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Jeff

@jef.f_vinyl

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Record fancier in Sydney, Australia.
Classical, jazz, electro & more: my vinyl collection reviewed
Streisand album reviews: @jeffasydney

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Padam Padam, you hear it and you know …

Happy Aussie Music Monday 🎶 🐨 🍃 #aussiemusicmonday

Inspired by Edith Piaf’s original heartbeat torch song, Kylie’s ultra pop ‘Padam Padam’ smashed charts around the world and saw another career resurgence for the Aussie superstar.

‘Padam’ was the song of summer with a earworm hook that won Kylie the inaugural Best Pop Dance Recording award at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards (two decades after her first Grammy for ‘Come Into My World’.)

Subsequent singles were just as hot: ‘Tension’ the song went Top Ten and ‘Hold Onto Now’ (Kylie’s confessed favourite track on the album) Top 20.

2023 album ‘Tension’ is aimed at the dancefloor, the place where Kylie shines.

The ballad-free album feels like one joyous party, proudly sexy and escapist with high energy pop songs that still allow the singer space for her warm vocals.

‘Tension’ debuted at No.1 here in her homeland, becoming Minogue’s fourth consecutive No.1 album and eighth overall, and debuted at No.1 on the UK Albums Chart, making it Minogue’s ninth chart topper there.

While the Disco album left me cold, and previous albums were patchy, the Tension albums are undeniably great.

An infectiously fun album. An incredible era.

2023 Spotify Coke Bottle Clear Vinyl
Picture sleeve and glossy lyric sheet

#kylieminogue #tensionkylie #vinylcollection by @jef.f_vinyl

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4 hours ago

I would like, if I may, to take you on a strange journey … No, not Rocky Horror’s Transexual Transylvania, but Texan singer-songwriter Micah P.Hinson’s America.

I’ve been a fan of Hinson since his glorious 2004 debut, ‘Micah P. Hinson and the Gospel of Progress’. Many impressive albums followed.

Then in 2015, having just recovered the use of his arms after a car accident, Hinson spent two years on this masterpiece, using reel-to-reel tape machines, vintage keyboards, and old Tascam and Yamaha desks.

The result is 2017’s double LP concept album, ‘Micah P. Hinson Presents The Holy Strangers’.

Hinson moves effortlessly between elements of bluegrass, alt country, and Nick Cave style murder ballads. With an uplifting simplicity and an intellectual’s eye for lyrics. These are deeply poetic, warm, and dark tales. Hinson’s lilting baritone glides effortlessly across this heavily instrumental album.

From the lyrics, you may not glean the story unfolding but it’s a reflective, subtle and moving story of a wartime family.

There’s a long monologue slap-bang in the middle that sends chills: ‘Micah Book One’ is a spoken word piece over a Ry Cooder style guitar. It could read like a commentary on Trump’s America or even Israel’s destruction of Gaza. Or maybe it’s just an age old tale of abuse of power. It’s powerful and moving.

Then he’ll turn around and pluck the most sensitive and beautiful fireside ballad. The album ends in an almost psalm.

If you want to something different in your music take a dive into Hinson’s deeply strange and highly musical world.

“Hinson’s self-described “modern folk opera” drifts with the mesmerising quality of an old-time train. The choir, the striking spoken-word interlude, and the enriching strings that career throughout all help weave tales of life, love and loss with an engrossing, cinematic edge. Hinson has succeeded in creating a bewitching Americana record that is quite his own and his most accomplished work to date.” - The Guardian

2017 2LP Vinyl, gatefold from Full Time Hobby

#vinylcollection @micahphinson #micahphinson #americana by @jef.f_vinyl

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4 days ago

It’s #soundtracksunday Hosted by Scott @soundtracksunday

1983 ‘Two of a Kind’ spawned the very fun Top 5 hit ‘Twist of Fate’ by Our Livvie, otherwise known to the rest of the world as Olivia Newton-John.

The eighties was a golden era for ONJ. She’d had several hits in Australia and the UK before ‘Grease’ brought her global attention in 1978. That soundtrack is one of the best-selling of all time. From there the hits kept coming, from film ‘Xanadu’ and her 1981 album ‘Physical’.

While ‘Two of a Kind’ was a messy flop, its soundtrack did solid business - in fact it went platinum - thanks that lead single. And not for nothing. It’s fun.

And that describes this album. It isn’t great but it is fun. And if you like that 80s sound, it fits the bill perfectly.

Travolta’s vocals fail to really register, and none of the other featured artists reach the height of Livvie’s upbeat opener, but ‘Two of a Kind’ is a warm slice of early 80s synth pop and a great afternoon spin.

“Now, as terrible as Two of a Kind turned out to be — it was nominated for several Razzies that year — its soundtrack fared a little bit better. Three of the four songs Newton-John contributed to the album — “Twist of Fate,” “(Livin’ In) Desperate Times,” and her duet with Travolta, “Take a Chance” — charted as singles. Other notable tracks include Journey’s “Ask the Lonely,” which was originally intended for their 1983 album Frontiers but was placed on the Two of a Kind soundtrack instead. “It’s Gonna Be Special,” was a mild success on the R&B and dance charts in 1984.” - Popsose

Now you’re warned. Enjoy 🙌

#vinylcollection #olivianewtonjohn #soundtrackvinyl by @jef.f_vinyl

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8 days ago

If you only know Etta James from her lounge torch song ‘At Last’ you need to know she was never that sweet-voiced jazz singer the record companies so wanted her to be.

Her own style is raw and gutsy blues-funk, and in her live performances she let everyone know.

‘Etta James: The Montreux Years’ is a 2021 double live album of rare and previously unreleased live performances that documents James’s appearances at the Switzerland jazz festival between 1977 and 1993.

‘Respect Yourself’ and ‘Dust My Broom’ show the powerhouse blues; and ‘Something’s Got a Hold On Me’ - which she wrote right when “rhythm and blues were having their baby: rock n roll” - sizzles with Ray Charles-like gospel grooves.

But this is more than the songs, James is in electrifying form on these discs.

The double live album is part of a Montreux Jazz Festival and BMG collection series, “The Montreux Years”.

“James’ classic I’d Rather Go Blind is strongly emotive experience- you can hear her gospel background. Vital to the sound too is John Paul Jones’ (Led Zeppelin) mesmeric bass, especially doubled with tuba on the slinky All the Way Down.” - UK Jazz News

“Etta came out, in your face with both fists and rhythm swinging, in a program that is one tidal wave after another.” - American Highways

“Her delivery is powerful, containing that degree of rawness we associate with the better blues performers.” - Jazz Journal

2021 BMG. Heavyweight 180g vinyl, Remastered 2LP in a gatefold jacket with liner notes from Bob Merlis (Etta’s press agent and a close friend of Montreux organiser Claude Nobs).

@ettajamesofficial #ettajames #vinylcollection #montreuxjazzfestival #blues by @jef.f_vinyl

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13 days ago

I was backpacking around the world in 1991, and found myself in NYC right before Paul Simon’s free concert in Central Park.

I took a blanket and plenty of food and got a spot right at the front and waited all day. Friends joined me later, pushing through the dense crowd to get to my patch. Over 500,000 people turned up that day.

The event was part of Simon’s ‘Born at the Right Time’ tour and he sang plenty of his hits, including those from Simon & Garfunkel (‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’, ‘The Boxer,” and ‘The Sound of Silence’). But what came next is what has stayed with me.

With the backing of a dozen South African artists Simon played songs from ‘Graceland’, the world conquering 1986 album that revitalised his career.

Before ‘Graceland’, Simon was in a rough patch: the breakup of his partnership with Garfunkel, the deterioration of his marriage and the failure of his previous album.

Things turned around when he found a bootleg album of South African street music. He went to Johannesburg and recorded with musicians there (paying them over ten times local rate) creating and then touring the work that became ‘Graceland’.

He flew several South African musicians to New York to finish the album, as well as working with a slew of artists living a NYC.

‘Graceland’ topped the charts in a dozen countries, scored a Grammy for Album of the Year, and is revered as one of the greatest albums of all time.

Back at that warm August night, the concert was incredible, shared with hundreds of thousands of happy fans. He performed songs ‘Graceland’, ‘Boy in the Bubble’ and an incredible ‘Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes’. Comedian Chevy Chase even popped up for the album’s Top 5 hit ‘You Can Call Me Al’.

Magic time. Perfect album.

2015 reissue by Music On Vinyl.
Remastered, 180-gram audiophile vinyl

#vinylcollection #paulsimon #paulsimongraceland by @jef.f_vinyl

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19 days ago

Oh, how I obsessed over this album as a teenager. I can still sing every word.

Is it the epic 3-minute guitar outro on ‘Stark Raving Love’? Is it monster ballad ‘Surf’s Up’ (with its cheeky “and so am I” lyric)? Is it the white straight man overcoming his fear of dancing in the battle ‘Dance in My Pants’? Is it the orgiastic paean to music itself in ‘Rock and Roll Dreams Come Through’.

Yes, yes, yes and yes. Plus the epic title track, and the airy ‘Lost Boys’.

When ‘Bat out of Hell’ singer Meat Loaf lost his voice after exhaustively touring their monster album, songwriter Jim Steinman stepped in and recorded the follow-up himself, assisted by ‘Bat’ back-up singer Rory Dodd, who covers the notes - and entire songs - out of Jim’s vocal reach.

Meat Loaf’s loss was the world’s gain.

1981 ‘Bad for Good’ scored mixed reviews - mostly for the fact that Jim’s voice couldn’t compare to Meat’s - yet it is a gift for fans: a chance to hear the star growl and emote through his own songs. His demented vocal on rock opera ‘Left in the Dark’ (later covered woefully by Barbra Streisand) is everything, his ‘Dance in My Pants’ character is a delight.

Fans may note that ‘Stark Raving Love’ was later reworked into Bonnie Tyler's ‘Holding Out for a Hero’.

‘Bat Out of Hell’ was the first album I ever bought and I was pretty obsessed with it. I loved this Steinman solo project just as much.

Oddly, the album came with a 7” single of two extra tracks. I play them as an intro (mission statement ‘Rock n Roll Dreams Come Through’) and finish the album with the huge orchestral work ‘The Storm’ as finale.

Meat Loaf went on to cover many of the tracks on this album, and while he did a great job with them, nothing beats Jim and Rory’s originals.

“Stark Raving Love' has the most amazing ending: two guitars playing duelling solos, back and forth until, at the end, they both play, but not the same thing. It is stunning.” - Weekend Notes

“An essential companion to Bat Out of Hell—brilliant, chaotic, and wonderfully excessive.“ -Tom Gillard

#vinylcollection #jimsteinman #batoutofhell @realjimsteinman by @jef.f_vinyl

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23 days ago

‘Gershwin: Leonard Bernstein’ is a pair of classic 1959 recordings by Leonard Bernstein leading the New York Philharmonic and the Columbia Symphony Orchestra.

At his fingertips are two of the most iconic works from America’s most-loved (and probably most accomplished) composer, George Gershwin, who really created a new American sound by knitting together elements of classical, jazz, blues and Broadway.

You would probably buy this for ‘Rhapsody in Blue’ but you’ll stay for the languid and evocative ‘An American in Paris’, the “rhapsodic ballet” that imagines a US visitor enthralled by the streets of Paris.

Both are incredible pieces of music. Bernstein takes solo piano duties on ‘Rhapsody’.

“Opening with what must be the most famous clarinet glissando in modern music, Rhapsody In Blue paints a kaleidoscope of the New World — the melting pot, the blues, the seething city life — in roughly fifteen minutes. Bernstein takes a double role as conductor and soloist with the Columbia Symphony Orchestra in this celebrated 1959 reading, maneuvering through the diversified score with hefty orchestral dynamics and finely chiseled solo playing. On the flip side the New York Philharmonic paints the impressions of a visitor to the hectic French capital in the autobiographical sketch An American in Paris — that, too, is the sound of America.” - The In Groove

“Speakers Corner has done justice to this historical recording. They have maintained the Columbia Masterworks high technical level of recording fidelity. The mic levels on “Rhapsody In Blue” are perfectly even. The piano never overtakes the orchestra. Every minute detail (reed, violin, percussion) is mixed adroitly and sounds crystalline. This remastered vinyl is flawless.” - audaud

“This is THE version of Rhapsody in Blue. I often wonder what it was like for people the first time this was played in a concert hall, how overwhelming.” - Amazon customer review

2016 Remaster by Speakers Corner Records.
Reissued by Ermitage.
180-gram analog remaster

#vinylcollection #gershwin #classicalvinyl by @jef.f_vinyl

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a month ago

As a fan of Californian soul collective The Internet, who merge smooth soul, jazz and grooves, I was pretty interested to follow the solo efforts of bassist Patrick Paige II.

2021 sophomore solo album ‘If I Fail Are We Still Cool?’ doesn’t disappoint, while leaning deeper into the hip-hop and RnB.

Set around a long flight (“Good morning ladies and gentlemen, please fasten your seatbelts …”) before widening into rap, this is an addictive trip.

Paige II brings along a whole bunch of friends to help the flight go smoothly, including Saba, Forte Bowie, Westside McFly, Ohana Bam, Syd, Steve Lacy, Allen Love, Durand Bernarr, and Paco TP.

Get onboard ✈️

“If I Fail … still explores Paige’s emotional state, but the songs are wide-open and inviting. These are hookier, punchier songs that combine melody and penmanship with skill. There are even convincing flex tracks like ‘Big Plays’ and ‘Westside Player Shit’, and he’s got the charisma to own it. “ - Loud and Quiet

“Smooth bars mixed with some truly amazing and chill production helps this album shine. It feels right at home in the catalog of his fellow group members. So if you love The Internet, this is definitely an album you need to be bumping.” - Lifoti

“Patrick’s solo work is anchored by a conversation between his splashy, Cali-drawl and a series of poping rhythms and grooves. “So They Say” sees Patrick weaving between a sunny guitar hook like a sparrow dodging between telephone poles, and the funk fusion of “40,000 Feet” envisions Patrick as cruising around on a cloud, checking his reflection in the windows of passing sky scrappers, and dropping care packages to the people below. Chicago’s Saba makes a wheel-heisting appearance on “Freestyle” where he spits fire over a reflective pond of tubular percussion and drizzly fusion founts.” - New Noise

“Start with the bluesy “So They Say” and the spaced-out synth soul of “Who Am I,” unflinching and deeply analytical songs.” - AllMusic

#vinylcollection #theinternetband #hiphopsoul by @jef.f_vinyl

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a month ago

Album of the Year contender 🌟 Happy Aussie Music Monday 🎶 🐨 🍃

Classically trained Aussie singer-songwriter Kate Miller-Heidke steps into gothic pop with 2026 ‘The Kiss & The Abyss’.

Twenty years into a successful career, the seemingly sunny Miller-Heidke, who has always embraced the theatrical and the kooky, has somehow channelled Kate Bush, Nick Cave, soprano Jessye Norman, and a medieval doomscroller. It’s an intoxicating mix that suits her well.

The highlights are many: the radio-friendly pop cool of ‘Isabella Don’t’, the clear-eyed look at celebrity in the folky ‘A Certain Panic’, and a new Aussie classic in ‘Butterflies’.

As usual, the album is packed with humour, from the post-apocalyptic ‘Little Ants’ (“teachers fighting over cans of peaches”) to ‘Holiday’: “Come on dickheads, we’re going to the beach!”

Then there’s the swirling Bjork-esque ‘Elephant’ - a song of the year contender - the dark and beautiful ‘Canterbury Stone’, and the sparse ballad ‘Love Sweet Love’.

Created with longtime collaborator (and hubby) Keir Nuttall and produced by Tom Iansek in Peter Gabriel’s studio in England, the 2026 album debuted at No.11 on the ARIA Albums Chart and No.2 on the ARIA Australian Artist Albums Chart.

“Eleven songs of beauty, darkness, humour, theatrical storytelling and raw emotion. And somehow, through all of that, it remains unmistakably Kate.” - Hear 2 Zen

“Filled with rich instrumentation, folk influences and moments of darkness, but underneath all of that grandeur is something deeply human and warm.” - Future Magazine

“It’s been six years since her last album, and the beloved multi-hyphenate is ready to not only begin again but get decidedly real. Dark, funny, beautiful and surprising.” - The Music

Exclusive Red Kiss Vinyl
Gatefold with signed art card, from @merchjungle

#vinylcollection #gothicpop #katemillerheidke
#aussiemusicmonday @katemillerheidke by @jef.f_vinyl

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a month ago

1967 ‘Nina Simone Sings The Blues’ feels like a live album, backed by just a small combo and stripped of studio polish.

After successful albums for Colpix and Philips, Simone moved to RCA in 1966 and released her first blues album.

Opening tracks ‘Do I Move You’, and ‘In the Dark’ set a tone of pure class.

‘My Man’s Gone Now’ Is the kind of Simone track you get at least once on every album, a stripped back track of pure emotion, where you forget to breathe between the first note and the final syllable.

Then just as quickly she changes tack to ‘I Want a Little Sugar in My Bowl’, a track whose deep blues elevates its cheeky lyrics.

These four tracks are all standouts in Simone’s catalogue. (‘Do I Move You’ and ‘Sugar’ appear on plenty of my playlists.)

The album keeps moving to interesting places, with a mournful, harmonica-driven ‘Since I Fell for You’ and a vibrant take on ‘House of the Rising Sun’.

The album isn’t perfect, there are flat spots, and the band doesn’t always match Simone, but she always rises above it.

When she’s this good, no one beats Nina Simone.

“A variety of blues songs (including originals), translated with authenticity and deep feeling. On “Do I Move You?” Simone’s contralto vocals are spellbinding. Her meticulous articulation and soulful urgency are palpable. Simone shows her flexibility with a funky, vintage r & b version of “Day And Night”, brings a slow-burning intensity to the Big Bill Broonzy ditty “In The Dark”. Things pick up on the roof-shaking Sunday morning (with organ) opus, “Real Real;” Her scaled-down cover of “My Man’s Gone Now” is achingly beautiful with deep spirituality. Simone distills the aching melancholy that is at the heart of blues music.” - Audiophile Audition

“She was known as the High Priestess of Soul for good reason. Nina Simone knew how to move you. Every time she sang the blues, you could feel it in your bones.” - All About Jazz

#ninasimone #vinylcollection #ninasiminesingstheblues by @jef.f_vinyl

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a month ago

Music was changing in 1980 as punk and disco collapsed into New Wave and Ultravox helped launch the new sound.

‘Vienna’ is the British band’s fourth album but their first with new lead singer Midge Ure, a former guitarist with Visage. Ure brought a whole raft of new ideas and enthusiasm and was embraced by the band who otherwise were facing an uncertain future.

It was a match made in heaven.

The album had a slow start on the charts, and it didn’t explode until January 1981 with the release of titular fourth single.

‘Vienna’ the single was a huge hit. An ear tickling combination of minimal synth meets full orchestral chorus: a blend of vintage analog synthesizers, drum machine, grand piano, and a live viola. It went Top Ten around the world (11 here in Australia) and propelled the album to No.3 in the UK, (Top Ten in Australia, New Zealand and Europe).

There are so many great tracks here, the instrumental opener ‘Astradyne’ and first single ‘Sleepwalk’ (Top 30 in the UK) among them.

Elsewhere, the ultrasleek ‘Mr X’ and ‘Western Promise’ could be among the coolest art-rock tracks ever.

‘Vienna’ the song is still pop perfection and should have lead the album rather than getting sidelined to the penultimate track.

This album was a moment in time. If you were there, you get it. If not, this probably means nothing to you. Oh, Vienna.

“One of the great creative pop triumphs of the early 80s. Originally led by the charismatic, lethally cheekboned John Foxx, the band’s first three albums had drawn in fans of artful and forward-thinking rock. But it was the subsequent arrival of frontman Midge Ure that turned them into bona fide pop stars.” - Louder

“Vienna is an album of great beauty that manages to be both cold-blooded and fierce at the same time.” - Sputnik Music

A happy crate-dig find.

#ultravox #80smusic #newwavemusic by @jef.f_vinyl

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2 months ago

The designer of the Zombies second album misspelled ‘Odyssey’. Sadly for him, the album didn’t quietly disappear but became a much-loved classic. And the cover art remains one of the greats, even with the typo … or maybe because of it.

1968 ‘Odessey and Oracle’ is most famous for its single ‘Time of the Season’, which is three-and-a-half minutes of pure 60s psychedelic pop glory.

There’s nothing else quite like it on the album - or in the universe - and its power is slightly dimmed by being the closing track. Surely this is track three, after the sensational ‘Care of Cell 44’ and the sweet Beatles-esque ‘Rose for Emily’. It would be perfect here.

Either way, this is a magical album.

The Zombies had a few early hits, ‘Tell Her No’ and ‘She’s Not There’. But then things went quiet. ‘Odessey’, made quickly and on a tight budget, was a last ditch effort at another hit. It was recorded in Abbey Road studios just after The Beatles had recorded Sgt. Pepper’s - the Zombies used a lot of the same equipment (see insert photo above.)

Sadly, the album flopped on release and the band broke up. But the album just grew and grew in stature.

‘Time of the Season’ became a surprise hit in the US a year after the album’s release, went on to become a signature song of the era, and led to the band’s resurgence.

“Decades ahead of its time, Odessey and Oracle stands as one of the late 60s’ greatest achievements.” - Pitchfork

“Even in a late ‘60s rich with groundbreaking psychedelic chamber pop, few albums achieved the same magic as the Zombies’ 1968 masterwork. Odessey and Oracle tapped into a very specific balance of mysterious, moody vocal harmonies, Baroque instrumentation, joyful sunshine pop, and lovelorn songwriting so sadly beautiful that these 12 tunes remain fascinating and unique over 50 years later.” - AllMusic

“This gem should grace any record collection.” - BBC

“Love that they embraced the typo.” - tectactoe

2025 Limited Edition Orchid Indie Vinyl.
Features the band’s original 1968 mono mix, photo insert, and new liner notes by David Fricke

#vinylcollection #thezombies #psychpop by @jef.f_vinyl

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2 months ago