3D headaches, Murder Ballads & Disaster Songs and the new Uncut playlist

Feeling a bit queasy right now, after watching five minutes of Jean Michel Jarre‘s new DVD while wearing 3D glasses. I can’t vouch for the whole disc of “Oxygene”, but Jarre seems to eschew the youthful sort of 3D stunts and go instead for shots of him and his mates playing some lovely old synths. Quite strange, not least because it seems to have had the unusual effect of making me both bored and dizzy at the same time.

A brief respite, this, from a hard day listening to good music, an eclectic one, too, which thus far has taken in the mighty Ghostface Killah, Blue Mountain Eagle – that’s Dewey Martin‘s rocking post-Buffalo Springfield outfit – and a terrific new recording of Gavin Bryars‘ minimalist classic, “The Sinking Of The Titanic”.

The Titanic’s been a big hit these past couple of days, since yesterday we had a good session with “People Take Warning: Murder Ballads & Disaster Songs 1913-1938”, a lovely new box set from Tompkins Square whose first disc features, I think, six songs about that benighted ship including my favourite, “El Mole Rachmin (Fur Titanik)” by Cantor Joseph Rosenblatt. Props to Tompkins Square, too, for digital reissues of the first three, crazily rare, albums by James Blackshaw, my favourite post-Fahey/Basho/Takoma guitarist of the year.

Blackshaw’s “The Cloud Of Unknowing” features in a Wild Mercury Sound Top 20 I compiled for Uncut’s Best Of 2007 supplement, which comes free with today’s new issue of the mag. Forgive me for the vulgar hype here, but it’s a pretty meaty survey of the year’s music and films. Yada Yada.

I digress. Here’s that playlist:

1 Noel Harrison – The Great Electric Experiment Is Over (Reprise)

9 Monade – Monstre Cosmic (Too Pure)