"Steve McQueen" by PREFAB SPROUT. Their Stunning 1985 Album Is Given A Beautiful New Remaster & Brilliantly Reinterpreted Acoustic Versions On A 'Legacy Edition' 2CD Reissue in 2007 - A Review by Mark Barry....

"...You Surely Are...A Truly Gifted Kid..." 

Following on from their hugely promising February 1984 debut “Swoon" - England's PREFAB SPROUT took many English and Irish hearts by storm in the summer and autumn of 1985 with their stunning 2nd album "Steve McQueen".

Rated by many as being in the Top 50 albums of all time - this 2 April 2007 'Legacy Edition' Reissue of "Steve McQueen" by PREFAB SPROUT on Sony BMG/Legacy/Kitchenware 88697072442 is a long overdue 2CD celebration of that bedsit staple - the album Remastered on Disc 1 with brand new Paddy McAloon interpretations on Disc 2 of 8 songs (beautifully recorded and done). Here’s the layout…

Disc 1 "Steve McQueen – Original Album Remastered" (45:13 minutes):

1. Faron Young [Side 1]

2. Bonny

3. Appetite

4. When Love Breaks Down

5. Goodbye Lucille No. 1

6. Hallelujah

7. Moving The River [Side 2]

8. Horsin’ Around

9. Desire As

10. Blueberry Pies

11. When The Angels

Tracks 1 to 11 are the album "Steve McQueen " - issued June 1985 in the UK on Kitchenware Records KW 3 (Vinyl, Cassette and CD). The US version was called "Two Wheels Good" for contractual reasons and was issued on Epic 40100.  The US CD version contained 3 bonus tracks - "Faron Young (Truckin' Mix)", "The Yearning Loins" and "He'll Have To Go" - they were not included on the UK version - nor unfortunately included here on this reissue either. This Legacy reissue is remastered by original producer THOMAS DOLBY at The Mastering Lab in Los Angeles  - he also contributes recollections to the liner notes.

Disc 2 – "New Acoustic Versions by Paddy McAloon" (35:00 minutes):

1. Appetite

2. Bonny

3. Desire As

4. When Love Breaks Down

5. Goodbye Lucille No. 1

6. Moving The River

7. Faron Young

8. When The Angels

Tracks 1 to 8 are brand new acoustic re-interpretations by Paddy McAloon (band's principal songwriter) of 8 tracks from the original 11 - they were recorded across the summer of 2006.

The 2CDs are housed in a card gatefold digipak (where's the Legacy Edition Protective Plastic outer wrap?), have motorbike logos on the CDs and a scant 12-page booklet with liner notes by PAUL LESTER. There are some new photos - outtakes from the album cover shoot, but bizarrely the original inner sleeve of the LP depicting the members of the band and giving recording details - is missing. But worse is the lack of musical extras. Between October 1984 and as late as February 1986, no less than 6 singles came off the album in the UK - When Love Breaks Down was put out 3 times  - Faron Young, Appetite and Johnny Johnny were issued also - between them and their multiple formats, they produced as many as 12 unreleased B-sides and mixes. As you can see from the playing time on both discs, there was plenty of room for remasters of these rarities. They will probably never see the light of day now - which is maddening - especially on a supposed collector's edition. However, the other way of looking at it is this - presented as is - this reissue forces you to focus 'only' on the album proper - and the new acoustic tracks - and as they stand - they make for a truly sensational listen. So I can see why McAloon would want the album presented in this way, it's just disappointing not to see those non-album tracks that are not on CD anywhere...

Which brings us to the 1st part of the good news - THE SOUND. Like many who've loved this wonderful record, I've had the cramped vinyl LP and dull sounding original CD for over 20 years now - hoping for a good reissue of it at some point. Well this Thomas Dolby remaster is just BEAUTIFUL - clean, muscular and full of presence. Hearing the sublime "Bonny" in this sound quality is a treat no music lover should be without - and that synth solo - wow! And when you think of how awful a lot of Eighties music sounds now - so dated and over-produced - musically the whole album still holds it own. So many great tracks "Moving The River", "Desire As" and the Johnny Johnny song "Goodbye Lucille No.1" A really sweet remaster by Dolby. But the real fireworks and good news number two start on Disc 2...

Few would have expected that Acoustic Reinterpretations would be this good - or even rival and better the originals - but here they do. It's hard to understate just how stunning these beautifully recorded remakes are - I've been playing them to buggery for over 18 months now and still don't tire of them. I made up a shop-play disc of 7 tracks from Ryan Adams' "Easy Tiger" album from 2007 with 7 from this - and every time I play it, it never fails to bring customers to the counter with looks of `discovery' on theirs faces wanting to know "Who is this!!!"

To sum up - despite the ok-only packaging and lack of those b-sides - this is a 5-star reissue of a 6-star album - a must buy. I will go weak at the knees if the same treatment is planned for the equally magnificent "Jordon: The Comeback"...

“The Complete Blue Horizon Sessions” by SUNNYLAND SLIM and JOHNNY SHINES [Featuring Their Rare 1969 Albums “Midnight Jump” and “Last Night’s Dream”] - A Review by Mark Barry...

“…Got A Lean On My Body…Mortgage On My Soul…” 

 The Complete Blue Horizon Sessions by SUNNYLAND SLIM and JOHNNY SHINES (2008 Sony/Blue Horizon CD Remasters)

This February 2008 UK released 23-track CD features two very rare blues albums from 1969 in their entirety along with three previously unreleased outtakes from the original sessions - and all of it in top quality digitally remastered form. Here are sunny details...

"The Complete Blue Horizon Sessions" by SUNNYLAND SLIM and JOHNNY SHINES on Sony/Blue Horizon 88697192172 (Barcode 886971921724) offers 2LPs Remastered onto 1CD that comes with Three Bonus Tracks. It plays out as follows (78:36 minutes):

1. Layin’ In My Cell, Sleepin’

2. I Am The Blues

3. Sunnyland Special

4. Heartache

5. Lowland Blues

6. Stepmother

7. Get To My Baby (Take 2)

8. Get To My Baby (Take 3)

9. Stella Mae

10. Midnight Jump (Take 3)

11. Midnight Jump

12. Depression Blues

13. Heartache (Alternative Version)

Tracks 1 to 6, 8, 9, 11 and 12 are the 10-track SUNNYLAND SLIM album "Midnight Jump" issued in January 1969 on Blue Horizon S 7-63213 in the UK. It wasn't issued initially in the USA - but was re-issued in 1972 with a different cover and name - "Blues Masters Vol.8" on Blue Horizon BM 4608.

Track 7, 10 and 13 are PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED – new to this CD

All tracks were recorded at Chess's "Ter-Mar Recording Studios" in Chicago on 10 June 1968 - corrected from the album's sleeve notes that mistakenly credited the recording date as May 1968.

14. Solid Gold

15. From Dark ‘Til Dawn

16. I Will Be Kind To You

17. Last Night’s Dream

18. Baby Don’t You Think I Know

19. Pipeline Blues

20. I Don’t Know

21. Black Panther

22. I Had A Good Home

23. Mean Fisherman

Tracks 14 to 23 are the 10-track JOHNNY SHINES album "Last Night's Dream" issued in January 1969 on Blue Horizon S 7-63212 in the UK; like the Sunnyland Slim album, it was also re-issued only in 1972 in the USA with a different cover and name - "Blues Masters Vol.8" on Blue Horizon BM 4607

The band for both sessions were:

SUNNYLAND SLIM (Albert Luandrew) on Piano & Vocals (Tracks 1 to 13 only)

JOHNNY SHINES on Guitar (All tracks except 3, 5 and 13)

WALTER "SHAKEY" HORTON on Harmonica (All tracks except 3 and 13)

OTIS SPANN on Piano (Track 19 only)

WILLIE DIXON on Upright Bass (All tracks except 13 to 17, 20, 22 and 23)

CLIFTON JAMES on Drums (All tracks except 13, 14, 17 and 22)

The original master tapes were transferred and remastered by SEAN LYNCH at Torch Music in Berkshire and SIMON WOOD at Dubmaster Studios in Hampshire and while Sunnyland Slim's album is clean, clear and ballsy sounding - the Johnny Shines album is very hissy on a good few of the tracks. Don't get me wrong - his music is very good - eerie almost - but the hiss level and tape glitches on "I Don't Know" and "I Had A Good Home" do detract a little (four session reels are missing).

The 16-page booklet is written by label boss MIKE VERNON and features detailed biographies on the two main men and each of the session players, album recording details, photos of the original LP covers - all of it in the usual card wrap on the outside - superbly presented as ever.

Musically, this is a deceptive release - at first I honestly thought it was all a little dull - merely workmanlike - but after a few listens - it's eaten into me - especially the Shines tracks. Badly recorded or not - they're wonderfully evocative of lone-guitar-blues - the ghost of Robert Johnson hanging over every long-fingered string bend. And even more enticing is that 17 of the 23 tracks are self-penned by both artists (the other 6 are covers) - which is impressive indeed given their overall quality. 

Both men had great voices and are complimented to the ninth degree by both DIXON and HORTON. Highlights include the Harmonica Driven instrumental "Lowland Blues" and a mighty Johnny Shines version of Robert Johnson's "Baby Don't You Think I Know (aka Sweet Home Chicago)" with Horton again blowing up some great Harmonica fills. The shuffle of "I Will Be Kind To You" is as infectious as blues gets - just lovely. Can't stop playing it. The three outtakes are complete versions too and it's hard to know why Take 3 was used and not Take 2 - they're equal to each other.

To sum up – this is yet another classy release from the Blue Horizon camp in a long line of them. Give this superb CD a chance - it has rewards aplenty, it really does…

“Bringing It All Back Home” by IAN CLAYTON (2007 Debut Book) A Review by Mark Barry...

"...People Try To Put Us Down…Talking About My Generation…"

As I cycle into work from the Hawaiian splendiferousness of sunny Walthamstow in East London to the sheer glamour fest of wee-wee-in-doorways that is Berwick Street in Central London, I’m constantly reminiscing - and I mean almost all of the time. In September 2008 I turned 50 - so it’s probably the age.

Moments just keep coming back to me – and bits of music too. Like “Diamonds Are Forever” by John Barry, a film I mitched school 5 times to see. Walking proudly across the schoolyard with a copy of Rory Gallagher’s “Live In Europe” under my arms knowing it to be an object of unbridled lust for other kids in my class. Meeting August Darnell of Kid Creole & The Coconuts at Dublin Airport the day after their National Stadium gig where the crowd went absolutely bananas and invaded the stage in a salsa train (“You guys can party!”). The Celtic folk-rock of Horslips on the back of a truck at a Sunday Fair in 1971, Phil Lynott busking at the bottom of Grafton Street again in 1971 with his fantastically wild hair and other-worldly exoticness, The Specials supporting the John 'Gypie’ Mayo line-up of Dr. Feelgood in 1978 (best gig ever), the awesome Bon Scott line-up of AC/DC on a cold Monday night in the Camden Ballroom in Dublin on the “Highway To Hell” tour – all of it mind-blowing…

Why mention all of these precious memories – because this book is full of that – moments in time – and most of them related to music. Ian Clayton is from Yorkshire in England - and although many of his vignettes and anecdotes are British-based - the appeal is Universal. “Bringing It All Back Home” (pictured above is the hardback below and paperback edition above it) isn't a story as such - it's chapter after chapter of great musical remembrances that will tickle pink anyone of my generation. It chronicles the years - the floor cushions and lava lamps of the Sixties segue into the cheesecloth shirts and Oxford bags of the Seventies. It quickly moves on up to the blue Mohican haircuts of Punk, onwards to hissing purists in the audiences of Left-Wing operas in the Eighties and Nineties and finally arrives at the new Portishead offering lodged in a CD player for weeks on end. And it's bloody funny too. There’s flashbacks to Sergeant Tommy Chapman of the West Riding Constabulary who arrested Hendrix in the tiny town of Ilkley for being too loud – onwards to an in-depth discussion about harnessing aggression with the drummer in The Gang of Four in the frankly award-winning toilets of the Pontefract Town Hall. It lovingly recalls Hamish Imlach’s room-clearing farts and a best friend’s mother passing judgement on the Beatles who were decamped in her hotel, “Their shoes were perfect – every mother looks at shoes…”
As you've already guessed - it's wonderful stuff - and there's lots of it to savour.

And I also love Clayton’s use of nouns as a powerful evoker. Paul Simon won a Grammy for a song called “Rene & Georgette Magritte With Their Dog After The War” on his hugely underrated “Hearts & Bones” LP in 1983. The beautifully crafted chorus talks of an immigrant couple that find a keepsake in a drawer that reminds them of “…The Moonglows, The Orioles and The Five Satins”. Simon doesn’t say ‘Vocal Groups’ or ‘Doo Wop Music‘ like a lazy writer would – he uses their names – he uses the power of nouns. Clayton does this in almost every line. Names of bars, streets, relations, friends, places he’s been too, nick names given to candy and food – album titles, label colours on 45’s, gigs, characters at those gigs - the effect is to make you remember stuff and places and people you’d long forgotten – and love every second of it. His tastes are varied and eclectic too - waxing lyrical about the ethereal beauty of singers like Kate Rusby and Dwight Yoakham, Iris deMent and John Lydon, Buddy Holly and Bessie Smith, Chris Farlowe and Mary Coughlan, John Martyn and Elmore James, Louis Jordon and Buffy Sainte-Marie. This is a book about a man who holds up the different picture sleeves of “Anarchy In The UK” and literally trembles at the sight of them. This is my kind of guy. I sat down to read a chapter a night and came to it like a conversation with a good friend about a subject you both love.

But then towards the end comes an unexpected hammering – he and his long-time partner suffer a crushing personal blow – and you then realize why the remembrances that preceded this are so full of warmth and humanity – they’ve been written by a man who has suffered horrible personal loss and it has imbibed his writing with a quiet thankfulness for moments that seemed almost inconsequential then but are huge now. Details matter - and music that moved and shaped you – does too.

Which brings us to music in general…what is it about men and their music? Be it Soul, Reggae, Rock, Jazz, Folk, Blues, Punk, Rock ‘n’ Roll, Dance, Hip-Hop – or all of it combined? I think it’s that it keeps us young – a buzz you never get over – its forever discovering something new and brill. You see I’m the kind of soppy git who works in a record shop all day and goes out at lunchtime and goes into another record shop. 
My better half says it’s a disease – she pats me on the head like a child and hands me “Sticky Fingers” to placate the poor eejet.
”There you go dear…I’ll be back in forty-five minutes with “Who’s Next”…”
“Yum! Yum!” comes the response.

If you’re the kind of person who gets moist in the trouser area about the bits revealed under the die-cut holes as you turn the cardboard wheel on the sleeve Led Zeppelin III, if you’re the kind of moo who tingles as you open out the rare poster in the Dead Kennedys “Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables” or smiles wildly at any photograph of the wonderful and sorely missed John Peel – then this homage to music and its wondrous effect on the very soul of a person is the bedside buddy for you.

I loved this book – a life well remembered and a lovely read.
Rave On John Dunne…you seeker of truth and inner peace…

"Songs For Beginners" by GRAHAM NASH (October 2008 Rhino CD and DVD AUDIO 2-Disc Set) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"…I Watched You Go Through Changes That No Man Should Face Alone…"

With Stephen Stills and David Crosby having produced absolute storming debut albums in November 1970 and March 1971, Graham Nash's quietly lovely opener didn't disappoint either. In fact in the early Seventies - it seemed like everything the combined and individual talents of CSYN did was magical.

This October 2008 2-Disc DELUXE EDITION of "Songs For Beginners" by GRAHAM NASH on Rhino/Atlantic 8122-79949-3 (Barcode 081227994938) celebrates his June 1971 debut album with a Remastered Stereo Remix of the stand alone first disc - while the second disc is a 5.1 DVD Audio Mix. You need a DVD player to hear the second disc that contains a DVD Interview about his Photography featuring a Gallery of Stills, Photo-Backed Lyrics & Web Links.

"Songs For Beginners" was released in June 1971 on Atlantic SD 7204 in the USA and Atlantic 2401 011 in the UK. The album featured many famous guests (one is uncredited), so here's a detailed breakdown (33:47 minutes):

1. Military Madness 

[DAVE MASON of Traffic on Guitar with RITA COOLIDGE on Backing Vocals]

2. Better Days 

[NEIL YOUNG (credited as Joe Yankee) on Piano, SEEMON POSTHUMA of THE FOOL on Clarinet, RITA COOLIDGE on Backing Vocals with DALLAS TAYLOR of CSYN and MANASSAS on Drums]

3. Wounded Bird 

[GN all instruments and voices]

4. I Used To Be A King 

[NEIL YOUNG (credited as Joe Yankee) on Piano, JERRY GARCIA on Steel Guitar with PHIL LESH on Bass (both of THE GRATEFUL DEAD) and DAVID CROSBY on Electric Guitar]

5. Be Yourself 

[RITA COOLIDGE on Piano, Electric Piano and Backing Vocals]

6. Simple Man 

[DAVID LINDLEY on Fiddle, DORIAN RUDNYTSKY of THE NEW YORK ROCK & ROLL ENSEMBLE on Cello with RITA COOLIDGE on backing Vocals]

7. Man In The Mirror 

[NEIL YOUNG [credited as Joe Yankee] on Piano, JERRY GARCIA of THE GRATEFUL DEAD on Steel Guitar, CHRIS ETHERIDGE of THE FLYING BURRITO BROTHERS on Bass]

8. There's Only One 

[RITA COOLIDGE on Piano & Backing Vocals, CHRIS ETHERIDGE on Bass, BOBBY KEYS on Saxophone with VANETTA FIELDS, SHIRLEY MATTHEWS, CLYDIE KING & DOROTHY MORRISON on Backing Vocals (The Blackberries)]

9. Sleep Song 

[DAVE MASON on Guitar with RITA COOLIDGE on Backing Vocals]

10. Chicago 

[DORIAN RUDNYTSKY on Cello]

11. We Can Change The World 

[RITA COOLIDGE, VANETTA FIELDS...DOROTHY MORRISON on Backing Vocals]

The 20-page booklet has an essay on the album and its star-studded background by noted writer DAVID FRICKE - it features Session Photos, Lyrics, Detailed recording and reissue credits - and even a picture of the master tapes.

But for fans the big news is the SOUND. The CD album has been Stereo Remixed & Remastered and the quality isn't just good - it's fabulous - BREATHTAKING.  "Better Days" has a very quiet Piano and Vocal Intro - it's spotlessly clean - and when the band kicks in - it's an absolute wow! The mastering is credited to DOUG SAX and SANGWOOK NAM at The Mastering Lab, Ojai - and they should both be Grammy nominated for it. "Days" is followed by the Acoustic and Vocal-only of "Wounded Bird" (a song for Stephen Stills and Judy Collins and their troubled relationship) and it's a lovely as it gets - BEAUTIFULLY restored. The delicately aching Cello work of Dorian Rudnytsky combines with Rita Coolidge's Backing Vocals on "Simple Man" to genuinely touching effect, while Jerry Garcia's Steel Guitar on "Man In the Mirror" adds a lot from an instrument you wouldn't expect from him. And on three tracks there's Neil Young - plinking away - putting in genuinely superb Piano work (he was credited as Joe Yankee for legal reasons). 

I find the 2nd disc, however, problematic. I don't have a DVD AUDIO player and 99% of the planet doesn't either - it's a dead format. Disc 2 features the entire album in Advanced Resolution 5.1 Surround Sound, Dolby Digital & DTS - wonderful stuff guys - if I could play it! But the really disappointing part is the complete lack of anything new - no outtakes, no demos - not even a live recording. However - and although it's completely unrelated to the album - things improve on the DVD part of the disc - it contains an interview with Nash about his lifetime obsession with black and white photography - and its fascinating - a lovely man, intelligent, sensitive - and you suspect a real peacekeeper among huge egos that often got out of hand. Then there's the gallery of images (he explains many of them in the interview) - I won't spoil it too much for those who are going to buy this except to say that there are captured moments on here of Joni, Neil, Stills and especially his lifetime pal David Crosby that will reduce some people to tears.

To sum up - a beautifully realized first disc - with a slightly odd and unrepresentative 2nd. Still - for fans of the album - this is a no brainer - the gorgeous remaster means you simply have to own it...

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"The Complete Blue Horizon Sessions" by BACON FAT and GEORGE SMITH. Rare 1970-1971 Albums, 7" Singles and Unreleased Stuff.

This 36-Track 2CD set allocates Disc 1 to BACON FAT and Disc 2 to GEORGE SMITH. Disc 1 is loosely based around Bacon Fat's 1st LP for the Blue Horizon label "Grease One For Me" from 1970 and Disc 2 around George Smith's sole LP for the label "No Time For Jive" from 1971. In between these two albums are a rare 7" single and a wad of previously unreleased live material.

Here's the layout:

Disc 1 (79:10 minutes): BACON FAT
Tracks 1 to 10 are the "Grease One For Me" Blue Horizon album from 1970 (7-63858)
Tracks 11 and 12 are the A&B sides of a 1970 7" single on Blue Horizon (57-3181, "Evil" and "Blues Feeling", both tracks are non-album)
Tracks 13 to 20 are previously unreleased live tracks (see 9 to 16 on Disc 2)

Disc 2 (74:38 minutes): GEORGE SMITH
Tracks 1 to 8 are the "No Time For Jive" Blue Horizon album from 1971 (7-63856)
Tracks 9 to 16 (as well as 13 to 20 on Disc 1) are previously unreleased live tracks by BACON FAT and GEORGE SMITH recorded at Hull, Bexley, Leicester, Plymouth and other UK locations during their November 1970 tour

The band BACON FAT was essentially a vehicle for ROD PIAZZA and his superb `chromatic' harmonica playing - loud, live and gutsy! The band line-up on Disc 1 includes BUDDY REED and GREGG SCHAEFER on Guitars, J.D. NICHOLSON on Piano with JERRY SMITH on Bass and DICK INNES on Drums. Track 5 only, "I Need Your Love", features J.D. NICHOLSON on Leads Vocals and Piano, while Track 8 only, "Telephone Blues", features GEORGE SMITH on Lead Vocals and Harmonica.

The album "Grease One For Me" has Little Milton and Smiley Lewis covers, 2 Rod Piazza originals ("Small's On 53rd" and "She's A Wrong Woman") and a lone contribution from J.D. Nicholson on "I Need Your Love". Recorded in Hollywood in November 1969 in one hectic day, the music is harmonica driven rockers and slow blues - and is a blast from start to finish. Listed at £50 in the price guides, good luck with trying to find a vinyl original; I've only ever seen two copies of it in 15 years of mail-ordering rare records - so it's a welcome re-issue here then.
(If you really need convincing, go to the iTunes store and download "Telephone Blues" for 79p - you'll soon want more! They do the entire 2CD set for £7.99, but I prefer the hard copy.)

Born in Arkansas in 1924, GEORGE SMITH was already a 30-year harmonica veteran by the time he stepped into the Eldorado Recording Studios in Hollywood in November of 1969 to record his album. Smith's playing and singing is similar to Little Walter - his blues both ballsy and fun - and equally at home with either. You've probably noticed that the "No Time For Jive" album has only 8 tracks, 3 of which are over 7 minutes long. Vernon comments on this in his liner notes by saying that he felt they were "too" long - and a bit of `producer' editing at the time - along with 3 or 4 more selections readied for the day - would have produced an absolute barnstormer of an album. He's right. But what is there is simply sensational - great rocking harmonica blues that left this aging white boy breathless with admiration! Listed at a whopping £120 in the price guides, and released months AFTER the tour value of the November 1970 gigs had evaporated, it must have sold zip when it finally reached UK stores in the Spring of 1971. So again - a welcome re-issue of a genuine rarity.

The 17 previously unreleased live tracks spread across both discs have a story all to their own. A UK tour was booked for BACON FAT and GEORGE SMITH for May and June of 1970, but it was postponed until November of that year. Although poorly attended in the middle of a cold winter, the acts played their hearts out - and we can now hear that because armed with his Sony TCD-3 and 2 Microphones, Mike Vernon followed the tour around and taped it! His notes explain that he never thought the recordings would be usable - he just wanted a document of the event. Some 36 years later, he rummages around his attic, finds the tapes, "bakes" them to get rid of oxidization - and boom! Here they are! And the results are just fantastic. If it hadn't been for Vernon, we would never have heard these gems. Dedication and love of the subject folks! Many of the live tracks are covers of blues standards. One particular highlight is "Forty Four" which has a preamble by George doing an accurate and hilarious impersonation of the mighty Howlin' Wolf! He talks about the blues ala "Wolf" much to the crowd and band's delight. Great stuff! Also, as Vernon has sequenced the tracks virtually without gaps, you get the feel of one long live concert in the same place - clever. Best of all is that each and every one of the 17 is a more than worthy addition to an already great release.

So there you have it. Two ludicrously rare albums, a 7" single you're never gonna see in your lifetime, all topped off with an entire album's worth of primo previously unreleased material. Throw in a classy card wrap on the outside, knowledgeable, informative and heartfelt liner notes on the inside - and you get all this blues goodness for an online price of six miserly quid! Jeez the Breeze Baby and Great Googley Moo!! I've bought nine of the Blue Horizon releases to date and this one's been the best surprise of all!

A job well done and a stunning re-issue - buy it with confidence.

PS: George Smith, Gregg Schaefer and J.D. Nicholson have all unfortunately passed away, but Rod Piazza (pictured below) is still playing mean harmonica and has many CDs to his name - including one for November 2007 - "Thrillville" on Wiernerworld CDs out of the USA.

PPS: BACON FAT made other albums for Blue Horizon in the UK, but the label changed distributor from CBS to Polygram in late 1971 - and their 'jurisdiction' then and now changed ownership to the Universal group of labels - and so are outside the scope of this release. They may be released by Universal at some time in the future, but that remains to be seen...

"Fairytale" by DONOVAN. His 1965 2nd Album On CD.

Released in October 1965, Donovan's 2nd album for Pye Records is represented here by Tracks 1 to 12 and it's something of a lost Sixties Folk/Rock classic - Tracks 13 to 18 are bonuses - original LP and CD reissued pictured above)).

The album's opener "Colours" is a balls-to-the-wall 60's classic - it truly is. Fairytale" features a lot of tracks like that - just Donovan and his acoustic guitar - more Folk than Pop really. In fact, when you hear almost any track on this very hard-to-find LP, it's easy to see why Donovan was often referred to as Britain's Bob Dylan. And it wasn't just because of the similar vocal styles - they were both such good songwriters and commentators on the times.

Highlights include "The Ballad Of A Crystal Man" which is represented on this disc twice - the full album version and the edited EP version - it's a fantastically strong and emotive anti-Vietnam piece equal to anything his Bobness put out on the other side of the pond. Lyrically the other songs are equally clever and even witty too. There's a "violent hash smoker" in "Sunny Goodge Street", while a quietly sinister "Jersey Thursday" gives us sly white powder references, "on a tiny piece of coloured glass, my love was born - and reds, and golds and yellows were the colours of the dawn..." Oh yeah!!

The extras (13 to 18) also make the purchase so worthwhile for fans. "Turquoise" and "Hey GYP (Dig The Slowness)" are his 3rd 7" single for Pye Records and both tracks are non-album. The last four songs, "Universal Soldier", "Do You Hear Me Now", "Ballad Of A Crystal Man" and "The War Drags On" are again non-album and make up the 4-tracks of the rare UK-only "Universal Soldier EP" from September 1965. ("Universal Soldier" and "Do You Hear Me Now" were released as a 7" in the States on Hickory).

So - a good album bolstered up with relevant bonuses. And the remastered sound quality on all is excellent too - very clear and not excessively hissy like some Sixties recordings can be.

"Fairytale" is a snip at any price for fans and a great way of discovering the wildly underrated Donovan for the uninitiated - especially those who want to veer away from his better-known hits. Highly Recommended.

"Make It Good" by PRINCE PHILLIP MITCHELL – Debut Album from August 1978 on Atlantic Records – Featuring Ray Barretto (November 2007 Rhino 'CLASSIC SOUL ALBUM - REMASTERED & EXPANDED' CD Reissue – Bill Inglot Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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SOUL, FUNK and JAZZ FUSION 
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"…I'm Gonna Make A Move That You've Never Seen Before…"

Now here's a smart reissue from Rhino (yet again). Louisville's PRINCE PHILLIP MITCHELL is one of the great unsung-heroes of Soul Music – a staggeringly prolific songwriter who’s been penning hits in both the Pop and R&B fields since the Sixties. 

Mitchell also had Solo singles of his own on Smash, Shout and Hi Records in the States (Jay Boy and London in the UK) with his compositions were recorded in the 60's & 70's by artists as diverse as William Bell, Solomon Burke, Archie Bell, The Walker Brothers, The Zombies, The Moody Blues, Millie Jackson, Norman Connors and many more.

And that’s where this CD comes in… 

"Make It Good" (1978) and "Top Of The Line" (1979) are his first two Solo albums made for the mighty Atlantic Records at a time when Mitchell’s smooth and funky Soul was finally able to make inroads into the marketplace and people's hearts. Here are the details…

UK released November 2007 - "Make It Good"by PRINCE PHILLIPS MITCHELL on Rhino 8122-76433-2 (Barcode 081227643324) is part of their 'Classic Soul Album - Remastered and Expanded' CD Series that breaks down as follows (54:07 minutes):

1. Star In The Ghetto [Side 1]

2. You're All I Got In The World

3. One On One

4. Falling From Heaven

5. You'll Throw Bricks At Him [Side 2]

6. Make It Good

7. If I Can't Be Your Man

8. Only Smoke Remains

Tracks 1 to 8 are a remastered version of the LP "Make It Good" released in the USA on Atlantic SD 19160 in August 1978

BONUS TRACKS:

9. One On One (Long Single Version) - the June 1978 USA 7" single on Atlantic 3480 - this is the rare DJ promo version, which extends the album's four-minute album cut by another 40 seconds

10. What Part Of Heaven Do You Come From? - a duet vocal with RAY BARRETTO that first appeared on Barretto's 1978 album "Can You Feel It" on Atlantic SD 19198

"Make It Good" has been remastered by Rhino's long-time tape engineer BILL INGLOT and the sound is typically great - warm, funky and with plenty of wallop without having to turn it up. There is hiss evident on some of the quieter tracks like "Only Smoke Remains" but its nothing too much to detract. The booklet has an essay on the album and artist by noted writer CHARLES WARING with typically insightful comments. The whole reissue feels classy.

Highlights include the lovely ballad "You're All I Got In The World" which sounds like "Let's Get It On" Marvin Gaye  - while his most famous song - "One On One" has become a huge Northern Soul dance floor filler in the UK - with a groove and lyrics to match (title above).  "You'll Throw Bricks At Him" sounds like "Hercules" by The Meters - funky as James Brown's DNA - the strings then kick in - it's just so good. The two bonuses are excellent too - the ballad with Ray Barretto is very loverman territory (a master's degree in making love baby...) but still so soulful - and the extended version of the huge "One On One" is icing on an already very nice cake.

"Make It Good" is old-school soul - an album that's not that well known - and should be. Hopefully this superb CD reissue will change all of that...

PS: This release is part of Rhino's "CLASSIC SOUL ALBUM - REMASTERED & EXPANDED" Series. Most titles are first time onto CD and are rare soul albums from the Warner/Atlantic/Cotillion/Elektra vaults:

1. Ace Spectrum - "Inner Spectrum" (see REVIEW)

2. Blue Magic - "Blue Magic" (see REVIEW)

3. Donny Hathaway - "Come Back Charleston Blue O.S.T." (see REVIEW)

4. Leroy Hutson - "Paradise" (see REVIEW)

5. Ronn Matlock - "Love City" (see REVIEW)

6. Gwen McCrae - "Gwen McCrae"

7. Gwen McCrae - "On My Way"
8. Prince Phillip Mitchell - "Make It Good" (1978 debut Lp on Atlantic)

9. Prince Phillip Mitchell - "Top Of The Line" (1979, his 2nd album on Atlantic)

10. The Voices Of East Harlem [featuring Donny Hathaway] -"Right On Be Free" (see REVIEW)