The exclusive vinyl thread

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Surprise, surprise. There was a lil booklet about the movie inside the "Doctor Schiwago" soundtrack record. I like these unheralded extras, when they are done nicely and professionally. And this one is, for a change.
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Honestly, I am not at all interested in this soundtrack. But after taking a closer look at the lil booklet, I might consider watching the movie (again?). I remember sitting next to my sobbing mother on the sofa, must have been in the late 70s or early 80s, and I liked the atmosphere of aquiver concentration without any other distractions. I think she had a crush on Omar Sharif afterwards, and that's why she got the soundtrack because you couldn't watch movies over and over again and non-stop back in those days, as there were no such devices available, at least not for ordinary folks, and so many other things to see to on a daily basis.

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It's a 1966 MGM records release, printed in Central Europe. Interestingly, it says Doctor Zhivago on the label, but Doctor Schiwago on the jacket.
The vinyl is still in great shape. Probably has been played only once or twice. The outer sleeve looks good.
Maurice Jarre, btw, is the father of Jean-Michel Jarre.
 
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A star-studded concert. Alec Guiness as General Jewgraf Schiwago, and Rita Tushingham as "The Girl".
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The caption on the right hand side says: "Julie Christie as Lara and Rod Steiger as Komarovskij in a titillating scene: Will she too succumb to her mother's seducer? Silent observer of this scene is Jurij Schiwago (Omar Sharif), who is driven into the arms of Lara by magical powers of fate."

Jeez, I am shivering all over.
 
I am surprised that besides the large-sized photographs there is also quite a lot of text to read, and the paragraphs are actually longer than just 3 or 4 sentences. I mean, the editors of the booklet must have had ordinary folks in mind, but it seems that back in those days people were used to reading a lot more, especially long epic novels. The attention span was much longer, which is the foundation of a strong imagination.

The language used is also remarkable.
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"Komarowskij, an opportunist with influential connections in Moscow's polite society, is taking Lara - the picture-perfect daughter of his lover - out on a date for the very first time; even such an experienced man like him isn't capable of ignoring the feminine charms of the young Lara - Komarovskij's pulse is beatin' faster ..."

:pray:
 
The second batch of records is dryin' and that's it for today...
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I have just decided not to watch Doctor Schiwago as I am not in the mood for epic monumental films showing stock characters whose emotions are magnified by historical events, or else, who would care? The Russians never had an Enlightenment, thus emotions are sanctified, often by going back into the past, reconstructing events that had never occured that way.

The soundtrack album was nice though. There is this well-known Leitmotif (La la la laaaaa, lalalala la la...) called Lara's theme which is running throughout the soundtrack and appears in almost all the other tracks. It is light entertainment, everything you expect from a Russian epic, including light pastoral scenes and also the soldier/mariner choir leaving no doubt that war and politics are supposed to be more important than emotions, they ignite the emotions, not the other way round. Very patriarchal.

Anyways, while washing the records, I thought about how quickly these mega-films are forgotten. Who cares about Doctor Shivago nowadays? It was celebrated as a monumental story of success in the cinema, won several Oscars, then returned after some years to the TV sets as a viewer magnet, and then it disappeared. Maybe because of the collapse of the Soviet Union, its story became obsolete, nobody was interested in Russia any longer, at least not culturally. By the end of the cold war, Russia had become totally unsexy, it had turned into a loser.

Nowadays, cultural products have become even more fleeting. It seems that only sports events can have the same impact and interest enough people at the same time to leave a longer impression in the collective mindset. With films, books and music it has become a very individualized experience that can be shared everywhere on social media but usually fails to get the immediate communal response that can only be created by social mega events that draw dozens of million people to the tv sets or whereever.

Maybe in the year 2021 we ourselves have become the stock characters in an epic story, without knowing.
 
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Listened to some of the newly washed records this morning...

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The George Benson 1983 release wasn't bad. I actually listened to side A several times, and liked how this slow soul jazz music provides a relaxed background to life. Side B was so-so, some nice songs, but also a copolla 80s synth driven soft ballads and duets, something that will never fail to chase me around the block. This here is a 1983 European Warner Bros records copy, nothing in particular, surely no rare collector's item, but the vinyl is still in top form and the outer sleeve in very good condition. So it will be pretty easy to barter it at the second hand vinyl shop. George Benson is still active nowadays. There should be a few afficionadas and -nados out there.

John Denver, well, what can I say. When I listen to his songs, I always have to think of Ronald and Nancy Reagan who declared him as one of their favorite singers. I have grown a bit tired of his songs about the joy of the simple man who doesn't need much more than a bit of sunshine and a smile on his lover's face. He surely wouldn't ask for more or something different for a change. This is a 1980s Central European release on the RCA label. Very crackly, full of pops, and a really obscene scratch at the end of side B which cannot be repaired.

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Both, Benson and Denver, will have to go.
 
Listened to some of the newly washed records this morning...

View attachment 70581

The George Benson 1983 release wasn't bad. I actually listened to side A several times, and liked how this slow soul jazz music provides a relaxed background to life. Side B was so-so, some nice songs, but also a copolla 80s synth driven soft ballads and duets, something that will never fail to chase me around the block. This here is a 1983 European Warner Bros records copy, nothing in particular, surely no rare collector's item, but the vinyl is still in top form and the outer sleeve in very good condition. So it will be pretty easy to barter it at the second hand vinyl shop. George Benson is still active nowadays. There should be a few afficionadas and -nados out there.

John Denver, well, what can I say. When I listen to his songs, I always have to think of Ronald and Nancy Reagan who declared him as one of their favorite singers. I have grown a bit tired of his songs about the joy of the simple man who doesn't need much more than a bit of sunshine and a smile on his lover's face. He surely wouldn't ask for more or something different for a change. This is a 1980s Central European release on the RCA label. Very crackly, full of pops, and a really obscene scratch at the end of side B which cannot be repaired.

View attachment 70582

Both, Benson and Denver, will have to go.

One thing ya gotta admire about John Denver is the speech he
gave at the PMRC Senate hearin' on censorship.
They thought Mr. Denver was on their side, but he quickly let'em
know that he was against their attempts at censorin' music.

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One thing ya gotta admire about John Denver is the speech he
gave at the PMRC Senate hearin' on censorship.
They thought Mr. Denver was on their side, but he quickly let'em
know that he was against their attempts at censorin' music.

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Yes, that's surely not what you would have expected of Henry John Germanvillage. but good to see that the American rock scene got rid of these helicopter moms eventually. I guess that Denver, Dee Snider and Frank Zappa had drawn the short straw coz somebody had to do it, whereas all the others uttered a giant sigh of relief.
 
I had put on my bikini today and then cycled to the garden for some health enhancing sunbathing, but shortly after my arrival it started to snow and hail like mad. There was even a thunderstorm approaching, a lightening flash hit a tree close by. So, I pedaled back like a Fury and, after having taken a vitamin D pill, listened to some more newly washed records instead.
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First, I listened to the A-Side of the Spotnicks album, and then I put it away. They were a Swedish instrumental rock group and quite successful, it seems. I remembered one of the songs as it was used here in Central Europe in the 70s or 80s as background music for sports or soccer shows on TV, if I remember correctly. Not really my thing. Their space suits looked kinda interesting. There are also two Shadows albums waiting to be washed.

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This here is a 1968 first Central European press, manufactured by Central European Grammophon., on the multinational Polydor label. The vinyl is still in super condition, the cover I had to glue together as the the old glue had dried up and the seams fallen apart in haphazard fashion.

 
Then I listened to the Animals Best of album. I used to listen to it a lot as a little kid, that's probably one reason why it is in such bad condition. I'm not gonna keep it. All scratched and the sound quality does not exist any longer. Also, I am not into the Animals any longer. Have grown out of it long ago.

Here is a privileged look at Bob Dylan's back...
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Hard Rain is one of his live albums. This is a 1976 European first press in really bad condition on the CBS label.
 
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After I got used to Dylan's screaming instead of singing, I found the music quite energizing. The songs were recorded during two shows in Colorado and Texas, and the album wasn't well received by critics.

The sound quality is so bad that I first thought it was a because of the old vinyl, but I later noticed that the recording itself must have been done on tape or any other simple device. Not sure if it was originally a bootleg, but there is a certain Leo Waxman mentioned in the credits, who was "Chief of tape research", whatever that means.

Even though the sound is extremely muffled and hazy, there is a certain immediacy in the music.

Résumée: Gonna keep Hard Rain, but the Animals and the Spotnicks will have to go.
 
I was comparing the sound of two Smiths singles today. The German Teldec/Zensor 12" Maxi Blue Single of "Panic", which I have shown off here before and praised for its superb sound quality even though the 35-year-old vinyl is at best in VG+ condition, and the Teldec Zensor 7" Single of "Ask". Both were released in 1986.
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And yes, there is the same solid crystal clear sound in the higher frequencies (?), most noticeable with the vocals and the guitar. Compared to the 12" Panic single, the 7" single of Ask is a bit blurry or corroded in the lower vibrations (?), which I ascribe to some vinyl wearout, as it has been stored in a thin, unprotected single sleeve for probably decades. Both of them, nevertheless, as I said, are crystal-clear sound-wise and throughout.

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The 7" is now well protected, as you can see. I am curious if there is some info on this Smiths collaboration with Teldec and Zensor, if it originated because of Burkhard Seiler's visit to London where he met Geoff Travis in 1978.
Plus, where were these Smiths singles pressed exactly? I know that Teldec Press was located in Nortorf. But I am not sure if they also had a pressing plant there and if it was the only one.

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Anyways, felt good to push the inherited vinyl collection of my parents aside for a moment (see posts above). I am not going to wash all of them. Some will just go straight to the second hand vinyl shop or the toxic waste disposal. I refuse to invest even more time and energy into these residual parental hangovers. I am still detoxing from their musical impact. Thanks, but no thanks. There are some limits. I will post the results later on.
 
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After I got used to Dylan's screaming instead of singing, I found the music quite energizing. The songs were recorded during two shows in Colorado and Texas, and the album wasn't well received by critics.

The sound quality is so bad that I first thought it was a because of the old vinyl, but I later noticed that the recording itself must have been done on tape or any other simple device. Not sure if it was originally a bootleg, but there is a certain Leo Waxman mentioned in the credits, who was "Chief of tape research", whatever that means.

Even though the sound is extremely muffled and hazy, there is a certain immediacy in the music.

Résumée: Gonna keep Hard Rain, but the Animals and the Spotnicks will have to go.

If ya ever wanna check out some great Dylan live stuff,
check out The Rollin' Thunder Revue.
It's a ton 'o fun.

 
If ya ever wanna check out some great Dylan live stuff,
check out The Rollin' Thunder Revue.
It's a ton 'o fun.


Thanks for the recommendation, Turkey. Was this the first leg of the tour? And does the film answer the very pressing question what a "Chief of tape research" might be?
 
This is a first stack of about 30 "basement" albums that will have to go ASAP!! Don't worry, my mother approves of the idea. She knows that there is some bad Karma attached to a considerable number of these records and it, the bad Karma, cannot simply be washed away.
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They can stay.
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Jennifer Rush, you might wonder (or not), but there are some good reasons for keeping it. First, one of her songs (the Power of Love) plays an important role in the novel "Nice Work" by David Lodge, and it explains very well how and why quite a lot of people get carried away by it, mostly because it promises excessive and uncompromising female passion and surrender, it's the energy that a mother would put into defending her offspring, but here it is utilized for saving the love for her man. That's why the male protagonist gets a kick from it, when he sits in his car on his way to work, leaving behind his menopausal wife. For most women, i would say, it's the power of the expressed passion, like a bolting horse, which detonates the small stereotypical role patterns that have to be played in real life in order to be accepted by a small-minded society, focussed on sex and work. Problem is, of course, that this passion, again, is used mostly to fulfill male needs. What Jennifer Rush gets out of it, we will never know. Anyways, my mother always liked listening to this album, that's why I'm gonna keep it. And sometimes, you know, it's just nice being carried away...
 
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The 12" Suedehead single I got mostly because of "I know very well how I got my name" which is on the B-Side and one of my Top 10 Moz songs.
It's a 1988 repress.
 
John Fogerty, well, as I said, a powerful album throughout...


One of the few 80s rock albums that still sound fresh.
 
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Thanks for the recommendation, Turkey. Was this the first leg of the tour? And does the film answer the very pressing question what a "Chief of tape research" might be?

It's the whole tour with everyone involved.
I kinda thought it was gonna just be a concert film, but it's really
like a traveling circus that's movin' in 50 directions.
They needed a "Cheif of tape research", cause there's all kinds
of extra things goin' on.
 
It's the whole tour with everyone involved.
I kinda thought it was gonna just be a concert film, but it's really
like a traveling circus that's movin' in 50 directions.
They needed a "Cheif of tape research", cause there's all kinds
of extra things goin' on.
I see. So that's another word for odd-job man? Chief cook and bottle washer? Maid-of-all-work? Factotum? General drudge? I am surprised though, as Lou Waxman was also a musician, had his own jazz orchestra. But I guess when you can tour with Bob Dylan, then you don't care what sort of work you have to do, and how folks are calling ya.
I still ask myself though, if this live record Hard Rain was originally recorded on tapes from inside the audience, and probably that's where the energy is coming from, despite the bad sound quality.
 
I see. So that's another word for odd-job man? Chief cook and bottle washer? Maid-of-all-work? Factotum? General drudge? I am surprised though, as Lou Waxman was also a musician, had his own jazz orchestra. But I guess when you can tour with Bob Dylan, then you don't care what sort of work you have to do, and how folks are calling ya.
I still ask myself though, if this live record Hard Rain was originally recorded on tapes from inside the audience, and probably that's where the energy is coming from, despite the bad sound quality.

Not sure where Hard Rain was recorded from.
Sounds like a question for Lou Waxman.
 
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