From the very first note to the final fade-out, this is one wonderful slab of vinyl here, folks. If you're into trying new musick that you've never heard before, then this one gets five stars. First before you get to the vinyl, the cover grabs you. A hand-made cut & paste cover on a blank white record sleeve. There's no printing on this sucker. The album title & band name, the cover photo - the band photo & tracklist & song info on the back, all pasted on by hand. Inside is some of the greatest crazy Beatnik jazz blues from outer space, at times verging on No Wave. Songs like "Tabor" & "Second Coming" remind of James Chance & the Contortions while songs like "In this Life" are dub-influenced a la The Ruts. Even on the only non-original cuts, two traditional blues songs arranged by The Blues Astronauts, they are anything but traditional. "Help Me" ventures into the blues explosions of Jon Spencer while the other, "Wake Up" is more of the seeds gone bad of Nick Cave. The only thing I find disheartening about this band is the lack of information about them or about individual members. Given the early 80s time frame & the Brighton, Massachusetts locale, it is possible that one on the members is a Harvard grad PhD. in Conservation Biology & perhaps one has gone into the visual arts field. The only member I'm sure is still in musick is the trombonist Boo Elmer, who plays with the world renowned Le Nouvel Ensemble Moderne & appears on the avant garde electronic chamber musick production Bang on a Can Live Vol. 1. Other than the Boo Elmer crediting, all the rest of the info on the band is conjecture. If anyone knows more about this great last wonder, please let me/us know.
The Blues Astronauts are: Paul Bloodgood - vocals; Michael Albrecht - guitars & bass on "Wake Up"; Jodie Myers - bass; guitar & vocals on "Wake Up"; Dan Perlman - drums & percussion; Boo Elmer - trombone; Willy MacMullen - harmonica.
All words by Bloodgood, all musick by Blues Astronauts except "Help Me" & "Wake Up" are traditional, arranged by Blues Astronauts. Recorded at Real Art Ways, Hartford,CT.
Year of Release: 1982
Label: Windsor Records BSAS-10
Genre: Experimental Blues, No Wave
Track List:
Side A
1. Tela
2. Sanctuary
3. Tabor
4. Marlboro
Side B
1. In this Life
2. Second Coming
3. Help Me
4. Wake Up
5. Joseph
Download: The Blues Astronauts - No Sanctuary
Download Size: 81.5MB
Ripped from surprisingly immaculate vinyl at glorious 320Kbps
The Blues Astronauts are: Paul Bloodgood - vocals; Michael Albrecht - guitars & bass on "Wake Up"; Jodie Myers - bass; guitar & vocals on "Wake Up"; Dan Perlman - drums & percussion; Boo Elmer - trombone; Willy MacMullen - harmonica.
All words by Bloodgood, all musick by Blues Astronauts except "Help Me" & "Wake Up" are traditional, arranged by Blues Astronauts. Recorded at Real Art Ways, Hartford,CT.
Year of Release: 1982
Label: Windsor Records BSAS-10
Genre: Experimental Blues, No Wave
Track List:
Side A
1. Tela
2. Sanctuary
3. Tabor
4. Marlboro
Side B
1. In this Life
2. Second Coming
3. Help Me
4. Wake Up
5. Joseph
Download: The Blues Astronauts - No Sanctuary
Download Size: 81.5MB
Ripped from surprisingly immaculate vinyl at glorious 320Kbps
Not Harvard -- Yale. (Jonathan Edwards college, class of '82.)
ReplyDeleteCheck out this link for pictures:
http://mds.gotdns.com/gallery/bluesast
Anon,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the link to the photogs.
& the Harvard - Yale correction.
Wish there was some more info.
This is a rare treat indeed. I didn't have much luck digging up info on these guys either. last.fm didn't even have a single track scrobbled by them, which is very rare, even for an obscure vinyl album released in limited quantities. I've just started listening to the album, but I really like what I've had a chance to listen to so far. Thanks for sharing this little treasure with us.
ReplyDeleteTesting
ReplyDeleteThis is intense, and I haven't heard anything quite like it. I downloaded and listened before I read the post and thought "these guys must be from the Boston area in the 80's".
ReplyDeleteI tip my hat to their excellent taste when dealing with such a tricky fusion of genres.
To All: The Blues Astronauts were a Yale band, most of them in Jonathan Edwards College there, and all graduating in 1982. After graduation, they stayed together--with one leaving--and ended up in Boston for a year or so before all going separate ways. At Yale, they were a popular band, playing lots of Saturday night gigs in the colleges, as well as shows at Toad's Place, a blues festival at Brandeis (with some big names like Matt Guitar Murphy and Koko Taylor headlining), and concerts at other schools local area colleges like Trinity. They were known for long and good shows: they had a lot of fun, were guys with really different backgrounds and talents, and a good sound, a blues/jazz and even funk fusion. No Sanctuary, I gather, was cut in a studio in Hartford, basically in one day. The guys cut 500 copies, put stickers randomly on the back of the album, and sold them to friends to pay the bills.
ReplyDeleteTo Anonymous,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the info about the Astronauts. There is little about them on the interweb, so I knew it would be up to folks who might have known them or known of them to fill in the blanks. I would have loved to have seen them live, but in 1982 I was on the left coast. I love that they hand made the album covers, & limited to 500 copies, I am indeed fortunate to have one. I have always cherished it, but now, even more. Thanks again.
Did any of your copies of this record have an enclosed press kit? I recently got a copy on ebay, and it included a 3-page photocopied press kit consisting of:
ReplyDelete1. A cover letter from their manager with a short bio and description of the band's sound. The letter is from their manager, a guy named Michael H. Smith, and is worded as if addressing a college radio station or independent label or publication ("As an outlet for independent music, you obviously play a large role...").
2. A standard one sheet with a list of the things the band has done and their plans and contact info.
3. A photocopy of the cover of the Boston Phoenix August 10, 1982 on which is a picture of them playing live, and a short blurb about them from the inside is pasted on.
Pretty cool. I scanned them for you guys:
http://thebigbigbucks.battlemounta.in/other/blues_astronauts_1.png
http://thebigbigbucks.battlemounta.in/other/blues_astronauts_2.png
http://thebigbigbucks.battlemounta.in/other/blues_astronauts_3.png
Ian,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the scans. I wasn't sure if anyone would be interested in them or not so I didn't include them. Appreciate you taking the time.
Again, the scans are at
http://thebigbigbucks.battlemounta.in
individual pages:
/other/blues_astronauts_1.png
/other/blues_astronauts_2.png
/other/blues_astronauts_3.png
Thanks again
hey, my dad is mike albrecht, guitarist. he's a public school teacher in philadelphia and still playing music! primarily with these guys: www.thebluesmessengers.com
ReplyDeletethis was a great write-up. i showed my dad!
Charlotte,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the reply. It is so totally kool that your dad got to read it. I am stoked & honored. Thank you for taking the time to reply. This album is one of my favorite vinyl treasures. Tell your dad, from this humble soul, great job. & thanks for the link to what he's doing today.
Any chance this might be re-uploaded, please?
ReplyDeleteDitto ... I tried to upload but the link is dead.
ReplyDeleteG.B. & Anonymous: I'll reupload this soon. Thank you for pointing out that the download link was dead.
ReplyDeleteDead link :'(. I'll search the web for a working one... Thanks anyway!
ReplyDeleteHere's a download for the time being: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/3271853/The%20Blues%20Astronauts.rar
ReplyDeleteThanks, ian.
ReplyDeleteIan,
ReplyDeleteThanks for re-posting the album. I saw the Blues Astronauts perform several times while I was at Yale (PC class of 1984). I have a cassette copy of the song Sanctuary recorded over the air from the campus radio station WYBC. I've been haunted for the last 30 years by my memories of groovin' to the band and am thrilled to finally find the info and the songs.
Thank you to the blog and all the posters.
-Serdar
January 2012
Like Charlotte, my dad was also in this band: Jonathan (Boo) Elmer. He is currently the chair of the english department at Indiana University. I hope he doesn't get mad that I'm exposing his lifelong nickname. Funny to me that you guessed he was still in music, but he still plays trombone regularly with other professors who moonlight as jazz musicians! Keepin' the dream alive!
ReplyDeleteI was just reading through the comments on this post as I was re-uploading it. These comments are the real reason I keep blogging & sharing rare & unusual musick. Especially personal anecdotes from Charlotte & Nathaniel (offspring of the Astronauts themselves) or pertinent information & valuable additions from obvious musick fans like Ian. To you & everyone else who commented here, my eternal gratitude.
ReplyDelete