AUM - RESURRECTION 1969

San Francisco act who were a very popular around the city's ballrooms in the late 60's. This their second album is from 1969 and it's a really diverse affair with a mixture of hard rock and psychedelic numbers. The title track is a dreamy epic affair with some great guitar work while a gospel tinge creeps in on "God is Back in Town". This is worthy of investigation. Originally on Bill Graham's Fillmore label.

Tracks :

1. God Is Back In Town
2. Resurrection
3. Only I Know
4. Bye Bye Baby
5. Today & Tomorrow
6. Little Brown Hen
7. Aum
8. Pachuko Boogie

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HARVEST FLIGHT - ONE WAY 1971

Very pro-sounding 1970s Christian hippie folkrock LP with a slicker sound than universally loved Jesus rock monsters like Kristyl et al. Impressive vocal harmonies manage to convey a wide range of emotions within the realm of an elaborate production. Other notable features include typical 70s keyboard wizardry, some good guitar, and intricate Third Estate-style arrangements that occasionally stray into the overambitious. Includes a cover of "One in spirit", rest is group originals. May be too much of a mainstream studio Steely Dan trip for some, but apart from one atypical country track I think it's pretty good. Release year seems to be 1971 but it actually sounds more like 1975-76 to me. Apart from the back cover difference, the original press has a different font on the front cover logo, and the label logo in the left corner instead of the right.



Tracks :

1 - Prologue
2 - Kingdom
3 - Change
4 - One in the Spirit
5 - Share
6 - Country Tune
7 - Joy of Salvation
8 - Truth
9 - Free
10 - Epilogue

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MAGGIE BELL - SUICIDE SAL 1970

In 1975 MAGGIE BELL’S second solo album was released to much critical acclaim having been recorded at RINGO STARR’s Studio, Tittenhurst Park, Ascot, England 'Suicide Sal' was a different sort of album to its
predecessor 'Queen Of The Night' as she had been playing live over the past year and the material had already been “road tested” and she captured on this release more of a 'rockier' live feel.
Fellow label mate JIMMY PAGE of Led Zeppelin even played on one of the tracks.
The release did particularly well in Germany and USA with one reviewer Tom Nolan stating “This LP signals Maggie Bell’s arrival as the fine, powerful singer we had been touted to expect. I have a feeling people will be playing this one for years” Enough said.




Tracks :

1. Wishing Well
2. Suicide Sal
3. I Was In Chains
4. If You Don’t Know
5. What You Got
6. In My Life
7. Comin On Strong
8. Hold On
9. I Saw Him Standing There
10. It’s Been So Long

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OMNIBUS - S/T 1970

Omnibus was Boston based band combining moody westcoast style organ sound with fuzzy psych guitar. The album was recorded in New York and produced by Steve and Eric Nathanson (who were the producers of Boffalongo).















Tracks :

1 Man Song
2 It's All in Your Heart
3 Shake It Off
4 Understand
5 Above Me
6 Den of Sin
7 Boogus Black and Blues
8 Spring
9 Winding Thru Your Heart
10 Harmony
11 Big Daddy Slave
12 Tired of Screamin'

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KEEF HARTLEY BAND - OVERDOG 1971

Together with Colosseum, the Keef Hartley Band of the late 60s, forged jazz and rock music sympathetically to appeal to the UK progressive music scene. Drummer Hartley had already seen vast experience in live performances as Ringo Starr's replacement in Rory Storm And The Hurricanes. When Merseybeat died, Hartley was enlisted by the London based R&B band the Artwoods, whose line-up included future Deep Purple leader Jon Lord. Hartley was present on their only album, "Art Gallery" (now a much sought-after collectors item). He joined John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and was present during one of Mayall’s vintage periods. Both "Crusade" and "Diary Of A Band" highlighted Hartley's economical drumming and faultless timing. The brass-laden instrumental track on John Mayall's "Bare Wires" is titled "Hartley Quits". The good-natured banter between Hartley and his ex-boss continued onto Hartley's strong debut, "Halfbreed". The opening track "Hearts And Flowers" has the voice of Mayall on the telephone officially sacking Hartley, albeit tongue-in-cheek, while the closing track "Sacked" has Hartley dismissing Mayall! The music in-between features some of the best ever late 60s jazz-influenced blues, and the album remains an undiscovered classic. The band for the first album comprised: Miller Anderson, guitar and vocals, the late Gary Thain (b. New Zealand d. 19 March 1976; bass), later with Uriah Heep; Peter Dines (organ) and Spit James (guitar). Later members to join Hartley's fluid lineup included Mick Weaver (aka Wynder K. Frog) organ, Henry Lowther (b. 11 July 1941, Leicester, England; trumpet/violin), Jimmy Jewell (saxophone), Johnny Almond (flute), Jon Hiseman and Harry Beckett. Hartley, often dressed as an American Indian, sometimes soberly, sometimes in full head-dress and war-paint, was a popular attraction on the small club scene. His was one of the few British bands to play the Woodstock Festival, where his critics compared him favourably with Blood Sweat And Tears. "The Battle Of NW6" in 1969 further enhanced his club reputation, although chart success still eluded him. By the time of the third album both Lowther and Jewell had departed, although Hartley always maintained that his band was like a jazz band, in that musicians would come and go and be free to play with other aggregations.


Tracks :


1. You can Choose (Anderson)
2. Plain Talkin' (Anderson)
3. Theme Song (Anderson)
Enroute (Hartley/Thain)
Theme Song-Reprise (Anderson)
4. Overdog (Anderson)
5. Roundabout (Anderson)
6. Imitations from Home (Hartley)
7. We are all the same (Anderson)

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BELLE & SEBASTIAN - FOLD YOUR HAND CHILD, YOU WALK LIKE A PEASANT 2000

Amongst B&S fans and critics alike, the debate over which album is the best could go on and on forever...probably long after the band finally calls it quits. When you've got in one corner the sunshine-soaked "The Boy With the Arab Strap," the solid, yet strangely menacing, "If You're Feeling Sinister" in another and this fantastic culmination of the "Belle and Sebastian sound" in yet another, it's hard to pinpoint one particular album as the best.

What certainly is a tough argument to make may be the most unnecessary. If there's anything that this band is truly good at is being consistent with their sound and their apparent motive for making music. The often-called "twee kids" and their baroque chamber-pop style has virtually been defined by B&S and you can hear it in its glory throughout their discography. They've been paving a new road with excellent LPs and EPs for us loyal fans to enjoy for years ahead. "Unique" is an understatement.

With that said, "Fold Your Hands, Child, You Walk Like a Peasant" only enforces the idea that when Belle and Sebastian are "in the zone," they don't let up. The wide variety found on this particular album (yet still maintaining the light, 60's-ish sound) is irresistible. "The Wrong Girl," for example, may be the most infectious B&S single to date. (Including the single-ridden "Dear Catastrophe Waitress" album!) Tracks like "The Chalet Lines" and "The Model" are classic B&S, yet sound fresh and new like an album truly should.

Though B&S have definitely carved a niche into popular music with their intelligent, yet vibrant and playful, sound, they continue to break ahead into all the nooks and crannies of their style to give us something wonderful to fall in love with...with each and every album. "Fold Your Hands..." is simply another strong (I say strongest!) example of how one band's initiative is too pure and precise to be broken.

Tracks :

1 I Fought In A War
2 Model, The
3 Beyond This Sunrise
4 Waiting For The Moon To Rise
5 Don't Leave The Light On, Baby
6 Wrong Girl, The
7 Chalet Lines, The
8 Nice Day For A Sulk
9 Woman's Realm
10 Family Tree
11 There's Too Much Love

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GYPSY - IN THE GARDEN 1971

This was Gypsy's second album. The song "As Far As You Can See (As Much As You Can Feel)" is a 12 minute epic which is probably their best song from all of their albums. This song also received the most radio airplay from this album.

This was the most collectable Gypsy album up until the time it was released on CD. This album was regularly priced at $25.00 and up in Goldmine magazine, record stores in the midwest, and at record shows. Copies of the vinyl LP in mint condition will still command a significant price. This group has matured greatly with this second album. The basic music is structured much like their first LP, but the sound is more together and the organ, played by Jimmy Walsh, seems to be the focal point of the group's maturity. "As Far As You Can See" is an enchanting education; while the second side of the LP contains one view of paradise entitled "Here in the Garden," and two other explicitly religious tunes.

Tracks :

1. "Around You" – 5:27
2. "Reach Out Your Hand" – 2:33
3. "As Far As You Can See (As Much As You Can Feel)"
(Rosenbaum with intro by Lordan/Walsh) – 12:09
4. "Here in the Garden I" – 6:43
5. "Here in the Garden II" – 3:07
6. "Blind Man" – 3:59
7. "Time Will Make It Better" (Walsh) – 2:53

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THE MANDRAKE MEMORIAL - MEDIUM 1969

Mandrake Memorial's sound didn't change that much between their first and second album, but Medium is definitely a letdown after their fine self-titled debut. Although it retained the solemn vocals and classical-tinged electronic keyboards, as well as some jazz and Indian influences, there was a drift toward a harder rock sound and longer, more meandering songs. It's the compositions that drag the record down the most, as they aren't nearly as tuneful or concise as those on their first release. Too, while much of the material on the first album had a buoyant, soaring quality, there was a bit of a somber, bummed-out feeling on this one, as if the musicians were in regretful repose from exultant flight. The comparison might seem strange, but at times it sounded like the Youngbloods might have if they'd taken their jazzier and more experimental tendencies to more self-consciously progressive ends. There was less emphasis on harmony vocals this time around, too, and Randy Monaco's vocals had a sorrowful quality that sometimes recalled those of Lawrence Hammond from the barely-better-known-than-Mandrake Memorial band Mad River, though Monaco wasn't quite as doleful. All these criticisms make the album seem worse than it was: there's some interesting psychedelic interplay between guitar, keyboard, and vocals, and it's not unpleasant. But it doesn't go anywhere particularly exciting, either. ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide

Tracks :

Snake Charmer
Witness the End/Celebration
Other Side
Last Number
After Pascal
Smokescreen
Barnaby Plum
Cassandra

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RICK SAUCEDO - HEAVEN WAS BLUE 1978

Rick Saucedo is a musician, songwriter, actor, and Elvis tribute artist. Born November 20, 1955 and raised in the city of Chicago, Illinois, Saucedo had an increasing interest in music. He had always appreciated the music of Elvis Presley, but in 1972, one song caught his attention. "Burning Love", a 1972 Elvis hit, was the main catalyst for Saucedo to create a tribute performance to Elvis Presley. At the age of seventeen, Saucedo began performing in nightclubs and bars around Chicago. Upon forming his band, The Ambassadors, Saucedo landed the role of Elvis in the 1978 Broadway musical Elvis-The Legend Lives. Along with Elvis' original backup group, The Jordanaires, Elvis' original drummer, D.J. Fontana, and original backup vocalist Millie Kirkham, Saucedo recreated Elvis' career. Ever since, Saucedo has been credited as one of the original Elvis tribute artists. He has been performing longer than Elvis did and it was his full-time job before people made habits out of impersonating Elvis. Decades later, Saucedo is still considered one of the top tributes to Elvis and has never stopped entertaining. He performs at clubs, restaurants, festivals, theaters, casinos, banquet halls, and more. Saucedo's schedule has him performing at over one hundred places a year.

Tracks :

01 - Reality - 4.25
02 - In My Mind - 4.12
03 - Country Shakin´ History Makin´ - 2.48
04 - Ka Mon Gonna Rock All Night Long - 3.52
05 - Heaven Was Blue - 18.29

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AZTECS - LIVE 1971

Billy Thorpe was Australia ’s musical chameleon. There was pop star pin up Billy, heavy rocking, long haired Billy, space travelling Billy, popular author Billy and revivalist rock Billy just to name a few. Such was the man’s contribution to the Australian music scene. No wonder his sudden death left so many music fans shattered. Everyone felt they knew him, and his music provided the soundtrack to so many Australian lives. No words can really sum up what he meant to Australian rock’n’roll, other than to say that the outpouring of grief and shock at his death was genuine and heartfelt. Australians simply loved Billy Thorpe.

Aztec Music have become the saviours of Australian rock music, consistently preserving a period when Oz rock had emerged as a genuinely original and powerful voice of a nation that was emerging confidently, shaking of the torpor of 23 years of Liberal Party dominance.

The excellent sleeve notes here utilise interviews with Billy Thorpe and Lobby Loyde, which make them all the more valuable, as well as Gil Matthews, Warren Morgan and Paul Wheeler. Conducted in February 2007, they emphasise just how important it is to get these stories recorded. They now serve to give us the definitive last word on this wonderfully colourful time in Australian music.

The music here captures one of those rare moments in rock history. For those who can remember, we can only drool at the lineup this Aztec performance was part of. A bill at Melbourne Town Hall on June 13 1971 also featured Chain, Daddy Cool, the Wild Cherries, La De Das, Healing Force and Lotus! Knowing what a barnstorming show it would be, the Aztecs opted to record their set for an album and TV show. The result is the first half of this powerful disc. Six tracks that capture the Thorpe, Morgan, Matthews and Wheeler as they really sounded, powerful and passionate.

The opening “Somebody Left Me Crying” features Morgan playing the Melbourne Town Hall pipe organ. Morgan had created a special piece to showcase the organ, and the song that emerged has a special place in Aztec history. In the sleeve notes Thorpe claims to have made the song up on the spot as a result of being overwhelmed at the huge sound of the organ as he walked on stage. Matthews disputes this, pointing to the fact that the band knew the chords to play along. Whatever the truth, it’s testament to a sound that was rapidly emerging, and sounds even more impressive on today’s digital sound equipment.

It’s easy to forget that the Aztecs didn’t emerge as instant heroes of the youth movement. Thorpie wasn’t initially a guitarist, and the lineup seesawed as it searched for “the sound”. This concert is seven months before Sunbury, but shows how important the brief Lobby Loyde Aztec period was in allowing Thorpe to move on from his pop star image.

“Time To Live” captures the band emerging as a rock powerhouse, and “Be Bop A Lula” is the link between Thorpe’s late fifties Brisbane rock’n’roll origins and the soon to be iconic Sunbury Aztecs. “Momma” is excitement personified, and features a Gil Matthews (“I’d like to introduce our new drummer”) drum solo to remind you that it was 1971. This is a time capsule, but it stands today as a loud, joyous celebration of rock music. Really, it is the sound of a generation preparing to blow 23 years of conservative dominance away, the Aztecs as the voice of change.

If the CD only contained the Melbourne Town Hall concert it would be easily worth its price, but here the bonus tracks more than double its value. You get the complete A and B sides of the three Havoc singles the band recorded. Although never a singles band, “The Dawn Song”, “Most People I Know” and “Believe It Just Like Me" retain a special place in the hearts of early seventies radio devotees. The B sides also capture the jamming side of the band. The studio version of “Time To Live” presents an opportunity to compare the live and studio sounds of the band directly.

Rounding out the collection is another rarity, a previously unreleased version of “Long Live Rock’n’Roll” recorded live at the Rosebud outdoor festival in 1972. It features the Sunbury Aztecs lineup with Bruce Howard replacing Warren Morgan on keyboards. It’s a fitting end to this unique collection, leading neatly into the Live! At Sunbury release.

This is a fitting requiem for Thorpie – a disc that captures the sound of the band that crystallised what it meant to be young for a generation of Australians. Just one final word: make sure that if you really want to pay tribute to Billy Thorpe, put this on somewhere that you can play it very loud!

Tracks :

Somebody left me crying
Time to live
Be -bop- a-lula
Momma

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Kind of a minor league version of the Doors, Clear Light were a West Coast phenomenon, and although they didn't last too long, were an interesting group. A very good slice of Los Angeles psychedelia, Clear Light were a six-piece band that combined folk, rock, psychedelia, and even a touch of classical to their sound. The end result, though, is a little ponderous and pretentious, but strangely listenable. The big hit off this album (produced by Paul Rothchild and engineered by Bruce Botnick) was "Mr. Blue," a psychedelic folk song written by Tom Paxton. It's over six-minutes long and a bit overbaked, but it does have an odd appeal. The finer moments are guitarist Bob Seal's psychedelic folk-rock songs, namely "With All in Mind" and "They Who Have Nothing." Singer Cliff DeYoung went on to have a successful acting career, bass player Doug Lubahn played on the early Doors albums, Dallas Taylor went on to drum for Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and John Sebastian, and keyboardist Ralph Schuckett became one of the more popular West Coast session players and arrangers. A lot of talent in a short-lived ensemble. Dated but charming West Coast psychedelia. ~ Matthew Greenwald, All Music Guide

Tracks :


01 Black Roses 2:09
02 Sand 2:38
03 A Child's Smile 1:37
04 Street Singer 3:17
05 The Ballad of Freddie & Larry 1:56
06 With All in Mind 2:58
07 She's Ready to Be Free [bonus track] 1:58
08 Mr. Blue 6:25
09 Think Again 1:37
10 They Who Have Nothing 2:34
11 How Many Days Have Passed 2:24
12 Night Sounds Loud 2:26

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CRAZY HORSE - S/T 1971

Members of this band had already released an album in 1968 as The Rockets, and had appeared on record twice with Young as Crazy Horse.

The core trio from the Rockets, Danny Whitten, Billy Talbot, and Ralph Molina, provided instrumental backing for Young's 1969 album Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere, and performed on some songs from Young's 1970 album After the Gold Rush. During sessions for the latter, they met guitar prodigy Nils Lofgren, and producer/keyboardist Jack Nitzsche of Phil Spector's Wrecking Crew and Rolling Stones fame, also on hand in supportive roles. They meshed, and Crazy Horse expanded into a quartet to back up Young for a short tour in early 1970, and then into a quintet with Lofgren for this album, picking up a contract with Reprise Records after the exposure garnered from Gold Rush.

For the recording of this album in the fall of 1970, they recruited fretboard virtuoso Ry Cooder, who had worked previously with Nitzsche on sessions for the Stones, adding his talents to three tracks. The album contains strong compositions from four principal writers, the fourth being Young, the band covering his "Dance Dance Dance," which had yet to see an official version by Young himself. Songwriter Randy Newman had already performed "Gone Dead Train" on the soundtrack for the 1970 cult film Performance by Donald Cammell and Nicolas Roeg, the Lofgren-penned "Beggar's Day" was covered by Scottish rock band Nazareth on their 1975 best-selling album Hair of the Dog, and a live version of "Downtown," by Whitten and Young, would appear on Young's Tonight's the Night album of 1975. On Neil Young's 2007 vault release Live At the Fillmore East 1970, the song is credited to Whitten alone. The spirit of Whitten hovered over the tour of the same name from 1973, the remaining quartet from this album backing Young on a notoriously bleak round of concerts in the wake of Whitten's death from an overdose in late 1972.

A pity, for Whitten's songs on this album indicated a promising talent. In particular, the ballad "I Don't Want to Talk About It" received a number of cover versions from a variety of artists, among them Rita Coolidge, Everything But the Girl on their Idlewild album of 1988, and Rod Stewart, who had a big hit with the song in the U.K., taken from his 1975 album Atlantic Crossing.

The album was re-released for compact disc on March 22, 1994, as part of the Warner Brothers archive series, produced for compact disc by Lee Herschberg, the engineer on the first pop album recorded completely in the digital medium, Ry Cooder's Bop Till You Drop from 1979. Crazy Horse appeared in its entirety as part of Rhino Handmade's Scratchy compilation from 2005, which also included outtakes from the sessions for this album. That compilation is no longer in print.

Tracks :


1. "Gone Dead Train" (Nitzsche, Titelman) – 4:06
2. "Dance Dance Dance" (Neil Young) – 2:10
3. "Look at All the Things" (Whitten) – 3:13
4. "Beggar's Day" (Lofgren) – 4:28
5. "I Don't Want to Talk About It" (Whitten) – 5:18
6. "Downtown" (Whitten, Young) – 3:14
7. "Carolay" (Nitzsche, Titelman) – 2:52
8. "Dirty, Dirty" (Whitten) – 3:31
9. "Nobody" (Lofgren) – 2:35
10. "I'll Get By" (Whitten) – 3:08
11. "Crow Jane Lady" (Nitzsche) – 4:24

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[BY REQUEST] ATTILA - S/T 1970

Attila was simply a group that came from the ashes of Joel's 1960's band The Hassles, as the only other member of this group was ex-Hassles drummer Jon Small. That's right: Billy Joel and Jon Small, no one else! Billy Joel sticks with Hammond organ and vocals (no piano!), and Jon Small on drums. And this is so far removed from the cheese Joel would later do it's hard to believe! Right away you get blasted with "Wonder Woman" with aggressive hard rock vocals and heavily fuzzed Hammond organ. "California Flash" comes to show the humorous side of Joel, about a stripper who got caught and was arrested. "Revenge Is Sweet", is, as you guess, another really harsh number with some very hostile lyrics about taking revenge. I really love those organ passages. Then comes the two part "Amplifier Fire", the first part is quite jazzy, which demonstrates that Jon Small's drumming is heavily jazz-influenced. There's tons of great organ work influenced by jazz and blues. Then comes the second part which is more brutal, with some psychedelic overtone. Plus I dig those wordless voices! "Rollin' Home" and "Holy Moses" are more ruthlessly agressives piece that are so unbridled that they make the likes of Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, and Black Sabbath seem like the Moody Blues! "Tear This Castle Down" is a totally wonderful piece, I really like the changes in this piece. Every time I hear this piece, I trip out that a future cheesy artist would do something like this, so different from what you expect him to do! (Too bad Kenny G. never tried anything like this!) "Brain Invasion" is the closing instrumental piece, closer to prog rock territory, bringing to mind The Nice, dominated by jazzy drumming and Hammond organ.

Both All Music Guide and popular opinion will lead you to believe that the Attila album is the worst album ever made. I couldn't disagree more. For one thing I am not a fan of Billy Joel by any stretch of the imagination, and to see him do something as cool as this, I am shocked! Fans of Billy Joel might just want this as a souvenir, fans of Deep Purple, Uriah Heep, and Quatermass would get a kick off this.

Billy Joel himself would want you to forget Attila. He deemed the album "psychedelic bullshit". It was also a bad time in his life (he attempted to take his life). It was the first (and last time) he'd ever try heavy metal, as his solo career went the pop singer/songwriter route that gave him lots of fame and big hits.

Although the original LP was released on Epic and now a major collector's item, it was luckily reissued. I suggest the 1985 BackTrac reissue as it contains the complete album, rather than partial Hassles/Attila material. I don't expect everyone to like this album, many will hate it, but if you fancy Billy Joel going heavy metal and can find it for cheap, get it! Reviewer: Ben Miler

Tracks :

1. Wonder Woman 3:38
2. California Flash 3:32
3. Revenge is Sweet 4:00
4. Amplifier Fire 7:39 (Part I - Godzilla; Part II - March of the Huns)
5. Rollin' Home 4:52
6. Tear This Castle Down 5:49
7. Holy Moses 4:30
8. Brain Invasion 5:41

Link : @

Artwork Included
T

THE ROSE GARDEN - S/T 1968

The Rose Garden's only album is a fair but unmemorable pop-folk-rock record, able in its emulation of the Byrds' 12-string guitar sound with some competent stirring male-female vocal blends. Indeed this contains some of the most blatant mimicry of Roger McGuinn's style that you'll find, without nearly as much of McGuinn's imagination. Far more pop-oriented than the Byrds, the record was also handicapped by the absence of original material; the sole song bearing writing credits of group members, "Flower Town" (on which Kim Fowley also somehow manages to squeeze into the credit line), is in fact an adaptation of the traditional folk song "Portland Town." Big Byrds collectors, though, might want to keep an eye out for this not-too-easy-to-find LP as it contains two Gene Clark songs that never appeared anywhere else, "Till Today" and "Long Time." Neither of these songs are wonderful, but they're okay and better than the rest of the album (save the hit "Next Plane to London"), with "Till Today" bearing a countryish feel not unlike some of the songs on Clark's debut album. In other curious footnotes, three of the tunes were co-written by Pat Vegas, later to rise to fame as part of Redbone, while "Look What You've Done" was co-written by Bob Johnston, who at that time was producing superstars Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash. ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide

Tracks :

01.Next Plane To London
02.I'm Only Second
03.February Sunshine
04.Coins Of Fun
05.Rider
06.She Belongs To Me
07.Flower Tone
08.Till Today
09.Look What You've Done
10.Long Time

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WILD TURKEY - BATTLE HYMN 1971 / TURKEY 1972

In 1971, Glen Cornick took the momentous step of leaving Jethro Tull having played bass on their first three albums: "This Was", "Stand Up", and "Benefit". He left a group that is undoubtedly one of the world's most influential and viable products of seventies rock to face a challenge that most musicians would find daunting.

He left to find the musical freedom he felt he needed to extend his musical creativity. A founder member of Jethro, Glenn had started to write songs that were not compatible with the musical identity of Jethro and rather than remain just playing bass with them, he decided to go his own way.

The decision made, Glenn started to look for the musicians for the band he had in mind. Over a period of three months, he looked at and auditioned a variety of people he'd been recommended. Eventually he chose four. Each of them came from vastly differing backgrounds, but as Wild Turkey, the name he chose for his new band, they have developed a corporate style that has been welded together over the past few months. They rehearsed, talked music and lived together in a farmhouse they rented for a month and then went out on the road. It was Glenn's decision to go out and build a reputation by playing to the club audiences that are instrumental in building a band's following rather than make use of the name and stature he earned within Jethro and rush straightaway into the recording studios to trade on his past.

During the past few months, Wild Turkey have steadily built an ever increasing following among club and college audiences around the country. With Glenn in Wild Turkey are vocalist Gary Pickford-Hopkins, drummer Jeff Jones, rhythm guitarist Jon Blackmore and lead guitarist Alan "Tweke" Lewis.
Gary Pickford-Hopkins, who also plays acoustic guitar, joined Turkey from the now-defunct Eyes of Blue, a highly rated Welsh outfit that won a Melody Maker group contest. The Eyes of Blue were together for five years and during that time Gary's vocals were an important part of their blues-based music. Like Jon Blackmore though, Gary also has his roots in folk music and Wild Turkey's set includes some acoustic numbers that have come about through that shared influence.

Jon Blackmore met Glen Cornick when Jon was playing in a small folk group and played occasional gigs at Glenn's parents' London pub. Glenn was in the audience one night, liked what he heard, and asked Jon to join Turkey.

Jeff Jones and "Tweke" Lewis are young musicians with reputations earned in a variety of groups. Jeff Jones knew Gary from times spent jamming together and, prior to joining Turkey, had been with Man, an experimental Welsh group with a wealth of European existence. Guitarist "Tweke" Lewis was the last member to join. A talented young musician, he was playing in Swansea one night when the rest of Wild Turkey heard him. He was just the guitarist that Glenn had been looking for, they approached him on the spot, told him what they had in mind, and the next day he left his old group and completed the Wild Turkey line up.

Tracks :

BATTLE HYMN
1. Butterfly
2. To The Stars
3. Twelve Streets Of Cobbled
4. Dulwich Fox
5. Easter Psalm
6. Sanctuary
7. One Sole Survivor
8. Gentle Rain
9. Battle Hymn
10. Sentinel

TURKEY
11. Good Old Days
12. Tomorrow?s Friend
13. Universal Man
14. Eternal Mother/The Return
15. Ballard of Chuck Stallion and the Mustangs
16. Street
17. See You Next Tuesday
18. Telephone


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BOOT - BOOT 1972

Their first album is rare and came out on a Texas label, though they hailed from New Port Richey, Florida, and had earlier recorded as The Split Ends. It's basically hard rock with some psychedelic guitar work. Their second album is rather mundane heavy rock.

Jim O'Brock recalls: "Circa 1969, we changed names from The Split Ends to B.O.O.T., an anacronym for 'Blues Of Our Time'. We began playing 80% to 90% original material and began traveling more, playing larger venues. We played with Canned Heat, B.B. King, Neil Diamond, Detroit Wheels, etc. and at the Atlanta Pop Festival and Miami II Pop Festivals. Once we competed with the Allman Brothers in a contest at the University of Florida and won first prize! In Atlanta, Georgia we played with Lynyrd Skynyrd (they opened for us!) and stayed on the road for about four years. During this time we recorded our two albums in Nashville, TN. We seemed to stagnate about that time. I left the band and it broke up. A couple of years later, Mike and Bruce tried to resurrect the name with a couple of new guys, but it didn't last long".

Tracks :

01. Hey little girl
02. Danny's tune
03. Liza brown
04. Andromeda
05. Destruction road
06. Reach out
07. What are the doing to me
08. What you're messing

Link : @

Ripped By : evermoreblues
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AGNES STRANGE - STRANGE FLAVOUR 1975

Long sought after British hard rock ripper finally sees a legit pressing with three bonus tracks. Agnes Strange was a trio that was one part Budgie, one part Status Quo, and one part pub-rock band. Well maybe thats all a bit redundant. If the names Incredible Hog, Leafhound and Human Beast give you damp knickers you need to check this minor classic from 1975 out.

"The forgotten saga of Agnes Strange and their lost album is one bizarre tale. The result of an unlikely joint venture between a major label (RCA) and the Bird’s Next chain of real ale music pubs, the Southampton-based power trio’s one and only album sank without trace in 1975, thanks in large part to the winding down of the band’s bookers, the Dick James Agency.

Now reissued for the first time, it comes with three bonus tracks (the single mix of Give Yourself A Chance and outtakes Motorway Rebel and Strange Flavour), and boasts both UK and European sleeve art. This collector’s item, with its big, warm analogue sound feels like the sort of wholesome fare that once upon a time surfaced on Harvest or Vertigo. Stuck in the no man’s land between the hard rock boom of the late 60s/early 70s and the dawning of punk, and produced by early rock’n’roll devotee Dave Travis, Agnes Strange crank their hearty blue collar mix of heavy rock, blues and rock’n’roll with occasional nods towards Taste, The Groundhogs, Budgie and, in their more boogiefied moments, vintage Quo. Very much one for those who like their rock tough and unfussy, in a full-Englishbreakfast- for-the-ears kind of a way." - Record Collector

Tracks :

1. Give Yourself A Chance
2. Clever Fool
3. Motorway Rebel
4. Travelling
5. Strange Flavour
6. Alberta
7. Loved One
8. Failure
9. Children of the Absurd
10. Odd Man Out
11. Highway Blues
12. Granny Don't Like Rock 'n Roll
13. Interference
14. Give Yourself A Chance

Link : @

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CARGO - ST 1970-72

This Dutch heavy rock outfit, who operated in the early '70s put out this great album with stupendous stoned guitar workouts / acid jams... Awesome stuff, but this CD also contains 8 additional tracks by the pre-Cargo outfit 'September'... An essential chunk of European rock history and a blast for your ears too!
(Freakemporium)












Tracks :

1 Sail Inside
2 Cross Talking
3 Finding Out
4 Summerfair
5 Choker
6 Lydia Purple
7 Yelly Rose
8 If Mr. Right Comes Along
9 Little Sister
10 Walk on By
11 Run Away
12 One More Chance

Link : Part 1 @ ; Part @ 2

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FELT - FELT 1971

Felt was formed in Alabama in the late '60s around the talents of Myke Jackson (guitars), Mike Neel (drums), Tommy Gilstrap (bass), Stan Lee (guitars), and Allan Dalrymple (keyboards). The band's self-titled album, released on the small Nasco label in 1971, contains half-a-dozen original songs written for the most part by Jackson. The mostly blues-styled songs on this album are full of great guitar work and contain fine Beatles-esque harmony vocals. While most of this album has a blues feeling to it, some of the songs hint of progressive rock with swirling keyboards, intense drumming, and blistering guitar solos. The album has recently been discovered for its musical excellence and has become a very rare collectors' item. Guitarist Lee would later go on to become a member of punk band the Dickies in the late '70s. This welcome re-release by Akarma Records features a reproduction of the original foldout album graphics in the mini-LP-styled Akarmapack.
(http://allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:fvfwxql5ldse)

Tracks :

1 Look at the Sun
2 Now She's Gone
3 Weepin' Mama Blues
4 World
5 Change
6 Destination

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FRATERNITY OF MAN - ST 1968

The short-lived Fraternity of Man is undoubtedly best known for the pro-pot anthem "Don't Bogart Me," which showed up during an unforgettable scene in the genre-defining biker film Easy Rider (1969). The original quintet included an overhaul of the Lowell George-led Factory, featuring Martin Kibbee (bass), Warren Klein (guitar/sitar/tamboura) and Ritchie Heyward (drums/vocals). George split and became a very temporary Mothers of Invention member, while the other three joined up with Freak Out (1966) era Mother Elliot Ingber (guitar). The personnel was completed with the addition of Lawrence "Stash" Wagner (vocals/guitar) and the band recorded its 1968 self-titled release Fraternity of Man. Another Frank Zappa connection could be found in the guise of Tom Wilson, who produced the Mother's earliest studio efforts. As one might anticipate, there are several prominent musical dynamics carried over into the Fraternity of Man from its former incarnation. The stoner wake-n-bake anthem "In the Morning," as well as "Blue Guitar" and "Plastic Rat" retain the psychedelic garage rock that pervaded much of the Factory's sound. The band's variation of Zappa's "Oh No" -- titled "Oh No I Don't Believe It" -- is a gassed-up rocker replete with Ingber's nimble lead fuzz fret work. Those decidedly more belligerent outings are contrasted by the intricate and Baroque qualities of "Wispy Paisley Skies" and the aforementioned steel guitar-driven "Don't Bogart Me." However, the comfortable misfit rockers "Candy Striped Lion's Tail," "Field Day," or the slightly perverse R&B-flavored "Bikini Baby" are among the best sides on the album. The latter was revived on the utterly dismissible dash for cash EP titled X (1995). The Fraternity of Man issued one follow-up, Get It On (1969) for Dot Records, prior to its dissolution in the waning months of the decade.

Lindsay Planer, All Music Guide

Tracks :

In the Morning
Plastic Rat
Don't Bogart Me
Stop Me Citate Me
Bikini Baby
Oh No I Don't Believe It
Wispy Paisley Skies
Field Day
Just Doin' Our Job
Blue Guitar
Last Call for Alcohol
Candy Striped Lion's Tails

Link : @

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SEX - SEX 1970

Sex was formed by Yves Rousseau (guitar), Robert Trepanier (vocals, bass, flute, harmonica), and Serge Gratton (drums). They released a self-titled album in 1970. The LP features rudimentary hard rock tracks based on heavy blues, a style prevalent in Britain at the time. (In fact, one could describe the album as a cross between Budgie and Black Sabbath.) This strong blues influence could explain it being labeled as "psychedelic" by some. Lyrics are sung in English with a heavy French accent, which was still mostly the case in Quebec, until Dionysos, who played many shows with Sex, broke the trend by singing all in French. Song titles and lyrics are consistent with the group's name, and contain some disturbing themes. Highlights on the album include "Come, Wake Up!" and "Not Yet", both of which were released as a single.

1971 saw the release of a second LP entitled "The End of my Life". Their obsession with the group's name returned with a vengeance, this time producing tracks like "Syphilissia" and an overall concept concerning a young man whose sexual "coming of age" involves heartbreak followed by promiscuity, then terminal infection, and ultimately imminent death. The band added Pierre (Pedro) Ouellette on sax and flute, lending a little more variety to the music. The album opener, "Born to Love", starts off as psych-blues for the first minute, embarking suddenly on a jazz-rock penchant for the next, and bringing in a prog twist for its conclusion. "I'm Starting My Life Today" is an interesting blues-rock venture that was chosen as album single. "Emotions" is not so successful, initially bordering on prog-rock with a frantic sax-and-xylophone intro that recalls Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention, but settling immediately thereafter into a rudimentary (though adequately performed) blues. Some tracks can find a distant comparison to post-psych group Blue Öyster Cult. Only the 8-minute title track that closes off the album succeeds in completely breaking past the psychedelic/blues barrier into the realm of the progressive, with enjoyable stylings resembling early Jethro Tull. Like label-mates W.D. Fisher, Sex was managed by Pierre Gravel out of Granby, and both bands' vocals (sung in broken English) detract the listener somewhat from the now dated sounding music. Also, like W.D. Fisher, Sex failed to bridge the gap from the psychedelic 1960's into the progressive realm of the 70's, when true inspiration, originality and musicianship finally exploded in Quebec music.

(http://www.progquebec.com/sex.html)

Tracks :

Scratch my back
Not yet
Doctor
I had to rape her
Come , wake up
Try
Night Symphony
Love is a game

Link : @

Ripped by : evemoreblues
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