There are a couple of items here that make Chico's sole album special. One is the heavy handed use of studio trickery (phasing, radical dynamic shifts, backwards tape, etc…), a common trait found among many early 70s French and German albums. Even more important, though, is Chico himself (real name Mahmoud Ayari, and originally from Tunisia). Chico is the vocalist, and it’s his ranting, raving, screeching, drooling, mumbling that makes this album so real. The listener witnesses a man on the edge – a true freakout captured on tape for all time.
There are other albums where this trait of insanity can be found, and they’re all favorites of mine: Dawn on Brainticket’s Cottonwood Hill, John L. on Ash Ra Tempel’s Schwingungen, and Catherine Ribeiro on No. 2 (really any of her early 70s works). The psychedelics that are applied both externally (music) and internally (individual) allow the artist to apply his or her most creative mind gymnastics. Sure, it’s pure madness, but it sends a chill down my spine especially when paired with raging wah wah guitar solos and a cacophony of tribal percussion.
It’s funny today to watch bands try to recreate this same sound. When it’s just the music, they do a good, sometimes great job, but when they try the "I’m crazy, here me rant" - they’re faking it. It was a one time of the era event. Everything else is just a simulation, a make-believe-let’s-pretend-we’re-freaked-out-and-nuts. And it sounds artificial. Get the real deal and check out Chico Magnetic Band. One of the all-time greats for certain.
Ownership: LP: 1971 Vogue. Single sleeve. Online acquisition from Switzerland (2021). I paid a small fortune for it, out of the profits from Purple Peak Records. In fact it's the second most I ever spent on a record, and the most ever if including shipping, taxes, fees, etc... So wouldn't you know it that there was tons of drama regarding the shipping to here, including one notification from the post office telling me it was "damaged and undeliverable". Ack!! I couldn't sleep for one night. I'm getting too old for this crap... All a big mistake of course, and it's here and it's in wonderful condition.
CD: 2008 Nosmoke (Portugal). Cardboard sleeve. Imagine my surprise when I saw the back liner notes... which were written by.... ME! (what did they use for the liner notes you ask? What you see above - though I've altered them slightly since - yea, I'm the TH - real initials even...). Guess we can safely assume this is a bootleg as well, since I certainly wasn't contacted prior*. It's a pretty decent boot actually, with extra tracks taken from 45s and EP's, also from the bootleggers collection no doubt. There's also a full history of the band, up through 2003, probably pulled from the internet as well. If a legitimate reissue surfaces, I hope they can secure the rights to these 45s as well.
* - to add even more drama, those knuckleheads known as the Freeman's tried to reverse my bootleg designation on Discogs. Without any evidence beyond some distributor they knew had it, therefore it was legit. I was furious. I know they did it to piss me off, and it worked. I filed a formal complaint with Discogs, and that's the last I've had to deal with them. Whatever respect I had left for those guys vanished right there. And as I already knew, the distributor also disavowed any knowledge of it.
3/28/07; 6/30/09 (new entry); 4/13/18;
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