The Weekend Stream: April 15, 2023
Welcome to The Weekend Stream, a relaxing weekly review of notable digital-only catalogue titles. There may be no CD or vinyl, but there’s plenty of great new/old music to usher you into the weekend. Rarities and oddities abound: cartoon soundtracks, early works from country legends, and more!
Pat Irwin, Rocko’s Modern Life (Original Music from the Series) (Nickelodeon) (iTunes / Amazon)
Joe Murray’s colorful cartoon about a harried wallaby and his misadventures was one of Nickelodeon’s edgier cartoons in the early-to-mid ’90s – a similar edge to The Ren & Stimpy Show, but a tad more subtle. Three decades after it first aired, the network has honored its quirky score by putting up a collection of suites from the series plus the original version of the theme (covered in later seasons by The B-52’s). Garbage day may be a very dangerous day, but there’s nothing to worry about here!
Gym Class Heroes & DJ Sliink, Cupid’s Chokehold (Club Mix) (Fueled by Ramen) (iTunes / Amazon)
The laid-rap-rock of Gym Class Heroes (fronted by the laconic Travie McCoy) came to a head on alternative and pop radio in the late ’00s when “Cupid’s Chokehold” – bolstered by Fall Out Boy frontman Patrick Stump singing the chorus of Supertramp’s “Breakfast in America” as a hook to the catchy song about young love – became a Top 5 hit. A decade after their lengthy hiatus, the group will be appearing at nascent alt-rock When We Were Young festival in Las Vegas this fall, have announced a vinyl reissue campaign and released this new mix of their breakthrough hit.
How to Dress Well, Love Remains (Unworking Remaster) / What Remains (Remixes) (Demino)
Love Remains: iTunes / Amazon
What Remains: iTunes / Amazon
The soulful electronic debut album by Tom Krell – better known as How to Dress Well – was lauded by critics and tastemakers when it was released in 2010. It’s now been remastered and reissued with new artwork and two previously unreleased live bonus tracks, alongside a new collection of remixed and reimagined tracks from the same album.
Nasty Rox Inc., Ca$h (Deluxe Edition) (ZTT) (iTunes / Amazon)
A quirky mix of late ’80s rock and club styles under the aegis of producer Trevor Horn, Nasty Rox Inc. personified the bizarre vision of ZTT Records. For the third digital release in honor of the label’s 40th anniversary, the album has been expanded with 11 rare and unreleased bonus cuts.
Starpoint, Keep on It / Wanting You / All Night Long (Chocolate City/UMG)
Keep on It: iTunes / Amazon
Wanting You: iTunes / Amazon
All Night Long: iTunes / Amazon
The group behind the 1985 hit “Object of My Desire” recently had their material from that era anthologized by SoulMusic Records, but Starpoint had their first hit of any size after signing to the Chocolate City label and releasing a Top 20 R&B hit, “I Just Wanna Dance with You,” in 1980. Now, all three of their Chocolate City albums are available digitally.
Alex North, The Sound and the Fury (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (Decca/UMG) (iTunes / Amazon)
1959’s loose adaptation of the William Faulkner novel, starring Yul Brynner and Janet Woodward, featured this score from the legendary Alex North, a few years removed from his breakthrough jazz scoring era that resulted in works like A Streetcar Named Desire but a year off from his sweeping work on Spartacus.
Dottsy, Tryin’ to Satisfy You (Expanded Edition) (RCA/Legacy) (iTunes / Amazon)
After last week’s expansion of country singer Dottsy’s debut album, here comes an expansion of her second and final LP for RCA, bolstered by the Top 10 country hit “(After Sweet Memories) Play Born to Lose Again” and here featuring some non-LP tracks for good measure.
Bobby Bare, The Capitol Years (Capitol/UMe) (iTunes / Amazon)
Bobby Bare’s storied country-folk career remains one of the most interesting in the genre during the ’60s and ’70s. But before that success, Bare endured a series of stalls – he famously co-wrote and sung the No. 2 hit “The All-American Boy” for Fraternity Records, who gave both credits to Bill Parsons – and initially tried to make it as a rock and roll singer during the genre’s earliest years. These six single sides for Capitol did not chart, but provide early insights into a true original.
Jim Nabors, The Twelfth of Never (Columbia) (iTunes / Amazon)
Between 1965 and 1974, Jim Nabors released over 20 long-players for the Columbia label showcasing his big, booming baritone: a sound so divorced from his speaking voice and golly, aw-shucks demeanor that The Andy Griffith Show spun comic gold out of the dichotomy. While Nabors’ deeply-felt gospel and Christmas albums have aged better, there’s still a sweet charm to his albums of pop covers such as this one. 1973’s The Twelfth of Never, produced and arranged by Snuff Garrett and Al Capps, respectively, features Nabors’ rendition of the title ballad as well as numerous hits of the day including “Alone Again (Naturally),” “And I Love You So,” and “Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree.” The artist’s gentle soul shines throughout.
Ray Conniff, Charlotte’s Web and Other Children’s Favorites (Columbia) (iTunes / Amazon)
Orchestra and choral group leader Ray Conniff, one of the longtime cornerstones of Columbia Records’ “easy listening” catalogue, delivered this 1973 compilation anchored by his new recording of Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman’s haunting “Charlotte’s Web” from the moving Hanna-Barbera animated film of the same name. The loosely-themed collection was rounded out by familiar kid-friendly classics from Mary Poppins, The Sound of Music, The King and I, and more, culled from past Conniff albums and all arranged and performed in his trademark smooth (and often jaunty) style.
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The two RCA Dottsy albums now available for download were both issued on CD as a “two-fer” in 2018 on the U.K. Cherry Red/Morello label. That disc also contains the six non-LP single A & B sides added as bonus tracks to the new download versions of the albums. Much appreciated whenever overlooked and hard-to-find single-only songs are included in album reissues
“Tryin’ To Satisfy You” was written by Waylon Jennings who makes an uncredited appearance playing lead guitar and singing harmony vocal on that track.