Where've I been?

Playing right now: The Oil Tasters -s/t and only album.
On CD no less! Yes, I found out used at Paul's and had to snatch it up. Turns out there are only three non-LP tracks on it. I, for some reason, thought there were almost the same amount of bonuses as there were original tracks. Oh well, I need these songs. This band was a big inspiration to me during high school. Tenor saxophone, bass and drums with a singer who sounds all nasal whine and snarl. A band like this wouldn't exist today in such an unself-conscious way. "We lived on speed, whisky and doritos," bassist/singer Richard LaValliere says in the all-too-brief liner notes.
Richard, if you come across this blog, write to me, brother. I was in what might have been the only band to cover the Oil Tasters. And I'd do it again.
I will say, I think I can tell what the remastering has done to change the sound a little. (Keep in mind I listened to this album a lot after buying it.) The sound is kind of wide and expansive where it was once all close and claustrophobic. I sort of prefer the album. But now I have both.

The roll of steady blog entries really died this month, eh? Somehow about two weeks ago, I lost my drive to keep it going. Now that I've looked at how long it's been, I think that'll be a good thing to recharge me. I want to make sure that I end the year with more entries than last year, by a significant upgrade.

Part of the delay could probably be attributed to the yard sale that we had last week. I went through the 30+ crates of records from the summer collection and tried to pull out what I thought I'd want to keep or sell for more than $1/each (the price I was asking at the yard sale). Then Jennie went out of town at the start of this week and it was just me and the kid until Thursday, when we drove down to Elyria to pick her up and visit her mum. On the way down, I said, "I think we need a little traveling music."

He replied, "Like Herb Alpert."

"That's my boy," I thought. (Yes, he knew we had packed Herb for the trip, but I didn't prompt him to say that. We had to listen to Going Places by Herb twice on the way down, and once on the way back. Lest you think I'm abusing myself or him, that album was a daily listening ritual when I was his age, and I'm just so amused that he likes it.)

The week before last, his uncle in Denver sent him his first phonograph, along with some records to play on it - a different Herb album, Snoopy & the Royal Guardsmen and a Spike Jones 78 of Old MacDonald. I'm doing my damndest to not micro-manage his listening experience. He can hold the record whereever he wants, even on the playing surface. As long as he stays away from my records (or ones that I give him), he can do whatever he wants.