The Cryan Shames - Synthesis (1968 us, marvelous sunny baroque psych, 2002 extra tracks issue)

This record is more eclectic than it is exciting, though the material is well arranged and the group were accomplished harmony singers in particular. On "Greenburg, Glickstein, Charles, David Smith & Jones" they get heavy; with the cover of Hoagy Carmichael's "Baltimore Oriole," they get jazz/folk-rock progressive; on "It's All Right," it's jaunty country-rock; on "First Train to California," there's an almost-self-conscious straining for an MOR AM radio hit. 

The segueing together of tracks and occasional insertion of spacy instrumental and production flourishes indicate that they wanted to leave the impression of making a progressive statement. But it sounds for the most part like 1960s AM radio filler trying to get hipper with a touch of the far-out, the problem being that 1960s AM radio filler intrinsically cannot get too hip or far out. 

The 2002 Sundazed CD reissue of this odd mix of sunshine pop and mild pop-psychedelia adds eight bonus tracks. No less than six of them are single versions of tracks from the LP; the other two present both sides of their 1969 single, "Bits and Pieces"/"Rainmaker," which matched a country-rock original with a Harry Nilsson cover. 

by Richie Unterberger

Tracks
1. Greenburg, Glickstein, Charles, David Smith And Jones (Isaac Guillory, Jim Fairs) - 2:16
2. Baltimore Oriole (Hoagy Carmichael, Paul Francis Webster) - 4:30
3. It's All Right (D.P. "Dad" Carter) - 2:11
4. Your Love (Lenny Kerley) - 3:28
5. A Master's Fool (Isaac Guillory) - 3:38
6. First Train To California (Jim Fairs) - 2:57
7. The Painter (Isaac Guillory) - 2:52
8. Sweet Girl Of Mine (Lenny Kerley) - 2:26
9. 20th Song (Lenny Kerley) - 2:07
10.Let's Get Together (Dino Valente) - 3:27
11.Symphony Of The Wind (Isaac Guillory) - 3:20
12.A Master’s  Fool (45 Version) (Isaac Guillory) - 3:37
13.First Train To California (45 Version) (Jim Fairs) - 2:57
14.Greenburg, Glickstein, Charles, David Smith And Jones (45 Version) (Isaac Guillory, Jim Fairs) - 2:16
15.Your Love (45 Version) (Lenny Kerley) - 2:53
16.20th Song (45 Version) (Lenny Kerley) - 2:10
17.Let’S Get Together (Mono Version) (Dino Valente) - 2:31
18.Bits and Pieces (Lenny Kerley) - 2:34
19.Rainmaker (Harry Nilson, B. Martin) - 2:19

The Cryan' Shames
*Tom Doody - Vocals
*Jim Pilster - Vocals, Percussion
*Alan Dawson - Drums, Vocals
*Dave Carter - Vocals, Guitar
*Isaac Guillory - Vocals, Guitar, Bass, Keyboards
*Lenny Kerley - Vocals, Bass, Guitar

1966  Sugar And Spice (Sundazed remaster and expanded)
1967  A Scratch In The Sky (Sundazed remaster and expanded)

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The Cryan' Shames - A Scratch In The Sky (1967 us, fabulous folk colorful psychedelia, 2002 remaster and expanded)

Every now and then something unexpected hits you in a way that leaves a deep and  lasting impression. For me, one of those occasions came with Chicago garage band The Cryan’ Shames’ recording of the old Drifters hit “Up On the Roof,” off their incomprehensibly under-appreciated psychedelic classic A Scratch In the Sky. Granted, “Up On the Roof” itself has been overplayed to the point of nausea since it first made the scene back in 1963, but the Shames take the old Tin Pan Alley standard and turn it into a soaring, tightly woven piece of teenage magic that does not waste a second out of its three minutes and twenty four seconds. It’s the sound of youthful rebellion and romantic angst woven into a thing of panoramic beauty.

As a matter of fact, I reckon that the record that this song is buried in is itself well-defined by the above platitudes. A Scratch In the Sky is one of those rare records laid down at the height of the sixties which manage to pull in the best qualities of the band’s many influences and turn back out something wholly unto its own. The cosmic harmonies of the Beach Boys, the jangling spirit of The Byrds, the rollicking pop of The Beatles; these are all commonly borrowed sounds, but rarely ones so expertly disassembled and recast as we hear on this record. Though this collection of songs remains well-polished through studio-craft and the musicians’ own abilities, it retains a freshness and noncommercial edge that makes it both an accessible and adventurous listen.

The second track, “Sailing Ship,” is a good example of what I mean by all this. There are all sorts of influences detectable here, but nothing absolute. I never fail to be impressed by the thundering drums, jagged guitar chords and droning bagpipes here, all of which make the song sound strangely ahead of its time, or at least out of its own time. In true Sgt. Pepper fashion, the band clearly strove to make each song stand out as a distinct work of art, rather than sounding like something they had simply worked up on the road. The arrangements are ornate and layered with lysergic sounds and tape tricks, and besides the previously mentioned bagpipes the band manages to bring in accordion, harpsichord, tamboura, french horn, and…french lyrics (on “In the Cafe,” of course). If there’s any song reminiscent of the band’s work on their previous record, Sugar and Spice it’s the hard grooving “Mr. Unreliable,” which retains a lot of the garage band attitude and sweet harmonic edge that painted earlier jewels like “Ben Franklin’s Almanac”.

I’m rather blown away to find that the 2002 Sundazed reissue of this record has already dipped back out of print, leaving it perhaps the hardest of the Shames discs to track down. Should the following tracks catch you like they caught me, however, you shouldn’t have to fork over too much for a vinyl copy. It seems strange that so many new reissues end up becoming more obscure and desirable than vintage releases of the same recordings, but I suppose that’s the way it goes.

by Nik Rayne

Tracks

1. A Carol For Lorelei - 4:05

2. The Sailing Ship - 3:36

3. In The Cafe - 3:12

4. Mr. Unreliable - 2:52

5. The Town I'd Like To Go Back To - 4:30

6. Up On The Roof (Gerry Goffin, Carole King) - 3:23

7. It Could Be We're In Love - 2:35

8. Sunshine Psalm - 2:17

9. Was Lonely When - 4:03

10.Cobblestone Road - 2:51

11.Dennis Dupree From Danville (Jeffrey Bryan - R. Holder) - 3:12

12.It Could Be We're In Love (Single Version) - 2:34

13.It Was Lonely When (Single Version) - 3:27

14.Young Birds Fly (William Oliver Swofford) - 2:25

15.Sunshine Psalm (Single Version) - 2:09  

16.Up On The Roof (Single Version) (Gerry Goffin, Carole King) - 3:28

17.The Sailing Ship (Single Version) - 2:55

18.The Warm (Jim Fairs) - 4:18

All songs by Jim Fairs, Lenny Kerley unless as else stated.

The Cryan' Shames

*Tom Doody «Toad» - Lead Vocals, Autoharp, Bells

*Jim Pilster «J. C. Hooke» - Tambourine

*Dennis Conroy - Drums

*Jim Fairs - Bagpipes, Bass, Flute, Guitar, Mandolin, Vocals

*Isaac Guillory - Accordion, Bass, Cello, Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals

*Lenny Kerley - Bass, Guitar, Tambora, Vocals

1966  The Cryan' Shames - Sugar And Spice (Sundazed remaster)

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The Cryan' Shames - Sugar And Spice (1966 us, delicate sunny beat psych, 2002 remaster)

The Cryan' Shames actually were a big deal in Chicago in the mid- and late '60s, when a bunch of their singles hit the local Top Ten; some of them were small national hits as well. The biggest of these was "Sugar and Spice," a cover of a Searchers song that made the Top 50 in 1966 and was later featured in Lenny Kaye's renowned Nuggets anthology of '60s garage bands. In their original incarnation, the Shames leaned toward the pop end of garage. 

Borrowing heavily from the Beatles, the Byrds, and the Yardbirds, guitarist James Fairs wrote a clutch of energetic guitar pop/rockers with sparkling harmonies. After 1966, the group pursued an increasingly mainstream pop direction featuring saccharine arrangements and material. In this respect they uncannily mirrored the devolution of local rivals the New Colony Six, who also shifted from tough pop/rock to MOR in their bid for national success. But the Shames' appeal endures, partly through the efforts of reissue/archival labels such as Sundazed Records, which have kept their music available into the 21st century, and some of the original members, who have kept the band alive as a performing outfit from the 1980s onward.

They actually started out in Hinsdale, IL, as the Prowlers, a trio formed by Gerry Stone (rhythm guitar), Tom "Toad" Doody (vocals), and Dave Purple (bass, keyboards), who added guitarist James Fairs and drummer Dennis Conroy, both late of a local band from Downers Grove called the Roosters. The quintet became the Travelers, specializing in R&B and rock & roll covers, though Fairs was starting to write originals as far back as 1964. They became a sextet with the addition of Jim Pilster, a one-handed tambourine player whose artificial extremity got him dubbed "J.C. Hooke." 

Included in their ranks were four singers who were capable of handling lead vocals as well as harmonies, and as they already had their rock & roll and R&B sound down, they emerged as a heavyweight outfit on the local band scene, equally adept at covering the Beatles, the Byrds, or the Rolling Stones, among others. Additionally, as they discovered, Pilster's presence lent them some novelty/publicity value as "the guys with the hook," an attribute that would also benefit the Barbarians around the same time, who sported a member with a replacement appendage. According to biographer Clark Besch, they were making upwards of $180 a gig (albeit split six ways) in 1966, a good fee for a group that had never recorded. They also attracted the attention of manager Bob Monaco, who was associated with the local Destination Records label, and hoped to rectify that gap in their biography in short order.

Their new name was imposed upon them when they were notified that another band had a prior claim on "the Travelers" -- as they told Besch, the situation was described by one of the affected parties as "a cryin' shame," and that became their new name. The group and Monaco intended to make their recording debut with George Harrison's "If I Needed Someone" -- a new Beatles song not yet available in the U.S. -- but were thwarted, as the Beatles' publisher wouldn't allow the release. Instead, they grabbed up another, older British Invasion-spawned original, "Sugar and Spice," written by producer/composer Tony Hatch (under the pseudonym "Fred Nightingale") for his client group the Searchers. The number had been in the repertory of another local band, the Riddles, and they got their version out through MG Productions on a tiny local label. 

The resulting single, which included a proto-psychedelic Fairs original called "Ben Franklin's Almanac," became a Top Five hit locally in Chicago, and attracted the attention of Columbia Records, which bought up their contract and put the record out nationally. It easily made the Top 50 and Columbia wanted more -- the band duly obliged with "I Wanna Meet You," another Fairs original, which only made the Top Ten locally and number 65 nationally. Columbia was still interested in an album, however, and the group delivered the 12-song Sugar & Spice long-player. It was a fairly good record of its kind, mixing covers and Fairs' originals and, as it was done on a tight budget -- basically Columbia accepted the record as delivered, according to Pilster in an essay by Besch -- it also included all four single sides, plus their proposed debut of "If I Needed Someone." Although the album barely cracked the Top 200 nationally, the single and the long-player between them helped raise the band's fees more than fivefold in just a matter of weeks. 

by Bruce Eder

Tracks
1. Sugar And Spice (Fred Nightingale) - 2:27
2. We Could Be Happy (Jim Fairs) - 2:34
3. Heat Wave (Lamont Dozier, Brian Holland, Eddie Holland) - 2:07  
4. We'll Meet Again (Hughie Charles, Ross Parker) - 2:05  
5. Ben Franklin's Almanac (Jim Fairs) - 1:57
6. She Don't Care About Time (G. Clark) - 2:23
7. Hey Joe (Where You Gonna Go) (B. Roberts) - 2:40  
8. If I Needed Someone (George Harrison) - 2:17
9. July (Jim Fairs) - 1:34
10.I Wanna Meet You (Jim Fairs) - 2:05
11.We Gotta Get Out Of This Place (Barry Mann, Cynthia Weil) - 3:38  
12.You're Gonna Lose That Girl (J. Lennon, P. McCartney) - 2:13
13.Mr. Unreliable (Single Version) (L. Kerley) - 2:23
14.Georgia (Jim Fairs) - 2:15
15.It Don't Matter To Me (D. Gates) - 2:54
16.Bits And Pieces (Version One) (L. Kerley) - 2:29
17.The Road (L. Kerley) - 2:18

The Cryan' Shames
*Tom Doody - Vocals
*Jim Pilster - Tambourine
*Dennis Conroy - Drums
*Jerry Stone - Guitar
*Jim Fairs - Guitar
*Dave Purple - Bass, Organ, Harpiscord

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Euphoria - A Gift From Euphoria (1969 us, elegant orchestrated psychedelia with folk drops)

A Gift From Euphoria is a well-funded album loaded with symphonic arrangements, excellent studio musicianship, psychedelic audio collage, and sound effects. It’s probably near to the apex of experimental rock from this era, and of the melding and juxtaposition of different styles of music.

The first two tracks on the record demonstrate the pace. Lisa an expansive and string laden orchestral number gives way to a legit bluegrass-country tune with banjo and pedal steel. Wait a little longer and you’ll get some fuzz guitar brain melters. Euphoria is all over the place on this album, which was recorded in Hollywood, London, and Bradley’s Barn. Some of the best session men in town put this one together, and it shows. Nary an unprofessional sound is on this record and some of the arrangements are stunning. They could use this album to replace the orchestra at the Boston Pops.

This is the only album released by the short lived Euphoria. The liner notes imply that the members disappeared, but parts of the liners are as out there as the sounds. Get this one for a supreme example of country and rock gone suicidally psychedelic, sounding remarkably fresh today.

by Brendan McGrath

Tracks
1. Lisa - 3:56
2. Stoen River Hill Song - 2:10
3. Did You Get The Letter - 5:38
4. Through A Window - 2:45
5. Young Miss Pflugg - 3:03
6. Lady Bedford - 3:02
7. Suicide On The Hillside, Sunday Morning, After Tea - 1:47
8. Sweet Fanny Adams - 4:22
9. I'll Be Home To You - 2:47
10.Sunshine Woman - 2:54
11.Hollyville Train - 3:03
12.Docker's Son - 2:49
13.Something For The Milkman - 0:54
14.Too Young To Know - 0:49
15.World - 3:09
All songs written by Hamilton Wesley Watt Jr., William D. Lincoln

Personnel
*William D. Lincoln - Bass, Vocals
*Hamilton Wesley Watt - Vocals
*Doug Delain - Guitar
*Dave Potter - Drums
*Irwin Webb - Orchestral Arrangement, Direction
*Nikolas Venetoulis - Direction

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Darryl Way's Wolf - Saturation Point (1973 uk, remarkable progressive rock, 2008 japan SHM extra tracks remaster)

The band's second album, released a few scant months after their debut, found Darryl Way and co. still edging away from the Curved Air ideal, without doing anything to truly alienate that band's loyal followers. Indeed, there were moments throughout Wolf's career when they sounded more like the original Air than that band's current incarnation ever could. 

Of course it's the mad violin that best confirms the similarities, but one can only dream of how dramatic this band could have been had they only reached a wider audience. Listening to Saturation Point is like walking a tightrope, a taut, nerve-bending ride that takes you from the eccentric peaks of "The Ache" and "Two Sisters" (combined, one of the greatest album overtures of the year), to the boleric attack of "Toy Symphony," a cut that raises the specters of Caravan and ELP, even as it shakes off comparisons with anything else. 

This was indeed the peak of Wolf's musical career, an album that snagged all the high points from its predecessor, then mashed them with the experience that the live show brought into reach. 

by Dave Thompson

Tracks
1. The Ache - 4:50
2. Two Sisters - 4:20
3. Slow Rag (John Etheridge) - 5:17
4. Market Overture - 3:38
5. Game Of X (John Etheridge) - 5:48
6. Saturation Point - 6:45
7. Toy Symphony - 7:16
8. A Bunch Of Fives - 3:331
9. Five In The Morning - 2:40
10.Two Sisters (Single Version) - 3:21
All songs by Darryl Way except where noted
Bonus Tracks 8-10

Darryl Way's Wolf
*John Etheridge - Guitar
*Dek Messecar - Bass, Vocals
*Ian Mosley - Drums
*Darryl Way - Keyboards, Violin

1974  Night Music

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Darryl Way's Wolf - Night Music (1974 uk, great prog rock, Japan SHM remaster)

The scarcest of the three Wolf albums, Night Music is finally remastered and reissued along with its litter mates. For those who did not follow the sometimes tortured path of rock-bands-with-violins (re: High Tide, Curved Air, et al.) Wolf was one of those niche bands, appealing to the minority that thought adding an electric violin to a rock format was more than a great idea, and further appealing to the even smaller minority that preferred instrumental work to "songs". And that difference, between the instrumental and vocal, is the compromise which erodes the impact of Night Music. 

Following two albums that offered flashes of intensity and some fine instrumental stretches, blistering violin work and well-conceived interaction among instruments with a minimum of marginal singing and frankly silly lyrics, the pressures of commerce seemingly dictated a need for more familiar forms. Always a mistake since the word "familiar" already contains the implication that there's already plenty of whatever that is available. 

by Kerry Leimer

Way was to bring ex-If vocalist John Hodkinson into the line-up for Night Music. Wolf's most accessible and commercial release benefited from his rich, individual vocal while greater use of keyboards changed the band dynamics to something more focussed. Ironically, this is where Way bowed out, rejoining his former band, and Wolf disbanded. 

by Peter Muir

Tracks
1. The Envoy (Darryl Way, Bruce Messecar) - 6:34
2. Black September (John Hodkinson, Darryl Way) - 4:53
3. Flat 2/55 (John Etheridge) - 6:59
4. Anteros (Darryl Way) - 4:33
5. We're Watching (Darryl Way) - 5:14
6. Steal The World (John Hodkinson, Darryl Way) - 4:22
7. Comerade Of The Nine (Darryl Way) - 2:44

Darryl Way's Wolf
*Ian Mosley - Drums
*Bruce Messecar - Bass, Vocals
*Darryl Way - Violin, Viola, Keyboards
*John Etheridge - Guitar
*John Hodkinson - Vocals

Related Act 
1970  If - If  (Repertoire remaster)
1970  If - If 2 (Repertoire remaster)
1971  If - If 3 (Repertoire remaster)
1972  If - If 4 (Repertoire remaster)
1972  Waterfall (Repertoire remaster)
1972  If - Europe '72 (Repertoire remaster)

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Viola Crayola - Music: Breathing Of Statues (1974 us, spectacular experimental prog jazz rock)

A real stunner of an album from Texan band Viola Crayola. Fronted by the Viola brothers, Tony and Ron, the group, whose music is often described as hard guitar prog-psych, a crossline between Zappa and Soft Machine, looked destined for success until the untimely death of Tony in a auto-train crash in San Antonio, Texas in 1974. 

Music: Breathing Of Statues is the brothers only known recording, and what a record it is, with its wild prog instrumental power-trio vibe and a strong jazzy fusion sound running throughout. The album, which was recorded in New York in 1974 and released the same year, appeared on the Fautna label, a label so obscure that it doesn't seem to have existed at all.

Tracks
1 Mr. Leroy, Pepe' Is Lost - 4:15
2 The Bus To New York - 4:47
3 I Know You Don't Have A Car, But What Color Is It? - 5:14
4 2+1 - 2:38
5 The Nurds At My School - 2:57
6 You're Drivin' Me Crazy With Relief - 2:44
7 The Last One On Earth - 3:22
8 What Is the Meaning Of Love? - 1:57
Music composed by Anthony Viola

Viola Crayola
*Anthony Viola - Guitar
*Ron Viola - Drums
*Bill Jolly - Bass

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David Bromberg - Wanted Dead Or Alive (1974 us, exceptional mix of country, folk, blues, dixie, roots 'n' roll, 2004 reissue)

With their masterfully executed mix of America’s musical roots, the albums released by David Bromberg in the mid-1970s remain as much fun as they were more than a third of a century ago.

Though his work with Dylan (on New Morning, Self-Portrait, and the forgettable Dylan, which used discarded tracks from the previous sessions) had led to a contract with Columbia Records and members of the Grateful Dead had played on his first two albums, his roots-oriented approach was obscured by the soft pop-dominated hit parade of the early-1970s. 

Those who craved and understood great musicianship loved those albums, but sales were nowhere up to major label standards. Reaching into what he does best, Bromberg came up with an album full of spirit, high energy and musical diversity. Opening with a galloping reprisal of “The Holdup,” his collaboration with George Harrison, Bromberg and cohorts, including the Grateful Dead’s Jerry Garcia, Keith Godchaux and Bill Kreutzmann and backup singers Tracy Nelson and the Sweet Inspirations, rarely let up. Bessie Smith’s 1929 blues hit, “Send Me To The ‘Lectric Chair,” Leiber and Stoller’s “Kansas City,” and a medley of Blind Willie McTell’s “Statesboro Blues” and L. Jordan’s “Church Bell Blues” are resurrected with new life.

A Dylan tune is thrown in, as well – “Wallflower,” which, although it had previously been recorded by Doug Sahm, with Bromberg on guitar, did not appear on a Dylan album until the release of The Bootleg Series – Volumes 1-3 (Rare And Unreleased) in 1991. While his vocals were anything but luscious, Bromberg’s deep, growl-like singing made every word heartfelt. Showing the depths of his songwriting with four self-composed tunes (“Someone Else’s Blues,” “Danger Man,” “The Main Street Moan,” and “The New Lee Highway Blues”), Bromberg uses the guitar picking styles that he had learned as a student and protégé of bluesman Reverend Gary Davis as springboards for discovery.

by Craig Harris

Tracks
1. The Holdup (D. Bromberg, George Harrison) - 3:06
2. Someone Else's Blue (D. Bromberg) - 8:02
3. Danger Man (D. Bromberg) - 3:09
4. The Main Street Moan (D. Bromberg) - 5:16
5. Send Me To The 'Lectric Chair (George Brooks) - 4:56
6. Statesboro Blues-Church Bell Blues (Blind Willie McTell, Luke Jordan, Arr. by D. Bromberg) - 5:12
7. Wallflower (Bob Dylan) - 3:00
8. Kansas City (Jerry Lieber, Mike Stoller) - 4:00
9. The New Lee Highway Blues (D. Bromberg) - 5:38

Personnel
*David Bromberg - Acoustic, Electric Guitar, Lead Vocals
*Steve Burgh - Bass
*Peter Ecklund - Trumpet, Mellophones
*Joe Ferguson - Alto, Baritone Saxophone
*Hungria Garcia - Timbales
*Jerry Garcia - Acoustic, Electric Guitar
*Keith Godchaux - Piano
*Jeff Gutcheon - Piano
*Bill Kreutzmann - Drums
*Phil Lesh - Bass
*Tony Markellis - Bass
*Steve Mosley - Bass
*John Payne - Alto Flute, Bass Clarinet, Tenor Saxophone
*Neil Rossi - Fiddle
*Andy Statman - Mandolin, Tenor Saxophone
*Jay Ungar - Fiddle
*Winnie Winston - Banjo
*Jack Lee - Background Vocals
*Andy McMahon - Background Vocals
*Tracy Nelson - Background Vocals
*The Sweet Inspirations - Background Vocals

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Lucifer's Friend - Lucifer's Friend (1970 germany, powerful heavy prog, 2008 SPV edition)

A German band from the early Seventies who were successful abroad, even in the States? What sounded like wishful thinking at the time applied, at least for a few years, to Lucifer's Friend from Hamburg. Not only the enthusiastic press reactions to their 1970 debut, but also top positions in the readers' polls of major American music magazines surprised even experienced product managers in Germany. But when American TV stations started to enquire about the band, Lucifer's Friend found themselves faced with a problem that had remained hidden from most media representatives: the group existed only on paper, or rather in the studio. The musicians involved – Peter Hesslein (guitar), Peter Hecht (organ) and Dieter Horns (bass) - had disbanded their beat group, German Bands, two years previously and recorded - more or less as an experiment - a handful of songs, initially without a vocalist or any clearly defined concept of how to go on.

Between German Bands and Lucifer's Friend lay the foundation of the group, Asterix. Established in 1969, this act marked the arrival of the musicians Hesslein, Hecht, Horns and Joachim Reitenbach (drums, also ex-German Bonds) on the rock scene. Their first attempt failed, and the project was terminated after two unsuccessful singles and a self-titled debut album. What was left was the musicians' ambition to found a band which, according to the Zeitgeist, concentrated on rock instead of beat music. Their second try featured a different line-up and succeeded. Thanks to the single, Ride The Sky, and a rock sound that seemed tailor-made for American radio preferences, their eponymously titled debut album scored in a big way.

British vocalist John Lawton joined the group when the album production was already underway. The musicians had discovered him during a gig with his band Stonewall at the Top Ten live club at Hamburg's Reeperbahn and enlisted him as a studio musician. Lawton was also on board when Lucifer's Friend decided in view of the great reactions at home and abroad to turn their studio project into a regular band, performing live shows. The music on the debut turned out to be a mix of Anglo-American hard rock, blues, soul and early variations of what was to develop into heavy metal. 

The press praised the LP by this "super-dynamic German rock quintet with more than slight Led Zeppelin resemblances", yet album sales in Germany were very slow to start off with. Their career began to gain momentum when Chicago import record company Billingsgate – who Epitaph were to have an unpleasant encounter with later - licensed the album, sending out specimen copies to the country's most important radio stations. Suddenly WMMS, Cleveland's most popular radio station, discovered the catchy Ride The Sky, catapulting Lucifer's Friend to no.2 of the city's best-selling albums (directly behind Pink Floyd) and establishing the basis for a long period of success.

During the following years, Lucifer's Friend continued to produce successful rock albums with changing line-ups, but were unable to live from their music alone, some band members having to work with the Les Humphries Singers on the side. Following Mind Exploding (1976), Lawton left the band to join Uriah Heep, returning in 1981 to record the final album, Mean Machine, and was also involved in the unsuccessful comeback attempt, Sumogrip (1994), which featured a new version of Ride The Sky. Subsequently, Lucifer's Friend were put to rest permanently.

by Matthias Mineur

Tracks
1. Ride In The Sky (P. Hesslein, J. Lawton) - 2:55
2. Everybody's Clown (P. Hesslein, John O'Brien-Docker, J. Rietenbach, D. Horns, P. Hecht) - 6:12
3. Keep Goin' (P. Hesslein, J. Docker, D. Horns, P. Hecht) - 5:26
4. Toxic Shadows (P. Hesslein, J. Docker) - 7:01
5. Free Baby (P. Hesslein, D. Horns, P. Hecht, J. Lawton) - 5:28
6. Baby You're A Liar (P. Hesslein, J. Docker, D. Horns, P. Hecht, J. Rietenbach) - 3:55
7. In The Time Of Job When Mammon Was A... (P. Hesslein, J. Docker, D. Horns, P. Hecht) - 4:04
8. Lucifer's Friend (P. Hesslein, J. Docker, D. Horns, P. Hecht, Herbert Hildebrandt-Winhauer) - 6:12
9. Horla (Bonus Track) (P. Hesslein, D. Horns, P. Hecht, J. Rietenbach) - 2:53
10.Lucifer's Friend (Radio Edit) (P. Hesslein, J. Docker, D. Horns, P. Hecht, H. Hildebrandt-Winhauer) - 3:43

Lucifer's Friend
*Peter Hecht - Organ
*Dieter Horns - Bass, Vocals
*John Lawton - Lead Vocal
*Joachim Rietenbach - Drums
*Peter Hesslein - Guitar, Vocals

Related Act
1970  Asterix - Asterix

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The Youngbloods - The Youngbloods / Earth Music / Elephant Mountain (1967/69 us, amazing west coast psych, two disc set remaster and 2014 japan blu spec issues)

The Youngbloods could not be considered a major '60s band, but they were capable of offering some mighty pleasurable folk-rock in the late '60s, and produced a few great tunes along the way. One of the better groups to emerge from the East Coast in the mid-'60s, they would temper their blues and jug band influences with gentle California psychedelia, particularly after they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area. For most listeners, they're identified almost exclusively with their Top Ten hit "Get Together," but they managed several respectable albums as well, all under the leadership of singer/songwriter Jesse Colin Young.

Young got his start on the folk circuits of Boston and New York, and had already cut a couple of solo albums before forming The Youngbloods. John Sebastian was one of the supporting musicians on Young's second LP, and comparisons between the two -- and between The Youngbloods and the Lovin' Spoonful -- are inevitable. Both groups offered good-timey folk-rock with much stronger jug band influences than West Coast rivals like the Byrds, though The Youngbloods made greater use of electric keyboards than the Spoonful, courtesy of the enigmatically named Lowell "Banana" Levinger. The Youngbloods didn't craft nearly as many brilliant singles as the Lovin' Spoonful, but (unlike the Spoonful) endured well into the hippie/psychedelic era.

While Young was always the focal point of the band, their first two albums also had songwriting contributions from guitarist Jerry Corbitt. Produced by Felix Pappalardi (who also worked with Cream), these records (The Youngbloods and Earth Music) were engaging and mature, if inconsistent, folk-rock. Corbitt's "Grizzly Bear" was a small hit, as was "Get Together," a Dino Valenti song that had previously been recorded by Jefferson Airplane. The Youngbloods' slow, soulful interpretation of "Get Together" was definitive, but it wouldn't reach the Top Ten until it was re-released in 1969, after the song had been used in a television public service ad. 

by Richie Unterberger

The Youngbloods' second long-player built on the strength of their self-titled debut by once again creating a blend of captivating songwriting with an infectiously fun delivery. Although the album failed to produce a definitive single -- as "Get Together" had done on their previous effort -- there are a handful of equally definitive sides scattered throughout Earth Music (1967). Featuring Jesse Colin Young (guitar/bass/vocals), Jerry Corbitt (lead guitar), Joe Bauer (drums), and Lowell "Banana" Levinger III (piano/guitar), The Youngbloods recall the uptempo good-time sound of their East Coast contemporaries, the Lovin' Spoonful, on the opening cover of the Holy Modal Rounders' "Euphoria." 

The first of several stellar compositions from Young follows with the laid-back "All My Dreams Blue." In addition to the affective songcrafting, Banana's upfront piano fills provide a jazzy counterpoint to the interlocking Bauer/Young rhythm section. This refined power trio would become the mainstay of their later post-Corbitt recordings. "Dreamer's Dream" highlights Corbitt's inimitable contributions to the band with a highly affective melody as well as his unencumbered vocals, which effortlessly intertwine with Young. The countrified interpretation of the traditional "Sugar Babe" is a precursor to the direction that the band's sound would take after their relocation to the West Coast. The track became an international hit no doubt due to its inclusion in the Michelangelo Antonioni film Zabriskie Point (1970). Other standout tracks include the high-steppin' "Wine Song" and one of the better revisitations of Tim Hardin's "Reason to Believe." 

Elephant Mountain (1969) is the Youngbloods' third long-player and marks their debut as a trio -- featuring Jesse Colin Young (bass/guitar/vocals), Joe Bauer (drums), and Lowell "Banana" Levinger (keyboards) -- after the departure of co-founder Jerry Corbitt (guitar/vocals). Although the band initially formed out of the early '60s Northeast folk scene, by the time this set was issued they had relocated to the pastoral Northern California county of Marin. Blending affective pop/rock melodies and lyrics with their good time jug band roots, the Youngbloods were instantly embraced by the already blossoming Bay Area music community. 

This effort contains some of the band's strongest material to date, building on the considerable momentum of their 1967 self-titled release and further enhanced by their remarkable instrumental capabilities. Young's contributions are particularly notable as he vacillates between the edgy and electric "Darkness, Darkness" to the light and earthy "Sunlight" and "Ride the Wind," or the bouncy tales "Smug" and "Beautiful." Banana honors his new surroundings with the gorgeous and catchy instrumental "On Sir Francis Drake" (named after a heavily traveled Bay Area motorway). On this cut the textural combination of electric piano and harpsichord provides a jazzy counterbalance to Young's propulsive basslines and Bauer's nimble drumming. 

The "Rain Song (Don't Let the Rain Bring You Down)" is left over from Corbitt's tenure and recalls the earlier Youngbloods' sound which was more akin to the Sopwith Camel or the Lovin' Spoonful than the trio's then-current folk-rock leanings. "Trillium" is a hidden gem of a jam that examines the band's remarkably strong improvisational interaction. "Sham" is perhaps the most straightforward rocker on the album and recalls Bay Area acts like the Sal Valentino-led Stoneground. The disc concludes with the sublime "Ride the Wind" which sports a very sophisticated and slightly Latin-flavored melody. 

by Lindsay Planer

Tracks 

Disc 1 

The Youngbloods 1967

1. Grizzly Bear (Jerry Corbitt) - 2:20

2. All Over The World (La La) (Corbitt) - 3:!3

3. Statesboro Blues (Blind Willie McTell) - 2:18

4. Get Together (Chet Powers) - 4:39

5. One Note Man (Paul Arnold) - 2:24

6. The Other Side Of This Life (Fred Neil) - 2:28

7. Tears Are Falling (Jesse Colin Young) - 2:25

8. Four In The Morning (George Remailly) - 2:51

9. Foolin' Around (The Waltz) (Young) - 2:50

10.Ain't That Lovin' You (Jimmy Reed) - 2:39

11.C.C. Rider (Mississippi John Hurt) - 2:37

Earth Music 1967

12.Euphoria (George Remailly) - 2:15 

13.All My Dreams Blue (Jesse Colin Young) - 3:17 

14.Monkey Business (Chuck Berry) - 2:49 

15.Dreamer's Dream (Jerry Corbitt, Lowell Levinger) - 3:35

16.Sugar Babe (Young, Jackie Lomax) - 2:08 

17.Long And Tall (Young) 4:05 

18.I Can Tell (Chuck Willis) - 4:29 

19.Don't Play Games (Corbitt) - 2:12 

20.The Wine Song (Young) - 2:24 

21.Fool Me (Levinger) - 2:57 

22.Reason To Believe (Tim Hardin) - 2:25

Disc 2
Elephant Mountain 1969
1. Darkness, Darkness (Jesse Colin Young) - 3:51
2. Smug (Young) - 2:13
3. On Sir Francis Drake (Lowell Levinger) - 6:44
4. Sunlight (Young) - 3:07
5. Double Sunlight (Levinger, Young, Joe Bauer) - 0:41
6. Beautiful (Young) - 3:49
7. Turn It Over (Levinger, Young, Bauer) - 0:15
8. Rain Song (Don't Let The Rain Bring You Down) (Corbitt, Pappalardi, Collins) - 3:13
9. Trillium (Levinger, Young, Bauer) - 3:08
10.Quicksand (Young) - 2:41
11.Black Mountain Breakdown (Levinger, Young, Bauer) - 0:40
12.Sham (Young) - 2:44
13.Ride The Wind (Young) - 6:37

The Youngbloods
The Youngbloods/Earth Music 1967
*Jesse Colin Young - Bass Guitar, Guitar, Vocals
*Jerry Corbitt - Guitar, Vocals
*Lowell "Banana" Levinger - Guitar, Pedal Steel Guitar, Electric Piano
*Joe Bauer - Drums, Percussion
With
*George Ricci - Cello On "Foolin' Around"

Elephant Mountain 1969
*Jesse Colin Young - Bass, Acoustic Guitar , Vocals
*Lowell "Banana" Levinger - Guitar, Electric Piano, Backing Vocals
*Joe Bauer - Drums
With
*David Lindley - Fiddle
*Plas Johnson - Tenor Saxophone
*Joe Clayton - Trumpet
*Victor Feldman - Vibraphone

1972  The Youngbloods - High On A Ridge Top (Sundazed remaster)
Related Act 
1973  Jesse Colin Young - Song For Juli (2009 edition)

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