Baby’s on Fire

My first year of college, 1983, was a huge transitional year in my musical awareness. I worked at the university’s music library and I also became a DJ. At work, I was exposed to classical music for the first time, international music like Indian ragas, and contemporary composers like Steve Reich and Edgar Varese. At the radio station, I played music I was more familiar with at first, punk and prog rock were my staples, but I greatly expanded my repertoire every day. At home, I was obsessed with these four albums by Brian Eno:

 Here Come the Warm Jets (1974)

 Taking Tiger Mountain (by Strategy) (1974)

Postcards for this Peking opera gave Eno the idea for the name.

 Another Green World (1975)

Here is a book detailing the album: Brian Eno’s Another Green World by Geeta Dayal.

 Before and After Science (1977)

Listening to them on Hoopla has brought me back to that time.

These albums are pop music and avant-garde at the same time. They contain driving rhythms and multi-textured aural qualities, with glam-rock sensibilities at times, ambient electronica at others. I hear direct influences of David Bowie and David Byrne. I also hear a unique set of songs similar to other music only in what has come after. The vocal timber is what I think draws me the most. Eno’s voice goes from almost sneeringly punk to decidedly New Wave. A frequent contributor to the albums is Robert Fripp, my favorite guitarist of the era.

I listened to these so often, they would be in the soundtrack to my college years if it were a movie, just like in this one: Me and Earl and the Dying Girl.

Brian Eno has been an influential record producer since the 1970s. His sonic stamp is present on the albums of The Talking Heads, U2, Coldplay, and many others. He was planning to collaborate on another project with his good friend David Bowie. It was Bowie’s recent death that prompted me to revisit these touchstones of my past.

 

-Joelle

Ten Holiday Albums to Stream Right Now

Last year, our music and film specialists at Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh – Main offered up their suggestions for holiday tunes that were a little off the beaten path. This year we’re making it even easier—here are ten albums we recommend that you can download or stream right now through the library with Hoopla. (And if you don’t yet have a Hoopla account, you can learn more about it here.)

The Beach Boys’ Christmas Album

If gloomy winter weather is getting you down, there is really no better balm than the sunny California sounds of the Beach Boys.

 

A Charlie Brown Christmas

Has there ever been a more maudlin song that included lyrics like, “Christmastime is here/Happiness and cheer”?  For me, this album perfectly sums up the holidays with its mixture of joy and bitter sweet nostalgia.

Ella Wishes You A Swinging Christmas

This is one of the funnest, jazziest holiday albums around. Ella Fitzgerald belts out classics from the raucous “Jingle Bells” to the wistful “What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve.” Highly recommended.

 

The Christmas Collection: Elvis Presley

If you’re looking to make it a blue Christmas, look no further than The King. This album is one half rockin’, one half bluesy gospel and all great.

 

Christmas in Soulsville

Get down for Christmas with the likes of Otis Redding, Isaac Hayes and Booker T. & The MG’s.

 

 

James Brown’s Funky Christmas

Christmas albums do not get any funkier than this. You cannot go wrong with James Brown.

A Jolly Christmas From Frank Sinatra

Make it a Rat Pack Christmas with the jazzy, loungey vocal stylings of one Frank Sinatra.

 

The 25th Day Of December – The Staples Singers

The Staple Singers are well known for their R&B hits of the late 60s and early 70s, but prior to that, they were a really groovy gospel group. The Staple sisters all have wonderful voices, but it’s Pops Staples work on the steel guitar that really makes these gospel tunes something special.

 

The Ventures Christmas Album

Like the Beach Boys, the Ventures are sure to cheer any listener up on a gloomy day with their swinging surf-rock melodies.

 

 

The Ultimate Motown Christmas Collection

Nearly two hours of holiday music from the likes of the Jackson 5, Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson and Marvin Gaye. Put your dancing shoes on and enjoy!

 

Happy Rockin’ Holidays,

Tara

Digital Comics Now on Hoopla

I have been waiting for libraries to carry digital comics for years.

And now, thanks to Hoopla and a few major comics publishers, they do. (Read this for information on why the Library may not have the eBook or digital comic you’re looking for.)

Hoopla now carries comics published by DC, IDW, and more. Image (my current favorite publisher) will hopefully be added to that mix in the near future.

There are a few quirks to watch out for as you browse. Some comics are collected into digital “trade paperbacks” (most of DC’s are like this) and some are available as single issues.

For some comics the series is broken up and you have to look in two different places to find it. (Example: Princeless issue one is here, and the other three are over here.) For others (like Adventure Time), only select issues are available (30 to 36 as of this writing.)

To celebrate this momentous occasion for comic nerds everywhere, I made a list of my top six digital comic picks.

1. The Sandman by Neil Gaiman: If you haven’t read this classic wherein Death, Dream, Destruction, Destiny, etc. are godlike entities who get wrapped up in the mundane world in various ways, you absolutely should. This is the series that made Gaiman’s name, and for good reason. It’s fantastic.
2. Fables: Legends in Exile by Bill Willingham and Mark Buckingham: This is another of my all-time favorites. (I talk about one volume a little in this post over here.) Fairy tale characters are living in modern Manhattan after the Adversary takes over their homelands. There are murder mysteries, epic battles, magic, sarcasm, and plenty of tender moments.
3. John Constantine, Hellblazer by Jamie Delano: I have had a major crush on John Constantine since I first read Hellblazer back in high school. He fights demons, chain smokes, and generally embodies the spirit of punk in a totally kick butt way. (There’s also a movie, which I recommend only if you are fond of Keanu Reeves, and one season of a television series–now cancelled–that began airing last fall.)
4. Lumberjanes by Grace Ellis and Noelle Stevenson: This band of girlfriends is the kind of group you’ve always wanted to belong to. Maybe you do. If so, all of you should read this together.
5. Batman: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller: My first introduction to this classic Batman tale was the cartoon adaptation of the early 1990s (which is fantastic, too, by the way). This is a “what if” scenario: What if Batman weren’t there to save Gotham? Now you can find out, 24/7, without leaving your couch/bed/gaming chair.
6. Y: The Last Man by Brian K. Vaughn: What if all men died? Not just humans, but all male animals, too? Except for one. Follow him and the awesome ladies he encounters as he searches for his fiancee, who might be somewhere in Australia.

You’re smart, so you probably noticed most of these are DC Vertigo titles. It’s true. I love DC Vertigo. There are so many more comics on Hoopla though, like biographies of Barack Obama and Kate Middleton for young adults, and classics adapted into comic form.

But the best thing about Hoopla? There are no wait lists. Every title is available to everyone all the time. So go on, read some comics!

-Kelly

Throw Yourself a Library Dance Party

One of the perks of working in the Music, Film & Audio department of the library is that I’m always discovering new music to check out and listen to on my daily commute. Unfortunately, the CD player in my car stopped working sometime last year, and so I was stuck listening to the radio—or so I thought.

That was until I discovered the library’s streaming music services, and I started checking out new music for my commute again via my smartphone. One of my favorite online library services is called Hoopla. Before I share some of my current music picks that you can check out from Hoopla right now, here’s a little refresher on what Hoopla is all about:

• Hoopla has a large collection of movies, TV shows, documentaries, music albums and audiobooks, all available for checkout with a current CLP or ACLA library card. A nice thing about Hoopla is that all content is available for streaming, but can also be downloaded on most mobile devices, and there is never a waitlist.
• You can check out up to 10 items a month, and downloads are automatically re-set at the first of the month.
• Most movie and TV content is available for 3 days after borrowing (a very small number of movie titles are available for 2 days). Music albums are available for 7 days, and audiobooks are available for 21 days.
• The first time you sign up for Hoopla, you will be asked to choose your local library and enter your library card number. You will then be prompted to enter an email address and create a password. This will be your user name and password that you will use to log into your account in the future.

• Hoopla has been making improvements to its app so that on some devices it will be easier to rewind/fast forward audio files, or listen to them at variable speeds. Also, Kindle Fire HDX users will now be able to find the Hoopla app in their app store.
• Did you know that Hoopla can also be viewed on some TVs? If you want to project Hoopla onto a larger screen using your notebook, tablet, or smart phone, this is now possible on TVs that have screen-casting capability.

And now, here are a handful of (newish) albums I’ve checked out recently and enjoyed:

What A Terrible World, What A Beautiful World / The Decemberists

No Cities To Love / Sleater-Kinney

St. Vincent / St. Vincent

Wine Dark Sea / Jolie Holland

I Never Learn / Lykke Li

Here And Nowhere Else / Cloud Nothings

Sunbathing Animal / Parquet Courts

They Want My Soul / Spoon

Happy listening,

Tara

PS – As you can probably tell, my tastes tend towards the pop and indie-rock genres – rest assured, there are plenty of great albums in genres as disparate as hip-hop, country, jazz and electronica. Just tell us what you’re looking for, and we’ll be happy to make a recommendation!

eCLP: Free and Easy

 

If I wrote a blog post about all that was amazing about the FREE “e” services Carnegie Library provides, it would be the longest one ever. I will therefore force myself to concentrate on one aspect — downloadable and streaming music. So Much! Downloadable and Streaming Music! Whatever Your Tastes!

There is so much that it can get a little overwhelming, so I urge you to start now. All you need is a library card, which is free of course. Downloadable offerings are easily accessible using apps or on a PC. No need to come to the library to take out or return stuff. Best of all it is free, free, free, free, free, free, FREE!

Here is a summary of what Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh offers:

Downloadable Music

Downloadable music, by album. Hoopla also has lots of movies, TV shows and audiobooks. I personally use this service a lot! I have the app on my smartphone, and plug it in to my car speakers or listen in my kitchen while I’m cooking. I have yet not to find what I’m searching for, and I have very eclectic tastes. I have educated myself about new artists with this service. Everything is always available, no waiting or putting things on hold.

 

Download the app, or go through your PC. Three free songs per week. Yours to keep forever. ‘Nuff said.

 

Streaming Music

Streaming music is not downloadable. You need to be connected to the internet. I use these sites to listen to music on my computer with headphones. Go through this site to access these databases.

Alexander Street Press music databases:

American Song — Songs by and about Native Americans, miners, immigrants, slaves, children and many others.

Contemporary World Music

Smithsonian Global Sound — world, folk (including the U. S.) and traditional music

Classical Music Library

Jazz Music Library

Opera in Video — operas, interviews & documentaries

This site also has help pages listed at the bottom, including Using Your Mobile Device with Alexander Street Press.

 

Naxos databases:

Naxos Music Library — classical, jazz and world music.

Naxos Music Library: Jazz — lots and lots of Jazz!

 

DRAM Online:

Digital Recordings of American Music — A scholarly resource of recordings, including liner notes and essays. This streaming site is only available within the Main Library of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh.

 

All this music for free! Educate yourself. Discover a type of music you’ve never heard before. There’s no risk because there is nothing to buy. Each site has new content all the time. What are you waiting for?

-Joelle

 

P. S. Did I mention that all this content is FREE (with your free library card)?