Michael Franks, The Art Of Tea (1975)

Songs about food are ridiculous because they’re almost always metaphors for fucking – and yet there’s nothing remotely sexy about a) Michael Franks or b) Michael Franks singing about Eggplant. So why do I have this album then? Well, my first record-store job was late nights in the mall, back when there were people shopping late(r) at night for records and tapes and CDs. And I worked with a guy – just me and him – and he knew next to nothing about music. I would hog the stereo for the in-store play material. I’d play the samples of new albums but I’d fish about and play all sorts of old favourites. I was pretty sure I had good taste and could make sales with what I was choosing. But I would have to let him pick one album a night – sometimes two. He would almost always choose this. Sometimes he’d play Kid Creole and The Coconuts. And I think one time he played a Jimmy Buffett album. He said to me, after putting on The Art Of Tea one night, “Simon, you like to smoke right?” And I said sure, because I was a cigarette smoker and all (at the time). So he then said, “cool we’ll hang out and have a smoke after work eh? Tonight?” And I said “sure” because I figured why not – I would usually light a smoke up as soon as we pulled the roller-door down. So Mr. Blue comes to an end and we put the cash from the tills in the safe and we shut the lights down and we close the roller-door and bolt it. And then he pulls a thin rolled smoke from his pocket, lights it and I’m already going with my Lucky Strike (I smoked those because I’d discovered Bob Seger’s Smokin’ O.P.’s album). And he hands me his ‘smoke’ while I already have mine. Yeah, so that was my first time smoking something that wasn’t a cigarette. Discombobulated by Michael Franks far more so than the weed I strolled off after a couple of draws and met some friends for tea.

Sample Track: Night Moves

The Vinyl Countdown is a document of every LP I listen to, brand new discoveries and old-old favourites; extremely pre-loved, previously abandoned or with the shrink-wrap having just been removed it’s all here at The Vinyl Countdown