Well Fertilized Funk: Compost

Compost: Thinkin and Take Off Your Body
From: Take Off Your Body [Columbia, 1971]

Back with the funk in a big way today my friends. We've featured Jack DeJohnette's percussion work in various groups a number of times on EarFuzz previously but today I'm turning the spotlight on to one of his earliest works leading a group with the 1971 album Take Off Your Body by Compost.

Also featuring the talents of Bob Moses and Jack Gregg, the album offers up a wide range of styles from softly softly jazz soul ballads to all balls to the floor manic funk.

Thinkin is undoubtedly the highlight of the record but it's fair to say that it would be the highlight of many records released in that period. An absolutely fantastic example of how to do a great funk tune the DeJohnette penned piece starts off slowly via the bass and builds up to speed in no time. I particularly love the breakdown two minutes in which works brilliantly as the drums come back in over the horn section.

I mentioned balls to the floor manic funk earlier and here it is. Take Off Your Body, written by Bob Moses, is a tune filled with hard as they come double time drumming, horns, congas and multitude of other instruments while the band plead with their muse to undress. It sounds like it could be a mess, hovering on the edge a number of times, but I'm a big fan of tracks with this chaotic energy and think this pulls it off with some to spare.

The record's yet to be reissued and seems to be pretty rare though when it does turn up on ebay it doesn't pick up much of a hefty price (seen it go for $10 more than once). I've yet to get my hands on the only other album Compost put together, Life is Round, any heads up on whether it's worth checking out would be much appreciated.

Take A Musical Trip Down US 69

US 69: Yesterday's Folks and Miss Goodbody
From: Yesterday's Folks [Buddha, 1969]

How you doing? Hope you all had a good new year and are now back in the swing of 2008. Apologies for not posting for a while, I've been mentally preparing a few wider in scope posting themes but these are sadly all still buried inside my private mind garden, hopefully to be excavated when my brain kicks into gear.

Instead today I come to you with an album that once again defies easy categorisation. The front cover of US 69's Yesterday's Folks suggests a journey into epic guitar solos of a progressive nature, but, while the album is far from mainstream, this couldn't be further from the truth my friends.

A group comprising of American and Mexican musicians, US 69 absorbed the changing face of the music scene around them to produce a real slept on gem of an album, covering rock, funk, and psych.

Yesterday's Folks is the only track that ever appears to have been comped and it's an absolutely fantastic tune. Kicking off with a funky bass riff the track offers up a great blend of bluesy rock with great percussion work, horns, and even a few breaks for an added bonus.

Miss Goodbody offers more percussion heavy funky rock and as an added bonus for the completists out there, was also sampled by Shadow on Red Bus.

The album has now been reissued on vinyl and I can happily recommend it as one that doesn't disappoint from beginning to end - a real slept on beauty. All this and not one pun on 69ing either.....


On a side note, it's a new year and one of my resolutions (probably the only one I've got a chance of keeping) is to expand and improve this website. Therefore, if you've a keen eye for design I'd certainly be interested in talking to you about potential rejigging of the site to make it a more beautiful thing to look at (difficult, I know) and, yes, money can be involved. We're also always on the lookout for new writers (sadly no money involved here) as well so holler if you think either of these are up your street.

Summer's End Mixtape

At the beginning of summer, I started digging deep into the recesses of this vast internet to find some new musical curiosities to explore. It was time to recalibrate the ears. This impulse apparently manifested in a key word search on "psychedelia". I dug my way to a few stockpiles of nice 60's/70's vinyl rips; things I would never find otherwise. Some of the albums have been reissued on CD; most have not. Interestingly, my favorite finds were less psychedelic and more rootsy blues-based rock, or, straight up hard rock.

Here is a sampler of some of my favorite cuts from this summer's deep cut binge; sequenced for maximum enjoyment. Hope you enjoy it. Sorry for the file size and ramble.

Sunrise Over One More Day [9 songs, 43min, 89.2MB, .Rar]

The Talent:
Note: Some links may require some further navigation.

Jamul, Jamul [1970, Lizard]
Research shows that this band shared management with Steppenwolf; this is actually a pretty good starting point in describing their sound: bluesy hard rock but more countryfied and less polished than Steppenwolf. More info here.

Solid Ground, Made in Rock [1976, ?]
Swedish heavy guitar rock. Pounding drums, lots of riffage. This album grew from a cult classic into a 1991 CD reissue and a 2004 reunion with the original lineup. That's the power of crate-digging and reissuing beloved artists. More info here.

Bear Mountain Band, One More Day [1971, Predator]
This is the description that won me over: "Extremely rare, trashy Arizona booze soaked psych rock LP with some blistering guitar and outlaw atmosphere." Pretty much nails it.

Blackwater Park, Dirtbox [1971, ?]
German hard rock with English vocals. This band loves big dirty guitar solos and aggressive riffs. One has to love the lack of irony in 70's hard rock. Reissued and worth picking up. Why not, eh?

Sid Rumpo, First Offense [1974, Mushroom]
Australian blues/pub rock. I like this record quite a bit for the keyboards that come into play during the second half of the album. They're all talented players and can take a pop song into an extended jam nicely.

Redbone - Potlatch

Judgement Day and Chant : 13th Hour
From Potlatch [Epic, 1970]

With six releases on a major and some moderately successful singles, I was surprised I had never heard of Redbone, especially since they have the added distinction of being one of the few commercially successful all Native American rock/pop groups in... well... history. Described as a blend of cajun funk and Latin soul, I was curious to hear how Redbone's Native American heritage manifested in the music. Turns out, it all comes together quite nicely.

Potlatch is Redbone's second album. It is a thoroughly enjoyable collection of down & dirty funk rock, some midtempo ballads (with lyrics of a specifically Indian perspective), and a touch of experimentation with traditional Native American music. The song-writing and musicianship is very strong throughout. Brothers Lolly [guitar, vox] and Pat [bass, vox] Vegas, and, guitarist Tony Bellamy were veterans of L.A.'s Sunset Strip, having played there professionally throughout the 60's. And, to further add to the "why haven't I heard of these guys?" feeling, they were accomplished session musicians having supported the likes of: Elvis Presley, Sonny & Cher, Dobie Gray, Odetta, John Lee Hooker, Everly Brothers, and more.

The most informative links I could find are here and here.

I had a hard time picking selections from this one; it's a solid record. Hope you enjoy.

Floating Anarchy

Gong: Sold to the Highest Buddha & Castle in the Clouds

From: Angel's Egg [Blue Plate, 1973]

Gong: Master Builder

From: You [Virgin, 1974]

The back cover on my Decal CD reissues say "File Under Psychedelia."

Gong is a band that is a bit tricky to introduce to people; pick the wrong album or the wrong song and the music might not take. Perhaps this is due to the fact that the band operated more as a collective than a proper band. The constant lineup changes produced such dramatic differences in their sound from song to song that it's difficult to pin-point those pivotal moments in their discography that will draw a listener in and give him/her an entry point into the band's universe.

These 3 songs are from what many consider to be Gong's creative peak (1973-1974) and their most succesful albums: The Radio Gnome Invisible Trilogy. The Radio Gnome song cycle, which unfolds over the course of 3 diverse albums [Flying Teapot, Angel's, You], is based around the band's founder and chief songwriter Daevid Allen's Gong mythology. Legend has it, the kernel for this mythology was born out of a very impressionable acid trip. I won't get too deep into the specifics of the story and its philosophies here, I only mention this because it's an interesting aspect of the band to explore should you enjoy these songs.

Sold to the Highest Buddha is as close as Gong comes to a pop song. It's a concise arrangement that is sonically dense and practically overflows with tasty, unselfish playing by a handful of space jazz rock pioneers: Daevid Allen, Steve Hillage, Pierre Moerlen, Tim Blake, Mike Howlett, Didiere Malherbe. Together this lineup had amazing chemistry as showcased in the smooth transition from the tightly-wound Buddha to the spacious, deceptively rocking Castle in the Clouds. In a way, this song to song transition mirrors the transition from Angel's Egg to You. If Angel's Egg is a pop album, then You is the space rock jam fest. Master Builder will give you a sense of how the 1974 era collective liked to play: heavy/funky rhythm section, spacey synth backdrops, a few chants here and there, and some nice soloing from Malherbe (sax) and Hillage (guitar).

Pass That Dutch

Focus: Hocus Pocus
From: Moving Waves [Sire, 1971]

Focus: Carnival Fugue and Answers? Questions! Questions? Answers!
From: Focus III [Polydor, 1972]

I'll step out of the dub bag for a moment and return to the world of progressive rock: early 70's, Netherlands.

Focus is one of the more well-known bands in the progressive rock canon- recognized both for brilliance and indulgence. Helmed by a pair of virtuosos: keyboardist/flautist Thijs Van Leer and guitarist Jan Akkerman, the band delivered a handful of solid (mostly instrumental) albums between 1970 and 1974. During this run, they even managed to land a song at #9 in the American pop charts with a suprising single: the yodel-enfused 'Hocus Pocus'. Like many bands with an outlier of a single, some Focus fans would probably argue that 'Hocus Pocus' is not exactly representative of the band's music. It's hard, though, to say what really is representative of their music. Each album is stocked with short composed guitar-led instrumentals, medieval classic guitar/mellotron interludes, baroque organ-led instrumentals, meaty rock riffing, and the obligatory long song (to showcase both compositional and improvisational chops). In other words, gloriously over-the-top studio jamming.

Focus' rhythm section lineup changes fairly frequently, but that tends to be a non-issue. The band really seems to more about an overall vibe or sound; and, it is a distinct sound. Aided by some beautifully warm and lush production, Focus albums envelope the listener in a pleasing nostalgic analog haze. Fun stuff.

Redefining the American Bar Band

Bobby Previte: Airstrip One and Memory Hole
From: The Coalition of the Willing [Ropeadope 2006)

I regret that it was only until recently that I familiarized myself with New York composer and percussionist Bobby Previte, who has got to be one of the most exciting musicians working today. First a brief introduction: Previte grew up in upstate New York, where his first drum kit was fashioned out of metal garbage cans, aluminum pie plates, and wire coat hangers. His formal studies took place at the University of Buffalo, where he studied with John Cage and Morton Feldman before he permanently settled in NYC and became a fixture of the growing "downtown" experimental jazz scene of the 1980s. For the past 25 years he has cut his teeth on records from the likes of John Zorn and Tom Waits.

Among the half-dozen of Previte's current projects is a collective called the Coalition of the Willing, a sort of warped bar band devoted to his eclectic instrumental compositions. For their self-titled release on Ropeadope Records last year, Previte recruited guitarist Charlie Hunter (who eschews his usual 8-stringed bass/guitar hybrid for a Telecaster), keyboardist Jamie Saft, and Seattle's Skerik on saxophones. One could be forgiven to expect a whirlwind of electric improvisation with a group like this, yet instead the focus is on Previte's uniquely skewed compositions; the album contains elements of '70s fusion, classic hard rock, reggae, new wave, Hawaiian surf, psychedelia, spy music, avant-garde jazz, and pretty much every other genre of music under the sun. What looks like a contrived, stylistic disaster on paper actually translates quite well to the record, mostly due to the caliber of the musicians here and Previte's remarkable skills as a composer.

"Airstrip One" opens with a rolling drum pattern that features the assistance of Stanton Moore on second kit, and alternates between a long siren-like wailing from the guitar and a series of exploratory bass solos, both from the versatile Hunter. Then midway through, Hunter rips off a blues lick to kick off a groove that sounds like an outtake from Miles' A Tribute to Jack Johnson (1970). "Memory Hole" is more subtle, a tone-poem of colors that advances cautiously, buoyed by Saft's shimmering electric piano and a soft pulse from Previte - that strange harmonica-like sound is Steve Bernstein's "slide trumpet." Unexpectedly, Previte shifts to a 6/8 swing, the bass begins to walk, and Hunter takes the opportunity to display his blues chops again before returning to the opening theme.

Although the record doesn't necessarily push the envelope in terms of jazz composition or arranging, it's still an exciting hybrid of rock and jazz that comes highly recommended for those looking for something a little different. The live band is supposed to be a monster on stage, which I imagine would be a much better interaction with the music if Previte gets the group together to tour again.

We Can

Can: Mushroom
From: Tago Mago (United Artists, 1971)

Can: One More Night and Vitamin C
From: Ege Bamyasi (United Artists, 1972)

Can: Future Days and Moonshake
From: Future Days (United Artists, 1973)

Since my last "prog" post was accepted well enough, I reckon I'll share some more music from the more notable acts that fall under the umbrella. This next band is pretty well known these days (you may even recognize their album cover in the Earfuzz banner). Since I'm no expert on the funky experimentalism of Can, I asked my friend humdrumboy to put this selection/writeup together. Thanks homey.

Formed in Cologne in 1968, the core line-up consisted of bass guitarist/tape-editor/alternative-instrumentalist Holger Czukay, keyboardist Irmin Schmidt, guitarist Michael Karoli, and drummer/percussionist Jaki Liebezeit. Each was influenced by wildly diverse sounds such as James Brown, Karlheinz Stockhausen, The Velvet Underground, Avant-Garde Jazz, and gypsy traditionals. The original group included the American-born singer, Malcolm Mooney, who left the band in 1969 due to a mental breakdown that Mooney's psychiatrist felt was directly related to the music Can was creating and performing.

The majority of the compositions that appear on their albums are culled gems pulled from lengthy jam sessions (some of these sessions lasting 6 to 7 hours straight). The space-funk trance music they created relied heavily on improvisation and the punishing "super-groove-machine" rhythm section of Liebezeit and Czukay.

The posts above are pulled from albums that had Japanese-born Kenji "Damo" Suzuki on vocals. Suzuki was a street performer and wanderer when he met Czukay and Liebezeit, and the majority of his lyrics were in a language he created and improvised.

If you enjoy the sounds above, definitely check out the Can Free Concert that was recently reissued on DVD (along with a documentary). The Can Free Concert has incredible concert footage, and it provides a window into how their music was created. Welcome to kraut-rock.

Paint A Lady

Susan Christie: Paint A Lady and Yesterday, Where's My Mind?
From: Paint A Lady [Finders Keepers, 2006]

You may have picked up from my previous posts on Ruth Copeland and Lyn Christopher that I'm a 100% sucker for a certain type of female folk rock. Anything with strong female vocals over tough and moody guitars makes me do the equivalent of a mental swoon and Susan Christie's Paint A Lady is one of the strongest offerings I've come across yet.

A folk singer with more than a passing interest in the playfulness of psychedelia, Christie suffered the fate of many of the artists featured on the site in that she never received her proper dues. However, Christie went one step further than most, forgoing the usual pain of having her album slept on by instead seeing the record label never release her album at all. It was only due to a private press protected lovingly for years that the album was rediscovered and reissued recently by Finders Keepers.

So, onto the music. The title song itself, Paint A Lady, is a brilliantly laid back growler of a track, simmering with intent from the moment the music starts, lilting guitars hovering over some simple but great percussion. Similar in tone to Lyn Christopher's Take Me With You, this track glows with confidence and swagger from Christie as she paints a tale of the monotony of life. By the time the harmonies enter in the chorus I can't see how anyone wouldn't be sold on the brilliance evident here.

I was torn with the second track to feature here, between the Copeland's Medal like anger of For The Love Of A Soldier, the folky bliss of Rainy Day or the psychedelic wig out of Yesterday, Where's My Mind?. Well I dithered and Rainy Day is a truly beautiful track but I thought you'd be most interested in the wig out so here it is. The track takes it's time to get going, spending three minutes as Christie sets the scene of wandering the streets. However, the song builds and builds on it's initial momentum until we are left with Christie screaming at God over heavy percussion and guitars. Excellent stuff.

The album is now readily available from Finders Keepers and they've done a decent job on the reissue. It's rare that an album so long slept on is great from start to finish but I would highly, highly recommend picking this up.

Grey and Pink

Can't Be Long Now/Francoise/For Richard/Warlock
From: If I Could Do It All Over Again, I'd Do It All Over You [Decca, 1970]

Nine Feet Underground
From: In the Land of Grey and Pink [Decca, 1971]

Feeling kind of random lately during this warm spell in NYC; so, here is a random selection from the progressive rock vaults - Caravan. For those uninitiated in prog lore, Caravan was part of the Canterbury scene and they made some pretty kinda fairly decently good albums (~4) in their prime ('70-'74). I haven't thought about this band for quite a while; and then, last week I was sitting in a bar and I swear I heard a hip hop track sampling some of the synth lines from Caravan's 23 minute "opus" 9 Feet Underground. I assumed I had heard wrong until the next track came on and it worked around the main riff from Cross-Eyed Mary by Jethro Tull (didn't see that coming). Long story short, I'm still not sure if it actually was a Caravan sample, but regardless... apparently progressive rock is fair game for beat mining now. With that said, I guess it's acceptable to dork out on this music again. I mean, I did hear a Diplo mix with snippets of Amon Duul's Yeti.

Can't Be Long... is a suite of smaller tunes that showcases the full gamut of the Caravan sound: psychedelic pop->some lite rocking->smooth jazzy jamming->psychedelic pop. Some say they perfected that formula in Nine Feet Underground. They're both here so you can be the judge. Hope you enjoy.

Note: The links above will take you to the Gibraltar Encyclopedia or Progressive Rock. It's definitely a super-fan site so take all the reviews with a grain of salt. It has all sorts of info about obscure albums so it might prove to be a useful research tool from time to time.

Classics Again For the First Time

David Bowie: Hang On To Yourself, White Light/White Heat, Moonage Daydream
From: Bowie at the Beeb: The Best of the BBC Radio Sessions 68-72 [BBC Music, EMI 2000]

Sometimes nothings hits the spot like a big beautiful heavy dose of rock.

I used to be a casual Bowie fan; that was before I heard the full-throttle takes of Ziggy Stardust classics and the amped Velvet Underground covers featured on Bowie at the Beeb disc 2. Upon hearing it, I found myself bowing at the altar of rock to pay my respects to the greatness that is David Bowie and the Rats from Hull (aka: the Spiders from Mars). This release is a fantastic document of a now legendary band fighting to convince the world of its relevance. History tells us that Ziggy Stardust was the break-through success that finally launched Mr. Space Oddity into the annals of rock superstardom. However, back in 1971-2, before the acceptance and the accolades: David Bowie, Mick Ronson, Trevor Bolder, and Mick Woodmansey were each 5+ years into a frustrating string of professional near-misses and broke and starving. They must have known that this was their moment because they blaze through each song with a hungry intensity unmatched by many bands past or present (except for perhaps Sir Stanley). These performances really show how a band's collective, unwavering commitment to a song can transform its humble ingredients into something transcendent.

Kudos to the engineer and producer for capturing the magic so well; they mix the rhythm section particularly nicely. And, um, the acoustic, folky, non-rocking disc 1 makes a nice coaster.

Take a Chance on Me

James Chance and the Contortions: Design to Kill and Contort Yourself
From: Buy [ZE, 1979]

Since Christmas is over, I thought I would post these two cuts from James Chance and the Contortions to help you bring in the new year with a funk blast from the past. James Chance and the Contortions first struck an emotional chord with both punks and jazz-heads after its album Buy hit record stores in 1979.

Chance was one of the founding members of the No-Wave movement in NYC, along with cutting-edge artists such as Mars, DNA and Lydia Lunch. You would be close to nailing down the sound of James Chance and the Contortions if you mixed the discordant free-jazz improvisations of Albert Ayler with the stinging guitar tones of Gang of Four and topped that off with a funky ass rhythm section that could hold its own against the Meters or the JB's.

I was first exposed to James Chance's music after reading about the No-Wave scene in The Secret History of Rock. After purchasing Buy at a local record store in Portland, I was hooked after the first listen. The unprecedented mixture of cacophonous horns, punk rock vocals and groove-based rhythms on Buy defies categorization. Designed to Kill opens up the album with an angular sax solo over chicken scratch guitar that interplays with a lunging funky bass rhythm that wouldn't be out of place on the Funk Box. After the first half of the song, Chance assaults the listener with an intense, sneering vocal that recalls the great D. Boon of the Minutemen. The track ends with jagged atonal guitars mixed with Chance's blood curding scream of "You're Designed to Kill". After listening to this tune, your mind will be exhausted from the dizzying array of creative ideas explored within it's two-and-a-half minute length.


Contort Yourself starts off with an upbeat, tight and funky rhythm that has a guitar hook reminiscent of a sped-up "Get on the Good Foot" by the late great James Brown. The eclectic mixture of free-jazz squealing, atonal guitars, primal vocals and and hyper speed basslines creates an absolutely mind-melting experience. Towards the end of the song, Chance screams a series of "Contort Yourself " refrains in a call and response fashion with the band. After he says "Contort yourself five times", he lets loose with one of the most blood curdling screams I've heard since the bone-chilling screams of Hasil Adkins. It might take you a couple listens to get into James Chance and the Contortions, but you won't be able to stop listening to it once your palette acquires the taste. Turn it up loud and shake your ass like your life depended on it.

Ch-Ch-Chains (And Black Exhaust)

Blackrock: Yeah Yeah
Sir Stanley I Believe I Found Myself
From: Chains & Black Exhaust

I'm always more than delighted to receive suggestions for posts and artists from you, the Fuzz readership. Following on from my Purple Image post a number of people supplied me with names of artists that i may want to check out. Josh Musick went one better though, supplying me with a copy of a truly blazing compilation: Chains & Black Exhaust (and it's not even my birthday till next week).

A highly limited release in 2002, the tracks were compiled by Dante Carfagna, the truly awesome DJ and writer for Wax Poetics. The compilation includes stellar tracks by artists such as Black Merda and Hot Chocolate (no, not the Errol Brown group, the other ones) as well as a number of bands I've never even heard whispers about.

To be honest I really could post up every single song from this collection, it really is that good, but in time honored Ear Fuzz tradition I've had to limit it to two.

Blackrock couldn’t be more appropriately named if they tried, offering a heavier, dirtier update of the organ and bass led funk rock reminiscent of Ike Turner & The Kings Of Rhythm. Yeah Yeah features guitar licks for days as the lead player wails for all he's worth over the rolling piano melody.

I Believe I Found Myself is all out insanity on wax with the royal Sir Stanley belting out his vocals with unrestrained passion, his voice cracking with the strain from the first notes as the band absolutely rip it up. I am in awe of the way the track brings in the guitar solo after the chorus – absolute killer.

If you ever get a chance to get your hands on this collection do not even stop to think about it, buy it and treasure it for ever.

Cast In A Purple Image

Purple Image: Living In The Ghetto and We Got To Pull Together
From: Purple Image [Map City, 1970]

Off to France with work tomorrow for a couple of days so thought I'd slip in a quick post before I trip the light fantastic in Paris.

I'm on a constant look out for that funked out, guitar fuzz heavy, late sixties/early seventies rock music sound. Think Jimi, think Funkadelic. It's actually been a fairly fruitless search a lot of the time though it did help me uncover the work of Black Merda a while back.

Purple Image are in a similar sort of vein to Merda's work with their blend of psych rock and funk capturing a vibrant time in rock music. Strangely limited to this single release before disbanding and disappearing the group featured ex Tradewinds members Pete Anders and Vincent Poncia and delivered an uneven but at times exhilarating selection of music.

Living In The Ghetto kicks off the album at full throttle with a hard as they come riff over thumping drums and a fuzzed out sound as the band hit the listener with everything in their arsenal.

We Got to Pull Together shows the softer sound of the band with melodic harmonies and delicate playing. It's a shame that the group never did get to record a sophomore album as tracks like this suggest that they could have carved out a field in a similar vein to the Chambers Brothers with the mixture of heavy guitar and soul tunes.

Extra special mention has to go to that front cover as well. Superb artwork.

Angels and Space Gods: J.D. Blackfoot

J.D. Blackfoot: Angel
From: Ultimate Prophecy [San Francisco, 1971]

J.D. Blackfoot: Epitaph For A Head [Philips, 1969]

Autumn's here and as the leaves start to fall from the trees my musical taste veers towards the slow and soulful in preparation for those long winter nights. To combat this natural hibernation setting in I've called on the almighty power of psych rock from J.D. Blackfoot.

Formed by the superbly monikered Benjamin Franklin Van Dervort, the J.D. Blackfoot band that played on the album the Ultimate Prophecy were a short lived affair to say the least. You can read more about the comings and goings of the band at the severely moustached Devort's website.

Their one album together ofter veers on the edge of psych's worst excesses with the track Prophecy in particular sounding dangerously close to a dry run for Spinal Tap's Stonehenge number. The ballads, on the other hand show the wonderful county tinged melodies the band had on offer.

Angel is the lightest of light folk styled tracks, its upper pitched vocals and soft harmonies reminding me a lot of early Love but with a distinctively country twang. Sweet but never descending into sickly saccharine levels it's a recent fave.

So, all very nice and all that but where's the hibernation combating rock? Look no further my friend for here is the truly awesome Epitaph For A Head. Released as a single only and even more rare than an OG of the album it shows what happened when the band took the bad pills rather than the happy ones: a bad rock trip of a song, with whacked out guitars, clattering drums and lyrics on a whole nother level (Ah, It's A Space God) . Turn it up loud and let it blow your mind.........

RIP Arthur Lee

March 7, 1945 - August 3, 2006

Love: The Red Telephone and Maybe The People Would Be The Times Or Between Clark And Hilldale
From: Forever Changes [Elektra, 1967]

Love: She Comes In Colours
From: Da Capo [Elektra, 1966]

Love: A Message To Pretty
From: Love [Elekta, 1966]

It's now confirmed that Arthur Lee, the frontman and songwriter for Love passed away yesterday after a long battle with leukemia. Love's music has had a profound effect on mine and millions of people's lives and will be sorely missed. Forever Changes alone would easily rank in my top five greatest albums ever recorded.

I've deliberated long and hard how best to pay tribute to one of the last great talents of the 20th Century. To be perfectly honest I'd love to put up the whole of Forever Changes but, seriously, if you don't already own it you need to get it right now. So, I've returned from a Friday night out and used my deteriorating state of mind to choose for me.

I've strayed away from Arthur's heavier period and not even touched on his solo albums but hopefully this will give you a first step in appreciating the talent the world has lost.

Each album, which sounds good on first listen, soon reveals a whole nother level of majesty that will entrance listeners for decades to come, from the magnificent trumpets of Maybe The People... to the sweet melodies of She Comes In Colours. I'll let the music speak for itself.

RIP to one of the greats.

Two Scoops of Vanilla Fudge

Vanilla Fudge: You Keep Me Hangin' On and Bang Bang
From: Vanilla Fudge [Atco, 1967]

If, like me, you have an incredibly short patience and concentration threshold, you'll find yourself constantly reaching out for new musical experiences and changes of tone. Therefore, while my love for funk soul and hip hop will never end I like to mix it up to ensure freshness is maintained in my musical garden.

One area of music that I've come to explore more and more over the recent months is the world of Psych/Prog Rock. Luckily for me, there is plenty of funky rock out there so, while I still can't find it in myself to embrace the image of Rick Wakefield in a wizard's outfit, my appetite is regularly fed.

One of my favourites from this expanding collection is Vanilla Fudge. A band who, on paper read more like some kind of parody, taking popular songs from the late sixties and reworking them into grand epic sets. While their success rate was not 100% any doubts about their intentions and the validity of the project are quickly washed aside when you put needle to record and hear something like this....

Stra (Illusions Of My Childhood-Part One) - You Keep Me Hangin'On - Wber (Illusions Of My Childhood Part Two) is actually a far more focused piece than it's elongated name suggests. While it's something of a cliche to note that Vanilla Fudge took a song and slowed it down that is essentially what they do. However, and I can't emphasise this enough, this is a MONSTEROUS song. Beginning in characteristically slap dash style the groove of the song slowly embeds itself in the track and when it comes together and takes off with harmonies and guitars over the rolling organ its sheer excess ends up bowling you over. Put this on rotation, turn the speakers right up, and play it again and again and again and again.

Vanilla Fudge were great believers that more is more, why layer one level of instrumentation when you can layer five? Bang Bang is more of an acquired taste than You Keep Me Hangin' On but I can't resist the playfulness of the track as it fluctuates all over the place incorporating everything up to and including nursery rhymes before finally focusing on the actual song halfway through the track. Organ heavy funky rock is the order of the day as the band once again display their own version of the wall of sound. Amazing to think this is thirty forty years old and still sounds as fresh today as it ever did.

Apparently according to their official website the band are reformed and currently touring, I can only pray that they make it across the Atlantic soon.

Real Soul Brothers Pt. 2

The Chambers Brothers: Uptown and Time Has Come Today
From: The Time Has Come [Columbia, 1967]

Back with some more Chambers Brothers today with The Time Has Come. The album that thrust the band into the spotlight, the music is less insanely out there than their later The New Generation but is equally funky and probably a more consistent album overall.

The songs on this longplayer move from R&B covers to more psychedelic funk outs showcasing the indisputable talents of these guys and the ease with which they moved from their folky upbringing to a heavier sound.

Uptown is a sweet as hell uptempo track with a vibrancy and energy which still floors the listener. A tribute to Harlem the track has a definite JB feel to it as the instrumentation builds up with trumpet parps and a sweet piano melody. Coming off more like a live performance than a studio recording it's a definite pick me up song.

Time Has Come Today is still probably the most famous of all The Chambers Brothers recordings, an extended 11 minute jam that set in place many of the standards in psychedelic funk as the band work on making your soul "psychedelicised". Starting with a sound somewhat reminiscent of the Rolling Stones with heavy guitars, crashing drums and lots and lots of cowbell the track goes places Jagger, Richards & Co didn't even consider till a few years later. The song really kicks in to psychedelic mode around the three minute mark as it slows to a stuttering halt before building again with the bassiest of breaks, various guitar riffs surfacing in the mix including, if I'm not mistaken, the little drummer boy. The track then goes into overdrive for the final four minutes, ominous laughter marking the point of no return. Like a mini album in it's own right this tune is totally insane and utterly essential.

This album has been rereleased on CD with additional bonus tracks and is worth picking up alone for the gorgeous ballad So Tired. Don't hesitate.

Real Soul Brothers

The Chambers Brothers: New Generation and When The Evening Comes
From: New Generation [Columbia, 1970]

Some monstrous tracks for you today with the psychedelic funk of The Chambers Brothers. By some bizarre, almost unheard of, occurrence in the world of soul the Chambers Brothers were actual real siblings, growing up performing gospel and folk songs in the fifties and early sixties. However, the addition of drummer Brian Keenan propelled them into the funk spotlight and also rectified the name anomaly.

The New Generation is one of the most out there of all the brothers late sixties/early seventies releases, featuring extended jams and lots and lots of fuzzy guitar. These days the album is most famous for featuring the ATCQ sampled Funky but you can pick this up on numerous compilations so I thought I'd focus on two of the lesser known tracks (that's right, I'm fronting with my rares snobbery).

The title song is an absolute behemoth of a composition which I give to you today in it's full 12 minute version. Alto vocals kick off the song over stuttering bongos before the beat kicks in and what a beat - I dare you not to want to get up and dance. One of the most spasm friendly beginnings to a song ever, I want to hear this played in a club and i want to go absolutely mental to it on the dancefloor. The band literally throw everything at this extended jam as the tempo builds and builds before a mere two minutes in the track turns into a blues/psych/funk roller, distorted guitars playing over the ever more hectic drums as the vocals swerve in and out of the mix. There are few songs that can leave you feeling exhausted without ever leaving your seat but this is undoubtedly one of them.

When The Evening Comes is the band's grandiose ballad. Starting proceedings with an understated intro of sunny guitar, the track takes a turn towards the mournful as deep gravelly vocals, strings and horns join the mix. From the first violin you can tell this is an epic ballad as the theme slowly repeats louder and louder, giving the song a late period Rotary Connection feel. I truly adore the way the track builds layer upon layer upon layer as the music swells and swells to the climax, Barry-esque strings and gospel choir shimmering in the background as everything but the kitchen sink is thrown in the mix. Stunning.

New Generation is currently out of print but you can pick up a best of album pretty cheap from the usual outlets. While it may not feature all the great songs it should pass the time till someone wakes up and reissues this beast.

Stone Cold Merda

Black Merda: The Prophet and Good Luck
From: Black Merda [Chess, 1970]

One of the most depressingly familiar phrases you hear when investigating bands that slipped under the radar is "They were ahead of their time". Often used as an excuse for bands that didn't sell well this cliche can also sometimes hit the nail right on the head. One of these select groups where the statement runs true is Black Merda.

Cropping up in between the fall of Hendrix and the rise of Funkadelic, Black Merda were, in their own words, the "1st Black Rock Band". Heavier than the average group of the time with a mixture of Hendrix influenced funk and Pink Floyd-esque instrumentals the band were simply not got by the buying public. You wonder how they would have been received if they had appeared on the scene after Funkadelic had broken down the expectations and perceptions of what Black rock could sound like.

Anyway, being ahead of your time is pointless if you don't have the music to make a lasting impression and this band certainly have it. The Prophet kicks off their debut album with some bluesy funk, VC L.Veasey's vocals reminiscent of Hendrix as the band combine the bass heavy guitar work with soulful, political, vocals to powerful effect. I love the gritty, muffled production on these tracks, adding to the overall feel.

Good luck features even more heavily dirty guitar, once again check out the harmonising the group bring over the groove. It may not be the most obvious of comparisons but the band's vocal style reminds me of Stark Reality in the way that they bring their harmonies over and outside of the basic melody structure. I can't believe this was slept on on initial release; this is deeper than deep funk rock and it's fucking fantastic.

Oh yeah, almost forgot, the band have their own website and are still going strong. You can read more about them here.

Time for some Stark Reality......

Stark Reality: Clouds and Comrades
From: Discovers Hoagy Carmichael's Music Shop (AJP Records, 1970)

So the fundraising for New Orleans continues over at Soulstrut and they've been pulling out the big guns with Stark Reality's Discovers Hoagy Carmichael's Shop appearing earlier this week and raising $1000 for the cause (which was quadrupled by Soulstrut). I've posted up a couple of tracks off the album to give you a taster of one of the holy grails of crate digging. While a grand is a pretty big sum of money to spend on any piece of vinyl, if any album's worth it this has got to be it.

If you want to know more about this stunning album you can read about it on the Stone Throw reissue here. Let me just tell you that it's been sampled by Large Professor, Pete Rock, Madlib and Cut Chemist and you can't get a much better guarantee of quality than that.

With the OG raising so much money it seemed only appropriate to post up a track bizarrely missing from the reissue, one of my favorite tracks of the album, Clouds. A truly brilliant mix of folk and funk the track is about as blissful as they come.

The second track, Comrades, is available on the recent reissue and displays the groups ability to hold together their experimental style into tracks that you cannot just admire from afar but also enjoy listening to day in day out. I always love the way the group bring in the vocals, perfectly fitting the lyrics to the outstanding music.. Truly, truly, brilliant stuff.

The regular folks on Soulstrut are starting to run out of money so get on there now and start bidding.........

DJs With Mohawks

Tuner Control: Radiohead "Fake Plastic Trees"/Interpol "NYC."
From Air Raid Vol. 2 (Unbeknownst, 2004)

I used to make mad rock mixtapes in high school, like the old push pause type mixes from my CD player to my tape deck. There was something so satisfying about making them, from choosing an album title, selecting the perfect mix of tracks, and then passing them off to my friends, I guess there's no surprise that I eventually took a liking to DJing and buying records.

I feel like I've been waiting for a mix like Tuner Control's Air Raid Vol. 2 for years, and excuse me if there are a ton out there. I'm sure there are, but this is the first one that's been brought to my attention, and damn is it exquisite. I'm not sure about the exact details behind this project; whether it's a dude or a group of dudes or what. What I do know is that they use DJ fundamentals like mixing and blending to put together a solid, cohesive mix that spans punk, metal, rock, and indie. You got The Misfits, Operation Ivy, Fugazi, Pantera, Violent Femmes, The Strokes, Le Tigre. What? The track list is crazy, although there are some parts where it's confusing what exactly their intentions were, like layering breaks over songs or Public Enemy's "Bring the Noise" over Motley Crue's "Live Wire," which is cool, but these moments are so few and far between that it seems like they would have been better left out.

Oh well. Still a great listen and some great mixing like Sonic Youth's "Bull in the Heather" into Smashing Pumpkins' "1979" or Radiohead's "Fake Plastic Trees" (the Tuner Control Dub Mix is awesome) into Interpol's "NYC." Fine fine stuff, and judjing from the title I assume there's a volume 1. Wouldn't mind getting my hands on that one.

(Rock) On/Off

Mirah: "The Light"
From C'mon Miracle (K Records, 2004)


The Black Keys: "When the Lights Go Out"
From Rubber Factory (Fat Possum, 2004)

Both of these albums are hot, and I could easily upload like 3/4 of the tracks from each of them, but I'd like to believe that blogs like this encourage (rather than replace) music purchases, so I'm limiting myself to just two songs.

If I had to map Mirah, I'd place her somewhere in the space separating Liz Phair and Bjork. A more important middle ground, though, is the balance she finds between immediate, pop appeal and the kind of depth (both sonic and lyrical) that encourages repeat listens. "The Light" begins with Phil Elvrum's drum machines stomping through puddles of filtered distortion, before suddenly dissolving into a weightless acoustic tremble halfway through. The effect is something like being sucker-punched, then softly kissed on the mouth.

Despite the similarities in lineup (guitar/drums duo), origin (Midwest), and name, don't confuse The White Stripes with The Black Keys. The BKs actually recorded their latest album in an abandoned rubber factory, but there are no pretentious statements about the post-industrial urban landscape here, only blues-tinged bangers like "When the Lights Go Out". Dan Auerbach sparks it with a piston-pounding levee (drum) break, while Patrick Carney adds just enough vocals and guitar to maintain the song's lovely slow burn.

Sonic Boom!

Sonic Youth: "Stones" and "Peace Attack"
From: Sonic Nurse (Geffen, 2004)

So as I was walking to class the other day perusing my ipod for the perfect music companion, I happened to stumble across Sonic Youth's latest offering, Sonic Nurse. I've been a fan of their's for the past few years, captivated by their deep sonic explorations that have always overshadowed vocals as the main attraction. I suppose their whole career has been built upon this principle and is why they've become one of the most influential rock bands over the last couple decades.

But back to Sonic Nurse which has been affecting me ever since the other day. I definitely remember putting it on my ipod months ago, actually a little excited to hear some new Sonic Youth material, but for some reason it's taken me this long for it to catch the attention of my often overzealous scrolling thumb. This one sees many similarities to their grungier material of the late 80's, but matched with the underlying beauty of rising guitar riffs and simple tones and harmonics. I find the two minute ride from "Stones" quite enjoyable as well as the wailing outro, while the arrangements on "Peace Attack" are similarly interesting, but feel fluffier only to serve as the perfect conclusion to the album. There are so many layers to their music, I'm now inspired to go pull out some of their older stuff since it's been quite a while since their vinyl have touched my tables.

On another note, I read in Vinyl Junkies by Brett MIlano that guitarist Thurston Moore is quite the record collector.

You and me both buddy.

The Sons

The Sons: "You Can Fly"
From The Sons (Capitol, 1969)

Apparently The Sons, formerly The Sons of Champlin, were a psychadelic rock outfit from the San Francisco Bay Area during the late 60's and early 70's. I found their self-titled record on a recent trip to New York. I actually grabbed it based on aesthetics alone and threw it on the in-store turntable, skimmed threw it quickly until I hit "You Can Fly" and was greeted with a heavy drum break that I immediately recognized from Hard 2 Obtain's "Bust Me Down." No further listening was required as I quickly filed it into the "to buy" stack. When I got home I was pleasantly surprised hearing the track in it's entirety. It's quite a monster, clocking in at just under twelve minutes, but it manages to hold your attention throughout. I'm not familiar with any of their other material, but I'd certainly check them out based on the strength of this track alone.