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80 posts tagged 1971
Dr. Z - Spiritus Manes Et Umbra
A lot of work went into tracking down and then fixing up a decent cover image for this record. Dr. Z was a Welsh one-album progressive rock act in the early 70s, 3 Parts to My Soul having an original run of only 80 copies which featured a shuttered record sleeve similar to ELP’s Brain Salad Surgery but much more colourful.
Their songs explored some occult themes, putting them in the same ball-park as Black Widow’s third or fourth records because Dr. Z gets nowhere near as dark as the other’s early work. This is the psychedelic journey song that this album gets its subtitle from, Spiritus Manes Et Umbra.
Ramases - Balloon
The industry really needs a few more rock stars convinced of their own reincarnated divinity. Just what have they been doing all these years leaving this hole unplugged?
Though Ramases died in 1978, a significant fan network has built up around his two albums. If you want to read about him and his career, there’s an extremely detailed fan site here run by Brian Currin.
Felt - The Change
Felt was an American psychedelic rock band that put out a single self-titled release in 1971. Akarma reissued the LP in 2000, further proving that they have basically the best taste in the world. The band played heavy riffing rock with dirty guitar and thick keys, like Spirit of John Morgan or Jackal (I apparently will have to post from these guys tomorrow). The heart of the record is this 10-minute-long journey.
Link Wray - Days Before Custer
In 1971 Link Wray released this record but attributed it to the record’s singer, Bobby Howard, whose pseudonym was Mordicai Jones. I guess Wray just really, really didn’t want media attention directed at him, not that many people listen(ed) to his 70s work much anyway. Like the record that was released under Wray’s own name that year, this one strips Americana down to its bare but electrified essentials, opting for pebble shakers instead of drum cymbals, for example.
The Next Morning - Adelane
The Next Morning were a psychedelic rock band of Trinidadians who moved to New York during the 60s. The internet is pretty sparse on any other details about them other than to jump at the opportunity to make a Jimi Hendrix comparison. To be fair, their guitarist Bert Bailey is exceptionally talented, but these guys are a five-man band with a more filled out sound, so a better recommendation might be Luv Machine, a psych act out of Barbados.
Stoneground - Passion Flower
This is the third record I bought this weekend. Stoneground saw a lot of personnel changes between their first album and this one, despite less than a year of intervening time, but that magic stuck around. This was released as a double LP, the first three sides taken from two small shows broadcast over a local LA radio station, really driving home the talent present in this too-forgotten band.
Stoneground were one of the bands in the movie Medicine Ball Caravan, which was about a hippie caravan and its music groups.
Edit: Because Tumblr has the worst servers ever, the .mp3 wasn’t working, but I’ve hosted it myself now so it should play.
Mu - Eternal Thirst
I bought this Mu record today, and I thought doing so would give me some liner notes worth blogging about, but sadly Akarma did not do a professional job on their reprint. They say this record was recorded in 1971, but their nameless record companies refused to publish it, resulting in the record being put out locally in Los Angeles by an also nameless company, some time in the 70s presumably. Discogs says it was releaed in 1974, but it also has the title Lemurian Music and a different track order. Mysteries. And a little strange since the band leader Merrel Fankhauser is credited with writing the notes…
Nerd rant aside, the band itself is wonderful, and the record is essential to those interested in psychedelic and blues music.
Brainticket - Brainticket (Part One conclusion)
Speaking of krautrock, here’s a great record by Brainticket, an experimental rock band from Switzerland and Southern Germany. Though they’re remembered most fondly for their music’s electronic elements, you’ll notice a lot of flute and jazzy guitar lurking in the background of their tracks. But fair warning, this song is being posted to highlight their experimental side, so it’s not the album’s most melodic. The band didn’t make much of a commercial splash and split up after three record releases in the early 70s, but they reformed with line-up changes both in the 80s and in 2000 which resulted in 3 new albums.
