My Generation

Clear Blue Sky - Out of the blue (1971)

2010-10-07T06:58:00.000-07:00

Originally a trio of friends from school, John Simms (guitar), Mark Sheather (bass), and Ken White (drums) grew up in the Acton area of London and started as a college circuit blues-rock band called JUG BLUES (later MATUSE and then X). Impressing manager Ashley Kozak, the band were given a deal with Vertigo, changed their name to CLEAR BLUE SKY and recorded a self-titled record under the production of Patrick Campbell-Lyons. Still only eighteen, the three musicians mixed hard blues with progressive and psychedelic rock in an unusually mature way, and the LP was released in January 1971 sporting one of Roger Dean's earliest album covers. The group was occasionally compared to CREAM, LED ZEPPELIN and early JETHRO TULL, though the music had a firm prog sensibility unlike CREAM or ZEPPELIN and sometimes may even remind of RUSH.

CLEAR BLUE SKY's 1971 debut (reissued on Repertoire,1991) is considered their most important and the LP is a collector's item. The second record, "Destiny" [Saturn, 1990], released twenty years after the first (and then again in 1999 on Aftermath in CD format), is old material but shows an improvement in form and approach from the first session. 1996 saw the part-concept album "Cosmic Crusader" and later another theme record "Mirror of the Stars". "Out of the Blue", a collection of live and unreleased material, came out in 2001.
Tracks
Tracklisting
01. Man of stone
02. New Dream
03. Spooky
04. Will you lie
05. Veil of the vixen
06. Taxman
07. Joanna
08. Journey
09. Mistery
Listen

Ginhouse - Ginhouse (1971)

2010-10-07T02:53:00.001-07:00

A hard rock trio from Newcastle whose album is now rare. They had a good reputation as a live act and wrote some strong material on their album, with the continuous track "The House"/"Sun In A Bottle" the highlight, alongside a cover version of The Beatles' "And I Love Her". Geoff Sharkey had earlier played in Sammy.
Tracks
1 Tyne God (Sharkey) 5:27
2 I Cannot Understand (Sharkey) 4:16
3 The Journey (Sharkey) 5:55
4 Portrait Picture (Sharkey) 5:42
5 Fair Stood The Wind (Sharkey) 2:48
6 And I Love Her (Lennon/McCartney) 3:09
7 Life (Sharkey) 4:27
8 The Morning After (Sharkey) 5:11
9 The House (Sharkey) 3:30
10 Sun In The Bottle (Sharkey) 5:03
Listen

Groundhogs - Blues Orbituary (1969)

2010-10-07T02:28:00.000-07:00

Originally released in 1969, Blues Obituary is the second album by ’60s British blues-rock legends The Groundhogs.
Blues Obituary finds the group beginning to stretch beyond traditional blues forms, as demonstrated on the seven-minute epic “Light Was the Day.” Beyond its memorable cover art, Blues Obituary marks the Groundhogs’ first effort as a power trio, the format in which the band would do its most acclaimed and popular work.
Tracks:
1. B.D.D.
2. Daze of the Weak
3. Times
4. Mistreated
5. Express Man
6. Natchez Burning
7. Light Was the Day
Listen

Kazuhiko Kato - Supergas (1971)

2010-10-07T01:45:00.000-07:00

Kazuhiko Katō (加藤和彦, Katō Kazuhiko?, March 21, 1947 – October 17, 2009), nicknamed "Tonovan" (トノヴァン?), was a Japanese record producer, songwriter, and singer. He sometimes used the spelling of "Kazuhiko Katoh".

As a member of the Folk Crusaders, Kato launched his recording career in the mid 1960s. "Kaettekita Yopparai (I Only Live Twice)", their psychedelic debut song composed by Kato and released in 1967, sold more than 1.3 million copies in Japan, and became one of the best-selling singles of the early Japanese popular music industry. The group also starred in director Nagisa Oshima's 1968 film "Kaette kita yopparai" (alternately known as "Sinner in Paradise" or "Three Resurrected Drunkards").

After the breakup of Folk Crusaders in 1970, Kato gained success for his production works for other musicians, including Shigeru Izumiya, Mariya Takeuchi, and Takuro Yoshida. In particular, Sadistic Mika Band, the acclaimed project he started with his first wife Mika Fukui, received international success. Their 1974 album entitled Kurofune (The Black Ship) is regarded as one of the most significant Japanese rock albums of the mid 1970s. The group was disbanded and reassembled again several times, with new vocalists such as Yumi Matsutoya, Karen Kirishima, and Kaela Kimura.

As a composer, Kato created the theme song "Ai Oboetei Imasu ka" for The Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Do You Remember Love? anime film released during the summer of 1984 in Japan. He later formed a songwriting team with his second wife, the late Kazumi Yasui. Most of the songs they wrote were recorded and produced by Kenji Sawada. In 1990, Kato teamed up with graphic artists, Haruhiko Shono and Kuniyoshi Kaneko, to provide the music for the award-winning Japanese computer game, Alice.

Kato committed suicide by hanging on October 17, 2009 at a hotel in Karuizawa, Kitasaku District, Nagano Prefecture, Japan. Police discovered a suicide note in his hotel room.
Tracks
1.Iewo Tsukurunara (02:24)
2.Arther Hakaseno Jinriki Hikouki (05:46)
3.Mahouni Kakatta Asa (02:23)
4.Sekkachito (03:15)
5.Moshimo, Moshimo, Moshimo (03:39)
6.Fushigina Hi (02:44)
7.Matankino Kokage (02:43)
8.Alcansheru (07:03)
9.Jiraiya (07:27)
10.Super Gas (01:44)
Listen

Pandamonium - Unreleased album (1969)

2010-10-07T01:19:00.000-07:00

A little confusingly, the core duo of Pandamonium, singer/songwriter-guitarists Bob Ponton and Martin Curtis, recorded as the figureheads of two different groups in the late '60s and early '70s. At first, with a few other musicians, they did some mid- to late-'60s singles for CBS; then, as Thoughts & Words, they did a 1969 album for Liberty. After that obscure LP, they recorded a 1970 album that went unreleased at the time. That 1970 LP was belatedly released in 2004 in the form of this download/cd, titled The Unreleased Album, and credited to Pandamonium, though it's not clear whether it would have been billed to Pandamonium had it come out in 1970. Certainly Ponton and Curtis were supported by several notable figures on these sessions, including Gerry Conway, Jerry Donahue, and Pat Donaldson from Fotheringay; guitarist Albert Lee; bassist Chas Hodges, later part of hitmaking duo Chas & Dave; top British session drummer Clem Cattini (that is, assuming the "Clem Katiny" credited on this CD is the same guy); engineer John Wood, who worked on numerous major British folk-rock albums of the period by the likes of Fairport Convention and Nick Drake; and Shel Talmy, who's credited as co-producer. For all that, however, the failure of this material to gain release is no mystery. It's affable, diverse, but rather nondescript circa-1970 British rock that doesn't fit comfortably into either the folk-rock or pop/rock categories. Ponton and Curtis put together some fair minor-keyed, introspective numbers like "It's a Long Time" (which is very slightly reminiscent of the Moody Blues) and "I Am What I Am" (which is in turn very slightly reminiscent of the psychedelic Byrds), with touches of folk-rock, orchestrated pop/rock, and singer/songwriter influences, but the songs aren't exceptionally memorable. At other times, like "Sunrise" and the peppy "Sit and Watch the Sunshine," they seem to be gearing toward a more conventionally uplifting single, though the breezier "Waiting for Summer" is a more successful effort along those lines; the country-rock-influenced "Baby I'll Be Yours" is rather like the most lighthearted moments of late-'60s Fairport Convention with the Sandy Denny lineup. There's certainly no harm done that this album's finally available, of course, but it's only recommended to very deep collectors of British rock of the period, or specific fans of Ponton and Curtis.
Tracks
01 - I Know You - 3.17
02 - It´s A Long Time - 3.14
03 - I Am What I Am - 3.53
04 - Sunrise - 4.10
05 - If I Could Be With You - 2.15
06 - Sit And Watch The Sunshine - 3.10
07 - Baby I´ll Be Yours - 3.51
08 - Send Out A Smile - 3.03
09 - Who Knows What We May Find - 3.14
10 - Waiting For The Summer - 2.30
11 - I Believe In You - 3.56
Listen

Jean Le Fennec - Phantastic (1968)

2010-10-07T00:58:00.000-07:00

Only project executed by the mysterious Jean Le Fennec, except for a promo 7inch excerpted from same album that saw a release in '69. Produced by famous Roland Kluger, the man behind Chakachas, Nico Gomez and Andrae Brasseur.
Tracks
1 L'abandon
2 L'enterrement
3 La fleur
4 Marie-Cécile
5 Mes enfants d'autre part
6 Le sorcier
7 Le chat et la souris
8 La boule et le verre
9 Le disloqué
Listen

Blue Phantom - Distortions (1971)

2010-10-07T00:43:00.000-07:00

A popular album among european psych and prog collectors, Distortions was in fact released in Italy in 1971, along with a single, by a group of unknown studio musicians and later released in other european countries, among which England.
Both album and single appeared in Italy on Vedette subsidiary Spider label, and were composed (under his nickname Tical) and played by Armando Sciascia.

An entirely instrumental album that shows some influences from late 60's psych sounds.
Tracks
1. Diodo
2. Metamorphosis
3. Microchaos
4. Compression
5. Equilibrium
6. Dipnoi
7. Distillation
8. Equivalence
9. Psycho Nebulous
Listen

Black Widow - Return to the Sabbath (1969)

2010-10-07T00:18:00.000-07:00

Black Widow were a rock band that formed in Leicester, England in September 1969. The band were mostly known for its early use of satanic and occult imagery in their music and stage act. The band were often confused with the better-known heavy rock band Black Sabbath, but the bands were only superficially similar.
The band originally formed in 1966 as Pesky Gee! with Kay Garrett (lead vocals), Kip Trevor (lead vocals, guitar and harmonica), Chris Dredge (guitar), Bob Bond (bass guitar), Clive Box (drums and piano), Jess "Zoot" Taylor (organ), Clive Jones (saxophone and flute). Jim Gannon (guitar, vocals and vibes), replaced Dredge in Spring 1969. The band split in September 1969.

The band released one album for Pye Records as Pesky Gee!, 1969's Exclamation Mark, before Garrett left the band. The remaining band members continued on as Black Widow and released their debut album Sacrifice in 1970.Perhaps better known than their music was the band's use of occult references in their music and their live performances, which were made more controversial with the mock sacrifice of a nude woman.These acts at time were very shocking but now a common use in the underground music scene, black metal The band attracted further controversy by consulting infamous witch Alex Sanders for advice.

Unlike one could have imagined, this Return To The Sabbath is not a re-working of the very good debut album of the lesser-known Black Widow. Each song featured on this album is a demo release of what would become Sacrifice which was released in 1970.
All these versions are dating from 1969 and they are being offered in a less achieved way than the ones which were recorded for the official album released in those early days of prog. Most of the songs are shorter in their pre-release formats if you would except the opening number In Ancient Days. The keyboards intro is more solemn and the sax parts longer.
Tracks
1. In ancient days (9:28)
2. Way to power (4:08)
3. Come to the sabbat (4:11)
4. Conjuration (5:53)
5. Seduction (4:41)
6. Attack of the demon (3:57)
7. Sacrifice (10:48)
Listen

Autosalvage - Auto Salvage (1968)

2010-10-07T00:09:00.000-07:00

Thomas Danaher (lead vocals, rhythm guitar)
Darius LaNoue Davenport (vocals, oboe, piano, drums, trombone, guitar, bass guitar, krummhorn, recorder)
Rick Turner (lead guitar, banjo, dulcimer)
Skip Boone (bass guitar, piano)

This group was started in the middle of 1966 by Thomas Danaher, who was a folk and bluegrass freak, and Darius LaNoue Davenport, who came from a musical family. Lead guitarist Rick Turner, son of a poet and a painter, had worked with Ian and Sylvia and then a long line of rock groups. Bassist Skip Boone is the brother of Steve Boone, the bassist for the Lovin' Spoonful.

Originally discovered by The Mothers Of Invention, the group broke up when they saw it wasn't enough to be good: you also had to sell a lot of records to make the sort of money that made the whole hassle worthwhile. Their only album, released in 1968, is full of quiet flashes of brilliance, and there are people about still weeping at the demise of a group called Autosalvage - even if there is a fine album left to remember it by."
Tracks:
01.Autosalvage
02.Burglar Song
03.Rampant Generalities
04.Our Life As We Lived It/Good Morning Blues
05.Ancestral Wants
06.Hundred Days
07.Land Of Their Dreams
08.Parahighway
09.Medley: The Great Brain Robbery/Glimpses Of The Next World's World
Listen

Tobruk - Tobruk (1972)

2010-07-26T05:51:00.000-07:00

Tobruk was formed by some North-American guys living in Brazil, and the album got released in 1972 on the Cash Box label.
"Theme from My Mind," taking full advantage of a psychedlic mood using an organ. This second track, probably works out the best and the vocalist even has a bit of Beefheartian swagger to his growl. Unfortunately, the vocalist here isn't the main man for the group, which is effectively a bummer. Alongside his blues growl is some pretty dark, acerbic guitar noise. It's no Velvet Underground, but if the Doors couldn't cop a jazzbo for its soloing needs it might have sounded like this - an early highlight.

In 1972 Tobruk probably sounded as tripped out and ready for revolt as any other group of ex-pat Americans living the diaspora. But one than needs to wonder how they all wound up in Brazil. The music that the band set to tape incorporates nothing from their adopted homeland. And assumingly, since the disc is in English and not Portuguese, it didn't impact the culture too much.
Tracks
01. I'm In Love With You
02. Theme From My Mind
03. Queens Are Made
04. Hello Crazy People
05. Heart Of A Sound Spirit
06. Ad Lib
07. Send It For Tomorrow
Listen

Dandelions – Dandelions (1971)

2010-07-26T05:38:00.000-07:00

It was just two years ago when we met each other — that’s when it all started. Jim CURRAN started giving us guitar lessons. After a while we always played together at the shows at school. Then we had a photography class with Frank. He taught us how to develop pictures and what a photographer should know. One day it was very nice out so we went over to the college to ake pictures and there was a great big dandelion field and so we thought why don’t we take pictures here. So we all picked some dandelions and posed in them. Frank took our picture and we developed it. In a few weeks we were together at Kitsy’s home for the weekend and Uncle Scott and Aunt Judy were there when we started to make up some songs. Uncle Scott said, “Why don’t you two make an album since you’re so good?” We said, “O.K.!” So we started making up songs and Kitsy came up with the idea of using the picture of us as the album cover. We figured out how it was going to look and everything so we made up a whole bunch of songs. Some of them we forgot and they weren’t any good and so we had to make up new ones. Our new ones turned out pretty good. Then we had singing lessons with some of the teachers at our school. Before we could record we had to practice doing our songs, so Jim said we should have a show of our own for the school just to get used to crowds. We did and we sang all our songs. Finally we had a whole bunch of rehearsals for the album and we had background people like Wendy and Mike — Mike played the drums and Wendy the bass. It really started to sound good so we had our first recording sessions. On our first recording session we recorded 4 songs but we only used two: “Dandelions” and “Tuffy”. In our second recording session we were tired of rehearsing and recording so we decided we were going to do them all that day. They all turned out good. The following Monday night at 8 o’clock we chose which songs we wanted to do which finished the album. We had everybody who wanted an album at the College School send in $5.00 to us. When we got pretty much money we finished the album and that made us very proud. Thanks to http://www.swanfungus.com
Musicians:
Jim Curran – Director
Wendy Katz – Bass
Mike Kieffer – Drums
John MacEnulty – Professional Assistance
Tres Williams – Guitar
Kitsy Christner – Guitar
Tracklist:
01. Dandelions
02. The College School
03. Tuffy
04. War
05. They Call It Love
06. The Children Of Sunshine
07. Uncle Harry
08. If You Are Lonely
09. Talking
10. It’s A Long Way To Heaven
11. Harmony
12. Talking
Listen

The Stowaways - In our time (1967)

2010-07-26T04:55:00.000-07:00

The Stowaways were a promising quintet who managed to leave behind an album's worth of impressive material on Calvin Newton's Justice Records label, based in Winston-Salem, NC. Tim Tatum was the lead singer, equally adept at lyrical Beatles covers or harder punk sounds, and the rest of the band was Tommy O'Neal on lead guitar, Paul Quick on rhythm guitar, Ken Knight on bass, and Ken Tanner at the drums.
Tracks
1. What a Shame
2. I've Been Hurt
3. It Won't Be Wrong
4. Summertime
5. It's Alright
6. It's Only Love
7. Just a Toy
8. You Lied
9. C.C. Rider
10. Sunny
11. Good Good Loving
12. Play With Fire
Listen

Ghost - When you're dead - one second (1970)

2010-07-26T04:24:00.000-07:00

The nucleus of The Ghost formed around former Velvet Fogg guitarist Paul Eastment, accompanied by multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Shirley Kent who would go on to a solo career as a British folk and jazz singer. This is a pleasant album to listen to, but it is remarkably uneven, especially the first half of the tracks. “Hearts and Flowers” and “Time is My Enemy” have an almost Fairport Convention kind of thing going on for example, including the very dated but pleasant hippie-harmonizing vocals of Kent and Eastment. But “When You’re Dead” and “In Heaven” are fully developed and guitar- driven psychedelic works in the finest tradition of The United States of America, Jefferson Airplane, and all the rest of the west-coast flower-power kids. So it seems like the band is really trying to find a sound that works for them, rather than taking a sound and direction they already shared and trying to develop it.
By the second half of the album the band settles into a very folk-influenced sound with farfisa organ, simple vocal harmonies, acoustic guitar, and tambourine.
Tracks
1. When You're Dead (4:25)
2. Hearts And Flowers (2:54)
3. In Heaven (3:21)
4. Time Is My Enemy (4:06)
5. Too Late To Cry (5:04)
6. For One Second (5:25)
7. Night Of The Warlock (4:22)
8. Indian Maid (4:21)
9. My Castle Has Fallen (2:57)
10. The Storm (3:36)
11. Me And My Loved Ones (4:09)
12. I've Got To Get To Know You (4:02)
Listen

The Shiver - Walpurgis (1969)

2010-07-26T03:54:00.000-07:00

Originally released in 1969 on the Maris label (catalogue number 20501), this is the only album the Swiss band Shiver ever released. It also contains both tracks that were issued as a single: "Hey Mr. Holy Man"/"The Peddle." It also features the very first time the famous designer H. R. Giger delivered some of his art to become an album sleeve. Later on he would do it much more, with Emerson, Lake & Palmer’s Brain Salad Surgery being the most famous one.
Musicians:
Dany Ruhle - lead guitar, harmonica, vocal
Jelly Pastorini - organ, piano
Mario Conza - bass, flute, vocal
Roger Maurer - drums, vocal
Peter Robinson - lead vocals
Tracks
01. Repent Walpurgis
02. Ode To The Salvation Army
03. Leave This Man Alone
04. What's Wrong About The Blues
05. Hey Mr. Holy Man
06. Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood
07. No Time
08. The Peddle
Listen

The Leaves - All the good that's happening (1967)

2010-07-21T06:40:00.000-07:00

The Leaves were an American garage band formed in California in 1963. They are best known for their version of the song "Hey Joe", which was a hit in 1966. Theirs is the earliest release of this song, which became a rock standard.
An uneven album, and understandably so because the group was disintegrating at the time it was made. The band's folk-rock sound is still its strongest side, and they play hard on numbers like "Twilight Sanctuary" and "With None Shoes," and give good accounts of Donovan's "To Try For the Sun" and Buffy St. Marie's "Codine." They get into a good dance groove on a cover of Jimmy Reed's "Let's Get Together" and the band original "Officer Shayne" (spoiled by a silly chorus), and achieve a sweet, languid spaciness on "On the Plane." Much of the rest is weak, however, and the group's psychedelic efforts here, "The Quieting of Oliver Tweak" and "Lemmon Princess," are embarrassingly fey compared with the psychedelic numbers on their prior album. Only Bobby Arlin was left at the finish of the sessions, and he padded the album out with the guitar-dominated, almost totally instrumental blues-oid "Flashback."
Tracks
1. Twilight Sanctuary (2:35)
2. One In The Middle (2:33)
3. On The Plane (2:34)
4. Officer Shayne (2:50)
5. Let's Get Together (2:50)
6. Introduction To A Cartoon Show (0:34)
7. With None Shoes (2:20)
8. To Try For The Sun (2:58)
9. Codine (3:55)
10. Flashback (The Rhythm Thing) (4:16)
11. The Quieting Of Oliver Tweak (The Stone Freak) (2:22)
12. Lemmon Princess (2:02)
Listen

Mountain - Nantucket Sleighride (1971)

2010-07-07T02:06:00.000-07:00

The song and album title is a reference to the experience of being towed along in a small boat by a harpooned whale (see Nantucket Sleighride.) The person to whom the song is dedicated, Owen Coffin, was a young seaman on the Nantucket whaleship Essex, which was rammed and sunk by a sperm whale in 1820. In the aftermath of the wreck, Coffin was shot and eaten by his shipmates. The Essex's story was recorded by its First Mate, Owen Chase, one of eight survivors, in his 1821 Narrative of the Most Extraordinary and Distressing Shipwreck of the Whale-Ship Essex.

"Nantucket Sleighride" was used as the theme to the long-running British political television show Weekend World.
Mountain is an American rock band whose main fame was in the 1970s. The band was inspired by Cream and enjoyed the involvement of unofficial Cream bassist and producer Felix Pappalardi.

Mountain played at the Woodstock festival in 1969 and their first album, Climbing!, was released the following year. The album included the track "Mississippi Queen" which reached No.21 on the Billboard charts. The band split after the live album, Mountain Live (The Road Goes Ever On) (1972), and two of the members went on to form West, Bruce (from Cream) and Laing which achieved success in their own right. After reforming in 1974, the band released a live album and Avalanche, but that was to be the last of their studio output until 1996's Man's World. Leslie West, and Corky Laing continue to "rock on" as Mountain to this day.
Tracks
o1. Don't Look Around - 3:47
02. Taunta (Sammy's Tune) - 1:00
03. Nantucket Sleighride (To Owen Coffin) - 5:55
04. You Can't Get Away! - 3:28
05. Tired Angels (To J.M.H.) - 4:42
06. The Animal Trainer And The Toad - 3:29
07. My Lady - 4:35
08. Travelin' In The Dark (To E.M.P.) - 4:26
09. The Great Train Robbery - 5:50
Listen

Brigitte Fontaine - Brigitte Fontaine est... (1970)

2010-06-13T04:19:00.000-07:00

Brigitte Fontaine's first album, arranged by Jean Claude Vannier (who had also done arrangements for Serge Gainsbourg), is her most normal and accessible record. It's still not terribly normal by pop standards, its arty songs dressed up with period Continental orchestration and quirky melodies and vocal deliveries. These can both hark back to Edith Piaf-styled material, or look forward to slight avant-garde/experimentalism. At times it sounds like the kind of thing Francoise Hardy might have done had she continued to develop along adventurous lines and keep pace with progressive pop and rock trends in the late '60s. In fact, songs like "Une Fois Mais Pas Deux" sound rather close to Hardy's best late-'60s material, but Hardy would have never done anything as goofy as "L'Homme Objet," with its music-box backing, or as odd as "Eternelle," with its tribal male backup vocals and rhythms, and "Blanche Neige," with its overdubbed tropical bird effects.
Tracks
1 Il Pleut
2 Le Beau Cancer
3 Il Se Passe des Choses
4 Une Fois Mais Pas Deux
5 L' Homme Objet
6 Eternelle
7 Blanche Neige
8 Comme Rimbaud
9 Dommage Que Tu Sois Mort
10 Je Suis Inadaptée
11 Cet Enfant Que Je T'Avais Fait
Listen

Archie Bell & the Drells - Tighten Up (1969)

2010-06-13T04:13:00.001-07:00

Archie Bell & the Drells from Houston,Texas hit #1 R&B/#1 Pop with the certified million-selling dance classic, "Tighten It Up." They also scored several hits produced or supervised by Philly Soul producers Kenneth Gamble & Leon Huff such as "I Can't Stop Dancing," "(There's Gonna Be A) Showdown," and "The Soul City Walk." The Drells were — at varying times — Archie's brother Lee Bell, James Wise, Joe Cross, Billy Butler, Lucious Larkins and Willie Pernell. Because Bell wanted the group's name to rhyme and to avoid confusion with Harvey, IL based group The Dells, he came up with The Drells.
Archie Bell was still on a tour of duty in Vietnam when "Tighten Up," the B-side of a single he had recorded called "Dog Eat Dog," broke out and hit the top of the charts in 1968. Infectious and utterly danceable, "Tighten Up" became Bell's claim to fame, even though he and the Drells had other hits, including "I Can't Stop Dancing" and "(There's Gonna Be A) Showdown" after they began working with Philly soul producers and writers Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff. All of these are included in this succinct introduction to Archie Bell & the Drells (as well as the fine "A World Without Music"), and for listeners looking for a set with just the hits, this one fills the bill with no frills and no fuss.
Tracks
1 Tighten Up, Pt. 1
2 Tighten Up, Pt. 2
3 I Don't Wanna Be a Playboy
4 You're Mine
5 Knock on Wood
6 Give Me Time Bell
7 In the Midnight Hour
8 When You Left the Heartache Began
9 A Thousand Wonders
10 A Soldier's Prayer
Listen

Magna Carta - This is (1969)

2010-06-13T03:59:00.000-07:00

Magna Carta was originally formed in London on 10 May 1969, by Chris Simpson (guitar, vocals), Lyell Tranter (guitar, vocals) and Glen Stuart (vocals).

The band is renowned for their gentle ballad style and mythical subject matter. Although never purely a folk band, they managed to successfully bridge the gap between folk and folk rock. The trio released albums for Fontana Records and Vertigo Records, enjoying particular success with 1970's Seasons before Tranter returned to Australia. Davey Johnstone joined the line-up as his replacement, recording Songs From Wasties Orchard and In Concert with the band before leaving to work with Elton John, with whom he is still playing.
Tracks
01. Times of change
02. Daughter daughter
03. Old John Parker
04. I am no more
05. Ballad of Francis Alabadalejo
06. Spinning wheels of time
07. Romeo Jack
08. Mid winter
09. Shades of grey
10. Emily thru the window pane
11. Sea & sand (The isle of Pabay)
Listen

The Allman Brothers - Idlewild South (1970)

2010-06-10T06:02:00.000-07:00

Idlewild South is the second album of The Allman Brothers Band, released in 1970.

Unlike the Band's self-titled debut album, Idlewild South enjoyed some popular success as well as critical enthusiasm, mostly due to what Rolling Stone magazine called "briefer, tighter, less 'heavy' numbers" which were more radio-friendly. The two most prominent of these were "Midnight Rider" and "Revival", the latter of which, in conjunction with the instrumental "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed", foreshadowed the impact of Dickey Betts' songwriting ability upon the band.

The album title stemmed from the band's nickname for a farmhouse it rented in Georgia during the recording, the busy comings and goings at which reminded them of New York City's Idlewild Airport.

"Midnight Rider" has been covered by many artists, including Gregg Allman on his solo album Laid Back. "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed" would go on to become iconic, along with Whipping Post one of the Band's signature concert jams.
Tracks
1.Revival (4:06)
2.Don't Keep Me Wonderin' (3:31)
3.Midnight Rider (2:59)
4.In Memory of Elizabeth Reed (6:57)
5.Hoochie Coochie Man (4:58)
6.Please Call Home (4:03)
7.Leave My Blues at Home (4:17)
Listen

Loadstone - Loadstone (1969)

2010-06-10T03:28:00.000-07:00

The group formed in Las Vegas, NV. Devers, Abernathy and Phillips were backing Bobby Darin at the time when he went on his hiatus to find himself, leaving them looking for a gig. Ryan, Douglas, Sterling and Cernuto were freelance musicians in Vegas looking for work. Thanks to a guitar player by the name of Mike Richards, who originally was in the group, they got together and formed a cover band to make some cash. The band worked a club in Vegas called 'The Pussycat A Go Go' where Andy Williams used to hang out. He signed the band to his label, Barnaby Records, because of the big following the band attracted to its live performances. Andy also got Dave Grusin to produce the album as well as play piano on one track, Dayshine. The album was recorded in a two week period in the Summer of 1969 and other than record promotion concerts and a few club gigs in L.A., the band never toured.

The albums lack of sales caused the group to slowly dissolve to working lounge gigs in Vegas. When that was over the band members went on to other groups. Today, all the members are still working as musicians in one capacity or another except for Douglas, who passed on in 1991.

The groups energy in live performance could never really be captured on record. The horn sound created by the Trumpet, Trombone and Sax with the funky rhythm section was truly incredible.

Tracks:
01. See the Light
02. Keep on Burning
03. Dayshine
04. Time
05. It Couldn't Be Bad
06. Flower Pot
listen

Mayo Thompson - Corky's Debt to His Father (1970)

2010-05-15T03:07:00.000-07:00

Mayo Thompson (born 26 February 1944 in Houston, Texas) is an American musician and visual artist best known as the leader of the avant-garde rock band Red Crayola (Krayola).
The obscure, defiantly avant-rock Texas band the Red Krayola has been held together entirely through the persistence of Mayo Thompson. For a taste of Thompson at his most accessible, however, consider Corky's Debt to His Father, an album made in 1970, put on record in 1986, and finally released eight years later. The album features a softer Thompson sounding like a Texan Syd Barrett, with songs that are spare and mystical but ultimately friendly. While the band sticks mostly to the familiar sounds of folk guitars, pianos, deep horns, and heavy bass, the instrumental arrangements are designed to clink along and never quite reach harmony. What is created in the end is an uptight and warped version of the stripped-back country & western of late '60s Dylan. If Thompson could sing, Corky's Debt's jazz touches and linear quality might have made the record something of an American Astral Weeks. Instead, we'll settle for coherence and a considerable amount of charm.
Tracks
A1 The Lesson 2:39
A2 Oyster Thins 6:00
A3 Horses 3:09
A4 Dear Betty Baby 3:47
A5 Venus in the Morning 2:30
B1 To You 2:50
B2 Fortune 2:11
B3 Black Legs 3:50
B4 Good Brisk Blues 3:07
B5 Around the Home 2:50
B6 Worried Worried 5:03
Listen

Jeff Simmons - Lucille has messed my mind up (1969)

2010-05-15T02:52:00.000-07:00

Jeff Simmons, born May 1949 in Seattle, Washington, is a rock musician and former member of Frank Zappa's Mothers of Invention. Simmons provided bass, guitar, and backing vocals for the group between 1970 and 1971. He left The Mothers just prior to the filming of 200 Motels (where he was replaced in the film by Ringo Starr's chauffeur Martin Lickert) in mid 1971. Jeff later returned to the group for a time during 1972 and 1973. Zappa and Mothers albums he appeared on include Chunga's Revenge (1970), Waka/Jawaka (1972), Roxy & Elsewhere (1974).

Years later Zappa released a number of archival recordings made during this period that feature Jeff including You Can't Do That on Stage Anymore, Vol. 1 (1988), You Can't Do That on Stage Anymore, Vol. 6 (1992), and Playground Psychotics (1992). Jeff also appears in the Zappa movie The True Story Of Frank Zappa's 200 Motels (1989). Numerous Zappa bootleg recordings from the same era also feature Simmons.

Jeff's music career began in Seattle. In 1967 he became a member of the local group Blues Interchange which soon changed its name to 'Easy Chair'. The group self-financed their only recording, released by the regional Vanco label in 1968. The 12" one-sided, three-song album sold well in the independent record shops along University Way NE (known locally as The Ave) in Seattle's University District. Only about 1000 copies of locally produced Easy Chair record were pressed. It is now a highly valued collectible.

Easy Chair was then booked as the opening act for an August 24, 1968 concert by The Mothers of Invention at the Seattle Center Arena (renamed in 1995 to Mercer Arena.) During the sound check Easy Chair was discovered by Zappa, who recognized that the group's musical and lyrical aesthetic and sense of humor was compatible with his own.

The group followed Zappa back to Los Angeles. In December 1968 Easy Chair was a supporting act for Zappa and The Mothers for 2 concerts at the Shrine Auditorium. The concerts were organized to showcase Zappa's two new record labels, Bizarre Records and Straight Records. Other artists appearing at the shows included Alice Cooper, The GTOs, and Wild Man Fischer. But Easy Chair never had the opportunity to make a record in Los Angeles. After disagreements and unexpected delays the group broke up before any recordings were made.

Simmons stayed in Los Angeles and completed two solo albums for Straight. He co-composed the soundtrack for the biker film Naked Angels (1969). His second album Lucille Has Messed My Mind Up (1969), featured Zappa as producer. Zappa wrote two songs and played lead guitar under the pseudonym La Marr Bruister. The engineer was Chris Huston, who also worked on Led Zeppelin II at about the same time. Lucille was voted the 2nd best album on Straight Records by Mojo Magazine. Both albums were re-issued on CD in 2007 by World In Sound Records.

Simmons is one of only a handful of musicians to share a songwriting credit with Zappa. Their collaboration Wonderful Wino appears on Lucille Has Messed My Mind Up and also on Zappa's 1976 album Zoot Allures. The title song of the album Lucille Has Messed My Mind Up was also re-recorded in a completely different arrangement on Zappa's 1979 album Joe's Garage. Simmons is also listed as co-writer (with Zappa and Napoleon Murphy Brock) on Dummy Up from Zappa's 1974 album Roxy & Elsewhere. During a 1982 guest DJ spot on UK's BBC Radio 1 Zappa played some of his favorite recordings including Simmons' song I'm In The Music Business.

Jeff continued to play music with various groups in the Seattle area during the 1980s. He appeared in the 1988 movie Rock and Roll Mobster Girls which was produced on video tape in Seattle during the very early stages of the Grunge music scene. Jeff Simmons' most recent work is Blue Universe (2004).
Tracks
01. Appian Way
02. Zondo Zondo
03. Madame Du Barry
04. I'm In The Music Business
05. Lucille Has Messed My Mind Up
06. Raye
07. Wonderful Wino
08. Tigres
09. Aqueous Humore
10. Conversations With A Recluse
Listen

Emitt Rhodes - Emitt Rhodes (1970)

2010-05-15T02:39:00.000-07:00

Emitt Lynn Rhodes is an American singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and recording engineer born February 25, 1950 in Decatur, Illinois. When he was five his family moved to Hawthorne, California. Considered by many as "the one man Beatles," his solo recordings of the early 1970s show a clear Paul McCartney influence in both vocals and musicianship. Rhodes began his career in musical ensembles The Palace Guard (as the group's drummer) and The Merry-Go-Round (multi-instrumentalist), leaving the drums to the expertise of Joel Larson.
Rhodes recorded the album in his home studio. At the time, union rules required that recordings released on major labels must be recorded in proper studios, so the fact that this was a home recording could not be mentioned on the cover. The runout groove of the original LP release on Dunhill Records contained a decorative banner proclaiming, "Recorded at Home." Rhodes wanted to call the album Homecooking, but Dunhill decided to title it Emitt Rhodes.

Rhodes recorded the instruments on a four-track recorder and then approched Dunhill, who gave him a contract. He transferred the four-track instrumental recordings to an eight-track recorder to add the vocals on the four additional channels (and using a better microphone).

The album reached number 29 on the Billboard album chart. The single "Fresh as a Daisy" just missed the top forty. Billboard later called the album one of the "best albums of the decade". The song "Lullabye" was featured in the film The Royal Tenenbaums.
Tracks
01. With My Face On The Floor 3:06
02. Somebody Made For Me 2:23
03. She's Such A Beauty 2:21
04. Long Time No See 3:14
05. Lullabye 1:05
06. Fresh As A Daisy 2:46
07. Live Till You Die 2:44
08. Promises I've Made 3:21
09. You Take The Dark Out Of The Night 2:54
10. You Should Be Ashamed 2:38
11. Ever Find Yourself Running 2:34
12. You Must Have 2:04
Listen

Plastic Bertrand - AN 1 (1978)

2010-03-31T03:10:00.000-07:00

Plastic Bertrand was the alias of new wave prankster Roger Jouret, a native of Belgium who appropriated the sound and style of the new wave movement in order to give it a gently satirical poke in the ribs, while scoring several European hits in the process. Jouret began his musical career as a drummer for the Belgian punk trio Hubble Bubble, which recorded one unsuccessful album. When Jouret met producer/songwriter Lou Deprijck, the two struck up a recording partnership; Jouret emphasized his pretty-boy looks and punkish fashion sense. Their first effort, "Ça Plane Pour Moi" ("This Life's for Me"), is widely regarded as a New Wave classic for its gleefully deranged stupidity, with Jouret singing French nonsense lyrics in a cartoonish voice over basic three-chord rock & roll complete with saxophones and a falsetto vocal hook straight out of the Beach Boys or Four Seasons. The song was a smash in Europe and became a cult favorite in America; Plastic Bertrand continued to release records in Europe, including a U.K. hit remake of the Small Faces' "Sha-La-La-La-Lee." Bertrand experimented with seemingly every new wave fashion, including spacy electronics, disco, bubblegum pop, reggae, and spoken word raps, all with the same naggingly entertaining stupidity. He remained popular on the European continent and in Canada for several years, where audiences were more attuned to his largely French lyrics, but the novelty eventually wore off, and nothing was heard from Bertrand after 1982. Plastic Bertrand released several albums, all of which are difficult to find; a greatest-hits collection is also floating around.
Tracks
01 Le Petit Tortillard
02 Bambino
03 Naif Song
04 Ca Plane Pour Moi
05 Sha La La La Lee
06 Pognon Pognon
07 Dance Dance
08 5.4.3.2.1.0.
09 Pogo Pogo
10 Wha! Wha!
11 Solo Naif Song
Listen

Second Layer - World of Rubber (1981)

2010-03-29T06:48:00.000-07:00

This album from "Second Layer" comes via some members of the Sound - remember 'Who the hell makes those missiles'? - but even better, the music has been worked outside the Sound structure and has turned out to be a very successful 'public' experiment, a characteristic feature is the full use of guitar and synth. Sounds which gel beautifully with the controlled use of a drum machine, for the results that have been successfully achieved here, it is essential that the drum machine be incorporated as a vital unit in the mix and not simply used as a time keeping metronome, 'Definition of Honour' with lines such as 'Dead medals for the dead', opens the album - a very bitter but well documented antiwar song. Further political overtones appear in 'Underneath the glows', which challenges the notion of false security within our society. However, the music is not dominated by political content, but also operates on personalized and 'love' themes, as in 'Save our souls' and 'In Bits' - these pieces seem to reach out and actively involve the listener. 'Fixation' has some dominant and memorable bass playing, while 'Japanese Headset' brings the effects of eastern torture into your living room (and lubricates), however, the outstanding piece is 'Black Flowers' which has been carefully selected to close the album, it is by far the moodiest and slowest of the pieces and lingers on, long after the music has finished.
Tracks
1. Definition of Honour
2. In Bits
3. Fixation
4. Save Our Souls
5. Distortion
6. Underneath the Glass
7. Zero
8. Japanese Headset
9. Black Flowers
10. Skylon
Listen

Fever Ray - Fever Ray (2009)

2010-03-26T01:48:00.000-07:00

Fever Ray is the debut solo album from Fever Ray, an alias of Karin Dreijer Andersson of the electronic duo The Knife. The album was released on March 18, 2009. It was named the 24th best album of the decade by Resident Advisor. check website here.
Tracks
1. If I Had a Heart
2. When I Grow Up
3. Dry and Dusty
4. Seven
5. Triangle Walks
6. Concrete Walls
7. Now's the Only Time I Know
8. I'm Not Done
9. Keep the Streets Empty for Me
10.Coconut
Listen

Ray Manzarek - The Golden Scarab (1974)

2010-03-26T01:36:00.000-07:00

Mention The Doors and people tend to overdraw on Jim Morrison without actively attributing at least some credit for the band’s success to his fellow band members. Whereas Morrison had God-given talent in droves, Ray Manzarek was blessed with immense skill, particular in his avant-garde leanings towards utilising the keyboard as a fiery instrument for rock assault. Morrison’s early death ensured that he would forever steal the spotlight from the other Doors. The fact that most music fans would struggle to name the two albums that the remaining band members recorded after his death speaks volumes for the myth that advocates Morrison was The Doors.

Listen to The Golden Scarab, and you will agree that Ray Manzarek could offer musical work that was just as interesting as Morrison’s, even if the level of charisma on offer was lacking. Where Morrison had dangerous instinct, Manzarek had calculated brains, and yet The Golden Scarab offers a hint that maybe it wasn’t just Morrison who was hung up on preaching whatever pretentious spiritual rambling took his fancy at the time. On first glance, the album is your typical latter-period Doors record – regular motifs such as spoken word introductions feature throughout, along with an overwhelming lyrical fascination for the mystical. Most importantly, however, a strong collection of rock songs is contained, albeit buried amidst off-the-wall production values and indulgent musings. Despite this, repeated lessons to The Golden Scarab will teach you that beneath the mumbo-jumbo aesthetic lies a worthier album than most Doors / Morrison fans will admit to.

Hopelessly naïve in places in its dated mysticism, you’d have strong reason to claim, in an ironic way, that Manzarek’s spiritual vision on the album was tainted purely by the fact that his musicianship was too strong. It’s as if the melodic hooks and killer-choruses somehow made their way into the song structures and that this wasn’t the original Manzarek master-plan. Another major factor corroborating the notion that The Golden Scarab is musically strong is the quality-driven session musicians Manzarek enlisted as his new ‘recording band’. Forever Changes-producer Bruce Botnick oversaw the album’s production with assured confidence, helped by impeccable guitar-work from Larry Carlton and slick drumming from Tony Williams.

Somehow, the album survives despite overt pandering to fourth-dimension conscious-thought. The introduction to second song has Manzarek’s spoken-vocal delivering “And myself said to me ‘Why are you waiting? I’ve always been at your side, can’t you see me? No? Well, then come with it’s time you lean to see!’“ When Morrison spouted nonsense such as this we forgave him because he always danced on the dark side; his unpredictability lead to a sense of incoming alarm at any moment. Manzarek doesn’t earn as much forgiveness with this assumed-narrator persona, and yet we quickly forget the leftfield cosmic framings the minute we hear stand-out song The Solar Boat. This second song off the album begins stark and intense, and then casually slips into a strong chorus, which even pays lyrical homage to doors with its “Let’s take a Moonlight Drive” lyric. It’s a strong follow-up to opener He Can’t Come Today, Maybe Tomorrow, which takes a space rocket through many unrelated musical genres before settling on a blues-rock chorus; the lyrical call for a religious leader seems lost amongst a song this melodic.

Soaring through Chuck Berry cover Downbound Train and even glam-rock synthesiser instrumental The Moorish Idol, it’s clear Ray Manzarek desperately wants to deliver a concept album that people will crave. Funnily enough, it’s the music on offer, as opposed to the concept, that will continue to attract Doors fans back to The Golden Scarab. It’s scary how similar Manzarek’s singing voice sounds to LA Woman-era Morrison, even though it becomes quite apparentManzarek lacks a strong voice on record. Even so, The Golden Scarab is a fine continuation of The Doors’ legacy after the death of Morrison, and should be regarded as an important work in the band’s universe. Review taken from The Music Fix
Tracks
1. He Can't Come Today
2. Solar Boat
3. Downbound Train
4. Golden Scarab
5. Purpose of Existence Is?
6. Moorish Idle
7. Choose Up and Choose Off
8. O Thou Precious Nectar Filled Form (A Little Fart)
Listen

Cuby and the Blizzards - Appleknockers Flophouse (1969)

2010-03-20T05:00:00.001-07:00

Cuby is a Dutch band from the town of Grolloo. The band was originally formed by Harry Muskee and other players included:Eelco Gelling, Nico Schröder and Hans Kinds.
The cover shoot for the album caused a small riot. The band invited some farmers over to a pub and ate and drank with them. At some time a stripper was brought in and the farmers went crazy. The whole thing was filmed, but the farmers, learning later (when sobered up) that the whole thing was filmed for a tv special and a cover shoot resisted. The mayor of the town Zweelo had to step in and prevent the footage from ever being released...
Tracks
1. Appleknockers Flophouse (2:31)
2.Unknown Boy (6:46)
3.Help Me (5:36)
4.Go Down Sunshine (7:03)
5.Disappointed Blues (3:22)
6.Midnight Mover (2:38)
7.Black Snake (4:20)
Listen

John Mayall - Empty Rooms (1969)

2010-03-20T04:48:00.000-07:00

After the Major Success of the "Turning Point" LP and the FM airplay of "Room To Move", John Mayall had achieved Stardom in the USA at long last. Whilst Touring to Promote "Turning Point" John was planning his next move, that being a Studio LP of New Songs Featuring the Great Musicians: Johnny Almond,Jon Mark and Steve Thompson.

Written and Recorded during 1969, while the tunes, "California" and "Room To Move" were Staples of FM Radio, this new work became "Empty Rooms". John was missing his new favorite place Los Angeles, Ca. and a new Lady in his Life Nancy T. And that shows up in his Writing here, When I first had a listen to this Album in 1970 a friend of mine commented that this Record was a Bummer. Well, it is a bit of a Downer, but THIS IS THE TURNING POINT BAND and for that Mighty Reason Alone it is Worth a Listen.

Again this is a Good Record, But we were all expecting a Great Record to follow "Turning Point". I can not find Fault in these Musicians, they are Top-Notch, and as with the Previous Record the Saxophones and Flutes of Mr. Johnny Almond, are as Good as any Jazz Players of this era. Also of Worth is the Great Bass Player Steve Thompson (Who left Mayall's Band to Hook up with Donovan before these Recordings were Completed).

This Record was another Success for John Mayall, and "Don't Waste My Time" and "Counting The Days" both recieved lots of Plays on the FM. But this Band was to soon Disolve and Jon Mark & Johnny Almond became the very Successful Group: "Mark Almond".And John Mayall rebuilt his Band once again and on the very next release: "USA Union" with a Stronger Bunch of Tunes and the Talents of Fiddler Sugarcane Harris he had another 'Classic' to give us. by Philips Wolfs
Tracks.
1. Don't Waste My Time
2. Plan Your Revolution
3. Don't Pick a Flower
4. Something New
5. People Cling Together
6. Waiting for the Right Time
7. Thinking of My Woman
8. Counting the Days
9. When I Go
10. Many Miles Apart
11. To a Princess
12. Lying in My Bed
Listen

Jake Holmes - Above Ground Sound (1967)

2010-03-20T04:36:00.000-07:00

Though often footnoted by Led Zeppelin apologists for "Dazed and Confused," Holmes' long out-of-print debut album for Columbia's Tower imprint contains much more than that pilfered song. It often blurs into the more speedy, acid-drenched songs of the Byrds, the warped balladry of early John Hartford, or the sort of folk orchestrations that would be toned down and delivered with greater refinement on Nick Drake's "Bryter Layter."

Holmes is to be lauded for his daring production risks, mixing Greenwich village folk with fleeting horns, strings, and quick-fingered jazz leads. The electric bass underpinning many of the arrangements is nimble and ever-so unpredictable. The album is indeed a lost psych-folk classic, albeit one the casually aware often slight with "if it's so good why haven't I heard it" dismissal. That said, Holmes does slip into some "poor me" lyrical missteps here and there.
Tracks
1. Lonely
2. Did You Know
3. She Belonged to Me
4. Too Long
5. Genuine Imitation Life
6. Dazed and Confused
7. Penny's
8. Hard to Keep My Mind on You
9. Wish I Was Anywhere Else
10. Signs of Age
Listen

Sun Ra - The Magic City (1966)

2010-03-18T04:03:00.000-07:00

The Magic City is an album by the American Jazz musician Sun Ra and his Solar Arkestra. Recorded in two sessions in 1965, the record was released on Ra's own Saturn label in 1966. The record was reissued by Impulse! in 1973, and on compact disc by Evidence in 1993.

It is notable especially for the title track, on which "the Arkestra's range of feelings and sound is expressed in a design that's simply unprecedented in jazz". While it begins with use of tape echo recalling the experiments on Art Forms of Dimensions Tomorrow, the key features quickly emerge: Ra's simultaneous piano and clavioline intertwining with Boykins' bass as the underpinning for new long-forms of group music-making which draw on varying sub-ensembles from the Arkestra through the course of the piece.

'The boundaries of Sun Ra's self-proclaimed "space jazz" underwent a transformation in the mid-'60s. The Magic City is an aural snapshot of that metamorphic process. Many enthusiasts and scholars consider this to be among Ra's most definitive studio recordings.' Lindsay Planer
The title Magic City refers to Ra's home town of Birmingham, Alabama, and to a large metal sign with the words 'Birmingham, The Magic City' erected in front of the railway station in 1926. The cover drawing, by Sun Ra, directly references the dome of the station. Ra grew up next to the post office and close to the main station, where, 'as a child, Sonny could look out the window and see the big sign over the railroad tracks that greeted visitors to The Magic City'
Tracks
01. The Magic City
02. The Shadow World
03. Abstract "eye"
04. Abstract "I"
Listen

Gary Numan - The Pleasure Principle (1979)

2010-03-18T03:34:00.000-07:00

Numan nearly completely abandoned guitars on the album. This change, coupled with frequent use of synthetic percussion, produced the most purely electronic and robotic sound of his career. In addition to the Minimoog synthesizer employed on his previous album, Numan made liberal use of the Polymoog keyboard, particularly its distinctive "Vox Humana" preset. Other production tricks included copious amounts of flanging, phasing and reverb, plus the unusual move of including solo viola and violin parts in the arrangements. Gary Numan was also influenced by Kraftwerk, and the track Cars has the same musical "glides," and both used the same synthesizers.

Notable tracks included "Airlane", the lead-off instrumental; "Metal", sung from the perspective of an android longing to be human (covered by Nine Inch Nails on Things Falling Apart, Afrika Bambaataa on Dark Matter Moving at the Speed of Light and used as backing for Planet Funk's "Who Said"); "Films", acknowledged by Bambaataa as an important influence on the U.S. hip hop scene; "M.E.", told by the last machine on Earth (later used as backing for Basement Jaxx’s "Where’s Your Head At?"; the electronic ballad "Complex", a UK number 6 single; and "Cars", a worldwide synthpop hit recently covered by Fear Factory and sampled for Armand Van Helden’s "Koochy". "Cars" reached number 9 in the U.S., helping make The Pleasure Principle Numan's strongest Stateside showing, but lack of a strong commercial follow up meant he was tagged a one-hit wonder there.
Tracks
01. Airlane
02. Metal
03. Complex
04. Films
05. M.E.
06. Tracks
07. Observer
08. Conversations
09. Cars
10. Engineers
Listen

German oak - German Oak (1972)

2010-03-13T02:15:00.000-08:00

A conceptual album? Maybe. Anyway this self title album is all about the II world war and its denunciation. This album is an electrified and original kraut improvisation with many weird, strange atmospheres injected into it. "Airalert " is an illustration of a military march. The electric organ stresses the tempo on it. "Down In The Bunker" can be seen as a funeral hymn related to chaos and the tragic consequences of war. A dark, creepy ambient atmosphere prevails, sustained by rolling drum parts, heavy, crying guitar lines and some frantic repetitive bass lines. Imagine something somewhere between TD's "electronic meditation" and Kluster but with more emphasis on the "dark" side. "Raid Over Düsseldorf" is an impressive, catchy "psych" heavy rock tune with lot of wha wha guitar effects and an outstanding contrast between a moody ambiance and a bluesy rock instrumentation. The rhythm is perpetual, systematic and guides the listener into an "acid" rock avalanche. "1945 - Out Of The Ashes" is a similar theme than the first track, based on a plaintive electric organ with an obsessional rhythmic.
During the summer of 1972, best remembered for the blood-shed of the Munich Olympics, the 5-man Dusseldorf instrumental group German Oak entered the Luftschutzbunker (air raid shelter) studio to record their first, eponymous album. The purpose of recording in a bunker was to recreate the feelings experienced by German soldiers during the Allied invasion of 1944. The strange acoustic conditions in the bunker made the music, which was a period of long, spacious guitar jams, sound distant and filled with echo.
Tracks
1. Airalert (1:55)
2. Down In The Bunker (17:57)
3. Raid Over Duesseldorf (15:42)
4. 1945 - Out Of The Ashes (2:13)
Listen

Toad - Tomorrow Blue (1972)

2010-03-13T01:57:00.000-08:00

"Toad" is a rather unusual Swiss hard-rock outfit, established in 1971 on the ashes of short-lived "Brainticket". The debut album (Toadfeatures founding members: Werner Froelich (bass), Cosimo Lampis (drums) and Vic Vergeant (ex-Hawkwind, but for a while only) on guitar, and a certain Jagger (but Benjamin) - as a session vocalist (who left straight after for better pastures, but dissapeared completely - to my knowledge at least). "Tomorrow Blue" (1972) is more mature album, which shows a serious move towards blues and progressive. It was produced by Martin Birch (the recording engineer of Deep Purple and its side projects, Sabbath etc) - which is enough to give you an idea of the music and its quality - very high. The same year the band issued the live recording of their gig in Basel, and in 1975 - "Dreams" (a drifter towards much weaker commercial mainstream). This particular album is exceptional.
Tracks
1. Thoughts
2. Tomorrow Blue
3. Blind Chapman's Tales
4. Vampires
5. No Need
6. Change in Time
7. Three O' Clock in the Morning
8. Fly
9. I Saw Her Standing There
10. Green Ham
Listen

Steve Miller Band - Brave New World (1969)

2010-03-13T01:39:00.000-08:00

Brave New World is the third album by American rock band The Steve Miller Band, released in 1969. The tracks "Celebration Song" and "My Dark Hour" featured Paul McCartney on backing vocals, drums and bass guitar credited as Paul Ramon.

The primary guitar riff on "My Dark Hour" was also used on the title track to Steve Miller's 1976 album Fly Like An Eagle.

"Space Cowboy" uses the same primary guitar riff as the Beatles' song Lady Madonna. It was released as downloadable content for the video game Rock Band on January 20, 2009.
Brave New World, the third offering by the still-new Steve Miller Band, was released in 1969. Can't you tell? References to celebrations and tripping abound, making this one of the sunniest, trippiest album of the psychedelic era. (Even the album cover is sunny yellow!) The opening of the title track (and the album) is a blast - literally, a bomb blast which hearalds the start of both a fresh, enjoyable tune and a bright new beginning for the world at large. Then, great drumming by Tim Davis kickstarts "Celebration Song," another wonderful vision of a world at play. "Got Love 'Cause You Need It" sounds like it's sung by Miller's infamous Gangster of Love character, full of danger and seduction, while "Seasons" is a gorgeous acoustic ballad, as heartfelt a track as Stevie Guitar has ever recorded. Nice! "Space Cowboy," of course, is the albums BIG HIT, complete with Moog synthesizer space sounds, and a rare, excellent guitar solo from Steve M! (The primary focus of Brave New World is on the material, not solos.) Literally too, too far out! "LT's Midnight Dream" is a fantasy feast, with lyrics like "got a bulldog in my learjet, gonna teach him how to fly"! Too much! Paul McCartney of the Beatles contributes drums, bass, and vocals to the blues-rock "My Dark Hour," (he is billed as Paul Ramon; yes, that is where the band The Ramones got their name!), while "Can't You Hear Your Daddy's Heartbeat?" is a love song in double-quick time and "Kow Kow" (also known as "Kow Kow Calqulator" on the anthologies) combines more fantasy lyrics with quotes from Bobby Blue Bland's "Turn on your Love Light". Outasite!! So, if your looking for something of Steve Miller's beyond the usual, well-crafted 70's material, give Brave New World a listen or two. You may want to start your own celebration!!! By Chris Meezy Food Czar.
Tracks
1. Brave New World
2. Celebration Song
3. Can't You Hear Your Daddy's Heartbeat
4. Got Love 'Cause You Need It
5. Kow Kow
6. Seasons
7. Space Cowboy
8. LT's Midnight Dream
9. My Dark Hour
Listen

Kuni Kawachi & His Group - Love suki daikirai (1972)

2010-03-13T01:26:00.000-08:00

"Beginning his career in the Group Sounds act The Happenings Four, keyboard player Kuni Kawachi will nevertheless probably always be best remembered for his writing contributions to Tokyo Kid Brothers version of THROW AWAY THE BOOKS, WE'RE GOING OUT ON THE STREETS, and also for his prescient employment of Flower Travellin' Band members on his first LP KIRIKYOGEN. Indeed, despite the strung out elegance of that solo record having spanned several genres, the appearance on lead vocals of Akira "Joe" Yamanaka has guaranteed KIRIKYOGEN a rightful place in rocknroll history, and a more genuinely listenable Japrock art statement you'd be hard pressed to find. Moreover, Kawachi's early version of Flowers Map is, to some ears, even better than the later "original". For his second LP, 1972's LOVE SUKI DAIKIRAI, Kawachi turned to the ubiquitous Jun "Kimio" Mizutani, former teen raver with garage band Out Cast, whose lead guitar had informed such legendary LPs as People's BUDDHA MEETS ROCK and LOVE WILL MAKE A BETTER YOU by Love Live Life +1. Mizutani's own highly rated solo album A PATH THROUGH HAZE was co-written by Masahiko Satoh along with Kawachi, whose painting is featured across the gatefold inner. In his later years, Kawachi moved north to become a farmer in Hokkaido, keeping his musical hand in writing TV commercials. A couple of years ago, his old Group Sounds band reformed, and are said to have played Kawachi's KIRIKYOGEN in its entirety. -Julian Cope
Tracks
1. That's Why People Are... (1:02)
2. Like Lovers (3:21)
3. The Cat (2:51)
4. Already No More Secrets (1:04)
5. Where My Voice Can Be Heard (3:55)
6. Where Are You Walking Now (3:36)
7. Like A Concert Of Angels (2:46)
8. Riddle (0:47)
9. A Letter Without A Stamp (2:37)
10. My Key Is In Your Hand (4:28)
11. Playing In Panic (3:22)
12. The Things You've Left (5:31)
13. A Puddle And Purple Vetch (2:24)
14. That's Why Love Is... (0:59)
Listen

Nikki & the Corvettes - Nikki & the Corvettes (1980)

2010-03-13T01:18:00.001-08:00

Nikki and the Corvettes, a Detroit punk-pop outfit led by the candy-voiced rocker Nikki Corvette, and Romantics guitarist Peter James, they kinda invented the whole girl sounding rock n roll thing. The group plied their brand of bubblegum punk from 1977 to 1981.

They had a sound somewhere between the Go-go's and the Ramones with bubblegum teenage libido maxed out with a dose of the Shangri Las. Led by a "new wave Betty Boop," to quote one review, this power group offered sounds and sex appeal. Combining those undeniable elements of energy and enthusiasm.
Tracks
1. He's a Mover
2. You're the One
3. C'mon
4. Just What I Need
5. Boys, Boys, Boys
6. Let's Go
7. Shake It Up
8. Back Seat Love
9. I Wanna Be Your Girlfriend
10. Summertime Fun
11. Gimme Gimme
12. You Make Me Crazy
13. Young and Crazy
14. Criminal Element
15. I Gotta Move
16. Girls Like Me
Listen

A Certain Ratio - I'd like to see you again (1982)

2010-03-04T04:15:00.000-08:00

Always somewhat overlooked in the now-mythologised Manchester scene that blossomed around Factory in the late 70's/early 80's, A Certain Ratio originally formed around a love of disco, Wire, the Velvets and (judging by their name) Eno. Reissued and backed up by 5 tracks taken from companion singles, 'I'd Like To See You Again' was first released back in late 1982 and see's ACR filtering NYC disco through their taut, Hacienda honed compositions. With opening salvo 'Touch' particularly relevant again now (it could almost be LCD Soundsystem), the reissue highlights just how much influence the likes of ACR have had on the contemporary music scene through their disciplined, proto-disco post-punk frosted music. Ranging in mood from the propulsive bass of 'Saturn' and dead-pan Grandmaster Flash referencing 'Hot Knights' to the familiar opening break of 'Axis' and 'Knife Slits Water's' spasming electro-pop, 'I'd Like To See You Again' is both an important musical document and intriguing listen that deserves to be reappraised.
Tracks
1. Touch
2. Saturn
3. Hot Knights
4. I'd Like to See You Again
5. Show Case
6. Sesamo Apriti - Corco Vada
7. Axis
8. Guess Who
9. Knife Slits Water [7"]
10. Tumba Rhumba
11. I Need Someone Tonite
12. Guess Who [Remix]
13. Knife Slits Water [12"]
Listen

Honolulu Mountain Daffodils - Guitars of the oceanic underground (1987)

2010-03-04T02:50:00.000-08:00

A scatterbrained and perhaps drunken recording entity based on the collective
talents of guitarist Joachim Pimento, fuzz guitarist/keyboardist Zoe Zettner, fuzz guitarist/vocalist Lord Sulaco, fuzz guitarist/percussionist Daiquiri J. Wright, fuzz guitarist Franklin Silverheels, and bassist Smoky Alvaro (yes, they apparently liked the sound of a fuzz guitar), the Honolulu Mountain Daffodils gathered occasionally throughout the late '80s and early '90s to patch together records that threw almost anything imaginable into a blender (from Kraftwerk to Tom Waits to the Ramones to Black Sabbath to Neu! and all points between). The ill-rehearsed results were always uneven, but a fun time was guaranteed each time they gathered into a studio. The only true ambition of the Daffodils was to have their records exist in obscurity until developing a cult of fans via a steady slew of dollar bin discoveries. In fact, as legend has it, the artwork for the 1987 album Guitars of the Oceanic Overgrowth was designed to look as if it had spent at least two decades gathering dust in a record shop's sunshine-prone window display. Guitars was their first album and was followed the next year by Tequila Dementia, and then the trilogy was completed three years later by Aloha Sayonara (the Psychic Hit-List Victim EP was released in 1991). Apparently the band split up soon thereafter; lord (or Lord Sulaco) knows why.
Tracks
01 Hanging On The Crosses (By The Side Of The Road) 4:21
02 Wolverine 4:43
03 Electrified Sons Of Randy Alvey 3:19
04 Guitars Of The Oceanic Undergrowth 5:06
05 Sinners Club 4:32
06 Black Car Drives South 4:29
07 El Muerto 4:06
08 Final Solution
Listen

January Tyme - First time from Memphis (1970)

2010-02-25T06:01:00.000-08:00

January Tyme was a New York band formed around the in-your-face vocal work of Janis Joplin-wannabe January Tyme. The band consisted of Tyme on lead vocals, keyboards, and percussion; Anthony Izzo on vocals and lead guitar; William Brancaccio on rhythm guitar, vocals, and keyboards; Steve Ciantro on bass; and Allen Cooley on drums and vocals. In 1969 the band released their only album for the Enterprise label, titled First Time from Memphis. Falling somewhere between Jefferson Airplane and Big Brother and the Holding Company style of music, the band failed to establish their own identity. Despite their songwriting competence and energetic performance on the 11 songs on this album, January Tyme faded into rock obscurity.
Tracks
1 Rainy Day Feeling
2 Music
3 Sleepy Time Baby
4 Ancient Babylon
5 Hold Me Up to the Light
6 Live Is Blind
7 Are You Laughing
8 Down to the River
9 I Could Never Love You
10 Take This Time
11 Love Surrounds Me
Listen

The Fall - The Wonderful and Frightening World of the Fall (1984)

2010-02-25T05:20:00.000-08:00

The Fall made the leap to a semi-major label — Beggars Banquet — with The Wonderful and Frightening World of the Fall, hooking up with noted producer John Leckie to create another smart, varied album. Contemporaneous with the slightly friendlier "Oh! Brother" and "C.R.E.E.P." singles without actually including them, Wonderful and Frightening World makes few concessions to the larger market — every potential hook seemed spiked with the band's usual rough take-it-or-leave-it stance. Mark E. Smith's audible, tape-distorting spit on the descending chord blast of "Elves" — already spiked with enough vocal craziness as it is — gives a sense of where the album as a whole aims. Brix Smith co-writes about half the tracks, creating a strong partnership with many highlights. It may start with a semi-low-key chant, but when "Lay of the Land" fully kicks in, it does just that, Craig Scanlon in particular pouring on the feedback at the end over the clattering din. Smith sounds as coruscating and side-splittingly hilarious as ever, depicting modern Britain with an eye for the absurdities and failures (and crucially, no empathy — it's all about a gimlet eye projected at everyone and everything). Two further standouts appear on the second half — "Slang King," a snarling portrayal of a cool-in-his-mind dude and his increasingly pathetic life, and the concluding "Disney's Dream Debased." Though unquestionably the most conventionally attractive tune on the album, ringing guitars and all, Smith's lyrics portray a Disneyland scenario in hell, however softly delivered. Elsewhere, Gavin Friday from the Virgin Prunes takes a bow with his own unmistakable, spindly vocals on the trebly Krautrock chug of "Copped It" and the slightly more brute rhythm of "Stephen Song." [The CD version, in an admirable move by Beggars Banquet, contains seven extra tracks to fill the disc out, including "Oh! Brother" and "C.R.E.E.P.," along with associated B-sides and the Call for Escape Route EP.]
Tracks
1.Lay of the Land (5:45)
2.2 X 4 (3:38)
3.Copped It (4:15)
4.Elves (4:47)
5.Oh! Brother * (4:01)
6.Draygo's Guilt * (4:29)
7.God-Box * (3:18)
8.Clear Off! * (4:40)
9.C.R.E.E.P. * (3:08)
10.Pat-Trip Dispenser * (4:00)
11.Slang King (5:21)
12.Bug Day (4:58)
13.Stephen Song (3:05)
14.Craigness (3:03)
15.Disneys Dream Debased (5:17)
16.No Bulbs * (7:51)
Listen

Pete Brown & Piblokto - Things May Come and Things May Go, But the Art School Dance Goes on for Ever (1970)

2010-02-10T05:23:00.000-08:00

Pete Brown & Piblokto! were a British progressive rock band 1969-1971, formed by former Cream lyricist Pete Brown, after he had been thrown out of his own band Pete Brown and his Battered Ornaments the day before they were due to support The Rolling Stones at Hyde Park[1]. The original Piblokto! members were; Brown on vocals, Laurie Allen on drums, Jim Mullen on guitar, Roger Bunn on bass and Dave Thompson on organ.

Allen left to join The Battered Ornaments and was replaced by The Battered Ornaments drummer Rob Tait

They released their first single "Living Life Backwards"/"High Flying Electric Bird", (The A-side later covered by Jeff Beck), followed by the album Things May Come and Things May Go but the Art School Dance Goes on Forever (1969).

Bunn was replaced by Steve Glover for their second single, "Can't Get Off The Planet"/"Broken Magic" and the LP, Thousands On A Raft (1970).

Mullen, Thompson and Tait left, so Brown and Glover were joined by Phil Ryan on keyboards, John 'Pugwash' Weathers on drums (both formerly from The Eyes of Blue) and Brian Breeze on guitar. This line-up only recorded one single, "Flying Hero Sandwich"/"My Last Band"

Weathers and Breeze left, to be replaced by guitarist Taff Williams (also formerly in The Eyes of Blue) and drummer Ed Spevock, before finally disbanding in Autumn 1971.

Pete Brown went on to work with Graham Bond

Both albums, all three singles and several bonus tracks were reissued on a Double CD BGOCD522 in 2001

The band's name was taken from the Inuit word for "Arctic Hysteria", Piblokto, with symptoms including hysteria (screaming, uncontrolled wild behavior), depression and echolalia (senseless repetition of words).
Tracks
A1 Things May Come And Things May Go, But The Art School Dance Goes On Forever
A2 High Flying Electric Bird
A3 Someone Like You
A4 Walk For Charity, Run For Money
B1 Then I Must Go And Can I Keep
B2 My Love's Gone Far Away
B3 Golden Country Kingdom
B4 Firesong
B5 Country Morning
Listen

the Greatest Show On Earth - The goin's easy (1970)

2010-02-10T05:19:00.000-08:00

The second album of TGSOE, released fairly shortly after their debut, is a bit different than the brass-heavy debut. The group is now only a sextet as the Repertoire reissue of the album mentions indicates as only Hanson is mentioned from the brass band, but we get some sax from one other blower.

The album is definitely more appealing to hard prog rockers, especially after an intriguing distorted intro of the 9-min opener Borderline promises and they convince in the UK proto-prog realm. The other lengthy track Love Magnet is definitely in the JR/F territory with some almost-perfect lines and might sound at times as Van Morrison's Young Lovers and at other excellent Chicago

But the group was still trying to pump some potential hits like Magic Woman Touch (with some very unwise/ill-advised sound effects), or the energetic Story Times, the rocking- rolling Leader and the album closer piano-dominated sing-along (no doubt it was designed as such in concerts) Tell The Story, which was on the accompanying single's B- side. As a bonus track comes the single A-side non-album track Mountain Song, which doesn't really add much.

The band would tour until the half of next year before disbanding, domestic lack of success being the main reason. Indeed in the mid-70's, their record company gave the band another try at success by reissuing both albums together, mostly on the band's strengths and The Hollies' successful cover of Magic Woman Touch. But as far as this writer is concerned, TGSOE was not destined to become a long running group, but this second album seems a better effort than their debut as it is much more even and progressive. But none are essential to a proghead, and unless you have a knack for brass-rock, they will stay that way. By Sean Trane
Tracks
Songs / Tracks Listing
1. Borderline
2. Magic Woman Touch
3. Storytimes & Nursery Rhymes
4. The Leader
5. Love Magnet
6. Tell The Story
Listen

Fairfield Parlour - From home to home (1970)

2010-02-04T01:56:00.000-08:00

The Fairfield Parlour From Home to Home album is a continuation of the Kaleidoscope career, with the same lineup. The major difference is that the sound is less psychedelic and more folk-progressive oriented, with great use of acoustic guitar, flute and keyboards (especially the mellotron strings). There are some mellancholic songs and some more upbeat, but the overall song is lightweight
Aries, By Your Bedside, Soldier of The Flesh, I Will Always Feel The Same, Chalk on the Wall and Monkey are mellancholic songs, all of them are beautiful and Daltrey's voice fits perfectly the mellancholic songs, being one of the best voices of the progressive rock for mellow songs. The keyboards and occasional flutes are superb, mainly the mellotron strings.

In My Box, Free, Glorious House of Arthur are more upbeat and rock, with good guitar work. There are mellotron strings too in most of the songs.

The Highlights in my opinion are:

The best song in this album in my opinion is And Emily Brought Confetti, which is the longest song. Though it has not many variations, it has a beautiful acoustic guitar riff and great mellotron strings arrangement that really stands out. The song is melancholic and the vocals and the flute fit very well to the theme of the song.

Sunny Side Circus is a song with psychedelic reminiscences, shown in the structure of the song, the sound effects used (backward tapes for examples), the constant changes of rhythm totally unstructured. The song is very enjoyable though, being a psychedelic song as they usually used to do as Kaleidoscope with the Fairfield Parlour instrumentation.

Drummer Boy of Shiloh is a very beautiful and melancholic song, with great mellotron strings, acoustic and electric guitar riff, military-like drumming and very beautiful singing by Daltrey which is one of my favourite singers, having a distinctive voice It is not the traditional song from the 19th century, but its lyrics are certainly inspired on the traditional song.

Overall the album is very good and along with White Faced Lady the best of this short-lived band which could have been of of the finest progressive acts from the 70's. By Akin from progrock.
Tracks
1. Aries
2. In My Box
3. By Your Bedside
4. Soldier Of The Flesh
5. I Will Always Feel The Same
6. Free
7. Emily
8. Chalk On The Wall
9. Glorious House Of Arthur
10. Monkey
11. Sunny Side Circus
12. Drummer Boy Of Shiloh
Listen

Rex Holman - Here in the land of victory (1970)

2010-02-04T01:43:00.000-08:00

Bit-part actor Rex Holman is perhaps better known to Star Trek and Monkees fans than music enthusiasts, but connoisseurs of acid folk have long treasured this, his sole album, which originally appeared in 1970 (when he was already 42 years old). A hypnotic blend of melodic, contemplative songs and philosophical lyrics, sung in Holman's quavering voice (which has been compared to Tim Buckley's), set to acoustic guitar, sitar and tabla, it's nothing short of an overlooked minor classic, and is sure to appeal to fans of artists such as Damon, Pat Kilroy and Mark Fry.
"Here In the Land of Victory" featured all original material, though the mix of Indian-flavored instrumentation and Holman's hyper serious lyrics sounded like something that was recorded circa 1967. Holman's vibrato-drenched vocals (which were an acquired taste) and his over-the-top lyrics certainly weren't for everyone. Imagine Richard Harris reincarnated as Donovan and you'll have a feel for tracks like 'Listen To the Footsteps', the sitar and flute propelled 'Sit and Flatter Me' and 'Come On Down'. Ironically if you could get over those characteristics, then the album rewarded you with quite a bit of memorable material. Holman's uber earnestness was somehow charming and most of the lyrics were no worse than your standard college English paper (okay, 'The Chosen One' was far worse). Certainly a reflection of my personal tastes, but Holman was at his best when backed by a full rock ensemble. As such personal highlights included 'Pink Lemonade', 'Today Is Almost Here', and the bluesy 'Red Is the Apple'. The disturbing artwork including a back cover photo of Homan sitting blissed out next to a passed out drunk certainly didn't help sales.
Tracks
01 - Here In The Land Of Victory - 3.16
02 - Pink Lemonade - 2.10
03 - Rowin' - 2.34
04 - Today Is Almost Here - 3.09
05 - Listen To The Footsteps - 2.58
06 - Red Is The Apple - 4.20
07 - Sit And Flatter Me - 3.35
08 - Copper Kettles - 2.25
09 - Come On Down - 2.40
10 - Debbie - 2.30
11 - The Chosen One - 2.57
12 - I Can't Read My Name - 2.27
Listen

MC5 - Live at Sturgis Armory June 1968

2010-02-04T01:36:00.000-08:00

It would be pointless to try and top the MC5 in-concert classic Kick Out The Jams, since it is simply one of the greatest live recordings of all time. Recorded in 1968 at the Sturgis Armory, Starship does a good job of collecting several MC5 compositions that are hard to come by (and never released by their official label, Elektra), mixed in with the expected fan favorites. Although it's not up to snuff sonically as Jams was (Starship is a soundboard recording produced by '60s activist/MC5 manager John Sinclair), the MC5 rage through a killer set, which includes a must-hear medley of James Brown hits ("Cold Sweat/I Can't Stand Myself/There Was a Time"). Other standouts include the solid non-album tracks "Upper Egypt," "Revolutionary Blues," and "Black to Comm," as well as the MC5 standards "Come Together," the title track, and of course their anthem, "Kick Out the Jams." Some of the songs were obviously aimed at certain audience members who were in an altered state of mind (unpredictable blasts of white noise crop up throughout, many of the songs end with an elongated drone, etc.), but Starship is an excellent reminder of how devastating the MC5 were in concert.
Tracks
1 Kick Out the Jams
2 Come Together
3 Revolutionary Blues
4 Rama Lama Fa Fa Fa
5 James Brown Medley: Cold Sweat/I Can't Stand Myself/There Was a Time
6 Upper Egypt
7 Tutti Frutti
8 Borderline
9 Born Under a Bad Sign
10 I Want You
11 Starship
12 Black to Comm
Listen

Punishment of Luxury - Laughing Academy (1979)

2010-02-04T01:24:00.000-08:00

There are many people on the indie music and punk scene who have never heard of Punishment of Luxury. While their one and only album, 'The Laughing Academy' was acclaimed at the time it was released in 1979, it is a much under-rated punk record and one that has been largely forgotten about now.

Punishment of Luxury, or Punilux as they were sometimes called for short, formed in the North East of England in 1976. The group, which initially consisted of Brian Bond (vocals, keyboards), Jeff Thwaite (drums), Malla Caballa (guitar, vocals), Nevill Luxury (guitar, keyboards) and Jimmy Giro (bass), released their debut single, 'Puppet Life', in 1978.
If you can imagine a punk band, all of whose members were suffering from schizophrenia, then that is something like what Punishment of Luxury sound like on the demented 'The Laughing Academy'. While the album has a very earthy punk sound, the mood and the tempo of the songs changes constantly throughout. I don’t think that you could get a band more individual. 'The Laughing Academy' is like a story book. Each track on the album tells a tale very different from the last one. It is the equivalent of watching a video or a DVD consisting of several different episodes of 'The Twilight Zone'..

The album opens with the raucous first single, 'Puppet Life', and on it a worn-down Brian Bond sings of having his opinions oppressed.["Once I had my own mind/ but in your sewer I was blinded/ wallowing around like a albino crocodile"]

The second song is called 'Funk Me' and, in contrast a funny track, pokes fun at medallion men who go to discos. ["Funk me til I'm crazy/Sex is just a dream/I drink your gaze and soak in dust and cream]. 'The Message' shows off an adventurous, fantastical side to the band and is the story of a satellite station picking up another life form on its equipment and trying to make contact.

Last but not least, there is 'Obsession', which is a well-crafted horror tale. 25 years on from first hearing it, its lyrics still make the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. It tells of a man obsessed with a girl he fancies. One is tricked into believing that he simply wants to seduce her, but as the song nears its end you realise he’s abducted and killed her. The song ends with these chilling words: "It only seems to happen with a corpse or a dream/Dead bodies don’t betray you/They never try to scream/Scream!”

Thatthen is an overview of the album Punishment of Luxury's 'Laughing Academy', which is one of my favourite albums of all time because it’s so diverse musical and lyrically.

If you’ve never heard the album try to get hold of a copy . It’s an experience

What was really sad was that in 1980 United Artists , Punishment of Luxury's label, were taken over by EMI and they broke up shortly after being dropped for the likes of the Cockney Rejects and Vice Squad. excerps from review by Dave Toynton.
Tracks
1. Puppet Life (3:03)
2. Funk Me (3:59)
3. Message (3:56)
4. All White Jack (3:59)
5. Obsession (4:40)
6. Radar Bug / Metropolis (5:42)
7. British Baboon (4:03)
8. Babalon (4:02)
9. Excess Bleeding Heart (2:40)
10. Laughing Academy (5:02)
Listen

Camel - Music inspired by the Snow Goose (1975)

2010-01-28T05:50:00.000-08:00

Camel's classic period started with The Snow Goose, an instrumental concept album based on a novella by Paul Gallico. Although there are no lyrics on the album — two songs feature wordless vocals — the music follows the emotional arc of the novella's story, which is about a lonely man named Rhayader who helps nurse a wounded snow goose back to health with the help of a young girl called Fritha he recently befriended. Once the goose is healed, it is set free, but Fritha no longer visits the man because the goose is gone. Later, Rhayader is killed in battle during the evacuation of Dunkirk. The goose returned during the battle, and it is then named La Princesse Perdue, symbolizing the hopes that can still survive even during the evils of war. With such a complex fable to tell, it is no surprise that Camel keep their improvisational tendencies reigned in, deciding to concentrate on surging, intricate soundscapes that telegraph the emotion of the piece without a single word. And even though The Snow Goose is an instrumental album, it is far more accessible than some of Camel's later work, since it relies on beautiful sonic textures instead of musical experimentation.
Tracks
1.The Great Marsh (2:02)
2.Rhayader (3:01)
3.Rhayader Goes to Town (5:20)
4.Sanctuary (1:05)
5.Fritha (1:19)
6.The Snow Goose (3:12)
7.Friendship (1:43)
8.Migration (2:01)
9.Rhayader Alone (1:50)
10.Flight of the Snow Goose (2:40)
11.Preparation (3:53)
12.Dunkirk (5:25)
13.Epitaph (2:07)
14.Fritha Alone (1:39)
15.La Princesse Perdue (4:45)
16.The Great Marsh (1:19)
Listen

Tipsy - Triptease (1997)

2010-01-28T02:28:00.000-08:00

Brought together by their shared fascination for experimental music and noise, the San Francisco-based lounge-collage duo Tipsy consists of Tim Digulla and David Gardner. Previously, Gardner worked with sonic manipulators like PGR and Big City Orchestra; Digulla began recording noise projects on his walkman while in junior high under the name No One. He continued his experiments in the San Francisco noise scene, through which he connected with Gardner at a warehouse sound event. Interested in the possibilities early easy listening and lounge music presented for tweaking and remixing, the duo formed Tipsy and recorded 1997's Trip Tease at the Bloody Angle Compound, their label Asphodel's recording studio. Trip Tease mixes modern and retro dance beats and the sensibility of '50s and '60s easy listening into a surreal musical confection; three singles, Flying Monkey Fist/Space Golf, Space Golf/Nude on the Moon and Grossenhosen Mit Mr. Excitement were released. In 1998, the band applied their avant-kitsch touch to a remix on Pulp's This Is Hardcore single. After a two-year period out of the spotlight, Tipsy returned in late 2000 with the Hard Petting single, which pointed to a more streamlined, less lounge-inspired sound. This trend continued on their second album, Uh-Oh, which arrived in early 2001. Tipsy's members worked on other projects, including music for commercials, before reconvening in the studio in 2005 for their third album. The group finished recording in fall 2007, but the product of their labor, Buzzz, didn't arrive until a year later on Ipecac Records.
Tracks
1 Mr. Excitement
2 Space Golf
3 Grossenhosen
4 Tuatara
5 Nude On The Moon
6 El Bombo Atomico
7 Liquordelic
8 Cinnabar
9 Fuad Ramses
10 Oops!
11 Ugly Stadium
12 Something Tropical
13 Zenith
Listen

The Monkees - The Birds, The Bees and the Monkees (1968)

2010-01-28T00:43:00.000-08:00

The year 1968 brought mixed returns for The Monkees. Their television series was cancelled, their first motion picture project, Head, failed at the box office, and in December, Peter Tork left the group. However, The Birds, The Bees & The Monkees was another successful album, yielding the group's sixth million-selling single in "Valleri" and yet another number one in "Daydream Believer", a bittersweet pop song from the pen of former Kingston Trio member John Stewart. Perhaps no other two tracks define Davy Jones as a pop music singer more than these two hits.

After gaining complete artistic control over their musical direction and finally being allowed to play instruments on their own records in early 1967, the monumental success of Headquarters and Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd. began to somewhat rebuff the critics who propagated that The Monkees was a band of talentless individuals who were simply lucky enough to gain recognition through their 'manufactured' origins.

The desire and focus, however, to remain as a complete band unit in the studio quickly evaporated after the Pisces album, when, much to the dismay of Tork, each individual band member began to produce his own sessions with his own selected studio musicians, often at entirely different studios around the Los Angeles area. An agreement was made to label all finished efforts as 'Produced by The Monkees', but in reality, beyond a few exceptions, most of the recordings featured on The Birds, The Bees & The Monkees revert back to the recording process of the first two albums—less group dynamics—except now each band member was fully in charge of the sessions. Chip Douglas, producer of The Monkees' previous two albums, fully expected to continue as the band's representative in the studio, but found the individual Monkees more interested in exploring their own diverse musical backgrounds with their own friends rather than relying on Douglas as the central figure.

Those diverse musical backgrounds, while making for an interesting mix of styles and sounds on Monkees albums, most likely also contributed to the downfall of The Monkees as a self-contained studio band. Four different musical outlooks resulted in less and less harmony in the recording process after Headquarters, and the results of that fracture are found on this album—Jones' Broadway rock, Michael Nesmith's country and western leanings, and the rock and soul of Micky Dolenz. Unfortunately for Tork, even though several of his compositions were considered for release on Birds, his participation is almost zero on this album; he appears only on "Daydream Believer." He spent the rest of his Monkees tenure struggling to find his footing in the studio now that the band was no longer working organically.

Despite all the intrigue surrounding the sessions that produced The Birds, The Bees & The Monkees, several songs stand out as some of their finest recorded work. "Tapioca Tundra", a wildly experimental piece of poetry put to music by Nesmith, charted surprisingly well as the b-side to "Valleri" at #34, perhaps the strangest song to hit American top 40 radio ever[citation needed]. "Auntie's Municipal Court", another Nesmith composition, featured an excellent double lead vocal by Dolenz and Nesmith, and "Zor and Zam" boasts some of the best Dolenz vocals ever recorded. Veteran Monkees tunesmiths Boyce and Hart contribute another classic to the proceedings in the psychedelic "P.O. Box 9847", while Jones submits perhaps his finest composition to date in the orchestral "Dream World".

The Birds, The Bees & The Monkees, the fifth album by the band, was also the first Monkees album not to go to number one, instead charting at number three and eventually selling over a million copies.

For record collectors and diehard Monkees fans, the extremely rare U.S. mono album (COM-109), released in a limited quantity as mono albums were being phased out by 1968, has become a highly-sought item for its unique mixes that differ from the common stereo versions (most notably on "Auntie's Municipal Court"). Most foreign mono copies feature the stereo mixes reduced to one channel.
Tracks
01. Dream World
02. Auntie’s Municipal Court
03. We Were Made for Each Other
04. Tapioca Tundra
05. Daydream Believer
06. Writing Wrongs
07. I'll Be Back Up On My Feet
08. The Poster
09. P.O. Box 9847
10. Magnolia Simms
11. Valleri
12. Zor and Zam
Bonus tracks
13. Alvin
14. I’m Gonna Try
15. P.O. Box 9847 (alternate mix)
16. The Girl I Left Behind Me (early version)
17. Lady’s Baby (alternate mix)
Listen

Kaleidoscope - Faintly Blowing (1969)

2010-01-20T05:10:00.000-08:00

For their second album, Kaleidoscope delivered something an awful lot like their debut, a body of pleasant, trippy, spacy raga-rock, with the main difference that they pushed the wattage a little harder on their instruments -- they'd also been performing pretty extensively by the time of their second long-player, and a lot of the music here was material that they'd worked out on-stage in very solid versions. The result is a record just as pretty as their debut but a little punchier and more exciting within each song than their first album. The title track is also one of the more beautiful psychedelic effects pieces of its period, while "A Story from Tom Bitz" is crunchy folk-rock, "(Love Song) For Annie" represents a more lyrical brand of druggy folk-rock, and "If You So Wish" shifts over to Moody Blues-style ballad territory circa late 1968 and early 1969
Tracks
1. Faintly Blowing
2. Poem
3. Snapdragon
4. Story from Tom Bitz
5. (Love Song) For Annie
6. If You So Wish
7. Opinion
8. Bless the Executioner
9. Black Fjord
10. Feathered Tiger
11. I'll Kiss You Once
12. Music
13. Do It Again for Jeffrey
14. Poem [Mono Single Version]
15. Balloon
16. If You So Wish [Mono Single Version)
17. Let the World Wash In [Released as 'I Luv Wight
18. Mediaeval Masquerade [Released as 'I Luv Wight]
Listen

The Coral - The Coral (2002)

2010-01-14T05:17:00.000-08:00

The Coral are an English band formed in 1996 in Hoylake on the Wirral Peninsula in Merseyside.

The band's music is a mixture of old-fashioned country, 1960s-style psychedelia and folk with modern rock influences. The Coral have released four albums. Their self-titled debut album was nominated for the 2002 Mercury Music Prize and later voted the fourth best album of the year by NME Magazine. It was announced on the 9th January 2008 that Bill Ryder-Jones would be leaving, but the band would continue as a 5-piece
The Coral is the self-titled debut album by The Coral, and was released July 29, 2002 in the United Kingdom on the Deltasonic label, where it debuted at number 5 in the charts, and on March 3, 2003 in the United States on Columbia Records (see 2002 in music). It was also nominated for the Mercury Music Prize.
Tracks
1 Spanish Main 1:53
2 I Remember When 3:38
3 Shadows Fall 3:29
4 Dreaming of You 2:21
5 Simon Diamond 2:28
6 Goodbye 4:02
7 Waiting for the Heartaches 4:03
8 Skeleton Key 3:03
9 Wildfire 2:45
10 Bad Man 3:03
11 Calendars and Clocks 11:56
Listen

Illusion - Out of the mist (1977)

2010-01-14T05:02:00.001-08:00

In 1975, the former members of the original Renaissance lineup converged informally, and kicked about the idea of forming another band. Unfortunately, before they could get the project off the ground, key member Keith Relf tragically died the following year. Despite this loss, drummer Jim McCarty grabbed the reigns and the band pushed onward. McCarty stepped out behind the drum kit for an acoustic guitar and shared vocal duties with Jane Relf (Keith's sister), and the band acquired two new members for support: John Knightsbridge on lead guitar and drummer Eddie McNeil. Having forfeited the Renaissance name some years earlier, the newly constituted band chose the name Illusion, which was the name of their second and final album when they were Renaissance
The album starts with a killer song "Isadora", a very catchy romantic song full of typical Baroque rhythmic piano. Actually, the omnipresent piano constantly flirts with Baroque, catchy & sophisticated airs, like during their early career. I cannot stop to like to be transported by Jane's pleasant & reassuring vocals on "Beautiful Country". The very bottom bass on "Solo Flight" remind you that it is Renaissance that is playing, despite the Yes-Drama like lead vocals.

On side 2, "Everywhere You Go" sounds more acoustic due to the miscellaneous high frequency percussions; it contains some good background orchestral arrangements reminding a bit Renaissance with Annie Haslam. "Face Of Yesterday" is a reprise from their Illusion album made in 1970: it has a richer sound and it is globally more fluid: needless to say I prefer it to the original version. The a bit unexpected last track, "Candles Are Burning", contains a good progressive part full of rhythmic piano and electric guitar solos: unlike the other tracks, it is not really romantic, except for its beautiful & majestic finale: what a great manner to end an album!
Tracks
01 Isadora
02 Roads to Freedom
03 Beautiful Country
04 Solo Flight
05 Everywhere You Go
06 Face of Yesterday
07 Candles Are Burning
Listen

Ill Wind - Flashes (1968)

2010-01-14T01:55:00.000-08:00

Originally known as The Prophets, with a singer called Judy Bradbury, this band were originally from Wellsley, Massachusettes but based themselves in Boston. Clearly, a hippie as opposed to a punk band.Following Capitol Record's decision not to sign the band, Ill Wind was put in contact with producer Tom Wilson through the New York office of William Morris Agency. Wilson was riding high, having produced hit records for Simon and Garfunkle, Bob Dylan, the Animals, the Mothers of Invention and others, and he had just established his own independent production company Rasputin. He had signed a stable of acts and had licensing agreements for release through several labels. Ill Wind's album was to be released on ABC Records.

The album was recorded at Mayfair Studios in New York, during four weeks in February and early March, 1968 using a one-inch 8-track machine. A total of eleven tracks were recorded, of which nine were selected for inclusion on the album. The session engineer was Harry Yarmark and the remix engineer was Gary Kellgren. None of the band members were permitted in the mixing sessions. The album was released in June, 1968 with an initial pressing of 10,000 copies. These were all defective, having a repeated section during High Flying Bird as well as a back cover that was printed so dark as to be illegible. A second pressing of 2,500 copies corrected both faults.
Tracks
01 Walkin' and Singin'
02 Sleep
03 Little Man
04 Dark World
05 L.A.P.D.
06 High Flying Bird
07 Hung Up Chick
08 People of the Night
09 Full Cycle
Listen

Canned Heat - Living the blues (1968)

2010-01-14T00:49:00.000-08:00

Living the Blues is a 1968 double album by Canned Heat. It was one of the first double albums to place well on album charts. It features Canned Heat's signature song, "Going Up the Country," which would later be used in the Woodstock film. John Mayall appears on piano on "Walking by Myself" and "Bear Wires." Dr. John appears on "Boogie Music". The 20-minute trippy suite "Parthenogenesis" is dwarfed by the album-length "Refried Boogie," recorded live.
Tracks
A1 Pony Blues 3:47
A2 My Mistake 3:21
A3 Sandy's Blues 6:45
A4 Going Up the Country 2:51
A5 Walking by Myself 2:38
A6 Boogie Music 3:13
B1 One Kind Favor 4:44
B2 Parthenogenesis 19:54
i. Nebulosity
ii. Rollin' and Tumblin'
iii. Five Owls
iv. Bear Wires
v. Snooky Flowers
vi. Sunflower Power (RMS IS truth)
vii. Raga Kafi
viii. Icebag
ix. Childhood's End
C Refried Boogie - Part I 20:10
D Refried Boogie - Part II 20:50
Listen 1
Listen 2

A la Ping Pong - Extrem Musik A La Ping Pong Phase 1 (1980)

2010-01-14T00:31:00.000-08:00

This rare electronic release contains atmospheres ala Manuel Goettsching / Gunther Schickert coupled with Cluster / Harmonia-like touches. A La Ping Pong consisted of Hardy Kukuk (synths, sequencers), Hucky Thoss (drums), Klaus Bloch (guitar, voice, synth) and Karsten Recke (electronic piano, sequencer, electronic drums).
Recorded at Studio Paradiso Feb.-Juli 1980. Mixed in September.
"Nordlaut 1 + 3" are live recordings from Spektakel '80.
Tracks
1 Fanfaren - Waidmannsheil?
2 Nordlaut 1
3 Edelweiß für ....
4 Nordlaut 3
5 Morgenstern-Abendstern
6 Zartbitter
Listen

Tim Buckley - Goodbye and Hello (1967)

2010-01-14T00:14:00.000-08:00

Before Tim Buckley got carried away with jazz rhythms in the '70s, he made profoundly moving folk-rock albums that showcased his stunning vocal range, thoughtful lyrics, and penchant for occasionally imbuing tracks with surprisingly soulful, non-blue-eyed grooves and infectious jangle-pop melodies. Goodbye and Hello, his second album (recorded in 1967 when he was only 20), runs the gamut. Here Buckley hints at the sensual howl that would blossom in the '70s ("I Never Asked to Be Your Mountain," "Pleasant Street," "Hallucinations"). While he goes into hippie-poet-deep-thinker mode on a few songs, the excellent folk-soul tracks win out.
There's no denying that some of the lyrics on this album apply specifically to the incredible era that was the 1960s - but have the values and beliefs they espoused so vibrantly faded into nonexistence? I don't think so. Emphasis shifts, forms of expression change - but the things about which Tim Buckley sang so eloquently on this recording are eternal: war and peace (both internal and external); love and loneliness; the strife that is born between generations. The 60s era was full of bands and songwriters wrestling with these subjects, striving to help us all deal with them - and more than a few who tagged along for the ride with the hope of making a buck out of the movements that arose around them. Buckley - and his (then-) lyricist Larry Beckett were, as artists, reaching desperately and honestly for something higher, not for any accolades that might come their way as a result, but to latch onto something they could use to pull themselves (and the rest of us) up to a higher level. Tim Buckley succeeded in this more than most of his contemporaries.
The musicianship on the album is superb. Buckley has moved to a 12-string acoustic guitar, the instrument which was soon to become his main choice. Lee Underwood is along on lead guitar - and I can't say too much about Lee's contributions to Tim's music (and his life - he was one of Buckley's closest friends). Carter C. C. Collins makes his first recorded appearance on congas - another musician who would become a close friend to Buckley, as well as a frequent, welcome accompanist. Jim Fielder is along on bass on some of the tracks. Most of the rest of the musicians, while talented, are studio players brought into the recording by producer Jerry Yester - Elektra recognized Tim's potential, and wanted a fairly slick, commercial recording. It turned out pretty good from all angles - but it would be the last bow to commerciality that Buckley would make.

The album begins with a song dealing with the horrors of war - it was, after all, the era of Vietnam - but in the case of `No man can find the war', the lyrics suggest that the real war is not in the jungle, but in the minds of men and women: `Is the war across the sea? Is the war behind the sky? Have you each and all gone blind? Is the war inside your mind?' It is only when we fight - or at least make an attempt to do so - the battles that rage within us that real peace will come. `Carnival song', the next track (written by Buckley alone) speaks to hypocrisy and truth, and does so more directly than many of the more popular tunes of the day that addressed this subject. `Pleasant Street' (also written by Buckley alone) is one of his finest tunes - `Hallucinations' is just that - the melody, lyrics and arrangement combine to produce a gently swirling maelstrom that draws the listener into the images spun by the singer.

The next track, `I never asked to be your mountain', is in my opinion one of the best things Buckley ever wrote. In it, he addresses his first wife, speaking openly and poetically of the forces that pull two people together and drive them apart. His 12-string guitar thunders out the rhythm on this track, drawing the other musicians along with him into one of the most powerful pieces he ever recorded. At the end of the song, the listener aches to hear Tim cry out `...please come home...' over and over - this is piercing music straight from the heart, which is where all of Tim's songs originated.

`Once I was' follows, a song that speaks gently of love and change - a beautiful song. `Phantasmagoria in two' (which Tim and Lee called `The fiddler'), is a deceptively progressive step in Tim's songwriting - giving free rein to the meaning at the heart of the song, Tim abandons completely attempting to force the words into rhyme. The effect is perfect - Tim's lyrics are so moving, combined with his amazing voice and the melody, that it almost goes unnoticed, form being overshadowed (as it should be) by substance. `Knight-errant' is next - a nod to the romantic attitudes of the era that uses the images of a knight and his lady nicely, if a bit naïvely.

`Goodbye and hello' is Larry Becket's magnum opus - at least among the songs he co-wrote with Tim. It's quite a piece of poetry, with two stanzas existing side-by-side in several places (and sung that way by Tim) - the fact that Tim was able to take this challenge up and write the melody for it says a lot about his skills as well as his determination. This is a tune that, due to its complexity, was only performed live on a couple of occasions. It borders on being overwrought - but it stands nevertheless as a valuable document.

`Morning glory' ends the set - this was covered more popularly by Blood Sweat and Tears - a gentle song that is deceptive in its depth, dealing with the romantic notion (held by the `character' who sings it) that simply by asking a hobo about his life, that life can be experienced by the questioner. The hobo makes his point by his refusal to tell his stories to the singer - and Beckett's lyrics make the point as well, that experience is the greatest teacher.

This is an amazingly good album - a wonderful example of Tim's most `accessible' work - and one which will shine for many years to come. Once you've dipped into the rich well that is Tim Buckley's voice, allow yourself to become adventurous and move on into his jazz explorations (on HAPPY SAD and BLUE AFTERNOON), then on to his more experimental works (LORCA and STARSAILOR, which he considered to be his greatest achievement). It's a journey you won't regret. By Larry L Looney
Tracks
1. No Man Can Find the War
2. Carnival Song
3. Pleasant Street
4. Hallucinations
5. I Never Asked to Be Your Mountain
6. Once I Was
7. Phantasmagoria in Two
8. Knight-Errant
9. Goodbye and Hello
10. Morning Glory
Listen

Del Shannon - The further adventures of Chales Westover (1967)

2010-01-07T01:32:00.000-08:00

This lesser-known cult favorite is not only one of the most musically ambitious outings of Del Shannon's career, but also one of his most all-around consistent albums. The Further Adventures of Charles Westover finds Shannon embracing psychedelia in a personalized way: Instead of imitating the whimsy of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, or the creepy freak-outs of Their Satanic Majesties Request, he uses the cinematic quality of psychedelic pop to provide a vivid backdrop for his songwriting. For instance, "Silver Birch" uses a swirling mass of horns and densely layered backing vocals to add a haunting quality to its tale of an abandoned bride, and "Color Flashing Hair" uses vertiginous string motifs and churning horns to re-create the feelings of obsessive love described in the lyrics. Shannon's work on this album also differs from usual psychedelic fare because it mixes some earthier textures into its sonic brew: "Be My Friend" enhances its lusty plea for feminine companionship with wailing harmonica and gospel-tinged female backing vocals, and "River Cool" laces its swinging beat with some deliciously soulful organ licks. The overall effect is stunning, managing to fit the tag of psychedelic pop but still retaining the haunting, emotional kind of songwriting that distinguished Del Shannon's music.
Tracks
1. Thinkin' It Over
2. Be My Friend
3. Silver Birch
4. I Think I Love You
5. River Cool
6. Colour Flashing Hair
7. Gemini
8. Runnin' on Back
9. Conquer
10. Been So Long
11. Magical Musical Box
12. New Orleans (Mardi Gras)
Listen

Tim Buckley - Tim Buckley (1966)

2010-01-07T00:26:00.000-08:00

Timothy Charles Buckley III (February 14, 1947 – June 29, 1975) was an American vocalist and musician who went through many distinct phases spanning the late 1960s and early 1970s, in which he incorporated aspects of folk, jazz, psychedelia, funk, soul, and avant-garde rock. He died when he was 28 years old, survived by his wife and adopted son Taylor, and his biological son from an earlier marriage, Jeff (who would later become a well-known musician in his own right).
Tim recorded his debut album, Tim Buckley, over three days in Los Angeles in August 1966. Tim later denigrated the album, describing it as "like Disneyland". The album's folk-rock style was largely typical of the time, but critics noted Tim's distinctive voice and tuneful compositions. The tracks featured were written with Larry Beckett while the two were in high school.

The record featured Buckley and a backing band of Orange County friends, as well as Lee Underwood, a former poet and high school English teacher who Tim met in Greenwich Village. Underwood's mix of jazz and country improvisation on a twangy telecaster became a distinctive part of Tim's early sound. Jac Holzman and Paul Rothchild's production style and Jack Nitzsche's string arrangements cemented in the record's mid-sixties sound.
Tracks
01 I can't see you
02 Wings
03 Song of teh magician
04 Strange street affair under blue
05 Valentine melody
06 Aren't you the girl
07 Song slowly song
08 It happens every time
09 Song for Janie
10 Grief in my soul
11 She is
12 Understand your man
Listen

Black Sabbath - Paranoid (1970)

2010-01-06T05:21:00.000-08:00

After the release of their eponymous debut album in February 1970, Black Sabbath returned to the studio in June that year, again with producer Rodger Bain, to record their second album. The album was recorded at Regent Sound Studios and Island Studios in London, England. The album's eponymous single "Paranoid" was written in the studio at the last minute.

As drummer Bill Ward explains: "We didn't have enough songs for the album, and Tony just played the "Paranoid" guitar lick and that was it. It took twenty, twenty-five minutes from top to bottom." The song was written with no intention of it being a successful hit for the band, only to be a filler on the album.
In comparison with their previous album, the songs on Paranoid were given more focus and direction, with less improvisation. However the lyrical content is equally as dark, exploring themes such as war, mental illness, drug abuse and sci-fi horror. Much of the album could be viewed as a kind of social commentary. Spin magazine wrote that the band "saw heavy rock as a way to emulate the horrors of a fallen world."

The lyrics of the opening song, "War Pigs", discuss war and the absurdities of those who make war without regard for those forced to fight it. It is often viewed as a protest song. Similarly, the lyrics of "Electric Funeral" discuss the horrific aftermath of nuclear warfare. These songs were written in the midst of the Vietnam War and the Cold War, and could be seen as quite representative of the political situation at the time.

The song "Paranoid" is uncharacteristically fast and simplistic for Black Sabbath in their early days. Supposedly the band members intended it only as an interlude or as "filler". Its lyrics concern the stigma of mental illness. In a related way, "Iron Man" is about a time traveller from the future who has been turned to steel. He is outcast by society but eventually takes his revenge on humanity. It is also a reference to Vietnam war veterans, who upon returning from war were outcast by society and had no help re-integrating into normal life or dealing with their post war mental disorders.[citation needed]

The song "Iron Man" is thematically very similar to the Ted Hughes novel, The Iron Man. This book was made into an animated film which was called The Iron Giant.

Three songs on the album appear to concern dreams, hallucinations and drug use. "Planet Caravan" and "Fairies Wear Boots" are quite psychedelic in style and their lyrics are quite abstract.

"Hand of Doom" was written as a message against heroin use (holes are in your skin, caused by deadly pin). The song transitions between slow, soft passages and fast, loud passages as a representation of the drug being injected.
Tracks
1.War Pigs (7:55)
2.Paranoid (2:47)
3.Planet Caravan (4:24)
4.Iron Man (5:53)
5.Electric Funeral (4:47)
6.Hand of Doom (7:07)
7.Rat Salad (2:29)
8.Fairies Wear Boots (6:14)
Listen

You - Electric Day (1979)

2010-01-06T01:30:00.000-08:00

Very nice album of Berlin School electronic music. Harald Grosskopf produced and contributed drum parts under Lhan Gopal pseudonym. Ulrich Weber's guitar and Harald Grosskopf's drums integrate wonderfully with various analog synthesizers and sequencers used here. Music is rooted in Berlin School, but still manages to be original and at times borders on experimental. Subsequent albums are all worthwhile as well.
Tracks
01. Electric Day (5:51)
02. Magooba (6:30)
03. Son Of A True Star (5:03)
04. Sequential Spectrums Part 1 (2:01)
05. Sequential Spectrums Part 2 (0:45)
06. Slow Go (11:56)
07. Zero-Eighty-Four (8:36)
Listen

Thin Lizzy - Vagabonds Of The Western World (1973)

2010-01-06T00:29:00.000-08:00

VAGABONDS OF THE WESTERN WORLD is not only the last record that Thin Lizzy recorded as a trio, but an album that signaled the band's adoption of a more hard-rock sound and an abandonment of its prior harder-edged prog-rock approach. VAGABONDS also contained Thin Lizzy's breakthrough hit, a modern update of the traditional folk song "Whisky in the Jar."

Once again turning to his Irish heritage, Phil Lynott reaches into Celtic mythology to create a wayfaring fictional character who traverses through a mystical world, a character who appears in the Hendrixian title track, and in the moody "Hero and the Madman." On the later, Lynott's spoken-word intro sounds not unlike something Jim Morrison might have written. When Lynott isn't relying upon magical beings for inspiration, his songs speak from the perspective of the perpetual outsider. Throughout the album, the band demonstrates its mastery of the blues ("Slow Blues," "Broken Dreams"), folk ("A Song For While I'm Away"), waltzes ("Randolph's Tango"), and Faces-like boogie ("Mama Nature Said.") The guitar-driven "Whisky in the Jar" may have been the album's hit, but "The Rocker," an anthem that became a precursor to the later success of JAILBREAK, is as hard-hitting as it gets.

Recorded in 1973, this LP was Thin Lizzy putting all they had into the music and taking risks. Its passionate, high energy and distinctive.
Tracks
01. Mama Nature Said
02. The Hero & The Madman
03. Slow Blues
04. The Rocker
05. Vagabonds Of The Western World
06. Little Girl In Bloom
07. Gonna Creep Up On You
08. A Song While I'm Away
09. Whiskey in the Jar
10. Black Boys on the Corner
11. Randolph's Tango
12. Broken Dreams
Listen

John Philips - John, The wolf king of LA (1970)

2010-01-06T00:20:00.000-08:00

John Phillips (John, the Wolf King of L.A.) is the first solo recording by the Mamas & the Papas leader John Phillips. All songs were Phillips originals, dealing mostly with recent events in Phillips' life, including references to his new girlfriend Geneviève Waïte and longtime friend Ann Marshall ("April Anne").

As John was the backing singer in the Mamas and the Papas, with the other three serving as lead singers, the album mix tends to de-emphasize his lead vocals. Denny Doherty stated that, had the Mamas & the Papas performed this album, it would have been one of their finest, because of the strength of Phillips' songs. The single "Mississippi" reached the US Billboard top 40.
Tracks
01. April Anne – 3:22
02. Topanga Canyon – 3:53
03. Malibu People – 3:41
04. Someone's Sleeping – 2:46
05. Drum – 3:36
06. Captain – 3:25
07. Let It Bleed, Genevieve – 2:53
08. Down the Beach - 2:52
09. Mississippi – 3:36
10. Holland Tunnel – 3:41
bonus tracks
11. Shady - 3:48
12. Lonely Children - 3:44
13. Lady Genevieve - 4:30
14. Black Girl (traditional) - 3:29
15. The Frenchman - 4:03
16. 16mm Baby (Reich) - 2:41
18. Larry, Joe, Hal and Me - 2:25
19. Mississippi [Single Version] - 3:07
Listen

David Axelrod - Songs of Experience (1969)

2009-11-26T05:08:00.000-08:00

With this album Axlerod based the songs upon the poetry of William Blake, definately a concept type piece.
The album's one of Axelrod's first on his own, cut for Capitol Records at a time when he was working with some of the label's biggest selling soul acts, like Cannonball Adderley and Lou Rawls turning their already-successful sounds into super-hit material by adding some nice funky touches, and excellent baroque production.

"A Poison Tree" and "A Little Girl Lost" are the first two tracks and show Axelrod’s usual heavy orchestration with strings, a loud violin, harpsichord and a strong Chamber Music sound.

"London" is much better with its keys playing and Carol Kaye’s walking bass. The "Sick Rose" goes through a number of parts, each led by a different instrument beginning with the guitar, then strings, and finally an organ joins in at the end. I like the second side much better with the harpsichord and light melody of "SchoolBoy", and bass again "Human Abstract", "The Fly", and the slow developing "A Divine image".
Tracks
01 The Poison Tree 3:10
02 A Little Girl Lost 3:29
03 London 2:49
04 The Sick Rose 4:49
05 The School Boy 2:31
06 The Human Abstract 5:33
07 The Fly 4:52
08 A Divine Image 4:36
Listen

Françoise Hardy - If you listen (1971)

2009-11-26T04:22:00.001-08:00

The LP, originally released in 1971, is the sultry French songstress' only English language album.
Sung (except for one track) in English, this 1972 album (originally titled just Françoise Hardy) was reissued on CD by Virgin France in 2000 under the title If You Listen, and issued in some foreign territories under yet different titles in the 1970s. However it was titled, it was a good, tasteful, and subdued set of folk-rock- and singer/songwriter-influenced covers (though the one French song, "Brulure," was the sole original Hardy composition). It's no surprise that the mood here is dignified rainy-day sorrow. But that was Hardy's forte, and the arrangements, emphasizing acoustic guitar and light strings, seem to indicate she was doing some listening to British folk-rock and American singer/songwriters. So does the choice of covers, including songs by Buffy Sainte-Marie, Neil Young ("Till the Morning Comes"), Beverley Martyn, and Randy Newman ("I Think It's Gonna Rain Today"). There's also the quite obscure "The Garden of Jane Delawnay," a misspelled interpretation of "The Garden of Jane Delawney" by the British folk-rock band the Trees; "Let My Name Be Sorrow," originally done by Mary Hopkin; and a couple of tunes co-written by Mick Jones, later of Foreigner. None of songs rate among her best work, but it's still a good album, often overlooked even by Hardy fans and notable in that just one of the English songs ("Bown Bown Bown") was also recorded by Hardy in a French version. It's also much superior to her album of English cover versions of just three years before, Françoise Hardy en Anglais, which was over-produced and far heavier on the syrup.
She grew up in the 9th arrondissement of Paris, the daughter of an unmarried mother. She received a guitar on her sixteenth birthday as a reward for passing her baccalaureat. After a year at the Sorbonne she answered a newspaper advertisement looking for young singers. Hardy signed her first contract with the record label Vogue in November 1961. In April 1962, shortly after finishing school, her first record "Oh Oh Chéri" appeared, written by Johnny Hallyday's writing duo. Her own flip side of the record, "Tous les garçons et les filles" became a success, riding the wave of Yé-yé music in France, with two million sales. She first appeared on television in 1962 during an interlude in a programme reporting the results of a presidential referendum.

Hardy sings in French, English, Italian, Spanish, and German. In 1963 she came fifth for Monaco in the Eurovision Song Contest with "L'amour s'en va". In 1963, she was awarded the Grand Prix Du Disque of the Charles Cros Academy.

In 1981, she married her long-time companion Jacques Dutronc, with whom she had had a son, Thomas Dutronc, in 1973. In 1994, she collaborated with the British pop group Blur for their "La Comedie" version of "To The End". In May 2000, she made a comeback with the album Clair Obscur. Her son played guitar and her husband sang the duet "Puisque Vous Partez En Voyage." Iggy Pop and Étienne Daho also took part. She has also recorded a duet with Perry Blake who wrote two songs for her award winning Tant de belles choses album. Hardy lives near Paris and Dutronc lives in Monticello, Corsica, although they remain a couple
Tracks
1. If You Listen
2. Ocean
3. Until It's Time For You to Go
4. Garden of Jane Delawnay, The
5. Sometimes
6. Let My Name Be Sorrow
7. Brulure
8. Can't Get the One I Want
9. I Think It's Gonna Rain Today
10. Take My Hand For a While
11. Bown Bown Bown
12. Till Morning Comes
listen

Kaleidoscope - Tangerine Dream (1967)

2009-11-26T00:57:00.000-08:00

On first listen, this is light, throwaway pop psychedelia, and it's easy to see why it sold in such low quantities - and hence is so incredibly rare. Think of the black and white video of Spinal Tap in their earliest incarnation singing "Listen to the Flower People", and you've just about got it.

So it seems to be a complete joke at the expense of record collectors - because the humour in the delivery seems almost non existent - the sincerity makes your jaw drop, aghast, and the lightweight music makes you think of Barrett Pink Floyd without the overdrive.

But then you listen again, and things start popping out at you. You listen again, and your attention is even more strongly held - and so it goes on. For this is an album crammed with subtleties almost hidden behind songs that border on the twee, but in actual fact are full of poetic depth and disturbing imagery.

In the year that saw "Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band", "Piper At The Gates of Dawn" and "Forever Changes" (among others), it's not hard to see how this gem got overlooked.

The character of this album is peculiarly English - in much the same way that "Piper..." is, but different... kind of musty, and filled with visions of middle class Victorian houses with manicured lawns and slightly overgrown borders, tea and cakes at 4, that sort of thing - giving more a warped yet perspicacious view of a solid reality, than some befuddled LSD-fuelled fantasy.

It's not really Prog Rock - but it IS incredibly progressive, even for 1967, when everything was progressive for the time, or so it seems.

THE MUSIC:

The introduction gives little clue as to the nature of the song that will follow; "Relax your eyes, for after all, we can but share these minutes", over an urgent "tick tocking" guitar... but then it all goes kinda Pete Tong. "Kaleidoscope, kaliedoscope, kaleida...". All very quaint and archetypally flower power - and that is it's strength.

The highlight of this track is the drumming, which has some superb "moments", but the overall arrangement is subtle, and the details are easily missed.

But it gets better... Much better. I'd guess the main issue here is that the opening track sets you off in the wrong direction, and every track can end up sounding like a dippy hippy tree-hug fest.

But "Tangerine Dream" is an album to discover, little bit by little bit - you simply need to allow the music to breadcrumb you into the depths of the forest, never to return...

"Please Excuse My Face" is an entertaining psychedelic pop tune, distinguished by the intro, which is remarkably similar to "Old Friends (Bookends Theme)" by Simon and Garfunkel. The open, airy arrangement is pleasing - but there are several songs by Love, The Byrds and Jefferson Airplane that are more imaginative and progressive.

"Dive Into Yesterday" is a lot more like it - possibly because by now I'm longing fo rsomething even half overdriven - with an imaginative introduction, nice drive and odd overall arrangement - largely caused, it would seem, by a bassist who is not too sure of what's happening, man. The riffing is cool, and there are some nice production touches and tangible psychedelic madness. Again, the drumming particularly stands out.

At 2:00 there are references to the lyrics of "Kaleidoscope", maintaining a subtle continuity that is easily missed, and around 2:55 there is a nice surprise - a return to the introduction of "Kaleidoscope", then some nice Floyd style development - along the lines of "The Gnome", but with some seriously odd experimentation on the guitar. The scooping attack on the word "Dive..." gives added propulsion to the most interesting track so far - although why water pistols should be filled with lemonade, and why that shuold interest the jester and the goldfish I'm still not sure...

"Mr Small The Watch Repairer Man" has even more production details verging on psychedelic (reefer?) madness - and quite insane drumming - it's like the stops are being slowly pulled out further and further as the album progressses. The vocals are practlcally Syd Barrett to a T.

"Flight From Ashiya" is much more experimental in terms of structure, with bass pedals a plenty to up the drama - and I get flavours of the Small Faces' "Ogden's Nut Gone", with added Nut Gone... A wall of sound is produced with a jangling Byrds-style guitar propelling the whole artifice in a disturbingly controlled way to the edge of oblivion.

"The murder of Lewis Tollani" begins with a drum heartbeat, then the story is narrated over slithering guitars - this is no ordinary song. For the next verse, the guitars undulate uncomfortably, and pauses add tension to the drama. This use of space in the music is what makes this really stand out.

"(Further Reflections) In the Room Of Percussion" seems like a return to standard song form - I was hoping for some great things from the very talented and precise Danny Bridgman, but this is, nonetheless, an enjoyable but very dark song; "My God - the spiders are everywhere!!!".

"Dear Nellie Goodrich" and "Holiday Maker" are great entertaining and startlingly observant songs, with more hidden depths, and "A Lesson Perhaps" is a poignant story of the King with no Kingdom, told in an appropriate style, with nice Mediaeval-flavoured guitar accompaniement.

But it's the 8:00 "The Sky Children" that I really wanted to get stuck into - all Proggers like the long tracks ;o). This is a strong that's very strong in melody - which is fortunate, as it's also very well endowed with lyrics...

For this song, a lyric sheet is very helpful for the first few listens, as it helps you realise that this is an incredibly well constructed and orcestrated piece, and highlights the main difference between Kaleidoscope and other 1960s psychedelic bands.

THE SUMMARY:

A wonderful, dreamy set of songs with a surprising bite that passes almost unnoticed on the first few listens. The bonus tracks are a nice addition, but the album is best taken in its original form to get a feel for how it was conceived (bearing in mind that some tracks were recorded considerably earlier than the album recording sessions)

This is not an album for those who want "hits", nor is it one for fans of the impossibly complex or crushingly heavy. It's not even real Prog Rock... although we are talking about 1967 here - so it could be.... Review thanks to Certif1ed
Tracks
1.Kaleidoscope
2.Please Excuse My Face
3.Dive Into Yesterday
4.Mr.Small the Watch Repairer Man
5.Flight From Ashiya
6.The murder of Lewis Tollani
7.In the Room Of Percussion
8.Dear Nellie Goodrich
9.Holiday Maker
10.A Lesson Perhaps
11.The Sky Children
Listen

Various Artists - Pet Projects, The Brian Wilson Productions (1960's)

2009-11-26T00:12:00.000-08:00

Brian Wilson did quite a bit of production work outside of his main gig with the Beach Boys, especially in the early to mid-'60s. This 23-track collection — entirely drawn from pre-1966 releases, except for a 1969 single by the Honeys and a 1973 single by American Spring — doesn't round up all of them, as some were unavailable for contractual reasons. But it's a good anthology of this facet of Wilson's career, with many obscure songs that are difficult to find and have been seldom reissued. As is usually the case for outside production/songwriting ventures by major stars, few of Wilson's non-Beach Boys ventures were hits, and in fact none of the items on this CD were. As is also usually the case in these situations, the material (frequently though not always written or co-written by Wilson) was more lightweight than what was being devised for the figure's principal project, the Beach Boys in Wilson's case. But this disc is still pretty enjoyable, featuring as it does a few genuinely outstanding cuts in which Wilson got to tinker with some production approaches. Foremost among these is Sharon Marie's 1964 Ronettes sound-alike single "Thinkin' Bout You Baby," which has a verse that was reworked with some changes to provide the Beach Boys' 1968 hit "Darlin'." Also of special note is Glen Campbell's 1965 single "Guess I'm Dumb," which has a confessional lyric and orchestral pop/rock production on par with the Beach Boys' own best album tracks of the period. Only slightly below this level is Gary Usher's 1964 single "Sacramento," which actually sounds a little more personal than much of the Beach Boys' output of that year. Brian Wilson himself is heard on the one-off 1964 single by the Survivors, with an A-side ("Pamela Jean") with an identical melody to that used for the Beach Boys' "Car Crazy Cutie," and an instrumental B-side ("After the Game") that's a vague forerunner of the lush instrumentals on Pet Sounds. The other tracks on this compilation are more frivolous, but they do testify to the large influence Phil Spector had on Wilson in the mid-'60s (particularly in the tracks by the Honeys). Other oddities of note are the Little Eva imitation by Rachel & the Revolvers; the 1973 Columbia single by American Spring, the band featuring Marilyn Rovell and Diane Rovell of the Honeys; and the cover of "Vegetables" (from the Beach Boys' Smiley Smile album) by the Laughing Gravy, a pseudonym for Dean Torrence of Jan & Dean.
1. Run Around Lover - Sharon Marie
2. Thinkin Bout You Baby - Sharon Marie
3. Pamela Jean - The Survivors
4. After The Game - The Survivors
5. Sacramento - Gary Usher
6. That's The Way I Feel - Gary Usher
7. Teh One You Can't Have - The Honeys
8. Surfin' Down The Swanne River - The Honey
9. Summertime - Sharon Marie
10. Hide Go Seek - The Honeys
11. Shyin Away - American Spring
12. Pray For Surf - The Honeys
13. Shoot The Curl - The Honeys
14. Vegetables - The Laughing Gravy
15. The Revo-Lution - Rachel & The Revolvers
16. Number One - Rachel & The Revolvers
17. She Rides With Me - Paul Petersen
18. Guess I'm Dumb - Glen Campbell
19. Story Of My Life - Sharon Marie
20. He's A Doll - The Honeys
21. Tonight You Belong To Me - The Honeys
22. Goodnight My Love - The Honeys
Listen

The Cretones - Snap! Snap! (1981)

2009-11-25T04:11:00.000-08:00

The Cretones were a United States, Los Angeles-based new wave and power pop group in the early 1980s. Led by singer/guitarist and former Eddie Boy Band member Mark Goldenberg (who also wrote the bulk of The Cretones' material), the group had a strong sense of melody and a lyrical wit that placed them a cut above most of their new wave peers. Other members were Peter Bernstein (bass, vocals), Steve Beers (percussion) and Steve Leonard (keyboards, vocals).

Both their albums were released on Richard Perry's Planet Records label. They had one single that charted on the Billboard Magazine Hot 100: Real Love, in the spring of 1980, which was from their first album, Thin Red Line. The song Empty Heart, from their second album Snap Snap, was their only other song to receive significant airplay on album rock stations, but it did not chart as a single.

They are perhaps best-known as the group that provided three of the songs on Linda Ronstadt's platinum-selling 1980's new wave album, Mad Love. Ronstadt's effort served to introduce and highlight Mark Goldenberg's tuneful melodies.

After the band broke up, Mark Goldenberg went on to write the song Automatic for the Pointer Sisters, which was a hit in 1984. He later toured with artists such as Peter Frampton and Chris Isaak and had moderate success as a new age instrumental artist in Japan. Since 1994, he has been lead guitarist for Jackson Browne and continues to write, play, and produce. Cretones members Steve Beers and Peter Bernstein helped produce and compose the score to the TV show 21 Jump Street. Steve Beers has been producing television ever since, while Peter Bernstein has gone on to write numerous film and TV scores
Tracks
01 Empty Heart
02 Hanging on to No One
03 Swinging Divorcee
04 Lonely Street
05 I Can't Get Over You
06 One Kiss
07 Love is Turning
08 Girls! Girls! Girls!
09 Snap! Snap!
10 Mood vertigo
Listen

Miles Davis - Miles in the sky (1968)

2009-11-25T03:48:00.000-08:00

Miles in the Sky is an album recorded in January and May 1968 by the Miles Davis quintet. It is notable for the first use of electric piano and electric guitar on an issued recording by Davis, a foreshadowing of his move into fusion music over the next few years.

Although the album was released shortly after recording, the tracks come from different sessions which show different stages of Miles Davis's evolution from acoustic jazz to electric "fusion" music. "Paraphernalia" features George Benson's electric guitar, although it is more conservative in style than the earlier "Circle in the Round", which was not released until the late seventies. "Black Comedy" and "Country Son" are Davis's last return to the acoustic quintet format in the studio. "Stuff", with its electric bass, Fender Rhodes piano and binary rhythm, is in yet another idiom, that of the forthcoming Filles de Kilimanjaro.

"Paraphernalia" was the only composition from this album to enter Davis's live book.
Tracks
01. Stuff
02. Paraphernalia
03. Black Comedy
04. Country Son
Listen

Serge Gainsbourg - Initials B.B. (1968)

2009-11-24T04:01:00.000-08:00

A fantastic Serge Gainsbourg album -- and the BB initials in the title belong to Brigitte Bardot! This rare gem from 1968 is a second set of tracks that Serge cut with Brigitte Bardot -- and it's a doozy! The record repeats a few tracks from their other effort (Bonnie & Clyde) -- but it's also got some incredible cuts that are exclusive to this album, and which have that stone funky groove that makes the best late 60s work of Serge so in-demand these days! The best tracks include "Mustang", "Initials BB", and "Black And White" -- all of which have incredible funky intros that are totally sampleable.
As it was still the case in pre-album era, this is a collection from various sessions in 1965, 1967 and 1968 (in full May Events, Mr. Gainsbourg was recording in London ...). Despite of this, this album is stylistically quite homogeneous.

"Initials B.B." is dedicated to his former lover, Brigitte Bardot. The song is inspired by Edgar Poe's "the Raven", Almeria is the town where B.B. went after seeing Gainsbourg for the last time (to shoot "Shalako"). The music uses a bit of Dvorak's "New World Symphony". Recorded in London in May 1968.

"Comic Strip" was recorded in June 1967. The onomatopoeias are by Bardot. An English version of the song was recorded following the diffusion of an American version of "the Brigitte Bardot Show" by NBC-TV in December 1968.

"Bloody Jack" was recorded in May 1968 in London. Inspired by Jack the Ripper.

"Docteur Jekyll et Monsieur Hyde" pursues on British myths. It was recorded in December ... 1965 !

"Torrey Canyon" refers to the biggest tanker in the world, who sank in 1967. The song was recorded in June 1967.

"Shu ba du ba loo ba" was recorded in December 1965.

"Bonnie and Clyde" was recorded in December 1967, with Bardot, and, as two other songs from this album, appears also in their "Bonnie and Clyde" album (which is also a loose collection from various sessions).

"Black and White" is from the May 1968 session in London.

"Qui est "in" qui est"out"" was from December 1965.

"Hold-up" was recorded in December 1967.

And, finally, "Marilu" is from December 1965. Possibly inspired by Italian actress Marilu Tolo ...
Tracks
Initials B.B. (3:36)
2.Comic Strip (2:13)
3.Bloody Jack (2:07)
4.Docteur Jekyll et Monsieur Hyde (1:59)
5.Torrey Canyon (2:45)
6.Shu Ba du Ba Loo Ba (2:08)
7.Ford Mustang (2:43)
8.Bonnie and Clyde (4:17)
9.Black and White (2:11)
10.Qui Est "In" Qui Est "Out" (2:16)
11.Hold-Up (2:39)
12.Marilu (2:32)
Listen

Mort Garson - The Wozard of Iz (1968)

2009-11-24T02:03:00.000-08:00

Mort Garson was a hippie-ish electronic music scientist and guru, who specialized in the more extreme possibilities of the moog. One of his most ambitious projects was a single spoken word LP for each sign of the zodiac, set to an electronic score. He also recorded the moog album "Electronic Hair Pieces" - that one with the great cover. "The Wozard of Iz" was one of his later recordings, and was a collaboration with Jacques Wilson (who apparently wrote and conceived the project). The musical, which might have been intended to go beyond just a recorded album, is a psycho-electronic re-working of "The Wizard of Oz" that sounds like the soundtrack to the greatest LSD/freak-out/moog/synth/electronic musical that never was. This oddity is a hysterical and typical leftist/hippie commentary on the socioeconomic human condition of the average American in 1968, and uses the analogy of Dorothy taking a "trip" from Kansas for a brighter and better world where one can really be "free."
The record begins over a kooky electronic score, while a male voice (with a deep Brooklyn accent) intones:
"This is the story of why Dorothy began her search for the Wonderful Wozard of Iz! Or somewhere... over... what rainbow? Our Dorothy... locked into one suburban acre of negative vibrations... boxed in with a pair of authority symbols; a hypnotized aunt, and a mesmerized uncle, who had turned life off... and turned the television set... on... and on ...AND ON!!!"
Then the music builds and builds as another voice commands Dorothy:
"Congratulations Dorothy, you're about to join the ranks of other famous teenage drop-outs... like Shirley Temple, Candy, and Tallulah Bankhead!"
To which a synthesized male voice in the background repeats over and over:
"Leave the driving to us! Leave the driving to ussssss!"
...to which the voice of Dorothy makes it's first appearance and sexily coos:
"I'm out of the coffin... I'm out of the box... Kansas City isn't where it's at... it's a place where people throw rocks at dreams, and the dreams shouldn't be stoned... only the dreamer. I want to be in a place where I can see a stranger, and offer him a flower. I want that kind of power!"
And that's just in the first few minutes. The record goes on and on and on like that. Dorothy meets a bag lady "on a bus" who tries to hand her some pamphlets written by an army general from "Normalville" ... but Dorothy convinces the army general to "...trade his dog tags in for love beads..." and the lady on the bus eventually gets attacked by some "free press" pamphlets, and becomes The Wicked Old Witch in protest. Dorothy eventually decides to "...find the Great Wozard of Iz... because if I find out where the Woz was, I'd find out where it's at!" Then she gets advised by some more witches on busses to leave "Upset Strip" road in search of "the yellow green road" past the land of "surf and muscle tan" where she notes "...everyone has sunburned teeth from smiling so much." The scarecrow she eventually meets is an excessive consumer who buys too many American gas-guzzling cars and who has substituted "things" for "zing" and decides to follow Dorothy on her quest for the Wozard who can perhaps help him "think" instead of "thing." All the while, insanity-inducing electronic sounds bloop, swerve, echo and boom in the background. This LP is a (fractured) MASTERPIECE!
The rest of the album goes all over the place... using plenty of instruments and a whole chorus of vocalists. The songs sound like they could be in ANY musical... and it's a wonder that the production never made it anywhere past an LP recording. The voice of Dorothy is provided by sometime Lee Hazelwood vocalist/partner Suzie Jane Hokum. There are rumors that this woman is actually Nancy Sinatra (it certainly sounds like her)... but looking at some of the discussions about this album on the web... it looks like the verdict is still undecided as to whether it is her or not. It could be... or it may be just a vinyl compleatist nerd's urban legend. Review found here.
Tracks
1. Prologue - 3:05
2. Leave the Driving to Us - 2:50
3. Upset Strip - 2:25
4. Never Follow the Yellow Green Road - 2:40
5. Thing a Ling (Scared Crow) - 2:21
6. In-Man - 1:28
7. Man With the Word (Lyin' Coward) - 2:00
8. They're Off to Find the Wozard - 1:40
9. Blue Poppy - 6:27
10. I've Been Over the Rainbow - 2:10
11. Big Sur - 3:20
12. Killing of the Witch - 3:35
13. Finale - 1:04
Listen

Gong - Flying Teapot (radio gnome invisible part 1) (1973)

2009-11-24T01:00:00.000-08:00

Flying Teapot is an album by Gong, originally released in 1973. Co-titled "Radio Gnome Invisible Part 1", it is the first of the Radio Gnome Trilogy of albums, and was followed by Angel's Egg and You. The Trilogy forms a central part of the Gong mythology.

Recorded at The Manor, Oxfordshire, it was produced by Giorgio Gomelsky and engineered by "Simon Sandwitch 2 aided by Tom Zen" (presumably Simon Heyworth and Tom Newman).
1973's Flying Teapot is a Gong milestone. It's the first installment in their legendary "Radio Gnome Trilogy" and a transitional point between the underground psychedelia of Camembert Electrique and the artier, more ethereal sound they later developed. Teapot is more visceral, less cerebral than its successors, and the catchy ensemble riffs of Camembert are still present. The arrival of virtuoso guitarist Steve Hillage and synth wizard Tim Blake represented a great leap forward, though. Blake concentrated exclusively on ambient electronic effects and soundscapes a la early Hawkind, leaving harmonic development to the other band members. Hillage's fleet-fingered jazz-rock solos and arsenal of effects upped the musicianship a notch and reinforced the spacy jazz elements already in place. Whether you're able to follow the willfully confusing storyline or not, the elaborate mythological world created by Daevid Allen is loads of fun when wrapped around music as inspired as this psychedelic art-jazz-space rock amalgam. The key players are a group of gnomes from another planet who arrive in a flying teapot (stoner imagery plays heavily in hippie Allen's vision) to save the world (or something). Actually, some surprisingly intellectual/philosophical messages were contained in the trilogy, leavened heartily by the irrepressible Allen's healthy sense of humor.
The story:
Gong mythology is a collection of recurring characters, themes, and ideas that permeate the rock albums of Daevid Allen and Gong and to a lesser extent the early works of Steve Hillage. The story is based on a vision Allen had during the full moon of Easter, 1966 in which he claims he could see his future laid out before him. The mythology is hinted at through all of Gong's earlier albums but is not the central theme until the "Radio Gnome Trilogy" (1973-1974).

The story begins on the album Flying Teapot (1973) when a pig-farming Egyptologist called Mista T Being is sold a "magick ear ring" by an "antique teapot street vendor & tea label collector" called Fred the Fish. The ear ring is capable of receiving messages from the Planet Gong via a pirate radio station called Radio Gnome Invisible. Being and Fish head off to the hymnalayas of Tibet (sic) where they meet the "great beer yogi" Banana Ananda in a cave. Ananda tends to chant "Banana Nirvana Mañana" a lot and gets drunk on Foster's Australian Lager.

This latter development mirrors the real-life experience of band members Daevid Allen and Gilli Smyth who met their saxophonist, Didier Malherbe, in a cave in Majorca.

Meanwhile, the mythology's central character, Zero the Hero, is going about his everyday life when he suddenly has a vision in Charing Cross Road. He is compelled to seek heroes and starts worshipping the Cock Pot Pixie, one of a number of Pot Head Pixies from the Planet Gong. These pixies are green with propellers on their heads, and they fly around in teapots.

Zero is soon distracted by a cat which he offers his fish and chips to. The cat is actually the Good Witch Yoni, who gives Zero a potion. This concludes the first album of the Radio Gnome Trilogy
Tracks
1. Radio Gnome Invisible
2. Flying Teapot
3. The Pot Head Pixies
4. The Octave Doctors And The Crystal Machine
5. Zero The Hero And The Witch's Spell
6. Witch's Song/I Am Your Pussy
Listen

Naked Eyes - Fuel for Fire (1984)

2009-11-23T05:18:00.000-08:00

Fuel for the Fire was Naked Eyes' 1984 follow-up album to their successful début. However, it was met with far less critical success and subsequently flopped. The band did have minor success with one single off the album, "(What) In the Name of Love" which reached #39 in the US on the Billboard 100.

Naked Eyes disbanded following the disappointment of Fuel for the Fire. The album has never been officially released on CD.
Band:
Naked Eyes was one of the first bands to make significant use of the Fairlight CMI sampling synthesizer on a pop recording. Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush had used the instrument on prior efforts, but the usage had been far less than Naked Eyes would employ on their debut effort. The debut album Burning Bridges was produced by Tony Mansfield, along with the follow up album Fuel for the Fire, which also featured two titles produced by Arthur Baker.

Naked Eyes consisted of childhood friends from Bath, England: Pete Byrne on vocals and Rob Fisher on keyboards. The two had formerly played in a band called Neon with future members of Tears for Fears and stayed together as a duo after the group broke up. Naked Eyes are one of the few acts to have enjoyed significant success outside their country of origin, notably in the U.S. and in Canada, yet remain almost unknown in their homeland.

Their second and third singles, "Promises, Promises" (which appears in an episode of the TV series, Knight Rider, and the 12" mix of which features vocals from Madonna) and "When the Lights Go Out", were also hit singles, mainly in the U.S. and in Canada. However, their second album Fuel for the Fire and the single "(What) In the Name of Love", were not as well-received, and the group broke up soon after its release. Byrne ended up doing session work (he is heard on Stevie Wonder's "Part-Time Lover", and wrote and produced "I Am the Cute One" for Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen in 1992) while Fisher joined another duo, Climie Fisher.

Fisher died on 25 August 1999, aged 39, following surgery for an illness which turned out to be bowel cancer.

Byrne released a solo album The Real Illusion in 2001, which featured some of the last tracks he wrote with Fisher for a proposed third Naked Eyes album.

More recently, the Naked Eyes version of "Always Something There to Remind Me" was used in the trailers of the Vince Vaughn/Jennifer Aniston comedy, The Break-Up.

On 31 July 2007, Naked Eyes, featuring Byrne, released Fumbling with the Covers, which consisted of covers of Bob Dylan, The Beatles and Elvis Costello songs, along with Naked Eyes hits.

In the summer of 2008, Naked Eyes completed a U.S. tour along with Belinda Carlisle, ABC and The Human League.

Currently, Naked Eyes is working on Piccadilly, its first album of original songs in more than 25 years
Tracks
A1 (What) In The Name Of Love 4:25
A2 New Hearts 3:37
A3 Sacrifice 4:07
A4 Eyes Of A Child 3:35
A5 Once Is Enough 4:08
B1 No Flowers Please 4:00
B2 Answering Service 3:42
B3 Me I See In You 3:34
B4 Flying Solo 4:31
B5 Flag Of Convenience 4:13
Listen

The Motions - Their Own Way (1966)

2009-11-23T04:29:00.000-08:00

In comparison with their brasher debut album, Their Own Way was disappointingly sluggish and subdued. The emphasis was on rather lethargic soul-rock ballads, as if songwriter Ronnie van Leeuwen was trying to find something that would get the same chart success as (better) British singers of the time such as the Walker Brothers. "Why Don't You Take It" was a pretty obvious attempt to capture a Drifters-like mood, and though the group occasionally got into a bluesy mode, the sound was surprisingly thin and the execution rather perfunctory. The biggest problem was that the songs weren't memorable, with the notable exception of the scorching "Everything That's Mine," now enshrined on the Nuggets 2 box set. That track is a mod masterpiece with screeching guitar that's just as exciting as the early Who or Small Faces, and its appearance at the very end of the album is downright shocking, blowing the rest of the set out the window. The bonus tracks aren't too exciting or notable; the only one not taken from a non-LP 45 is a previously unreleased stereo version of a song from Their Own Way, "You've Hurt Yourself."
The Band:
The Motions from The Hague were one of the bigger groups of the 1960s Dutch beat explosion. They were formed in 1964 from the remnants of Ritchie Clark and the Ricochets and went on to become hitmakers for the next several years. The Walker Brothers even recorded "My Love Is Growing", a song The Motions' Robbie van Leeuwen had written (the Motions had recorded it as a flipside to "Why Don't You Take It") and the Walkers' manager John Stewart produced The Motions' second LP, "In Their Own Way". The single, "Freedom", reached the lower regions of the American charts in 1969. This song was sampled in the 1990s by Japanese band Tokyo No.1 Soul Set on their track "Sunday". Although the group disbanded in 1971, the most important members have met each other again & again in new bands such as Crossroad, Greenhorn, Jupiter and Galaxy Lin.

From 1964 to 1967, the line-up was stable: Rudy Bennett (i.r.l. Ruud van de Berg - vocals, earlier as Ritchie Clark and the Ricochets), Robbie van Leeuwen (guitar, ex-Atmospheres & Ricochets, later the founder of both Shocking Blue and Galaxy Lin), Henk Smitskamp (bass, ex-Willy & Giants, later to Livin' Blues) & Sieb Warner (i.r.l. Siebolt Warntjes - drums, ex-Ricochets, later to Golden Earring). This line-up had a string of hits in The Netherlands during 1965 and 1966 with singles like "Wasted Words" and "It's The Same Old Song". Their first album, "Introduction To The Motions", is considered one of the best albums of the era.

Early 1967, Robbie left to form Shocking Blue and was replaced by Gerard Romeyn (ex-Tee-Set, later with Nico Haak, Image). Late 1967, Henk Smitskamp was ousted in favour of Leo Bennink (ex-Mack and Jay-Jays). A fifth member was found in multi-instrumentalist Jan Vennik (sax, flute & organ, also ex-Jay-Jays, later to Rob Hoeke & Ekseption). When in mid-1968 Gerard Romeyn and Jan Vennik were busted for posession of marijuana and incarcerated, the band took in Paul van Melzen (ex-Haigs, later in the Mailer McKenzie Band) on bass and Bobby Green, (i.r.l. Bob van der Vaart - organ, ex-Bobby Green Selection, also to Fisher & Friends). Bennink switched to guitar. This line up recorded the album "Electric Baby" for Decca in 1969. The band then suffered another setback by the departure of drummer Sieb Warner to rivals Golden Earring (who'd by then just dropped the 's' off Earrings). His replacement was Han Cooper (i.r.l. Han Gordinou de Gouberville). The last line-up of the group (up until 1971) was: Rudy, Leo, Paul, Bobby and Han. They did a few gigs in England and went on a trip to the USA (only playing at The Scene Club in New York), but international success eluded them. They recorded one more album for the Simogram label of supermarket chain Simon de Wit, but split up soon afterwards.

After the breakup, Rudy Bennett, Bobby Green and Gerard Romeyn all released solo singles. Bennett later joined Robbie van Leeuwen in Galaxy Lin. In 1992, The Motions did a one-off reunion gig for Veronica television with the original line-up, joined by Leo Bennink on guitar and keyboards. Rudy Bennett regularly does Golden Oldies gigs with pick-up bands under the moniker of The Motions, often including Leo Bennink. Henk Smitskamp still plays with Willy & his Giants.
Tracks
01. My babe
02. You've hurt yourself
03. My love is growing
04. Hard time blues
05. Late last night
06. Why don't you take it
07. Sittin' on top of the roof
08. Too late to be sorry
09. You can't fight it
10. There's no place to hide
11. Everything that's mine
Listen

Steppeulvene - Hip (1967)

2009-11-23T04:13:00.000-08:00

Steppeulvene (Danish language for Steppenwolf) was a Danish rock band which despite its short life has become the icon for the Danish hippie music scene. The name of the group was taken from the 1928 novel Steppenwolf by German Nobel laureate Hermann Hesse. Also in 1967, in California, the band Steppenwolf named itself after the novel.

Their only album Hip (1967) was the first rock album with original Danish lyrics, and has attained near-mythological status in the history of Danish rock.

The group was the result of a collaboration between lead singer Eik Skal?e, who had traveled in the Orient in the early 1960's and wrote the Bob Dylan-inspired, highly symbolic and almost surreal lyrics, and Stig M?ller (guitar, vocal), who wrote the drawling, psychedelic, folk-influenced music. The other members were S?ren Seirup (bass) and Preben Devantier (drums).

A tour in October 1967 came to a chaotic end when a concert was cut short by the police and the group members were arrested for cannabis use. Shortly after being released, Eik Skal?e went on a journey to Afghanistan/Nepal (on the so-called "hippie trail") and was found dead outside the city of Ferozepore near the Indian/Pakistani border in October 1968, apparently after a drug-induced suicide. Back in Denmark the rest of the group attempted to carry on, but, lacking the characteristic Skal?e as a front figure, quickly dissolved
Tracks
A1 Dunhammeraften 5:25
A2 Itsi-bitsi 4:54
A3 Til nashet 5:23
A4 Jensen 6:40
B1 0-0-0 5:02
B2 Lykkens pamfil 5:44
B3 Kvinde kom ud 4:03
B4 Kun for forrykte 5:19
Listen

Donovan - Sunshine Superman (1966)

2009-11-23T03:39:00.000-08:00

These recordings mark a distinct change in Donovan's music, representing some of the first psychedelia released. A full rock band backs up Donovan on many of the songs, and the instrumentation has been expanded to include sitar and other unique musical instruments. This change is partially the result of working with producer Mickie Most, whose pop sensibilities led to chart hits for many other artists at the time.

Donovan's lyrics began to encompass his increasing ability to portray "Swinging London" and give listeners an insider's look into the mid-sixties pop scene. He was known to be close to The Beatles and Brian Jones at this time, and he became widely known after "Sunshine Superman" became a chart-topper in the US, and hit #2 in the UK. Donovan's penchant for name-dropping in songs such as "The Trip" and "The Fat Angel" (written for Mama Cass) coupled with his chart success helped elevate him to superstar status. In addition to noting the people in the pop scene, Donovan recorded "Bert's Blues" for his friend and folk music notable Bert Jansch.

Contrasting this modern bent was Donovan's fascination with medieval themes in such songs as "Legend of a Girl Child Linda" (written for Brian Jones' girlfriend Linda Lawrence) and "Guinevere". The rich descriptions of color and environment that Donovan developed in individual songs on Fairytale were now evident throughout his writing.

Several other songs were recorded for Sunshine Superman, but did not make the cut. These include "Museum" (later rerecorded and released on Mellow Yellow), "Superlungs My Supergirl" (later rerecorded and released on Barabajagal) and "Breezes of Patchulie" (originally called "Darkness of My Night" and released on Donovan's 1964 demo collection Sixty Four). The Sunshine Superman recordings of these songs were all included on Troubadour The Definitive Collection 1964–1976.

In the video for the Beatles' "A Day in the Life", a close up of a spinning turntable shows the Epic Records version of Sunshine Superman playing. The film was shot at the recording sessions for the song, which was included on Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.

A cover version of "The Fat Angel" was recorded, approprietly, by Jefferson Airplane for their 1968 live album Bless Its Pointed Little Head.
Tracks
1.Sunshine Superman (3:14)
2.Legend of a Girl Child Linda (6:51)
3.Three King Fishers (3:15)
4.Ferris Wheel (4:12)
5.Bert's Blues (3:57)
6.Season of the Witch (4:56)
7.The Trip (4:34)
8.Guinevere (3:39)
9.The Fat Angel (4:10)
10.Celeste (4:08)
Listen

Eric Burdon & War - Eric Burdon declares War (1970)

2009-11-18T02:05:00.000-08:00

"We the people have declared war against the people for the right to love each other". Personally I prefer the second title, but then record companies can be such picky people. Eric Burdon & War was one of those unstable combinations that throws out sparks and heat even as it heads toward meltdown. Looking back it seems amazing that the team up of a British Blues / rock singer, a freaked out Danish harmonica player and an L.A. - based R & B / Jazz / Latin sextet came together at all. Their mixture of ethnic background & musical influences created a sound that was as hard to classify as exciting as it was to listen too. Eric Burden & War ran that fine line between genius & total excess as their star blazed a fluorescent trail across the musical stratosphere. The brief career only lasted two years & two albums, (1969 - 71) during this brief time together they performed with a sense of daring, risk, imagination, & adventure. "Eric Burdon declares War" was the first & most successful of the two albums, (the other "Black Man's Burdon" being released the following year) recorded after nearly a year of touring, the band went in and laid down what they were playing on stage with very little overdubs & plenty of ad-libbing. The music captures the kinetic inter play between Burdon & his band mates. Their ability to communicate with and improvise off each other gives "Declares War" its power & its glory. The tension between Burdon's unpredictable nature, War's polished instrumental skills, and Lee Oskar's reckless jamming harmonica runs through the music. Burdon was an artist with a definite message, and working with a multi-racial band was part of his statement. "War" wasn't a name to be chosen lightly in 1969 (or now come to that) it acknowledged both cultural & artistic conflicts & challenged audiences to deal with such issues, at least that's my slant looking at the monikers meaning. The free flowing approach of the album starts immediately with first cut "The Vision Of Rassan" with its name checks to Charlie Parker & John Coltrane, this was the bands tribute to jazz reed player Roland Kirk, and wets the musical palate for what is to come. From there, Burdon leads the band into an expanded exploratory version of Tobacco Road, that had previously been a hit for the Nashville Teens, but not much of their version remains as Burdon uses the lyric as a springboard for an odd erotic sermon, nailed down by War's tight supporting play.
The albums best known track "Spill The Wine" is a Latin tinged daydream of a song which became a number 3 in the U.S.A & a number one in the rest of the world. "Mother Earth" an old blues standard gives us the main theme for the 13 minutes of "Blues For Memphis Slim". As the band coasts along, Burdon expounds upon sex, birth, & morality, stepping aside to allow Charles Miller & then Lee Oskar to strut their stuff. The albums concludes with the vocal workout "Your No Stranger" a nice return to normality after what has gone before. The following year the partnership dissolved, fortunately the music they recorded survives, a remarkable combination of divergent ancestries and united talents. review courtesy Mott the Dog.
Tracks
1. Vision of Rasson: Dedication / Roll On Kirk
2. Tobacco Road: Tobacco Road / I Have A Dream / Tobacco Road
3. Spill the Wine
4. Blues For Memphis Slim: Birth / Mother Earth / Mr. Charlie / Danish Pastry / Mother Earth
5. You're No Stranger
Listen

Eric Burdon & The Animals - Winds of Change (1967)

2009-11-18T01:27:00.000-08:00

The original band, The Animals, broke up in 1966 and this band was entirely new except for lead singer Eric Burdon and drummer Barry Jenkins, who joined the original lineup when John Steel left in February 1966. With the new band, featuring guitarist Vic Briggs, bassist Danny McCulloch and electric violinist John Weider, Burdon began to transition from the gritty blues sound of the original mid-1960s group and moved into the pyschedelic era of music.

The album opened with the sound of waves washing over the title track, "Winds of Change." "Poem by the Sea" is a spoken word piece by Burdon with a swirl of echo-drenched instruments. "Good Times" and "San Franciscan Nights," were two of the most popular tracks, with the latter breaking into the Top 10 in 1967. Burdon was a fan and friend of Jimi Hendrix and wrote the fifth track as an answer song to Hendrix's "Are You Experienced?" from earlier that year.
Tracks
1. Winds of Change
2. Poem by the Sea
3. Paint It Black
4. Black Plague
5. Yes I'm Experienced
6. San Franciscan Nights
7. Man-Woman
8. Hotel Hell
9. Good Times
10. Anything
11. It's All Meat
Listen

Beaver & Krause - Ragnarok (1969)

2009-11-18T01:15:00.000-08:00

Composers and synth players Paul Beaver and Bernie Krause were among the most high-profile electronic music acts of the late '60s, recording a series of LPs distinguished not only by their groundbreaking studio advances but also by the presence of notables including Gerry Mulligan and Mike Bloomfield. Krause -- a onetime member of the legendary folk group the Weavers -- was working as a staff producer at Elektra Records when he met Beaver, a former jazz musician; under the name Beaver & Krause, they began assembling electronic pieces employing spoken-word passages, acoustic instruments, tape loops and improvisational techniques, debuting in 1968 with The Nonesuch Guide to Electronic Music. After 1969's Ragnarok Electric Funk, the duo issued In a Wild Sanctuary a year later; 1971's Gandharva -- recorded live in San Francisco's Grace Cathedral and featuring cameos from Mulligan and Bloomfield as well as Bud Shank and Ronnie Montrose -- was the most popular of their releases. After 1972's All Good Men, Beaver recorded the solo LP Perchance to Dream; sadly, it was his final work -- he suffered a fatal heart attack on January 16, 1975 at the age of 49. Krause later resurfaced as a noted expert in environmental sound recording.
Tracks
01. Ragnarock
02. The Fisherman
03. Circle X
04. Dill Picolo (Try Not to Twitch)
05. Dr. Fox
06. Moogy Blues Funk, As I Hear it
07. 33rd Stanza of a Hymn to Sancho Panza
08. Fountains of the Dept. of Water & Power
09. Changes
10. Interplay
Listen

Manfred Mann - Mighty Garvey (1968)

2009-11-09T05:53:00.000-08:00

Mighty Garvey! is an album released in 1968 by Manfred Mann. It was the second and last recorded by the band (not including compilations and the soundtrack album to the film Up The Junction) after the change of direction and personnel of the previous As Is. It continued a transition away from jazz and blues and towards self-composed art-pop.

Despite including two UK 'Top 5' hit singles (Bob Dylan's "Mighty Quinn" and Tony Hazzard's "Ha! Ha! Said The Clown"), the album did not chart and the band split up the year after. The group's continued pop success with material by established songwriters such as Dylan and Hazzard made it averse to the risk of releasing self-written singles, a state of affairs that had prevailed ever since the success of "Do Wah Diddy Diddy", even though the group's first hits had been self-composed, at least one example of drummer Mike Hugg's new-found productivity had been seen as potentially chart-worthy and singer Mike d'Abo was able to provide other artists with hits such as "Build Me Up Buttercup" and "Handbags and Gladrags". The resultant pop image did not encourage album sales to "serious" listeners, particularly when trends were turning from baroque pop to hard rock. So, like contemporary releases by The Kinks and The Zombies, Mighty Garvey became a record esteemed more in retrospect than at the time. It was later re-issued in 2003, with bonus tracks.

The group's commercial compromises also led to "self-knocking", and its recordings developed an ironic distance that on Mighty Garvey sometimes invites comparison with The Kinks, Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich, Frank Zappa or The Bonzo Dog Band. Even on Hugg's intricate and sentimental "Harry the One Man Band" the vocal track finally dissolves into schoolboy mirth and silly noises.
The group made full use of the new possibilities of multi-tracking, overlaying complex and inventive textures of flutes, keyboards and vibraphones, while the group's backing vocals, originally limited to a tribal unison, began to take on an almost Pet Sounds complexity
Tracks
01. Happy Families – 2:18
02. No Better, No Worse – 3:02
03. Every Day Another Hair Turns Grey – 2:54
04. Country Dancing – 2:53
05. It's So Easy Falling – 3:20
06. Happy Families – 2:09
07. The Mighty Quinn – 2:52
08. Big Betty – 3:06
09. The Vicar's Daughter – 2:18
10. Each and Every Day – 2:47
11. Cubist Town – 3:21
12. Ha! Ha! Said the Clown – 2:27
13. Harry the One-Man Band – 3:11
14. Happy Families – 2:16
Listen

Jackie McLean - 'Bout Soul (1967)

2009-11-09T05:38:00.000-08:00

'Bout Soul does not mean the same thing as soul-jazz, as the opening track "Soul" makes abundantly clear. Written by Grachan Moncur III and poet Barbara Simmons, "Soul" is a tonally free tone-poem that features Simmons' spoken recital. It's about what the concept of soul is, not what soul music is, and that should not come as a surprise to anyone acquainted with Jackie McLean's work. Even as his Blue Note contemporaries were working commercial soul-jazz grooves, McLean pushed the borders of jazz, embracing the avant-garde and free jazz. 'Bout Soul is one of his most explicit free albums, finding the alto saxophonist pushing a quintet -- trumpeter Woody Shaw (who sits out "Dear Nick, Dear John"), pianist Lamont Johnson, bassist Scotty Holt, drummer Rashied Ali -- into uncompromising, tonally free territory. This is intensely cerebral music that is nevertheless played with a fiery passion. Although the music was all composed, it is played as if it was invented on the spot. Fans of McLean's straight-ahead hard bop, or even of his adventurous mid-'60s sessions, might find this a little off-putting at first, but 'Bout Soul rewards close listening. It is one of McLean's finest modern contemporary sessions
Tracks
1.Soul (10:15)
2.Conversion Point (9:45)
3.Big Ben's Voice (10:06)
4.Dear Nick, Dear John (4:53)
5.Erdu (5:54
Listen

Moondog - Moondog (1969)

2009-11-08T02:32:00.000-08:00

While his first albums featured Moondog on the streets, performing solo, this album barely contains any of Moondog’s actual playing. While the first albums had a few guest musicians here and there, playing “instruments” like tap shoes, this album has over half an orchestra, playing flutes, bassoons, cellos and all that fancy stuff. While the first three albums were charming, homemade, do-it-yourself performances, this is a posh classical album. But none of that means you won’t like this record if you loved the first three, because quite honestly, this album is impossible to hate.

I’m not sure what happened in those twelve years between “The Story of Moondog” and this release…I don’t know if it was living on the streets, or his sometimes residence in his cabin upstate with no electricity, or his divorce, or what, but, damn…what a change of pace. I know nothing of classical or jazz music, so I have no idea if this album is clever or breaks any new ground, but it is just about the most catchy and stylish orchestrated music I have heard. Listening to it is like watching a movie: the layers of sound, all fitting together, telling some kind of beautiful, but slightly reckless story. It only lasts a shade over thirty minutes, but there are hardly any wasted notes, and each tune really does capture your attention. I know it sounds corny, but for a virtual homeless, blind, basically self taught, Viking lover of a man to come up with such an impressive, gripping album just makes the album sound that much more cool…you know?

The opening “Theme” begins as a typical Moondog percussion piece, seemingly no different from any of his other records, but slowly the orchestration builds, swirling, rising towards a point just out of reach. To me it sounds like a struggle… and the song ends before the mêlée is decided, leaving you feeling both unfulfilled, but eager for the resolution. “Stomping Ground” doesn’t bring you any closer to closure though. After some brief street noises and a quick spoken word section by Moondog, the orchestration enters on a marching beat. This isn’t military marching though; it is much too loose. Instead it sounds like a city gang; some punk kids swaying down the streets—scheming, spying, and getting ready…creating an extraordinary edginess.

Unfortunately, “Symphonique #3 (Ode to Venus)” brings an end to the tension, with a five-minute, elegant moan, sounding like the scene when Juliet wakes to see Romeo dead and decides to kill herself. Dark and attractive, it is not really something that gets my juices flowing (although I’m no classical connoisseur, so maybe it will really speak to you). “Symphonique #6 (Good for Goodie)” is definitely more my style though, beginning with a bass solo that sounds like the White Stripes. Soon some horns come jiving in, be-bopping and head knobbing their way through a cool riff with swagger and purpose. The song gradually finds dimension, adding instrument after instrument, with the bass getting fortified by a tuba, and all the instruments just groove—they hit it, you know…making this just about the coolest little classical/jazz piece: melodic, tough, and funky!

Another short Moondog poem opens the six-minute “Minisym #1.” At the beginning, this piece sounds like some fantasyland epic movie (like Willow or Lord of the Rings), all bombastic, but with some Medieval, elfin charm. The middle though, is a more introspective section where the horns sound like they are having a deep conversation with themselves, a little cheesy, but tolerable because it leads to the intense closing, taken at breakneck speed, with Moondog’s crazy percussion keeping beat. It has a great rock riff, with the horns taking the place of an electric solo…absolutely smoking.

And the pace doesn’t let up with “Lament 1 "Bird's Lament".” This piece was written for jazz great Charlie Parker when Moondog heard of his friend’s death. But instead of being remorseful, this song cooks as well, having more of a restrained party sound that is outright ear candy. It was used in some minivan commercials in the early part of this decade, so it will probably sound familiar, and it might just be the catchiest thing Moondog ever released…two-minutes of happy horn hooks.

“Witch of Endor” is something completely different, a mini opera done in six-minutes. Each sectioned title perfectly depicts the music, with the opening and closing sounding like some sort of dance ceremony, and the middle going from a prophesy, to a battle, to the main character’s death. Of course, this piece was the inspiration behind George Lucas having both Emperor Palpatine and Darth Vader die on the planet Endor! Seriously though, the music strangely could be used to explain that story perfectly…eerie, but cool J The closing “Symphonique #1 (Portrait of a Monarch)” is the most cartoonish arrangement on the album, with a more bouncy feel…it is still slightly dark, but the humor can be heard here easily. It isn’t my favorite tune on the record, not reaching the standards set by the previous selections until the beautiful coda. Still though, it is goofy and fun and a great change of pace for the closer.

Overall this is fantastic in a way that fairy tales are fantastic: loveable, innocent, touching, but with a slightly dark atmosphere. The brevity does bother me a little, but it only makes me want to play the album over and over again. As I have said a few times, this might not be a great album to the ears of an expert of classical or jazz, but trust me, it is accessible beyond belief, charming, melodic, fun, gorgeous, and a gem that you really need to uncover.Tracks
01 Theme 2:34
02 Stamping Ground 2:39
03 Symphonique #3 (Ode to Venus) 5:51
04 Symphonique #6 (Good for Goodie) 2:47
05 Cuplet 0:09
06 Minisym #1 5:45
07 Lament 1, "Bird's Lament" 1:43
08 Witch of Endor 6:30
09 Symphonique #1 (Portrait of a Monarch) 2:37
Listen

Fifth Flight - Into smoke tree village (1970)

2009-11-08T02:05:00.000-08:00

Century Records was a California custom record label which pressed tens of thousands of small-run records for schools, church groups and obscure local bands and fifth flight's into smoke tree village, with its rustic mill whee cover, was a garage psych album consisting mostly of covers, delivered with lashing of fuzz guitar and heavy, spooky organ.The stand - out track is surely the band's jawdroppingly awesome version o neil young's sugar Mountain which over the years has gained a deseved reputation as a psych masterpiece.
Tracks
1. Can't See You
2. I'd Like to Make It With You
3. Devil With a Blue Dress
4. Celebrate
5. Midnight Hour
6. Summertime
7. It's All Over Now
8. Sugar Mountain
9. Try a Little Tenderness
Listen

Tortilla - Little Heroes (1971)

2009-11-05T06:54:00.000-08:00

Players: Jelle Jeltema, Gerard, Jan-Piet den Tex, Jaap van Beusekom, Emile den Tex and Jaap van der Sluys. The band were founded in 1670 in the place Bergen.
Quite mellow sounding folk rock from the Netherlands. Inspired by the sounds of Neil Young, The Byrds and The Band.
Tracks
01. Patient woman
02. Dreams take me away
03. Man woman dog
04. Old friends
05. May be maybe
06. Wild pony
07. Back to the roots
08. Sometimes
09. In this room
10. Every angel
Listen

Contents Are - Through You (1967)

2009-11-05T04:37:00.000-08:00

The Through You lp was little more than rumor til a copy mysteriously appeared at a 2005 Austin record show. Contents Are were a garage folk-rock band from Quad City, Iowa that released two good 45’s and this 1967 private press album. It’s remarkable that the band were still in high school when they cut this lp as both the lyrics and musicianship are quite advanced.

In true DIY fashion the band pressed 100 copies of Through You and gave the lp’s away to eager fans who came to Contents Are live events. It’s a solid record to say the least, with influences coming from early Buffalo Springfield, the Byrds and Rubber Soul era Beatles. Through You is full of good, 3 minute pop songs and it’s the kind of record that saw the beat/garage and folk-rock sounds merge. One song, Peace At Last, has complex lyrics and a wonderful mid period Beatles-like chorus. No Chance To Choose is another excellent, dark folk-rocker that strongly recalls John Lennon’s Rubber Soul compositions and hints at psychedelia. There are a few hard rocking tracks such as the opening, fuzzy Country Roads but most of this record is predominately folk-rock. Other good standouts are the folk-rock downers Dream Of My Predictions and Reccuring Changes, which feel like lost Gene Clark compositions in lyrical content and sound.

For many the highlight was In Trouble. This track is notable for beautiful back porch harmonies, jangly guitar and a distinct, rural Buffalo Springfield sound. It’s the kind of song that makes searching for private press records worth all the trouble and grief. Through You’s sound quality is a little muddy and probably will not be of interest to those who like clean, sparkling major label glitz. But to those wanting to explore buried local sounds, this is a great record that’s bound to grow on you.
Tracks
01. Country Roads
02. The Dream Of My Predictions
03. Uni-Love
04. Peace At Last
05. In Trouble
06. No Chance To Choose
07. Tonight In Venice
08. Unconcerned
09. Don't Take My Freedom
10. Recurring Changes
11. No Need To Be Blamed
12. If You're Relaxing
13. Brother Abbot
14. I Don't Know
15. Direction Of Mind
16. Future Days
17. New Mexico
Listen

The Seeds - A web of sound (1966)

2009-11-04T07:28:00.000-08:00

‘A Web of Sounds’ shows THE SEEDS continuing with the same caliber tracey Garage Rock they injected into the California rock & roll circuit with their debut. Though it was not much of a progression, it is easy to hear their influence on the upcoming psychedelic scene of 1967.

Apart from the inclusion of instant Garage Rock classic ‘Mr. Farmer’, one of the most important, yet least impressive tracks on ‘A Web of Sound’ is ‘Up in Her Room’. THE SEEDS did have the longest recorded extended jam on a Rock & Roll LP on their debut with the 6 minute ‘Evil Hoodoo’. Since then, THE ROLLING STONES released their own extended jam titled ‘Goin’ Home’ on the LP ‘Aftermath’. Sky was obviously not satisfied with THE STONES retort and extended ‘Up in Her Room’ to 14.5 minutes. Their title would be taken forever a mere 4 months later when LOVE dedicated an entire side of their upcoming sophomore release ‘Da Capo’ to one song (‘Revelation’).

THE SEEDS were an incredible and original band. Their music was a big influence on many popular bands of the day including THE DOORS. THE SEEDS are often lumped into the NUGGETS crowd of 'One-Flop-Wonders' but with a little more awareness these guys could easily attain the current status that a band like, say, the MC5 have today. They were equally as important & ‘A Web of Sound’ makes that obvious.
Tracks
01 Mr. Farmer 2:58
02 Pictures and Designs 2:40
03 Tripmaker 2:40
04 I Tell Myself 2:25
05 A Faded Picture 5:14
06 Rollin' Machine 2:28
07 Just Let Go 4:04
08 Up in Her Room 14:27
Listen

13th Floor Elevators - Live in San Francisco (1966)

2009-11-04T06:46:00.000-08:00

While much of the 13th Floor Elevators’ popularity today rests upon their studio albums and 45s, this wasn’t always the case. Especially not in Texas, where the Elevators first became famous as an outstanding live act, with a combination of ferocious drive and dark mystique that was unlike anything seen before. When the Psychedelic Sounds LP was released in late ‘66, some fans in their hometown Austin felt it was missing a bit of the captivating energy they associated with the band. Even Tommy Hall, the band’s lyricist and intellectual nexus, stated in a 1989 interview that “our real show was live”.
The ’66 set sounds fantastic – in a raw, semi blown out/distorted way, but this isn’t a random audience tape…there is a little tape phase, but basically all instuments are loud & proud & Roky’s vox are even more manic & helium infused than on the first album. The set is mostly the first album plus some covers: Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, the Beatles, the Kinks – they get into an extended workout with Tommy Hall jug treatment of “You Really Got Me,” & this song might be the highlight of the set, which overall resides on the garage side of the garage/psych spectrum, mostly due to the covers.
Tracks
01. Everybody needs somebody to love
02. Before you accuse me
03. You don't know
04. I'm gonna love you too
05. You really got me
06. Splash I
07. Fire engine
08. Roll over Beethoven
09. The word
10. Monkey island
11. Roller coaster
Listen

Holy Toy - Warszawa (1982)

2009-11-04T06:20:00.000-08:00

Heavily experimental array of stuff going on this one, from electro to ambient to ethnic to jazz. Andrej Nebb sings in Polish and English, his vocalizing being a prominent part of this unique electronic music. Sounds a bit like a Sound/Joy Division meets Ensemble Pittoresque.
Even in 1982, post-punk was still progressing, as Holy Toy proved.

"Down in Japan" is a weird fusion of synth-wave (a la Suicide) and discordant jazz. "Warszawa" features a noir-ish bassline, dissonant perscussion and free-jazz brass squelches. "Marmur" uses an even more frenetic rhythm and an anthemic melodic progression. Then "Dwa Portrety" tones things down with a menacing synthesizer line and an elegiac Middle-Eastern interlude (Joy Division crossed with Minimal Compact).

At times the album veers towards even more experimental territories. In "Niebieska Patelnia" the singer recites his lyrics against a collage of deformed brass and voices, and ethereal flutes; then a soaring melody appears (worthy of a religious hymn), before the song returns to an even more abstract collage of sound-effects. In "Bells", they juxtapose a militant march, sonorous chants and moody brass. The logical progression is "Buntowniki", where the singer's zombified monotone is set against an aquatic guitar pattern. Here Holy Toy turn the ethereal upside-down.

They still exhibit a rare elegance though, as shown in the melancholy jazz of "Wojtek" (worthy of Tuxedomoon).
Tracks
01 Down in japan - i
02 Warszawa
03 Marmur
04 Dwa portrety - i
05 Niebieska patelnia
06 Lada vada
07 Wojtek
08 Bells
09 Buntowniki
10 Planet of violence
11 Dada
12 Do wroga
Listen

Various Artists - Achili Funk (1969 - 1979)

2009-11-04T05:57:00.000-08:00

15 Spanish Gipsy songs from 1969-1979, sandwiched between two recent songs.
At first, when the disc begins to play, you have the customary tourist vision of Gypsy music: dancers with their nose up, handclaps and heels beats, Flamenco guitars ... Then you realize there is something more: funky and groovy sounds from that time, completely mixed with the traditional ones. The effect is exhilarating, and it sounds really like nothing else.
The presentation is awesome: the disc is inserted in a gatefold sleeve, and goes with a 112 (!) page booklet, in Spanish, English and Japanese, which includes hundreds of 45s images, artists pictures, complete tracklists, a detailed history of the music ... And the design of the set is absolutely gorgeous, too. I have rarely seen such a beautiful and informative package. If you are looking for something unusual, look no further ... It might not be love at first listening, but it will grow on you. By chrismass61.
Tracks
1. Los Fulanos (Feat. Peret) - Gato
2. Encarnita Polo - Paco, Paco, Paco
3. Chacho - Bum Bum
4. Smash - El Garrotín
5. Los Amaya - Que Mala Suerte La Mía
6. Dolores Vargas - Anana Hip
7. Peret - Si Fulano
8. Dolores Vargas - La Hawaiana
9. Peret - Chaví
10. Rabbit Rumba - Caramelos
11. Rumba Tres - Rumba Tru, La, La
12. Los Chorbos - Sones De Chicharro
13. Los Marismeños - Pares O Nones
14. Los Chunguitos - Baila Mi Ritmo
15. Trigal - Gol
16. Gato Pérez - Tiene Sabor
17. Mantecao Y Su Combo - Achili Funk
Listen

The Seeds - The Seeds (1966)

2009-11-04T05:38:00.000-08:00

Lead singer Sky Saxon had a musical career that went back to pre-Beatle music days, when he recorded a few 45s under the name Richie Marsh. Born in Salt Lake City, he was based in Los Angeles from the early 1960s. The Seeds were formed in 1965 with Saxon joining as a response to an advertisement. Keyboardist Daryl Hooper was a major factor in the band's sound; the band was one of the first to utilize keyboard bass. Guitarists Jan Savage and Jeremy Levine with drummer Rick Andridge completed the original quintet, but Levine left shortly after the first recording sessions for personal reasons. Although Sky Saxon is usually credited as bass player, he did not play bass on any of the Seeds' recordings. This was handled by session men, usually one Harvey Sharpe. On stage, keyboardist Daryl Hooper would handle the bass parts via a separate bass keyboard, in the same way as Ray Manzarek did with the Doors.

The Seeds' first single, "Can't Seem To Make You Mine", was a regional hit in southern California in 1965. The song was also played regularly on AM rock stations in northern California (and probably elsewhere), where it was well received by listeners. The band had their only national Top 40 hit, "Pushin' Too Hard", in 1966 (#44 in Canada). Three subsequent singles, "Mr. Farmer" (also 1966), a re-release of "Can't Seem To Make You Mine" (1967) (#33 in Canada), and "A Thousand Shadows" (1968) achieved more modest success, although all were most popular in southern California. Musically uncomplicated and dominated by Saxon's vocal style and flair for simple melodic hooks, their first two albums are today considered classics of '60s garage music. A later album was devoted to the blues (with liner notes by Muddy Waters), and another (Future, 1967) was full-blown psychedelic rock, with ornate flower-themed graphics to match.

By mid-1968, with their commercial popularity flagging, the group's personnel began to change; the band was renamed "Sky Saxon and the Seeds" in 1969, by which point Bob Norsoph, guitar, and Don Boomer, drums, had replaced Savage and Andridge. Saxon continued to use the name "The Seeds", using various backup musicians, at least through 1972; the last major-label records of new material by The Seeds—two non-charting singles on MGM records—were released in 1970.
Tracks
01. Can't Seem to Make You Mine
02. No Escape
03. Lose Your Mind
04. Evil Hoodoo
05. Girl I Want You
06. Pushin' Too Hard
07. Try to Understand
08. Nobody Spoil My Fun
09. It's a Hard Life
10. You Can't Be Trusted
11. Excuse, Excuse
12. Fallin' in Love
Listen

The Ceyleib People - Tanyet (1967)

2009-10-29T07:46:00.000-07:00

Amazing psych-raga bluesy rock from this underrated "classic" project by Ry Cooder. With a lot of inventions and variations, this music conciliates eastern buzzing ragas to rocking energy and synth progressive orchestrations. The opening track (divided into 5 parts) features a catchy bluesy vibe, nice percussions parts and evocative, dreamy like flute passages. Rapidly, the composition explores in a meditative style sitar / flute combinations...after 3 minutes, we have the return of Ry Cooder's typical guitar sound, communicating with inspired "ethereal" keyboards and buzzing sitar strings. It finishes with violin like strings with some expeditive classical covers...really enigmatic and passionate song. The second composition (for 6 parts) also alternate bluesy rock interludes and raga sonorities...featuring very catchy melodies and rhythms. Impressive bluesy-folky-psych raga fantasias!
Tracks
A Aton I 10:00
a. Leyshem
b. Zendan
c. Ceyladd Beyta
d. Becal
e. Ddom
f. Toadda BB
B Aton II 11:14
a. Dyl
b. Ralin
c. Tygstl
d. Pendyl
e. Jacayl
f. Menyatt Dyl Com
Listen

Laghonia - Glue (1971)

2009-10-29T06:26:00.000-07:00

Since 1965 the Peruvian band named The New Jugglers Sound had made a name in our country and wrote almost 100 songs, but it's not until 1968 when their sound takes a definitive form, first they change the name to "Laghonia", they recruit a North American guitar player and vocalist named David Levane and start to take seriously their career.
They release their first single called Glue (Due to a drug that Saul Cornejo had read about in Time Magazine) with a "B" side a single called Billy Morsa (Billy Walrus).

With this singles an some new material that included their first N° 1 hit "Bahia", most of it oriented towards Psychedelia they are ready to release their fist album in 1971 which takes the name of their first single "GLUE".

Don't let the date of release (1971) fool you, because all the material is from the 60's, but when you live in a third world country ruled by a dictator who hates Rock, it is hard to find any label ready to take the risk of promoting Peruvian Rock band who sings in English (Language hated by the same dictator).

The album starts with "Baby, Baby"; beautiful song especially because it's really naïve, this track is clearly influenced by early Beatles, for moments seems that you're listening a weird version of Love Me Do including the "oohs". But that simplicity is the key of its beauty, almost as a baby walking for the first time but holding the hand of an adult.

"I Must Go" starts as a Psychedelic version of Simon and Garfunkel, even the voices are similar, but the song is darker and less friendly, somehow derivative but very good.

It's time for Neighbor and time to get really Psychedelic with a clear Latin sound (Like a mixture of WAR and Grand Funk Railroad but written before any of this bands released their debut albums), the vocal work is very complex, all the members sing different lyrics like a conversation where everybody wants to say his part never caring for the rest. Rhythmic but chaotic, a very interesting experiment and the Hammond B2 sounds better than ever.

"The Sand Man" starts as a ballad with nothing special dreamy but very simple and apparently predictable, but suddenly the voices of the rest of the members join announcing an instrumental section where the repetitive piano creates a very nostalgic effect leaving a very aggressive guitar a la Hendrix to do the work and turns to a very complex and well elaborated track. The highest point of the album up to this point, it's clear that these guys can create 100% original and imaginative stuff.

"Billy Morsa" (Billy Walrus) had already been released in late 1968 as B side for the title song of this album and was well received by the public, rock oriented a bit mysterious and satirical, it's a sound about an ex-convict (Alias Billy Morsa) who appears dead in a garden.

I love the effect created by the vocalist (Who seems to be Dave Levane making it funnier being born in USA) who fakes a very strong Latin accent, that's part of the joke (Sounds like Mexican border English), because if you notice this is the only track with a name partially in Spanish and this guys have proved that their English was very good.

The song ends much more complex than it started, because all the instruments join to create a very pleasant sound, outstanding bass work.

When I believed this was already a very good debut album, comes "Trouble Child" to prove that this guys really had the chance to make excellent stuff. This song has everything, strong vocal work (Chorus), dramatic changes, a killer first guitar and very solid drums, a new peak of the album has been reached, very Progressive and extremely solid. Can they get better? We'll see in the next lines.

"My Love" starts like a Beatlesque ballad in the vein of the early works of the fabulous four, but there's something special, more advanced towards proto Prog with the excellent guitar and the wonderful organ.

It seems clear from the structure of the song that goes in crescendo and keeps adding new instruments that we should expect an explosion of sounds, but it never happens, only keeps getting more dreamy and psychedelic, but who cares, the song is still great.

"And I Saw her Walking" is a song oriented towards Motown, Dave Levane again in the vocals is great playing with a Harlem like accent, solid drumming and at the end an excellent guitar semi solo, interesting track that starts funky and ends clearly Psychedelic, another good one.

"Glue" as I said before was written by Saul Cornejo who was inspired by a drug he read about in Time Magazine and released as a single in 1968 - 1969 before taking the name for their first album

Wonderful song, 100% druggy Psychedelia, distorted guitar, dreamy organ and hallucinating lyrics, describes the genre was as a book, excellent that sounds like if Hendrix meets early Pink Floyd.

The album ends with "Bahia" a song that was inspired by a Brazilian calendar that the guys found and where impressed with the girl that represented the city of the same name. The song is another Psychedelic track but in this case with a touch of Tropical sound that clearly sends us to an imaginary voyage to Brazil. Ivan Melgar.
Tracks
1. Baby, Baby (1:50)
2. I Must Go (2:58)
3. Neighbor (3:23)
4. The Sand Man (3:27)
5. Billy Morsa (4:19)
6. Trouble Child (2:51)
7. My Love (4:52)
8. And I Saw Her Walking (3:22)
9. Glue (3:17)
10. Bahia (4:24)
Listen

Blond - The Lilac Years (1969)

2009-10-25T07:56:00.000-07:00

Blond grew out of the Swedish heroes Tages, who ruled Sweden's hit parade during their 1964-67 heyday and arguably was one the best Scandinavian rock groups in the 60's. 1969's Lilac Years, a failed attempt to reach the British music market, is their most psychedelic album featuring moody pop-psych melodies, great guitar works, weird effects and lush orchestration. Produced by Andy Henrickson (King Crimson, Quatermass, Life and Jericho).
Tommy Blom left Swedish band tages in 1968, however the surviving members of the bands line up Danne Larsson rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist, Anders Töpel Lead guitarist and backing vocalist Lasse Svennson Drummer and backing vocalist, together with Tages bassist Göran Lagerberg leading the new project, that came to be known as BLOND named after the Bob Dylan LP Blonde on Blonde together with their old producer they went into full force to try once more to record an album, and they decided to do this over in England. The Lilac years, is an ace grand production, that goes deep trough fields of rock n and pop, blues jazz, and even deeper into folk music, to me one never senses the absence of their former front man Blom,
Lagerbergs grand melodic genius who now comes into light more than ever before, and while tages was a group of tight direct yet perfect little nuggets, with blond, the band becomes a bit braver, and manages to move out even more of the pop nugget frames and successfully emerges into even bigger arrangements at places, were they either go into more epic lengths around 6 or 7 minutes ( as on the albums title track, the folk rock arranged retitled Swedish folksong de sålde sina hemman, or the groovy blues jam Caroline complete with hand drums and percussion flowing throughout the track ) and if not they manages to take their shorter songs trough many fantastic levels as well, notable on the fantastic Sailing Cross The Ocean that crosses between swing rock, raga rock and folksy/waltz crossings

At first glance The Lilac Years might seem stiffer and more forced than Tages late 60s, But really the songs never loose their touch, and a lot of effort was put in the production, that it must have been exhausting, but hard work paid of as BLOND put out a complete and awfully strong effort, thick, but filled with melodic genius, and really stellar musicianship, and a great ambition to hit of grand, and make a grand production, with all ideas given space to flow trough, in magnificent arrangements, this album also features ace arrangements from the London symphony orchestra, that sweeps along on striking songs such as the magnificent “flowers in the morning” also recorded by British Cilla Black the same year(although under a different title If I thought you’d ever change your mind), and by Swedish Doris, a few years later, a strong beautiful ballad that captures a great melodic sense and that captures one to a great extent, during its three minutes of play time.
It features some gripping organ work to, and together with Deep inside my heart, they are the two strong ballad numbers that balance a already colourful and strong production, we have top ace rock n roll, on songs such as _six white horses; with mean guitars (some overdubbed by Anders Nord) and Hoy can I pray when I don’t believe Pick on a Buss
swaying Pschycadelic folk lost child reminiscent of Crosby stills and Nash a bit in the arrangement , we have country and western touches in Sun in her hand featuring banjo plucking and such together, together with a flowing piano, and orchestra and organ,
And we have a jazz swing rocker in the girl I once had with killing brass thrown in and some really ace boogie rhythm and neat vocal delivery.

Neat upbeat flowing is all over in I Wake up and call and Time is Mine in the end it comes of as a warmly crafted ambitious album, a colourful and truly ace production, that should be considered as a real gem, that really captures the time of the late 60s well, as well as being a strong and very creative effort, and this should to be considered as one of the top albums of the 60s, and perhaps it should have been, if the group toured more, and the album was spread more widely. Apparently it did not turn out this way, as some members left the group to go for military service, and other projects came in crossing their path, but before the group dissolved in 1971, Björn Linder and Anders Nord came in as substitutes (the two had made some overdubs on the album tracks Caroline and six white horses for the album) Nord wouldn’t stay around for to but was around long enough to feature on the blond single were they’ve backed Örjan Ramberg on the Balladen Om Killen single release, produced and written by Lagerberg, that captures the moody feel of a restless teenager, looking back in reflective and nostalgic mood which is also featured on the CD. While this line up never got to play live in front of an audience Nords substitute came to be Björn Töpel, Anders Töpels kid brother. Lost Child/How can I play when I don’t believe came as the groups last single, and in between they also managed to perform on Swedish TV , which was recorded in December 69, and broadcasted in December the following year. By JanFreidun
Tracks
01. Deep Inside My Heart
02. Sailing Across The Ocean
03. Six White Horses
04. Time Is Mine
05. The Girl I Once Had
06. The Lilac Years
07. I Wake Up And Call
08. Sun In Her Hand
09. I Pick Up The Bus
10. There's A Man Standing In The Corner
11. I Will Bring You Flowers In The Morning
12. Caroline
13. Lost Child *
14. How Can I Pray When I Don't Even Believe *
15. Balladen Om Killen (Del 1) *
16. Balladen Om Killen (Del 2) *
17. The Weight (Live/Bonus) *
Listen

Creation of Sunlight - Creation of Sunlight (1968)

2009-10-25T07:44:00.000-07:00

Almost nothing is known about this west coast pyschedelic-pop band from the late 60s. It seems like they went through 3 name changes and 2 recording deals in 1968 and then vanished. But not before leaving us with a monumental LP of breezy sunshine psych.
They started off as Sunlights Seven and recorded an LP entitled Sunstroke in 1968. This recording never got beyond the acetate stage by DCT Recorders and is a monster, monster rarity that has not been reissued.
After the Sunstroke project was scrapped, the band hooked up with Windi Records and recorded a 7" under the name of Sunlight. This 7" consisted of Colors Of Love and Sometimes A Woman and was released under catalogue number W-1001 and W-1002. The versions of these songs are different than the ones that appeard on their LP.
Finally settling on the name Creation Of Sunlight, they continued recording for Windi, finally releasing their self-titled LP and one 7" later in 1968. The 7" contained LP versions of David and The Fun Machine on Windi W-1005 and W-1006.
Their self-titled album on Windi WS-1001 contains 10 songs, 8 of which are original compositions with Gary Young and Jerry Griffin doing most of the songwriting duties. Interestingly, the credits for David, which was not written by the band, differ on the 7" and the LP. The entire album is absolutely great, loaded with organ and fuzz guitar just oozing with that acid and sunshine vibe. Original copies of this LP almost never turn up for sale and when they do, expect a really nice copy to reach four figures. This is one of the (too) few rarities that can musically justify their price tag. The only vinyl reissue has been a European bootleg on the "Windi" label. This is a nice sounding and nice looking job and it too seldom comes up for sale. A legitimate CD reissue on Mystic 7 has been released and is easily available.
Tracks
1. David
2. Rush Hour Blues
3. Light Without Heat
4. In the Middle of Happy
5. Hammond Eggs
6. Sometimes a Woman
7. Second Thoughts
8. Seven Times Infinity
9. Colors of Love
10. Fun Machine
Listen

Loop - Heaven's End (1987)

2009-10-22T04:26:00.000-07:00

The band was formed in 1986 by Robert Hampson (vocals, guitar), with wife Bex on drums. Bex was soon replaced by John Wills (of The Servants) and Glen Ray, with James Endeacott on guitar. Initially releasing records on their own Head label, their first release was 1987's '16 Dreams', with debut album Heaven's End following later that year. The band's psychedelic/drone rock gained comparisons with Spacemen 3, much to the latter's annoyance.

Ray and Bex left, to be replaced by Endeacott, Wills and Neil MacKay, the band also being signed up by Chapter 22 Records, returning with a more polished sound with the 'Collision' single in 1988. Second album Fade Out followed in 1989, reaching #51 on the UK album chart. Endeacott left the band in 1988, Scott Dowson joined the following year.

They then hopped labels again to Beggars Banquet subsidiary Situation Two, releasing the 'Arc-Lite' single in 1989 and the third and final studio album A Gilded Eternity in 1990.

The band split in 1991, with Hampson briefly joining Godflesh before forming Main with Dowson. Hampson's Main project was discontinued in 2006, he now releases under his own name. Chasm is said to be his most recent (1999) project. Wills and Mackay went on to form The Hair and Skin Trading Company.

A collection of the band's John Peel sessions entitled Wolf Flow was released in 1992. Following the split Loop's official studio albums were re-released on their Reactor label.

The band's sound was influenced by Krautrock and No Wave influences and relied heavily on three chord riffs. Some of the records featured cover versions of Suicide, The Pop Group and Can tracks. During the latter stages of their career the band played at the Reading Festival in 1989.
Tracks
1. Soundhead
2. Straight to Your Heart
3. Forever
4. Heaven's End
5. Too Real to Feel
6. Fix to Fall
7. Head On
8. Carry Me
Listen

Spacemen 3 - Playing with fire (1989)

2009-10-22T01:57:00.000-07:00

Jason ‘Spaceman’ Pierce and Pete ‘Sonic Boom’ Kember -- two men that had a great deal of influence over the independent music scene in the mid to late 80s. Born on the same day in the same hospital in Rugby, Great Britain – the duo seemed to share a united gift for creating the most blistering, acid-soaked rock’n’roll since Iggy and his Stooges had thrown the towel in. Since they finally came to blows with the recording of Spacemen 3’s swan song Recurring (which was split equally between Pierce and Kember’s songs), Kember has stayed true to character – forming his Spectrum project, and Pierce has gone on to find international fame as the front man of Space-Rockers Spiritualized.

Back in 1989 though, the duo (along with future Spiritualized bass player Will Carruthers) managed to create perhaps the most complete conceptualisation of their grand vision. As Kember noted in the liner notes “Luckily we had always thrived on adversity, and our experience served to focus us on the purity of our musical quest. I guess it was also the refining point of a lot of my theories on minimalism being maximalism, ‘hypno-monotony’ (consciousness change via repetition)”. They had an agenda for pushing simple, revolving melodies, either minimal in their approach, or filtered through a wall of guitar distortion and reverb to leave the listener draped in sound, where the most minor variation seems like a revolution.Starting quietly with subtle, reversed delay, flanged organ and hushed vocals on both Kember’s “Honey” and Pierce’s “Come Down Softly To My Soul”, they represent the veritable calm before the storm erupts. Pierce follows closely to his guitar melody, even giving air for some guest violin during the trailing guitar solo. Things come to a climactic conclusion initially with the sombre “How Does It Feel?”. The most minimalist of tracks on the album, starting with a monologue from Kember, then two gentle guitar lines (one for melody and a second pulsating, reverberant riff that drives the songs rhythm) that gradually grow and build over the songs’ 8 minutes.

The album continues to ebb and flow, finally delving into a full paced wall of sound with the aptly titled ‘Revolution’. A single chord guitar drone highlighted by primal drumming, Kember’s snarling vocals and positively chaotic lead guitar – thoroughly engorged with distortion. Kember announces ‘It takes just 5 seconds of decision, that the time is right, to start thinking about a little revolution’, and lets forth with his guitar fury. Reminiscent of Ron Asherton’s finest moments for the Stooges, Carruther’s Bass adds a layer of groove to one of the albums’ most engaging numbers. Though Kember has a succinct, authoritative approach to vocals (often spoken or in a monotone drawl), its Pierce who demonstrates the most dynamic vocal approach with the softly sung ‘So hot (wash away all of my tears)’. The album places heartfelt, building, and graceful songs between their moments of sheer sonic assault – resulting in a breathing, dramatic album that pulls at the heart-strings them blows them all away.

That clincher comes with the epic ‘Suicide’ – another drone based guitar freak-out (that is captured on the reissue in both its studio inclination and with a stunning live performance). An instrumental track based along a drone, a revolving organ line, shuffling drums and the occasional splash of lead guitar (that often follows the organ line) – it seems perfect instep with the flange and tremolo effects that texture the sonic mayhem. As the song develops, you start to notice all sorts of sounds coming into play, evolving in and out of the sound – the bass seems highly present through out the second half of the song, and organ patterns seem to come and go. Things come to a climax late in the song as each musician locks in on the organs stop-start rhythm, building a stew of guitar, bass and organ that pulsates until the songs eventual decent into unguided feedback.

The album serves as a document for all that has come after. ‘Lord can you here me when I call’ is perhaps the clearest connection. Pierce developing his thematic, gospel approach to self-realisation lyrics and song dynamics, a cacophony of horns, strings and the inevitable wall of guitars that characterises his later-day Spiritualized releases. Thoroughly engrossing, and utterly indulgent, the reissue adds a number of tracks. Taken from Stylus
Tracks
1. Honey
2. Come Down Softly to My Soul
3. How Does It Feel?
4. I Believe It
5. Revolution
6. Let Me Down Gently
7. So Hot (Wash Away All of My Tears)
8. Suicide
9. Lord Can You Hear Me?
Listen

Trader Horne - Morning Way (1970)

2009-10-15T03:27:00.001-07:00

When Judy Dyble left Fairport Convention way back in the 1960s, many distraught music fans kept an eagle eye out in the music press to see to what she would turn her hand next. She was clearly wondering herself as on 1 June 1968 she put a "Musician Wanted" ad in Melody Maker. When Peter Giles responded by telephone, the call was answered by boyfriend Ian McDonald. This led to both of them working with Giles, Giles and Fripp, the ensemble which was to mutate into King Crimson. But a month later Judy and Ian's relationship was over and she left once more.
Jackie McAuley had been organist and guitarist with Them during their rumbustious Angry Young Them period, and when Van Morrison had split the band some of them including Jackie and his drummer brother Pat had kept going, attracting the attention of Los Angeles producer Kim Fowley. He christened them the Belfast Gypsies and recorded with them a spirited rewrite of Gloria called Gloria's Dream, as well as the psych beat track People! Let's Freak Out which they released under the pseudonym the Freaks Of Nature. Then Jackie had briefly formed a band with Paul Brady in Dublin, called Cult, and travelled across Europe and Morocco widening his musical horizons.

This disparate duo forged an unlikely alliance in 1969 when they formed Trader Horne (the name of John Peel's nanny, apparently). A single was released called Sheena, with a Judy Dyble song on the flipside, Morning Way, which became the title track of this, their only album. It was quite unlike anything either had done before, ethereal and whimsical and imbued with childlike wonder, with Tolkeinesque lyrics that tell of the Children Of Oare and of Three Rings For Eleven Kings, and a soundscape fleshed out with flutes, harpsichords, auto-harps and celeste. Assisting on the album are Ray Elliott, an ally from Them, on alto flute and bass clarinet, bass-guitarist John Godfrey who arranged much of the album, and from Twice As Much's band, Andy White on drums.

Most of the songs were written by Jackie McAuley, whose original intention had been to write a children's album, but Judy Dyble contributes both Morning Way and the beautiful Velvet To Atone, which she wrote with Martin Quittenton from Steamhammer. There is also a version of Bessie Smith's Nobody Knows You When You're Down And Out (here titled Down And Out Blues), and all the tracks are knitted together with a recurring instrumental motif.

Another single followed the album: Here Comes The Rain backed with Goodbye Mercy Kelly.

Trader Horne were due to be launched at a festival set up specifically for the purpose, the Hollywood Music Festival in Newcastle-under-Lyme, where I first experienced the Grateful Dead. Typically, though, Judy had broken up the band (in what she called a "tantrum") shortly before and went off to get married to Simon Stable. The festival launched Mungo Jerry instead.

She also toured the Netherlands with DC and the MBs (Judy Dyble, Lol Coxhill and Phil & Steve Miller) before settling down as a librarian. Trader Horne continued briefly with Saffron Summerfield, before Jackie McAuley embarked on a solo career.
It is hard to imagine an album like this being made today, though at the time it could have sat in your album rack alongside Donovan, Trees, Vashti Bunyan or Keith Relf's Renaissance. The song Morning Way was included on a retrospective anthology called Paisley Pop, an umbrella title for a genre unrecognised at the time. Listen to this album and time travel to an unrecognisable world. By Laurence Upton.
Tracks
1. Jenny May
2. Children Of Care
3. Three Rings For Eleven Kings
4. Growing Man
5. Down And Out Blues
6. Mixed Up Kind
7. Better Than Today
8. In My Loneliness
9. Sheena
10. Mutant
11. Morning Way
12. Velvet To Atone
13. Luke That Never Was
Listen

Neon Philharmonic - The Moth Confesses (1968)

2009-10-15T03:10:00.000-07:00

The Moth Confesses is the 1969 debut album by The Neon Philharmonic. Described as "A Phonograph Opera," it was inspired, according to the liner notes, by a production of Samuel Barber's Antony and Cleopatra, which Saussy attended after The New York Times claimed that it was a terrible opera, and wanted to see what a terrible opera looked like, which he surmised was its deliberate attempt to appeal to a one-time audience. In response, he conceived this album as a condensed opera, with a moth-like protagonist, focused on the "literary theme" of desperation. Saussy did not imagine it could be staged like Tommy, but offered it up as a challenge.[1]

"Brilliant Colors" and "Morning, Girl" were both released as singles, while "The New Life Out There" was used to promote the record as a contemporary opera in radio advertisements. "Morning, Girl" hit #17 and was later covered by The Lettermen, which slowed and made rubato the tempo and was backed mostly by strings. Shaun Cassidy covered "Morning Girl, Later" with a few tweaked lyrics (omitting the reference to "Catherine" that complicates the song implying that the protagonist now has a wife or daughter) and titled it "Morning, Girl." The songs primarily cover the topic of striking out towards a new life when relationships fail for various reasons.
Tracks
01. Brilliant Colors – 4:18
02. Cowboy – 2:18
03. The New Life Out There – 5:32
04. Morning Girl – 2:12
05. Midsummer Night – 5:44
06. Little Sparrow – 3:16
07. The Last Time I Saw Jacqueline – 3:42
08. Morning Girl, Later – 2:31
Listen

The Speakers - En El Maravilloso Mundo de Ingeson (1968)

2009-10-15T02:57:00.000-07:00

Their fourth self-titled album from 1968 was a major advancement for the Speakers, as it was crammed with excellent originals that mixed garage pop and acid rock. Later that year the group released it’s final album, the psychedelic masterpiece En El Maravilloso Mundo De Ingeson (In the Wonderful World of Ingeson). A record such as this could only be released independently as it was too far out for major labels to market. Ingeson was notable for being the first Columbian rock record to use multi channel recording techniques which enabled the band to introduce all kinds of strange sound effects to the record buying public. When the lp was released in 1968 it came in a gatefold edition that included a 12 page full-color booklet with photos of the band by Danilo Vitalini, text, drawings, and even a replica of an acid hit! The album has a very cool lo-fi sound and its only flaw is the out of place Historia De Un Loto Que, a silly blues rocker with sped up alien-like vocals. That being said, the rest of this record is great and as whacked out as any of the early Mutantes records.
Tracks
1 Por la mañana
2 Oda a la gente mediocre
3 Hay un extraño esperando en la puerta
4 Si la guerra es un buen negocio
5 Reflejos de la olla
6 Historia de un loto que florece
7 Niños
8 No como antes
9 La Banda Le Hace A Ud. Caer En Cuenta Que...
10 Nosotros, Nuestra Arcadia, Nuestra Hermanita Pequeña, Gracias Por Los Buenos Ratos
11 Un Sueño Magico
12 Salmo Siglo XX, Era De La Destruccion
Listen