Velvett Fogg - Velvett Fogg (1968 uk, amazing hard progressive and psychedelic rock, remaster edition with bonus track)

Velvett Fogg was formed in 1968 out of a respectable Brum band called Gravy Train. They were fronted by soul singer Ernie Handy and the guitarist at that time was Bob Hewitt. The other band members were drummer Graham Mullett, bass guitarist Mick Pollard, and Londoner Frank Wilson who played Hammond organ. The band were soon off to Germany where they spent most of the year playing at army bases and clubs. Their exciting stage act included a light show and a go-go dancer (who later married Ernie).

Upon returning to Birmingham, the band, now managed by an agency called Inter City Artists, was given a record deal by Jack Dorsey of Pye Records. At this time it seemed that the more unusual or controversial a band was, then the greater chance there would be for success in the record business. The record label was looking to sign unusual "underground" acts and Velvett Fogg were told to, in Jack Dorsey's words, "develop an image that would make people think you would piss on the pope"!

The initial line-up of Velvett Fogg featured guitarist Tony Iommi (later to make the big time with Black Sabbath). Tony stayed in the band for only one gig before leaving to be replaced temporarily by Ian Leighton - described as "a great blues guitarist" by his friend Frank Wilson. It was during this time that Pye Records arranged a photo-shoot of the group for the cover of their proposed first album (more about that later).
Material for the Velvett Fogg album would be supplied by local songwriter/guitarist Keith Law who became a friend of the band.

Keith was a veteran of the West Midlands music scene having played in "The Williamsons", "Love and Understanding" and Paint (Jardine). Keith takes up the story; "I was in the Rum Runner one night, when someone told me that Velvett Fogg were looking for new material, and they introduced me to them. I arranged to meet them at their rehearsal place, Langley Baths. I went along the next day, and went through the following songs with them: Yellow Cave Woman, Once Among The Trees, and Within' The Night and that was it! The next couple of days, they were in London recording".

Before recording could begin in late 1968, Ian Leighton departed Velvett Fogg and was replaced by guitarist/vocalist Paul Eastment (a cousin of the band's previous guitarist Tony Iommi). Paul Eastment was also to contribute original compositions for the album along with Frank Wilson, Graham Mullet and Mick Pollard.

Velvett Fogg recorded the tracks for their debut album under direction of Pye producer Jack Dorsey. Apparently, Dorsey aimed to get the band onto the then-popular "progressive" band wagon. "I was a classically trained pianist but we all had to play way below our capabilities" says Frank Wilson. The band were also allowed to record covers of a few songs they liked and these included psychedelic-sounding versions of New York Mining Disaster 1941 by The Bee Gees, and Tim Rose's version of "Come Away Melinda".

Velvett Fogg's self-titled album was released on the Pye label in January of 1969. Despite what some may have thought, the album stands up as a fine example of late 1960s British psychedelia. As well as the previously mentioned covers, original compositions such as Yellow Cave Woman and Once Among The Trees are both hypnotic if not compelling. By contrast, other tracks like Lady Caroline and Plastic Man had both homicidal and political overtones respectively.

By far the most controversial feature of the Velvett Fogg album was the record cover. It displayed the pre-Paul Eastment line-up of the band wearing garish make-up/body-paint and costume but also included two well-endowed young women wearing nothing but strategically applied body paint! This politically-incorrect package was accompanied by a typically obscure sleevenote by the influential U.K. disc jockey John Peel who commented "There is a lot of good music on this record. Remember Velvett Fogg - you will hear the name again."

Along with the Velvett Fogg album, Pye Records also released a single by the group. It was a cover of the Tornado's classic instrumental Telstar and was recorded by the band as requested by Jack Dorsey who hoped to cash in on the publicity surrounding the American moon landings taking place at that time. While receiving some radio play, the record did not sell enough copies to chart and a big advertising campaign planned by the record company to promote the album never materialised.

The band did a bit of touring after the single came out. Perhaps discouraged by poor sales of the Velvett Fogg album, Pye seemed to lose interest and withdrew their backing. In the autumn of 1969 the group disbanded with the members going their seperate ways. Frank Wilson says "I personally thought the first line-up in Germany was the best and most satisfying." He returned to London and joined Riot Squad and then "The Rumble Band" before following in Rick Wakeman's footsteps to join Warhorse in 1970.

Paul Eastment started a Brum band called "Holy Ghost" - later to become Ghost with whom he recorded a couple of albums. He later fronted another group called Resurrection as well as recording with local folk singer Shirley Kent. Keith Law stayed in the music business, is still writing songs, and is now a successful entertainer in the South-West of England.

During the years since Velvett Fogg's demise, demand amongst collectors for copies of their (now very rare) album has increased considerably. Original albums have changed hands for high prices with bootleg copies also known to be in circulation. Fortunately, in 2002 the Sanctuary Records Group Ltd. re-issued the album officially for the first time on CD (CMRCD619) and it is strongly recommended for those who are fans of the British psychedelic or early progressive sounds of the late 1960s. Keith Law and Frank Wilson are back together writing and recording for a proposed new Velvett Fogg album. Word has it that an Italian record company is already showing a lot of interest in the project.

Appearing in 1968, and disappearing just as quickly, Velvett Fogg's only LP is a truly great, lost classic of British psychedelic music. At it's best it features some imaginative guitar and organ workouts combined with quirky and unusual lyrics and the band's covers of 'New York Mining Disaster' and 'Come Away Melinda' add an eerie tone missing from the originals. Fogg's own originals include the childlike 'Wizard of Gobsolod', the haunting and somewhat dislocated 'Lady Caroline' and the jazzy workout of 'Owed to the Dip' but the tone of the album is set by the powerfully doom-laden opener, 'Yellow Cave Woman'. It's a great record and it's rounded off with the inclusion of the band's only single, a 68-style, special effect laden version of 'Telstar' - the sleevenotes, by John Peel, are a remarkable 1968 artifact in their own right.
Brum-Beat

Tracks
1. Yellow Cave Woman (K. Law) - 6:57
2. New York Mining Disaster 1941 (R. Gibb, B. Gibb, M. Gibb) - 2:55
3. Wizard Of Gobsolod (P. Eastment) - 2:56
4. Once Among The Trees (K. Law) - 5:38
5. Lady Caroline (P. Eastment) - 2:23
6. Come Away Melinda (Fran Minkoff, Fred Hellerman) - 5:52
7. Owded To The Dip (G. Mullett, M. Pollard, P. Eastment) - 6:09
8. Within The Night (K. Law) - 4:45
9. Plastic Man (Frank Wilson, Graham Mullett) - 4:45
10.Telstar '69 (Bonus Track) (K. Law) - 2:46

Velvett Fogg
*Keith Law - (Songwriter)
*Frank Wilson - Hammond Organ, Vocal
*Paul Eastment - Guitar, Vocal
*Graham Mullett - Drums
*Mick Pollard - Bass Guitar

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Purple Overdose - Exit #4 (1988 greece, psychedelic rock revival)

The beauty of psychedelic music lies in its potential for genuine magic to occur. And if you focus your mantra in the direction of Athens, Greece you will find something very magical indeed. Purple Overdose is a band who unabashedly wear their passion for 1960's/70's era psychedelia on their shirtsleeves, creating some of the most beautiful and passionate progressive influenced psychedelia of the last several years.

Formed in 1987 by guitarist, vocalist and songwriter Costas Constantinou, Purple Overdose have released five studio albums and one live album of cosmic sounds that recall the glory of days gone by, while retaining a freshness and excitement that shrugs off any accusations of being "retro".

Purple Overdose's debut album - Exit #4 - was released in 1988 on Pegasus Records. At this time a quartet, the band consisted of Costas Constantinou on guitars and lead vocals, Christophoros Triantaphilopoulos on drums & percussion (George Nikas is the drummer on 5 tracks), "Sugar" George Papageorgiades on bass and backing vocals, and Michalis Vasiliou on organ, piano and backing vocals.

On this release we hear a rawer version of Purple Overdose though the seeds of exciting things to come are firmly planted. The songs reveal the bands passion for 60's era psychedelia combining elements of Jefferson Airplane, The Doors, and go-go flower power psych. The San Francisco sound really comes out on songs like "Are You There". "Yellow Mole" and "Roobie Go Round" feature classic 60's psych styled organ and keys.

Listening to "Yellow Mole" conjures up visions of go-go- girls grooving high above the dance floor. "Orange Journey" is the most Doors flavored song of the set and we're treated to the band taking off into jam territory (dig those Ray Manzarek keyboards!). "Holes" combines a Jefferson Airplane sound with Costas Constantinou's unmistakable vocals. "When You Talk About Me" is one of the heavier and intense songs on the album though the verses are classic 60's psychedelia. And "Blue Torture" is a cool trippy Blues tune. An impressive debut. 

by Jerry Kranitz 

 

On May 4th 2020, Costas Constantinou founding member and mastermind of the band, passed away, he was only 60 years old..

Tracks

1. Exit #4 (Intro) - 1:37

2. Are You There? - 3:16

3. Yellow Mole - 4:48

4. Holes - 5:46

5. When You Talk About Me - 5:00

6. Rooby Go Round - 4:28

7. Elevation - 4:13

8. Blue Torture - 5:06

9. Orange Journey - 5:53

10.Exit #4 (Outro) - 1:35

All songs by Purple Overdose.

Purple Overdose

*Costas Constantinou - Guitar, Lead Vocals

*Christophoros Triantafilopoulos - Drums, Percussion

*George Papageorgiades - Bass Guitar, Backing Vocals

*Michalis Vassiliou - Organ, Piano, Backing Vocals

*George Nikas - Drums (on tracks 2, 4, 5, 7 and 8)

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Lee Clayton - Border Affair/The Capitol Years (1978-79/81 us, excellent classic rock, with country folk rock blend, 2007 acadia double disc edition, including three albums)

Introducing an artist such as Clayton is an excuse for the lazy sleeve note writer to trot out such hackneyed adjectives as 'enigmatic', or 'obscure', but not 'million-selling'. In a recording career that spans over thirty years, his album output doesn't even run into double figures, so one epithet that cannot be used in conjunction with Clayton's name is 'prolific'.

However, I'll take qualify over quantity any day, and if Clayton needs to take his time over albums as consistently strong as the three contained here - Border Affair, Naked Chid and The Dream Goes On, well, so be it. So, here's the point at which I shade in a bit of the Clayton background detail for yet.

According to the few music encyclopaedia entries on him, he was born in Alabama on October 29th, 1942, and was raised in Oak Ridge, Tennessee from the age of four. He told the UK fanzine Omaha Rainbow that "I've always known that music was important - when my dad knew he'd got uptight, and the world got too much for him, he would break out his bourbon and play Red Foley and Jimmie Rodgers records, and tell war stories and drink whisky.

I can remember trying to figure out what was going on; why everybody would sit there and get drunk and cry. I figured anything that could evoke that kind of emotion had to be pretty strong." Clayton's father was keen for him to learn a musical instrument, and gave him the choice of accordion or Guitar. He choose the latter of course, but it appears that his father purchased a steel guitar (maybe even a dobro) and also arranged for young Lee to have lessons. After a couple of years, Clayton expressed the opinion tha he preferred learning the instrument by ear, as opposed the formal lessons, his father promptly sold the guitar.

He didn't return to music until his teens. Music remaind one of numbered interests that he maintained during his student days at the University of Tennessee, wherein he eventually earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Managment, after which he got a job. He was doing ok, but in the mid '60's he was married had a Porsche sports car, and yet feld strangely unfulfilled. As well as music, he yearned to fly aeroplanes and despite being married, had the ol "roving eye" when it comes to the ladies.

According to Clayton "one day something went click and i turned around and went back home, quit the job and started trying to get in to the Air Force. He was to spend three years in USAF getting the pilot to March 2nd McDonnell BF101 Voodoo Fighter, which was most known amongst fly boys as "The Widowmaker", owing to a design fault that led to it behave unpredictably during certain manoeuvres.

In fact that experience inspired the song "Old Number NIne" from his album Border Affair. Having crossed off the desire to fly from his "to do" , on quitting the force, Clayton decamped to Nashville with the aim of pursuing a career of singer-songwritter. During his period with the services, Clayton has honed his skills as singer-songwritter, working on his Guitar playing and lyrical skills. There was clearly more than a grain of talent there, but in Nashville he was one of the zillion aspirant singer-songwriters trying to shine up the greasy pole.

" I was living in Luisville Kentucky, and spend three or four days of week in Nashville... people would say to me -what are you doing? - I'd say I'm a poet and songwriter. With in six months my money started to go and they took my credit cards away from me and I was on the street. Sols my Porsche and I had and old beat-up VW. I went from then until I got some money from the record company when i signed the deal in early '73. Before that was out on the street , sleeping in the floor time".

The record company referred to hear is MCA, who signed Clayton in 1973, following the succes he had enjoyed when Wylon Jennings had covered his song "Ladies Love the Outlaws". Clayton's excellent self-titled debut album is also available and is well worth checking out. However, Clayton spoked with somewhat mixed feelings of the year 1973 and released his debut long player. "The start of '73 I had no money, got some money made a record, spend a lot of money, end of '73, broke off the label, back on the streets again, all in one year.

I lived in motel room in California most of '74 - out in the Mojave Desert and lived there with this woman. Didn't do a whole lot, the truth is, just sat around and looked at things. Watched a whole lot of sun downs and sunrises, thought a lot, climbed the mountain, and one day figured it was time for me to go at it again". A considerable factor in the re-energising of Clayton's muse was his meeting and befriending Philip Donnelly, a fine Irish guitar player who was then a part of Donovan's touring band. In Donnelly, Clayton found an incisive and inspired guitarist, who helped supply a razor-sharp cutting edge to Clayton's recordings, lifting the music out of the Nashville standard, into something slightly more rock-orientated and contemporary.

This was Outlaw country, I guess. Clayton landed a new record deal with EMI / Capitol, and cut the three albums that you're hopefully enjoying. Border Affair was released in 1978, and enjoyed positive critical notices, and Willie Nelson loved the track If You Can Touch Her At All enough to cover the track himself. Cashbox magazine nominated Clayton for New Male Vocalist of the year. It's follow-up, Naked Child had a more difficult gestation - Clayton had crises of confidence over the production sound and the way recordings were progressing - however, he hauled it together, and its release in May 1979 again saw it well-received, critically.

Although Clayton had made little impression sales-wise in his native USA, the album did sell well in continental Europe, and Clayton, with an impressive band, toured the continent supporting label mates Roger McGuinn, Gene Clark and Chris Hillman. His European fan base has proved loyal; Clayton still enjoys a reputation on the Continent, years after the release of his final Capitol album, The Dream Goes On.

Lee Clayton has only intermittently returned to the recording and gigging fray in the twenty odd years since the early 80's; Bono of U2 has claimed Clayton as an influence, bizarrely enough, but Clayton's story is ultimately one of potential largely unfulfilled. Mind you, if one book-ends his debut with the three albums contained here, you have a quartet of some fine Outlaw Country music that no self-respecting fan should be without
by Alan Robinson, November 2007

Tracks

Disc 1 

1. Silver Stallion - 4:48

2. If You Can Touch Her At All - 4:35

3. Back Home In Tennessee - 4:33

4. Border Affair - 3:47

5. Old Number Nine - 3:07

6. Like A Diamond - 4:36

7. My Women My Love - 5:02

8. Tequila Is Addictive - 4:32

9. My True Love - 4:36

10.Rainbow In The Sky (Lee Calyton, Phillip Donnelly) - 3:33 

11.Saturday Night Special - 3:11

12.I Ride Alone - 5:14

13.10,000 Light Years / Sexual Moon - 6:23

14.Wind And Rain - 2:40

All songs by Lee Clayton except where indicated

Tracks 1-10 from Border Affair 1978

Tracks 11-14 from Naked Child 1979

Disc  2
1. I Love You - 5:06
2. Jaded Virgin - 4:14
3. A Little Cocaine - 5:26
4. If I Can Do It (So Can You) - 4:44
5. What's A Mother Gonna Do - 2:54
6. Industry - 7:27
7. Wont You Give Me One More Chance - 3:22
8. Draggin' Them Chains - 3:31
9. Where Is The Justice - 4:48
10.Whatcha Gonna Do - 4:06
11.Oh How Lucky I Am - 3:41
12.The Dream Goes On - 4:47
All compositions by Lee Clayton
Tracks 1-4 from Naked Child 1979
Tracks 5-12 from The Dream Goes On 1981

Musicians
1978 - Border Affair
*Colin Cameron - Bass
*Lee Clayton - Guitar, Harp, Lead Vocals
*Jimmy Day - Pedal Steel Guitar
*Phillip Donnelly - Lead Guitar, Vocal Harmony
*Danny Lane - Drums
*Andy McMahon - Keyboards
*Wayne Jackson - Trumpet
*Andrew Love - Sax

1979 - Naked Child and 1981 - The Dream Goes On
*Clay Caire - Drums
*Lee Clayton - Guitar, Lead Vocals
*Phillip Donnelly - Guitar
*Tim Krekel - Lead Guitar
*Steve Marshall - Bass
*Tony Newman - Drums tracks 8,12
*Bobby Ogdin - Keyboards
*Rachel Peer - Bass track 12
*Glenn Rieuf - Pedal Steel
*Vickie Hampton, Donna McElroy, Deborah Allen - Backing Vocals
*Sweet Honey Bees (Children's Voices) - Backing Vocals
*Thomas Cain & The Corinthian Church Choir (Big Children's Voices) - Backing Vocals

1973  Lee Clayton - Lee Clayton (2006 Acadia edition) 

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The Moving Sidewalks - Flash (1968 us, excellent garage rock, with ZZ Top future members, akarma remastered edition, plus five bonus tracks)

The sole album by the Moving Sidewalks is as fascinating as it is unremarkable. As the birthing ground for legendary blues-rock guitarist Billy Gibbons, one would expect at least a taste of what would later make ZZ Top one of the best touring and recording bands on the planet; sadly, the album offers little in the way of revelation in its 15 tracks.

Admittedly, at the time of ZZ Top's 1970 debut, Gibbons' transformation from a journeyman bandleader into a boogie-blues demigod was still not fully realized, but his chops were miles away from what is heard here. Part of that lies in the fact that ZZ Top was less about psychedelia than straight blues; whatever psychedelic touches made their way onto the studio albums were largely an accessory. (They would eventually fully integrate on 1979's Deguello.)

The Moving Sidewalks, on the other hand, were psychedelic rockers whose songs hinted at the blues without fully diving in. The songs show little of Gibbons' future promise, and in fact are so thoroughly mediocre (both in writing and playing) that it's amazing to think he was only a few years away from international success. "Pluto-Sept. 31st" shows a clear Hendrix influence (the two guitarists openly admired each other), and as a bonus, Akarma's reissue includes five bonus singles that are some of the strongest material on the album, especially "Need Me," "I Want to Hold Your Hand," and the legendary single "99th Floor."
by Jim Smith

Tracks
1. Flashback (Ames) - 4:46
2. Scoun Da Be (Moore) - 2:07
3. You Make Me Shake (Gibbons) - 3:04
4. You Don't Know the Life (Moore) - 3:56
5. Pluto - Sept 31st (Ames, Gibbons) - 5:13
6. No Good to Cry (Anderson) - 4:32
7. Crimson Witch (Gibbons) - 3:06
8. Joe Blues (Gibbons, Mitchell, Moore, Summers) - 7:37
9. Eclipse (Ames, Gibbons) - 3:37
10.Reclipse (Ames, Gibbons) - 2:30
11.99th Floor (Gibbons) - 2:17
12.What Are You Doing to Do (Gibbons) - 2:29
13.I Want to Hold Your Hand (Lennon, McCartney) - 3:20
14.Need Me (Gibbons) - 2:14
15.Every Night a New Surprise (Ames) - 2:58

The Moving Sidewalks
*Billy Gibbons - Vocals, Guitar
*Tom Moore - Keyboards
*Lanier Greig - Keyboards
*Don Summers - Bass
*Dan Mitchell - Drums

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Socrates Drank The Conium - Taste Of Conium (1972 greece, rough classic rock, blues psych)

Socrates was Yannis Spathas and Antonis Tourkoyorgis on guitar and bass respectively. During the period that they were playing in the Kitarro Club they went through several drummers including George Trantalidis, all of them terrific. In Athens during the early seventies, when the 1967 military dictatorship was still in control, there were a number of rock clubs in the area around Victoria Square and in the Plaka. Poll and Morka played at the Elaterion. Socrates and Exidaktilo played at the Kitarro. As Dorian Kokas, the founder and leader of Morka told us one night "We used to race through our set and play everything fast so we could get out early and go to the Kittaro and catch the last set of Socrates." Musicians loved Socrates.

Socrates sounded like several bands that were popular at the time, Jimi Hendrix Experience, Deep Purple, Blue Cheer, and Black Sabbath come to mind now when I hear their music from that early period, though the majority of their material was original. There were songs that were crowd favorites such as "Close the Door and Lay Down", "Starvation" and "Underground", but often the highlight of the evening was when they did their Hendrix songs like "Voodoo Chile", "Message of Love" and "Red House" or jammed on songs like "Kansas City" with singer Jimi Quidd (later of the NY Dots) and Greek-American blues guitarist John Kronis.

Spathas played a Fender Strat, long straight hair hanging down almost to the guitar, he was motionless except for his hands which effortlessly ripped out the most fluid, solos and riffs. He always hooked the chord to his amp over the bottom cutaway so he would not step on it and pull it out during a solo, I suppose. It was sort of his trademark in a way and we would watch him tune up and wait for him to do it which meant to us that the music was about to begin. He would play some mind-boggling riff to make sure the volume was right or the guitar was in tune and they would be off. Antonis Tourkoyorgis played bass and sang and if Spathas gave the appearance of being introverted he was the complete opposite. He was also a great bass player.

The powerful sound this little three-piece band with their stacks of Marshalls put out in the Kittaro kept us coming back night after night. In all honesty I have to say that to this day I have not heard any band, three-piece or more, fill as much musical space. Seeing the Who in 1976 I found myself comparing them to Socrates. OK, the Who is the Who. But apart from the personalities, the songs I knew and the flamboyance, were Townshend, Entwhistle and Moon as good a band as Socrates? No way. Led Zepplin? Nope. You'd have to ask someone who had seen Hendrix or Cream to make the judgement about those bands but I can't imagine anyone being better than Socrates on a good night and as far as those nights in the Kittaro went I don't think they ever had a bad night. They were too good to have a bad night.

What made them so remarkable was the guitar playing of Spathas. Even today listening to the solos he played in 1972 I still can't believe the music he was making. Brent Lambert of Kitchen Mastering, quite a guitar player himself, after hearing several Spathas solos from thirty years ago said "If this guy had come to America he would be a guitar hero and everyone would know his name." If you liked the way Hendrix, Ritchie Blackmore, Jimmy Page and Eddie Van Halen play you will love Spathas and if you play guitar yourself you will wonder "If this was thirty years ago and he is still playing how good must he be now?"
Anazitisi-Records

This is their second effort, released 1972, and despite the poor mixing and mastering we have the opportunity (once more) to discover the ability of the members, not only as skilled musicians, but also as renowned composers, expressing a particular view even in the versions of Satisfaction as "Wild Satisfaction" and "See See Rider".
Thank you my friend Antonis, I hope you are well.

Tracks
1. Wild Satisfaction (M. Jagger, K. Richards arr. by J. Spathas, A. Tourkogiorgis, E. Boukouvalas) - 13:00
2. Good Morning Blues (J. Spathas, A. Tourkogiorgis, E. Boukouvalas) - 2:25
3. See See Rider (Traditional arr. by J. Spathas, A. Tourkogiorgis, E. Boukouvalas) - 3:10
4. Door of the Dream (J. Spathas, A. Tourkogiorgis) - 4:30
5. Waiting for the Sun (J. Spathas, A. Tourkogiorgis) - 2:55
6. A Trip in the Sky (J. Spathas, A. Tourkogiorgis) - 3:22
7. It's OK (J. Spathas, A. Tourkogiorgis) - 1:45
8. Born to be Free (J. Spathas, A. Tourkogiorgis) - 2:30
9. She's Gone Away (J. Spathas, A. Tourkogiorgis) - 4:20

Socrates Drank The Conium
*Antonis Tourkogiorgis - Bass guitar, Vocals
*Yannis Spathas - Lead guitar, Synthesizer
*Kostas "Gus" Doukakis - Guitar
*George Trantalidis - Drums

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One St. Stephen - One St. Stephen (1975 us, heavy acid psych blended with various influences)

Another private pressing, this time one that first saw the light of day on the Owl label in 1975. This is an album which is generally regarded as one of the finest heavy acid psych albums of its time.

One reviewer described it thus: 'Side 1 opens and closes with extended, awesome moody psychers which will blow you away. Poe, heroin and Jim Morrison all help shape the One St. Stephen outlook, which results in one of the more distinct late autumnal moods [ever] manifested on vinyl. Good vocals, some howling fuzz and occasional use of Moog in typical '70s acidhead fashion'.

Don L. Patterson wrote the music and lyrics, was lead vocalist, played electric guitars, directed and produced the album 'One St. Stephen' in March of 1975. The music was originally intended for a film Don was developing with the working title 'The Devil's Reservation'. Due to a famous Jazz musician with the same name, Don used the alias of One St. Stephen.

The music was recorded at the legendary Owl Studios (Columbus, Ohio), using the same 8-channel analog recording deck that was used to tape the audio at Woodstock in 1969. Because everyone who heard the LP wanted a copy, Don pressed a very limited amount from Queen City Record Company (Cincinnati Ohio). He also designed the album sleeve and label. The response by regional disc jockeys was phenomenal.

The album got a lot of regional air play. A few months later, Don was offered a recording contract from two major record companies in New York City. Don was asked to tour. Don was never interested in the world of rock and walked away from a music future. Since then the album has been sought by record collectors around the world and bootlegged twice in Europe.

One St Stephen has been issued on CD before (on an unknown Austrian label in the '90s), but that particular version erroneously included 2 tracks by a completely different band (St Steven, from Boston), so this is the first time that this highly-regarded album has appeared in its original form.

Tracks
1.November Edgar - 7:32
2.November - 2:37
3.You May Be Religous - 2:19
4.Nightly Drift - 6:03
5.Old Man - 2:14
6.Junkie's Lament - 2:01
7.Twelth St. Shuffle (Don L. Patterson - Bill Blechschmid) - 3:26
8.Richer You Get - 3:01
9.Dash In The Rocks - 4:41
All songs by Don L. Patterson, except where noted.

One St. Stephen
*One St. Stephens (aka Don L. Patterson) - Vocals, Guitar
*Bill Blechschmid
*Terry Finneran
*Danny Lawson
*David Pierce
*Franklin Reynolds
*Bruce Roberts
*Charles Squires

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The Koala - The Koala (1968 us, frantic rhythms, garage and riotous psych with future members of Sir Lord Baltimore band)

This snotty proto-punk act had the misfortune to be marketed as Australian (in an era when Oz was still perceived as a mysterious land of kangaroos and convicts). In fact the truth was more prosaic: they hailed from the East New York section of Brooklyn, bordering Queens.

Gigging locally, they came to the attention of producer-managers Art Polhemus and Bob Wyld, who'd already achieved smash success with the Blues Magoos and were on the lookout for another snappy garage act to push. With a Capitol contract in the bag, the band issued their one and only 45, Don't You Know What I Mean?

I Scattered Children's Toys (Capitol 2365) in mid-1968, and though it didn't sell, proceeded with an album later that year. The majority of it is high-energy garage rock, featuring searing fuzztone and feedback (typified on Poor Discarded Baby, Poppa Duke Tyler and others), but there are some decidedly psychedelic touches too, such as the sitar on Strange Feelings and the ethereal harmonies on Elizabeth.

The album slipped out in a unipak sleeve whose design was decidedly similar to that of another contemporary Capitol release, The Inner Mystique by The Chocolate Watch Band (which actually appeared on Tower), and promptly bombed. The 'Australian' marketing concept (itself borrowed from a strategy that had safely seen another New York garage band, The Strangeloves, have a hit with I Want Candy in 1965) was apparently news to the band, who split up almost immediately after the LP's release.

Jose Mala went on to sing (as Jay Mala) with legendary glam punks the Magic Tramps, before touring with the Joe Perry Project (a side project for Aerosmith's lead guitarist). Rhythm guitarist Joey Guido also stayed in music, playing with glam act The Brats, while lead guitarist Louis Caine joined hard rock legends Sir Lord Baltimore.

The album they made together was largely forgotten until the 1990s collector's market drove the price of original copies ever upwards, and word of its energetic charm began to spread. It is to be hoped that this first CD reissue will firmly establish its claim to be one of the earliest New York punk albums ever recorded.

Tracks

1. Don't You Know What I Mean? - 2:40

2. Look At The Way She Comes - 3:28

3. Poor Discarded Baby - 3:08

4. Nothing's Changed - 4:22

5. She's A Lady - 3:21

6. Colours Of Our Rainbow - 5:29

7. Poppa Duke Tyler - 2:41

8. Strange Feelings - 2:54

9. Elizabeth - 2:37

10.You Say - 2:30

11.Yesterday's Rain - 2:33

12.Lady Dressed In White - 2:42

13.Scattered Children's Toys - 4:38

All compositions by J. Mala and J. Guido.

The Koala

*Jose Mala - Lead Vocals

*Joey Guido - Rhythm Guitar

*Joe Alexander - Drums

*Louis Caine - Lead Guitar

*Anthony Wesley - Bass

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The Magic Bubble - The Magic Bubble (1968 canada, fine psych folk blues rock, Fallout extra tracks issue)

In spite of the group name, Toronto's Magic Bubble was essentially a duo consisting of siblings Frank and Rita Rondell. For their 1969 debut "Magic Bubble", the Rondells were backed by keyboardist Paul Benton, guitarist Wade Brown (who along with one Alex McDougall penned most of the material), bassist Brian Kirkwood and drummer Sonny Milne.

Produced by John Williams, musically the album's exceptionally diverse, including stabs at pop, hard rock, blues moves and even what sounds like an attempt at a calypso rhythm). That diversity is simultaneously a strength and a weakness. To our ears Rita has an okay, if less than overwhelming voice. While she has a bluesy voice that occasionally recalls Maggie Bell, exemplified by tracks such as "I'm Alive" and the ballad "If I Should Ever Love Again" she's largely relegated to handling the group's more pop oriented material.

Those performances are okay, if slightly under whelming. Her best performance happens to be her toughest vocal - "Cry Cry". That leaves Frank to handle the more rock-oriented tracks such as "Whiskey Fire", "Changes" and "Circles (Lonely Wind)". Occasionally sounding like a more rock inclined David Clayton Thomas, to our ears his performances provide the set's highlights, including one bizarre bluesy cover of George Gershwin's "Summertime". Elsewhere, there's only one real duet between the siblings; the funny "Me & Mr. Hohner". As far as we can tell the album didn't see an American release.

One final single "Who Turned the World Around" b/w "Ohio and Sun" (Columbia catalog number C4-3030) and the band was history.Rita relocated to Italy where she made a name for herself as a backup singer. In the late 1980s she returned to Canada where she started a solo career as Rita Chiarelli.
Bad-Cat

Tracks
1. I'm Alive (Wade Brown) - 2:27
2. Whiskey Fire (Wade Brown) - 2:33
3. If I Should Ever Love Again (Alex McDougall) - 3:24
4. Changes (Alex McDougall) - 3:24
5. Cry Cry (Wade Brown) - 4:29
6. Circles (Lonely Wind) (Wade Brown) - 2:40
7. Sunshine Man (McDougall, Rondell) - 2:34
8. Back To Toronto (Robbie Robertson) - 2:29
9. Me & Mr. Hohner (Boby Darin) - 3:37
10.Summertime (George Gershwin) - 6:06
11.Ohio Sun (Bonus track) (Guy Fletcher, Doug Flett) - 2:54
12.Who Turned The World Around? (Bonus track) (Richard Kerr, Scott English) - 2:42

The Magic Bubble
*Paul Benton - Keyboards
*Wade Brown - Guitar
*Brian Kirkwood - Bass
*Sonny Milne - Drums, Percussion
*Frank Rondell - Vocals
*Rita Rondell - Vocals

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Various Artists - White Lace And Strange (1968-72 us, heavy psych and power fuzz)

By the end of the sixties psychedelia was pretty much a spent force. Bands were looking for something simpler and more earthy. Crosby, Stills & Nash had gone all acoustic and harmonious, The Band had achieved a return to classic Americana, and James Taylor was showing the world you could be laid back and hip at the same time. However, not everyone wanted to ditch their fuzzboxes.

Inspired by such outfits as Cream, Blue Cheer, Hendrix and the nascent Led Zeppelin, these American bands were moving out of psych into something less cosmic and far heavier. This mix of blooze rock and heavy riffing is loud and nasty but it pre-dates metal. It's pretty tripped out, but it's not really psychedelia. It's the sound of guitar, bass and drums (and the occasional Hammond organ) just as it was meant to be, cranked up and in your face. No frills, just power chords and stomping riffs. Stamp on that Big Muff and solo till your brain drops out.

Tracks - Artists
1. Persecution - Third Power - 3:26
2. White Lace & Strange - Thunder and Roses - 3:12
3. Dimples - Hook - 2:50
4. It Could`t Be Me - Power of Zeus - 3:49
5. John Doe - Banchee - 4:30
6. Steel Dog Man - Brother Fox & The Tar Baby - 3:44
7. Hideaway of Your Love - Lemonade Charade - 2:22
8. Angeline - Genesis - 2:50
9. Loveless Lives - Blue Mountain Eagle - 3:31
10.Someone Else`s Games - Mount Rushmore - 4:33
11.Get in the Wind - Mount Rushmore - 2:56
12.Bide My Time - Fields - 3:16
13.Spaceship Earth - Road - 3:29
14.Knocked Out - Eden`s Children - 3:12
15.I Think You`d Cry - T.I.M.E. - 4:19
16.Darkness - The Underbeats - 2:57
17.I`m a Man - Yellow Payges - 5:02
18.Time Has Come, Gonna Die - Lincoln Street Exit - 4:08
19.My Babe - The Uniques - 2:27
20.The Seventh Is Death - The Fort Mudge Memorial Dump - 5:28

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Various Artists - Up All Night (1969-73 us/uk, 20 heavy nuggets from the golden age of hard psych)

If rocking's your schtick, and you prefer an atypically sleazy form of it a la a 70s bellbottom, cocaine sniffing sort of way then boy is this for you. If not, well, go the fuck back out west and take it easy I suppose. This collection, put out by the capable hands of bin diggers over at Past & Present, pulls twenty psych greats that essentially fall somewhere in between the hypnotic stoned levels of the Doors and the dark slaying of Black Sabbath.

None of them seem to have done much, but from the evidence herein there seems little reason other than pure bad luck. Of course any questions as to their whereabouts are swiftly resolved in the extensive liner notes, which provide mini biographies of each act. So where do the highlights lie? Well it really depends on your steez I suppose—Highway Robbery's “Fifteen,” torn apart by Rolling Stone in 1972, sounds like a crossbreed between King Crimson and the Sex Pistols, sliding between styles within seconds with propulsive energy and snotty attitude.

The Damnation of Adam Blessing, who opened for the Stooges and the Faces, present the loping groove of “Driver,” a pummeling number that keeps it garage-y and epic all at once. Dragonfly's “Enjoy Yourself” presents some serious guitar twang intermixed with a proto metal violence. Wild stuff. Especially Haystacks Balboa's “The Children of Heaven", a totally schizophrenic proggy number that's like little else to my ear. Totally a certain thing, but if you're into the thing you could do worse. Especially well suited to cruises around the street on summer nights, beer in hand.
by Henry Smith

Tracks - Artists
 1. Warm Touch - Liquid Smoke - 3:36
2. Be Good and Be Kind - Tin House - 3:39
3. Journeys - The Litter - 2:15
4. Outcast - The Finchley Boys - 2:33
5. Fifteen - Highway Robbery - 2:58
6. Gimme Some Lovin' - Euclid - 3:39
7. Driver - Damnation Of Adam Blessing - 3:57
8. Up All Night - SRC - 3:07
9. The Queen - Bang - 5:24
10. Enjoy Yourself - Dragonfly - 3:20
11. You're In America - Granicus - 4:10
12. Wrought Iron Man - Steeplechase - 4:18
13. Kingdom Come - Sir Lord Baltimore - 6:35
14. All You Have Left is Me - Jamul - 2:46
15. In the Night - The Power Of Zeus - 3:52
16. The Children of Heaven - Haystacks Balboa - 3:06
17. Persecution - Third Power - 3:26
18. Providence Bummer - Yesterday's Children - 3:40
19. Road Runner - Head Over Heels - 3:19
20. Sad and Lonely - Landslide - 3:03

All artists include here, are presented on both blogs with their releases.

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Barefoot Jerry - Southern Delight/Barefoot Jerry (1971-72 us, splendid southern rock with progressive folk/blues/country rock elements)

Barefoot Jerry remains one of the unsung heroes of southern rock. They rose from the ashes of Nashville super group Area Code 615 which featured some of Nashville’s best studio musicians and released string of successful albums between 1971 and 1977 before breaking up.

Lead by guitarist Wayne Moss, Barefoot Jerry’s original line-up also included ex- Area Code 615 members Mac Gayden on guitar and vocals, Kenneth A. Buttrey on drums along with John Harris on keyboards.

In 1971 Barefoot Jerry signed to Capitol Records and released their classic debut album, Southern Delight. Following year Capitol dropped them, but Barefoot Jerry released the self-titled sophomore effort for Warner Brothers records.

Russ Hicks and Kenny Malone had replaced Gayden and Buttrey. The band then signed to Monument records and went through further lineup changes (Si Edwards on drums, Dave Doran on bass, Fred Newell on vocals) before recording 1974's Watchin' TV.

In 1975 Monument released You Can't Get Off With Your Shoes On, and Crocery, double LP featuring reissues of their first two albums came out the following year.

Wayne Moss resurrected Barefoot Jerry one more time in 1976 and the band recorded Keys to the Country with bassist Terry Bearmore, guitarist Jim Colvard and Warren Hartman keyboards. This same line-up recorded the last Barefoot Jerry album, 1977's Barefootin'.

Barefoot Jerry has shared the stage with Wet Willie, The Charlie Daniels Band and other major players in southern rock scene, yet remain fairly unknown to this day, which might have something to do with the ever rotating members of the band. In fact, Wayne Moss was the only member who played in all of the albums and concerts.
Pure-Southern-Rock

Tracks  
Southern Delight 1971
1. Hospitality Song (Mac Gayden, John Harris) - 4:49
2. I'm Proud To Be A Redneck (Mac Gayden, Joe Gayden) - 2:35
3. Smokies (Wayne Moss) - 2:18
4. Quit While You're A Head (Song Of Sensible Compromise) (Wayne Moss, John Harris) - 3:15
5. Blood Is Not The Answer (Mac Gayden, John Harris) - 5:32
6. Come To Me Tonight (Mac Gayden, Joe Gayden) - 4:44
7. Finishing Touches (Mac Gayden) - 4:16
8. The Minstrel Is Free At Last (Mac Gayden, John Harris) - 5:17
9. Nobody Knows (PD Arr. Barefoot Jerry) - 1:22
10. That's OK, He'll Be Your Brother Someday (Kenny Buttrey, Mac Gayden, John Harris, Wayne Moss) - 4:46

Barefoot Jerry 1972
11. Castle Rock (John Harris) - 4:39
12. One Woman (Wayne Moss) - 2:48
13. In God We Trust (Bobby Thompson, Eileen Thompson) - 5:28
14. Message (Wayne Moss) - 3:12
15. Friends (Wayne Moss, John Harris) - 4:23
16. Snuff Queen (Russ Hicks) - 0:56
17. Little Maggie (Trad. Arr. Barefoot Jerry) - 3:12
18. Warm (Russ Hicks, Kenny Malone, Wayne Moss) - 3:32
19. Fish 'N' Tits (Wayne Moss) - 2:01
20. Ain't It Nice In Here (Wayne Moss) - 4:32
21. Ebenezer (John Harris) - 4:04

Barefoot Jerry
Southern Delight 1971
*Mac Gayden - Bass, Guitar, Vocals
*Wayne Moss - Bass, Guitar, Vocals
*Kenny Buttrey - Drums, Vocals
*John Harris – Keyboards

Barefoot Jerry 1972
*Wayne Moss - Bass, Guitar, Organ, Vocals,
*Russ Malone - Drums, Percussion
*John Harris - Keyboards, Vocals
*Russ Hicks - Steel Guitar, Vocals

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Rare Bird - As Your Mind Flies By (1970 uk, superb progressive rock, 2nd album, 2007 esoteric bonus tracks release)

Rare Bird's second album "As Your Mind Flies By" turned out to be their classic release. It's stuffed with a great 70's atmosphere and flawless songwriting. All the 5 tracks on the album are impressivly strong. "What You Want to Know" and "I'm Thinking" are melodic, organ-driven, early 70's progressive rock at its best.

The arrangements have lots of cool, twisted and varied organ-sounds and the vocals are great. The rest of side one is made up of the short, baroque-influenced "Down on the Floor" and the great, heavy-progressive "Hammerhead". The second side consists of the 20-minute "Flight". This is one of those tracks that will make any fan of 70's progressive rock cry of joy.

The first part of it is quite dramatic and classical-influenced, then it goes into a great jamming part with a choir and excellent duels between the organ playing of Graham Field and the twisted el-piano of Dave Kaffinetti. The two last parts of the track are energetic and heavy with the most perfect organ-sounds you can imagine. With no doubt one of the best progressive rock albums from 1970. By the way, the single-release of "What You Want to Know" had a very different arrangement from the album-version.
Vintage-Prog

Tracks
1. What you want to know - 5:59
2. Down on the floor - 2:41
3. Hammerhead - 3:31
4. I'm thinking - 5:40
5. Flight - 19:39
…As your mind flies by
…Vacuum
…New York
…Central Park
6. What you want to know (Bonus track, Mono single version) - 3:34
7. Hammerhead (Bonus track, Mono single version) - 3:23
8. Red man (Bonus track) - 3:29

Rare Bird
*Mark Ashton - Drums, Vocals
*Graham Field - Organ, Assorted Keyboards
*Steve Gould - Lead Vocals, Bass Guitar
*Dave Kaffinetti - Electric Piano, Assorted Keyboards

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The J. Geils Band - Blow Your Face Out (1976 us, r 'n' b blues rock, recorded loud to play loud)

Double-album live sets came into vogue in 1976 after Peter Frampton's sales went through the roof for A&M, Bob Seger found fame with Live Bullet on Capitol, and the J. Geils Band released its second in-concert document in four years, Blow Your Face Out. There is great power in these grooves recorded over two nights, November 15 and November 19, at the now deconstructed Boston Garden and in Detroit at Cobo Hall.

Here's the beautiful dilemma with the Geils band: Live: Full House, recorded in Detroit in April of 1972, contains five songs that became J. Geils standards, and none of them overlap on the 1982 EMI single live disc, Showtime, chock-full of their latter-day classics. Can you believe there is absolutely no overlap from the first or third live album on this double disc, which came in between (except for "Looking for a Love," uncredited, which they slip into the intro of "Houseparty" on side two)? The Rhino CD contains Jeff Tamarkin's liner notes, while the original Atlantic album has an exquisite gatefold chock-full of photos, and inner sleeves with priceless band memo stuff à la Grand Funk's Live Album.

Sides one and two are great, and three and four are even better. "Detroit Breakdown" rocks and grooves, with tons of audience applause...Wolfy and the polished authority of his monologues are in command as the band oozes into "Chimes" from 1973's Ladies Invited. About three and a half minutes longer than the five-minute original, it is one of many highlights on this revealing pair of discs. A precursor to 1977's title track, "Monkey Island," "Chimes" gives this enigmatic band a chance to jam out slowly and lovingly over its groove.

There is so much to this album: the Janis Joplin standard "Raise Your Hand" written by Eddie Floyd, Albert Collins' "Sno-Cone" from their first album, and "Truck Drivin' Man" beating Bachman-Turner Overdrive to the punch. B.B. King producer Bill Szymczyk does a masterful job bringing it all together, and the band photos on back look...roguish. "Must of Got Lost," "Where Did Our Love Go," and "Give It to Me" are here in all their glory, a different glory than the studio versions, on an album that should have done for Geils what Live Bullet and Frampton Comes Alive did for their respective artists.

If only a legitimate release of their 1999 tour would be issued to stand next to this monster -- during that tour they combined the best elements of all three of their previous live discs. The J. Geils Band is more important and influential than the boys have been given credit for. It will be the live documents that ensure they eventually get their due, and Blow Your Face Out is a very worthy component that can still frazzle speakers.
by Joe Viglione

Tracks
1. Southside Shuffle - 4:16
2. Back To Get Ya - 4:38
3. Shoot Your Shot (A. DeWalt, L. Horn, J. Graves) - 3:56
4. Musta Got Lost - 6:34
5. Where Did Our Love Go (E. Holland. L. Dozier, B. Holland) - 4:00
6. Truck Drivin' Man (Terry Fell) - 1:52
7. Love-Itis (H. Scales, A. Vance) - 4:05
8. Intro: (Lookin' For A Love) (J. Alexander, Z. Samuels) - 2:06
9. (Ain't Nothin' But A) House Party (Del Sharh, J. Thomas) - 5:04
10. So Sharp (Arlester Christian) - 2:38
11. Detroit Breakdown - 6:25
12. Chimes - 8:56
13. Sno-Cone (Albert Collins) - 3:04
14. Wait - 3:44
15. Raise Your Hand (Eddie Floyd) - 4:08
16. Start All Over - 2:21
17. Give It To Me - 6:52
All songs by Peter Wolf and Seth Justman except where noted. 

J. Geils Band
*Peter Wolf - Vocals
*Seth Justman - Keyboards And Vocals
*Magic Dick - Harp
*J. Geils - Guitar
*Danny Klein - Bass
*Stephen Jo Bladd - Percussion And Vocals

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Rare Bird - Rare Bird (1969 uk, remarkable heavy progressive, debut album, 2007 esoteric remaster bonus tracks issue)

Rare Bird was an early British prog rock band. The band formed in October 1969, and got their debut album out the following month, which is really quite an accomplishment, since it usually takes a band a year or more after their formation to get an album out, not to mention it usually takes two or three months to get the album out after the band records it.

This was the very first album ever released on Charisma, the same label that gave us Genesis, Van der Graaf Generator/Peter Hammill, Lindisfarne, Capability Brown, and even Monty Python. Rare Bird was an odd band, for they had two keyboardists (David Kaffinetti on electric piano, Graham Field on organ), as well as bassist (Steve Gould, who also handled vocals), and drummer (Mark Ashton), but no one on guitar. It's interesting to note that Kaffinetti later appeared on the infamous 1984 movie of a mock heavy metal band, This Is Spinal Tap. By that time, his name was shortened to David Kaff. He played Vic on that film.

Rare Bird had a rather unique sound and the powerful vocals of Steve Gould helps. The album has some really great prog rock numbers like "Beautiful Scarlet", "Iceberg", and the ever sinister "God of War" (my favorite). The album also features "Sympathy" which was actually a hit for these guys in Continental Europe. Written, obviously, during the Vietnam War-era, the song features lyrics I feel are just as relevant today (if not more so): "Sympathy is what we need, my friend/'Cause there's not enough love to go around" and "Half the world hates the other half/and half the world has all the food/and half the world lies down and quietly starves/'Cause there's not enough love to go around". In this era of conservative politicians screwing us all, and threats of going to war in the Middle East, it's real easy to relate to this song.

"Times" is an odd one, because it starts off sounds like a 1950s song, sounding like how Little Richard might sound like if he played organ rather than piano, then the second half goes in to more typical prog rock territory. There are a couple of other shorter pieces like "You Went Away", "Nature's Fruit", and "Bird On a Wing" which are all great songs.

I always felt Rare Bird's debut is a bit underrated compared to their 1970 followup As Your Mind Flies By, in fact I actually prefer this album to As Your Mind Flies By (which is a fine album, by the way). More great music, particularly if you like early, organ-driven British

by Ben Miler

Tracks

1. Iceberg - 6:56

2. Times - 3:24

3. You Went Away - 4:39

4. Melanie - 3:28

5. Beautiful Scarlet - 5:23

6. Sympathy - 2:30

7. Nature's Fruit - 2:32

8. Bird On A wing - 4:13

9. God Of War - 5:30

10.Devil's High Concern (Bonus Track) - 2:47

11.Sympathy (Mono, Bonus Track) - 2:34

Rare Bird

*Mark Ashton - Drums, Vocals

*Graham Field - Organ, Keyboards

*Steve Gould - Bass Guitar, Saxophone, Vocals

*Dave Kaffinetti - Keyboards, Electric Piano

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Accolade - Accolade 2 (1971 uk, fabulous folk rock with jazzy slices)

Accolade's one of those short-lived late-1960s/early-1970s English bands that attempted to expand musical boundaries, mixing traditional English folk with some rock influences.

Following a personnel shakeup that saw singer/guitarist Gordon Giltrap strike out on his own, the band returned with 1971's cleverly titled "Accolade 2". Again produced by Don Paul, Capitol executives apparently deciding the set had no commercial potential and passed on the opportunity to release the album domestically. That was unfortunate given the band's sophomore effort was actually far stronger than the debut.

With Partridge continuing to serve as chief writer (he's credited with six of the ten songs), his contributions were far more varied than on the first LP. Musically the set was pretty entertaining, mixing acoustic folk and jazzy touches with occasional slices of more pop and rock-oriented material. Highlights included the opener 'Transworld Blues', the surprisingly taunt rocker 'The Spider To the Spy' (sporting some of the year's most inept harmony vocals) and the bizarre 'Cross Continental Pandemonium Theatre Company'.

Admittedly it wasn't something that immediately grabbed my ears, but this is one of those albums that rewards patience. The first time around it doesn't sound like anything special, but with repeated spins, it grows on you revealing considerable charms.
Bad-Cat

Tracks
1. Transworld Blues - 3:22
2. The Spider to The Spy - 2:33
3. Baby, Take Your Rags Off - 3:17
4. Cross Continental Pandemonium Theatre Company (B. Cresswell, I. Hoyle, D. Partridge, M.Poole) - 11:02
5. Snakes In a Hole (Georg Wadnius, Tommy Borgudd) - 3:25
6. The Time I've Wasted - 2:37
7. Sector Five Nine - 2:20
8. If Only I'd Known (Wizz Jones) - 2:08
9. William Taplin (Gordon Giltrap) - 4:55
10.Long Way to Go - 5:07
All songs by Don Partridge except otherwise stated.

Accolade
*Don Partridge - Vocals, Acoustic Guitar, Vibraphone
*Malcolm Poole - Contrabass, Fiddle
*Ian Hoyle - Drums
*Brian Cresswell - Flute, Alto Saxophone
*Wizz Jones - Vocals
*Mike Moran - Piano

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Sunforest - Sound Of Sunforest (1969 us, beautiful folk, sunshine pop with traditional and baroque glances, japan remaster)

The Sun - the beginning Of life in out solar system The Symbol, therefore, of creation Representing joy and love The finest attributes of life The Sun is giving, we receive As inhabitants of this earth The Forest, which contains all Wherein dwell sheltering trees Rising to worship the lifegiving sun All animals, plants and finally Man Inhabit the vast forest of the earth Desert, mountain, green valley and sea The Earth, from which spring all creatures Nature's art - informed to live Inspired to create and understand In the light of the giving sun At night we rest by the gentle lamp The moon, the jeweled starts Then by the soft brightness of dawn Persuaded, we rise again - Once more light and life Reign silent, strong and pure In the Forest of the Sun
by Freya Lynn Houge

A mellowness of cool sound Vibrations of personality in song A gentle harmony of tempered soul A rose colored glass filled to capacity With love for music and out neighbors. Welcome to Sunforest!
by Vic Smith

Terry Tucker went to London with two girlfriends, Erika Eigen and Freya Houge, to become pop singers and were discovered almost right away in a working class cafe drinking tea. A man came in a fur coat from Decca Records, wanted to hear their songs and they went to the studio that night and recorded a demo. Two weeks later they wanted to record an album and he became their manager. They were his American girls. The recorded their one and only album Sound of Sunforest in 1969.

Kubrick wanted her to record Overture for the Sun for the soundtrack. It got recorded again, Terry wrote some changes in the arrangement for the film. It was exciting. It just fell into their lap. In those days they never tried to make anything happen, just follow their nose and it happened. Overture is instrumental, like a little renaissance piece. Terry wrote and arranged it, played harpsichord on it. Lighthouse Keeper is a song that Erica wrote and Terry sang backup on it and played the piano. Terry stayed in England about 12 years and came home to the US after the band broke up.
by Malcolm McDowell

Tracks
1. Overture to the Sun (Terry Tucker) - 1:40
2. Where Are You (Eigen, Hogue, Harry Smith) - 2:42
3. Bonny River (Freya Lynn Hoguer) - 2:41
4. Be Like Me (Freya Lynn Hoguer, Terry Tucker) - 2:10
5. Mr. Bumble (Terry Tucker) - 1:50
6. And I Was Blue (Freya Lynn Hoguer, Terry Tucker) - 2:50
7. Lighthouse Keeper (Erika Eigen) - 2:04
8. Old Cluck (Freya Lynn Hoguer) - 2:41
9. Lady Next Door (Erika Eigen, Freya Lynn Hoguer, Terry Tucker) - 2:26
10.Peppermint Store (Freya Lynn Hoguer) - 2:00
11.Magician in the Mountain (Harry Smith) - 4:09
12.Lovely Day (Freya Lynn Hoguer) - 2:45
13.Give Me All Your Loving (Erika Eigen, Freya Lynn Hoguer, Terry Tucker) - 2:38
14.Garden Rug (Terry Tucker) - 2:13
15.All in Good Time (Freya Lynn Hoguer, Terry Tucker) - 3:45

Sunforest
*Terry Tucker - Piano, Harmonium, Harpsichord, Organ Hammond
*Freya Lynn Hogue – Spanish Guitar, Banjo, Vocals
*Erika Eigen - Latin American Percussion, Bells
Guest Musicians
*Herbie Flowers, Joe Mudele - Bass Guitar
*Cecil James - Bassoon
*Malca Cossak - Cello
*Dougie Wright, Ronnie Verrel - Drums
*Jim Sullivan - Electric Guitar
*Andy McGavin - French Horn
* John Burden - French Horn
*Les Baldwin, S. Sutcliffe - Oboe
*Jim Lawles, John Blanchard, Reg Weller - Percussion
*Harry Smith - Piccolo Flute, Flute, Clarinet
*Cliff Haines, Les London, Ralph Eizen - Trumpet
*Alfie Reece - Tuba
*F. Riddle - Viola
*D. Wolfstal, R. Mosley - Violin
*Erika Eigen, Freya Hogue, Terry Tucker - Vocals

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Spriguns - Time Will Pass (1977 uk, magnificent progressive electric folk, 2004 japan remaster)

England has incredibly good folk music items. Some groups are more leaning towards traditional folk, some are more folkrock (of which Trees is one of my favourites). Some of the more original/progressive folkrock will be listed on these pages more easily (The Pentangle, Gryphon, Spirogyra, Fotheringay are some of my own favourites). And also The Spriguns are also one of the more original bands who were rooted in folkrock, but Mandy Morton thoroughly conceptualized her own visions, with the help of the band, comparable to what Sandy Denny tried. Sandy Denny was heavily admired by Mandy Morton, who dedicated the titletrack of her 1978 album to her, “Magic Lady”.

Even when albums like that and “Time Will Pass”, which are the strongest starters of all Mandy Morton & Spriguns related albums, we had to wait for reissues of these albums for a very long time. The band had started off as Spriguns Of Tolgus with more traditional folk inspirations with their own visions. Both albums are also very much worth tracing. Most of these albums were only very limited available mostly only through Japanese and Korean reissues.

Mandy Morton led much more the band away from the limitations in creativity of folk and even folkrock visions, but kept the whole typical linear heritage of England’s culture, with references to Renaissance and medieval times that brings an idea of magic, giving that way more colour and depth in background to the inspirations. Sandy Roberton did the production. He produced before the early folk/folkrock albums of Steeleye Span. Especially on the opener “Dead Man’s Eyes” we can hear a comparable approach of an influence of folk mixed with a straight rock rhythm.

The lush orchestrations on “All Before” by Robert Kirby* are comparable to some Sandy Denny tracks, while especially on the closing track, “Letter to a lady” the arrangements that confirm the old England blossoming days with bassoon and such, are most impressive. Most arrangements are definitely making the best of a singer-songwriting vision, with tracks that have rather progressive or often crafted even at times with its own subtleness, heavy rocking arrangements.

I must also mention how Mandy also has a beautiful coloured voice and singing and a personality and vision that give this album a masterly musically conceptual vision, which made this album an essential classic.

Tracks
1. Dead Man's Eyes - 3:46
2. All Before - 2:44
3. For You - 3:37
4. Time Will Pass - 2:28
5. White Witch - 3:04
6. Blackwaterside (Traditional) - 5:13
7. You're Not There - 2:51
8. Devil's Night - 2:52
9. Letter To A Lady - 5:11

All songs by Mandy Morton except track #6

Spriguns
*Mandy Morton - Lead Vocals, Acoustic Guitar
*Wayne Morrison - Lead Guitar, Acoustic Guitars, Mandolin, Vocals
*Dick Powell - Electric Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals
*Mike Morton - Bass, Vocals
*Dennis Dunstan - Drums, Percussion
Additional Musicians 
*Robert Kirby - Orchestral Arrangements
*Lea Nicholson - Concertina
*Tom Ling - Electric Violin

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Peter Bardens - The Answer (1970 uk, psychedelic/progressive rock, 2010 esoteric remaster with extra tracks)

Reading the liner notes of this recent reissue of Peter Bardens’ 1970 debut The Answer, reveals a prolific artist kept busy prior to his finding fame as the keyboardist with progressive rock group Camel. Aside from the psychedelic Ladbroke Grove act, The Village, he played in a whole host of bands during the British “Blues Boom” of the mid-sixties, alongside future household names such as Mick Fleetwood, Peter Green and Premier League rogerer, Sir Rodney of Stewart.

And there’s an element of blues rock bubbling away beneath the psychedelic/progressive mix that forms The Answer, particularly with regards to Bardens’ vocal delivery, which is a full-bodied blues drawl and, on occasion, remarkably similar in sound to another royal lady-roisterer, a certain Michael Jagger.

The title-track, first up on the album, is awash with energetic blues guitar licks, in this case provided by an uncredited Peter Green, which is bolstered throughout by Bardens’ elaborate organ artistry and pseudo-philosophical lyricism, popular in progressive and underground rock circles of this era.

The blues guitar continues through the eerie mire that is ‘Don’t Goof With a Spook’, where the Jaggerisms are possibly at their strongest, and the excellent acid-soaked freak-rock of ‘I Can’t Remember’, with its hedonistic tribal undercurrent in addition to the masterclass of swirling keyboard extravagance.

‘I Don’t Want to Go Home’ and ‘Let’s Get It On’, both of which also feature an uncredited Peter Green on lead guitar, are more in the standard blues-rock vein and as such a little more formulaic, but following on from something as undeniably strong as the three aforementioned tracks that open The Answer, is always going to be a thankless task.

Which brings us nicely to the B-side spanning closing track of the original album. Running just shy of 14 minutes, ‘Homage to the God of Light’ is a spectacular journey into the outer reaches of psychedelic-prog, bringing to mind the early instrumental excursions of Pink Floyd and the exalted voyagers of space rock, Hawkwind. Bardens really gives the organ a punishing workout on this captivating, and lengthy, illustration of finest, ye olde underground gallivanting. A worthy highlight to an all round worthy album.

The reissue also throws in The Village’s excellent psychedelic single ‘The Man in the Moon’ and its instrumental B-side, ‘Long Time Coming’.
by Nick James

Tracks
1. The Answer - 5:25
2. Don’t Goof With A Spook - 7:21
3. I Can’t Remember - 10:41
4. I Don’t Want To Go Home - 5:13
5. Let’s Get It On - 6:36
6. Homage to the God of Light - 13:32
7. Man In The Moon (Bonus Tracks as Village) - 4:13
8. Long Time Coming (Bonus Tracks as Village) - 2:33
All compositions written by Peter Bardens.

Musicians
*Peter Bardens - Keyboards, Vocals
*Steve Ellis - Vocal
*Andy Gee - Guitar
*Reg Isadore - Drums
*Linda Lewis - Vocal
*Alan Marshall - Vocal, Percussion
*Bruce Thomas - Bass
*David Wooley - Vocal
*Rocky - Congas
*Bruce Thomas - Bass Guitar (Village)
*Bill Porter - Drums (Village)

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