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Music gives soul to universe, wings to mind, flight to imagination, charm to sadness, and life to everything.

Plato

Monday, July 9, 2012

The Surprise Package - Free Up (1969 us, powerful organ driving heavy acid psych with some prog shades)



The Surprise Package were a Seattle, Washington group consisting of Fred Zeufeldt (drums, backing vocals), Michael Rohers (piano, organ, bass, backing vocals), Greg Beck (guitar, backing vocals), Rob Lowery (lead vocals).

Their only  album was released in early 1969 on tiny LHI label owned by the famous arttist/producer Lee Hazelwood. The Record mostly contained a trippy and quite intense music with lots of Hammond organ pasages, loud and fuzzed-out guitar parts and solid drumming. It can be easily described as a stylistic combination of Vanilla Fudge, The Doors and especially Iron Butterfly. 

It worth noting that the title track lasted nearly 16 minutes and its structure wasvery similar to In A-Gadda-Da-Vida. Excellent freaky improvisations in some parts.Very Essential for acid heads. Unfortunately, the album (and also single with cover of MacArthur Park) went almost completely unnoticed. Soon after the band changed its name to American Eagle and 1970 released an eponymous LP for Decca records. 


Tracks
1. New Way Home (Beck, Lowery, Rogers) - 3:53
2. 100% Vision (Lowery, Rogers) - 7:19
3. Breakaway (M. Rogers) - 3:34
4. Supporting Cast (M. Rogers) - 2:59
5. Social Disease (Beck, Lowery) - 2:35
6. Free Up (M. Rogers) - 15:51
7. MacArthur Park (A-Side 1969) (J. Webb) - 3:17

The Surprise Package
*Greg Beck - Guitar, Vocals
*Fred Zeufeldt - Drums, Vocals
*Mike Rogers - Organ, Piano, Bass, Vocals
*Rob Lowery - Lead Vocals


7 comments:

  1. My brother have the original LP, very good album in my memory. Thanks for sharing this cd reissue, Marios.

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  2. Released in 1969, only one album, American, heavy-psychedelic group, without a doubt, staring at the time Iron Butterfly In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida (a good thing!) And in contemporary works of Vanilla Fudge. The great thing about this album is great distorted guitar sound - on a par with Hammond organs filling sound spectrum. On the album, fortunately missing fillers, deserves special attention seven-minute, powerful 100% of Vision (oh this guitar!) And 16-minute, excellent Free Up - a very intense song, sometimes the illusion of a suite like Iron Butterfly (a solo drums, guitar, and of major organ solo release), but listened to it so well that any 'borrowed' does not apply in this case irrelevant. Additionally, included only issued as a single treatment of the (then very popular) hit MacArthur Park. This is a psych-rock masterpiece of the American second division.

    @Marios Great action .... to be completely happy I miss - American Eagle( It could use) ... many thanks!

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  3. Some Butterfly, some Fudge, a nice one, Marios thanks!

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  4. Thank you so much!! This is a fantastic blog and I love all the info you provide. Cheers!

    - s.

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  5. Remember coming from Camp McCoy Wisconsin can I listen to this one selection free up and I was blown away literally as I passed through La Crosse Wisconsin in Came Upon an aurora borealis the likes of which I've never seen that coupled with the music was an unforgettable experience I've spent 50 years looking for that album with that special sound first class all the way just like the Aurora Borealis was

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