1962 MINTY ACID ARCHIVES PRIVATE AT THE UNICORN - TOM RUSH Folk Blues

$

47

             ORIGINAL 1962 FIRST PRESS

            MEGA RARE PRIVATE PRESS!!! 

                   TOM RUSH

                THE UNICORN

\                                              USA - PRIVATE PRESS (LY CORNU)  

ACID ARCHIVES...PRIVATE PRESSING SUPER RARE 1962 Original first pressing IN MONO!

Original LP self-released on Tom Rush's own label (a rare thing for 1962) ..."Tom Rush at the Unicorn" is a warts-and-all charming lo-fi garage recording featuring the young folksinger on stage at Boston's leading teen HOT spot, The Unicorn, one of the local faves (along with Cambridge's Club 47) of the hipsters. The 12-track set list is composed of folk classics like "The Old 97" and "Ramblin' on My Mind" to "Pretty Boy Floyd" and "Talking Dust Bowl Blues." Rush delivers his material with the energy of a thrilled to be theer teen, sounding like the collegiate folk fan he was, and not the sensitive, nuanced singer/songwriter he would become by the time of 1965's Elektra debut, Tom Rush. Tom Rush at the Unicorn is overall very interesting in a raw snapshot of the very roots of the hipster-folk '60s scene. 
 
Here is an interesting 1962 newspaper accounting of the album in full detail:

Boston College > The Heights > 22 November 1963 
 
"Tom Rush at the Unicorn—LyCornu, Got a Mind to Ramble— Prestige/Folklore 14003. In case anyone in this area does not know, Tom Rush is a folksinger. Chances are that you have seen and heard him in person at the Club 47 or some other local coffee house. If you don't like coffee houses, then you can now gelt Tom Rush on record. (Even if you do like coffee houses, you can still buy the records.) Tom Rush is rather hard to describe. His singing and guitar playing are similar in style to ?that of Ramblin' Jack Elliot, but then of you-haven't'heard of Tom Rush, you probably haven't heard of Jack Elliot. Anyway, Tom has a distinctive voice and style, "an unusual synthesis of sensitivity in statement and guts in feeling in his music," accord-
ing to Robert Shelton of the New York Times. What does Tom Rush sing? We can loosely describe his material as Negro blues, interpreted in the manner of the current white city blues revival. The best description for anyone not familiar with Tom Rush or with this particular type of blues is the one given by Tom himself in a live performance, or on record. Of course, no record can really communicate the experience of a live performance, especially in this case. Standing at the mike, tall, long hair, staring off into space, fingers sliding up and down over the frets, boots stomping on the platform, talking and joking with the audience between numbers, Tom Rush is indeed impressive. Each performance is exciting, even to those who by now knew most of the songs by heart. But this is a review of his records. The first of the two records, "Tom Rush at the Unicorn," cut in the spring of 1962 on a small local label, shows a wilder, less experienced (although no less talented) performer. Of the two, the first record comes closer to the excitement of a live performance, probably because it was
'recorded live at the Unicorn Coffeehouse. The second recording, "Got a Mind to Ramble," cut a year later under more ideal conditions, shows a more polished, toned-down Tom Rush. His development is easily seen in the two numbers which are included on both albums. "San Francisco Bay Blues." a Jesse Fuller jazz blues number which has practically become Tom's 'theme song, is as it is sung on the first album, much more spirited and free-wheeling than on the second. It seems that repeated performance and Tom's greater vocal control have smoothed off the edges. "Orphan's Blues," an old washboard Sam ditty, shows Tom's improvement in guitar playing, although some might prefer the harsher, butsier sound of the first record-
ing. It is hard to single out any one or two numbers on the Unicorn album as better than the rest. Certainly "The Old 97," a Southern railroad number and "Make Love To You," a Chicago Sotuh Side r&b piece, both with harmonica accompaniment by Gordie Edwards, are worthy of special mention. Other great cuts on the record are "Ramblin' On My Mind," "Every Night When the Sun Goes Down," "Walkin' Blues," and the best of all, "Old Blue," a number which Tom doesn't do in person anymore. "Ramble" is perhaps a better showcase for Tom Rush's range of talent, including as it does workers' songs ("I Don't Want Your Millions Mister"), an instrumental ("Mole's Moan"), uptempo blues ("Big Fat Woman*, a religious standard ("Just a Closer Walk With Thee"), a narrative ("Duncan and Brady"), songs praising the joys of whiskey ("Rye Whiskey"! and women ("Every Day of the Week") and others: Which one to buy? Well, go see Tom Rush, then take your pick. Or even better, rush right out and buy them both."

 
 
Ramblin' on My Mind
 San Francisco Bay Blues
 The Old 97
 Every Night When the Sun Goes Down
Walkin' Blues
 Make Love to You
 Poor Man
 Orphan's Blues
 Pretty Boy Floyd
 Julie's Blues
 Talking Dust Bowl
 Old Blue 

CONDITION: The cover: THICK cardboard cover is still, after an amazing 52 years, with fresh original colors, rated "EX" (excellent) having only a little light shelf rub at very top of seam, the front and back "faces" and all the rest are very CLEAN ...no delete marks, no split seams, no bends, and no writing  ... collection worthy rarity ...

The vinyl: Clean and glossy over both sides, rated M- expect play grade to be with very enjoyable audio...NO distracting surface problems ... both PRIVATE labels are clean

      A cool addition to anyone's music library!

SEE: SELLERS OTher items for similar cool sounds for "head" people...

EFFICIENT/CAREFUL GRADING

All imperfections are noted both cover & record