The Stranglers’ secret recordings as Celia and the Mutations, 1977
During the summer of ’77, the new wave band Celia and the Mutations released its first single, an update of Tommy James and the Shondells’…
Author: Oliver Hall
Touch of Basil: Orson Welles’ spicy salad recipe
While waiting for the third volume of Simon Callow’s Orson Welles biography to arrive in the mail, I’ve been watching a number of movies by…
‘Kimono My House’: Sparks’ audio guide to the Los Angeles rock scene of the Sixties
Before they were Sparks, brothers Ron and Russell Mael were teenagers growing up in Pacific Palisades. More than the sunbeams, they bathed in the sound…
That time the most famous director in Mexico shot a film critic in the balls
Even if you’ve never seen one of Emilio Fernandez’s movies—even if you’ve never seen him in Sam Peckinpah’s The Wild Bunch or Bring Me the…
Lou Reed and John Cale’s soundtrack to Andy Warhol’s ‘Hedy,’ 1966
Andy Warhol and Mario Montez filming Hedy (via Continuo) On the night of January 27, 1966, the actress Hedy Lamarr was arrested for stealing $86…
Unboxing the Los Angeles Free Music Society’s new 13-LP collection—a Dangerous Minds premiere
Members of the Los Angeles Free Music Society, 1976 (photo courtesy of The Box LA and Fredrik Nilsen Studio) In 2012, the Los Angeles Free…
This web oracle cuts up text and audio of William S. Burroughs’ ‘Naked Lunch’
Collage by William S. Burroughs and Brion Gysin, c. 1965 (via Print) What’s that, friend? You say you’d like to consult the I Ching, but…
Public Image Ltd met with Martin Scorsese about doing the ‘Raging Bull’ soundtrack
Public Image Ltd live at the Palladium, NYC, April 20, 1980 (photo by Rob Pistella via Fodderstompf) I confess that I haven’t yet read Jah…
Bob Dylan’s little-known songs about Vincent Van Gogh
“Side Tracks – 17 October 1964 – Detroit, Michigan” by Bob Dylan (via Halcyon Gallery) Seeing both Bob Dylan and Vincent Van Gogh in the…
When DEVO met the Stranglers
The Stranglers took a short break in between Black and White and The Raven. While JJ Burnel worked on Euroman Cometh, Hugh Cornwell went to…