Funky 45's — All Formats  

A totally amazing look at Lee Hazlewood's late 60s record label – served up in a host of rare singles by other artists who were working with Lee at the time! The range of styles is wide, but there's a really focused feel to the whole thing – given Hazlewood's key touches in the studio behind the singers, and his undeniable sense of wit and warmth, which makes just about all these artists sound way better with Lee than they would on their own! This limited-edition box is totally beautifully – with eleven individual 7" singles, each with original label and sleeve art – plus the rare "Woodchucks" pic sleeve, a special Hazlewood puzzle, an LHI 45 adapter, and even a download card for all the music – packaged in a heavy-duty magnetic flip-top box! Titles include "Lady Barber" by Lynn Castle, "Invisible People" by Hamilton Streetcar, "Come Down" by Honey LTD, "The Street Song" by The Kitchen Cinq, "Trouble Maker" by Lee Hazlewood, "Valentine Grey" by Danny Michaels, "It's A Nice World To Visit" by Ann Margret, "Bo-Dacious" by The Woodchucks, "Anyone Who Had A Heart" by Eve, and "Nobody Like You" by Lee Hazlewood & Suzi Jane Hokum.

Two versions of a great track – one original, one recorded specially for this single! Mark Lanegan's a perfect choice to rework Karen Dalton's "Same Old Man" – as his raspy vocals only get better with age, and his ear for unusual sounds makes for some great noisy instrumentation in the background! The flipside features Dalton's version from 1971 – beautifully rootsy, with a spare banjo line that's as haunting as her vocals!

A great remake of "I'll Slip Away" – done by Charles Bradley in a style that's even more soulful than the Rodriguez original! The Menahan Street Band provide backings – and are funky, but laidback too – with this nice echoey guitar underneath Bradley's vocals, and a snapping rhythm part that grooves along, yet lets Charles firmly take the lead! The flipside features the original by Rodriguez – a bit moodier, and with a really dark and echoey quality!

One of our favorite Lee Hazlewood songs ever – a really beautiful number that perfectly shows Lee's blend of the sensitive and sinister! The original is fabulous – a masterpiece of songwriting, performance, and production – and the single's worth it enough for that cut alone – but Gold Leaves actually do a pretty good take on the number too – although we still like Lee's the best!

Two takes on the classic soul tune "After Laughter Comes Tears" – the sublime original by Wendy Rene, from the vaults of Stax Records – and another version by Sweet Tea – done with an equally classic sound! The tune's a stone heartbreaker – and both versions are totally great – almost making the record feel like a two-part funky 45 from years back – instead of a limited contemporary offering!

Incredible early solo recordings by Roky Erickson – the surprisingly melodic "Mine Mine Mind" and the fuzz guitar blast "Bloody Hammer" – on psychedelic swirl colored vinyl!

A wild remake of the Betty Davis classic – and a tune that may well be one of Iggy Pop's funkiest recordings ever! The guitars are way more up in the mix than on Betty's original – lots of fuzz from the Zig Zags, cut through by Iggy's dark vocals – all in a fuzzy wave of sound that steps out with a really badass feel right from the start. The flipside features Betty's original version – just in case you forgot how great that one is too!

The beautiful debut UK single by PiL – never before issued in the US – and featuring an exact reproduction of original fold-out newsprint sleeve! Amazing!

A wild original – and a mighty nice cover, too! The original "Baby" by Donnie & Joe Emerson is a weird bit of obscurity from the late 70s – this very slow, very mellow ballad that slinks along like some late nite soul harmony track from the decade before – even though the duo were probably trying more for a tighter AOR sound in the end! The track is wonderful – sad and sweet at the same time – and Dam Funk and Ariel Pink do a great job on their remake – sliding a bit of funk in at the bottom, yet still keeping their cool – as the dreamy vocals tipple wonderfully over the top!