Hey, I finally got around to doing some of what I always meant to do here – actually post some things as I buy them! We missed the train to LI yesterday, and so I took the opportunity to rush to chelsea markets to buy a few records before the next train was due. I’ve also entered a few of the other Al Caiola records in my collection, as a tribute to the great man himself, who actually emailed me today! Al, you rock, man….

Astrud Gilberto: 'September 17, 1969' (CD; Polydor Japan; 1969)
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Well, I must admit, I'm actually listening to this today because I want to listen to the Margo Guryan album, but I don't have it with me. It's a great album in its own right though. Astrud's late 60s pop albums on Verve are strange items - they don't seem to have sold very well (and are very scarce on vinyl), and her voice often sounds strangely wimpy, but the arrangements are beautiful, and the musical selections are well chosen. The first track here is the superbly groovy 'Beginnings', a track originally recorded by Chicago, which I recommend at musical taste. Other highlights include 'Let Go' (canto de ossanha), a rather cool 'light my fire' and the fantastically catchy 'don't leave me baby'. She also keeps me happy by covering Margo Guryan's 'Think of Rain', which was also recorded by Claudine Longet on 'The look of love'. Indeed, Astrud takes her Claudine similarity to another level when she sings in French in the introduction to Francis Lai's beautiful 'Love is stronger far than we' (from 'A man and a woman'). Anyway, while there are some weaker tracks (e.g. I could do without 'A million miles away behind the door'), this is a nice album, well worth having.