REPOST (@ 256) -Brave new World-Impressions on Reading Aldous Huxley (Vertigo Krautrock)

This band emerged from Hamburg and lasted only a few years. It included a mixture of loca musicians and two “foreigners”. The German musicians were Reinhart Firchow (recorders flutes, ocarina, stylophone, percussion, vocals), Lucas Lindholm (bass, bass fiddle, organ piano), Dicky Tarrach (drums, percussion), Herb Geller (flutes, cor anglais, alto/soprano/tenor saxes, organ), the Irishman John O'Brien-Docker (guitars, organ, percussion, vocals, wind chimes) and Esther Daniels (vocals). As you can tell from the name of the band and one album title, their coming together was to make their instrumental interpretation of Aldous Huxley’s novel – A Brave New World. Being almost entirely an instrumental band (apart from some occasional voices) they created a most unique sound which combined together successfully different styles such as folk, psychedelic rock and electronics. Their use of wind nstruments (woodwinds), peculiar percussion patterns, flute, saxophones and a stylopohone gives their music a special otherworldly sound. A possible sound-alike would be Annexus Quam (in the psychedelic rock approach) and Between (in the ethereal, atmospheric sound) Sadly, after they released Impressions on Reading Aldous Huxley in 1972 and then dissolved. It is commonly referred to as an essential album in any krautrock album collection.(Progarchives.com)

Interesting weird meanderings

Alan Stivell -Chemins De Terre

01. Susy MacGuire
02. Ian Morrison Reel
03. She moved through the Fair
04. Can Y Melinydd
05. Oidhche Mhait
06. An Dro Nevez
07. Maro Ma Mestrez
08. Brezhoneg' Raok
09. An Hani A Garan
10. Metig
11. Kimiad

*See comments!/make comments!

Freedom -Through the Years (1971)

Freshly departed from PROCOL HARUM, Bobby Harrison & Ray Royer founded FREEDOM, a Heavy Blues infected Psych Rock combo, that toured with BLACK SABBATH among others. FREEDOM never reached great success and is often seen as a middle-of-the-pack band. Sure it's not as inventive and catchy as other British bands of the era, but FREEDOM still delivers some great tunes and good Heavy Rock tracks that really deserve a listen
1. Freestone
2. Through the Years
3. Get Yourself Together
4. London City
5. Thanks
6. Toe Grabber

Roger Saunders - acoustic guitar, electric guitar
Walter Monaghan - vocals, electric piano, Mellotron, bass guitar
Bobby Harrison - vocals, drums, percussion

*See comments!/make comments!

Tea -The Ship (1975)

1. Breakdown 7:15
2. Through Scarlet 4:43
3. The Ship 6:50
4. See You Again 4:03
5. I'd Never Have Bothered 8:00
6. A Dog Called Joe 3:19
7. Crystal Rivers 2:50
8. Summer In the City 2:50

*see Coments!/Make comments!

Lighthouse -One Fine Morning (1971)

"Love of a Woman" -Lighthouse

Unlike The Ides of March, which hit it big out of the gate with "Vehicle" and then dropped out of sight, it took this 11-man Canadian group four albums to finally have a hit.

A far brighter and jazzier song than "Vehicle," "One Fine Morning" could have easily been mistaken for Chicago or BS&T. This was a huge band with a big sound -- an unmistakable electric rhythm guitar riff that any beginner could play, all kinds of horns, a string section, shaking tambourines, a funky bass over the extended drum bashing intro, and suitably jazzy electric piano solo.

Somehow, and you have to give them a lot of credit, they get this monstrosity moving in a fast-moving groove, building to a big blast of a climax. You have to love these 70's horn-driven singles that didn't fade out -- they ended in one colossal blasted chord.

Again, a good song that becomes great when heard in its full extended album version...(more)

Bob Downes -Electric City (1970)

*see comments!/Make comments!

Aphrodite's Child -666

666 (The Apocalypse of John, 13/18) is a double album by PSYCHEDELIC/PROGRESSIVE ART ROCK group Aphrodite's Child. It is one of the early cult albums in rock history, and is still popular among fans today. It was published in 1972, and was the primary vehicle/effort for this Vangelis project. It had a minor Album Oriented Radio hit in "The Four Horsemen," and a nearly pop hit with "Break." The album was ostensibly an adaptation of Biblical passages from the book of the same name, but was also very experimental in lyrics and composition, including a curious piece of performance art in which Irene Papas is struggling to chant a mantra while coming to climax." - Wikipedia

- Anargyros "Silver" Koulouris / guitars, percussion
- Evengelio Odyssey Papathanassiou (VANGELIS) / keyboards, flute, percussion, vibes, backing vocals
- Artemios Ventouris Roussos (Demis Roussos) / bass, lead & backing vocals
- Lucas Sideras / drums, lead & backing vocals
Guests:
- Harris Chalkitis / bass, tenor saxophone, congas, backing vocals
- Irene Papas / vocals (2:5)
- Michel Ripoche / trombone, tenor saxophone (1:2 & 2:6)
- Yannis Tsarouchis / Greek text
- John Forst / narration

DISC ONE
1. "System" - 00:23
2. "Babylon" - 2:47
3. "Loud, Loud, Loud" - 2:42
4. "The Four Horsemen" - 5:53
5. "The Lamb" - 4:34
6. "The Seventh Seal" - 1:30
7. "Aegian Sea" - 5:22
8. "Seven Bowls" - 1:28
9. "The Wakening Beast" - 1:11
10. "Lament" - 2:45
11. "The Marching Beast" - 2:00
12. "The Battle Of The Locusts" - 00:56
13. "Do It" - 1:44
14. "Tribulation" - 00:32
15. "The Beast" - 2:26
16. "Ofis" - 00:14

DISC TWO
1. "Seven Trumpets" - 00:35
2. "Altamont" - 4:33
3. "The Wedding of the Lamb" - 3:38
4. "The Capture of the Beast" - 2:17
5. "∞" - 5:15
6. "Hic and Nunc" - 2:55
7. "All the Seats Were Occupied" - 19:21
8. "Break" - 2:59

*See comments!/make comments!

Linda Hoyle -Pieces of Me

While Affinity is instrumentally a masterpiece and Linda's voice perfectly fits into it (Affinity is heavy and more moody jazzy rock with the voice of Linda at its most heavy. Similar voices and energy can be heard in Jefferson Airplane, but even more in Julian's Treatment, Analogy, Delivery, but also Sandrose, Curved Air, Earth and Fire,Heart,... I like it very much, even "all along the Watchtower's" 12 minutes more freak out version I find it splendid), her solo album has a different approach and mood. It gives more attention to the singer, with various more soul driven songs, bluesrock, most of it very orchestrated. With songs from Nina Simone and Laura Nyro, it's clear that the area is different here. Never the less there has been (too) much studio work on the songs, making them more heavy and a bit more difficult to consume. The freak-out guitars and organ on the title track come somewhat unexpected. The album is varied, and time is needed to fully comprehend its full range / content. Participating are Chris Spedding and Soft Machine members John Marshall and Karl Jenkins. The album is fine but is more difficult to appreciate and understand immediately after having heard Affinity first. Therefore it's better to compare it with solo albums from other female singers from around these days / times

Backlash Blues
Paper Tulips
Black Crow
For My Darling
Pieces of Me
Lonely Women
Hymn To Valerie Solanas
The Ballad Of Marty Mole
Journey’s End
Morning For One
Barrel House Music

ta-da!

Manfred Mann-Chapter Three, Volume One (1969)

Manfred Mann Chapter III was formed in England in 1969 after the break up of Manfred Mann famous for their chart topping pop hits throughout the 1960s. Manfred Mann’s Chapter III had a more Progressive appearance and moved away from their Pop roots. Chapter III was formed after the break up of the (Chapter II) line up of Manfred Mann in 1969 which featured singer Mike D'Abo, not forgetting the legendary (Chapter I) line up in the early 60s which featured singer Paul Jones.

Manfred Mann's Chapter III turned their backs on three minute Pop singles and light hearted songs to develop a more Jazz and Progressive sound often had lengthy tracks with solos.
Manfred Mann's Chapter III only recorded Mike Hugg or Manfred Mann compositions this was deliberate to avoid lead guitar. Sadly for Manfred Mann's Chapter 3 the band had unsuccessful record sales and paid the price for this and unfortunate for Manfred Mann's Chapter III they had disbanded late in 1970. This is their first album, recorded between June and October 1969 in the Old Kent Road. (Bio Written by Progman)

Craig Collinge (drums)
Bernie Living (saxophone)
Brian Hugg (guitar)
Mike Hugg (keyboards, vocals)
Manfred Mann )keyboards)
Steve York (bass)

01 - Travelling Lady
02 - Snakeskin Garter
03 - Konekuf
04 - Sometimes
05 - Devil Woman
06 - Time
07 - One Way Glass
08 - Mister You're A Better Man Than I
09 - Ain't It Sad
10 - A Study In Inaccuracy
11 - Where Am I Going
12 - Sometimes (Mono)
13 - Mother (Aka Travelling Lady-Mono)
14 - Devil Woman (Single)
15 - A Study In Inaccuracy (Alternative Version)

The unusual sound of Mann

Agitation Free -Malesch (Vertigo)

Tracklisting:
1 You Play For Us Today (6:08)
2 Sahara City (7:42)
3 Ala Tul (4:50)
4 Pulse (4:43)
5 Khan El Khalili (8:10)
6 Malesch (8:10)
7 Rücksturz (2:09)

http://www.mediafire.com/?ougqojeyomg

Atlantis -It's Getting Better (Vertigo)

1 It's Getting Better 4:52
2 Drifting Winds 5:08
3 Days of Giving 7:24
4 Changed It All 6:06
5 Fighter of Truth 6:19
6 Woman's Sorrow 3:25
7 A Simple Song 1:59

Inga Rumpf - Guitar, Percussion, Vocals
Karl Heinz Schott - Bass
Ringo Funk - Drums
Dieter Bornschlegel - Guitar
+ Gaspar Lawal - Afro-Percussion (1, 3, 4)

AMG:"Atlantis' second album, It's Getting Better, was the first to be recorded with new members Dieter Bornschlegel (later to join Guru Guru) and Ringo Funk, but it remains firmly cemented within the explorative realms that highlighted the band's debut, at the same time prompting the U.K. music press to describe the band as "the most English of all German groups." This was due in large part to vocalist Rumpf's avowed love of jazz and soul. The funky elements in no way outweighed Atlantis' prog instincts, however, with the seven tracks each spreading out in directions that confirmed the heroics of Atlantis and, in places("Drifting Winds", "Fighter of Truth"), even surpassed it. The opening title track, too, is a triumph, and well deserving of its inclusion on DJ Andy Votel's much- loved Vertigo Mixed anthology."

*see comments!/make comments!

Trace -Trace (1974 -Vertigo) -Great Keyboard classic!!!

Trace - 1974 - Trace.rar

The Baker Gurvitz Army (1974 -Vertigo)

Ginger Baker's mid-'70s profile took another unexpected turn following Cream's blues-rock blood and thunder and his Afro-beat matchups with Fela Kuti.

He formed this straight-ahead power trio with the guitar- and bass-playing brother team of Adrian and Paul Gurvitz, who'd briefly lit up the '60s U.K. charts as Gun (of "Race With the Devil" fame).
Such a step might have seemed subversively normal for Baker, but he and the brothers had an undeniable chemistry; not surprisingly, their debut album is a self-assured, aggressive affair.

"Help Me" and "I Wanna Live Again" are punchy and succinct; so are the hard-driving instrumentals "Love Is" and its funkier cousin, "Phil 4." The band leavens their hard-hitting delivery with subtle orchestration and piano; the latter instrument works to haunting effect on the introspective "Memory Lane." There's some engaging humor, too; "Mad Jack"'s lyrics about a reckless outback race are silly, but kitschy fun.

The only real clinker is "Since Beginning," which is bogged down from self-consciously "meaningful" lyrics and meandering delivery; its eight minutes could have benefited from judicious pruning.

Naturally, no Ginger Baker album could pass without some drum solos, but they're tastefully done. He's very much a team player here, in contrast to infamous stick-bashing marathons like "Toad." That said, this album's a strong, decisive statement, and if hard rock's what you crave, you won't be disappointed (by Ralph Heibutzki).

Tracklisting:
01.Help Me
02.Love Is
03.Memory Lane
04.Inside of Me
05.I Wanna Live Again
06.Mad Jack
07.4 Phil
08.Since Beginning

Baker Gurvitz Army:
*Ginger Baker: drums
*Adrian Gurvitz: guitar, vocals
*Paul Gurvitz: bass guitar, backing vocals

BakerGurvitzArmy...The Baker Gurvitz Army75.mustang.rar

Affinity -Affinity (1970 -Vertigo)

Fronted by vocalist Linda Hoyle Affinity's one and only LP is now worth around BP60 on the collectors' market. Not bad for a band whose entire recorded output consists of just the "Affinity" LP and the single "Eli's Song"/"United States Of Mind" (Vertigo 6059 018) which is in itself worth around BP10. Ably supported by guitarist Mike Jupp, bassist Mo Foster, organist Lynton Naiff and drummer Grant Serpell, Affinity were one of several UK jazz-rock groups signed up by the influential Vertigo Records. But although the band's seven-track debut was well received by the critics, it didn't dissuade the group from splitting up soon after its release in 1970.

Linda Hoyle continued to record for Vertigo, releasing the "Pieces Of Me" LP (Vertigo 6360060) in 1971 on which she was backed by Chris Spedding and Soft Machine members John Marshall and Karl Jenkins. The LP was a much more varied one than Affinity's, ranging from ballads to hard rock, and though it wasn't a commercial success, it's now worth something like BP125 to a dedicated devotee Vertigo Records collector. Drummer Grant Serpell went on to join Sailor, playing on hits like "Girls Girls Girls" and "A Glass Of Champagne", whilst organist Lynton Naiff gigged with Toe Fat, the band led by ex-Rebel Rouser Cliff Bennett. Mo Foster later resurfaced in Ray Fenwick-led Fancy, in the mid 70s.

Tracks :

I Am And So Are You
Night Flight
I Wonder If I Care As Much
Mr. Joy
Three Sisters
Coconut Grove
All Along The Watchtower
Eli's Coming
United States Of Mind

AFFINITY -AFFINITY.rar

Colosseum -The Valentyne Suite (Vertigo)

01. The Kettle
02. Elegy
03. Butty's Blues
04. The Machine Demands A Sacrifice
05. The Valentyne Suite:
a)Theme One: January's Search
b)Theme Two: February's Valentyne
c)Theme Three: The Grass Is Always Greener

*see comments!/Make comments!

May Blitz -The 2nd of May (Wonderful Vertigo Heavy Prog album)

01. For Mad Men Only
02. Snakes And Ladders
03. The 25Th Of December 1969
04. In Part
05. 8 Mad Grim Nits
06. High Beech
07. Honey Coloured Time
08. Just Thinking

May Blitz - 1971 - The 2nd Of May.rar

Dr. Z -Three Parts to my Soul (1970)

One of the great, lost prog rock albums, Dr. Z's “Three Parts to My Soul” ended up being one of the rarest albums on the "swirl" Vertigo label, with only 80 copies said to exist. Luckily it was reissued many times, starting with Second Battle in Germany, Si- Wan in Korea, Universal in Japan, and most recently Akarma in Italy. Most of these reissues replicate the original gimmick cover (a die-cut fold-out cover not unlike ELP's “Brain Salad Surgery”).
Dr. Z was lead by North Wales university professor Keith Keyes, who handles keyboards (harpsichord, piano, organ), as well as vocals, with Bob Watkins on drums, and Rob Watson on bass. This is another album, like BLACK WIDOW's “Sacrifice”, that featured lyrics that flirted with the occult in a prog rock setting. Here Keyes had the idea that in the afterlife, your soul is divided in to three parts, with a Latin term to each, Spiritus, Manes et Umbra. Spiritus was the soul that goes to heaven, Manes is the soul that's damned to Hell, and Umbra being the soul that stays on Earth to eternally haunt. There are some people who don't think this album is particularly good. OK, so don't expect polished YES/GENESIS-influenced prog here. What you get is early British prog, dominated mainly by harpsichord, with occult lyrics and very peculiar vocals, trying to sound "evil". The production isn't the greatest in the world, although it was produced by Patrick Campbell-Lyons of NIRVANA (the late '60s/early '70s UK band that is, hardly the Kurt Cobain-led grunge band everyone knows of).
"Evil Woman's Manly Child" is said to be a reverse of the Ten Commandments. Here you get two voices, a whispered voice and a sung voice. This is truly one of the album's many high points. "Spiritus, Manes et Umbra" could almost sound like a hit if things worked out a bit different for the band (and of course, rid of the drum solo). It's such a catchy little song. "Summer For the Rose" shows some psychedelic elements, showing how in 1971, the 1960s hadn't totally vanished. "Burn in Anger" is a piano-dominated ballad that truly screams 1971, while "Too Well Satisfied" is one of those cheesy songs with lots of appeal. "In a Token of Despair" is the closing ballad, regarding the spirit that haunts the Earth. The entire album has that theatrical quality. Many of the reissues come with two bonus cuts, "Lady Ladybird" and "People in the Street", which was released as a single back in 1970 on Fontana. What's really interesting about these two cuts, written by Keith Keyes as on “Three Parts to My Soul”, is you will find absolutely no signs of occult subject matters in these two songs. "Lady Ladybird" is a pretty cheery number. "People in the Street" on the other hand sounds too much like straight-up pop, lacking the charm of "Lady Ladybird". But for “Three Parts to My Soul”, this might not to be everyone's taste, but I like the album, regardless what might be said.

DR Z -3 PARTS TO MY SOUL.rar

Agitation Free -2nd (1973)

"Haunted Island" -Agitation Free ("2nd). spooky!

1. First Communication (8:10)
2. Dialogue And Random (1:51)
3. Layla, Part 1 (1:41)
4. Layla, Part 2 (6:47)
5. In The Silence Of The Morning Sunrise (6:33)
6. A Quiet Walk (9:15)
a) Listening
b) Two-not Of The Same Kind
7. Haunted Island (7:11)

Agitation Free - 1973 - 2nd.rar

Gracious - Same/This is... Gracious! - 1970 (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED OBSCURITY!)

,

Gracious (or Gracious!) were a British quintet who operated during the early 1970s, when they released two albums, 'Gracious!' (released 1970 on Vertigo) and 'This Is... Gracious(posthumously released in 1972 on the Philips International label). The band was formed in the mid-Sixties in Esher, a well-to-do spot south of London in Surrey's stockbroker belt, by guitarist Alan Cowderoy and drummer/vocalist Paul 'Sandy' Davis, who were at schoo together. This was prior to them adopting the name under which they recorded - they were first called Satan's Disciples (many years before punk/metal bands began using similarly first called Satan's Disciples (many years before punk/metal bands began using similarly lurid names), according to Cowderoy: "It was a Catholic school, so we thought this was the most contentious name we could come up with, and we played a couple of school concerts. It was an out and out pop group - we were just doing other people's songs, and then gradually we started putting in our own tunes. It was all covers in the first school concert - 'Sweets For My Sweet', all the popular hits of the day - and we went down fantastically well. That was probably in 1964 or '65". Schooldays over and several personnel changes later, keyboard player Martin Kitcat (his real name, apparently) joined first on piano and later, as eventual bass player Tim Wheatley recalled, a Hohner pianet, a trendy type of electric piano Next, Davis was asked to concentrate on singing and give up drumming (few have mastered such a double act!), and Robert Lipson was invited to join from a rival Esher band. Tim Wheatley first joined the band as road manager, but when original bass player Mark Laird decided to leave Gracious, Wheatley graduated to playing bass. The line-up when they decided to leave Gracious, Wheatley graduated to playing bass. The line-up when they recorded was thus Sandy Davis (vocals), Martin Kitcat (keyboards), Alan Cowderoy (guitar),Tim Wheatley (bass) and Robert Lipson (drums) By then, the group had been using the name Gracious, which was conceived by their manager, David Booth, for some time. Cowderoy recalled: "I think he dreamt up the name and sold it to a couple of guys in the band, who liked the double meaning of it - it was either an exclamation or an adjective. I hated it, and I'm embarrassed by it to this day, but it stuck, and I was outvoted by the majority - people said if I didn't like it, I should think of something better, and I couldn't". It was, feels Wheatley, "quite a good name, a name with hippy connotations, although at that stage, we were still very much a pop band doing three minute pop songs" There was a sixth member for a while, Keith Ireland, a back-up and harmony vocalist who also played percussion and was in the band when they went on tour in Germany earlier in 1968. Wheatley, at the time still I a roadie, recalls: "We went out there for six weeks, and we were so green, we knew nothing, just teenagers. Hamburg, The Star Club, the Reeperbahn we just couldn't believe what was going on". Gracious did record before making their two albums, although the results hardly appeared at the time.

vintageprog.com"Legendary British progressive band, and their classic debut-album explains why. The first side of the album seems to have a concept about heaven and hell, and the lifestyles which will lead to one of those places (if you believe that bullshit!). The music is good old English progressive with loads of mellotron and harpsichord. The highlight is the beautifu"Heaven". With its floating mellotron theme and symphonic sound, this track lives up to its name. "Hell" is, as you may suggest, a much more uglier and heavier track with some very name. "Hell" is, as you may suggest, a much more uglier and heavier track with some very distorted organ creating a perfect hell-atmosphere. You can almost smell the sulphur"Fugue in 'D' Minor" is a pure baroque piece played on guitar and harpsichord. The 16-minute "The Dream" features a load of time changes and different moods. From symphonic and beautiful, to disharmonious and energetic. This is a impressive and truly progressive rock album that every 70's progressive rock fan should own."

Gracious! -This is Gracious!!


"Another early Vertigo release, known as "the two exclamation marks album" (!!). If you're hearing it for the first time don't panic - there's nothing wrong with your stereo system, it's just the intro to the "Supernova" suite! In four parts - "Arrival of the Traveller" ("space" just the intro to the "Supernova" suite! In four parts - "Arrival of the Traveller" ("space" noises galore, Hawkwind and Floyd comparisons would not go amiss here, but I'm being naughty!), "Blood Red Sun", very catchy organ riff, great Purple-esque groove, "Say Goodbye to Love", a slow, strummy ballad, very nice indeed, and "Prepare to Meet Thy Maker" which brings us back into the Twilight Zone - etherial chorus and swirling other- worldly keyboards, the song develops into a slow dreamy arrangement, rounding off the suite rather nicely, though comparisons with early Genesis abound! keyboards, the song develops into a slow dreamy arrangement, rounding off the suite rather nicely, though comparisons with early Genesis abound"C.B.S." is an almost Rooster/Purple (there i go again!) style groove, a somewhat sixties style pop song but which comes as something of a breather after the preceding suite, some nice keyboard and guitar solos, a very fine track indeed. "What's Come to Be" follows this, a slow, beautifully arranged song awash with vocal harmonies and Mellotrons, a lovely track though comparisons with the Moodies are not unfounded! An uptempo intro to the romantic song "Blue Skies and Alibis", which contains good guitar solos, in places this track reminded me of Purple's "I'm Alone". The last track "Hold Me Down" is another melodic pop song though not the most outstanding track on an overall great follow-up to "Gracious! (1)" , a very enjoyable listen and highly recommended as a worthy addition to any early Prog collection.

ALBUM ONE:http://www.mediafire.com/?jnwmwzzmy4e

ALBUM TWO:http://www.mediafire.com/?mukxm24yujh

*HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!*

Zao - Z=7L

Zao was the very first offshoot band of Magma. Founded by former members Francois Cahen (keyboards) and Yochk'o Seffer (woodwinds) who both played on 1001 Degrees Centigrade, their debut was recorded in August 1973. Z=7L obviously has much in common with Magma's sound(though a bit lighter and jazzier) especially with the addition of an equally deranged vocalist, Mauricia Platon. Mauricia sounded like an opera singer from another planet, and on this one she certainly gave Zao that unique punch. Sadly, she didn't end up sticking around after this, and the band's subsequent output wasn't quite as distinctive as it is here. The songs themselves are expertly played fusion. "Marochsek," the moody opener, gives you a pretty good summary of what you can expect. My favorite track is the Cahen-composed "Atart," a whirling tornado of jazz-rock in 9/8 with a ferocious, seductive Fender Rhodes riff. Z=7L is a great purchase for lovers of the Zeuhl movement who wish to explore outside of Magma, and also for fusion fans. review by Joe McGlinchey — undated

Tracklisting:

1 Marochse
2 Atatur
3 Ronach
4 Atar
5 La Soupe
6 Satanyi

ZAO 1973 - Z=7L.rar