"I See You Live On LOVE STREET: Music From Laurel Canyon 1967-1975" by VARIOUS ARTISTS - Featuring The Association, Paul Revere & The Raiders, Love, The Monkees, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, The Factory [pre Little Feat], The Gentle Soul, The Stone Poneys (featuring Linda Ronstadt), The Doors, Clear Light, The Peanut Butter Conspiracy, Ruthann Friedman, The Holy Mackerel, Barry McGuire, The Mamas And The Papas, The Sunshine Company, Buffalo Springfield, The Byrds, Dillard & Clark, Captain Beefheart, The Leaves, Stephen Stills, Tim Buckley, Hoyt Axton, Three Dog Night, The Turtles, Rick Nelson, Glen Campbell, Susan Carter, Canned Heat, Steppenwolf, Frank Zappa, Warren Zevon, Kim Fowley, Essra Mohawk, Gene Clark, David Crosby, Grin (with Nils Lofgren), J.D. Souther, Little Feat, Judee Sill, Linda Ronstadt, Nilsson, Carly Simon, Jo Mama, Gram Parsons, Rosebud (featuring Judy Henske and Jerry Yester), Rita Coolidge, Crazy Horse, Leon Russell, Dan Fogelberg, Ned Doheny, Fleetwood Mac and more (March 2024 UK Grapefruit Records 3CD 72-Track Clamshell Box Set Compilation with Simon Murphy Masters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

https://www.amazon.co.uk/SEE-YOU-LIVE-LOVE-STREET/dp/B0CRVG8ZL3?crid=1Z0DBXWGN8RGY&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.7haW0eDtk7NVHffHXnY7sA.1FTX1H98ujURJwSj0OX30wRnkfdBmC_KeQ91p7CVNpY&dib_tag=se&keywords=5013929194304&nsdOptOutParam=true&qid=1731592949&sprefix=5013929194304%2Caps%2C86&sr=8-1&ufe=INHOUSE_INSTALLMENTS%3AUK_IHI_3M_AUTOMATED&linkCode=ll1&tag=mabasreofcdbl-21&linkId=738f40a898dd8ba23ad66fdbc4f69489&language=en_GB&ref_=as_li_ss_tl

RATINGS:

Overall *****

Presentation *****

Audio **** to *****

"...My Love Still Burns For You..."

Across the last five years and more, Grapefruit Records of the UK (part of the Cherry Red roster of labels) has been whomping aged-and-mellow collectors like moi with comprehensive deep-dives like this. But just sometimes, head honcho David Wells (the leading light at all things Grape) gets it so damn right that they make my weary information-overloaded head and quad bi-pass battered heart flutter just one more time.

"I See You Live On LOVE STREET: Music From Laurel Canyon 1967-1975" is so friggin' good – covering a huge amount of artistic activity around that community playground known as LAUREL CANYON (running from Scwab's On Sunset to the suburban San Fernando Valley). And even if Wells must admit that musical giants like Joni Mitchell, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, James Taylor, Carole King, Jackson Browne and The Eagles are not on here due to compilation-exclusion clauses in recent contracts – what is available across every disc is thoroughly excellent and a times revelatory (there are excellent unreleased tracks too and only a few cuts dip here and there). 

LOVE STREET also boasts one of the best 48-page booklets I have ever seen or read – jam-packed with seriously in-depth info, photos, gig posters, trade adverts, etc. So much to float above…here are the communal love seeds man…

UK released Friday, 21 March 2024 - "I See You Live On LOVE STREET: Music From Laurel Canyon 1967-1975" by VARIOUS ARTISTS on Grapefruit Records CRSEG3BOX143 (Barcode 5013929194304) is a 3CD 72-Track Clamshell Box Set with Three Mini LP Card Sleeves, a 48-Page Booklet and Simon Murphy Masters that plays out as follows:

CD1 Young Girls Are Coming To The Canyon (1967-1968) (79:52 minutes):
The front cover photo is the band CLEAR LIGHT (see Track 10)
Title of the compilation are lyrics from the Scott McKenzie song, Track 18

1. Come On In – THE ASSOCIATION (from the April 1968 US LP "Birthday" on Warner Brothers WS 1733 in Stereo)
2. Tighter – PAUL REVERE & THE RAIDERS (from the August 1967 US LP "Revolution!" on Columbia CS 9521 in Stereo)
3. The Good Humor Man He Sees Everything Like This – LOVE (from the December 1967 US LP "Forever Changes" on Elektra EKS-74013 in Stereo)
4. As We Go Along – THE MONKEES (October 1968 US 45-single on Colgems 66-1031, B-side to "Porpoise Song" – a Carole King cover version)
5. Holding – THE NITTY GRITTY DIRT BAND (from the March 1967 US Debut LP "The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band" on Liberty LST-7501 on Stereo)
6.Smile, Let Your Life Begin – THE FACTORY (April 1967 US 45-single on Uni Records 55005, A-side – band featuring Lowell George on Guitar later with Little Feat and Drummer Dallas Taylor later with CSNY and Manassas with Stephen Stills)
7. Our National Anthem – THE GENTLE SOUL (May 1967 US 45-single on Columbia 4-44152, A-side)
8. I've Got To Know – THE STONY PONEYS (from the June 1967 US LP "Evergreen Vol.2" on Capitol ST-2763 in Stereo - band featured Linda Ronstadt)
9. Love Street – THE DOORS (from the July 1968 US LP "Waiting For The Sun" on Elektra EKS-74024 in Stereo)
10. How Many Days Have Passed – CLEAR LIGHT (from the October 1967 US Debut LP "Clear Light" on Elektra EKS-74011 in Stereo)
11. Floating Dream – THE PEANUT BUTTER CONSPIRACY (May 1967 US 45-single on Vault V-933, A-side)
12. Montage Mirror – SMOKEY ROBERDS with ROGER NICHOLS TRIO (Not Originally Released, Recorded 1967
13. Halfway There – RUTHANN FRIEDMAN (Not Originally Released, Recorded October 1967)
14. Wildflowers – THE HOLY MACKEREL (from the November 1968 US Debut LP "The Holy Mackerel" on Reprise RS 6311 in Stereo)
15. Secret Saucer Man – BARRY McGUIRE (from the April 1968 US LP "The World's Last Private Citizen" on Dunhill DS-50033 in Stereo)
16. Mansions – THE MAMAS And THE PAPAS (from the April 1968 US LP "The World's Last Private Citizen" on Dunhill DS-50031 in Stereo)
17. I Need You – THE SUNSHINE COMPANY (from the September 1967 US LP "Happy Is The Sunshine Company" on Imperial LP-12357 in Stereo)
18. Twelve Thirty – SCOTT McKENZIE (from the November 1967 US LP "The Voice Of Scott McKenzie" on Ode Records Z12 44002 in Stereo)
19. A Child's Claim To Fame – BUFFALO SPRINGFIELD (September 1967 US 45-single on Atco 45-6519, B-side of "Rock 'n' Roll Woman" – written by Richie Furay – see also The Souther-Hillman-Furey Band on CD3)
20. Train Leaves Here This Mornin' – DILLARD & CLARK (from the November 1968 US LP "The Fantastic Expedition Of Dillard & Clark" on A&M Records SP 4158 in Stereo)
21. Blight – THE MILLENIUM (Not Originally Released, Recorded Late 1968)
22. Call On Me – CAPTAIN BEEFHEART & HIS MAGIC BAND (from the August 1967 US Debut LP "Safe As Milk" on Buddah BDS 5001 in Stereo)
23. Twilight Sanctuary – THE LEAVES (from the January 1967 US LP "All The Good That's Happening" on Capitol ST-2638 in Stereo)
24. You Don't Miss Your Water – THE BYRDS (Not Originally Released Alternate Version of a track from the August 1968 US LP "Sweetheart Of The Rodeo" on Columbia CS 9670 in Stereo – This is an Original Version that features Gram Parsons on Lead Vocals rather Roger McGuinn)
25. I Had A Dream Last Night – THE M.F.Q. (Modern Folk Quartet) (June 1968 US 45-single on Dunhill D-1437, A-side – band featured Cyrus Faryar and Jerry Yester – see CD3 entries Cyrus Faryar and Rosebud)
26. Shadow Dream Song – STEVE NOONAN (from the May 1968 US LP "Steve Noonan" on Elektra EKS-74017 in Stereo)
27. Hello, Hooray – JUDY COLLINS (from the December 1968 US LP "Who Knows Where The Time Goes" on Elektra EKS-74033 in Stereo – written by Rolf Kempf of Colonel Popcorn's Butter Band, introduced to Judy Collins by Alan Gerber of Rhinoceros, later covered by Alice Cooper and finally made a hit by him in early 1973 – from his "Billion Dollar Babies" album)
NOTES:
Tracks 12, 13 and 21 are PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED

CD2 Going Home To California (1969-1971) (79:52 minutes):
The band on the front cover is The Flying Burrito Brothers, see Track 5
Title of the compilation are lyrics from the Rick Nelson song, Track 8

1. Love The One You're With – STEPHEN STILLS (November 1970 US 45-single on Atlantic 45-2778, A-side – band features Graham Nash, David Crosby, John Sebastian of The Lovin' Spoonful with Rita and her sister Patricia Coolidge)
2. Pickin' Up The Pieces – POCO (from the May 1969 US LP November 1974 US LP "Pickin' Up The Pieces" on Epic BN 26460 in Stereo – band featured Jim Messina of Loggins & Messina, Randy Meisner (of Eagles) and Rusty Young)
3. Buzzin' Fly – TIM BUCKLEY (from the April 1969 US LP "Happy Sad" on Elektra EKS-74045 in Stereo)
4. Kingswood Manor – HOYT AXTON (from the March 1969 US LP "My Griffin Is Gone" on Columbia CS 9766 in Stereo – features David Cohen of Country Joe & The Fish, James Burton and Members of The Wrecking Crew)
5. Christine's Tune (Devil In Disguise) – THE FLYING BURRITO BROS. (from the March 1969 US Debut LP "The Gilded Palace Of Sin" on A&M Records SP-4175 in Stereo – band featuring Gram Parsons and Chris Hillman)
6. Mama Told Me Not Come – THREE DOG NIGHT (May 1970 US 45-single on Dunhill D-4239, A-side – a Randy Newman cover version)
7. Lady-O – THE TURTLES (November 1967 US 45-single on White Whale WW 334, A-side – a Judee Sill cover version, for Judee Sill see CD3, Track 4)
8. California – RICK NELSON (from the September 1970 US LP "Rick Sings Nelson" on Decca DL 75236)
9. P.F. Sloan – JIMMY WEBB (from the September 1970 US LP "Words & Music" on Reprise Records RS 6421 in Stereo)
10. Where's The Playground Susie – GLEN CAMPBELL (from the March 1969 US LP "Galveston" on Capitol ST-210 in Stereo - a Jimmy Webb song)
11. Bluebird – SUSAN CARTER (from the February 1970 US LP "Wonderful Deeds And Adventures" on Epic BN 26510 in Stereo – featuring Members of Blood, Sweat & Tears – song is a Buffalo Springfield cover version)
12. I Still Wonder – LOVE (from the November 1969 US 2LP set "Out Here" on Blue Thumb Records BTS-9000 in Stereo – featuring Arthur Lee)
13. Let's Work Together – CANNED HEAT (January 1970 UK 45-single on Liberty LBF 15302, A-side – a Wilbert Harrison cover version)
14. It's Never Too Late – STEPPENWOLF (from the March 1969 US LP "At Your Birthday" on Dunhill DS-50053 in Stereo)
15. Peaches En Regalia – FRANK ZAPPA (from the October 1969 US LP "Hot Rats" on Reprise Records RS 6356 in Stereo – an Instrumental)
16. Wanted Dead Or Alive – ZEVON [Warren Zevon] (from the April 1970 US LP "Wanted Dead Or Alive" on Imperial LP-12456 in Stereo)
17. Born To Make You Cry – KIM FOWLEY (May 1970 US 45-single on Original Sound OS-98, A-side)
18. I Am The Breeze – ESSRA MOHAWK (from the May 1970 US LP "Primordial Lovers" on Reprise RS 6377)
19. White Light – GENE CLARK (from the August 1971 US LP "White Light" on A&M Records SP-4292)
19. Traction In The Rain – DAVID CROSBY (from February 1971 US LP "If I Could Only Remember My Name" on Atlantic SD-7203 – features Laura Allan on Autoharp and Backing Vocals with Graham Nash also on Backing Vocals)
20. Brother Speed – RUSS GIGUERE (from the April 1971 US LP "Hexagram 16" on Warner Brothers WS 1910 in Stereo)
21. Outlaw – GRIN (from the April 1971 US LP "Grin" on Spindizzy Z 30321 – band features Nils Lofgren, went solo, later with The E Street Band)
22. Too Much Truth, Too Much Love – DAVE MASON [of Traffic] and CASS ELLIOT [of The Mamas And The Papas] (from the February 1970 debut album on Blue Thumb BTS-8825 in Stereo)

CD3 Postcards From Hollywood (1971-1975) (78:39 minutes):
The band on the front cover is Jo Mama, see Track 8
Title of the compilation are lyrics from the Ned Doheny song, Track 17

1. Some People Call It Music – J.D. SOUTHER (from the August 1972 US Debut LP "John David Souther" on Asylum SD 5055 – features Ned Doheny on Backing Vocals)
2. Easy To Slip – LITTLE FEAT (January 1972 US 45-single on Warner Brothers WB 7553, A-side - featuring Lowell George of The Factory, see Track 6 on CD1 – for Lowell George Production Credit - see also Track 21 on CD3 for Howdy Moon)
3. Birds – LINDA RONSTADT (from the January 1972 US LP "Linda Ronstadt" on Capitol SMAS-635 – a Neil Young cover version – a live version on a largely studio album)
4. Crayon Angels – JUDEE SILL (from the October 1971 US Debut LP "Judee Sill" on Asylum SD 5050)
5. Driving Along – NILSSON (from the November 1971 US LP "Nilsson Schmilsson" on RCA Victor Records LSP-4515)
6. We Have No Secrets – CARLY SIMON (from the November 1972 US LP "No Secrets" on Elektra EKS-75049)
7. I Don't Want To Talk About It – CRAZY HORSE (from the March 1971 US LP "Crazy Horse" on Reprise RS 6438 – band featured Danny Whitten, Nils Lofgren, Jack Nitzsche and Ry Cooder)
8. Back On The Street Again – JO MAMA (from the August 1971 US LP "J Is For Jump" on Atlantic SD 8288)
9. Danny's Song – KENNY LOGGINS with JIM MESSINA (from the November 1971 US LP "Sittin' In" on Columbia C 31044)
10. How Much I've Lied – GRAM PARSONS (from the January 1973 US LP "GP" on Reprise MS 2123 – musicians featured James Burton, Al Perkins, Buddy Emmons and Byron Berline)
11. Flying To Morning – ROSEBUD (from the July 1971 US LP "Rosebud" on Reprise RS 6426 – featuring Judy Henske and Jerry Yester)
12. Journey Thru The Past – RITA COOLIDGE (from the November 1971 US LP "Nice Feelin'" on A&M Records SP-4325 – a Neil Young cover – band included The Dixie Flyers, Marc Benno and Nick DeCaro)
13. I Think He's Hiding – CYRUS FARYAR (from the October 1971 US Debut LP "Cyrus" on Elektra EKS-74015, ex The Modern Folk Quartet)
14. Paper To Write On – CRABBY APPLETON (from the October 1971 US Second LP "Rotten To The Core" on Elektra EKS-74106 – features Michael Fennelly)
15. Tight Rope – LEON RUSSELL (from the July 1972 US LP "Carney" on Shelter Records SW-8911)
16. Anyway I Love You – DAN FOGELBERG (from the October 1972 US Debut LP "Home Free" on Columbia KC 31751)
17. Postcards From Hollywood – NED DOHENY (from the June 1973 US Debut LP "Ned Doheny" on Asylum SD 5059)
18. Outlaw Man – DAVID BLUE (January 1973 US 45-single on Asylum AS-11015, A-side)
19. For Free – MORNING (from the November 1971 US LP "Struck Like Silver" on Fantasy 9402 – a Joni Mitchell cover – band featured Jay Donnellan [aka Jay Lewis] of Love)
20. Fallin' In Love – THE SOUTHER-HILLMAN-FUREY BAND (from the July 1974 US Debut LP "The Souther-Hillman-Furey Band" on Asylum 7E-1006 - featuring J.D. Souther, Chris Hillman and (ex-Buffalo Springfield) Richie Furey)
21. Cook With Honey – HOWDY MOON (from the April 1974 US Debut-and-Only LP "Howdy Moon" on A&M Records SP-3628 – band featured Valerie Carter (song written by her), Joe Lind and Richard Hovey – overall album produced by Lowell George of Little Feat – above track Produced by Michael James Jackson, famously the Producer for Kiss – David Paich of Toto arranged the strings and Bill Payne of Little Feat played Piano)
22. Say You Love Me – FLEETWOOD MAC (from the July 1975 US LP "Fleetwood Mac" – band featuring Lindsay Buckingham and Stevie Nicks for the first time)

Some authors of liner notes pump up the positivity when reviewing lesser material - and you are there reading – going – really? DAVID WELLS is not one of those. The choices and sequencing is clever and inspired. His notes on every song and artist in the fabulous 48-page colour booklet are chock-full with factoids, other musician associations, setting the backdrop and so. It is smart writing to tell you that the band featured on the magnificent Stephen Stills song "Love The One You're With" had Graham Nash, David Crosby, John Sebastian of The Lovin' Spoonful with Rita and her sister Patricia Coolidge on it. But that info also gives you the feel of the time. Huge numbers of artists and bands would stay and leave - dip in and out of the welcoming houses in sunny Californian Laurel Canyon eating them out of fridge and home whilst exchanging ideas and players – and most of time amidst a haze of smoke that was not pancakes on fire on the stove. Mickey Dolenz of The Monkees explains the LC scene was full of college drop-out stragglers and long-haired weirdos. There is an array of LP sleeves between the paragraphs too – photographs of billboards advertising Love LPs – The Monkees and the film poster for Head – snaps of female heroes like Judee Sill, Linda Ronstadt, Carly Simon, Judy Collins, Valerie Carter of Howdy Moon. The back page has a montage of 16-other box sets to choose from. 

And the SIMON MURPHY mastering is superb throughout too – only rarely dipping into hints of muffle - but that would generally be because of crude recordings in the first place. Take the Barry McGuire track "Secret Saucer Man" on CD1, Jimmy Webb wondering where "P.F. Sloan" has disappeared to on CD2 or Ned Doheny explaining about the counter-culture scene on the CD3 track "Postcards From Hollywood" – all sounding spiffo. 

I have lived with this set a few days now and noticed some very clever programming. The obvious big-name big-hit cover versions of Randy Newman and R&B singer Wilbert Harrison by Three Dog Night on "Mama Told Me Not To Come" and Canned Heat doing "Let's Work Together" stick out (both No.1 on the Billboard 45-single charts) – but how about six obscure covers where genuinely radical transformations have taken place that put these interpretations above the run of the mill. Take The Sunshine Company doing the Beatles/George Harrison song on "Help!" called "I Need You" – a fantastic take. Or The Turtles tackling a Judee Sill song "Lady-O", Morning having a go at the Joni Mitchell song "For Free" and winning, Susan Carter taking on the Buffalo Springfield tune "Bluebird" with the aid of Blood, Sweat & Tears as her backing band. You get Linda Ronstadt when she was fronting The Stone Poneys as they went at a Pamela Polland tune called "I've Got To Know" and then in her early solo career – a touching live cut of the Neil Young ballad "Birds". And a potence of what was to come – Judy Collins doing "Hello Hooray" which would be taken by Alice Cooper in 1973 and finally made a hit. 

We must talk about sequencing – I am not in the least bit surprised to see CD1 open with the fantastic Sunshine Pop/Mamas & Papas vibe of "Come On In" by The Association. As joyful as 60ts music gets, I use it myself on home play CDs. That is followed by the swirling ebullience of Paul Revere & The Raiders getting "Tighter". Hummingbirds and pigtails in the morning see Love stamp that adventurous 60ts West Coast sound. Clever B-sides like "As We Go Along" by The Monkees – a sublime moment from them perfectly in keeping with the peace, love and understanding lyrics of 1968 (another cover version too – a Carole King song). Then there are the discoveries – The Gentle Soul and their gorgeous "Our National Anthem" – Clear Light getting Acoustic Poppy with their "How Many Nights Have Passed" riling against a lady who broke their fuzz-guitar hearts and then moved on. I am shocked at how good the unreleased "Montage Mirror" is by Smokey Roberds with Roger Nichols (Nichols no doubt dreaming of recording perfection when he teams up with Steely Dan in 1972 for the rest of that decade). Great hippie-sounding Sitar, flanged vocals and Cello string-pulls on the period-groovy "Wildflowers" – The Holy Mackerel living up to their trippy-fishy name (fab audio too). Eagles fans will recognize Dillard & Clark doing "Train Leaves Here This Mornin'" (a gorgeous Bernie Leadon melodious ballad) because they covered it on their "Eagles" debut in 1972 when Leadon had joined Glenn Frey, Don Henley and the gang. The Beefheart song feels out of place actually and has a messy sound. 

Over on CD2 – you get a fab triple-bill in Stephen Stills, Tim Buckley and Hoyt Axton - "Love The One You're With" practically laying down the love-in ethos that dominated those years – Buckley and his "Buzzin' Fly" - all swirling and trippy and Acoustic Folk-Soul (check out the Terry Reid cover of it – was in the running for vocalist to Led Zeppelin) while a seriously drugged up Hoyt Axton (author of "The Pusher" for Steppenwolf and "Joy To the World" for Three Dog Night) warns of "Kingswood Manor" and the perils that lay within (I have reviewed his eclectic 1969 platter "My Griffin Is Gone" from which "Kingswood Manor" is taken). Amazing clarity on "I Still Wonder" by Love - same for the only instrumental on the 3CD Box - "Peaches En Regalia" by Frank Zappa. You can already hear the outlaw/loony tunes mania in the early Warren Zevon cut "Wanted Dead Or Alive" (credited as merely Zevon) and to top off a great run of tracks – you get toppermost melodies from Gene Clark, David Crosby (his "Traction In The Rain" is Godlike to me as is the whole of his debut solo LP "If I Could Only Remember My Name") and Dave Mason (of Traffic) teaming up with Mama Cass of The Mamas & The Papas for their lone duet LP on 1971 (Blue Thumb Records in the USA and Harvest in the UK).

CD3 opens with sometimes-Eagles-collaborator J.D. Souther and a Country-Rock moment of his called "Some People Call It Music" while Little Feat's "Easy To Slip" always thrills. You don't expect the enthusiastic audience reaction at the end of Linda Ronstadt's heartfelt rendition of Neil Young's 'After The Gold Rush' gem "Birds" - a live track on a studio album. Songwriter/Doomed heroes follow in the shape of Judee Sill and Harry Nilsson while the gorgeous Carly Simon and Danny Whitten's Crazy Horse hit you with two fab ballads - "We Have No Secrets" and "I Don't Want To Talk About It" - the latter being a song so many have covered - Rod Stewart being one of the more memorable ones. Genuine discoveries - I knew of the Rosebud album because I've already reviewed Judy Henske and Jerry Yester's "Farewell To Alderbaran" album from 1969 on Zappa's Straight Records (Rosebud the band is essentially them) - but it's so cool to hear a track from it here. Even better is the Howdy Moon self-titled album that has most of Little Feat as the backing band and Lowell George as Producer - Wells quite rightly pointing out that lead singer Valerie Carter is the hero 'Love Street' is focusing on. What a gorgeous tune - and I will have to own that CD. And on it goes with Dan Fogelberg, Ned Doheny, David Blue and Morning doing that wickedly-good cover of Joni's "For Free".

This is the kind of 3CD Clamshell Box Set compilation that might pass you by in a long line of adverts for similar-ish product and even the same subject matter. 

But "I Hear You Live On LOVE STREET: Music From Laurel Canyon (1967-1975)" is a winner on all fronts. When you think that there are three double-albums worth of songs on these 3CDs for about £24 - purchase becomes a no-brainer as well as a reminiscence and rediscovery journey you want to embark on. Top banana to all involved...

"The Complete de Wolfe Sessions" by THE ELECTRIC BANANA [The Pretty Things under a pseudonym] – Including Six UK Library Music Albums from 1967, 1968, 1969 (two), 1973 and 1978 on the Music de Wolfe label – featuring Richard Taylor, Phil May, John Povey, John Alder and Alan (Wally) Waller of The Pretty Things (September 2019 UK Grapefruit Records 3CD Clamshell Mini Box Set of Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

This Review Along With 324 Others Is Available In My

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Covering 1967 to 1977 - It Also Focuses On

Fusion Rock, Acid Folk, Art Rock and Underground 

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"...Free Love..."

Imagine you're a hip and happening dapper dude filmmaker walking down the King's Road in 1967 London with an afghan coat in one hand and a lysergic tablet in the other. You've just left the Tangerine Tandem Purple Ship Bicycles Bar with your copy of Oz that contains a fascinating article on the use of macrobiotic yoghurt in Himalayan yacks. 

But before that, you engaged in a very disturbing A/B-Button payphone phonecall to your moneyman (i.e. Producer). He has broken the bad news. If you want actual groovy cool music originals from the hipster bands of the Swinging Sixties in your film about nubiles mating with aliens from the planet EggNog at the Stonehenge Summer Solstice - the cost is prohibitive man. Drat - you think. You pop that tab from your right hand into your mouth and wallah! Suddenly, the fog of the hassling man has dissipated and all has become translucently and metaphysically clear baby. I need Library Music...

When I worked as the Rarities buyer in Reckless Records in Islington and Soho - the three big Library Music makers - KPM, Chappell and Music de Wolfe - would present themselves in collections at your counter in the form of albums with the same artwork - just different catalogue numbers. You would have song titles on the back sleeves like "Love Dance And Sing" or "A Thousand Ages From The Sun" - and have no earthly idea who was playing on what LP – or which one of these samey-looking buggers was worth the dosh. 

The dark arts of Library Music always elicited two reactions amongst collectors in my experience - frenzy or a yawn. There were those who adored the Psych and Film Music instrumentals you could stumble upon hidden inside these obscure LPs that turned up like musical thieves in the night in secondhand record shops. But there were also those who had forked out £20 for an LP that contained only insipid incidental interludes – none of which were interesting or cool (burned once, never again). And that’s where this superbly done 3CD Clamshell Mini Box set comes a bopping in.

Our Psych-rocking heroes moonlighting in the latter part of the 60ts as 'The Electric Banana' turned out to be none other than members of The Pretty Things (a quick perusal of the DW/LP credits beneath the titles showed that the songs were written by Richard Taylor, Phil May, John Povey and Alan Waller). A 60ts supergroup in their own right, but also an integral part of that underground scene which had its toes in eclectic films and TV programs - these records have always been touch stones for fans of the PT's. And they are rare in original form. 

The moniker 'The Electric Banana' never did get out an album on a major label, but as this box shows, managed six LPs on the British Library music label Music de Wolfe in 1967, 1968, 1969 (two), 1973 and 1978. And typically, Grapefruit Records of the UK have done a stunning job of shining a torch on a very dimly lit part of the counterculture. To the goose, the street girls, the orphan ladies and oodles of free love...

UK released Friday, 27 September 2019 - "The Complete de Wolfe Sessions" by THE ELECTRIC BANANA on Grapefruit Records CRSEGBOX058 (Barcode 5013929185807) is a 3CD Clamshell Mini Box Set that plays out as follows: 

CD1 (61:51 minutes):
1. Walking Down The Street [Side 1]
2. If I Needed Somebody 
3. Free Love 
4. 'Cause I'm A Man 
5. Danger Signs 
6. Walking Down The Street (Instrumental) [Side 2]
7. If I Needed Somebody (Instrumental)
8. Free Love (Instrumental)
9. 'Cause I'm A Man (Instrumental)
10. Danger Signs (Instrumental)
Tracks 1 to 10 are the UK Library Music album "Electric Banana" released 1967 on Music de Wolfe DW/LP 3040 in Mono - credited to ELECTRIC BANANA with TILSLEY ORCHESTRAL 

11. I See You [Side 1] 
12. Street Girl 
13. Grey Skies 
14. I Love You
15. Love Dance And Sing
16. A Thousand Ages From The Sun 
17. I See You (Instrumental) [Side 2]
18. Street Girl (Instrumental) 
19. Grey Skies (Instrumental) 
20. I Love You (Instrumental) 
21. Love Dance And Sing (Instrumental)
22. A Thousand Ages From The Sun (Instrumental)
Tracks 11 to 22 are the album "More Electric Banana" UK released 1968 on Music de Wolfe DW/LP 3069 in Mono

CD2 (77:35 minutes):

1. Alexander [Side 1]

2. It'll Never Be Me 

3. Eagle's Son 

4. Blow Your Mind

5. What's Good For The Goose

6. Rave Up 

7. Alexander (Instrumental) [Side 2]

8. It'll Never Be Me (Instrumental)

9. Eagle's Son (Instrumental)

10. Blow Your Mind (Instrumental)

Tracks 1 to 10 are the album "Even More Electric Banana" - released 1969 in the UK on Music de Wolfe DW/LP 3123 in Mono [NOTE: see also Track 11, CD3]

11. Sweet Orphan Lady [Side 1]

12. I Could Not Believe My Eyes

13. Good Times 

14. Walk Away 

15. The Loser 

16. Easily Done 

17. Sweet Orphan Lady (Instrumental) [Side 2]

18. I Could Not Believe My Eyes (Instrumental)

19. Good Times (Instrumental)

20. Walk Away (Instrumental)

21. The Loser (Instrumental)

22. Easily Done (Instrumental)

Tracks 11 to 22 are the album "Hot Licks" - released 1973 in the UK on Music de Wolfe DW/LP 3284 in Stereo

CD3 (46:28 minutes):

1. Do My Stuff [Side 1]

2. Take Me Home 

3. James Marshall 

4. Maze Song 

5. Whiskey Song 

6. Do My Stuff (Instrumental) [Side 2]

7. Take Me Home (Instrumental)

8. James Marshall (Instrumental)

9. Maze Song (Instrumental)

10. Whiskey Song (Instrumental)

Tracks 1 to 10 are the album "The Return On The Electric Banana" - released 1978 in the UK on Music de Wolfe DW/LP 3381

11. The Dark Theme (Instrumental) 

Track 11 is from the album "Even More Electric Banana" - released 1969 in the UK on Music de Wolfe DW/LP 3123 in Mono [NOTE: see Tracks 1 to 10 on CD2 for the rest of the album]

These Clamshell Mini Box Sets always feel classy to the touch while three individual card sleeves do their back-and-front best to picture the five albums artwork in varying ways. DAVID WELLS has done the serious sleuthing liner notes to unravel the secrets for the 30-page booklet. Packed with period photos and snaps - you get stills from TV programs like Dr. Who, Monique, Edna The Inebriate Woman, Private Eye, The Sweeney and Dawn Of The Dead - all of whom used Electric Banana music. There is also a wonderful collage page of publicity stuff for the April 1969 movie "What's Good For The Goose" with Norman Wisdom and Sally Geeson - one that shows the band in period clobber looking very right on. The distinctive 'Pop Sound' LP artwork is there too as are repro's of those rare orange and white Music de Wolfe LP labels. 

Sound – the very essence of these recordings is Mono Grunge – so those looking for Abbey Road type Stereo magnificence and perfection should collect theirs at the kiosk now and leave. Not surprisingly there are no audio transfer credits, but the remastered sound is uniformly excellent even given the limitations of these late 60ts recordings. It feels like your eavesdropping on The Small Faces having an extra curricular or in the case of Side 2 of the LPs where you got instrumental versions of the five or six sung-songs on Side A – it feels like you’re listening to backing tracks by The Kinks or The Who - in all their hooky gonzo-bashing power. 

In fact even though the lyrics on Side 1 of the debut about "Street Girls" waiting for customers under the lamplight and self-centred men who sleep all day and come home late at night in "'Cause I'm A Man" are actually way better than most Sixties observations by other bands (excluding The Kinks) – it's the instrumentals and their naked backbeats that have always intrigued me. Striped of the loaded so-60ts references and words, you lock into the mostly guitar-driven Rock-Psych groove they got and I love that (Mods have always had a thing for their Small Faces sound too). And of course no commercially released LP would ever do this configuration – so the song/instrumental side-by-side dynamic was exclusive to Library Music LPs. 
People stare as they pass you by, knowing somehow that you've seen the promised land, says our likely lad in "Walking Down The Street" - whilst the Pretty Things cheeky bugger singer wants to forego foreplay down-payments directed at a woman's affection altogether and go directly to the free love bit in, well "Free Love". 

By the time you get to the genuinely improved excellence of album two, John Povey and Peter Reno have begun to contribute to the songs (alongside Phil May, Richard Taylor and Allan Waller) – examples being the superb Who-meets-The Charlatans vibe of "Grey Skies" and the "...give your soul to the wind...be free... " mantra of "Love Dance And Sing" – a song that eloquently sums up the very essence of breaking down emotional barriers – the stuff that indeed make the Sixties swing. And on it goes to the last LP that features a token PT presence but not a lot of anything else. 

For sure if you are a Pretty Things aficionado then "The Complete de Wolfe Sessions" is a must-own. But it also a way for others to get a crack at side projects – fringe listening that still stands up – songs and their instrumental counterparts. 
"Loving you was my first mistake..." our hero worries in "Danger Signs" – missing out on this will be our mistake now...

"A Place In The Sun: The Complete Jason Crest" by JASON CREST – Five UK 45’s from 1968 and 1969 on Philips Records plus Rare and Unissued Acetate Tracks and Radio Sessions from 1968 and 1969 – featuring Terry Clark, Terry Dobson, Paul Siggery, Derek Smallcombe, Ron Fowler and more (May 2020 UK Grapefruit Records 2CD Anthology – Ben Wiseman Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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Covering 1967 to 1977 - It Also Focuses On

Fusion Rock, Acid Folk, Art Rock and Underground 

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"...Turquoise Tandems..."

Now here's an obscure one with splinters that went off in every which way. 

Formerly known first as The Spurleeweeves then The Good Thing Brigade between 1965 and 1966 – British Psych darlings JASON CREST were quickly renamed and signed to Philips in 1967, thereafter managing to usher out five singles between 1968 and 1969 (but no album). 

Thereafter they morphed yet again, this time into the Island Records act called High Bloom. You will remember Toploader's year 2000 poppy cover version of High Broom's ''Dancing In The Moonlight" - originally an August 1970 UK 45-single on Island WIP 6088. Once High Broom had had its day (again no album), three former members of the five-piece (Roger Siggery, Derek Smallcombe and Terry Clark) went into a band called Holy Mackerel who managed a single self-titled album on CBS Records UK in 1972 (not to be confused with the American group of the same name who had an album on Reprise Records in 1968 that featured "Classical Gas" hitmaker Mason Williams). A tangled web indeed... 

Grapefruit's typically exemplary anthology "A Place In The Sun: The Complete Jason Crest" gathers together all 10 of those non-album single sides, further outtake rarities and even finds some previously unreleased radio sessions - lumping the lot onto a 2CD set that will surely act as the definitive document for a band's whose 45s now command big bucks (if you can find them). Here are the turquoise tandems...

UK released Friday, 20 September 2020 - "A Place In The Sun: The Complete Jason Crest" by JASON CREST on Grapefruit Records CRSEG078D (Barcode 5013929187825) is a 28-Track 2CD Anthology that plays out as follows: 

CD1 (59:42 minutes):
1. Turquoise Tandem Cycle 
2. Teagarden Lane 
3. Patricia's Dream 
4. A Place In The Sun 
5. My House Is Burning
6. King Of The Castle 
7. The Collected Works Of Justin Crest 
8. Black Mass 
9. Charge Of The Light Brigade 
10. (Here We Go Around The) Lemon Tree 
11. You Really Got A Hold On Me 
12. Two By The Sea 
13. Juliano The Bull 
14. Education 
15. Waterloo Road 
16. Good Life 
17. Black Mass (Dubious Mix Version) 
Tracks 1 and 16 are the non-album A&B-sides of their January 1968 UK debut 45-single on Philips BF 1633
Tracks 13 and 12 are the non-album A&B-sides of their April 1968 UK second 45-single on Philips BF 1650
Tracks 10 and 3 are the non-album A&B-sides of their August 1968 UK third 45-single on Philips BF 1687
Tracks 15 and 14 are the non-album A&B-sides of their February 1968 UK fourth 45-single on Philips BF 1752
Tracks 4 and 8 are the non-album A&B-sides of their August 1968 UK fifth and final 45-single on Philips BF 1809
Tracks 2, 6, 7, 9 and 11 first appeared on the July 1993 UK Various Artists LP "Syde Trips Three" on Tenth Planet TP006 
Track 5 is copyright 1994 Tenth Planet 
Track 17 is Previously Unreleased, Copyright 2020

CD2 (35:23 minutes):
1. Hold On 
2. A Hazy Shade Of Winter 
3. Fresh Garbage
4. California Dreamin' 
5. Paint It Black 
6. What's It Like 
7. Come Together 
8. It's A Way To Pass The Time 
9. Good Times, Bad Lines 
10. Better By You, Better Than Me
11. Percy's On The Run 
Tracks 1 to 11 first appeared 1999 on the UK Jason Crest LP "Radio Sessions 1968-1969" on Tenth Planet TP041, a numbered limited edition of 1000 copies. Tracks 1 to 5 recorded in November 1968, tracks 6 to 11 in November 1969 - both radio sessions. 

The chunky three-way foldout card digipak is pretty in resplendent orange and red day-glow images as is the typically jam-packed 24-page booklet. The memorabilia pictured includes a flyer for a July 1965 gig in The Bromel Club (Bromley, Kent) – the embryonic Spurleeweeves set up for Thursday the 19th. 

DAVID WELLS employs help from all sources as he pieces together the band’s progress – promo photos, acetate labels, a two-page display of trade gig adverts where Jason Crest share stages with Elmer Gantry, Kipperton Lodge, The Skatalites and Desmond Dekker. There is even a photo of them as High Broom and loads of other juicy factoids (it is a great read and an informative one too). 

BEN WISEMAN does his usual job of wickedly good remastering even if some of the acetate stuff is a tad ropey around the edges. 

Disc 1 offers us the singles and a wad of outtakes that first saw light of day in 1993 on the cult label Tenth Planet – and what an eclectic rattle they all make. Faves for me include "Juliano The Bull" and "Two By The Sea" whilst the boys got a little Rock-Soulful with their unissued cover of the Smokey Robinson & The Miracles classic "You Really Got A Hold On Me". In fact out of only one other cover version on CD1 - Roy Wood's 1968 "Move" debut album track "(Here We Go Round The) Lemon Tree" - Vocalist Terry Clark alongside Lead Guitarist Terry Dobson provided all of the songs. 

Which makes the strange cackle of covers on Disc 2 seem like some other project Jason Crest were pursuing in order to get noticed or even paid. After Disc 1, it is weird to hear The Mamas & The Papas, The Rolling Stones and Simon & Garfunkel covers even if their genius shows through on the Spirit classic "Fresh Garbage". There are intriguing contributions too from Drummer Paul Siggery and other guitarist Derek Smallcombe in "It's A Way To Pass The Time" – Smallcombe getting heavy too on his "Good Times, Bad Lines". 

You would not call this kind of Psych an easy listen by any means, but this JASON CREST 2CD Anthology is yet another reason why Grapefruit are so liked by collectors – they tread where others won't go and deliver every time...

"An Apple A Day" by APPLE – February 1969 UK Debut LP on Page One Records in Stereo - featuring Jeff Harrad, Robert Ingram, Denis Regan, Charlie Barber and Dave Brassington and Producer Caleb Quaye of Hookfoot and The Elton John Band (September 2020 UK Grapefruit Records Expanded Edition CD Reissue – Oli Hemingway Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...

This Review Along With 324 Others Is Available In My

SOUNDS GOOD E-Book on all Amazon sites
CADENCE / CASCADE 

PROG ROCK, PSYCH, AVANT GARDE...
And Others Genres Thereabouts
Exceptional CD Remasters

Covering 1967 to 1977 - It Also Focuses On

Fusion Rock, Acid Folk, Art Rock and Underground 

Just Click Below To Purchase

Thousands of E-Pages - All Details and In-Depth Reviews From Discs

(No Cut and Paste Crap)

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"...Full Of Flavour..."

History is a double-edged sword when remembering, and I'd argue never more so than for the five-piece Welsh Psych-boys of APPLE. To understand the magnificence of this September 2020 Expanded Edition CD reissue from those hairy-men over at the much-loved Grapefruit Records, some musical backdrop is needed. 

In 2017, a Stereo (playable Mono) copy of the February 1969 LP "An Apple A Day" by Apple on Page One POLS 016 sold for a staggering four grand on a well-known auction site – the kind of Psych and Freakbeat rarity that makes fans of the genre sell small babies to unscrupulous piranha to acquire. And at that time little was known about the group in any discography anywhere – nearly half a century after the event. The band Apple and their fantastically grungy lone album were largely unknowns, which in some ways only added to the mystique. 

For this Grapefruit Records CD remaster and reissue, founder member and Bassist Jeff Harrad has finally come forth and upset the you-know-what cart by giving us a blow-by-blow account of the band's woes with Larry Page's Page One Records – a rushed signing to a London maverick they all came to bitterly regret. In fact the material is licensed from Harrad - remastered by OLI HEMINGWAY at The Wax Works and annotated by the much-lauded DAVID WELLS of Grapefruit Records (all good names amongst collectors). 

Page was a cheapskate on a gargantuan level. In a 20-page booklet, there are only three photographs of the band and they are in black and white because Page wouldn't pay for colour. The three 'demo' recordings they made with guitarist and future Hookfoot and Elton John Band member CALEB QUAYE as Producer at De Lane Lea Studios were only meant to be just that - demos. Then at another session in Page's Oxford Street studios, they recorded more demos only to find that instead of doing proper studio variants, Page slap-dashed the lot together and that became their February 1969 debut album. 

The front cover was a shot Page had borrowed from (wait for it) 'The Apple And Pair Development Council' of Great Britain and the album inexplicably contained a four-page insert of 'the juicy, full of flavour and crisp' nature of English Apples and Pears. It offered meringue recipes with further instructions on how to keep the fruits and ripen them - and even had a colour-coded calendar on their availability in English shops throughout the year (don't you just love it). Absolutely naught to do with the group or the wild music contained within the LP. The rear cover misspelled two of the band member names (Harrad as Harrod and Denis with two n’s) and the track list was arse-about face too. And worst of all of course, despite favourable press reviews, their debut barely made into any collection anywhere – hence its rarity value. In fact Harrad advises that keyboardist Charlie Barber was so appalled when he saw and heard the finished LP that he drew a nail across the tracks so they couldn't be played again. 

But here's the historical rub. The very kiss-me-quick nature of the demos where the fuzzed-up Psych guitar of Robert Ingram and Piano tinkles of Charlie Barber do battle with the barely audible drums of Dave Brassington, the vocals of Denis Regan and the bass of Jeff Harrad - gives the solos, passionate performances and sonic assault a wallop that polished studio variants would probably have lacked. This is a wee brute of a listen – so uncouth – and yet so bloody alive because of that. Page wouldn't have cared one way or the other at the time even if perfectionists in the band were appalled, but their mistakes then are a boon to us now – this being the kind of whig-out Syd Barrett Pink Floyd-esque sound subsequent collectors of the Psych genre worship at the feet of - and rightly so. 

Time to get Bramley Cake and Crumble on this sucker, here are the CD reissue details...

UK released Friday, 25 September 2020 - "An Apple A Day" by APPLE on Grapefruit records CRSEG079 (Barcode 5013929187924) is an Expanded Edition CD Reissue and Remaster in a Card Digipak that plays out as follows (52:30 minutes):

1. Let's Take A Trip Down The Rhine [Side 1]
2. Doctor Rock 
3. The Otherside
4. Mr. Jones 
5. The Mayville Line 
6. Pretty Girl I Love You 
7. Rock Me Baby [Side 2]
8. Buffalo Billycan
9. Photograph 
10. Psycho Daisies 
11. Sporting Life 
12. Queen Of Hearts Blues
Tracks 1 to 12 are their debut and only album "An Apple A Day" - released February 1969 in the UK on Page One Records POLS 016 in Stereo

BONUS TRACKS:
13. Let's Take A Trip Down The Rhine (Mono Single Version) 
14. Buffalo Billycan (Mono Single Version) 
Tracks 13 and 14 are the A&B-sides of their debut UK 45-single released October 1968 on Page One POF 101

15. Doctor Rock (Mono Single Version)
16. The Otherside (Mono Single Version)  
Tracks 15 and 16 are the A&B-sides of their 2nd and last UK 45-single released December 1968 on Page One POF 110

The card digipak has a promo photo of the five-piece on one inner flap whilst a Grapefruit Records advert for other product lies beneath the see-through CD tray. DAVID WELLS has done a typically excellent job on the 20-page booklet and presentation. The genesis of Apple goes back to 1963 and a thriving Cardiff band on the popular R&B scene called Vance & The Vauqeros that featured drummer David Brassington and singer Denis Regan. Bassist Jeff Harrad came up through the ranks of another popular five-piece combo called Brother John & The Witnesses – both suited-and-booted beat groups are pictured on Pages 4 and 5 of the booklet. There are foreign pictures sleeves for the two 1968 singles hat preceded the album, a full repro of the ludicrous Apples and Pears insert and a fascinating flyer repro on Page 8 for a 25 June 1969 gig at the Paget Rooms in Penarth showcasing The Apple and support act, The Budgie (now there’s a noisy rocking gig). 

Apple (nothing to do with The Beatles of their label) managed two UK 45-singles in their short duration as band, both of which are pictured on the last page of the booklet in stock and demo copy form alongside a rare two-track Emidisc Acetate dated 7 September 1968 for their debut 7" single - "Take A Trip Down The Rhine" and "Buffalo Billycan" (see photos provided). I always wondered why the poppier "Let's Take A Trip Down The Rhine" debut 45 is listed in the Record Collector Rare Records Price Guide at more than "Doctor Rock" b/w "The Otherside" - because in my mind both sides of the second are way better - a genuinely stunning piece of mad Psych guitar frenzy that still amazes. 

As for the LP, of the twelve songs, you got nine originals and three contemporary covers - "Rock Me Baby" by Muddy Waters, "Psycho Daisies" by The Yardbirds and "Sporting Life" by Brownie McGhee. I love the Syd Barrett Floyd-era feel to "Mr. Jones" and the great grunge-drive of "The Mayville Line" despite its less than stellar Production values. Robbo (as the LP called him) puts in some fantastic guitar in "The Otherside" and although Grapefruit's Wells argues that the three covers dilute the original material and overall impact, I personally couldn't disagree more. The Bluesy "Sporting Life" is excellent and guitar frenzy is everywhere on the Morgan Mackinleyfield (Muddy Waters) classic "Rock Me Baby". We never do find out who the Brass Section is on one of the album's highlights - "Queen Of Hearts Blues" - and the delightfully titled "Buffalo Billycan" is surely the masterpiece 45-single Syd's version of Sixties Pink Floyd never made. 

For sure this kind of Psych and Freakbeat will not be everyone's idea of a pleasant punt down the canals of Oxford sipping tea and dreaming of strawberry spongecake. It's a snarler and I'd argue all the more brill for it (there is a reason why some collector parted with four large ones for an album listed at less than half that price). 

"...This is where their progress lies..." wrote Producer Caleb Quaye on the final line of his original 1969 liner notes. Well 51 years on, this unfairly forgotten band and we once-clueless admirers of them and their lone LP have at last progressed some, and we have Grapefruit Records of the UK to thank for it. Well done to all involved and nose bleeds to the rest...