Folk & Psychedelic Music from 60s and 70s and...not only...
Thursday, January 19, 2017
Tea and Symphony
An Asylum for the Musically Insane is the debut album by the psyched-out progressive/folk weirdo ensemble Tea and Symphony. Released on Harvest in 1969.
This is a fine example of English musical eccentricity that's very much in the style of Forest, Dr Strangely Strange and later period Incredible String Band. In turns experimental, progressive and theatrically challenging this is an unusual example of early '70s esoteric progressive/psych music from a bunch of hippy heads.
From Montreal, Quebec, this band began life as a high school garage band in 1964 and lasted through to 1970. Original drummer David Wynne recalls:- "Like most of the other band members we had started in high school garage bands (more basement in the Canadian climate) copying the Ventures and Shadows etc, then the Beatles, Stones and Dylan. I left The Rabble in 1965, shortly after Golden Girl was written, to join The Haunted. Their first drummer, Brian Robillard then joined The Rabble..."
Their best known song was Golden Girl and their albums which were an amalgam of pop and psychedelia, are both now sought-after by collectors. The first is decidedly patchy with more rubbishy pop songs than expected (I Still Can Hear You Laughing, Black Potato and Can I Squeeze?). Golden Girl is a straight-forward but competent pop song and was their most successful 45. The album does contain three tracks which are of interest; Rising Of The Sun, a gentle laid back number with a psych-pop ending; the rather unusual The Crushing Hand Of Mother, notable for its tempo changes and psychedelic guitar work and the magnum opus The Energy Ritual, a four part pop-psych potpourri, strongly influenced in places by the Sergeant Pepper era Beatles.
Actually part of a larger New York artist collective of the same name, the Group Image released one album, 1968's A Mouth in the Clouds. Heavily derivative of Jefferson Airplane (who also had a five-man, one-woman lineup), it also showed the influence of late-'60s harmony folk-pop-rock groups like the Mamas & the Papas. Despite wider exposure than many such bands, including coverage in Time magazine and being chosen to represent American culture at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, the group's record failed to make the charts.
Legendary US psych rock album, first released in 1971.
Excellent vocal harmonies and ringing guitar work coupled with some heavy riffs make this a worthwhile reissue.
From Corpus Christi in Texas as their name suggests.
There's some good guitar work on the album, which is essentially blues-based.
Arthur Lee got involved in the music business at an early age, and by the mid 60s had fronted several bands and had minor successes as a songwriter and producer in L.A. With the advent of the folk-rock movement in 1965 he was inspired to fuse the new sound of The Byrds with his beloved R&B, and before long had put together a band called Love. Under his leadership they became very popular in the L.A. clubs, and were signed to Elektra Records. By the time of their first album the band consisted of Arthur Lee (vocals/harmonica/guitar), Bryan Maclean (guitar/vocals), Johnny Echols (lead guitar), Ken Forssi (bass) and Alban Pfisterer (drums). They were notable for being one of the first racially integrated rock groups.
Their debut album was released in 1966, and saw them successfully blend folk-rock aesthetics with a harder garage rock style, with both Byrds-style 12-string guitars and more raw, edgy flavours. Lee was the focal point as both songwriter and lead singer, though rhythm guitarist Bryan Maclean also wrote and sang a good song of his own, as well as a cover of Billy Roberts' "Hey Joe". The other cover was an excellent arrangement of Burt Bacharach and Hal David's "My Little Red Book", which when released as a single became a minor hit at #52. The album itself was a modest success, peaking at #57 on the album chart.
Psychedelic pop combo the Rainy Daze formed in Denver, CO, in 1965. Comprised of singer/guitarist Tim Gilbert, his brother Kip on drums, lead guitarist Mac Ferris, bassist Sam Fuller, and keyboardist Bob Heckendorf, the group started as little more than a covers act, nevertheless parlaying a string of frat party gigs into a local television appearance that reportedly caught the attention of famed producer Phil Spector, who extended a management contract.
“There’s a Bond” is the superior album as it is more sophisticated with some clever arrangements with commercial expediency being restrained i.e. no Tammy equivalent. The highlights were Bond’s brilliant “Walking in the Park” (a later performance staple of Jon Hiseman’s Colosseum), Baker’s “Camel’s and Elephants” (Toad’s precursor) and Bruce’s inventive “Hear Me Calling Your Name”. Ray Charles’ influence permeates both albums
In 1968 Alexis Korner turned 40. He managed to record and release another album, its title A New Generation Of Blues suggesting that he was passing the baton on to the younger crowd. Instrumental backing came from the rhythm section of Danny Thompson and Terry Cox, though the two of them were now finding much greater success as part of folk-jazz band Pentangle. Enjo:http://www5y0.zippyshare.com/v/67739620/file.html
The name of the label on the cover is pretty cool. And the music on this record too. Hailing from New-York, The Lovin' Spoonful were brilliant musicians, able to rivalize with the greatest of their times. Their lead single, Daydream and its trademark whistle, may have been too much heard, even in commercials, it stays nonetheless infectious. The rest of the album reach the same level, one feet in country and blues, clearly influenced by Sun Records, and the other one on the other side of the ocean in (Swingin') London and the British (Beat) Invasion. The best songs on the albums are two samplable beautiful gems, Didn't Want To Have To Do It and You Didn't Have To Be So Nice that will both make a gorilla drop its tear.
Power of Love was the second studio album by Hour Glass, issued in March 1968 on Liberty Records, the final by the group with the namesakes of The Allman Brothers Band. After the failure of their first album, Liberty Records allowed a greater independence for the group, who had been virtually shut out of the decision making for their first album by the label and producer Dallas Smith. However, with the label's decision to retain Smith as producer, the group, especially Duane Allman, once again felt constricted by their label's expectations for the album. Enjoy:http://www1.zippyshare.com/v/62253343/file.html
