The Roches

I woke up this morning with the "Hammond Song" playing in my head. It was great to hear it again. I think that says it all!

I happened upon an LP(yes vinyl) at KAXE 91.5FM,.a very cool community radio station in Grand Rapids,Mn. where I did a 4 hr.sunday night show for about the most fun I could ever have,by a unknown girlie folk style group from Suffern NY.I immediately put it on a turntable to listen.The ladies politely intro'd themselves in "We" and I was in love.Got to know them better in Hammond Song,Mr.Sellack and got lost in their spell the rest of the way.The Roches,them and the album,was so differant than anything I had heard.Their dissonant harmonies and quirky,chaotic songs grab you,slightly upend you but put you back in a better place than when you 1st started listening to them.I have luckily seen them in concert 2 times and they are even better.But,one night Tom Snyder an NBC talk show host had them on his late night hour and proceeded to almost insult the trio because he didnt get it.To bad for him.I did and 31 years later I am still a Roches groupie and will in 31 more.This is a great listen as are all of Maggie,Terre and Suzzy's songs.If you havent tried,please do for your own enjoyment.I think you will Get It.

I was very surprised to see that there were no reviews of this absolutely magnificent record, one of my all-time favorites. The sisters Roche sing in a folk style, but they are hardly "folkies" - their brilliant and often moving songwriting reveals a tough-mindedness that only has greater impact when set in the sisters' beautiful harmonies. The record is also notable for the production by Robert Fripp, who contributes brilliantly understated guitar as well. This is one of the earliest examples of Fripp's "audio verite" Frippertronics production style, with the tracks stripped down to the bone. The collaboration of Fripp with the Roche sisters may seem odd, but the results are undeniably great.