The Angelic Gospel Singers

Artist: The Angelic Gospel Singers

LP: Gotta Find a Better Home

Song: "Mercy Lord" 
[ listen ]

I love the concept for the cover of this 1977 "Gotta Find a Better Home" LP: "This frozen planet that's completely covered with ice will do! Let's set 'er down." Actually, planet Earth made a fine home for Margaret Allison and her Angelic Gospel Singers. According to Wikipedia, they were "the longest consistently selling female gospel group in African-American history," performing together for over 60 years—from 1944 until founder Margaret Allison's death in 2008. You can find a neat video clip of Allison performing with her AGS here. The women with Margaret Allison, center, in the photo on the back of the record must be Josephine Wells McDowell and Bernice Cole, but I'm not sure which is which. Anyone else have any idea?

The Story of Star Wars

Artist: The Cast of Star Wars

LP: The Story of Star Wars: From the Original Soundtrack

Song: "The Story of Star Wars (excerpt)" 
[ listen ]

In case you haven't heard, there's a new STAR WARS movie playing in theaters. This is evidently episode #7, but I honestly can't remember what happened in episodes #1-6. (I know I've seen movie #3, which I believe is episode #6, the one with all the Muppets in the woods, but I missed movie #4, which may be episode #1 if I'm not mistaken; it's the one with Jar-Jar Binkus or whatever, the one that flopped. If I've seen episode #4, which I think is movie #1, it was years ago. I've seen either episode #2 or #3, which would be movies #5 and #6, but I can't recall which one! And it's hard to imagine I'd have gone without seeing movie #2 in the cinemas when I was a kid, which as far as I can tell would be episode #5, but if I saw it I still can't tell you a single thing about it.) 

Anyway, I desperately need a Star Wars refresher course before watching THE FORCE AWAKENS or I'll be completely at a loss. Good thing I found "The Story of Star Wars" at a thrift shop up in Alaska earlier this year. If you're in the same boat as I am, this might help you too! Before we dive headlong into the story, it's important to re-familiarize ourselves with all of the players:

"The Story of Star Wars" takes place

The entire ordeal begins when

And then suddenly

Things seem to be looking up when

But then

Everyone knows what horrors this signifies. Their worst fears are confirmed when

Without wasting a single precious moment,

Meanwhile, as everyone had anticipated,

Momentarily sidetracking everyone, R2-D2 provides a dazzling demonstration of technical brilliance by repeatedly presenting a 

Seizing a golden opportunity while everyone's busy watching the hologram,

Meanwhile, as if from out of nowhere,

Once again,

Knowing full well that time is of the essence,

As

And then, as if they didn't already have enough to do,

Which keeps them out of the way as

But then

And helps him to understand that choking the rebel officer was wrong!
Suddenly

Thankfully, he escapes with just enough time to shower and dress for the

Where, as a reward for his bravery, 

Inter Galactic Touring Band

Artist: Inter Galactic Touring Band

LP: Inter Galactic Touring Band

Song: "Love Station"

[ listen ]

Song: "Robot Salesman"

[ listen ]

My Vibra Pocket Translator, which will be helpful for my volunteer gig at Casa Latina, arrived in the mail yesterday and I was thrilled to find it packed with an expensive bottle of wine. I'm also expecting my Vibracon Globe to show up in a couple of months (if my report isn't rejected), but I'm kinda' bummed that the Globe Robots have been discontinued. You can read about Inter Galactic Touring Band here, where you'll find out what famous soul singer handles lead vocals on "Love Station."

Neil Norman and His Cosmic Orchestra

 Artist: Neil Norman and His Cosmic Orchestra

LP: Greatest Science Fiction Hits 

Song: "Moonraker"

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Song: "Can You Read My Mind"

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Song: "Close Encounters"

[ listen ]

Here are three of the greatest hits from sci-fi films of the late-1970s, as interpreted by Neil Norman and His Cosmic Orchestra. Norman's outer-space musical wizardry blends perfectly with the elegant touches of lounge-master Les Baxter to create sounds that are simply out of this world. "Moonraker," originally sung by Shirley Bassey, is the theme song for one of the worst James Bond films ever made; "Can You Read My Mind," the love theme from SUPERMAN, was recorded by Maureen McGovern and released as a single—though her version doesn't actually appear in the film; and of course "Close Encounters" is from CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND, and was originally performed by aliens.

 

 

 [ Neil Norman, with space necklace. ]

 

 [ Neil Norman with guitar, orbiting Earth. ]

 

 [ Neil Norman, with chest hair. ]

 

 [ Neil Norman with keyboard, in control center. ]