Plain and Fancy

1969 Man - Revelation (2009 remaster and expanded)

Saturday, May 3, 2025

Man - Back Into The Future (1973 uk, astonishing jam prog rock, 2008 three disc box set remaster)

Man's 1973 album, Back Into The Future was the follow-up to the highly successful Be Good To Yourself At Least Once A Day and, unsurprisingly, featured a change in line-up with Clive John having left after becoming fed up of life on the road. That left Micky Jones, Phil Ryan, Terry Williams and Will Youatt to write and start recording the new album. However, before recording had been completed Tweke Lewis, a 19-year-old guitar prodigy fresh out of the ranks of Wild Turkey had joined the ranks. After a hectic two-week writing session at Clearwell Castle hampered by a BBC film crew recording a documentary, the band started recording at Rockfield Studios in late May 1973, finishing off at Chipping Norton Studios in July were new boy Lewis added some overdubs. Between the two recording sessions the band hit the road again for the Up For The Day tour, supported by none other than old accomplice Deke Leonard. One of the concerts, at the Roundhouse in London, was recorded and at the last moment the record company decided to supplement the new studio recordings with highlights from the live performance. But more of that later.

The studio side of Back Into The Future displays a somewhat funkier and more playful band than on previous releases. Opener A Night In Dad's Bag featuring a percussive 7/8 beat, was overlaid with a multitude of sound effects, mostly supplied by Ryan's keyboards. Phil Ryan also dominates the opening to Just For You which turns into a veritable funk fest with wah wah guitars and a toe-tapping beat. The title track features a more traditional Man sound with Micky's driving guitar and soaring vocal harmonies. Probably the most instantly likeable Man song in the band's repertoire, it's only drawback is the rather weak ending with rather misplaced synth sounds overlaid until the fade out. Don't Go Away is the album's ballad and a powerful track it turns out to be as well. The piano and acoustic guitar intro blend perfectly morphing into electric guitar and keyboards that play in harmony rather than fighting against each other. Jones playing is perfect and the tight harmonies are perfect for the song, despite wavering slightly!

Ain't Their Fight, the only studio track to feature Lewis, in retrospect sums up the internal conflicts that were plaguing the band at the time with the guitar driven approach of Jones combating with the more jazzier approach of Ryan's keyboards. It stands as a fascinating battle between the two adversaries with Jones emerging slightly ahead, particularly on the close-out where the stereo panned twin guitars dominating the keyboards which are pushed slightly further back in the mix as well. Final track, the bizarrely titled Never Say Nups to Nepalese, is a tour de force instrumental that rounds the studio album off in style. A superb group effort and an essential for any Man fan.

Whilst researching the master tapes for bonus tracks for this reissue, the original 16-track masters for the Roundhouse concert were uncovered and it was decided that they would make a great addition to the re-release. Even though three of the tracks are included on the CD of the original album, they are also included on the bonus discs in their original set positions, so the whole concert can be enjoyed as it was played on the night! The concert opens with the Gwalia Male Voice Choir singing Sopspan Fach, the anthem of Llanelli. The choir had first appeared with Man when they supported Frank Zappa at the Oval the previous year and provided a unique, if somewhat surprising for the audience, introduction to the concert. A Night In Dad's Bag is somewhat tighter and less funky that the studio version while the opening to C'Mon gives Hawkwind a run for their money in the space rock stakes. Lewis, in only his third gig with the band performs admirably and the choir are reintroduced in the middle section which really beefs things up and provides a great version of this classic song. Just For You benefits from an extended jam and some particularly tight drumming by Williams while Jam Up Jelly Tight \ Oh No Not Again (Spunk Rock '73) is exactly what the title says it is, a superior jam based around the classic, and often epic, piece from a few years previous.

The second bonus CD concludes the concert with three more extended numbers, an energetic Bananas with some tasty flourishes from both Ryan and Jones, Life On The Road which is somewhat different from the live version that appeared on the Christmas At The Patti album some months earlier and the encore Ain't Their Fight. This latter track comes into its own live, with the two guitars and the keyboards duelling it out and providing a rousing end to the show. Two further bonus tracks are also included, a putative single recorded in August 1973 that was never released, although it is believed that some acetates were pressed. I'm Dreaming, which was later rewritten and performed as 'Breaking Up Once Again', would have made an unusual choice as a single, particularly as an edited version of Back Into The Future would have been a much more commercial proposition. Having said that, the riff is quite catchy despite the vocals sounding a bit rough around the edges. The whole thing has more of a demo feel than a completed and polished track. On the other hand The Symbol Who Came To Dinner is a great 'lost' song and would have made a great addition to the album if it had been written and recorded a few months earlier.

This reissue of Back Into The Future is a loving testament to the Welsh wizards who seem to have spent most of their career underappreciated. The presentation of the box set is immaculate and is an essential purchase for anyone who has ever heard and enjoyed this album, it even makes a great place to start a Man collection as the uninitiated will get a flavour of what the band are all about both in the studio and on stage. A fine album, a great band and a brilliant reissue.

by Mark Hughes

Tracks

Disc 1 ~ Original Album

1. A Night In Dad's Bag - 4:03

2. Just for You - 5:18

3. Back into the Future - 4:06

4. Don't Go Away - 4:00

5. Ain't Their Fight - 7:42

6. Never Say Nups To Nepalese - 7:31

7. Sopspan Fach (Traditional) - 3:34

8. C'mon (Michael Jones, Phil Ryan, Terry Williams, Clive John) - 19:03

9. Jam Up Jelly Tight \ Oh No Not Again (Spunk Rock '73) - 21:02

All compositions by Michael Jones, Phil Ryan, Terry Williams except where stated

Disc 2 ~ Live At The Roundhouse - The Complete Concert

1. Sopspan Fach (Traditional) - 4:36

2. A Night In Dad's Bag - 5:06

3. C'Mon (Michael Jones, Phil Ryan, Terry Williams, Clive John) - 19:58

4. Just For You - 6:23

5. Jam Up Jelly Tight / Oh No Not Again (Spunk Rock '73) - 21:39

All compositions by Michael Jones, Phil Ryan, Terry Williams except where noted

Disc 3 ~ Live At The Roundhouse - The Complete Concert (continued)

1. Bananas (Michael Jones, Phil Ryan, Terry Williams, Clive John) - 16:19

2. Life On The Road (Michael Jones, Phil Ryan, Terry Williams, Clive John) - 12:14

3. Ain't Their Fight - 10:23

4. The Single (I'm Dreaming) - 4:06

5. The Symbol Who Came To Dinner - 3:00

All compositions by Michael Jones, Phil Ryan, Terry Williams except where indicated

Man

*Micky Jones - Guitar, Vocals

*Phil Ryan - Keyboards

*Terry Williams - Drums, Vocals

*Tweke Lewis - Guitar (Disc 1, Tracks 5-9)

*Will Youatt - Bass

1969 Man - 2 Ozs Of Plastic With A Hole In The Middle (2009 remaster)

1971 Man - Man (2007 remaster)

1971 Man - Do You Like It Here Now Are You Settling In (2007 bonus tracks remaster)

1972 Man - Live At The Padget Rooms, Penarth (2007 double disc remaster and expanded)

1972 Man - Be Good To Yourself At Least Once A Day (2007 remaster with extra tracks)
1974 Man - Slow Motion (2008 remaster and expanded)
1974 Man - Rhinos Winos And Lunatics (2007 double disc remaster)

1975 Man With John Cipollina - Maximum Darkness (2008 remaster with bonus tracks)

1976 Man - Welsh Connection (2013 double disc remaster)

1972 Ten Years After – Rock 'n' Roll Music To The World (Audio Fidelity remaster)

Friday, May 2, 2025

Ten Years After - Woodstock (1969 uk, legendary classic blues rock testament, 2024 remaster)

Ten Years After's epic performance at Woodstock has been praised as one of the best performances of the three-day music festival in August 1969. It was also a breakthrough moment for the British band.

But until now their complete show has never been released as a stand-alone record. On Aug. 16, one day before the 55th anniversary of their historic show, the full hourlong concert is being issued as a one-CD, two-LP set titled Woodstock 1969.

The British blues rock band led by Alvin Lee had released two studio albums and a live record when they took the stage in Bethel, New York, on Aug. 17 at 8:15 p.m. A third album, Ssssh, was released a few weeks after their Woodstock appearance and became their first Top 10 U.S. hit.

Ten Years After's set-closing performance of "I'm Going Home," which clocks in at nearly 10 minutes, was featured on the No. 1 Woodstock: Music From the Original Soundtrack and More album in 1970 as well as in the hit documentary released the same year.

While the band's full performance at Woodstock was previously issued as part of 2019's 38-CD (and pricey) Woodstock – Back to the Garden: The Definitive 50th Anniversary Archive, which included all songs from the history-making festival, the upcoming Woodstock 1969 marks the first time Ten Years After's set is available as a stand-alone record.

The newly restored and mixed concert from the original 2" multitrack tapes includes the band's set-opening cover of Howlin' Wolf's "Spoonful," two attempts at Sonny Boy Williamson's "Good Morning Little Schoolgirl," an 18-minute version of Al Kooper's "I Can't Keep From Crying Sometimes" and the epic closing song, "I'm Going Home," a Lee original first found on 1968's live LP Undead.

by Michael Gallucci, July 9, 2024

Tracks

1. Spoonful (Willie Dixon) - 7:37

2. Good Morning Little Schoolgirl (False Start) (Sonny Boy Williamson) - 3:09

3. Good Morning Little Schoolgirl (Sonny Boy Williamson) - 7:08

4. The Hobbit (Ric Lee) - 7:48

5. I Can’t Keep From Crying Sometimes (Al Kooper) - 17:57

6. Help Me (Ralph Bass, Sonny Boy Williamson, Willie Dixon) - 15:03

7. I’m Going Home (Alvin Lee) - 9:44

Ten Years After

*Alvin Lee - Vocal, Guitar

*Leo Lyons - Bass

*Ric Lee - Drums

*Chick Churchill - Organ, Piano

1972 Ten Years After - The Cap Ferrat Sessions (2017 remaster)

1973 Chick Churchill - You And Me (2011 Flawed Gems)

1972 David Clayton Thomas - David Clayton Thomas (2006 remaster)

Wednesday, April 30, 2025

David Clayton-Thomas - David Clayton-Thomas / Tequila Sunrise (1972 canada, excellent blue eyed soul, rhythm 'n' blues, brass rock, 2002 edition)

David Clayton-Thomas primarily known as the frontman of the legendary Brass Rock ensemble Blood, Sweat & Tears. Although purist might contest that Clayton-Thomas made some recordings in Canada in 1965 and 1966, before joining BS&T, these were done with his early ensembles and were not solo albums, but were partly released in 1969 under his name, after his popularity soared due to the success of BS&T, but should not be considered as part of his solo career.

The first eponymous album was recorded in late 1971 / early 1972 and released by Columbia later that year. It presents ten songs, only two of which were written by Clayton-Thomas. The music was superbly arranged and included string and brass section and some top Jazz and studio musicians. The material spanned Blues, Soul and Rhythm And Blues, with the usual heartfelt vocals, which are amongst the finest ever on the Rock scene.

The next album was recorded and released by the end of the same year (1972), also by Columbia. It was recorded by a much tighter ensemble of excellent instrumentalists and offers a Funky / Soul oriented feel. It presents eleven songs (one repeated twice) most of which are written by Clayton-Thomas.

Clayton-Thomas always possessed one of the most distinct and magnificent voices ever and I could never get enough of his singing, although some critics have often ridiculed him cruelly – well as usual, most critics are completely deaf anyway. For people who love Blood, Sweat & Tears this is an absolute must, others might perhaps discover a gem they have been missing in their life?

by Adam Baruch, 10th September 2020

Tracks

1. Magnificent Sanctuary Band (Dorsey Burnette) - 3:35

2. We're All Meat From The Same Bone (Gary Zekley, Mitchell Bottier, Roberta Twain) - 1:50

3. Stealin' In The Name Of The Lord (Paul Kelley) - 2:48

4. Dying To Live (Edgar Winter) - 4:42

5. Sing A Song (Gary Wright) - 2:47

6. She (Gram Parsons, Chris Etheridge) - 4:51

7. Don't Let It Bring You Down (Neil Young) - 3:44

8. Once Burned (Todd Rundgren) - 3:32

9. North Beach Racetrack - 3:05

10.Caress Me Pretty Music (Alan O’Day) - 3:29

11.I Could Just Boogie All Night - 0:43

12.Yesterday's Music - 3:51

13.Friday The 13th Child - 3:14

14.The Face Of Man (Timothy Martin, Walt Meskell) - 3:06

15.One More Time Around - 3:32

16.Down Bound Train (Chuck Berry) - 4:40

17.Nobody Calls Me Prophet - 4:37

18.The Last Time That She Cried - 2:33

19.Fallin' By Degrees (Traditional) - 4:59

20.MySong (For Geannanne) - 3:42

21.Bread 'N Butter Boogie - 4:30

22.I Could Just Boogie All Night (Reprise) - 0:38

Tracks 9,11,13,21,22 written by David Clayton-Thomas

Tracks 12,15,17,18,20 written by David Clayton-Thomas, William Smith

Tracks 1-10 from "David Clayton-Thomas 1972" LP

Tracks 11-22 from "Tequila Sunrise 1972" LP

Musicians

(Tracks 1-10)

*David Clayton-Thomas - Vocals, Guitar

*Mike Deasy - Guitar

*Steve Cropper - Guitar

*Paul Cannon - Guitar

*Hugh Mccracken - Guitar

*Joe Osborn - Bass

*Jim Johnson - Bass

*Jimmy Lewis - Bass

*Russ Svakus - Bass

*Larry Knechtel - Piano

*Frank Owens - Piano

*Dick Halligan - Organ

*J. Spell - Keyboards

*Paul Griffin - Piano

*Earl Palmer - Drums

*Richie Simpson - Drums

*Bobby Colomby - Drums, Tambourine

*King Errisson - Percussion

*Ollie Mitchell - Piccolo Trumpet

*Johnny Rialto - Piccolo Trumpet

*Bill Watrous - Trombone

*Garnett Brown - Trombone

*Dave Bargeron - Trombone

*Joe Farrell - Alto Sax

*Jimmy Guiffre - Tenor Sax

(Tracks 11-22)

*David Clayton-Thomas - Lead Vocals, Guitar

*William "Smitty" Smith - Musical Director, Keyboards, Vocal Accompaniment

*Danny "Kootch" Kortchmar - Guitar

*Michael Jay Feinstein - Harmonica

*Kenneth "Spider Webb" Rice - Drums

*Kenny Marco - Guitar

*Chuck Rainey - Fender Bass

*Tessie Calderon - Percussion, Vocal Accompaniment

1969 Blood Sweat And Tears - Blood Sweat And Tears (2014 audio fidelity and 2016 SACD)

1970 Blood Sweat And Tears - 3 (2016 SACD)

1971 Blood Sweat and Tears - 4 (2016 SACD)

1975 Blood Sweat And Tears - New City

1976 Blood Sweat And Tears - More Than Ever

1968 The International Submarine Band - Safe At Home (2004 remaster)

Tuesday, April 29, 2025

Gram Parsons - Another Side Of This Life The Lost Recordings (1965-66 us, acoustic country folk blues, 2000 release)

Gram Parsons gets heavy credit as one of the pioneers and true talents of country rock. In the 27 years since his death, no one has matched the beautiful fragility of his voice or his novelistic sense of country songwriting (i.e., “$1000 Wedding”). Though Parsons may not have been an overly prolific writer, the few cuts that showed up on his LPs were high-quality keepers.

Listening to his canon of work, Parsons seems to have arrived as a full-blown original. While owing a debt to his heroes such as Merle Haggard and George Jones, Parsons seemed to be coming from a different, outside place; he occupied a space that seemed truly his own. Now, for the first time, we are privy to an early, developmental stage of his amazing, if too short, career.

Another Side of This Life: The Lost Recordings of Gram Parsons 1965-1966 gathers 18 tracks recorded three and a half decades ago on a friend’s reel-to-reel machine. What makes these recordings so interesting is the evident development that was taking place. The total commitment to country music doesn’t yet seem to be in place, and Parsons shows heavy folk leanings from his time playing the coffeehouses in Greenwich Village. Fred Neil, in particular, seems to cast an influence over these performances, which makes sense considering Neil’s stature in the New York City folk scene at that time.

Parsons’ recorded work, beginning with his 1968 International Submarine Band recordings, showed a rapidly maturing and seemingly confident stylist. It comes as a bit of a revelation to hear where Parsons was only two years earlier. The Gram Parsons of these demos is a more straight-ahead folk singer. Songs such as Dick Weissman’s “They Still Go Down” and Hamilton Camp’s “Pride Of Man” even sound Kingston Trio-ish. The vocal style Parsons would use on his later work is not wholly evident here, and the fragility in his delivery, though hinted at, is not fully present.

The track on this collection that stands out and points to the future is an early version of the Parsons original “Brass Buttons”. The vocal does not yet contain the homespun quality of the version that would later appear on Grievous Angel, but it still stands as a promising sign of what’s to come. It’s a shame Parsons didn’t write more during his brief life, but “Brass Buttons” shows how capable he was, even at this early stage.

As usual, Sundazed has done a wonderful job mastering and packaging this release. The sound quality of these home-recorded demos is much better than one might assume; at first listen, I was shocked at how well they had been transferred.

Another Side Of This Life may not be essential listening for those not interested in the Parsons story or legacy, but as a historical document, it is revealing. This collections fills in a previously missing aspect of Gram Parsons’ musical life; for those intrigued or moved by his work, it sure is nice to have that early chapter.

No Depression, March 1, 2001

Tracks

1. Codine (Buffy Sainte-Marie) - 5:34

2. Wheel Of Fortune (Gram Parsons) - 2:27

3. Another Side Of This Life (Fred Neil) - 2:38

4. High Flyin' Bird (Billy Edd Wheeler) - 3:46

5. November Nights (Gram Parsons) - 3:35

6. Zah's Blues (Gram Parsons) - 3:59

7. Reputation (Tim Hardin) - 3:07

8. That's The Bag I'm In (Fred Neil) - 3:11

9. Willie Jean (Traditional) - 4:05

10.They Still Go Down (Dick Weissman) - 2:24

11.Pride Of Man (Hamilton Camp) - 2:42

12.The Last Thing On My Mind (Tom Paxton) - 3:42

13.Hey Nellie Nellie (David Fromer, Elbert Robinson, Jonathan Fromer) - 3:02

14.She's The Woman I Love (Danny Adams, Sam Moffitt, Sam Moffitt Jr.) / Good Time Music (John Sebastian) - 4:55

15.Brass Buttons (Gram Parsons) - 2:22

16.I Just Can't Take It Anymore (Gram Parsons) - 3:26

17.Searchin' (Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller) - 3:29

18.Candy Man (Reverend Gary Davis) - 3:17

*Gram Parsons - Vocals, Guitar

1969 The Flying Burrito Brothers - The Gilded Palace Of Sin (2017 SACD)

1970 The Flying Burrito Brothers - Buritto Deluxe (2020 SACD)

1970 Bread Love And Dreams - The Strange Tale Of Captain Shannon And The Hunchback From Gigha

Monday, April 28, 2025

Bread Love And Dreams - Bread Love And Dreams (1969 uk, fragile, beautiful with little flash-points of colour like the wings on a butterfly, 2012 remaster)

This is the first album from Bread, Love and Dreams, released in 1969 against the background of a major revival in the popularity of folk music that had grown via the folk clubs and college campus across much of the county during the previous few years.

This upsurge in popularity reached its peak with the release of a glut of seminal releases from bands like them who all stretched the scope of what was a fairly narrow and traditional style of music into the realms of Acid-Folk, Folk Rock and of course more traditional Folk styles. That year saw Liege and Lief from Fairport Convention, and the third and fourth Incredible String Bands albums to name just two.

Bread Love and Dreams were originally from Edinburgh where their psyche influenced folk compositions were in stark contrast to the more traditional approach of many of their Scottish contemporaries. They first came to the attention of Decca producer Ray Horricks at the 1968 festival and he quickly brought them to recording studios in London to record their debut release the following year. They released three albums between 1969 and 1971 with a varied line up from album to album and on later releases featuring well known guests from the burgeoning folk circuit like Danny Thompson and Terry Cox of Pentangle.

The main members of the band on this first LP were David McNiven, who wrote and sang much of their material, Angie Rew, on vocals and playing the flute and Carolyn Davis on guitar.

This album has been compared with a number of groups from that period especially of tracks like 'Falling Over Backwards' which to some critics at the time reminded them of the ISB. Others praised Bread Love and Dreams for distinctive sound, linked no doubt to their combined talents and abilities as multi instrumentalists.

This album features some really nice ethereal female lead and backing vocals, which was very much the accepted style of the time, but it also features strong lyrics from David which keep the listeners interest and today provide an interesting reflection on the fairly left-wing anti establishment, at the time 'hippie', stance of much of the bands output.

But its not all folk whimsy as the last track here is much more blues than folk and contrasts with much of the rest of the album. While the band toured widely, with Magna Carta and even Tyranosaurus Rex, but they never really achieved the success they deserved with this album, or the two others that followed, and this is reflected in the considerable value now placed on original copies of all three of their releases. David and Angie continued to tour and work in theatre projects and became involved with the rock band Mama Flier, also from Edinburgh and they continue to perform.

by Ian Milton 2012

Tracks

1. Switch Out The Sun - 3:22

2. Virgin Kiss - 3:43

3. The Least Said - 3:44

4. Falling Over Backwards - 5:44

5. Lady Of The Night - 3:14

6. Main Street - 2:16

7. Artificial Light (Of All The Living Lies) (Andy Badale, Estelle Levitt) - 3:39

8. Until She Needs You - 3:43

9. Mirrors - 5:34

10.Poet's Song - 2:53

11.The Yellow-Bellied Redback - 2:17

12.95 Octane Gravy - 3:22

All compositions by David McNiven, Angie Rew, Carolyn Davis except track #7

Bread Love And Dreams

*David McNiven - Vocals, Guitar, Organ, Piano, Flute, Harmonica

*Angie Rew - Vocals, Guitar, Organ, African Drums

*Carolyn Davis - Vocals, Guitar, Bass, Tambourine, Buzz-Horn

With

*Ian Green - Strings Conductor

1971 Bread Love And Dreams - Amaryllis (2001 Korean remaster)

Sunday, April 27, 2025

The Love Depression - The Love Depression (1968 venezuela, rough garage punkadelic, 2006 reissue)

Venezuela 1968. Band members were 17 to 18 years old at the time of the recording. Guitarist Alvaro Falcón came from a band called The Snobs and previously a band from Washington D.C. The Laymen, Richard Aumaitre came from a famous Venezuelan band Los Darts and Jesus Toro from The Nasty Pillows, a local soul and Hendrix oriented band. What an amazing record this is. On same label as Ladies WC. This masterpiece is full of fuzz guitar, acid leads and pumping sounds. Covers only this time but played so wild that you will like it better than the original composition. This album is as good as Ladies WC. Realy amazing Psych artwork too." Alvaro Falcón: (Guitar, Piano, Organ, Harmonica, Background vocals), he was 17 at the time; Jesus "Torito" Toro: (Drums and Lead vocals); Richard Aumaitre: (Bass and Background vocals). Recorded in Estudios Continente,Caracas, Venezuela April 1968.

FoEx

Straight from 1968. You don’t often associate the garage and psychedelic music of the 1960s with Venezuela, but the LOVE DEPRESSION dispels that notion. This record is mostly covers including some of JIMI HENDRIX and CREAM. While the covers are pretty fantastic, some better than the originals, it’s the LOVE DEPRESSION originals that stand out. “Gonna Ride” is absolutely simmering with psychedelic garage energy. Something like a souped-up JIMI HENDRIX. You most likely haven’t heard of the LOVE DEPRESSION, but now is your chance. This record holds up better than ever.

Tracks

1. Gon'na Ride (Alvaro Falcon, Jesús Toro) - 2:58

2. High Way Child (Jimi Hendrix) - 3:02

3. When A Man Loves A Woman (Lewis Wright) - 3:25

4. Kansas City (Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller) - 4:55

5. If You Need Me (Bateman Picket) - 2:28

6. Toad (Bateman Picket) - 4:05

7. Stone Free (Jimi Hendrix) - 3:32

8. Cross Roads (Robert Johnson) - 4:26

9. Whiter Shade (Gary Brooker, Keith Reid) - 3:52

10.51st Aniversary (Jimi Hendrix) - 3:12

11.I'm Sorry (Bobby Womack) - 3:16

12.Sweet Soul Music (Otis Redding) - 1:56

The Love Depression

*Alvaro Falcon - Guitar, Organ, Piano, Backing Vocals

*Jaime Seijas - Guitar, Organ, Vocals

*Jesús Toro - Drums, Vocals

*Richard Aumaitre - Bass, Backing Vocals

With

*Stephen Scott - Harmonica (Track 4)

Friday, April 25, 2025

James Luther Dickinson - Dixie Fried (1972 us, awesome roots 'n' roll swamp blues folk psych rock, 2002 edition and 2016 remaster and expanded)

The late James Luther Dickinson was one of American music’s most elusive, intriguing musicians and producers. Part of the unpredictable Beale Street crowd from Memphis, Tennessee, his résumé reads like a free-styling, improvised narrative of American country, blues, folk, soul and rock. A limber, flexible player, he’s on Aretha Franklin’s Spirit In The Dark, The Flamin’ Groovies’ Teenage Head, and great sets from Jerry Jeff Walker and Ronnie Hawkins, among others: he also played piano for The Rolling Stones, on “Wild Horses”. Later in his career, Dickinson was a benign presence on albums by Bob Dylan, Tav Falco, Meat Puppets, Mudhoney, Primal Scream and Spiritualized.

His production legend, however, rests on Big Star’s dissolute classic, Third/Sister Lovers. Listening to Dickinson’s first solo album, Dixie Fried, recorded a couple of years before the Big Star set, you can start to hear how things ended up the way they did: while Dixie Fried is more coherent, there are still some seriously odd things going on. Like his eventual collaborator Alex Chilton, Dickinson takes liberties with songs, pulling them apart like taffy while scrawling graffiti over the musical backbone provided by a motley crew of players, including Mac Rebennack (aka Dr John), Memphis legend Sid Selvidge, and members of Dickinson’s session group, The Dixie Flyers.

Dickinson’s version of Dylan’s protest song, “John Brown”, is a good example: low-slung and sprawling, his bolshy, colloquial vocal ties itself in knots over a rhythm section playing through fug and mud, the sax and slide tangling together as Terry Manning’s Moog dials in electronics seemingly from an entirely other recording session. Songs like this, the warped blues clatter of “O How She Dances” and the drunken, see-sawing bluff of “Casey Jones (On The Road Again)” are the heart of Dixie Fried, balanced as they are by more immediately straightforward performances, like the bawdy roar of the opening “Wine”, or the gospelised holler of the title cut, written by Carl Perkins.

Throughout, Dickinson’s deeply invested in animating revenants, but something always goes awry as the past creeps up to mug the present: Dixie Fried is an album full of mutant ghosts. There’s some kind of manic juju in the air through this set of songs – it’s hard to put your finger on it exactly, but it has the same reckless, careening energy of later, more sainted Dickinson productions like Chilton’s 1979 solo set, Like Flies On Sherbert. Unlike the proto-punk deconstruction of rock that took place on Chilton’s solo masterpiece, though, with Dixie Fried, Dickinson’s extending the form by mangling it, lovingly, confusingly, with good times in mind.

by Jon Dale, 27th November 2016

Tracks

1. Wine (Billy Joe Shine, David Swartz, Gene Haufler, Jack Allday, Mario Daboub) - 3:28

2. The Strength Of Love (John Hurley, Ronnie Wilkins) - 3:51

3. Louise (Paul Siebel) - 3:10

4. John Brown (Bob Dylan) - 6:31

5. Dixie Fried (Carl Perkins, Howard Griffen) - 2:24

6. The Judgement (James Luther Dickinson, Mike Utley) - 4:08

7. O How She Dances (Traditional) - 3:15

8. Wild Bill Jones (Bob Frank) - 4:13

9. Casey Jones (On The Road Again) (Furry Lewis) - 6:36

Bonus Tracks on 2016 Future Days edition

10.If I Had My Way (Traditional) - 3:10

11.The Lady From Baltimore (Tim Hardin) - 3:23

12.Clap Your Hands (Jim Dickinson) - 2:04

13.Old Time Used To Be (Christmas Tree) (Jim Dickinson) - 5:25

14.Relax Your Mind (Jim Dickinson) - 3:14

15.Mama Tried (Merle Haggard) - 3:44

16.Sanctified (Jim Dickinson, Bob McDill) - 2:47

Musicians

*Jim Dickinson - Lead Vocals, Piano, Guitar

*Charlie Lawing - Alto Saxophone

*Brenda Kay Patterson, Ginger Holiday, Jeannie Greene, Mary Holiday, Mary Lindsay Dickinson - Backing Vocals

*Joe Gaston, Tommy McClure - Bass

*Sammy Lee Creason - Drums

*Jack Pennington - Fiddle

*Charlie Freeman, Edward La Paglia, Gimmer Nicholson, Lee Baker, Mike Ladd - Guitar

*Sid Selvidge - Guitar, Piano

*Mike Utley - Keyboards

*Ken Woodley - Keyboards, Bass

*Jeff Newman - Pedal Steel Guitar

*Dr. John, The Night Tripper - Piano

*Terry Manning - Vocals, Guitar, Electric Piano

*Jimmy Crosthwait - Washboard

Thursday, April 24, 2025

Impala Syndrome - Impala Syndrome (1969 venezuela, fantastic acid psych rock, 2012 remaster)

Previously known as Los Impalas, this Venezuela-based group eventually moved to Spain where they met with great success. The band’s discs, which encompassed a mix of different styles, were well received and are now relished by collectors throughout the world. In tune with the changing times, Los Impalas then switched their name to the snazzier sounding Impala Syndrome and released a self-titled album in 1969 on the Parallax label, which has recently been revived by Gear Fab Records.

Housed in a ghastly hallucinogenic sleeve, Impala Syndrome stands as a spectacular slab of hard rocking psychedelic informed godliness. The band’s chops, which surge forth with energy and excitement, are constantly firing on all circuits, while the quality of the songs is exceptionally high. Powerful and confident vocals, mated with packets of punchy melodies also flood the material. Cream, the Jimi Hendrix Experience and Sly and the Family Stone tend to be the trinity of influences supporting the tracks, but it’s entirely safe to say Impala Syndrome had their own mojo working.

Cuts like “Too Much Time,” “I Want To Hug The Sky” and “Children Of The Forest” swivel and shake with flocks of fat and funky licks. Crunchy, crushing and aflame with cool grooves, these are the type of songs impossible not to dance to or play air guitar to. Splashed with waves of windy harmonies, “Leave, Eve” skillfully combines pop sensibilities with a stroke of acid rock fodder, and then there’s “Love Grows A Flower,” a moody midtempo piece that grips both the ears and the soul.

A lot of bands choose to save the best for last, and some folks will certainly tag the grand final on Impala Syndrome as the ultimate showstopper. Set to a ghostly raga rock rhythm, “Run (Don’t Look Behind)” echoes both the Beatles’ “Tomorrow Never Knows” and Them’s “Square Room,” as it hums and sighs to a repetitious beat of mystical mystery.

Crammed tight with dazzling mobility, Impala Syndrome is one of the finest albums of its genre. Synchronicity abounds in pounds here, as the band continually bounces ideas off each other, then locks everything neatly together. How wonderful it is such amazing performances have been documented on record, allowing them to live on for eternity.

by Beverly Paterson, March 2, 2012

Tracks

1. Too Much Time (F. Chanona, Martin Brummer, Gene Busnar) - 3:05

2. Love Grows A Flower (Francisco Belisario, Rudy Marquez, Martin Brummer, I. E. Pittelman) - 3:42

3. Children Of The Forest (K. Perea, Martin Brummer, Gene Busnar) - 4:15

4. For A Small Fee (Leo Acosta, Martin Brummer, Gene Busnar) - 2:36

5. New Love Time (Edgardo Quintero, Martin Brummer) - 2:52

6. Let Them Try (Edgardo Quintero, Rudy Marquez, Martin Brummer) - 3:03,

7. Land Of No Time (Francisco Belisario, Edgardo Quintero, Martin Brummer) - 3:14

8. I Want To Hug The Sky (F. Chanona, Martin Brummer, Gene Busnar) - 3:25

9. Leave Eve (Francisco Belisario, Rudy Marquez, Edgardo Quintero, Martin Brummer) - 2:44

10.Run (Don't Look Behind) (A. Neri, Martin Brummer, Gene Busnar) - 4:20

Impala Syndrome

*Francisco Belisario - Rhythm guitar, vocals

*Rodolfo (Rudy) Marquez - Vocals, percussion

*Edgardo Quintero - Lead guitar, vocals

*Nerio Quintero - Bass guitar, vocals

*Bernardo Ball - Drums, percussion