Holla Band, Fast Annie, Remembering David...

Today is the 3rd anniversary of the passing of David Enloe. So it was about 3 years ago I started to dig out all of my old vinyl to listen to. I got to hear all of my favorite bands, think about old friends and get inspired to share it all with the world. I regret not having enough time to adequately spend on Comboland Radio but I do what I can in hope one day I'll have time to do more. I do still occasionally add more music. Tune in now and you will hear two new additions, "The Holla Band" and "Fast Annie".

The Holla Band played around a bunch as I remember hearing the name, but I don't think I ever saw them. That is a shame as I can tell by the LP, release on Moonlight Records in early '82, I would have enjoyed them. The LP I found was in very good shape and required very little cleanup. There is a very small Facebook group devoted to Holla but it appears not to have been visited much lately. Matt Barrett has some photos on his site devoted to NC music. And one of the former members has a page with the band on it as well. The tunes sound great on Comboland Radio.



"Fast Annie" featured ex arrogance member Mike Greer, was produced and engineered by arrogance member Don Dixon and was recorded where Don did much of his recording and producing, Reflection Sound Studios. Released on Chelsea records the LP has a couple of tunes that fit well on Comboland Radio, both written by Greer, "Laugh At The World" and "My Baby's Alright". They are playing now on Comboland Radio.

Robert Kirkland is involved with a couple of new projects I hope to track down and add soon. I have some unanswered messages to catch up on too. Maybe this weekend...

Tonight is a sort of celebration of David's life as the Comboland Radio staff (Missie and I) are going to see some live music. SCOTS is playing out here on the OBX. So we get a little taste of home, and maybe a piece of fried chicken.

Free Music Blogs

What do Chris Stamey, Let's Active, The Killer Whales, The X-Teens, and The Woods Have in common? Several things of course... but one you may not be aware of. Then again.... All of these artists, along with thousands of others, have their works "featured" on music blogs where you can download the for free! Sounds great right?!? I'm not too sure.

It's a fairly recent phenomenon that seems to have exploded in the past few years. Literally thousands of blogs have cropped up that "feature" mostly out of print recordings and most of these sites allow you to download the entire recording for free. Are you looking for a copy of the hard to find "Precision Auto" 7 inch by Superchunk? It's available... for free... you just have to know where to look. You don't need Limewire, Bit Torrent or anything except a browser and some rudimentary knowledge of file extraction and mp3 files. Some have complete artwork ready for you to print out just in case you want to make your own CD.

I'll be honest. I don't know how I feel about these blogs. On one hand some of this stuff is never going to be re-released in any form. These bloggers aren't making any money themselves. Most seem to be passionate fans of a specific genre of music. Most have a policy of removing a link of the artist objects or if the material is re-released. In fact I pointed out to one blogger that the "Van DeLecki's" "Letters From the Desk of Count S.Van Delecki" was still commercially available and he quickly removed the download link and replaced it with a link to the page on CD Baby where you can buy the CD. However it does seem to me that the artists are still getting ripped off.

I do know that Terry Anderson and Jack Cornell had been working on a Woods box set but that seems to have stalled. Terry said something to effect of "why should I spend the money to put it out when it's already out there for free"? Specifically "It's Like This" is on one of these blogs, despite the fact that Twin Tone will still make you a copy on a custom CD for $15. Also floating around is The Wood's "Lost Album". Never released the "free" copy's quality is not great, but the songs sure are. I, for one, would have plopped down the cash for the box set JUST to hear decent copies of these songs. I don't think it's happening. Is it because of these blogs? Are blogs like this preventing artists from making some of their pasts works available to their fans?

I tried my hand at legally selling music on The Comboland Radio website. For 2 years I had all but one of the Arrogance recordings available. We sold a few downloads, but it cost twice the dollar amount we sold to host the website and pay the fees for the "shopping cart" and to accept PayPal. NOT a good business model! I was surprised too. But after thinking about it all of the fans we have seen at the shows in recent years probably had the stuff already. Not everybody felt the need to replace their vinyl with the digital downloads... although they do sound good. Also I shouldn't have sold individual songs. For the same amount of storage space and inventory items I should have tried harder to get some of the other bands to sell some of their out of print stuff there too. Still I'm not sure it would have ever broken even.

I guess I could put the Arrogance stuff up on a blog of my own! I guess I could put ALL of the vinyl have I digitized for Comboland Radio up on a blog somewhere!! (It's quite a bit!) Hell I could put up the all of out of print CDs I have too!!! I could... but I can't. I was a suspected music bootlegger in the 80's. While working at Reflection Sound Studios the studio recorded 4 live R.E.M. shows. OF COURSE a few copies were circulated by the staff. However copies of 2 of the shows got to the outside world. It wasn't nefarious... it didn't involve me... and it was an innocent mistake. However I DID hear about it and several people were/are convinced I bootlegged the tapes. I didn't, but I felt horrible. R.E.M wasn't this huge band yet. I had seen them many times in clubs and dives in the south. I had friends who were working with them. I wouldn't have done anything to take money out of any of their pockets. I still feel the same way.(By the way... I still have my tapes. I check the R.E.M. bootleg list every now and then and as of yet the 2 shows I have are not listed anywhere.)

For what it's worth Comboland Radio is a "legal" Internet broadcast and pays all of the music licensing fees through Live365 (although I would be GREATLY surprised if ANY of the artists ever receive a penny of what I pay in... but that is a another blog for another time).

Again... I don't really know how I feel about these blogs... but they are in great abundance and cover every form of music imaginable. I would be interested in your point of view. If the musicians and artists are against this type of "sharing" then I would have to side with them. Just know that no matter what "the man" does to prevent the sharing of music on the Internet people will figure out a different way to do it.

With all of that said I have just transferred 2 albums to digital, both with Triangle ties, that will start playing legally on Comboland Radio later this week.

th' Cigaretz Jerry Williams Links

Below are additional links for information on Jerry Williams:

The first is from Beastiemania, a site devoted to The Beastie Boys, who Jerry worked with and recorded.
http://www.beastiemania.com/whois/williams_jerry/

Next is an obit from The Punk Vault.
http://www.punkvinyl.com/2010/09/20/r-i-p-jerry-williams/

Here is Jerry's MySpace page.
http://www.myspace.com/jaydublee

This is an old article from 2004 but scroll down to the heading "Best local record hunter's captured prey:". Read for yourself to see this authors selection, as if you can't guess.
http://www.indyweek.com/indyweek/music-and-clubs/Content?oid=1191951

An obit with a few external links you may find interesting from Brooklyn Vegan.
http://www.brooklynvegan.com/archives/2010/09/jerry_williams.html

Another obituary from Papermag. In the comments below the obit there are details of an upcoming memorial in New York.
http://www.papermag.com/2010/09/jerry_lee_williams_obituary.php

David Menconi wrote an article about a website that claimed Miley Cyrus ripped off th' Cigaretz "Apartmentalivin".
http://blogs.newsobserver.com/category/tags/Fly-on-the-Wall

Sad Cigaretz News

...Opened up Facebook this morning at 3:45 to some sad news posted by Terry Anderson. Jerry Williams of Raleigh's Cigaretz has died, just a few days shy of his 62nd birthday.

For many, myself included, the Cigz was their first live exposure to a real punk band. Playing countless gigs at the Free Advice th' Cigaretz certainly made a name for themselves and carved out a nice fan base. Their lone DIY LP is classic! Yet it doesn't quite capture all of the noise and intensity of seeing them live.

How important were th' Cigaretz? Read Sam Hick's 1998 article "How North Carolina Got It's Punk Attitude". Go read it now... The three paragraphs devoted to th' Cigaretz might put it in perspective. It also details a bit of Jerry's life after th' Cigaretz which had to be quite exciting at times.

I saw them a number of times during their heyday. But one show I didn't see was one where they opened for Arrogance in Chapel Hill at The Town Hall. That show is a bit Woodstock-esque in that more people remember being at that show than the place would ever hold!! I believe it was Byron that turned one of the stage monitors speaker side up, filled it with cereal and milk and ate out of it. Hopefully someone will recall that story and it's repercussions.

Rest in peace Jerry. Your fans and friends love and remember.

I'll try to play more tunes from the LP starting tomorrow on Comboland Radio.

Killer Whales - States - SCOTS - Stratocruiser - Leisure McCorkle

The revamped Skidmart at the SCOTS website is open! The new release "Kudzu Ranch" is available in LP, CD and digital download. When you buy "Kudzu Ranch" in any format you get a digital download for free which includes alternate takes of 4 tunes. (hint... the free version of "Pig Pickin'" download is an alternate take too!) The re-issued "Too Much Pork..." is also available in CD and digital download. There are new t-shirts and other swag too. Comboland Radio has been playing a couple of tracks from "Kudzu Ranch" for a few weeks now. In celebration of the new store we have changed them up and are also featuring 2 cuts from "Too Much Pork.."(I had the original release) to get you all hopped up to go buy your own copies from the Skidmart!! As usual the tunes are mixed in with the best music new and old from the Carolinas on Comboland Radio.

I have also got some new old music to add to the rotation. I finally got a copy of the very hard to find "Big Bang" from the "Killer Whales". Their website is now dead but their music lives on. Former member David Bethany has put up a couple of pieces on youtube worth checking out.

"The States" from Norfolk, VA had 2 songs featured on "Mondo Montage" that we currently play on Comboland Radio. They also had 2 LP's and at least 2 singles previous to the MM tunes. I had one of those albums but couldn't locate it... until now.

Stratocruiser is one of my faves! So I can't believe I missed the July 27th release of their latest EP (see previous posts about my crazy work schedule...). Unlike last year's "best of" release this one is available for download and immediate gratification for the usual evil download sources. It is absolutely worth getting!

Another recent discovery for me is Leisure McCorkle. The 2002 CD I have was "on sale" at Not Lame so I picked it up. It is pure Power Pop and fab as well. Produced by Jamie Hoover (who plays and sings on it as well) it is well worth getting. It seems since this CD was released Lee has finished his PhD in Ireland and has had time to work on a new release that should be out soon. He has been playing a bunch of shows this year with a few more to come.

Listen for all of these tunes, artists and much more on Comboland Radio.

SCOTS - Dixon - Arrogance Gig!!

I did get some new tunes into the rotation on Comboland Radio.

As promised some of them are hard to find cuts from Southern Culture On The Skids. Their new "store" debuts on their website on September 7th. In the new store will be their new album, "Kudzu Ranch" I am playing 2 songs from it, "Pig-Pickin'" and "Come As You Are/Lucifer Sam" as we get ready to hear the whole thing! I have also encoded several singles SCOTS has released over the years, mainly for the "B" sides which are not available anywhere else. I have them playing too. They include:

Two Pigs In A Blanket
Wedding Bell Twist
BSA441
C.W. James 00-Spy
Tantrum
Tidewater Jack

Listen for these tunes and get ready to get the new SCOTS long player "Kudzu Ranch" on September 7th.




Don Dixon has a new CD out, "Don Dixon Sings The Jeffords Brothers". I got to hear some of these tunes during Dixon's visit to the OBX in March. I now have a couple of them playing on Comboland Radio. Get the CD or download from CD Baby. Dixon fans will love it. But WARNING! It does have a "Beach Music" feel about it. I know some of you have an aversion to this music. I prefer to think of it as Dixon re-visiting his soul roots. Those who know him understand that he was influenced by soul and R&B from the 60's, as were many of us. This is actually the third project he has done with the Jeffords brothers. Earlier projects with Dip Ferrell & The Truetones also included Jamie Hoover and Marti Jones. These CD's were true "Beach Music" and do sound great.



Get ready to see Don along with Robert, Marty, Scott and Rod on New Year's Eve at the Cat's Cradle in Carrboro. Yes... Arrogance will rock the Cradle and rock in the new year! Hey... if your life is like mine it is NOT to early to start planning and figuring out how you are going to be there. If you have missed any of the Arrogance show in the past couple of years then make it a priority to be there! You won't be sorry.

Other new songs in the Comboland Radio playlist include 2 from a "Jamie Hoover Group" 45 from 1977, Chris Stamey's "The Summer Sun" (produced by Alex Chilton) and some additional cuts from Richmond, VA's "Single Bullet Theory". I still have some other Chris Stamey songs to get in. I just need more time to work on them!

SCOTS and New Vinyl!!

The company I work for, Max Media, has just purchased 4 more radio stations on the Outer Banks. That means I now have 8 total to run/manage. With the acquisition I have had little time to devote to Comboland Radio (a continuing theme in my notes). But I do try to work on it when I can. I do still look for material and have had excellent success recently.

I the world of vinyl record collection the grade a piece receives for the seller is important. NM stands for "near mint", VG is "very good". Then you have the "+" and "-" signs added to the grade to give an even better idea of the condition of the record. VG+ and VG++ are usually decent enough for a decent digital transfer and restoration. The Holy Grail for any collector is an SS, or "still sealed". Those are un-opened and therefore un-played!! Still sealed copies of old albums can be quite valuable. For example one of my favorite sites has a SS Beatles "Rubber Soul", original pressing, mono, and a rare promotional sticker on the cellophane. It recently sold for $6500. This same site has an SS "butcher cover" "Yesterday And Today", mono for sale right now for $47,500.

I'm not sure if any of the "Comboland" records will be worth quite that much in an SS state but I have found quite a few of them recently. They include:

X-Teens - X-Teens (1st LP)
Sugarcreek - The Creek
Bad Checks - Innocence
Southern Culture On The Skids - Southern Culture On The Skids (1st LP)
Brice Street - Imagination
Othermothers - No Place Like Home

The X-Teens disc is the second SS X-Teens LP I have purchased, the first about 10 years ago... a copy of "Love And Politics" I played it once to transfer it to digital.

I would love to think that one of these LP's would increase in value to an "Butcher Cover" price but I don't see that happening. So I will open them at some point. I've been considering getting a new phono cartridge and stylus so I will wait for that. As I already have copies of most of those LP's there isn't much new to add to Comboland Radio. However in the case of a few of those I will have much better copies with a lot less restoration needed.

Other recent purchases will make there way to Comboland Radio. Earlier solo works of Chris Stamey have been largely absent but I have tracked most of them down and will be adding selections from them soon. I mentioned SCOTS in my last post. They have a new CD/download coming out soon, plus a re-release of "Too Much Pork For Just One Fork". The SCOTS 45's released through the years offer some nuggets not otherwise available. I have obtained quite a few of them, including one which was only given to guests at a wedding. Supposedly only about 150 were pressed. One side is SCOTS performing "Wedding Bell Twist". A cool tune which I know SCOTS fans will dig.

I am contemplating a bit of a change in direction for the Internet radio station. While I am not going to abandon new bands and music those show the most interest in Comboland Radio seem to come here for the older material and for the new material from those artists. Especially in the Triangle there are great outlets for the newer bands, like WKNC. There are also folks there who can keep up with the new scene much better than I can from my outpost in Kill Devil Hills. While I enjoy the mix of new and old it is probably too broad for most folks tastes. There are no big changes yet but certainly on the way soon. Comments and suggestions are welcome!