Atlantis - Atlantis (1972 germany, remarkable hard blues rock, with prog, jazz funk tinges, 2008 digipak remaster with bonus track)

Atlantis was not only the name of the legendary island, the famous Greek author Plato mentioned, but also the name of a band formed by ex-Frumpy musicians Inga Rumpf, Jean-Jacques Kravetz and Karl-Heinz Schott, in late Summer, 1972. The initial line-up included guitarist Frank Dietz and ex-Emergency drummer Curt Cress (later with Triumvirat, Passport). 

The band played a few live gigs in Germany before they recorded their debut in London's Island Studios. The US magazine, Cash Box, compared Atlantis with the Doobie Brothers and praised Inga Rumpf's blues-tinged voice. Shortly before the group went on a four week tour of England with Procol Harum, Traffic, Vinegar Joe and the Sharks, Cress and Dietz left and were temporarily supplanted by Udo Lindenberg and George Meier. After the tour, Atlantis recruited Dieter Bornschlegel (ex-Traumtorte) on guitar and Ringo Funk (ex-Jeronimo) on drums as new permanent members. 

Rumpf and Kravetz remained the artistical nucleus of the band. Said Kravetz: "Inga determines this band like Rod Stewart & the Faces, her voice makes our image." Atlantis' second album "It's Getting Better" was even more determined by Inga Rumpf's preference for black rhythms: "I always took a special liking in blues, jazz and soul music, and, since I'm writing most of the songs, this influence is decisive in our music."  Melody Maker "recommended" the second album and Sounds attested the band to be "the most English of all German groups". 

After the gig at the Paris' Olympia, Atlantis went, again, on a four week tour of England, which included a performance at the rock show, "Old Grey Whistle Test". During this tour, Kravetz left the band and had to be hastily replaced by Rainer Schnelle (ex-Family Tree). 

At the end of 1973, Atlantis was among Germany's three most popular German rock groups, according to a Musikmarkt poll. 

Half a year later, the line-up changed again. Schnelle and Bomschlegel were replaced by English keyboarder Adrian Askew and ex-Curly Curve guitarist Alex Conti. 

Both were featured on the third LP "Ooh Baby". Seven of the ten songs were written by Askew/Conti, while Rumpf only had three of her compositions on the album.  The result was a "spicy funk album" (Musik Express) with a "bunch of Germany's best soul" (Sounds). 

Atlantis was at its best on stage, which was proved by a double album recorded live at the Hamburg Fabrik from 1973 - 1975. 

In Summer 1975, Atlantis went on tour in the States, mostly as opener for Lynyrd Skynyrd. After the tour, guitarist Alex Conti was fired and went on to play with Lake. The new line-up was completed with former guitarist Frank Dietz and as second guitarist Rainer Marz. 

The rockier American influence was noticable on Atlantis' fourth LP "Get On Board", but the LP and the following tour failed to have commercial success. Concequently, Inga Rumpf and Karl-Heinz Schott announced their departure in January 1976. 

After the split, the album "Top Of The Bill" with unreleased studio recordings from December 1975 and March 1976 was released. On February 23, 1983, the original line-up reunited for a revival concert in the Hamburg Fabrik and received

Tracks
1.Get It Up (Inga Rumpf) - 5:24
2.Big Brother (Inga Rumpf) - 5:07
3.Rock 'n' Roll Preacher (Frank Diez)  - 3:42
4.Maybe It's Useless (Jean Jacques Kravetz, Inga Rumpf) - 3:41
5.Let's Get on the Road Again (Inga Rumpf) - 3:33
6.Living at the End of Time (Frank Diez) - 9:07
7.Words of Love (Frank Diez, Inga Rumpf) - 4:52
8.Mainline Florida (Bonus Track) (George Terry) - 2:59

Atlantis
*Inga Rumpf - Vocals, Guitar, Percussion
*Frank Diez - Guitar
*Jean Jacques Kravetz - Keyboards
*Karl Heinz Schott - Bass, Vocals
*Curt Cress -  Percussion, Drums
Guest Musicians
*Rainer Baumann - Guitar
*Rebop Kwaku Baah - Percussion, Conga
*Jackie Diez -  Background Vocals
*Carsten Bohn Bandstand - Drums
*Jean Roussel - Keyboards
*Claire - Vocals

Related Act
1970  Frumpy - All Will Be Changed (2008 remaster with extra tracks)
1971  Frumpy - Frumpy II
1972  Frumpy - By The Way

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Blue Cheer - The Original Human Being (1970 us, terrific hard psych classic rock, 2007 japan and 2017 japan SHM remasters)

The Original Human Being opens with the driving "Good Times Are So Hard to Find," a West Coast version of the Spencer Davis Group's "I'm a Man" that generously lifts from that classic Jimmy Miller/Steve Winwood/Spencer Davis composition. Founding member Dickie Petersen is augmented by horns, of all things, on the blues-pop "Love of a Woman." Blue Cheer sounding like Traffic and Tower of Power in two fell swoops is not what the menacing cover photo would indicate. Indeed, you can't tell a book by its cover. Logically, Blue Cheer should have taught Black Sabbath a thing or two, but the band heads more in the direction of Ozzie's Magic Lantern with its singsong hit "Shame Shame" than the grunge of guitarist Tony Iommi. Titles like "Preacher" and "Black Sun" may be better suited for Sabbath, but for fans of this ultra-cult band from the '60s, 

The Original Human Being is a vast improvement over the band's third outing, New! Improved! Blue Cheer. Keyboard player Ralph Kellogg's "Make Me Laugh" sounds strained in the vocal department, but the band has its act together and the song works. Blue Cheer is so "on" that everything works here, including the instrumental and sole songwriting contribution by drummer/sitar player Norman Mayell. It is the sleeper surprise on this disc. How many listeners wanted to like George Harrison's "The Inner Light"? "Babaji (Twilight Raga" is the blending of Ravi Shankar with pop that the Beatles sought but never found. Hidden here, the last track on side one of a Blue Cheer disc, is that magic formula. Really creative and fun stuff. "Pilot," the first of guitarist Gary Yoder's five co-writes with G.R. Grelecki, is innovative, cosmic, intellectual -- just well-threaded rock ‘n’ roll. 

Blue Cheer was not adverse to changing membership on a frequent basis and trying different formats. If the lyrics on "Pilot" are deficient, the music is distinct and original...truly "the original human being." Close to 46 minutes of music is a healthy 20-plus minutes per side, and where side one of New! Improved! Blue Cheer fell flat, just two discs later we find this album full of revelations. Of course, Petersen is the only holdover from the first two albums to appear on The Original Human Being, which says a lot about the experimentation of lineups. Blue Cheer was a musical version of a baseball team with players coming and going. Still, the groove of "Preacher" has sax weaving in and out, pre-Roxy Music and just as entertaining and enlightening. 

The production by Gary Yoder, Eric Albronda, and Norman Mayell is really fine. "Tears By My Bed" could be the Band, showing a complete shift in Peterson's musical accomplices, crafting a series of albums worthy of study. The Original Human Being and Oh Pleasant Hope are the culmination of serious efforts by Dickie Peterson. The folksy guitar riff coupled with Yoder's harp on "Man on the Run" makes for real '60s period-piece paranoia, perfect for an episode of Route 66 or The Man From U.N.C.L.E. This album is also a good argument for modern rock radio adding classic songs that never got airplay the first time around. "Man on the Run" is everything so-called "modern rock" bands aspire to be. Two more Yoder/Grelecki compositions, the funky/sensual "Sandwich" and "Rest at Ease," conclude this excellent portion of San Francisco rock, "Rest at Ease" with a descending fadeout that shows the band at the peak of its powers. 

by Joe Viglione

Tracks
1. Good Times Are So Hard To Find (Kent Housman, Norman Mayell) - 3:24
2. Love Of A Woman (Dickie Peterson) - 4:35
3. Make Me Laugh (Ralph Burns Kellogg) - 5:06
4. Pilot (Gary R. Grelecki, Gary Yoder) - 4:48
5. Babaji (Twilight Raga) (Norman Mayell) - 3:45
6. Preacher (Gary R. Grelecki, Gary Yoder) - 4:04
7. Black Sun (Gary R. Grelecki, Gary Yoder) - 3:32
8. Tears In My Bed (Ralph Burns Kellogg) - 2:06
9. Man On The Run (Dickie Peterson) - 3:58
10.Sandwich (Gary R. Grelecki, Gary Yoder) - 5:05
11.Rest At Ease (Gary R. Grelecki, Gary Yoder) - 5:35

The Blue Cheer
*Dickie Peterson – Bass, Guitar, Vocals
*Gary Lee Yoder – Guitar, Harmonica, Vocals, Harp, Vocals
*Ralph Burns Kellogg – Organ, Piano, Synthesizer, Bass
*Norman Mayell – Guitar, Percussion, Sitar, Drums
With
*Bruce Stephens - Guitar
*Jack May - Guitar
*Doug Kilmer - Bass
*William Truckaway - Synthesizer
*Martion Fierro - Saxophone
*Frank Morin - Saxophone
*Mel Martin - Saxophone
*Bill Atwood - Trumpet
*Pat O'Hara - Trombone

1968  Blue Cheer - Vincebus Eruptum (2007 Japan remaster)
1968  Blue Cheer - OutsideInside (2012 edition)
1969  Blue Cheer - Blue Cheer (Japan 2007 remaster and expanded)
1969  Blue Cheer - New Improved! (2007 japan remaster)
1971  Blue Cheer - Oh! Pleasant Hope (Japan 2007 remaster)
Related Act
1967 Mint Tatoo - Mint Tatoo

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Flamin' Groovies - Flamingo (1970 us, razzle dazzle garage 'n' roll, 2012 Audiophile remaster)

While the Flamin' Groovies' first album, Supersnazz, loaded their high-octane retro-rock down with a loving but overly intrusive production, their next long-player, Flamingo, went in exactly the opposite direction; for their second time at bat (and their second major label), the Groovies cranked up their amps and kicked up the tempos, while producer Richard Robinson stripped the band's sound to the bone. If Flamingo has a flaw, it's that the album is just a bit too basic; the recording sounds a bit flat and muddy, and it isn't very flattering to either Tim Lynch's guitar or Danny Mihm's drums (and who fell in love with the panning control while they were mixing?).

But if Flamingo sometimes sounds more like a demo than a finished album, it's a demo of a great band firing on all cylinders; with "Gonna Rock Tonite," the album starts out in fifth gear and never stops, with even the less manic tunes (such as the bluesy "Childhood's End") sounding sharp and full of fire, and the many rave-ups raving mighty fine indeed (notable exception: the trippy "She's Falling Apart," which proves these guys didn't understand psychedelia and had no business playing it, which was a considerable virtue in the Bay Area during the late '60s and early '70s). If the engineering sometimes lets them down, Flamingo does a far, far better job of capturing what made the Groovies a great band than their debut and ranks alongside their very finest work. 

by Mark Deming

Tracks
1. Gonna Rock Tonight (Roy A. Loney) - 4:48
2. Comin' After Me - 3:31
3. Headin' For The Texas Border - 5:08
4. Sweet Roll Me On Down - 2:11
5. Keep A Knockin' (Richard Penniman) - 2:16
6. Second Cousin (Roy A. Loney) - 3:19
7. Childhood's End (Roy A. Loney) - 2:26
8. Jailbait - 4:18
9. She's Falling Apart (Roy A. Loney) - 4:49
10.Road House - 5:36
All songs written by Cyril Jordan, Roy A. Loney except where indicated

The Flamin' Groovies
*Roy A. Loney - Vocals, Guitar
*Cyril Jordan - Guitar, Vocals
*Tim Lynch - Guitar, Vocals
*George Alexander - Bass Guitar
*Danny Mihm - Drums, Percussion
*Commander Cody - Piano

1971  Flamin Groovies - Teenage Head

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Hilton Valentine - All In Your Head (1969 uk, amazing folkish baroque psychedelia, 2009 remaster)

Hilton Valentine really got his start playing lead guitar with the Animals. Those were the old raving days, when Scotch and hit records and chicks and shiny limos and riots made up most of an Animal's life. "House of the Rising Sun" days - and nights.  There was even a time when Hilton got sacks of fan mail while the Burdon Himself wistfully shrugged and waited for a card from his Mum. Hilton never did anything on stage, lie just stood and played and maybe grinned. The letters and the girls rolled in. Obviously another pretty face. Everyone loves Mr. Valentine. Very sweet. He kisses the ladies' hands. Can you stand much more? The poor geezer's not to blame. A Taurus/Gemini cusper, Hilton exudes charm and gentleness. The Taurus comes out after 10. He is still a dedicated looner. Even after years of Eric Burdon shows, he makes a special trip to see his friend onstage, shouts, "Too much!" and laughs all over everybody's drinks. Fortunately, he is more Gemini. Hilton's music and message are airy, yet apt. The stuff you think of, hut nearly always keep to yourself. Things of youth and life and truth and beauty. If it is a wee mite naive it is also optimistic.

Original Notes by Debbi Smith (Strobe Magazine)

There's always been a special place in the heart of record collectors for late Sixties acid casualty albums. Syd Barrett's solo work and Alexander 'Skip' Spence's extraordinary Oar LP are probably the best known examples of this intriguing little sub-genre, but there are quite a few others worthy of note, particularly Sky Saxon's post-Seeds adventures with religious cult/commune Ya Ho Wha and former Monkees songwriter Craig Smith's equally spaced-out vinyl adventures as Maitreya Kali.

Somehow, though, Hilton Valentine's 1969 solo effort, the psychedelic folk-flavoured All In Your Head, seems to have slipped through the net, having eluded even the nefarious attentions of those individuals who can't stumble across a collectable album without bootlegging it. As guitarist with the Animals, Hilton had had a seismic effect on both the British and American music scenes of the mid-Sixties, from his iconic arpeggio intro to 'House Of The Rising Sun' to the clanging Rickenbacker chords that had shaped such classics as 'It's My Life' and 'We've Gotta Get Out Of This Place'. 

But by the time that the original Animals went their separate ways in the summer of 1966, Hilton was marinated in the acid experience, and he was still attempting to get out of the drug's clutches when, in 1969, he was given the opportunity to fly to California to record a solo album for Capitol Records.

A fascinating collection of wide-eyed, flowerchild- of-the-universe songs delivered in endearingly ramshackle fashion (though it should be noted that Hilton has subsequently disowned the album, unhappy with the baroque arrangements that were grafted onto his original, largely acoustic recordings), All In Your Head had a similar sense of melody and the same naive, childlike whimsy as similar-vintage recordings by Donovan. Unfortunately, a worsening of relations between Capitol and the Animals' management meant that, in addition to only being issued in America and Canada, All In Your Head was given little or no promotion.

Forty years later, even some hardcore Animals fanatics remain unaware of its existence. Hopefully this first-ever reissue, which represents the first time that All In Your Head has been made unavailable outside of North America, will bring a little-known but thoroughly charming album from one of the era's key musicians to wider attention.

As he had been for the last three years or so, Hilton was firmly under the influence of Donovan, so it's no surprise that All In Your Head followed the Celtic Bard's late Sixties template: latter-day nursery rhymes with a strong peace'n'love hippie ethos, fey vocals that reflected the childlike lyrics, strummed guitars, baroque orchestration and a general late Sixties psychedelic folk vibe. Two of the songs had already seen the light of day more than a couple of years earlier, 'Run Run Run' having been recorded by Keith Shields, and the near-title track 'It's All In Your Head' by Natasha Pyne. Nevertheless, they fitted in perfectly with more recent material like 'Girl From Allemagne', a lilting, charming love song that Hilton recently recalled he'd written when "I was tripping at a friend's place, and I was looking at this giri across the room who was from Germany - I felt we were communicating telepathically, and I wrote a song about it."

Hilton, however, was (and still is) extremely unhappy with what he felt to be unsuitable or overpowering arrangements, recently claiming that the production "had lost the plot of what I was trying to do". To be honest, he does have a point. Some of Vic Briggs' arrangements are perhaps obtrusively florid; 'Run Run Run', for example, is punctuated by some ridiculous didgeridoo-style interjections, the charming simplicity of 'Is There Anything But Love' is compromised by the horns arrangement, and 'Little Soldiers' bears that peculiar late Sixties weakness for vaudeville backdrops.

Nevertheless, there are occasions when the instrumentation matches the song perfectly, and the bulk of the album is a triumph. Hilton's homespun, Age of Aquarius philosophising blends with a strong sense of melody and his pleasingly wistful vocals on a handful of wide-eyed paeans to Mother Nature, including 'Listen', 'Sitting In The Sun' and the drowsy, hypnotic 'Peace', with its "peace be with you my friend" refrain and general Byrds-like air. The laconic 'It's All In Your Head' has a gently rolling, Dylanish charm that transcends the rather unsympathetic arrangement, but perhaps the strongest track is the gorgeous 'Everything Returns To Me', a fragile beauty that's so catchy that it really should have been issued as a single.

Sadly, Capitol chose not to release a single, and All In Your Head didn't make too much of an impression. Hilton claims this was due to Burdon leaving Deverich's management ("everything fell to pieces when Eric left Kevin"), and it may well be the case that Capitol's dwindling relationship with the Animals' camp played its part. Vic Briggs was sacked by Capitol in December 1969, having acted as producer on no less than three former Animals' solo albums (All In Your Head, Danny McCulloch's Wings Of A Man and Zoot Money's Welcome To My Head} as well as former Music Machine lead singer Sean Bonniwell's Close and Mark Eric's highly regarded A Midsummer Day's Dream (the latter as arranger only).

Whatever the reason for All In Your Head disappearing into the ether, it left Hilton very much a stranger in a strange land. Burdon once again helped out, employing him as a roadie for the duration of Eric's two-year liaison with the band War. "LA was perfect for me at the time", Hilton subsequently admitted. "It was the flower-power thing. I was even chanting 'Hare Krishna' for a while. Thank God I'm not still doing that. I couldn't handle the yellow robes..."

When the Burdon/War gig ended, Hilton signed on the dole. Meanwhile, he was playing in a CSNY-style soft rock band called  Oojakapiv, who signed a one-album deal with a local record company, only for the advance to mysteriously disappear. With no money coming in, he accepted an offer to become manager of the Theatre Restaurant in LA. By the time that the original Animals reconvened in late 1975 to make the wittily-titled album Before We Were So Rudely Interrupted (not released until August 1977 due to legal difficulties involving Burdon's former managers), Hilton had been a Buddhist for two or three years. "In retrospect, I'd always been trying to escape from my life until then -trying to transcend to somewhere else", he told Andy Blackford in 1986. "When I started to practice Buddhism, I began to realize that this is where it's all at. There isn't anywhere else, other than in your daily life."

Hilton returned to England in 1977, working for Chas Chandler for a year or so before moving back to his native North Shields in 1980. Further musical endeavors followed. On the back of a 1982 reissue of The House Of The Rising Sun' that peaked at No. 11 in the UK singles chart, the Animals came together once more to record an album of new material, Ark, as well as embarking on an extensive worldwide tour which resulted in the LP Greatest Hits Live!

When the Animals once again found they were unable to tolerate each others' presence on a permanent basis, Hilton reformed his pre-Animals band, the Wildcats, before joining forces with John Steel and Dave Rowberry (who'd been Alan Price's replacement back in 1965) in Animals II. He then returned to America, settling down in Connecticut, where he began to concentrate on acoustic music. Using the pseudonym Skiffledog, in 2004 he released a new CD entitled It's Folk 7V Skiffle, Mate!, which included stripped-down revamps of two All In Your Head songs, 'Peace' and 'Run Run Run1. Having toured extensively with Eric Burdon, he has recently recorded with fellow Sixties survivor, Yardbirds drummer Jim McCarty.

Forty years after the subterranean release of his first solo album, Hilton still claims that he'd rather forget all about it. That's the artist's prerogative, of course, but there's nothing about the charming period-piece All In Your Head that should embarrass him - apart, maybe, from the groovy, astrologically-inclined original sleeve note from the editor of Strobe magazine, one Debbi Smith. But such is life. Here, then, is All In Your Head in all its beautiful, gentle, enigmatic, late Sixties acid casualty glory...

by David Wells August 2009

Tracks
1. Listen - 2:40  
2. Everything Returns To Me - 2:47
3. Its All In Your Head - 3:13
4. Little Soldiers - 1:54
5. Eyes Of A Child - 2:23
6. Sitting In The Sun - 2:38
7. Is There Anything But Love - 2:45
8. Land Of Children - 2:27
9. Run,Run,Run - 2:39
10.Peace - 3:33
11.Girl From Allemagne - 2:55
All selections by Hilton Valentine

*Hilton Valentine - Vocals, Guitars

1964-67  The Animals - The Complete French EP

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The Temptations - All Directions (1972 us, classic soul funk psych, 2012 japan remaster)

The Temptations were Motown's top-selling male vocal group, racking up a ton of mid-60s hits, most of which were written by Smokey Robinson. Unique among the label's acts in that all the vocalists were able to sing lead, they succeeded with a variety of material, from ballads ("My Girl") to heavy R&B ("Ain't Too Proud To Beg"). Producer Norman Whitfield became the group's primary songwriter (with Barrett Strong), and starting around 1969 he led them into Sly Stone-inspired psychedelic funk, with lyrics that were increasingly insightful socio-political statements (including "Ball Of Confusion," which was only released as a single). 

It kept them at the top of the charts, but in fact the band's best records came before and after the psychedelic period: Whitfield's endless orchestral excursions and relentless wah-wah made albums like Psychedelic Shack difficult to sit through. While the band underwent rapid personnel changes, Whitfield moved on, and later produced popular but unambitious albums for Rose Royce ("Car Wash," "Love Doesn't Live Here Anymore")

by David Bertrand Wilson

The Temptations, like many other contemporary vocal groups, often had to cope with frequent changes in personnel. Not only did the outfit handle this well, the original group itself was a product of a line-up change or, more specifically, a merging of two groups: The Primes and The Distants. By the time of this 1972 release, after Motown’s creative prime had passed, many thought that the band, after an 11-year career, was dead. Then Damon Harris replaced Eddie Kendricks and they released Papa Was A Rolling Stone, a magnum opus of pop-funk spanning almost 12 minutes in length, which served as the central pillar of a cracking album that provided the Tempts with a new lease of life.

by Paul Rigby

Tracks
1. Funky Music Sho' Nuff Turns Me On (Barrett Strong, Norman Whitfield) - 3:08
2. Run Charlie Run (C. Maurice King, Jan Forman) - 3:17
3. Papa Was A Rollin' Stone (Barrett Strong, Norman Whitfield) - 12:08
4. Love Woke Me Up This Morning (Nickolas Ashford, Valerie Simpson) - 2:32
5. I Ain't Got Nothin' (C. Maurice King, Evans King) - 3:53
6. The First Time Ever (I Saw Your Face) (Ewan MacColl) - 4:16
7. Mother Nature (Nick Zesses, Dino Fekaris) - 3:14
8. Do Your Thing (Isaac Hayes) - 3:44

The Temptations
*Dennis Edwards - Vocals
*Damon Harris - Vocals
*Richard Street - Vocals
*Melvin Franklin - Vocals
*Otis Williams - Vocals
With
*The Funk Brothers - Instrumentation
*The Andantes - Backing Vocals

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Rich Mountain Tower - Rich Mountain Tower (1971 us, magnificent folk psych country rock, 2014 issue)

Named for a ranger lookout in Cades Cove, Knoxville country-rock act Rich Mountain Tower found some national success in the 1970s. With David Carr on lead guitar, William “Sandy” Garrett on bass and vocals, Doug Moisson on lead and pedal steel guitar, Dana Paul on 12-string acoustic guitar and vocals, and Bob Tucillo on drums, the band gained popularity playing in Knoxville clubs like Bradley’s Station, the Place, the Longbranch, and Yosamite [sic] Sam’s before getting their break following a show in Nashville. 

"Rich Mountain Tower's debut self-titled album, released in the fall of 1971, combines southern rock with acoustic ballads and psychedelic flourishes to create a sound well ahead of its time. Originally issued in quadrophonic sound, it's a superb recording that shows just what a fine and underrated band this Tennessee quintet was.

Really, though, these folks are mainly anchored in psychedelic folk, with a driving, rock rhythm and lots of jangly guitars and Southern-style slide balancing out the nascent twang. The lyrics are very hippie-dippie and diffuse, spacy, celebratory stuff about being alive and in nature, sung in airy harmonies with pedal steel an 12-string guitar providing sweet counterpoint -- all in all, a very Byrds-y sound. 

A few Nashville studio pros were brought in to beef up the band's sound -- Charlie McCoy lays down a few hot harmonica riffs, and steel player Weldon Myrick adds gorgeous accompaniment throughout. There's not a lot on here that I would call "country," as opposed to rock, and a few songs may get irritating if you're just in search of country sounds, although for psych/folk-freak fans this record is a real treat. A mixed bag, but a great document of its time. 

Slipcue

Tracks
1. Uncle Bob White - 5:08
2. Circle Sky Moon Mix (Randy Haspel, Tom McNamee) - 4:14
3. Thank You, Maggie - 3:47
4. If You Don't Look Back (Randy Haspel) - 3:13
5. Our Passage Home - 3:37
6. He Ain't Got No Color, Boys (Bob Tuccillo, Dana Paul, David Carr, Sandy Garrett) - 4:06
7. Song Of The Sea - 2:54
8. The Same Thing Applies To Me That Applies To You - 3:51
9. One Last Farewell - 2:39
10.Marie - 2:32
All songs by Dana Paul except where stated.

The Rich Mountain Tower
*Dana Paul - 12 String Guitar, Keyboards, Lead Vocals, Harmonica
*David Carr - Lead Guitar, Acoustic Guitar
*Sandy Garrett - Bass, Vocals
*Randy Haspel - Guitar, Vocals
*Bob Tuccillo - Drums, Percussion
Additional Musicians
*Lamonte "Skip" Ousley - Congas, Percussion
*Charlie McCoy - Harmonica
*John "Hoffy" Hoffmann - Banjo
*Sonny Pitman - Bass
*Weldon Myrick - Steel Guitar
*Don Tweedy - Moog Synthesizer, String Arrangements

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Zoo - Hard Times Good Times (1972 france, superb jazz psych brass prog rock, 2014 remaster)

The French band Zoo was formed in 1968. They took part in the festival in Amougies, Belgium, along with Pink Floyd, The Nice, East Of Eden, Frank Zappa, etc. The band had a strong jazz-blues-rock influenced sound with traces of psychedelia and funk. Featuring electric guitars, Hammond organ, electric violon and saxophone..

In 1972 Zoo released their 3rd album "Hard times, good times", Strong jazzy psych brass sounds, like Blood Sweat and Tears, Chicago, etc. Even though τhey participated in many big festivals  they failed to make an international career and due the lack of commercial success they disbanded in late 1972. 

Tracks

1. What Am I To Be (Ian Bellamy) - 3:54

2. Down In Memphis (Philipe Rault, Daniel Carlet) - 4:41

3. Captain (Ian Bellamy, Andre Herve) - 3:10

4. Faces (B. Bergmann, E. Baaz) - 3:58 

5. Delusions And Dreams (Philipe Rault, Michel Herve) - 3:57

6. Four Strings (Michel Ripoche) - 3:26 

7. Second Class Games (Ian Bellamy) - 3:24  

8. Hard Times, Good Times (Ian Bellamy, Andre Herve) - 2:16

9. Queen Of The Green Eyes (Ian Bellamy, Christian Devaux) - 5:58

10.La Feuille (Andre Herve, Daniel Carlet, Michel Ripoche, Ian Bellamy, Michel Herve, Philipe Rault) - 3:48 

The Zoo
*Ian Douglas Bellamy - Vocals, Percussion
*Andre Herve - Acoustic, Lead Guitar, Organ, Piano, Percussions, Vocals
*Michel Herve - Bass, Percussion
*Christian Devaux - Drums
*Michel Ripoche - Electric Violin, Tenor Saxophone, Trombone
*Daniel Carlet - Soprano, Tenor, Baryton Saxophone, Flute, Violin

1969  Zoo - Zoo (2012 Remaster)
1970  Zoo - I Shall Be Free (2011 Issue)

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Invaders - Invaders (1971 south africa, outstanding heavy psych rock, 2010 bonus tracks remaster)

The rise of The Invaders to the pinnacle of South African pop and rock stardom can be traced directly to the 1961 Cliff Richard & The Shadows tour in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. After seeing the show twenty one year old John Burke confidently declared “I was born for show business and someday I’ll be famous like The Shadows” - these would be prophetic words. Armed with a battered guitar he formed his first group called The Astronauts, the first pop band in Uitenhage but after several live dates that band splintered. Undeterred John and guitarist Errol Gobey continued in various groups including an embryonic Invaders before settling on the classic line up of John Burke-bass; Joe Moses-lead guitar ; Errol Gobey- guitar and Dave Burke –drums in 1963.

Over the next 3 years The Invaders proceeded to play every 'session', 'school hop' dance party and talent competition available, often thrashing the opposition bands. Word of mouth about their energetic live performances and in 1967 they released their debut album “Two sides of The Invaders” which rapidly achieved gold status. In December of that year they released the “Shockwave” single (also available on the “Astral Daze 2” compilation)– a seminal, fuzz drenched guitar workout that seemed to preempt the coming psychedelic revolution. This track climbed the South African charts peaking at No.10 and earning them a gold disc-the “Shockwave” single and album was a huge success” recounts Gobey, we toured the whole country and according to the media 

The Invaders were South Africa's top band”. This success is confirmed by the band's fan club which at it's peak had over 50,000 members, rivaling that of The Beatles and Rolling Stones. Another two successful albums, “One more time” and “New image” were released before the band embarked on a European tour. Hassled by red tape and permit problems but inspired by the rock explosion in the countries that they played in, the band returned to South Africa with a new vision and direction for the next album.

Now joined by vocalist Lionel Petersen and organist Rodger Pillay they entered the studio to record “There's a light, there's a way”. Gone were the guitar driven pop instrumentals and light pop tunes of previous years and in it's place was a more contemporary sound, incorporating elements of funk, prog rock and psychedelic soul. “Turn on the sun”, with it's layered vocal harmonies manages to bridge the divide between early '70s soul and pop whilst the funky “Ocean of peace” wouldn’t be out of place on a Rare Earth album ; awash with swirling Hammond and driving guitar work the pastoral “Astral III” is the perfect counterfoil to the Grand Funk like “Astral II”. With a nod to The Kinks' “You really got me” the stomping riff of “I need you” is the platform for Joe's searing guitar solo. 

Tackling a Stones classic like ‘You can’t always get what you want” is a daunting task for any band but The Invaders 'soulify' the tunes with soaring vocals, funky piano/organ lines and some jazzy flute making it one of the best covers in rock history.The original album is boosted by the inclusion of two bonus tracks; a raw version of Creedence's ‘Born on the bayou” and an earlier psych tune “Painter Man”.

With the long overdue release of ‘There's a light, there's a way”, The Invaders rightfully take their place alongside other shining lights in the rock firmament like Freedoms Children, Otis Waygood, Hawk, Suck and Abstract Truth.

by Benjy Mudie, May 2010

Tracks
1. There's A Light There's A Way (David Burke, Joe Moses) - 3:04
2. Turn On The Sun - 3:58
3. Ocean Of Peace - 4:21
4. Astral III - 4:46
5. Astral II - 3:07
6. Second Coming - 4:27
7. I Need You - 2:04
8. You Can't Always Get What You Want (Mick Jagger, Keith Richards) - 6:01
9. Born On The Bayou (John Fogerty) - 2:35
10.Painter Man (Kenny Pickett, Eddie Phillips) - 2:14
All compositions by Invades except where stated
Track #5 including excerpts from "You Really Got Me" and "I Want To Take You Higher"

The Invaders
*Joey Moses - Lead Guitar, Vocals
*Errol Gobey - Rhythm Guitar, Vocals
*Johnny Burke - Bass
*Dave Burke - Drums
*Lionel Petersen - Vocals
*Roger "Spewy" Pillay - Organ

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Nite People - P.M. (1970 uk, fascinating prog psych groovy rock)

Originated from Bournemouth circa 1965. Nite People were signed to Fontana records in 1966 before signing to Page One in 1969. Recorded couple of demos for Avenue Artists circa 1967 at Bob Potter's studio in Mytchett, Surrey and in London, circa 1969 to be included on their LP for Page One records entitled P.M.. They disbanded in 1970.

Their sole album originally issued in 1970 on the collectable Page One label and one of their rarest releases. Progressive/psychedelic sound dominated by Hammond organ/guitar with cool jazz-funk and rare-groove touches, including the mod-club classic "P.M.," the superb instrumentals "Funky Hoe" and a top cover of Frank Zappa's "Peaches en Regalia," among others.  

Tracks
1. P.M. (Barry Curtis, 'Fergy' Ferguson, Scott Kirkpatrick) - 2:58
2. Rock Island Line (Traditional) - 3:37
3. Train And A River (Jimmy Giuffre) - 3:48
4. Reach Out I'll Be There (Brian Holland, Edward Holland, Jr., Lamont Dozier) - 5:48
5. Funky Hoe (Barry Curtis, 'Fergy' Ferguson, Jim Shipstone, Scott Kirkpatrick) - 3:18
6. Season Of The Rain (Elton John, Bernie Taupin) - 3:15
7. Native Land (Curtis Amy) - 4:02
8. North Canadian Paradise (Hans Vermeulen) - 3:29
9. Delilah (Barry Mason, Les Reed) - 5:07
10.Peaches In Regalia (Frank Zappa) - 3:53

The Nite People
*Jimmy Warwick - Guitars, Vocals
*Barry Curtis - Keyboards, Recorder
*Scott Kirkpatrick - Bass
*Chris 'Fergy' Ferguson - Drums, Percussion, Vocals
Guest Musicians
*Freddy Staff - Trumpet
*John Hockridge - Trumpet
*Jeff Evans - Trumpet
*Roy Sidwell - Tenor, Baritone, Soprano Saxophones
*Allan Dilly - Baritone Saxophone
*Danny Elwood - Bass Trombone
*John Kirkland - String Leader
*Colin Frechter - Bass, String Arrangements

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Big Foot - Big Foot (1968 us, awesome early prog, jazz brass rock, Vinyl edition)

Big Foot were formed in Los Angeles California in 1967 and consisted of Art Munson (guitar, vocals), Virgil Beckham (bass, vocals), Gerard Belisle (trumpet, trombone, vocals), Spencer Earnshaw (drums), David Garland (organ, trumpet, saxophone, vocals). 

Munson had previously been a back-up musician for the Righteous Brothers while the other members played in various groups in and around Orange County. One such group was the Soul Brothers which included Beckham and Belisle who while cruising the Sunset Strip, came up with the name Big Foot, after the ape-like creature that roamed the remote mountain areas of the Pacific Northwest. 

The band played the Los Angeles area which included gigs at the Whisky-A-Go-Go and the Pussy Cat-A-Go-Go in Vegas while entertaining recording contract offers.

by Jack Dominilla

Tracks
1. I Keep Holding On (Gerard Belisle, Art Munson) - 3:26
2. Colors (Art Munson) - 3:57
3. Sarah Lee (David Garland) - 3:30
4. When Will It Hit Me (Gerard Belisle, David Garland, Virgil Beckham, Spencer Earnshaw) - 3:37
5. Living Again (Art Munson, Gerard Belisle, David Garland, Virgil Beckham) - 3:19
6. Take Me (Gerard Belisle, Art Munson) - 2:26
7. California Lights (Art Munson) - 4:59
8. Bring Another Day (Virgil Beckham) - 3:11
9. Teen Thigh (Art Munson, Spencer Earnshaw) - 2:44
10.Music Maker (Gerard Belisle, Art Munson) - 3:30
11.Let It Flow (Art Munson, Gerard Belisle, David Garland) - 3:21

The Big Foot 
*Art Munson - Guitar, Vocals
*Virgil Beckham - Bass, Vocals
*Gerard Belisle - Trumpet, Trombone, Vocals
*Spencer Earnshaw - Drums
*David Garland - Organ, Trumpet, Saxophone, Vocals

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Prentice And Tuttle ‎- Every Loving Day (1972 us, wonderful folk rural rock)

This collectable record by Steve Prentice and Stephen Tuttle, is a fragile psych folk record with strong rural Americana feeling. 

Most of the songs were recorded in a small apartment in Boston, Steve had a job as a printer, and Stephen was working in a warehouse. They had their own equipment to record a number of takes after work and weekends.

Steve and Stephen met with John Gerbron and David Cain at the Knowles House to do a couple of songs. Tapes finished in early June 1972 at Stephen's house outside Philadelphia. About a thousand of copies were made.

...On the rare occasion I listen to this music it no longer feels like listening to myself. Too much time has passed. Just two young lads playing some songs. A few moments of creativity and heartfelt expression.

by Stephen Tuttle

Tracks 
1. The River Song - 3:13
2. Old Man Taylor - 3:07
3. This Downhill Walk - 2:27
4. Jacob's Tree - 2:32
5. It's Getting Mighty Cold - 3:10
6. Deep Blue Affection - 3:07
7. Like A Midnight Crier -  
8. Just How You Feel - 2:50
9. The Devil Be Your Lord - 2:40
10.It Isn't Going To Rain This Day - 2:53
11.Ring Them Bells - 3:16
12.Every Loving Day - 3:42
Words and Music by Stephen Tuttle, Steve Prentice

Personnel
*Stephen Tuttle - Vocals, Guitar, Piano
*Steve Prentice - Guitar, Vocals
*David Cain - Bass
*John Gerbron - Drums

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The Underdogs - Blues Band And Beyond / Sitting In The Rain (1967-69 new zealand, excellent rough blues rock)

The group was originally started in 1964 by blues fanatic Archie Bowie and guitarist Harvey Mann, both from Mt Maunganui but based in Auckland. They were a hard-core blues band playing mainly traditional American negro blues, which was a brave move in Beatles-obsessed New Zealand. This early incarnation of The Underdogs was the band without an audience. Tthey had to wait for the prevailing British rhythm and blues explosion to gain an audience in New Zealand, and in The Underdogs eyes, save us all from a world of continuous yeah yeah yeahs.

The British R&B invasion spearheaded by the likes of The Yardbirds, John Mayall and The Rolling Stones took hold and The Underdogs Blues Band soon flourished, as New Zealand quickly became a stronghold of the British style of R&B. The Underdogs were a tight musical unit and soon found themselves playing in some of the inner city dances and clubs. Musical divisions within the group started to surface over musical direction, which resulted in group leader and guitarist Harvey Mann taking drastic steps to ensure that his band all travelled in the same direction together. Harvey asked Murray Grindlay if he would like to join The Underdogs as he had just fired Mick Sibley, their singer, who had taken over from Archie Bowie. Drummer Ian Thomson stayed a while then left in protest while rhythm guitarist Tony Rawnsley found himself being replaced by his brother Lou. Thomson later moved to The Brew.

After the dust had settled, there emerged a new Underdogs incarnation that would become the most enduring and best known line-up, with original members Harvey Mann (guitar) and Neil Edwards (bass) now joined by Murray Grindlay (vocals), Lou Rawnsley (rhythm guitar) and Tony Walton (drums). Without missing a beat and using the recently released John Mayall and Eric Clapton Bluesbreakers album as their blueprint the new Underdogs settled in to a Galaxie residency late in 1966 where they played alongside The La De Da’s, The Action and The Pleazers.

Eldred Stebbing signed The Underdogs to his Zodiac label. The first single ‘See Saw’/‘Looking Back’ was released in early 1967, with the A-side, ‘See Saw’ showing a slight shift in direction from their blues roots into a more soulful direction. As Murray Grindlay explains, “we started [recording] closer to what The La De Da's were playing, which was a mixture of soul and British R&B, which was a lot more commercial than the hard core blues that that the previous Underdogs line-up had played.”  Later in the year the single would be chosen as a finalist in the 1967 Loxene Golden Disc Awards.

Shortly after the release of ‘Sitting In The Rain’, group leader Harvey Mann left the group, also to join The Brew (with Ian Thomson). Miffed that Harvey had left, the remaining members decided not to replace him, to show that they didn't really need him and carried on as a four-piece. Late in 1967 work started on their debut album, which included a cover of the Donovan song ‘Hey Gyp’ that became their next single and included possibly New Zealand’s first drum tape loop.

Edwards left after being kicked out halfway through the album recording sessions, as the group’s musical direction started to change yet again. Dave Orams joined the group on bass.  The group relocated to Wellington for a short period before returning to Auckland at year’s end. Early in 1968 Orams left to join Wellington group, Quincy Conserve and was replaced by George Barris.  

Shortly afterwards the group broke up. Tony Walton went on to join a new group Jigsaw that included as their lead singer, Glyn Mason who by year's end would leave Jigsaw to take over from Larry Morris in The Rebels. Chaz Burke Kennedy and George Barris were also members of Jigsaw.  Meanwhile Murray Grindlay and Harvey Mann joined The Australasian Blues Champions who rehearsed but never really got off the ground.  After little more than a month Murray and Harvey reformed the Underdogs in April 1968. Filling out this line-up was Lou Rawnsley and Doug Thomas on drums.

This line-up of the Underdogs managed to stay together for the rest of 1968. In early 1969 they released the single ‘There Will Come A Time’/‘Fine Jung Thing’. Lou Rawnsley left after the single’s release and was replaced by Chaz Burke-Kennedy from Jigsaw, but by late 1969 the group had disbanded again. Harvey Mann and Neil Edwards got together with Glen Absolum on drums in 1970 and yet again reformed the group. They released the 1971 Bob Gillett-produced album Wasting Our Time as Pig, Mann and Edwards for Pye Records before finally breaking up for good. In 2000 Ascension Records released the CD Blues Band and Beyond, which includes their entire Zodiac output, including their album, EP and singles.

New Zealand music

Tracks
1. Oh Pretty Woman (A.C. Williams, Albert King) - 3:26
2. Snowey Wood (John Mayall, Mick Taylor) - 3:06
3. Main Line Driver - 2:17
4. Mary Anne (Lou Rawnsley, Murray Grindley) - 1:59
5. Pauline - 3:07
6. Pretty Girls - 2:34
7. Yonder Wall (James Clark) - 3:45
8. All My Love (Otis Rush) - 3:39
9. Hey Gyp (Donovan) - 2:52
10.It Hurts Me Too (Traditional) - 3:14
11.Rubber Duck (Peter Green, Aunsley Dunbar) - 2:23
12.Cheating (Live) (Chas Chandler, Eric Burdon) / Everybody Needs Somebody (Bert Russell, Jerry Wexler, Solomon Burke) / Ride Your Pony - 4:02
13.See Saw (Irving Caesar, Don Covay, George Gershwin) - 2:37
14.Looking Back (Delaney Bramlett, Tony Joe White) - 2:11
15.Sitting In The Rain (John Mayall) - 3:08
16.Shortnin Bread (Traditional) - 2:50
17.Cheating (Live) (Chas Chandler, Eric Burdon) / Everybody Needs Somebody (Bert Russell, Jerry Wexler, Solomon Burke) - 6:47
18.There Will Come A Time (Frank Zappa) - 1:44
19.Fine Jung Thing (Mike Bloomfield) - 4:03

The Underdogs
*Harvey Mann - Lead Guitar
*Lou Rawnsley - Rhythm Guitar, Lead Guitar, Bass, Vocals
*Mick Sibley - Vocals
*Murray Grindley - Vocals
*Chaz Burke Kennedy - Guitar
*Ian Thompson - Drums
*Tony Walton - Drums
*Doug Thomas - Drums
*Neil Edwards - Bass
*Dave Orams - Bass

1970  The Underdogs - Wasting Our Time
Related Acts
1971  Human Instinct - Pins In It
1972  Human Instinct - Snatmin Cuthin
1971-75  Headband - The Headband Collection

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Ginhouse - Ginhouse (1971 uk, great heavy prog rock)

Ginhouse were a trio from Newcastle consisting of Stewart Burlison (bass, vocals), Geoff Sharkey (guitar, vocals) and David Whitaker (drums). They only recorded one album. Although Ginhouse had a strong live performance at the time - they supported bands like Yes, The Who and Fleetwood Mac - this album appeared to be their swan song; they disbanded in 1972. The first reissue on CD dates from 1993 on Green Tree Records, but it failed to reach the office of Background Magazine. Thanks to Esoteric Recordings this recently remastered reissue gave me a second chance to discover the music of this band.

When you listen to this album forty years after it has been recorded you can say that it sounds rather outdated. However, I guess that isn't a problem as long as the compositions have something to say music wise. Well, this is certainly the case and I often wondered why this band never made it to the top. Not all pieces these musicians recorded for their sole effort can be regarded as progressive rock. Mainly songs as The Journey, Portrait Picture and Fair Stood The Wind drew my attention all the way. On these tracks the keyboard parts played by producer Anders Henriksson push the music of Ginhouse towards a musical style strongly related to In The Court Of The Crimson King (1969), the debut album by King Crimson. The combination of the lead vocals, which occasionally sound like the voice of Greg Lake, the acoustic guitar, organ and Mellotron flutes reminded me of several tracks from that album.

At the time Ginhouse were also influenced by the music of The Beatles which can be heard throughout the album. Therefore I wasn't really surprised to hear that they covered And I Love Her, one of the many Lennon & McCartney songs. They made a rather heavy version of this mellow acoustic song. Apart from the already mentioned influences I also heard touches of the hard rock scene that flourished in those days. Ginhouse's music isn't as heavy and loud as the music recorded by bands as Deep Purple or Black Sabbath, although the overall sound is clearly dominated by the electric guitars. Finally I heard some elements from psychedelic rock and folk music.

by Henri Strik

Tracks
1. Tyne God - 5:33
2. I Cannot Understand - 4:19
3. The Journey - 5:57
4. Portrait Picture - 5:46
5. Fair Stood The Wind - 2:51
6. And I Love Her (John Lennon, Paul McCartney) - 3:12
7. Life - 4:30
8. The Morning After - 5:13
9. The House - 3:33
10.Sun In The Bottle - 5:16
All compositions by Geoff Sharkey except track #6

The Ginhouse
*Stewart Burlison - Bass Guitar, Vocals
*Dave Whitaker - Drums
*Geoff Sharkey - Lead Guitar, Vocals

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Downchild - Bootleg (1971 canada, spectacular blues brass rock, 2007 edition)

"The blues is good news” -Anon, Sure is. Especially when the men playing the blues are faithful to the music's tradition. And in this day of blues-tinged rock, that isn't always the way things work out. The blues, a music created out of gin and troubles by black men in gritty bars, is more likely in recent years to be something produced by shrill-voiced English boys who whip around formidable amplifiers and whose natural habitat is a huge concert halt or a shiny sixteen-track recording studio. 

So much for that good old authentic feeling. Which brings us to the Downchild Blues Band. They're white at! right - Toronto white. as a matter of fact - but in their case/ color is only skin deep. Their feel for the blues has a quality that reaches back to the simplicity and touch of the black men who started it all. No electronic barrages for Downchild. No John Mayall "blues extension." No fooling around with the basic form. Downchild - the name derives, appropriately, from a blues by Sonny Boy Williamson - comes across with nothing more than the essential fun and sadness of the blues, with, if you please, a lot of reverence for the real thing. Donnie Walsh, the band's leader, guitarist and harp man, put Downchild together in 1 969. 

He had a minimum of musical experience at the time, but he was inspired by his collection of ancient 78s and 45s, records that preserved the music of the great Chicago bluesmen. With a repertoire drawn from the likes of jimmy Reed and junior Wells, plus a few Walsh originals, Downchild went into a series of Toronto bars bearing names like Forbes and Grossman's and the Dovercourt. All you need to know, about those places is that they exhibit a certain grittiness perfectly appropriate to the blues.

Downchild doesn't play loud but it does play real, and word about the band reached out to a steadily growing and passionately devoted following. And today the band, getting tighter by the gig, works a steady round of bar dates and concerts that are the last word in frantic informality. Sounds authentic? Sure does; and so was the making of this record. That happened at Sound Horn, which happens to have its studio in the second basement parking garage under Rochdale College in Toronto. The music was recorded on two-track stereo and it was mixed as it came through the board. 

Given the all-round primitive circumstances of the enterprise, the sound is amazingly fine. There are a couple of reasons for that. One is that the engineers at Sound Horn brought as much love and patience to the venture as Downchild did. The second is that you just can't help coming up with something good and true when you play blues the way Downchild does. And, speaking of primitive, wasn't that the way Howiin' Wolf and Muddy Waters, those old blues masters, made their finest records? Yeah!!

by Jack Batten

Tracks
1. Rock It (Don Walsh) - 3:58
2. Just A Little Bit (Roscoe Gordon) - 3:06
3. Down In Virginia (Jimmy Reed, Ewart Abner) - 3:36
4. That’s All Right (Jimmy Rodgers) - 4:55
5. Messin’ With The Kid (Mel London) - 3:23
6. Don’t You Bother My Baby (Don Walsh) - 4:07
7. Change My Way Of Livin’ (Taj Mahal) - 5:09
8. You Don’t Have To Go (Jimmy Reed) - 3:08
9. Next Time You See Me (Earl Forest, William G. Harvey) - 2:52
10.I’m Sinkin’ (Don Walsh, Rick Walsh) - 3:02

The Downchild
*Don Walsh - Guitar
*Rick (The Hock) Walsh - Vocals
*Jim Milne - Bass
*Cash Wall - Drums
*Dave Woodward - Tenor Saxophone
*Ron Jacobs – Tenor, Baritone Saxophones

1973  Downchild Blues Band ‎- Straight Up (Vinyl edition)

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Witness Inc. ‎- The Singles (1966-69 canada, fabulous garage psych beat, 2009 issue)

Saskatoon's Witness Inc. was formed in 1967 by singer Kenny Shields with high school friends Les Bateman on organ, Ed Clynton on guitars, bassist Allan Ayers, and drummer Dave Tupper. But before long Bob Walker had replaced Ayers and Derry Stewart had replaced Clynton. The band continued playing the prairie circuit when they caught the attention of Apex Records executives. They were taken to a local studio where they recorded several tracks to fuel their tours.

"I'll Forget Her Tomorrow," backed with "Girl Before You Go" were light-hearted pseudo-psychadelic numbers that did better than the follow-up "Jezebel," which featured "Not You Girl" as the b-side. Two more singles were released a year later, psychadelic covers of the Motown classics "Harlem Lady" b/w a haunting version of "I Put A Spell On You," and "Visions Of Vanessa" b/w "Another Side Of Her." Throughout the band's recording days, the only constants were Shields as the frontman and Bateman on organ. The revolving door continued, and the lineup featured Craig Kaleal replacing Tupper on drums, Bruce Dagenhardt briefly replacing Walker on bass, only to see Walker back in seemingly overnight. Steve Boddington replaced Stewart on guitars, only to see Stewart come back.

By 1969 the band was Shields, Bateman, Bruce Dagenhardt, Derry Stewart, and Bob Ego on drums. They recorded a cover of Allan Ayers' "So Come With Me" and "I've Got To Go" that year, but still only managed limited success outside the prairies and central Canada, although they did make a couple of trips to the east coast. Following a devastating car accident that fall that nearly claimed his life, Shields quit the band while undergoing extensive therapy and rehab. The band carried on, replacing him with Greg DeLaronde early in 1970. He too was replaced before long by Arnie Guzyk, who was also shown the door practically overnight. Meanwhile Don Johnson had been added as a second guitarist, and original guitarist Stewart was replaced by Terry Thomas.

Bateman, Ego and Walker relocated to Edmonton, where they hooked up with vocalist Ed Kilbride. They added Larry Chalmers and Bill Hardie on guitars, but other than a few appearances on a CTV variety show eminating from Calgary and Edmonton, failed to make a go of it. Confused yet? So was everyone else, and the band unofficially called it quits in early '71.

In 1975, Shields was back and reformed the band he'd started. This time the lineup was totally revamped, with only him as a returning member. The new twin-guitar attack featured Bob Deutscher and George Martin, Ken Sinnaeve was brought in on bass, Kaleal was brought back on the skins, and Daryl Gutheil was the new keyboardist. Before long though Shields got back in touch with Ego, who replaced Kaleal as the drummer. But times had changed, musical tastes in the buying public had changed with them, and Shields was unable to recapture the magic. He soon closed the book on Witness Inc, and formed Streetheart in 1976, which also featured Sinnaeve and Gutheil. Ego would go on to join Painter, Paul Hann and Mavis McCauley (ex of One Horse Blue) and do session work for a number of performers. He then reunited with Shields et al in Streetheart in 1979.

Canadian Bands

Tracks

1. I'll Forget Her Tomorrow (Tommy Kaye, Ben Wagman) - 2:06
2. Girl Before You Go (Dennis Tremmeer) - 2:08
3. Jezebel (Wayne Shanklin) - 3:14
4. Not You Girl (Ed Clynton) - 1:48
5. Harlem Lady (David McWilliams) - 3:12
6. I Put A Spell On You (Jay Hawkins) - 3:24
7. Visions Of Vanessa (Allan Ayers) - 3:40
8. Another Side Of Her (Allan Ayers) - 3:43
9. So Come With Me (Brass Version) (Allan Ayers) - 2:40
10.I've Got To Go (Kenny Shields, Allan Ayers) - 3:01
11.So Come With Me (Allan Ayers) - 2:38

The Witness Incorporation
*Les Bateman - Keyboards
*Ed Clynton - Guitar
*Dennis Tremeer - Bass
*Craig Kaleal - Drums
*Kenny Shields - Vocals
*Allan Ayers - Bass
*Dave Tupper - Drums

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The Standells - The Hot Ones (1966-67 us, fantastic blend of garage folk psych beat, rare out of print issue)

Sure, part of it's being famous and making money and who doesn't like that? But these four guys honestly dig their music, their performances, their recordings - yes, their fans, too. They enjoy being a group. As a result, they have a rapport that's a little rare in show business, where ambitions and egos often get in the way and blow relationships. You might hear one of these guys singing lead on one song and another on the next. They do whatever s best for the arrangement and they're happy that way.

It's nice for the Standells; it's nice for their audiences, too. Or, to repeat an old proverb: "Sometimes good guys don't wear white; they just get along! Well, that's what makes the Standells' recordings of the Hot Ones so Hot! They've taken the big hits, like the Monkees' Last Train to Clarksville; Donovan's Sunshine Superman; the Troggs' Wild Thing; the Rolling Stones' 19th Nervous Breakdown; the Lovin' Spoonful's Summer in the City and their own Dirty Water and worked them out the way they sound best.

And they sure do! In most of the songs, they've done actual re-creations of the famous originals, though on a couple (the Beatles' Eleanor Rjgby and Los Braves' Black is Black) they have vocals replacing instruments (not to mention the budget-conscious carhorn vocals on Summer In The City...- ed).

Here, Dick happens to be singing most of the leads, but Larry does lead voice on the Kinks' Sunny Afternoon, with Tony featured prominently on the background; and Dave is featured - novelty fashion - on Sam the Sham's Lill’ Red Riding Hood, along with Florida DJ Mike Reineri's famous "Bertha Breadsacker" voice.

Original LP Liner Notes

The Hot Ones! album, first released in September 1966, was comprised of covers of then current chart hits. In addition to the newly recorded tracks, the LP recycled two cuts from the Dirty Water album; "19th Nervous Breakdown" and "Dirty Water". To avoid repetition, these two cuts have been omitted on this set, with additional unreleased tracks inserted in their place. "You Were The One" is a previously unreleased ballad recorded during the first Ed Cobb-produced Standells' session on March 5, 1965; the same session that yielded the legendary cuts "Dirty Water" and "Rari".

The unissued tracks "School Girl" (a Graham Gouldman composition) and Cobb's "Ten O'clock Scholar" (with its great 'Boettcher-esque' vocal lines) are both outtakes from the early sessions for the Try It album, recorded near the end of 1966. They feature new member John Fleck on bass.

The somewhat out-of-character "When I Was A Cowboy" (a Leadbelly song) and the megaphoned, Tony Valentino-penned "Don't Tell Me What To Do" were originally issued in 1967 as a rare Tower 45 (#312) and credited to The Sllednats. "Misty Lane" has previously made an appearance on a U.K. compact disc, erroneously credited to Tower label-mates The Chocolate Watchband, The track is, in fact, the Standells taking a shot at what would soon become a Watchband classic. 

While the C.W.'s version surely remains the definitive performance, The Standells' take is an interesting alternative, with its unique backing vocals and use of Tony's signature fuzzed guitar tone providing the intro lines. Lastly, we have our favorite 'lost' performance, "The Standells' Love Theme", a boozy, extended, afterhours studio jam, circa 1966. Perhaps intended at one time to be chopped to shards for use in an A.I.P, biker flick, we're proud to present the lengthy session in its ultra-cool entirety.

by Bob Irwin

Tracks
1. Last Train To Clarksville (T. Boyce, B. Hart) - 2:43
2. Wild Thing (Chip Taylor) - J:5J
3. Sunshine Superman (Donovan Leitch) - 2:41
4. Sunny Afternoon (Ray Davies) - 3:22
5. Lil' Red Riding Hood (R. Blackwell) - 2:43
6. Eleanor Rigby (J. Lennon, P. McCartney) - 2:73
7. Black Is Black (Hayes, Wadey, Grainger) - 233
8. Summer In The City (J. Sebastian, M. Sebastian, S. Boone) -2:J
9. You Were The One (Ed Cobb) - 2:29
10.School Girl (Graham Gouldman) - 2:18
11.Ten O'clock Scholar (Ed Cobb) - 3:00
12.When I Was A Cowboy (H. Ledbetter) - 2:39
13.Don't Tell Me What To Do (T. Valentino) - 2:56
14.Misty Lane (M. Siegel) - 3:10
15.Standells' Love Theme (Ed Cobb, B. McElroy) - 11:18

The Standells
*Dick (Jose Taco) Dodd - Drums, Guitar
*Larry Tamblyn - Piano, Organ, Guitar, Vocals
*Pave (Super Hick) Burke - Bass, 12-string Guitar
*Tony (Mr.Parmesan) Valentino - Lead Guitar

1966  The Standells - Dirty Water
1966  The Standells - Why Pick On Me
1966-67  The Standells - Try It

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