Moondog s/t LP 1969 UK CBS gatefold 1st press original inner psych avant gardeEX

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Moondog s/t LP 1969 UK CBS gatefold 1st press original inner psych avant garde EX

Original UK pressing on CBS with original inner sleeve.

Louis Thomas Hardin (May 26, 1916 – September 8, 1999), also known as Moondog, was an American musician, composer, theoretician, poet and inventor of several musical instruments. He was blind from the age of 16.

Hardin lived in New York City from the late 1940s until 1972, and during this time he could often be found on 6th Avenue, between 52nd and 55th Streets, wearing a cloak and a horned helmet sometimes busking or selling music, but often just standing silently on the sidewalk. He was widely recognized as "the Viking of 6th Avenue" by thousands of passersby and residents who weren't aware of his musical career.

Moondog's music took inspiration from street sounds, such as the subway or a foghorn. It was characterized by what he called "snaketime" and described as "a slithery rhythm, in times that are not ordinary [...] I'm not gonna die in 4/4 time". Many of his works were highly contrapuntal, and he worked hard on perfecting his counterpoint.

Moondog's work was early championed by Artur Rodzi?ski, the conductor of New York Philharmonic in the 1940s. He released a number of 78"s, 45"s and EPs of his music in the 1950s, as well as several LPs on a number of notable jazz labels, including an unusual record of stories and songs for children with Julie Andrews and Martyn Green, in 1957, called Songs of Sense and Nonsense - Tell it Again. For ten years no new recordings were heard from Moondog until producer James William Guercio took him into the studio to record an album for Columbia Records in 1969.

A second album produced with Guercio featured one of Moondog's daughters as a vocalist and contained song compositions in canons and rounds. The album did not make as large an impression in popular music as the first had. The two CBS albums were re-released as a single CD in 1989.

The music of Moondog of the 1940s and 50s is said to have been a strong influence on many early minimalist composers. Philip Glass has written that he and Steve Reich took Moondog's work "very seriously and understood and appreciated it much more than what we were exposed to at Juilliard".

In July 1956 the British jazz composer and musician Kenny Graham recorded the album "Moondog and Suncat Suites" with a thirteen-piece band featuring such notable performers as Stan Tracey and Phil Seamen. "Moondog" featured Graham's arrangements of ten Moondog compositions, whereas "Suncat Suite" consisted of a sequence of six of Graham's own compositions inspired by Moondog. HMV issued the original vinyl album in 1957, and Trunk Records reissued it on CD in 2010.

Moondog inspired other musicians with several songs dedicated to him. These include "Moondog" on Pentangle's 1968 album Sweet Child and "Spear for Moondog" (parts I and II) by jazz organist Jimmy McGriff on his 1968 Electric Funk album. Glam rock icon Marc Bolan and T. Rex made reference to him in the song "Rabbit Fighter" with the line "Moondog's just a prophet to the end...". The English pop group Prefab Sprout included the song "Moondog" on their album Jordan: The Comeback released in 1990. Big Brother and the Holding Company featuring Janis Joplin covered his song "All Is Loneliness" on their 1967 self-titled album. The song was also covered by Antony and the Johnsons during their 2005 tour. Mr. Scruff's single "Get a Move On" from his album Keep It Unreal is structured around samples from "Bird's Lament". New York band The Insect Trust play a cover of Moondog's song "Be a Hobo" on their album Hoboken Saturday Night. The track "Stamping Ground", with its odd preamble of Moondog reciting one of his epigrams, was featured on the sampler double album Fill Your Head with Rock (CBS, 1970). Canadian composer and producer Daniel Lanois included a track called "Moondog" on his album/video-documentary Here Is What Is.

A1         Theme               2:35

A2         Stamping Ground        2:36

A3         Symphonique #3 (Ode To Venus)    5:51

A4         Symphonique #6 (Good For Goodie)             2:45

               Mini-Sym #1   (5:45)

B1a       I - Allegro        

B1b       II - Andante Adagio  

B1c       II - Vivace        

B2         Lament I, "Bird's Lament"     1:42

               Witch Of Endor            (6:29)

B3a       I - Dance          

B3b       II - Trio             

B3b1    A. Adagio (The Prophesy)    

B3b2    B. Andante (The Battle)         

B3b3    C. Agitato (Soul's Death)       

B3c       III - Dance (Reprise)               

B4         Symphonique #1 (Portrait Of A Monarch) 2:36

CONDITION:

SLEEVE: VG++  edge + general wear

RECORD: VG++ to EX—  Spindle marks on labels, some fine lines, clean glossy vinyl, plays NM