Plain and Fancy

Friday, December 2, 2022

The Count Bishops - The Best Of (1975-79 multinational, strong garage boogie pub rock)

This 27 track compilation assembles the very best of The Bishops studio recordings and the complete "Live At The Roundhouse" LP from 1978. The CD plots the various line-up changes from their formation in 1975 to their demise after the death of guitarist Zenon de Fleur in 1978. Sleevenotes are by long-time fan Charles Shaar Murray and track-by-track commentary by band member Johnny Guitar. Look out soon for the Count Bishops "Speedball EP" with extra tracks.A rowdy, high-energy R'n'B outfit, The Count Bishops were magic on a good night.

John Crosby remembers one such occasion: "It was a balmy summer night in 1978. I had bought a ticket to The Mekons at Hull University Union hall and was not having fun. The local police (in the heavy-handed manner of the punk era) were trying to eject two under-eighteen year olds from the event and had repeatedly emptied the whole venue of everybody in order to achieve their goal (the targeted kids, of course, resourcefully climbed back in through an open toilet window after each expulsion). Somebody said The Bishops were playing the adjacent Higher Education College hall and half of the crowd decided to go check it out. Great band that The Mekons are, those who made the switch were not disappointed.The music The Bishops made just sucked you in and the couple of hours of blissful, hard-drivin' R&B and rock 'n' roll they created live was always among the finer rock experiences of those crazy late 1970s nights. The band had the slightly shambolic air of a new group playing their second high school gig, but the music - oh, the music was as tight and heady as it comes. Most of the material you will hear on this new Best Of was given an airing that night, including the singles Train, Train and I Want Candy plus most of what constituted their (then) recent "Live At The Roundhouse" set. We all left very late and very elated. By the end of the year, the band was sadly no more but the records they made bear testimony to a very special kind of fire and passion."

Tracks

1. Train, Train (Zenon De Fleur) - 3:17

2. Baby You're Wrong (Zenon De Fleur) - 2:39

3. Stay Free (Zenon De Fleur) - 3:07

4. I Want Candy (Bert Berns, Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein, Richard Gottehrer) - 2:25

5. I Take What I Want (David Porter, Isaac Hayes, Teenie Hodges) - 2:36

6. Mr. Jones (John D. Loudermilk) - 2:02

7. I Need You (Ray Davies) - 2:22

8. Down In The Bottom (Willie Dixon) - 2:50

9. You're In My Way (Steve Lewins) - 3:09

10.Talk To You (Steve Lewins) - 3:45

11.Taste And Try (Chris Youlden) - 2:32

12.Someone's Got My Number (Steve Lewins) - 2:32

13.Good Time Tonight (George Young, Harry Vanda ) - 3:21

14.Your Daddy Won't Mind (Dave Tice, Zenon De Fleur) - 2:16

15.What's Your Number (Dave Tice) - 2:20

16.Till The End Of The Day (Ray Davies) - 2:02

17.These Arms Of Mine (Otis Redding) - 3:19

18.Rolling Man (Zenon De Fleur) - 2:54

19.Paul's Blues (Paul Balbi, Dave Tice) - 2:31

20.No Lies (Dave Tice, Zenon De Fleur) - 2:35

21.Too Much, Too Soon (Paul Balbi, Dave Tice) - 2:39

22.Sometimes Good Guys Don't Wear White (Ed Cobb) - 2:37

23.Don't Start Me Talking (Sonny Boy Williamson II) - 2:27

24.Somebody's Gonna Get Their Head Kicked In Tonight (Jeremy Spencer) - 2:43

25.I Don't Like It (Zenon De Fleur) - 2:05

26.Route 66 (Bobby Troup) - 2:31

27.Train, Train (Zenon De Fleur) - 3:22

Tracks 21-27 recorded Live At The Roundhouse 18/02/78

The Count Bishops

*Johnny Guitar - Guitar, Vocals

*Paul Balbi - Drums

*Steve Lewins - Bass

*Zenon De Fleur - Guitar Vocals

*Dave Tice - Vocals

With

*Pat McMullan - Bass, Vocals

*Noel Norris - Horns

*Ruan O'Lochlainn - Horns

1975 The Count Bishops - Speedball Plus 11

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Thursday, December 1, 2022

Exmagma - Exmagma / Goldball (1972-74 germany, eccentric jazzy space krautrock, 2003 remaster)

Exmagma was a jazzy Krautrock trio that released its eponymous debut in 1973. With a side of studio tracks and a side of live recordings, the album offers psychedelic jazz-rock with some avant-garde moves thrown in. The band falls somewhere between earlier Krautrock psychedelic jazz-rock groups like Xhol Caravan and Thirsty Moon and Canterbury groups like Soft Machine. The Soft Machine comparison is even more apt because Andy Goldner's fuzz bass style owes a debt to Hugh Hopper. "The First Tune" begins with a tripped-out jam with bass, drums, and keyboard locked into a relaxed groove, and then suddenly that trails off and is replaced by a far more free-form section, with schizophrenic organ chords over choppy drums and a very fat fuzzy bass rift.

The second track makes a similar abrupt tangent, as a drum and bass workout with tweaky electro bleats suddenly slows into an electric guitar-driven space rock piece that comes off both dirgy and pastoral. The live side offers a trio of cuts on one long track, and finds the group further along in improvisational free form. It begins even more amorphously, with loose clatters of drums, the squall of an alto sax, bubbles of electronic noise, and high chirp twitters, the whole thing very apt for the title, "Trippin With Birds." Suddenly the drums launch out into rapid rhythms to raise the rest of the music into a loud racket that soon dies down again. Whereas the studio side skewered different sound spaces every few minutes, the live side has a more sustained effect. Eventually the group locks again on another wild groove jam to finish the record near where it began.

Though not quite as avant-garde as the earlier eponymous debut, Goldball can hardly be called commercial or compromising. Though the music is less eccentric and unpredictable, they make up for it with tighter playing, and there are plenty of tweaked guitar and keyboard solos, funky drum and bass grooves, and lots of creative improvisation. "Marylin Kennedy" opens up the proceedings with a propulsive jazz-funk rhythm and swirls of keyboard tones. "Dada" tones down the energy just a little bit, as it locks into a repetitive riff for a couple minutes, before it gets hyper toward the end.

"Jam Factory for People Insane" adds some whacked-out vocals, though most of the song is still instrumental. "Greetings to the Moroccan Farmers" is an amorphous free-form piece with piano tinkles, odd bits of drum clatter, and even the sound of a cow at one point, and it comes closest to the avant-gardism of their earlier effort. With most of the tracks being quite short, and only two over six minutes long, the group never gets into any excessively long jams, which may or may not be a good thing. Otherwise, the record is an interesting Krautrock mix of jazz and psychedelic rock.

by Rolf Semprebon

Tracks

1. The First Tune - 7:37

2. Tönjès Dream Interruption - 4:17

3. Interessante Olè - 2:50

4. Two Times - 2:26

5. Trippin With Birds / Kudu / Horny - 18:48

6. Marilyn F. Kennedy - 2:31

7. Dada - 3:37

8. Adventures With Long S. Tea 25 Two Seconds Before Sunrise - 2:53

8. Groove - 4:53

10.Tango Wolperaiso - 2:36

11.Jam Factory For People Insane - 4:05

12.Habits - 5:57

13.Dance Of The Crabs - 0:53

14.Greetings To The Maroccan Farmers - 6:36

15.Last But One Train To Amsterdam - 0:57

All compositions by Thomas Balluff, Fred Braceful, Andy Goldner

Exmagma

*Thomas Balluff - Organ, Electric Piano, Clavinett, Effects

*Fred Braceful - Sonor Drums, Percussion

*Andy Goldner - Fretless Electric Bass, Electric Guitar, Alto Sax, Tape Recorder

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Wednesday, November 30, 2022

Excalibur - The First Album (1972 germany, fine bluesy hard rock, 2007 remaster)

Excalibur was a rock group, from Germany. The three members came from Mönchengladbach area. Werner Odenkirchen (guitar and vocals), Hartmut Scholgens (organ, bass and vocals), Charlie Terstappen (drums).They first and only album is musically somewhere between Tiger B. Smith and Black Sabbath, so on the one hand it is very influenced by the British hard rock of the time, but it also has nice krautrock elements.

Excalibur is a legendary sword. Who owns it is unbeatable. Just like King Arthur of England once received it from Merlin's hand. After the king's death, it was smashed into a mountain. From former Rattles and Wonderland drummer Dickie Tarrach. Excalibur is still sharp and invincible today. Hear it for yourself, Excalibur is unbeatable.

Tracks

1. Light In The Dark - 6:05

2. Get Me, If You Want - 2:54

3. Zamuno (Hartmut Schölgens, Werner Odenkirchen) - 2:56

4. Run Through The Past - 3:58

5. Sure You Win - 4:27

6. Hollywood Dreams - 3:27

7. Questions (Hartmut Schölgens, Werner Odenkirchen) - 5:03

8. Don't Look Backwards - 5:02

9. Feelin's - 6:32

All songs by Werner Odenkirchen except where noted

Excalibur

*Werner Odenkirchen - Vocals, Lead Guitar

*Hartmut Schölgens - Organ, Bass, Vocals

*Manfred Terstappen - Drums

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Monday, November 28, 2022

The Pirates - Shakin' With The Devil / The Best Of The Pirates (1977-79 uk, powerful tough boogie roots 'n' roll pub rock, 2011 double disc digi pak)

Legendary UK music scribe Mick Farren once defied anyone to name two guitarists who could out-cut Mick Green and his battered Fender Telecaster, having just witnessed his band The Pirates in full throttle at the height of punk. The trio, also comprising bassist/singer Johnny Spence and brick shithouse drummer Frank Farley, had brazenly reunited during tumultuous 1977 having first played together behind cutlass-brandishing Brit-rock’n’roller Johnny Kidd. That early 70s incarnation laid down the acknowledged template for any power trio line-up that followed, with Dr Feelgood’s Wilko Johnson unashamedly homaging Green’s jaw-dropping lead-rhythm combination.

Embraced by both musicians and punk crowds, The Pirates laid waste to the nation’s gig circuit. In between times, they managed to capture their live mix of punk-shot compositions such as All In It Together and their own rock’n’roll classics on three albums (Out Of Their Skulls, Skull Wars and Happy Birthday Rock’n’Roll), catalysed by renowned back-to-basics producer Vic Maille.

The trio split after record company disinterest and Green’s elevation to session royalty, before his sad death in 2010. This rampant double-disc set of album highlights, plus outtakes, jingles and incendiary live workouts, pays suitable tribute, with added annotation by veteran journalist Roy Carr.

by Kris Needs, 07 September 2011

When Mick Green died in January 2010 a month short of his 66th birthday after a long illness, British music lost one of its best known session musicians.

Green spent the 1980s and 1990s touring the world and recording with Paul McCartney, Bryan Ferry and Van Morrison, but will always perhaps be best known as the guitarist in the early 60’s rock ‘n’ roll group Johnny Kidd and the Pirates.

By the time Green joined the Pirates in early 1962, shortly after Johnny Spence (bass guitar) and Frank Farley (drums), both of whom he had grown up with him in Wimbledon in South London, Kidd, another Londoner, had already had his biggest hit with a previous incarnation of the group and the 1960 number one hit, ‘Shakin’ All Over’.

The Green-Spence-Farley line-up of the Pirates, however, remains the definitive version of the band. Green’s fiery guitar work and ability to play the lead guitar and rhythm guitar simultaneously was an influence on both the Who’s Pete Townshend and Wilko Johnson, the guitarist with Dr Feelgood. They also became a very visual act, having an effect on both Alice Cooper and Adam and the Ants. Kidd, who wore an eye patch over his eye, would wave about a cutlass on stage, and he and his band, all of whom wore nineteenth century pirate costumes, would perform in front of a huge backdrop of a pirate galleon.

Green left Johnny Kidd and the Pirates in 1964 to join Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas, while Spence and Farley stayed on with Kidd until in early 1966. In 1976, ten years after Kidd was tragically killed in a car accident later on in 1966 and shortly after forming another incarnation of his band, the New Pirates, Mick Green, Johnny Spence and Frank Farley reformed, calling themselves the Pirates.

The Pirates’ swaggering and raucous brand of rock ‘n’ roll made them an instant success on their native London live circuit and was embraced by the punk movement. The trio, who continued to wear pirate attire on stage, signed a deal with Warner Brothers with whom they released two albums, their half live, half studio-recorded debut ‘Out of Their Skulls’ (1977) and its follow-up, ‘Skull Wars’ (1978), before moving to independent label Cube Records to release their third album, ‘Happy Birthday Rock ‘n’ Roll’ (1979).

They broke up in 1982, but Green and Spence from 1999 continued to play together sporadically as the Pirates, eventually without Farley who retired from live work due to ill health in 2005, and recorded a last studio album, ‘Skullduggery’, together in 2006.

2011 has seen a release of two disc, fifty two track box set, ‘Shakin with the Devil-the Best of the Pirates 1977-1979’, which has come out on the reissue label Salvo Music, and, beautifully packaged, contains the first three studio albums and also rare and unreleased tracks.

by John Clarkson, 27/10/2011

Tracks

Disc 1

1. 'Out Of Their Skulls' LP radio promo spot - 0:34

2. Please Don't Touch (Frederick Heath, Guy Robinson) - 2:22

3. I Can Tell (Ellis McDaniels, Samuel Smith) - 2:28

4. Linda Lu (Intro) - 0:20

5. Peter Gunn (Henry Mancini) - 2:18

6. Lonesome Train (Glen Moore, Milton Subotsky) - 3:07

7. Shakin' All Over (Frederick Heath) - 2:33

8. Honey Hush (Willie Turner) - 2:09

9. Milk Cow Blues (Kokomo Arnold) - 3:31

10.Drinkin' Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee ("Stick" McGhee, J. Mayo Williams) - 2:58

11.Sweet Love On My Mind (Wayne Walker, Webb Pierce) - 3:21

12.Do The Dog (Rufus Thomas) - 2:40

13.Gibson Martin Fender (Mick Green) - 3:31

14.Don't Munchen It (Mick Green, Johnny Spencer) - 3:37

15.That's The Way You Are (Mick Green) - 2:44

16.You Don't Own Me (Alan Lancaster, Mick Green) - 2:48

17.'Skull Wars' LP radio promo spot - 0:34

18.Long Journey Home (Mick Green, Roy Carr) - 3:43

19.Dr Feelgood (Curtis Smith) - 1:58

20.All In It Together (Mick Green, Johnny Spencer) - 3:15

21.Johnny B Goode's Good (Mick Green) - 2:26

22.Johnny B Goode (Chuck Berry) - 4:05

23.I'm Talking About You (Chuck Berry) - 3:02

24.I'm In Love Again (Antoine "Fats" Domino, Dave Bartholomew) - 3:11

25.Voodoo (Mick Green) - 2:32

26.Four To The Bar (Mick Green, Johnny Spencer) - 2:51

27.Honey Hush (Willie Turner) - 2:26

28.Diggin' My Potatoes (Traditional) - 3:37

29.Shake Hands With The Devil (Johnny Spencer, Mick Green) - 3:28

Tracks 2-16 from "Out Of Their Skulls" 1977

Tracks 18-29 from "Skull Wars" 1978

Disc 2

1. Shakin' All Over (Frederick Heath) - 2:59

2. Saturday Night Shoot Out (Mick Green, Roy Carr) - 3:57

3. The Witch Queen of New Orleans (Lolly Vegas, Pat Vegas) - 3:08

4. Lonesome Train (Glen Moore, Milton Subotsky) - 3:01

5. All By Myself (Antoine "Fats" Domino, Dave Bartholomew) - 1:42

6. Sweet Love On My Mind (Wayne Walker, Webb Pierce) - 3:18

7. Gibson Martin Fender (Mick Green) - 3:39

8. Don't Munchen It (Mick Green, Johnny Spencer) - 3:34

9. Linda Lu (Ray Sharpe) - 3:38

10.Tear It Up (Dorsey Burnette, Johnny Burnette, Paul Burlison) - 3:33

11.You Can't Sit Down (Cornell Clark, Delicta Muldrow, Kal Mann) - 3:07

12.Hey Mary (Mick Green, Johnny Spencer) - 3:33

13.Golden Oldies (Mick Green) - 3:34

14.Alarmer (Mick Green, Johnny Spencer) - 2:57

15.Lady (Put The Light On Me) (Phil Wainman, John Kenneth Goodison) - 3:47

16.Happy Birthday Rock'n'Roll (Mick Green, Pete Cage) - 4:53

17.Going Back Home (Mick Green, Wilko Johnson) - 3:14

18.Lemonade (Mick Green) - 2:52

19.1:30, 2:30, 3:35 (Neville Crozier) -2:40

20.Hard Ride (Mick Green, Alan Lancaster) - 3:20

21.Mercy Pirate (Mick Green, Johnny Spencer) - 2:33

22.Hard Sell - 4:33

23.All By Myself (Antoine "Fats" Domino, Dave Bartholomew) - 1:44

Tracks 1-10 from "Skull Wars" 1978

Tracks 11-23 from "Happy Birthday Rock 'N' Roll" 1979

The Pirates

*Mick Green - Guitar, Vocals

*Frank Farley - Drums, Vocals

*John Spencer Louts - Bass, Vocals

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Sunday, November 27, 2022

Rick Hayward - Rick Hayward (1971 uk, lo-fi experimental folk psych rock, 2007 remaster)

Having played lead guitar for psychedelic legends the Accent, formed a late incarnation of the Zombies with Rod Argent, collaborated with Christine Perfect (later of Fleetwood Mac), joined boogie rockers Jellybread and recorded innumerable sessions, Rick Hayward finally recorded this solo album for the Blue Horizon label in 1971.

Don't expect any Zombies-like songs, this is an off-beat collection of psychedelictinged folk songs and instrumentals on which he plays all instruments, it was produced by Mike Vernon (David Bowie, Fleetwood Mac, Ten Years After) but sank without trace on original release. Features detailed liner notes by Rick himself, as well as rare photographs and eleven bonus tracks recorded for his unreleased second album a few months later.

Tracks

1. Lament F' Yorke - 2:11

2. Light In The Sky - 4:10

3. His Imperial Highness Prince Chicken Rag - 2:43

4. Can't See Any Sign - 2:26

5. Neptune - 3:19

6. Weasel - 3:14

7. Dance Of The Sour Grape Fairy - 2:57

8. Seeing Through - 3:05

9. Minuette - 1:02

10.Mongrel - 2:23

11.Find Yourself Sometime - 4:28

12.Wheels Within Wheels - 2:50

13.Tattered Rag - 2:42

14.Gwendolynne - 2:00

15.Morning After - 2:26

16.Fast Track - 1:49

17.Peregrination - 3:10

18.Ragtiming - 3:00

19.Greensleeves (Sort Of) - 2:26

20.Strolling Home - 3:36

21.Boogie Bill - 1:50

22.Breathing Space - 2:19

23.Bonnie Wee Fling - 2:29

All songs by Rick Hayward

Bonus Tracks 13-23

*Rick Hayward - Acoustic, Electric Guitars, Sitar, Mandolin, Bass, Bongos, Drums

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Thursday, November 24, 2022

Joe Prichard And Gibraltar - Joe Prichard And Gibraltar (1974 us, power guitar rock, 2004 reissue)

Very little is known about Joe Prichard or his sidekicks, except that the band, which hailed from Missouri, drew its inspiration from influences far and wide, resulting in each of the 5 tracks being very different in character, ranging from the power chords and staccato guitar breaks of the Jimmy Page variety, to the throaty sax of 12-bar blues specialists Climax as well as the dual guitars of ZZ Top. There's even a 9-minute jam a la Jethro Tull or Traffic with flute and sax giving a decidedly jazzy feel to proceedings. This is another extremely rare record (only 500 copies were pressed on the private Kendall-Lee label in 1974).

Tracks

1. Blind Man (David Harmon) - 9:07

2. Rose Petal Lady (Steve Armstrong) - 7:08

3. Reason To Be (Joe Prichard) - 5:37

4. The Machine Is Small Enough (Joe Prichard) - 10:02

5. August Apathy (Joe Prichard) - 1:19

Joe Prichard And Gibraltar

*David Harmon - Bass, Vocals

*Norman Pelot - Drums, Backing Vocals

*Vincent West - Lead Guitar

*Steve Armstrong - Vocals

*Joe Prichard - Moog, Piano, Organ, Saxophone, Vocals

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Tuesday, November 22, 2022

Quintessence - Indweller (1972 uk, a compelling prog-rock exploration, 2008 remaster)

Quintessence's first album for RCA Records from 1972. Hailing from the heart of London's 'alternative underground' society in Notting Hill, Quintessence were inspired by Eastern philosophy and spiritual teachings creating a unique fusion of psychedelia, jazz and ethnic rock. Indweller saw them continue their musical explorations in this vein, creating a classic of the progressive/acid rock genre. The Esoteric remastered edition was produced from the original analog master tapes and features a booklet with liner notes and new essay."

Tracks

1. Jesus My Life (Swami Ambikananda) - 3:39

2. Butterfly Music - 1:03

3. It's All The Same - 7:08

4. Indweller - 2:30

5. Holy Roller - 4:16

6. Portable Realm - 1:30

7. Sai Baba (Swami Ambikananda) - 3:24

8. On The Other Side Of The Wall - 3:38

9. Dedication - 2:46

10.Bliss Trip - 6:25

11.Mother Of The Universe - 1:46

All selections by Allan Mostert, Ronald Rothfield, Richard Vaughan, Jake Milton except where indicated

Quintessence

*Allan Mostert - Lead Guitar

*Ronald Rothfield “Raja Ram” - Flute

*Richard Vaughan “Sambhu Babaji” - Bass

*Jake Milton - Drums

1969-71 Quintessence - Spirits From Another Time (2016 double disc set)

1969-71 Quintessence - Move Into The Light The Complete Island Recordings (2017 double disc)

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Monday, November 21, 2022

Stampeders - New Day (1974 canada, exceptional classic rock, 2006 remaster)

"New Day" was cut in ’74 and was more experimentation in the studios, marked by the lead-off track and first single “Ramona”. Other hi-lites of their fifth straight gold record were Dodson’s “Marigold” (named for his future recording studio and record label), “Running Out Of Time” and the haunting “Brothers Of The Universe”. The subsequent tour resulted in the live album “Backstage Pass”, recorded at Ontario Place and released before year’s end. Capturing their live presence, which was always one of their trademarks, the record featured live versions of “Devil You”, “Johnny Lightning” and a cover of “Blue Suede Shoes”. “I used to ask the guys if we have to play music when we’re on stage. It always got in the way of my comedy routine,” King quipped. Slick editing (for the time anyway) stripped the gags out of the record and left one of the purest live albums of its day, showcasing the band in its most familiar stage – in front of screaming fans.

by Rich Dodson, Ronnie King

“New Day” represents a bit of a departure for The Stampeders. Leaving relatively “hokey” numbers (like Monday Morning Choo Choo, for example) aside, The Stampeders show their versatility and their ability to play straight ahead Rock and Roll on this album.

Highlights include “In the Shadows”, “Ramona”, a straight ahead rocker, “It’s Your Move”, another fast-paced tune and the casually paced “Do It Again”. Of particular interest are the songs “Somebody Help Me”–two groove-infused songs that are featured as bookends on the Stampeders “Backstage Pass” Live album. A nice change of pace for a group that is, unfortunately, lost in the annals of Canadian Rock history.

Tracks

1. Ramona - 3:22

2. Marigold - 4:52

3. Running Out Of Time (Kim Berly) - 3:50

4. It's Your Move (Ronnie King) - 2:53

5. Wild Eyes - 3:51

6. In The Shadows - 4:30

7. Words (Kim Berly) - 2:55

8. Do It Again - 3:28

9. Somebody Help Me - 2:05

10.Brothers Of The Universe (Ronnie King) - 4:45

All songs by Rich Dodson except where indicated

The Stampeders

*Kim Berly - Drums, Vocals

*Ronnie King - Bass

*Rich Dodson - Guitar, Vocals

1971 Stampeders - Against the Grain (2006 bonus tracks)

1971 Stampeders - Carryin On (2003 edition)

1973 Stampeders - From The Fire (2006 remaster)

1973 Stampeders - Rubes Dudes And Rowdies (2006 remaster)

1974 Stampeders - Backstage Pass (2006 reissue)

1975 Stampeders - Steamin (2006 remaster)

1976 Stampeders - Hit The Road (2006 remaster)

1979 Stampeders - Ballsy (2006 remaster)

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Sunday, November 20, 2022

Mirkwood - Mirkwood (1973 uk, hard rock with prog shades, 2008 edition)

"Mirkwood's lone self-titled album was originally issued in 1973, in an edition of just 99 copies. Coming out of the port town of Dover, with each of the group members having honed their moves in various outfits for years (including the original Rolling Stones from 1957 - no relation to the Glimmer Twins).This album's fantastic mix of precise hard rock and mysterious ballads has had many a private press enthusiast by the hair over the years. Crashing out of the gates with the one-two knockout combination of the fuzz shuffle of 'Take My Love' and the epic 11-minute centerpiece of 'Love's Glass of Sunshine,' this record is a classic deep listen, revealing great moments with each new spin. Killer harmonies and lots of twin-guitar lead action, tough and tender, this record is pure autumnal magic."

Tracks

1. Take My Love - 4:35

2. Love's Glass Of Sunshine - 11:28

3. Just Because - 5:17

4. The Leech (Mick Morris) - 5:19

5. The Vision - 3:27

6. Clockwise - 6:02

7. Lavendula - 7:23

All songs by Jack Castle except track #4

Mirkwood

*Jack Castle - Guitar, Vocals

*Mick Morris - Guitar, Vocals

*Steve Smith - Drums

*Derek Bowley - Lead Vocals

*Dave Evans - Bass

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Saturday, November 19, 2022

Blue Mink - Melting Pot (1969 uk, pleasant psych rock blue eyed soul, 2006 japan remaster)

One of the giants of British pop in the early '70s, Blue Mink was formed in fall 1969 by keyboard player Roger Coulam, around a nucleus of musicians based at London's Morgan Studios -- bassist Herbie Flowers, guitarist Allan Parker, and drummer Barry Morgan were also involved. Having already recorded a number of backing tracks, Coulam then approached soul singer Madeline Bell and former David & Jonathan star Roger Greenaway as vocalists; Bell accepted, Greenaway declined but recommended his songwriting partner (and fellow David & Jonathan-er) Roger Cook in his stead.

With this lineup, Cook and Greenaway's "Melting Pot" was released as Blue Mink's debut single, a plea for multi-racial harmony that reached number three in the U.K. that November. An album of the same title was released in the new year, alongside the single "Good Morning Freedom" -- for reasons unknown, the single did not originally appear on the LP. However, its swift rise into the U.K. Top Ten prompted a rethink, and subsequent pressings packed it on board.

by Dave Thompson