Street Organ / Drehorgel "De Arabier"

Artist: Street Organ / Drehorgel "De Arabier" [owner: G. Perlee]

LP: Daar Waar De Molens Staan / Where the Windmills Are

Song: "K.L.M. Mars"

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Here's a jaunty little number featuring "the colorful music of Holland's best known street organ, 'De Arabier.'" I especially like the organ's robust percussion section. The song is called "K.L.M. Mars," so I was hoping there might be other-worldly sci-fi sound effects thrown in, but I guess "Mars" probably means something different in Dutch. The English and Dutch-language liner notes and some neat old photos from "Daar Waar De Molens Staan / Where the Windmills Are / Wo Die Windmühlen Stehen" are included below. I'll be at the Bellingham Gay Pride Parade this weekend, and I'm really hoping to find some candy-striped activist groups gaily marsing to the cheery tunes of a horse-drawn barrel organ there.

The Tarriers

Artist: The Tarriers

LP: Gather 'Round

Song: "My Name Is Morgan But It Ain't J.P."

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Song: "Little Boxes"

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When The Tarriers formed in the mid-1950s (taking their name from an old vaudeville song, "Drill, You Tarriers, Drill") the trio featured Erik Darling, Bob Carey, and Alan Arkin. When Alan Arkin left in 1957 to focus on his acting career, the group took Clarence Cooper aboard. A few years later, Erik Darling's other musical projects started interfering with The Tarriers' performance schedule, so Eric Weissberg stepped in to play bass and ended up becoming a bonafide Tarrier in 1959. When personal problems began keeping Bob Carey away from rehearsals, Weissberg suggested adding his old friend Marshall Brickman to the group and Carey was let go in 1963. By the time this "Gather 'Round" LP was released in 1964, the group consisted of Clarence Cooper, Eric Weissberg, and Marshall Brickman, with none of the original members remaining. Sadly, after his dismissal from the group, Bob Carey's problems worsened, he turned to drugs and alcohol, and his lifeless body was found on a bench in Central Park sometime in the 1970s. But alas, this 1964 version of The Tarriers is dynamite. "My Name Is Morgan But It Ain't J.P." is full of terrific rhymes like, "Forget your champagne appetite, for the best you'll get is beer tonight," and "Little Boxes," which pokes fun at social conformity and popular ideas of "success," is as timely today as it was 45 years ago. You can read Dave Samuelson's extensive biographical notes on The Tarriers on the Folk Era website here, and go here to visit Erik Darling's website, where you can buy some of his CDs, find out about his book, and, unfortunately, read his obituary (he passed away in 2008). Notes from the back of the "Gather 'Round" LP are included below.

Bobby Gutierrez

Artist: Bobby Gutierrez

LP: Ilocandia's Best

Song: "Gasat Ni Baak"

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This (probably late 1960s?) LP from handsome Filipino singer Bobby Gutierrez features his-n-her album covers on opposite sides. As you can read here, Bobby was once dubbed the "Original Ilocano Jukebox King," for his beautiful songs that were popular with the Ilocano people of the northern Philippines.

Xavier Passos

Artist: Xavier Passos

CD: 16 Super Exitos de Xavier Passos, Vol. 2
Song: "No Te Cases"
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Song: "El Mañoso"
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Last Friday night I took a guy to Geraldine's in Columbia City on a first date (and the last—he's an actor and had prepared a 2-hour autobiographical monolog for the evening). After dinner I dragged him to the Mexican CD store up the street where I'd found my Los Bukis CD a few years ago. I practiced my Spanish with the friendly guys behind the counter by asking if they had any music from the '50s, '60s, or '70s they could recommend. We came up with this groovy, organ-heavy Xavier Passos Greatest Hits CD (vol. 2) that I'll be posting some songs from as soon as I remember to bring the actual CD along with me to work instead of just the empty case.

Sandy Nelson

Artist: Sandy Nelson

LP: Drum Discothèque

Song: "Tim Tom Drum"

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You can bring the excitement of the discothèque (not to mention The Watusi) into your very own home with this 1965 "recorded live" LP by handsome rock-n-roll drummer extraordinaire Sandy Nelson. Born in Santa Monica, CA in 1938, Sandy went to high school with Jan and Dean before playing drums on several pop hits, like The Teddy Bears' "To Know Him Is to Love Him." He then landed several top ten hits of his own in the late '50s and early '60s—a rare feat for a drummer whose songs don't feature any vocals. Though his right foot was amputated in 1963 after a motorcycle accident, Nelson continued making music on into the 1970s and '80s. His latest album, "Nelsonized," was released on the Spinout label in 2008—you can hear samples and buy a copy here. Read more about the life and career of Sandy Nelson on Wikipedia here, and pictures and notes from the "Drum Discothèque" LP are included below.

[ Sandy Nelson, American drummer ]

Jack Pleis, His Piano, Chorus, and Orchestra

Artist: Jack Pleis, His Piano, Chorus, and Orchestra

LP: Strings and Things

Song: "Paris Loves Lovers"

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Song: "Strings and Things"

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This 1957 collection of moods, meanings, and melodies in merry montage is another one of the things I found while rummaging around before breakfast last weekend. The music of Jack Pleis, His Piano, Chorus, and Orchestra is positively lovely, like being gently wrapped in ribbons. But I was especially drawn to the album cover, which seems to reveal the secret hideaway of a lonely-hearts strangler who dabbles in a bit of arson on the side. "Paris Loves Lovers" sheds light on Jack's inventive arrangements with chorus and orchestra, whereas "Strings and Things" shows off his abilities on the piano. Sadly, Jack Pleis doesn't yet have a page on Wikipedia, but you can find some information about the Philadelphia native in the LP liner notes below.

Update from February 28, 2016: You can now find lots of info about Jack Pleis on Wikipedia here and go here to read specifically about his "Strings and Things" LP. Thanks for the tip!

[ Jack Pleis: May 11, 1917 — December 5, 1990 ]