Group 1850 – Agemo’s Trip to Mother Earth. 1968 Netherlands

By all rights, the Dutch music ensemble Group 1850 should hold the same mythic stature that Pink Floyd obtained. First of all, Group 1850 represent Continental Europe's first progressive rock band. Their compositions are designed for the tripped-out effect: Organ overlays, relentless throbbing bass, active percussion, spacey / phased voices and, best of all, an acidic guitar tone that uses every bit of studio trickery and tone affectation available at the time.

Clearly a parallel group to Pink Floyd, Agemo's Trip to Mother Earth is taken from the same cloth as Saucerful of Secrets. In retrospect though, Group 1850's work is more creative - which one may expect from a Continental band without any commercial restraints. Sure, there are some pure psychedelic moments to be had - but just hearing the title track (technically titled 'I Put My Hands on Your Shoulder') should put anyone in awe who can hear this from an historical perspective. There just flat out wasn't anything like this in 1968 . The fuzz guitar, the trippy voices, the acid induced phased effects, and the drumming (oh my - the drumming). It's a true masterpiece in the field of psychedelic progressive music.

CD: 1997 Pseudonym
LP: 1999 Pseudonym
CD: 2019 Pseudonym (as part of an 8 CD box set called Purple Sky)
CD: 2017 Universal (2 CD reissue known as The Golden Years of Dutch Pop Music)
CD: 199? SPM (Germany)

Group 1850's debut was groundbreaking in many ways, including the original LP cover: A fantastic gatefold with a 3-D cover complete with glasses! The original Dutch pressing is the only one that was 3-D whereas the original UK press (also on Philips) had a focused picture which has a blue hue to it. Because the original cover appears fuzzy, I also added the UK LP cover for this entry.

My first copy of this album was the rather shoddy SPM release which has little to offer. But 1997's Pseudonym CD is like the LP, and it also comes with a 3-D cover and features a whopping 13 bonus tracks. Group 1850's 45's were just as "out there" as their LP tracks, so these bonus songs are enlightening. Two years later, Pseudonym went forward with an exact LP replica. They did such a good job, I haven't felt it necessary to fork over for an original, even though this is a favorite album. The LP does not have any bonus tracks however.

This album has also been part of 2 significant compilations. The first was the Golden Years 2 CD set. And finally the album is part of the definitive 8 CD box set Purple Sky. While this latter compilation is absolutely essential for most of Group 1850's catalog, Agemo's Trip is the one CD from the past I will hang onto anyway. If nothing else for the 3D glasses!

Last listen: December 22, 2017