Erna Schmidt - Live 69-71. Germany (archival)

I've spoken about this prior, but worth repeating here: There's an Essence of Krautrock. To me the term has an esoteric meaning. It's not just one thing, or one style of music, but rather it was the spirit of the moment. Zeitgeist is the proper term, though often overused today. Many bands fall into the Krautrock vortex, whether they be hard rock, cosmic electronic, progressive jazz, etc... It certainly doesn't mean "rock from Germany". In fact, it can be from anywhere, even though its origins are definitively from the Fatherland. And with that...

Erna Schmidt is the pure embodiment of Krautrock. One of the best examples there is, certainly of those that weren't released real time in their day. They feature a classic lineup of guitar, flute, bass, and drums. Erna Schmidt were your prototypical hippie troupe, that lived the commune lifestyle, and played concerts throughout the country. They were signed to the Ohr label, the perfect home for a band such as this. Probably if looking for label comparisons, Erna Schmidt ties closest to Mythos at the time of their debut, minus the ill advised vocals. One could point to dozens of other examples, but it's not necessary because you already know the type of sound. The beauty of Krautrock is each brings their own ingredients to the figurative bowl of stew. No formal studio recordings were ever made, but fortunately a future entrepreneurial engineer recorded multiple hours of live material - in great sound for the time and place. Because of the volume of recordings, they were able to vet out some fantastic moments. The highs of Live 69-71 lie in the middle of the disc, which is how many of the best archival albums are laid out. Not too much at once, and don't wait until the end for the "good stuff". The booklet hints there are SWF tapes as well, though we're 22 years on from this release, so perhaps that isn't the case. In short though, if Krautrock is your bag, Erna Schmidt should already be your collection. If not, buy it now.

Ownership: CD: 2000 Garden of Delights. Purchased new upon release. The usual fantastic job from GoD with lengthy liner notes and better-than-you-would-expect sound. There are no details on the exact dates of each track, though it says the majority are from 1970. Apparently - perhaps sadly - this wasn't a big seller, as you can still purchase the CD new and it was never repressed. I wouldn't wait forever though.

3//10; 7/31/22 (new entry)

Kraan - Wiederhören. 1977 Germany

From a collection perspective, I see 2021 as the year that I loaded up on jazz funk LPs and CDs. It seemed everywhere I went, I ran into cool early to mid 70s American albums that specialized in this genre. But what of my older European prog collection that was secretly hiding similar type music - would it hold up in court? Kraan's 5th album would put that theory to test. I knew when this one came up in the random search that it belonged to Kraut Fusion, but my memory had it that it was more funky than I usually cared for. That is to say, it wasn't going to scratch that Embryo and Missus Beastly itch. It's been close to 20 years since I heard it, so let's see what we have here.

'Just One Way' opens the album and all my fears came straight to the front. It's rather dreadful "uptight white guy" funk with terrible vocals and stiff rhythms. Well, so much for that I said to myself. Ah, but wait. Next up is 'Vollgas Ahoi' and all is right again with its fiery fusion. This is followed by 'Silky Way' which provides the perfect soundtrack while viewing the islands from your fantasy yacht. Like all of our favorite albums, it gets better as it goes, and the final 2 tracks provide the highlights. Something to look forward to as you immerse yourself into Wiederhören's magic world. Even the other vocal cut 'Let's Take a Ride' isn't so egregious, bringing about a fine funk fusion number. Basically start with track 2 and never look back. This listen was close to a +2, much better than I had anticipated it would be.

Ownership: CD: 2000 FünfUndVierzig. Standard jewel case release with no extras. Album cover is boring, so getting this on vinyl is no priority either. If I find one out in the wilds cheap, I'll likely replace this CD, but I have no intention of seeking this one out online otherwise.

7/30/22 (new entry)

Maynard Ferguson - Conquistador. 1977 USA

This was the first jazz album I ever bought, going all the way back to 1981 while still a sophomore in high school. Ferguson was popular with the brass section of our school marching band, which I was part of. I really enjoyed it at first, but I didn't really have a foundation or perspective for the music, and a few years later I parted with it. I don't think I allowed myself a chance to like it honestly. Now it fits perfectly with my ever increasing interest in jazz funk. I'm a sucker for the 'Rocky Theme' anyway, and what better way to open an album. 'Mister Mellow' and 'Soar Like an Eagle' are superb jazz funk numbers. And the title track starts off in progressive rock territory of all things. After the opening trumpet proclamations, it breaks down into a massive oft-kilter bass and drum riff, before joining the rest of the album's genre motif. Today I consider this an excellent album and glad to be reunited.

Ownership: LP: 1977 Columbia. Single sleeve. Half-Speed Mastered. Just picked this up at a thrift shop yesterday some 4 months after the above review, which also came from a thrift shop (commodity LP release). 

1981; 3/12/22 (LP 3.7); 7/29/22 (new entry)

Eddie Henderson - Realization. 1973 USA

Depending on what you read, Realization is either an unnecessary straight copy of same era Miles Davis and Herbie Hancock - or it's a well executed rendition of a favorite style. I fall to the latter school, just as I would with prog rock - or with anything else in life. Great ideas don't have to begin and end with one set of people or company, and there's plenty of room for other interpretations. Realization is, in effect, Hancock's band (including himself), with Henderson in full-on Miles mode. And they're going for the deep groove for all of side 1. Whereas side 2 goes into the deep space galaxy as the cover suggests. Easy recommendation for fans of the aforementioned artists.

Ownership: LP: 1973 Capricorn. Single sleeve. White label promo. Found this copy last year (2021) at a local store at a steal of a price ($4).

6/1/21 (LP 2.24); 7/28/22 (new entry)

Samadhi. 1974 Italy

One of the earliest series of Italian progressive rock CD reissues - or just progressive rock in general - came from Fonit Cetra in 1989. Up until that time, the CD seemed reserved for only mainstream artists, not for rare obscuros. The cost was deemed too expensive for manufacturers, labels, and consumers. But considering that original LPs had skyrocketed in price during the late 80s, $30 for a CD copy seemed like a reasonable investment. Today it seems almost absurd that prices were once so high for a garden variety CD, but such was the landscape of the times.

Of that first batch, Fonit-Cetra released some real gems, albums that were sought after but unattainable on LP. But Samadhi was at a different level. Something akin to "Who? What?". Only a handful of people in the world knew of this record. Even today, for every Samadhi that's been offered, 50 Museo Rosenbach Zarathustra's have already sold during that time frame. Popsike shows about 10 former global ebay auctions; Discogs has never sold one; And I don't recall ever seeing it in a rarities catalog that I poured over in my youth. Clearly a micro release. 

But why so obscure? Samadhi was made up of veterans of the Italian prog scene (most notably Raccomandata Ricevuta Ritorno), and Fonit (original label) was well known and had great distribution throughout Italy. That's a tough question to answer, as there doesn't appear to be a specific historical reason such as a recall. The only logical conclusion is that the album didn't sell many copies to begin with. By 1974, Italy's interest in progressive rock was certainly beginning to wane. The more established bands had continued on with success, but newer groups were struggling to gain attention. And we do know that unsold copies in Italy were recycled in the early/mid 70s. I remember meeting some well heeled collectors in Rome and they told me that a large part of their Italian prog collections came from the United States! And as far as I know, Samadhi was never imported via Peters International like so many others of its ilk. Further complicating the matter is that - as mentioned a few times here before - Japanese businessmen cleaned out Italy in the 80s as demand back home was enormous. So your best bet to find an original is probably in Japan.

For as scarce as this album is, Samadhi is not typical of that situation. It's not a radical underground album at all. With a name like Samadhi, you might expect an exotic, Eastern mystical oriented work. Nope, it's very much the sound of Italy at the time - a tad more orchestrated, polished, and bright perhaps, but ultimately very satisfying with its implied complexity and romantic melodies. If looking for a comparison, I would offer up Delirium's 3rd album, which has a similar type of approach. For my tastes, the super tracks are A2, A4, and B3, but everything on here is at least excellent. A very professional album that time basically forgot. Since that first reissue, Samadhi has been easily accessible, but interest remains nominal. But if an original showed up, now that will draw attention...

Ownership: CD: 2011 Arcangelo (Japan). Papersleeve edition that replicates the awesome textured gatefold cover. This replaced the first jewel box edition mentioned above that was purchased real time. While an original would be nice, I doubt I'll ever be offered one, much less could afford it anyway.

11/21/11; 7/26/22 (new entry)

Fates Warning - The Spectre Within. 1985 USA-Connecticut

My introduction to this album is an interesting story. While still in college in 1985, but flush with cash due to the summer intern engineering job (discussed elsewhere in this blog), I was desperate for new tuneage. I had yet to learn of Goldmine magazine, so I was completely unaware of the rarities I would soon know about. 1985 was a dire year in terms of new music. I suppose if you were an X-Wave fan, or loved corporate rock, it would have been the heyday. I wanted progressive rock or heavy metal! Of the latter, I had little interest in the bonehead variety that was proliferating the shelves at that time. The whole 'I Wanna Rock' scene was boring in 1980, much less 5 years later. So I decided to go through every record in the store to see if anything looked interesting. It was a Sound Warehouse, so a well stocked mainstream record store where everything was sealed. Only one stood out.

From a presentation standpoint, this had everything I was looking for. And the song titles looked appealing, as well as the lengths of the tracks (guessed that since the times weren't listed) indicated some thought would be applied to the compositions. Once I got it home and on the turntable, I knew I had struck gold. Not only was this my introduction to Fates Warning (having no clue this was actually their sophomore effort), but it also opened up a new world for me (and well for everyone really): Progressive Metal. Essentially Fates Warning took the Iron Maiden blueprint, and heaved it over the progressive rock goal line. Iron Maiden, for their part, were prog rock fans and dabbled in progressive themes, especially on the recent Powerslave (1984) album. But they stopped short of going too far, knowing their enormous fan base liked intelligent metal, but they didn't want to get too highbrow. 

What I like best about The Spectre Within is it's the anti-Dream Theater. It's dirty and messy. Well played and well executed - yes - but still grimy and "true" metal. I love John Arch's vocals which are way out of bounds, yet there's an odd control about them. The rhythms are complex but not crisp. And the guitar sound is appropriately heavy, more so than Maiden actually.

Historically speaking it was an instant classic. However in real time, not too many people were ready for what Fates Warning were up to. But I was hardly alone in the world looking for music just like this, and they built up a cult following rather quickly. For me, The Spectre Within ranks among my favorite metal albums of all-time. Hearing it again last night, after some 37 years of familiarity, still resulted in a +1 listen.

Ownership: LP: 1985 Metal Blade. Single sleeve. Purchased as told in the review above. 

CD: 1994 Metal Blade. Jewel case.

1985; 5/25/12; 7/22/22 (new entry)

Fashion Pink - Encore. 1971 Germany (archival)

Brainstorm were a band with 2 studio albums... and no less than 4 full posthumous archival releases. Between Garden of Delights and Long Hair, the group's backlog has been mined thoroughly. And yet, surprisingly, there's little repetition between them. Encore features not only Fashion Pink's earliest recordings from 1969 but also their last known show in 1975 as Brainstorm. Through it all, we hear their patented take on the Canterbury sound, without ever deviating into commercial realms. The first 8 songs compliment the SWF Sessions Volume 3 release, and are uniformly excellent. Best of all is the inclusion of a full EP that was released under the name T.A.C. (see Ownership section for some controversy). These tracks demonstrate early sketches of what was to be eventually released as Smile a While, and flow quite nicely together. If you're a fan of the collective, you'll want this, even if you have the other 3 archival albums.

Ownership: CD: 2005 Long Hair. Excellent archival release with fine sound and full historical liner notes. After the release of the SWF Sessions, original guitarist Helmut Rusch chimed in to clarify some of the history. Looks like I didn't get around to purchasing this until 2013.

Now for the promised controversy: T.A.C. There's no questioning the authenticity of the recording, the purpose of its recording, the moniker or anything else. It's an outstanding addition to the overall package. Some of you might recall my entry for a Dutch band called Crying Wood. I think we have a similar situation here. The liner notes indicate that an EP was released in 1971 by the corporate entity known as Beiersdorf. You can look them up on Wikipedia, and they remain a major provider of skin care products in Europe. The story goes that this album was given as a gift to customers. Pffffttttt. C'mon. Now we're not being harsh on Mr. Rusch, as it could have been misinterpreted what he said, or he may have been mistaken about it being actually released (you know musicians and their memories...). But I'm sure the recording themselves could have been made for such a purpose. All of that is believable, and again, these are authentic recordings. 

But wait - there's a version on Discogs (see photo on right). See? You're wrong again ol' Mr. UMR! Sure - and so are the Psi-Fi releases and the Crying Wood. Remember Art Jackson's Atrocity on Columbia? Haha. Here's what we know: The image on Discogs was taken from an ebay auction in 2008. There's no label or back cover. Which mysteriously can't be found anywhere. 2 people claim ownership, and a whopping 13 want it (including us now lol). So I'm supposed to believe that a major corporation used this album as a giveaway, and only 2 copies are owned after all these years? And almost no one knows about it? So it's that obscure? Yea, right. You know the RT had a lot of these corporate albums in his collection. I had to throw most of them away and use the covers as mailer filler. There's 1000's of them in the marketplace, all more worthless than the last. Note the date of the auction: 2008. Perhaps taken from the CD? Ya think? Well anyway, none of this is proof it doesn't exist. No more than I can prove that original LPs by Pyramid or Galactic Explorers doesn't exist. But the evidence looks awfully fishy. But was there a band named T.A.C. who recorded an EP for Beiersdorf in 1971? I can believe that for sure, yes.

4//13; 7/21/22 (new entry)

Caravan ~ England

Cunning Stunts (1975)

After Waterloo Lily, Caravan released For Girls Who Grow Plump in the Night as well as the live Caravan and The New Symphonia, both of which I've covered already. So that takes us to Cunning Stunts, Caravan's 6th studio album and their final one for Decca. And it also signifies the end of an era for the great band from Canterbury. Though the band has continued on to this very day, they were never to be the same.

And really, Cunning Stunts signifies more their new beginning versus the past glories. In this way, it represents a different kind of bookend. They've definitely jumped the shark towards pop rock, though there are plenty of elements of their progressive rock predilection. Starting with 'No Backstage Pass', Cunning Stunts offers up an intriguing mix of both styles. This leads to their near side-long epic 'The Dabsong Conshirtoe', a fine energetic effort but faded compared to 'For Richard' or 'Nine Feet Underground'. This is the ride out in the sunset album. If you continue to follow them, you'll receive a Biblical 40 years lost in the desert scenario.

The CD adds three bonus tracks. One is the single version of 'Stuck in a Hole'. Another is an unreleased track called 'Keeping Back My Love' which probably should have been part of the album proper. And the big winner here is the 1974 live recording of 'For Richard' which was only previously on the compilation Canterbury Tales. An excellent performance of one of their classics.

Ownership: 1975 Decca (LP); 2001 Decca Japan (CD). Papersleeve. Liner notes with three bonus tracks. Part of the Caravan box set as released by Disk Union.

1985 (first acquired); 2/9/13; 7/20/22 (review)

Waterloo Lily (1972)

Major changes happened upon the Caravan camp in late 1971 with the departure of key member David Sinclair to Matching Mole. His keyboards, in particular the fuzz organ, and his unique style of playing were out the door. In comes Steve Miller from the band-that-should-have-made-it Delivery. His style is more jazzy and he prefers the Fender Rhodes. So with that, Pye Hastings and Richard Sinclair take a bigger role in the songwriting for their next album Waterloo Lily. And there's quite a drop off in quality overall. At least from my perspective. Having owned this album in the same near-40 year timespan, I've generally regarded Waterloo Lily as their least great album until Cunning Stunts. Note I used the phrase "least great" rather than "worst" because I still think it's a worthy album, just not at the level of the others. Part of that is Miller's influence, or lack thereof. The other is Pye Hastings taking more control over the songwriting - or at least there are fewer progressive rock outings. However there's still two lengthy suites to consider. The first 'Nothing At All' is the jazzy sequence, very good on the whole but not exemplary. The other is why Waterloo Lily can still hang with their classics: 'The Love in Your Eye' which is definitely a look back to In the Land of Grey and Pink. There are a contingent of fans who prefer Waterloo Lily, or at least state it's at the same level as its predecessors. Mostly you'll read that the songs are better, and the other albums were too "jammy". So if you hold a similar opinion about Caravan's classics, and haven't heard Waterloo Lily, then rest assured this might be the album you enjoy most.

Ownership: 1972 Deram (LP). Gatefold; 1972 Brain (LP). Green Brain Metronome; 2001 Deram Japan (CD). Papersleeve. Liner notes with four bonus tracks. Part of the Caravan box set as released by Disk Union.

7//85 (first acquired); 9//04; 1/15/14; 7/17/22 (review)

In the Land of Grey and Pink (1971)

It was the Christmas break of 1984 / 85, while in college. I headed over to Dallas' last Peaches record store which was in the process of closing, and they were liquidating their inventory. Among those in the racks was a sealed copy of In the Land of Grey and Pink. I had no idea what it was, or who Caravan were, but at 99 cents I decided I could afford to take chance with a cover like that.

Welcome to the world of Canterbury! This was my first as they say. Another new world was opened that had eluded me to that time. It was love at first hearing. Opener 'Golf Girl' wasn't so convincing on first blush, but once 'Winter Wine' finished, I knew I needed more of this sound! Whatever it was. I had no idea what Canterbury even meant. I'm not even sure I knew it was a region of England back then. A book by Geoffrey Chaucer maybe? As you all know as you're reading this, the best was yet to come for me. Flip the record over, and up comes 'Nine Feet Underground'. Which is about where I found myself (nine feet underground) as I was completely entranced by the sounds therein. I didn't even realize that the solos were entirely performed on an organ, thinking it was a guitar. Which was the point as it turns out, but it was a new sound for me. So much melody - so many great instrumental breaks. Superb vocals. It is the sound of Canterbury. As I state for my Non-Canterbury Canterbury list on RYM: "The sounds of the style are distinctive: Jazzy, highly melodic, pop influenced yet complex, psychedelic, often times instrumental, insouciant, and pleasant to the ear." We are now 37+ years on from that event, and every time I hear this album (including last night), it only gets better. Only Pye Hastings 'Love to Love You' is a bit tedious and it's here he begins his annoying trait of adding his little "ditties" as I called them on my For Girls Who Grow Plump in the Night review. In any case, this was David Sinclair's great moment in the sun, as he dominates the recording. And then he left afterward, and Caravan would never be quite the same, even though he did return on For Girls... and The New Symphonia.

Conclusion: In the Land of Grey and Pink is one of the greatest albums of all time.

Ownership: 1971 Deram (LP). Gatefold; 2001 Deram Japan (CD) Papersleeve. Liner notes with five bonus tracks including the excellent unreleased 'I Don't Know Its Name'. Part of the Caravan box set as released by Disk Union.

1//85 (first acquired); 1//06; 9/18/19; 7/10/22 (review)

If I Could Do It All Over Again, I'd Do It All Over You (1970)

Continuing on with my retrospective of Caravan. This is the album where they put it all together and is arguably their most consistent work. For my tastes, it's only surpassed by their next release. David Sinclair's fuzz organ comes to the fore, and the melodic quotient is very high. Even on tracks that seem to go nowhere like 'Hello, Hello' and the title track, there are mid section breaks that raise it two points. Guitarist Pye Hastings brings the high register vocals and bassist Richard Sinclair provides the oh-so-British accented baritone. Highlights include 'As I Feel I Die', 'With an Ear to the Ground You Can Make It' (suite), and the monster opus 'For Richard'. This latter track was the signature song on If I Could Do It All Over Again, I'd Do It All Over You, and was played live for many years to come, oftentimes as their grand finale. If for some reason Caravan has evaded you to date, then I can certainly recommend this album as a starting point. Or the next one of course...

Ownership: 1970 Decca (LP); 198? Decca (LP); 2001 Decca Japan (CD). Papersleeve. Liner notes with four bonus tracks  including the unreleased 'A Day in the Life of Maurice Haylett'. Part of the Caravan box set as released by Disk Union. 

I kept the 80s reissue since it was the first copy I found.

8//88 (first acquired); 2001; 7/8/22 (review)

Caravan (1969)

I thought I'd written about all the Caravan albums in the past, but apparently I've only tackled two of them, and not the best ones either. Ha! So time to start a retrospective. Not that I have much to say here. Caravan's history is well documented, and this debut shows the group as a very raw entity at its beginning. Which is part of its charm. They were nowhere near the level of their other former bandmates (from The Wilde Flowers) Soft Machine at this stage of their career. But they caught up fast, and arguably surpassed them in short order. Highlights here include the organ-up-front 'Place of My Own', Jimmy Hastings' first of many cameo's 'Love Song with Flute', and the closer 'Where But For Caravan Would I?' which predicts their future closing opus' that ultimately defined Caravan's place in history.

The CD includes both the mono and stereo versions are included. They also added the 'Hello, Hello' 45 single which technically goes with their next album, but they didn't have the master tapes at the time it was reissued. Shortly thereafter they did find them and added it to this reissue instead. 

Ownership: 1972 MGM (LP). Alternate cover; 2002 Verve Japan (CD). Papersleeve. Liner notes with bonus tracks. Part of the Caravan box set as released by Disk Union.

1985 (first acquired); 6/30/22 (review)

For Girls Who Grow Plump in the Night (1973)

In late 1984, at age 20, I happened upon a sealed copy (US London) of In the Land of Grey and Pink. It was 99 cents. I had no idea what it was, but it looked awesome, so I took a chance and that's about all the money I had anyway. Jackpot. That, predictably, had me go on a Caravan seeking mission. With that prelude, For Girls Who Grow Plump in the Night (again US London) was quickly secured at a used record store in Lubbock called Lipps*.

This album isn't nearly as immediately likable as Grey/Pink is, and it was always on the margins of whether or not I should keep it. About a decade later it finally penetrated through my thick skull, and today I consider it one of their better albums. The thing about Caravan is that you have to sit through what I call the "Pye Hastings' Ditties". They're not bad songs per se, but more geared toward the whiskey drinking nightclub set, rather than the psychedelic backdrop of their best work. And on For Girls, those ditties are front loaded with 'Headloss' (second half of the much better 'Memory Lain, Hugh'), 'Hoedown', and 'Surprise, Surprise'. One can get disinterested early. Suddenly 'C'Thlu Thlu' pops in with an angular King Crimson like sound (also not a known Caravan quality), and it's very disorienting. But Side 2 is as good as anything Caravan ever released. And it closes with one of their best epics in 'A Hunting We Shall Go', which is classic Caravan, with Dave Sinclair's fuzz organ driven solos, just as God had intended music to be. This is the album that introduced long time member Geoffrey Richardson to the fold. His viola is a very welcome addition to the Caravan sound, and one wonders how much better the early albums would have been had he been on them. Caravan were never to reach these heights again, though the follow up Cunning Stunts certainly is worthy of investigation as well.

If in the market for the CD reissue, be sure to find any of the Deram based reissues (starting in 2001), as they feature five bonus tracks. The first four are alternate recordings of the album proper, and are interesting but not essential. The grand prize here is 'Derek's Long Thing'. After Richard Sinclair and Steve Miller departed following Waterloo Lily, there was a lineup that included Derek Austin on organ and Stuart Evans on bass. This is the only known surviving work from that period. Hastings stated that Austin wasn't a good fit for Caravan, because he was "too much Hammond organ". One cannot have too much Hammond organ in my world! This track is awesome, and one wonders what would have been produced had they stayed on board (Richardson was part of the same package).

*Lubbock is in West Texas, and where I attended college. Lipps was one of a handful of good used record stores we had in the area in the 80s. They had taken over an old Piggly Wiggly grocery store, so it was a big place. It closed down while I was still in college (...so last week. Noooooo. 1986 I think?)  But here's the interesting part. Our neighbor here in the suburban Fort Worth area, who lives precisely two doors down from us, is the older brother of the owner of that store! How crazy is that?

Ownership: 1973 Deram (LP). Gatefold; 2001 Deram Japan (CD). Papersleeve. Liner notes with bonus tracks. Part of the Caravan box set as released by Disk Union.

2//85 (first acquired); 1995; 1/31/14; 4/7/17 (review)

Caravan & The New Symphonia (1974)

This concert catches Caravan during their For Girls Who Grow Plump in the Night phase. A fine mix of progressive rock and pop (in that order) are on display, complete with a full orchestra. The version of If I Could's 'For Richard' is splendid here. As is Waterloo Lily's 'The Love in Your Eye'. These are two of the finest compositions in Caravan's canon (perhaps only bested by 'Nine Feet Underground') and the execution is fiery for both, and the orchestra only enhances the experience. In addition to that, if you obtain any of the reissue CDs with the full concert added as bonus tracks, you will hear For Girls' most progressive track 'A Hunting We Shall Go' with a nice arrangement, and was originally the encore to the show. Contrary to some of the reviews I've read, I don't find this album superfluous at all, and holds up well on its own. Though a live album, this is hardly a straight run-through of studio material.

Ownership: 1974 Deram (LP); 2001 Deram Japan (CD). Papersleeve. Liner notes with bonus tracks (the full concert as noted in the review). Part of the Caravan box set as released by Disk Union.

1985 (first acquired); 1/9/16; 10/26/16 (review)

10/26/16 (new entry)

Parzival - Legend. 1971 Germany

Legend is unique among German folk rock albums, in that it's more in line with the English progressive folk rock movement. As such, these albums have long been held in high esteem from worldwide collectors who prefer the UK progressive style and lyrics in English. Only on occasion do Parzival play it straight, and long stretches of instrumental fancy are on display. With flute, violin, acoustic guitar, cello, viola, driving electric bass and drums, and piano, the instrumental palette is rich and the music is at times complex. The one anomaly is Groove Inside, which for me is the highlight of their canon. Imagine an instrumental kosmische Comus caught in a deep groove trance for 16 minutes. It's an amazing piece, and if the album in total was entirely like this, no doubt Parzival could have found themselves on the Ohr label.

Ownership: LP: 1971 Telefunken. Wonderful gatefold cover. Acquired online (2012) after many years of searching for it. My introduction to this fine album came via the 2 LP set that Nova released, which I purchased in 1994.

CD: 1998 EastWest / Telefunken. Jewel case release with liners in German and unique photos. 

1994; 1998; 6/22/14; 7/19/22 (new entry)

Tear Gas. 1971 Scotland

Now this is exactly the kind of hard rock I like. Great sounding heavy guitar with well thought-out compositions that contain more than one theme throughout. And superb solos. Only on 'Lay it On Me' do we hear Tear Gas go garden variety boogie rock, and even then, the guitar soloing saves the track from ruin. You'll also note an Elvis medley towards the end. Normally that would result in a complete disaster, but in the hands of Tear Gas, they make the tracks so much more interesting than they are. Overall a superb slice of early 70s hard rock.

Ownership: CD: 1993 Renaissance (USA). Standard jewel case reissue with one excellent bonus track, not found on the other reissues (including Esoteric). Acquired this from a friend in 2014.

11//14; 7/19/22 (new entry)

I was reading some old notes of mine from 2004, and I wasn't very keen on this title back then. Just goes to show how much my appreciation for hard rock has gone up since.

Guadalquivir. 1978 Spain

My scratch off notes for Gnosis over 20 years ago says: Guadalquiver's self-titled debut approaches music similar to that of bands like Iceberg in that it combines fusion styles (for example Return to Forever) and adds indigenous Castillan Spanish themes. The final concoction is excellent and everyone should taste the flavor of Spain like this.

---  

Clearly I had yet to learn how to spell the band name correctly... Or Castilian... In any event, I'm a bit less enthused about the title now than prior. This is my first listen since then, and it resulted in a -1. Which is still good enough to keep. Other than perhaps the handclaps, the Spanish influence is very similar to what was going on here in the States at the time. Return to Forever being one of the primary proponents, and others in Chick Corea's sphere like Al Di Meola and Mingo Lewis. Also fellow countrymen Iceberg were operating in the same territory, as noted above. There isn't much diversity in terms of style - 7 tracks that mine the same cave. Best track for my tastes is A4 'Generalife'. Overall a very good example of the Spanish fusion genre of the late 70s, so if you're in the market for that, Guadalquivir is a good bet.

Ownership: LP: 1978 Harvest. Single sleeve pressed on green wax. Online acquisition (2015) and was an upgrade to the first copy I bought back in 1992 from a mail order dealer. I also owned the CD on EMI, but it adds nothing extra so it can go.

1992; 1/18/01 (Gnosis); 7/18/22 (new entry)

Renaissance - Ashes are Burning. 1973 England

Some of you might recall that last August I found a pile of near mint Renaissance albums on vinyl. Looks like I reported on 3 of those, but left off just as many including Ashes are Burning. I discuss my history with the band in at least one of those posts, so I'll skip that here. Ashes are Burning is the second album to feature soprano Annie Halsam, and the band's overall trademark sound is more established. I miss the quirkiness of its predecessor Prologue, but I'm warming more and more to Ashes are Burning. The lengthy bookend tracks are the clear highlights for me, bringing a Yes-like progressive rock structure - highlighted by John Camp's Rickenbacker bass work, similar to Chris Squire's. The 4 middle tracks are more geared towards folk and commercial rock, but not really, as they do maintain a progressive rock slant as well. Most of the Renaissance albums continue to grow in stature within the collection.

Ownership: CD: 1995 Repertoire (Germany). Decided to stick with the existing collection CD of this title whereas most of that thrift shop LP find replaced what I had on CD prior. Features copious historical liner notes from noted music journalist Chris Welch which takes it over the top - plus I like the sound of this CD. 

Historically I've owned the single sleeve version on Capitol at least twice. It's very easy to find here in the States, with most record stores charging less than $5 for clean copies.

1/15/94; 2/12/16; 9/26/21; 7/16/22 (new entry)

Anekdoten ~ Sweden

Until All the Ghosts Are Gone (2015)

---7/15/22

This was in the weed out stack, but I remain undecided, hence its placement here. Not good enough (yet) for a feature, but also not on the passenger list for the next bus out. On the one hand I really like the return to their analog 70s roots. On the other, I'm not too keen on them continuing with that modern post rock / alt rock style of song that turned me off from their post-Nucleus works. At first the latter was winning the battle of my mind and I was looking for a price point to sell. But it started to win me back as the album progressed. A second listen had similar results. There's a lot of great material here for sure. Love the cover too.

---11/8/23

Last night's listen was more positive from top to bottom. Perhaps I haven't been listening to as much "retro prog" as prior, so I warmed up quickly to it. Or I'm getting more nostalgic as every year goes by (probably). There's more than a nod here to Vemod, and maybe this is the album that closes the circle for Anekdoten. 

I see they're still around, posting here and there, but nothing indicating they're pining to get together in the studio as a group for another go. Not sure they need to really. Whatever this collective group of minds has to offer, they've managed to successfully release those ideas over a 22 year timespan. I wrote extensively about my experience with Anekdoten on the Vemod review - anything else will be repetitive. 

Ownership: 2015 Virta (CD). Tri-fold digipak. 

5/24/15 (acquired); 7/15/22 (review); 11/8/23 (update)

Vemod (1993)

I suppose if one is to review Vemod properly, they must mention it sounds like King Crimson’s Red, and then you can move on to your main point, if there even is one to move on to (don’t get me started on this Starcastle thing again). Of course when Vemod was first released in 1993, the excitement level was very high for the new album. Anekdoten were the other band from Sweden that had all of us in a swoon at the time. Presumably I don’t need to divulge the name of that other group. Whatever the case, some of my friends were quick to declare Anekdoten as the better outfit. I never agreed with that, but basically we’re talking varying degrees of what a 5 star album is. In Gnosisland we would characterize the two as distinguishing between a 13 and a 14. And while King Crimson entered my mind on first impact, it wasn’t all encompassing. I don’t recall King Crimson having a Swedish folkloric underpinning for example. Vocalist Jan Erik Liljeström possesses a softer, more gentle tone than John Wetton’s matter of fact singing approach. There's cello instead of violin. The driving woody bass is more from the Yes school, and then there’s the mellotron. Bassoon tapes anyone? When guitarist Niklas Berg begins his riffing, and then OK yes, Larks' Tongues in Starless Red does come to mind. No doubt Anekdoten themselves will freely admit the influence, especially from a compositional structure perspective. Many modern bands are, and forever will be, influenced by the almighty King Fripp, just as King Crimson were influenced by the classical masters of the past. There’s so much on Vemod to digest, that simple comparisons aren’t going to do it justice. I’ve now owned this album going on 24 years (hard to believe isn’t it? Seems like it was new last week.). And I will say it still raises the hair on the back of my neck.

So you’re damn right it’s stood the test of time.

Ownership: 

1994 Colours (LP). Gatefold. 

1995 Arcangelo (CD). Includes a very important 10 minute 'Sad Rain' track which is as good, if not better, than anything else on the album.

1993 (CD first acquired); 1994 (LP acquired); 1995 (CD upgrade); 3/5/17 (review)

Also own and need to review Nucleus

Also once owned: From Within; Gravity; A Time of Day

3/5/17 (new entry)

Dr. Z - Three Parts of My Soul. 1971 England

A much polarizing release, primarily due to the original being incredibly scarce. Featuring a gimmix die cut middle opening (similar to Ash Ra Tempel's debut), the LP barely sold any copies in its day. Like with the Still Life album we just spoke about, demand picked up a decade later, but no copies were to be found. In fact, even less so than any other on the venerable Vertigo swirl label. As such, it has been a 4 figure rarity for many years now. And with that you will have fans that like it because of just that. And... you will have those that say the album is overrated because the music doesn't substantiate the ridiculous high price of the original. Of course all of these opinions are due to the album being reissued in multiple formats. The reality is the music itself doesn't warrant strong opinion at all. It is very much a product of 1971 England - a traditional but quirky progressive rock album. A three piece with keyboards, harpsichord, bass, and drums. And unusual vocals. One could see The Mandrake Memorial taking this route if they continued on. 

Former ownership: CD: 2001 Vertigo (Japan). Papersleeve edition.

6/3/17 (first listen); 7/15/22 (review / new entry)

A.R. & Machines - Die Grüne Reise / The Green Journey. 1971 Germany

It all starts here for Achim Reichel's new project A.R. & Machines. Essentially he discovered tape delay which made his guitars sound massive. The album was much derided by the German music press upon release. Keep in mind that Reichel prior to this was a pop star, so the end results were jarring to fans. Reichel can rightfully be considered one of the pioneers of the sound-on-sound electric guitar Krautrock albums later further refined by Manuel Gottsching and Gunter Schickert. Voices and percussion provide further mysterious atmospheres for the recording. A pioneering and groundbreaking work that today stands in stark contrast to its original reception. The recognized classics usually go through a similar historical metamorphosis.

Ownership: LP: 1985 Polydor. Single sleeve with a cool cover. I bought this later press brand new from the Record Gallery in Dallas circa 1987 while still in college. I've spoken about this remarkable store and its impact on my music development in other posts.

CD: 2007 Tangram. CD+DVD. Super nice tri-fold digi-pak cover with a history in both English and German. Also comes with a DVD that I have yet to see. Since the album was originally released as a "movie soundtrack for your mind", a group of contemporary college students decided to make a video with the music as a backdrop. This is the copy I listened to for this revisit. It appeared Reichel was going to reissue his back catalog in this manner, but then it derailed for 10 more years before he decided to release the massive box set.

CD: 2017 Tangram. And we're glad he did! This is a 10 CD box set with a hardbound book. One of the highest rated CD packages in my entire collection. I discuss this box more in depth on the AR 3 review.

At this point, I will likely keep all 3 copies as each brings something unique.

12/31/07; 12/20/18; 7/13/22 (new entry)

Warpig. 1972 Canada

Well, forget the name. This isn't a Black Sabbath clone, though they do have a couple of similarities. One is that they actually use riffs similar to how Sabbath did (not as heavy, but the style is there). And that they shared some of the same blues and rock influences as the Sabs. But Warpig is more in line with the typical early 1970's UK "heavy progressive" movement. Warpig quite simply should have been on Vertigo (as were Sabbath), and then most would know what to expect. Somewhere between May Blitz, early Nektar, Odin, Clear Blue Sky, and Atomic Rooster one will find the sound of Warpig. Keyboards are a big element of their sound (harpsichord, Clavinet, piano, organ). 

With long tracks named 'Advance in A Minor' (presuming the scale, not a college curriculum), 'The Moth' and 'U.X.I.B.', I think it's pretty clear Warpig weren't just a typical booze, dope, and broads kind of band. There's also 'Tough Nuts', 'Melody With Balls', and 'Rock Star', so there's that to consider. What impresses me most is the time and place. Not a whole lot of music like this on these shores from back then. Pretty advanced material all things considered.

Ownership: CD: 2006 Relapse (USA). Purchased new upon release. Jewel case release with lengthy historical liner notes. We learn that the 1973 release on London has been completely remastered with different track lengths. It's not clear which version this CD is taken from. Though my best guess is the original 1972 Fonthill version given the abridged title of 'Advanced Am'. and the breakup of the tracks A2 and A3. But I'm not entirely sure of this either.

2006 (original notes); 3/24/07; 3/30/11 (RYM); 7/12/22 (new entry)

Pepe Maina ~ Italy

Il Canto Dell'Arpa E Del Flauto (1977)

Another one of those albums sitting in my collection that I had no memory of. I also had Pepe Maina miscategorized as progressive rock, as does the Japanese reissue label. Maina plays a type of instrumental World Fusion with electronic elements. I would submit his debut is a combination of Jade Warrior, Mike Oldfield, and the instrumental parts of Harmonium. A very fine work that can pass you by if not paying close attention, which is apparently exactly what has happened to me these past years.

Ownership: 1993 MMG (CD)

1996 (acquired); 7/10/22 (review / new entry)