Mick's Picks - Vinyl Records

06/05/2026

Happy 72nd Birthday, Alejandro de Michele✌️
One half of the '70s Argentinian folk-rock duo, "Pastoral," Alejandro had one of the most unique voices in South America. The music of Pastoral was different to many other folk/rock/psych groups at the time, mixing soft and light sounds with heavy and abrasive lyricism, dealing with taboo themes like isolation, insanity, and death. Their third album, "Humanos," sought to shed light on longstanding worldwide issues like the pollution and destruction of our Earth, and how to go on to find reason and beauty in life after losing our loved ones. It's a dark record full of optimistic conclusions which outweigh the unsavoury topics we often prefer to ignore. Alejandro's writing was pure poetry:
"If the grass grazes me
The meadows will be the fog
That will explode tomorrow
And the man who treads on me today
Believing himself powerful
Will know he is only something else."

05/31/2026

Happy 78th Birthday, John Bonham ✌
At a time when rock drummers were becoming well known for their increasingly impressive skills - namely Mitch Mitchell (Jimi Hendrix), Keith Moon (The Who), and Ginger Baker (Cream) - Bonzo, a then unknown drummer, was handpicked by Jimmy Page to be the final piece of the puzzle of what would become Led Zeppelin. Simple was the reason: he was the best. He didn't need a flashy, grandiose kit to produce the work he laid down on those albums. What he could do with his unbelievably fast right foot is still (nearly 6 decades later) an unattainable goal for drummers around the globe. At 20 years old, he proved himself to his fellow Brits and to the world at large; and today, on what would have been his 78th birthday, we are still listening, still mesmerised, and still grateful that he was a quarter of Zeppelin.

05/24/2026

Happy 85th Birthday, Bob Dylan ✌
The greatest of all time, bar none. No other has done what Dylan has, and it'll be a miracle if we ever see anyone come close. Thanks to Martin at LP Records for lending me this early UK pressing of one of the best albums the great man ever released.

05/10/2026

Happy 80th Birthday Donovan✌️
When I began collecting vinyl, I bought every Donovan record I found (even if I already had three of the same copy).
His early few albums were pure folk and poetry, recounting the beatnik lifestyle before it was sought. Then turning to psychedelia, the artistry continued fully formed and appearing faster than other catalogues of the era. I've vast, surging memories of being inside those songs and living them out - not one unsavoury reflection, albeit some unnervingly far out.
From riding on and into the freedom of a sunrise to falling suggestive to the pensive hymn of the white moon, with Donovan's music, there is more than one way to be, and to go on.

04/20/2026

On Friday night, I had the honour of seeing Jason Bonham pay his respects to his dad and the music he made with Led Zeppelin. I've been following "Jason Bonham's Led Zeppelin Evening" since their incarnation 16 years ago, so this was a special night!
You can read my account of the show through the link.
HEAVY Magazine The Fortitude Music Hall

Words by: Michael Bradley Forty-five years since the passing of John Bonham - and subsequently the end of Led Zeppelin – the late drummer’s son, Jason, is b ...

04/17/2026

Listening to Physical Graffiti in anticipation of seeing tonight! The group's third time in Australia, they will be performing Physical Graffiti in its entirely in celebration of its 50th anniversary. Zeppelin's only double LP studio album, it was a pivotal point in their career which represented a shift in technicality and approach to recording.

04/12/2026

And that's a wrap for Hot Wax III: Cairns Record Fair! 🔥

We were blessed with a perfect Sunday in paradise and spent the day surrounded by music lovers, talking, laughing and trying to not completely drain our bank balances. We got to meet many newcomers as well as welcome back the same friendly faces we know and love so well. I don't have a highlight or special moment of the day since it was a riot from start to end! Thanks so much to the organisers, the vendors, the walkers-in and The Shed for having us! Until next time ❤️

04/09/2026

🔥 Hot Wax III 🔥
📆Date: Sunday, 12th April
🕘Time: 10 am - 2 pm
📍Location: The Shed, 179 Bunda Street (Behind Cairns Central)
📀Why: Several local record collectors and music lovers are willing to give their beloved collections a cull so their excess records can go to loving homes where they will be in frequent rotation and enjoyed to the max!
🥰We hope to see you all there!🥳

04/01/2026

Happy 77th Birthday, Gil Scott-Heron✌️
"Miscellaneous" - this is the category they put his music under. Too many genres, too many socio-political elements, too much before its time to be believed. Gil's albums led the way for what later became modern rap and hip-hop, especially influencing those artists mixing jazz fusion into their work. Year after year, the legend grows and the clarity is bestowed more. Always remembering the man who sacrificed himself to build the mountains of gold we're still discovering.