[Davey]

Recently been listening to a lot of early Morphine ... Good, Cure For Pain, and Yes. What a great band, and a trio of very nice records, especially that bluesy first one. Not very recent, in fact almost 15 years old now, but ya gotta go back aways to get any pop or rock that is well recorded and mastered because the industry has been taken over by the idiots, and it's almost all severely compressed, and then maximized, and then repeated, until there is no life, no nuance, no texture, just a constant barrage of sound....

OK, rant over, but these were all recorded by Paul Q. Kolderie at Fort Apache, a pretty well known studio, and engineer. He also did records like Radiohead's The Bends and the Pixies debut EP and some Uncle Tupelo and a bunch of others. If you like sax with your rock, these records kick some ass, sometimes hot and smoldering, but sometimes bursting into flames. Here's an excerpt from the SoundStage! audiophile ezine about Cure For Pain, which might be my favorite on most days ...

Morphine – Cure for Pain [Rykodisc RCD 10262]

Walking around audio shows as a member of the press occasionally yields temptation from the manufacturers. When I first met the guys from Blue Circle and Merlin at HI-FI '97, they offered me Morphine. And you thought Roy Hall's scotch was addictive. Cure for Pain is a really catchy, upbeat release that's hard to classify. It's definitely rock, but with influences from jazz to funk. One of the most unique parts of the sound is the saxophone playing of Dana Colley. It used to drive me crazy trying to figure out how the hell he got some of the weird blends of sound he was producing. One of my musician friends who'd seen the band live clued me in -- he plays two saxophones at the same time! You won't easily confuse these guys with anybody else, I tell you that much. Morphine is lots of fun to listen to, and the recording deserves playback on a show-quality system. Just don't expect it to be covered by your HMO. -- Greg Smith

 

[markl]

Great great band, they called it "Low Rock". I got to see them live around '96, what a shame Sandman died. His bass had only 2 strings, he got all those sounds out of a two-sting bass.

I got to see them in a small club and the airline had lost his bass, the only one he used. So, he had to borrow a bass from a local musician and basically wreck it to make it a two string bass tuned his way.

Ah, memories.

For me Yes is the one where it all clicked perfectly, it's got everything you want from them on it. The Night, the last album is also interesting, they were progressing and it was a lot more atmospheric.

 

[Jeff Guidry]

I remember this band, they were a favorite of mine in college, a sort of "what would Tom Waits sound like if he rocked a little more" sort of sound. A very expansive sound with that really trippy saxophone, some necessary listening if you want to know what was happening other than grunge in that period......

 

[scompton]

I discovered Morphine a couple of years ago by accident. I got a classical CD out of the library, and in it was a copy of The Night. I loved it and bought Cure For Pain. Eventually, I'll buy the others. There's just too much good music to buy.

 

[NiceCans]

Morphine is indeed addicting! They could not have chosen a better name.
I only wish there was more material avaliable.

 

[R_burke]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NiceCans /img/forum/go_quote.gif Morphine is indeed addicting! They could not have chosen a better name. I only wish there was more material avaliable.

Mark Sandman - Sandbox 2 disc set on Kufala Records

http://www.amazon.com/Sandbox-Mark-S...6626278&sr=1-1

Interesting stuff, not necessarily the best recordings, but still good stuff

 

[Rav]

Great stuff indeed

 

[Davey]

Quote:

Originally Posted by markl /img/forum/go_quote.gif Great great band, they called it "Low Rock". I got to see them live around '96, what a shame Sandman died. His bass had only 2 strings, he got all those sounds out of a two-sting bass. I got to see them in a small club and the airline had lost his bass, the only one he used. So, he had to borrow a bass from a local musician and basically wreck it to make it a two string bass tuned his way. Ah, memories. For me Yes is the one where it all clicked perfectly, it's got everything you want from them on it. The Night, the last album is also interesting, they were progressing and it was a lot more atmospheric.

You used to go to a sh!tload of shows, huh Mark? Do you still get out anything like that anymore? Never heard The Night, guess I should. Such a cool sound, and so nicely recorded too. Man, we lost a lot in the last few years. Yes is turning into my favorite too, but Good has the jam, when they get going on "You Speak My Language", it's just all so cool. Got that late night smokey jazz club feel running through a lot of it. Glad this stuff is still so readily available, and practically free if you take the time to look.

 

[Absorbine_Sr]

Bootleg Detroit is an officially released live audience recording that seems to capture an excellent hot sweaty club feel. Give it a listen if you get the chance. Definite lo-fi but that ain't always bad.

A_Sr.

 

[monolith]

Yeah, they were pretty excellent. Surprisingly few people know about them, too. I recommend them to customers at work all the time. They're really cheap, too.

 

[riceboy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NiceCans /img/forum/go_quote.gif Morphine is indeed addicting! They could not have chosen a better name. I only wish there was more material avaliable.

I agree with NiceCans. I listened to them when they first came out and really like them. I really wish there was more material for us to listen to

 

[Henmyr]

Just started listening to Cure for pain about a month ago and I've really liked it. Will definitely check out their other albums. Thanks for the tip.

 

[DLeeWebb]

Have loved Morphine since "Cure For Pain." I think "The Night" is my favorite by them. What a tragedy, barring hidden/lost recordings, that we won't be hearing anything new from them.

 

[Orcin]

I have "Yes" and I really like it. It's a very unique sound, and the material is engaging. I will add the other two CD's mentioned by Davey to my shopping list.

 

[markl]

Quote:

You used to go to a sh!tload of shows, huh Mark? Do you still get out anything like that anymore?

yeah, I saw most of the great bands of the late eighties to nineties. Went to a show nearly every week. Sadly, when you hit your thirties, you suddenly discover you've become that creepy older guy in the back. You also have so much less time...