Thanks to producer, publicist, all-around music maven and--most importantly--Texas native(!) Bill Bentley for hipping me to the fantastic story of Dallas-based Paris Records, which over the years has released a small but influential catalogue of spoken word-with-music recordings, including late-career works by Gregory Corso, Allen Ginsberg and William Burroughs (http://www.evergreenreview.com/120/paris-records.html). The Ginsberg and Burroughs records were helmed by the protean producer Hal Willner, who assembled a typically eclectic group of musicians. For Burroughs' "Dead City Radio," recorded when the poet was 74, contributors included John Cale, Donald Fagen, Sonic Youth, and Blondie's Chris Stein. The tracks include "Thanksgiving Prayer," which finds Burroughs--backed by the NBC Symphony Orchestra--in fine, ironic, caustic form as he recounts the state of Reagan-era America in 1986. Happy Thanksgiving, everybody--all things considered, we're in better shape today. I think...
(The albums can be ordered from the label's website: http://parisrecords.net/t-home.aspx)
Download 08 Thanksgiving Prayer
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