Eclectic Grooves

Frank Zappa- Willie the Pimp and The Gumbo Variations From: Hot Rats [Bizarre Records, 1969] With the sweltering heat wave coming through the Pacific Northwest region as of late, temperatures are set to average between 95-100 over the next several days in Portland. With that said, I plan on writing this post as quickly as possible while not sacrificing the quality of the review. I have never been the biggest Frank Zappa fan, mostly because the material I had heard up to that point was of the hokey parody variety, and it didn't sit quite right with my tastes at the time. Over the past couple years, I've grown an appreciation for the skilled musicianship and innovative ideas contained in much of Zappa's recording output from '66 to'72, especially Chunga's Revenge and Freak Out. Considering this, it's odd that I had yet to give Hot Rats, one of the most critically acclaimed records in Zappa's discography, a true listen until thi...

To my utter amazement, the streets of Portland were completely covered with snow before I stumbled out of bed this morning. According to my calculations, it has snowed about three or four times every winter that I have lived here, so it caught me off guard. My girlfriend Verity was born and raised in Oregon so it is an exciting thing for her whenever it snows in Portland. Since I am from the chilly midwest (Peoria, IL to be exact) I don't get nearly as excited as she does about the magical white powder that falls from the skies. Nevertheless, we ventured outside to experience a winter wonderland filled with youngsters snowboarding and sledding down the steep hills of our neighborhood park. I thought that I was well prepared for the treacherously cold weather, but I could have used a face mask to block the cold wind that was slapping me in my face. Apparently, temperatures are expected to remain cold throughout the week with a high likelihood of more snowfall by Wednesday. Damn, I j...

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...

Here are some more Halloween goodies for your listening pleasure. Enjoy! The Haunted House- 20 Tracks to Make You Jump in the Night This is one swanky, toe-tapping, smart and sassy collection taken from old-timey blues and jazz 78's including Louis Armstrong's "The Skeleton In the Closet" and Ma Rainey's "Black Cat, Hoot Owl Blues". This is the Halloween album that you will want to put on when you've had your fill of spooky sounds and ghost stories, and are ready to jump-n-jive with the best of them. Enjoy! Tracklist 1. The Haunted House - The Three Ginx 2. Nightmare - Artie Shaw And His Orchestra 3. The Skeleton In The Closet - Louis Armstrong 4. Skeleton Jangle - The Original Dixieland Five 5. 'Tain't No Sin (To Take Off Your Skin And Dance Around In Your Bones) - Dan Russo And His Oriole Orchestra 6. Dry Bones - Fats Waller And His Rhythm 7. Bogey Wail - Jack Hylton And His Orchestra/Sam Browne 8. Boogaboo - Jelly Roll Morton's Red Hot...