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  • 87. Who’s Going To Teach Me Peace And Happiness?

    We stayed with Lee G.’s friends at Murrells Inlet that week, just down the road from Myrtle Beach.  The hub around which the whole thing turned was his friend Sheila, whose parents rented the beach house and served as chaperones.  Aside from introductions and a nice conversation about the ride from Spartanburg I don’t remember…

  • From The Stacks: Nothing Will Be As It Was Tomorrow

    Flora Purim has some pipes, no doubt about it.  But judging from the size of that pigeon and which direction its business end is pointing there’s no doubt that nothing will be as it was tomorrow, either.

  • On My Turntable: Tenacious D – Rize of the Fenix

    Tenacious D is a comedy band fronted by two delusional fat guys who have no business being rock stars.  That’s their whole shtick, but the joke is on us.  Jack Black and Kyle Gass know more about classic rock and infuse it with more joy than 99% of the heritage acts still recording and touring. …

  • Deep Cuts: Beach Songs

    Beach songs.  On one hand you’ve got your Beach Boys and Jan and Dean; on the other you have your Dick Dale, Ventures, and Surfaris.  And then there’s Shag music — oldies like the Drifters and  the Platters. That’s all good stuff (especially Dick Dale), but you don’t need my help putting together that kind…

  • 86. Forgotten Lies Aim To Distract Me

    Sherri and I eventually got back together.  I don’t remember the specifics other than a lot of crying and the appearance of a little stuffed purple dragon on the hood of the Quincymobile.  I’m a sucker for a kind gesture. That’s actually at best false bravado and at worst an outright lie.  I did her…

  • From The Stacks: Chastain – Mystery Of Illusion

    This is normally where I write something.  Sometimes I provide a little background to introduce you to an album, give you some sense of the artist and the music.  Sometimes I make a snarky comment or seven in order to gently guide you to what’s funny about a particular album cover. But really, what’s the…

  • Deep Cuts: Your Independence Day Playlist

    The Fourth of July is a big deal in the United States.  It was on this very day back in 1776 when the Beatles first  came to America, and we like to celebrate by getting drunk, eating too much, and blowing shit up. We also have a very standard playlist that we beat to death…

  • 85. Between The Velvet Lies There’s A Truth That’s Hard As Steel

    Back in 1970 when Black Sabbath merged horror films and heavy music on their debut album they were without peer.  It took a little over a decade for their aesthetic to hit the mainstream, but by the mid-eighties no self-respecting heavy metal band was without their own county fair artwork. Iron Maiden’s mascot, Eddie, was…

  • A Lovely Gift For Your Mailbox

    Who doesn’t enjoy receiving actual mail?  We still need a higher resolution version before we can pull prints and make posters, but postcards of this one should be arriving in a week or so.  Want a free one for your cubicle wall?  Email me your mailing address at jostaffordjr@gmail.com and I’ll send you a miniature…

  • From The Stacks: Scorpions Lovedrive

    Without question this is one of my all-time favorite album covers.  Number 161 in the Hipgnosis Bestiary, 1979’s Lovedrive sported yet another brilliant jacket from Storm Thorgerson.