[Jandek] taking the plunge

[Seth Tisue]

>>>>> "Jason" == Jason Harman <jmharman at hotmail.com> writes:

 Jason> Hey.  I've been a Jandek admirer for about a decade now. I
 Jason> discovered him as a DJ at WRCT in Pittsburgh in the early
 Jason> 90s. For several reasons, I've decided that now is finally the
 Jason> time to take the plunge and order a batch of 20 cds from
 Jason> Corwood.

 Jason> While there are some of his albums that I am definitely
 Jason> interested in owning (ready for the house, chair beside a
 Jason> window, and lost cause for starters), I am interested in
 Jason> feedback from some of those infinitely more in the know as to
 Jason> definite Jandek highlights and records to own or to pass on for
 Jason> my initial order of 20.....Thanks.

Here's my recommendations for the post-"Lost Cause" era:

- Definitely get "Glad to Get Away".  If you like it, you can get
  "Graven Image" and "White Box Requiem" later, and if you still
  want more, "I Woke Up", "New Town", and "The Beginning".

- Your 20 should include a spoken word disc.  I think "Put My Dream on
  This Planet" is superior to the other two.  Yeah, it's longer and
  harder to take, but if you're going to stare into the abyss, don't
  shield your eyes -- stare!

- "I Threw You Away", "The Humility of Pain", and "The Place" are all
  pretty similar, so for now one of the three is enough; I think "I
  Threw You Away" is the best of the three.

- "The Gone Wait" and "Shadow of Leaves" are pretty similar, so for now
  one of the two is enough; I'd give "Shadow" the edge.

As for the earlier stuff, I think you could skip these for now: "Staring
at the Cellophane" and "Your Turn to Fall" (because the preceding albums
are better), "The Rocks Crumble" (because "Interstellar Discussion" is
better), "Somebody in the Snow" and and "One Foot in North" (because the
preceding three albums are better).

There's four albums with Nancy ("Foreign Keys", "Telegraph Melts",
"Follow Your Footsteps", and "Modern Dances") that are all fairly
similar, but I don't know which one or two to leave out.  Probably
"Follow Your Footsteps".

==
Seth Tisue - seth at tisue.net - http://tisue.net
"It is better to stay indoors and not mess around
with useless experiences." - Rudolph Wurlitzer, _Nog_