Lost And Found - Everybody's Here (1967-68 us, awesome texas psychedelic rock, 2009 Charly remaster)

Emerging from the same mid-60s Houston, Texas scene as label mates Thursday's Children and The Red Crayola, Lost And Found were formed in 1965 and originally called themselves The Misfits, consisting of Peter Black on guitar and vocals, Jimmy Frost on lead guitar, bassman James Harrell and - after a succession of drummers - Steve Webb. Part of the nationwide explosion of local bands springing up in the wake of the British Invasion (and America's immediate musical responses), the group busied themselves, with local appearances. They developed quite a following, often playing shows in Houston at the famed venue La Maison, where they became the house band alongside The Six Pents and Baroque Brothers.

Later, they also frequented Love Street, which opened in June 1967. A pivotal moment in Lost And Found/The Misfits' history came in early December 1965 when artist friend George Banks - who would later form the Flash Graphics company, producing most of International Artist's artwork - took Harrell and Black to the Jade Room in Austin to see the debut performances of the newly-formed 13th Floor Elevators, who were to have a huge influence on The Misfits' sound and approach to songwriting. The two groups' friendship, sparked at a La Maison show early in '66, would eventually lead to an introduction to the infamous International Artists label in Houston.

At some point early in their career, the group, minus Jimmy Frost, split to Los Angeles with buddies Euphoria, hanging out on the West Coast for a couple of months until poverty and general apathy forced a return to Houston. Their time spent on the West Coast, however, was not entirely wasted, as the emphasis on melody and memorable hooks so common to the City of Angels clearly seeped into the boys' songwriting, with elements of The Byrds and Love being most evident.

Upon their return, at the start of a six month residency at Scott Holtzman's Living Eye Club in Houston and later immortalized on their albuml, they attracted unwelcome notoriety as the first Texas group busted for LSD. However, the charges were supposedly dismissed, following confusion as to the drug's legality - it had only just been outlawed a month earlier in October '66.

As paranoia and suspicion were already rife in the conservative Texan atmosphere with regards to the "longhairs", it seems that one positive factor in the group's association with International Artists was that owner-lawyers Bill Dillard and Noble Ginther could potentially offer support with regard to legal matters, as they were already doing and would continue to do with the Elevators! Around this time, and possibly due to the negative associations with their name following the bust, the group finally became Lost And Found.

In August 1967, the group entered Andrus Studios in Houston to cut their one and only album, working with producer Lelan Rogers and engineer Frank Davis. Made up of mostly original material written by Harrell and Frost, except for a cover of the Elevators' 'Don't Fall Down' from that group's Psychedelic Sounds album, it's a strong debut, melding the influences picked up on their LA jaunt with more esoteric elements picked up from the Elevators, and their mystical quest for pure sanity. 

Strong vocal harmonies and guitar interplay abound, with Harrell and Webb laying down a solid foundation. The album's opening track 'Forever Lasting Plastic Words' successfully lays out the band's ethos - folk-rockesque melodies, matched with intelligent and meaningful lyrics. 

Standouts for this writoi include 'There Would Be No Doubt', with its echoing of the sentiments of the Elevators' 'Reverberation', the pure teen-rush-mania of 'I Realize' and the closing 7_ minute instrumental opus 'Living Eye'. The lattoi successfully combines elements of 'Eight Miles High' and 'Smokestack Lightning', highlighting the group's instrumental prowess, and giving an indication of their on-stage majesty.

Two blues tracks, the instrumental 'Zig Zag Blues' - dedicated to the founder of the Zig Zag cigarette rolling paper company- and '2 Stroke Blues' - NOT dedicated to 2-stroke oil and lawnmower engines, but a hymn to making sweet lovin'! - make it fairly clear that the group were no Butterfield Blues Band, but they're pleasant enough, and certainly contribute to the overall diversity of the LP. 

The afore-mentioned Elevators cover, 'Don't Fall Down', is interestingly re-structured, starting with the chorus, and working though a startlingly different arrangement to the original. 'Everybody's Here' is part stoned declaration, part Dylan parody, whilst 'Let Me Be' is a nippy little number, slightly marred by the group's failed attempt to emulate the Elevators' unique jug sound.

The album was released in late '67 as IALP#3 and was the first International Artists LP to be released in stereo only, housed in a suitably psychedelic George Banks-designed sleeve. The album had been preceded by a single release of two of its titles, 'Forever Lasting Plastic Words' backed with 'Everybody's Here'. The largely anonymous sleeve - no full band names or photos, justshadowy images - contributed to lA's aura of mystique, which was actually borne out of their complete paranoia over the contents of their catalogue! 

The back of the original album sleeve featured two short sleeve notes, both of which are reproduced in this booklet. The first, written by Lelan Rogers, praises Frank Davis' engineering skills whilst the second one, by George Banks, details his intended meaning behind the sleeve design. As with The Red Crayola's Parable Of Amble Land IP, each of the song titles has a brief excerpt from its lyrics added underneath it and which we have reproduced in the track listing at the back of this booklet.

Presumably these were included to summarise the meaning of each of the tracks. History indicates that, for the most part, International Artists were unable, or unwilling, to effectively promote any of their releases, their only two hit singles - the Elevators' You're Gonna Miss Me' in '66 and Bubble Puppy's 'Hot Smoke And Sassafras' in '69 - being as much down to chance and good fortune than to any promotion and marketing by the label. Lost And Pound's album was afforded the same lack of promotional nous, being held back from its intended release date to allow International Artists to promote the second Elevators LP, Easfer Everywhere.

The same fate befell their labelmates' The Golden Dawn's masterpiece, Power Plant, which was also recorded in the summer of '67 and held back for release until early the following year. As an aside, sonically-speaking the two IPs have a lot in common. It could be argued that by using the same studio, producer and engineer, similarities were bound to crop up; certainly, the slightly thin, demo-like quality of the production on both LPs sounds a little rushed, almost unfinished in places.

The fragile, somewhat whiny quality of the lead vocals also draws immediate comparisons, but it's clear Lost And Found had their own sound: OK, they wore their influences on their collective sleeve, but when your influences are that good - why not?! 

Further songs were demoed by the group in February '68 to provide material for a proposed second album which never saw the light of day. One of these songs, '25 MPH', eventually showed up on lA's 1980 Epitaph For A Legend compilation. What did appear later from the group in 1968 was a second single, this time produced by Fred Carroll, Lelan Rogers having left the label acrimoniously in February. 

This was an entirely different ballgame, the group this time being allowed to cut loose and do their own thing in the studio - allegedly, IA had toned down their previous recordings. Both songs - 'When Will You Come Through' and 'Professor Black', co-written with George Banks - burn with a peculiar intensity, especially the former, with its berserk squalling guitar, fuzzed-out bass and busy drums. It's almost as though the group, knowing that their remaining time was to be short, decided to throw all their enthusiasm, pent-up frustration and sheer "fuck you" attitude into the mix! Unfortunately, like the previous single and LP, it tanked, effectively stalling the group's career. Despair set in, and the group was close to collapse. 

International Artists had earlier booked them on a tour of Texas, Louisiana and Alabama with garage legends The Music Machine. When they returned, IA informed the group that they owed the label money; they had made nothing from the tour, nothing was happening with the album, so they finally split in the summer of'68.

There next emerged an unusual sidebar to the Lost And Found story. Still under contract from IA, Pete Black and James Harrell were reluctantly roped in to play about a dozen dates with Stacy Sutherland and Danny Thomas (subbing for the departed Roky Erickson and Dan Galindo) in a ersatz version of The 13th Floor Elevators, ostensibly to promote the release of the fake Elevators Live album in July of '68.

A weekend of shows in late August at The Vulcan Gas Company in Austin, with support from New Atlantis featuring Dan Galindo, was met with a degree of indifference, and overall disappointment: although the group was good, it wasn't the Elevators! 

The same line-up was booked to play The Vulcan again at the end of September and, after approximately ten more shows, finally called it quits. Pete Black and James Harrell both joined Endle St. Cloud, that group covering both sides of the final Lost And Found single on their 1970 International Artists LP, Thank You Very Much. The group later evolved into Potter St. Cloud, which included Steve Webb on drums. (MOLE)

This 2009 issue UK Strictly Limited Deluxe Edition 13-tracK CD album - One of the most influential independent record companies of its day, International Artists has gained cult status over the years, particularly amongst fans of prime American psychedelic and garage rock. 

Roky Erickson from the 13th Floor Elevators introduced Lost & Found to Lelan Rogers of International Artists, who promptly signed them up. They then recorded their one and only album, 'Everybody's Here', in the summer of 1967. 

This latest title in Charly's series of limited edition reissues of key IA albums comes expanded with the 3 Bonus Recordings: 'When Will You Come Through', 'Professor Black' & '25 MPH'.

Presented in a rigid digibook sleeve, complete with a 16-page bound-in illustrated booklet featuring an authoritative, contemporary overview of the band and its music by EIL's very own Matt Lambert, as well as reproductions of the album's two original notes!).

Tracks
1. Forever Lasting Plastic Words (James Harrell) - 2:14
2. Everybody's Here (Jimmy Frost) - 3:03
3. There Would Be No Doubt (W. West, P. Black) - 2:09
4. Don't Fall Down (T. Hall, R. Erickson) - 3:15
5. Zig Zag Blues (J. Harrell, J. Frost, P. Black, S. Webb) - 6:02
6. Let Me Be (Jimmy Frost) - 2:48
7. I Realize (J. Harrell) - 2:31
8. 2 Stroke Blues (J. Harrell) - 3:09
9. I'm So Hip To Pain (J. Harrell) - 2:40
10.Living Eye (J. Harrell, J. Frost, P. Black, S. Webb) - 7:35
11.When Will You Come Through (Peter Black) - 2:26
12.Professor Black (G. Banks, J. Harrell, P. Black) - 2:47
13.25 MPH (J. Harrell) - 1:51

Lost And Found
*Peter Black - Vocals, Guitar
*Jimmy Frost - Guitar
*James Harrell - Bass
*Steve Webb - Drums

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Various Artists - Piccadilly Sunshine Part 7 (1966-70 uk, pop psych and lots of flavours)

This is getting better and better, part 7 is one of the most exciting pieces from this series, and it goes much further and beyond the british psychedelic scene from the mid to late sixties.

Every song that follows makes our light brighter, and our willing to push the start button again and again, well it's true now, these diamonds are for ever, just enjoy them....

Artists - Tracks
1. Loose Ends - I Ain’t Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore - 2:12
2. Peter Fenton - Small Town - 2:13
3. Paul Young - No, No, No - 2:25
4. Bobcats - Let Me Get By - 2:19
5. Chris Kerry - Seven Deadly Sins - 2:40
6. Situation - Time - 2:26
7. Magic Lanterns - Time Will Tell - 2:01
8. Mud - You’re My Mother - 2:30
9. Peeps - Gotta Get A Move On - 2:25
10.Pinkerton’s Assort’ Colours - Will Ya? - 2:10
11.The Act - One Heart - 2:36
12.The Koobas - City Girl - 2:23
13.Deuce Of Hearts - The Times They Are A-Changin’ - 2:24
14.Harbour Lites - Run For Your Life - 2:26
15.Monopoly - Gone Tomorrow - 3:05
16.Dead Sea Fruit - Seeds Of Discontent - 3:24
17.Barry Fantoni - Fat Man - 1:55
18. Rising Sons - Just A Little While Longer - 2:48
19.Barley Bree - Save Your Love - 2:25
20.Paul Young - You Girl - 3:01

The Piccadilly Sunshine flavours 
1968-70  Piccadilly Sunshine Part 1
1966-71  Piccadilly Sunshine Part 2
1967-70  Piccadilly Sunshine Part 3
1967-69  Piccadilly Sunshine Part 4
1966-69  Piccadilly Sunshine Part 5
1967-70  Piccadilly Sunshine Part 6

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Them - Time Out Time In (1968-69 uk, spectacular garage psychedelic rock, Rev Ola extra tracks edition)

After Van Morrison’s departure from the group in 1966, Them relocated to Los Angeles, California and released a string of worthwhile efforts.  The group completely revamped their image and sound behind Jim Armstrong’s accomplished guitar work and Ken McDowell’s vocals; the only hold over from the Van Morrison era was guitarist Alan Henderson.  Now And “Them” and Time Out! Time In For are by far and away the best LPs the post Van Morrison Them ever produced.  The liners from the Rev-Ola reissue written by notable British rock historian Jon Mojo Mills take it almost too far, stating “they mastered West Coast psychedelia like no other Irish band.  And quite why Van Morrison gets all the credit is beyond me.  Which songs are better?  Gloria and Here Comes The Night or Dirty Old Man and Time Out Time In?”

Let me get this out in the open right here: the psychedelic era Them is nowhere near as good as early Them, particularly Them’s first LP and the early singles with Van Morrison (I’m sure psych fans will take issue with this!).  Early Them was a hard edged British R&B group who was both innovative and revered in their day.  Van Morrison is a legend, however, and Them’s early work is considered some of the best pure rock n roll from that time frame (64-66).

That being said, this album is a pretty good psychedelic record though not the masterpiece dealers and rock critics make it out to be.  This is the kind of album you get after you’ve heard a few hundred or so classics and are thirsting for more UK psychedelia.  The musicianship is way above average, particularly Jim Armstrong’s guitar work.  Mean lean fuzz leads are painted all over this album.  

The opening cut “Time Out For Time In” is very good with jazzy time signatures and effective sitar work.   Some of the tracks are marred by dramatic vocal phrasing and pretentious lyrics but that’s a minor complaint.  Exotic numbers like “The Moth” and the lyrically bizarre “Waltz of the Flies” work best, employing a variety of instruments (mandolin) and strange sounds.   Another highlight, “Black Widow Spider,” is a classic sitar headswirler while the boys give a good blues psych reading of “I Put A Spell On You” (titled here “I Put A Hex On You”).

Once again, if you expect the unexpected and enjoy classic psychedelia, this record is for you.  It’s not the original Them but not many bands are.  The Alan Henderson/Jim Armstrong/Ken McDowell lineup was a very underrated group and while this LP may not be an essential purchase, the music is still very good and full of mysticism.  During this era, Them also had a good live reputation throughout the LA area and released some fine singles including the excellent garage punker “Dirty Old Man.”  Icing on the cake is the original vinyl album sleeve’s beautiful psychedelic collage.

by Jason, The Rising-storm

Tracks
1. Time Out for Time In (Lane, Pulley) - 2:55
2. She Put a Hex on You (Lane, Pulley) - 2:24
3. Bent Over You (Henderson, Lane, Pulley) 3:17
4. Waltz of the Flies (Lane) - 2:23
5. Black Widow Spider (Lane, Pulley) - 4:33
6. We've All Agreed to Help (Them) - 2:20
7. Market Place (Lane, Pulley) - 3:01
8. Just on Conception (Henderson, McDowell, Harvey, Armstrong) - 5:07
9. Young Woman (Lane, Pulley) - 2:44
10.Moth (Lane, Pulley) - 3:23
11.But It's Alright (Jackson, Tubbs) - 2:42
12.Square Room (2nd Single Version) (Henderson, McDowell, Harvey, Armstrong) - 3:18
13.Dirty Old Man (2nd Single Version) (Lane) - 1:46
14.Corinna (Single Version) (Mahal, Davis) - 2:38
15.Dark Are the Shadows (Single Version) (Monda, Budnick) - 2:39
16.Dirty Old Man (Original Single Version) (Lane) - 1:57
17.Square Room (Original Single Version) (Henderson, McDowell, Harvey, Armstrong) - 3:37
18.But It's Alright (Original Single Version) (Jackson, Tubbs) - 2:43
19.Square Room (Single Edit Remix) (Henderson, McDowell, Harvey, Armstrong) - 3:20

Them
*Kenny McDowell - Lead Vocals
*Alan Henderson - Bass
*Jim Armstrong - Guitar, Sitar
*Dave Harvey - Drums
*Johnny Guerin - Drums (Studio Sessions)

Themology
1965-66  The Wheels - Road Block
1967  Them - Now And Them
1967  Belfast Gypsies
1970-71  Rod Demick And Herbie Armstrong - Little Willie Ramble

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The Medium - The Medium (1969 canada, fantastic heavy psych with early prog shades, Flawed Gems 2012 remaster)

The only album of this forgotten Montreal band was released on tiny Gamma label in 1969 and is usually considered as one of the very best Canadian albums from late 60' s psychedelic era. 

It mostly contained a trippy, instrumental music full of swirling organ and fuzz guitar parts, but there were also a space for atmospheric, dreamy ballads sung in a deep voice and for some distinctive, weird and 'jazzy' guitar solos... 

Anyway, it was a pretty complex and freaky album, which can be described as a stylistic combination of Vanilla Fudge, The Doors, Iron Butterfly, Aorta and C.A. Quintet. It has been carefully remastered from the original, analogue source and sounds really great!

Tracks

1. New Thing - 4:34
2. My Lady Lies Forever - 2:39
3. Give Me A Peace - 4:01
4. Two By Two - 2:35
5. The Mouse - 5:04
6. I'll Love Everyone At Last - 2:51
7. In Between - 4:41
8. Melon - 1:44
9. Stars - 5:34
All compositions by Jim Solkin

The Medium
*Robert Ellis - Vocals, Harmonica
*James Solkin - Organ, Piano
*Pierre Latrelille - Guitar
*Neil Malott - Bass
*Steve Blackwell - Percussion

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Carl Oglesby - Carl Oglesby / Going To Damascus (1969/71 us, fabulous protest folk rock with psych and country touches)

Carl Oglesby was born in Ohio. After graduating from Kent State University, he worked in Michigan as a technical editor for a defense contractor.

Oglesby was radicalized by the Vietnam War. In 1965 he was elected president of the Students for a Democratic Society, a group that organized opposition to the war. Oglesby went on to teach politics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Dartmouth College. 

He may be the ultimate politically hyphenated American: He's an anti-interventionist-New Left-humanist-libertarian. He's also a folk singer with two albums to his credit, an author, and one of the nation's leading experts on the assassination of John F. Kennedy.

Oglesby's background didn't hint that he would end up, as Murray Rothbard called him in 1992, a "longtime libertarian." Born in Ohio, Oglesby attended Kent State University and then worked in Michigan as a technical editor for a defense contractor.

His world turned upside down in 1965 when he became radicalized about the United States' growing military involvement in Vietnam. Later that year, he was elected president of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), a "New Left" group that organized student opposition to the Vietnam War.

As he traveled around the country, Oglesby came to realize that the United States' foreign policy wasn't just a matter of left (good) versus right (bad). In 1967, he wrote Containment and Change (with Richard Shaull), which argued that the libertarian, non-interventionist "Old Right" should be the New Left's best ally in opposing an imperialistic American foreign policy.

In 1971, Oglesby was a speaker at a "Left-Right Festival of Mind Liberation." The event, sponsored by the California Libertarian Alliance, was designed to lay the groundwork for a libertarian/New Left anti-war coalition. Oglesby made the case that "the Old Right and the New Left" were "morally and politically" united in their opposition to war, and should work together.

Oglesby also began speaking out against the alliance of big business and government -- what he called the "corporate state" -- and in favor of "radically humanist politics" that embraced decentralization and free association.

During those same years, Oglesby earned recognition for his musical talent. He released two albums, Carl Oglesby (1969) and Going to Damascus (1971), that were praised for their "psychedelic folk rock sound." The albums were re-released in CD format in 2003.

After the Vietnam War ended, Oglesby's innate suspicion of government led him down another career path -- investigating the assassination of John F. Kennedy. He wrote three books: On the Trail of the Assassins (with Jim Garrison, 1988); Who Killed JFK? (1991); and The JFK Assassination: The Facts and the Theories (1992). All three voiced skepticism about the government's "lone-gunman" theory.

In 1991, Oglesby again bridged the gap between his libertarian/left perspective and the liberty movement in a speech to the Massachusetts Libertarian Party. In it, Oglesby discussed secret American intelligence operations, including the U.S. Army's post-World War II "Gehlen Deal" that recruited former Nazis to spy on the USSR for NATO; the CIA's 1953 Operation Ajax that overthrew the government of Iran; and the FBI's Vietnam War-era COINTELPRO campaign against anti-war activists. Such covert operations, warned Oglesby, were indicative of an out-of-control "national-security oligarchy" that constituted "a secret and invisible state within the public state."

Tracks
1969 Carl Oglesby
1. Suburbs Of Eden - 2:56
2. Le Chinois - 4:04
3. Staring At The Sunshine - 4:18
4. The Prophet - 5:19
5. Black Panther - 4:45
6. Portait Of A Lady - 5:50
7. Dragon Song - 3:03
8. Cherokee Queen - 3:28
9. Lemon Light - 6:42
1971 Going To Damascus
10. Last Night I Saw The Sailor - 3:00
11. Till The Dance Is Mine - 4:28
12. Going To Damascus - 3:44
13. Play Volleyball Like A Man - 3:18
14. The Working Class Stranger - 4:29
15. The Lowly Beggar Girl - 3:02
16. Boarder Ballad - 3:59
17. The Lady With The Red Glass Eye - 3:28
18. The Wild E. G. And C. - 3:04
19. Light The Pipe - 4:49
Words and Music by Carl Oglesby

Musicians
1969 Carl Oglesby
*Carl Oglesby - Acoustic Guitar, Vocals
*Richard Davis - Bass
*Seymour Barab - Cello
*George Edwards - Guitar
*Robert Fritz - Woodwind
*Elmer Gordon - Keyboards
*Tim Hauser - Guitar
*Mark Puleo - Harmonica
*Peter Psarianos - Guitar
*Vinnie Bell - Electric Guitar
*Norman Grossman - Percussions
*Bill La Vorgna  - Drums
*Joe Mack - Bass

1971 Going To Damascus
*Carl Oglesby - Acoustic Guitar, Vocals
*John Frangipane - Organ, Piano
*Bill La Vorgna  - Drums
*Joe Mack - Bass
*David Spinozza - Electric Guitar

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Them - Now And Them (1967 uk, perfect garage r 'n' b psych, 2003 remaster)

They're a group with five distinct but not disjointed personalities. This is Them as I know them.

There's Kenny McDowell, who worried about stepping into Van Morrison's place as the group's vocalist. He's a worker on stage, shouting and whispering everything from blues to Indian ragas. Blues is his game and he plays it well. Off stage he's shy, but getting over it. Charming in that delightful Irish way, he blushes when complimented and calls every girl "Luv." You just can't help but love Kenny.

Towering over him on stage is Kim Armstrong, lead guitar player extraordinaire. A year ago Jim looked like a cross between Chad Stuart and Peter Asher; now he just looks tall. New Shankar albums to blow his mind, but then so do songs like "They're Coming To Take Me Away," so how can you win? He's basically an uncomplicated guy who likes to like and is easy to like. Keep your eye on this man; he's going to develop himself into one of our top guitarists. But it won't hang him up, 'cause things just don't hang Jim up.

And there's Alan, who resembles an iceberg in that only about ten percent of him is above the surface. He keeps a lot of him inside. What's on the outside looks a lot like Omar Sharif. It's a little difficult to earn Alan's respect, as it is with all of Them, but once you get it you have a loyal friend. But cross him once and you'll never have a chance to do it again. He's one heck of a bass player, but if you ask him he'll tell you Jim is the group's best guitarist. He can seem a bit rough at times, but he's learning the meaning of gentleness. Just don't let Alan frighten you.

Ray Elliott plays sax, organ, flute, etc., and is the world's largest living leprechaun, not necessarily in captivity. He's easy to love but impossible to understand. He calls his sax a typewriter and is capable of talking for hours without making sense to anyone other than himself, but that's Ray. And you'll just have to take him as he is, 'cause there's no way he's ever going to change. But why should he; he's enjoying himself. Ray doesn't trust people, but maybe he has a reason. We'll probably never know.

Move slowly around Dave Harvey and he may be able to keep up with you. Them's drummer, he's a low keyed Englishman who looks Spanish when his moustache gets too long. He once wore a watch that said five o'clock for three months, but in Dave's world it might have been five o'clock for three months. Jazz is his bag, photography his latest interest and girls his full time interest. He doesn't stand out in a crowd, but he's glad of that since crowds bother him. Dave's simply quiet, easy going and slow, at everything.

These are Them now and now is Them. They've been through some changes, bad times and good times and learned from all of it. It's going to happen for Them now. I think you'll like Them.

by Carol Deck

Tracks
1. I'm Your Witch Doctor (John Mayall) - 2:39
2. What's The Matter Baby (Joy Byers, Clyde Otis) - 2:46
3. Truth Machine (Jim Armstrong, Dave Harvey, Ray Elliott, Kenny McDowell) - 2:10
4. Square Room - 9:59
5. You're Just What I Was Looking For Today (Carole King, Gerry Goffin) - 2:57
6. Dirty Ol' Man (At The Age Of 16) (Tom Hale) - 1:48
7. Nobody Loves You When You're Down And Out (Jimmie Cox) - 3:35
8. Walking In The Queen's Garden - 3:06
9. I Happen To Love You (Carole King, Gerry Goffin) - 2:48
10. Come To Me - 2:24
11. Walking In The Queen's Garden (mono single mix) - 3:04
12. I Happen To Love You (mono single mix) (Carole King, Gerry Goffin) - 2:54

Songs 4,8,10,11 by Alan Henderson, Jim Armstrong, Dave Harvey, Ray Elliott, Kenny McDowell

Them
*Alan Henderson - Bass
*Jim Armstrong - Guitar
*Dave Harvey - Drums
*Ray Elliott - Saxophone, Organ, Flute
*Kenny McDowell - Vocals

Themology
1965-66  The Wheels - Road Block
1970-71  Rod Demick And Herbie Armstrong - Little Willie Ramble

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Gandalf - Gandalf 2 (1969 us, beautiful psychedelic rock, 2007 sundazed edition)

The exotic, mindbending sounds of Gandalf have long been one of the great lost treasures of the first great psychedelic era. Featuring the breathy vocals and lysergic guitar of Peter Sando, the band's only official album Gandalf—a delight from start to finish—has been a best-selling Sundazed psychedelic release that has generated a fervent demand for more of the same.

The release of Gandalf 2, is a return trip to the band's garden of earthly delights. A thorough search of Sando's tape vault revealed a fabulous stash of spellbinding demos and acetates, unheard for decades. Sando has penned the liner notes for Gandalf 2, which also features another visit to the band's dusty book of memorabilia. 

Released with Peter Sando's active cooperation, technically this wasn't really a Gandalf album since it included a number of non-Gandalf tracks; notably three selections from guitarist Peter Sandolf's post-Gandalf Barracuda project.  That said, the collection included a mixture Gandalf acetates and demos that may have been intended for a shelved sophomore album.

Tracks
1. Bird In The Hand (Sando) - 3:55
2. Days Are Only Here And Gone (Sando) - 3:31
3. Smokey Topaz (Sando) - 3:03
4. Ladyfingers (Bonner, Gordon) (As The Barracuda) - 2:28
5. No Earth Can Be Won (Sando) - 4:16
6. Bad Dream (Demo) (Sando) - 2:58
7. I Won’t Cry No More (Sando) - 3:10
8. The Dance At St. Francis (Bonner, Gordon) (As The Barracuda) - 2:18
9. Julie (The Song I Sing Is You) (Bonner, Gordon) (As The Barracuda) - 2:52
10.Over This Table (Sando) - 3:18
11.Golden Earrings (Demo) (Evans, Livingston, Young) - 6:09
12.Tears Of Ages (Live) (Sando) - 2:59
13.Downbound Train (Live) (Berry, Arr. By Peter Sando) - 6:43

Musicians
*Bob Muller - Bass
*Russ Savakis - Bass
*Joe Delia - Acoustic Bass
*Bryan Post - Drums
*Dave Bauer - Drums
*Terry Eaton - Flute
*Peter Sando - Guitar, Lead Vocals
*Frank Hubach - Piano

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Various Artists - Piccadilly Sunshine Part 6 (1967-70 uk, pop psych and other flavours )

Our flight to sixth cloud from this heavenly piccadilly compilations, is getting brighter with the melt of  psych pop flavored with early progressive rock, giving a different shade to these sunny tunes.

From Still Life to Shulman brothers (pre Gentle Giant) and from Philamore Lincoln's melodic pop  to the Merseys merseybeat.

Many gems that have eluded the grasp of compilers before will grace deserved ears and should serve to establish Piccadilly Sunshine as the stalwart series in the inflated contemporary maze of re-issues.

Artists - Tracks
1. Still Life  - What Did We Miss - 3:11
2. Ross Hannaman - 1969 - 3:02
3. Disciple  - Cherie Alamayonaika - 2:36
4. Simon Dupree And The Big Sound  - Sleep - 2:36
5. Mike Sedgewick  - The Good Guys In The White Hats - 3:02
6. Happy Confusion  - Hereditary Impediment - 2:55
7. Philamore Lincoln  - Rainy Day - 2:38
8. Katch 22  - Out Of My Life - 2:24
9. The Merseys  - I Hope You're Happy - 2:23
10.The High - Beggar Man Dan - 3:10
11.The Mariane - Like A See Saw - 2:26
12.Selwyn And John - Bogey Man - 2:05
13.Little Brother Grant And Zapatta Schmidt - Let's Do It Together - 2:23
14.Chuckles - Painting The Day - 2:03
15.Zion De Gallier - Winter Will Be Cold - 2:30
16.Tate Gallery - Newspaper Man - 2:28
17.Malcolm Rabbitt - Why Won't The Sun Shine On Me - 3:13
18.Kaplan - I Like - 3:27
19.The Epics - Travelling Circus - 2:33
20.Hayden Wood - The Last One To Know - 2:32

The Piccadilly Sunshine flavours 
1968-70  Piccadilly Sunshine Part 1
1966-71  Piccadilly Sunshine Part 2
1967-70  Piccadilly Sunshine Part 3
1967-69  Piccadilly Sunshine Part 4
1966-69  Piccadilly Sunshine Part 5

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Trifle - First Meeting (1971 uk, sensational brass progressive jazz rock, 2010 Esoteric remaster)

The late sixties and early seventies were incredibly productive times for rock music with more scenes than you could shake a stick. There seemed almost to be three distinct breeds of Progressive rock – the folk and classical based movement typified by the Canterbury set, the Blues based bands like Taste or The Groundhogs and the crossover bands like Colosseum or, in this case Trifle.

Trifle only ever made one album and it has been a collectors item for years and I think that this is the first CD issue of the album and it really is a bit more than just a curio. The songs like ‘Alibi Annie’ are fairly typical of the time, the lyrics are less than deep but they serve to create a baseboard for the musicians and the quality there is really something. Because the horn section of Barry Martin (saxes), John Protchard (Trumpet) and Dick Cuthell (Trumpet) are an integral part of the band the music is written with horns in mind and this creates a more powerful and subtle sound. Not that George Bean’s guitar or vocals are weak, they aren’t and Speedy King works well with Rod Coombes to anchor the rhythm section.

The best numbers are those where they try to create something unique and they hit the spot on ‘Is It Loud?’ with the horns in a very jazzy space and the keyboards meandering beautifully all creating a mesmerising sound that is a combination of Nucleus and ELP if you can imagine such a thing. ‘Old Fashioned Prayer Meeting’ has a gospelly and funky feel to it and ‘New Religion’ is very dark and moody and there is a touch of menace about the number but the standout track on the album is undoubtedly ‘Devil Comin’ – which has more than a touch of voodoo about it and a beaten rhythm that chills the listener..

As a bonus we get ‘Dirty Old Town’ which was the b-side to their single ‘Prayer Meeting’ and probably could have been a hit in its own right. Overall a good album with more than a few touches of real brilliance and about time it was re-issued.

by Andy Snipper

Tracks
1. Alibi Annie (George Bean, Dick Cuthell, Chico Greenwood, Patrick King) - 4:55
2. Home Again (R.Berkowitz) - 4:05
3. One Way Glass (Mann, Thomas) - 4:34
4. But I Might Die Tonight (Stevens) - 3:51
5. Is It Loud? (Alan Fealdman) - 8:10
6. Old Fashioned Prayer Meeting (George Bean, Patrick King) - 4:39
7. New Religion (George Bean, Dick Cuthell) - 5:43
8. Devil Comin '(George Bean, Patrick King) - 7:45
9. Candle Light (George Bean, John Hitchen) - 1:48
10.Dirty Old Town (George Bean, Dick Cuthell, Barry Martin) - 3:48
11.Old Fashioned Prayer Meeting (Single Version) (George Bean, Patrick King) - 4:38

Trifle
*George Bean - Vocals
*John Hitchen - Guitar
*Patrick Speedy King - Bass
*Barry Martin - Tenor, Baritone Saxophones
*Dick Cuthel - Horns
*Brian (Chico) Greenwood - Drums

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The Shadows Of Knight - Gloria (1966 us, classic garage beat, Sundazed edition)

Although revisionist historians will claim that any Shadows of Knight best-of that includes "Gloria" will cover just about everything you'll ever need on this Chicago punk band (and usually acting as if Van Morrison's and Them's original was the actual hit -- wrong), true believers have long championed their two original albums for the Dunwich label, especially their debut long-player named after their big hit.

Why? Simply because it positively rocks with a raw energy of a band straight out of the teen clubs, playing with a total abandon and an energy level that seems to explode out of the speakers.

Equal parts Rolling Stones, Yardbirds, Who, and snotty little Chicago-suburb bad boys, the Shadows of Knight could easily put the torch to Chess blues classics, which make up the majority of the songs included here.

Their wild takes on "I Just Want to Make Love to You," "Oh Yeah," and "I Got My Mojo Working" rank right up there with any British Invasion band's version from the same time period.

Original material was never plentiful on either SOK long-player, but worth checking out are "Light Bulb Blues," the blues ballad "Dark Side," and the why-me? rocker "It Always Happens That Way."

Completing the package is the inclusion of three bonus tracks, the single-only "Someone Like Me" and an alternate version, and "I Got My Mojo Working," which is vastly superior to the take on the original album.

A not-too-vastly-different alternate mix of "Oh Yeah" completes the bonus tracks, although the original album version is curiously missing from this otherwise excellent package.If you're only going to own one Shadows of Knight package, you could, and should, start right here 

by Cub Koda

Tracks
1. Gloria (V. Morrison) - 2:34
2. Light Bulb Blues (J. kelley, J. Sohns, J. McGeorge) - 2:32
3. I Got My Mojo Working (M. Morganfield) - 3:28
4. Darkside (W.Rogers, J. Sohns) - 2:00
5. Boom Boom (J. L. Hooker) - 2:28
6. Let It Rock (C. Berry) - 1:52
7. Oh Yeah (E. McDaniel) - 2:45
8. It Always Happens That Way (W.Rogers, J. Sohns) - 1:52
9. You Can't Judge a Book by Looking at the Cover (W. Dixon) - 2:37
10.(I'm Your) Hoochie Coochie Man (W. Dixon) - 3:52
11.I Just Want to Make Love to You (W. Dixon) - 3:49
12.Oh Yeah (E. McDaniel) - 2:45
13.I Got My Mojo Working (M. Morganfield) - 3:14
14.Someone Like Me (Novak, McDowell) - 2:18

The Shadows Of Knight
*Joe Kelley - Guitar
*Jerry McGeorge - Guitar
*Jim Sohns - Vocals
*Tom Schiffour - Drums
*Warren Rogers - Bass

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Jaki Whitren - Raw But Tender (1973 uk, superb acoustic folk rock with country and blues overtones, 2006 Sunbeam issue)

I was born in 1953, and grew up in a pretty little Hampshire village. Music was in my blood - my grandfather played piano for silent movies, my grandmother was a cellist and mezzo soprano, my mother was a trained concert pianist who'd moved into jazz and my father (who died when I was very small) had been a drummer and dancer too. As a result, I was raised on music from Chopin right through to Georgia On My Mind, and at school I was always the kid that sang in the playground. 

From the age of 11 I was taken up by the local beatniks, who introduced me to early R’n’B and soul, John Coltrane, Doc Watson, Revd. Gary Davis, Big Bill Broonzy and many others. In those days there was brilliant new stuff coming out every week too, so I was listening to Dylan, the Beach Boys and Motown as well. I was very lucky to have such a thorough musical education. By the time I was 13 I had a repertoire of about 200 songs, and had started to sing in local clubs. Local press and TV soon heard about me, and I became quite well-known in the area. 

I eventually left home at 16 to live with my older friends in Southampton. Around this time, Van Morrison's Astral Weeks appeared, and totally blew me away. The first time I heard it, I ran straight home, grabbed my guitar and tried to write songs in the same style. I couldn't do it, though, and what came out instead was Give Her The Day, the first song I ever wrote. One day in 1972 I answered a knock at the door, and found three good looking guys from London on the doorstep. They explained that they were part of a jazz rock band who were doing a gig at Southampton University that night, but the opening act couldn't make it and could I do a half hour slot instead? I explained that 1 hadn't been gigging for a while, and didn't have a set together as such, but had started writing my own songs, and maybe this was a chance to try them out in public. 

So off I went and sang my first selfpenned songs, and got a standing ovation. Later that evening they turned up again, this time to ask if 1 wanted to join their band as a lead vocalist. I gladly consented, and it went well. A few weeks later, after more rehearsals, we did a show at the Marquee, which was another success. They were great, but their guitarist, Stuart Cowell saw me aside to suggest that he was in a strong position to get me a record deal if I wanted one. Within a matter of weeks I'd been signed to Columbia and flown to New York. They wanted to make me into a star, but I wasn't at all comfortable with it. 

At a reception over there I was introduced to the label's owner, an elderly man in a wheelchair, as 'the next Barbra Streisand,' which mortified me. To my friends and me that would have been about the least cool thing imaginable. John Hammond himself came especially to meet me, and told me he believed me to have 'one of the finest voices ever to come out of the UK.' At the time it all went over my head, I'm afraid, and it's only in retrospect that I've come to appreciate the enormity of these compliments. They offered to buy me a house  over there, which I refused, then put me in the studio with some very talented black musicians and asked me to write something in a funkier style than before. 

I came up with But Which Way Do I Go?, which summarized my feelings. I found it all too overwhelming, I was more interested in my social life than my career, and I wanted to be back in England. When I think about it now I can see what a big deal it was, and I'm grateful for their faith in me, but at the time I was still a kid and didn't know if I was coming or going. As a result, I returned home and went into the studio to make an album in the folk-blues idiom that I was accustomed to, rather than the funkier, more soulful style they'd wanted in America. I didn't have enough songs to fill an LP, but when we began recording they just poured out of me. Stuart produced the sessions, and also managed me. He was a great musician as well as an intelligent and sensitive guy, and slowly came to understand what I was about. 

The musicians were very subtle and sensitive too, and kept to the essence of what I'd written. Albert Lee was lovely, and his musicianship was a thrill to be around. The rhythm section were also really sympathetic and tolerant of my naivete. It was all very easy and quick, because I actually didn't know how not to do a perfect take. Being so young (18 years old) and unconscious is a blessing on that score. Mick Glossop was the overall producer, and remains to this day one of the most sensitive people I've ever worked with in the studio (and I've worked with some of the world's greats, like Phil Ramone and Gus Dudgeon). 

The album appeared in July 1973, and was well-received. Disc said 'genuine new talents are pretty rare, and here's a songwriter of the first order, who plays a mean acoustic guitar too.' Give Her The Day was extracted as a 45 (backed with But Which Way Do I Go?), and the NME called it 'a monster record, full of soul, feeling and emotion.' At one point it was getting 24 plays a day on the BBC, and Tony Blackburn even made it his single of the week - something I kept very quiet about in front of my friends! 

At one point Cliff Richard wanted to cover it, but nothing came of it. Another 45 appeared later in the year (Human Failure I Ain't It Funny?), but that didn't chart either. I couldn't have cared less - my friends and I weren't remotely interested in the hit parade, and I didn't like the idea of appearing on TV anyway, so I turned down all offers apart from The Old Grey Whistle Test. I gigged in support of the album for a year, both on tour with John McLaughlin, Tom Paxton, Loudon Wainwright and others, and doing one-off shows with people like Sly and the Family Stone, Genesis and Roy Harper. 

I seemed set to go full blast into a mega career, which should have been a dream come true, but for me (having been gigging since I was thirteen) the novelty was virtually non-existent, and I was pretty bored by the lifestyle that went with 'the biz'. I'd had my first child when I was 18, and looking after him wasn't compatible with the life of a touring musician. I dreamed of being able to do what I wanted with my day, instead of an endless round of trains, planes, hotels and concert halls, round and round so that you couldn't tell one from the other. I was desperate for a big change in my life, and dreamed of isolation and anonymity. 

By the middle of 19741 was getting thoroughly fed up of playing the same songs every night, and constantly moving around. I was offered the support slot on Ike and Tina Turner's forthcoming European tour, but couldn't face it and turned it down. At the same time, Joan Armatrading got in touch to say she was a big fan of the album and wanted to duet with me. She came to stay with me in Hampshire for a week, and we did a lovely gig together at the Marquee, but it was practically the last thing I did. I ended up going away for 2,1/2 years, and at the end of it I felt 1 had a far more meaningful, healthy and satisfying life. 

I've continued to sing and record since, but only on my own terms - in fact, I'm currently working on my first solo album since Raw But Tender, and its approach is similar. Since the advent of the internet, I've had lovely fan mail about the album from people all over the world, ranging from a captain of industry in South Africa to a worker on a kibbutz in Israel. I think people identify with it is because it's a truly heartfelt piece of work, and a sincere expression of a human soul at a particular point in its journey. I'm delighted that people will now have another chance to hear it.

by Jaki Whitren July 2006

Tracks
1. New Horizon - 3:13
2. Oh Little Boy (Whitren, Baker) - 2:32
3. A Little Bit Extra Please - 2:35
4. Country Life - 1:43
5. To A Friend, Through A Friend (Let Your Feelings Burn) - 3:54
6. But Which Way Do I Go? - 4:56
7. Give Her The Day - 2:52
8. Ain't It Funny? - 3:08
9. I've Thought Hard About It - 4:26
10.As That Evening Sun Goes Down - 3:29
11.Human Failure (Leslie) - 3:13
12.Running All The Time (Whitren, Baker) - 3:37
All songs by Jaki Whitren except where noted.

Musicians
*Jaki Whitren - Vocals, Guitar, Banjo
*Pat Donaldson - Bass
*Gerry Conway - Drums, Congas
*Albert Lee - Dobro
*RobYoung - Flute
*Lindsay Cooper - Bassoon
*Marie Goosens - Harp
*Henry 'VIII' Bartlett - Jug
*John Van Derrick - Violin
*Gordon Huntley - Pedal Steel
*Frank Ricotti - Congas
*Ivan Chandler - Electric Piano
*Harry Beckett - Flugelhorn
*Malcolm Griffiths - Trombone
*Stan Sulzmann - Tenor Sax
*Brian Brocklehurst - String Bass
*Stuart Cowell - Guitar
*Mike Leslie - Guitar, Backing Vocals

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Country Joe And The Fish - Here We Are Again (1969 us, great west coast psychedelic rock, 2005 remastered edition)

"Here We Are Again" is the fourth--and next to last--album by the original lineup of Country Joe and the Fish. While the group would reunite every so often over the next few decades, this is one of the highlights of their career. The group's multi-songwriter democracy had displayed an admirable eclecticism on the first three albums, but the results often sounded scattershot. While that wide-ranging spirit is all over HERE WE ARE AGAIN, the individual songs somehow cohere into a more satisfying whole.

The addition of a horn section recruited from Count Basie's orchestra adds a jazz/R&B edge to the folk-rock-based songs, a conceit that works better than it might sound. Country Joe McDonald and Barry "The Fish" Melton largely avoid topical material in favor of witty tunes about love and life, making HERE WE ARE AGAIN the least dated of Country Joe and the Fish's original albums.

Recorded at Vanguard's 23rd Street Studio, New York, New York.

Tracks
1. Here I Go Again - 3:24
2. Donovan's Reef - 4:18
3. It's So Nice To Have Love - 3:25
4. Baby, You're Driving Me Crazy (Barry Melton) - 2:43
5. Crystal Blues - 6:18
6. For No Reason - 3:55
7. I'll Survive - 2:28
8. Maria - 3:30
9. My Girl (Barry Melton) - 2:16
10.Doctor Of Electricity (Barry Melton) - 3:58
All songs by Country Joe McDonald except where noted.

Country Joe And The Fish
*Country Joe McDonald - Vocals, Guitar
*Barry Melton  - Vocals, Electric Guitar
*David Cohen - Guitar, Keyboards
*Gary "Chicken" Hirsch - Drums, Percussion
Additional personnel 
*Mark Kapner - Piano
*Mark Ryan - Bass
*Jack Casady - Bass
*Peter Albin - Bass
*David Getz - Drums

1967  Electric Music For The Mind And Body
1969  Live! Fillmore West

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The Happenings - The Happenings / Psycle (1966-67 us, vocal harmony sunshine baroque psych folk pop, 2003 Collectable's issue)

 "The band was gifted with a flair and a half for harmony pop, especially that of the good old fashioned barbershop quartet variety."

From Paterson, New Jersey came The Happenings, who encountered a quick flash of glory in the sixties before getting bumped off the radar by the more progressive acts of the era. The band was gifted with a flair and a half for harmony pop, especially that of the good old fashioned barbershop quartet variety.

However, they updated their sound just enough so it wouldn't be too horribly quaint for the kids to digest. Such spine-tingling vocal prowess can be experienced on these two albums which have been shoehorned into one compact disc.

Released in 1966, "The Happenings" deposited a pair of rock solid hit singles with "See You in September" and a copy of Carole King and Gerry Goffin's "Go Away Little Girl." A cluster of Tokens compositions such as "Tonight I Fell In Love," "You're In a Bad Way," "What To Do" and "Tea Time" line the album as well.

And that makes complete sense because not only did the evergreen doo-wop group handle the band's affairs and produce their work, but The Happenings were also signed to their label, BT Puppy Records. Decked out in a freaky jacket cover that belied the characteristically polite music housed inside, "Psycle" was issued in 1967 and included "I Got Rhythm" and "My Mammy," both which clenched the national charts. The album suggested The Happenings were attempting to stretch boundaries a bit, as snippets of the material are trimmed with jazz and blues inclinations. But the band refused to pretend to be something they were not, and all told, "Psycle" teems with concise harmony pop configurations.

The Happenings excelled at this style of music so why change their image? Although the band never broke any real new ground, their contributions to the golden age of teen radio should not be underestimated. 

by Beverly Paterson

Tracks
1966  The Happenings
1. See You in September (Sherman Edwards, Donald Meyer, Sid Wayne) - 2:29
2. Tonight I Fell in Love (Mitch Margo, Phil Margo, Hank Medress) - 2:19
3. Girl on a Swing (Robert Miranda) - 2:31
4. If You Love Me (Really Love Me) (Marc Monnet, Marguerite Monnot, Geoff Parsons) - 2:43
5. What to Do (Buddy Holly, Hank Medress) - 2:42
6. You're Coming on Strong, Babe (Robert Miranda) - 2:56
7. Go Away Little Girl (Gerry Goffin, Carole King) - 2:21
8. The Same Old Story (Dave Libert, Robert Miranda) - 2:25
9. Sealed With a Kiss (Gary Geld, Peter Udell) - 2:25
10.You're in a Bad Way (Hank Medress) - 2:43
11.Girls on the Go (Brute Force) - 2:31
12.Tea Time (Lucky Thompson) - 2:45
1967  Psycle
13.I Got Rhythm (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin) - 2:58
14.Why Do Fools Fall in Love (Morris Levy, Fred Lyman, Frank Lymon) - 2:49
15.That Cold Feeling (Hank Medress) - 2:29
16.Down, Down, Down (Dave Libert, Robert Miranda, Neil Young) - 2:32
17.Growing Old (Lord, I Must Be Growin' Old) (Dave Libert, Robert Miranda) - 3:23
18.I Believe in Nothing (Hank Medress) - 2:39
19.My Mammy (Walter Donaldson, Sam M. Lewis, Joe Young) - 2:58
20.When I Lock My Door (Hank Medress) - 2:38
21.I'm Always Chasing Rainbows (Harry Carroll, Joseph McCarthy) - 2:37
22.When the Summer Is Through (Hank Medress) - 2:33
23.Every Year About This Time (Dave Libert, Robert Miranda) - 2:28
24.Bye Bye Blackbird (Mort Dixon, Ray Henderson) - 3:05

The Happenings
*Tommy Giullano-  Vocals, Percussion
*Mike La Neve - Drums, Percussion, Vocals
*Bernie Laporta - Lead Guitar, Vocals
*Dave Libert - Vocals, Bass, Keyboards
*Bob Miranda - Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards

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Tommy Boyce And Bobby Hart - Anthology (1962-76 us, wonderful sunshine beat psych bubble pop)

It might be cute to say that Boyce & Hart were the hand inside the Monkees' puppet head, if not for the fact that the Monkees had legitimate talent and have already caught enough grief over their prefabricated origins. Boyce & Hart had yet more talent, though, and not only plied the Monkees with hit songs but, in some cases, performed them, too. 

Tommy Boyce enjoyed minor teen idol success as a solo act with "I'll Remember Carol" in 1962 before teaming up with Bobby Hart to produce one Top Ten hit ("I Wonder What She's Doing Tonite") and a handful of lesser chart entries. This Australian anthology, simply titled The Anthology, contains two of Boyce's solo recordings (including his hit), 18 A&M recordings from Boyce & Hart's prime (including all of their hits), and five songs the duo cut with the Monkees' Davy Jones and Micky Dolenz in the '70s. The Boyce & Hart recordings are the highlights, especially the bubblegum pop of songs such as "I Wonder What She's Doing Tonite" and "The Countess." 

Listeners already familiar with the Monkees' albums will experience deja vu throughout as Boyce & Hart demonstrate again and again the extent to which they were the architects of the Monkees' sound. Even the Monkees' detours into pop psychedelia are matched by Boyce & Hart on a trippy rendition of "Jumpin' Jack Flash." The theme song from the 1967 spy film The Ambushers (complete with gunshot sound effects) is campy fun, as are the mid-'70s cover versions of "Teenager in Love" and the Beach Boys' "Sail on Sailor," provided one doesn't approach them with high expectations. 

For those who want only the Boyce & Hart recordings, a more recent compilation on Rev-Ola titled I Wonder What She's Doing Tonite: The Best of Boyce & Hart limits its focus to recordings from the pair's late-'60s heyday. 

by Greg Adams

Tracks
1. I'll Remember Carol (T. Boyce) - 2:27
2. Sunday, The Day Before Monday - 2:19
3. Out And About - 2:30
4. I Should Be Going Home - 3:00
5. For Baby - 3:48
6. Sometimes She's A Little Girl - 2:55
7. I Wonder What She's Doing Tonite - 2:43
8. The Ambushers (H. Monetnegro, H. Baker) - 2:15
9. I'm Digging You Digging Me - 2:37
10. I Wanna Be Free - 2:25
11. Teardrop City - 2:22
12. Love Every Day - 2:50
13. The Countless - 2:28
14. Goodbye, Baby - 3:59
15. Where Angels Go, Trouble Follows (Shifrin, Boyce, Hart)- 2:06
16. Alice Long - 2:52
17. P.O. Box 9847 - 3:01
18. Abracadabra (Shelton, Lewis, Gallie) - 1:52
19. Jumpin' Jack Flash (Jagger, Richards) - 4:08
20. Standing In The Shadows Of Love (Holland, Dozier, Holland) - 4:29
21. I Love You - 3:10
22. A Teenager In Love (Pomus, Shuman) - 3:00
23. Sail On Sailor (D. Trevor) - 3:40
24. I Remember The Feeling - 3:25
25. It Always Hurts Most In The Morning - 3:28
All songs by Tommy Boyce And Bobby Hart unless as else stated

*Tommy Boyce - Guitar. Vocals
*Bobby Hart - Vocals, Piano

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Lee Clayton - Lee Clayton (1973 excellent country rock with folk shades, 2006 Acadia edition)

Lee Clayton was born on October 29th, 1942 in Russellville, Alabama. He grew up in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and learned to play harmonica and guitar around the age of seven. As Clayton told the UK magazine Omaha Rainbow way back when: "I've always known music was important - when my dad knew he'd got uptight, and the world got too much for him. he would break out his bourbon and play Red Foley and Jimmie Rodgers records and tell war stories and drink whisky. 

I can remember trying to figure out when I was a little boy what .-.as going on; why everybody would sit there and get drunk and cry. I figured anything could evoke that kind of emotion had to be pretty strong". At the age of nine, he was given a steel guitar, and like many of his contemporaries, turned onto Country music as heard on the many specialist radio stations in the Southern States. Apparently, Clayton had been given a choice of instruments - guitar or accordion - and, probably surmising (given his relatively tender years, maybe it was just a hunch he had) that the guitar was a better method of attracting the attention of young ladies took up the string option. However, when he professed boredom and the formal music lessons that his dad was paying for, Clayton senior promptly sold the guitar. This proved to be a temporary hiatus from Clayton's musical ventures, however; Clayton took up music again in his mid-teens. 

As time went by, Clayton got married, and acquired a Porsche sports car - he has said elsewhere that the limit of his ambitions at the time was to fly aeroplanes, play music now ambitions, and, in his own words: "One day, something went 'click' and I turned round and went back home, quit the job and started trying to get in the air force". Clayton spent several years in the US Air Force; having been drawn to the fly boys when taking a friend to undergo basic training as a pilot. Whilst in the USAF, he piloted the infamous Voodoo 101 fighter, nicknamed the 'Widowmaker' by his fellow pilots because of the plane's unfortunate propensity to become uncontrollable at high speeds. 

Having had his fill of that, Clayton left the services to pursue a potential career as a singer-songwriter. In the aforementioned interview, Clayton recalled his attempts to find a way in to the Nashville singer-songwriting circle: "I was living in Louisville, Kentucky, and I'd.... spend three or four days a week in Nashville. (When) people would say to me 'What are you doing?', I'd say Tm a poet and songwriter'. Within six months, my money started to go and they took my credit cards away from me and I was on the street. Sold my Porsche and I had an old beat-up Volkswagen. I went from then until I got some money from the record company when I signed the deal in early 73. (Before that) it was out on the street, sleeping on the floor time". 

His first major success came with the song that gave 'Outlaw1 country its name, Ladies Love Outlaws, originally recorded by The Everly Brothers on their 1972 album, Pass The Chicken And Listen, and taken into the US Billboard Country singles chart by Waylon Jennings in the same year. Ironically enough, Jennings didn't even want the song (or the album it came from) released; it ended up giving its name to a movement in which he would become one its icons. 

Indeed, it's probably by far Clayton's best known number - artists such as Tom Rush, Confederate Railroad (on the soundtrack of the movie Maverick, which starred Jodie Foster and Mr 'Hi there sugar tits' himself, Mel Gibson) and Jimmy Rabbit have tendered their own take on record over the years. Such success and notoriety saw Clayton score a record deal with the MCA label. MCA had broadened their musical horizons in the early 1970s, signing the future giants of 'Southern Rock', Lynyrd Skynyrd, and also started feeling out talent in other musical genres. The first fruit of the liaison was the album you're hopefully playing now, simply entitled Lee Clayton. From the cover on in, it's apparent that Clayton had been around a bit, done his fair share of dues paying before he set foot in a recording studio. 

The cover features a long-haired, somewhat careworn individual, in a country setting, looking more like a drifting hitch-hiker than a Nudie Cohen-suited 'hat' act from the Nashville production line. A cursory introduction to the album's musical content reveals that Clayton is possessed of a voice that is similarly rough around the edges - but a perfect vehicle for his intimate, ruminative and pleasingly melancholy songs. Indeed, melancholy is the overall mood that permeates the album in an emotive and appealing way. 

It's not, however, the kind of melancholia of a Hank Williams or a Ray Price; no, what Clayton parlays is a contemporary take on Romantic desolation. Whereas Hank would've contrasted the existential hillbilly longing of / Can't Help It If I'm Still In Love With You with up-tempo hee-hawing like Settin' The Woods On Fire, Clayton's songs are more urban, and negotiate a different emotive register - equally as affecting, mark you, but firmly rooted in the here and now, at least the here and now of the early 1970s. Also (and you couldn't ask for more from a debut album), Clayton's debut is a bunch of well-crafted, melodically strong and considered collection of songs that showed great promise. 

Lee Clayton was produced by Chip Young - his career has seen him provide like services on albums Billy Swan, Joe Ely, Mickey Newbury and Delbert McClinton amongst many others. The album also contains musical contributions from a talented bunch of session musicians, whose names will be familiar to fans of the music that's emanated from Nashville over the last thirty years. These include such Music Row luminaries as Tim Drummond (bass), Mickey McGee (drums), and Buddy Spicher (fiddle). Bonnie Bramlett also gets to provide some backing vocals, too. 

There's also a personal dedication from Clayton to Waylon (Jennings), Kris (Kristofferson), and Billy Joe (Shaver) - a nice acknowledgement from one talented singersongwriter to his influential contemporaries - Clayton would latterly have more reasons to thank Jennings and Kristofferson, as we shall see. The centrepiece of the album is the composite New York City Suite 409. In the space of its six minutes plus duration, Clayton skilfully elides two songs together - Lord She Don't Belong In New York City, and Don't You Think It's Time To Come Home. 

The first part finds Clayton in thoughtfully sombre mood, yearning for his lover who's in far off NYC, and his skilful description of the missing main squeeze's homespun ways paints a vivid mental picture. It's also obvious a concurrent strand running through the piece is the notion that she's not coming back, which makes the second half of the song all the more poignant, Clayton's lyrical and vocal understatement only adding considerably to the emotive sucker punch that the song ultimately delivers. 

To me, this illustrates Clayton's songwriting talents brilliantly; a complex emotional range put across simply and effectively. Your attention is drawn to the female vocal in this song that adds a pleasingly femme ying to Clayton's masculine yang - it's supplied by none other than Carly Simon, whom, one surmises, is likely the subject of Clayton's credit on the original album jacket: "Special thanks to a lovely lady from New York City". 

I'm duty bound to point out the presence on bass on this track of one Dennis Linde - often erroneously credited as the composer of the dreamy sixties folkie hit Elusive Butterfly (that was actually Bob Lind - Dennis will be best-known to you as the composer of arguably Elvis Presley's best latter-day record, Burning Love, as well as composer of songs recorded by Garth Brooks (Callin' Baton Rouge), Mark Chesnutt (Bubba Shot The Juke Box), George W Bush's favourite Country act, The Dixie Chicks (Goodbye Earl) and even our very own Dr Feelgood (No Mo Do Yakamo). 

Elsewhere, Clayton turns his attention to the Country staples of drinking (Bottles of Booze), and the wooing of women (Mama, Spend The Night With Me) - I'm not sure how successful Clayton was with the lady in the latter, but at least he achieved a modicum of artistic success in crafting a fine contemporary Country seduction song. Clayton, somewhat inevitably, perhaps, chooses to end the album with his most famous song (up until then), Ladies Love Outlaws, and his version, whilst not the definitive item, serves to illustrate the depth and range of his songwriting skills - it's not the best track herein, but would still be a standout item on most singer-songwriters' albums. 

Lee Clayton - the album, was not a huge sales success, even if its artistic success justified MCA's signing him in the first place. Interviewed a few years later, Clayton was philosophical about it's commercial failure: "I think at some point in time people will understand what I've been trying to do. At the time, it was a very well kept secret. What happened to it was... who knows what happens? It's just one of those things. I had a shot, I rolled my dice and was fortunate enough and worked to a point where I could make a record album. It didn't sell a whole bunch, but that's just part of it. It knocked me out at the time that somebody thought enough about me that I could even put it down on plastic". 

He continued with the following overview of the year in which MCA signed him: "The start of 73, I had no money; got some money; made a record; spent a lot of money; end of '73 broke; off the label; back on the streets again all in one year. I lived in a motel room in California most of 74, then went to the desert in December of '74 - out in the Mojave Desert and lived there with this woman. Didn't do a whole lot. the truth is, just sat around and looked at things. Watched a lot of sundowns and sunrises, thought a lot, climbed the mountain and one day figured it was time for me to go at it again". Lee Clayton signed to the Capitol label in the late 1970s, and cut two more albums – Border Affair (1979) and Naked Child, which were well regarded at the time, critically, if again underwhelming in the sales department. 

Border Affair contained his own versions of songs such as Silver Stallion and If You Can Touch Her At All, the former of which was a signature track by that infamous quartet of Country Gargantuans, The Highwaymen - that's Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Kris Kristofferson and Willie Nelson. Willie Nelson also recorded the latter in solo mode. Despite Clayton's apparent obscurity, it's clear that his music has exerted a palpable influence on successive generations of artists; there's a lot of Clayton in Steve Earle and Ryan Adams, to these ears, and even Bono, vocalist with U2, once said: "There's only one Country singer who has influenced me, and he's an unknown feller called Lee Clayton." Since the early 80s, Clayton has sporadically put his head over the parapet - a live album here, tour of Scandinavia there, nut nothing really sustained. 

One surmises that Clayton likes it that way. So what's Lee Clayton up to these days? Well according to EMI publishing's Bruce Burch, he is living about an hour's drive outside of Nashville, and is still writing great songs. One hopes that there's more to come from this talented individual.

by Alan Robinson, October 2006

Tracks
1. Carnival Balloon -3:23
2. Bottles Of Booze - 4:48
3. Henry McCarty - 3:29
4. New York City Suite 409 - 6:38
…a. Lord She Don't Belong In New York City
…b. Don't You Think It's Time To Come Home
5. Mama, Spend The Night With Me - 3:07
6. Red Dancing Dress - 4:77
7. Danger - 2:52
8. Lonesome Whiskey - 2:45
9. Ladies Love Outlaws - 2:42
All songs written by Lee Clayton

Musicians
*Lee Clayton - Lead Vocals, Guitar
*Bobby Woods - Piano
*Reggie Young - Electric Guitar
*Kenny Malone – Drums,  Percussion
*Johnny Christopher - Rhythm Guitar
*Lloyd Green - Pedal Steel Guitar
*Shane Kestler - Moog
*Bobby Thompson - Banjo
*Mike Leech - Bass
*Tim Drummond - Bass
*Dennis Linde - Bass
*Richard Bowden - Electric Guitar
*Ed Black - Pedal Steel Guitar
*Mickey McGee - Drums
*Bobby Ogden - Organ
*Chip Young - Rhythm Guitar
*Jerry Shook - Harmonica
*Buddy Spicher - Fiddle

1978-79/81 Border Affair/The Capitol Years

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