous Folkways Records album dedicated to the classical music of Iran has been sitting on a shelf next to my record player for over a month now, waiting for the right time to post on these pages. The time is now. It's been more than a year since I last found an album by Folkways at a thrift store. It's regrettably not the most likely place to find records from that label, because the price (at 99 cents) is right. I have now 40 of the 2,168 records released through them. Folkways is my favorite label, and the shelf of my record collection dedicated to it has a most prominent place. All their records come with an informative booklet, consisting of recording data, background information, and photos. This record with music from Iran was in excellent shape but did not come with its booklet. Fortunately the Smithsonian Institute, which acquired Folkways in 1986, after founder Moses Asch's death, posted most of the booklets free for download on their site. So I know now that the dastgah at the beginning of side B was sung by Miss Khatereh Parvaneh of Shour, and that the lyrics of the song are verses from the Masnavi: "Famous mystic poetry written in the thirteenth century by Jala al-Din Rumi, the founder of the Mevlevi order of Dervishes (the 'whirling' Dervishes)". And it's this song I picked to turn into an mp3 and share with you below, all ten minutes of it.

The Big Reggae Haul

The haul

My wife had a huge surprise for me when she came home from work on Friday. She had a stack of 41 records with her. She found them at the Goodwill in Punta Gorda, Florida. The records were mostly reggae records, there were a few soca and calypso records, some disco records completed the haul. I was so excited seeing the records that upon my wife's announcement that there were a lot more we got into our car and drove back north to Punta Gorda. I ammassed another thirty records to complete the haul, and still left behind enough crumbs for someone else to get excited too. I picked out two records from the haul to share here. The one with my favorite sleeve, and the one with favorite (so far) song. First the sleeve: It's not specific to the maxi single inside but it's rather a label advertisement. The label is simply called Joe Gibbs, after its producer. The record inside is a tune written by Joe Gibbs (Gibson) together with Alton Ellis called Girl I've Gatta Date. It is performed by Dennis Brown. The backside, as is the case with most of the maxi singles from the haul, is an instrumental version by Joe Gibbs with his band The Professionals. I almost like the instrumental version better but share the vocal one here because it's has a bit more variation. 

Joe Gibbs 45rpm Disco Single
Dennis Brown – Girl I've Gatta Date
Joe Gibbs Music Inc. 1978, Made in Jamaica

My favorite song so far (I've not nearly played all 71 records) is Woman Come by the singer Marguerita from an LP called More Intensified! Original Ska 1963-67. It is a remarkable track in more than one way. First of all there aren't that many recordings of a female singer in the mid sixties ska era in Jamaica. But what's really history is that Marguerita was later (in 1965) murdered by her long time boyfriend, the famous trombone player of the Skatalites, Don Drummond. They are heard together on this recording. Marguerita is Anita 'Marguerita' Mahfood, an exotic rhumba dancer and singer.

More Intensified! Original Ska 1963-67, Vol. 2

various artists, Mango Records, MLSP 9597
Island Records, made in New York, 1980

Un Amor Canta al Amor

Patricia Gonzalez – Un Amor Canta al Amor
Remo Records, LPR 1561, New York
Printed in Guayaquil, Ecuador

My collection of Latin American records is growing steadily largely due to my frequent trips to Miami. The predominant language is Spanish there and in the thrift stores nearly half of the records come from one Latin American country or another. It's a bit messy, browsing through the shelves in thrift stores in Miami (that of course are the lowest ones in the entertainment section of the store). The condition of the records is mostly poor, often the wrong disc is inside a jacket, if there's a jacket at all. Sometimes you'll find the back half of the jacket in a different location than the front half, and the vinyl in yet a third location. It is hardly a deterrent for me. I may assume that those records in good shape represent less popular ones, and I assume too that I often like less popular records better than popular ones. And that introduces me to this gem I found last week in a Goodwill on Tamiami Trail on my way out of town. The gem is an LP by the Ecuadorian singer Patricia Gonzalez titled Un Amor Canta al Amor. The singer is pretty obscure, there's not much presence on line, and as far as I can tell, there's no other record by her. But it's one of the best. And if you decide to visit Miami and try to snatch the next gem from under my nose...do me favor and also visit the WDNA 88.9 FM radio station. The gallery of which houses a bunch of musician's paintings. Many of them modeled after images on sleeves of Latin records that I picked up on previous visits to that wonderful city.

The Pentangle (Almost)

The Pentangle – The Pentangle
Reprise Records, RS 6315
Warner Brothers, New York, NY, 1968

Alright, it's been two months (almost), I kinda quit (almost), but after I bought this Pentangle record last week for only 50¢—green tags were half off—I just had to share it, it was too good (almost) to keep it to myself.  Now, I had never heard of the band Pentangle, but their two guitar players, Bert Jansch and John Renbourne, had been with me for as long as I was serious about my music I listened to. I was 16 and learning to play the guitar, and there was this John Renbourne tune I considered the apex of guitar playing. For years I'd study the piece, and I (almost) managed to conquer it. So the Pentangle are the who's who of British folk music (almost). For those of you who follow me here, or those who know me, know that I, when it comes to vocals, prefer a female voice over a male one. And I love Jaqui McShee, the singer of the Pentangle, she's like Sandy Denny (almost), but my pick to share with you today is the only instrumental piece on the album. It's not even the most virtuoso guitar playing (almost) that made me pick it, it's something I can't explain, there's just something magical about it. The track is simply called Bells, a title that rings magical—remember that great tune by the Dominoes, that one in which the lead singer burst into tears, or that fantastic free jazz gem by Albert Ayler—in Bells, the Pentangle hit that same kind of magic (almost).  For those of you who follow this blog too: you must know that my scanner bed only goes to nine inches, cutting off three from a 12"er. With the Pentangle record here this fact resulted in cutting off the P, leaving the word "entangle" behind. If one uninformed listener were to guess about the title of this record, or name of the band, he or she could well opt for the name, or title, Entangle. (That's how utterly sophisticated the rhythms and melodies of Bells unfold.) See for yourself. 

Italian 45s

Anna Identici – Era bello il mio ragazzo/
E quando saro' ricca
Ariston, AR.0537, Made in Italy, 1972

I have quite a large 45 collection but I don't buy many in thrift stores any more. Reason for this is that you hardly ever find them with their original jackets—most don't have one at all, which leaves the vinyl unprotected and all scratched up. It seems that a lot of 45s available in the US came out of jukeboxes and have therefore been played too often and are separated from their cover. When I do browse through the supply (not every thrift store carries 45s anymore). Hardly ever do I find one that is both interesting and in good enough shape. And when I do buy one it is almost always European. Apparently there's more of a 45-with-jacket culture in Europe, and almost all 45s in my collection stem from the time I was still living in Europe. But just yesterday I ended a long period of not expanding my 45 collection with the purchase of three Italian singles, the first ones of 2013. My favorite of the three is the one pictured above by Anna Identici. Both sides are really nice, they're happy and sweet, side A being the happier, while side B is the sweeter. I don't speak Italian, so my happy/sweet judgement may well be far of the mark, especially considering the bloody design of the jacket and the last word sung on side B which is "finita". And it is side B that I chose to share, the sweetest of two, it's called E Quando Saro' Ricca.

Odetta Sings Odetta

Odetta Sings...
Produced by John Boylan
Polydor 24-4048

Made in New York, 1970

The folk singer Odetta Gordon (1930-2008), known as simply Odetta, released a score of records between 1954 and 2001. Not that would like to collect all these but if I see one at a thrift store I'll pick it up for sure. I have about ten of them. My favorite is The Essential Odetta on Vanguard records released in 1973 as a package of earlier live albums. A few months ago I posted a song from her 1960 record Christmas Spirituals and today I'll do one from Odetta Sings, a 1970 record that I picked up at the Goodwill around the corner the other day. Neither of these records are "essential" but still a good listen. Odetta Sings is apparently her attempt to cross over into the mainstream as it is loaded with covers of popular songs of the time. It is also her only record on the mainstream Polydor label (most of her best work is on Vanguard) and contains renditions of Rolling Stones, Randy Newman, and Elton John songs among others. Half the record was recorded with session musicians in Los Angeles (Carole King is one of these), and the other half at the famous Muscle Shoal Studios in Alabama. The best songs on the record are the only ones that aren't covers but were written by Ms. Gordon herself: Hit or Miss and Movin' it on. You can listen to Hit or Miss below. The song was recorded at the Muscle Shoal Studios.

Conjunto

"Conjunto Obaoso" de Onelio Scull –
Santeria-Cubana: Toques y Cantos Sanretos Lucumi
Santero LP-135, Made in Mexico

Don't Judge a Record by its Cover was the title of a piece I wrote on a Hungarian record back in December. That adaption of the adage was in the spirit of its meaning then, but that the adage also has to be taken quite literally is a well known fact among collectors of thrift store records. Even the girl behind the cash register will sometimes tell you to check the record. I always check the record. But if I like the cover I'll buy the record regardless. A nice cover is worth the 50 cents or dollar, and sometimes, if there's not even a record in it, they even might give it to you for free. I did check it too, when I came across this Santeria Cubana record in the Goodwill on Palm Beach Boulevard right near our house. And I knew, before I even checked, that the content wasn't going to match the cover, it was simply too heavy for that. I knew I was going to get two for the price of one. You can't be too picky when collecting from thrift stores. Not only do you have to accept that sometimes the record inside doesn't match the picture on the outside, you also have to take the scratches for granted. The content of this Santeria Cubana record had everything wrong with it but yet I was excited to buy it. The cover is beautiful and while I regret not having the record that's supposed to be in there (a record that promises this spiritual Caribbean religious practice that combines Voodoo with Catholicism,  and all the drumming and chanting that comes with it), I still was excited to hear what was inside. It appeared to me that it would be in the spirit of the cover. The first record inside is called Santos Cantados con Nieves Quintero y Su Conjunto (Canta Luz Celeni Tirado) Y Coro on a label called L.P. Antillano (LP 25) from which I selected a track from side B Misterios Espriritistas. The second record is a rosario (a rosary prayer, I assume) that lasts more than 30 minutes. I copied the first 5 minutes of the Rosario en Honor a San Martin de Porres to share. Neither record has any information concerning place and time of recording on it. That said it didn't take too much effort to find Nieves Quintero on line. He's apparently a legend of Puerto Rican cuarto music. The rosary in honor of San Martin de Porres record yielded less information. The saint, of course, is well written about, but the recording remains a mystery. There's no name attached to the recitation, and Leonor (the record label) is not found anywhere on line. There is no additional information whatsoever printed on that label.