The Contours- Shake Sherry/You Better Get In Line

I finally took the plunge on a new computer. Over the years I’ve owned just about every major brand, but the last two have been Samsung. The one I’m typing on right now has been my favorite computer of all time—steady, loyal, and only occasionally acting like it needs a nap. Lately, though, it’s been giving me little fits, so I’m retiring it to the noble realm of recording songs, where computers go to live out their golden years.

Naturally, you’d assume I bought another Samsung. Naturally, you’d be wrong.

I bought a newer Samsung about five years ago,when this machine needed some repairs on the plugin and I thought it was done for. The newer Samsung was so uninspiring it’s been demoted to backup duty—basically the bullpen pitcher who only comes in when the starter’s arm falls off.

But back to the new machine.  I’ve been impressed with my work ThinkPad and with its versatility. So for the last few months I spent alot of time browsing Lenovo’s site and a few other retailers like a man studying ancient scrolls, trying to find a machine that can keep up with my multitasking chaos. Best Buy had some tempting options, but then I learned many were third‑party “upgrades” that souped up those machines but they void the warranty- an exciting gamble I did not feel like taking. Hard pass.

I finally narrowed my choices, and on Sunday I decided to take the plunge — nothing dramatic, of course, just the kind of move that suggests I’ve quietly known what I was doing all along.  I tried to buy my chosen machine on the Lenovo site- Payment failed. WTF. I left it in the cart with all the smooth patience of someone giving it space to come to its senses, and it repaid me by acting like I was the problem. Monday I log in and—bam—Lenovo drops the price by almost $200. Apparently, they missed me.I called them and they sorted out the payment issue — graciously confirming it was their mess, not mine — and I ordered it immediately. It arrives today, and I’m fully prepared to ride this thing like a speed‑freaking‑machine, with the calm composure of someone who absolutely intends to cause a little stylish chaos.

As for today’s 45: The Contours - Criminally underrated group released a lot of quality sides, some covered by other groups, and this one was their second‑highest Billboard hit (#43 pop, #21 R&B), and it should’ve charted higher. It deserved more love. I always see Contours 45s out in the wild, but it’s always the same handful. So, enjoy Sherry Shake, a double‑sided soul groover while I wait for my new digital hot rod to show up.

Doug Sahm And The Tex Mex Trip - Groover's Paradise / Girls Today (Don't Like To Sleep Alone)

Doug Sahm previously wandered onto the blog three times with the Sir Douglas Quintet — a band I’ve quietly, then loudly, then permanently filed under “a favorite go‑to listen.” I recently picked up a stock copy of this 45 to keep my promo company. Being the completist I am, of course I gathered them all. It’s instinct at this point — like a cat batting at a dangling string, except the string is a discography. 

And the LP… well, that’s a whole archaeological dig. I bought an import copy from an antique store twenty years ago, and if memory serves, it’s Spanish — though I’ll admit I was far too lazy to excavate it from the shelves to confirm. Years later, during my stint in the VMP club, an orange‑vinyl reissue arrived like a little neon blessing.

Both sides of this 45 find Doug in fine form. Girls Today (Don’t Like To Sleep Alone) was one of the standout tracks for me on the LP — the moment where that Tex‑Mex and Country pulse really kicks the door open and lets the sunlight pour in. It’s got that groove, the border‑town sway, the feeling that somebody in the band is wearing sunglasses indoors for reasons no one questions.

Doug, meanwhile must’ve had a gravitational field for record contracts. The man collected labels the way the rest of us collect coffee mugs we swear we won’t break. Every time you turn around he’s on another imprint, another lineup, another “this time it’s gonna stick” moment. You don’t bounce around that much unless you’ve got a personality big enough to charm, confuse, and possibly overwhelm an entire A&R department before lunch.

His chart success with the Sir Douglas Quintet was before 1969 and afterwards he had one lonely top‑200 solo LP on the Billboard charts and one solo 45 chart hit — at #100 on the country charts, of all things. A man who should’ve been a household name but instead became a cult‑hero footnote.

Thankfully, YouTube has become a kind of digital shrine. There are full television concerts floating around — especially those Austin City Limits performances — and they’re absolutely worth sinking into. Sahm in his natural habitat: loose, joyful, and unmistakably himself.

Robert Forster - Baby Stones/The Land That Time Forgot

Robert Forster, the powerhouse co‑founder of the brilliant Go‑Betweens, blasts out pure independent magic with this obscure debut solo 45—and the fact that it’s a promo makes it even sweeter. My Go‑Betweens stash keeps growing: albums, 45s, the works, and they’ve even made appearances on this blog before. Somehow, Robert and his bandmates remain criminally overlooked here in the States, but they’re a huge part of why my love affair with Australian artists stays loud, proud, and very much alive.

Guided By Voices - Alex Bell/Focus On The Flox

Guided By Voices (GBV) making their first appearance on this blog feels like one of the greatest crimes of the blogs sixteen‑year existence— the kind of crime that would get you banned from Discogs forums and quietly judged at every record show within a 200‑mile radius.  Sure, there were the lean years — the stretches where the drive sputtered out of me, or when some malicious link (scamming bastages, every one of them- may their styluses forever mistrack) hijacked the blog and turned it into a digital haunted house. But still… GBV deserved better from me.

My love affair with them started back when I lived in Denver. My friend Craig was a Scat Mail Order zealot — the kind of guy who bought everything they touched, possibly including packing slips and air from the warehouse. When Scat signed GBV, they still had quantities of the early records lying around, and Craig scooped them all up like a man preparing for a future where vinyl becomes currency and only the righteous survive. Then he did the noble thing: he shared them with me.

I, meanwhile, was broke. Not “I’ll wait for payday” broke — I was “I’m choosing between ramen and gas money, and ramen is winning” broke. So, I didn’t buy my own copies. Craig had an original Propeller, and I could’ve had one too. If I’d known what that record would someday be worth, I would’ve sold plasma, furniture, and possibly a distant relative to get it.

From Vampires on Titus onward, though, I’ve been there — buying the albums, the 45s, the EPs, the releases that appear without warning like Pollard woke up from a dream and said, “Yes, the world needs another 7-inch with a photocopied sleeve and hooks that could catch a whale.” The catalog is staggering, a labyrinth of hooks, fragments, and melodies that sound like they were recorded in a basement, a garage, and a broom closet simultaneously. And Robert Pollard remains the King of Rock in a realm where the King is somehow still unknown to the masses — which honestly feels perfect. If he ever did become mainstream, half the collectors would immediately panic‑sell their entire GBV section out of sheer identity crisis.

The Monarchs IV – Surge / Weekend

It’s brutely scorching outside — the kind of heat that feels personally offended you dared to exist. Luckily, Cooper and I are early‑morning creatures, sneaking out while it’s still dark enough that the sun can’t tattletale on us. He struts around like he’s running a secret society of dawn‑patrollers, and honestly, I’m just honored to be his plus‑one.

I didn’t get much recording done this weekend… my ADHD staged a tiny, adorable mutiny and I spent two days hopping between half‑projects like a gremlin with a clipboard. Monday morning drag music comes from an April session — Past Me tossed Present Me a little stash like, “You’re gonna need this, buddy.”

The Monarchs IV revved things up on “Surge” like they were trying to jump‑start the entire weekend. Meanwhile, I was over here wishing someone would jump‑start me.  Anyway, I’m tossing the doors open for requests — go ahead, try to stump the ole chump and his record collection. I dare you. I double‑dog dare you. Cooper triple‑dog dares you, and he plays for keeps. He’s already pawed through the shelves and picked something obscure just to mess with you. He lives for this.

Brother Prince Dixon - I'm Glad I'm Free/ In The Spirit Of The Lord

WAKE UP, MY FRIENDS, because the spirit isn’t just stirring — it’s kicking the doors off the hinges this morning. Brother Prince Dixon just delivered the kind of soul‑medicine that hits harder than a week’s worth of struggle. After the days I’ve had, this record didn’t just play… it ROARED, it JUMPED, it shot pure hope and holy optimism straight into my chest like gospel adrenaline in 45‑RPM form

And you already know when it comes to these Peacock 45s, I’m a hopeless case. I’m knee‑deep, heart‑deep, spirit‑deep baptized in that sound. But this one? This one feels like the moment the choir stands up, the organ swells, and the whole room catches fire.

From what I can tell, this might’ve been Brother Prince’s very first release — and if that’s true, then the man didn’t just hit a homerun… he sent that ball into the next county and had time to shout “GLORY!” before it landed. A little digging shows he later rose to fame in the ’70s lifting souls with the Jackson Southernaires, and even led his own Gospel Caravan like a man who knew exactly where the road to joy was paved. And get this — there’s a whole documentary about it streaming for FREE! That’s not a suggestion — that’s destiny. Sounds like the perfect date-night flick for me and the missus, because she’s got the spirit too- it will be time for feet up, hearts full, spirit fed.

The Yellow Payges - Jezebel/ We Got A Love In The Makin

It’s been a week — and not the charming kind people put on inspirational calendars. No, this one came with the good, the bad, and the kind of ugly that makes you stare into the middle distance and reconsider your life choices.

The good: Cooper the Wonder Dog and I have been tearing up the streets on our early‑morning walks like a couple of retirees training for the Senior Olympics. Spirits high, steps counted, squirrels intimidated.

The bad: My wife gave me a magnificent 22‑ounce Father’s Day coffee mug — a heroic vessel capable of holding enough caffeine to keep me marginally functional. I managed to keep it alive for three days before gravity and my own clumsiness teamed up to assassinate it. Of course.

The ugly: Last month I bought new tires for the ol’ Chevy Colorado, which felt only slightly less invasive than donating a kidney. Then, a week ago Friday, some renegade metal stick decided to reenact a jousting tournament with my sidewall. The tire lost spectacularly. Thankfully, the warranty covered it, because apparently I’ve already sacrificed enough organs to the automotive gods.

And yet, here I sit, surprisingly zen. It’s the weekend, and my biggest crisis is choosing the final cover‑version post of the week — a problem I’ll gladly take over, say, another tire impalement. I’m already “planning” next month’s cover version series, (and by “planning,” I mean I’ve said out loud that I’ll probably do it).

Today’s pick comes from a group that deserved far more love than they ever got. I’ve owned all their 45s and their lone album — the kind of collection that makes people squint and say, “Who?”. Their final single peaked at #102 on Billboard’s Bubbling Under chart, which is basically the musical equivalent of being told, “You almost made varsity, champ.”

But their second 45? That one slaps. They tackle the classic “Jezebel” like Mark McGwire swinging for the fences — minus the pharmaceutical assistance. And the B‑side? Also a scorcher. Another forgotten 45 sinking gracefully into the swamp of music history… and, naturally, into my collection.