PULASKi SKYLiNES

Jim Robertson

Num Title Length MP3 Sheet music
SiDE 1:
1. NEWARK BUTTON 3:25 [MP3] [PDF file]
2. RUNNiNG MAN 4:29 [MP3] [PDF file]
3. MY STREET 4:13 [MP3] [PDF file]
4. iNSTRUMENTAL THEME FOR AN UNWRiTTEN HORROR FiLM 1:40 [MP3] [PDF file]
5. JOE NAMATH FOR A DAY 5:42 [MP3] [PDF file]
6. LiMA AiRLIFT 4:28 [MP3] [PDF file]
7. HARRISON 4:59 [MP3] [PDF file]
SiDE 9:
8. CRiCKETS AND TUMBLEWEEDS 2:31 [MP3] [PDF file]
9. CLiFF NOTES VERSiON 2:37 [MP3] [PDF file]
10. CAROLiNE 4:31 [MP3] [PDF file]
11. LiNCOLN HiGHWAY 4:26 [MP3] [PDF file]
12. "PHOEBE SNOW" 3:17 [MP3] [PDF file]
13. DiSAPPOiNT 4:13 [MP3] [PDF file]
14. TALLAHASSEE 7:31 [MP3] [PDF file]

Download album on zip Download album as a zip file.

Every MP3 file includes artist, title, album, and date info as well as album cover art.

Album notes

NEWARK BUTTON When you've worked in Newark for four years, like I have, you might get it. Dedicated to Whitehead and Hoag. RUNNiNG MAN Written winter 1995. Influenced by Bob Mould's "Believe What You're Saying," Billy Bragg's "Sulk," and Matthew Sweet's "I've Been Waiting." MY STREET Look just to the north of the French Quarter and just to the south of my heart. Written early summer 1995. As proof that these songs are only demo versions, this one has been dramatically re-worked for the better by Anthony Marchese, Tom Rosko, and Aaron Potocny, and our alt.sex.dentist band does a far superior version. iNSTRUMENTAL THEME FOR AN UNWRiTTEN HORROR FiLM Wierd chords make this song. One of them shown to me by Adam Victor in 1990; the other two just made-up. JOE NAMATH FOR A DAY If the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost has a pick-up game against Namath, Shatner, and Heston, who would win? Written in spring 1996. LiMA AiRLiFT Well, she dared me. Influenced by Wilco and another band I'm too embarrassed to name. HARRiSON Not George, not Bergeron, and neither William Henry nor Benjamin. Tom Rosko contributes backing vocals and harmonica. That's not plagiarism of Husker Du, it's artistic license and an homage. Influences: Ringo's "Don't Pass Me By" and Billy Bragg's "Rotting on Remand." CRiCKETS AND TUMBLEWEEDS Crowd noise from an April 1996 alt.sex.dentist gig at Doc Watson's in Philly. Written about that same time. CLiFF NOTES VERSiON I used to be reminded of this on a quarterly basis, until I took matters into my own hands. CAROLiNE This is not a southern song. It's a northern song. And the walrus is NOT Paul. Thanks to TOm Rosko for supporting vocals. When written, I was shooting for a Silos and Sun Volt kind of vibe, but when I recorded it, I eneded up aiming for an Oasis and Bush kind of thing (with a little Andy Summers guitar thrown in for good measure). LiNCOLN HiGHWAY I've got an addiction to reading. This song was inspired by an article in the Oct/Nov '93 issue of Omnibus (New Jersey Transit's magazine--don't bother looking for it at your newsstand). "PHOEBE SNOW" Had the chord progression to the chorus in my head since 1986, but could never do anything with it until last year. DiSAPPOINT One of the first songs I wrote on my new acoustic guitar in spring 1996. Another drone song. All these things are true. TALLAHASSEE Original inspiration came from a Fords jam (Tom Rosko, Anthony and Larry Marchese, and myself). Yes, there are some R.E.M. influences in this, and frankly, the whole ending wagada is lifted straight from the Silo's "Here's To You." Thanks to Lisa Orloff for playing the violin line that leads the wagada off and to Tom for more vocal assistance. The Florida panhandle had a lot of migrant workers. And for two years, me, too.

Well, here I am again with another tape. As always, these are demo versions and subject to change once Anthony, Tom, and Aaron get their hands on them. Your feedback--the good, the bad, and the ugly--is always welcome. I hope you enjoy.

All music and lyrics written, performed, recorded, and mixed by Jim Robertson--unless otherwise noted--betwen 1994 and 1996 in Hoboken, NJ.

Copyright 1996 by Jim Robertson. This tape is for promotional purposes only; not for sale. This has been another Oaktree Music production.

Other tapes by Jim Robertson:

"Sundays, holidays, and other days" (1991)

"Songs and shovels" (1993)

Music and lyrics book available.

Special thanks to Lisa Orloff for letting me play my guitars late into the night. Thanks also to Aaron Potocny, Anthony Marchese, and Tom Rosko for occassionally helping me to play some of these songs live.

Cover photo by Jim Robertson.

Digital Re-release notes

This was the third 4-track tape Jim released in a five-year period. During the writing and recording of these songs, Jim was (at first) playing with The Fords band and (later, and more substantially) alt.sex.dentist.

A definite emphasis was placed on stereo-recording the songs, with sparse and simple arrangements. Drums were programmed and emphasized in the final mixes as a purposefuly antidode to the Casio-preset drum sounds of the previous two albums. Bass was also emphasized in the mix. Two reasons: (1) Jim was actually playing a lot of live bass with The Fords and alt.sex.dentist, and (2) the first two albums (Sundays, holidays, and other days and Songs and shovels were too trebley.

The result is the best-produced sound Jim every got out of his Yamaha cassette-based 4 track recorded. The Boss Dr. Rhythm DR-660 was used for all drums and percussion. Two new basses: a Washburn AB-20 acoustic/electric and a Music Man String-Ray. The trusty Ibanez Roadstar II electric, plus a new Yamaha acoustic.

In digitizing the old cassette and putting this website together, I came across this old quote from Larry Marchese. It's still gotta be one of kindess things written about me:

Pulaski Skylines: "Images of personal rebirth and redemption against a backdrop of urban renewal." In other words, a man and a city striving together to emerge from the ashes of historical conditioning... Something new is born, or rather, reborn. Scarred but revitalized, weary but wise. Something emerges from the ruins of the heart and the ruins of downtown. Do you get my drift? It is a beautiful and poignant picture that the album paints. I mean that seriously, even if I have stated it a little pompously.

Here are some comments I wrote myself back in 1997 when I was sending a copy of the tape to another music and recording friend, Sam Franz:

I remember one of your comments upon hearing my last tape was something like, "too much treble; turn up the bass!" : On that previous tape I was mixing down onto a cheap box. Since then, I've improved both my equipment and my methods.

Now I mix down onto an Onkyo stereo tape deck and monitor the sounds through Bose speakers. I also bought a SansAmp for my bass to really pump it up. And, I bought a Boss DR-660 drum programmable machine.

Each of those things has made a big difference, but probably the biggest difference was made by the drum machine. In the past, I either used one of two usable presets on a cheap Casio keyboard or I drummed in live on some cheap Yamaha drum pads. Problem was, I'd have to drum in the bass and the snare on one track and then go back and drum in the highhat and etc on another track. Then, mix those tracks together onto a third track.

Not only does the drum machine allow me to save a generation, but I can also record in stereo. The only thing I have to do is spent a lot of pre-recording time programming in the drums. It actually doesn't take long to get basic programming. What takes the longest is making all the small "local" changes in the patterns to keep it fresh and sounding a little less like a drum machine.

But, the new drum machine opened up the possibility of my arranging the songs to be much more stripped down than on past tapes. It also allowed me to do a lot of stereo recording. For example, I'd lay the drums to tracks 1 and 2 (left and right stereo). At the same time, I'd use track 3 as a bass guitar input, but actually record the bass guitar equally to tracks 1 and 2. So, after one take, I'd have my basic rhythm track in stereo on tracks 1 and 2 (left drums and equal bass guitar on track 1 and right drums and equal bass guitar on track 2).

Then, I'd have track 3 for rhythm guitar. Ping it to track 4 while simultaneously adding lead guitar to track 4. Now, track 4 has rhythm and lead guitar and only the rhythm has lost a generation. That leaves track 3 open for vocals.

Sparse, in stereo, and recording quality is up. Of course, in some songs I've lost the stereo or had to do more overdubs, but for the most part the sparseness and stereo are there.

These are some "outtake" photos from my field trip to take the album cover photo:

Photo 1
 		Photo 2
 		Photo 3

Discussion

I've unabashedly said since 1996 (or so) that I ripped off the ending coda of Tallahassee from The Silos song -- Here's To You. So, I'm going to break it down a bit.

Here is their original song. Listen now. At 3:20, The Silos launch into a georgous 24 bar solo -- first 8 bars are a violin "set up", then 16 bars of electric guitar solo.

It was sort of an outlier move in the song -- a bit of a curve ball of a loud, electric part to an otherwise quiet, acoustic song. But, I when I listened to their song (as I was writing my song), I thought it could "soar" more and "marry" into my song.

So, I copied it as closely as I could -- tempo, sonically, melody, etc. -- and then just went for it, and extended the idea for another 3 minutes. On my Yamaha 4-track, I probably played the electric guitar solo out for 6-7 minutes; I was aiming to "fill the side" of the cassette. I probably considered a hard stop a la The Beatles I Want You (She's So Heavy), but I decided on a fade-out instead. (Right: I was already thinking album sequencing ... back when there were still "Sides 1" and "Sides 2" to cassettes.

I divulge this with the anxiety that this will make the reader/listener think less of my song. But, I'm also pretty happy with the final result. I just feels right and remains one of the favorite songs I've written and recorded 20+ years later. The origin came out of a The Fords jam with Ant, Rosk, and Lars. Rosko busked some lyrics about "donuts" and it evolked (to me) a photograph I took in Tallahassee a few years prior. So, I was off to the races with the lyrics.

I was particularly pleased that Rosko could come to Hoboken one evening and lay down the "overlapping" vocals on the final verse. It brings a smile to my face every time I listen to it. I think Monica was with him -- perhaps we were going out for a couples dinner. I think I played them Lima Airlift upon the visit -- I must have just finished it.

(NOTE: I may have a cassette of that origial "donuts" jam somewhere; I'll have to look for it and digitize it one of these days. #todo)

In order to ensure the "fidelity" I was looking for, I enlisted Lisa Orloff to play the first 8 bars on violin. She hadn't played violin in years (like 10-12 years), so I wrote out the notes in actual musical notation for her and had her practice for a week or two before recording it. She did a nice job.

(NOTE: On the "Combined/overlapped" version, you can hear the tempos drift off a bit. Well, I was playing to a drumtrack, while The Silos were most-likely playing "live" or certainly without a click track. So, the tempo drifts a bit in the middle, but then syncs up again towards the end. I did a little bit of editing on my song to "drag" my track back into sync with theirs. But, aside for that little bit of "humanity," the tracks are pretty amazingly in sync in tempo and sonic aesethic. Not bad for the pre-digital 4-track days.)

One of the best compliments in my entire life was when Ant Marchese told me -- circa 1997 or so -- that the coda/solo to Tallahasee reminded him of a Neil Young solo. I didn't exactly know what he meant at the time (although I've known of Ant's love for Neil Young since high school days), but in the years since that 1997 comment/compliment, I have come to known Neil Young a bit better, and I sort of get Ant's reference. And, I'm honored by Ant's generous compliment.

Look, I'm not really a solo guitar player. The solo in Tallahassee is the longest solo I've ever recorded, and it was pretty scripted. Nothing world-shattering; just going through the shapes. Yet, somehow, to me, the solo is in keeping with the feel of the song.

I was going for something "epic" with this song. I'm pretty happy with the result. If this airing of "dirty laundry" soils the presentation of this song, well, then that's my bad. I usually like more info than less info.

NOTE: To any member of The Silos or their publishing company or legal team -- I have not profited from this homage or Fair Use approbation. The Silos song simply inspired me to extend their musical gesture in a creative way. This musical publication is an ameteur hobby endeavor. No profits have been made.

These are the unfiltered comments Adam emailed me in 1997 about this tape/"album" of mine. I appreciate the honest feedback then, and I read this again now (Oct 2017) for the first time in 20 years.

#129 5-FEB-1997 23:20:21.81
From: MX%"Adam.Victor@clorox.com"
To: MX%"robertson@tesla.njit.edu"
Subj: Tape Review - Pulaski Skylines

Hey,

As requested -- comments on your tape. By the way, I LOVE the songbook. Thanks a lot!! That must have been a lot of work...

(Jim note of 2017: The Songbook Adam references is Latitudes and Longitudes -- which I wrote and released at the same time of this PULASKi SKYLiNES cassettee/album.)

Anyway -- overall comments before the song-by-song review: In general, you'll probably see a pattern in what I like vs. what I don't like. I'm quite partial to music as a non-intellectual exercise; that is, I would argue with anyone that AC/DC Back in Black is as fine a rock and roll album as any that has ever been made. Seriously. For no other reason than when I hear it, it MOVES me. I want to dance, or break something, or laugh, whatever.

As a result, some of your more lyrically esoteric songs are less appealing to me; because, as a listener, I'm not deep enough (or don't want to put in the energy) to connect with many of them. So, I tend to enjoy songs that evoke an emotional response -- whatever that emotion might be.

That's really not a criticism -- it's an awareness issue concerning who's reviewing your tape. I'm obviously no qualified to say that a song is "good" or "bad"; I'm just giving you feedback on how they affected me (or didn't).

Onward!!

Side 1

Newark Button - An inauspicious beginning. Kind of a nice song, but doesn't really do a lot for me over all. The melody is kind of dull, but I like the middle 8 ("Here it comes..."). The bass line is plodding. I like it the more I listen to it, in that it's a little haunting, but it feels predictable.

Running Man - Hmmm...well...It's got a good beginning instrumentally, but the melody is not very catchy. It's also extremely extremely goofy. Are you intentionally ripping off the 8675-Jenny lyric? The "I'm running as fast as I can" lyric and melody works nicely, but the subsequent "I'm an 86753 kind of man" is just plain embarrassing.

My Street - Has potential - the beginning is really driving, and draws me in. It has a good sound to it, but I don't like the chorus ("What about Terry...") -- I can't really pinpoint why I don't like it. I also think in the verse, you go a little to low vocally, and it's clear your straining. It interrupts the rhythm of the song a little bit. The "pay the fare in years" line is great! But then you come back with "...Hudson and Mississippi..." which doesn't work from a cadence, visual, or lyrical standpoint (perhaps you should have tried "Hudson and Muscanetcong." Maybe not.). At this point in the tape, I'm feeling kind of down. I'm saying, "Jim can do better than this." And then...

Instrumental Theme for an Unwritten Horror Film - GREAT!! If I were you, I wouldn't close the book on this song. It has a great sound (and would indeed be a fine theme song for a horror film), but it could also work as a full song. Very spooky. Did you ever try to write a melody/lyrics to it? As I said, at this point in the tape, I was feeling kind of disappointed, because I didn't love any of the first 3 songs -- but this one rejuvenated me, and I think the rest of the tape really kicks in from here.

Joe Namath for a Day - Good song! Good intro (acoustic), and I must say, I'm attracted to the "drone" songs (not only yours, but as we've discussed, things like 'Secret Garden' by Springsteen). I think we've had this discussion before, but I promise you that Joe Namath does NOT wear a toupee. That's allllllll Joe.

"....Making guarantees..." is a GREAT line.

It says it all about Joe in two words. Because, as we all know, not only did he have the balls to make guarantees, but deliver on them as well. It reminds me of when Larry Bird would walk into the locker room before a 3 point contest, and say, "Which one of you suckers is playin' for second?" And then he'd go out and kick their asses. Anyway, this song really says a lot, I think. Very strong. "...chattin' up the nurse-of-the-day, hey darlin' what's your name," - another great line! Again, says so much about him with great economy.

Lima Airlift - OUTSTANDING!!!! Jim, this may be one of the best songs you've ever written, in my humble mock-rock-critic opinion. First of all, it sounds like a love song to me (I'm assuming that Lisa is the Lima Airlift), and it resonates honestly. It's cryptic, yet not indecipherable. You do a nice job holding that note at the end.

Harrison - Wow, is this song terrible. Sounds more like "Octopus' Garden" than "Don't Pass Me By." Awful. It's so bad, that I'm hypnotized by it. I can't even stand up to fast forward it. Not only is it bad, but it's long. And then, even as it ends, I'm tortured by a grating harmonica solo -- and then you have the nerve to give a FALSE ending, then follow up with one more chorus!!! Wow! Terrible!

Side 9

Crickets and Tumbleweeds - I like the crowd noise as a starting point. This is a good song, and sets a good tone for side 9, which is a more consistent set of songs. I don't know how to say it, but the songs on side 9 just sound more "mature." You briefly slip into your old cadence problem in this song ("Heyyyyy, Mister Bartender" could be shortened to "Heyyyy Bartender" or "Mister Bartender" for a more even flow), but this is a strong song. I also like at the end, how you don't really fuck around too much. It has a nice little build up, and then it ends. Damn solid.

Cliff Notes Version - Huh? I'm not sure how to say this without offending you, but...uh...why even bother? Although I will say that I like when the whole band kicks in, and I like the little guitar lead that's thrown in.

Caroline - Awesome beginning, and I love the guitar!!! The melody is pretty good, as it fits into the "feel" of the song -- but the chorus kind of wrecks it for me. The multiple voices singing the "Caroline" just doesn't sound too good, and I think it changes the driving nature of the song. And lyrically, I'm not nuts about it (that "40 acres and mule" line is too obvious, and doesn't really fit).

Lincoln Highway - Rock on, dude. If I could change one thing about this song, I would say, turn the guitars up to 11, speed it up a little, and de-emphasize the vocals -- and I say that because this song is begging to ROCK, and nobody cares what the words are when you're ROCKING. Really, really, good song. Don't reference Rockville. Again, I could see how this song might be great when played live.

ÒPhoebe Snow" - Nope. I don't know if this song is about trains or Phoebe Snow herself. In either case, it's not good. You should have left this chord progression in your head -- it seemed to be doing just fine up there.

Is that a cow bell I hear? Is that a train whistle I hear? On the bright side, I think the guitar solo is pretty good.

Disappoint - Hands down, your best song (Sloan Valve Co. is still right up there, too). GREAT FUCKING SONG!!! This song, again, should be played at top volume. I wish I could jam with you on this song -- there are some areas for some good high harmonies, and where I think the melody could go in a different direction -- but it's great as it is!! Good drone. It sounds a little like Tomorrow Never Knows by the Beatles. This is also a really good guitar solo - very coherent, melodic, and played well. I'm extremely impressed (seriously).

Tallahassee - out of state and out of luck (great line). Lyrically, I think this is a really good song, but the melody/chorus are not that good. I question the use of "panacea," in this song, to say nothing of your pronunciation of it. There's really no hook to it. And, as you're sometimes wont to do, you take some of your duller songs and turn them into epics a'la Stairway to Heaven. Again, though, the guitar solo is very good, and frankly, I think the wagada is the strongest part of the song.

Closing comments: The most impressive thing throughout the whole tape is your guitar playing. Very solid, seemingly much improved from previous efforts, both in the content of the songs and your ability to play. I am sincerely impressed.

All in all, this is goooooooood stuff. More mature, better melodies, stronger from soup to nuts. My obvious favorites: Disappoint, Namath, Crickets, Lincoln Highway, Lima Airlift, some of Caroline. And the only flat-out stinker on the whole tape is Harrison. That's pretty damn good, to put 14 songs on a tape and have only 1 stinker.

Keep it coming. Later,

Adam