Plain and Fancy

1972 Keef Hartley Band - Seventy Second Brave (2009 esoteric)

Sunday, March 1, 2026

Hanson - Magic Dragon (1974 uk, stunning blues funk rock, 2007 japan remaster)

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

Hanson

*Junior Hanson - Guitar, Vocals

*Glen LeFleur - Drums, Percussion

*Neil Murray - Bass

*Brother James - Percussion, Congas

*Marlo Henderson - Guitar

*Andre Lewis - Keyboards

With

*Cassandra - Vocals

Relasted Act

1972 Keef Hartley - Lancashire Hustler (2009 esoteric)

1976-77 Streetwalkers - Red Card • Vicious But Fair (2005 remaster)

Saturday, February 28, 2026

rep>>> Gass - Gass "Juju" (1970 uk, exciting blend of blues, jazz, psych and prog, with Peter Green)

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

Gass
*Robert Tench - Bass, Guitar, Organ, Vocals
*Godfrey Mclean - Drums, Congas, Vocals, Percussion
*Delisle Harper - Bass, Percussion
*Derek Austin - Organ, Piano, Flute, Percussion
*Michael Piggott - Violin, Guitar
With
*Junior Kerr - Guitar
*Errol Mclean - Congas
*Humphrey Okah - Sax
*Lan Roskans - Lead Guitar
*Frank Clark - Organ
*Peter Green - Guitar

Just Paste
Text Host

1965-71 Ruthann Friedman ‎– Hurried Life / Lost Recordings (2003 release)

Friday, February 27, 2026

Ruthann Friedman - The Complete Constant Companion Sessions (1969-70 us, wonderful folk rock, 2014 remaster)

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

18.Ginger - 3:32

19.Song For My Brother - 2:24

20.I Understand (Pamela Polland, Ruthann Friedman) - 3:18

21.World's End (Peter Kaukonen, Ruthann Friedman) - 3:02

22.The Sky Is Moving South (Peter Kaukonen, Ruthann Friedman) - 4:04

23.Have A Good Time - 2:08

24.Windy - 1:58

All compositions written by Ruthann Friedman except where indicated

Personnel

*Ruthann Friedman - Vocals, Guitar

*Peter Kaukonen - Electric Guitar

1966-73 Ruthann Friedman - Windy - A Ruthann Friedman Songbook (2013 remaster)

1976 Charlie - Fantasy Girls (2007 remaster)

Wednesday, February 25, 2026

Charlie - No Second Chance (1977 uk, a blend of hard melodic rock with strong harmonies, 2009 remaster)

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.

"No Second Chance" exists with two different album covers. The other one has a barely dressed girl in a hotel room on it. Compared to the other two albums on this page, this one sounds far more Progressive. Apparently they started their carreer as a Progressive Rock band, but already their sound was smooth and accessible. No sharp edges and a clear emphasis on vocal melodies. Some Funk influences too, in tracks like the uptempo Rock song 'Johnny hold Back'. Highlights are the tracks 'Don't look back' (Soft Prog Rock), 'No Second Chance' (a combination of Soft Rock parts and "harder" Funk Rock parts) and 'Pressure Point' (a slick synth-injected version of 'Déjà-Vu'-era Crosby Stills Nash & Young). As a whole this album has its highs and lows.

by Johan Wuyckens

Tracks

1. No Second Chance (TerryThomas, Martin Smith) - 4:44

2. Don't Look Back - 4:29

3. Pressure Point - 3:40

4. Turning To You - 3:06

5. Thirteen (TerryThomas, Martin Smith) - 6:10

6. Lovers - 6:22

7. Johnny Hold Back - 4:14

8. Love Is Alright (TerryThomas, Martin Smith) - 3:51

9. Guitar Hero (False Messiah) - 7:38

All songs written by Terry Thomas except where stated

Charlie

*John Anderson - Vocals, Bass

*Martin Smith - Guitar

*Steve Gadd - Drums

*Terry Thomas - Vocals, Guitar

With

*Peter Zorn - Saxophones, Flutes

*Richard Burgess - Percussion

*Martin Smith - Guitars

*Geoff Leach - Piano (Track 5)

*Graeme Quinton-Jones - Keyboards

Sunday, February 22, 2026

rep>>> Various Artists - Take My Tip (1963-67 uk, exciting mod r 'n' b artyfacts from the EMI vaults)

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

20.Edwick Rumbold - Boggle Woggle (Roger James) - 2:48

21.The N' Betweens - Evil Witch Man (Dave Hill, Don Powell, Jim Lea, Kim Fowley, Noddy Holder) - 2:19

22.The Shadows - Scotch On The Socks (Brian Bennett, Bruce Welch, Hank Marvin, John Rostill) - 2:18

23.Ben Carruthers And The Deep - Jack O'Diamonds (Ben Carruthers, Bob Dylan) - 2:44

24.Paul Williams And Big Roll Band, The - Gin House (Fletcher Henderson, Henry Troy) - 2:37

25.Night-Timers Featuring Herbie Goins - The Music Played On (Ray Smith, Tony Colton) - 2:46

Saturday, February 21, 2026

rep>>> Marsupilami - Arena (1971 uk, epic agile potent concept progressive rock, 2007 remaster)

After their debut album's release, Marsi toured and expanded by adding Mandy Riedelbanch on multiple wind instruments and found themselves relocating in Amsterdam, where they were playing a series of concert in the Paradiso theatre with the then-state of the art MC2 Lightshow. This is when they started to write and rehearse for their second album, with the assistance of an external lyricist Bob West.

The album, recorded in London, was produced by future Camel founder Peter Bardens, and indeed you can hear some of Mirage's source of inspiration in Arena, including Latimer's flute, much reminiscent of Jessica Stanley. "Graced" with one of the ugliest ever prog artwork, Arena was an improvement on their debut, partly because the extra musician allowed the group to have much more possibilities, sonically and songwriting-wise.

So the aptly titled opening track Prelude does musically exactly that: it resumes the first album's progress and the band is ready to pick up things where they'd left it at. So with the following Peace Of Rome (we're in a concept, but I was never bothered to follow it too much without smirking at the pretentiousness, the worst offender being Triumvirate) is a very ambitious piece, exploring its themes over circus/arena crowd noises, and a touch of mellotron (that was missing in the debut album) and plenty of interplay time.

The mammoth title track starts rather eerily, but in a second movement, it picks a mid-eastern them over tabla and drums, but in the next one, the ambitious and daring vocal passage turns close to ridicule, but saved from it by further impressive progressions until a sharp and raw end. At one point, you can hear Laverock's bowed guitar give an acetate cello sound.

The flipside starts on effects-laden narration as intro of the other epic of this album, Time Shadows. This tracks spends a considerable time in its first movement a piano/organ duo (overdubbing from Leary, certainly), before gradually intervening are Jessica's flute, Mandy's sax and Laverock's now jazzy guitar. After an insufferably long passage dishing out whatever lyrics the track had to offer, the group unleashes on a bass and closing lyric lines, before echoing keys and sax bring the track into a very Graaf-esque ending. Indeed you'd swear this is Jaxon, Banton, and Hammill closing this track.

I'm not sure whether the closing Spring track is supposed to be part of the concept, for it doesn't get one of those pompous description like the first four tracks, but it's also a collectively-written track, that starts as a complete mayhem to slowly settle down in a dervish-like trance, with Fred's meandering scat vocals soaring over the rest of the band's great semi-raga, until the guitar and flute slowly deconstruct the group's unity (there is a superb double flute interlude that last until the organ breaks it up, announcing the piano and now double scat vocals. Fantasrtic stuff and definitely the group's best moment and it is quite accessible too. Much more than some of the more "baroque" passages that "doesn't click all the way".

One of the rare deceptions I have is that it seems that the new member Riedelbanch is only really present (or at least noticeable) on the album's flipside, which is a crying shame, because I think she made quite a difference. Arena is definitely an improvement on their debut album, but it is a bit like Gnidrolog?. Get both albums as they're equally good, even if this one will get more nods.

by Sean Trane

Tracks
1. Prelude To The Arena (Leary Hasson, Bob West) - 5:23
2. Peace Of Rome (Leary Hasson, Bob West) - 7:01
3. The Arena (Leary Hasson, Bob West) - 12:55
4. Time Shadows (Leary Hasson, Fred Hasson, Bob West) - 11:16
5. Spring (Dave Laverock, Leary Hasson, Fred Hasson, Richard Hicks, Mike Fouracre, Jessica Stanley-Clarke, Mandy Reidelbanch) - 9:16

Personnel
*Fred Hasson - Lead Vocals, Percussion, Harmonica
*Dave Laverock - Electric, Acoustic, Bowed Guitars, Percussion, Vocals
*Leary Hasson - Piano, Mellotron, Tubular Bells
*Richard Hicks - Bass
*Mike Fouracre - Drums, Timpani, Percussion
*Jessica Stanley-Clarke - Flute, Vocals
*Mandy Reidelbanch - Tenor, Alto Sax, Flute, Percussion
*Bob West - Vocals
*Peter Bardens - Percussion

1970 Marsupilami (2008 Eosteric remaster)

1974 he Electric Flag - The Band Kept Playing (2002 remaster)

Friday, February 20, 2026

Roger Troy - Roger Troy (1976 us, pleasant soulful groovy brass rock, 2016 korean remaster)

Roger Troy's only solo work in 1976, former of Jellyroll and member of Mike Bloomfield Band, and Electric Flag, and also provided songs and performed the most soulful vocals. This work was released two years later. In addition to his own compositions, here features songs by Dan Penn, Carole King, Randy Newman, and others, showing the true essence of swamp rock. From sweet, mellow ballads to tight funky numbers, this is a great record full of southern soul taste.

Tracks

1. Don't Put The Blame On Me Baby (Roger Troy) - 3:03

2. A Woman Left Lonely (Dan Penn, Julie Oldham) - 3:44

3. Never Be Lonely (Roger Troy) - 4:16

4. Sweet And Slow (Al Dubin, Harry Warren) - 3:15

5. We Are All In This Together (Carole King, David Palmer) - 4:27

6. Don't You Have Any Love In Your Heart? (Roger Troy) - 3:29

7. When A Man Loves A Woman (Andrew Wright, Calvin Lewis) - 4:27

8. Sad Eyes (David Spinozza) - 3:49

9. Kentucky Home (Randy Newman) - 2:30

10.Shine On Love (Roger Troy) - 4:21

Personnel

*Roger Troy - Bass, Vocals, Strings, Horns Arrangements

*Henry E. Davis - Bass

*James Gadson - Drums

*James Vincent - Rhythm Guitar

*Larry Goshorn - Guitar

*Mary Lu Whitney - Vocals

*Mike Anthony - Rhythm Guitar, Strings, Horns Arrangements

*Mike Lipskin - Piano, Synthesizer, Strings, Horns Arrangements

*Sonny Burke - Keyboards

*Ernie Watts - Saxophone, Clarinet Solos

*Deniece Williams - Vocals

*Mary Lu Whitney - Vocals

1974 Skyhooks - Living In The 70's (2004 remaster)

Wednesday, February 18, 2026

Skyhooks - Ego Is Not A Dirty Word (1975 australia, fine glam rock)

"Ego Is Not a Dirty Word" is Skyhooks finest album. I know that Living in the Seventies is the much-loved debut, selling over 300,000 copies, and enjoying the infamy of six of its offerings being banned. But, on this second release, there’s an increased breadth in the songs, with “Love’s Not Good Enough” musing on suburban loneliness, “Smartarse Songwriters” featuring Greg Macainsh’s meta-cognitive explorations, and the title track, pushing the patience of many (I can’t imagine Sir Joh was a fan) with its brazen reference to the triumvirate of Richard Nixon, Leonard Cohen, and in an Australian music first, Jesus.

My favourite is side 2, track 2. I know it’s a hundred types of wrong, but I recently played it in the car for the boys. On the first note of “Mercedes Ladies” they both giggled at the larrikinism of bass line, the cheeky guitars and Freddie’s comical tom-tom drumming. It rollicks along with the musical highlight the double hi-hat chick at the end of each line. It’s a great way to spend three minutes, and encapsulates the band, their time, and their legacy. In this, as in much of their material, Skyhooks satirise the suburbs while also rejoicing in them.

Of course, we’re all apprehended by our creative context. Even here in smug 2016, history will eventually scold us. 1975 imprisoned many with multiple charges: sexism, homophobia, stereotyping. But despite this, Skyhooks also pioneered themes concerning the suburban and the local. It was music of the largely untold other; it was not of NYC or London.

Such is the significance of Skyhooks for me that the mention of Carlton evokes the song first, and the footy team second. The band’s collected lyrics still generate an imagined google map of Melbourne, and a reference to Toorak or Balwyn returns me to my original conceptions of the city by the Yarra. If the Beatles are Liverpool, and the Rolling Stones are London, then Skyhooks is Melbourne. Their music has always presented the geography of a highly human environment, as there’s colourful pictures of grimy pubs, menacing streetscapes, and widescreen vistas too.

I love that I can go years without listening to a band, and then one afternoon find myself dragging out a dusty CD, and with the opening chords, being teleported to a distant, thrilling place. With Skyhooks that place is in the dimming distance and unreconstructed, but from time to time, I really enjoy going back there.

by Michael Randall, Mar 14, 2016

Tracks

1. Ego Is Not A Dirty Word - 3:00

2. Love On The Radio (Greg Macainsh, Steve Hill) - 4:18

3. Saturday Night - 2:48

4. Love's Not Good Enough - 7:18

5. The Other Side - 3:14

6. Smartarse Songwriters - 4:12

7. Mercedes Ladies - 3:31

8. All My Friends Are Getting Married - 4:49

9. Every Chase A Steeple (Red Symons) - 3:41

10.Private Eye - 3:00

All songs written by Greg Macainsh except where indicated

Skyhooks

*Graeme 'Shirley' Strachan - Lead Vocals

*Redmond Symons - Guitar, Vocals, Plano (Tracks 4,9)

*Bob 'Bongo Starkle - Guitar

*Freddie Kaboodleschnitzer - Drums, Vocal, Percussion

*Greg Macainsh - Bass Guitar

With

*Peter Jones - Fender Rhodes Piano (Tracks 2,8), Marimbas, Vibes (Track 1), Chimes (Track 3) Boo Bams (Track 4)

*Greg Sneddon - Arp Synthesizer (Track 10)

*Andy Cowan - Mini Moog (Track 10)

*Col Loughnan - Tenor, Baritone Saxaphones (Track 6)

*Pat Wilson - Finger Cymbals (Track 1)

*Ross Wilson - Yamaha Synthesizer (Track 1), Vocal Harmonies

*Ian Mason - Harmony Vocals (Track 8)

*Jenny Keath - Harmony Vocals (Track 1)

1976 Pavlov's Dog - At The Sound Of The Bell (2010 Bonus Tracks)

Tuesday, February 17, 2026

rep>>> Pavlov's Dog - Pampered Menial (1975 us, stellar prog rock, 2009 japan xpanded and 2013 remasters)

While 1974 is considered to be the closure for classic English progressive rock, it was a promising, groundbreaking year for the Americans in the genre, with bands like Kansas and Rush releasing their debut albums. Pampered Menial, the forgotten debut album by St. Louis band Pavlov’s Dog, serves as a further testament to this.

Pavlov’s Dog can actually be the missing piece linking Kansas and Rush – mixing the accessibility of the first with the harder edge of the latter. While not as aggressive as early Rush efforts, Pampered Menial offers about 35 minutes packed with well-written, captivating songs that are dense with instrumental beauty and creativity – creating a sense of celebration from one side and a painful heartbreak affair on the other.

This concentrated, orchestrated work is clearly inspired by early European progressive rock albums (a sub-genre known as "proto-prog"), such as King Crimson’s In the Court of the Crimson King and Spring (another forgotten gem), with various keyboards, mellotron, flutes and strings being a substantial part of the work aside the varied guitar playing, giving it a symphonic touch. It all rocks with intensity, driven by highly dynamic, imaginative drumming, and filled with melody, much in the way Kansas did in their early days.

Lead vocalist David Surkamp’s high singing is very close to that of Rush’s Geddy Lee, both in tone and in delivery. In fact, Surkamp takes his muscular-feminine vibrating vocals to an even more extreme point, using them with more confidence than early Lee, in a way that can be seen as a cross between Lee and the goat-like trembling vocals that Family’s (a late 60’s-70’s outfit that offered orchestrated prog-pop material) Roger Chapman is remembered for.

In fact, Surkamp is not the only one who is performing with confidence. The entire band performs remarkably well and displays maturity and refinement that are sometimes absent from debut albums. Unlike the Led Zeppelin-ish early Rush, Pavlov’s Dog managed to bring on their debut a polished sound that is their own, thus making it a mandatory acquisition to anyone who is interested in American progressive rock.

by Avi Shaked

Tracks
1. Julia - 3:10
2. Late November (Steve Scorfina, David Surkamp) - 3:12
3. Song Dance (Mike Safron) - 4:59
4. Fast Gun - 3:04
5. Natchez Trace (Steve Scorfina) - 3:42
6. Theme From Subway Sue - 4:25
7. Episode - 4:04
8. Preludin (Siegfried Carver) - 1:39
9. Of Once And Future Kings - 5:28
All songs by David Surkamp except where stated

Bonus Tracks 10-13 only on Japanese Edition 2009

10.Subway Sue (David Surkamp) - 4:38

11.Preludin (Siegfried Carver) - 9:58

12.I Wish It Would Rain (David Surkamp) - 5:48

13.Rainbow (David Surkamp) - 3:00

Track 10 recorded live in Detroit 1975

Tracks 11-12 recorded live in St. Louis 1975

Track 13 from the 1969 Album "Stree Suite' by the Touch

Pavlov's Dog
*David Surkamp - Lead Vocals, Guitar
*David Hamilton - Keyboards
*Doug Rayburn - Mellotron, Flute
*Mike Safron - Percussion
*Rick Stockton - Bass Guitar
*Siegfried Carver - Violin, Vitar, Viola
*Steve Scorfina - Lead Guitar