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ALL THINGS MUST PASS
1970
1970
Your All-Genres Guide To
Exceptional CD Reissues and Remasters
Over 1,800 E-Pages of Reviews from the discs themselves...
"...Good Year..."
A few years back I started a
Blog called "There's Something About 1970..." and began reviewing all
things musically interesting from that opening year. So as you can imagine, I
got a tad excited when I leered lustily at this chunky-monkey Box Set devoted
entirely to that great decade's first 365 days.
Typically brilliant,
Grapefruit Records' "New Moon's In The Sky..." is a dinky mini
clamshell box set offering up 70-tracks across 3CDs. A vaults trawl into the
Pop and Rock and Prog of the Seventies first year - you get their usual split
between the vaguely known and the mightily unknown (both in abundance, check
out those near 80-minute playing times for each disc). A 52-page booklet packed
to the gunnels with photos, notes, memorabilia and even two previously
unreleased recordings - Grapefruit is a collector's cult label and it’s easy to
hear and see why. Let's get to the New Moon...
UK released 26 July 2019 -
"New Moon's In The Sky: The British Progressive Pop Sounds Of 1970"
by VARIOUS ARTISTS on Grapefruit Records CRSEGBOX059 (Barcode 5013929185906) is
a 3CD Box Set of 70-Tracks that plays out as follows:
CD1 (79:42 minutes):
1. Piggy Pig Pig - PROCOL
HARUM (from the June 1970 UK LP "Home" on Regal Zonophone SRLZ 1014)
2. Good Love Child - BARCLAY
JAMES HARVEST (from the June 1970 UK LP "Barclay James Harvest" on
Harvest SHVL 770)
3. Good Year - FIVE DAY RAIN
(Not originally issued, recorded circa June 1970)
4. Hurry On Sundown -
HAWKWIND (July 1970 UK 7"single on Liberty LBF 15382, A-side)
5. Around The World In Eighty
Days - STRAY (from the June 1970 UK LP "Stray" on Transatlantic TRA
216)
6. All The Best People Do It
- THE HUMBLEBUMS (from the June 1970 UK LP "Open Up The Door" on
Transatlantic TRA 218)
7. Give Me No Goodbye - MAGNA
CARTA (from the July 1970 UK LP "Seasons" on Vertigo 6360 003)
8. Winter Is Coming Again -
CRESSIDA (from the February 1970 UK LP "Cressida" on Vertigo VO 7)
9. Tiny Goddess - TIM ANDREWS
(January 1970 UK 7" single on Parlophone R 5824, A-side, a Nirvana cover)
10. Jennifer - ANGEL PAVEMENT
(not originally issued, recorded April 1970)
11. I've Seen To Dream -
HARMONY GRASS (from the January 1970 UK LP "Harmony Grass" on RCA
Victor SF 8034)
12. The Two Of Us - PENNY
ARCADE (May 1970 UK 7" single on Pye International 7N 17943, a Beatles
cover)
13. California Here I Come -
RIVER (not originally issued, recorded early 1970)
14. My Mind's Eye - CANTICLE
(November 1970 US 7" single on Century 36685, A-side, a Small Faces cover)
15. Celebrity Ball – PLASTIC
PENNY (from the April 1970 UK LP "Heads I Win - Tails You Lose" on
Page One POS 611)
16. Time To Die - PATTO (from
the November 1970 UK LP "Patto" on Vertigo 6360 016)
17. Mr. McGallagher - THE
SWEET (June 1970 UK 7" single on Parlophone R 5848, B-side Of "Get On
The Line")
18. I Will Be There - THE
SEYCHELLES (May 1970 UK 7" single on President PT 291, A-side)
19. Call Me Lightning - THE
GOOD VIBRATIONS (February 1970 German 7" single on Ember 14 515 AT,
A-side)
20. Me And My Life - THE
TREMELOES (August 1970 UK 7" single on CBS Records 5138, A-side)
21. Singing A Song In The
Morning - KEVIN AYERS & THE WHOLE WIDE WORLD (February 1970 UK 7"
single on Harvest HAR 5011, A-side)
22. The Flying Machine - THE
FLYING MACHINE (March 1970 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 17914,B-side of
"Hanging On The Edge Of Sadness")
23. The Land Of The Few -
LOVE SCULPTURE (February 1970 UK 7" single on Parlophone R 5831, A-side,
edit of album version, features Dave Edmunds)
24. Climb That Tree - SHE
TRINITY (January 1970 UK 7" single on President PT 283, B-side of
"Hair")
CD2 (78:46 minutes):
1. Kaleidoscope - THE MARMALADE
(from the June 1970 UK LP "Reflections Of The Marmalade" on Decca SKL
5047)
2. Under The Silent Tree -
HONEYBUS (from the March 1970 UK LP "Story" on Deram SML 1056)
3. What's It All About -
PUTNEY BRIDGE (September 1970 UK 7" single on Chapter One CH 129, A-side)
4. Across The Universe -
JAWBONE (from the May 1970 UK LP "Jawbone" on Carnaby CNLS 6004, a
Beatles cover)
5. Devil's Answer (Demo
Version) - ATOMIC ROOSTER (not originally issued demo, recorded circa June
1970)
6. Lovely Day - THE FOX (from
the June 1970 UK LP "For Fox Sake" on Fontana 6309 007)
7. Castles In The Sky -
BLONDE ON BLONDE (April 1970 UK 7" single on Ember EMBS 279, A-side)
8. Blind Man - CURVED AIR
(from the November 1970 UK Debut LP "Airconditioning" on Warner
Brothers WS 3012)
9. Rowena - MEIC STEVENS
(from the June 1970 UK Debut LP "Outlander" on Warner Brothers WS
3005)
10. Bridge - LIFEBLUD
(PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED, recorded 1970)
11. Goodbye - RUSTY HARNESS
(April 1970 UK 7" single on Ember EMBS 283, B-side to "Ain't Gonna
Get Married")
12. Time To Die - ANCIENT
GREASE (from the July 1970 UK LP "Women And Children First" on
Mercury 6338 033)
13. Treacle People - U.F.O.
(from their September 1970 debut album "U.F.O. 1" on Beacon BEAS 12)
14. Playing With Magic - THE
SMOKE (not originally issued, recorded December 1970)
15. Mr. Dieingly Sad - THE
OTHERS (June 1970 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 17952, B-side to
"Air-O-Plane Ride", a Critters cover)
16. In The City - DAVID &
DAVID (April 1970 UK 7" single on Columbia DB 8678, A-side)
17. Levinia - STEAMHAMMER
(from the December 1970 UK LP "Mountains" on B&C Records CAS
1024)
18. Sam And Sadie - FICKLE
PICKLE (January 1970 UK 7" single on Fontana TF 1069, B-side of
Millionaire")
19. Mr. & Mrs. Franklin -
THE REGIME (PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED, recorded April 1970)
20. Mad Professor Blyth - THE
HOLLIES (April 1970 UK 7" single on Parlophone R 5837, B-side to "I
Can't Tell The Bottom From The Top")
21. Anna Laura Lee - YELLOW
TAXI (May 1970 UK 7" single on President PT 296, A)
22. Mother, Mother, Mother -
PAPER BUBBLE (from the March 1970 UK LP "Scenery" on Deram SML 1059)
23. Step This Way - ANDROMEDA
(not originally issued, recorded March 1970)
24. Have You Heard The Word -
THE FUT (May 1970 UK 7" single on Beacon BEA 160, A-side)
Tracks 10 and 19 are
PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED
CD3 (79:44 minutes):
1. St. Louis - WARHORSE (from
their November 1970 Debut UK LP "Warhorse" on Vertigo 6360 015)
2. An Appointment With The
Master - RACHDENKEL (not originally issued, recorded July 1970)
3. Shy Fly - STATUS QUO (from
the August 1970 UK LP "Ma Kelly's Greasy Spoon" on Pye NSPL 18344)
4. Tarot - ANDREW BOWN (July
1970 UK 7" single on Parlophone R 5856, A-side, Theme to "Ace Of
Wands" UK TV Series)
5. Thief - OCTOPUS (April
1970 UK 7" single on Penny Farthing PEN 716, B-side to "The
River")
6. United States Of Mind -
AFFINITY (from the June 1970 UK Debut LP "Affinity" on Vertigo 6360
004)
7. Umbopo - DOCTOR FATHER
(August 1970 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 17977, A-side, features Godley &
Creme pre 10cc)
8. Together In The Night -
THIS SIDE UP (from the 1970 UK LP on Studio G LPSG 1001)
9. He's Growing - THE GODS
(from the February 1970 UK LP "To Samuel A Son" on Columbia SCX 6372)
10. Through A Window - HARD
MEAT (from the April 1970 UK Debut LP "Hard Meat" on Warner Brothers
WS 1852)
11. Ned Kelly - IRON MAIDEN
(April 1970 UK 7" single on Gemini GMS 006, B-side of "Falling")
12. What? - THE MOVE (October
1970 UK 7" single on Fly Records BUG 2, B-side to "When Alice Comes
Back To The Farm", a Jeff Lynne song)
13. Lightning Never Strikes -
SHERIDAN & PRICE (September 1970 UK 7" single on Gemini GMS 009,
B-side to "Sometimes I Wonder", a cover of the B-side of
"Brontosaurus" by The Move)
14. Hard Selling Woman -
FLASHMAN (from the 1970 UK LP "Beat Group" on Studio G LPSG 1001)
15. Alias Oliver Dream -
AIRBUS (not originally issued, recorded late 1970)
16. Soon There Will Be
Everything - KILLING FLOOR (from the November 1970 2nd UK LP "Out Of
Uranus" on Penny Farthing PELS 511)
17. Rock And Roll Woman -
LOVE STREET (March 1970 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 17896, B-side of
"Venus", a Buffalo Springfield cover version - Stephen Stills song)
18. Your Mother Thinks I'm A
Hoodlum - SAVWINKLE & TURNERHOPPER (March 1970 UK 7" single on Pye 7N
17913, A-side)
19. Flies Like A Bird - FIRE
(from the October 1970 UK LP "The Magic Shoemaker" on Pye NSPL 18343)
20. Colour Of The Sunset -
DANNY McCULLOCH (February 1970 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 25514, A-side)
21. Indian Maid - THE GHOST
(June 1970 UK 7" single on Gemini GMS 007, B-side of "When You
Die")
22. On Ilkla' Moor Baht' At -
BILL ODDIE (January 1970 UK 7" single on Dandelion 4786, A-side, cover
version/parody done in Yorkshire dialect of a folk song meets The Beatles
"With A Little Help From My Friends")
The 52-page booklet is a work
of art (even if my pages were too tucked into the binding thereby making the
edge lines difficult to read) with truly fantastic notes from Compiler and
Annotator DAVID WELLS. There are more rare photos in here than you can shake a
Peggy's Leg at from the Regal Zonophone advert for Procol Harum's fourth
"Home" to a photo of the obscure This Side Up in live mode. SIMON
MURPHY at Another Planet has done the mastering and it’s the usual mix of fab
to acceptable with the emphasis (thankfully) on the first.
It opens with the
unnecessarily doomy "Piggy Pig Pig", a Matthew Fisher-less Procol
Harum sounding like they need to get out more (I'd have chosen "Whisky
Train" as an opener). Things improve with the up-and-at-em rawk of
"Good Love Child", Barclay James Harvest clearly having a Flamin
Groovies moment. The unissued Mellotron Pop of "Good Year" by Five
Day Rain is a pleasant surprise – something going down even if the audio is
clearly a wee bit compromised. A
stand-alone seven issued at the same time as the debut self-titled album, I
never ever get over the sheer life-is-great vibe to "Hurry Up
Sundown" – the most unnerving Hawkwind moment where they sound like a
happy McGuinness Flint about to picnic with a Harmonica and a hamper (great
track). Other winners on CD1 include the very Incredible String Band-sounding
Indian Sitar and Dobro sound of "Give Me No Goodbye" from Magna Carta
(dig those great Hollies-like harmonies) and the rather lovely 'you're gonna
send your love to me' melody within Cressida's "Winter Is Coming
Again" (dig that guitar solo too).
Harmonies come in the shape
of Tim Andrews doing a sweet cover of Nirvana's lovely "Tiny Goddess"
(the 60ts Island Records band) - our Tim sounding like Colin Blunstone in full
on "Odyssey and Oracle" mode. Clearly massively influenced by
"Pet Sounds", The Byrds and Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young – Harmony
Grass deserved more notoriety for their dreamy and very pretty "I've Seen
To Dream". Unfortunately Penny Arcade pretty much destroy The Beatles and
their "Let It Be" opener "Two Of Us" while the obscure
River do an almost identikit cover of Shocking Blue’s "Venus" in the
shape of "California Here I Come" – a SB track from the Dutch band’s
"Home" album. Was a time when you were strong and didn't fear anything,
but acoustic guitars tell us its "Time To Die" on the excellent Patto
song. Ditching the dismal Archies cover on the A ("Get On The Line"),
we get The Sweet B-side "Mr. McGallagher" issued 12 June 1970 on
Parlophone where Brian Connolly's vocal shine (Chinn and Chapman penned Glam
Rock glory lay ahead on Mickie Most's RAK Records). The rare 3:22 minute single
edit of "In The Land Of The Few" by Dave Edmunds' Love Sculpture will
be welcomed by collectors - Bach sneaking out of the heavily overdubbed melody
while the ladies of "Hair" get to rock-out with the weirdly put
together "Climb That Tree" – out of tune vocals meet unwieldy guitar
soloing – nice!
CD2 opens with the Talking
Heads racing rhythms of "Kaleidoscope" by The Marmalade - trippy
hallucinogenic lyrics about minds expanding man underpin a truly pretty song -
a genius choice. Disc 2 continues its glory ride with the much-loved Honeybus
who are looking for moving signs "Under The Silent Tree" - the flutes
and uptight and outta sight rhythms of the '68 and '69 still lingering. We can
work it out whimsy gives "What's It All About?" a better than
throwaway pop ditty feel for the obscure Putney Bridge, while the cover of
"Across The Universe" by Jawbone (who were close to the fab camp so
they got permission to use it before the LP appeared) apes The Beatles
"Let It Be" version and its hard to believe the Fabs seemed to think
so little of this gorgeous song.
Astonishingly good is one way
to describe even the 'demo' of "Devil's Answer" - Atomic Rooster's
road to the British single charts and avenue into LP buyer's hearts. Ex
Andromeda man John Cann gave Vincent Crane's British band this winner, so this
demo cut features him on Lead Vocals. It's great even without the brass that
was added so memorably to the released single version released on B&C
Records in May 1971 with the fabulous instrumental "The Rock" on the
flipside. I can recall the elaborate die-cut sleeve of the "For Fox
Sake" album on Fontana wasn't enough to entice buyers, an album you were
constantly told was worth money by punters but never sold for any. And you can
hear that their "Lovely Day" is good but in the end (like the sleeve)
- trying too hard. Far better is the Blonde On Blonde cover of a March 1968
Simon Dupree & The Big Sound second-album reject – come to me in my Welsh
"Castle In The Sky" – join me in a very cool wall of hip sounds.
Speaking of hip (and thigh-high boots) - sexpot singer Sonja Christina helps
violinist Darryl Way and keyboardist Francis Monkman in Curved Air sound way
cooler than they were.
I've only ever once seen the
Welsh folky Meic Stevens' "Outlander" album on Warner Brothers (a
lucky find in Cheapo Cheapo about 1992) - his supercool Incredible String Band
Folk-Rock "Rowena" track standing out here - a sort of more flaked
out Donovan with rockier guitars (nice). Time now for the Box Set's first
Previously Unreleased and its a find - a plaintive ballad (in demo form) from
Hemel Hempstead folkies Lifeblud - even though the recording is crude for sure,
it's filled with prettiness and I can so hear why it was chosen. Following that
is another genius inclusion, the very Animals organ-grinding
"Goodbye" by Rusty Harness, a Mike Berry-penned B-side bopper
sounding not a million-miles away from any American Garage band of 1968 and
1969 (his vocals are wickedly good too). Surprised again - the rather excellent
and melodic guitars of "Time To Die" by the staggeringly obscure
Ancient Grease who would fail at the time of release but two of its members
(Gareth Mortimer and Graham Williams) would eventually find chart glory later
as Racing Cars (1977's "They Shoot Horses Don't They?"). Other goodies include the hugely impressive
unissued recording of "Playing With Magic" by The Smoke - an
inexplicable left-in-the-can winner that receives an airing again here.
Unfortunately the Critters cover attempted by Ireland's The Others is
indescribably awful. Better is David Mindel and David Seys as David &
David, whose Paul Buckmaster string-filled "In The City" is a pretty
piece of angst-melodrama worth rediscovering. And dig that great acoustic
guitar solo on "Levinia", a surprisingly mellow slice of 'you go your
way and I'll go mine' from Steamhammer.
Allan Clarke of The Hollies
wrote and sang on the jaunty flipside "Mad Professor Blyth" - his
Prof's mind set on illusion and diffusion (moggy went missing though).
Fuzzed-up Psych-Pop turns up in the one and only release from Yellow Taxi
(after the Joni song) called "Anna Laura Lee" - its rare German
picture sleeve repro'd on Page 36 of the booklet. Future Yes-man keyboard
wunderkind Rick Wakeman is clearly heard racing up and down the organ on
"Mother, Mother, Mother" - a bopper hoping for Top 40 glory by Paper
Bubble. And the absolutely uncanny resemblance to John Lennon on "Have You
Heard The Word" by The Fut has meant the track has turned up on countless
Beatles bootlegs as a Fab outtake, but it transpires its Australia's Tin Tin
aided by Maurice Gibb's mimic-vocals. The track was leaked and the Beacon label
picked up on it, issuing a single in May 1970. Hell, even had Yoko Ono tried to
copyright it as a John Lennon song (what a blast way of finishing the listen).
All in all, you'd have to say that Disc 2 is chock-full of goodies and pleasant
surprises too.
CD3 opens with the first 45
from Vertigo's Warhorse, "St. Louis" released 12 February 1970 - a
rare Euro picture sleeve of it gaining pride-of-place on Page 39. Featuring ex
Deep Purple Bassist Nick Simper and a man who once auditioned for Purple,
vocalist Ashley Holt, they stump up the Geetar Rawk of "St. Louis"
where Holt immediately shows why the Purps would have considered him over Ian
Gillan. Powered by his controlled screech, the show me the way to the city tune
is a great piece of mover-groover ended by a bit of wild wah-wah and Jon Lord
type keyboard racing (so Deep Purple frankly!). Even more impressive is
"An Appointment With The Master" by Birmingham Progsters Bachdenkel -
a really good unissued version that makes me want to seek out their French-only
LP "Lemmings" from May 1973. Not surprised in the least to hear the
Quo's wickedly good rip-roarer "Shy Fly" on here - a highlight on the
band-turns-to-rock "Ma Kelly's Greasy Spoon" album.
I can't honestly remember the
paranormal "Ace Of Wands" UK TV Series, but here's its
"Tarot" Theme Song issued by ex Herd and future Status Quo man Andy
Bown. More above average Pop comes from Paul Grigg's and his tambourine-shaking
band Octopus - his very Peter Noone-sounding "Thief" rattling along
like it needs to get to a public toilet pronto (Griggs would eventually join
Split Enz). Linda Hoyle's doubled-vocals lifts the surprisingly pretty Affinity
song "United States Of Mind" - a tune penned by Lindisfarne's mighty
Alan Hull. Speaking of superb tunesmiths, Kevin Godley and Lol Crème turn up
pre 10cc in the standalone single by Doctor Father. "Umbopo" is a
character in Rider Haggard’s "King Solomon’s Mines" – a guide of
sorts – and clearly the boys are in magnificent melodious songwriting form on
this rare July 1970 Pye International 45 (how did this lovely song go
unnoticed). And on it goes to Henry McCulloch's mescaline eyes viewing
"Colour Of The Sunset" and Goodies stalwart Bill Oddie going
strangely strange but oddly normal on his witty but convincing take on the Beatles
Peppers tune "With A Little Help From My Friends" ending CD3 as a
Yorkshire variant called "On Ilkla' Moor Baht' At". Funny and
brilliant.
"New Moon's In The Sky:
The British Progressive Pop Sounds Of 1970" is a superb Box Set and one
that holds many discoveries even for the most knowledgeable aficionados
(Underground or Prog).
Grapefruit delivers secret
pleasures once more – tunes and artists no longer lost in time – but given
pride of place. I’m looking up at the new moon, and frankly after this - (along
with others) I'll be looking for more…
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