An original copy of this record (with the 7″ 45 that was released a year later, in 1980) passed through my hands at work today and, I had to admit, I hadn’t heard it before. I know, you’re probably thinking, “Blasphemous! You claim to be some kind of Acid Archivist! Surely you’d know about this by now!” And, well, yeah. You’re probably right. But then again there’s plenty of shit in that tome I’ve yet to hear for myself.
The way I heard it from the guy who sold it is, this is an exceedingly rare (scarce?) privately-pressed LP that was recorded between 1977 and 1979, and released in 1979 in a limited edition of 100 copies. I think he said only three or four copies have ever come up for sale. Six or seven years ago it was reissued by Anazitsi. I’m pretty sure the original isn’t on any label that I can tell, although it carries a catalog number “6983-A”. The 45rpm single (“Head To The Station” / “What A Wonderful Time”) was released on Tin Drum, and isn’t nearly as hard to find as the LP. That one usually commands about $50. As for the original, who the hell knows what it’s worth. Someone sold a “Fair” / “VG+” condition copy for $400 a few years ago.
Hey, so how about the music, right? Patrick over at Lysergia describes it as “…moody, late-night New York City singer-songwriter private press from a Greek immigrant. Good, classy album.” It was described as Dylan-esque to me twice. Which means you’re probably wondering, “Okay, but which Dylan album?” And the answer, of course, is…Desire. Yeah, it sounds like Desire-era Dylan. Harmonica, electric guitar, pedal steel, tuba (!!), some strings. I wouldn’t call it psych but my definition of the genre probably differs vastly from most people.
In any event, it’s a rare-as-hell record, and between the originals and reissues there were only ever 250 made in the world (that’s not taking into account there are only, like, 5 originals currently known to exist), so it’s definitely worth checking out. Enjoy.
Pavlo V
Strength Of Materials
(No Label, 1979)
MediaFire DL Link
01. Big Mama [MP3]
02. Tiny Emmett
03. Rent-A-Cop Blues
04. Blind Alley
05. A Memory To Forget
06. Summer Midnight Blues
07. Birthday Present
08. I’m Only Waiting
09. Last Call
10. I’ll Fight Them Back
