Beatnik/Crime/Spy/Suspense: Original LPs
The Word: Plant ya now, 5-cornered squares! Cut out from all those corn capers in Cubesville and fall by Hip Wax. The real gone ginchy jambake is right here: zooty hep cats, crazed beatniks, zonky word-hippies, [bongo] skin poppers, spies vs. eyes, "noir" jazz, itchy suspense, subliminal TV & film soundtracks, & even regular, official, Man-approved Beat Poet jive to perk up the coffee clatch in your own mad pad, dad. And it's all tossed up for your flaps & peepers only, so lamp it quick. Be the first in your tribe! Drag off these precious relics to your holy bop cave and make the scene way-out style. Like, DIGGGG!
Discounts (usually free mailing or $5 off per item) for all multi-item orders--buy 2 or more!
Jeanne Bargy/Bill Costa: Greenwich Village U.S.A. ST; 20th Fox MasterArts FOX-4005; 1960 (1-LP abridged/expurgated version of TCF-105-2S) deep groove N/E+ $30 -- beatnik/cast; a few swinging scat, beatnik, & bongo tunes spice up this ok musical; "Birth of a Beatnik" is the best; also beatnik-y jacket art
Warren Barker (Hawaiian Eye & others not listed below) -- see Exotica-Foreign
Warren Barker & Frank Comstock: TV Guide Top Television Themes; Warner Bros. 1290; 1959; deep groove E/N- $20 (or E/E- $15, specify) -- crime/TV themes; 2 top bandleaders (famous for other great LPs too) unite to deliver swinging, high-impact versions of the swinging chestnuts of crime & suspense, plus other classic themes (12 cuts all told) in glorious sound "without resorting to what might be called a musical beatnik approach"; very cute cartoon jacket art--liners include a TV I.Q. test!; The D.A.'s Man, Perry Mason, 77 Sunset Strip, Pete Kelly's Blues, Maverick, Peter Gunn, Have Gun Will Travel, Richard Diamond, M-Squad..
John Barry: The Ipcress File ST; Decca DL-79124; 1965; E+/N S $35 (or mono DL-9124 N-/E+ $30, specify) -- spy; one of the scarcer, better spy/suspense classics & our favorite John Barry LP; movie stars Michael Caine; essential for title theme "A Man Alone," which is done in several versions--some bongos, jazz, & samisen(?!); LP sounds like the subtler early Bond STs but better (and thx to slick Decca red-label production); best tune title to display on your Ipod: "If You're Not Clean--I'll Kill You"
John Barry Revisited; Ember SE-8008; 1971; UK import E+/E S $20 -- John Barry collectors take note!; unseen outside the UK, it sports a saucy jacket (Barry/gun/bullet holes/nude blonde) that would never make it here in the prudish former Colonies; Zulu, From Russia w/Love, Fancy Dance, Kinky, 4 in the Morning, Elizabeth theme, London theme, 007 theme, Yesterday's Gone, No Tears for Johnny, Aliki, Monkey Feathers, Judi Comes Back, The Loneliness of Autumn
Buddy Bregman & his Orchestra: Swinging Kicks; Verve MGV-2042; blue deep groove E-/N $60 -- jazz/crime/cheesecake; rare (high book value); sensational cheesecake jacket (woman in negligee on brass bed); top Calif. players; reworks his score for "Wild Party" into 17 great modern-jazz cuts (think of it as an even better ST for something already good, like Route 66); Wild Party, Go Kicks, Mulliganville, Terror Ride, Honey Chile, Kicks is in Love, Lost Keys, Bada Blues, Kicks Swings, Gage Flips..
Lord Buckley: Lord Buckley in Concert; Liberty/World-Pacific WP-1815; rec. 1959; black label N-/N shrink $60 (or N-/E+ $40, specify) -- beatnik/spoken/hip; live "Royal Concert Performance, Ivar Theater, Hollywood); the first LP beatnik (& voice of "The Wild Man of Wildsville") & obvious inspiration to Captain Beefheart, Lord Buckley made this terrific 1st LP for the label (originally titled "Way Out Humor"); his very best & most representative set!; Supermarket, Horses Mouth, Black Cross, The Naz, My Own Railroad, Willie the Shake, God's Own Drunk
Lord Buckley: Blowing his Mind (and Yours, Too); Liberty/World-Pacific WP-1849; rec. 1959-60; deep groove promo (stamped & promo label) E-/N $40 -- beatnik/spoken/hip; partly live; the first beatnik (& voice of "The Wild Man of Wildsville") & obvious inspiration to Captain Beefheart, Lord Buckley made this terrific 2nd LP for the label; Subconscious Mind, Fire Chief, Let it Down, Murder, The Gasser, Maharaja, Scrooge
Lord Buckley: The Best of Lord Buckley; Elektra EKS-74047; rec. 1951; tan label N-/N $35 (or red label N-/N $25, specify) -- beatnik/spoken/hip; compiles best bits from the 2 collectors-item LPs on the tiny Los Angeles Vaya label; "Best of" makes these classic, peak performances available again affordably & w/great new jacket art & notes; The Nazz, Gettysburg Address, The Hip Gahn, Jonah & the Whale, Marc Antony's Funeral Oration, Nero
Lord Buckley: Bad Rapping of the Marquis de Sade; Liberty/World-Pacific WPS-21889; rec. 1960, live; E+/N ES $30 (or E-/N- ES $20, specify) -- beatnik/spoken/hip; great as any of his records but bc it came out out later, it's still not considered a collectors item (get it now while it's still cheap); H Bomb, The Chastity Belt, His Majesty the Policeman, The Ballad of Dan McGroo, Bad Rapping of the Marquis de Sade
Jack "Bongo" Burger: Let's Play Bongos; HIFI R-803; 1957; no booklet E/N- $25 -- instruction by the #2 bongo man of Hollywood (after Jack Costanzo); nice production, including photos of hand positions; one of the best bongo-instruction LPs
Al "Jazzbo" Collins & the Bandidos: A Lovely Bunch of; Impulse A-9150; gatefold 1st cutout N/N- $40 (or same but E/N- $30, specify) -- beatnik/jazz/comedy/hip; all-star group of Steve Allen, Terry Gibbs, Hal Blaine, Mel Browne; legendary DJ's hip fairy tales & "interviews" (including hip-speak instruction that's MUCH hipper than "How to Speak Hip"!), & more!; Sonny Cool, Goldilox & 3 Bears, Jazz Mass, 3 Little Pigs, Power of the Flower, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack & the Beanstalk, Swearing in of the Banditos ("I don't need no stinkin' badges")
Jack Costanzo: Mr. Bongo Has Brass; Zephyr ZP-12003G; E/E- $50 (or E-/V $20, specify) -- rare (on obscure tiny Hollywood label) & probably his 1st 12" LP; w/arrangements by Eddie Cano, Bill Hitchcock, John Anderson, Paul Lopez; unique, vintage, hip, modern-jazz music you can't get otherwise, plus the great '50s modern-art jacket has prized photos & liner notes; Diga Diga Do, Equinox, Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen, Young Man with a Horn, Blue Prelude, Barney Google, Row Row Row Your Boat, Street Scene, The Continental, El Diablito, Burley-Q Bongo, Man with the Golden Arm
Jack Costanzo: Bongo Cha Cha Cha!; Golden Tone C-4061; deep groove N-/N- $25 -- Afro-Cuban smoker; public-domain but totally authentic & very exciting set w/Kaskara & Marda Saxon singing (you may know them from Rene Touzet LPs); 8 of the 12 possible cuts (most versions are 8-10 cuts only); nice jacket photo, impeccable shape & sound
Jack Costanzo: Mr. Bongo; Atlantic/Clarion SD-621; E/N ES $30 -- Afro-Cuban smoker; public-domain but totally authentic & very exciting set w/Kaskara & Marda Saxon singing; same session as on various budget labels (Tops, Evon, Golden Tone, Tiara); here you get 10 of the 12 possible cuts (most versions are 8-10 cuts only); rare (perhaps rarest version), well-produced, nice jacket, & the only version that claims to be stereo--but it's either mono or electronic stereo (also it credits "Jack Costanza")
Jack Costanzo: Mr. Bongo Plays Hi-Fi Cha Cha; Tops L-1564; deep groove E/N $30 (or deep groove E-/E $20, specify) -- Afro-Cuban (not cha cha cha!), totally authentic & exciting; w/vocals by Kaskara & Marda Saxon; packaged on various labels, but this is the only complete set (12 cuts) of authentic Afro-Cuban jamming, w/top star vocals; great jacket photo too
Jack Costanzo: Bongo Fever--Jack Costanzo at the Garden of Allah; Liberty LRP-3109; deep groove white-label promo E+/E+ $60 -- Latin jazz/bongo bop; live!; one of his best & rarest! (not to be confused w/the later Sunset compilation "Bongo Fever" which is drawn mostly from the also-rare "Latin Fever" LP); Bongo Fever, Besame Mucho Rock, Garden of Allah Bongo, Birl's Works, Consternation, Salta Perico, Harlem Nocturne, Bei Mir Bist du Schon..
more Jack Costanzo -- see Latin
Allen Ginsberg Reads Howl & Other Poems; Fantasy 7006; 1959; red vinyl, deep groove V+/V- $50 -- Beat/spoken; THE classic true Beat poem in literature & on vinyl; terrific just as decor but also a landmark statement & censorship case; extensive liner notes by Ginsberg; worth $400 when in top shape, this lacks insert, has significant wear/noise & a slightly water-stained jacket but a prize even "as is"
Allen Ginsberg: Ginsberg's Thing; Douglas SD-801; cutout E/E- S $30 -- Beat/spoken; rare Alan Douglas production; his best after "Howl"; has a scratch that produces pops briefly (not too damning), priced accordingly
Jerry Goldsmith: Our Man Flint ST; 20th Century Fox TFS-4179; 1966; cutout E+/N- S $35 -- spy/electronica/exotica; w/Shelly Manne, Arthur Morton, Warren Barker; one of the very best all the way through!; exotic tunes & electronica make it a standout as well as one of the hippest, swingingest spy grooves; dig these titles: Doing as the Romans Did, Tell Me More About that Volcano, Galaxy A Go-Go, Stall! Stall! Flint's Alive..
Babs Gonzales: Live at Small's Paradise; Audio Fidelity/Chiaroscuro CR-2025 (reissues Sunday Afternoon at Small's Paradise; Audio Fidelity/Dauntless DM-4311; 1963) N/N- shrink $60 (or E+/E+ $50, specify) -- "wild, swinging, demoniac, funky, hilarious, way-out, continental, down home, home-cooked, volatile, expoobident, groovy, bombastic, stoned, risque, hip, incredible, orgiastic, superstitious, finger-popping, rabelasian, didactic, crowd-pleasing, recherche, humanitarian, nitty gritty, spontaneous, unspeakable"--his rare live masterpiece (which is really something!); classic artwork features far-out photo of Babs expubidenting, cig & drink in hand; w/Johnny Griffin, Clark Terry, Horace Parlan..; Dem Jive New Yorkers, Oop-Pop-A-Da, Integration, Be-Bop Santa Claus, Keep an Ugly Woman, St. Louis Blues..
Babs Gonzales: Babs; Audio Fidelity/Chiaroscuro CR-2032; 1981; E/E+ S $40 -- the original hipster's hipster live; AF reissue; w/Johnny Griffin, Clark Terry, Horace Parlan, Melba Liston, Charlie Rouse..; Cool Cooking, Speedy Gonzales (Me Spelled M-E Me), Lullaby of the Doomed, Babs Mood for Love..
Juliette Greco: Les Grandes Chansons (Volume III); Columbia Adventures in Sound WL-174; gold-label promo E/E $40 -- French/torch/beatnik; recorded in Paris w/full French lyrics & English translations; the original Left Banke "beatnik in black" works her magic in a classic, scarce treasure (one of the tiny handful of great LPs in this series)
Johnny Gunn w/Don Ralke: Introspection IV; Warner Bros. WS-1372; 1960; sealed S $150 -- beatnik/suspense; spoken w/music; WILD poetic narrations, or "flip-end vignettes," or "outre weirdos"; rare as the dickens & we actually have it still sealed & uncut (tho there is just the slightest bit of rub wear on the jacket just at the very bottom); see p.40 of the Taschen book "Beatsville" for what it looks like; narrated by Gunn, who sounds like Rod McKuen at his absolute hippest but comes off like Ken Nordine or even John Rydgren, comparable also to La Dolce Henke; Ralke & other top percussionists provide great background (even space music) to hip, spooky tales each with a twist & all with a very noirish feel; Chicken, Sentry, Night, Chris, Blood, Gunnsmog, Solicitress, Imagine, Voodoo, Pattern, Lastthought
[The Mad Musical World of] Mel Henke: La Dolce Henke; Warner Bros. WS-1472; 1962; cutout E+/E S $100 (or mono W-1472; N/N shrink $100, specify (or mono W-1472; E+/N- $85, specify) -- beatnik/space/strange/novelty; w/Mel Blanc(!); rare/in high demand, like the best moments in "Kookie" if not EVEN BETTER!!!; famous for "The Lively Ones" (wack, uptempo, beatnik jive comparing a woman's bod to a car) & the awesome "Woman in Space" (w/Beverly Ford) but it's chockablock w/many other crazy bits & Esquivellian space-age thrills; great jacket, too!; an odd-pop AND beatnik holy grail/best-of-breed!
Mel Henke: Dynamic Adventures in Sound; Warner Bros. WS-1447; 1962; gatefold N-/E+ S $75 -- exotica/space-age pop/novelty; the other rare, great one by "La Dolce" Henke (this is the OTHER odd-pop Henke everyone needs); in the scarce Workshop Series, this "spectacular musical extravaganza" purports to be "architecturally constructed to induce the maximum in audio sensation" & "exploring uncharted patterns of sound"; the 2 MAJOR highlights are "Exotic Adventure" & "Old MacDonald Had a Girl," in which a woman sensuously giggles, a la Jim Backus' "Delicious" only much, much BETTER!!!
Alfred Hitchcock Presents Music to Be Murdered By; DRG SL-5183; 1980 (UK reissue of rare US Imperial); N/N shrink S $35 -- crime; rare, even as a reissue!; partly spoken (Hitchcock's narration is what it's all about) w/spooky-spacey-suspenseful orchestral music; Suspicion, Music to be Murdered By, Alfred Hitchcock Television Theme, I Don't Stand a Ghost of a Chance with You..
Kenyon Hopkins: The Fugitive Kind ST; United Artists UAL-4065; 1960; deep groove E/E $75 -- twist/suspense; one of the fine rare Hopkins STs (like "The Hustler"); Tennesse Williams play "Orpheus Descending" adapted for film starring Marlon Brando (pictured w/Anna Magnani & Joanne Woodward); the twist "Get Crazy" & "High Pocket Blues" are uptempo picks, but the whole thing is full of great sounds & themes, such as the strange blues vocal "Let Me Out"
Dick Hyman: The Man from O.R.G.A.N.; Command RS-891-SD; 1965; gatefold N-/N- S $35 -- organ/spy; Hyman's very distinctive Lowrey sound nails most of the very best spy themes in the loud, totally swinging way of his best work on Command; The Man from O.R.G.A.N. (great original w/guitar), The Liquidator (Lalo Schifrin!), The Cat (Lalo Schifrin!), Agent Double-O-Soul (w/chorus), I Spy, Honey West, A Man Alone, 3rd Man, Danger, Thunderball, Man from UNCLE..
Katie Lee: Songs of Couch & Consultation; Commentary CNT-01; E+/N- $30 (or E-/N- $25, specify) -- "vocal consultation"; w/Bob Thompson!; famous, venerated, SUPERB, MUST-HAVE, twisted, psychoanalysis-themed spoofs of folk classics (shrink-inspired comedy ballads, very beatnik); as featured in Incredibly Strange Music; mono only (there is no stereo); Shrinker Man, [I've Got] the Will to Fail, Schizophrenic Moon, Hush Little Sibling, Real Sick Sounds, Properly Loved, It Must be Something Psychological, Repressed Hostility Blues..
Katie Lee: Songs of Couch & Consultation; Reprise R-6025; 1961/195? (REISSUES Commentary CNT-01); white-label promo, deep groove N-/N $25 (or deep groove N-/N- $20, specify) -- different jacket art but every bit as good as the Commentary version; definitely have one or the other (& the RCA LP), at least!
Katie Lee w/Ray Martin: Life is Just a Bed of Neuroses; RCA Victor LSP-2214; 1960; 1st E+/N- S $35 (or mono LPM-2214; E+/N- $25, specify) (or mono E/E $20, specify) -- "vocal consultation"; wonderful, rarer sequel to the beloved "Songs of Couch & Consultation" LP of shrink-inspired comedy ballads by the charming, beatnik folk singer; art & liners by Mad Magazine's Don Martin & Frank Jacobs!; Don'tville, The Insecure Tango, Ballad for Group Therapy, Love That Man, We Must Adjust..
Enoch Light: Paperback Ballet; Command RS-805-SD; 1963/1959; N/N shrink cutout S $20 -- crime; formerly "The Private Life of a Private Eye," it's a welcome reissue (old) of a scarce classic for crime/suspense buffs, essential for its original tunes composed by Light & Lew Davies: The Private Life of a Private Eye, The Gang at the Green Grotto, Harry's Hideout, Dirty Work Underfoot, Frenchy's Tune, Harlem Hot-Shot in a Hurry, Blonde Bombshell, Mess in Morocco, The Creep, Serenade for a Sweet Babe, Living on Borrowed Time, Gum Shoe Lullaby
Henry Mancini: Experiment in Terror ST; RCA Victor LSP-2442; 1962; German press/2nd cover E/E- S $20 -- crime/twist; "1962's double 'Oscar' winner"; scarce & one of the best-kept secrets in both crime & twist, this Mancini wonder offers an unbeatable twist version of the title cut as well as the straight version, "Tooty Twist," & other winners; revised version of the jacket features a hung mannekin instead of the earlier mugging scene but equivalent appeal; nice thick vinyl
Henry Mancini: The Party ST; RCA LSP-3997; 1968; deep groove 2nd press cutout E+/N shrink S $25 -- sitar (Bill Plummer!) on the title cut (both vocal & instrumental versions--uptempo, jazzy sitar-soul) make it desirable beyond even the norm: top players, wild Mad-Magazine-like cartoon jacket, groovy Peter Sellers (pictured w/sitar as "Hrundi V. Bakshi"); Birdie Num-Num, Wiggy, Brunette in Yellow, Party Poop..
Henry Mancini: Mancini's Angels; RCA Victor APL1-2290; 1977; N/N shrink S $20 (or N-/N S $20, specify) -- crime/funk/Moog/disco/TV themes; one of his hip '70s ones w/breakbeats & synth; features Harvey Mason, Larry Bunker, Lee Ritenour, Chris Mancini on Arp; Charlie's Angels, Evergreen (A Star is Born), Car Wash (funky!), Inspector Clouseau, Silver Streak, What's Happening, The Moneychangers, Gonna Fly Now, Roots
Johnny Mandel: Harper ST; Mainstream 56078; N/E- shrink $40 -- crime/mod soul; rare ST from the terrific Paul Newman vehicle; wide variety of '60s sounds ("Mexican Breakfast" takes care of Mexicali), but the real star is the DJ-worthy "Harper Does it Better," a mod-soul/boogaloo organ jukebox dirge (like Lalo Schifrin's "The Bird" from The Liquidator ST); slight noise in unimportant places but well worth it, espec. at the price
Skip Martin: The Music from Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer; RCA Victor LPM-2140; 1959; deep groove E/E $30 -- crime/TV; "Sound of Violence"; dramatic jacket; rare
Rod McKuen Takes a San Francisco Hippie Trip; Everest/Tradition 2063; E/N S $25 (or E-/E+ S $20, specify) -- beatnik/spoken w/background music; has a toehold in the hippie era (as w/"How to Speak Hip") but is solidly bongo-bop-fueled beatnikism, with bongos & beatnik references galore; unlike his 2 other great beatnik records (The Yellow Unicorn & Beatsville), it sold well enough that it's still low-priced!
Hugo Montenegro: More Music from the Man from U.N.C.L.E.; RCA Victor LSP-3574; 1966; deep groove N/N- S $50 (or N-/E S $30, specify) -- spy; WOW!!!; hip, funky, happening--one of the very best of the idiom, if not THE best (much better than the 1st LP); besides being very strong all along, several cuts are deeply hip & essential for DJs (definitely for spy-crime fans); Sandals Only, Solo Busanova, Off & Running, Boo-Bam-Boo Baby, Slink, Run Spy Run, Jungle Heat, The Wiggely Pig Walk, Lament for a Trapped Spy, There They Go, Jo Jo's Torch Song, Dance of the Flaming Swords
Buddy Morrow: Poe for Moderns; RCA Victor LPM-2208; 1960; deep groove 1st press E-/N- $25 -- crime/suspense/twist/spoken/whistling; rare, unique wonder (far beyond anything else by Morrow); superb production (music, concept, jacket art, liners); features vocal group The Skip-Jacks & quite affecting whistling; The Murders in the Rue Morgue, Annabel Lee, The Gold Bug, A Descent into the Maelstrom, The Bells, The Fall of the House of Usher, The Pit & the Pendulum, Ulalume, The Black Cat, The Raven, Quoth the Raven, The Tell-Tale Heart
Don Morrow: Grimm's Hip Fairy Tales as Dug by Don Morrow; Roulette R-25146; 1960; deep groove E-/V $100 -- beatnik; legendary, super-rare expansion of the Al Collins shtick (Side 1 is 3 far-out tales rapped over jazz; Side 2 is an original beatnik-jazz instrumental set); fantastic performance, charming jacket art, hipsterical liner notes; deserves its reputation as one of the best of the very few LP-length beatnik LPs; w/Andy Doyle, Mort Lindsey, Phil Bodner, Jerome Richardson, Doc Severinson, Jack Zimmerman, Barry Galbraith, Don Lamond, Ted Sommers..; Like Hansel & Gretel, Like the Shoemaker & the Elves, Like Rumplestiltskin, All That Jazz, A Little Night Music, Like Wow!, Two Little Kooks, Two-Beat Beatniks, It Ain't Grindlesteig, Gossip, Kerouazy; masking tape on jacket top and bottom edges; some marks & noise but it's too rare/good to be precious about
[Jerry Murad's] Harmonicats: Great Themes from TV & Motion Pictures; Columbia/Harmony HS-11223; N/N shrink S $15 (5 $15 LPs for $50) -- spy/crime/harmonica: normally we avoid the Harmonicats (worthy as they may be for pop harmonica) except this LP, which really is worthwhile!; on the Harmony sub-label only; Avengers (hard to get this tune in the US!), Pink Panther, Spy with a Cold Nose, Peter Gunn, Charade; plus mod fare: Music to Watch Girls By, Georgy Girl, Wives & Lovers, Moon River, Born Free
Ken Nordine w/Fred Katz Group: Son of Word Jazz; Dot Jazz Horizons DLP-25,096; 1958; 1st/deep groove E/E+ S $50 -- beatnik; "more phenomenal words and jazz and hi-fi sounds!"; super-cute jacket, rare stereo; harder to find than the astounding, ground-breaking, classic 1st LP & every bit as good; snap it up before it's TOTALLY GONESVILLE!!!
Ken Nordine: The Voice of Love; Paramount/Dot/Hamilton HLP-12102; deep groove E/E+ S $50 -- same as a super-rare Dot LP called "Love Words"; jacket face is different, otherwise same great stuff; it's on a romantic bent, of course, and Nordine's intimate voice comes off quite well, if tongue-in-cheek
Ken Nordine: Passion in the Desert; FM 304; N-/N $100 -- Nordine reads Balzac accompanied by bassist Johnny Frigo(!!!) & Dick Marks (piano); rare op-art label & inner sleeve are other nice features but it's most famous for the Alan Douglas jacket art, which is of the story's subject, a bare-breasted leopard woman
Ken Nordine: Robert Shure's "Twink"; Philips PHS-600-258; 1967; cutout E-/E S $60 -- beatnik/strange/spoken w/music; what a joy!; 34 totally far-out bits mainly about everyday things (eyelashes, ping pong, zebra sex); goes beyond Word Jazz & even Colors (the other great Nordine LP on this label); very modern music (jazz, percussion, even some w/guitar-rock); we agree w/those who consider it probably his best work; hard to find; groovy jacket art (see p.40 of the Taschen book "Beatsville") & liner notes round it off; YOU NEED THIS!!!
[Ken Nordine &] Billy Vaughn: The Shifting Whispering Sands; Dot DLP-25442; 2nd label cutout N/N shrink S $20 -- Ken Nordine narrates the 2-part title track, centerpiece of a fine suite of Western themes
Mike Pacheco: Bongo Bop; Tampa TP-10; red vinyl, deep groove, promo E/V $60 -- bongo bop; THE classic of the idiom (see the bongo bop page at the Soul Patch) by former Perez Prado player; quartet w/Oscar Moore, Carl Perkins, Joe Comfort; Up Tempo, Buddy Can You Spare a Dime, There'll Never Be Another You, April in Paris, Warm Up, Samson & Delilah Theme, Kiss Me Again, Dinner for One, Walkin' Home, Moonlight in Vermont; wear/noise but well worth it
Mike Pacheco: Bongo Session; Tampa TP-21; deep groove E/V+ $75 -- bongo bop; sextet w/Carlos Vidal, Shelly Manne, Robert Gil, Julio Ayala, Frank Guerrero; another of his few, scarce, wonderful records; great jacket art; Move, Sometimes I'm Happy, Rhumba by Candlelight, Fascination, Caravan, Magitos, Number Four
[Mike Pacheco &] Carlos Vidal: Congo Drums; Tampa RS-1000 (formerly TP-32); black label deep groove E+/as is $25 -- Latin jazz/bongo bop; w/Mike Pacheco, Shelly Manne, Robert Gil, Tony Rizzi, Tony Reyes; Too Marvelous, Hop Skip & Jump, I'll Take Romance, Round Robin, Nightingale (Cugat's exotica masterpiece), Gil's Dilemma, Bobby's Fables
Kenneth Patchen Reads w/Allyn Frguson & The Chamber Jazz Sextet; Trend/Discovery DS-858; 1983/1957 (reissues Cadence CLP-3004) w/lyrics inner sleeve, cutout N-/N $50 -- Beat poet w/jazz; excellent, reprints authentic Beat LP (both versions very rare!); better still, you get new artwork, photo, lyrics, & info & great sound/shape -- better than the original!
Shorty Petterstein: The Wide Weird World of; World Pacific WP-1274 (formerly WPM-412); 1958; black/deep groove N-/N- $300 -- beatnik/Beat/psychological comedy/spoken w/sounds; "More Interviews of Our Time"; one of the holy grails of the idiom (for desirability as well as rarity), its 15 great mad bits include even a cover of Woody Leafer's legendary "Drums in the Typewriter"; spiced up w/electronic sounds & effects --perhaps tape manipulation-- worthy of music concrete & avant garde fans; top jacket (see p.40 of the Taschen book "Beatsville"), liners, etc.
Paul Phillips & his Band/Joe Harnell: The Sound of Midnight--Naked City; Kapp Medallion MS-7517; gatefold E/E- S $15 (5 $15 LPs for $50) -- crime/mod; best entry in the scarce Kapp audiophile series; interprets rare/wonderful "Naked City" (noir/urban/crime ST) in truly swinging arrangements by Joe Harnell of --what else-- mod brass & bongos (here better than most similar stuff on Time, Command, Victor, etc.); Fever, Route 66, Naked City theme, Harlem Nocturne..
Piero Piccioni: The Tenth Victim ST; Mainstream S-6072; 1965/1964; E+/N- S $75 -- crime/sci-fi suspense/wordless chorus/mod jazz/organ; rare ST, here uncut, stereo, top shape ("47" marked in white space on jacket, otherwise gorgeous); film features Ursula Andress & Marcello Mastroianni
Sid Ramin: Stiletto ST; Columbia Masterworks OS-3360; 1968; sealed S $50 (or promo E+/E- S $20, specify) -- crime/mod/funk/bossa; highest recommendation as one of the very best & hippest modern crime/spy/suspense STs (we love it & look for it always); packed w/hard-hitting, '70s-sounding tunes ideal for DJs & samplers as well as crime ST fans--something for everyone, really; the film, from a Harold Robbins novel, stars Britt Ekland & features Barbara McNair; Knife Fight on the Hill, Stiletto, Sugar in the Rain, Tram, Follow That Man, Goat Island, Confrontation..
Pete Rugolo/Jimmy McHugh: The Music from Richard Diamond; Mercury/EmArcy MG-36162; deep groove E+/E $25 -- crime/bongo bop; widely recognized as terrific, essential; epitomizes crime idiom in its circa-1960 heyday; high-impact w/great use of bongos & jazz elements; dramatic jacket art caps it off; Richard Diamond Theme, Diamond on the Move, Who's Sam?, The Teaser, Teen Age Rock, The Sleeve Job, Does Mama Know You're Out?..
The Roland Shaw Orchestra: The Return of James Bond in "Diamonds Are Forever"; Decca/London Phase 4 2-BSP-24; 2-LP gatefold; N-/N- S $20 -- spy/crime; shockingly chauvinist jacket of bikinied gals as targets (full of bullet holes) could only come from the decadent UK; but the music is romantic at times & well done; 1 LP devoted to Bond (incl. Casino Royale), 1 of other great & rare themes: The Avengers, The Saint, The Spy Who Came in from the Cold, Wednesday's Child, Mission Impossible, I Spy, Ipcress File, Man from UNCLE, Peter Gunn, Our Man Flint
Lalo Schifrin: Gone with the Wave ST; Colpix SCP-492; 1965; 1st/deep groove E/E S $90 (or 1st/deep groove E-/E- S $60, specify) (or mono CP-492 E+/N- $90, specify) -- "Modern sounds go surfing" says the jacket (4 surf scenes in sequence--surf-photo collectors take note) though it's way beyond surf music; one of his rarest & very best; all-star players (Francisco Aguabella, Paul Horn, Frank Rosolino, Shelly Manne, Bob Bain, Laurindo Almeida, Howard Roberts, Milt Holland..) as well very creative, fun, varied (mod, Latin, exotic...), original tunes (A Taste of Bamboo, Taco-Taquito, Breaks, Aqua Blues, Surf Waltz, Breaks Bossa Nova, Waimea Bay, Halieva Blues..); bottom line: star-quality playing of hip, mod, exotic jazz--everything you want from West Coast players but rarely get
Lalo Schifrin: Cool Hand Luke ST; Dot DLP-25833; sealed S $100 (or cutout N/N shrink S $75, specify) -- crime ST/jazz-blues; Academy Award winner, long considered a masterpiece, one of his scarcest, & a real collectors item -- particularly the stereo perfection offered here!
Lalo Schifrin: Mannix (TV Show ST); Paramount PAS-5004; E-/E S $30 -- crime/funky; a great ST for music lovers w/several major tracks DJs will love, it's heavy-duty, very scarce, & much in demand (like the Bullitt ST only even rarer); YOU NEED IT!!!; Mannix, The Edge of Night, The Girl Who Came in with the Tide, Beyond the Shadow of Today, The Shadow, Turn Every Stone (Shorty Rogers original), Hunt Down, Warning: Live Blueberries, Fear, The End of the Rainbow, End Game
Lalo Schifrin: The Liquidator ST; MGM SE-4413-ST; uncut N/N shrink S $75 (or mono E-4413 sealed $40, specify (or yellow-label mono promo E-/N $35, specify) -- spy/mod soul/soul jazz/bossa; everything is great about this treasure from Lalo: 1st-rate artists/music, liners, jacket design; the title vocal by Shirley Bassey rates as the hipster's "Goldfinger"; then there are the contributions of U.K. tenor sax legend Tubby Hayes(!); but the real star is "The Bird," a mod-soul blaster to die for: a blaring, bluesy jukebox riff/dirge that just screams swingin' '60s (a total mover for DJs); GET IT!!!
The Secret Agents: Mission Impossible & Other Action Themes; Pickwick/Design DLP-287; E+/N- S $20 -- spy/crime/organ; very rare & intriguing budget-label wonder, from the low-budget photo "action" sequence on the jacket to surprising tunes (guitar & organ instros): Mannix, MI, Star Trek(!), Majorca Express, Spy Who Came in from the Cold, Under Cover Agent, The Saboteur, Win Lose or Spy
Morris Stoloff/George Duning/Ned Washington: The Naked City; Columbia Colpix CP-505; deep groove (only 1 pressing, rare) E-/E- $25 -- crime/narrative/ST; the "real" Naked City LP is much rarer than the Paul Philips/Joe Harnell treatment; this is the first we've had it to sell, and it's a prize for the crime-LP collector or anyone nostalgic for the TV show
Creed Taylor: Lonelyville--The Nervous Beat; ABC-Paramount ABCS-308; 1st/deep groove E/E+ S $35 -- crime; sought-after classic w/hip concept/jacket is also a masterpiece by Taylor, Kenyon Hopkins, & Bob Kenyon!; great sound---loud!; The Nervous Beat, Lonely Girl, Dream Beat, The Lonesome Road, Lonely Train, Lonesome River, Dark Street, St. James Infirmary..
Armando Trovajoli: Seven Golden Men ST; United Artists UAS-5193; N/N- ES $30 (or promo E/E- ES $20, specify) -- crime/spy/wordless chorus/mod/whistling/drums; US release of a terrific, obscure ST from a hot Italian film; great variety of sounds & styles!; 15 cuts: Seven Golden Men, Ping Pong, Thunder Bolt, The Plot Thickens, Brick Top, The Chase..
Billy Vaughn: The Shifting Whispering Sands -- see Ken Nordine above
Uncredited: [Production Music]; Robert Hall RH-104/105; generic/E- $50 -- production (sound library)/mod soul/mod jazz/crime jazz/bongo bop; very similar to a great Sam Fox (Synchrofox) LP we just sold, it's one of our favorites on a terrific, underrated US label; all great short (most about 1.5 mins.) but well-developed tunes; Side 1 is mainly uptempo, swingin' '60s mod soul, mod jazz stuff (great!)--12 hip cuts such as Minor Bird, Pot Luck, The In Thing, Flute Nova, Palm Trees & a Flute, Friday Night, East 53rd..; Side 2 leans more on the bongo-bop, mod-jazz, crime-noir kick; dig the 13 crazy titles: Pete Gunner MT, Cool Tension, Bongo Blues, Hip Chick, Withdrawal, East Side Party, Wild Party, Feeling High, 125th St, 3am, Cold Turkey, Frantic, 5am
Uncredited (possibly Skip Martin): Music from Thunderball; Alshire/Somerset SF-24700 V+/E- S $15 (5 $15 LPs for $50) -- spy; nifty John Barry fest (6 titles given nice long treatments) best known for the zany color jacket art & dubious, Russ Meyer-esque legend "The Sounds of Action...Romance...Violence!!" (isn't that how every Bond relationship proceeds?)
Various: Capitol Jazz Classics Vol. 13--Strictly Bebop; Capitol M-11059; 1972/1949-50; red label E/N- $30 (or red cutout E-/E $20, specify) -- Babs Gonzales/Dizzy Gillespie/Tadd Dameron; a prize for both hep jive cats (for whom this page exists) & classic jazz collectors, it's absolutely essential for the 5 first-rate Babs Gonzales songs/scats/experiences you won't find otherwise (forget about landing the super-rare original singles on scratchy fragile 78s!): Capitolizing, Professor Bop, St. Louis Blues, Real Crazy, Prelude to a Nightmare; the Dameron & Gillespie cuts are great too!; best of all, it's in clean mono hi-fi, a huge improvement over 78s; THRILLSVILLE, DAD!!!
Various: Merry Christmas from Sesame Street; Children's Television Workshop CTW-25516; 1975 gatefold; N-/E+ S $25 (or E+/E- S $20, specify) -- Christmas/kids/beatnik; worthy in many respects, but holy for Northern Calloway's "The Night Before Christmas on Sesame Street" -- rapped in hip, beatnik, Al Collins-esque jive style (there are several beatnik takes on "The Night Before Christmas" but this is one of the best, if not THE best!); also notable for "Saludo" (Latin) & general kids/Sesame St. interest
Beatnik/Crime/Spy: Original 45s/EPs/78s
Please note: shipping/handling for 45s is gratis!
Lenny Bruce Live at the Curran Theater! picture-sleeve EP; Fantasy FP-2; promo (promo-only EP) N-/N- $20 -- comedy; rare!; nearly 11 minutes of great bits from the 3-LP Curran Theater set; Pot, Grandchildren, Jewish & Goyish, Authority, A Letter to God, Russia & China, The Lie
Edd Byrnes & Friend: Kookie, Kookie (Lend Me Your Comb)/You're the Top; Warner Bros. 5047; E $10 -- the classic of classics; A-side w/Connie Stevens; w/the Big Sound of Don Ralke
Al "Jazzbo" Collins: Little Red Riding Hood/3 Little Pigs; Decca/Brunswick 9-80226; 1953; black label V+ $25 -- beatnik/hip/jazz; the classic on 45; w/Lou Stein, piano; copyright Down Beat, Inc. & Steve Allen
Jack Costanzo: Mr. Bongo Has Brass Compact-33 7" EP; Zephyr ZP-7003; picture-sleeve (shown) promo E+/N- $90 -- impossibly rare promo-only compact-33 EP version of what is probably his 1st LP, on obscure small Hollywood label; great '50s modern-art jacket/liners; even if you are lucky enough to have the LP, itself a collectors item, you may still need this item for its superior condition (both looks and play); Diga Diga Do, El Diablito, Man with the Golden Arm, Row Row Row Your Boat, Street Scene, The Continental
The Gallants (H.B. Barnum): The Man from U.N.C.L.E./The Vagabond; Capitol 5376; E $15 -- guitar instrumental; prod. David Axelrod (some brief solos incl. drum tho not funky); mild warp but plays fine
Babs Gonzales w/Jimmy Smith Trio: You Need Connections/'Round About Midnight; Blue Note 1638 AND Babs Gonzales & his International Jazz Men: Sugar Ray/Cool Whalin'; Babs 6402/6403 -- both are AS IS (the Babs single is cracked thru but playable); expect wear & noise; $25 gets them both, take it or leave it
Bob McFadden & D'Or: The Mummy/The Beat Generation; Brunswick 9-55140; V+ $20 -- beatnik; B-side is Rod McKuen's CLASSIC of the idiom (NOT the Mamie Van Doren movie song but the one famously covered in the '80s by the terrific Beat Farmers)
Ken Nordine & the Fred Katz Group: Hunger is From/My Baby; Dot 45-15658; E $15 -- beatnik/word jazz; far-out stuff from the original "Word Jazz" LP here in the high-gain, high-impact hi-fi that you only get with the 7"; eat it up, baby!
Ken Nordine & the Fred Katz Group: I Used to Think My Right Hand Was Uglier Than My Left Hand/My Baby; Dot 16000; E $20 (or E- $15, specify) -- beatnik/word jazz; B-side "From the TV Spectacular 'Another Evening With Fred Astaire'" features his son; both cuts are super hip; every jukebox of the gods needs Nordine!
Stan Purdy: Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer Story Vol. II; V (Fifth Corp.) EP V-2502; (c)1954; V+/E $15 -- crime; impossibly rare & obscure treatment of music for the show (not the same as the Skip Martin ST); you'd have to pay heaps more for 10" LP, a heavy collectors item (as this may be too, but...); intriguing jacket art & notes; Velda, Oh Mike!, The Woman, The Mike Hammer Theme
[Rafael "Googie" René] Googie Rene: Caesar's Pad/Serenade in the Night; Class 262; 1959; E+ $25 -- beatnik/modern jazz/Latin jazz; "Uh, dig this crazy scene...holy mackerel, Caesar!"; incredible, one of the best things ever to come from California & one of our all-time favorite pieces of HIP wax; all-star crew, heavy on the percussion, includes legends Jack Costanzo (bongo solos!), Modesto Duran, Milt Holland, Earl Palmer, Larry Bunker, Red Callender, Plas Johnson, Buddy Collette, Gerald Wilson..; it's the MOST, dad!; "Caesar's Pad," here abridged for 45 play, is one of the 2 lead, killer tracks from the great Romesville LP (shown); w/all-star players & Googie's far-out narration
Beatnik Books
Please note: shipping/handling for books is gratis!
Steve Allen's Bop Fables; Simon & Schuster; 1955; hardcover, illustrated by George Price; Goldilocks & the Three Cool Bears, Three Mixed-Up Little Pigs, Crazy Red Riding Hood, Jack & the Real Flip Beanstalk -- sensational "kid's" book that further mines a golden idea; never too late to redo childhood as a hipster; 3rd press, some cover wear, $50
Bob Reisner: Beat Bop & Cool; Citadel, New York (no date); paperback, 64 pages, illustrated by Cecil Brathwaite! -- jokes, humor, cartoons; some cover wear, $50
James W. (Jim) Schock: Life is a Lousy Drag; Unicorn Publishing Co.; 1958; paperback, illustrated by Trubee Campbell -- thin/brief but excellent, not-so-exploitative guide to/meditation on the beat scene; some cover wear, $50
John Schuyler: Beatnik Party; Bedside Books; 1959; paperback, 175 pages, fiction -- "The truth about the wild orgies of San Francisco's beat generation!"; "Crazed with Strange Desires...Shameful Affairs!"; classic beatploitation, some cover wear, $30
See Also:
jazz for mod jazz, noir jazz, etc.
Latin for mod Latin
Wanted Records:
- Johnny Beeman: Laughin' Beatnik
- Bill & Ray: Hillbilly Beatnik
- Lord Buckley: Hipsters, Flipsters and Finger Poppin' Daddies Knock Me Your Lobes; RCA Victor (10" or 12" reissue)
- Lord Buckley: The Parabolic Revelations of; Pye PPL-208 (UK LP)
- The Caltones: The Beards
- Chaquito: Spies & Dolls, maybe others (John Gregory)
- Al "Jazzbo" Collins: Little Red Riding Hood/The Pee Little Thrigs (Capitol)
- Bing Day: Mama's Place
- Jimmy Van Eaton: Beat-Nik/Foggy; Rita 1004 (must play cleanly)
- Gene Eunice: Beatnik
- Barbara Evans: Beatnik Daddy
- Joe Hall & the Corvettes: Bongo Beatin' Beatnik
- Jim Henson: The Country Side/Tick Tock Sick; Signature
- James Komack: The Beat Generation
- Tony Rodelle Larson: Bear Rug
- Ken Nordine: Next Word Jazz, Word Jazz Vol. 2, Grandson of Word Jazz, plant LP
- Louis Nye: Teenage Beatnik
- Richard Pine: Beatnik Bill
- Russ Reagan: Be Bop de Bongo
- Googie Rene: Caesar's Pad (Rendezvous version)
- Various: Radio Programme, No. 1: Henry Jacobs' "Music & Folklore"; Folkways FW03861; 1955
© Hip Wax
to order
Tony Mottola: Danger ST