Eclectic Grooves

While the mystery mix didn't yield the type of results I anticipated, there were a couple people who asked for a track list. Besides revealing the track list for the mix, this post will feature an assortment of random curiosities that may peak your interest further. I encourage you to look into some of these artists further, as many of their other songs are equally as great as the ones featured on this mix. Mystery Mix- L'avventura 1) The Invaders- Spacing Out 2) Area- Chilometri Da Smirne 3) El Rego Et Ses Commandos- Petite Rosette 4) Gil Alluminogeni- Cosmo 5) John Cale- Adelaide 6) Karen Dalton- Blues on the Ceiling 7) Dane Sturgeon- Whip of Love 8) Franco Battiato- Energia 9) Dave Lamb & Gye Whiz- Shine On Me 10) Calamity Jane- Olympia 11) Ruth Copeland- Your Love Has Been So Good to Me 12) Back Door- Jive Grind 13) Souls of Mischief- Let 'Em Know 14) Joe Henderson- Vis a Vis 15) Bunzu Sounds- Zinabu 16) Bodo Molitor- Real Real 17) The South...

You never know when inspiration will strike next. It could happen while pondering the meaning of life while toiling away at your office job. It could happen when you are going for a brisk walk in the middle of a downpour. It could happen as you let your mind aimlessly wander while on a slow drive, or bus ride home after a long day at work. It could simply occur when having a conversation with a loved one who ignites a spark within your creative soul.  A young man and woman meet on a scenic train ride through the countryside. As idle conversation goes on, the man asks the woman, "Which came first for you?  Music or love?" She responds "Music, of course. A fiancee you've gotta look for, but a radio can be bought". The man goes on to say that it was "love" for him, and that he knows a great deal about the ways of the heart. With so many distractions as of late, I needed something to get me back on track, and while taking the early hours of the day to ...

I feel like I'm on the cusp of a major breakthrough in my life, where possibilities are endless and doors open and close at my command. Within the next couple of days, I will know whether or not strongly advocating on my own behalf will have resulted in the largest pay raise that I have ever received at a job during my arduous journey spinning on this mortal coil. This, along with the lack of comments on my last two posts, is the reason why I haven't posted during the entire month of January. I don't like to harp on this too much, because I'm grateful to be able to share music with an audience who appreciates it, but it often feels like I'm talking to myself. I can't stress how important encouraging comments can be to me as writing on this blog serves as an outlet for relieving stress and coping with the everyday rigors of life. I guess it can simply be stated as such: a plant needs water and light to grow and thrive. Receiving comments and having ongoing discus...

As I perused the number of downloads for the last several things I've posted on Eclectic Grooves, I noticed that the most popular posts have been the Eddie Harris- Free Speech album, The Trees- The Garden of Jane Delawney and the last eclectic mix that I posted on here a couple weeks ago. Since you guys seem to dig the eclectic mixes, I'm going to share another one with you that was originally conceived a few years ago on 5-24-14. This is another eclectic mix that was shelved for no apparent reason other than the pieces not coming together at the right time. I have replaced most of the original versions of the songs with ones that have a higher quality bitrate. Unfortunately, a couple of the songs are so rare that I was unable to find a higher quality bitrate version of them for this mix. Additionally, I omitted a couple of the tracks as they were either too long, or didn't fit the vibe of the rest of the mix. The result is another eclectic mix that is exactly 65 minutes,...

I apologize for the radio silence during the past couple weeks, but the flu hit my body like a ton of bricks that didn't let up until the last couple days. I never get flu shots, because I rarely get the full-blown flu. This year, however, was a much different story. I came home from work last Tuesday, ate my dinner and settled into watching a little television. Around 8:00 pm, my legs started feeling weak, I was experiencing muscle and joint pain and the temperature of my body was fluctuating from hot to cold with the same unpredictability as daily weather patterns.  I missed a couple days of work, and then proceeded to spend a three-day weekend resting, drinking so many fluids that I thought I was going to burst and binging Netflix while laying on my futon. Thankfully, I think I'm on the other side of this, but it really did do a number on me. Over three years ago, I posted that I had multiple eclectic mixes that were completed and ready to post. I  went back to my playlis...

I had planned on getting this year's summer mix completed before Summer Solstice.  As usual, my perfectionism stepped in, preventing me from completing the mix until a couple hours ago. While the process of gathering tracks began in the middle of May, I didn't get into finalizing my choices until last week. I feel that this years mix is filled with songs that are perfect for summer road trips, backyard barbecues and pool parties.  In keeping with the theme of the blog, it is an eclectic mix spanning genres such as rock, glam, garage, jazz, soul, funk and hip-hop. For those of you who still burn CD's, I have trimmed the length of the mix a little so it will fit on a single CD. Dive in, and let these songs make a splash in your eardrums this summer! Summer Mix2015 1) Witch- Introduction 2) Andres Landero- Perdi Las Abarcas 3) The Hombres- Let It Out (Let It all Hang Out) 4) White Fence- Raven on White Cadillac 5) Gene Harris- Put on Train 6) Shirly El...

It's once again time for the annual summer mix on Eclectic Grooves. This time around, the tracks were compiled from various sources:  a summer funk mix on mixcloud, a few recommendations from a DJ friend of mine and several selections that barely missed the cut on last year's summer mix.    Overall, this mix is way more funkdafied than previous ones, with small servings of rock, African high-life, reggae and hip-hop to balance out the proceedings. As usual, my hope was to post this mix much earlier in the summer, but at least you will have the entire month of August to enjoy these savory summer jams. If there is anyone who still checks out Eclectic Grooves, I would love to hear what you guys think of this year's mix. Summer Mix 2014 1) The Breeders- No Aloha 2) The Creation- How Does it Feel to Feel 3) Skull Snaps- It's a New Day 4) Camp Lo- Luchini (aka This Is It)...

As the Breeders so aptly stated on their infectious slice of summer jam “Saints”, “Summer is ready when you are”.   While I’ve been ready for summer since it ended last year, I wasn’t quite expecting the sudden onslaught of heat that the Portland area received at the beginning of July.   But once the days started to stretch longer and the warm air was hitting my skin, I became inspired to create a new soundtrack for my summer days. Since summer weather in Portland doesn't typically start until around the first of July, I started to compile my summer playlist at this point. Over the past few days, I have managed to narrow my selection down to an eclectic mix of songs spanning genres as diverse as funk, jazz, rap, soul, gospel and rock that clock in at just over an hour. So fire up the barbecue, bask in the afternoon sunlight and don't hesitate to dive right into this year's summer mix! Summer Mix 2013 1) New Dawn- There...

Well, it's been close to a month since I last posted on here about a summer mix being right around the corner. It just depends on what your definition of right around the corner is. Primarily, I used this time to prepare the tracks for my latest summer mix entitled Waves of Inspiration . I put my blood, sweat and tears into this one so I hope you all enjoy it. Hopefully, I can resume to posting on a more regular basis, although I may be too busy soaking up rays of sunshine. Until next time, grab a cold one, throw some steaks on the barbecue and take in the eclectic sounds of summer. Without further ado, I present to you the track list for this year's summer mix. Waves of Inspiration 1) Opening Waves- :30 2) Satan's Pilgrim's- Que Honda- 2:45 3) Octopus- Summer- 3:00 4) The Breeders- Saints- 2:32 5) Jack McDuff- Hot Barbecue- 2:56 6 ) The Chakachas- Hot Hands- 2:35 7) Beck- Sissyneck- 3:52 8) Laghonia- Neighbor- 3:24 9) Ray & His Court- De E...

The tenth episode of I Hear a New World is available to be downloaded at: http://ihearanewworld.podomatic.com/ This is the conclusion to the Excursions In Space trilogy. Some of the artists that are included in this part of the podcast are: Ken Nordine, Broadcast, Kraftwerk and Angus Maclise. This episode focuses on a journey through space as well as the inevitable return back to civilization on planet Earth. Once again, I have interspersed the podcast with snippets from various sources of novelty records as well as cult sci-fi films to retain the theme of space travel. I hope you guys have enjoyed this series as much as I've enjoyed compiling them. For those of you who like surprises, don't read the tracklist below. Instead, let your mind travel to new and exciting worlds as your brain searches for the sources of inspiration used to create this podcast. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think about this episode. I Hear a New World Podcast #10- Excursions In Space...

The ninth episode of I Hear a New World is available to be downloaded at: http://ihearanewworld.podomatic.com/ This is the second installment of the Excursions in Space trilogy. With this episode, I have compiled an eclectic cross-section of artists including Bruce Haack, Sun Ra, Legendary Pink Dots, Ferrante and Teicher and Jimi Hendrix. I have posted the entire tracklist below so any mysteries of the unexplained can be, well, explained. This was originally supposed to be the second hour of a two-hour podcast, but it ended up being the middle section of a mix focusing on music associated with martians, astral voyages, UFO's and all other elements related to space. One glance at the tracklist is all it will take to reveal the complexity of this podcast. The selection of music includes ambient electronic, wacky psychedelic rock, experimental noise and 50's novelty rock. Essentially, I have taken pieces of classic sci-fi films and restructured them within the context of this pod...

The eighth episode of I Hear a New World is available to be downloaded at: http://ihearanewworld.podomatic.com/ This is the first part of three parts related to the theme of space including snippets from rare sci-fi movies, rare recordings of UFO mythology, authentic recordings of sounds from space and a myriad of sounds that evoke the experience of exploring space. I suppose you may be wondering what ever happened to that music fanatic who runs Eclectic Grooves. You may say to yourself "Did he fall off the face of the earth? " Well, actually that's not too far from the truth. I've been mining through hours and hours of songs that could fit into the context of a space theme. By space theme , I mean the whirring sound of rockets heading out to another dimension in time, the abstract experimental sounds of electronics emulating the sounds of space and everything in between. Since this was originally supposed to be one two hour podcast, the introduction on the first par...

The eighth episode of I Hear a New World is finally ready to be downloaded at: http://ihearanewworld.podOmatic.com This is a special two-hour Christmas edition of I Hear a New World that I have been compiling over the past few weeks. It includes a wide range of styles including blues, folk, old-timey, jazz, easy listening, rock, rockabilly and many more. Artists include Lightnin' Hopkins, Arthur Lyman, 5, 6, 7, 8's, Red Red Meat, Cottontop Mountain Sanctified Singers and Loretta Lynn. I have to give a huge shout out to the various Christmas blogs because this Christmas podcast would not have been the same without the songs I downloaded from their blogs. Thanks goes out to A Christmas Yuleblog, Ernie Not Bert, Big Rock Candy Mountain, Christmas A Go Go, 77 Santas and Dartman's World of Wonder. I hope you guys enjoy this special edition of I Hear a New World. For those of you who would like a tracklist, please let me know in the comments. Be on the lookout for my Best ...

Well.. The past few weeks have been difficult for me, as I've been in and out of urgent care twice, and put on two different types of antibiotics all within the same week. I'm still not sure if the infection is getting any better, but I have to keep the faith. I have still been thinking about posting on the blog, but the level of discomfort has kept me from doing this until today. Life is a strange thing. One day you have a job and steady money coming in, and the next one you find yourself looking for work and heading to the doctor with a serious infection that needs immediate attention. Whenever I experience something like this, I think of other people who have to deal with pain on a regular basis, and I thank my lucky stars that I have generally been in great health throughout my life. My friends, girlfriend and family have been extremely supportive of me over the past few weeks, and I am eternally grateful that they are a part of my life. This post goes out to all of those p...

I don't think this has ever happened since I've started this blog, but I am posting for the second time today. The previous post was more of a re-up anyway, so here you go. As I was compiling this mix, I didn't realize that almost all of the artists were from a foreign country. I just happen to listen to a lot of international music and the flow of this mix went in that direction. Here is the tracklist for the mix: Whirling Dervish Cocktail 1) Tambu - Hear When De Duppy Ba- 1:50 (Jamaica)- Short bursts of melodic chanting and tribal drumming that make you feel like you are in the middle of a drum circle in the jungles of Africa 2) Tobacco feat Aesop Rock- Dirt- 4:03 (America)- Producer of Black Moth Super Rainbow recruits the master of verbal linguistics, Aesop Rock, to add hip-hop flavor to this distorted electro -rock music 3) Melt Banana- Like a White Bat in a Box, Dead Matters Go On- 3:34 (Japan)- hyper speed punk-pop excursion from this experimental band from Japan...

Last night I was hanging out with Rich from Kill Ugly Radio and Daniel Flessas during Daniel's KBOO radio show, "The Outside World", when I came to the realization that I need to start doing podcasts on Eclectic Grooves. Around three a.m., I dragged myself home in that state somewhere between the realm of awareness and sleep. When I arrived at the apartment, I compiled this mix that I am featuring today. This mix features a wide variety of styles that seem to coalesce into a psychedelic space-rock contingent. Even though this is not a podcast, I plan on featuring podcasts here in the near future. I hope you enjoy the mix, and would love to hear what you guys think. Night Trippers From Distant Galaxies 1) D. Charles Speer & the Helix- Sit Right There- 4:18 2) Boredoms- Relerer- 7:09 3) Sun Araw- Hive Burner- 7:16 4) The Strange Flowers- Mars Behind Our Eyes- 5:03 5) Eddie Fisher- Jeremiah Puckett-4:32 6) Moussa Dombia- Yeye Mousso- 5:03 7) Tim Berne Caos Totale- Ba...

I'm back after an unexpected hiatus due to getting over a cold and searching for a new job. Thanks to everyone who downloaded the film noir mix, and especially to those who left comments. I have been listening to so much music in the past couple weeks that I feel as if I will implode if I don't share some of it with the rest of you. Now on to the Eclectic Mix that I have brewing in my mind today. Stir in a little African groove with Japanese instrumental surf rock. Mix in a little Turkish psychedelic fuzz rock groove and add equal parts sublime free jazz. Finally, toss in a dash of apocalyptic instrumental rock and top it off with a whirling dervish of space-age bachelor pop. The result is an easily digestible musical stew that will surely delight your pallet. Enjoy! Tracklist 1) The Antarcticans- The 2000 Year Clearing of All Peace- 7:25 2) Sharp Five- Sakura Sakura- 3:21 3) Ric Colbeck Quartet- Subdued- 6:20 4) Erkin Koray- Cemalim- 7:43 5) Ne Zhdali- Hungarian Young Years- ...

Back by popular demand! Well, not really, but I had to say it. Recently, a person that goes the by the initials "LD" requested that this film noir mix be re-upped. Thanks to "LD", those of you who didn't get a chance to hear/download this before will get a second chance. It was originally posted on January 8, 2007, back when Eclectic Grooves was still in it's early stages of development. If you want to see the original post for this, please go here . I love compiling mix-tapes/Cd's, but this one was a real labor of love. I believe that this mix is my greatest achievement. I would love to hear what you think about the mix. Aural Film Noir Excursions Re-up Here's the setlist: Addendum: It has been brought to my attention by one of the visitors that this link has expired, so I am posting a new link so that more readers can download this mix. Please remember that I will try to grant most requests to re-up links on here as long...

Recently a lot of my favorite blogs have decided to call it a day. Church Number Nine, Prostrate Before a Periwinkle and Cut-Out have recently announced that they will no longer be updating their blogs for various reasons. Daily pressures such as worryingg about how ethical it is to share out-of-print music, constant hassles from record companies and lack of time and energy are the main reasons that they decided to quit blogging. However, these bloggers should be proud of what they have accomplished. They have not only opened up the eyes of the record industry in regards to reissuing out-of print records, but they have gained a cult status among record collecting enthusiasts around the world. These were all blogs that I visited daily and they never failed to have something new and interesting to share. At this time, I would like to give a shout out to these blogs for setting the bar higher for myself and countless others who strive to introduce people to rare and interesting music that...

Well, I'm back from vacation with many ideas for this blog. I've been listening to all kinds of music and traversing the web for the latest and greatest blogs to feature on Eclectic Grooves. I will be updating the web links on the side of this page, as it has come to my attention that many of these blogs are defunct or have infrequent updates. In addition, I have a plethora of new sites that I have been checking out on a daily basis that I will be showcasing on here in a future post. I wanted to inform you that the fight for internet radio is still going on. Many people voiced their concerns over the past month, and let it be known that they will not allow their civil liberties and freedoms to be violated. Because of this, Pandora will have more of a fighting chance for survival in the internet radio business. Unfortunately, the fight isn't over yet, and we need to continue contacting our local representatives and state senators to support the passing of the Net Neutrality ...