Complete Collection Countdown

 Hallmark Records, 1969 Category: Crooner, jazz standard pop Another jazz standards pull... I need to start mixing up what bag I'm pulling from as I put things away! This may be the first record to fall victim to the purge. I'm a bit on the fence, because Sinatra is such a standard, but the recording quality on this LP isn't great and I have another compilation with more of my preferred songs. I'll have to give than one a listen and then make my decision.

 Pablo Records, 1978\ Category: Jazz By a funny coincidence, I pulled out my only other album that features Joe Pass, and it's another great one.  I thought myself pretty well informed when it came to jazz growing up; thus, it was a surprise when I got my hands on this album (not sure where) and realized that Sarah Vaughan and her incredible voice existed. Somehow, up to that point, she had slipped by me. Wowee. If you like vocal jazz, this is worth a listen. Also, great backing band!

Pablo Live, 1981 Category: Jazz This is a great record. It's chill enough to be good listening for dinner or hangouts, but also very mentally engaging and stimulation for more intensive listening. Joe Pass has elements of Django Reinhardt, but also a style all his own. Listening to him improvise is a genuine pleasure.  I picked this record up at the ReFound shop on Thistle Street, and was very excited to find it. I used to have a burned cd of some solo recordings of his, and that was great, but hearing him with the trio is a real treat. You can tell he is really exploring and having fun. No regrets on this purchase!

 Animal Records, Chrysalis, 1984  Category: Dark American Country Folk Rock? Very difficult to categorize At one time, I would have described the Gun Club as my favourite band. It it still up there and no mistake, I just find it hard to choose "my favourite". This genre probably isn't for everyone, but something in it speaks to me. It's dark, impassioned, imperfect, and feels like it's telling timeless stories. I had a really hard time finding copies of these records, so I was pumped when Sympathy for the Record Industry re-released them on coloured vinyl. This one came in green, which happens to be my favourite colour, which was a nice bonus. Look at how pretty it is! I am going to stop writing now and just enjoy listening to side two.

 Island Records, 1974 Category: Folk, folk rock I LOVE this record. It was recorded live in London, and its vibes remind me of being at Fundy Folk when I was a kid growing up on the land cooperative. Traditional tunes with and electric edge, with some blues/country thrown in here or there for good measure. There is some awesome fiddle playing as well, which I always appreciate, being a fiddle player myself.  I am pretty sure I picked this record up at Plan B on Gottingen Street. I had come across one of their tunes years before when doing some exploring via Soulseek, and liked it, so I nabbed this. It far exceeded my expectations. I thought they were going to be more folky like Simon and Garfunkel meets The Mamas and the Papas, and was very stoked to be thrown into some solid jigs and reels. I highly recommend if traditional Irish / Scots folk is your jam. 

 Polydor, 1980 Category: Mod Rock I have a special "affection" for The Jam (See what I did there?). I came to them in a rather roundabout way. I acquired a mislabeled mix tape, with a song that I liked which was attributed to them. It turned out later it was 54-40 (a story for another day), but not before I had expressed interest in the band to one of my coworkers, Laura, who was a few years older than me and had great musical taste. She made me a mix cd that was actually The Jam, and I have been a fan ever since!  This album has some great tracks on it, and a fun 80's era record sleeve. I wouldn't say that every song is a banger, but it's definitely a keeper.

 RCA Victor, 1973  Category: Art Rock What a weird emotional journey this album is. There are parts that are delightful, and others that are grating. I actually had to turn it off halfway through the second side because it was making my partner depressed! That said, it's a Lou Reed album through and through, and one I will keep. I'll just listen to it when my partner's not around ;) I have a fondness for Lou Reed thanks to discovering the Velvet Underground at just the right stage of high school. My friends and I were not very conventional, and related to the weirdness and the raw expression of feelings or ways of being that were taboo in rural Nova Scotia in the 90s. This album is one I picked up later, so it's not one I have a huge connection with, but it's staying all the same.