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Sunday, 30 August 2020

"One Step On" by JODY GRIND – October 1969 UK Debut Studio Album on Transatlantic Records in Stereo - featuring Tim Hinkley, Ivan Zagni, Louis Cennamo and Barry Wilson with Guest Arranger David Palmer (November 2016 UK Esoteric Recordings Expanded Edition CD Reissue – Mark Powell Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...






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"...Night Today..."

Taking their name from Horace Silver's 1967 Jazz album on Blue Note called "The Jody Grind" - England's short-lived but mighty JODY GRIND managed only two Progressive Rock albums on the largely Folk Indie label Transatlantic Records.

Their October 1969 debut "One Step On" received favourable press and elicited a devout fan following (especially in Europe) - while their second and last album "Far Canal" from September 1970 massively improved on its predecessor. But neither did any real business sales-wise. Still - that hasn’t stopped good labels like Akarma in Italy and Strange Days in Japan reissuing Jody Grind’s recorded legacy on CD. Which brings us to these new and superlative 2016 remasters out of the UK...

England’s Esoteric Recordings (part of Cherry Red) have built up a huge rep with collectors for quality in both Audio and Presentation – and these two November 2016 CD Expanded Edition Reissues for this long forgotten British Prog Rock Trio will only add to that growing list of Reissue accolades.

The first album "One Step On" is really good - a Hammond-Organ and Guitar-driven band let loose in the studio with Jethro Tull's arranger David Palmer helping out on Horns and Brass. And it's easy to hear why both of their albums have a stonking £200+ price tag allocated to each (and often a lot more). There's a shed load of details to get through - so here are the (wait for it) peaky grinders (ouch)...

UK released 26 November 2016 - "One Step On" by JODY GRIND on Esoteric Recordings ECLEC 2567 (Barcode 5013929466746) is an Expanded Edition CD Reissue and Remaster with Two Bonus Tracks and plays out as follows (49:13 minutes):

1. One Step On [Side 1]
(a) In My Mind (b) Nothing At All (c) Interaction (d) Paint It Black
2. Little Message [Side 2]
3. Night Today
4. U.S.A.
5. Rock 'N' Roll Man
Tracks 1 to 5 are their debut studio album "One Step On" - released October 1969 in the UK on Transatlantic Records TRA 210. Produced by HUGH MURPHY and Arranged by DAVID PALMER - the album was not issued in the USA and didn't chart in the UK. All tracks written by Ivan Zagni and Tim Hinkley except "Paint It Black", which is a Rolling Stones cover version.

BONUS TRACKS:
6. Night Today (Alternate Version)
7. Rock 'n' Roll Man (Single Version)

JODY GRIND was:
TIM HINKLEY – Hammond Organ, Piano, Electric Piano and Lead Vocals
IVAN ZAGNI - Electric Guitars
LOUIS CENNAMO – Bass on "Paint It Black", "Little Message" and "Rock 'N' Roll Man"
BARRY WILSON - Drums and Percussion

The 16-page booklet has informative and well-researched liner notes from Esoteric’s own MARK POWELL – who also compiled, co-ordinated and remastered the original tapes. The elaborately constructed picture of a Wizard in his big pointy hat and cape stood in front of a recording console that adorned the inner gatefold of original British LPs is repro’d throughout the pages (Tim Hinkley doing the honours). Powell gives a potted history of the band (slots in Timebox and Patto), slogging it out on the Prog Rock/Avant Garde live circuit as Jody Grind, signing their eclectic music with Nat Joseph to his Transatlantic Records label and on onwards up to entering Morgan Studios in July 1969 to record the album. Beginning with its eighteen-minute long Side 1 opus in four parts, the Audio is fantastic – beefy without being too trebled for the sake of it – very clear and impressive work.

Formed in November 1968 by Keyboardist Tim Hinkley with Guitarist Ivan Zagni and Drummer Martin Harryman. Harryman left to work with Elkie Brooks in Dada (over on Atlantic Records) to be replaced with Drummer Barry Wilson.

As the Side 1 eighteen-minute title-track four-parter opens with tasty Hammond Organ and Guitar licks chugging-mellow as they build a very definite vibe, you are immediately reminded of several imaginative bands who pushed the envelope of Rock – Blood, Sweat & Tears, The Flock, The Nice, Vanilla Fudge, Iron Butterfly and even dollops of Brian Auger’s Retaliation. The playing is great and the music way better than it had any right to be. Zagni lets rips with impress guitar soloing as the "In My Mind" portion smooches on, only to be followed by Hinkley getting all Spencer Davis Group on his Hammond (you can imagine that this must have been a blast live). About nine-minutes in we get doomy with the "Nothing At All" second section where Brass fills accompany the huge Hammond chords – looking for a place to go – travelling in that direction. The "Interaction" segment is a drum solo that is followed by the final five minutes - a clever fast-paced whig-out – a cover of "Paint it Black" by The Rolling Stones that feels perfectly placed.

Transatlantic clearly thought the extended very-Ten Years After guitar boogieing cover version had some legs so someone turned it into a 7" single in both Germany and Portugal - giving it a Mono Single Mix. The German single from 1970 on Metronome M 25 201 had "Little Message" from Side 2 as its B-side and came in a wicked picture sleeve (Tim Hinkley giving some Keith Emerson on his Hammond) – while the Portuguese 45 on Zip Zip Records 30 011 had a Single mix of "Rock n' Roll Man" on its flipside – one of the two Bonus Tracks presented here.

Over on Side 2, a very ELP Hammond keyboard run opens "Little Message" – a rapid Blood, Sweat & Tears puncher with relentless heavy-guitars that tells everyone that the band want to get down (yeah baby). I can’t help thinking it would have made for a better A-side choice than the obvious lunge for the known Stones winner and would have established Jody Grind as perhaps in there with the "25 Or 6 to 4" Chicago mob. Things get decidedly keyboard Jazz Prog with "Night Today" – a slowy that is accompanied by some sexy brass fills but is perhaps let down by Hinkley and his forced vocals. The heavy-heavy 6:41 minutes of "U.S.A." has our heroes going back to America – a long road they just got to take (there could be a devil woman involved). Their debut ends with four and half minutes of uncharacteristic Chuck Berry type boogie about Tennessee and Rock and Roll that has to go Johnny go (you get the drift). Once Zagni plays a blinder channelling his inner Johnny Winter as that axe pans from speaker to speaker.

After the first album - both Zagni and Wilson exited too to be replaced with Bernie Holland and Pete Gavin for album number 2 - "Far Canal" – an even more sophisticated effort than the debut. Following the collapse of Paul Korda's Dada after only one self-titled LP on Atlantic Records – Tim Hinkley (ex Climax Line Blues Band) then joined Elkie Brooks and Robert Palmer for the first Vinegar Joe LP over on Island Records – later starring in Mike Patto's offshoot band Boxer too (Patto and he were both in Climax Line Blues Band). Hinkley subsequently played on stage with Chapman & Whitney's Streetwalkers (ex Family), Dr. Feelgood, Bad Company, Snafu, Thin Lizzy and has done session work on solo LPs for The Who's Roger Daltrey and Vinegar Joe's Elkie Brooks.

The four then three-piece JODY GRIND are a footnote in Rock's History now (2020) – Prog Rockers who liked to boogie too (with their Arthur Brown face paint and Wizard hats on), and I can so understand why their two albums garnish such fever in collector’s circle. Well done to all involved for getting their legacy out there and in such good shape too...

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