Gary Higgins - Red Hash (1973 us, neat rough acid folk rock)

Red Hash was originally released on Higgins' Connecticut-based Nufusmoon Records. Around that time, he was busted for possession of marijuana and spent two years in prison. In his absence, the album sank into oblivion. Mastered from the original tapes with new photos and artwork from Higgins' archives as well as a lyric sheet and two bonus tracks, Red Hash is now available to a wider audience.

It's been a good couple of years for once-lost folkies. Comparing Higgins to other formative players in the midst of rebirth, he's darker than Vashti Bunyan or Incredible String Band, less outer-realms and more melodic than Simon Finn. His work could, more or less, be compared to Skip Spence's Oar dressed up like David Crosby. On Red Hash, his guitar and soulsick (but often uplifting) voice are accented with rich cello, piano, organ, mandolin, flute, and bass. The sounds are melancholy but never unaccessible: This is folk both your uncle and WFMU will (and do) love.

Coming first, "Thicker Than a Smokey"'s the strongest composition, a perfect blend of wanderer sadness, transcendent vocals, jangling instrumentation, dour melodies, and a libretto that feels like a Beatnik "Advice to the Graduate". Like many of Higgins songs, "Thicker" deals with a journey. Beginning with the queries, "What do you intend to do young man? Where do you intend to go?," he delves out homespun advice ("If you travel with a spider/ In your duffle bag/ With you good weather goes") and personal anecdote ("It's often that I wish to leave myself/ Buy some fancy clothes...") in a way that connotes something cyclical or unending.

Higgins' major themes are travel and lonesomeness. "Telegraph Towers" finds the protagonist "sailin' for home"; only the blowing wind makes him feel like he's not alone. In "I Can't Sleep at Night" he's afraid of shut-eye because it might mean death (he smells it everywhere). The mournful "Windy Child"'s downcast sing-along weds flute, cello, and Higgins' minor chords to "You were the sun/ And I was the morning dew... / You were always bigger / you were always brighter than me." The parlor fare of "Looking For June" has Higgins joined on vocals with upfront piano for a tale of a solo desert wanderer meeting with camels and the pope (check out the subtle, Eastern vibe).

Secondary lyrical fixations include animals, which often signify a lighthearted turn that under closer scrutiny isn't so joyful. There are plenty of birds (and the skies in which they fly), including a cuckoo in the track of the same name. Honing in on Trout Mask Replica, "Down on the Farm"'s comic protagonist milks a bull instead of a cow. There's also the gently humorous love ballad, "Stable the Spuds", but before getting too cozy, note the creepy piano, which trills like descending ice cubes.

The most beautiful work outside of "Thicker than a Smokey" is "Unable to Fly", which is traditional-sounding and pastoral, as if performed by Elliott Smith. (In parts, Higgins adopts a falsetto that sounds torn from Either/Or.) It retells a quest to reach the sun via an Icarus-type flight, but the hero's sent off in a wooden boat (carved by his father) to sail alone on the sea (as instructed by his mother). Before going, he turns in time to see her spread her wings "to greet the sky so blue" and fly away. Addressing a lover, he's bummed that know that knows where he's supposed to go, "You no longer care to know." He then flies, "In the golden light of your stare."

Red Hash proper consists of 11 pieces and ends with the aforementioned (Revelations-inspired?) dream quest, "Looking For June". Unfortunately, as it often goes with these sorts of reissues, the two bonus tracks aren't as powerful as the others. "Don't Ya Know" is an early 80s home recording heavy on the blues and lines about drinking whisky and playing guitar and being a long-hair. (Remember the Five Man Electrical Band via Tesla? that kind of thing...) The more ambitious "Last Great Sperm Whale"-- a 1975 studio track with bluesy slide guitar and tinny drums-- tells the story of recently freed whale who goes on an oceanic tear until he's recaptured and killed. Likely coming on the heels of Higgins' release from prison, it's a fitting allegorical finale to the reissue, but stylistically it creates a disjunct from the original Red Hash track list.

A more fitting end: Last weekend I was at a pot luck and the host put on Red Hash. The first few strums of "Thicker than a Smokey" cast a lovely soporific feel over the room before I realized what it was. Commenting on it to my friend, he mentioned that from the pictures accompanying the music, it seems Higgins possesses a certain aura of calm (and there really is a tawny haze around his head in one of the pics). It reminded me of his Tonic performance. After Higgins completed his one-song set, Chasny told the crowd to buy Higgins a beer, but once he finished, he walked back to the bar, somehow ducked out of my sight, and blended silently back into the audience before I could attempt to fulfill the request.

by Brandon Stosuy

Tracks
1. Thicker Than A Smokey - 3:38
2. It Didn't Take Too Long - 4:02
3. Windy Child - 3:31  
4. Telegraph Towers - 2:56
5. I Can't Sleep At Night - 3:52
6. Cuckoo - 2:10
7. I Pick Notes From The Sky - 4:45
8. Stable The Spuds - 5:22  
9. Down On The Farm - 3:08
10.Unable To Fly - 4:12
11.Looking For June - 3:51
12.Don't Ya Know - 3:36
13.Last Great Sperm Whale - 5:21
Music and Lyrics by Gary Higgins 

Musicians
*Gary Higgins - Guitar, Drums, Vocals
*Dave Beaujon - Bass
*Maureen Wells - Cello, Vocals
*Jake Bell - Guitar, Vocals
*Paul Tierney - Mandolin, Flute, Vocals
*Jerry Fenton - Piano, Organ

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The Master's Apprentices - The Master's Apprentices (1966-68 aussie, fabulous garage beat roots 'n' roll, 2009 double disc digi pack edition)

The Masters' story began in the South Australian capital of Adelaide in early '65, with The Mustangs, a dance band formed by four Adelaide teenagers: Mick Bower, Brian Vaughton, Gavin Webb and Rick Morrison. The Mustangs were a typical example of an early-60s instrumental band, playing the obligatory Shadows and Ventures covers. The cataclysmic visit by the Beatles in 1964 rendered all that passe overnight. The Mustangs were canny enough to realise that the surf/instrumental craze was past its 'use-by' date, and they decided to change their style to incorporate the new "beat' music, so they placed a "singer wanted" ad on the noticeboard at a local music centre. On his third (and last) visit there, the ad was spotted by a young would-be bass player called Jim Keays, whowas taking lessons from musician and guitar teacher John Bywaters (who was a member of one of Adelaide's most popular and accomplished beat groups, The Mustangs began to established themselves on the dance circuit around Adelaide, in suburban halls and migrant hostels. 

They built up a strong following with the local teenagers, many of whom were, like Jim, migrants from the UK (Adelaide was a major destination for UK migrants in the 50s and 60s. Their audiences were also an important influence for the band - some of these kids were very recent arrivals, who had seen the top UK bands in action only weeks before, and they had a strong effect on the band's "look", since they were directly in touch with current 'mod' fashions, a trend which was still not very well known in Australia. The next step was a name change, and because they regarded themselves, at least for a while, as apprentices to those musical "masters" like Muddy Waters, Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley, their new name (suggested by Bowers) paid homage to these heroes. They decided early on to dispense with the apostrophe.

Towards the end of 1965 they found their home-base at an Adelaide club called The Beat Basement. Before long they were they regularly packing out the club, and they graduated from the less prestigious spots to the prized Saturday afternoon residency. They also became a prime attraction at theOctagon Ballroom in the Adelaide suburb of Elizabeth (The Twilights' home turf) which was located near another large migrant hostel. Keays recalls that the regulars included two young Scots migrant boys, John "Swanee" Swan and his brother Jimmy Barnes. The band also played at a dance in Salisbury, promoted by a young Doc Neeson, later the lead singer of The Angels......

...Milesago

Tracks

Disc 1

1. But One Day (M.J. Bower) - 2:39

2. Wars Or Hands Of Time (M.J. Bower) - 2:52

3. Dancing Girl (Ellas 'Bo Diddley' McDaniel) - 3:13

4. 1 Feel Fine (John Lennon, Paul MccCartney) - 3:23

5. My Girl (William 'Smokey' Robinson, Ronald White) - 3:23 

6. Undecided (M.J. Bower, Rick Morrison) - 2:28

7. Hot Gully Wind (M.J. Bower) - 2:51

8. Theme For A Social Climber (M.J. Bower) - 1:54

9. Don't Fight It (Wilson Pickett, Steve Cropper) - 3:04

10.She's My Girl (M.J. Bower) - 2:24

11.Johnny B. Goodc (Chuck Berry) - 2:46

12.Buried And Dead (M.J. Bower) - 2:41

13.Living In A Child's Dream (M.J. Bower) - 2:42

14.Tired Of Just Wandering (M.J. Bower) - 2:21

15.Elevator Driver (Max Ross, Brian Cadd) - 2:21

16.Brigette (Doug Ford, Jim Keays) - 2:26

17.Four Years Of Five (Jim Keays, Peter Tilbrook) - 2:33

18.I Feel Fine (John Lennon, Paul McCartney) - 3:03

Disc 2
1. Blast Off 0:17
2. Inside Looking Out (J.A. Lomax, E. Burdon, C. Chandler) - 3:31
3. Black Girl (In The Pines) (Huddie Ledbetter) - 3:57
4. Bye Bye Johnny (Chuck Berry) - 2:08
5. Dear Dad (Chuck Berry) - 1:41
6. Poor Boy (M.J. Bower, Jim Keays) - 3:05
7. Bye Bye Baby (Bower, Morrison, Keays) - 2:23
8. Wild Wild Party (M.J. Bower, Jim Keays) - 2:27
9. Got My Mojo Working (Preston Foster) - 2:56
10.Not Fade Away (Buddy Holly, Norman Petty) - 1:53
11.Bright Lights, Big City (Jimmy Reed) - 2:17
12.Little Girl (Van Morrison) - 2:04
13.Around And Around (Chuck Berry) - 2:57
14.It's Gonna Work Out Fine (Seneca, Lee) - 2:25
15.Cops And Robbers (Ellas 'Bo Diddley' McDaniel) - 3:33
16.Dimples (John Lee Hooker) - 3:29
17.Just A Little Bit (Bass, Brown Thornton, Washington) - 2:07
18.Mama, Keep Your Big Mouth Shut (Ellas 'Bo Diddley' McDaniel) - 2:58
19.Don't Bring Me Down (Johnny Dee) - 2:05
20.Hey Bo Diddley (Ellas 'Bo Diddley' McDaniel) - 3:51
21.Road Runner (Ellas 'Bo Diddley' McDaniel) - 2:55

The Master's Apprentices
*Jim Keays - Vocals, Harmonica
*Mick Bower - Rhythm Guitar, Vocals
*Rick Morrison - Lead Guitar
*Gavin Webb - Bass
*Brian Vaughton - Drums
*Steve Hopgood - Drums (Disc 1, Tracks 4, 5, 8, 9, 13, 14, 15, 18)
*Tony Sommers - Lead Guitar (Disc 1, Tracks 4, 5, 8, 9, 13, 14, 15, 18)
*Peter Tilbrook - Rhythm Guitar (Disc 1, Tracks 15-17)
*Doug Ford - Lead Guitar (Disc 1, Tracks 16, 17)
*Colin Burgess - Drums (Disc 1, Tracks 16, 17)

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The Maze - Armageddon (1968 us, terrific heavy psych, sundazed issue)

An obscure San Francisco area group that cut one extremely rare album in 1968, Armageddon (recorded at Leo Kulka's Golden State Recorders, and issued on MTA), which is highly valued in some collector circles. Actually, they don't rank as a very impressive find, in fact epitomizing some of the period's least enduring excesses. They originally recorded under the name Stonehenge, with a female vocalist, before assuming their more familiar name, and left behind a good deal more than an album's worth of tracks, some of which turned up on the 1995 Sundazed CD reissue of Armageddon. Their all-original material emphasized heavy organ, long, drawn-out fuzzy guitar solos, despondent stoned vocals, and minor-key melodies, somewhat in the mold of Iron Butterfly.

by Richie Unterberger

The advent of ear splitting, cortex-skewering bands like the Maze really did signal the end of the sixties. But just like that ultimate orgasmic blast during the finale of a great fireworks show, what a perfect way to go.

A true rarity among 60’s psych collectors, tracks 1 through 7 appeared on the original Maze release, recorded at various studio sessions from September 1967 to March 1968 at Leo Kulka’s Golden State Recorders in San Francisco. In addition to this original album, we’ve added six unissued bonus cuts! The earliest of these tracks, “Right Time” and “Rumours” were recorded on April 21, 1967 under the groups’ previous moniker, “Stonehenge”. 

The cool, folk-rock sound of “Stonehenge” is period Bay Area, complete with requisite female vocalist and chiming Rick 12-strings. Other previously unissued tracks here include instrumental backings of “Dejected Soul” and “Kissy Face”. They are, essentially, extended, fuzz-guitar filled rehearsals for what would, several takes later, become the master backing tracks upon which vocals would then be overdubbed.

Sundazed

Tracks
1. Armageddon - 7:11
2. I'm So Sad - 7:01
3. Happiness (J. Jensen, C Boyd) - 2:07
4. Whispering Shadows - 4:20
5. Kissy Face - 3:03
6. Dejected Soul  (Richard Eittreim) - 2:30
7. As For Now - 2:39
8. Right Time - 2:18
9. Rumors - 1:55
10.Whispering Shadows (Alternate Version) - 3:17
11.Dejected Soul (Instrumental) (Richard Eittreim) - 3:00
12.As For Now (Alternate Version) - 2:27
13.Kissy Face (Instrumental) - 3:51
All compositions by William Gardner except where stated

The Maze
*William Gardner - Organ, Vocals
*Jeff Jensen - Guitar, Vocals
*Kit Boyd - Bass
*Rick Eittreim - Drums

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Methuselah - Matthew, Mark, Luke And John (1969 uk, sensational heavy prog spritual folk rock. 2010 issue)

This late 60s group made two albums for Elektra but only the one above, which inevitably is now quite rare and sought-after, was released. The band evolved out of The Dimples/Gospel Garden, with a new drummer Mick Bradley (ex-The Sorrows) and whiz kid guitar player Les Nicol (ex-ABC). The band inherited Gospel Garden's management deal with Steve Roland at Double-R management and scored a three-album deal with Elektra. 

Label boss Jac Holzman drafted in songwriter Kenny Young (of “Under The Boardwalk” fame) to produce the first album of Gladwin originals. Inexplicably it was never released in the UK, and when nothing happened in the States, the band recorded the (unreleased) double album. However, by this time "proverbial" musical differences had split the band and the second album was cancelled. The various factions went their separate ways with Mick Bradley joining Steamhammer, Gladwin and Wincott signing with Island Records as Amazing Blondel and Craig Austin and Les Nicol together with (ex-Junior's Eyes drummer Steve Chapman) forming psychedelic trio Distant Jim and later Coast Road Drive. 

Methuselah's released album has folk, R&B gospel and even pop influences in its melodies and vocals. The best tracks are ‘John’, with astonishing guitar leads from Les Nicol; the folky ‘High In The Tower Of Coombe’; the gospel-influenced ‘My Poor Image’ and ‘Fireball Woman’. The French children’s song ‘Frere Jaques’ is sung in French at the start and finish of the album, the second time with church choir-like vocals and some jazzy instrumentation in the middle segment. Les Nicol also played with other British musicians on the second Pavlov's Dog album.

by Vernon Joynson, Costas Arvanitis, thanks to Craig Austin

Tracks
1. Matthew - 4:40
2. Mark - 3:03
3. Luke - 3:00
4. John - 4:15
5. High in the Tower of Coombe - 3:15
6. Methuselah - 4:26
7. My Poor Mary (Methuselah) - 3:17
8. Fireball Woman - 3:38
9. Fairy Tale - 3:01
10.Frere Jacques (Traditional arr. by Methuselah) - 6:08
All compositions by John Gladwin except where stated

Methuselah
*Craig Austin - Bass, Vocals
*Mick Bradley - Drums
*John Gladwin - Vocals, Vibes
*Les Nicol - Guitar, Vocals
*Terry Wincott - Guitar, Vocals

Related Act
1970  Judas Jump - Scorch
1971  Ray Owen's Moon - Moon
1973  Amazing Blondel - Blondel
1974  Coast Road Drive ‎- Delicious And Refreshing (2013 Korean remaster)

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Joe South - Games People Play / Joe South (1969/71 us, magnificent folk psych country rock)

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The second (1969's Games People Play) and fourth (1971's Joe South) albums by Joe South were combined onto one CD on this 2006 reissue, which added three non-LP bonus tracks.

To some degree, Games People Play was a rushed album, issued to capitalize on the unexpected hit single title track (which had first been issued as an LP-only cut on South's previous long-player, Introspect).

Three songs that had appeared on Introspect ("Games People Play," "Birds of a Feather," and "These Are Not My People") were placed on Games People Play as well, and some of the other songs (like "Untie Me" and "Concrete Jungle") had been recorded by other artists as early as 1962.

For all that, however, it was a pretty cracking good set of country-soul-rock, and if it was hastily thrown together, it certainly didn't show in the songwriting, production, or performances.

South's sage, humanistic, and somewhat outside-looking-in view of the madding crowd came through forcefully in "Party People," "These Are Not My People," and "Birds of a Feather." Wholehearted romantic lust and confusion laced his energetic recastings of "Untie Me" (first a hit for the Tymes back in 1963) and "Hush" (which had just been a smash for Deep Purple), as well as the respectably Elvis Presley-meets-Neil Diamond-styled "Heart's Desire," which had the catchiness of a hit single.

The dabs of psychedelia throughout the record -- some electric guitar here, some weird echo there (both at once on "Hole in Your Soul," the most avowedly strange track) -- might have been trendy, but were nonetheless effective. Quite a lot of fine music not found on best-of compilations awaits South fans who have yet to discover this record.

As South was working at a white-hot pace in the late '60s, with three fine if slightly erratic albums emerging one after the other, it's perhaps unsurprising that Joe South was both less energetic and less impressive than what had preceded it.

It's still a worthy record with his expected (and perhaps unsurpassed) knack for combining rock, country, and soul, though it marked no less than the third appearance in four albums of "Birds of a Feather." Certainly the most renowned track is "Rose Garden," a number three pop hit in the hands of country singer Lynn Anderson, though South's version is unsurprisingly funkier and more relaxed.

At other points South sounds rather like Elvis Presley might have in the early '70s had Elvis been able to write songs and was less of a showboat. But while the songs are OK (and, in the case of "Rose Garden," quite a bit more than that), there was nothing aside from "Rose Garden" as exciting and striking as the best of what South had done in the late '60s.

The bonus tracks include the Righteous Brothers-styled B-side "It Got Away" and the rare psychedelic instrumental 45 "Soul Raga Simmerin'"/"Soul Raga Cookin'," which was issued under the name of the Believers, and which evolved into "Hole in Your Soul" when lyrics were added. ~ Richie Unterberger

"Games People Play" and "Joe South" are two classic country-soul albums well ahead of their time. Known primarily as a session man (Aretha Franklin, Wilson Picket, Bob Dylan) Joe South had shown his song writing ability since the late 1950's. "Games People Play" made him a bona-fide star.

The LP of the same name was an electrifying blend of southern soul and country with deft dabs of rock and psychedelia. His 4th album, Joe South (1970), was recorded in Atlanta, Georgia with the Atlanta Rhythm Section further demonstrating his skill as both a gifted songwriter and rootsy singer with an exceptional voice.

These two albums showcase a unique talent: Joe South, the man who blazed the path of country rock'n'soul. With three rare bonus tracks including the simmering psychedelic 'Soul Raga' by South's band The Believers, this 24 track, 75 minute '2-for-1' with revealing liner notes is extraordinary value

by Bernie Howitt

Tracks

Games People Play 1969
1. Games People Play - 3:33
2. Party People - 4:25
3. Untie Me - 2:34
4. Concrete Jungle - 2:52
5. Hole In Your Sole - 3:33
6. Hush - 3:45
7. Birds Of A Feather (Long Version) - 4:20
8. Heart's Desire - 2:52
9. Leanin' On You - 2:51
10.I Knew You When - 2:58
11.These Are Not My People - 2:31
Joe South 1971
12.High On A Hilltop - 3:43
13.Birds Of A Feather (Single Version) - 2:45
14.For The Love Of A Woman - 3:00
15.Rose Garden - 2:48
16.Yo Yo - 3:45
17.Fool Me - 2:59
18.How Can I Unlove You - 2:20
19.You Need Me - 3:03
20.She's Almost You - 2:22
21.Devil May Care - 3:05
Bonus Tracks
22.It Got Away - 2:28
23.Soul Raga Simmerin' (The Believers) - 3:42
24.Soul Raga Cookin' (The Believers) - 2:32
All songs by Joe South

Musicians

*Joe South - Vocals, Guitar
Tracks 12-21 with The Atlanta Rhythm Section
*Rodney Justo - Vocals
*Barry Bailey - Lead Guitar
*James B. Cobb - Guitar, Backing Vocals
*Dean Daughtry - Keyboards, Vocals
*Paul Goddard - Bass
*Robert Nix - Drums, Percussion, Backing Vocals

1968-69  Introspect / Don't It Made You Want To Go

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Joe South - Introspect / Don't It Made You Want To Go Home? (1968-69 us, splendid folk psych bluesy rock)

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Atlanta native Joe Souter (a.k.a. Joe South) is one of the unsung heroes in popular music as although a few of his hits peaked in the top 40 in pop and/or country, as noted, mostly other artists had hits with his material.

This CD is an Australian twofer of his first 2 albums originally released on Capitol. Introspect, from 1968, and Don't It Make You Want To Go Home, from 1969. These 2 albums contain many of the most influential songs in all of popular music including pop hits:

#12 "Games People Play," (covered successfully by Freddy Weller, who had a #2 country hit with it), Birds of a Feather (a #96 hit for Joe that became a #23 hit for Paul Revere & The Raiders in 1971), Rose Garden (covered by Lynn Anderson who would take it to #1 on both country and pop charts), Don't It Make You Want To Go Home (which would peak at #27 on the country chart and #41 on the pop chart, which Bobby Bare and a few other artists have covered), Children (a #51 hit which Billy Joe Royal covered on his "Cherry Hill Park" album in 1970, available on a twofer with 1965's "Down In The Boondocks" which is available here at Amazon), Walk a Mile In My Shoes (a #12 pop hit, #56 country hit, which Elvis would later feature in his concerts regularly throughout the 1970s), These Are Not My People (Freddy Weller also charted with this and it peaked at #5 on the country charts), "Hole In Your Soul," a single that got included on the "Games People Play" compilation in the LP days and not on any other album is included as a bonus track.

The entire CD is classic singer-songwriter music and is essential to any collection of music from the 1960s-1970s

by Bradley Olson

Tracks
Introspect, 1968
1. All My Hard Times - 2:49
2. Rose Garden - 2:47
3. Mirror Of Your Mind - 4:36
4. Redneck - 3:15
5. Don't Throw Your Love To The Wind - 2:50
6. The Greatest Love - 2:28
7. Games People Play - 3:32
8. These Are Not My People - 2:29
9. Don't You Be Ashamed - 3:12
10.Birds Of A Feather - 2:43
11.Gabriel - 7:16
Don't It Make You Wanna Go Home? 1969
12.Clock Up On The Wall - 4:14
13.Bittersweet - 2:41
14.Shelter - 3:10
15.What Makes Lovers Hurt One Another? - 2:35
16.Before It's Too Late - 3:54
17.Children - 3:37
18.Walk A Mile In My Shoes - 3:40
19.Be A Believer - 3:01
20.A Million Miles Away - 4:35
21.Don't It Make You Wanna Go Home? - 3:10
Bonus Track
22.Hole In Your Sole - 3:37
All songs by Joe South

*Joe South - Vocals, Guitar

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Pure Prairie League - Pure Prairie League / Bustin Out (1972 us, excellent country rock, 2006 remaster edition)

Despite significant personnel changes, Pure Prairie League maintained itself as a successful country-rock band during the 1970s and early '80s, releasing ten albums and enjoying hits -- including "Amie" and "Let Me Love You Tonight" -- with different configurations of the group.

Pure Prairie League was formed in Columbus, Ohio, in 1969 by singer/songwriter/guitarist Craig Fuller (born July 18, 1949, in Portsmouth, Ohio), singer/guitarist George Powell, bass player Jim Lanham, and drummer Tom McGrail, who gave the band its name, which was the name of a women's temperance group in the 1939 Errol Flynn movie Dodge City. Pure Prairie League built up a following in Ohio, playing around Cincinnati for a year before earning a record contract with RCA Victor. 

By that time, McGrail had left and been replaced by Jim Caughlin, though Billy Hinds had also drummed with the band for a time. Adding steel guitar player John David Call, the group went into the studio and recorded its self-titled debut album, which was released in March 1972 with a cover depicting a Western character named Luke, an illustration drawn by famed naturalist painter Norman Rockwell that had first appeared on the cover of The Saturday Evening Post in 1927. Luke would turn up on all the band's subsequent album covers, giving them a distinctive visual conception.

Pure Prairie League did not sell well enough to reach the charts, and the group fragmented. Lanham, Caughlin, and Call left, and remaining members Fuller and Powell brought back Hinds, who in turn recruited a friend, keyboard player Michael Connor, to play on the second album, Bustin' Out, and subsequently become a full-fledged bandmember. Among the other session musicians on the album was David Bowie associate Mick Ronson, who played guitar and arranged the strings.

by William Ruhlmann

The songwriting team of Craig Fuller and George Powell was one of the finest in the business, and on Bustin' Out they made an album that is unequaled in country-rock. The songs are meditative portraits of relationships that aren't running smoothly but are still alive, and they sound autobiographical rather than something contrived to sell records. These tunes are presented with grace and unusual taste, the country guitars and vocal harmonies backed with astonishingly sympathetic string arrangements by Mick Ronson. Both lyrical and musical themes carry over from song to song -- "Falling in and Out of Love" and "Amie" are really two halves of one suite, and there are echoes of that suite throughout the rest of the album. 

Despite the extraordinary beauty and intelligence of the music on this album, it was not immediately successful, and the already troubled band broke up after it was released. Nevertheless, the influence of Bustin' Out was profound, and one song in particular became a staple for bar bands everywhere. RCA re-released "Amie" as a single more than two years after the album came out, and it was a Top 30 hit. The revival of interest in Pure Prairie League led RCA to re-sign the group, alas without Craig Fuller. That hit status also led to a rediscovery of the merits of the rest of Bustin' Out, which is acknowledged to be one of the artistic high points in country-rock history. 

by Richard Foss

Tracks
Pure Prairie League 1972
1. Tears (Craig Fuller) - 2:41
2. Take It Before You Go (Fuller) - 4:04
3. You're Between Me (Fuller) - 5:35
4. Woman (Adam Taylor) - 3:40
5. Doc's Tune (George Powell) - 1:22
6. Country Song (T. P. Waterhouse) - 7:37
7. Harmony Song (Fuller) - 5:20
8. It's All On Me (Powell) - 2:30
Bustin' Out 1972
9. Jazzman (Ed Holstein) - 2:34
10.Angel No. 9 (Craig Fuller) - 4:55
11.Leave My Heart Alone (Powell) - 4:24
12.Early Morning Riser (Fuller) - 5:05
13.Falling In And Out Of Love (Fuller) - 2:12
14.Amie (Fuller) - 4:18
15.Boulder Skies (Fuller) - 4:01
16.Angel (Fuller) - 4:26
17.Call Me, Tell Me (Fuller) - 2:41

Pure Prairie League
*Craig Fuller - Lead Guitar, Vocals
*George Powell - Finger-Style Guitar, Rhythm Guitar, Vocals
*Jim Lanham - Bass Guitar, Background Vocals (Pure Prairie League LP)
*John David Call - Steel Guitar (Pure Prairie League LP)
*Jim Caughlan - Drums (Pure Prairie League LP)
*Billy Hinds - Drums (Bustin' Out LP)
*David Huchins- Guitar (Bustin' Out LP)
Additional Personnel
Pure Prairie League LP
*Hugh Mccracken - Guitar
*Barbara Merrick - Vocals
*Starr Smith - Vocals
*James Westermyer "Westy" - Vocals
Bustin' Out LP
*Dianne Brooks - Vocals, Background Vocals
*Steven Edney - Background Vocals
*Al "Brisco" Clark - Steel Guitar
*Michael Connor - Piano, Keyboards
*Bob Ringe - Percussion, Marimba
*James Rolleston - Bass
*Mick Ronson - Guitar, Vocals, Background Vocals
*Michael Connor - Piano
*Gary Smith - Guitar

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Rita Coolidge - Delta Lady, The Anthology (1971-98 us, very tasty blend of after hours soft orchestrated folk country tunes, 2004 two disc set)

With the arrival of Delta Lady: The Rita Coolidge Anthology, one can only remark: what took so long? No other singer -- not Maria Muldaur, Bette Midler, Bonnie Bramlett, Carly Simon, or Linda Ronstadt -- more perfectly embodied the wide range of changes that popular music underwent from the late '60s through the mid-'80s, and continues to seek new means of expression today. 

This two-disc anthology on Hip-O offers the first complete portrait of this complex and multivalent talent on CD (though a box set would have been nice). Rita Coolidge scored her first chart hit with friend Donna Weiss' "Turn Around and Love You" in 1969. That song earned her a studio spot where she fell in with Delaney & Bonnie, Leon Russell, and a huge cast of musicians. Being a background vocalist on Delaney & Bonnie's classic Accept No Substitute earned her a place on Russell and Joe Cocker's Mad Dogs & Englishmen revue and the rest is history, including a handful of chart hits and guest appearances that stagger the mind.

Coolidge's period with A&M reveals that Coolidge is a singer whose gift of empathy for a song is singular. Indeed, in virtually every song one not only hears her voice, but also feels its smoky, throaty, body-caressing languor in every verse. She wraps her entire mouth around her syllables because they come from the deep, fathomless well that holds the fire in the belly. Her great earthy depth does not rely on pyrotechnics, but on passion and expression, the wealth of which adds another dimension to even a miniscule pop song and sends it forth to the listener with the temperature of a hot spring. 

All the evidence one needs is found in her live reading of "Superstar" (yes, the tune that became a smash for the Carpenters), where one can hear something completely outside the hit version's sentimentality. Coolidge brings the hue of painful memory -- of lovemaking, of shared tenderness and longed-for passion -- into the grain of the song; in its place lies raw, swollen, melancholy need. In addition, her performances of Dave Mason's "Only You Know and I Know," Booker T. Jones and William Bell's "Born Under a Bad Sign," Leonard Cohen's "Bird on the Wire," and Johnny Davenport's "Fever" are shot through with emotion that is equal parts physical and spiritual. And when it comes to expressing those intangible emotions that lie outside the margin of categorization, one need only to hear "The Lady's Not for Sale" (written by former husband Kris Kristofferson) to be moved outside the realm of one's experience and into that of the song. And Coolidge's country version of Eric Kaz's "Love Has No Pride" is nearly peerless in its white-out pathos and cavernous want (only Bonnie Raitt's comes close).

While the first disc is full of songs that represent "the Voice," with a few hits in the mix, disc two concentrates on the R&B and pop hits Coolidge garnered during the 1970s, such as her cover of "(Your Love Has Lifted Me) Higher and Higher," "The Way You Do the Things You Do" (her biggest smash), Boz Scaggs' "We're All Alone," and "Slow Dancer." But they are all here, from "One Fine Day" to "The Closer You Get" to Tom Snow's "You," and of course the John Barry/Tim Rice-penned "All Time High" from the James Bond flick Octopussy. But in these songs, too, there is a complete lack of artifice in her interpretations; she delivers each song honestly, from the belly bone and into the ether that goes beyond the microphone. In each and every case, it's the song that matters to Coolidge, not her own voice. 

If one goes to the later material, after the hits, and into the recent past with "Cherokee" and "The Way I Love You," where this set ends, the listener is the recipient of a voice that has, if it is even possible, gone even further into the mystery of song itself. Coolidge's maturity as a vocalist comes in allowing the song to move through her, not to spin it or rework its intent, but to allow it a hearing in the full light of its own day, in its own complexity, in its own world. 

That she has been able to effortlessly move from the spirit of one song to another, regardless of genre or production, is a rare gift; that she can give listeners the wellspring of her own unclassifiable wildness in her performances -- naked, unbowed, and filled with grit, grace, and mystery -- is a small miracle. With its wonderful packaging featuring many photographs and excellent liner notes by Scott Schneider and the artist, Delta Lady goes far beyond the boundary of a "for fans only" compilation. Indeed, it demands a complete reconsideration of the wealth and necessity of Rita Coolidge's contribution as an artist and as an influence on modern popular music -- a contribution that will continue, no doubt, to mystify and delight.

by Thom Jurek

Tracks

Disc 1

1. Turn Around and Love You (Donna Weiss) - 02:22

2. Superstar (Leon Russell, Bonnie Bramlett) - 04:56

3. That Man Is My Weakness (Donna Weiss, Craig Doerge) - 03:53

4. Born Under a Bad Sign (Booker T. Jones, William Bell) - 04:16

5. Mud Island (Donna Weiss, Mary Unobsky) - 04:28

6. I Believe in You (Neil Young) - 03:11

7. Family Full of Soul (Marc Benno) - 03:06

8. Nice Feelin' (Marc Benno) - 05:28

9. Only You Know and I Know (Dave Mason) - 03:37

10.Fever (John Davenport, Eddie Cooley) - 03:27

11.Bird on the Wire (Leonard Cohen) - 05:41

12.The Lady's Not for Sale (Kris Kristofferson, Cathy Pugh) - 04:11

13.A Song I'd Like to Sing (feat. Kris Kristofferson) (Kris Kristofferson) - 04:01

14.Loving Arms (feat. Kris Kristofferson) (Tom Jans) - 03:44

15.Love Has No Pride (Tom Jans) - 03:53

16.Now Your Baby Is a Lady (Bob Morrison) - 02:39

17.Born to Love Me (Donna Weiss, Jackie DeShannon) - 03:41

18.I Wanted It All (Jackie DeShannon, John Bettis) - 03:05

19.Late Again (Kris Kristofferson) - 04:11

20.Am I Blue? (Grant Clarke, Harry Akst) - 04:39 

Disc 2
1. (Your Love Has Lifted Me) Higher and Higher (Paul Smith, Gary Jackson, Raynard Miner, Billy Davis) - 04:01
2. The Way You Do the Things You Do (William Robinson, Robert Rogers) - 03:37
3. We're All Alone (Boz Scaggs) - 03:39
4. You (Tom Snow) - 03:14
5. Love Me Again (David Lasley, Allee Willis) - 03:39
6. Slow Dancer (Boz Scaggs, George Daly) - 04:01
7. Please Don't Tell Me How the Story Ends (Kris Kristofferson) - 02:22
8. One Fine Day (Gerry Goffin, Carole King) - 04:01
9. I'd Rather Leave While I'm in Love (Carole Bayer Sager, Peter Allen) - 03:24
10.Something 'Bout You Baby I Like (feat. Glen Campbell) (Richard Supa) - 02:43
11.Fool That I Am (Carole Bayer Sager, Bruce Roberts) - 03:08
12.Basic Lady (Allen Toussaint) - 03:06
13.The Closer You Get (James P. Pennington, Mark Gray) - 04:24
14.Only You (Vince Clarke) - 03:16
15.All Time High (Theme Song from Octopussy) (John Barry, Tim Rice) - 03:04
16.Love Came for Me (Lee Holdridge, Will Jennings) - 04:27
17.Something Said Love (Wood Newton, Jerry Michael) - 03:37
18.Survivor (Psiscilla Coolidge, Mary Unobsky, Danny Ironstone) - 03:31
19.Perfect Strangers (Love Theme from The Mystery of Edwin Drood, feat. Rupert Holmes) (Rupert Holmes) - 04:26
20.Cherokee (Rita Coolidge, Priscilla Coolidge, Laura Satterfield) - 05:58
21.The Way I Love You (Joe Lamont, Rick Chundacoff) - 03:52

Musicians
*Rita Coolidge - Vocals
*Kris Kristoffeson - Vocals
*Glen Campbell - Vocals
*Rupert Holmes - Vocals
*Charlie Freeman - Guitar
*Tommy McClure - Bass
*Mike Utley - Keyboards
*Sammy Creason - Drums
*Booker T. Jones - Keyboards, Bass

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Crazy Horse - Scratchy, Complete Recordings (1962-73 us, exceptional country rock, 2005 double disc issue)

Crazy Horse’s 1971 self-titled debut, with Danny Whitten, Nils Lofgren and Jack Nitzsche, remains a roots-inflected, heavy-rock touchstone, boasting a uniformly strong set balancing mournful ballads and left-field rockers (notably, an ode to erectile dysfunction and a party stomper about scoring heroin). Just a year later, the follow-up Loose found Talbot and Molina fronted by an anonymous collection of minor leaguers, delivering limp country-rock several notches below the not exactly hearty CSN/Eagles standard. Rhino’s “limited edition” supplements the official releases with the usual oddments and arcana, but given the original lineup’s too-brief run, these barrel scrapings inspire a benevolent indulgence. The simulated innocence of the early-’60s close harmony and Brill Building knockoffs that close the set is sweet enough to induce tears.

by Scott Manzler

Neil Young may not ever allow his Reprise outtakes to be released, but that doesn't mean there's not a lot of equally cool stuff from an orbit near his that can't be enjoyed -- and Rhino Handmade has hit a mother lode with this double-CD set, which offers a lot more than even dedicated Crazy Horse fans may expect. Thanks to their convoluted membership history and a series of label changes, Crazy Horse had one of the stranger release histories of almost any '70s band -- their stuff and, to some extent, their sound are all over the map. Scratchy: 

The Complete Reprise Recordings makes a strong case, however, for the primacy of the first lineup and their work on Reprise, assembling all of their released work for the label plus the equivalent of an album's worth of outtakes and radio spots, and two tracks by Danny & the Memories, the group that preceded the formation of Crazy Horse by five years or so. The group's self-titled debut album has bounced in and out of print for the last 34 years, but here it's been remastered with the kind of attention that makes it sound like one is hearing it for the first time -- the close sound of the acoustic guitars on "I Don't Want to Talk About It" and the roaring electric instruments on "Gone Dead Train," "Dance, Dance, Dance," and "Downtown" are impressive to these ears, the harder-rocking numbers now displaying the raw power and impact that the group exuded on-stage; the remastering job has undone the inevitable flattening process that went into the vinyl release, so that Billy Talbot's bass, in particular, now gets a killer showcase, and Jack Nitzsche's piano on "Carolay" gets as much play as the massed acoustic guitars that carry the rhythm figure at the center of the song. 

What's more, the crispness of the sound has brought the singing out in vivid detail -- if the LP could have sounded this bracing and powerful, this band might well have seen the success it deserved. The second half of the first CD is filled out with the tracks off of their second album, Loose; thanks to the ensuing lineup changes that took place, they're a bit of a letdown after the 11 gems from Crazy Horse, though not bad on their own terms -- the group plays from less melodic strength and raw inventiveness, but make up for it with a lot of enthusiasm and positive vibes in their sound, especially on the acoustic numbers such as the gorgeous "One Thing I Love" or "All Alone Now." 

The real treat, however, is the second disc, which opens with a string of extraordinary outtakes, including the title track -- the outtakes sound incredible and feature exceptional playing, and "Scratchy" by itself is worth the price of admission, 12 minutes of stunning electric interaction; and it's followed by the gorgeous acoustic piece "Dear Song Singer," plus a long version of "Downtown"; the first Danny & the Memories cut, "Can't Help Loving That Girl," was, in its own time, a throwback to early-'60s doo wop style, while the second, "Don't Go," was much more contemporary circa 1965. The set is attractively designed, with separate pockets for each disc and a beautifully designed booklet with extensive annotation, all in a very practical slipcase-style package. It's a bargain for any fan of this band or any of its members, and worth tracking down.

by Bruce Eder

Tracks

Disc 1 "Crazy Horse" 1971

1. Gone Dead Train (Russ Titelman, Jack Nitzsche) - 4:10

2. Dance, Dance, Dance (Neil Young) - 2:13

3. Look At All The Things (Danny Whitten) - 3:14

4. Beggars Day (Nils Lofgren) - 4:33

5. I Don't Want To Talk About It (Danny Whitten) - 5:20

6. Downtown (Danny Whitten, Neil Young) - 3:16

7. Carolay (Jack Nitzsche, Russ Titelman) - 2:53

8. Dirty, Dirty (Danny Whitten) - 3:33

9. Nobody (Nils Lofgren) - 2:39

10.I'll Get By (Danny Whitten) - 3:08

11.Crow Jane Lady (Jack Nitzsche) - 4:27

"Loose" 1972

12.Hit And Run (John Blanton) - 2:41

13.Try (George Whitsell) - 3:18

14.One Thing I Love (Greg Leroy) - 2:37

15.Move (George Whitsell) - 3:13

16.All Alone Now (George Whitsell) - 2:46

17.All The Little Things (Greg Leroy) - 5:01

18.Fair Weather Friend (Greg Leroy) - 2:41

19.You Won't Miss Me (George Whitsell) - 2:47

20.Going Home (Greg Leroy) - 2:50

21.Don't Believe It (George Whitsell) - 3:07

22.Kind Of Woman (John Blanton) - 4:25

23.One Sided Love (George Whitsell) - 3:12

24.And She Won't Even Blow Smoke In My Direction (George Whitsell) - 1:21

Disc 2
1. Dirty, Dirty (Alternate Version) (Danny Whitten) - 3:56
2. Scratchy (Takes 1-3) (Unknown) - 12:12
3. Dear Song Singer (Unknown) - 3:10
4. Downtown (Unedited Long Version) (Danny Whitten, Neil Young) - 10:42
5. Susie's Song (Takes 1-5) (Nils Lofgren) - 6:13
6. When You Dance You Can Really Love (Neil Young) - 2:52
7. Radio Spot - 1:07
8. Danny And The Memories - Can't Help Loveing That Girl (Jerome Kern, Oscar Hammerstein II) - 2:03
9. Danny And The Memories - Don't Go (Danny Whitten) - 1:59
Tracks 1-5 from "Crazy Horse" sessions
Track 6 recorded January 1973
Track 7 Reprise  1971
Tracks 8-9 Danny And The Memories Valiant single  1962

1968  The Rockets - The Rockets

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The Leaves - The Leaves...Are Happening! Best Of (1965-66 us, stunning folk garage psych, Sundazed release)

At last, a legitimate and well-distributed reissue of everything the Leaves released on Mira between 1965 and 1966: the entire Hey Joe album, all of the non-LP songs from their singles, the single version of "Too Many People," and three versions of "Hey Joe" (from the hit single and two previous 45s which used slightly different arrangements). This is not the complete work of the Leaves, as it doesn't include anything from their 1967 Capitol LP All the Good That's Happening, but this is no loss, as that album was pretty lousy. (Two covers of unspecified origin from the compilation 1966 are also missing.) Although the Leaves were erratic, at their best they were a fine band who drew from the Byrds' folk-rock, the Beatles' melodicism, and the hard rock of the Rolling Stones, as best heard on "Hey Joe" and the less celebrated "Too Many People," "Be With You," "Just a Memory," "Dr. Stone," "Funny Little World," and "Words." The reissue is enhanced by the detailed history in the accompanying 16-page booklet. 

by Richie Unterberger

Tracks
1. Dr. Stone (J. Pons, J. Beck) - 2:19
2. Just A Memory (B. Arlin) - 2:16
3. Get Out Of My Life Woman (A. Toussaint) - 2:46
4. Girl From The East (R.P. Jameson) - 2:55
5. He Was A Friend Of Mine (Traditional) - 3:22
6. Hey Joe (B. Roberts) - 2:48
7. Words (B. Hart, T. Boyce) - 2:19
8. Back On The Avenue (B. Arlin, J. Pons, J. Beck, R. Reiner, T. Ray) - 3:07
9. War Of Distortion (B. Arlin) - 2:08
10.Tobacco Road (J.D. Loudermilk) - 2:09
11.Goodbye My Love (A. Mcnally, C. Pender) - 3:05
12.Too Many People (B. Rinehart, J. Pons) - 3:15
13.Hey Joe Where You Gonna Go? (Single Version) (B. Roberts) - 2:43
14.Funny Little World (B. Arlin) - 2:07
15.You Better Move On (A. Alexander) - 2:24
16.That's A Different Story (B. Rinehart, J. Pons) - 2:38
17.Love Minus Zero (B. Dylan) - 2:26
18.Be With You (B. Rinehart, J. Pons) - 2:01
19.Too Many People (Single Version) (B. Rinehart, J. Pons) - 2:43
20.Hey Joe Where You Gonna Go? (Promo Single Version) (B. Roberts) - 2:52

The Leaves
*Jimmy Kern - Drums
*Robert Leereiner - Guitar
*Jim Pons - Bass
*Bill Rhinehart - Guitar
*John Beck - Sax, Harmonica, Vocals
*Tom Ray - Drums
*Bobby Arlin - Guitar

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