whisper sweet surprise

On the outside, this unassuming metal box may look like yet another means for Andrew to earn a row of stitches and a tetanus shot, but inside...

...is a veritable treasure trove of 7" wonders from the Me Decade, providing an interesting cross section of funk, rock, and disco flavors of the moment.

It's another one of Maura's estate sale discoveries, purchased a decade ago, then pushed to a corner of attic due to my lack of a functioning turntable. The organization and selection of the singles in the box makes me wonder if it wasn't part of an actual or aspiring DJ's collection, as it contains all the up-to-the-moment tracks one would expect to hear at any given booze-and-artificial-fabric-fueled wedding reception thrown during the wild years of the Ford Administration.

The only turd in the punch bowl regarding this astonishing acquisition was that the previous owner took rather poor care of the collection, and removed the individual singles from their sleeves and let them rattle loose between cardboard inserts. While some miraculously managed to remain pristine despite the abuse, most have skips, scratches and pops.

I usually take such eccentricites of wear and tear in stride, as they are part and parcel of what gives vinyl its unique charm. I was not thrilled, however, when I discovered that the two b-side tracks by the Buckeye funkateers (a.k.a. the Ohio Players) I had planned on posting today turned out to be sonically mutilated beyond recognition.

Oh, well. There's always Option B, which is sweet indeed...

Sweet - Burn on the Flame (the b-side to the 1974 "Fox on the Run" single) - Nothing like a little classic bubbleglam to kick the summer off on the right rockin' note. I think of it as the Platonic ideal behind the 1980's glam metal scene's host of imperfect shadows.