Ed Askew – Looking For Love (Holy Page)

Musical Content: Askew has been quietly making music for over forty years. His first album, Ask the Unicorn, was released in 1968 on the great ESP Disk label. Ed kept on recording and performing (as well as concentrating on his visual artwork). He made reel to reel and cassette recordings, giving them to friends, which were dubbed and passed around. Early recordings were made with a Martin Tiple. Then he added harpsichord (see the 1980s recording, Imperfiction, released in 2011 by Drag City). Somewhere along the line, Askew invested in a computer and samplers, and he proceeded to record his beautifully strange songs with squeaky-clean home production.

Looking For Love is a collection of tracks recorded between 1969 and 2003, and is a good representation of Ed’s music. While some tracks are interesting experiments, others rank among his best work, like “Blue Winds,” the title track and “Accordian Man.” Ed has a great way of describing the everyday events of his life through the eyes of a child, filled with love and wonder. That charm is sprinkled throughout the cassette. For those who are already fans, this tape is essential. It also serves as a strong introduction to the work of Ed Askew.

Sound Quality and Package: The tape is pro-dubbed and housed in an all-clear cassette shell. The artwork is nicely printed on high quality card stock. Overall, a high quality release.

Available from Holy Page’s Bandcamp site. Limited to 100 copies.