Mississippi

COLEMAN, GEORGE - Bongo Joe

There can only be one Bongo Joe, and that is the incredible George Coleman. Bongo Joe is perhaps the worlds only virtuoso player of the empty oil drum, a man so ingenious that he could even turn petroleum refuse into something musical and sublime. Recorded on the streets of San Antonio in 1969 by Chris Strachawitz (Arhoolie Records). Bongo Joe drums on his oil cans with a thunderous, tympani-like effect, while discoursing rambling, insightful and hilariously funny lyrics that are often times more stories than songs. As Joe himself put it, I rap but not that bullshit theyre putting down now. I play fundamental beat music. Whether draping his drums with an American flag or washing them in swirls of psychedelic green and red paint, theres something beyond the typical street-corner busker in Bongo Joes persona, unbridled quality that isnt just musical, but draws on a tradition of pure entertainment. One of the true treasures of the Arhoolie catalog for many years. Try Science Fiction, Innocent Little Doggie (if you think Joe was just a novelty act, listen closely to the poignant insightfulness of the lyrics), Transistor Radio (more wry commentary) and Dog Eat Dog. One of our favorites, available on vinyl for the first time in 39 years. -Mississippi

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After nearly a decade of false starts, multiple game plans veering off the rails, and a handful of shattered hopes and/or dreams, the odyssey is finally complete—the new Fusetron site is here.

This is the first phase of a multipart rollout that will span the next few months: the currently browsable stock includes miscellaneous new releases from the past 8+ months (we have a lot of catching up to do), plus approximately a third of our backstock. Note that we’ve reduced/slashed prices on many titles and will continue to do so in order to make room for new stock. We’ll also be expanding / tweaking / improving / debugging the site itself (for example, we still have work to do on the automated international postage system, not to mention the inevitable inventory discrepancies that come with transferring an ancient and massive database to a new system).

Over the next few months, as we take inventory, clean house, and delve into our storage, we will be uploading thousands of additional items, gradually, on a near-daily basis. This will include the majority of the LPs, as well as many titles, in all formats, once thought long-gone. Many currently “sold out” items are likely to resurface.

Finally, once our general backstock is up (probably in the next two or three months) we’ll begin making our extensive stockpile of rarities available online for the first time: tons of random out-of-print titles, "deadstock," warehouse finds, secondhand collectibles, etc., accumulated over the past few decades.

Frequent/returning customers will be getting early access to these items. Details to follow on how this will work (a priority mailing list? a 'frequent flyer'-like program?), but it will not be based on dollars spent. We want to reward those who consistently support us, especially in the discogs marketplace era (to those who show up trying to poach five copies of a one-off rarity, and nothing else, ever… ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ).

So—we suggest you take some time to dig through the site—even we’ve been surprised by what’s been turning up, and there’s much more to come.
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