François de Roubaix's "L'Homme Orchestre"

Truly one of the great French film composers (and there are quite a few) François de Roubaix's "L'Homme Orchestre" is ....insane.   The orchestra is all in the kitchen and it is like that room has spinned around not once, but twice, and presto you get this soundtrack album.  And I gather the film is a musical, because there is a lot of music on this album.  French pop meets jazz meets experimental tape techniques, meets visions in one's head.  I am almost afraid to see the film, because I think what I see in my head maybe even better than the actual film.  But who knows.....   Great record.

Vince Taylor - Mack the Knife.AVI

Vince Taylor is a fascinating figure in Post-Beatles pop culture. Great vocalist? That's for the public to decide. But his aura sings out brightly. Totally amazing.

Michel Legrand's "Michel Legrand chante"

For the past two years I have been searching out music by Michel Legrand.  His mixture of pop and jazz is a win-win combination.  And his soundtrack work with Jacques Demy is...well its damn incredible.  But via the world of the Internet I have been finding some interesting music by this man.  For instance this album.  I don't know when it was recorded, my guess sometime in the early 60's.  What I have is a vinyl download, so the clicks and cracks adds to the magic of the music.  Legrand has a great jazzy voice and it is very effective when he's singing something very pop orientated.  Also his skill as an arranger is something else.   And his sensitivity with the voice with the instruments I think is quite unique.  A beautiful album.

"The Lost Album: A Visual History of 1950's Britain" by Basil Hyman

The coffee book design is made for books like "The Lost Album." Photographer Basil Hyman's beautiful reproduction of the black and white years of Post-War England. Half of it is his photographs of sites, people (no one famous) burned out music halls, pubs, and etc. But within these pages you get actual ration cards for food and gas, a program for a dance hall performance, ticket stubs from the tube, as well as from various shows, newspaper clippings - its all incredible. 
The book is beautifully designed and the paper has a textural touch that brings back memories - but the thing is this is not my memory, but Hyman's thoughts and visuals of an era that is extremely importrant. The 50's U.K. built the pop stars that will soon change pop culture in the 60's - and seeing the rationing cards, the harsh black and white imagery, which was really the world at the time - is both extremely moving and beautiful. Essential book to the ultimate max.

Tosh Talks May.13.2011 Raymond Roussel

My little chat on the works of Raymond Roussel

Paul Scheerbart's "The Perpetual Motion Machine"

Paul Scheerbart is a total mystery to me, but yes, what a wonderful mystery. German writer of the early 20th Century who focused on poetry and plays as well as being a fan of glass architecture. This small and quite eccentric book is Scheerbart's focus on his scientific invention "The Perpetual Motion Machine." 

After reading this book I haven't the foggiest idea what the Perpetual Motion Machine does or what it's supposed to do - but nevertheless I am sure it is a remarkable invention. For the sole reason that this book is a remarkable invention. With his diagrams in trying to locate the right wheel in the right direction, this is something Scheerbart thought long and hard on. And the beauty is not the result, but the process in getting there - if he even he got there. 

Wakefield Press is surely one of my favorite presses. Besides this jewell of a book they also published the mind-liked "An Attempt at Exhausting aPlace in Paris" by Georges Perec. All part of the Imaging Science series

Tosh Talks MUJI May.06.2011

I do have obsessions about retail stores, and one of my favorites is MUJI. A Japanese no-brand store of sorts but with high design quality - and all the goods are excellently made. I have used their notebooks and pens for over 20 years. Remarkable stationary, but they make everything from shoes to pre-fab homes.

Public Image Ltd.- Poptones & Careering (American Bandstand 1980)

One of those classic "American Bandstand " moments, yet, PIL takes it on another level. Part "Ready Steady Go" meets well...I guess "American Bandstand." Beautiful songs galore. A moment that stands still. In other words a perfect set of moments.

Tosh Talks Apr.29.2011 Charles Brittin

A remarkable walk through Los Angeles/Venice history among other things. Charles Brittin's work is quite magnificent. Here I talk about that and some on my family who is featured in this book.

"Fatale" by Jean-Patrick Manchette

A tough little superb French noir novel that is sort of a revenge against the rich and mighty, but also a snapshot image of class difference and hatred due to that difference. The main character is sort of a professional serial killer, who is a shark looking for the rich to kill. And like all classic noir novels, there is not a wasted word in the book. Manchette for sure has that "it" quality down, and i pray that more of this late writer's work will come out. So far three novels and two graphic novels in English. More? More

0-1: Jacques Roubaud @ Verbale Pupiller

"The Form of a City Changes Faster, Alas, Than The Human Heart" by Jacques Roubaud

By reading these Paris city poems by Jacques Roubaud, one can sense that there is an "Oulipo" stance with its wit and presence. But then again, this is probably one of the best 'poetic' books on Paris. In fact it reads like a map - and for some reason I am drawn to the visual aspect of Paris and how its streets are placed in sections and how it is attached to the big boulevards.

There is a dual aspect to these poems. One is the importance of a language that investigates Paris, but also it is an accurate portrait of a city. So what we have here is Paris as it is laid out by Roubaud's wit and observation. And it goes back to Baudelaire, Queneau, and various French Surrealist poets, with respect to how writing is very much a form itself -and that form represents Paris itself. So not a critique on other writings on Paris, but a nod and a tip to the hat to those who came before and was seduced by Paris' presence.

My only complaint about this book is that it isn't bilingual, but then again I am sure there were budget considerations. And the translation by Keith and Rosmarie Waldrop is pretty readable and fun - and fun is a big part of Roubaud's work.

Tosh Talks Apr.23.2011 Serge Gainsbourg

"Tosh Talks" about Serge Gainsbourg and his home ....and his butler.

Kurt Schwitters' "Three Stories"

The mega-great artist Kurt Schwitters is also a fantastic poet. But what we have here are three (very) short almost like fairy tales, one poem, and an appreciation by artist E.L.T. Messens, and a response from Schwitter's son Ernst. 
The book is only 32 pages, and sort of the perfect read for a good soak in the bathtub, or a bus ride from Silvelake to Hollywood. Elegantly designed as well. Nothing fancy, but just a nice object to behold. The stories themselves are modest, but for sure worth the read, and the poem reminds me of his visual work. One got the impression Schwitters walked around London and just picked up its vibe for his poem. Love it.

"Gainsbourg Inside" by Yannick Ribeaut

A remarkable photo book focusing on Serge Gainsbourg home in Saint Germain des Prés Paris  The book works on two levels.  One its a document of his home at the time of his death - and his various collections of antique dolls (kind of creepy) to military metals and bullet castings.  Gainsbourg is a hero of mine, so of course anything on this great artist is of great worth.  What impresses me about the interior of the location is how small it seems, and how every object in the house has some importance to its owner.  A good interior should convey the owners personality but also its poetic quality is very important as well.
The second level is Gainsbourg's relationship with his man-servant Fulbert Ribeaut.   Gainsbourg left lots of notes to him asking him to buy specific or the latest publications (including the complete works of Mallarme) and of course smokes!
The photographer Yannick Ribeaut was the nephew of the butler, and with Charlotte Gainsbourg's request, he photographed the house.  This book is both a tribute to Gainsbourg's aesthetic as well as the relationship between Serge and his faithful butler Fulbert.  Almost Proust like intensity!

Charles Brittin's exhibition at the Michael Kohn Gallery in Los Angeles

All photos above by Charles Brittin.  All shown at the Michael Kohn Gallery now.

Tosh Talks Jack Spicer Apri.15.2011

Jack Spicer is without a doubt one of my favorite poets. Here I give a little talk, a little reading on this remarkable figure in the poetic arts.

Charles Brittin and ....my parents and ....me

Tosh Talks "James Schuyler"

My James Schuyler special. A great poet and I do a reading...

Tosh Talks Apr.01.2011

"Tosh Talks" about "Blast," Wyndham Lewis, Ezra Pound, The Vorticists, The Italian Futurists, & DADA.