30-12-07 - 06-01-08

Saturday, January 05, 2008

Grapefruit - Around Grapefruit [1968]

Like the fruit after it was named, Grapefruit's debut album was at times too sweet, but was on the whole a promising and worthy effort. Devoted almost wholly to songs written by leader George Alexander, the record featured tuneful, upbeat mid-tempo late-'60s British rock with good harmonies, creative ornate arrangements, and a very slight and very sunny psychedelic tinge. Certainly similarities to the Paul McCartney-penned tracks from the Beatles' own psych-pop era are evident, and if George Alexander's songs weren't in nearly the same league as McCartney's, well, no one working the style was in McCartney's league. Grapefruit was at their best on the occasional songs in which they reached into slightly darker and more melancholy territory, particularly when they made creative use of strings, organ, baroque keyboards, and Mellotron, as on "This Little Man" and "Dear Delilah" and the instrumental "Theme for Twiggy." The latter tune sounds like something that could have been killer had words been devised; as it is, it seems like something that wasn't quite seen through to completion. There's also the Four Seasons cover "C'mon Marianne," which, although it wasn't one of their better tracks, was (along with "Dear Delilah") one of their two small U.K. hits. The CD reissue on Repertoire adds "Dead Boot," the non-LP B-side of "Dear Delilah." [Allmusic.com]

Track list;
01 - Another Game
02 - Yesterday's Sunshine
03 - Elevator
04 - Yes
05 - C'mon Marianne
06 - Lullaby
07 - Round Going Round
08 - Dear Delilah
09 - This Little Man
10 - Ain't It Good
11 - Theme For Twiggy
12 - Someday
13 - Dead Boot

[128k]

Style; Psychedelic Pop

7 X 7 is - U.S. Garage singles pt.8

Sister Ray - Purgatory/Hillside (Forced Exposure FE-016, 1988)

Sam and Mike D'Angelo , two brothers from Youngstown, Ohio (like Boys From Nowhere), have a rather long story, which you can read here. This is a single from 1988, released thru Forced Exposure and therefore a collector's item now. Both sides are killers, with muddy garage sounds and releaving guitar solos.

Sam D'Angelo - Enter Hell (7'EP, Resonance 904501, 1990)

As in the credits of the previous Sister Ray's single Sam D'Angelo appears as did 'nothing at all', here's his single from 1990 with 3 tracks. He tries to move away from the sound of the band and he partially succeeds in 'This was My Blood' as the title track could be in any Sister Ray release.

The Clams - Train Song/Crazy Boys (7', Imaginary IMC 509, 1987)
All-girl band from Minneapolis, Clams with a couple of rock'n'rollers from 1987, 'recorded on a tascam four track in mark's basement'. They released a 12' also in Imaginary and a 7' in another Mpls label, Susstones. According to John Dougan (AMG) (who obviously was a fan) "Live they were sensational, with Lawson exuding pure attitude and lead guitarist Roxie Terry (the coolest rock chick ever!) striking an alluring Joan Jett-ish pose that made her a rock goddess come to life."

Hopelessly Obscure - Shoot That Girl/Linda Sue Dixon/Do The Doug/Too Tired (7'EP, Arf Arf AA-019, 1986)

Time for the inevitable Kenne Highland and his gang (see previous posts of '7X7', Dark Cellars, the World of Distortion etc for more). In this EP we find all the usual suspects, like Aram Heller, Erik Lindgren and Willie 'Loco' Alexander, whose stories are too long to fit here. Special mention to Gay Hathaway (gtr, vcls). As for the music, you know what to expect: raw, lo-fi, pure garage!

The Original Sins - Coca-Cola (Sweet)/Juicy Fruit (7', Get Hip GH-134, 1990)

JT (John Terleski), founder of the Original Sins, continues until today under the name Brother JT or Brother JT3. In one of his solo records he put the title 'Music For The Other Head' and the appropriate cover. That's exactly the point here: two primitive/2-chord/garage tracks to make you remember to keep smiling (as the boy says on the cover).

Popealopes - Poor Tom/Bovine Lament (7', Resonance 88-4507, 1988)

PopeAlopes were a group from Davis, CA, active from 1986 to 2001, according to this myspace page (though their last official release was in 1993). This 7' was given as bonus with the first 1000 copies of their (Russ Tolman produced) album "An Adder's Tale", which, as I remember, was rather well received in Europe, reminding the missed True West.

Crypt Kicker Five - 4th Hole/Bedouin Stomp (7', C/Z records, CZ019, 1990)

Crypt Kicker Five were founded in Seattle by Jaime Caffery and Chip Doring, as a surf-punk band, in 1984. At their second incarnation, they joined by Jack Endino (yes this one!) on drums and production and Rhonda Pelikan on vcls and guitar. This single is from their 2nd phase,the only vinyl output of their recordings (that were released recently) and contains a gnarly a-side with some of the most sophisticated riffs you could find in a garage-punk song and a catchy oriental/surf tune on the b-side.

Here are the links for rapidshare and massmirror .

Friday, January 04, 2008

Albatross - 1973 - A Breath Of Fresh Air

Side 1:
1."Full Moon"
2. "The Drowning Song"
3. "Escher's Door"
4. "Drop Me a Line"
5. "Bouzouki Boogie"
6. "A Breath of Fresh Air"
Side 2:
1. "The Games Cards Play"
2. "Nimbin Stopover"
3. "Mermaid"
4. "A Message to You"
5. "Seashell Secrets"
6. "Wings Of The Albatross"

7. "The Angel & the Boy"

Albatross formed in September 1972, after the split of legendary Sydney band Tamam Shud. The initial lineup was a trio, comprising Bjerre and Baron (both ex-Shud) and drummer Kim Bryant (ex-Country Radio).

While bands like The Aztecs and The La De Das and were mining the rich veins of blues, boogie and heavy rock, Albatross took a different tack, exploring a mellower, acoustically-based style that was a development from the quieter side of Tamam Shud's Shud's progressive/psychedelic sound. Albatross' music incorporated elements of folk and country music, as were a number of other contemporary Australian groups like Country Radio, The Flying Circus and The Dingoes. Lyrically, the band's material continued Bjerre's concerns with sprituality, nature and environmental issues.

The band's home-base was on Sydney's northern beaches, and during the year of its existence Albatross played regularly at the Memorial Hall in the Sydney beachside suburb of Mona Vale. In early 1973 the band was augmented by Lindsay's wife Simone on vocals and in April they were joined by multi-instrumentalist Richard Lockwood, formerly of Tully, who had also played with the last version of Tamam Shud.

This augmented lineup recorded the group's only LP, A Breath Of Fresh Air (Warner Reprise), which also included session contributions from Gary Frederick (slide guitar), Pirana organist Keith Greig and Chris Blanchflower (harmonica). It's a fine album, and long overdue for reissue. Bjerre's unusual voice is perhaps an acquired taste but the album is full of excellent material, beautifully played and very well recorded. The pacy opening track "Full Moon", a road song opens with an innovative string arrangement and features some heavier sounds that recall Tamam Shud, and it's decorated with some very tasty "Layla"-style slide guitar from Fredericks. Other highlights include the rollicking "Bouzouki Boogie" and "Nimbin Stopover", a commemmoration in song of the 1973 Aquarius Festival, which features the inimitable harmonica stylings of the great Chris Blanchflower (Country Radio).

Another sought-after Warner album from this period, Total Union by Band Of Light, has been recently reissued by Gil Matthews' Aztec Music label, so there is some hope that the Albatross album will eventually be remastered and re-released on CD. Meanwhile, the original LP -- which presumably sold few copies -- has become highly collectible, with copies now changing hands for over $100.
Albatross gained important exposure with a prestigious support spot on Frank Zappa's his first Australian tour, but the band did not last out the year, and had already broken up by the time the LP was released in November.

Lindsay Bjerre spent the next few years pursuing spiritual interests and travelling; he also wrote a (never-performed) rock opera and studied mime in England with theatrical legend Lindsay Kemp. He re-emerged in 1977, with a new performance persona, simply called Bjerre, and with support from Countdown he scored a surprise hit with the single "She Taught Me How To Love Again".

Get It Here

Albatross_-_1973_-__Breath_Of_Fresh_Air__australia_.rar

Bill Fay

Bill Fay - 1970 - Bill Fay

A brilliant lost set from singer Bill Fay -- recorded in baroque brilliance that rivals the late 60s work of Scott Walker! Like Walker, Fay's as much a poet as he is a singer -- and also like Walker, he's got the great fortune here to be working with some excellent arrangements -- handled by British jazzman Michael Gibbs, and featuring some excellent guitar work from Ray Russell. Fay's style is slightly folksy at times, with echoes of Leonard Cohen somewhere in the mix -- but his overall vision is far more elaborate, and carried off here to perfection in a rare kind of "once in a career" record that still holds up beautifully today!

Get It Here :
rapidshare.com/files/Bill_Fay_-_Bill_Fay_1st.rar

~@~@~@~

Bill Fay - From The Bottom Of An Old Grandfather Clock
(Demos & Outtakes 1966-1970)

25 Stunning Demos (22 Previously Unreleased) and Work in Progress Tracks Cut Between 66 and 70 from this Cult British Artist. 60's Pop Art at It's Finest. Wilco Fans Take Note, this Includes the Original Version of "be Not So Fearful", a Song Covered by Jeff Tweedy in the Wilco Documentary Film 'i Am Trying to Break Your Heart'.

Get It Here :
rapidshare.com/files/Bill_Fay_-_Demos___Outtakes_70_s.rar

~@~@~@~

Bio :
Obscure British singer/songwriter Bill Fay made a couple of albums in the early '70s that matched Dylanesque songwriting with unusual arrangements. Fay had actually done his first single, "Some Good Advice"/"Screams in the Ears," for Deram back in 1967, produced by early Donovan co-manager Peter Eden. The single introduced his characteristic downbeat melodies and scrambled impressionistic lyrics, though with somewhat more pop-oriented production and melodies than those heard on his albums.

It wouldn't be until 1970 that his self-titled debut appeared. Bill Fay is an odd and not particularly good record, in large part because his songwriting has the obvious ambition of song-poets like Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen, but not nearly as much talent. His hoarse, thin singing is also obviously Dylan-influenced, but like fellow Dylan acolyte David Blue, he had the tendency to go distressingly off-key. There was a bit of the British lilting storytelling style to his songwriting, in the path of Al Stewart, Donovan, and Nick Drake, but these traits were far subordinate to the inchoate Dylanisms. Twee orchestral arrangements figure strongly on the record, as if to cover up for some of the artist's vocal deficiencies. His second LP, Time of the Last Persecution (from 1971), was similar in its songwriting, but far more straightforward and rock-oriented in its production, and more conventionally accomplished in its vocal delivery. Though still not noteworthy, it was definitely better than its predecessor, and sometimes enlivened by unexpectedly gnarly rock guitar.
~Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide

posted by Ben Elephant

Thursday, January 03, 2008

Various Artists - Maidens In The Moor Lay Vol. III

Dark Ages - Piano Magic w/Vashti Bunyan (Saint Marie EP)

Passiflora - The Gray Field Recordings (Hypnagogia)

Painted Skies - Tiny Lights (Prayer For The Halcyon Fear)

Under the Gaze - Samara Lubelski (The Fleeting Skies)

Hold You Up - Alice Despard (Thinning of the Veil)

The world is burning, so let us waltz - Post Crash High (The apocalypse came yesterday and no one noticed)

You Don't Love Me Yet - Bongwater (Double Bummer)

A Good Many Things - Matty and Mossy (Fraimers Hamey)

Down by the River - DiGiTaL DaN & EliZaBeTh (Unknown)

Dark World - Sylvia Juncosa (Nature)

This Train - 28th Day (28th Day)

The Orange Bears - Famous Boating Party (Silvery Branches)

Happy go lucky - Spray Pals (7"single)

Hiawatha - Look Blue Go Purple (Compilation)

A quiet start with one of the few worthy comebacks (Vashti Banyan), followed by the promising Gray Field Recordings (multi-instrument player R. Loftiss), a little pop/psyche with Tiny Lights with Jane Scarpantoni's cello (from 1984) and a much more recent album of Samara Lubelski (Tower Recordings) and a nice song from the real passionate Alice Despard (ex-Hyaa!). Post Crash High's song is subtitled "it's almost as good as listening to the tale of "Long Lankin" under the influence of psilocybin" and I don't have anything to add, Ann Magnuson w/Bongwater in a Roky Erickson cover, Matty & Mossy (Jana Hunter's band from 2001), in a real dark tune, and a duo (DiGiTaL DaN & EliZaBeTh) I wish I knew more: I have only a few tracks from them, but they're really good. Sylvia Juncosa (more on her in a few days - if anyone's interested) takes us high with her outstanding guitar playing and then a version of Pete Seeger's 'This Train' from 28th Day and Barbara Manning with all her youth (it was 1985!) and innocence (which I'm sure she still has). Famous Bloating Party is one of the many inhouse bands of Jewelled Antler Collective.

I must confess that the next song from Spray Pals triggered me to compile this third part of Maidens. You may know Susanne Lewis from Thinking Plague. This is one of her first recordings (from 1982) where they managed to make a song based on tribal percussion, Indian Raindance chant vocals with bouzouki solos, flavored with drops of folk. You have to listen to believe it. We close with the stormy Hiawatha from the New Zealanders Look Blue Go Purple.

Here it is from massmirror and rapidshare

Wednesday, January 02, 2008

Blues Magoos

The Blues Magoos, who started out as The Trenchcoats in The Bronx, NY, in 1964, were by 1965 denizens of the Greenwich Village scene, along with the likes of The Lovin' Spoonful, The Fugs and Mama Cass Elliott's pre-Mama's & The Papa's group The Mugwumps.

At this time they were managed by Marvin Lagenoff...who supposedly had also managed Eydie Gorme earlier on...the man that had changed their moniker to The Bloos Magoos (Magoo was short for Moo Goo Gai Pan; he'd supposedly been eating this at a Chinese restaurant). It was from there that they'd set about recording. In October of that year, they'd signed with MGM's Verve subsidiary and recorded a double-sided single, 'So I'm Wrong And You Are Right'/'The People Had No Faces', the former penned by Rick Shorter (along with Bobby Hebb and Richie Havens one of the few black musicians involved with folk music), the latter a Scala/Castro composition.

Meanwhile, in Greenwich Village, they'd met up with the two men who would become the definitive lead guitarist and drummer, Mike Esposito and Geoff Daking (who, after a rift between Scala/Castro/Gilbert and Finnegan/Lapore, a la Pete Best, promptly replaced the latter) and the management team of Bob Wyld and Art Polhemus. It was with this aggregation that they began recording in November for Mercury Records, the first effort being another double-sided single, John Loudermilk's 'Tobacco Road', backed with 'Sometimes I Think About' (a/k/a 'Willie Jean'), a traditional Negro folk ballad about a condemned man set to a blues style. Due to the over-three-minute length of the former and the subject matter (however subdued) of the latter, the single received limited airplay. And I would guess that the actual composer of the latter was the condemned man.

No one will know for sure, especially considering that until the '30s no black writers could even obtain copyrights. 'Sometimes...' was written decades before. Then in 1966, while the group was playing at The Chessmate Club in Detroit, came the breakthrough. A DJ on station CKLW played '(We Ain't Got) Nothin' Yet' one afternoon and caused a Nationwide deluge!!! In a short time every station was playing it and it eventually reached ..5 in 1967. 'Nothin' Yet' was backed with an earlier version of 'Gotta Get Away', another song that appeared on their PSYCHEDELIC LOLLIPOP album, also released in '66.

Other albums followed, ELECTRIC COMIC BOOK and BASIC BLUES MAGOOS, but did not meet with the same success. The Magoos, meanwhile, were playing dates all over the country with The Who and Herman's Hermits and recorded more singles that met with the same fate. Finally, at the beginning of 1969, the original group broke up.

Then during the time of Woodstock, Bob Wyld put together a new version of The Magoos with only Castro remaining. His backup musicians were John Liello (keyboards & vibes...who also strongly resembled Scala), Roger Eaton (bass), Eric Kaz (electroharp) and Richie Dickson (drums). This aggregation, whose sound closely resembled Blood Sweat & Tears' and Santana's, recorded one album for ABC called NEVER GOIN' BACK TO GEORGIA (1969).

Eaton and Dickson left shortly after and Castro, Liello, Kaz and studio musicians recorded GULF COAST BOUND (1970). Then it was the end of the Magoos until 2000. Castro, meanwhile, has appeared in the Broadway musical HAIR and was in the groups Barnaby Bye and Balance. His son Jesse Doran Castro is currently heading his own group called CASTRO.


Watch them here : clip 1 ~ clip 2

Download Them Here :
Psychedelic Lollipop
Electric Comic Book
Basic Blues Magoos
Never Goin' Back to Georgia
Gulf Coast Bound

Tuesday, January 01, 2008

Roger Humphreys - 1996 - Beyond the Wall of Sleep

Debut privately pressed album by this Canadian solo artist. Beautiful electric/acoustic folk with a Celtic, pastoral edge. Fragile and bewitching stuff......~freakemporium

I invite you to download my 1996 Folk/Psych album :
"Beyond the Wall of Sleep" via RapidShare.

All I ask is that you leave a comment.
This album was never available in shops. Sold about 500 copies back in the day through record collector's catalogues. I hope to put more of my music on this page soon.
Thanks, Roger Humphreys.

Link to download:

rapidshare.com/files/Beyond_The_Wall_Of_Sleep.zip

Blog site :
http://www.fallingoverbackwards.blogspot.com

The Vietnam Veterans

The Vietnam Veterans were one of the main attractions of the Neo-Psych movement and a major event in the psych scene of the mid 80s (what was rather small, sadly), with every new record. Today it seems they are Lost-In-Tyme.

The Vietnam Veterans are a French band, that first started playing in 1982. They play a very unique and fantastic psychedelic music style!

The very first members were: Mark Enbatta, Lucas Trouble, Greg Jones, Angelo Jupp, Steve Palermo (Drums), D.D. Richardson (Harmonica). In this formation they produced the first LP "On the Right Track Now !" (1983). The record itself was recorded and mixed in only three days.That gave the album a pretty low sound quality, but that doesn't changes the fact that this is one of the best albums ever recorded from the post-psychedelic garage scene of the 80's, especially in Europe. It includes many great songs but probably the best known pearls are
"Don't Try To Walk On Me" and "Dreams Of Today."

Vietnam Veterans - 1983 - On the Right Track Now !

Mark Enbatta (Guitar & Vocals) Greg Jones (Guitar) Angelo Jupp (Bass)
Steve Palermo (Drums) Lucas Trouble (Keyboards) D.D. Richardson (Harmonica)

Tracks :
1. Don't Try To Walk On Me 2. Dreams Of Today
3. I Can Only Give You Everything 4. You're Gonna Fall
5. I Walked With A Zombie 6. Back From Hell
7. Out From The Night 8. Critics 9. That's Love
10. Dogs 11. Hey Gyp 12. Right Track Now

Get It Here (mp3) :
rapidshare.com/files/The_Vietnam_Veterans_-_1983_-_On_The_Right_Track_Now.zip

On the second LP "Crawfish for the Notary" (1984), there is a little change, Steve Palermo and D.D. Richardson left the band and Martin Joyce became the new drummer of the Vietnam Veterans. That should be the final formation of this band. "Crawfish for the Notary", was recorded in the same studio as "On The Right Track Now", but it was done in three weeks so it had a much better sound quality to it. It also contains some of the bands' best songs: "Children Eyes," "What Are You Hiding," "I Give You My Life" and more.

Vietnam Veterans - 1984 - Crawfish for the Notary

Mark Enbatta (Guitar & Vocals) Greg Jones (Guitar)
Angelo Jupp (Bass) Martin Joyce (Drums) Lucas Trouble (Keyboards)

Tracks :
1. Burning Temples 2. I Heard The Wind Blow
3. I Give You My Life 4. Children Eyes 5. My Trip 6. Liars
7. Is This Really The Time 8. What Are You Hiding
9. Masters Of Time 10. This Life Is Your Life 11. Gary Cooper's Trip

Get It Here (m4a) :
rapidshare.com/files/The_Vietnam_Veterans-1984-Crawfish_For_The_Notary.zip
Get It Here (mp3) :
RapidShare or SendSpace

Not long and the third LP "Green Peas" (1985) was released, a record featuring the band's first two live gigs in Germany. This album features the best songs from the first two albums and had other songs that were completely improvised on the stage during the show- more proof of the band's unique chemistry. It's the best album to start with for someone who wants to learn about the Vets.

Vietnam Veterans - 1985 - Green Peas (Live)

Mark Enbatta (Guitar & Vocals) Greg Jones (Guitar)
Angelo Jupp (Bass) Martin Joyce (Drums) Lucas Trouble (Keyboards)

Tracks :
1. You're Gonna Fall 2. Dreams Of Today 3. Curanderos 4. Dogs
5. Liars 6. Critics 7. Wrinkle Drawer 8. Tower Of Babel
9. What Are You Hiding 10. Is This Really The Time
11. Don't Try To Walk On Me 12. Out From The Night
13. The Trip 14. Dreams Of Today 15. Peas On Earth

Get It Here (mp3) :
rapidshare.com/files/The_Vietnam_Veterans-1985-Green_Peas-1.zip
rapidshare.com/files/The_Vietnam_Veterans-1985-Green_Peas-2.zip

In 1986, the band released Ancient Times, a well-produced album which contained one of the band's more stirring masterpieces- "Curanderos," among other brilliant songs such as "Tower Of Babel","Wrinkle Drawer" and "Crooked Dealers" (the first three also appeared on the Green Peas).

Vietnam Veterans - 1986 - In Ancient Times

Mark Enbatta (Guitar & Vocals) Greg Jones (Guitar)
Angelo Jupp (Bass) Martin Joyce (Drums) Lucas Trouble (Keyboards)

Tracks :
1. Let It Rain 2. Ancient Times 3. Curanderos
4. Everywhere Is My Nation 5. Run Baby Run 6. Tower Of Bablel
7. Three Months Every Year 8. Wrinkle Drawer 9. Next Year
10. Crooked Dealers 11. Safety Razors

Get It Here (m4a) :
rapidshare.com/files/The_Vietnam_Veterans-1986-In_Ancient_Times.zip
Get It Here (mp3) :
RapidShare or SendSpace

"Catfish Eyes And Tales" was released in 1987 and provide to be the last Vets album. It's a special album which contains the piece, "Medley," was built out of three connected songs: "Distant Drums," "Sea Horse" and a cover of the late David McWilliams's song "The Days Of Pearly Spencer."

Vietnam Veterans - 1987 - Catfish Eyes and Tales

Mark Enbatta (Guitar & Vocals) Greg Jones (Guitar)
Angelo Jupp (Bass) Martin Joyce (Drums) Lucas Trouble (Keyboards)

Tracks :
1 Dead Breams Don't Bite 2 Southern Comfort 3 Maybe You Think
4 Time Is The Worst 5 Crying 6 Catfish Eyes And Tales
07 Medley : a.Distant Drums b.Sea Horse c.Days Of Pearly Spencer

Get It Here (m4a) :
rapidshare.com/files/The_Vietnam_Veterans-1987-Catfish_Eyes_And_Tales.zip
Get It Here (mp3) :
RapidShare or SendSpace

Before the band broke up, another album was released. "The Days Of Pearly Spencer" (1988) is a collection of unreleased songs and better versions of songs from the first two LP's. It also contains a live version of "The Trip" with strange people joining them on stage.

Vietnam Veterans - 1988 - Days of Pearly Spencer

Mark Enbatta (Guitar & Vocals) Greg Jones (Guitar)
Angelo Jupp (Bass) Martin Joyce (Drums) Lucas Trouble (Keyboards)

Tracks :
1. The Days Of Pearly Spencer 2. 500 Miles 3. Is This Really The Time
4. Burning Temples 5. Don't Try To Walk On Me 6. Dogs
7. You're Gonna Fall 8. Dreams Of Today 9. Be My Baby 10. The Trip

Get It Here (mp3) :
rapidshare.com/files/The_Vietnam_Veterans_-_1988_-_Days_of_Pearly_Spencer.zip

~@~@~@~

source : http://www.furious.com/Perfect/vietnamveterans.html

Their sound are at first rooting in the 60's Garage sound evolved into a very unique mix of Psychedelia through their records. Very recommended.

posted by chocofreta

Happy Neo-Psychedelic Year !!!

Sunday, December 30, 2007

V.A. - Love Is The Song We Sing: San Francisco Nuggets 1965-1970

Love Is The Song We Sing: San Francisco Nuggets 1965-1970

Released in commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the Summer of Love, the four-CD San Francisco Nuggets set gives an unprecedented look at the music scene that changed America. Featuring legends such as Jefferson Airplane, Sly Stone, and Santana alongside local hits from the fertile garage-rock underground, it's an ideal reminder for those who were there and a proper introduction to those who wish they were.

It wasn't all peace, love, and drugs that made San Francisco the fulcrum of the burgeoning hippie scene in the mid '60s. According to this sprawling 77-track, four-disc set — the third in Rhino's ongoing Nuggets series — it was the music that nurtured and helped create Haight-Ashbury. This expansive package succeeds in presenting the disparate acts involved in that cultural revolution through a detailed aural exploration. Sure, the usual suspects like the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, Quicksilver Messenger Service, and Janis Joplin are here, but it's the obscurities and oddities — some never previously available and many more extremely difficult to find — that provide intimate glimpses into the crevices, building blocks, and influences of what was later dubbed the "San Francisco Sound." The platters are broken down into rough category/chronological groupings, with disc three focusing on 1967, the Summer of Love whose 40th anniversary this box's release celebrates. Even there, acts such as the Ace of Cups, the Mystery Trend, and the Loading Zone fly way below the radar. There's lots to absorb, even for genre enthusiasts, but compiler Alex Palao's extensive, track-specific liner notes provide concise yet vital contextual background to guide the listener through a wildly diverse landscape that runs from the British Invasion-styled pop of the Beau Brummels and the soft folk of the Youngbloods to the furious garage psychedelia of the Count Five and the eardrum-bursting, proto-metal power rock of Blue Cheer. — Hal Horowitz

Disc 1: Seismic Rumbles
1. Dino Valenti - "Let's Get Together"
2. Country Joe & The Fish - "I Feel Like I'm Fixin' To Die" (EP Version)
3. We Five - "You Were On My Mind"
4. The Charlatans - "Number One"
5. The Warlocks - "Can't Come Down"
6. The Beau Brummels - "Don't Talk To Strangers"
7. The Vejtables - "Anything"
8. Jefferson Airplane - "It's No Secret"
9. The Mystery Trend - "Johnny Was A Good Boy"
10. The Great! Society - "Free Advice"
11. The Grass Roots - "Mr Jones (A Ballad Of A Thin Man)"
12. Blackburn & Snow - "Stranger In A Strange Land"
13. Quicksilver Messenger Service - "Who Do You Love" (Demo Version)
14. The Mojo Men - "She's My Baby"
15. The Wildflower - "Coffee Cup"
16. The Family Tree - "Live Your Own Life"
17. The Sons Of Champlin - "Fat City"
18. The Frantics - "Human Monkey"
19. The Tikis - "Bye Bye Bye" (Warner Bros. Single Version)
20. Country Joe & The Fish - "Section 43"
21. The Sopwith "Camel" - "Hello Hello

@320 part 1 - part 2

Disc 2: Suburbia
1. Count Five - "Psychotic Reaction"
2. The Front Line - "Got Love"
3. The Mourning Reign - "Satisfaction Guaranteed"
4. The Oxford Circle - "Foolish Woman"
5. The Stained Glass - "My Buddy Sin"
6. The Otherside - "Streetcar"
7. Teddy & His Patches - "Suzy Creamcheese"
8. The Immediate Family - "Rubiyat"
9. Syndicate Of Sound - "Rumors"
10. The Harbinger Complex - "Sometimes I Wonder"
11. The New Breed - "Want Ad Reader"
12. The Generation - "I'm A Good Woman"
13. The Chocolate Watchband - "No Way Out"
14. Butch Engle & The Styx - "Hey I'm Lost"
15. People - "I Love You"
16. Public Nuisance - "America"
17. Country Weather - "Fly To New York"
18. The Savage Resurrection - "Thing In 'E'"
19. Frumious Bandersnatch - "Hearts To Cry"

@320 Part 1 - Part 2

Disc 3: Summer Of Love
1. The Charlatans - "Alabama Bound"
2. The Mystery Trend - "Carl Street"
3. The Great! Society - "Somebody To Love" (LP Version)
4. Country Joe & The Fish - "Superbird"
5. The Beau Brummels - "Two Days 'Til Tomorrow"
6. Moby Grape - "Omaha"
7. The Serpent Power - "Up & Down"
8. Grateful Dead - "The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion)"
9. Quicksilver Messenger Service - "Codine"
10. Big Brother & The Holding Company - "Down On Me" (Live)
11. Salvation - "Think Twice"
12. Jefferson Airplane - "White Rabbit"
13. Steve Miller Band - "Roll With It"
14. Notes From The Underground - "Why Did You Put Me On"
15. Sly & The Family Stone - "Underdog"
16. Blue Cheer - "Summertime Blues"
17. The Ace Of Cups - "Glue"
18. Santana - "Soul Sacrifice"
19. The Loading Zone - "The Bells"

@320 Part 1 - Part 2

Disc 4: "The Man Can't Bust Our Music"
1. Santana - "Evil Ways"
2. Fifty Foot Hose - "Red The Sign Post"
3. Kak - "Lemonaide Kid"
4. The Sons Of Champlin - "1982-A"
5. Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks - "How Can I Miss You When You Won't Go Away"
6. Mad River - "Amphetamine Gazelle"
7. The Steve Miller Band - "Quicksilver Girl"
8. Mother Earth - "Revolution"
9. Moby Grape - "Murder In My Heart For The Judge"
10. Quicksilver Messenger Service - "Light Your Windows"
11. Flamin' Groovies - "I'm Drowning"
12. Seatrain - "Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Lady"
13. It's A Beautiful Day - "White Bird"
14. Grateful Dead - "Dark Star" (Single Version)
15. Blue Cheer - "Fool" (Single Version)
16. Jefferson Airplane - "Mexico"
17. Janis Joplin - "Mercedes Benz"
18. The Youngbloods - "Get Together"

@320 Part 1 - Part 2

Enjoy and Happy New Year Everybody!

Quintessence - 1970 - Quintessence

Quintessence - Quintessence ( UK Island Rec. 1970)

Quintessence The fifth essence. The ancient Greeks said there are four elements or forms in which matter can exist- fire, or the imponderable form; air, or the gaseous form; water, or the liquid form; and earth, or the solid form....
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Review
by Richie Unterberger
While Quintessence's second album had a guileless sincerity to its spiritual striving that was uncommon in pop music, it's very much a relic of its hippie age.

The good points? An uncalculated, genuine wish to both reflect the era's ideals and to use its music as a tool to achieve them, as well as a willingness to blend aspects of jazz,

Indian music, and religious invocation into an overall psychedelic-progressive rock structure (complete with flute and some acid rock guitar). The bad points? An absence of conventional songwriting chops, exacerbated by the band's tendency to ramble on in formless jam-like passages, though actually none of the tracks here exceed six minutes. Certainly it's eclectic, with a commune-like vibe permeating the proceedings, though the recording's quite professional. "Jesus, Buddha, Moses, Gauranga" sounds rather akin to the We're Only in It for the Money-era Mothers of Invention, though minus any hint of satire or irony in the over the top beatific lyrics. Overall, though, it feels a little like listening to the house rock band of a pan-religious cult that doesn't have anything of particular value to sell. The 2004 CD reissue on Repertoire adds a live version of "Jesus, Buddha, Moses, Gauranga" (originally released on the first pressing of the 1970 Island compilation Bumpers) as a bonus track.

Quintessence (English band)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia :
Quintessence was a band formed in April 1969 by Raja Ram in Notting Hill, London, England. The style was a mixture of jazz and progressive rock with an influence of music from India. This trend in music started by Quintessence would later resurface in the 1990s in the form of Goa trance. Quintessence were formed in April 1969 by Raja Ram in Ladbroke Grove, Notting Hill. They played a hybrid of jazz, progressive rock and Indian Music.

The original line-up included Shiva Jones (voice, keys, percussion), Raja Ram (flutes, percussion), Sambhu Baba (bass, guitar), Maha Dev (guitar), Allan Mostert ((guitar), and Jake Milton (drums, percussion). Quintessence were tagged a 'spiritual' band and were playing new age rock before the term was born.
Although their evangelism in retrospect might seem to be a bit over the top, the music retains its beauty created by some highly individual souls. They rehearsed in All Saints Hall which was a converted church near Portobello Road, and recorded 3 albums for Island Records between 1969 and 1971. two further albums were recorded in 1972 for RCA. The 'Self' entitled first of these was their best with studio material on side one, and the band playing live at Exeter University December 11, 1971 on side two. Their live set was usually mostly improvised as they avoided playing the same riff twice or going into a routine thing. Not unlike the Grateful Dead, they did a lot of collective jamming with an intention to trance out their colourful audiences by a forceful combination of the chanting of mantras with the Krishna flute lines and the lyrical guitar soloing. Often the local Hare Krishna disciples would provide an extra percussion section to the already steamy proceedings. Quintessence had their household guru in Swami Ambikananda. They built a reputation on solid club work and were deemed London's Underground Sensation in 1970. Besides appearing at the first two Glastonbury Festivals (then called 'Faires'), in 1970/71, they also were invited to play the Montreux Jazz Festival at a time when jazz was still being played there. At their peak they sold out the Royal Albert Hall twice.
Although Quintessence played many hundred of concerts and festivals all over Europe, they never made it to the United States. Although a concert at New York's Carnegie Hall was already lined up in early 1972, they didn't make it because Shiva and Maha Dev were asked to leave the band by Raja Ram in spring 1972. Shiva and Maha Dev went on to form the short-lived outfit called Kala.

With ego clashes and problems on many frontiers, Kala quickly folded and Quintessence, now trying to make it the body without a head, and bereft of a sense of purpose, direction and being victims of the changing times, played on into the eighties, then slowly drifted into limbo.
Jake Milton went on to form Blurt with his brother Ted Milton.
(Maha Dev) has recently released his first solo album.
"The band turned down a US record deal negotiated by Chris Blackwell (Island Records) and didn't play at Carnegie Hall or tour the USA because four of its members wanted a larger monetary advance. This disappointed Chris Blackwell greatly and he dropped the band from the label. The band signed with RCA and recorded one album with Shiva and Maha Dev. Raja Ram unexpectedly 'fired' Shiva and Maha Dev after that album with RCA was recorded.
"The 'real' reason that Shiva's band Kala broke up was because Bradley's Records (a subsidiary of ATV) changed their policy towards their artists. They no longer wanted bands to make albums and insisted on them being singles pop artists. They wanted Shiva to wear a 'glitter suit', and when he refused, the senior management of ATV broke up the band by taking all of the equipment back and canceling their dates. It had nothing to do with 'ego' clashes. I don't know where this 'Nik' got his info from." - directly quoted from Shiva/Phil Jones

Sambhu Babaji -Bass
Dave Codling -Guitar
Shiva Shankar Jones -Keyboards, Vocals
Jake Milton -Drums
Alan Mostert -Guitar
Raja Ram -Flute, Piano, Vocals

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SHIVA'S QUINTESSENCE

QUINTESSENCE__-__1970_-_Quintessence__UK___VBR.rar