Almost like a fly on the wall, we are witness to the young J.J. Cale and Leon Russell, stretching out among friends in Russell’s Paradise Studios in Los Angeles, in June of 1979. In a 21 song set, they are having the time of their lives, and we are left to watch in wonder. Joining Cale and Russell are his wife, Christine Lakeland, along with Marty Green, Nick Rather, Jimmy Karstein, Bill Boatman and Ambrose Campbell.
by Keith Hannaleck
There isn't a bad track on this album. The playing is way more muscular than on his records. The band just lays right into it from the opening track Nowhere to Run and never lets up. You will not believe the bass pouring out of your speakers. The beat is big thumping tremendous and propels the whole album. The drums and guitars are crisp. The solos are tasty. The mood is very relaxed and the band is having a great time.
The standout track for me is Going Down where they, ahem, take it up a notch. The energy on that track is just phenomenal, which is saying something since we've already heard the band in a rip-snorting version of JJ's signature song Cocaine. Studio owner, Leon Russell, lets it rip on piano and kinda snarls out of the side of his mouth. Then the saxes take over with a wailing chorus the whole backed up with fer-ro-cious rhythm guitar. It ain't all up-tempo though, JJ can sing a ballad with the best of ‘em viz Sensitive Kind.
by Ray Chowkwanyun
Tracks
1. Nowhere To Run - 2:43
2. Cocaine - 2:58
3. Ten Easy Lessons - 4:20
4. Sensitive Kind - 3:33
5. Hands Off Her - 3:39
6. Louisiana - 2:38
7. Going Down (Don Nix) - 5:14
8. Roll On - 2:51
9. No Sweat - 3:13
10.Crazy Mama - 3:13
11.Fate Of A Fool - 2:55
12.Boilin' Pot - 3:36
13.After Midnight - 4:13
14.Same Old Blues - 2:55
15.Don't Cry Sister - 3:05
16.Call Me The Breeze - 3:22
17.Ever Lovin' Woman - 2:34
18.Katy Kool Lady - 2:39
19.Lies - 3:19
20.Don't Wait (Christine Lakeland Cale) - 3:31
All songs written by J.J. Cale except where stated
Personnel
*J.J. Cale - Guitar, Vocals
*Leon Russell - Piano, Organ, Vocals
*Christine Lakeland - Guitar, Harmonica, Backing Vocals
*Larry Bell - Piano
*Marty Grebb - Horn
*Nick Rather - Bass
*Jimmy Karstein - Percussion, Drums
*Bill Boatman - Guitar
*Ambrose Campbell - Percussion, Drums
*Pat ‘Taco’ Ryan - Brass
*Shamsi Sarumi - Percussion
A notoriously jaw-dropping folk-funk classic, long treasured by the Balearic fraternity, the self-titled LP from the brothers Batteau nevertheless remains a criminally underheard gem. Appealing to fans stuck on Ned Doheny's scorching blue-eyed soul as well as Gene Clark's rich country-rock, it's an honour to present the reissue of this undoubted masterpiece of proto-Yacht-Rock.
Like a forgotten piece of baroque folk caught in 1973, Batteaux's eponymous album somehow sounds magically timeless. A full 45 years after the fact, it remains a mystery as to why they weren't better known. The lush production and virtuoso playing conforms with the ruling aesthetic of the time - well-crafted, melodic songs performed with precision and balance - whilst the shimmering AOR atmosphere and sun-dappled vocal washes align neatly with the best Crosby, Stills & Nash records.
Throughout, the beautifully penned tracks hold traces of Jimmie Spheeris, America and Seals & Crofts. The immaculately orchestrated percussion and additional instrumentation (electric piano and fiddle to name a few) are performed by perennially celebrated West-Coast cats including Tom Scott, John Guerin and Andy Newmark.
It's no surprise that the heavenly "High Tide" is such a Balearic touchstone. A free soul aqua-space groover, its sophisticated rhythms predict the swing of CSN's canonical "Dark Star" by a full four years. An alternative measure of its enduring magnificence can be gauged by MF Doom sampling Paul Horn's wonderful version, subsequently used by Ghostface Killah.
The highlights are many and memorable. Gorgeous opener "Tell Her She's Lovely" is the perfect example of the addictive, melody-driven songwriting which really should have earned them stardom. Moody ballad "Living's Worth Loving" is nothing short of heartbreaking whilst the chugging elegance of "Wake Me In The Morning" showcases their bewitching harmonies. The hypnotic yearning of "Lady Of The Lake" is an exquisitely string-drenched, piano-laced favourite that achieves a peculiar strutting-funk. It's that good.
This lovingly curated reissue enables a long overdue reappraisal of the hitherto buried genius of Batteaux. The serene aqua artwork which their father worked on a dolphin-human communication project in Hawaii, hence the infamous design.
Tracks
1. Tell Her She's Lovely (David Batteau) - 2:38
2. Living's Worth Loving (David Batteau) - 3:13
3. Wake Me In The Morning (Robin Batteau) - 2:42
4. Mirror (David Batteau) - 2:58
5. Joe Arnold (David Batteau) - 3:15
6. Dig Up The Love (David Batteau) - 2:50
7. Katy (Robin Batteau) - 2:00
8. Lady Of The Lake (David Batteau, Henry Lewy, Stuart Alan Love) - 2:23
9. Treat Me Right, Treat Me Wrong (Robin Batteau) - 2:47
10.High Tide (David Batteau) - 3:51
11.Wishing My Father (Robin Batteau) - 1:15
12.Maybe I'll Run Away (David Batteau) - 2:59
The Corporation formed in 1968 at the Galaxy Club, located in Cudahy, WI, a southeastern suburb of Milwaukee. Some months later, they were discovered by Capitol Records executives while playing at another local club called The Bastille. Members included Kenneth Berdoll (bass, vocals), Patrick McCarthy (organ, trombone), Daniel Pell (vocals), Gerard Smth (lead guitar, vocals) and brothers John Kondos (guitar, flute, harp, piano, vocals) and Nicholas Kondos (drums, vocals).
Their first, self-titled LP was released in early 1969 and contains some great musicianship and original melodies. Highlights on the album include 'Ring That Bell', 'Smile' and the 19½ minute psychedelicized version of the John Coltrane instrumental 'India'. Although the album was a smash on the local Milwaukee charts, peaking at #3, it only reached #197 nationally. Even though the record ended up not being a huge commercial success, the band continued to write and record with hopes of a follow up LP on Capitol.
Tracks
1.I Want to Get out of my Grave (John Kondos, Nicholas Kondos) - 5:31
2.Ring That Bell (John Kondos, Nicholas Kondos) - 4:52
3.Smile (John Kondos, Patrick McCarthy) - 2:51
4.Highway (John Kondos, Gerard Jon Smith) - 3:04
5.Drifting (John Kondos) - 4:05
6.India (John Coltrane) - 19:33
The Corporation
*Kenneth Berdoll - Bass, Vocals
*John Kondos - Guitar, Keyboards, Fute
*Nick Kondos - Drums, Vocals
*Patrick McCarthy - Keyboards, Trombone
*Daniel Vincent Peil - Vocals
*Gerard Jon Smith - Lead Guitar, Vocals
Jackie McAuley's debut solo album Jackie McAuley first released in 1971 is a minor masterpiece, a beguiling mixture of moods with shades of folk-rock, blues and jazz. The album has been somewhat unjustly overlooked as history has continued to praise Trader Home's magical Morning Way, recorded with Judy Dyble the previous year.
The early recording career of McAuley - a gifted original singer and musician - is a confused tale of short-lived projects and missed opportunities. Jackie McAuley was born into a very musical family in County Derry, Northern Ireland surrounded by traditional Irish music. In 1964 Jackie and his elder brother Patrick moved to London and joined Them - Belfast's finest r'n'b band with Van Morrison. Them were plagued with personnel problems, Jackie's tenure as the group's organist was brief - confusions over who played on the group's influential early recordings has been the subject of hot debate for many years.
Whilst in London, Jackie made the acquaintance of one of his musical heroes - the American rock & roll legend Gene Vincent; "Gene really was the one who gave me the confidence to write my own songs". McAuley soon found himself in Dublin fronting a blues band with Paul Brady - later of the Johnstons and Planxty. Sometime in late 1966, when Pat McAuley finally exited the turbulent Them, the brothers formed a new band together with Mike Scott and Ken McLeod. In London they met the American record producer Kim Fowley, a longstanding fan of Them, who christened them the Belfast Gypsies, and signed with the hip Island label.
The Belfast Gypsies recorded a pair of singles for Island, but discographical confusion continued. Their first 45 - 'Gloria's Dream' / 'Secret Police' - appeared in October '66, the second single - 'People, Let's Freak Out' / 'Shadow Chasers' • followed two months later appearing confusingly under the name Freaks Of Nature. The 'A' side had overdubbed percussion by Soft Machine's Robert Wyatt and Island A&R executive Guy Stevens. The Belfast Gypsies went on to complete an album which finally appeared in Scandinavia under the title Them Belfast Gypsies' in 1967.
When the Gypsies foundered, McAuley began working as a Folk Rock duo with ex-Fairport Convention singer and auto-harpist Judy Dyble. Trader Home, apparently taking their name from the venerable John Peel's nanny, recorded the beautiful 'Morning Way' album - released on Dawn records in March 1970. "Good tunes, nice harmonies, played well," is Dyble's succinct summary of the record. When Dyble left to get married, McAuley briefly continued with singer Saffron Summerfield before dissolving the band.
Determined to pursue his own musical vision, McAuley then began recording a solo album with help from some of the best young jazz musicians of the time. Most of the players were recruited on the suggestion of the label's in-house producer Barry Murray. Mike McNaught, Tony Roberts and Mike Travis were all members of the Henry Lowther Band which had recorded the acclaimed 'Child Song' in 1970. Renowned jazz trumpeter Henry Lowther had played with the original Mike Westbrook Band and with John Dankworth's Big Band.
In the sixties Lowther had also worked on the rock scene with Manfred Mann and John Mayail. and appeared at the famous Woodstock festival in 1969 whilst a member of the Keef Hartley Band. Flautist Tony Roberts was an alumni of Alexis Korner's genre-defying Blues Incorporated and regularly recorded with John Renbourn and many of the most innovative innovative Londonbased jazz composers, On double bass they hired Roy Babbington, an ex-member of Delivery, currently playing with Ian Carr's Nucleus and a busy session musician - recording with Harvey Andrews, Mike D'Abo, Keith Tippett and Soft Machine among many.
The rhythm section was completed by Mike Travis from the Canterbury-based Gilgamesh and Pete Hossell, an acclaimed jug player. Hossell was well-known on the British blues scene, a founding member of the Panama Limited Jug Band, in 1969 he appeared with Ian Anderson's Country Blues Band on their 'Stereo Death Breakdown' album. The orchestral arrangements for the album were by keyboard player Mike McNaught.
He'd recently been the musical director for the London stage production of Harry Nillson's The Point' and would go on to have an eclectic career recording with B A Robertson, composing songs for children's television series like 'Rupert' and arranging songs for the Monty Python albums The Meaning of Life' and 'Monty Python Sings'. Jackie McAuley was issued by Pye Record's Dawn imprint in July 1971. All of the songs had been written by Jackie before the recording began.
The album includes one non-original, a fine cover of Leadbelly's 'Poor Howard': "Since I was a kid, I've always been a big fan of Leadbelly, Robert Johnson, Woody Guthrie... all were great songsmiths" recalls McAuley, "the sessions were great. I have good memories of that recording, they were great players." 'Country Joe' is a gentle portrait of another of McAuley's heroes - Country Joe McDonald of 'and the Rsh' fame.
Dawn released two singles to promote the album - 'Turning Green1 / 'It's Alright' (DNS1011) and 'Rockin' Shoes' / 'One Fine Day' (DNS 1020). However, McAuley was reluctant to undertake live gigs at the time, like so many singer-songwriters he suffered the familiar quandary - he didn't have a band to take the album arrangements on the road, and felt that solo performances would not do the material justice.
Sadly the album failed to find the audience it deserved and quickly disappeared from the market. McAuley soon found work as a session player, recording with Jim Capaldi, Rick Wakeman, Bryn Haworth and many others, later he was musical director of the Lonnie Donegan band.
In 1982 he co-wrote with Johnny Gustafson Status Quo's Top Ten hit 'Dear John'. In the mid-1980s Jackie formed a Celtic rock band called Poor Mouth with Clive Bunker (ex- Jethro Tull), Philip Rynhart (ex-Taj Mahal) and Tommy Lundy (ex-Katmandu). He has continued to record and gig throughout the past two decades, releasing an occasional series of fine albums - Gael Force (1989), Headspin (1994), Fretwork (1996), Shadowboxing (1999) and Bad Day At Black Rock (2000).
by David Suff
Tracks
1. Turning Green - 6:08
2. Boy on the Bayou - 3:31
3. Country Joe - 4:38
4. Cameramen, Wilson & Holmes - 4:55
5. Spanish Room - 1:59
6. It's Alright - 6:04
7. Poor Howard (H. Ledbetter) - 2:01
8. Away - 3:35
9. Bangerine - 5:02
10.Ruby Farm - 3:38
11.Rocking Shoes - 3:20
12.One Fine Day - 2:02
All compositions by Jackie McAuley unless otherwise stated.
Guitarist Junior Marvin is largely known for his work with Bob Marley. While there's nothing wrong with such recognition, it ignores a decade of work under a wide array of alias, supporting an impressive collection of groups with difference musical styles, as well as his work fronting this short-lived entity.
Hanson was apparently a post Keef Hartley band project, as well as serving as the debut of his new stage name - Junior Hanson. The group's original line up consisted of Hanson, bassist Clive Chapman, drummer Conrad Isadore and keyboard player Jean Roussell. After being signed by Emerson, Lake, & Palmer's Manticore Records, the quartet survived long enough to release one LP - 1973's Mario Medious produced "Now Hear This".
Anyone expecting to hear a continuation of Kerr's (nee Hanson's) blues-rock work with Keef Hartley was going to be surprised. There wasn't a single blues-rocker on this collection. Instead, on tracks like 'Traveling Like a Gypsy', 'Take You Into My Home', and 'Rain' Hanson unveiled his latent Hendrix influences. I won't go as far as describing these tunes as plagiarism, but the Hendrix sound was distinctive. On the other hand, don't let that turn you off. Hanson had a likeable voice, was a fantastic guitar player and the fact of the matter is there wasn't a bad tune on the album. Well worth tracking a copy down.
by Scott Blackerby
Tracks
1. Traveling Like A Gypsy - 6.15
2. Love Knows Everything - 3.08
3. Mister Music Maker - 4.27
4. Catch That Beat - 3.48
5. Take You Into My Home - 3.11
6. Gospel Truth - 5.03
7. Rain - 5.10
8. Smokin’ To The Big M - 9.53
All songs written by Junior Hanson except Track #4 written by Ken Cumberbatch
For an album released on the Manticore label (home to the always over-bearing Emerson, Lake and Palmer), this 1974 release came as a pleasant surprise.
The fact that it features one of rock's true chameleons in the form of Donald Hanson Marvin Kerr Richards, Jr.(aka Junior Hanson, aka Junior Kerr, aka Junior Marvin) was simply an added bonus.
The guy's discography is a hornet's nest and I'm not going to try to untangle it here, but Hanson was apparently a post Keef Hartley band project, as well as serving as the debut of his new stage name - Junior Hanson.
Prior to recording a sophomore album, the band underwent a wholesale personnel shake up that saw namesake Hanson the only carryover. The revised line up featured percussionist Brother James, drummer Glen LeFleur and bassist Neil Murray.
Overlooking the butt ugly cover art (nice job there Bob Defrin), "Magic Dragon" is surprisingly good Hendrix inspired guitar rock with enough psych touches to make it interesting to folks collecting that genre.
by Scott Blackerby
Tracks
1.Rocking Horseman (John Burns) - 3:34
2.Morning Day Religion (Junior Hanson, Ken Cumberbatch) - 3:10
3.Down Into The Dragon (Junior Hanson, Ken Cumberbatch) - 5:28
4.Rock Me Baby (B.B. King, Joe Josea) - 3:57
5.Love Yer, Need You (Brother James, Glen LeFleur, Junior Hanson, Neil Murray) - 4:59
6.Boy Meets Girl (Cassandra) - 3:06
7.American Beauty Rose (Junior Hanson, Ken Cumberbatch) - 3:06
8.Looking At Tin Soldiers (Junior Hanson) - 3:46
9.Magic Dragon (Junior Hanson, Ken Cumberbatch) - 2:59
Bob Tench (also frequently credited as Bobby Tench) is a talented journeyman singer and guitarist who has worked with some of the biggest and best-respected names in British rock during a career that has spanned six decades. Born on September 21, 1944, Tench got his start as a bass player, working with a variety of acts on the London club circuit before forming his first band, Gass.
Gass cut singles for Parlophone and CBS between 1965 and 1967, and in 1969, when impresario Jack Good presented his rock & roll stage adaptation of Othello, Catch My Soul, Gass were recruited to serve as the backing band and later appeared on the original cast album. Gass cut an album of their own in 1970, Juju, which featured a guest appearance by British blues legend Peter Green, but the group broke up in the summer of 1971.
by Mark Deming
Tracks
1.Kulu Se Mama - 7.14
2.Holy Woman - 5.29
3.Yes I Can - 6.51
4.Juju - 3.39
5.Black Velvet - 3.50
6.House For Sale - 3.47
7.Cold Light Of Day - 4.13
8.Cool Me Down - 6.10
All songs by Godfrey McClean, Delisle Harper, Robert Tench
When The Association's "Windy," reached the #1 position in July 1967, writer Ruthann Friedman didn't just score a hit single, she also achieved a milestone: Ruthann was the third female songwriter to compose an American #1 record without a cowriter. In 1999, BMI desig- nated the infectious smash the 61st most played song of the 20th century. But the story doesn't end there.
Produced in 1969 by JOE WISSERT (The Turtles, Lovin' Spoonful, Jackie DeShannon) Constant Companion is Ruthann's only LP released during the first chapter of her career. An intimate folk album replete with lysergic lyrical imagery, Constant Companion will intrigue fans of Joni Mitchell and Judee Sill.
Also included is a full album's worth of previously unreleased material cut during the Constant Companion era. Some of these tracks feature the participation of Ry Cooder, Van Dyke Parks, and Byrds members Clarence White and Gene Parsons. The booklet includes rare photos and extensive liner notes featuring the participation of Ruthann herself!
CD Liner-Notes
The songs on Constant Companion cover a range of styles, from Simon and Garfunkel style folk (“People”) and Mitchell-inspired psychedelic ruminations (“Fairy Prince Rainbow Man,” “Danny”) to jazz-inflected pop (“Morning Becomes You”). The arrangements are sparse, consisting solely of Friedman’s acoustic guitar and voice, with the exception of lead guitar by Peter Kaukonen (brother of Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna’s Jorma, and creator of Constant Companion’s cover art). Friedman’s wide stylistic range suggests that the suits at Reprise may have been a little too eager to force her into the role of “the next Joni”; several of her songs cry out for further orchestration (the fingerstyle guitar intro to “Looking Back Over Your Shoulder” being one case in point).
While they work as acoustic compositions, they may have benefited from more complex arrangements, as does the post-album single “Carry On (Glittering Dancer),” a quirky track that indulges in Van Dyke Parks-style baroque orchestrations (apparently Parks and Friedman were briefly an item, and he executive produced the track.) Given the fact that Friedman hasn’t recorded anything since, Constant Companion can hardly help but evoke imaginings of what might have been had she stayed in the business longer. As it stands, though, the album is a fine effort, and its rescue from the archives is certainly to be applauded.
by Michael Cramer
Tracks
1. Topsy-Turvy Moon (Charles Shaw, Dick Kuhn, Jerry Kanner) - 0:38
2. Piper's Call - 3:40
3. Fairy Prince Rainbow Man - 3:04
4. Too Late To Be Mourning - 2:53
5. Ringing Bells - 3:08
6. Looking Back Over Your Shoulder - 3:35
7. People - 3:35
8. Morning Becomes You (Peter Kaukonen) - 3:12
9. Peaceable Kingdom - 4:23
10.No Time - 3:10
11.Danny - 1:49
12.Look Up To The Sun - 3:25
13.Carry On Through (Glittering Dancer) - 2:26
14.Off To See The World - 2:41
15.When You're Near - 3:59
16.Traveling Around (Peter Kaukonen, Ruthann Friedman) - 2:36
17.Chocolate See (Peter Kaukonen, Ruthann Friedman) - 2:09
Charlie was a British band that had a few minor hits in the UK and the US, but they are completely unknown in continental Europe. And that's a shame, because their commercial, slick type of Melodic Rock / AOR is pleasing to the ear. If you're a contemporary or alternative Rock fan, don't read on. Charlie's style is mainstream as hell, and so 80's and sweet that it'll make you run for cover. But they were very good at what they were doing, so I decided to write something about them here, for the old, the unhip and the ugly and for those who are all this times two (like yours truly).
The band had some pretty interesting personnel throughout their existence. There were people coming from bands like the NWOBHM band Axe (John Anderson and main song writer Terry Thomas) and 70's Rockers Argent (Bob Henrit and John Verity). Several of Charlie's members would later be active as producers, session musicians or band members for different well known Pop, Rock, Prog and Hard Rock bands. Names like Bad Company, Bonnie Tyler, The Kinks, Janus Stark, Steve Hackett, The Church, Clannad, Toto, Crawler, Foreigner, Giant,... will undoubtfully ring a few bells. And that's not even half of the complete list of names.
Charlie has released eight studio albums between 1976 and 1986. I'm limiting myself to these three as they are the only ones I know. I can only guess that their other albums sound similar.
Dedicated to the enduring appeal of 60s music in its various guises. UK bands in the 60s successfully fused their love of U.S. black music with other styles, charged it with a healthy dose of youthful aggression and called it their own.
That's in essence the Beat and R&B era, of course, in a nutshell. But a quick glimpse at the credits for this compilation reveals more: previously, serious-minded musicians shunned "pop". The R ‘n’ B explosion brought them into the fold: now, hardcore jazz musicians could be found in the ranks of various beat combos.
Running parallel with this musical renaissance was a similarly exciting evolution in youth culture. Mod was the catch-all term used to describe the newly-acquired aspirant lifestyle adopted by many teenagers - with a strongly identifiable look, the emphasis on the neat, the sharp, the modern.
Four or so decades on, Mod has now come to symbolise the era, inseparable from the iconography of the mid-60s, and kept alive by a small but perfectly formed scene of people who weren't even born at the time. What's Mod? What you want it to be. Is this Mod? Who cares?! In essence, Take My Tip is a fascinating jukebox of classic rarities.
From CD liner notes
Artists - Tracks - Composer
1. Ottilie Patterson with Sonny Boy Williamson - Baby Please Don't Go (Joe Williams) - 1:48
2. Long John Baldry And Hoochie Coochie Men - Up Above My Head I Hear Music In The Air (Sister Rosetta Tharpe) - 2:50
3. Duffy Power - If I Get Lucky Some Day (Duffy Power) - 2:42
4. Tony's Defenders - Yes I Do (Tony Diamond) - 2:23
5. The Manish Boys - Take My Tip (David Joner) - 2:15
6. Chris Farlowe And The Thunderbirds - Buzz With The Fuzz (Albert Lee, John Deighton, Ricky Charman) - 2:30
7. The Shotgun Express - Curtains (Peter Bardens) - 2:21
8. Herbie Goins And Night Timers - Cruisin' (John McLaughlin) - 2:40
9. The Ram Jam Band With Geno Washington - Shake Shake Senora (Frank Guida, Gene Barge, Joseph Royster) - 2:31
10.Cliff Bennett And The Rebel Rousers - Strange Feeling (Bert DeCoteaux, Joseph Cook) - 2:37
11.Simon Dupree And The Big Sound - Medley: 60 Minutes (Of Your Love) A Lot Of Love (David Porter, Isaac Hayes / Homer Banks) - 3:37
12.Haydock's Rockhouse - Mix-A-Fix (David Paramor, Eric Haydock, Peter Eden) - 2:24
13.Beryl Marsden - What's She Got (Bob Barratt, Len Beadle) - 2:35
14.The Roulettes - Jackpot (Bob Henrit, John Rogan, Peter Thorpe, Russ Ballard) - 2:05
15.Mike Patto - Love (Elton Dean, Mike Patto) - 3:01
16.Rod Stewart - I Just Got Some (Billy Emerson, Willie Dixon) - 2:40
17.Toni Daly - Like The Big Man Said (Giovanni Alceo Guatelli, Mario Panzeri, Daniele Pace, Peter Callander) - 2:51
18.Murray Head with Blue Monks - You Bore Me (Murray Head) - 2:11
19.Kenny Lynch with Laurie Jay Combo - Harlem Library (Kenny Lynch) - 2:22
