ROBERT CALVERT
Captain Lockheed And The Starfighters
Atomhenge
www.cherryred.co.uk
Bob Calvert’s celebrated 1974 cult extravaganza dramatising the cautionary tale of the doomed Lockheed Starfighter F-104 is one of ’70s rock’s great unsung solo projects. Formatted as a series of surreal Dr Strangelove-esque sketches interspersed with slabs of thudding space rock, the intrepid Calvert appears in the multiple roles of storyteller, lyricist and black humorist fronting an all-star cast including The Pink Fairies’ Paul Rudolph and Twink, members of the then contemporary Hawkwind line-up including Lemmy and Nik Turner plus Arthur Brown, Vivian Stanshall, Jim Capaldi and Brian Eno.
This welcome deluxe reissue comes with sleeve notes by Nik Turner and bonus tracks including an extended ‘The Right Stuff’, plus the 45 versions of ‘Ejection’ and ‘Catch A Falling Starfighter’. This is either the late lamented Bob Calvert’s meisterwerk or the great lost Hawkwind album – or maybe it’s a bit of both.
Grahame Bent
CAPTAIN MARRYAT
Captain Marryat
Shadoks LP/CD
www.psychedelic-music.com
The big record collecting story of last year was the (re)discovery and subsequent megabucks auctions of Scottish prog band Captain Marryat’s sole album from 1974, released on Thor Records. With the price range well out of the reach of mere mortals, this Shadoks reissue will be many people’s first listen to the material rather than the hype.
To my ears it doesn’t disappoint. The sound is organ-driven prog with folk undertones and a continuous gloomy atmosphere that recalls Dr Z or Beggars Opera. Particularly distinguished is the guitar work that spiders over most of the six long tracks, with ‘Songwriter’s Lament’ a noteworthy stand out. It’s an utterly convincing artefact without a weak track from start to finish.
It’s exciting to think that there’s still gold out there as sparkling as this. Full marks to Shadoks again for their devotion in reissuing this and many other superb obscure titles.
Austin Matthews
CRUSHED BUTLER
Uncrushed
Radio Heartbeat LP
www.radioheartbeat.net
From the moment the opening drum salvo of ‘It’s My Life’ assaults your eardrums you know this is no excursion into lightweight rock – no siree. Except for ‘High School Drop Out’ and the other instrumental bonus track ‘Let It Ring’, this re-released version of Uncrushed largely consists of what can only be described as really heavy nuggets of raw, solid, foot stomping rock ’n’ roll.
Bolstered by some tight powerhouse drumming from Darryl Read, future Hammersmith Gorillas frontman Jesse Hector provides suitably gruff vocals and choppy guitar. Frequently described as “punks ahead of their time” – the tag is fully deserved – just listen to the likes of ‘It’s My Life’, ‘Factory Grime’ and ‘My Son’s Alive’ and you’ll realise why. Crushed Butler isn’t too dissimilar from fellow proto-punk band Third World War in this sense then, but there are also strong echoes of early Black Sabbath, Edgar Broughton Band and even Slade.
Rich Deakin
Fludd
Fludd
Wounded Bird CD
www.woundedbird.com
Although bass player Greg Godovitz (Goddo, The Carpet Frogs) is their most famous alumnus, it’s the Pilling brothers, Ed and Brian, who are most responsible for Fludd’s early output, having written all the songs save one on Fludd, the band’s debut album from 1971.
Though they hailed from Toronto, Fludd has a decidedly British feel; in fact, one could say that it’s the spit of the non-powerpop side of Badfinger, mixing soft tunes like the Top 20 Canadian hit ‘Turned 21’, ‘Sail On’ and ‘Easy Being No One’ with sturdy rockers ‘Mama’s Boy’, ‘You See Me’ and ‘Tuesday Blue’. The standout track, however, is ‘The Egg’, which probably comes closest to the essence of Badfinger.
As is often the case, a quality album doesn’t correspond to high sales figures, and Fludd was dropped by Warner Brothers, after which they hardened up their sound quite a bit on subsequent LPs. Hopefully Fludd will now get its proper due with this reissue.
David Bash
GOLIATH
Goliath
Gear Fab CD
gearfab.swiftsite.com
Louisville quintet Goliath recorded these songs in 1970. I’m still not sure from the liners if this was an album proper at the time or just a collection of unreleased studio recordings. In any event, this is a very nice CD. The swampy funky rock stylings of ‘Taking Back Roads’, ‘Kwak’ and ‘Mother Rat’ sit well with the more Crosby, Stills & Nash influenced tunes like ‘Chessboard Kings’.
The ballads ‘Sunny Day’, ‘Innocence Of My Mind’ and ‘In The Summertime’ are more mellow and the beautiful harmonised vocals lift them progressively higher. Lead vocals are strong and smooth accompanied by some lovely harmonies throughout.
Essentially, this is good southern rock with competent guitar and organ interplay. CSN and Allman Brothers fans will love this.
Paul Martin
MILT MATHEWS INC
For The People
Fantastic Voyage
www.futurenoisemusic.com
It’s life-affirming when an album pops up by a previously unknown name and turns out to be a stone classic. This latest gem from the Ember archives, spotlights a world-class soul singer-songwriter in Milt, plus a stellar band that effortlessly straddles the cross-pollinating musical styles running riot in the early ’70s.
Produced in New York by Beau Ray Fleming and first released in 1971, the album marries breathtaking psych-soul exercises like ‘Disaster Area’, bolstered by Randall Burney’s scathing acid-fuzz guitar, with brooding gospel-soul outings like ‘Can’t See Myself Doing You Wrong’, which wouldn’t have sounded out of place on Spooky Two. Although there’s an obligatory Beatles cover (‘A Hard Day’s Night’) and a gorgeous version of Blind Faith’s ‘Presence Of The Lord’, Milt wrote the best tracks, including the yearning ‘That’s The Way I Feel (Like A Burning Fire)’.
Highly recommended: not just as a curio but something which bears repeated hammering.
Kris Needs
MANDY MORE
But That Is Me
Sunbeam 2-CD
www.sunbeamrecords.com
If you’re down and troubled, need a helping hand or just want a damn good listening experience, this album – the first time Mandy More’s sole LP has been reissued since its brief spell on the shelves in 1972 – is absolutely essential.
It’s a complete mystery as to how this album has been under the radar for so long. Tracks like ‘Alone In My Yellow’ and ‘If I Smiled On Saturday’ are intelligent but starkly emotional singer-songwriter masterpieces, and they’re buffeted by more verdant productions like the totally original take on ‘God Only Knows’ and, best of all, the phenomenal slice of post-psychedelia, ‘If Not By Fire’.
Sunbeam has done a fantastic job on this reissue, with great sleeve notes, the addition of non-LP singles (including another tour de force, ‘Every Mother’s Child’) and an extra disc of unreleased material. For fans of the best bits of Kate Bush, Laura Nyro and Dana Gillespie, But That Is Me is every dream made flesh.
Jeanette Leech
Morning Dew
At Last
Cicadelic CD
www.cicadelic.com
The classic 1970 Roulette album from Topeka’s greatest ever show band is available again, now accompanied by a bunch of previously unreleased tracks.
At Last is a blistering slice of prime psychedelic rock. Having honed their skills on the Kansas circuit, regularly playing four-five hour sets each night, the band hit the studio at the peak of their powers. From the opening adrenalin rush of ‘Crusader’s Smile’ via the fuzzed-up guitar fest of ‘Cherry Street’, the album is a total blast.
Roulette never honoured the contracted second album which, on the evidence of the additional tracks presented here, was a travesty. In particular, the magnificent nine and a half minute ‘Lion’ show a band progressing at an alarming rate, heading for heavier, uncharted waters. Sadly they never got there but this album acts as a timely reminder – at last – of what was, and what could have been.
Gary Thorogood
LAURA NYRO & LABELLE
Gonna Take A Miracle
Rev-Ola CD
www.revola.co.uk
After four fine albums for Columbia, Miss Nyro looked back at her early soul and R&B influences with an exclusive album of covers. Produced by Gamble and Huff with vocal support and duets with Labelle, Gonna Take A Miracle revisits a number of classics and takes 1971 back to ’65. Rather than being part of the rock ’n’ roll revival that was popular at this time, lively songs such as ‘Jimmy Mack’ and ‘Monkey Time’ are resplendent with joy and sincerity, defining the music rather than reviving it. The stripped down production bears no trace of early ’70s technology and propels the music back to a simpler time.
When the girls’ perfect vocals are swamped in reverb, notably heard on the oldest song on this collection, Nolan Strong & The Diabolo’s dreamy ‘The Wind’ (which was originally recorded in ’54), they mesmerise.
Jon ‘Mojo’ Mills
PJ PROBY
I’m Yours
Fantastic Voyage CD
www.futurenoisemusic.com
71 years young and still quite active, Houston-born James Marcus Smith has made music and acting his career since his teenage days working with the likes of Elvis Presley, The Collins Kids and George Jones. In 1967 he had his sole Billboard Hot 100 hit with ‘Niki Hoeky’ on Liberty but by the time this Ember album came out in ’73, he was a cabaret and nightclub fixture à la Tom Jones.
Billed on the cover as his “comeback album, remastered from the original tapes” it failed to herald much of a comeback for him at the time but holds up quite well with superb arrangements accentuating his theatrical, occasionally over-the-top vocals.
Picks include a couple of show tunes (‘They Call The Wind Maria’ and ‘If I Loved You’) along with arresting covers of ‘Mama Married A Preacher’, the subdued ‘Draw Me A Circle’, a couple of R&B classics (‘Twilight Time’ and ‘Only You’) and the intimately epic title song.
Gary von Tersch
SPEEDBALL
Maximum Speed
Detour CD
www.detour-records.co.uk
I’m sure there were moments when all of us thought, “That’s it! There just can’t possibly be another mod revival band worth releasing a whole CD by! Not even on Detour!” Not only are Speedball more than worth releasing, but this may well be one of the label’s strongest releases to date. Familiar references pop up regularly throughout the songs, not least Paul Weller and Ed Ball who would’ve been quite proud of much of this material themselves.
Paired for their sole release in ’79, ‘No Survivors’ and ‘Is Somebody There’ are good but they’re not the best. ‘Billy Gets What Billy Wants’ is mod-pop artistry of the highest order, ‘Don’t You Know Love By Now’ and ‘Boys And Girls’ are up there with power-pop classics from the likes of The Nerves, and however tight the band may sound on the seven live tracks included, every single one of them will make you regret they haven’t had at least one more chance in the studio.
Goran Obradovic
MEL STREET
Mel Street / Country Soul
Poker CD
www.cherryred.co.uk
Country music singer and songwriter Mel Street had his biggest hit in 1973 with the hard-core honky-tonker ‘Lovin’ On The Back Streets’ and went on to cut six albums before taking his own life on his birthday in ’78, aged 45.
The utterly soulful, heartfelt 22 titles collected here comprise his complete output for the Polydor label, circa ’77, and contain four hit singles – including his final Top Ten charter ‘If I Had A Cheatin’ Heart’. Other unvarnished efforts, often set to an unhurried shuffle beat and boasting imaginative, down-to-earth lyrics include the suggestive bar room ballad ‘Close Enough For Lonesome’, the memory-laden smolderer ‘Shady Rest’, the hilariously reflective ‘I’m Just A Redneck In A Rock And Roll Bar’ and the downbeat microdrama ‘Let The Phone Just Keep On Ringing’.
Tony Rounce’s insightful liners relate the sad story of a promising career gone tragically awry.
Gary von Tersch
T REX
Spaceball (The American Radio Sessions)
Applebush 2-CD
www.easyaction.co.uk
Five radio sessions on US stations that saw Marc Bolan and friends attempting to capture America at the height of their heyday, 1971-72. To hear the intimate, solo acoustic versions Marc does of ‘Cosmic Dancer’ and ‘Planet Queen’, previewing these future classics prior to the release of Electric Warrior, is to partake of a dizzying delight.
When Mickey Finn joins in for some two-man numbers, and when the full band comes on and they all go off on some extended jams – that’s all just gravy. More gravy is poured when Marc and some of the DJs have off-the-cuff chats; too bad those interviews aren’t longer, as it’s always a great pleasure to listen to Bolan’s cosmic ramblings.
The booklet contains a generous bounty of groovy band photos, but the sleevenotes are in dire need of an editor’s touch.
Brian Greene
VARIOUS ARTISTS
The Electric Asylum Volume 4: Rock Hard British Freakrock
Past & Present CD
www.soundlinkmusic.com
This latest volume of obscure UK sides is pretty true to its subtitle, following on from the more junkshop glam dominated volume three. Only a few cuts (Wolfrilla, Smoke and Ning) have been compiled before.
Ex-Sorrows Rog (Lomas) And Pip (Whitcher) impress with the seismic ‘Warlord’, a B-side from a one-off 1970 45, whilst if you flip over Tuesday’s much-comped soft popper ‘Sewing Machine’ you get the glam-boogie delight of ‘Big Mr Little Man’. Some might see this as the juxtaposition of the sublime with the ridiculous (though I don’t).
We learn that Incredible Hog were distraught at the way their 45, ‘Lame’ was produced for a glam market (they were a heavy blues rock band), and you get a definite distinction between chart-aimed glam numbers and “serious” underground groups using 45s as hoped for album trailers.
Paul Martin
VARIOUS ARTISTS
Forge Your Own Chains: Heavy Psychedelic Ballads And Dirges 1968-1974
Now-Again CD/LP
www.nowagainrecords.com
After countless high-quality deep funk reissues, Now-Again Records have taken a trip around the world and done gone psychedelic on us. In the search for the perfect drum break to sample, master crate-digger Egon has discovered 16 cuts of lysergic, beat-pounding broodiness and added informative liner notes to boot.
Highlights are plentiful with Cleveland’s Sensational Saints’ ‘How Great Thou Art’, a farfisa-driven slice of psychedelic gospel, the fuzzy psych-beat ballad ‘Nina Nana’ from Colombian duo Ana Y Jaime, jazzy lounge psychedelics by Connecticut’s DR Hooker on ‘Forge Your Own Chains’, and the one truly “heavy” number on offer, Sweden’s Baby Grandmothers’ spiralling nine-minute psych-blues drone-fest ‘Somebody keeps Calling My Name’, leading the field.
Elsewhere, western rock influences spice up more traditional fare from Iran, Thailand and South Korea which, although good, never quite create enough spark to lift them above being merely interesting curios.
Alan Brown |
