Polyphonal Reliquary

polyphonalreliquary

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Yes, my mom was an activist. These are from her student days at Santa Clara University. You will probably recognize the Panther and Malcolm X pins. The Oak Park Four were members of the Panthers’ Sacramento chapter who went on trial in 1970 for an alleged police killing - and were acquitted. The RNA 11 were members of the Republic of New Afrika involved in a 1971 Missouri shootout. Eight were convicted. #blackpantherparty #blackpanthers #hueypnewton #malcolmx #republicofnewafrika #younglords

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Several years ago, Lil B dropped off a bunch of CDs he used to sell on MySpace at Rasputin Records in Berkeley. There were two titles: “I’m Thraxx” and “6 Kiss.” I only bought “6 Kiss” because, well, I didn’t like “I’m Thraxx.” (Feel free to criticize me for that decision.) CDs in general are not as valuable as vinyl (and, increasingly, cassettes), but “6 Kiss” has sold for as much as $200 on Discogs. I often get requests to sell my copy. #lilb #bayarearap #rasputinrecords

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I picked up this issue of UK zine Jazz Monthly solely for its John Coltrane photo. Valerie Wilmer apparently took it during his tour of the UK in 1961. Oddly, there are no Coltrane stories in the magazine, just academic-style essays on saxophonist Buster Smith and the use of the electric organ. I guess covers were selected differently back then. Nice photo, though. Issue date Vol 7, number 11, January 1962. #johncoltrane #bustersmith #jazzmonthly #valeriewilmer

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When I went to the Bay Area Book Festival today, I picked this up at the Re/Search table. Publisher V Vale sold me the copy, which was a particular delight. The front cover is Sid Vicious; back cover is Mark Mothersbaugh of Devo (who is wearing a Sex Pistols shirt). But I bought this mostly for its Q&A with Nico. Issue Number 5, copyright 1978. #nico #vvale #bruceconner #punk #sidvicious #devo #searchanddestroy

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This is one of my goofier items—an MP3 case promoting Andre 3000’s “Class of 3000” cartoon. When I received it in 2007, few realized the accompanying CD would be the Southern rapper’s last full-length musical project to date. For some reason, I still haven’t listened to that album. #cartoonnetwork #classof3000 #andre3000 #outkast

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My grandfather passed away in 2000. I knew he was a trumpeter who played with a few famous musicians—particularly James Moody—while working for the USPS. But I didn’t learn that he made a record until I found this acetate 10-inch he made with a pickup band among my late uncle’s collection. I don’t know anything else about the session. I tried to ask my grandmother, but she couldn’t tell me anything except there are apparently two records he made. She was already suffering from Alzheimer’s, and passed away last August. #jazz #swingjazz #jazzrecords #privatepress

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One more Sight & Sound, this one with a still of Monica Vitti and Alain Delon in Michelangelo Antonini’s L’Eclisse. Issue also includes the second edition of Sight & Sound’s world-famous film poll (and a Pauline Kael essay, too). This marks Citizen Kane’s ascent as the best film ever, a position it would hold for 50 years. Vertigo, which ended Orson Welles’ run in 2012, is not on the list. I purchased this issue at Kayo Books in San Francisco—back when it held normal business hours. Issue date Winter 1961-62. #sightandsoundmagazine #monicavitti #citizenkane #alfredhitchcock #orsonwelles #paulinekael #kayobooks #michelangeloantonioni

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Sight & Sound is like the National Geographic of film. I have collected it for decades, but rarely find older issues from the 20th century. A few years ago, Bibliomania in Oakland had a collection of back issues on sale. I bought them all, including this cover spotlight on Andrei Tarkovsky’s Stalker. Oddly, the magazine only includes photos from the film—and an announcement that a review would be in the next issue, which I sadly don’t have. Issue date Autumn 1980. #sightandsoundmagazine #andreitarkovsky

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One of the myths of Rock journalism is that it was mostly waged by swaggering white men like Lester Bangs and Richard Meltzer. One of the unjustly forgotten women who covered the era is the late Phyl Garland, Ebony magazine’s music critic. In addition to possibly authoring cover stories on the Supremes and the Ronettes (both stories are unsigned), she also published “The Sound of Soul” in 1969. It’s one of the first books to mark the emergence of the “soul” aesthetic and connect its influence to pop acts such as The Beatles. It also includes a long interview with Nina Simone. #rockjournalism #soulmusic #ninasimone #phylgarland #ebonymagazine

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October 1999: Mos Def’s Black on Both Sides and Pharoahe Monch’s Internal Affairs dropped within one week of each other. I remember it like yesterday...actually, I don’t. I remember it was a big deal, though. I’m not sure how I got this promo poster. #rawkusrecords #mosdef #pharoahemonch

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Every year, my cousin and his friends visit a different city to watch the 49ers play. Last September, he went to Minneapolis. The day before the 49ers vs. Vikings game, he visited the Paisley Park museum, and was very kind to purchase this exhibition book for me. I know I should rip off the cellophane and look at it, but the collector in me can’t quite bring myself to do it. #paisleyparkmuseum

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Copped this while digging around the Bay yesterday. Musician magazine was a huge inspiration for me in high school. Coverage was a bit too Big 80s, but they had great writers. Issue date November 1985. #musicianmagazine #talkingheads

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