Tonton Macoute - Tonton Macoute / Revisited Edition (1971/2016 uk, superb inspired psych prog jazz rock, 2017 blu spec double disc set)

Tonton Macoute, is a British progressive rock band, founded in 1970 in the County of Berkshire. The saxophonist and vocalist Dave Knowles the bassist and guitarist Chris Gavin had already played in various bands in Berkshire County when they met the organist Paul French and the drummer Nigel Reveler, who had a similar career as musicians in the north of England , The quartet received a record deal from Neon Records, a sub label of RCA, which relocated especially in Progressive Rock.

The debut album by Tonton Macoute came out in 1971, it remained the only original release of the band. The music of Tonton Macoute is strongly influenced by jazz, so the band could simply regarded as a progressive rock band as well as a jazz rock band.

Among the highlights are 'Just Like A Stone', that has some rocking piano and backbeat drums. 'Don't Make Me Cry' is a real jazz fusion odyssey, while the spooky 'Dreams' is laden with vibraphone textures. The swinging 'You Make My Jelly Roll' has young French singing in Frank Sinatra mode. Twin extended performances 'Natural High Parts 1 & 2' explore classical, rock and blues themes in a style that epitomises the band's musical sophistication.

Paul went on to form Voyager who charted in 1979 with a song entitled Halfway Hotel. They released 3 albums too, before disbanding in 1982. They have recently reformed to release the album Eyecontact. He performs regularly at The Piano, 106 Kensington High St. Dave formed his own band Turbo in the 70s and now lives in Cornwall. Gavin went on to practice fine art and photography, but still plays regularly in the Newbury area. Nigel has a successful career within the record industry and currently runs a distribution company Active Media.

In the recent decade, Paul French has been to reform Tonton Macoute to produce more material. His thinking in producing a new depiction of this album, was to imagine how the band would have sounded in the modern age and with more time to perfect the original tracks.

Unfortunately Dave Knowles passed away in 2015 before it all came to fruition, but his contribution is acknowledged here and in the music itself. The remaining three members and Dave's successors are very much behing this new album.

Tracks

Original Disc 1971

1. Just Like Stone - 6:33

2. Don't Make Me Cry - 8:50

3. Flying South In Winter - 6:28

4. Dreams (Dave Knowles) - 4:00

5. You Make My Jelly Roll (Dave Knowles) - 8:00

6. Natural High (Part 1) (Paul French) - 6:58

7. Natural High (Part 2) (Paul French) - 3:56

All songs by Nigel Reveler, Paul French, Chris Gavin, Dave Knowles except where stated

Disc 2 Revisited 2016

1. Don't - 5:53 

2. Dreamy - 5:15 

3. Slow Down - 5:50 

4. Fly South - 5:08 

5. Naturally - 5:20

6. I Said "Don't" - 4:18 

7. Don't Make Me Laugh (Paul French) - 4:59

8. Stoned - 4:46 

9. Summer Of Our Love (Paul French, Dave Knowles) - 5:09 

10.No I Didn't - 4:15

All songs by Nigel Reveler, Paul French, Chris Gavin, Dave Knowles except where indicated

Tonton Macoute

*Paul French - Acoustic, Electric Pianos, Organ, Vibes, Vocals

*Chris Gavin - Bass, Acoustic, Electric Guitars

*Dave Knowles - Alto, Tenor Saxes, Flute, Clarinet, Vocals

*Nigel Reveler - Drums, Percussion

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Thunderhead - Thunderhead (1975-76 us, awesome hard southern rock, 2009 reissue)

In the early seventies O.T. Ware, Ronnie Dobbs and I  were the core members of a popular New Orleans cover band “Paper Steamboat.” At that time, Bobby "T" Torello was the drummer for  David and the Giants, a Laurel, Mississippi cover band, played many of the same venues and "T" began jamming with "Steamboat." The desire to form a powerful original band is what drove the three Steamboat members to ask Bobby "T" to be part of the new project. We all agreed and set out to find a second guitarist and after trying Billy Gregory of “It’s A Beautiful Day” and two other local New Orleans musicians, Pat Rush was asked to join the band and Thunderhead was formed in late 1973. We rehearsed for 2 weeks, took a week vacation and then opened up at “The Flying Dutchman “in Charleston, S.C.

We were signed by Paragon Agency out of Macon Georgia (The Allman Brothers agency) and began touring small venues. Johnny Winter, who from time to time jammed with the Steamboat and then the new Thunderhead Band, asked us to join his tour.  We opened for Johnny at several venues around the South. We then embarked on a tour that took us to Louisville, Kentucky, Knoxville, Tenn., Ashville, North Carolina, Atlanta, Ga., and Lansing, Michigan where we opened for ZZ Top.

Interesting side story: When we took the stage in Louisville at a club called “The Beggars Banquet”  we were arrested for grand larceny and put in jail. It seems our manager at the time paid a judge to swear out fugitive warrants on us for “Stealing” our own P.A. We were released the next morning when we presented the lease agreement we had for the equipment to the judge. A few Days later on April 14, 1974 we opened for "Kiss" a relatively unknown band at the time.    

After the concert with ZZ Top, Thunderhead received a call from our friend Greggo Howard who was working with Johnny Winter and suggested we record our first album and that Johnny would produce it. We immediately went back to Bogalusa where “The Studio In the Country” was just finishing up an album with “Kansas”, and we began recording several tunes with Johnny producing and playing on several cuts and Edgar singing back up vocals and playing piano. Bill “Bleu” Evans studio owner and builder did the engineering. The album was shopped around and well received, but ABC was the only major label that made an offer. But, it was a very disappointing offer for the band, because they wanted us to record the entire album with a different producer. (John Haeny) 

Back in those days there were no options, as there are today,( to release the album independently) so we took the deal despite our disagreement about the album we had done with Johnny. We recorded the album and were sent out on the road and never asked to be there for the final mix. We also never saw the cover or liner notes. I found out the album was released by phone. A local record store owner, who was a fan, called me and told me it was out. I think I had to buy the first one. I remember doing one major showcase after that to push the album. It was in Atlanta at “Alex Cooley’s Electric Ballroom” and that was it. We did our usual gigs waiting for a tour that never came about. At one point I was told that there was a chance of touring with “Fleetwood Mac” but they did not want us on the tour, because we were “too High Energy” and would wear out the crowd. 

We hung around New Orleans and played as opening act for many of the big bands at “The Warehouse” and all the major concert venues. Joe Cocker, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Elvin Bishop, Dr. John, Edgar Winter, Peter Frampton and many more, but no tour. It seems that the support for the tour was dropped because the President of ABC killed himself and the new regime had an eye towards “Disco” and did not want to spend the money to promote the album. We set out to New York, where we were duped into believing that we would get some help from Teddy Slatus and maybe a tour. It never happened. Now we had no management, a record sitting on the shelves and no tour. Disco came along about then and we literally died on the vine. Broke up in October 1976.

by Mike Dagger

Tracks
1. Busted In Georgia (Mike Daggar, O.T. Ware, Ronnie Dobbs, Pat Rush) - 3:43
2. Lay It On The Line (Ronnie Dobbs) - 3:38
3. Got To Get Away (Mike Daggar, Ronnie Dobbs, O.T. Ware) - 3:51
4. Showdown (David Craig) - 3:16
5. Hit and Run Driver (Mike Daggar, H. Garrick) - 4:48
6. Breaux Bridge Rag (David Craig) - 3:17
7. Juliette (L. Georger) - 3:00
8. Armed Robbery (Mike Daggar, Pat Rush) - 3:40
9. More Than I Can Chew (Mike Daggar) - 4:26
10.Rock Me, Roll Me (Gary Nunn) - 4:12
11.Roll Up the Hill (Mike Daggar) - 4:16
12.Make Your Own Good News (Mike Daggar) - 4:09
13.Apathy (Instrumental) (Mike Daggar) - 3:46
14.Stop the Madness (Mike Daggar) - 4:05
15.Space Saver (Mike Daggar) - 7:16
16.Home (Mike Daggar) - 4:24

Thunderhead
*Mike Dagger - Flute, Percussion, Vocals
*Pat Rush - Guitars
*Ronnie Dobbs - Guitars
*Otho T. Ware - Bass
*Bobby Torello - Drums

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New Riders Of The Purple Sage - Gypsy Cowboy (1972 us, remarkable country folk bluesy psych rock, 2007 remaster and expanded)

Gypsy Cowboy was the New Riders of the Purple Sage's second album of 1972, released only seven months after its predecessor, Powerglide, and was also the group's third album in 15 months, which may help explain why the original material, written separately by John Dawson and Dave Torbert, was not impressive. Dawson as usual contributed some twangy country-pop including romantic tributes and reminiscences about the Gold Rush and bootleg whiskey, but nothing really memorable. 

(His eight-minute "Death and Destruction" provided opportunities for David Nelson to play some stinging electric guitar leads, even if it was essentially a rewrite of Neil Young & Crazy Horse's "Down by the River.") Torbert's contributions were even slighter, from his spacy title song ("Let's roll another number") to the by-the-numbers rocker "Groupie." And the New Riders continued to seem like inferior interpreters of others' songs, as their take on "Long Black Veil" was generic country-rock. 

The band had almost completely spun off from the Grateful Dead by now; the only contribution from the parent act was the appearance of Dead singer Donna Jean Godchaux on backup vocals on a couple of tunes. Gypsy Cowboy did not demonstrate that they couldn't ride alone, but it did suggest that they ought to pause and come up with some first-rate original material before entering the recording studio again, something they proved unable to do. [The 2007 reissue of the album by Wounded Bird Records added four previously released live versions of the songs, three of them culled from the 1974 LP Home, Home on the Road, produced by Jerry Garcia.] 

by William Ruhlmann

Tracks
1. Gypsy Cowboy (Dave Torbert) - 4:18
2. Whiskey (John Dawson) - 3:33
3. Groupie (Dave Torbert) - 2:40
4. Sutter's Mill (John Dawson) - 1:52
5. Death And Destruction (John Dawson) - 8:39
6. Linda (John Dawson) - 3:03
7. On My Way Back Home (Dave Torbert) - 3:29
8. Superman (John Dawson) - 3:09
9. She's No Angel (Wanda Ballman) - 2:51
10.Long Black Veil (Danny Dill, Marijohn Wilkin) - 3:56
11.Sailin' (John Dawson) - 2:49
12.Groupie (Dave Torbert) – 2:46
13.Sutter's Mill (John Dawson) – 2:13
14.Superman (John Dawson) – 4:05
15.She's No Angel (Wanda Ballman) – 3:10
Bonus tracks 12-15 Live versions

New Riders Of The Purple Sage
*John Dawson - Vocals, Rhythm Guitar
*David Nelson - Lead Guitar, Vocals, Dobro, Mandolin, Bagpipes
*Dave Torbert - Bass, Vocals, Acoustic Guitar
*Buddy Cage - Pedal Steel Guitar
*Spencer Dryden - Drums, Percussion
Additional Musicians
*Richard Greene - Violin
*Mark Naftalin - Piano
*Jack Schoer - Horns
*Darlene Didomenico - Vocals
*Donna Godchaux - Vocals

1971-72  New Riders Of The Purple Sage - New Riders Of The Purple Sage / Powerglide (2002 double disc remaster) 
Related Act
1969  Grateful Dead - Live/Dead 
1971  Grateful Dead - Skull and Roses (2001 HDCD bonus tracks edition)
 
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Henry Paul Band - Grey Ghost (1979 us, excellent southern boogie rock)

Henry Paul was a rhythm guitarist and vocalist for the Outlaws. He left the group in 1977 after its third album. He formed the Henry Paul Band in 1978 and signed to Atlantic later that year. Grey Ghost is the band's debut, and it is drenched in Southern rock influences as well as those of '70s West Coast bands such as the Eagles. The opening cut, "So Long," combines folk, country-rock, and the over the top guitar punch of bands like Lynyrd Skynyrd and the Allman Brothers, while "Crossfire" sounds like the Joe Walsh-era Eagles jamming with the Pure Prairie League and "Foolin'" has the Byrds' signature all over it. But to say that Paul and his band merely copied what was out there wouldn't be fair. 

Grey Ghost is a fine album; the songcraft is tight and crisp, the lead and harmony vocals are crystalline, and the production is unobtrusive. But those twin guitar leads that sound like they come from the Allmans' "Ramblin' Man" are a bit derivative sounding. The title track is the best thing on the record. Written in 1977, it is an uncredited but undisguised tribute to the late Ronnie VanZant of Lynyrd Skynyrd, who had perished two years earlier in a plane crash: "And the autumn wind whispers through the tall and lonely pines/And the hour of fate is drawing close at hand/A free bird falling from the sky/Brings an end to another Southern man.

Despite the close harmonies and softer edges of the first half of the disc, the second half entrenches itself more in the raw Southern boogie and hard honky tonk rock that defines the genre, from "I Don't Need You No More" to "Lonely Dreamer," the crunchy "You Really Know (What I Mean)," and the closer, which reverts back to the more airy sound of side one with added percussion by ace Joe Lala, who guests. The only loser is the idiotic "One Night Stands." A hard rocker, even at the end of the 1970s they should have known better than this. Still, it's a small mark against one of the more obscure but worthy albums from the era. Wounded Bird Records has issued the band's four Atlantic recordings on CDs with excellent sound. 

by Thom Jurek

Tracks
1. So Long (Henry Paul) - 5:08
2. Crossfire (Max Paul Schwennsen) - 3:12
3. Foolin' (Dallas Moore, Henry Paul) - 2:52
4. Wood Wind (Henry Paul, Jim Fish) - 0:49
5. Grey Ghost (Barry Rapp, Henry Paul) - 6:48
6. I Don't Need You No More (Bill HoFfman, Billy Crain) - 2:42
7. Lonely Dreamer (Henry Paul, Jim Fish, Wally Dentz) - 3:55
8. One-Night Stands (Billy Crain) - 2:49
9. You Really Know (What I Mean) (Jim Fish) - 4:05
10.All I Need (Barry Rapp) - 4:10

The Henry Paul Band
*Henry Paul - Guitar, Vocals
*Barry Rapp - Keyboards, Vocals
*Billy Crain - Lead Guitar
*Wally Dentz - Bass, Harmonica, Vocals
*Jim Fish - Lead Guitar, Vocals
*Bill Hoffman - Drums
With
*Joe Lala - Percussion

Related Act
1973-81  Outlaws – Anthology / Live 'n' Rare (2012 four disc set release) 
1975  The Outlaws - The Outlaws (2001 remaster) 

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Starz - Violation (1977 us, straight hard rock, 2005 bonus tracks remaster)

Starz' sophomore album, Violation, was quite similar to its predecessor. Jack Douglas was still the band's producer, and Starz continued to favor the type of slick, commercial hard rock that would be called pop-metal in the '80s and early '90s. This 1977 LP didn't establish Starz as major players in the pop-metal field; the New Yorkers did have a small following, although not a huge one. Nonetheless, this is an enjoyable record. 

Tracks like "Cherry Baby" and "Rock Six Times" are certainly decent. Most of the time, Starz vocalist Michael Lee Smith sings about the same things that Kiss and Sweet were singing about in the '70s; namely, all-night parties and wild young women in tight dresses. Starz's lyrics, as a rule, were meant to be fun, not profound, and while Violation didn't go down in history as one of pop-metal's all-time classics, it's worth hearing if you're a fan of the style. 

by Alex Henderson

Tracks
1. Cherry Baby - 3:47
2. Rock Six Times - 3:13
3. Sing It, Shout It (Brendan Harkin, Richie Ranno, Pieter "Pete" Sweval, Jeff Grob, Michael Lee Smith, Jon Parrot, Sean Delaney) - 5:10
4. Violation - 4:28
5. Subway Terror - 3:43
6. All Night Long - 3:28
7. Cool One - 3:41
8. S.T.E.A.D.Y. - 5:40
9. Is That A Street Light Or The Moon ? - 3:18
10.Do It With The Lights On - 3:34
11.Cool One - 3:22
12.Rock This Town (Richie Ranno, Brendan Harkin, Jeff Grob, Michael Lee Smith) - 2:47
All songs by Brendan Harkin, Richie Ranno, Pieter "Pete" Sweval, Jeff Grob, Michael Lee Smith except where indicated.
Bonus tracks 10-12

The Starz
*Michael Lee Smith - Vocals
*Richie Ranno - Guitar
*Brendan Harkin - Guitar
*Pieter "Pete" Sweval - Bass
*Joe X. Dubé - Drums

1976  Starz - Starz (2005 bonus tracks remaster) 

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Climax Blues Band - Shine On (1978 uk, fine soulful classic rock with funky vibes, 2012 remaster)

It is 1978 and Climax Blues Band is at the peak of its powers during a happy golden era when rock bands rule. They had hit the charts the previous year with funky single Couldnt Get It Right and they get it right on again with shiny new album Shine On. It features marvellous performances from a classic Climax line up with Peter Haycock at the helm on lead guitar and vocals. Peter is joined by Colin Cooper, the deep toned vocal-meister and superb alto sax player. 

They are boosted by a super tight rhythm section comprising Derek Holt (bass) and John Cuffley (drums). Climax romp through eight raunchy tracks, including Makin Love (released as a single and available here as a bonus track) and the stomping boogie Champagne & RocknRoll. A cover of Tony Joe Whites The Gospel Singer comes complete with soulful backing vocalists.

Tracks
1. Makin' Love - 4:02
2. Mistress Moonshine - 5:16
3. When Talking Is Too Much Trouble - 3:34
4. The Gospel Singer (Tony Joe White) - 5:45
5. Whatcha Feel - 6:29
6. Teardrops - 4:16
7. Like A Movie - 4:14
8. Champagne And Rock 'N Roll - 3:28
9. Makin' Love (Edit) - 3:35
All song by Colin Cooper, Peter Haycock, Derek Holt, John Cuffley, Peter Filleul except track #4

The Climax Blues Band
*Colin Cooper – Vocals, Saxes
*Peter Haycock - Vocals, Guitars
*Derek Holt - Vocals, Bass, Keyboards
*John Cuffley - Drums
*Peter Filleul - Keyboards
With
*Richard Jones - Keyboards
*Colin Fairley - Backing Vocals
*Pete Riley - Percussion
*Madeline Bell - Vocals
*Helen Chappelle - Vocals
*Liza Strike - Vocals
*Joy Yates - Vocals

The Climax Long Hard Road
1969  The Climax Chicago Blues Band (2013 remaster and expanded)
1969  The Climax Blues Band - Plays On (2013 remaster and expanded) 
1970  A Lot Of Bottle (2013 remaster and expanded)
1971  Tightly Knit (2013 remastered with bonus tracks)
1972  Climax Chicago - Rich Man (2013 bonus track remaster) 
1973  Climax Blues Band - FM Live (2013 remaster)
1973-79  Climax Blues Band - Live Rare And Raw (2014 Release)
1974  Climax Blues Band - Sense Of Direction (2013 remaster and expanded)
1975  Climax Blues Band - Stamp Album (2013 remaster with extra tracks)
1976  Gold Plated (2013 bonus tracks remaster)

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Larry's Rebels - I Feel Good The Essential Purple Flashes Of Larry's Rebels (1965-69 new zealand, fabulous beat psych, 2015 remaster)

This 25 song CD collection of a Larry's Rebels collection subtitled -- The Essential Purple Flashes of Larry's Rebels 1965-1969 -- is a useful companion to some previous collections, notably the 2013 disc A Study in Black/Madrigal which pulled two of their albums onto one disc.

With a very good synopsis of the band's story -- from the pre-Rebel schoolboy band the Young Ones (!) through to the post-Larry version simply billed as the Rebels -- by compiler and fan Grant Gillanders, this chronological account shows a damn fine band which was dab hand at adapting material by others for their own purposes.

Larry's Rebels had a residency at Auckland's Top 20 (where they were obliged to learn new songs to remain fresh) and later toured on the multi-act bill of Roy Orbiosn, the Walker Brothers and the Yardbirds. Their friendship with the latter -- which included Jimmy Page at the time -- was doubtless an influence on their subsequent hit Painter Man where you can clearly hear the Page sound in John Williams solo. (Williams briefly deputised with the Yardbirds in Hamilton when Page was to drunk to play.)

Starting as pop band influenced by the new sounds of Britain (the lightweight but nice This Empty Place and So Much in Love With You) they quickly adopted a tougher style (their covers of the Who's It's Not True and the Small Faces' Whatcha Gonna Do 'Bout It) and scored a huge Radio Hauraki hit with I Feel Good, a song which drummer Nooky Stott (still at school at the time) had heard on a shortwave radio station from Sweden.

Their version is a Kiwi classic (covered later by Citizen Band) because no one here had heard the original (by the Artwoods).

Songs like I'll Make You Happy, Painter Man and the more poppy Let's Think of Something in '67 -- the latter two here in NZ and Australian versions -- confirmed their reputation as a disciplined recording unit.

Scattered throughout these tracks are some originals although few reach the heights of their covers (Speak My Mind a noble exception), and ironically after Larry Morris left for a solo career in '69 the remaining members had a number one hit, My Son John, with singer Glyn Mason.

But their subsequent album Madrigal ("done in a bloody rush" says Viv McCarthy) wasn't their finest moment and the single Can You make It On Your Own disappeared . . . and the title seemed prophetic.

They broke up in January 1970, eight years after the Young Ones had formed and were playing Shadows' covers.

As Stott says in the liner notes, "I ended up living back home with Mum and Dad with 50 bucks in my pocket, a pair of drum sticks and a suitcase full of stage clothes."

But it had been a thrilling ride for both the band -- which also toured with Tom Jones,  Eric Burdon and the Animals, the Easybeats in Australia and others -- as well as those in their enthusiastic audience.

Nice to read they used to sneak vodka into the Top 20 to add to their orange juice.

Didn't we all.

by Graham Reid,  April 13, 2015

Tracks
1. This Empty Place (Burt Bacharach, Hal David) - 2:37
2. So Much In Love With You (Ian Edwards) - 2:29
3. It's Not True (Pete Townshend) - 2:29
4. What Am I To Do (Doc Pomus, Phil Spector) - 2:27
5. Feel Good (Allen Toussaint) - 2:51
6. Whatcha Gonna Do 'Bout It (Ian Samwell, Brian Potter) - 2:12
7. Painter Man (Nz Version) (Eddie Phillips, Kenny Pickett) - 2:57
8. Let's Think Of Something (Nz Version) (Roger Skinner) - 3:19
9. Flying Scotsman (John Williams, Larry Morris) - 4:32
10.Shakin' Up Some Soul (John Williams, Larry Morris) - 2:56
11.Inside Looking Out (Eric Burdon, Alan Lomax, John A. Lomax) - 3:45
12.Speak My Mind (John Williams, Larry Morris) - 3:26
13.Dream Time (John Williams, Larry Morris) - 3:23
14.I'll Make You Happy (George Young, Stevie Wright) - 2:50
15.Painter Man (Australian Version) (Eddie Phillips, Kenny Pickett) - 2:56
16.Let's Think Of Something (Australian Version) (Roger Skinner) - 3:30
17.Fantasy (John Williams, Larry Morris) - 2:36
18.Coloured Flowers (John Williams, Larry Morris) - 2:49
19.Halloween (John Williams, Larry Morris) - 2:16
20.Everybody's Girl (Hans Poulsen) - 2:26
21.Mo'reen (Mark Lindsay, Terry Melcher) - 2:35
22.By The Time (John Williams, Larry Morris) - 3:33
23.My Son John (Doug Flett) - 2:14
24.Passing You By (The Rebels) - 3:08
25.Swing The Jingle (W. Senior) - 1:02

Larry's Rebels
*John Williams - Lead Guitar
*Terry Rouse - Keyboards, Rhythm Guitar
*Viv McCarthy - Bass
*Dennis 'Nooky' Stott - Drums
*Larry Morris - Vocals

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Sandy Salisbury - Falling To Pieces (1966-69 us, wondrous baroque beat psych, 2002 remaster)

Here are slices of California '60s pop that never were at least not then. Guitarist, songwriter, and vocalist Sandy Salisbury of California almost - legends the Millennium wrote dozens of songs and recorded them demo - style on a sound - on - sound tape recorder in his California beach house before turning them over to his publisher, who did absolutely nothing with them because he was instructed by the band's producer and arranger, Curt Boettcher, to shelve them for further band productions.

What Boettcher essentially accomplished was keeping under wraps pop songs that would have  -  if "Love Grows Where My Rosemary Goes" is any indication  -  landed Salisbury near the top of the pop heap. The sense of hook, the clean, gorgeous vocals, the sappy melodies, and the Baroque stylings of these songs make them all ready for pop heaven. This collection brings 17 such songs  -   and in some cases actual demos  -  together in a portrait of Sandy Salisbury as an equal of people like P.F. Sloan and John Phillips, if not Brian Wilson.

This is magical, beautiful, and yes, sappy pop music. It's lush, textured, and overly sentimental, as innocent as it gets, and as pretty as it gets. I can see someone like Beck freaking out over music like this  -  and he should. Falling to Pieces is for anyone interested in the glories of late - '60s through mid - '70s pop. This is the real stuff.

by Thom Jurek

Tracks
1. Love Divided By Two (Sandy Salisbury, Keith Colley) - 2:08
2. All I Really Have Is A Memory - 2:21
3. Together In The End (Sandy Salisbury, Gary Usher) - 2:30
4. Sweet Sweet Cinnamon - 2:26
5. Every Minute Of My Life - 2:19
6. Spell On Me #1 - 2:53
7. The Best Thing - 2:21
8. Spell On Me #2 - 2:57
9. So Close To Heaven - 2:25
10.Falling To Pieces (Sandy Salisbury, Joey Stec) - 2:53
11.A Little Bit Of Love (Jill Jones, Sandy Salisbury) - 1:50
12.Bring Me On Back Home Again - 2:38
13.Butter Me Over With Cinnamon Sugar - 3:03
14.Candy Kisses (Sandy Salisbury, Joey Stec) - 2:21
15.Tommorrow (Sandy Salisbury, Joey Stec) - 2:23
16.Do Unto Others (Sandy Salisbury, Keith Colley) - 2:54
17.Here Comes That Feeling (Sandy Salisbury, Jill Jones, Keith Colley) - 2:23
18.Holly In The Summertime - 2:59
19.Back Where You Belong - 2:21
20.Cecily (Sandy Salisbury, Curt Boettcher) - 2:38
21.I Touched The Sun (Sandy Salisbury, Curt Boettcher) - 2:44
All songs by Sandy Salisbury except where noted

Personnel
*Sandy Salisbury - Vocals
*Curt Boettcher - Guitar, Vocals
*Ron Edgar - Drums
*Michael Fennelly - Guitar
*Lee Mallory - Guitar, Vocals
*Randy Meisner - Bass
*Doug Rhodes - Bass, Piano
*Joey Stec - Guitar

Related Act
1967-69  Sandy Salisbury – Everything For You Vol.1 (2013 Blu Spec) 
1969  Sandy Salisbury - Do Unto Others (2013 Blu Spec) 

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Ricotti And Albuquerque - First Wind (1971 uk, remarkable jazz blues prog rock, Vinyl edition)

Michael de Albuquerque was born June 24th, 1947 in Wimbledon and was ELO's bass player and backing vocalist. He worked more as a backing vocalist during live performances than on the albums in addition to being a bass player from July 1972 to September 1974. His first appearance was with the "28 Choir" at the Royal Albert Hall, at the age of nine. He was educated in Worth Abbey, Sussex, and Downside School, Somerset, and his first professional appearance was at the Marquee in London in 1970.

Frank Ricotti (born 13 January 1949 in London England. was into a musical family and followed in his drummer-father’s footsteps by taking up percussion. Educational facilities were limited but fortunately Ricotti came to the attention of Bill Ashton, then a teacher in London. With Ashton’s encouragement, Ricotti was able to extend his studies (and, inspired by Ricotti, Ashton embarked on a project that eventually became the National Youth Jazz Orchestra). Although adept on most percussion instruments, Ricotti concentrated upon the vibraphone and also developed his talents as a composer and arranger. In the late 60s and early 70s Ricotti played and recorded with Neil Ardley, Dave Gelly, Graham Collier, Mike Gibbs, Stan Tracey and Gordon Beck. By the late 70s Ricotti had become established as a studio musician; during the following decade he was deeply involved in the soundtrack music for a succession of popular British television series by Alan Plater, including The Beiderbecke Affair. Also in the 80s he was co-leader, with Chris Laurence and John Taylor, of Paragonne.

Michael de Albuquerque together with Frank Ricotti  in 1971 recorded "First Wind" as Ricotti And Albuquerque.  Michael who had written most of the material played the guitar on this album and was the lead vocalist. The album was very much influenced by blues and jazz, with a sleeve designed by Jane de Albuquerque, Michael's wife. In addition to his recording with Frank Ricotti, he also earned money as a session musician. Prior to and after the recording sessions for "ELO 2", Michael de Albuquerque recorded his first solo album "We May Be Cattle But We've All Got Names" which was released on RCA in 1973. He had written all the songs, played the piano, guitar, and co-produced the album. "Do Right" was released as a single, but unfortunately it did not make the charts.

Tracks
1. Ratsa (Don't Know Why) (John Taylor) - 4:45
2. Lo And Behold (James Taylor) - 3:18
3. Go Out And Get It (Michael de Albuquerque) - 3:48
4. Don't You Believe Me (John Taylor, Michael de Albuquerque) - 5:12
5. New York Windy Day (Michael de Albuquerque) - 4:36
6. Bobo's Party (Melanie Safka) - 6:07
7. Didn't Wanna Have To Do It (John Sebastian) - 3:10
8. Old Ben Houston (Michael de Albuquerque) - 3:03
9. The Wind Has No Love (Colin Gleadell, Michael de Albuquerque) - 3:56
10.Give A Damn (Bob Dorough, Stuart Scharf) - 3:57

Musicians
*Mike de Albuquerque - Guitar, Vocals
*Chris Laurence - Bass
*John Taylor - Electric Piano
*Frank Ricotti - Vibraphone
*Trevor Tomkins - Drums

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Starz - Starz (1976 us, strong hard rock, 2005 bonus tracks remaster)

They had it all -- songs that managed to be both rocking yet melodic (think a merger of Cheap Trick, Aerosmith, and Kiss), a hunk of a frontman, a pyro-heavy stage show the featured lots of shooting sparks, the same management as Kiss -- but for whatever reason, Starz just didn't hit the big time. The group's roots can be traced back to the early-'70s pop band Looking Glass, which scored a number one hit single, "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)" in 1972. And it was Looking Glass' rhythm section that would be transplanted to Starz -- bassist Peter Sweval and drummer Jeff Grob (who went under the colorful name Joe. X. Dube upon becoming a member of Starz) -- who were joined by guitarists Richie Ranno and Brendan Harkin, as well as singer Michael Lee Smith (brother of '70s teen heartthrob Rex Smith). 

Signed to Capitol Records, the label issued the self-titled debut from Starz in 1976, followed by Violation in 1977, Attention Shoppers! in 1978, and Coliseum Rock in 1979. Along the way, the group issued their share of arena-worthy anthems ("Detroit Girls," "Violation"), had some close calls with songs that should have been hit singles ( "Cherry Baby," "Sing It, Shout It"), opened for the era's biggest bands (Bob Seger, Ted Nugent, Rush), and Ranno even guested on Gene Simmons' 1978 solo album. But Starz just didn't translate to the masses, and by 1980, they were kaput. In the wake of their split, the group retained a sizable cult following, as quite a few hair metal acts later in the decade were quite vocal about their Starz fandom (Poison, Cinderella, Bon Jovi).

A steady stream of releases from the vault appeared -- especially after the launch of the official Starz website -- including a live set recorded in 1978 that has been reissued several times over the years, Live in Louisville, which offers proof that Starz could easily stand alongside the era's big boys of rock (despite including some of the most ridiculous stage raps you'll ever hear on a live recording). The early 21st century saw all of the group's studio albums remastered and reissued via Rykodisc, which resulted in Starz reuniting for live shows -- something they've sporadically done ever since. 

by Greg Prato

Tracks
1. Detroit Girls (Richie Ranno, Michael Lee Smith, Piet Sweval) - 4:01
2. Live Wire (Richie Ranno, Michael Lee Smith, Piet Sweval) - 3:20
3. Tear It Down (Piet Sweval) - 3:10
4. Boys in Action (Richie Ranno, Michael Lee Smith, Piet Sweval, Brendan Harkin) - 5:38
5. (She's Just a) Fallen Angel (Richie Ranno, Michael Lee Smith, Piet Sweval, Brendan Harkin, Sean Delaney, Joe X. Dube) - 3:32
6. Monkey Business (Brendan Harkin, Michael Lee Smith, Piet Sweval, Delaney) - 2:49
7. Night Crawler (Brendan Harkin, Richie Ranno, Michael Lee Smith) - 4:28
8. Over and Over (Michael Lee Smith) - 3:16
9. Pull the Plug (Brendan Harkin, Richie Ranno, Michael Lee Smith) - 4:43
10.Now I Can (Brendan Harkin, Richie Ranno, Michael Lee Smith) - 4:13
11.Sweet Jeremiah (Piet Sweval) - 3:15
12.Fallen Angel (Richie Ranno, Michael Lee Smith, Piet Sweval, Brendan Harkin, Sean Delaney, Joe X. Dube) - 3:25
13.Detroit Girls (Richie Ranno, Michael Lee Smith, Piet Sweval) - 4:02
14.Live Wire (Richie Ranno, Michael Lee Smith, Piet Sweval) - 3:57
Bonus Demo tracks 11-14

The Starz
*Michael Lee Smith - Vocals
*Richie Ranno - Guitar
*Brendan Harkin - Guitar
*Pieter "Pete" Sweval - Bass
*Joe X. Dubé - Drums
With
*Gary Coleman - Percussion

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