Jim Spencer was always looking for a stairway to success beyond, but Milwaukee was a Mobius loop he could not escape. He played many roles with grace; he was a musician, songwriter, poet, magus, and congenial salesman of ideas. He was a dealer in rare books, antiquities, and fantasies. He was a D.I.Y. publisher and indie recording artist at a time when circulating self-produced poetry and music beyond one’s hometown was a challenge on par with swimming the English Channel. He was Milwaukee famous—at least to anyone who cared about music and poetry. He was not much known elsewhere.
He released three albums under his own name and one as Major Arcana, a band-persona that enabled him to escape his singer-songwriter image. All were issued under the imprimatur of cryptically-monikered labels: Thoth, Akashic, and Castalia Records. “He had forbidden books in his basement,” said frequent collaborator Sigmund Snopek, a classically trained progressive rock keyboardist. “He was fascinated by other cultures and religions and incorporated some of that into his music.”
1973’s Landscapes is Jim Spencer’s first, and perhaps most disciplined and fully-realized record in a singer-songwriter mode. Recorded with a band and released on Thoth (after the Egyptian God of writing and learning), Landscapes shows a level of confidence and sophistication one simply doesn’t associate with private press debuts.
Tracks
1. El-Mar'a (Jim Spencer, Richard Thomas) - 1:55
2. You To Me (Jim Spencer, Kathleen Wingner, John Voyles) - 3:47
3. Poor Dolly (Jim Spencer) - 2:12
4. River Run (Jim Spencer, Kathleen Wingner, Ilze Platais) - 3:15
5. The One Who Cries (Jim Spencer, John Voyles) - 2:37
6. On My Way To You (Jim Spencer, Richard Thomas) - 3:02
7. One Thing Less To Lose (Jim Spencer, Kathleen Wingner) - 3:25
8. She Can See (Jim Spencer, Kathleen Wingner, Roger Skentny) - 3:52
9. Another Lonely Day (Jim Spencer, John Voyles) - 2:14
10.As The Foundation Crumbles (In The House Of Your Love) (Jim Spencer) - 2:08
11.Where Do You Run? (Jim Spencer) - 4:42
12.A Finger For Old Glory (Jim Spencer) - 2:38
Musicians
*Jim Spencer - Vocals, Acoustic Guitar
*Susan Thomas - Vocals
*Richard Thomas - Acoustic Guitar, Bass, Vocals
*Mike Balistierri - Bass, Flute, Piano
*Mike Pageant - Acoustic Guitar
*Ilze Platais - 12 String Guitar, Bouzouki
*Gary Kemp - Acoustic, Electric Guitars
*John Voyles - Electric, Acoustic Guitars
*Kenny Knoll - Electric Pedal Steel Guitar
*Kent Carpentier - Mandolin, Fiddle
*Alan Ek - Bass
*Rob Fixmer - Percussion
*Jim Hall - Percussion
*The Magnetic Staircase - Vocals
