When I was a kid there wasn’t much available on the radio beyond the local AM radio stations. The one I usually listened to was WENY and at the time my favorite DJ was a guy named Paul Lee, who also hosted a late night Saturday monster movie as his alter ego, the Undertaker. He was entertaining for a 12 or 13 year old kid and had a pretty sharp wit for a DJ in a small market. He was always runnings call in contests and on one night Iw as lucky enough to be the 20th or whatever caller. I won a stack of 25 albums and I thought I was in pig heaven.
Of course, they were just getting rid of all the promos that had come their way and never made it on the air. Most were pretty bad and some were just not the taste for a teenager. I remember there was an Ornette Coleman LP that was a very conceptual jazz thing that sounded like squawks and buzzes to my ears at the time. Actually, it still sounded that way to me everytime I’ve pulled it out over the years. But there were a few gems in there.
One was this self-titled first album from David Bromberg. It was produced by George Harrison who appears on the very enjoyable song, The Holdup. Several of the songs are Bromberg’s interpretation of blues and traditional classics mixed in with some wonderful originals, including the strange and haunting Sammy’s Song. I still listen to it on a regular basis and it has always held up through the many years. Bromberg’s an interesting guy, a folk guitar wiz who basically quit the business for several years to learn the art of violin making. He has returned and plays several shows a year but maintains a violin shop in Wilmington, Delaware. He seems like a man who lives life on his own terms. A rare and wonderful thing.
Anyway, on this rainy Sunday morning, I’m glad I was the 20th caller and found this album. Here’s Last Song for Shelby Jean from it:
Redtree Times 