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...despite bein' part o' that wimpy limpy singersongwriter family that gave it th' big whinge back in th'early seven ohs this cat is th' odd one out'n by virtue o' that fact he's th' one to dig for any cats who need some kinda blues action'n not some pain'n heartache blabber from priviledged poo-heads...theres nothin' worse than havin' some rich no-account doodad moanin' some grief about who knows what('n who cares), givin' out endlessly about drug problems when all it takes is some cash from th'trust fund to go get some more, it aint so hard, certainly no one cares if th' gold diggin' girlfriend done gone'n left, probably couldn't stand th'whinin' on about th' imagined smack problem anyway...alex is th' one to check, he's a grimey roadhouse bluesbelter 'n this wax is a real hot2trot southern rock blowout o' th' first order...apart from th' first trk these are all covers o' then well known songs, but als performance 'n th' real solid backin' with excellent guitar 'n keyboards make them fresh 'n first-time alive...largely forgotten even by cats that dig th' dixie rockin' sounds this doesn't disappoint on any track...a bonefide tiptop effort...
...after gene called it a day on this outfit what happened next was one o' th' first groundbreakin' LP's in amerikkkan new drugpop...laid over a basic folk groove, forged outta th'hepness o' bob-lyrics'n fabism-12-string is some cool jazzbo moves, funky-drug r'n'b instros, cool inner consciousness/antiwar wordage 'n a couple o' tunes from older weirder tymes...all underpinned by some great rock'n'roll tub thump thuddin' drums...
...oh yep indeed, very nuch indeed this is some nice gear from th'mods early forays into th' rock'n'roll game...this coaster is well sprite'n chipper 'n has his first demos from 64, some solo singles, duet with pat arnold 'n th'eventual smash hit with python lee jackson...real hep 'n groovy, real nice...
...eric is just a cat who does what he wants 'n thats that'n this is a perfect example... euroboot o' a gig at th' roxy in l.a in 76 (some cats estimate a year earlier due to band members but who knows)...long jams with some funky rock moves,'n numbers from th'unreleased 'mirage' project'n it comes complete with 10 minute versions o' risin sun 'n misunderstood for animal watchers...these are very loose 'n eric was zoned by th' sound o' this...interestin' even essential...
...hepcats alert, this double wax is a comp of this combos stint at bein' a blue eyed soul aggro'n mighty fine'n dandy it is too...if'n they weren't duane 'n gregg no one could be bothered with this'n their fanbase probably hate these slices anyway so really they've been left for th' more discernin' heads to get a bead on, naturally enough with all good grist this languished in deletion bins evry time it got reissued, th' total sign o' a chipper disk...theres some good playin' on here'n th' biggish production values go well with th'style o' sound they're puttin' down...some bluesy-soul vocal from gregg indicate how he would become proficient in later times,'n some fun psychy guitar blasts from his bro are great to hear...not all th' tracks stand up but more do than dont, but this is more than just back catalog filler, so dig it clyde...
...first thing a cat gettin' hep to th'country idiom gotta know is that its a song that always tells th' truth...now that truth may only be as one person sees it or it may be an exaggerated truth or romanticised 'n embroidered but its th'truth to some one, aint no two ways about it, its tellin' it like it is to someone everytime 'n everytime they knows they're hearin' tellin' like it is or it oughta be...this here wax from 1975 is just about th'most tellin' like it is whole truth, no about a doubt truths on th' state o' amerikkka that is most often hidden even from th'people its affectin' so all pervasive is th' government/business hype 24-hour-aday machine...listen to these songs 'n know th'truth cos its true for someone all th' time...
...cats who may not be too familiar with pre-war, specially pre-depression country blues could be in for a bit o' a treat with th' first 7 trx recorded for paramount in 1930 by one o' th' great exponents, eddie son house whose heavy presence comes right down th'years'n into th'room with these tunes...th'sound o' this cat is still unbelievable with his doomed vocal style that not too many have really gotten near without it soundin' real phony...trx8/20 come from th'next decade (41/42)'n show son workin' in slightly more various styles but're still unmistakeable'n would prove to be his last until rediscovery in th' early 60's took him on th'folk'n blues college circuit for a whole new generation who were lookin' for somethin' real after all th'plastic pap they had been force fed...sound quality is better than to be expected none more so than th' earlier sessions as those disks would sound rougher than rough when they were new...this is some o' th'finest sound ever captured by 20th century technology'n it aint ever comin' again, dig while theres time...
...when tommy recorded th'hanky panky tune he had no idea that two years later it would catapault him into th'charts'n when it did it was time to get some cats together to form his new backup combo'n knock out some long play wax to mop up excess teeny cash...considerin' this was just a cash-in disk with no real idea they would stay th'course its pretty hep filled as it is with finger-poppin blue eyed soul, R&B dance tunes some good soul rockin'n a couple o' uptempo crooners...no outright clunkers in sight 'n its a stone cold solid fact that dont happen too often...
...cats remembrrin' th' paisley underground scam from th' eighties might also remember scratchin' th' noggin' 'n wonderin' what was up with all that limpoh plastic that came floodin' out to obscure a cats thinkin'...th' combos that flew with that hyped nonsense was some o' th' most vacuous that ever existed 'n brother thats a fact that cant be denied...if'n any o' em got more than one halfway decent wax out it was some kinda miracle 'n more than likely a trick o' th' light...but as luck 'n geography would show on th'periphery o' that woebegotten movement was a few aggros that could see what time it was 'n this here combo in question managed to put out some chipper screech 'n pound over a few years 'n live they smoked a doobsworth 'n put up a nice stoned atonal feedback racket o' th' first order 'n what this live double coaster happens to be is proof o' that statement...good overview o' their output 'n some choice covers that show they knew a thing or two...this gig proved to be their last 'n goin' out on a high shows good sense...
...th' tremeloes 1970 gambit for some funky hippy cred came to a sticky end before it had got off th' ground cos in a sudden brash fit they called their fans they did have idiots for likein' pop music...this game plan was supposedly to put them in th' prog/college dropout camp who might appreciate such candid blab but o' course th'whole thing turned a deeper shade o' moody'n no one liked them at all 'n this wax fell straight into th' bargin bin in some sorta record speed...its a goodly mix o' hard rock/thud pop with a couple o' softer numbers that are filler...needs a few plays but much better than could be expected...fits in with th' early seven oh post fabs pop that was fightin' th'student prog assault that was clutterin' up halls 'n record decks across th' planet...
...when this cat hit th'outtanational scene in th' mid seven ohs his hype was that he learnt to play guitar in hospital after a proper bad acid trip'n he was infected with th' eternal spirit o' jimi...well naturally that was th' last straw, that got rock critic snobs into a bit o' 'n outrage'n they could only do one thing,'n one thing only, they put th' dis on him'n that was th'end o' good music press reportage but th' crazy suburban teen-ohs on th' downer drug trip had other ideas'n his psyched-out-post-prog heavy rock slowly but surely caught on with audiences around th' globe...this here platter comes from '77 'n is slightly less raucous than some o' his earlier forays but th'fxpedal grooves are still there 'n ready to do their thing...goes well with a green pipe 'n thats a fine thing...
...heres a thing that shouldn't work, all underground counter culture sensibilties should deny th' very existance o' this on grounds o' principle, hippy bigot principles maybe but some times there's all there is, but this is way cool business...knocked out in '72 in olde london towne by a bunch o' square biz entertainers, singers from th' stage hit hair 'n some session cats this waxin' is some funky grooves on th' move...big beat pop on one track, prog pop 'n groovy urban folk on others'n plain old early seventies funk rock with a beat to keep...some moody orchestration takes its turn in th'proceedin's 'n some leftover psych moves prop up some pieces, 'n some political posturin' in th' hippy groove...a nice surprise from left field, a curve ball that could have missed th'target by a counry mile, but this is spot on groovy, no two ways from yesterday to deny it, a wonderful treat from long gone times...all those involved have gone onto bigger things but if any're as good as this that'd be another surprise...
..if ever a wax reflected th'times'n place it certainly was this one...th'sound o' amerikkka was mirrored in th'basement murk o' this creepycrawl funk with its drumboxes, keyboards'n dronin' tired vocal style...th'war in nam that had been bought home by revolutionary forces such as th'weather underground was reflected in slys disillusionment with hippy vibes that had been driven into th'gutter by government drug-dealers peddlin' th'worst gear to its own children cos they wouldn't buy into a failed 'n corrupt dream that lead him into his own paranoia'n vast intake o' chemicals...th' haze o' teargas in th'inner cities'n on college campus, th'napalm in th'nam'n agent orange in grunts systems was thrown up in th'gloom'n dark vibes that pervade this very singular biscuit(this is not th' remastered version)...still needs to be heard as th'planet plunges deeper into th'mayhem o' new world order...
...from th'strange frightenin' pre-industrial times on th'banks o' hidden lakes deep within dark'n dank forests comes this witchy trancy folk biscuit...long instro passages 'n wordy story poetry all in a once removed from reality theatrical settin', once removed from th'known dimension, that takes time to work into th'noggin but a few spins bring this doomy masterpiece to fruition...one o' th' top early 70's wax 'n came on th' nice'n funky dawn label...
...these young hepster mods had been playin' in an R'n'B band in th'mid 60's when still puttin' in time at th'halls o' learnin'n went through psych to end up progged out boogieheads...totally cool example o' th'2nd generation hard rock riffmongers that played th'cellars'n backrooms of towns all over merrie olde back in th'turn o' th'seven ohs decade...fx pedal madness drives these relentless riffs on eight well groovy tunes from this first effort by these still teenage longhairs...most probably their purest moment when all is considered, th' high point between gettin' th' buzz when they were young'n then bringin' all they knew to fruition, after this its really a case o' tryin' to refine th' sound, not always sucessfully but at least they tried to keep it a bit fresh with ideas that unfortunately didn't always work...really nice ol' fashion stereo useage as a bit o' a bonus...
...from nineteen seventy comes this psychedout funkathon with th' blastin' power o' many suns...th' super stun racket o' th' first track is worth more than a years supply o' beer 'n beans alone'n th'thing about this wax is it dont stop there...these cats aint no one trick pony, when it comes down to varyin' th'funk they got it in th' pocket...they were th' houseband at hot wax (says it all right there, totally apt name when it comes to this platter), so a cats gonna know these brothers got it goin' on in a big way...put some new batteries in th' hi-fi 'n turn that dial to eleven 'n watch th'walls turn to dust...go with th'ride, clyde...th' magic spirit that comes wrapped in th' noise could be used to fly around th' planet in one go with no landin' needed...
...they were th'rowdy younger kids on th'pub rock circuit around olde london towne'n surroundin' burgs, this mob were a beer soaked R'n'B streamlined hard rock riffa-rama bundle o' energy...they surely kicked up a racket 'n as time was right for this sorta noise they started to make some inroads - then punk struck 'n it looked like a movement was formin' that th' rods could 'n would be apart of...then all o' a sudden they were deemed too old 'n regessive to be considered punk with th' modded-out R'n'B sound 'n things looked like goin' to moody street...th' general citizens had other ideas 'n gave them a coupla hits when they got some powerpop rush bolted to their sound but it was too little too late...culture had moved on 'n punk itself was yesterdays thing so it was back to th' low payini gigs 'n disks that were deemed less'n less important as years went trundlin' by...this coaster is a quick blast o' th' first few years when they were at th' top o' their game 'n is filled with hotcha moves that every right thinkin' cat back there dug...gig wise they kicked up a storm'n there wouldn't let a cat down on th' live circuit 'n any cat not rememberin' them will not be let down with this racket o' goodness...max R'n'B as th' shepherds bush mod himself once said...play loud...
...way cool example o' a pop-clubsoul combo jiggin' a few psych moves into th'sound to try to keep up with th' comin' flower power tastes some o' th'mod audience in hep urban centres o' merrie olde were gettin' into...they arrived on th' recordin' scene too late to actually make any impact, th' audiences fickle tastes would decree this outta-date'n so they would fade away after a coupla years but they did have a small followin' in some northern clubs where th' psychedelic fad would not penetrate...th'jams on this wax're based on what their live show would consist o' with a couple o' slow bubblers in amongst th'toe tappers makin' for a nice all round lobe loobin'...
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