Sing-A-Long

None of my friends had ever heard of her.

I'd be willing to bet that's still the case even today. For the most part.

It wasn't until a trip to New Zealand that I found another fan.

Judith's cousin. He was eight. He knew the lyrics well enough to sing them.

Apparently her success has never made it stateside.

I doubt it ever will at this point.

Everyone loses.

Except for me. And maybe Nick. I forced the album on anyone who would listen.

He was the only one.

Sophie Ellis-Bextor - Read My Lips. eBay. Used.

Will Regret

This was one of the first pieces of hardcore vinyl I owned. It might have been the very first.

Like all of my vinyl, it was eventually sold.

Every item found a better home. The fact that I wouldn't have to move it again was a bonus.

This particular record was difficult to unload.

The band had become a joke. It was embarrassing to own the record. Nobody wanted to buy it.

Things change.

While a good bit of the material after this release is questionable, I am willing to fully back these four tracks.

I am also willing to take the abuse that comes with such a proclamation.

Orange 9mm. Amazon.com. Used.

Consider This a Request

When traveling, I like to pick up local music.

During my trip to New Zealand I picked up a few music magazines. One pointed me in the direction of Minuit.

I had never heard of them before. I have never heard of them since.

But I really like these four songs.

Four songs. All I know. All I may ever know.

Minuit - Luck. Echo. New.

Art Rock for Art Art

Paul McCartney's involvement was not a selling point.

It gave me pause before I went through with the purchase.

Up until that point I had been pretty cool towards his post-Beatles output. Including Wings.

However, my Super Furry Animal habit overruled any trepidation.

McCartney should explore more collaborations in this vein. Maybe he has.

Liverpool Sound Collage. Amazon.com. New.

There Are Manics

After the pop success of the "Loco Motion," my love affair with Kylie entered a long hiatus.

Even when I wasn't listening, I knew her career never stopped.

I decided it was time to see what I had been missing.

I connected with an Australian online about purchasing a used copy of Impossible Princess.

It was one of many international purchases I made during the nineties. Online. Non-eBay. A lot of trust went into these transactions. They almost always involved hidden cash.

The disc arrived without any problems. As an added bonus he threw in a mixtape of full of Kylie hits, starting with the "Loco Motion."

Both items in the package were a nice way to end the hiatus.

Kylie Minogue - Impossible Princess. Online. Used.

Not Robin

Jenny started making fun of me as soon as I mentioned my new found love of Robbie Williams.

"Robbie Williams? From Take That?"

The very same.

Her and Judith had a good laugh about it. But I was a believer. I would make them into believers as well.

I was determined.

Judith eventually came around. Jenny, I'm not so sure. She was stuck on the Take That connection. I understood her bias. She was living in England during their heyday.

The saccharine greatness of Back for Good should never be a sticking point.

Robbie Williams - I've Been Expecting You. Princeton Record Exchange. New.

Go Buy It

Mouthpiece - Can't Kill What's Inside: The Complete Discography. RevHQ. New.

Go Buy It

The Cure - The Only One. Best Buy. New.

Bonus

M.I.A. and Diplo - Piracy Funds Terrorism Volume 1.

Go Buy It

M.I.A. - Kala. Best Buy. New.

You Know It, You Love It

Your mom probably does.

And your friends who know nothing about British bands.

Maybe that girl from high school.

That group at the bar.

The corny DJ.

Hit compilations of the nineties.

Or maybe you don't like it at all.

Oasis - Wonderwall. eBay. Used.

Reposts

Dinosaur Jr. - Without A Sound.

Orchid - Dance Tonight! Revolution Tomorrow! / Chaos Is Me.

Please let me know if a link is down. Leave a comment in the post or email me at hedancesfornickels@gmail.com.

If you would like something removed, let me know. I will take it down.

Beggars Can't Be Choosers

Like an EP, the non-album single is a treat.

Sadly, both have become something of a rarity in the grand scheme of releases.

Which goes double for American artists.

Both formats are underutilized, cheating the listening public out of an in-between-album surprise.

A teaser of what's to come.

Oasis - Whatever. eBay. Used.

A Collection Littered With Impulse Buys

There we were, on Twitter, discussing Compulsion.

I can't recall what triggered the discussion.

I had never heard of the band. Much less heard the band.

A Wikipedia search yielded no familiarity.

So I ordered it.

Compulsion - Comforter. Amazon.com. Used.

Hindsight

It is a good thing I never embarked on the dreadlocks adventure with Christian.

It had little to do with my good sense. It had everything to do with fear of my mother.

I was a balding gentleman early enough. I had already been dying my hair. There was no reason to make things worse.

Peter Tosh - Wanted Dread & Alive. eBay. Used.

Go Buy It

The Verve - Forth. Christmas. New.

Repost

The High Back Chairs - Curiosity and Relief.

Please let me know if a link is down. I will re-upload. Leave a comment in the post or email me at hedancesfornickels@gmail.com.

If you would like something removed for any reason, please email me at hedancesfornickels@gmail.com. I will take it down immediately.

He's Been Called the Ugliest Man in Rock and Roll

The compact disc box set is perfect for an individual who is more than a casual fan, but not a super fan.

Too often the box set is viewed as an item for only those truly dedicated fans.

In some cases, this is true.

Some box sets are made up almost exclusively of rarities. Songs that may not interest the casual listener.

Most box sets are actually four and five disc greatest hits packages.

Perfect for the listener who wants more than the ten song greatest hits release. Perfect for the listener who does not need to own every item in the discography.

The box set is somewhere in the middle, fulfilling the needs of any listener who has more than a passing interest in a band.

Motorhead - Stone Deaf Forever! (Disc 1) (Disc 2) (Disc 3) (Disc 4) (Disc 5). Christmas. New.

Go Buy It

Spiritualized - Songs In A & E. Christmas. New.

Just Say No

In an effort to dissuade me from ever using drugs, my parents looked to the Jump video for help.

I was seven or eight. And I loved Van Halen.

They didn't cite Van Halen an example of drug use.

They cited Van Halen as an example of clean living.

Those jumps of David Lee Roth? Impossible if he used drugs.

It was a lie. Confirmed by a David Lee Roth drug arrest years later.

Placebo - Meds. Christmas. New.

Go Buy It

No Age - Nouns. Christmas. New.

Cheat Lake

While everyone took part in beer pong I had an opportunity to DJ.

I was surprised by some of the artists on Michael's iPod. Liz Phair?

I settled on Peter Tosh.

Reggae seemed to be the safest option with the diverse tastes in the house.

That was the correct call.

Shortly thereafter the group readied for their trip to Morgantown. Destination: Excalibur.

Peter Tosh - Legalize It. eBay. Used.

Repost

Statue - Filter the Infection.

Please let me know if a link is down. I will reupload. Leave a comment in the post or email me at hedancesfornickels@gmail.com.

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Honesty

I don't want this to be the final studio album. Leaving things on a low note.

Yes, it's better than a lot of other albums. It's New Order.

When compared to the rest of the New Order catalog. It isn't so hot.

I've never learned to love it in its entirety. There are a few standout tracks.

Overall, it hasn't improved with age.

New Order - Waiting for the Sirens' Call. Amazon.co.uk. New.

Finale

Alex and I decided we were going to do Saint Patrick's Day right. None of these "weekend" celebrations a week or two in advance. We would only celebrate on the day of. The way it was meant to be. A day of shirking responsibilities.

For us that meant skipping classes.

I arrived at Alex's around 8:00am. He wasn't ready yet, so I passed the time reading through the Negative Approach liner notes laying on his desk.

We started the day with breakfast at the Manayunk Diner. And from there, we were off.

First stop, Kildare's. It was 9:00am. We were the first people there. 93.3 WMMR was broadcasting live. Pierre Robert asked us a few questions on air. He wanted to know how we were able to start so early, what our plans were for the day or what we did for a living. I informed him and the WMMR listening public of my deadbeat status.

From there we went to Francisville. Adding additional revelers to our party. Eventually the ever-growing group landed in Fairmount. And that is where we would stay.

The details of the day were lost by lunchtime. A day that didn't end until 2:00am.

On what ended up being my final Saint Patrick's Day celebration.

Negative Approach - Total Recall. AKA Music. Used.

No, Not Probot

Before I saw Dave Grohl wearing their t-shirt in a video, I had never heard of The Sounds.

This prompted me to buy their album.

I had no reason to take listening cues from him or Foo Fighters.

They were off of my radar by that point.

But there I was. Buying an album because of a t-shirt in a video. Worn by a band that barely interested me.

Foo Fighters - There Is Nothing Left to Lose. Best Buy. New.

Thank You

Thanks to Chris Alpino for the new header.

It looks great and really adds to the site. Standing out from the Blogger crowd.

He went above and beyond my expectations.

Check out more of his work at www.cjadesign.com.

Update: Radio Disney, An Exception

The album in the original post was missing a track.

Blame Mick Jagger.

Peter Tosh - The Toughest.

Radio Disney, An Exception

Apparently Peter Tosh is popular with the kids. Real children.

I don't have kids. I have dogs.

If I ever decide to have kids, I wonder what they will listen to.

Will they reject my tastes for what passes as popular? Will they come home excited by classic rock -- Nickelback, Creed, Matchbox 20?

Rebelling against their parents. Not against the status quo. But for it.

I will do my duty. A listening diet of hardcore, punk rock, hip hop, Britpop, metal, indie rock.

Ultimately it would be up to them. My parents let me listen to what I wanted to. I would do the same for my kids.

Or I can stick to dogs. Bella and Gizmo have no say.

Peter Tosh - The Toughest. eBay. Used.

Repost

New Order - Krafty (Maxi-Single).

Please let me know if a link is down. If I didn't take it down for a specific reason, I will re-upload. Leave a comment in the post or email me at hedancesfornickels@gmail.com.

If you would like something removed, feel free to contact me at hedancesfornickels@gmail.com.

Hyping a Sub Pop Also-Ran

I am confident when I say not a lot of people know this band.

I am also confident when I say that a lot of people could get into this band. If they were given the opportunity. And were willing to take the chance.

I could be way off. It wouldn't be the first time.

(Confidence waning.)

But here I am making it easy for you. Make it a double. Two tries.

Pond - The Practice of Joy Before Death. AKA Music. Bargain bin.

Or Smash It Like Belushi

It took a history professor at Temple to show me that there was more to the genre.

Prior to that I had been dismissive of folk music. Gentle, acoustic.

He showed the class that it was the sound of protest. Radical politics. An important element of the counter-culture.

The course had little to do with folk music. But he did everything in his power to incorporate it into the lectures. Relevant or not.

He introduced us to a number of early artists. These were the musicians that I initially sought out. For a while, I would only listen to folk in its earliest incarnation. Over time I became receptive to later eras. Folk revivals. Folk as pop.

Folk is not without its merits.

Peter, Paul and Mary - The Best of Peter, Paul and Mary: 10 (Ten) Years Together. Borrowed from my mother.

Wrote For Jah

"I hate the Happy Mondays. They're reg-GAY."

"No they aren't."

This is reggae. And as for the Mondays, they are awesome.

Peter Tosh - Super Hits. eBay. Used.

More Slick Rick Puppets

Judith bought Stankonia for her cousin Robin.

She didn't know how available or affordable it would be in South Africa.

It was a big album at the time and he was a fan of rap. I thought it would be a nice gift.

So much so that I picked up a copy for myself. Listening on repeat during the flight over.

At the time, the longest flight I had ever taken. There were a lot of listens.

Thanks to technology, Robin already had the album.

I should have known.

Outkast - Stankonia. ??? New.