Melvins/Jon Spencer Blues Explosion- Black Betty (Splatter) 7"

Jon Spencer goes mano a mano with King Buzzo and his Melvins crew on this limited edition single. A mere 600 copies were pressed then sold on tour and through Amphetamine Reptile Records. They've already sold out so you'll need to have your own ebay boxing match if you want to get your hands on a copy. Both bands give raucous versions of the Leadbelly tune "Black Betty" here. Apparently, Black Betty was an early 19th century term for liquor and, justifiably, these versions go down well with a couple slugs of the sweet nectar. Jon Spencer should win this battle because the nature of the song is more in the Blues Explosion's wheelhouse, they are the Blues Explosion after all. However, the judges deducted points from Jon Spencer for the use of his version in a Volkswagon Super Bowl ad last year. It was a hard fought battle with both sides landing some good combinations, King Buzzo was on the ropes a couple of times, but the winner of this bout is.... Sideshow Bob and his Melvins!

Buy this record if you want to get punched by a bottle of tequila.

www.pop-catastrophe.co.uk/3024.aspx

Kraut! Demons! Kraut!- German Psychedelic Underground 1968-1974

Leave it to a Krautrock compilation to open with a song "Ready For Take Off" featuring buzzing airplane propellers and a manic drum solo. Even Krautrock fans will be hard pressed to name the bands on this compilation, there's no Faust, Amon Duul, or Neu!, although there is an unreleased track from Can, "Kama Sutra". There are some pure blues tunes as well, pointing out the correlation between early blues rock and the evolution of the Krautrock genre. Some tracks, like Trash's "Living In A Garden" with its "Sympathy For The Devil" hoot-hoots, are more accessible, but then Exmagma turn on the cosmic afterburners on "It's So Nice", a molten kaleidoscope of swirling organs, hypnotic guitar lines, and frantic cymbal crashes. A handful of tracks are fairly forgettable, but the variety and obscurity of the collection will ably freak any fan of the genre's mind.

Buy this record for that stein of Spaten Optimator, die tasche of mushrooms,  and haus saurbraten und gravy.

www.last.fm/music/Various+Artists/Kraut!+Demons!+Kraut!

Cecil Gant- Cecil Gant '44-'45 (Flyright 61)

Blues pianist who had a number one hit with the ballad "I Wonder" in the early forties and later recruited Nashville session players on guitar and bass for boogie stomp numbers, the kind of music that Jerry Lee Lewis would later steal, I mean imitate. Unfortunately Gant didn't live to see the advent of Rock'N'Roll, a genre that he inadvertently helped usher in, because he died at the ripe age of 38. Gant wasn't the best singer or most technical piano player but he imbued his music with personality and humor and created

some rollicking harbingers for today's music purveyors, and imitators.

Buy this record when you wanna wash down those farm-fresh eggs with a glass of milk from the bottle.

www.bluesnexus.com/bio.php?id=400 

Andre Williams- That's All I Need

Talk-singing from venerable Alabama-born R&B singer Williams. He has a storied 60 year history in the music biz as a performer, and songwriter for the likes of Ike Turner, Stevie Wonder, and Parliament/Funkadelic. He recorded 12 singles for Fortune Records in the 50's and scored a top ten R&B hit with "Bacon Fat". This 2010 Bloodshot Records release finds Andre licking his chops with members of  Detroit bands the Dirtbombs, Electric Six, and the Witches accompanying him. After endearing himself to the punk and sleaze scene in recent years with profane lyrics and his black man's version of David Johansen on crack look, Williams decides to play it pretty straight on this record. That's All I Need gains momentum as the record wears on, where the strongest tracks "There Ain't No Such A Thing As Good Dope", "Too Light To Fight",  and "Amend" provide a steady anchor.

Buy this record if you gotta hitch in your porch swing and a greasy mess on the stove.

www.bloodshotrecords.com/artist/andre-williams