Elyse Weinberg - Greasepaint Smile (and recorded music time-travel)

I am often surprised by the time between recording and release of an officially sanctioned album but this really takes some beating: approximately forty-six years! What happened and what do we get?
The album had been recorded and even the album artwork completed; then the label Tetragrammaton Records went bust with the album still unreleased. With no release - I am unable to find a code allocated to the title - the LP was effectively orphaned and then eventually almost forgotten. Tide and time played a part and so eventually this happened.

Elyse Weinberg - Greasepaint Smile (Numerophon, 18 September 2015, LP, CD & d/l).

Greasepaint Face is now widely available and it should have been her second release for Tetragrammaton. This was the first.

Elyse Weinberg - Elyse  (Tetragrammaton T-117, 1968).

This was released to considerable acclaim but is now more tricky to find although re-released by Orange Twin (LP, CD & d/l) in 2005 but is still almost impossible to find in the UK. An original example of T-117 might be my Christmas present to myself. The equivalent in 2015 was at least as improbable!

Lists of 2016: It is that time again.

This year I have been listening to more new music than ever and the list business will start at Advent. Maybe I should have made a musical calendar? Thinking about it maybe I will.
I could choose a track for each day regardless of the lists of LPs, EPs and such. It would be a way to shine a spotlight on things that I have caught my attention but that otherwise might not have featured at all. If I do it is going to have to be done on the fly as 1 December is close.

That aside things will proceed much as they did in recent years and the rules will be the same. As I did last year the final list may not appear until early January. This not only combats the tendency of forward-creep but it also allows the possibility of including late releases. The cut-off for my consideration will be Friday 2 December. There will also be a new list category this year.
I imagine that you can guess a number of my favourite albums of 2016 and I'm sure some will appear on many other people's lists. I'd like to think that I will also include some surprises that are worthy of the attention of your ears.

Update: 1 December-
The first list will appear tomorrow evening. It will be the new category and also a very brief list but you might find it interesting nevertheless.
I'm still thinking about the song-a-day Advent calendar. It might start with a introductory group of songs at the weekend. I'll just have to see how much time I can devote to it.

New Music 2016 - Part 57 - Frida Hyvönen - Kvinnor och barn

I have posted about my forays into listening to music sung in foreign languages a few times in the past. On the other hand I don't think that Swedish (a language that I don't understand a word of) has ever before been one of them.
Frida Hyvönen the artist I was well aware of through her three English language LPs:

• Until Death Comes (2006)
• Silence Is Wild (2008)
• To The Soul (2012)

In addition to songwriting and singing her principal instrument is piano and this album is no exception. One thing I have discovered is that its title 'Kvinnor och barn' translates as 'Women and children'.

Frida Hyvönen - Kvinnor och barn (4 November 2016).

 The twelve tracks are as follows:

• Sjön
• Imponera på mig
• Balkongmannen
• Förlotat dig
• Alla vet att det är vakert i Paris
• Vänner i vardagen
• Kommer du?
• Drömmer om dig
• Min stad
• Kvinnor och barn
• Fredag morgon
• Amors förkastliga pilar

I have as yet been unable to divine the label by which it is released (on vinyl, CD and d/l) but it is available to stream on Spotify (here in the UK, at least at the time of writing).
Sometimes not understanding the lyrics allows one to appreciate the melody and structure of the music more easily. This was one of those times for me and I very much enjoyed it. It has also reminded me that I really must revisit all the earlier albums. 'Silence Is Wild' tackles some rather unusual subjects in popular music, if I remember correctly.

New Music 2016 - Part 56 - Will Varley - Kingsdown Sundown

In some ways 2016 has been a long and tiresome year. Will Varley has put words to it far better than most could ever have hoped to do. His name might not be on the tip of your tongue but that is no matter.
Kingsdown Sundown is dense, dark and yet ultimately hopeful. It was recorded in the basement of a pub in Deal, on the coast of Kent, but written on tour in only the way that an itinerant artist can; raw and not compromised by home comforts.

Kingsdown Sundown - Will Varley (xtramile Recordings, 4 November 2016)

Taken from it, this is 'To Build A Wall'.