Mixed Bag 2: Greg and Ian and Nat - Oh, My!

Just added Nat Pike and Lefty Brown to the blogroll. One of the great things about Lefty's Mixed Bag - I get to read some great blogs...and hear some great music. I'm very pleased to say that the first three discs I received have not only opened my ears, but are motivating me to check out my local indie record shop to find some great stuff.

(Quick note on one of Nat's comments - "Know Your Product", unfortunately, suffers from late 70s punk production, meaning that you have to crank that sucker in order to hear it. The advantage - you have to crank that sucker in order to hear it)

First, Ian Brill's Mix Up Your Mind is a very eclectic, wide-ranging collection of tunes. Any disc that begins with the mighty Hal Blaine's boom-ba-boom-crash on the Ronettes' "Be My Baby" is destined for greatness. Highlights - Doctor Octagon, Them (although I grew up with the Troggs' version - this version is more raw and just, well, deeper), Del tha Funky Homosapien, old school Prince (although I silently wish for the album version), Magnetic Fieldspretty much all but one track. I'm not too crazy about John Frusciante or Jesus & Mary Chain, so their tracks did nothing for me - otherwise, pretty much solid.

Speaking of solid, Greg Burgas' My Forever Came Today is one of the most well-flowing discs I've ever heard. Anyone who can go from my favorite O Brother, Where Art Thou track to hair metal to jazzy hip-hop deserves my respect, as well as large truckfulls of cash. Even the spoken word breaks (which I didn't like) helped move the disc along, and not a clunker in the bunch.

And for a change of scene - Nat Pike's We Don't Need No Stinkin' Lyrics, 50 minutes of pure instrumentals that are neither surf nor soul, but just make great end-of-the-day music. Even Van Frickin' Halen can't disrupt this party - although my personal favorite track is the piano version of the Spider-Man theme. Least favorite - Emerson, Lake and Palmer's Hoedown, but prog rock just isn't my cup of tea. Otherwise, a great collection of instrumentals.

So, I'm eagerly awaiting the other entries in the Mixed Bag...and trust me, from what I've heard...well, I'm grateful I'm in the mental health field. That's all I gotta say.