First ever release for this previously unknown late ‘60s/ early ‘70s acetate, rescued from a thrift store in Chicago. Damaged heavy blooz-psych in the vein of Blue Cheer, Majic Ship, Mount Rushmore, Houston Fearless, Apryl Fool, Sweet Slag, Mutzie, Aum, Screw, or a wasted teenage Canned Heat.
In these digital and interconnected times, it’s very rare to find an album from the 60s-70s which hasn’t been documented or “discovered” yet. That’s the case with a mysterious demo LP titled “A Very Snug Joiner” by a band called Mad Timothy. In words of Steve Krakow (of Plastic Crimewave / Galactic Zoo): “A friend of mine found this no-jacket LP at a thrift shop, and there is ZERO information on them--no one knows anything and I've spoken to many collectors. Very cool sludgy Blue Cheer/Majic Ship/Mount Rushmore kind of vibe--with a few folkier tracks---it’s all pretty charmingly primitive-- I think people would want to hear this!”
Even knowing that our efforts to track down the band were fruitless, we thought that this rarity deserved to be shared with the world, so we at Out-Sider / Guerssen in collaboration with Steve’s Galactic Archive imprint, are doing a vinyl edition of the Mad Timothy demo album, hoping that any of the band members will see it and contact us…
*The audio has been lovingly restored for full thudding blastage, with new artwork by underground sculptor Robert Buchholz and Plastic Crimewave (Galactic Zoo Dossier).
Tracks
1. Strong Enough - 4:39
2. Drain Pipe - 3:58
3. Masters Of War (Bob Dylan) - 5:23
4. Find My Place - 2:54
5. Snug Joiner - 3:03
6. Running - 3:59
7. J.P. - 4:17
8. You Will Die If You Go Away - 4:02
9. King Bee (Slim Harpo) - 8:08
The album commences with its title song, which was at once the first real hit for the band as well as the single song which made Clapton decide to depart. “For Your Love” was presented to the band by publisher Ronnie Beck and everyone in the group, aside from Clapton, loved it. Written by then 19-year-old Graham Gouldman, the song contains a distinct harpsichord by session man Brian Auger and is overall a strong departure from the blues-rock style of most of the other material on the band. Still, it was melodic and catchy and peaked in the Top 10 on the pop charts of both the UK and US. Clapton played the sessions for this song and then immediately left the group.
When Clapton departed, Gomelsky asked Jimmy Page, then the top session man in London, to join the group. However, Page was busy and happy with his session work and suggested Beck, who was sort of an understudy, for the position which Page would ultimately fill himself a few years later. Beck immediately makes an impact on “I’m Not Talking”, with its heavy rock, crunchy riffs and rudiments along with great rhythmic elements by bassist Paul Samwell-Smith and drummer Jim McCarty. “Putty (In Your Hands)” contains a cool 60s groove while the bridge has some jazz elements, while Calvin Carter’s blues classic, “I Ain’t Got You”, features the fine harmonica playing by Relf for the first time on the album.
“Got to Hurry” is the first real original composition as an instrumental credited to Gomelsky (as “Oscar Rasputin”), but really a jam composed by the group. Rhythmically, this instrumental has surf music elements while it also acts as a showcase for Clapton’s bluesy leads. “I Ain’t Done Wrong” is a driving rocker with blues vocals by Relf and some great rudimental riffs thrown in for fun, while “I Wish You Would” is another blues standard with consistent, upbeat guitar rhythm by Dreja and Relf adding harmonica between every line during the verses. This side two opener also has a bridge section which builds towards a frenzied crescendo and was released as a single in August 1964. Although “A Certain Girl” was just the ‘B-side’ for the previous track, but is the first real shot at pop with a bright sound, strong melody, call and response vocals, and a blistering pop lead by Clapton which sounds like a souped-up Byrds lead.
The Yardbirds sound like a whole different band on “Sweet Music”, a song produced by Manfred Mann who also brought in some outside session players and vocals. The track is interesting because of the players involved, but really out of place on this album. In contrast, “Good Morning Little Schoolgirl” is pure fifties-style pop style with harmonized vocals, Relf’s fine harmonica, and an outstanding, bluesy lead by Clapton. The song was originally composed and recorded by Williamson nearly three decades earlier. “My Girl Sloopy” is an interesting album closer as a fun rendition of a song which had not yet been made famous as “Hang On Sloopy” by The McCoys. The vocals here are odd but entertaining, especially the exaggerated high pitched harmonies and this extended track adds some Beatles elements.
While For Your Love barely broke the Top 100 on the album charts, it set The Yardbirds up for their first American tour, where Beck began to forge his own sound as well as help direct the group’s evolving sound through the mid sixties.
Tracks
1. For Your Love (Graham Gouldman) - 2:33
2. I'm Not Talking (Mose Allison) - 2:35
3. Putty (In Your Hands) (Kay Rogers, John Patton) - 2:21
4. I Ain't Got You (Calvin Carter) - 2:03
5. Got To Hurry (Giorgio Gomelsky) - 2:36
6. I Ain't Done Wrong (Keith Relf) - 3:42
7. I Wish You Would (Billy Boy Arnold) - 2:22
8. A Certain Girl (Allen Toussaint) - 2:21
9. Sweet Music (Major Lance, Otis Leavill Cobb, Walter Bowie) - 2:33
10.Good Morning Little Schoolgirls (H.G. Demarais) - 2:49
11.My Girl Sloopy (Bert Russell, Wes Farrell) - 5:41
12.Steeled Blues (Keith Relf, Jeff Beck) - 2:38
The Yardbirds
*Keith Relf - Lead Vocals, Harmonica, Acoustic Guitar
*Eric Clapton - Lead Guitar
*Jeff Beck - Lead Guitar (Tracks 2, 4, 11, 12)
*Chris Dreja - Rhythm Guitar, Lead Guitar
*Paul Samwell-Smith - Bass Guitar, Backing Vocals
*Jim McCarty - Drums, Backing Vocals With
*Giorgio Gomelsky - Backing Vocal
*Brian Auger - Harpsichord
*Denny Pierce - Bongos
*Ron Prentice - Bass
*Manfred Mann - Keyboard, Backing Vocals
*Paul Jones - Backing Vocals
*Mike Hugg - Vibes
*Tom McGuinness - Guitar
*Mike Vickers - Guitar
*Unknown- Sitar
*Unknown- Tabla
Gary Farr has one of the most distinctive r'n'b inflected voices of the early seventies British singer-songwriter. His second and finest solo album - 1970's Strange Fruit is an unjustly neglected gem amongst the many albums from that era and genre, A popular live performer in the mid-6G's clubs of centra! London, Farr had an enviable reputation as the leader of the T-Bones, by 1963 he had decided on a soio career founded upon his richly moody original Songs.
Gary Farr was the son of the former British Heavyweight Boxing champion Tommy Farr – the Tonypandy Terror - who in 1937 memorably completed 15 rounds with World Champion Joe Louis. After retiring from the ring Tommy settled his family on the Sussex coast. It was here the Gary began playing folk and blues music in pubs and clubs around the Worthing and Brighton area. In 1963 at the height of the "Beat Boom" he formed the fabulous T-Bones. The group was continually changing line-up, including short stints from keyboardist Keith Emerson and bassist Lee Jackson, both later to form the Nice. The band was a live sensation, securing a weekly residency at London's prestigious Marquee Club and replacing the Yardbirds as the resident band at London's Crawdaddy Club. The contemporary Fabulous magazine breathlessly reported - "Down at the Marquee Club in London's Wardour Street, there are long, long queues every Friday to see five swingers called The T-Bones."
A talented and popular live band, Gary Farr and the T-Bones released three singles and an EP (Dem Bones, Dem Bones, Dem T-Bones) on the Columbia label in 1964 and 1965. Their powerful, rhythm 'n' blues repertoire didn't translate too successfully to vinyl, never making the music charts. The band undoubtedly got their biggest exposure when their performance of "Wooly Bully" at the Richmond Jazz & Blues Festival in August 1965 appeared on American television's 'Shindig Goes to London'. Farr and the T-Bones are seen playing between slots by the much more celebrated Animals, Moody Blues, George Fame, and Steampacket (featuring future stars Julie Driscoll, Brian Auger, Long John Baldry, and Rod Stewart). The T-Bones struggled on for a further year before disbanding in late 1966.
Returning to solo gigs, Farr re embraced his folk roots, though the man who ran the Crawdaddy, Giorgio Gomelsky - who'd also managed the Yardbirds in their first few years - continued to be involved in the singer's career. An obscure 1967 bootleg recorded live in Sweden by the Gomelsky managed psychedelic band Blossom Toes, also features a solo acoustic Farr performing a couple of tunes, including a cover of Tim Hardin's "Hang on to a Dream". He briefly worked with Blossom Toes drummer Kevin Westlake, the pair issuing a single "Everyday" / "Green" in May 1968, before Farr released his 1969 solo debut Take Something With You also on Gomelsky's Marmalade label. The album was heavily influenced by contemporary folk and progressive rock especially recent recordings by Tim Buckley and Tim Hardin; sometimes having a memorable pastoral rock-jazz-folk feel a la Traffic. Curiously the album sits comfortably alongside label mate Gordon Jackson's Thinking Back (which boasted Traffic among the supporting players).
Turning in commendable performances on Farr's LP are members of two of the most inventive bands on the head circuit at that time - Blossom Toes and Mighty Baby (one of the great lost British psychedelic ensembles) had formed in 1968 from the ashes of The Action - a bunch of Tamla Motown influenced mods. They released two sought after albums, Mighty Baby – which appeared on the short-lived Head label in December 1969, (but had been recorded a year earlier) and A Jug Of Love (released on Blue Horizon in October 1971). The band were known for their ambitious improvised live sets and were in demand as session musicians, appearing on albums from Andy Roberts (Home Grown), Sandy Denny (The North Star Grassman ft The Ravens), Keith Christmas (Stimulus and Fable of The Wings), Shelagh McDonald (Stargazer) and Robin Scott (Woman From The Warm Grass) among many. Between their two albums, members of the band became Sufi Muslims. Keyboardist Ian Whiteman would appear on Richard & Linda Thompson's beautiful Sufi influenced Pour Down Like Silver, and with Roger Powell and Mike Evans would form the Thompson's backing band during a legendary 1977 tour of Britain.
Completing a circle in your humble correspondents brain - these three Mighty Baby stalwarts - Whiteman, Powell and Evans would also appear on Gary Farr's next album, 1970's Strange Fruit, which also includes Fairport Convention's Richard Thompson on lead guitar. Richard Thompson is arguably Britain's finest electric guitarist. A founder member of Fairport Convention - the band credited with inventing the British version of folk-rock. Their 1969 masterwork Liege and Lief has long been regarded as a milestone recording, defining British rock in the same way that Music From Big Pink was to define North American rock with traditional roots. It was this album that finally revealed the extent of Richard's talent as a songwriter – writing contemporary songs whilst drawing upon deep traditional modes. Throughout the early 70's Thompson was called upon to add his distinctive guitar to a bewildering number of recordings. Farr's Strange Fruit was one of his first studio sessions outside the Fairport / Witch season orbit and probably marks the first time he met the Mighty Baby rhythm section.
After the demise of Marmalade, Farr secured a new contract with CBS records. Work soon began on recording his second album. In his brief sleeve note, brother Ricky Farr reveals the high hopes that they had for the project. Ricky was the erstwhile manager of the Action and one of the promoters of the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival. This familial connection no doubt explains the presence of the three Mighty Baby's on the sessions and Gary's appearance at both the 1969 and 1970 Isle of Wight Festivals. Strange Fruit is notable for the contributions of several other young turks on the London music scene. The LP was produced by Fritz Fryer, a former member of the Four Pennies, who in 1970 was just beginning his career as a record producer. He would go on to establish the well-known Rockfield Studios in Monmouth producing acts as diverse as Stackridge, Skin Alley, Motorhead, Nucleus, Horslips and in 1973 Prelude's hit reading of Neil Young's "After The Goldrush".
String arrangements were written by a 21 year old Mike Batt, soon to achieve chart fame as a Womble. Sleeve photographer Eric Hayes from Canada was briefly in London working as house photographer for the London edition of Rolling Stone. He took the memorable photos of Fairport Convention rehearsing Liege ft Lief at Farley Chamberlyne. Strange Fruit is a compelling early example of a pastoral roots rock, there's an attractive melancholy atmosphere to many of Farr's performances. He's at his best when the compositions and arrangements are the folkiest - slightly recalling American songwriters Tim Buckley and Tim Hardin. Listening again, all these years later, one is left with the feeling that the album has been somewhat unjustly overlooked. Perhaps if he had spent longer with one record company the story would be different. Gary's final recording was the 1973 Jerry Wexler produced Addressed To The Censors Of Love (Atco), recorded at Muscle Shoals Sound in Alabama, using respected session men such as guitarists Jimmy Johnson and Pete Carr, keyboardist Barry Beckett, bassist David Hood, and drummer Roger Hawkins. Despite a slightly more soul-rock focus this album also failed to find favour with a larger audience. In only ten years of recording Gary Farr had navigated a fascinating journey through r'n'b, folk, blues and soul, essaying a fine body of "really valid songs for today". Sadly Gary Farr died in Los Angeles in August 1994.
by David Suff, November 2007
Tracks
1. In The Mud - 3:41
2. Old Man Boulder - 4:49
3. Strange Fruit (Lewis Allen) - 4:55
4. Margie - 4:13
5. Revolution Of The Season - 4:59
6. About This Time Of Year - 4:48
7. Down Among The Dead Men - 4:42
8. Proverbs Of Heaven And Hell - 3:31
9. Old Man Moses - 3:13
10.Sweet Angelina - 4:46
11.Revolution Of The Season - 3:44
Music and Lyrics by Gary Farr except where noted
Trapeze has long been underrated in hard rock and metal circles, as along with bands like UFO, Thin Lizzy, Uriah Heep, Black Sabbath, and Deep Purple, helped define European heavy metal and shape "riff" rock of the 80's. Comprised of Glenn Hughes on vocals, bass, and keyboards, Mel Galley (later of Whitesnake) on guitar, and Dave Holland (later of Judas Priest) on drums, the band was a bona fide supergroup, but only recorded a few albums together before Hughes left to replace Roger Glover in Deep Purple in 1973, shortly after the tour for this album.
Songs like "Keepin' Time" and "Way Back to the Bone" contain huge guitar riffs from Galley, while Hughes and Holland lay down some funky rhythms. In fact, listening to some of these songs it is apparent who really came up with those chunky riffs on the Whitesnake album Slide it In. "Coast to Coast" is Hughes' signature melodic rocker, and the singer also shines on the earthy "What is a Woman's Role", a tune that features some neat electric piano and big rock guitar riffs. The band walks into Humble Pie or Bad Company arena rock territory on the funky blues rocker "Feelin' So Much Better Now", with Hughes' Steve Marriott inspired screeching leading the way over Galley's crushing power chords.
Atmospheric sax and liquid electric piano give the crooning "Will Our Love End" a jazzy quality, while "Loser" is a heavy, funkified affair that sounds like it could have come off a Grand Funk Railroad album from the same time period. Galley's guitar solos are just plain dirty and nasty here, as he shows what an unknown talent he really was. The title track is a busy funky romp, littered with Hughes' intricate bass work and Galley's meaty riffs. A great ending to a landmark album.
Those new to Trapeze would be doing themselves justice by starting off here or with Medusa, another excellent release from this same line-up. Only then will you begin to realize just what all the fuss is about.
by Pete Pardo, November 5th 2003
Tracks
1. Keepin Time (Mel Galley, Tom Galley) - 3:42
2. Coast To Coast (Glenn Hughes) - 3:57
3. What Is A Woman's Role (Glenn Hughes) - 5:39
4. Way Back To The Bone (Glenn Hughes) - 5:25
5. Feelin So Much Better (Glenn Hughes) - 3:36
6. Will Our Love End (Glenn Hughes) - 5:04
7. Loser (Mel Galley, Tom Galley) - 4:38
8. You Are The Music, We're Just The Band (Mel Galley, Tom Galley) - 5:13
Trapeze
*Glenn Hughes - Bass, Piano, Vocals
*Mel Galley - Guitar
*Dave Holland - Drums, Percussion With
*B. J. Cole - Steel Guitar
*Rod Argent - Electric Piano
*Kirk Duncan - Electric Piano
*John Ogden - Percussion
*Frank Ricotti - Vibraphone
*Jimmy Hastings - Alto Saxophone
Designed in 1928 by Charles N. Agree for dance hall entrepreneurs Edward J. Strata and his partner Edward J. Davis, the Grande started off as a place Detroiters would go to dance and listen to jazz and big band sounds, but it would later achieve immortal status in the annals of music history as a rock venue. It is arguably the birthplace of punk and hard-driving rock, where bands like The MC5 and The Stooges cut their chops and became legends.
The building was designed in the Moorish Deco style and contained storefront space on the first floor and on the second a ballroom with Moorish arches featuring a floor on springs that gave dancers the feeling of floating. The dance floor held 1,500 dancers and was one of the largest in the city. Its ground floor had several retail tenants, such as W.T. Grant Department Stores, Beverly's and a drugstore. The neighborhood was a predominately Jewish enclave in the 1930s and '40s.
By 1961, the Grande was the only venue in the city with any semblance of what ballroom dancing used to be.
The ballroom did not serve liquor, "nor do we allow persons who have been drinking on the premises. This is not a pickup place," she told the News. "We do not emphasize the type of dancing or create the kind of atmosphere that appeals to troublemakers."
Russ Gibb, a social studies teacher at Maples Junior High School in Dearborn was a popular local radio DJ at the time. Gibb took a trip out to San Francisco to visit a friend in early 1966 and paid a visit to the storied Fillmore Auditorium and saw The Byrds. When he returned to Detroit, he set out to bring Bill Graham's Fillmore to the Motor City. He scouted out several locations, including the then-closed, since-demolished Gayety Burlesque theater on Cadillac Square downtown and the ballroom of the Statler Hotel on Grand Circus Park, which also has been razed. He settled on the Grande, which was near the neighborhood he grew up in back in the 1940s and entered a rent-to-buy deal with the Kleinman family.
The Grande opened the evening of Oct. 7, 1966, to a crowd of about 60 people turning out to see the Chosen Few and The MC5. Before long, the rock music and the counter-culture environment started luring kids from the suburbs eager to shed the ties and ditch the Brylcreem. The Grande became "the embassy for the suburban youth, whose parents had spirited them out of Detroit forever," Sinclair said. "They kind of thought the shopping malls were kind of lame, you know? They wanted to do something more interesting, so they started coming into the city. … Just as their parents feared, it rubbed off."
It featured one of the largest strobe lights ever built at the time. While Gibb, who was paying about $700 a month in rent, started off booking local acts like the MC5, Stooges, SRC, The Frost and the Rationals, in 1967, he started bringing in famous touring rock acts, the first being Vanilla Fudge on Dec. 15. Other rock legends soon followed, pummeling the sweaty crowds in temperatures that sometime reached 100 degrees: Led Zeppelin, John Lee Hooker, the Yardbirds, Cream, Pink Floyd, Canned Heat, the Jeff Beck Group, The Byrds, Big Brother and the Holding Company, Chuck Berry, Howlin' Wolf, the Velvet Underground, Canned Heat, the Steve Miller Band, Country Joe and the Fish, Blue Cheer, Tim Buckley and more all played the Grande.
The Grande's final show came on New Year's Eve 1972. Gibb had started booking shows at bigger venues, including the Michigan Palace (formerly the Michigan Theatre), and in other cities across the Midwest. "A big frustration for me was the New York and Hollywood agents," Gibb said. "If I wanted to have The Doors play, I had to take two or three of their bands, too. I wanted to put local bands on the bill. The greed was incredible. Plus, people were always thinking we were dopers and the cops were giving us a hard time. …
by Dan Austin
Frost was a late 60's band from Alpena, Michigan. They were led by legendary guitarist, Dick Wagner, who went on to play with, Lou Reed, Alice Cooper, David Bowie, Kiss and Ursa Major in the 1970s. The rest of the band consisted of Gordy Garris (bass guitar), Bob Rigg (drums), and Don Hartman (rhythm guitar). 'Live At The Grande Ballroom' was originally recorded in 1969, from various appearances, a litle bit different tracklist from their other live album "Rock and Roll Music".
Tracks
1. Opening Announcement - 0:14
2. Rock And Roll Music - 3:10
3. Sweet Lady Love - 4:22
4. Baby Once You Got It (Bob Rigg, Don Hartman, Gordy Garris) - 5:26
5. Donny's Blues (Don Hartman) - 7:49
6. Black As Night - 3:59
7. 1500 Miles (Through The Eye Of A Beatle) (Don Hartman) - 2:57
8. Take My Hand-Mystery Man (Dick Wagner, Don Hartman) - 10:10
9. Black Train - 3:56
10.We Gotta Get Out Of This Place (Barry Mann, Cynthia Weil) - 16:50
All songs by Dick Wagner except where noted
Frost’s final and, in Dick Wagner’s opinion, best album, “Through The Eyes Of Love”, was released in 1970. The album contained seven great songs including two, Wagner’s “Black As Night” and Donny Hartman’s “Fifteen Hundred Miles (Through The Eye Of A Beatle)”, that had been originally recorded at the Grande Ballroom but left off of “Rock and Roll Music”. Despite the overall quality of “Through The Eyes Of Love”, the Frost again fell victim to Vanguard’s lack of support and the album sold poorly.
Wagner related in an interview in 2003 that when the Frost went out to San Francisco to open for B.B. King at the Fillmore West in support of their new album, the crowds loved them but everywhere they went their records were nowhere to be found. Vanguard had sent no representatives to support them, so without vital label promotion no one in the cities they were playing in knew anything about the Frost. Band members felt that their record label had let them down and that they were basically on their own. This in turn resulted in resentment and a loss of group morale.
According to Wagner, the end came when drummer Bobby Riggs became upset that the band wasn’t getting the adulation on the road that it routinely received in Michigan. At the start of a tour of Canada, Riggs decided he no longer wanted to continue, and he left the rest of the group in Toronto and flew home. Wagner had to cancel the remaining shows, and that signaled the demise of the original Frost. Hartman and Riggs later tried to rekindle the Frost in 1971 and 1972 with new bassist Rick Bozzo and keyboardist Robin Robbins, but without Wagner and Garris, the band was only a pale shadow of its former self.
After the Frost break-up, Dick Wagner traveled to New York where his manager pitched him the idea of joining a band he was putting together called Ursa Major.
Originally, Billy Joel was to be the keyboardist in the trio. Joel at that time, however, was undergoing some severe emotional problems and had to drop out of the project. Wagner recruited bassist and keyboardist Greg Arama from Michigan’s Amboy Dukes to fill the void. Dick Wagner then took over leadership in the band and wrote all seven songs for the band’s self-titled debut album, “Ursa Major”, produced by Bob Ezrin.
Although the album received positive reviews and Ursa Major toured as an opening act for both Alice Cooper and Beck, Bogart & Appice, the album didn’t sell and the band dissolved. Wagner was then called by producer Bob Ezrin to play guitar on some Alice Cooper sessions. Dick played uncredited on the “School’s Out”, “Billion Dollar Babies” and “Muscle Of Love” albums and established a close friendship with Alice.
The connection with producer Ezrin led to Wagner’s next gig, playing guitar on Lou Reed’s “Berlin” album. Dick and fellow Michigander Steve Hunter, who also played on “Berlin”, then joined Reed’s touring band. This resulted in 1974’s highly acclaimed “Rock ‘N’ Roll Animal” live album on which the twin guitars of Wagner and Hunter overshadowed Lou Reed’s performance.
After the break-up of the original Alice Cooper band, Cooper decided to go solo and Wagner was brought in to help Alice write a ‘concept’ album. The two went to Nassau in the Bahamas and eventually came up with ideas and songs for the “Welcome To My Nightmare” album. Wagner and Cooper settled into a songwriting partnership in which Dick would compose the music and Alice would come up with the lyrics. The album’s big hit single was a ballad called “Only Women Bleed”. Cooper changed the words to a song Dick had written back in 1968 called “I’m Moving On”. Released as “Only Women”, the single was a huge hit and it helped propel the ‘Welcome To My Nightmare Tour’ into one of the biggest and most successful rock productions of the 1970’s. The tour’s elaborate stage show, which featured both Dick Wagner and Steve Hunter on guitars, set the standard for Rock and Roll theatrics.
The songwriting partnership between Cooper and Wagner flourished for the next few albums before Alice’s alcoholism got the best of him. The pair collaborated on three more hit big singles in the late 70’s, “I Never Cry”, “You And Me”, and “How You Gonna See Me Now”, before Cooper was institutionalized for his drinking problems.
Since that time, Dick has done some solo projects, wrote hit material for Air Supply, worked off and on with Alice Cooper, and joined John Bradshaw in the Remember The Child project. He returned to Saginaw in the 1990’s and opened his own recording studio. While in Saginaw, Wagner performed his Remember The Child music with John Bradhaw, the Saginaw Bay Symphony Orchestra, and a gospel choir during a memorable outdoor concert on the Campus of Saginaw Valley State University.
Donny Hartman lives in Northern Michigan and performs and records with the Donny Hartman Band. Bobby Riggs has played with Wagner and Hartman in several Frost reunions, and he recorded the CD single, “This Band Can Rock And Roll Forever/In The Middle Of The Night” with them in 1999 as part of the Frost 30th Anniversary Tour. After the Frost, Gordy Garris played in Whipeye and then in the Gordy Garris Band. He continues to be involved in music as a songwriter, but he has not participated in the Frost reunions.
In 2005, Dick Wagner closed his Saginaw recording studio and moved permanently to Phoenix, Arizona. In 2007, he suffered a major heart attack. Happily, Dick is on the road to recovery, and he is playing guitar again and producing a new artist called Wensday for his independent label Desert Dreams Records. Wagner has recently been working with his old guitar partner Steve Hunter, and there is a possibility that Dick and Alice Cooper may write together again in the near future.
Frost was voted into Michigan Rock and Roll Legends in 2008. "Mystery Man" was voted a Legendary Michigan Song in 2010.
Tracks
1. Black As Night - 7:37
2. Fifteen Hundred Miles (Through The Eyes Of A Beatle) (Donny Hartman) - 3:39
3. Through The Eyes Of Love - God Helps Us Please - 6:16
4. Maybe Tomorrow - 2:53
5. It's So Hard - 4:51
6. A Long Way From Home - 3:53
7. Big Time Spender - 4:32
All songs by Dick Wagner except where stated
Every autumn, when the nights start to get longer, the air begins to cool and all of the leaves start to change colors, I get an insatiable craving for folk music, but specifically English and psychedelic/acid folk and folk rock.
I’m not entirely sure why I prefer this particular sound at this time of year, but I think it has to do with these records often having a sort of chilly and rustic quality to them, which I immediately associate with the harvest, strolls through damp forests of yellow and orange under darkly overcast skies and vacant, leaf-strewn cemeteries. (A bit vague, I admit, but hopefully you know what I mean.)
The usual go-to albums that fit the bill for me include the likes of: First Utterance by Comus, The Hangman’s Beautiful Daughter by The Incredible String Band, the first four or five Pentangle and Fairport Convention records and of course the enigmatic work of Vashti Bunyan and Nick Drake. However, there are several artists and albums that I revisit each autumn that have sadly gone a little under the radar but still deserve just as much praise as some of their better-known contemporaries.
To help share my love of these lesser-known folk albums and to celebrate the season (the best time of year, in my opinion) I’m going to review a personal favorite of mine once per week until late November. I want to go all through the fall and we all know that winter doesn’t officially start until around December 21st, but let’s face it, by Thanksgiving, we’re so buried in Christmas music, decorations and much colder weather, it really doesn’t feel like autumn anymore.
Seeing that it’s still September, why not start with a band that recorded a track called “September Song”?
Fly On Strangewings by Jade (or ‘Marianne Segal and Silver Jade,’ as they were known in the US) is a unique yet successful hybridization of the traditional English folk rock style with the more polished American folk-pop sound. Imagine if Sandy Denny-era Strawbs recorded with the likes of Judy Collins or John Phillips.
Released in 1970, Fly on Strangewings is surprisingly accessible, even for its time, despite its eclectic instrumentation, which includes electric violin and generous amounts of harpsichord. The songs are all generally catchy and focus greatly on melody while mainly being constructed around piano and acoustic guitar parts, sounding similar to Unhalfbricking-era Fairport Convention.
The strongest moments of the album happen when the group leans the furthest into their English folk roots, like the galloping, Fotheringay-like “Mrs. Adams” and the dreamy, harvest imagery-laden opening track, “Amongst Anemones.” Another major highlight is the hazy, almost Jefferson Airplane-like “Reflections on a Harbour Wall,” with its phased, acidic electric guitar lines. These stand out moments also all share a sharp, driving rhythm, which makes sense, seeing that they all feature Pentangle’s Terry Cox behind the drum kit.
The one complaint that I have is that sometimes the orchestrations sound a little corny. Perhaps I’m spoiled by the superb Joe Boyd productions that came out around the same time, but I feel like the few songs on this record that feature orchestrations could have benefited from being arranged by the likes of Robert Kirby. That’s just my personal preference and I’m really nitpicking, because it really doesn’t detract that much from the album.
While this is the only record officially credited to Jade, some reissues feature bonus tracks made by Marianne Segal prior to and after Strangewings. The best of this other material include the previously mentioned “September Song” as well as an excellent cover of “Carolina in My Mind.” However, as of only a few weeks ago, a 3CD set called Fly on Strangewings: Anthology was released with tons of unreleased rehearsal and demo recordings as well as other songs by Segal as a solo artist as well as a duo with fellow Jade-member, Dave Waite. I have yet to hear this set since it just came out, but I imagine that it would be worth seeking out.
Talk about good timing!
If I could give a copy of this album to every person that liked Fairport, Roy Harper or Marianne Faithfull, then I’d do it in a heartbeat.
Disc 3
1. Circle Round The Sun (Master, 1971) - 3:57
2. Middling Man (Master, 1971) - 4:11
3. Gold Dust And Dirt - Song For Leonard Cohen (Demo, 1973) - 4:26
4. Sit Yourself Down (Demo 1974) - 4:45
5. Lucky Seven (Demo 1974) - 3:52
6. Fly Me To The North (Live, 1975) - 3:32
7. Deal Out The Cards (Master, 1976) - 2:13
8. Miranda (Master, 1976) - 4:33
9. Peaceful Easy Feeling (Master, 1976) (Jack Tempchin) - 3:28
10.So Sure Tonight (Master, May 1979) - 3:32
11.Kiss Of The Buddha (Master, May 1979) - 3:45
12.Outside The Wall (Master, 1984) (John B. Spencer, Graeme Taylor) - 4:57
13.Gypsy Girl (Master, 1990) - 3:34
14.This Life (Demo 1996) - 4:17
15.The Water Is Wide (Master, 2013) (Traditional) - 5:43
16.Better Side Of Me (Demo 1972) - 4:17
17.Topanga (Demo 1972) - 4:34
18.Swallow (Demo 1973) - 4:24
19.Bullseye On A Rainy Night (Demo 1974) - 4:00
All compositions by Marian Segal except where indiacated
Growing up in Memphis, Tennessee, he acquired a broad taste in music...records from blues greats such as Sonny Boy Williamson and Freddie King were placed alongside the Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra discs in his collection. Nix first started playing guitar but picked up the saxophone for his first real band.
The Mar-Keys were "a high school band" formed by Messick High School students. Along with Steve Cropper, Duck Dunn, Wayne Jackson, Andrew Love, Charlie Freeman, Packy Axton and others, they recorded "Last Night", an instrumental record intended for local radio that became an international hit in 1961, establishing the foundation of Stax Records. The group had follow up hits "The Morning After" and "Popeye Stroll".
They toured the world (with acts such as the Yardbirds, Ike and Tina Turner, Sam the Sham, Gary Lewis and the Playboys, etc.) and backed up various other Stax artists (Carla and Rufus Thomas, William Bell, etc.) onstage and in the studio.
The band eventually broke up following a rowdy appearance on American Bandstand (Packy Axton arrived at the studio taping less than sober and the entire band gave Dick Clark the "finger" afterwards) with Cropper and Dunn joining Booker T. and the MG's, and Wayne Jackson forming the Memphis Horns with Andrew Love. Other members of the original group included renown session guitarist Charlie Freeman and Jerry Lee "Smoochie" Smith.
After years of touring with the Mar-Keys, Nix was tired of the travel and uninterested with the show business aspect of playing onstage. He found his niche creating and directing music production behind the scenes.
He played the part of backup musician to tracks cut at Stax studios (including William Bell's huge hit You Don't Miss Your Water and eventually wore the hat of record company exec, overseeing the day to day operations of Stax's rock themed subsidiary label Enterprise.
Nix honed his production skills at Stax, John Fry's Ardent Studios, and at Leon Russell and Denny Cordell's Shelter label, producing artists such as Albert King, Delaney and Bonnie, Joe Cocker, Sid Selvidge and Tracy Nelson.
Despite his reluctance to ever beome a front man or stage performer, Nix released brilliant (but underrated) solo albums on Shelter and Enterprise, such as Living By The Days and Hobos, Heroes, and Street Corner Clowns. Well worth the listen, Nix used the finest musicians and vocalists from Memphis (Larry Raspberry, Jeannie Greene, etc.), Muscle Shoals, and the crowd at Shelter, known as the Shelter People (Claudia Lennear, Kathi McDonald, Chris Blackwell, Carl Radle, Don Preston, etc.) as players.
Nix's most notable project during this period was producing childhood hero Freddie King at the famous Chess Studios in Chicago. Leon Russell and Duck Dunn played on the session which produced a hit record for King, a song penned by Nix entitled "Goin' Down" , which has become somewhat of a standard jam tune with bar bands and rock stars alike. It has been covered by Deep Purple, Pearl Jam, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Mick Jagger, Maggie Bell with Stone the Crows and many others.
Jeff Beck covered "Goin Down" on his 1972 Jeff Beck Group album on Epic, and the next year Nix produced his colaboration with ex- Vanilla Fudge members Tim Bogert and Carmine Appice titled Beck, Bogart, and Appice.
Despite his reluctance to go back on the road, it was a necessity for Nix to tour and promote his solo albums. He formed the Alabama State Troupers around the premise of recreating an old time traveling music show.
Nix teamed with singer Jeannie Greene and guitarist Lonnie Mack, and they hit the road to promote their individual solo albums, backed by the finest musicians from Muscle Shoals and Memphis.
The group included Wayne Perkins and Tippy Armstrong on guitar, Clayton Ivey on piano, organist Ken Woodley, Bob Wray on bass, Ken Woodley on keyoards, drummers Tarp Tarrant (from Jerry Lee Lewis's band) and Fred Proudly (formely of the Hot Dogs), and the "Mt. Zion choir" with singers Marilyn Greene, Brenda Patterson, Mary "Bouche" Anderson, Carolyn "Pepper" Watkins and Marianne "Tweety" Watkins along with bodyguard/bouncer/cook "Sweet Emily" Smith. The band was a rock and roll version of a big tent revival.
They played shows up and down the west coast (most were simucast on local FM radio), and charged "plain folk prices" (usually $1 or $1.50). The tour was a wild success but ran into trouble when Lonnie Mack unexpectedly pulled out after the first few shows.
Nix turned to an old friend from Memphis, legendary Beale street bluesman Walter "Furry" Lewis for help. Lewis fought his fear of flying and caught the first plane west to join the tour.
The presence of a true authentic bluesman meshed with the younger players onstage was new and unexpected to the early 70's rock audiences, but they were remarkably well received. Lewis continued until the tour ended, and the next year Elecktra released the album The Alabama State Troupers/Road Show.
This two disc live recording is out of print, but is still considered a "must hear" for all Memphis music collectors and listeners.
One notable career event was her collaboration with George Harrison and many others in the production of the Concerts for Bangladesh - a pair of star-studded benefit concerts held at Madison Square Garden.
Harrison asked Nix to assemble a "soul choir" for the show (Claudia Lennear, Marlin and Jeannie Greene, etc.) and later told Nix that he should join the singers onstage. Though reluctant, Nix explains that "you don't say 'no' to a Beatle."
Apple intended to release a three disc album with a film to document the event,but the world class film team that Harrison commissioned to record the concerts were prevented from filming the shows ("right at the last minute" according to Nix) due to union regulations. A crew of Madison Square Garden union hacks apparently more familiar with sporting events actually filmed the concerts.
Blues rocker Bob “Catfish” Hodge grew up in Detroit, where he formed his first group while still at school. The city became world famous via the success of Motown, which inspired many young Detroiters, both black and white, to take up music as a career. In the late 60s Hodge founded the band Catfish. Emerging from a rock scene which starred the Stooges and the MC5, they recorded two LPs for Epic, neither of which sold well.
Hodge then self-released his first solo album, before moving to London to write some songs, hoping to become the next James Taylor. Instead he penned ‘Boogie Man’ and headed back to Detroit to get a record deal. Forming a new band, he went to see Westbound Records’ Armen Boladian, who invited George Clinton and Calvin Simon of Funkadelic to see them play.
Within weeks Hodge and his band were recording their first album, produced by Simon at Manta Studios in Toronto at the same time Funkadelic were making “America Eats Its Young”. A mix of boogie rock and soulful horns, “Boogie Man Gonna Get Ya” sold well and picked up good radio plays. A second album, “Dinosaurs And Alley Cats”, had a more laidback feel, most notably on ‘Circus Is In Town’.
Hodge then moved to Virginia, where he met Bonnie Raitt and played on many bills with her. Recorded in Los Angeles, his next album, “Soap Opera’s” (sic), was his most complex and featured a stellar line-up that included Raitt, Dr John, Birtha’s Rosemary Burton and the Flying Burrito Brothers’ Sneaky Pete Kleinlow.
Long out of print, this 2CD set brings together Hodge’s three Westbound and Eastbound albums, a handful of out-takes and a long-forgotten B-side. When we discussed this reissue, he was cheerful and happy with his past. When asked to look back on this period he said simply, “It was a very good time in my journey through life. It gave me a wonderful opportunity at the time when I was ready and able to take it.”
by Dean Rudland
Tracks
Disc 1
1. Different Strokes - 3:43
2. Ghetto - 3:07
3. Hungry Love - 6:49
4. I Want You (She's So Heavy) (John Lennon, Paul McCartney) - 5:23
5. I'll Be Gone - 3:06
6. Stop - 2:27
7. I'm The Man - 3:22
8. Boogie Man (Bob "Catfish" Hodge, Gary Shinder) - 9:36
9. Train To Detroit - 3:05
10.Heartbeat Of The Street (Bob "Catfish" Hodge, Gary Shinder) - 5:18
11.Color Tv Blues - 7:02
12.Circus Is In Town (Bob "Catfish" Hodge, Carol Hoffman) - 4:09
13.Never Tell Your Mother She's Out Of Tune (Jack Bruce, Pete Brown) - 6:03
14.Ten Speed Bike (Bob "Catfish" Hodge, Gary Shinder) - 2:48
15.Living The Blues - 5:49
16.Birmingham (Bob "Catfish" Hodge, Gary Shinder) - 4:57
All songs by Bob "Catfish" Hodge excpet where stated
Tracks 1-8 from "Boogieman Gonna Get Ya" 1972
Track 9 Unreleased
Tracks 10-16 from "Dinosaurs And Alleycats" 1974
Disc 2
1. What Those Wimmin Do - 4:32
2. Big Boss Man (Al Smith, Luther Dixon) - 5:36
3. We Got Love In Our House - 4:52
4. Keep Driving Me Crazy - 3:31
5. Silver Arrow - 4:09
6. Ain't It A Shame - 5:57
7. Bulldog - 1:50
8. Oscar Teo - 4:38
9. Des Woman - 3:24
10.It's All Over Now (Bobby Womack, Shirley Womack) - 4:55
11.Sweet Cocaine - 3:10
12.Take A Look In The Mirror - 4:01
13.For Free (Joni Mitchell) - 5:33
All songs by Bob "Catfish" Hodge excpet where noted
Tracks 1-2 Unreleased
Tracks 3-13 from "Soap Opera's" 1975
Musicians 1972 Boogieman Gonna Get Ya
*Bob "Catfish" Hodge - Vocals, Guitar
*Bob Babitch - Piano
*William H. Landless - Bass
*Pat Freer - Drums
*Jerry Paul - Percussion
*Dallas Hodge - Guitar
1974 Dinosaurs And Alleycats
*Bob "Catfish" Hodge - Vocals, Guitar, Piano, Organ
*William H. Landless - Bass
*Crispin Cloe - Baritone, Tenor Saxophones
*Dave Chambers - Drums
*"Shakey" Al Werneken - Guitar, Gong
*Dallas Hodge - Guitar, Vocals
*Bob Babitch - Piano
*Jim McCarty - Slide Guitar
*Carter Threlkeld - Trumpet
*Rachel O'Brien - Vocals
*Phyllis Gore - Vocals
*Richard Pinkston - Vocals
This double disc was recorded over two days in Atlanta in 1970. The venue was only 14 miles from the Allmans “Big House” in Macon, Georgia. So they feel at home.
Day one features some fine excursions, including a stompin’ version of “Hoochie Coochie Man” with Berry Oakley on vocals. It’s nasty. No other way to describe it. There’s a very nice version of the underrated “Dreams” that clocks in at almost 10 minutes and features solos by Duane and Dickey, and Gregg on vocal and organ. Even though Duane has been dead for more than 30 years, it would be hard to find a rock guitarist who sounds this sweet, but still plays with such incredible power. It’s an easy thing to forget what a magnificent player he was. Easy, that is, until you dial up on a tune with him playing. Anyway, disc one has some great music on it, including a “Mountain Jam” that gets interrupted by the rain.
But it’s disc two that lets you hear the Allman Brothers at their finest. Recorded two days after the first, on this disc they seem more comfortable, and they expand ideas throughout the set. Some of the songs are repeated from the first set, but, as you’d expect from a band that jams this much, things get changed around.
This version of “Statesboro Blues” is guaranteed to knock your socks off and make your rear end move. To really catch what this band is all about at their best, check out July 5th’s “In Memory of Elizabeth Reed.” It’s a journey that has a lot of fun stops, and highlights each player’s strengths. It’s a shame some of today’s so-called jam bands can’t capture this feeling. No meandering. Everything, even when it appears to be found by chance, has a purpose.
Disc two also features a very cool version of “Stormy Monday,” a classic take on “Whipping Post,” and a 28-minute “Mountain Jam” with guest Johnny Winter.
Some of this has been bootlegged before, but the sound here is terrific. Kirk West’s liner notes are informative and fun, and there are some great photos in the small booklet.
by John Heidt, December 2005
Tracks
Disc 1
1.Introduction - 1:04
2.Statesboro Blues (Blind Willie Mctell) - 6:05
3.Trouble No More (McKinley Morganfield) - 4:04
4.Don't Keep Me Wonderin' (Gregg Allman) - 3:49
5.Dreams (Gregg Allman) - 9:49
6.Every Hungry Woman (Gregg Allman) - 4:31
7.Hoochie Coochie Man (Willie Dixon) - 5:29
8.In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed (Dickey Betts) - 11:35
9.Whipping Post (Gregg Allman) - 14:47
10.Mountain Jam Part I (Gregg Allman, Duane Allman, Dickey Betts, J. Johnny Johnson, Berry Oakley, Butch Trucks) - 10:35
11.Rain Delay - 1:14
12.Mountain Jam Part II (Gregg Allman, Duane Allman, Dickey Betts, J. Johnny Johnson, Berry Oakley, Butch Trucks) - 6:51
Disc 2
1.Introduction - 1:10
2.Don't Keep Me Wonderin' (Gregg Allman) - 4:04
3.Statesboro Blues (Blind Willie Mctell) - 4:25
4.In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed (Dickey Betts) - 13:14
5.Stormy Monday (T. Bone Walker) - 9:04
6.Whipping Post (Gregg Allman) - 14:23
7.Mountain Jam (Gregg Allman, Duane Allman, Dickey Betts, J. Johnny Johnson, Berry Oakley, Butch Trucks) - 28:20
Together, Country Joe & the Fish's third album, was the group's most consistent, most democratic, and their best-selling record. Unlike their first two albums, which were dominated by Country Joe McDonald's voice and compositions, Together featured the rest of the band -- guitarists Barry Melton and David Cohen, bassist Bruce Barthol, and drummer Chicken Hirsh -- almost as prominently as McDonald.
That's usually a formula for disaster, but in this case it gave the album more variety and depth: McDonald tended to favor droning mantras like the album-closing "An Untitled Protest," which worked better when contrasted with the likes of Melton's catchy anti-New York diatribe, "The Streets of Your Town," and the group-written "Rock and Soul Music." Songs like the latter cast the group as a soul revue, true, and they couldn't quite pull that off, but Together had the charming quality of unpredictability; you never knew what was coming next.
Unfortunately, what came next in the band's career was a split. Barthol was out by September 1968, Cohen and Hirsh followed in January 1969. Thereafter, McDonald and Melton fronted various Fish aggregations, but it was never the same, even when this lineup regrouped for Reunion in 1977.
by William Ruhlmann
Tracks
1. Rock And Soul Music (Country Joe McDonald, Barry Melton, David Cohen, Bruce Barthol, Gary "Chicken" Hirsh) - 6:54
2. Susan (Gary "Chicken" Hirsh) - 3:31
3. Mojo Navigator (Ed Denson, Barry Melton, Country Joe McDonald) - 2:27
4. Bright Suburban Mr. And Mrs. Clean Machine (Gary "Chicken" Hirsh, Barry Melton) - 2:22
5. Good Guys-Bad Guys Cheer-The Streets Of Your Town (Barry Melton) - 3:42
6. The Fish Moan - 0:28
7. The Harlem Song (Country Joe McDonald) - 4:23
8. Waltzing In The Moonlight (Gary "Chicken" Hirsh, Barry Melton) - 2:16
9. Away Bounce My Bubbles (Gary "Chicken" Hirsh) - 2:28
10.Cetacean (Bruce Barthol) - 3:41
11.An Untitled Protest (Country Joe McDonald) - 2:48
Country Joe And The Fish
*Country Joe McDonald - Vocals, Rap, Lead Guitar
*Barry Melton - Vocals, Lead Guitar, Rhythm Guitar
*David Cohen - Rhythm Guitar, Organ, Lead Guitar, Organ, Piano
*Bruce Barthol - Bass, Vocals, Backing Vocals
*Gary "Chicken" Hirsh - Drums, Vocals, Bells
