Dina Mariana – Mari Bergoyang (Pop Remaja Vol. 1, 1978)
Known as the “Ricky Martin of Indonesia” among hipsters from Wisconsin, because like Ricky, she was able to successfully transition from being a famous child singer to a soap opera actor. I was hitherto unaware of Ricky’s stint as a bartender on General Hospital in the 90s, but after binging all of his episodes on youtube I am now thoroughly hooked on the show. Can someone please explain why Sonny was stupid enough to marry Lily?! Yes, I know she blackmailed him, but still.
The Kaplan Brothers – Eleanor Rigby (The Kaplan Brothers, 1973)
Ponytone has long been a connoisseur of fine Rigbies of the Eleanor variety, and this one is stellar. According to the back of the record, not only did the Kaplan Brothers have a long standing gig at Chicago’s Sheraton O’Hare, they were the hosts of a one-hour nationwide television show sponsored by the San Antonio World’s Fair. They also entertained Lady Bird Johnson, one of my heroes because apparently she conducted all of her business from bed. (Which does make me wonder just where exactly this “entertainment” took place)
Marilyn T. was some kinda of militant feminist rapper, and that’s about all I know. The only listing of this recording I could find anywhere was in the Women’s Revolutions Per Minute Recordings Archive at the Birmingham library in England. The album was released in 1987 on cassette format by the Raging Raps label out of Boulder, Colorado. (I wasn’t able to uncover any info about the label, either).
What I do know for sure is that for the past couple weeks I’ve been driving around town, windows down, with this bizarre tape BLASTING and getting very strange looks at stop lights. I hesitate to call it the best rap I’ve ever heard, only because I’m probably forgetting something better. Marilyn covers such a wide range of topics it’s truly mind-boggling.
On “False Alarm” (above) she addresses everything from the game show Sale of the Century to Princess Diana’s fondness for Barry Gibb. “Time and Motion” is about her adventures on the subway:
What really impresses me, though, is how she can start off with a cockney english accent, let it gradually fade away, and by the end of Side B (on “Amazon Rap”) sound like an African immigrant who has spent the past 20 years living in Georgia. Marilyn sure likes to keep us guessing.
Marilyn T. – Amazon Rap
yes I am silly.
…and now some BONUS TRACKS !!! for all you die-hard Marilyn T. fans:
Selections from the early film scores of the reclusive and under-appreciated composer Florentin Zagalahuchi. Includes themes from such films as The Gold Letter Tower Of Flying Drama (1958), Twilly Blue (1971), Will Be Willing To Be Better Tomorrow (1982), Fat Upsurge IV (1969), and This Being Free, It Is Foppish! (1979). As far as the compilation, there’s not a lot of info written on the back of the record, just that it was released by the Czech label Wiptoffa in 1987.
