01. You Ga(ta Give It) (4:31) 02. Not Tonight (3:56) 03. Don't Get Funny With My Money (4:34 ) 04. Tee'd Off (3:43) 05. You Left Something Behind (3:59 ) 06. Squish (5:51 ) 07. Dream Theme (5:40) 08. Baffled (5:22) 09. I Don't Know Either (5:49)
Randy Brecker / trumpet, flugelhorn (2,5,8,9), Prophet 5 synth (3), lead vocals (1,3) Michael Brecker / tenor sax, flute
With: - David Spinozza / guitar (1-3,7) - Hiram Bullock / guitar (4-6,8,9) - Jeff Mironov / guitar (1-3,7) - George Duke / clavinet (2), Yamaha CP70 (3), Prophet 5 synth (4,7-9), Oberheim 4 synth (6), lead (1) & backing (2) vocals - Mark Gray / Fender Rhodes (4,5,6,8,9) - Don Grolnick / Yamaha CP70 (1,2), Fender Rhodes (7) - Neil Jason / bass - Marcus Miller / bass (1,3,7) - Steve Jordan / drums - Steve Gadd / drums (1-3,7) - Paulinho Da Costa / percussion (1,3) - Ralph MacDonald / percussion (2,5,7) - Airto Moreira / percussion (6,8,9) - D. J. Rogers / lead vocals (1) - Carl Carwell / lead (1,2) & backing (2) vocals - Sue Ann Carwell / backing vocals (2) - Fonzi Thornton / backing vocals (1,3,5) - Irene Cara / backing vocals (1,3,5) - Paulette McWilliams / backing vocals (1,3,5) - Ullanda McCullough / backing vocals (1,3,5) - Luther Vandross / / backing vocals (1,3,5), vocals arrangements (3)
The epitome of cool, the Brecker Brothers were one of best-selling jazz fusion outfits of the mid-'70s to the early '80s. Randy Brecker (trumpet/flügelhorn) and Michael Brecker (tenor sax) were ubiquitous session players and also members of the New York band Dreams. By the mid-'70s, they started recording under their own name. Their subsequent albums, The Brecker Brothers, Don't Stop the Music, and the live Heavy Metal Be-Bop all find the group doing challenging melodies in a genre that often played it too stupid. Detente finds them during a time when jazz playing was starting to get more lucrative. Keyboardist and producer George Duke was behind the boards for Detente. Although the Brecker Brothers and Duke are probably mainstays in any jazz fusion collection, their styles aren't analogous. Some of the tracks here clearly prove that point. "You Ga (Ta Give It)" and "Not Tonight" both come off as a little too radio friendly. Not surprisingly, the best cuts here have both the classic intelligent Brecker Brothers sound as well as George Duke's production prowess. The sophisticated and funky "Tee'd Off" gets the Brecker Brothers on more familiar terrain and features a sinewy guitar solo from the underrated Hiram Bullock. The highly charged "Squish" and "Baffled" both display Randy Brecker's singular arranging skills. "Dream Theme," arranged by Michael Brecker, is the album's best song, reflective yet not melancholy, with his saxophone felt and flawless throughout. The last track, "I Don't Know Either," has solos from both of the Brecker Brothers, and displays the level of skill that many jazz outfits simply didn't possess. Detente features work from a litany of jazz players, including Neil Jason and Steve Jordan in addition to Duke. Despite a few lukewarm tracks, Detente is well worth picking up
01.East River (3:38) 02.Inside Out (9:32) 03.Some Skunk Funk (7:01 ) 04.Sponge (6:24) 05.Funky Sea,Funky Dew (8:03) 06.Squids (7:57 )
Randy Brecker / electric trumpet, keyboards Michael Brecker / electric tenor sax Barry Finnerty / guitars, GuitarGanizer, background vocals Terry Bozzio / drums, background vocals Neil Jason / bass, lead vocals
Additional Musicians - Sammy Figueroa / percussion - Rafael Cruz / percussion - Kask Monet / handclaps, percussion, background vocals - Jeff Schoen / background vocals - Roy Herring / background vocals - Paul Schaeffer / fender rhodes - Victoria / tambourine - Alan Schwartzberg / drums - Bob Clearmountain & friends / handclaps
While artists more often than not look for an album title that in some way reflects the music contained within, few have come up with a name that, in three simple words, says it all as much as today's Rediscovery: The Brecker Brothers' Heavy Metal Bebop. A positively incendiary live recording (barring bassist Neil Jason's funkified, studio-recorded, set-opening vocal anthem, "East River"), it sports a completely revamped lineup from the group's Don't Stop the Music (Arista), released the previous year. While this album was reviewed as part of Legacy Recordings' 2012 box set, The Complete Arista Albums Collection, its sheer power and raw energy demanded inclusion as a Rediscovery.
And, as expected, it sounds absolutely tremendous . This is an album that—featuring a core quintet where saxophonist Michael Brecker and trumpeter Randy Brecker are joined, in addition to Jason, by guitarist Barry Finnerty and drummer Terry Bozzio, with additional percussion and overdubs added in post-production—rips through some of the best material from the group's earlier albums, including a light speed version of "Some Skunk Funk" and slightly faster, even more nuclear-infused take on "Sponge," both from the group's 1975 Arista debut, The Brecker Bros.
A slight breather comes with Don't Stop the Music's generally mellower "Funky Sea, Funky Dew," Michael's only compositional contribution to the set. Still, an extended a cappella and heavily processed saxophone outro is both an album highlight and demonstration of why Michael was already one of the most influential saxophonists of his generation...and would go on to become even more so in the decades leading to his untimely passing in 2007 at the too-young age of 57. A closing "Squids," from the same record, also feels less wholly unfettered than the album's first three live tracks, but still possessed more attitude and energy per square inch at a time when fusion was, in general, slowly morphing its way into the easier-on- the-ears predecessor to what would ultimately become smooth jazz. The album's only previously unheard live track is also its first live one: Randy's potently altered blues, "Inside Out," played with a greasy shuffle from Jason and Bozzio that, quite simply, means it.
Throughout this 42-minute set—all but three of them recorded live at My Father's Place in Roslyn, NY—the entire band plays as if its life depended on it. Michael Brecker soars, while older brother Randy (similarly processing his horn with a harmonizer, envelope filter and more) matches his younger sibling's energy note for searing note, the pair seemingly unable to play anything but the right note at the right time—except, occasionally, when they played the wrong note at precisely the right time...because with music this unshackled, there are no wrong notes, just ones that drive the player(s) in unexpected directions. While rarely featured, Jason and Bozzio keep the pulse at a fever pitch throughout, thundering where necessary—especially on the high octane "Sponge" where, with a new solo section, a three-way trade-off between the two Breckers and Finnerty represents the album at its most reckless, raw and relentless—but laying back as required with equal aplomb.
The surprise of the set is, however, Finnerty. Having first heard the guitarist on a live radio broadcast of the Crusaders, playing a solo to the title track of keyboardist Joe Sample's Rainbow Seeker (ABC, 1978) that remains memorable to this day, it was clear that he may have had big shoes to fill in replacing Larry Carlton in that group but—clearly imbued with similar chops and linguistic command—the guitarist brought an edgier New York vibe and completely different kind of lyricism to the successful Texan-centric West Coast group.
So, when finally hearing Heavy Metal Bebop for the first time—a little late to the game, a couple years after it was first released—I already knew he had all he needed to not just match the two Breckers, but to actually up the ante. While the Breckers take the lion's share of the solo space, every time Finnerty is featured it's a revelation...and all the more a crime that, despite remaining active in the ensuing years, the guitarist has never managed to garner the broader acclaim he deserves—if nothing else based on his contribution to Heavy Metal Bebop but, with Miles Davis, Billy Cobham, Hubert Laws and Eliane Elias also in his résumé, clearly possessing even more.
The Brecker Brothers would continue recording and touring—even reuniting in 1992, after a lengthy hiatus, for two superb studio records: The Return of the Brecker Brothers (GRP, 1992) and Out of the Loop (GRP, 1994), along with a live concert video crying out for DVD and/or Blu Ray reissue. But while the group would make other superb records, in particular its first-period swan song, Straphangin' (Arista, 1981), it would never make another record like Heavy Metal Bebop.
Still, with the same lineup reuniting in 2014 for tours of Europe and Japan (with Ada Rovatti in the saxophone chair) who knows? Maybe there will be an album culled from those dates, just as The Brecker Brothers Reunion (Piloo, 2013) came out of both a studio date CD, led by Randy in 2011 with a different (and expanded) lineup, and a concert DVD recorded the following year at the Blue Note in New York City.
Hope may spring eternal...but in the meantime there's still Heavy Metal Bebop—indeed the heaviest album The Brecker Brothers ever made; a fusion record that, with its in-your-face energy and attitude, could only have come out of the Big Apple...and is the perfect Rediscovery to scratch a most particular itch.
01.Finger Lickin' Good (3:59) 02.Funky Sea, Funky Dew (6:12) 03.As Long As I've Got Your Love (4:13 ) 04.Squids (7:44) 05.Don't Stop The Music (6:31 ) 06.Petals (4:21) 07.Tabula Rasa (8:20 )
Randy Brecker / flugelhorn, trumpet, electric trumpet Michael Brecker / tenor sax , flute
With: - Steve Khan / 6- & 12-string electric guitars - Jerry Friedman / guitar (1), electric piano (5) - Hiram Bullock / guitar (2-4,6) - Santiago Torano / guitar (1,3) - Don Grolnick / keyboards - Doug Riley / keyboards - Alan Rubin / trumpet - Lou Marini / alto sax - Lew Delgatto / baritone sax - David Taylor / bass trombone - Barry Rogers / trombone - Will Lee / bass, backing vocals - Chris Parker / drums - Lenny White / drums (7) - Steve Gadd / drums (4,6) - Ralph MacDonald / percussion - Sammy Figueroa / congas (7) - Christine Faith / backing vocals - Robin Clark / backing vocals - Josh Brown / backing vocals - Beverly Billard / backing vocals (3) - Doug Billard / backing vocals (3) - Doug Riley / horns & strings arranger - Gene Orloff / concertmaster
String Section : - Aaron Rosand / violin - Guy Lumia / violin - Paul Gershman / violin - Harry Lookofsky / violin - Sanford Allen / violin - Ariana Bronne / violin - Harold Kohon / violin - Matthew Raimondi / violin - Peter Dimitriades / violin - Lamar Alsop / viola - Richard MaxImoff / viola - Alfred Brown / viola - Jesse Levy / cello - Richard Locker - cello
This 1977 effort continues their hitmaking streak of one of fusion and R&B's durable and respected units. While this album's predecessor, Back to Back, was credited to the Brecker Brothers Band and featured members including David Sanborn and Steve Khan, it came off as underdone and facile. Don't Stop the Music does present their gifts in a more cogent fashion, but not without a few odd detours. The title track and "Finger Licking Good" are pure disco efforts, with pushy rhythms and ingratiating backing vocals. Although they are both a little silly, they have great horn riffs and boast a potent production. Despite those danceable offerings, Don't Stop the Music also features some of the brothers' most challenging work. The funky and quirky "Squids" features Randy Brecker's customarily offbeat and singular electric trumpet work. Hiram Bullock's articulate guitar also shines on that track and he fit into the Breckers sound like no other player. "Funky Sea, Funky Dew" is a reflective, urbane mid-tempo offering that has great tenor solos from Michael Brecker. The just-as-strong "Petals" features a poignant trumpet work from Randy Brecker. Don't Stop the Music enlists rock producer Jack Richardson, and he and co-producer Steve Backer both capture the more powerful aspects of the duo. Recorded at Atlantic Studios and engineered by Gene Paul, Don't Stop the Music boasts an interesting sound, and is one of the Brecker Brothers' better efforts.
01. Keep It Steady(Brecker's Bunp) (6:24) 02. If You Wanna Boogie.....Forget It (3:56) 03. Lovely Lady (6:16) 04. Night Flight (6:14) 05. Slick Stuff (4:46) 06. Dig A Little Deeper (3:58) 07. Grease Piece (5:46) 08. What Can A Miracle Do (4:14 ) 09. I Love Wastin' Time With You (6:32)
Randy Brecker / flugelhorn, trumpet, electric trumpet Michael Brecker / tenor sax , flute
With: - Steve Khan / guitar - Don Grolnick / keyboards - David Whittman / synth programming - David Sanborn / alto sax - Lew Delgatto / baritone sax (2) - Will Lee / bass, lead & backing vocals - Chris Parker / drums - Steve Gadd / drums (4,9) - Ralph MacDonald / percussion - Sammy Figueroa / percussion (4) - Rafael Cruz / percussion (4) - David Friedman / marimba (6) - Luther Vandross / backing vocals, vocal arrangements - Patti Austin / backing vocals - Robin Clark/ backing vocals
During the seventies, The Brecker Brothers were the go-to guys for anyone looking for a horn section. This wasn’t any horn section though. Quite the opposite. The Brecker Brothers were one of the hottest horn sections of the seventies. Their services and sound was constantly in demand. No wonder. Michael played saxophone, flute and EWI and Randy trumpet and flugelhorn. They featured on everything from jazz, funk and soul albums right through to albums by Todd Rundgren, Frank Zappa and P-Funk giants Parliament. Despite The Brecker Brothers’ services being so in demand as top session musicians, they still found time to forge their own career, releasing a string of successful jazz fusion albums. Between 1975 and 1994, The Brecker Brothers released eight albums. The album that launched their recording career was their eponymous album The Brecker Brothers. It was released to critical acclaim and commercial success in 1975. This set the bar high for The Brecker Brothers. This meant they had a lot to live up to when they released the followup, their sophomore album, Back To Back in 1976. For the recording of Back To Back, The Brecker Brothers put together a crack band of musicians and vocalists to record nine new songs. Would Back To Back, which will be rereleased by SoulMusic Records on 12th November 2012, prove to be as commercially successful and critically acclaimed as their debut album?
When The Brecker Brothers came to record their sophomore album Back To Back, they proved that as well as being top musicians, they were also talented songwriters. They penned six of the nine tracks, collaborating with a variety of songwriting partners. Michael wrote Night Flight and Randy Slick Stuff. The only track Michael and Randy cowrote was Grease Piece, which they cowrote with Steve Khan and David Sanborn. Another of Randy Brecker’s songwriting partners was a young Luther Vandross, who cowrote Keep It Steady (Brecker Bump) wIth Steve Khan, David Sanborn. Luther’s other contribution was What Can A Miracle Do, which he cowrote with Don Grolnick. If The Brecker Brothers’ list of songwriting partners was impressive, then their band was equally impressive.
Joining The Brecker Brothers at Electric Lady Studios were a band that included some of the best session musicians of the seventies. The core band included a rhythm section of drummer Christopher Parker, guitarist Steve Khan and bassist and vocalist Will Lee. David Sanborn played alto saxophone and keyboardist Don Grolnick. Guest musicians included drummer Steve Gadd, percussionists Sammy Figueroa, Ralph McDonald and Rafael Cruz and Lew Del Gatto on baritone saxophone. Dave Whitman played synths, Dave Friedman marimba and Luther Vadross added backing vocals. Patti Austin sang the lead vocal on Wastin’ Time. Given this was a band crammed full of talented musicians, singers and songwriters, surely Back To Back must be a commercial success?
On the release of Back To Back in 1976, it proved more successful than The Brecker Brothers’ debut album. It had reached number 102 in the US Billboard 200, number twenty-five in the US R&B Charts and number four in the US Jazz Charts. Back To Back proved more successful in the US Billboard 200, reaching number eighty-two. However, it only reached number thirty-two in the US R&B Charts and number nine in the US Jazz Charts, which wasn’t as successful as their debut album. At least Back To Back had crossed into the mainstream. The only single released was If You Wanna Boogie…Forget It, which only reached number ninety-five in the US R&B Charts. Although Back To Back proved slightly more successful than their debut album The Brecker Brothers, was the music as good? After all, The Brecker Brothers was a critically acclaimed album. That’s what I’ll now tell you.
Opening Back To Back is Keep It Steady (Brecker Bump), which ensures The Brecker Brothers have your attention. From the get-go, the arrangement has a driving, smouldering and funky beat. The rhythm section create a pulsating, back beat while stabs of keyboards and The Brecker Brothers’ blazing horns help drive the arrangement along. They’re helped along by David Sanborn’s alto saxophone. The horns feed off each other, driving the other to greater heights. Then Steve Khan’s guitar takes centre-stage. It’s a show stealing solo. Steve’s rocky guitar sears and sizzles, riffing until you think there’s nowhere else to go. Adding to the drama that builds and builds, are the backing vocals, lead by Luther Vandross. Like the horns and Steve Khan’s guitar solo, they play their part in the track’s drama and success.
If You Wanna Boogie…Forget It is very different from the opening track. There’s everything from boogie woogie through Frank Zappa and Little Feat. Boogie, funk and rock are combined peerlessly as the track unfolds at breakneck speed. The vocal is delivered powerfully and urgently, while piano, a funky rhythm section and stabs of growling horns provide an accompaniment. Backing vocalists respond to the lead vocals call, reflecting a similar sense of urgency. During the track there’s some peerless boogie woogie piano playing. When the punchy harmonies and stabs of grizzled horns are added to the equation, the result is a glorious genre-straddling track.
Lovely Lady has a very beautiful, almost understated sound. Just tender horns, percussion and a subtle rhythm section create a meandering backdrop for a heartfelt vocal. It drifts in and out as wistful woodwind and keyboards join the mix. Later, horns rasp before a flugelhorn takes centre-stage, providing a dreamy, melancholy sound. You’re swept away by its beauty, as the vocal returns. Horns accompany it rasping and sometimes, growling, but nether overplaying nor overpowering the rest of the arrangement. The result is a track that’s beautiful and dreamy, where you can lose yourself and float along in its wake.
Night Flight was Michael Brecker’s first ever composition. You wouldn’t realize this listening to the track. A myriad of percussion, shakers and bongos give the track a Latin sound and feel. Before long it’s all change. Rock and jazz-fusion and even shades of prog rock keyboards combine. Guitars provide a rocky flavor, as the rhythm section drive the track along in the direction of jazz-fusion with growling horns for company. Mostly it’s jazz-fusion all the way. Think Weather Report and John McLaughlin. Steve Khan’s guitar and keyboards add a dynamic, dramatic sound. Then the track heads back in the direction of jazz-fusion, something The Brecker Brothers do so well.
Slick Stuff was the sequel to a track on The Brecker Brothers debut album Some Skunk Funk. It’s one of the real highlights of Back To Back, from the opening bars. The track sounds not unlike a track from the soundtrack to a seventies Clint Eastwood film. It bursts into life, braying horns and the rhythm section driving the arrangement along. Space is certainly at a premium. The band play as if their lives depend on it. Soon, you’re thinking of Dirty Harry chasing the bad guys across San Francisco. This track paints pictures in your mind. You close your eyes and the scenes unfold, with The Brecker Brothers providing the soundtrack. If only someone could write a movie as good as this track, then it would well worth seeing.
Dig A Little Deeper is a parody of the pseudo-hippie philosophy of the sixties. By 1976, when Back To Back was recorded, people had seen through much of the sixties’ culture. This track proves this and parodies it. There’s even a hint of David Bowie and Frank Zappa during the track. A slow, spacious and funky beat accompanies a vocal that’s deliberate, even melodramatic. It reminds me of David Bowie. Backing vocalists respond to the call, as horns growl and blaze. Percussion, marimba and keyboards join the fray, but it’s the vocal, backing vocals and horns that steal the show, on a track where truth and humor play their part in the song’s success.
Punchy, blazing horns open Grease Piece, driving the track along. They’re joined by keyboards, handclaps, percussion and the rhythm section. It doesn’t take long to realise that although this is a slice of good-time, funky music. You only need to listen to the peerless horn playing, scintillating rhythms and its percussive delights. Sometimes, you wonder is this an attempt to crossover into disco? Why not though? This track isn’t just dance-floor friendly, but infectiously catchy and uber funky. Alas, for some reason, it wasn’t released as a single. This was certainly a missed opportunity, and a case of what might have been?
What Can A Miracle Do sees The Brecker Brothers showcase their versatility. Luther Vandross delivers his vocal accompanied by just piano, percussion and understated rhythm section. There’s a hint of vulnerability in Luther’s vocal, while guitars, percussion and keyboards provide the backdrop. Randy Brecker adds the finishing touch, adding an open-belled trumpet in between each verse. This is something of masterstroke, and works beautifully. Despite this, Luther steals the show. By now, you realize that Luther Vandross was destined for greatness, given his emotive, heartfelt delivery of what’s quite simply one of the most beautiful songs on Back To Back.
Closing Back To Back is I Love Wastin’ Time With You, which features a duet between bassist Will Lee and Patti Austin. She’d just released her debut album End of A Rainbow and was on something of a roll, as this track shows. A sultry saxophone joins a slow, deliberate rhythm section and keyboards before Patti and Will deliver their duet. This they do against rasping horns, stabs of Hammond organ and the rhythm section which create a dramatic, jazzy backdrop. Patti and Lee vamp their way through the track, feeding off each other. When the tempo drops, it’s as if to give them the time to get their breath back. After a wistful, jazz-tinged piano solo, the drama grows and grows. When their vocals return, they seem determined to close the track on a dramatic high, but not before teasing and toying with you. This they do, for the remainder of this blistering track, which proves the perfect way to end Back To Back.
01. Some Skunk Funk (5:50) 02. Sponge (4:05) 03. A Creature Of Many Faces (7:41) 04. Twilight (5:44) 05. Sneakin' Up Behind You (4:54) 06. Rocks (4:38) 07. Levitate (4:32) 08. Oh My Stars (3:14) 09. D.B.B. (4:46)
Randy Brecker / trumpet, electric trumpet, flugelhorn, vocals Michael Brecker / tenor sax
With: - Bob Mann / guitar - Don Grolnick / keyboards - David Sanborn / alto sax - Will Lee / bass, vocals (5) - Harvey Mason / drums - Christopher Parker /drums (5) - Ralph MacDonald / percussion
Randy Brecker's time with the original line-up of Blood, Sweat & Tears proved short-lived unfortunately, and I heard nothing more significant from this talented trumpeter until he joined up with brother Michael (sax) in another fleeting group called Dreams (which also included ace drummer Billy Cobham).
Eventually, however, the siblings found a more permanent gig for themselves by forming The Brecker Brothers, which released its first album back in '75.
Certainly initial comparisons to Blood, Sweat & Tears are understandable, but instead of sticking to strictly Jazz-Rock, the band also injected a healthy dose of Funk into its overall style. Heck, the vigorous and buoyant opening track is called "Some Skunk Funk"—which lives up to its name, by the way—and other flamboyant ditties such as "Twilight," "Rocks," "A Creature of Many Faces," and "Sneakin' Up Behind You" occasionally toss more Funk influences into the sophisticated song arrangements, although often blended with Jazz, Soul, and even Progressive Rock due to their general complexity. Thus, the debut album by The Brecker Brothers becomes almost a melding of Blood, Sweat & Tears with Tower of Power, only a mostly instrumental version of such.
Regardless, this debut, featuring—as one would expect—an impressive blaring-and-blazing horn section (the brothers along with the legendary David Sanborn on alto sax), plus a stunning array of Jazz-oriented backing musicians, is a thoroughly energetic and enjoyable affair, not only for "brass enthusiasts" like myself, but also for those who delight in often-intricate Jazz-Fusion material.
While it wasn't the first attempt at melding jazz, rock and funky R&B (Herbie Hancock got a head start), the Brecker Borthers took it to a whole new level of inventiveness. It was as if they were thinking "What would happen if Stevie Wonder and Thelonious Monk had a meeting of the minds.
What comes out is a fiery brew of twisty angular melodies, inspired playing, soulful Stevie Wonder-esque songcraft, frighteningly tight ensemble playing ("Skunk Funk") and a funky good time had by all. Randy Brecker's writing is one fo the most outstanding features of the disc, using lots of witty unpredictable twists, while his Coltrane-inspired brother Michael lays out huge slabs of tenor sax brilliance. Randy even lets off a poignant solo in "Twilight"
Nearly every track is a winner, even the lesser tracks are great fun. "Sneakin' Up Behind You" is their obligatory radio-play tune and it even comes up miles ahead of so much radio fare back then (1975), Randy's exxagerated vocals here are a scream not to mention that catchy melody line! "Oh My Stars" puts Randy in the lead vocal spot, though many would say "Randy, don't quit 'yer day job (trumpeting), the performance is oddly endearing with some funny lyrics and him sounding a lot like the Multiplication Bunny on ABC's Schoolhouse Rock series of yore.
Their early experiments here would be perfected on subsequent albums but there's just nothing like the first one in its raw charm!
01. Three Days After Death Pt. 1 (9:28) 02. Three Days After Death Pt. 2 (7:09) 03. Aunty Mary's Trashcan (10:48) 04. Aftur Yur Lumber (5:12) 05. Plastic Man (5:59)
Doug Rome / organ Mick Riddle / guitar Bill Anderson / bass Dick Sneddon / drums Zeik Hume / vocals
Arriving in a roar of hellfire, brimstone and occult unease, the sole 1972 release for Scottish band Bodkin is a wicked and infectious Hammond organ-drenched heavy rocker. Their self titled release was in the manner of bands such as Atomic Rooster, Nosferatu, Bram Stoker and Deep Purple, and anyone familiar with those groups will know what to expect here. Hard rocking riffs, psychedelic flavours and bluesy guitar wailing with confident vocals and strong melodies means Bodkin and their album can sit perfectly alongside those acts on the shelf for fans of that sort of early prog-related music.
The first side opens with the intimidating and plodding (but in a good way!) two parter `Three Days After Death'. Tin-can drums patter away as the listener is instantly blasted with Doug Rome's Hammond fury, with grubby snarling heavy guitar riffs and cymbal fury crashing all over that scratchiest rough-as-guts organ. Energetic whirring blasts of fury, stomping mud-thick bluesy stomping, noisy dirty grooves and even some more sedate and reflective moments all fall together, yet despite the relentless muscle and noise throughout, the piece always remains melodic and catchy - that's the strength of this album overall. The second part is particular has a very melancholic and moving vocal from Zeike Hume, the downbeat melody sorrowful and despondent.
The ten minute `Aunt Mary's Trashcan' on the flipside is up-tempo, relentless and full of life. Although it's bookended with a slightly hostile lead vocal melody, it's really an extended improvisation utterly dominated by Rome's Hammond organ orgasm over every sweaty inch of it. It reverberates with thrumming rippling distortion, taking on a malevolent glee, powered along by Dick Sneddon's frantic chasing battery of drumming, Bill Anderson's fluid bass rumbles and Mick Riddle's gorgeous sleazy strutting bluesy guitar. Foot-tapping and effortlessly cool, fans of the extended jams on the early Birth Control albums will dig this one. `Aftur Yur Lumber' is a shorter punchy Yes-like vocal rocker at heart, a little more restrained for the actual tune with a call out repeated melody, chiming guitar and symphonic touches, but with a wild F-off swooping Hammond break as well. Symphonic majesty keeps on throughout moments of `Plastic Man', a creeping bass line and swampy guitar stalking behind the lead voice, the whole band letting rip with a gutsy jam in the middle.
Special mention must go to the incredible, if borderline blasphemous album cover that adorns the original LP or it's couple of vinyl reissues. A massive cross that folds out several times to form a crucifix with a goats head at it's centre burning with infernal flames certainly makes a huge impression and grabs plenty of attention! If that worries you, there is a CD reissue with a safer (yet dull!) alternate cover. As for the album itself, some may have trouble with the slightly rough production quality, but it's perfect for this sort of music and anything cleaner and more polished wouldn't have been appropriate at all. This album has long been a personal favourite of mine and a treasured, essential part of my collection, and if music driven by Hammond organ is your thing, then `Bodkin' will likely cast it's devilish spell on you.
01. Atomic Bombs Away 5:30 02. Mississippi Mountain Blues 4:05 03. Just I Was Born 6:18 04. Sorrow 7:31 05. One Summer Day 2:26 06. Brane Baster 2:00 07. Sooner Or Later 5:13 08. Demon & Eleven Children 9:15
Kazuo Takeda: electric guitar, vocal Hirami Ohsawa: vocal Masashi Saeki: electric bass Masayuki Higuchi: drums
Japan's Blues Creation was formed by guitarists Kazuo Takeda, Koh Eiryu and singer Fumio Nunoya, in early 1969, after the dissolution of their Group Sounds outfit The Bickies. Highly influenced by Cream and The Yardbirds, Takeda joined forces with school friends Takayuki Noji, Shinichi Tashiro, and lead singer Fumio Nunoya. Formerly vocalist with Taboo, a heavy band led by future Happy End guitarist Eiichi Otaki, Nunoya was also searching for an even heavier sound, and the results of the new American-influenced experiment were released in October 1969, as Blues Creation. Singer Fumio Nunoya soon found himself edged out of artistic decisions by the supremely confident Takeda, and thereafter left to form his own band, Dew. While searching around throughout 1970 for a new singer, guitarist Takeda heard the new, even more strung-out music of Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Eric Clapton's solo LP Clapton, and Leslie West's Mountain, and decided he should take the opportunity to start again from scratch. Takeda enlisted bassist Masashi Saeki and drummer Akiyoshi Higuchi for the new line-up, and eschewed the previous cover's style in favor of his own compositions. With the new Blues Creation fronted by singer Hiromi Osawa, Kazuo Takeda recorded what has come to be regarded as his masterpiece in the form of Demon & Eleven Children, originally released in 1971 on Denon. This album was recorded at the Japan Folk Jamboree, and is a full-on gem of a record, but Takeda was now widely-known as a true Japanese guitar hero, and -- as ever -- had set his sights higher and higher. He split Blues Creation the following year, leaving for London in late 1972. This sludge-y slab of big, loud, brain-busting heaviness sits at #17 on Julian Cope's Japrocksampler top 50 list.
01. Frigivningen (1:33) 02. Sirenernas Sång (6:05) 03. Idealet (3:44) 04. De får la Stå Öppet tess Vidare (1:47) 05. Maskinsång (5:16) 06. I Solnedgången (4:53) 07. Drottningholmsmusiken (2:20) 08. Världens Gång (1:53) 09. Erinran (10:36)
Bonus tracks on 1997 CD edition: 10. Mars (7:46) 11. Linnéa (5:49) 12. Idolen (6:41)
Dennis Lindegren / vocals, chimes Mats Ohberg / electric & acoustic guitars Bo Ferm / organ, piano Hannes Råstam / bass Tomas Olsson / drums With: Steinar Arnason / bass (10-12)
Lightly symphonic prog and fairly straight-forward art-rock with strong vocal harmonies, quickly catchy melodies that lodge themselves into your brain and very tight instrumental playing forms the bulk of the debut 1975 self-titled album from Swedish band Blåkulla. The quickest and easiest comparison would be the first couple of Yes albums (up to `Fragile' more or less) before they dove head first into very ambitious prog-rock, and this is further highlighted by the thick upfront bass playing, ragged and blistering Steve Howe-style electric guitar soloing and the warmest Hammond organ washes more along the lines of Tony Kaye than the caped wonder Rick Wakeman. There's nothing too demanding or complex here (although the two longer tracks that close each side of the LP come closest), but it's all very well played, easy to listen to rock/ballads with light proggy flourishes and unexpected turns here and there.
It's unusual that the band opens the album on a quick balled `Frigivningen', with a soothing lead vocal from Dennis Lindegren sung in Swedish with delicate yet nimble acoustic guitar chimes. Confident rocker `Sirenernas Sang' instantly reminds of `The Yes Album', with skittering drumming, chunky bass playing, softly exploding lead guitar runs and thick cascading Hammond organ. It sets a standard in superior vocal harmonies and melodies that maintains throughout the entire LP. Energetic tempo changes and lovely electric guitar/organ melodies twisting together enliven slightly repetitive vocal rocker `Idealet', while `De' Fa...' is a tasty interlude of bluesy guitar wailing duelling it out with the thickest darkest grumbling bass. Side A closer `Maskinsang' is the most daring piece so far, a slightly malevolent heavy rocker with morbid intimidating organ and Tomas Olsson's aggressive relentless drumming, with a killer symphonic prog flavoured repeated theme played with electric guitar bite, the entire track full of devilish little tempo change bursts back and forth. Bo Ferm cuts loose with some deranged Hammond soloing, and the whole piece is a totally killer track that kicks so much rear-end!
Many of the symphonic instrumental themes that run through `I Solnedgangen' could have easily come off one of the classic Focus albums, all played and sung with a real joyful warmth, and the Hammond organ gleams here. Organ driven `Drottning...' is a near- medieval flavoured fanfare that also wouldn't have sounded out of place from Focus, with a foot-tapping melody full of classical flare and pomp, yet it always remains quite playful. Most of `Varldens Gang' is a fragile, reflective and somewhat melancholic acoustic ballad, be sure to listen out for the ominous electronic buzzing that brings a hint of unease. The ten minute album closer `Erinran' lets the band more fully flex their progressive rock muscles, full of plentiful soloing mostly powered by Mats Ohberg's dynamic and victorious electric guitar soloing lifting the grandly symphonic themes with ease. Hannes Rastem's bass ripples, there's constant thick upbeat Hammond washes and strident drumming, even a sprightly folky acoustic break in the middle, and overall the piece is almost in the style of Aussie symphonic proggers Sebastian Hardie and even fellow Swedish prog band from the time Kaipa. It's the perfectly epic finale that's expected of symphonic prog albums.
The original vinyl is a super rarity these days, but there's a few CD reissues with bonus tracks more easily and affordably available for curious listeners. I found the front cover unusually eerie and quite unpleasant (look closely at that shadowy inverted figure - brrrr!), so I expected to find an album of occult themed heavy Hammond rockers in the style of Atomic Rooster (only the track `Maskinsang' comes close to that sort of sound)! Instead, `Blåkulla' is a winning collection of smooth symphonic prog, heartfelt pleasing soft-rock/ballads and some brief welcome heavier turns. It really deserves some wider recognition and a renewed exposure, and it showcases what a talented bunch of musicians Blåkulla were. What a shame they fell victim to the `one and done' prog band curse and disappeared, because they showed great potential here. If you're a vintage symphonic prog fan, do yourself and favour and take a chance on `Blåkulla', this very enjoyable and full of life album might really impress you!
01. Medley: Swanee River Overture / House Of Leather Theme - 2:06 02. Do You Recall The House Of Leather? - 2:47 03. Recess With Mrs. Grim - 1:03 04. Graduates Of Mrs. Grim’s Learning - 3:10 05. There Is Love In The Country (On The Donny Brooks Farm) - 2:03 06. Here I Am - 4:27 07. She Lives With Me - 1:07 08. There’s Love In The Country (On The Donny Brooks Farm) Reprise - 2:05 09. Time Marches On - 5:23 10. Dixie And The War - 3:21 11. Death And Reality - 2:52 12. Sarah’s On Her Knees - 2:46 13. Theme From House Of Leather (Epilogue In Suede) - 2:45
Ron Beckman - Bass, Dennis Caswell - Drums, Vocals Tom Hustin - Guitar, Vocals Dennis Libby - Piano, Vocals Greg Maland - Keyboards, Pipe Organ Dale Menten - Guitar, Vocals Bruce Pedalty - Organ, Vocals
The first time I heard House Of Leather, at first I was not very impressed by it. The vocals sounded too “pop”; like something the Association would have recorded, and the recurring themes and overtures sounded like space fillers. But I could not deny even then that the electric guitar playing was arresting, and the organ playing weaved its way expertly through the various arrangements, providing a distinctive connecting strand. The Blackwood Apology definitely had their own sound.
For greater atmosphere, they also throw in instruments like acoustic guitar and even pipe organ. The arrangements on the album are complex, and it is cleverly structured so that by the end of the record, the piece has returned to its starting point, meaning that you can put the album on shuffle play and listen to it as an endless loop on your MP3 player should you so choose.
I am not so dedicated as to want to do that, but I did find myself coming back to this album again and again over the 20 years that have elapsed since I bought it. In addition to the advanced musicianship, my main focus was the lyrics. Even with the full text provided on the inside cover (along with an elliptical explanatory note on the instrumental depiction that the album provides of the American Civil War), the words are perplexing.
As someone on the Internet wondered; is the House of Leather a cathouse? The images on the cover suggest it is a house of ill-repute of some sort. And why is it the house “Of Leather”? Was it some sort of kinky B&D joint where moustachioed gents went to get their jollies in unorthodox ways?
Finally, after 20 years of scratching my head, I sat down and listened to the lyrics, and not just once but several times, in an attempt to get to the bottom of what this perplexing album is about.
The story starts “down along the Swanee River”, where we are introduced to a young lady named Sarah Jane who has “got love to send you… straight to heaven where she comes from”. We move on to a reminiscence of the House of Leather, where “the pretty young things all got together” to dance, among other things.
We are then introduced to one Mrs Grim, who appears to be the matronly figure in charge of the House of Leather, and the narrator reminds her of Donny Brooks, a farmer who she used to know in one capacity or another, and obliquely makes mention of the town’s mayor, a man by the name of Ramsey.
A little bit further on, we find out that the House of Leather is a school of some sort, and Sarah Jane appears to be a teacher there (teaching what exactly? – again, we don’t know), who both Donny Brooks and Ramsey have fallen in love with. The outcome of this love triangle is that Sarah Jane ends up with Donny Brooks the farmer, and they settle down on his farm, where she ends up bearing him a child.
Then along comes the US Civil War, in which her husband and child (a boy) are both killed. After the war, Sarah Jane stays on at the farm, which Ramsey, the mayor, now owns. The album concludes with the words “Sarah’s on her knees… building dreams… begging for love”, and “if you’re ever…. way down along the Swanee River… you’re not far from the House of Leather… where I was born….”
Well, that’s all perfectly clear, isn’t it? So the narrator is the offspring of Sarah Jane and Ramsey… or is he? And if he was their child, why was he born in the House of Leather and not down on the farm? Was she kicked off the farm and ended up having to work for a living? But working in what capacity? And exactly what sort of education is offered by an institution that ventures to call itself the “House of Leather”?
01. Mental Block (3:18) 02. Roundabout (5:45) 03. One's Life (3:03) 04. Indian Summer (6:10) 05. Dirty Face (4:25) 06. Rock Song (8:45) 07. For No One (3:25)
Richard Routledge / vocals, guitar Michael Fechner / guitar Andreas Scholz / bass Norbert Kagelmann / drums
With: Burkhard Plenge / keyboards
Hard 'n' heavy guitar rock from Berlin, 1971, with 'no-messin' attitude, overloaded guitar, and english vocals. Includes a cover of the Beatles "For No One", and a mini epic 8 min work-out "Rock Song".
Another one of those German bands with a British vocalist. The line-up was Richard Routledge (vocals, guitar), Michael Fechner (guitar), Andreas Scholz (bass, he came from the recently disbanded Murphy Blend!) and Norbert Kagelmann (drums). "Dirt Box" had a promisingly weird cover. The material written by Fechner and Scholz ("Mental Block", "Rock Song" and "Indian Summer") was the best, recalling the brilliance of Armaggedon.
Routledge's material tended towards boogie blues and sounded more like Free. He also wrote all the lyrics. The album also included a good cover version of the Beatles' "For No One". How the hell did such? an awesome sounding band record only one album ???
Recorded over 4 days in december 71 and released in 72 this 7 track 35 minute album from Germanys Blackwater Park simply rocks. Fabulous basic production gives these high energy hard rockin' tunes extra impetus. Track one features hammond and track five has some rock 'n' roll style piano, the last track is 'For no one' from the Beatles Revolver album but centrepiece goes to the 8m 42s track 'Rock Song' driven along by a frantic riff, it's eastern infused middle section leading into a fantastic call and response guitar solo created by just useing a bit of reverb which will have you reaching for your air guitar.
01. Il Tempo Della Semina (10:13) 02. Mente Sola - Mente (2:55) 03. Viva Lotta Pensa (3:15) 04. L'arte Sublime Di Un Giusto Regnare (3:17) 05. Solo Ma Vivo (6:27) 06. La Canzone Del Padre (9:34)
Claudio Canali / vocals, flute, tenor flugelhorn Marco Mainetti / acoustic & electric guitars Giuseppe Banfi / Gem organ, Minimoog Giuseppe Cossa / piano, Hammond L100 Fausto Branchini / bass Mauro Gnecchi / drums, percussion
The songs were actually recorded in 1974 but never released due to financial problems within their label at the time.
Sophomore, last and posthumous album by Biglietto per l'Inferno, one of the undisputed masters of the heavier side of 70s Italian symphonic prog, "Il Tempo della Semina" never met its proper vinyl edition at the time. All in all, it happens to be one of those lost progressive rock gems that shouldn't be missed in a good collection. Definitely, the band remains loyal to its roots, formed by a combination of rocking dynamics, creative use of double keyboards by two stylistically different players, an important presence of Canali's vocal deliveries and a tight ordainment of the rhythm duo's foundations. All these are fueled into a harmonizing structure that feels even more robust than on the debut album, a stunning debut indeed. The level of compositional genius and the dose of dramatic musicality may not be as impressive as on the debut album, but you can tell that the arrangements and sonic interconnections among musicians are more accomplished, that is, they reveal a wider range of elaboration. It is such a pity that the sound production is not really in touch with this improved framework, but luckily we've recently got remastered editions of both albums, so this technical flaw does not feel as overwhelming. The original CD was taken from a presumably lost tape, and now we've got a new edition with a modified tracklist. Anyway, I'll comment on the first CD edition. The opener is the majestic 10 minute long namesake track, which follows a set of instrumental deliveries fluidly going through the various motifs: the flow is properly on clever links between sections that are alternately romantic, pompous, syncopated and almost spacey. The whole sung part is actually a soliloquy that trends somewhere between the ceremonious and the humorous, followed by a final instrumental section (Tull-meets-BMS). Once the fade-out end, the listener is left wanting more, and so the record continues. 'Mente Sola - Mente' is a playful theatrical interlude that mixes a circus mood with a mechanical vibrato (not unlike the closing track of BMS' "Darwin"). It is a funny little piece in which the sense of humor provides a light approach to the relevant issues of free thinking and the value of the individual mind. 'Vivi Lotta Pensa' states a very vibrant example of progressive complexity cleverly mixed with the power of rock: it isn't too long but it is well crafted in artsy terms. The same goes for 'L'Arte Sublime di un Giusto Reinare', which brings a Tullian feel to the band's signature approach to uptempo compositions. Believe me, these tracks are so catchy and, at the same time, so true to the spirit of symphonic rock, that perhaps they would have benefited from a longer expansion (a total of 4 or 5 minutes) in order to comply with their potential magnificence. Elaboration and expansion are not problems for the last two pieces. 'Solo Ma Vivo' starts with a slow, introspective section that sounds quite related to the more relaxed moments of the debut album; the final section erupts with power and intensity, with the guitar riffing and the tight drumming leading the way for the other instruments, while Canali sings the closing words. 'La Canzone del Padre' bears a more diverse structure (with featured presence of organ layers and fuzzed bass), less dramatic than the preceding song, with more room for playful passages. I agree with other fellow reviewers that the song lacks the sense of unity that prevailed in the namesake opener and in 'Solo Ma Vivo', but it is a great song anyway, and it makes an effective closure. Great, awesome, colorful - synonyms for Biglietto per l'Inferno and accurate descriptions for this particular album.
01. Ansia (4:16) 02. Confessione (6:32) 03. Una Strana Regina (6:12) 04. Il Nevare (4:37) 05. L'Amico Suicida (14:23)
Bonus track on CD releases 06. Confessione (Instrumental) (3:32)
Claudio Canali / vocals, flute Marco Mainetti / guitars Giuseppe Banfi / keyboards Giuseppe Cossa / keyboards Fausto Branchini / bass Mauro Gnecchi / drums
The debut album of Un Biglietto Per L'Inferno (A Ticket To Hell) is an amazing cocktail of spontaneous musical energies and poetry. You can hear here some echoes of Deep Purple, Jethro Tull and PFM but there's no plagiarism and the musicians seem to have shaped their own style trying to capture the energy of their live acts. The song-writing of the singer and flutist Claudio Canali is excellent and the lyrics draw some bitter reflections about the hypocrisy of the world. There are many changes of rhythm and mood but all the tracks are in someway bound together as in a long suite, as in a long way down on a "stairway to hell".
The opener "Ansia" (Anxiety) begins with a delicate sound of organ and guitar, then the rhythm becomes more varied and nervous; Claudio Canali's vocals come in at the end of the track introducing the "subject" of the album. The lyrics describe the feeling of uneasiness and apprehension that comes up from a "sad and infamous life spent in murdering and stealing" and the desperate quest for a saviour, for someone who can ease the pain and give hope. Charlatans, merchants, prophets or priests, it doesn't matter. A good prologue to the next track!
The lyrics of "Confessione" (Confession) describe a dialogue between a killer and a friar. The music is full of energy and rage, with "shades of Deep Purple" melting in "tarantella" and passages with flutes "à la Jethro Tull". The singing of Claudio Canali is definitely convincing and his voice seems almost trying to find a reason for the wind of violence that was blowing so strongly in the Italy of the early seventies. "Listen to me, friar / I don't know if I committed a sin / I killed a bastard who wanted cover his dirty past by means of his money / Trying in this way to cheat his fate. Listen to me, friar / And tell me if you call it a sin or a noble act / I steal some money of a rich gentleman / Just to give something to eat to a dying man". But in this album there's no much room for hope and the verses with the answer of the friar are just a dark prelude to the tragic epilogue of the fifth track: "I can't save you from the eternal fire / You have just a ticket to Hell"! This song is the trademark of the band.
Good organ work introduces "Una strana regina" (A strange Queen). The music is a blending of church-like music, Jethro Tull influences, hard rock and Italian folklore. Claudio Canali's vocals seem to be drenched in pessimism while the dialogue between the killer and the friar continues. "A strange queen rules on the Earth / She lives in castles formed by every street / She changes her dress every evening / Her name is hypocrisy. Let's hope that our God from the hereafter can see and forgive us for our impiety".
"Il nevare" (The Snowing) is another great track, with some almost "bluesy" passages and a soaring electric guitar in the forefront. Claudio Canali defined this track as a "laic prayer" and the lyrics seem to invite to meditation and introspection suggesting that, even in a life where hypocrisy and evil rule, you can find joy just contemplating the nature and the snow falling down. "Heavy snowflakes felt down that day / They wet my eyes / Lost in the light / Lost in the effort of knowing, of seeing / How much pure joy from a simple snowing. Far away a bell-tower reminded of a prayer / Over the roofs ancient shadows were celebrating the evening". In my opinion this is one of the best moments of the album.
The long and complex "L'amico suicida" (The suicidal friend) is highly dramatic. The lyrics are autobiographical, inspired by the suicide of a Canali's comrade-in-arms during the military service. "Around your body there's a halo of death.": Canali's vocals are dark and full of commotion, the music flows powerful and melancholic along more than 13 intense minutes. "There was a long rumble of sound, and it seemed to him that he was falling down a vast and interminable stairway. And somewhere at the bottom he fell into darkness. That much he knew. He had fallen into darkness. And at the instant he knew, he ceased to know." Well, just a little quote from Jack London's novel Martin Eden that in my opinion fit perfectly with the conclusion of this "epic"..
Before the end of the album, there's still room for a nice short instrumental reprise of "Confessione". In the whole, I think that this is definitely an essential work in an Italian prog collection.
01. The Influence a. The Wooing Of The Child b. The Innocence Of The Child c. The Interest Of The Youth d. The Involvement Of The Man e. The Realization f. The Wooing Of The Man g. The Conclusion 02. Gibbon 03. Christmas Execution 04. Gismo
Alex Macleery - Electric Piano, Harpsichord, Moog Synthesiser David Sheen - Brums, Congas, Percussion, Vocals Gerry Reid - Electric, Acoustic Guitars Len Surtees - Bass Peter Davey - Alto, Tenor, Baritone Saxophones, Flute, Clarinet
One of the rarest and most valuable records on the Vertigo swirl label is this lone S/T album by Ben. Their sound is a nice mix of jazz-rock and progressive rock and in my opinion they blend those two styles together really well. Just four songs on this LP but those are all pretty lengthy.
Here are lengthy multi-part suites, excellent musicianship and an overall very appealing early 70's, very jazzy progressive rock sound with lots of flute, sax, keyboards and guitar. But closer inspection of the material on the album reveals that you've been cheated. All of the four tracks are made up of tiresome extended jams and solos that are built around themes and melodies.
‘Ben’ was the band’s only release on the progressive Vertigo ‘spiral’ label in 1971. It is packed with ambitious instrumental arrangements of inspired jazz-rock, performed by a talented five that represented the best of the Canterbury scene, the movement that flourished in the early 1970s.
To me, one of the best and most original examples of early '70ies jazz rock... dressed with a somewhat hilarious and ironic spirit.
01. Delhi Daily 5:17 02. Terre Brulée 4:44 03. Chandigardh 3:07 04. Latin Baroque 5:40 05. Zoma 11:30 06. Cesar Go Back Home 7:18 07. Orientasie 4:20 08. Largo 4:04
Georges Rabol: Piano, Harpsichord Jean-Charles Capon: Cello, Violin Philippe Combelle: Percussion
Mixing Baroque, free-jazz and world music, the unique album of the Baroque Jazz Trio (which is in fact 3/5 of the Bach Modern Quintet) is a difficult-to-label sound object which is far from being typical of the psychedelic sounds associated with the early 1970s. Because, although fusion with Indian music (amongst others) and jazz (but also pop) was popular at the time, rarely had all this been mixed together with Baroque music. Even mentioning Jacques Loussier adapting Bach does not come close, as here, all barriers are broken down, with an audacity which begins with the highly original and extraordinary use of the harpsichord, an instrument which it is unusual to hear in such a context, even though indicated by the ‘baroque’ in the title. Of course jazz specialists will mention Johnny Guarnieri in the Gramercy Five with Artie Shaw, Martial Solal playing "Four Brothers" in 1965, or Lalo Schifrin in his homage to the Marquis de Sade… But no, none of these references really makes sense, as they pale in comparison to the wild adventures of Georges Rabol, probably closer to Call Cobbs with Albert Ayler, or, better still, Odile Bailleux in another remarkable French group, Armonicord, than anyone else.
With George, the rhythm section is no less outstanding,: Jean-Charles Capon, who, two years later would record the magnificent L'Univers-solitude on the same label, is a flying cello virtuoso, while Philippe Combelle, a great drummer rarely heard in such experimental circumstances, plays daringly mixed percussion. Also noteworthy is the presence of flutist, Michel Roques on one track, who was also behind a Saravah album, the splendid Chorus.
In France, whether or not groups like Moravagine, Confluence or Synchro Rhythmic Eclectic Language, working in similarly unusual areas, are taken into account, it is rare to find a group which, like the Baroque Jazz Trio, have been able to so blur the boundaries, especially by adding an exotic breath of fresh air inherited from the Third Stream.
This record, alongside the album by Brigitte Fontaine with the Art Ensemble of Chicago made Pierre Barouh stand out as a pioneering producer and destroyer of stylistic frontiers.
01. You Always Like An Entree? (2:13) 02. Try (7:44) - a. Hopeful Strive - b. Step By Step - c. Find The Way 03. Obelisk (11:06) - a. Like A Stalagmite - b. Hora Nata - c. Stalagtites In My Jam - d. Wet The Ropes 04. Hattrick (7:32) - a. My First Hot-pants - b. Kick And Rush - c. The Final And The Third Game 05. Three Magicians (part 1) (12:13) - a. Once - b. Theme Of The Rainbow - c. Bermst - d. We´ll Bring You The Sun
Singles Bonus tracks on 1995 CD reissue: 06. Hora Nata (2:58) 07. Good Morning Life (3:44) 08. We're So Sorry (3:06) 09. Be Careful Now (3:26) 10. Talking About My Love (3:07) 11. On The Rocks (3:01)
John McO / acoustic & electric guitars, vocals Peter Torfs / organ, piano, e-piano, Moog, String Ensemble, vocals Evert Verhees / bass, bass pedals, acoustic guitar, piano, vocals Erry Fox / drums, percussion Ludwig Kemat / congas, metallophone, marimba, vibes, percussion, alto sax
With: Frans Maes / tenor sax C. Focant / horn J. Lasselin / horn
Although the opening number (instrumental) is fully jazz-oriented, the remaining songs will be in the synth style for which they were famous (in Belgium). The musical introduction of "Try" is rather complex, the complete opposite of the vocal part which is rather simple and a carbon-copy of a tranquil YesSong. Jon's voice being nicely rendered.
If Yes is one source of inspiration while vocals are concerned, Camel is the other one for most of the instrumental parts. "Obelisk" is probably the closest Camel-like song here. Beautiful symphonic music almost all the way through (there will be a minute of improv though). A sweet moment, except during the finale which is quite hard actually. Solid guitar solo and great rhythmic section to back it up. My favourite song of this album.
"Hat Trick" is jazzier. Sax and drumming remind more KC than anything else but great guitar breaks, and soft keyboards will revert the mood to a less aggressive style. Very nice and fully Camel although the keys during the finale seriously remind me of the ones from Jon Lord...
The longest song features great melodies (guitar and keys) and is truely grandiose. Very intense piece of music. Symph prog fans will be transported to heaven while listening to it. The second half offers more diversity (violins, percussions) and more personal vocals. I just wonder why it is called "Three Magicians, Part I"...
As for the bonus tracks, they are the singles the band released in those years, the first being the title track of the album redone with a string section. Most of the singles are of good quality but they are somewhat different than the album itself. On those singles Banzai manages to sound more like Caravan (circa New Symphonia era) and is rather pleasant.
If the mix of Camel music and some jazzy flavour is of interest to you, this album might be a good surprise. If you must have only one symphonic rock album from Belgium , make it this one.
01. Holocaust 02. Pete For Jennie 03. Living With A Memory 04. S.S. Bounce 05. The Gift 06. When I'm Feeling 07. Faith To Sing A Song
John Worrall (vocals, flute) Tom Davidson (vocals) Eddie McDonald (bass) Rex Bullen (keyboards) Hank Davis (drums)
Bakery were an Australian group which is quite unknown to the prog community, it's not that they released a masterpiece album and have to be widely known, but they were a part of the history of prog rock in the early 70's. Their first album 'Rock Mass For Love' is an effort to fuse some preaching at mass and rock n' roll, some kind of a 'jesus christ superstar' for the young crowd. No interest for progers though. Their second album 'Momento' is a different story and represent the bands most creative peak, an album trying to go further towards progressive realms. Unfortunately this stayed their only complete album to date, because of their break up in around 1975.
The bands style is a mix between heavy progressive, jazz and a slight psychedelic feel. The sound is quite rich sometimes including flue, keys, piano and saxophone. The writing is good and the band is trying to go from one idea to the next easily passing through some instrumentals on the way or solos. Mixing between calm acoustic parts and heavier rockier moments. As progressive as they are trying to be they are featuring some more straight forward rocky stuff as well, and some album fillers too. The more progressive songs 'Living With a Memory' and 'Holocaust' are definitely better, 'holocaust' is where everything falls right in place and manage to be exciting, containing some wild guitar playing, very good keys and some wacky sax, 'Living With a Memory' is good the solos are good, sound is good but everything is just good and not amazing. 'S.S. Bounce' is a rocky song failing to reach black sabbath on their worst day in the 70's. 'The Gift' is an improvement and although it's 8 minutes long it is not progressive but definitely electrifing with heavy keys, heavy guitar and killer main riff sounding like Deep Purple, also one of the highlights.
This could have been a great stepping stone for the band to go from, but instead it was their swan song. The band kept on going for a few years, but never released anything maybe due to some personnel changes, and that is a real shame.
01. Big Bear Ffolly (3:55) 02. Bring It On Home (4:16) 03. Drivin' Bachwards (2:06) 04. Last Blues (7:04) 05. Gang Bang (6:15) 06. This Worried Feeling (7:03) 07. Son Of Moonshine (14:52)
Bonus tracks on CD: 08. Once Upon A Time (1969 B-side) (3:37) 09. This Worried Feeling (alternative take) (5:45)
Dave 'Clem' Clempson: guitars, piano, harpsichord, harmonica, vocals
Terry Poole: bass guitar, vocals (4,7) Keith Baker: drums
With: - Gerry Salisbury / cornet (3)
Nowadays one of the secondary, supplementary pleasures of music listening can be the background genealogy of those involved. The trail usually goes two ways: a forgotten or legendary one-off debut album, whereby context becomes archaeology rather than tracing current and ancestral lines; or else going on to form or augment more famous bands later known worldwide. A rare confluence of all these factors finds us in the territory of Bakerloo, a name which had as little to do with London’s public transport as their sole album’s distinctive cover image.
Their initial moniker was neat word-play: The Bakerloo Blues Line, formed in England’s West Midlands in early 1968 by David ‘Clem’ Clempson (guitar, piano/harpsichord, harmonica, vocals) and Terry Poole (bass, vocals), a graphic artist who handled their promo material. In the wake of Cream, they searched long for a drummer adept in different styles to complete a power trio, coming up trumps with the aptly-named Keith Baker. Their local area was a hotbed for up and coming bands that also saw young liggers like Robert Plant, John Bonham, Spencer Davis, Cozy Powell, The Move, Medicine Head, and Black Sabbath. Indeed, the Sabs in their first incarnation as Earth shared the same agency as Bakerloo, and later label-mates Tea & Symphony, so often gigged together and more; Bill Ward filled-in on drums a couple of times for the ’loo.
In the spirit of those times Bakerloo, with the later Black Sabbath manager Jim Simpson, started their own club. The legendary Henry’s Blueshouse (1968-1973) was located in the upstairs function room of the Crown Hotel (actually a pub) surrounded by music shops in central Birmingham. Bakerloo were the first headliners (supported by Earth) to open the venue that soon became famous for Tuesday jam sessions with Rory Gallagher, Zepp and many others and, like the Mothers club in nearby Erdington, featured touring blues legends like Arthur Big Boy Crudup, J.B.Hutto, Gary Davis, and Son House (supported by Stackwaddy!).
In September 1968 Bakerloo played London’s Roundhouse with the Small Faces, Barclay James Harvest and The Action, followed the next month as support at the famous Marquee for the debut of Led Zeppelin, a little-known band that saw fit to modestly advertise themselves as ‘The New Yardbirds’. Bakerloo played it so often as to be almost residents while crashing with local friends, including support for the last appearance there of Jethro Tull before headlining in their own right soon after. John Peel heard them at Mothers and put them on his Top Gear show (with the Bonzo Dog Band) that same October. There is a bootleg in existence which may be this BBC recording, featuring four songs later on their album. They reappeared on the BBC in January 1969 (with Alexis Korner) and for two songs on Top Gear the next month, perhaps a repeat of their debut appearance. Their first airing led to nationwide gigs throughout the next year and what seems their only foray abroad, a concert in Belgium for the princely fee of £100. Back in Brum they were seen by Tony Hall of EMI and became one of the first signings to its new prog label.
That same summer a single was released: Drivin’ Bachwards (an arrangement of Bach’s Bourrée In E Minor, soon adapted also on Jethro Tull’s second album) coupled with the non-album Once Upon A Time (HAR 5004). An unknown session drummer was used as Keith Baker had yet to join, and this is when their name was shortened to Bakerloo. There is some dispute, however, if the 45 even saw the light of day. An expert dealers’ forum has never seen one—certainly the exhaustive popsike website has no appearance—although a test pressing exists, once owned by Harvest label manager Malcolm Jones. Was it held back by the label awaiting the album then overlooked as the label gained momentum?
The self-titled album of seven tracks appeared as a gatefold in December 1969 on Harvest (SHVL 762) with band photos on the inner sleeves. Terry Poole kindly informed me that his cover design features a mining accident in the transalpine tunnel during the 1880s. The recording was one of the first produced by Gus Dudgeon (he’d engineered John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers and Zombies prior) before later fame with Bowie’s Space Oddity and the first LPs of Elton John and Michael Chapman. Recorded round the corner from the Marquee at Trident Studios, it what was their live set nailed in two or three takes (except, ironically, for the shortest track Drivin’ Bachwards) in just a few days—unsurprisingly as the studio cost £30 per hour, at a time when the Marquee paid exactly half that and many bands were on retainers of a fiver a week. They even squeezed sessions in-between gigs the same day. In spite of being featured on Harvest’s double sampler Picnic (This Worried Feeling) it has become one of the rarest vinyls of the Harvest catalogue. Unlike for smaller labels—the only way to get Incredible Hog’s album on Dart was to hotfoot it to Haymarket and buy in the label’s office I recall—the platter was in the shops but eluded sales. Incredibly, however, the line-up had already split by the time the album hit the shelves.
Now Esoteric/Cherry Red has digitally remastered it plus five bonus tracks. The sound is loud, sharp and full of body, each instrument in its own space for a listening delight. A jazzy fast-chord instrumental opens, Big Bear Ffolly named after their agency’s first tour, which appropriately leads into a tasty Willie Dixon standard of the 60s, Bring It On Home, mid-paced with understated mouth harp in the spirit of early Canned Heat. Driving Bachwards, the aforementioned take on Bach, is a harpsichord-led instrumental very much ’69 or an electric Amazing Blondel, with the lone guest Jerry Salisbury on trumpet. The pace drops for Last Blues, funereal-paced bass morphs into a Cream-like power trio blast with guitar effects and solo, before returning via shimmering cymbals to the original melody with wind effect. Laden with metaphors (“Take me to the train”…), its dark atmosphere clings like a coroner’s wet-suit beside a foggy lake. Imagine the Wuthering Heights’ moor round an old graveyard and you’re there.
The unfortunately titled Gang Bang closed side one, like the opener with a nod to jazz inflections overlaid by guitar solo. This group composition—no doubt the real intent of the title—showcases each musician, especially drummer Keith Baker’s rhythm patterns as pounding as those of his namesake Ginger. Surely one of the least boring drum solos on record: close your eyes and you’re on the Victorian loco rattling through the tunnel en route to the Crystal Palace. This Worried Feeling opens with a Peter Green ‘lonely style’ Fleetwood Mac blues but stays closer to the four-bar like Savoy Brown. The stronger vocals here are underpinned with bar-room piano, building up to some blistering guitar. The bonus of this drops the guitar intro in favour of piano which is more prominent in a variant, shorter take that’s still finished and interesting.
The album closes with a track that is impossible to avoid superlatives about. Extending to almost 15 minutes, Son Of Moonshine flies by like a single due to sheer energy and inventiveness. This is one helluva beast of a track, with enough horse-power to chuff a Genghis Khan who up to that point only had the heaviest Groundhogs on his walkman fed through a bank of pillaged cabinets. It is ’Hogs plus Mayblitz (live) or a tighter, heavier Mighty Baby jam. A total experience; live, you would have had to crawl out of the venue on your hands and knees afterwards—and forget to ask why the venue omitted to have a booze licence.
Its riffing, feedback opening, abrasive as asbestos, opens outs into a thumping fuzz-driven beat with more guitar styles and licks than a heaving music shop could cater for. The lyrics aren’t bad either, full of pithy wisdom, but bejeezus it’s darn hard to remember to listen out for them while such chords and rhythms are being committed to posterity. It is one of the greatest tracks of the period if you like driving, let-it-rip rock, a youth-filled bash that sums up the era, an Uncle Harry’s Freakout linking the Grove with Brum as if the M1 had never been built.
The bonus of this (Son Of Moonshine Part One) is a genuine alternate take, slightly less fuzzed but still an energetic nine minutes without the album’s post-blitz closing segment or vocals. The b-side of their only single, Once Upon A Time, is a swirling guitar example of the last flourishing of psych as we now know it in a paean to lost love. The three new bonuses are completed by the sore-thumb (Hoagie Carmichael’s Georgia) and a rumbling first take of Train, a hardy perennial subject back then that has some tasty bottle-neck slide. With 15 minutes plus of new bonuses, added to the two prior released 9 minutes, this issue is a 71 minute treat from start to finish.
The influences span genres: blues, hard rock, psych, jazz and progressive including classical elements for an experience rare as tunnel cleaners on the transport system of their name. There is no bloody gap to mind. Clearly the trio, versatile without being flashy, saw Bakerloo as a showcase for instrumental prowess and audiences lucky enough to catch them on the circuit during that brief 18 months. Reviewers compare them to Alvin Lee’s Ten Years After, Cream, Blue Cheer, Canned Heat, Juicy Lucy and Blodwyn Pig, but Bakerloo is a sticky amalgam of these great bands fired by the energetic joie de musique of stand-alone albums like Quatermass, T2 or Hackensack. One immediate post-album killer line-up featured Clem (a nickname from schooldays, he doesn’t like the name Dave) with Cozy Powell and Dave Pegg before they left for other name bands after one gig, while a later more jazzy 5-piece incarnation morphed into a renamed Hannibal (Chrysalis Records) but without any Bakerloo founder members.
It’s said that the original split was because Terry Poole wanted to move to London but not Clem. Bakerloo was their vinyl debuts, reproducing their stage sound with added keys: Clem studied piano at the Royal School of Music from an early age before taking up the guitar under the influence of blues and early rock ‘n’ roll. Incredibly, he has never released a solo album. Initially he left to form Colosseum, while Poole and Baker formed Mayblitz but again left before the Vertigo albums. The clear origins of the sound of that cult band appear on Bakerloo. And here the genealogy takes off, as the trio’s members went their own ways to Humble Pie, Graham Bond, Vinegar Joe, Judas Priest, Supertramp, Running Man and Uriah Heep—to name but a few! After more than ably replacing Peter Frampton, Clem worked in the 80s and 90s with Cozy Powell, Jack Bruce, Snafu, Rough Diamond, Ken Hensley, Jon Anderson, Bob Dylan and Chris De Burgh. After soon becoming Supertramp’s first drummer then Uriah Heep’s tubman for their second album but declining to tour, Keith Baker has worked as an in-demand sessionman. Terry Poole has had an equally glittering career as one of the best bassists in the business.
The founders are all still rightly proud of an album that has had laudatory reviews from day one for forty five years. It could have been the making of a major 70s band, rather than the safe-as-rock stepping stone it became. A more accomplished, confident debut could not exist; it would have to share the same plateau. Of course most debuts usually have their fair share of ideas—or should have—but here there is a consistent effort to add their own stamp to the event. Initially released on CD by Repertoire in 2000, with two bonus tracks, and then in 2013 on Belle (Japan) in mini cardboard sleeve, this Esoteric recording via Cherry Red in remastered glory is now definitive in concert-live sound like their recent issue of Quatermass. Even hoarders of the rare vinyl should check out its sound quality. No, not a lost gem, it has never gone missing and remains one of the cornerstones of heavy progressive rock without need of hype. Because it’s a masterpiece.
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