Michael Franks “Sleeping Gypsy”

One of my favorite Michael Franks records—maybe my favorite of those I have on vinyl. I was very excited to find it in a record store, and I even threatened to compromise my trash aesthetic by paying more than I usually pay for a record. That’s kind of a joke, because my low-budget-aesthetic has more to do with economics (no money) than aesthetics. I have more Franks records on digital format than vinyl (I’m not sure if they’re all even available on vinyl) and he’s one of half-a-dozen artists I go to on any given day to fill my dank room with sunshine and create an atmosphere for sustaining life (mine, as I work on stuff). I looked it up, and it’s only his third, from 1977. I have half of his 18 studio records on vinyl, but there are five (of those I don’t have) that I’ve not yet even heard! Talk about something to look forward to, in life! He’s an odd one, because he’s recorded from the Seventies up until present, but you can’t place any of his albums in a time period, or decade, even. (Though, cover art, perhaps). But his music, to me, feels as timeless as pizza, sex, and fermentation.

The inner sleeve has recording studio snapshots of the musicians—casual photos of some heavy-duty cats. Some of the best to ever do this stuff, including Joe Sample, Larry Carlton, Wilton Felder, and more. Also, there are lyrics, and Michael Franks lyrics are definitely worth paying close attention to, and you’ll pick them up on repeated listenings, because the words enhance the songs considerably. Just check out, for example, even without the music, “In the Eye of the Storm.” He wrote all eight songs here, and he credits co-writes on a couple. They’re all good. I really should spend a lot more time going song by song, but then I’d have one of those 33 1/3 books, unpublished, and I swear I’m shooting for one paragraph reviews—I’m trying! My favorite is the opener, “The Lady Wants to Know,” which I bet is on or close to the top of many Franks fans’ lists. It’s one of his coolest, no doubt. My next favorite is “Antonio’s Song (The Rainbow)”—well, equally as great. It occurs to me that those two are on a “Best of” CD I’ve listened to excessively, so maybe that’s part of why they’re standouts in the moment. (I’ve got to say, the songs sound better on vinyl, and that’s not my imagination.) The more I listen to the record, the more they all become my favorites.

This is a beautiful and intriguing album cover—it’s right up there—a bit mysterious. The entire thing taken up by an orange and white design that looks uncannily organic, given its complete lack of anything recognizable. I am guessing it’s a treated photograph—maybe of a forest or glade of heavy trees—then the contrast and color temperature altered to the extent that it creates more or less an abstract. The artist name and album title at the very top in barely there, small case, italic print. In the bottom right there’s a small, jeweled moth or butterfly that could have just landed there. Your lepidopterist will, with a resigned sigh, say, “Of course, that’s a _____!” (Tyronious Pyrothrombosius, or something no one, but them, would ever be able to remember.) The back cover is a full-size photo of Michael Franks standing in front of glade of trees (that could be the front cover trees prior to treatment), and he looks somewhat like Tom Siler (one of the geniuses behind my favorite band of all time, Tulip Sweet). He’s got the 1977 hair and moustache, a goofy bucket hat, and a WB (Warner Bros.) sweater. The total nerdiness of his look is a cool by contrast counterpoint to the music, which is as hot as it gets. And, also, very cool.

4.10.26