Part II... Old links, new links, expired links... 😃😃😃

                                                                                                                                           

Hello Folks,

I have updated some albums whose links had expired and uploaded new links. These are the albums:

49th Parallel - Forty Ninth Parallel

Angel Pavement - Maybe Tomorrow

Arcadium - Breathe Awhile

Beachheads - Beachheads                     

Beagle Hat - Magical Hat

Beaulieu Porch - Beaulieu Porch

Bon Scott - The Early Years

Buzz Linhart And Eyes Of Blue - Buzzy

Church Of The Cosmic Skull - Science Fiction

Churchill's - Churchill's 68-69 & Jericho Jones - Junkies Monkeys & Donkeys

Circus Maximus - Circus Maximus & Neverland Revisited

Clifford T. Ward - No More Rock'n' Roll

Cowboy - 5’ll Getcha Ten

Crabby Appleton - Crabby Appleton

Cross Country - Cross Country

                

Crystal Syphon - Family Evil

Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich - Boxed!

Dave Waite And Marianne Segal - Paper Flowers

Davie Allan And The Arrows - The Wild Angels And Other Themes, Music From The Original Soundtrack

Denny Doherty - Waiting For A Song

Denny Doherty - Watcha Gonna Do

Denny Gerrard - Sinister Morning

Denny Laine - A Tribute To Paul McCartney & Wings

Dino Desi And Billy - I'm A Fool & Our Time's Coming

Doris - Did You Give the World Some Love Today Baby

Doug Powell ‎– The Lost Chord

Earth Island - We Must Survive

Fancey - Love Mirage

Five Day Rain - Five Day Rain

Ford Theatre - Time Changes

Gene And Debbe - Playboy   

Gonn - Gonn For Good - The Best Of Gonn

Graham Gouldman - Play Nicely And Share

Harpers Bizarre - Harpers Bizarre 4

Improved Sound Limited - Improved Sound Limited

Improved Sound Limited - The Final Foreword

Paul Collins' Beat - To Beat Or Not To Beat + Long Time Gone

As always, you can find the albums of course via the search mask, here on the top right of the page. More updated links will follow within the next days. Viel Spaß

Frank

'60s Beat/Pop/Pop Rock/Psychedelic Pop: Tages - Studio 1967 (2010 RPM) 5 Bonus Tracks

 

Tages were more well equipped than most other bands from Scandinavia to move with the times after the beat era waned, considering that unlike most such bands, they sometimes sounded pretty close to an actual mid-'60s British group. Considering how adeptly they'd absorbed British Invasion styles, it's unsurprising that the 1967 album Studio finds them getting into much more florid pop-psychedelia,

with various ornate production dabs, bouncy whimsy in much of the songwriting, and touches of soul and orchestration in the arrangements. Perhaps it's a testament to 1967 British psychedelia being harder to assimilate and copy than Merseybeat or mod, but though this is a carefully produced and ambitious set of songs, the material itself just isn't up to the level of the probable inspiration. None of the songs are either great or lousy; they're just average examples of approaches that were in fashion, though a bit of stomping mod rock remained in "It's My Life." 

More typical were upbeat midtempo cuts that sounded something like audio equivalents to amiable strolls by hip tourists through London, the Baroquely orchestrated "People Without Faces" being one of the better ones. "It's in a Dream" slightly recalls the late-period Zombies with its marriage of deft classical-flavored keyboards and harmonized pop/rock, though it's not up to the Odessey and Oracle level. 

You can't fault the craft of the insertion of some of the period production tricks, like the distorted psychedelic guitar that gives way to Renaissance piping, hazy harmonies, keyboard plunks, and backward blips on "Seeing with Love." Certainly the weirdest track is "She Is a Man," and not just with respect to its backward guitars, psychedelic echoes, and instrumental break of ambient conversation; it certainly seems to be a portrait of a transvestite, if a pretty confused one, three years before the Kinks' "Lola." (Richie Unterberger, allmusic.com)

Dieses review von Richie Unterberger verwirrt mich etwas, muß ich zugeben. Nicht weil ich eine etwas andere Meinung in Bezug auf die musikalischen Darbietungen auf dem Album habe, sondern weil mich seine Aussagen bezüglich des Songs ''She Is a Man'' doch ziemlich ratlos zurücklassen. Im besonderen der letzte Satz. Aber vielleicht liegt es auch an meinen 'Englisch' Kenntnissen. Wie auch immer: Vier Sterne für das Album von fünf möglichen. Viel Spaß!(Frank)

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70's Power Pop/Pop Rock: We All Together - Singles 1973-74 (2011 repsychled, Lion Productions)

The Peruvian band We All Together, though unknown beyond a core cluster of cultists, was among the prime exponents of Beatlesque pop/rock in the early '70s. Led by singer and frequent composer Carlos Guerrero, who (along with some other members) had been in the Peruvian rock band Laghonia, they released two albums (singing in English) in the first half of the '70s. These were fashioned after the lighter side of the late-'60s Beatles, particularly in the vocal harmonies, melodic tunes, and sophisticated arrangements blending keyboards, acoustic guitars, and electric guitars in a graceful manner.

Although Lennon, McCartney, and for that matter, Harrison's influence, show up in We All Together's work, they had more of an affinity for McCartney's engaging melodicism, to the point of covering some obscure, early McCartney solo tunes. On their second album, they also reached into some British progressive rock riffs, although the Beatles vibe remained dominant. 

With the exception of Badfinger, they may have been the best band of their time to play in an avowedly Beatlesque style. Their albums, once all but impossible to find in the Northern Hemisphere, were reissued in the U.S. in the late '90s. Richie Unterberger, allmusic.com)

The 2007 compilation Singles rounds up the 13 tracks that never appeared on We All Together's two proper albums. This description suggests that Singles has a motherload of rare material, which isn't quite true: the two LPs were reissued on CD and were graced with bonus tracks that happened to be taken from these singles, so all but a handful of these tunes should be familiar to fans. Fortunately, that handful of tracks -- unlike the proper albums,

these rare cuts are mostly in Spanish, with "We Live Too Fast" being the only one in English -- maintain the group's high standards, offering wonderful evocations of Paul McCartney and Badfinger. That's enough for the devoted to pick this up, but anybody who has yet to fall in love with We All Together will find this a good introduction to their charms. (S.T. Erlewine, allmusic.com)

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Classic Psychedelic Rock & Pop Album: Pink Floyd - The Piper at the Gates of Dawn 1967 (2007 EMI, 40th Anniversary Edition) 3 Disc Edition

 

The two-CD set is a well-intentioned (and, purely on its own terms, excellent) assembly of the two different mixes, stereo and mono, of Pink Floyd's 1967 debut album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, issued by EMI Records for the 40th anniversary of its release. 

Original Cover

And if it stood alone, with no other version of the album out there, it could be recommended without hesitation -- the original stereo and unedited mono versions of the album (of which the latter is totally new to CD) have been given state-of-the-art digital transfers, and those two mixes are different enough so that they're both worth hearing. The balances on the instruments on various songs is sometimes radically different, 

and it's clear that there were so many ideas tried in the mono mix (which was done first) that didn't make it to the stereo mix, and other ideas that were unique to the stereo version. The only problem with this two-CD set is that it stands distinctly in the shadow of a more expensive and ambitious Piper at the Gates of Dawn [3-CD Deluxe Edition], which includes a brace of outtakes plus the five single-only sides issued by the band during 1967.

And anyone who would be interested in the stereo and mono mixes of Piper would almost certainly be a natural audience for that third CD of material. So most Floyd fans who would buy this double-CD set should just skip past it and go for the triple-disc set.

Syd Barrett collage 1965

The latter comes in a handsome hardcover book format and offers fans of the early Pink Floyd a chance to do something for the first time in the CD era (and for the first time since the year 1967 and maybe 1968) -- immerse themselves in the Syd Barrett-era Pink Floyd sound. That includes not only the stereo and mono mixes of the album on two separate digital platters,

Syd Barrett collage 1965

but also the band's three early singles, plus two previous unreleased alternate takes (an "alternative version" of "Matilda Mother" and "Take 6" of "Interstellar Overdrive"), plus a booklet replicating Syd Barrett's collage artwork from 1965. That's the way to hear this material -- this double-disc set should be left to the timid neophyte fans who, if they have any ears at all, will soon want to upgrade to the triple-set. (Bruce Eder, allmusic.com)

I'm a huge fan of 'Piper' and you shouldn't compare it to other PF albums, simply because you can't. For me it is unique. And not only in the PF universe, but in the whole history of music in general. Six stars out of five for the stereo and the mono disc and also for the third disc. Enjoy!(Frank)

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Apple Jam: 2 great Albums and a fantastic EP : 'Off The Beatle Track' (2009 Roseta), 'Off the White Album' (2018 Rosetta Productions), 'On The Wings Of A Nightingale' EP (2012 Roseta)

 

Apple Jam

Off the Beatle Track

Off the Beatle Track' showcases authentic and affectionate Merseybeat re-creations of 14 tracks that John Lennon and Paul McCartney penned during the Beatles' early years that were handed off to other British artists or never officially released by the Fab Four during the '60s. (There's also one George Harrison-written tune here that was demoed in 1964 but which remained unreleased until 1995's Anthology 1.)

Apple Jam is a Seattle, Washington-based quintet who have the early Beatles sound down to a tee and who used '60s-era equipment to fashion this reverent collection. From the Buddy Holly-ish reading of "I'll Be On My Way" (released in 1963 by Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas) and the "And I Love Her"-styled take of "A World Without Love" (made famous by Peter and Gordon) to lesser-known numbers such as "Tip of My Tongue" and "One and One is Two," the disc is further proof of the Lennon/McCartney songwriting magic. As a bonus, the Harrison cut, "You Know What to Do," sounds fantastic, all tricked out in the twangy, Carl Perkins guitar stylings that George used so successfully from '63-'65.

Apple Jam's stellar performances of these songs and other long-lost gems (such as "From a Window," "I'll Keep You Satisfied" and "Nobody I Know") that the Beatles gave away make Off the Beatle Track sound like a long-lost Fab Four album, circa 1965. And while other acts from such far-flung locales as Spain (Sgt. Pepper's Band), the UK (Revolver) and Australia (The Beatnix) have attempted a similar sort of album with many of the same songs, Apple Jam's renditions are fresher and more stylistically varied, making Off the Beatle Track a cool little record indeed. Beatle freaks will definitely need to check this one out. (Available at www.offthebeatletrack.com)

- John M. Borack                Grade: ****1/2

Review Apple Jam - Off The White Album

On The Wings Of A Nightingale:

On the EP are two songs, ''On The Wings Of A Nightingale'' written by Paul McCartney, and the other ''Help Me To Help Myself'' by John Lennon. The songs were recorded in several versions. With the idea of how they would have sounded in different times.

Furthermore, there is as a bonus track ''Instant Karma''. However, the song is not listed on the cover.

Ich gebe beiden Alben und auch der EP 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟.

Ich bin fasziniert davon, wie die Band sich dem Ausdruck der Beatles mit den Songs und ihrer eigenen Kreativität annäherte und einen Sound geschaffen hat, der eine Vorstellung davon vermittelt, wie es hätte klingen können. Es ist mehr als einfach einen Song bis ins kleinste zu kopieren, mit dem Ziel, wie das Original zu klingen.

Wer mehr über die Band wissen möchte, einfach im Netz suchen, da finden sich Fakten zur Band. Auf der EP spielt Alan White (der früher schon auf verschiedenen Projekten der Beatles Musiker spielte) auf den Songs vier und fünf, sowie ich glaube ebenfalls auf ''Instant Karma''. Viel Spaß (Frank)

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British Psychedelic Pop/Freakbeat: The Tremeloes - What a State I'm In -The Psych-Pop Sessions (2003 Castle, Sanctuary) Remastered

 

This is one delightfully strange, even revelatory compilation CD, a cross-section of the Tremeloes' music devoted exclusively neither to hits nor to rarities -- rather, the producers have culled the strangest, most uncharacteristic sides by the band from four years of sessions, with the emphasis on psychedelic sounds, ranging from the Beatlesque psychedelic pop of "Willow Tree" to the dissonant, feedback-laced, volume-pedal, and fuzz box-soaked "Hard Time" (which by itself will be worth the price of admission for fans of Rick West's guitar playing).

In between those two poles are a large handful of tracks that would qualify as unabashed freakbeat classics, starting with the 1966-vintage B-side "What a State I'm In," which offers pop hooks, freakout guitar runs, a catchy chorus, and a snide punk attitude worthy of the Creation or even the Who. And speaking of the Who, "Let Your Hair Hang Down" offers Dave Munden playing about as much like Keith Moon as anyone ever got, in addition to filling the room with a spacy chorus. And while mentioning associates of Pete Townshend, the next track, the number two British single titled "(Call Me) Number One," does sound like a spacier follow-up to Thunderclap Newman's "Something in the Air." The driving, electric 12-string-soaked youth anthem "Gentlemen of Pleausure" (astonishingly, the B-side of "There Goes My Baby") belonged in a movie about the psychedelic scene in swinging London, while "Shake Hands (And Come Out Crying)" is a weird-ass freakbeat adaptation of the central riff from the Byrds' "Feel a Whole Lot Better" (which was, in turn, lifted from the Searchers' version of "Needles and Pins"). 

Just about the only track that doesn't belong in these surroundings is "Be Mine," which is a little too pop-oriented. The mastering is impeccable, state-of-the-art resolution at a good high volume, and the annotation very thorough, though filled with odd typos that lead one to believe it wasn't edited. (Bruce Eder, allmusic.com)

Definitely the best Tremeloes Collection. And it would probably be the best Tremeloes album, if it were one. . . besides the maybe a little less known soundtrack album 'May Morning' by the Tremeloes for the 1970 Italian film 'Alba pagana' with Jane Birkin. Enjoy !(Frank)

I'm sorry, but unfortunately no booklet.

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Canadian Pop Star TerryJacks' first (recording) Band: The Chessmen - The Chessmen Collection 1964-1966 (2010 Regenerator Records) Remastered

 

Primarily remembered as Terry Jacks' first band, this Vancouver, B.C. ensemble cut four singles during their brief career (1963-66). Core members included Guy Sobell (lead guitarist and founder) and Bruce Peterson (electric accordion); with various drummers and bassists (e.g. Bill Lockie, Al Wiertz, Miles Kingan and Larry Borisoff) passing through the rhythm section's revolving door.

Billing themselves as "The Modern Rock Quartet, " they began as frat-house instrumentalists but quickly progressed to mainstream pop. Their first 45, "Meadowlands" b/w "Mustang" (London 17334), was an inspired reworking of (of all things!) an old Russian folk song, and spotlighted Sobell's lightning-fast flat-picking.

"The Way You Fell" b/w "She Comes By Night" (London 17340) debuted Jacks' soft, saccharine vocals and hit #2 locally. The A-side invokes the Grassroots or the Cascades, the flip is an odd grave-rock dirge. Still, both tracks demonstrate Jacks' growing talent as a songwriter (fortunate, for the band found his rhythm guitar work abysmal and had considered dumping him!).

Despite U.S. airplay in Chicago and the Midwest, two further 45's met with general indifference, and in 1966, the Chessmen retired from the board. Jacks, briefly affiliating with the Poppy Family, later found fame as the author of the memorably maudlin, "Seasons In The Sun." The Chessmen's "Meadowlands" resurfaced on the History Of Vancouver Rock, Volume 1 (Vancouver Record Collectors' Association VRCA 003, 1987), and both sides of the group's second single appeared on the History Of Vancouver Rock, Volume 2 (Vancouver Record Collectors' Association VRCA 002, 1985). (Stansted Montfichet, allmusic.com)

Already on these recordings you can hear Terry Jack's distinct talent for writing fine pop songs and leaving the rhythm guitar to someone else in the studio, lol. 🎸😄

I really like this compilation, also because you can hear the songs with how much confidence and fun the band performs. WELL DONE !!! Enjoy!(Frank)

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You find more music by Terry Jacks with the Poppy Family and Terry Jacks solo via the ''Search'' function on the upper right  here on the site.

'60s Brit Invasion Pop Rock: Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich - Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich 1966 (2003 Repertoire)

 

Although the success of Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich was nominal in the States, they fared significantly better throughout Europe. Dave "Dee" Harman (guitar/vocals), Trevor "Dozy" Davies (bass), John "Beaky" Diamond (rhythm guitar), Michael "Mick" Wilson (drums), and Ian "Tich" Amey (lead guitar) were an instrumentally self-contained unit

with a penchant for aggressive pop leanings that remained buoyant and catchy, while simultaneously flirting with the subterranean freakbeat and mod rock scenes as well. That distinction can be heard between the pulsating rhythms of "Hold Tight," "No More Love," and "We Got a Good Thing Goin'" -- recalling the unmistakable sound of the Dave Clark Five.

 "Frustration," "Hard to Love You," and "All I Want to Do" are among the standout rockers with a notably edgier sting and sonic punch. This is stylistically augmented by the equally moving balladry of "Here's a Heart" and the emotive midtempo "Something I Gotta Tell You." [Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich's recorded legacy is only partially represented by their LP, however.

In many (if not most) cases, 7" single releases would boast considerably different mixes or tunes that were otherwise not available on the 12" platters. Enthusiasts of the band should take note of the 2003 reissue of First Album, as it boasts no less than a dozen bonus tracks consisting mostly of 45-only sides and alternate edits. (Lindsay Planer, allmusic.com)

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Mid 70's Pop/Pop Rock/Soft Rock by Songwriting monster... Barry Mann - Survivor (1975 RCA Victor) (2005 Arista, BMG Japan CD Release)

 

Half of the successful writing team of Barry Mann & Cynthia Weil, songwriter Barry Mann played an integral part in the success of the Brill Building sound and its dominance of the pop charts in the early '60s. Before becoming a songwriter he also made the charts as a performer, singing the novelty song "Who Put the Bomp (In the Bomp, Bomp, Bomp)."

German Single cover

 Mann began his career at Don Kirshner's Aldon Music. Crafting rock music with a level of sophistication that had never before been attained, Mann, along with wife and partner Cynthia Weil, wrote such classic tunes as "On Broadway," "You've Lost that Lovin' Feeling" ("the most-played song of the 20th century"), and "Uptown." It was Mann who supplied the majority of the music for these compositions and the duo continued to provide hits for other artists through the decades. In addition to his continuing successful collaboration with Weil, Mann has provided keyboards and production skills to artists such as B.J. Thomas and the Pointer Sisters, and co-wrote Dan Hill's hit "Sometimes When We Touch." In 1987, Mann was inducted into the Songwriters' Hall of Fame and was awarded two Grammys, including Best Song for "Somewhere Out There." (Steve Kurutz, allmusic.com)

Barry Mann and his wife Cynthia Weil

 Notes:

Track listing on the CD differs from the tracks that were listed on the back cover of the original vinyl

 LP Track 1 "I'm A Survivor" was not included in the original vinyl LP but was included in subsequent pressings of the original vinyl LP

Track 12 "Nothing Good Comes Easy" is listed as a bonus track on the CD but it was included in the original vinyl LP (from Discogs.com)

Mann in the '70s

I think everyone who has owned a radio or TV in the last sixty years knows the music of Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil. The couple, together with Gerry Goffin/Carol King, is considered the most successful songwriter couple of the so-called Brill Building Sound and, together with the British John Lennon/Paul McCartney, probably the most successful pop songwriters in the world.

But now briefly to the album. I still like the album very much. It spreads a good pop flair with sometimes light country borrowings. Of course you can't deny parallels to Kenny Rogers (as some contemporaries liked to do big and wide), but to reduce it to that would not do the album justice. Besides the really great songs, the production is also top with the possibilities of the seventies. Produced by Mann, together with Bruce Johnston, as well as Terry Melcher on the song ''Nothing Good Comes Easy'', himself. Mann's performance is expressive and soulful, giving the songs (soulful) depth. For me, four and a half stars out of five. Enjoy.(Frank)

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