Well kids – get out your masks and makeup and start hob-goblining for the times of peril are upon us. Spooks, ghouls, the vaguely undead. Yes, it is time for the election. I suppose there may be some diversity of opinion on the quality of candidates in the coming election. I for one will be voting against the incumbent, but then, if you have paid any attention to my recent work, you already knew that. Some of you may be 180 degrees opposite on this matter. We still love ya! However you are gonna vote, just go do it – VOTE! And when the voting and counting is done, let’s work on being civil to one another.
Now, back to the boring old world of music! For starters, the recently threatened Beautimus and other sounds of the Nineties album is now a reality. Ones and zeros. Atoms. The songs on the album all come from the 90’s and were all recorded at the now-shuttered Art Institute of Seattle (AIS), where I was faculty and later department director. I was working full-time, a dad with young kiddos, and a student at the UW, so none of these were real gigging bands. No time! These were recording projects and Lord knows I love to record! Only six of these nineteen songs have ever been released anywhere and even those locations were tenuous and obscure. Listen here.
Beautimus was a most rocking combo made of former students of mine, folks from bands I had recorded and some fine old pals. I had written this batch of songs and decided it would be big fun to pull something together and lay down some tracks in the AIS studios after hours. They were all better players than me – I always like that and we got things done fast. We even made a video for The Prize, which fortunately remains hidden in the mists of time. After the project was wrapped, we played one glorious show at The Sunset Tavern in Ballard opening for the Green Pajamas. What a great band!
Gravy was a short-term studio-only beast with Scott McAllister and Dave Wheeler – these two songs are our collected works. They were made up all on the spot – no practice or planning, just glory. Marcel Rom was a friend of Scott’s who happened by and we got her to sing on “Satellite.”
B.L.O.G. (bunch of lame old guys) 1&2 were a faculty/staff bands tossed together over the between-quarter breaks. I mostly provided the songs – general mirth ensued. While most of the songs were written in advance, there was nothing resembling rehearsal involved – get the basic idea, hit record! Overdub a few bits, mix and head for the bar across the street at the Edgewater Inn (yes, the Beatles fished from their windows and Led Zep did the nasty with groupies and mud sharks there). “Heavin’ Tiny Sandwiches” was a hidden track on The Young and The Restless compilation on the school’s 3:23 Reckerds label (the name for the label came from Steven King’s The Stand whose Larry had the last ever Billboard #1 – it was 3:23, the Reckerds spelling came from Art Chantry). A music video of “We Are B.L.O.G.” was entered in the AIS faculty show and put on endless loop in the gallery, much to the consternation of the receptionist. It did not win a prize but was no doubt exceptional.
I’ve been thinking about doing this release for 10-12 years, but it remained on the To Do list. Perhaps it took a pandemic to become reality, because this year I have emptied the old stuff closet, between this and Truth or Consequences. It was only when I pulled this release together that I realized (duh) this whole bag of songs was tied to the Art Institute in the 90’s. The front cover is a self-portrait I created for the faculty art show – using a picture of me taken by a now-unknown student, a Fender amplifier schematic and a NASA photo of Saturn. The show entry print was black and white and about 4 feet tall – big head! The back-cover photo was taken by a then-student on the roof of AIS – the inside picture was taken backstage at John Denver’s show at the Moore Theater in Seattle. He was on the AIS International Board of Advisors and I was there on official business. The young people in the photo were students of mine who were working the show. The packed house of grannies loved Mr. Denver.
This release empties the Tom Dyer closets of yore. You may now sleep easy.
In other startling news, the fantastic Mr. Al Bloch has informed me there will be a new AL BLOCH album this year. November. He and his mad brother Kurt have put their shoulders to the grinding wheel and Brother Al cannot be denied. GRIND! GRIND! Make the monkey dance! If you are still confused about what you will get you mom for Xmas you certainly want to save a spot for this on the old Christmas list.
Not content to be out done nor overmatched, unable to wait until November, the sublime Mr. Gary Minkler & Mr. Bill Bagley are giving us a new digital single this very Halloween, a preview of their soon-to-be-upcoming album. The Gary Man also has a whole ‘nother album that he is working on and which may arrive before the Bagley/Minkler thang, depending on his mighty whim. We welcome the Magnificent Minkler under ALL circumstances and you will too.
In the meantime, the Christmas numbers for this year’s album are starting to drift in. If you ae thinking this is the year you are sending your masterpiece, you best get crackin’.
Oh yes, last week Dante and Eros Faulk’s excellent Mirage album CDs finally arrived. We had sent them in to manufacture (with payment) to a company who is now pandemic dead. That has finally been sorted and discs are at hand. It is a really great album and you should listen to it and buy it today.
Mr. Richard Peterson’s remaining albums (1 & 2) and single are being prepared for digital release Jan 1. This will make the entire RP catalog available digitally for the first time ever. And remember, we do not keep a penny of Richard’s sales – he gets it all.
Peter Barnes remains working hard on his debut now scheduled for early next year.
The True Olympians are at work recording the masterpiece Olympia.
‘til next month,
td October 2020
Due to circumstances beyond our knowledge, this is not the usual GMR Album of the Month format.
So, please listen to Beautimus here