Jive Time Turntable

Stranglers “Dreamtime” (1986)

The last album with The Stranglers original line-up, Dreamtime is an excellent collection of smooth pop. Referring to an Australian aboriginal term for the drug-induced trance when the elders walk with the spirits, this is no studious examination of primitive cultural beliefs but rather an aural travelogue.

“Big In America”, “Mayan Skies” and “Nice In Nice” are written more for effect than any real interest in the subjects but it is the calibre of both music and overall sound which lifts the whole album above the norm. Each song is imbued with its own sense of place and perception as if written to create the perfect mood. In the main it works perfectly and is an excellent companion piece to their previous album Aural Sculpture. The Stranglers continue with their fondness for horns and Was It You? is particularly effective. Dreamtime was also good from a singles perspective for the band. Besides “Shakin’ Like A Leaf”, The Stranglers found differing shades of chart success with “Nice In Nice”, “Big In America” and “Always The Sun”. But, in truth, it would have been just as easy for the record company to choose the likes of “Ghost Train”, “Was It You?” or “Too Precious” as alternatives. —Ian

Graham Nash “Songs for Beginners” (1971)

In one of the finest years in music, Graham Nash delivered the finest of all Crosby, Stills & Nash solo releases. A true masterpiece, that he could never equal again. Sure, the hit ‘Chicago’ with is famous “we can change the world” is naive and dated, but it gives a good impression about the time in which this song was released. It’s also such an incredibly beautiful song. Great vocals all the way through, and besides ‘Chicago’ as an obvious highlight, there’s also magnificent songwriting in ‘Military Madness’, (“the army had my father and my mother was having me”), ‘Man In The Mirror’, ‘Be Yourself’, ‘There’s Only One’ and ‘I Used To Be A King’ to mention a few. No filler! With work as impressive as this, you would expect that he’d become as great as Neil Young (who plays piano on one track). “Songs For Beginners” is probably as great as Neil’s best albums, and that’s arguably the greatest compliment you can get. —Dominique

Stomu Yamash’ta, Steve Winwood & Michael Shrieve “Go” (1976)

This is the album through which Stomu Yamash’ta finally gained international recognition, not least because of Traffic’s Steve Winwood’s presence. Among the other stars are Michael Shrieve (ex-Santana and you can hear a bit of this influence at times on this album) and not mentioned on the album cover, Al DiMeola and Klaus Schulze.

Slowly rising from naught, first with space whispers, soon transformed into a beautiful melancholic symphonic movement, “Solitude” is a logical introduction to the first sung passage “Nature,” here Winwood’s voice is at it’s best. The first side is a succession of structured songs linked with instrumental passages, be they calm or more heroic/dramatic. While the strings can approach the cheesy, some of the songs can be Santana-esque (courtesy of DiMeola and Shrieve) with a funky touch (much more prominent a feature on next year’s Go Too album), the whole thing works quite well. The flipside gets even better, with the same spacey Schulze intro, later on a slightly dissonant movement including the orchestra and again later a wild funk track Time Is Here with the orchestra playing the rhythm.

Go is one outstanding album that should really be heard by everyone and certainly progheads around the world. —Sean

Billy Paul “War of the Gods” (1974)

Billy Paul was always one of the hippest talents on Philly International – mixing together soul and jazz influences with a deeper sense of spirituality, and long experience as a sophisticated vocalist. This album’s one of his most sublime efforts – kind of a quasi-spiritual record with a similar high-concept approach to some of Marvin Gaye’s work from the same time. Gamble and Huff produced and wrote most of the record – including the two long tracks that make up side one, “I See The Light” and “War Of The Gods”, the latter of which starts out slow and moody, then breaks out into a club groove. Other titles include the more standard soul tune “The Whole Town’s Talking”, plus “Thanks For Saving My Life” and “Peace Holy Peace”. —Chris

Jive Time Records’ Tenth Anniversary!

Jive Time turns ten! After a decade of serving Seattle quality used records, our mission remains the same: to make shopping for music as much fun as listening to it!

Thank you Seattle. Because of your support, we’re able to share our passion for music together. We promise to continue our commitment to bringing you fresh stock daily, always at competitive prices. Follow us on Facebook, for stores news, special offers, album reviews, music polls, guides, and more!

Donald Fagen “The Nightfly” (1982)

This is one of those albums – like Marquee Moon, like Exile on Main Street – that I’ve always liked, but that the years since my initial purchase have only deepened my appreciation of its qualities. I think that everyone who cares already knows this record, so I’ll just focus in on the things that I dote on the most. First and foremost, we have “I.G.Y.” which is quite possibly the greatest song Fagen ever wrote or will write. Though coming off as an incredible and subtle little pop tune, this one reaches far and wide, offering up a vision of the United States circa 1957 (note – pre-Vietnam conflict, pre-Kennedy/King assassinations), where boundless promise seemed like the norm of the nation and you’d have to admit it, the future looks bright. But to release it in 1982, early on in the Reagan era, it takes on a totally different meaning – not quite the simple sarcastic riposte that it could have been, but more a longing look at what happened in the U.S. between that era of promise and today – with “today” not just meaning 1982, but also 1969, also 2002, also 2006, and probably 2023 as well. It’s an amazing song to me, among the best pop tunes ever, and imbued with a depth and intelligence that lesser songwriters (and novice listeners) would miss entirely. Terrific shit, and it’s only the beginning – “Green Flower Street” seems like a simple love song but glances off racial relations in the process; “Ruby Baby” is probably just a great, soulful cover, but what a cover it is! And the album keeps going like that, sometimes sticking with the personal, sometimes alluding to the political, and sometimes mixing them up to great effect, as in “New Frontier” and “Walk Between Raindrops.” Every song here is a finely crafted masterwork, as you’d expect from one of the brains behind Steely Dan, but I think that this may actually trump most of Dan’s albums for me because Fagen actually sounds less cynical here – even happy. It may be a guarded and cautious happiness, but I know happiness when I hear it, and it is here. —Patrick

Crabby Appleton “Crabby Appleton” (1970)

With a lot of obscure rock bands from the ’60s and ’70s you might be able to pinpoint that one ingredient the band may have been missing in order to grab hold of a large audience or get radio play. With Crabby Appleton, any listener should be at a complete loss for words as to how this band got denied the success they so richly deserved! The band’s 1970 debut for the Elektra label speaks for itself, and loudly at that. From the first cut to the last, there isn’t one musical misstep on this entire L.P.! It is truly a lost gem of the early power-pop genre. Led by Mike Fenelley who teamed up with local L.A. band Stonehenge to form Crabby Appleton, the band’s main strength was their irresistible pop rock sound, but there was much more to the band than just a Top 40 style garnered for mass appeal. How many pop-rock bands could also incorporate a Santana styled percussive section into their music and make it sound completely natural? Or suddenly break out into a little classical based prog-rock without missing a beat? That’s not to say you’re going to have to endure any over the top Santana jams or 30 minute Emerson, Lake, and Palmer solos with Crabby Appleton, just a pinch of each to liven up the mix. Rolling Stone magazine actually gave this album a crowning review when it was released and you know THAT’S saying something. I’m certainly glad I took a chance on this album because I was rewarded GREATLY! —M McKay

Wishbone Ash “Wishbone Ash” (1970)

Wishbone Ash’s self-titled debut album is a triumph of early seventies rock. It successfully merges elements of hard, folk and progressive rock to form an original compound. The album starts with the rocking but somehow stuttering “Blind Eye”. The effect is almost teasing. Next up is the harder, more progressive “Whiskey Lady”. This particular track is like Atomic Rooster in some ways: the singing, some tasty, catchy, heavy riffs, longish instrumental sections and great soloing. But then it’s not as dark as most Atomic Rooster and doesn’t feature Vincent Crane’s Hammond organ. Still, it’s an excellent track and one of my favorites from these guys. This is followed by another progressive piece, “Errors of my Way”. This is altogether much gentler with harmony singing giving it a distinctly folky feel. It’s a lovely track, and another favorite.

The second half is devoted to just two tracks. “Handy” is an almost completely instrumental track at over 11 minutes ling. It hints at some of their beautiful, gentle compositions that were to appear on the next album. This is followed by “Phoenix” another long track (over 10 minutes). This again is an almost all instrumental track. Some of the guitar playing here reminds me of early Fleetwood Mac.

“Wishbone Ash” is a great achievement for 1970. —Jim

Rahsaan Roland Kirk “Prepare Thyself to Deal With a Miracle” (1973)

If Rahsaan Roland Kirk truly was a god (you’ll have to grant me this assumption), Prepare Thyself is his book of Isaiah, a document that ties together the history of his people, their current challenges and predicaments, all the while pointing to a glorious future. Classical, blues, Romantic, free, modal, bop: Kirk masters it all, tamps and shapes it into a heroic, tender Black Music.

“Saxophone Concerto” is the fireworks show on the record; Kirk blows for 20 minutes continually amid a din of dancing styles. In places it sounds like circus music, but really, Kirk’s running you down with the whole troupe (bop, chant, free), pointing out the mastery in the chaos with his fiery sax leads. It’s a story of awakening, of talent leading to craftsmanship leading to personal and cosmic freedom. The end is an ocean of drone and liberty. I’m straining here- listen to the record. There’s more. “Salvation and Reminiscing” is a ghost’s workout, his vocalists hauntingly echo his minor-key phrases, before a roiling string section (complete with chimes and timpani) chases Kirk through the woods. He goes through a tonal workout before echoing the strings’ theme, which then gets resolved in a most cinematic manner. There’s still more. “Seasons” puts every post-rock band to shame with its main section. After a folksy duet ‘tween nose flute and what sounds like finger cymbals, Rahsaan coos softly above a plucked bass, lurching between the same two or three evocative notes. Soon, Kirk is pushing the limits of his flute, aspirating loudly, groaning and muttering like a floor-bound Pentacostal. But it’s all joy. I hear snips of what could be him saying “aw yeah”; regardless, he sounds happy as hell, completely peaceful and in control of a fucking cloud machine. For ten minutes, he captivates with an expression of pure awe and a simplistic background that puts today’s guitar-bound clods to shame. I can’t recommend this record enough. —Silent Mike

Hüsker Dü “New Day Rising” (1985)

Some say Zen Arcade, I say New Day Rising. Although fourteen songs long, it feels shorter due to these guys’ songwriting chops. There’s no fat on this disc. “Folk Lore” could’ve been a seven-minute spiel, but the Hüskers get in a couple impressionistic verses and they’re out. The second-longest track, the four-minute “Celebrated Summer,” is absolutely crucial. If God made a mix CD about nostalgia, etc. Other highlights include the epic opening track, which consists of the boys invoking the titular phrase over and over until you BELIEVE it, and “I Apologize,” perhaps the most moving song ever. One of my top ten all-time. Add to that the perfect love song “Books About UFOs” (its “watch out- wha- whooo!” break segueing into the brief solo still has the power to choke me up). Even the curtsies to hardcore (“Whatcha Drinkin'”, “Powerline”) end up catchier and more grand than most Midwest bands could ever dream about. To this day, slews of bands only get as far as the idea of Hüsker Dü – why would you shortchange the masters? This record is aching for you. — Silent Mike