Junky

"THE JUNKY'S CHRISTMAS" (1993)

Cartoon of the story by Burroughs from Francis Ford Coppola, shot in plasticine style, tells of standing on end in search of dose on Christmas Eve …

In 1969 – some three years before his self-titled debut solidified his stature as a pre-eminent string bender – Roy Buchanan (guitar/vocals) signed with Polydor Records and began work on his first full-length platter. In 2004, three-and-a-half decades later, the audio archivists at Hip-O Select finally issued The Prophet: The Unreleased First Polydor Album (2004)…

Ryan Bingham's stellar 2010 album Junky Star felt like a record he'd been striving to make since he began recording. By contrast, Tomorrowland feels like one he had to make. Bingham ditched his label and the Dead Horses, his longtime backing band. This set appears on his own Axster Bingham label; it was co-produced by the artist and Justin Stanley. Its 13 songs run the gamut, from well-written, acoustically driven Americana tunes to loud, shambolic rockers…

Good Times was a bit spotty compared to Music Is the Message, compromising Kool & the Gang's legendary funk instincts for a variety of digressions that don't turn out the way they should. There's much more good than bad though, beginning with the title track, a school's-out jam just in time for summer. "Making Merry Music" is in a similar mold and just as good, while the group leaps into wild, unhinged, horn-driven funk for "Rated X" and "Country Junky." …