RY COODER: SHOW TIME

Factory Sealed Album

• School Is Out
• Alimony
• Jesus on the Mainline
• The Dark End of the Street
• Viva Seguin/Do Re Mi
• Volver, Volver
• How Can a Poor Man Stand Such Times and Live
• Smack Dab in the Middle

• Ry Cooder: Bass, Guitar, Mandolin, Guitar (Electric), Vocals, Producer
• Terry Evans: Vocals
• Isaac Garcia: Drums
• Milt Holland: Percussion
• Flaco Jiménez: Accordion
• Bobby King: Vocals
• Eldridge King: Vocals
• Henry Ojeda: Bass
• Jesse Ponce: Banjo, Bass, Bajo Sexto
• Pat Rizzo: Saxophone
• Ray Thompson: Engineer
• Frank Villareal: Saxophone, Sax (Alto)

• Following the odd, but entertaining Hawaiian, southwestern mix of Chicken Skin Music, Ry Cooder hit the road with a group of Tex-Mex musicians led by the great accordionist Flaco Jiminez. To make things even more interesting, he also included three soul- and gospel-based backup singers in the lineup (two of whom had appeared on Chicken Skin Music). Recorded in December of 1976, over a span of two nights in San Francisco, Show Time documents these shows by Cooder and his "Chicken Skin Revue." And while Cooder's guitar -- along with his usual eclectic assortment of songs -- is the star of the show, each of the principles has his chance to shine throughout the evening. Terry Evans, Bobby King, and Eldridge King's soulful rendition of "The Dark End of the Street," as well as the lovely "Volver, Volver," which features Jiminez, are a couple of the highlights. Cooder's selection of material here is as eclectic as ever, but Jiminez and the band stay with him every step of the way. They seem equally at home with the R&B of "Smack Dab in the Middle" as they do with the Jiminez instrumental "Viva Seguin," which leads into a Tex-Mex reworking of Woody Guthrie's "Do Re Mi." Still, as good as the fit may be between leader and band, it's the Negro spiritual, "Jesus on the Mainline," stripped down to just four voices and Cooder's remarkable bottleneck, that's the real showstopper here. Cooder is not usually one to stray too far outside the confines of the song on record, but in this setting he gets a chance to really stretch. Like most live recordings, Show Time isn't necessarily essential, though there's enough to make it worthwhile for fans. Also, included is a terrific Dixieland take on Gary "U.S." Bonds' "School Is Out" recorded with the same band in the studio.

• Whether serving as a session musician, solo artist, or soundtrack composer, Ry Cooder's chameleon-like fretted instrument virtuosity, songwriting, and choices of material encompass an incredibly eclectic range of North American musical styles, including rock & roll, blues, reggae, Tex-Mex, Hawaiian, Dixieland jazz, country, folk, R&B, gospel, and vaudeville. The 16-year-old Cooder began his career in 1963 in a blues band with Jackie DeShannon and then formed the short-lived Rising Sons in 1965 with Taj Mahal and Spirit drummer Ed Cassidy. Cooder met producer Terry Melcher through the Rising Sons and was invited to perform at several sessions with Paul Revere & the Raiders. During his subsequent career as a session musician, Cooder's trademark slide guitar work graced the recordings of such artists as Captain Beefheart (Safe as Milk), Randy Newman, Little Feat, Van Dyke Parks, the Rolling Stones (Let It Bleed, Sticky Fingers), Taj Mahal, and Gordon Lightfoot. He also appeared on the soundtracks of Candy and Performance.
• Cooder made his debut as a solo artist in 1970 with a self-titled album featuring songs by Leadbelly, Blind Willie Johnson, Sleepy John Estes, and Woody Guthrie. The follow-up, Into the Purple Valley, introduced longtime cohorts Jim Keltner on drums and Jim Dickinson on bass, and it and Boomer's Story largely repeated and refined the syncopated style and mood of the first. In 1974, Cooder produced what is generally regarded as his best album, Paradise and Lunch, and its follow-up, Chicken Skin Music, showcased a potent blend of Tex-Mex, Hawaiian, gospel, and soul music, and featured contributions from Flaco Jimenez and Gabby Pahinui. In 1979, Bop Till You Drop was the first major-label album to be recorded digitally. In the early '80s, Cooder began to augment his solo output with soundtrack work on such films as Blue Collar, The Long Riders, and The Border; he has gone on to compose music for Southern Comfort, Goin' South, Paris, Texas, Streets of Fire, Alamo Bay, Blue City, Crossroads, Cocktail, Johnny Handsome, Steel Magnolias, and Geronimo. Music by Ry Cooder (1995) compiled two discs' worth of highlights from Cooder's film work.
• In 1992, Cooder joined Keltner, John Hiatt, and renowned British tunesmith Nick Lowe, all of whom had played on Hiatt's Bring the Family, to form Little Village, which toured and recorded one album. Cooder next turned his attention to world music, recording the album A Meeting by the River with Indian musician V.M. Bhatt. Cooder's next project, a duet album with renowned African guitarist Ali Farka Touré titled Talking Timbuktu, won the 1994 Grammy for Best World Music Recording.
• His next world crossover would become one of the most popular musical rediscoveries of the 20th century. In 1997 Cooder traveled to Cuba to produce and play with a group of son musicians who had little exposure outside of their homeland. The resulting album, Buena Vista Social Club, was a platinum-selling international success that made stars of Compay Segundo, Ibrahim Ferrer, and Rubén González and earned Cooder another Grammy. He continued to work on projects with his Buena Vista bandmates, including a collaboration with Manuel Galbán in 2003 titled Mambo Sinuendo. His other work in the 2000s included sessions with James Taylor, Aaron Neville, Warren Zevon, and Spanish diva Luz Casal. In 2005 Cooder released Chavez Ravine, his first solo album since 1987's Get Rhythm. The intriguing My Name Is Buddy followed in 2007.

Stuff to mull over:

• All pictures are of the exact item being sold. Some of the pictures might show a reflection of my camera and tripod. Feel free to email me if you need any better pictures.
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• This record is from a store called "Phantasmagoria" that was located in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Phantasmagoria went out of business in 1978. I purchased their leftover inventory some years later when I owned a new & used record store in Catasauqua called "Music Madness". Music Madness is still listed in the phone book if you want to try to contact me.
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