Last Ten lps I've Listened to: Lots of Disco and Kitsch

Hmmm...yes, I'm not sure if I should go public and mention some of these old vinyl records that I actually listened, mostly last weekend. For various reasons, I was in a bit of an anti-social mood, and I ended listening to about 24 records over a two-three day period, including four double lps! (Two of which will be mentioned here).

And, yes, there is some kitsch here though the late John Denver's "Take Me Home Country Roads" (pictured here with the Muppets) is always a fun song to listen to. When I was working as a newspaper reporter in the area of Woodstock, Va., in the heart of the Shenandoah Valley, I heard that the song was written in Mount Jackson, Va., where one can see a covered bridge and an open skyline which does indeed parallel the Shenandoah River. A few months ago, I heard a reggae version of the song at a Starbucks. I have no idea who sings it!

Two of the records were actually comedy records, which were popular in the '70s. And, top-selling artists included the likes of the late George Carlin, the late Richard Pryor and Steve Martin.

I found the 1971 Partridge Family record which was done in conjunction with the tv sitcom "The Partridge Family" at Happy's Flea Market in my hometown of Roanoke, Va. Happy's Flea Market is a local landmark, though it has alas lost of its appeal in more recent years. I think i only spent a dollar on the record, which was also the case for the Barry Manilow album (Manilow is picture with the pooch).

Here is the freakin' list!:

1. The Partridge Family. "Up to Date." 1971. Key Track: "Doesn't Somebody Want to Be Wanted" (I think this was actually a smash hit!).

2. John Denver. "Poems, Prayers and Promises" 1971. Key Tracks: "Take Me Home Country Roads" and "Sunshine on My Shoulders."

3. Barry Manilow. "Barry Manilow II." 1974. Key Track: "Mandy."

4. Fleetwood Mac. "Runors." 1977. Key Tracks: Pretty much the whole album! Siganture songs from this epic record include "Don't Stop," "Go Your Own Way" and "You Make Loving Fun."

5. Richard Pryor. "Holy Smoke." 1976. Spoken word/comedy.

6. Steve Martin. "Let's Get Small." 1977. Spoken word/comedy

7. "Saturday Night Fever Soundtrack." 1977 (a double album). Featuring music from The Bee Gees, Kool and the Gang, and KC and the Sunshine Band. Key tracks from The Bee Geees include "Staying Alive," "How Deep is Your Love," "Jive Talkin," "Night Fever" and "More Than a Woman."

8. "Fast Times at Ridgemont High Soundtrack." 1982. (a double album). Featuring music Jackson Browne, Don Henley, Jimmy Buffett, The Go-Go's and Stevie Nicks. Key Tracks: "Somebody's Baby" by Browne; "Love Rules" by Henley; and "Speeding" by The Go-Gos.

9. Queen. "News of the World." 1977. Key Tracks: "We Will Rock You," "We Are the Champions," "Sheer Heart Attack" and "Get Down Make Love."

10. Pink Floyd. "A Momentary Lapse of Reason." 1987. Key Tracks: "Learning to Fly," "On the Turning Away" and "Sorrow."

SIDEBAR: The answer to last week's quiz is indeed B) Iran as the Polish cartoon was the only children's animated show that was allowed to air on Iranian tv after the fall of the Shah in 1979.

Greensboro vs Roanoke- Battle of the Fleas

We wrap our series of entries on which city is 'better,' my hometown of Roanoke, Va., or my adopted city of Greensboro, NC, two cities which are divided by a 100-mile stretch of Route 220 (aka the Moonshine Highway) up with a look at flea markets.

In Roanoke, there is Happy's Flea Market, a landmark, cultural icon on Williamson Road, where one can find very unique items ranging from Partridge Family records on vinyl (yes, I actually purchased some of these for like $1.50 as a gag gift) to up-scale kitsch like velvet paintings of a Native American.

In Greensboro, there is the Big Flea Market, which is not open every single day like Happy's (well, they maybe closed for Christmas), but rather it comes up some eight to ten times a year. The event will be held next weekend at the Greensboro Coliseum.

Since both places are flea markets, they sell many similar items, but Greensboro might be the better place to find an antique clock or a red state weapon of choice (forgive the political humor). I suppose an antique clock could be a weapon too, actually.

So, which one would I choose? As the late left-wing philosopher Howard Zinn, who was actually more liberal than I am, once said: "No one can stay neutral in the path of a runaway train."

With that in mind, I will choose Big Flea as I have a thing for antique clocks even though I personally can't afford them!

The Backpackers Are Beside BestBuy (entry 5 of 6)

Note: This is the fifth entry in this six part series. The even-numbered entries are located on our sister blog "The Daily Vampire" (www.nocturnalguy38.blogspot.com); here is today's entry. This series discusses how I took photographs of all seen public art displays in Roanoke, Va., which is part of the city's "Art in Roanoke" campaign.

I had just finished taking a photograph of "In Flux" at Vic Thomas Park. I went inside the neighboring Black Dog Salvage, which featured antiques and novelty items as well as the black dog, which is the store's mascot.

It was Monday, Austs 15th. And, there were now just two public art displays I had not found. They were "Glory Pipes" (featured here) by two Arizona artists and "Happy Wanderers" by local artist Charlie Brouwer (well, he lives in Floyd County which is near Roanoke).

Of the two, "Glory Pipes" seemed like both the easiest one to find and the most accessible one from Black Dog Salvage, which is located on Memorial Avenue just past the Grandin Village area of the city.

So, I headed to find "Glory Pipes," which is located in downtown Roanoke on Franklin Road at the SunTrust Plaza. This makes it sound easy to find, but that proved not to be the case.

I drove by striking Verizon workers, and waved at them. I heard a few days later on NPR that a woman in Arlington, Va., was mad at the strikers because they were delaying her Internet installation. She said something to the effect of how 'these people should just be grateful to have a job.' It never ceases to amaze me how many Americans, some of whom are actually independents or even Democrats, distrust the government, but have no problem trusting big corporations and mega-churches with ministers who look like '70s teen idols from "The Partridge Family."

I parked my car at a place which turned out to be fairly distant from "Glory Pipes." As I walked towards a bicycle shop, I asked a fellow pedestrian where the SunTrust Plaza was. She pointed directly across the street. I felt like a bit of a dork, but then again, I may have walked for 20 minutes on my own before figuring that out.

Once I got to the SunTrust Plaza, which is fairly close to Arzu Restaurant, a Turkish and international fine dinning establishment managed by friend Halil, I still had difficulty finding the sculpture.

I walked around the lawn, and then there it was.

According to the Art in Roanoke web site, "Glory Pipes" is made from LEDS, electornics, aluminum pipes and a steel plate. At night, apparently, the inner portions of sculpture glow. The artists say that the piece is meant to create dynamic tension and motion.

It happens to be a tricky sculpture to photograph, and one has to take adequate time to find the right angles.

But, I was able to snap a fair number of shots, and from there I went to the Mill Moutain CoffeeShop downtown and realized though it was mid-afternoon that "The Happy Wanderers" would have to wait for another day.

SIDEBAR_ The answer to our question last week about the distance between Abingdon, Va., the town near the Tennessee border where the Barter Theatre is and the Ford's Theatre in Washington, DC, was d) 5 hours, 45 minutes.