Back in 1977, Moxy had already released their second album, had toured all over Canada, and had had a relative success in faraway Texas (mainly because the most famous radio producer in San Antonio loved them). So they recorded Ridin’ High. As expected it’s a hell of an album. Maybe it’s all about Buzz Shearman’s tremendous voice (Rod Steward on hard rock steroids), or even guitars’ hobo attitude likewise Southern bands’ from Canada. Could be as well the perfect rhythm section; as a result of their pure rock n roll origins, with ooo that smell (referring of course to cigarette and whiskey).
The first two songs follow this exact pattern (“Nothin’ comes easy”, “Rock Baby”). “Sweet Reputation” though it’s rougher, being totally on verge of metal (okay just kidding, still heavier though that lots of this exact period). The first side ends with the hit “I’ll set you on fire”. Come on guys … there is no way a fan of Roth’s hard era, or even Scorpions’ and Thin Lizzy’s, not being fond of this one! Second side and the hard rock n’ roll is on fire, “Ridin’ High” and “Young Legs”, with guitars’ orgasm in the later. Getting to “Another Time, Another Place” crossed the borders heading to another dimension. There is no way Southerners do not like these power ballads, they are exactly what they’re seeking for. And then there’s the rhythmic and sexy “Are you ready”, you know, these old-fashioned rock and phallocratic songs that we – the warhorses – still enjoy listening to.
The album ends with a reprise of “Nothing comes easy”. Well … let me see… Is it a top notch album? Is it a very good record? Is it even worthwhile? I don’t have one and only answer to give. Like I said, every listener is also a critic. I’m not quite sure what would the reaction of a new Moxy’s listener be nowadays. Bloody hell, I don’t even know if Point Blank would affect people, especially younger audience. All I know is that bands like this (of this era I mean) have to be listened carefully, without skipping mode on. Although older releases have had also fillers, their work was approached in detail, more professionally in a way. Every single time you listen to their work, you grasp something extra, like whispers that you may have not noticed right from the start, bass lines from bassists who wrote even melodic lines of the tracks, and singers’ performances who give their souls, not relaying to nowadays’ mentality “okay we’ll fix it on PC”. “Ok, boomer”… right ?
Recording of Home's eponymous second LP began a mere month after their first album had been released. Despite, by modern standards, this obscenely short interval, the album saw the band make considerable advances both stylistically and compositionally. Upon release it was hailed by Melody Maker as one of the best efforts of the year, sold over 10,000 copies in the UK alone and missed making the top 40 in the album charts by one place. Part of the credit for the album's success lies with the more coherent and consistent sound and the excellent production of John Anthony, who had achieved critical and commercial success with the likes of Genesis, Van Der Graaf Generator and Lindisfarne.
Although many comparisons can be made between Home and other bands, the group that comes to my mind when listening to this album is Badfinger. This is rather odd as ostensibly they are not that similar, it is more in the approach taken and the willingness to explore different musical aspects to produce compositions encompassing a variety of styles but maintaining an overall sound that is distinctively their own. For example, Rise Up is a happy acoustic number with a jaunty bass line, xylophone and plenty of vocal harmonies, while the opening and closing tracks of the album are out and out rockers. The biggest step forward in terms of arrangement is a much greater use of harmony vocals which are provide a smoothness to the delivery.
Wisefield is again the star of the show, laying down tasteful guitar licks and thoughtful solos over the rhythms provided by Stubbs, even expanding his repertoire to include steel guitar. Stubbs himself takes on all the keyboard duties which although not extensive do provide clarity and variation, such as on Western Front. As on the first album, he also writes most of the material, the only exceptions being the aforementioned first and last tracks on the original album, Dreamer and Lady Of The Birds, which were written by the whole band. The first of these is a fantastic opening number and it is not surprising that it was used to start live shows. With an initial cry of "Pay Attention!" things immediately set off with Wisefield's and Stubbs' Fender Telecasters fighting it out for dominance with speedy licks battling it out before cohering into harmony. Wah Wah effects are put to great use in the solo which although lasting for about 70 seconds could go on for a lot longer without becoming in the slightest bit boring. It is no wonder that Wishbone Ash were so eager to recruit Wisefield after Home split in 1973.
However, it is Lady Of The Birds that is the real triumph. Having been extensively road tested, when it came time to recording the song the band knew exactly where to take the number and what could be obtained. The opening couple of minutes sets the scene and builds tension before acoustic guitars come to the fore and Cliff Williams coaxes some unusual sounds from his bass guitar by playing it with a violin bow (undoubtedly a technique copied from Jimmy Page!) Eventually, harmony vocals echo the bowed bass riff, guitar flourishes ramp up the tempo, the bow is land down, the drummer starts hitting more than just his cymbals and the soloing begins. Wonderful! As a bonus the b-side Shady Lady has been appended to the running order. Much more in style with the music on the first album it comes as a bit of a shock after the delights of the previous track. Although somewhat of a fun, joke song (and in that respect a typical b-side) it is not a long-lost classic but nice to have for the completists amongst us. The importance of this song lies with the fact that it was the first time that Dave Skillen provided lyrics for the band, a collaboration that continued when he wrote all the lyrics for Home's definitive prog album, The Alchemist.
Although as different from the album that preceded it to the album that followed, Home is nevertheless a wonderful album from a band who deserve to be rescued from obscurity and given a higher profile than they have enjoyed since their untimely demise.
Home are best remembered as being the band that featured future Wishbone Ash guitarist Laurie Wisefield and AC/DC bassist Cliff Williams, although all three of their albums sold in reasonable quantities on their release in the early 1970s. Indeed, vinyl copies of The Alchemist seemed to be in abundance when I started seriously collecting music back in the 1980s and I was embarking on a scientific career I was naturally attracted to the album due to its cover! Ever since first hearing, I have loved the album with its prog credentials to the fore: from the gatefold sleeve to the conceptual tale of the alchemist who prevents disaster befalling the town he lives in but is ultimately killed by the people he originally saved. That Home should come up with a progressive album following the release of their first two albums, Pause For A Hoarse Horse and the eponymous Home, both released in 1972, is somewhat surprising as although both were thoroughly decent albums, neither really suggested that the group was anything other than a very good mainstream rock act. I supposed it is testimony to the record labels at the time (in this case CBS) that they were prepared to invest in groups and let them develop at their own pace over several albums. How many major-label bands get such an opportunity these days?
In addition to Wisefield and Williams, Home also featured Mick Stubbs (guitar, piano, lead vocals) and Mick Cook (drums) with, on this album, David Skillin providing the lyrics and Jimmy Anderson adding synths and Mellotrons. Throughout the album it is the playing of Wiseman that shines through, blending marvellously in the complex arrangements that incorporate numerous shifts in time signatures and arrangements that make best use of the variety of instruments available to the band. There is also plenty of harmony singing, something that features on all three Home albums given that three of the four members (Cook being the exception) were fine singers contributing their vocals throughout. For a progressive album The Alchemist starts somewhat incongruously with a delicate, almost folky, number, Schooldays. Undoubtedly this is deliberate as it is the origins of the story where the two main protagonists first meet at the very beginning of the 20th century. The folkier style is therefore representative of older days and differentiates this element of the tale from the main narrative which is based in the 1950s. It is not appropriate to provide a track-by-track coverage of the album because, as a concept, the music has been arranged to help tell the story and not, necessarily as standalone tracks. However, there are plenty of highlights that are worth noting. For instance, Wisefield's restrained playing on the instrumental Time Passes is in complete contrast to his more direct and angry lead on The Disaster. The sublime vocal melody on The Old Man Calling [Save The People] clearly demonstrates the thought that has gone into matching the lyrics not only to the story but also to the music, with the music itself displaying a breadth of imagination lacking from so many progressive albums - take, for example, the great ending to The Sun's Revenge with its piano and acoustic guitar sections.
The original second side of the LP started with three short numbers, the second of which The Brass Band Played could have eaily provided the inspiration for Camel's The Homecoming on Nude. But it is with The Disaster Returns that everything comes together with the dual guitars of Wisefield and Stubbs providing energetic backing but never dipping into self-indulgence, although the group do bring out the big progressive guns at the end of the song and on the following The Death Of The Alchemist. In classic concept album style, the final song, The Alchemist, reprises elements of the opening Schooldays bringing the music full circle and the album to a fine close. Three rare tracks have been added to this reissue, both sides of a 1974 single Green Eyed Fairy b/w Sister Rosalie which was the final release before the band called it a day. Stylistically the single, particularly the b-side, was more akin to the material on the group's first album and showed less of the progressive influences. Hayward Town is a previously unreleased number which, based on the lyrics, is not an out-take from The Alchemist. The finished nature of the song suggests it was not a demo; possibly recorded at the same time as the last single, it may have been that the band were contemplating a new album that was abandoned when sales of The Alchemist failed to elevate Home to the next level and the group split.
As expected from Esoteric releases the sound of this reissue is exemplary. I have a prior reissue of the CD which pails into complete insignificance compared with this version. Add to that the comprehensive booklet and the three rare tracks (even as a fan of the band I was unaware of the final single!) and you have an excellent reissue of an excellent album that deserves rediscovery by a large audience. Let's hope so as the band performed the whole album for a BBC In Concert performance that was issued a while back on a double CD but is now practically impossible to find. Hopefully, if this new release attracts a large enough following there will be the incentive for Esoteric to reissue the BBC sessions once more.
"I had known Herbie Armstrong for several years. He used to be in a duo with Rod Demick, called, surprisingly, Demick and Armstrong. Herbie and his wife Susannah were great friends with Tony Brainsby the publicist. I would occasionally hang out at the Brain’s office, and so would Herbie. Incidentally I hired Tony to work on The Great Stampede album and he did a great job. Only problem was that EMI didn’t!
Anyway I met Kenny Young much later on. (Kenny Young wrote Under The Boardwalk when he was 16). I think it was around the time I did the Robert Calvert sessions in April 1975, which became Lucky Leif and the Longships. Kenny hired me to play a session in the main Island studio at Basing Street. I don’t recall if it was an early Yellow Dog track. More likely it was for Fox which was the main, pop-orientated band he had.
We settled into a pattern where I would go out to his place in Brailes, near Banbury, and record in his home studio, which was small but pretty good. I introduced him to Gerry Conway, who became drummer for Yellow Dog; Herbie and Kenny were there too of course, and the bass player was Gary Taylor, with whom I later worked for 3 years with the Hank Wangford Band. Occasionally Jim Gannon the Fox guitarist was involved.
I would mainly go back to London the same day. On odd occasions I was billeted for an overnight stay in a small hotel down the road. It was a very good arrangement. Kenny’s pad was extremely comfortable, the money was handy, and he had a greenhouse full of marijuana plants. Can’t fault it, really.
The sessions carried on for some months. We worked on many tracks, some of which became Fox tracks, and some for Yellow Dog. We never knew at the time which project they were bound for and neither did Kenny and Herbie. The songs were all written by Kenny or Herbie or both of them.
I think my involvement was all done by the end of summer 1975. They did tour with Yellow Dog, but I wasn’t involved. I haven’t seen Kenny from that day to this. Herbie and Susannah moved to Portugal to raise horses, which they were always mad keen on.
That’s the whole story in a nutshell. Herbie did end up for a time as rhythm guitarist in Van Morrison’s band. Good gig for him. My personal favourite is My Lady on side 2 of Yellow Dog, one of Herbie’s songs. I have nothing but the happiest memories about the whole period."
Andy Roberts
Tracks
1. Stood Up - 3:10
2. Gypsy Soul - 4:13
3. The Green Lizard (Kenny Young) - 4:32
4. Flash Gordon (Kenny Young) - 5:36
5. Indian Summer Rain - 3:28
6. My Lady - 4:08
7. City Bird - 5:04
8. Nobody Got So Much Soul (Kenny Young) - 3:21
9. For Whatever It's Worth (Kenny Young) - 3:27
All songs by Kenny Young, Herbie Armstrong except where noted
So Long, Bannatyne came in the wake of a huge international success that was American Woman, an album that blew up a band that had previously only had a few extraneous hits here and there. Randy Bachman, once perceived as the creative muscle behind songs like 'Undun', took his leave following his bout of Mormon fever that infected his view of the band's then unruly lifestyle. This left The Guess Who to pick up two guitarists from their home city of Winnipeg, Kurt Winter and Greg Leskiw, to take his place. Bachman's departure had not left the group quite in dire straits, as not only was Share the Land with this new lineup. Released in the same year of 1970, it itself spawned more singles that kept The Guess Who in a continued state of success.
As the year winded down however so did this success. The group began to evolve slightly but quickly in to a much less commercially palatable sound with progressive touches here and there. The band went from scoring number ones on the Billboard charts to barely scraping into the top 20 in a year alone. Thus enter So Long, Bannatyne, what came out of this madness. To be blunt, this record has no right to be good considering the circumstances in which it was released. However it'd be foolish to judge a book, or in this case a large plastic disk by its cover.
If a word alone were given to describe this particular record, it would likely be "ambitious". It certainly embodies post-Bachman Guess Who better than anything that followed it- this has a much looser, experimental tone than the harder edged stuff on American Woman. It generally wanders the line between archaic, earthy rock 'n' roll and warm hints of progressive rock. When it comes down to specifics it's all over the place, with each song sounding relatively different and reflecting off of one another. For instance the second track 'She Might Have Been a Nice Girl', a bittersweet, regretful ballad is immediately contrasted by the elaborate and maniacal 'Goin' a Little Crazy'. It's quite hard to get over this seemingly halfbaked nature upon first listen, but after a few spins you begin to see how all of the songs are tied by a vague theme of retrospection and introspection.
Though it's fairly known in the band's fan circle that this album's title track is written in relation to Kurt Winter's upheaval from Manitoba, the entire album tends to follow a train of thought that delves into sentimentality quite often. 'Sour Suite', a stunning piano rock ballad (and one of if not the best ballads I've heard) tells of a "runaway dad that took away the only thing that I never had". The more straightforward, floaty rocker 'Pain Train' has the lyric "We love the dollar more than the collar that Daddy used to wear". This whole lyrical theme the album uses not only, as aforementioned, ties everything in, but it also makes it thematically intriguing and keeps your intention extremely well. It doesn't hurt that songs like the jazz-rock of 'Grey Day' keep you on your toes with extremely impressive musicianship. Seriously, this song absolutely stunning. One of both Cummings' and Peterson's best work, as well as the song by the band that likely has impressed me the most to date.
So Long, Bannatyne is a comfort record, for sure. On the other hand, it's also a rocker. On the third hand, it also makes you think. You can take it however way you please. Or you can simply take all three in at once and listen to what a surprisingly beautiful and awesome show that this record is.
Rainbow Rider is the only album released by Brothers (Danny Guy and Tom Guy), an early 70's rock duo with some occasional prog baroque styled and melodic vocals, Album recorded in California and was released in 1973 (Windfall Records).
Robert Hunter's work as a solo artist with a deluxe reissue of his 1974 debut, Tales of the Great Rum Runners. While Hunter is widely revered as the primary lyricist for the Grateful Dead, this series will explore the depth of his solo work, offering a renewed appreciation for his exceptional artistry.
Originally released in spring 1974, Tales Of The Great Rum Runners marked the inaugural release on Round Records, an offshoot of the newly formed Grateful Dead Records. Among its 13 tracks were several destined to become staples of Hunter's live repertoire, like “Boys In The Barroom,” “Rum Runners,” and “It Must Have Been The Roses.”
Recorded at Mickey Hart's converted barn studio in Novato, California, the album reveals Hunter's multifaceted talents and features him singing and playing various instruments, including guitar, tin whistle, and bagpipes on “Children's Lament.” He was accompanied by a revolving cast of Bay Area musicians on the album, including Jerry Garcia, Keith and Donna Jean Godchaux, and Mickey Hart of the Dead, as well as guitarist Barry Melton (Country Joe & The Fish), bassist David Freiberg (Quicksilver Messenger Service/Jefferson Starship), and pedal steel guitarist Buddy Cage (New Riders Of The Purple Sage).
Tales Of The Great Rum Runners (Deluxe Edition) comes with 16 previously unreleased bonus tracks, offering new insight into the album's evolution. Among these are alternate versions of six songs that made the album (“Keys To The Rain” and “It Must Have Been The Roses”), plus ten gems that did not (“The Word,” “Buck Dancer's Choice,” and “Elijah.”)
Tracks
Disc 1 (Original album 1974)
1. Lady Simplicity - 0:21
2. That Train - 4:37
3. Dry Dusty Road - 2:20
4. I Heard You Singing (David Freiberg, Robert Hunter) - 3:38
More than their two previous albums (also available as CD reissues on Collectors' Choice Music), Shredder captured some of the freewheeling energy of the Wackers, a band that flew in the face of early-'70s trends by taking their inspiration from the concise pop-rock of the British Invasion era. Ironically, however, it wasn't even intended to be a Wackers album when it was first conceived. Perhaps even more ironically, a subsequent attempt to capture the actual Wackers live sound on LP came to naught, helping lead to the demise of the band in 1973.
Although the Wackers had formed in Northern California, they moved to Montreal after recording most of their second album, 1972's Hot Wacks, in the city, returning to play an enthusiastically received two-month residency at the Mustache club. Shredder started out not as a Wackers album, but as a side project for Bob Segarini and Randy Bishop, who had done much of the writing and singing on the first two Wackers LPs. Calling themselves the Incredible Duck Brothers, they were joined in the recording by Wackers bassist-guitarist Bill "Kootch" Trochim. Segarini had studio time at Wally Heider's Studio in San Francisco, he explains, "and we went in and did some little acoustic things. There were three or four songs we did, sort of mellow stuff. Everybody was enjoying this." After getting a go-ahead from Elektra president and founder Jac Holzman to do a full album, he continues, "I said, 'I want to go back to Montreal and finish this.' At the end, Elektra was so knocked out by the songs they flew [Wackers drummer] Ernie [Earnshaw] up, and we finished the album as the Wackers. So, so much for the Duck Brothers. But that's why it really leans back to the acoustic days, 'cause that's how it started out."
Producing the album was Mark Abramson, who'd been working on Elektra sessions since its days as a primarily folk label in the late 1950s. "Mark was the sweetest guy I think I ever worked with," says Segarini. "He was also Judy Collins's producer, and this is when we really went into the sort of acoustic thing. Half the drums on that album are played by me on a snare drum with a hole in it, a sheet of paper on a phone book on a barstool with a wire brush, and one cymbal." There was also a change in personnel within the band, as founder-member and fellow singer-guitarist-songwriter Michael Stull "left to be a technician and get into Da Blues," Segarini told Gary Sperrazza and Lester Bangs for a Wackers feature in Shakin' St. Gazette. "I got him to play Rickenbacker 12-string funky leads and he hated to play them; he thought it restricted his blues playing and fast licks.
But I give a big fat fuck about fast licks. Gimme a Badfinger solo anytime as opposed to a Mahavishnu solo. I find that redundant and boring at the same time." J.P. Lauzon took Stull's place on the album, with Jerry Mercer helping out on drums; Mercer had been in the Montreal band Mashmakhan (who had a Top Forty hit in the US in 1970 with "As the Years Go By"), and would later join the popular Canadian group April Wine.
The loose nature of the project spilled over to the sessions themselves, which were graced by some very famous guests who didn't make it onto the album credits. "We were there for about six weeks, and Monty Python was doing their first North American tour," remembers Segarini. "They were in town for like two weeks. Because we were a big deal in Montreal at the time, they showed up in the studio one night -- John Cleese, Eric Idle, Neil Innes [the ex-Bonzo Dog Band member who toured as part of the Python's stage show], and Michael Palin. Cleese came by a few times, he was always really fun. But Eric was there all the time. And because they're hanging out, everybody starts hanging out. Frank Marino from Mahogany Rush, whose first album I produced. Brian Greenway from Mashmakhan, who I eventually formed a band with; he's been in April Wine for the last 25 years. Frankie Hart, a singer in a well-known local band, sang the backup vocals on a couple of tunes.
"All the sessions was just a long party. I mean, what are you going to do with Eric Idle and John Cleese sitting in a room, cracking jokes? And the same thing with all the other musicians coming by. 'Cause, you know, the booze was flowing, the drugs were flowing. It was a very relaxed time. We were sort of at our peak, confidence-wise. We could have rented a real set of drums for the record, but we never bothered. Even when Jerry's there, he's playing on a stupid piece of shit drum kit."
The album did yield, at long last, a hit for the Wackers in "Day and Night," though it would be a much bigger hit north of the border than in their native country, getting only to #65 in the US. According to Segarini, the single "was huge in Canada, and broke into Billboard in the States thanks to CKLW [which broadcast into Detroit from just across the border in Windsor, Ontario] in the Midwest; a program director named Rosalie Trombley broke that record in the States. Because we didn't have representation down there and we were up here, we never pushed that record into the Top Fifty. But it was a great song. 'Day and Night' is credited to Bishop-Segarini; Randy came up with the guitar riff, but I wrote the song." Adds Bob, "The track for that was cut at Wally Heider's, during the Duck Brothers sessions. I don't even know if there's a set of drums on that track. I'm playing the packing crates that the instruments came in, and tambourine, shakers, maracas. That was just stuff we did without a click track at Wally's, with two acoustic guitars. Then we had Jack Schaeffer come in and do the 'Mr. Wacker Bilk,' brought him back for the horns in it. I always thought the coolest thing about 'Day and Night' was the fact it has a clarinet solo at the end of it." Asked if he has some other favorites on the album, Bob adds, "I love 'I'll Believe in You.' I think [it] is a tremendous piece of music. It's a little simple sort of throwback to 1965. It sounds like John Lennon and David Bowie doing a duet on an old Beatle record."
While Segarini enjoyed "the laissez-faire sort of campfire goofing around" vibe of the sessions, he wasn't sure it was right to use "Buck Duckdog Memorial Jam" on the final LP. "Mark insisted on putting 'Buck Duckdog' on there, which was just literally a jam, goofing around. Then I went and put words in places. It was just us playing in the studio, and he really liked it. I've always thought it was kind of a misstep that that was even on it. We had three or four [other] tunes in the can; they were great Wackers songs."
After its release, Shredder got some positive feedback in Rolling Stone, where reviewer Ben Edmonds observed, "With rock'n'roll commanding so much of the action on Shredder ('Hey Lawdy Lawdy,' 'It's My Life'), even their acoustic material packs a punch, and may in fact provide the album's most enjoyable moments. These are rock'n'roll ballads, not whimperings from some Marin County sickbed...On 'Last Dance' you can almost envision Ray Davies and David Bowie in starchy prom tuxedos, waltzing across the floor for the final time. Randy Bishop's vocal is overly affected, but works perfectly in context. The song is a caricature, its features consciously distorted for emphasis and effect. At the heart of the Wacker ethic is an unmovable commitment to fun, even should it take the form of mild self-parody."
But Shredder, like their previous two albums, failed to make the charts. As Segarini tells it, "After that, we wanted to do the album we always wanted to do. We wanted to rock harder, three-part harmony, kick some ass. And we went in with Mark to do an album called Wack and Roll." A press release from June 1973 disclosed that five tracks for the projected LP had already been recorded live in Westport, Connecticut, and that students from high schools in the Montreal area had been invited to take part in the cover photo, the tentative concept being a picture in which the Wackers would be "surrounded by hundreds of teenagers in a school playground." According to another press release from May of the same year, the album would have included live-in-Westport versions of "Queenie," "I Started to Rock," and "Teenage Love," and was scheduled to come out in July 1973. Mark Abramson was quoted in that press release hailing the live material as "some of the finest pieces of recording I have ever heard." And Bob Segarini told Shakin' St. Gazette, "When we originally came up here to do Wack and Roll, we had already recorded the demo right after Hot Wacks, consisting of 'Rock and Roll Circus,' 'Teenage Love,' 'She Loves You,' Randy's 'Old Mr. Hard Times' -- all uptempo, rock'n'roll songs. And we played them for Elektra promotion head John Davis, who was jumping up and down shouting 'I've finally got a rock'n'roll band.'"
For all the effort and planning, however, as Bob sadly recounts, "Elektra rejected the record. They rejected the monitor mixes; it never even got mixed. We finished the album just as Jac [Holzman] left, sold Elektra, and we were running out of steam. So the Wackers broke up. You can find a cassette of the Wack and Roll album from collectors now for $700-$1000." Segarini and Trochim did do one additional Wackers single with three new members for Canadian Polydor, but soon they had formed a new band, All the Young Dudes, who put out an album for CBS. Now based in Toronto, Segarini's kept busy performing, recording, and producing with various bands over the last three decades, as well as working as a radio DJ, TV producer, actor, and voiceover artist. Randy Bishop went on to a solo career and is now based in Nashville, enjoying success as the co-writer of Toby Keith's huge 2001 country hit "My List."
"I think our timing was five years too early, or five years too late," Segarini remarks when asked why the Wackers never made a big commercial splash, despite gaining fans among some of the day's leading rock critics, and despite making music with a very commercial pop-rock approach. "I think the Wackers albums are full of hits. But it's really not important. It wasn't even important at the time. I don't remember ever hearing anybody say, we don't have a #1 record, so we suck. We were always working, we always saw full houses, we always were in the studio, pretty much. It felt good to us. Had Elektra understood what the Wackers were, I think we would have broken ten times bigger than the Raspberries ever did. But they didn't."
by Richie Unterberger
Tracks
1. Day And Night - 3:04
2. Hey Lawdy Lawdy - 3:48
3. I'll Believe In You - 3:13
4. Put Myself To Sleep - 2:20
5. Eventually, Even You Even Me - 3:35
6. Coming Apart - 3:58
7. It's My Life - 3:32
8. Beach Song - 2:43
9. Buck Duckdog Memorial Jam - 10:13
.a. Our Ship's Comin' In (William "Kootch" Trochim, Jean-Pierre Lauzon, Bob Segarini, Randy Bishop)
.b. My Old Lady (William "Kootch" Trochim, Jean-Pierre Lauzon, Bob Segarini, Randy Bishop)
.c. You Really Got Me (Ray Davies)
10.Last Dance - 3:34
All songs written by Jean-Pierre Lauzon, Bob Segarini, Randy Bishop except where noted
Ah, The Mighty Man band. Without them the history of Welsh rock music would be a lot poorer if only for the sheer number of albums that the various band members through the ages have been involved in. It would also be a difficult task to draw a timeline for the group as the frequent comings and goings and offshoots would leave the brain spinning, much as the music of the group in their heyday was wont to do. And it is with the band at the peak of their powers of creativity that these first three re-releases are concerned with. The beginning of the 1970s saw Man living in Germany where their first two albums, released by Pye Records, had sold well compared with the poor sales in the UK. In Germany the band attracted regular audience of around 2,000 paying punters, compared with a handful of curious people in their home nation. So financially it made good sense for the bad to up sticks, particularly as their royalty rate for what albums they did sell was practically non-existent.
In early 1972 a lot had changed in the Man camp. Firstly they had played a concert in Berlin bottom of the bill to Soft Machine, Yes and Family and managed to upstage the cream of the high profile British acts. This was duly reported in the music press giving the band some much needed exposure in their homelands. Then keyboard player Clive John left the band meaning the band had to rely more on the twin guitar approach and finally they were included in the line-up for The Greasy Truckers Party along with fellow United Artists acts Brinsley Schwartz and Hawkwind. The resulting live album sold out of its initial run almost immediately and increased the profile of the band immeasurably. The success of The Greasy Truckers album prompted the band's label to suggest that Man recorded their own live album and came up with the idea that is should be limited to 8000 copies and released at mid price.
Recorded on their home soil in Penarth, the resulting album hit number one in the mid price chart and prompted speculation that Man were the 'next big thing'. Originally the album was three tracks, Many Are Called... and Daughter Of The Fireplace on side one and the H Samuel jam on side two. The latter two tracks are rather obscure in live format as Daughter Of The Fireplace was not kept in the set for long and the Jam is quite a chaotic and loose amalgam of odd bits and pieces including fragments of Alchemy and Would The Christians Wait Five Minutes? The Lions Are Having A Draw. Although the three track album is not the best representation of Man live, the reissued album, featuring the whole set, makes up for the limitations of the original album with an extra 52 minutes of first rate live Man. Spunk Rock and Angel Easy are both storming versions and probably better performance wise than on The Greasy Truckers album (hence the reason they were left off the original vinyl release). Romain also rocks solidly being altogether more focused on the guitar interplay now that there were no keyboards included.
by Mark Hughes
Tracks
Disc 1
1. Spunk Rock (Clive John, Micky Jones) - 24:49
2. Many Are Called, But Few Get Up (Clive John, Deke Leonard, Martin Ace, Michael Jones, Terry Williams) - 10:42
3. Angel Easy (Martin Ace, Clive John, Michael Jones, Deke Leonard, Terry Williams) - 5:16
Disc 2
1. H. Samuel (Jam) (Deke Leonard, Martin Ace, Michael Jones, Terry Williams) - 19:27
2. Romain (Martin Ace, Clive John, Michael Jones, Deke Leonard, Terry Williams) - 20:36
3. Daughter Of The Fireplace (Deke Leonard) - 7:57
Recorded Live at the Padget Rooms, Penarth on 8th April 1972.
Prog was, and continues to be, a worldwide musical force. We think about bands from the UK, Holland, Germany, Italy – even Argentina but there was a burgeoning Prog scene as far away as Denmark and Ache were one of the prime exponents of the form over there.
The line up of the Olafsson brothers (Torsten, Bass & Finn, guitar) along with Peter Mellin on keys and Glen Fisher on drums created, as Proggists tend to do, the world’s first Rock Ballet in ‘De Homine Urbano’ (About Urban Man) and if you strip away the pretentiousness of that concept the album is a real cracker. Mellin’s Hammond work is superb and Finn Olafsson demonstrates real dexterity in his guitar playing. – a lovely fluid sound full of soul and miles away from the Blues riffery of many of his contemporaries.
The vocals are fine, albeit a bit of an afterthought but it is the orchestral feel to the rock music that makes the band – they claim The Nice as influences and you can definitely hear that band’s sound signatures here although there is also the feel of The Crazy World Of Arthur Brown and some of the darkness of Atomic Rooster in the music.
The debut album consists of two tracks, each an album side in length but you do not feel that they are stretching to try and fill it out – the length of the songs is justified.
‘Green Man’ is – to quote Torsten Olafssson – “Ache Rock Theatre – a dramatical art form based upon the coordination of heavy rock music, psychedelic light, dancing and acting” and it most definitely has the feel of a stage inspired series of tracks – be nice to see a DVD of the whole show at some time – and has moved into a heavier and more dramatic place. The music is more powerful and you really can sense the development of the band as musicians although there is a little less of the sweet naivety of the first album.
These guys were – and are – musicians of real quality and they produced two albums that are never less than interesting. Of the two I would probably go for ‘De Homine Urbano’ but they both have a place on my decks.
by Andy Snipper, 02 December 2012
Ache, a Danish band formed in 1968 that recorded two progressive rock albums in the seventies. Denmark isn't a well-known country as far as progressive rock is concerned. They first releases were "De Homine Urbano" (1970) and "Green Man" (1971). At the time, the band's line-up consisted of Torsten Olafsson (bass, vocals), Finn Olafsson (guitar, vocals), Peter Mellin (organ, piano) and Glen Fisher (drums, percussion). Ache first came to the attention of the public in Denmark with their debut De Homine Urbano, meaning 'about urban man'. This piece of music was the first rock ballet ever, performed in 1969 by the Royal Danish Ballet Company in Copenhagen. The original vinyl album contained two pieces of music, on each side one. The A-side featured the title track divided into ten parts. The track on the B-side was called Little Things. Both pieces contain approximately nineteen minutes of music mostly inspired by bands as The Nice and Iron Butterfly. I guess that Dutch band Ekseption could have been an inspiration as well. I even heard touches of The Zombies with Rod Argent behind the Hammond.
The music they composed was mainly based on Peter Mellin's powerful Hammond organ sound and the fluent guitar playing of Finn Olafsson. He both played the electric and the acoustic guitars. The two pieces on De Homine Urbano mainly contain large instrumental parts on which both musicians could show off. However, the band also used their vocal capabilities rather well. The voices of the Olafsson brothers are both worthwhile listening to. The band also had the talent to write good songs for the album features rather melodic compositions.
This also applies to their second album Green Man released in June 1971. It continued the musical style of their debut. The album contains seven shorter compositions including the Lennon-McCartney song We Can Work It Out. They covered this song a bit like Deep Purple did on The Book Of Taliesyn (1968). This version has more organ parts than the original one. The other tracks are more song orientated than the material on their first offering, but again, as I said before, all worthwhile listening to.
by Henri Strik
Tracks
1. De Homine Urbano (Torsten Olafsson, Peter Mellin arr. Ache) - 18:44
a) Overture
b) Soldier Theme
c) Ballerina Theme
d) Pas de Deux
e) Ogre Theme
f) Awakening
g) The Dance Of The Demons
h) Pas de Trojs
i) The Last Attempt
j) Finale
2. Little Things (Torsten Olafsson, Peter Metlin arr. Ache) - 19:11
3. Equatorial Rain (Torsten Olafsson) - 7:03
4. Sweet Jolly Joyce (Finn Olafsson) - 3:50
5. The Invasion - 6:01
a) Faniatonade (Peter Mellin)
b) Invasion (Torsten Olafsson)
c) Monologue (Torsten Olafsson)
d) Break Down (Glen Fischer)
6. Shadow Of A Gipsy (Peter Mellin) - 4:40
7. Green Man (Torsten Olafsson, Finn Olafsson) - 4:41
8. Acheron (Peter Mellin) - 4:49
9. We Can Work It Out/Workin' (John Lennon, Paul McCartney arr.Ache) - 8:42
