Songs from Beneath the Spaghetti Tree Vol. 53

 

After the previous volume which was dedicated to the 60s & 70s, back to normal for this one. A wide selection of (mostly) obscure music spanning every decade from the 60s to the present day, though this volume leans heavily towards psychedelia. Not much of a surprise there I guess!

Thanks again to Sarah who's online photos I will be using for artwork on the current batch of Spaghetti Tree volumes. Also thanks to Manerg who's bandcamp wishlist I found quite influential in some of the artists featured on this volume. Info on each track provided in download file.

  1. The Boo Radleys - I Will Always Ask You Where You've Been Even Though I Know the Answer (3:04)

  2. The Dandelion Set - Pristina Strawberry Girl (2:23)
  3. Richard in Your Mind - All I Can Do (3:30)
  4. The Future Eve featuring Robert Wyatt - 04.08 (2:49)
  5. The Galaxy Electric - Calm Down (3:38)
  6. Edu Passeto & Gui Tavares - Herói de Jornal (2:20)
  7. Gravenhurst - The Velvet Cell (5:00)
  8. Robyn Hitchcock & Andy Partridge - Turn Me On, Deadman (3:34)
  9. Pilot - Auntie Iris (1:48)
10. Testbild! - Vita Staden (4:53)
11. Forever Pavot - Ça Lance (3:16)
12. The Paupers - Black Thank You Package (3:08)
13. Syd Barrett - Golden Hair (Take 5) (2:13)
14. Here and Now - Seventies Youth (4:57)
15. Choo Choo Train - Happy Bicycle (2:55)
16. Fred Lane & His Hittite Hotshots - The Man With the Foldback Ears (2:48)
17. Roy Wood - Wake Up (3:20)
18. Humphreys & Keen - You Too (3:48)
19. Svitlana Nianio - Episode 6 (3:09)
20. Los Destellos - Boogaloo del Perro (3:28)
21. Frown Pow'r - Keep the Bores at Bay (2:39)
22. Maud Octallinn - La Souplesse (2:41)
23. The New Lines - A Solitary Congress (3:50)
24. Super Furry Animals - Venus & Serena (3:24)

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Come My Way: The Best of St. Thomas

 

St. Thomas was the name used by Norwegian folk/alt.country musician Thomas Hansen. He died tragically young in 2007 at the age of 31. He'd taken a combination of drugs, some prescribed, some not, and it seems probable he arrived at his death through an unlucky and unintended combination of the two.  His mental problems had been well-known for several years, something of which he had openly expressed both from stage and in interviews. In his lifetime he released 6 studio albums and one live album. A posthumous album, titled "A Mouse in a Crowded House", consisting of demos recorded shortly before his death, was released in 2016.

The first time I heard St. Thomas was on one of the compilation CDs released by Uncut magazine, back in 2002. The track featured, "Oh I Have Left the Ground", was quite similar to the early/mid '70s recordings of Neil Young, a period of Young I find the most compelling, so I purchased the album it came from soon after. I was also luckily able to see him perform live on stage a couple of times in 2002/2003. 

For this compilation I've picked songs from all studio albums released when he was alive, plus a couple of EPs, and a track he contributed to a Lee Hazlewood tribute album. I decided not to include anything from the posthumous release, to me it's quite obvious most of these songs were nowhere near the finished article and should never have been released. Also missing are any tracks from the "Live in Europe" album, the first draft of this comp did include 3 tracks but I felt they sat uncomfortably with the studio recordings so I removed.

Lastly, thanks to the lovely Sarah who offered some advice/a song suggestion during the making of this compilation. More information about St. Thomas can be found here & here. Info about origin of each track included in download file. Enjoy!

  1. Mysterious Walks (2:39)
  2. Dance to the Disco (4:01)
  3. Twisted Cowboy (3:01)
  4. Oh I Have Left the Ground (3:27)
  5. Ride (3:24)
  6. Be Cool Be Nice (3:23)
  7. Into Your Deep (3:39)
  8. An Artist With a Brilliant Disguise (3:55)
  9. The Mexican Father (3:05)
10. The Railroad (2:53)
11. The Charity Ego (3:23)
12. She Married a Cowboy (3:26)
13. The Present (2:37)
14. People in the Forest (2:45)
15. Sheer Wonder (3:29)
16. Like You Know (3:14)
17. Sugarmilk Coffee (1:56)
18. Strangers Out of Blue (4:06)
19. Falling Down (3:21)
20. The Play (2:42)
21. What Have I Done (2:56)
22. Thinking (2:40)
23. A Long Long Time (3:11)
24. Like the Byrds (3:36)
25. Come My Way (2:58)

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