lPE lPIT(~1 VOL. 1 NO.1 JULY ,1980 KY l02-TONE WINNER WANTS WINGS PennyLane opened the first Sum­ mer of the 80's with a tanning contest sponsored by KY 102 ra­ dio and inspired-or perspired­ by Columbia Records new release "Tommy Tutone." Debbie LaReau of Kansas City was judged first out of a field of one vying for a 102 second sweep through the store. Her entry was a discrete "KY 102" STORE SITS ON tanned ol').l1er thighs. the thigh was all it KC area the COl').J;,.Aitt"l'c.W~s believed re­ sponsible for the low level of competition. Penny Lane is no chain. It's In late 1979, Hal Brody, the sort of the missing link in keeper of The House, carne up- Debbie, who was chided by the the world of retail. on the old Visiting Nurses build· many spectators for using up ing in historic Westport. The nearly 15 of her 102 valuable. Since the beginning way back air was much better above ground seconds in search of the elus1ve in 1975, Penny Lane has moved and, aside from the pink-tiled Wings section, quickly got in three times in search of the restroom, the nurses left a per­ the groove and carried away 113 right chemistry that would make fect horne for both Penny Lane different LP's. it different from the standard and The House. record shop. Debbie did alright considering albums weigh about a half pound In 1980, it seems to have all What this all means to the re­ each and duplicates were dis­ corne together. And in 1980, cord buyer is that a hard to get allowed. When the dust had set­ economic conditions surely jazz or blues record that would tled, she still hadn't grabb d dictate that a small business be unobtainable or at best a McCartney's new album. The 7Jud­ be more than average to stay special order in most record ges, which included. famous KY in business. shops is either in the bins at DJ Jay Cooper, Jim Lucas of CBS Penny Lane or a couple of steps and PennyLane's own Le Roi, al­ So what makes Penny Lane dif­ away. lowed Debbie an even swap for ferent? Below the feet of un­ the Ex-Beatle's new solo LP. suspecting record buyers is a And Penny Lane people will be warehouse where national dis­ glad to take those steps to see tribution of over 350 small, that the music and the customer independent record labels are joined whenever possible. takes place daily. The 1980 House catalog is now The distribution end is called available listing all those la­ The House, and the house liter­ bels and titles between two ally runneth over with jazz, covers. It can be had for the bluegrass, blues, classical and asking at Penny Lane or through some recordings which defy the mail (see information in classification. this issue of The Pitch). The House is called "The House" The purpose of this small paper because it was started in a is to let those folks who need house in St. Louis. It remained a regular diet of music know that The House even after a prolonged Penny Lane is a good place to stint in Kansas City's 31st. corne when you're hungry. Debbie: She W.nted Win,s Street limestone caves. The Penny Pit~h pale 2 THE LETTERS Penny Pi tell Dear Pitch, IS PUBLISHED ON OCCASION BY On June 4th, I went to a Genesis, con­ cert. Walking into the auditorium, I sensed that it was going to be a superior con­ ~l~tMUNE~ cert. I was right. The speakers hung in mid-air and the sound was incredibly 4128 BROADWAY clean. It could be loud. Undoubtedly,-Genesis displayed both "Just down the street from the old superior showmanship and craftmanship. Wolfburger's." \'Jhen playing older material, main show­ Kansas City, Mo. 64111 man Phil Collins had the whole audience involved. His props were entertaining Edi tor-in··Chief ••••• l"larren Stylus and amusing. Executive Pub •.•.••• Hal Brody While introducing the band, Collins Nev-ls Door ••.•••••••• Mon Dayberger began the story of Duke. DUKE, on City Door •..••...••. I-Sheryl Atlantic Records, is their new stage Store Door •••.•.•••. Kathy Roths project. Contributing Writers this issue: Genesis is on of those few bands that grow musically with age. The band should Lonesum Chuck Haddix, Le Roi®, be given credit for both their new al­ the Rev. Dwight Frizzell, Mr. bum and their performance in Kansas City. D. Conn, Marta My Dear, and Lane It's nice to get your money's worth and Dave of GENCO LABS. for once. Inspiration this issue: Stan Andrews of KY 102, and M.M.D. Sid Musso Ed.' s note: Someone once said, "Music is a sound Dear Pitch, , ~T' So - how come you got letters to the BAT LFlATWJN 1 l'ow. Editor already and it's only your very first edition? Is this some kind of put­ on or what? Puzzeled ED. 's NOTE: Through the miracle of editing , you get tomorrow's news and views today. The Penny Pitch welcomes any correspondence - excluding letter bombs. Send opinions, questions, or answers to: EDITOR Penny Pitch 4128 Broadway Kansas City, Mo. 64111 Lonesum Chuck points to both the way prices are going and the way to Beat !nflation ~ow. Pennylane's-wall of Penny Pinching Deals offers $1.00 off the regular low price on new releases, check the BINS of Cut-outs priced from $1~99 to $3.49. Where is Foot Foot? The Penny Pitch page 3 NEWS AND REVIEWS ROCK AND ROLL LE ROI'S SHORT REVIEWS * POOR ** FAIR *** AVERAGE OR GOOD **** BETTER THAN AVERAGE; VERY GOOD ***** EXCELLENT *** CAROLE KING/Pearls (Capitol 12073) King performs classic Goffin & King tunes such as "Locomotion," "One Fine Day" & "Chains", in very commendable style. Refreshing! *** SAMMY HAGAR/Danger Zone (Capitol 12069) One of his finest efforts yet. Powerful rock that will probably go top 40. **** LOU REED/Growing Up in Public (Arista 9522) One of his best efforts yet. Reed displays a sense of humor that's been lacking in other efforts. ***** BEST OF THE BUNCH * PAUL McCARTNEY/McCartney II (CBS 36511 CBS paid millions of $$'s too much for ***** GRAHAM PARKER/ The Up Escalator (Arista this. 9517) Excellent recording quality, excellent ***** JOAN ARMATRADING/ Me,Myself,I (A&M musicianship (the Rumour,parts of the E­ 4809) street band, Nicky Hopkins, and the Boss) , Another sparkling effort, with expanded and best of all Parkers pounding vocals and styles from this overlooked talent. prolific writing talp-nts. You can't miss Including Chris Spedding on Guitars. with this record. **** PETE TOWNSEND/Empty Glass (Atco 32- 100) Nothing empty about this effort. Over­ flows with fun, enjoyable tunes. ***** GRATEFUL DEAD/Go to Heaven (Arista 9508) Don't let the cover fool you. Best effort since Workingman's Dead. *** TASMAN:IAN DEVILS/(same) (WB 3400) Very refreshing record. Has the potential and lightness of the first Dire Straits. **** SQUEEZE / Argybargy (A&M 4802) Great Record! This is ~he one McCartney ALL ABOVE ALBUMS CAN BE PURCHASED should have done. *** TERRANCE BOYLAN/ Suzy (Asy. 201) DI R ECTLY FROM LeRoi® AT PENNY LANE Good, solid record. Unfortunatly, it may get lost in the shuffle of new records. I Hope not. The Penny Pitch Pa,e 4 JAZZ Penny Lane Offers Ra Deal SUN RA: MUSIC FOR WORLD SURVIVAL STRANGE CELESTIAL ROAD Round~r Records 3035 (on the wall for $4.99) SUN RA is one of few who are transcendent of time. His mu­ sic points to the future and The title cut, STRANGE CELEST­ the past. Yet, the arrival o'f IAL ROAD, is a combination of his new album on Rounder, walking-swing, funk, black STRANGE CELESTIAL ROAD, could cnant, electronic music, and not be timed better. Ra's music lyrical jazz improvisation. is, literally, SOUL food. If John Gilmore's tenor sax slices the world is as large and per­ the air with his full-bodied verse as myth, then Sun Ra is a tone. Sun Ra doubles on elec­ revelation of the splender of tric piano and synthesizer, esoteric knowledge and the pow­ The Rev Picks treating each as a unique voice­ er of intuition. SUN RA's mu­ sic is food for the soul so that the electric piano in a jazz­ funk style and the synthesizer we may SURVIVE. as the ascending ELECTRIC SOUND of the Space Age. Marshal Allen --Rev. Dwight Frizzell (alto sax and longtime member of Much of JOURNEY TO THE ONE fea­ the Arkestra) and Michael Ray P.S. Looking forward to next tures an exceptional jazz quin­ (trumpet, a Ra discovery during issue featuring review of Ra's tet including John Hicks (piano) Ray's rock-band days) both have June 14th concert on Lake Mich­ Eddie Henderson (flugelhorn), an< distinct and notably powerful igan and hopefully exclusive Idris Muhammad (drums). John solos. Two vibe players extend interview in the PENNY Pitch. Bonner (piano) performs a shim­ Ra's multi-keyboard textures. mering duet with Sanders (tenor sax) of Coltrane's After the SAY is. a big-band number reme­ Rain. This album is a must. niscent of Fletcher Henderson's PHAROAH SANDERS' JOURNEY TO THE orchestra. Ra's band swings ONE boldly on new waves of a lyrical past. I'LL WAIT FOR YOU is al­ Theresa Records TR 108/109 so a classic, emplying a funk riff and pushing the intuitive complete line oj abilities of the Arkestra to new From the beginning, hearing worlds.