"A Day At The Races" by QUEEN - December 1976 Fifth Studio Album on EMI Records (Island/Queen Productions UK '2011 Digital Remaster' CD + Bonus EP Edition Reissue and Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...You Take My Breath Away..."

In tiny print on Page 4 of this rather ordinary looking Island Records/Queen Productions '2011 Digital Remaster' Reissue are the unsung heroes of the hour - Audio Restoration by KRIS FREDRICKSSON and Mastering by BOB LUDWIG - meticulously re-created from the original analogue master tapes.

And having heard this densely overdubbed and overpopulated album before on a previous CD incarnation - these claims aren't some marketing ploy or Marx Brothers joke. Only a few moments into the layered-guitars fade-in pomp of "Tie Your Mother Down" and you're in no doubt that its time to 'party down'. The clarity of the piano and vocal in the quieter passages of "The Millionaire Waltz" – that huge guitar solo on "You And I" - the wall of voices on "Somebody To Love" – it’s all magnificent and a world away from our humble Christmas LPs from 1976. Take My Breath Away indeed. Let's get to the Royal silverware right away...

UK released 14 March 2011 (17 May 2011 in the USA) - "A Day At The Races" by QUEEN on Island Records/Queen Productions 276 441 6 (Barcode 602527644165) is a '2011 Digital Remaster' Edition with a Bonus EP. There is also a single-disc version of "A Day In The Races" (minus the EP CD) that comes in a 'Super-Disc' rounded-corner jewel case and is on Island Records/Queen Productions 276 441 7 (Barcode 602527644172).

Disc 1 "A Day The Races" album - 44:29 minutes:

1. Tie Your Mother Down

2. You Take My Breath Away

3. Long Away

4. The Millionaire Waltz

5. You And I

6. Somebody To Love [Side 2]

7. White Man

8. Gold Old-Fashioned Lover Boy

9. Drowse

10. Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together)

Tracks 1 to 10 are their 5th studio album "A Day At The Races" - released December 1976 in the UK on EMI Records EMTC 104 and January 1977 in the USA on Elektra 6E-101. Played, Arranged and Produced by QUEEN (Engineered by MIKE STONE) - it peaked at No. 1 in the UK and No. 5 in the USA on the album charts.

Disc 2 "Bonus EP" - 22:33 minutes:

1. Tie Your Mother Down (Backing Track Mix 2011)

2. Somebody To Love (Live At Milton Keynes Bowl, June 1982)

3. You Take My Breath Away (Live In Hyde Park, September 1976)

4. Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy (Top Of The Pops, July 1977) (Mono)

5. Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together) (HD Mix)

It seems odd to me after all the obvious aural diligence spent on this reissue that someone at Island couldn't have come up with packaging that reflected the beauty of the original gatefold LP. Both "A Night At The Opera" and "A Day At The Races" famously reeked of visual opulence - embossed Queen Logo artwork – a lavish gatefold sleeve and inner - they 'felt' like an event as well as sounded like one. The square double jewel case and the 12-page booklet do the job for sure - but even though the lyrics are there - the four band member photos, some extra live shots and new liner notes on the Bonus EP (but not the album?) - it all feels dreadfully ordinary for a No. 1 record ("A Night At The Opera" had achieved the same rare chart status in December 1975). And frankly why have two editions when you could have had one with the EP added onto CD1 as extras tracks (there’s room)?

Recorded between July and November 1976 – the layering and scope of these songs is (even now) huge and yet still uniquely 'Queen'. You have to marvel at Brian May's distinctive guitar sound and his sixpence plectrums – those flourishes on the decidedly strange "White Man" – and then leaping from that to the acoustic simplicity of "Long Away" – a song I return to much more than all the others. Those swirling guitars that open Roger Taylor's "Drowse" sound just like its title - and again brilliant clarity as May's slide-guitar flourishes give a nod to Pink Floyd’s Dave Gilmour on "Wish You Were Here" from the year prior. The near six-minutes of the finale song "Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together)" allow Freddie Mercury space to show off his extraordinary vocal range as Brian plays Harmonium Piano. I’d forgotten how pretty the melody is – and that anthemic vocal passage before the Quadrophenia musical ending is pure Queen.

Bonus Tracks are often crap that should have stayed in the can – but the Bonus EP turns out to be actually worth of the moniker Bonus. It is truly bizarre to hear "Tie Your Mother Down" as an instrumental with partial vocals (Freddie’s lead is removed) – but it actually works and comes as a genuinely clever addition to the album’s canon. Widely regarded as their best performance of the vocal marathon that is "Somebody To Love" – the Milton Keynes performance makes up in sheer passion for what it lacks in fidelity (are you ready). Freddie previews the gorgeous “You Take My Breath Away” a full two months before the album’s release somehow getting the exited audience to ‘listen to this one’ – his vocal and piano mesmerizing – reminding you of his power as a live performer. It’s special stuff. The Mono Top Of The Pops cut of "Good old Fashioned Lover Boy" is the worst sounding track on here – but with different May guitar work – extra vocals from Roger and Freddie – it’s a collector’s nugget. First included on the Japan-Only "Jewels II" Box Set in 2005 – the High Definition Digital Mix of "Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together)" sounds spectacular for sure – but then so does the 2011 – both feeling like veils lifted in terms of audio.

Aside from my reservations about the presentation – this is a balls-to-the-wall triumph in the area that matters most – the sound. And thankfully that Bonus EP actually lives up to its name. Find a version to love – this is the one...

"Street-Legal" by BOB DYLAN - 1976 Studio Album on Columbia Records USA and CBS Records UK (September 2003 and March 2004 UK Sony CD Reissue with Greg Calbi Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...True Love Tends To Forget..."

You never can pin Bob Dylan down. Take the artwork for 1978's "Street- Legal" (itself apparently a phrase for a modified hoodlum’s car or a dodgy hot rod). He stands there all elusive-like outside the entrance to the makeshift Rundown Studios (as he called it) – looking to his left down a street from the safety of some steps and a layback. Dylan looks cool – alluding to something – seeing the bigger picture we mere fan-schmucks cannot see. He is after all the spokesperson for a generation – and a renewed one too since 1975 and the magisterial "Blood On The Tracks" LP that took the whole world by storm.

But then you turn over the cover to read the credits on the rear sleeve – and you’re presented with something truly garish and staggeringly unflattering – Dylan in what appears to be a white clown's outfit with mascara running down his face looking like he’s auditioning as an extra for the Alice Cooper Travelling Horror Show. It's a really crappy and unbecoming photo that no other artist would have let pass. But this is Bob Dylan - cool one moment - a putz and a let-down the next - a legend within a mystery within an enigma (and that's just the left leg)...

And in some ways that 'who gives a crap' attitude permeates everything about this much anticipated and yet (at the time) much derided LP. As one insider put it - "Street-Legal" was recorded in a week, mixed the week after and released regardless the week after that. The inference was of course that the new record was a rushed half-assed effort. And in some ways – recording-wise anyway – it is. His band entourage were supposed to be using Rundown Studios (in Santa Monica, California) as a rehearsal space for the Japanese Tour – so the material was recorded in a haphazard ad-hoc way (missed cues, vocals panning in and out etc) with the perceived idea that they’d return to the songs and the sessions and record them properly somewhere else. But Dylan liked what he had – describing it as "the closest to where I am" – and released the unwieldy poorly-recorded beast anyway (all 50 cramped-on-vinyl minutes of it).

The backlash also came from waiting. After the career highs of "Blood On The Tracks" in 1975 and "Desire" in 1976 and the filler live album "Hard Rain" in late 1976 – by June 1978 anticipation for more studio goodies was at fever pitch. As I recall the public liked/disliked "Street Legal" in equal measure - but critics were less kind – especially the famous Greil Marcus review which once again dragged out the 'crap' word whilst throwing in 'fake' and 'sexist' too for good measure (lyrics in "New Pony" stood accused). Dylan reacted angrily saying that even if the Production values weren't exactly Steely Dan – the music was good and his lyrics had meaning and were not just convenient quotes taken from the rhyming-couplets dictionary sat alongside his Woody Guthrie songbook and recent divorce papers in whatever place the Rambler called home.

Which brings us to this re-constructed Stereo CD Remaster from 2003 – carried out by the mighty GREG CALBI – a name synonymous with transfer greatness for me. Given what they had to work with and knowing how bad my initial 1980s CBS CD sounded – the transformation here is amazing and I for one feel should lead to a reappraisal of this slice of lyrical haphazard Bobness. Here is the changing of the guards...

UK re-released March 2004 – "Street-Legal" by BOB DYLAN on Sony /Columbia 512355 2 (Barcode 5099751235521) is a straightforward CD Remaster of his 1978 9-Track LP. 

It was initially reissued September 2003 as a CD/SACD Hybrid Dual Format release in a gatefold card digipak (Columbia 512335 6 – Barcode 5099751235569) but that quickly deleted and replaced with a standard jewel case issue. The 2003 Remaster has been used on this Reissue (repressed in 2009 and 2016). It plays out as follows (50:26 minutes):

1. Changing Of The Guards

2. New Pony

3. No Time To Think

4. Baby Stop Crying

5. Is Your Love In Vain?

6. Senor (Tales Of Yankee Power)

7. True Love Tends To Forget

8. We Better Talk This Over

9. Where Are You Tonight? (Journey Through Dark Heat)

Tracks 1 to 9 are the album "Street-Legal" - released July 1978 in the USA on Columbia JC 35453 and June 1978 in the UK on CBS Records CBS 86067. Produced by DON DeVITO - it peaked at No. 11 in the USA and No. 2 in the UK.

You'd have to say that the gatefold slip of paper that laughably calls itself an insert is a huge disappointment - especially on a reissued Remaster. As the original had no lyrics, this was a perfect opportunity to finally provide them - words being a tad important when it comes to Bob Dylan. But at least we get that stunning GREG CALBI Remaster - a man whose had his mitts on McCartney's "Band On The Run", Paul Simon's "Graceland", Supertramp's "Crime Of The Century" and "Breakfast In America" and even John Mayer's Remastered catalogue. Calbi has turned a pig's ear into something prettier than a sow's rump...a job well done it has to be said.

A quick glance at the original LP playing time for the Side 1 opener "Changing Of The Guards" shows a 6:34 minute duration – but the 2003 remaster and remix has the ‘endless road’ song extended to 7:04 minutes - suddenly packing a live-in-the-studio Band punch it never had. Now you can actually hear David Manfield’s Mandolin and the three ladies crooning after every line – Carolyn Dennis, Joanne Harris and Helena Springs on backing vocals. And the guitar on "New Pony" is now more menacing and in your face as are the drums (its also increased from 4:28 to 4:39 minutes - how much longer indeed).

I always thought "No Time To Think" had a great hook (as you slowly sink) - the clever rhymes come fast and furious and that rolling piano is now more to the fore in the mix even if it is overly long at 8:20 minutes. Side 1 ends with the first single "Baby Stop Crying". Released July 1978 on CBS Records S CBS 6499 and unlike most BD 45s "Baby Stop Crying" actually charted - peaking at No. 13 and enjoying an 11-week run and the wild luxury in 1978 of a 12" single issue in a picture sleeve (not sure why). With the guitar chug of "New Pony" as the flipside on all formats - it was an excellent double-header.

Side 2 opens with the cheery "Senor (Tales Of Yankee Power)" as Bob asks "...can you tell me where we're heading...Lincoln County Road or Armageddon..." and at 5:42 minutes it remains the same but the clarity of that strummed acoustic guitar and the sax solo is better than before. "Is Your Love In Vain?" was the second single lifted from the LP in Blighty (CBS Records S CBS 6718 in September 1978 with "We Better Talk This Over" on the B-side) and its whiny theme made an impression at the time even if it did feel like some dismissive 60ts outtake ("...alright...I'll fall in love with you..."). But my fave-rave on the album is "True Love Tends To Forget" which feels like a great Bob Dylan song complete with actual emotion and not just snide observation.

The musical arrangement of "We Better Talk This Over" signals what is to come with "Slow Train Coming" and its lyrics are so emotion-confessional they can at times become uncomfortable. Speaking of which - were the lyrics "...if you don't believe there's a Christ...and sweet Paradise...just remind to show you the stars..." in the album's final cut "Where Are You Tonight (Journey Through Dark Heat)" about his lost 10-year marriage or leaning into the religious trio of albums that began with "Slow Train Coming" in August 1979 - probably both. And that "Like A Rolling Stone" organ sound – wow - a good end to a really good album.

Not as heart-wrenching as "Blood On The Tracks" or as lyrically hard-hitting as "Desire" - nonetheless 1978's "Street-Legal" is a winner on re-listen – it’s an all-good Bob Dylan album when such things were something you hoped for in the later decades but rarely got. "Street Legal" deserves another go-round and this superb 2003 Remaster has finally given the LP the aural oomph it always needed.

"...Missing her so much..." - Bob Dylan sang on "Where Are You Tonight..." - I felt the same re-playing this street hoodlum of a record...

"Leftoverture" by KANSAS - October 1976 USA Album on Kirshner Records - December 1976 on Epic Records in the UK (June 2001 UK Epic/Legacy 'Expanded Edition' CD Reissue - Darcy Proper and Suha Gur Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...More Than I Can Measure..."

Prog Rock - and American Prog Rock at that - wasn't supposed to have the words 'monster chart hit' written anywhere on its dense playlist. And yet after three 'crawling-up-the-lower-200' albums and many years of touring slog - Topeka's KANSAS finally broke through in 1976 with a bona-fide radio-friendly bruiser "Carry On Wayward Son" – a very Boston-sounding complex rocker that's played today - 41 years after the event.

Signed stateside to Kirshner Records - their self-titled debut "Kansas" troubled the US charts in June 1974 at No. 174 while March 1975's "Song For America" did better at No. 57 - but December 1975's "Masque" dipped back down to No. 70. It was time for a do-or-die change - and with Guitarist and Principal songwriter Steve Walsh suffering from writer's block - up stepped KERRY LIVGREN who penned five of Leftoverture's songs and co-wrote the other three. And it worked. The hit single made a hit album (both doing a storm of business) which meant that their next and even better platter "Point Of Know Return" went one higher to No. 4 in October 1977 - impressive statistics for an American Prog Rock band in the late Seventies.

Which brings us to this fab-sounded CD remaster on Sony’s Legacy imprint. Let's "Carry On Wayward Son" to the Magnum Opus details...

UK released June 2001 (May 2001 in the USA) - "Leftoverture" by KANSAS on Epic/Legacy 502479 2 (Barcode 5099750247921) is an 'Expanded Edition' CD Remaster of their 4th studio album plus Two Previously Unreleased Bonus Tracks and plays out as follows (55:21 minutes):

1. Carry On Wayward Son
2. The Wall
3. What's On My Mind
4. Miracles Out Of Nowhere
5. Opus Insert [Side 2]
6. Questions Of My Childhood
7. Cheyenne Anthem
8. Magnum Opus
(a) Father Padilla Meets The Perfect Gnat
(b) Howling At The Moon
(c) Man Overboard
(d) Industry On Parade
(e) Release The Beavers
(f) Gnat Attack
Tracks 1 to 8 are their 4th studio album "Leftoverture" - released October 1976 in the USA on Kirshner JZ 34224 and December 1976 in the UK on Epic S EPC 82718 (reissued February 1977 on Kirshner S KIR 82718). Produced by JEFF GLIXMAN - the LP peaked at No. 5 on the US Rock charts (didn't chart in the UK).

BONUS TRACKS (Previously Unreleased):
9. Carry On Wayward Son (Live, 1977 at Pine Knob in Wisconsin)
10. Cheyenne Anthem (Live, December 1977 at The Palladium in New York)

KANSAS was:
BOBBY STEINHARDT – Lead and Backing Vocals, Violin and Viola
STEVE WALSH – Lead and Background Vocals, Organ, Piano, Vibes and Synths
KERRY LIVGREN – Lead Guitar, Piano, Moog, Clavinet, Oberheim and ARP Synth
RICH WILLIAMS – Lead Guitar and Acoustic Guitar
DAVE HOPE – Bass
PHIL EHART – Drums and Percussion

The 10-sided foldout inlay has excellent and informative liner notes from DAVID WILD (Contributing Editor to Rolling Stone) – lyrics to all the songs – a live snap of the boys in full-on serious-musician mode and the six portrait photos of the band that came with original Kirshner LPs (facsimile artwork front and rear too). But all that is small beer to the gorgeous sound...

There’s a 'Producer's Note' from Jeff Glixman about the transfers and Remaster. He advises that the original vinyl format left audio compromises with an album running to nearly forty-five minutes - no such problem with the freshened-up CD. Done by DARCY PROPER and SUHA GUR from original master tapes - the Audio is a huge improvement - the synth-and-piano-bop of "Questions Of My Childhood" now leaps out of your speakers - those violin moments and girly chorus on "Cheyenne Anthem" - it's all so good. But it's a damn shame someone didn't think to include the obvious 7" single edit of "Carry On Wayward Son" - at 3:26 minutes - there was plenty of room. Still there is that 'live' version from the period that’s new...

When the voices sing "...don’t you cry no more..." as "Carry On Wayward Son" slithers in – you’re in no doubt about the clarity of the Remaster. At 5:25 minutes as opposed to 3:26 minutes - I can never make up my mind whether or not I prefer the full album version to the zippy 7” single edit (it rose to No. 11 on the US singles chart in February 1977 but would have to wait for a reissue in the UK in May 1978 on Kirshner S KIR 4932 to chart at a lowly 51). And I guess you would have to argue that songs like "Frankenstein" by the Edgar Winter Group (from way back in 1973 – another band on Epic) and more recently "More Than A Feeling" and "Long Time" by BOSTON – had smashed down the Prog Rock door for Kansas. The people were ready for dense guitar Rock. And don’t you just love those funky guitar breaks towards the end – brilliant.

Livgren wants to break down the dark barrier in relationships that is "The Wall" - while Kansas try for another guitar-hit with the catchy "What's On My Mind". That acoustic beginning to the 'dew drops' of "Miracles Out Of Nowhere" is very clear as are those synth-flourishes from Walsh. Side 2 is dominated by the near nine-minute "Magnum Opus" which looms in ominously before going into full-on Genesis - sounding at time like those big moments in "The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway". As the guitar then grunges before softly segueing into piano plinkers - you're reminded of the musicality of Rush. "...Music is all for you..." he sings during the "Howling At The Moon" portion before they go all Gentle Giant on yer ass...

In truth the music of Kansas will not be for everyone in 2017 - but loyal fans will devour the transfer here and newcomers will see where modern day Prog acts got their inspiration/information from... Onwards my wayward sons to the "Point Of Know Return"...

"Let There Be Rock" by AC/DC (2003 Epic/Albert Productions 'ConnecteD Technology' Digipak CD - George Marino Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...Whole Lotta Rosie..."

Shock and Awe – it's a clichéd phrase I know in this wide-bottomed business we call reviewing. But the truth is simple – little will prepare you (or any listener for that matter) for the sheer sonic assault of 1977's "Let There Be Rock" – AC/DC's angriest and loudest album – a platter that strips reinforced paint off walls from a hundred paces and then urinates on the ragged results...

There had already been indications of their Rock greatness in the first two British released LPs – "High Voltage" and "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" – fabulous hooky riffs like "It's A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock 'n' Roll)" and "Problem Child" – both recorded in 1975 and 1976. But 1977 saw them produce a studio beast to rival Deep Purple or Humble Pie at their 'live' barnstorming best – a not inconsiderable feat - and in a year when Rock was supposed to be dead or busy dying in a ditch somewhere...

First the Production values went through the roof. Amped-up and jacked-up to 13 on a scale of 10 – AC/DC were essentially live in the studio and in possession of a lethal combo of new power riffs. Out went the 9 or 10 songs – in came 8. They were lengthier but they were also more convincing and undeniably brilliant. To this day Australia's finest play half of the album in every show (fans would probably feel cheated if they didn't). And the title track "Let There Be Rock" has of course turned into something of a 20-minute live marathon for Angus Young – their guitarist and core of the band – a crowd-pleasing solo fest of scorched-earth wildness that few who see it ever forget (it has me grinning from ear to ear just thinking about it). Which brings us to this messed-about CD reissue and its rejiggered track list that requires some eggsplanation (as Mister Ayers would say). Here is the 'Crabsody In Blue'...

UK released May 2003 - "Let There Be Rock" by AC/DC on Epic/Albert Productions 510761 2 (Barcode 5099751076124) is an 8-Track CD variant of the 1977 American LP and plays out as follows (41:01 minutes):

1. Go Down
2. Dog Eat Dog
3. Let There Be Rock
4. Bad Boy Boogie
5. Problem Child [Side 2]
6. Overdose
7. Hell Ain't A Bad Place To Be
8. Whole Lotta Rosie
Tracks 1 to 9 are their fourth studio album (3rd in the UK) "Let There Be Rock" - released March 1977 in Australia on Albert Productions APLP.022 -  June 1977 in the USA on Atco SD 36-151 and October 1977 in the UK on Atlantic K 50366.

AC/DC was:
BON SCOTT – Vocals
ANGUS YOUNG – Lead Guitar
MALCOLM YOUNG – Rhythm Guitar
MARK EVANS - Bass
PHIL RUDD – Drums

Some explanation is needed about the CD Reissue and its track-list that for many fans outside of America is not how they bought the original vinyl LP. Both the Australian and British LPs had different tracks and placements on Side 2. The Australian LP was the first issue in March 1977 (its different black and white guitar-photo artwork is on the last page of the booklet) while the British LP arrived last in October 1977 with the US artwork of June 1977 (the live photo of the band). However both the OZ and UK LPs had a Side 2 that ran as "Overdose", "Crabsody In Blue", "Hell Ain't A Bad Place To Be" and "Whole Lotta Rosie".

But as this CD is a US release it follows the American Track List/Artwork – so as you can see above for Side 2 it uses "Problem Child" as Track 1 (originally on their "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" LP from 1976) with "Overdose" as Track 2 instead of "Crabsody In Blue". If you want the absent "Crabsody In Blue" track in order to configure the OZ and UK LPs - it's available on the "Backtracks: Studio Rarities" 2CD/1DVD Box Set of Remasters from November 2009 (another AC/DC release worth seeking out).

So what do you get here? This Epic CD 8-track reissue has what they call 'ConnecteD Technology' which allows you to access online content via your computer but I'm buggered if I've ever bothered. The card digipak is the same for all of these reissues - very tasty and tactile. There’s a picture CD to the right and a 16-page booklet housed on the left in a pocket pouch. It's crammed full of colour photos behind the text, press reviews (good and bad), a ticket to the 24 Oct 1977 show at Manchester’s Free Trade Hall, buttons, stage passes and Angus, Bon and the Gang in various manic live poses (MURRAY ENGLEHEART does the superb liner notes). There are more photos of the band on the inner gatefold and beneath the see-through CD tray. The GEORGE MARINO Remaster (done in the USA) is from 'original master tapes' and sounds HUGE - rocking like the beast that it is.

The albums that followed 1977's "Let There Be Rock" ("Powerage" in 1978 and "Highway To Hell" in 1979) sported a crisp clean radio-friendly sound care of Mutt Lange – not here my good friends. With amps humming and a spoken count-in - the sheer volume at the beginning of the very unsubtle "Go Down" is like a mission statement. Within seconds you get the biblical reference – a huge riff threatens to level your living room - the Aussies are indeed here to ROCK and those with nervous dispositions should run for the Exit sign. I cannot overstate the sheer force of this track and the riff it has – a huge mother of an opener as Bon once again makes "Ruby Lips" famous for services above and below the call of duty. "Dog Eat Dog" (eat cat too) does the same and legend has it that midway through the recording of the epic "Let There Be Rock" - Angus’ amplifier literally went on fire from the heat - yet Producer George Vanda told him to continue – which the mighty imp did. Wow! Now there's a story you want to tell your kids. "...Did you bleed daddy for this track? Well son..there I was making Rock history...when all of a sudden..." And Side 1 ends on the ballsy AC/DC Blues-Rock of "Bad Boy Boogie" – four sucker-punches in a row and a Side of Rock Classics most bands would nobble a close relative to achieve.

Whilst "Problem Child" is utterly brilliant – a short sharp kick in the kangaroo pouch – its Production values differ wildly to the other Jan/Feb 1977 recordings – so it feels automatically out of place. Others may disagree. The slow Blues of "Crabsody In Blue" - a track about appointments and ointments and critters nibbling at Bon's favourite appendage - is typically funny stuff from the brill Scotsman and so un-PC as to be cherishable. And again it followed perfectly after "Overdose" – a grimy and grubby slow starter that builds into the most monster riff you have ever heard as Bon sings his salacious tale of innocence corrupted (it's all booze and cigarettes now – her fault apparently). And at this point we have to talk of Angus' guitar playing – solo after solo exploding with a ferocity that makes Led Zeppelin-in-full-flow seem like a weedy school prefect with a Ukulele (and that takes some doing). And then the LP gives us two massive slices of primal Rock – "Hell Ain't A Bad Place To Be" and the awesome "Whole Lotta Rosie". Even now that solo in the middle of "Whole Lotta Rosie" is beyond description – a kick in the chest by a mule with serious mommy issues.

Unbelievably - March 2017 will see the album's 40th Anniversary. And in absolute present-day truth – if Metallica produced even three songs in 2017 as good as the original eight on "Let There Be Rock" – the Net would melt, ice caps would get up and do a Scottish jig and Donald Trump would gain a conscience (well maybe two of those things). AC/DC did it 40 years ago man. Step aside pretenders - best Rock Band on the planet bar none.

Shock and Awe indeed...

"Velvet Mountain: An Anthology 1970-1972" by COCHISE featuring Mick Grabham and BJ Cole with guests Steve Marriott of Humble Pie and Members of Hookfoot (April 2013 UK Esoteric Recordings 2CD Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...Past Love..."

This rather beautifully presented 2CD set from reissue champs Esoteric Recordings of the UK (part of Cherry Red) puts up the notion that the West-Coast influenced COCHISE (they came out of the Cambridge and Sunderland) are worthy of your attention - a forgotten British Americana Folk-Rock band with Guitarist Mick Grabham and B.J.Cole on Pedal Steel that deserve a second go-round. There are even appearances from Caleb Quaye and Nigel Olsson of Hookfoot and Elton John's Band, Tim Renwick of Junior's Eyes and Quiver and a rare duet with Steve Marriott of Humble Pie on the second LP to draw in collectors...

Unfortunately even with my penchant for all things Bronco, Matthews Southern Comfort and Brinsley Schwarz (see reviews) - there are only sporadic moments of greatness on offer here and its easy to hear why the slightly plodding Cochise sank without a trace despite popping out three albums at the beginning of that most receptive of decades - the Seventies (1970, 1971 and 1972 and a rare stand-alone 45). Still - if you're a fan of them and like-minded Americana music (The Band, Poco, The Flying Burrito Brothers and even America) - the presentation is superlative and the audio absolutely top notch (from original master tapes). There's a lot to get through so let's get to the nitty gritty...

UK released 29 April 2013 (7 May 2013 in the USA) - "Velvet Mountain: An Anthology 1970-1972" by COCHISE on Esoteric Recordings ECLEC 22388 (Barcode 5013929438842) is a 2CD Remastered Retrospective with 30-tracks and plays out as follows:

Disc 1 (58:41 minutes):

1. Velvet Mountain [Side 1]

2. China

3. Trafalgar Day

4. Moment And The End

5. Watch This Space [Side 2]

6. 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)

7. Past Loves

8. Painted Lady

9. Black Is The Colour

Tracks 1 to 9 are their debut LP "Cochise" - released July 1970 in the UK on United Artists UAS 29117. Produced by DICK TAYLOR

10. Love's Made A Fool Of You - November 1970 UK 7" single on Liberty LBF 15425 (A-side - a Buddy Holly cover version)

11. Jed Collder

12. Down Country Girls

13. Home Again

14. Lost Hearts

15. Strange Images

16. Why I Sing The Blues

Tracks 11 to 16 are Side 1 of their 2nd studio album "Swallow Tales" - released April 1971 in the UK on Liberty Records LBG 83428.

Disc 2 (60:22 minutes):

1. Another Day

2. Axiom Of Maria

3. Can I Break Your Heart

4. O Come All Ye Faithful

Tracks 1 to 4 are Side 2 of their 2nd studio album "Swallow Tales" - released April 1971 in the UK on Liberty Records LBG 83428.

5. Words Of A Dying Man - November 1970 UK 7" single on Liberty LBF 15425 (B-side of the Buddy Holly cover version "Love's Made A Fool Of You" on Disc 1)

6. Cajun Girl [Side 1]

7. Blind Love

8. Dance, Dance, Dance

9. So Many Times

10. Diamonds

11. Thunder in The Crib [Side 2]

12. Up And Down

13. Wishing Well

14. Midnight Moonshine

Tracks 6 to 14 are their 3rd and final studio album "So Far" - released May 1972 on United Artists UAS 29286 (not 28286 as is mistakenly credited on the back cover). The track "Dance, Dance, Dance" (a Neil Young cover) was recorded 'live' at Manchester Free Trade Hall in 1971.

COCHISE was:

STEWART BROWN - Lead Vocals and Acoustic Guitar on the "Cochise" album only

JOHN GILBERT - Lead Vocals on "Swallow Tales" and "So Far" albums

B.J. COLE - Pedal Steel Guitar and Dobro on all albums (Cello also on "Cochise") 

MICK GRABHAM - Lead and Acoustic Guitars, Piano, Organ and Vocals on all albums (Lead Vocals on "Dance, Dance, Dance" on "So Far")

RICKY WILLS - Bass on all albums

JOHN WILSON - Drums, Percussion and Vocals on "Cochise" album

"WILLIE" WILSON - Drums, Percussion and Vocals on "Swallow Tales" album

ROY O'TEMRO - Drums and Percussion on "So Far" album

The three-way foldout card digipak has two picture CDs - photos beneath the see-through trays - LP artwork for the three albums on the flaps and a quality 16-page booklet with new liner notes from MICHAEL HEATLEY (with thanks to founder member Mick Grabham). It comes with the usual plethora of trade adverts, publicity photos and discography info and is very nicely done. But the big news is the stunning audio care of PASCHAL BYRNE (done at Audio Archiving) that lifts the original master tapes off the ground in a big way. I had the first two LPs on original British vinyl back in the day and they sounded o.k. - here they are full of beans - great clarity and without ever overdoing the treble knob. Onto to the music...

The debut sported some typically provocative but strangely off-putting nipple artwork from Hipgnosis – then beginning their long association with Pink Floyd and all things oblique yet cool. Problem is that the artwork doesn’t reflect in any way the music contained within. From the outset you can hear how heavily influenced the five-piece was by the emerging Americana scene across the pond - so "Velvet Mountain" is sub Band territory while "China" is so America. Some of the tunes are stuff like "Past Loves" is a grower. But a dreadful cover of Simon and Garfunkel's "59th Street Bridge Song" and Stewart Brown's frankly dead vocals do for so many. BJ Cole makes his Dobro presence known on his own "Trafalgar Day" where our heroes liken their lovelorn loins to that of Nelson but it descends after a promising opening into dreadful guitar wailing. Stewart Brown wails on "Moment And The End" and you wish he wouldn't.

But things get better with "Swallow Tales" which is way more Country than the debut - PJ Cole's Pedal Steel to the fore and John Gilbert sounding like the enthusiastic vocalist this kind of music needs sing of 'hound dogs' that need to 'scratch an itch'. The song quality picks up with Mick Grabham's "Home Again" - his jangling guitar sound akin to the Byrds and serious dollops of Gene Clark and Gram Parsons. "Lost Hearts" gets all Spanish in its rhythms and begins a duo of BJ Cole songs - the second being "Strange Images" - far better than the lame first (it features Caleb Quaye and Nigel Olsson of Hookfoot). Over on Side 2 "Another Day" continues Mick Grabham's melancholic songs underpinned by Cole's lovely playing. It comes as blessed relief to hear the unmistakable larynx of Steve Marriott on "Why I Sing The Blues" (plays Piano on the track also). After a very Ozark Mountain Daredevils "Can I Break Your Heart?" (sweet vocals and production values) - the album ends on a short but slightly pointless Pedal Steel instrumental of that Gospel Traditional "O Come All Ye Faithful".  

Things funk up with the opener "Cajun Girl" on album number three - a great slinky guitar groove supplied by new drummer Roy O'Temro. Dave Elliott provides "Blind Love" - a lovely song that feels like early Seventies Hollies (Gilbert's voice is akin to Allan Clarke). Quite why a live cover version of Neil Young's "Dance, Dance, Dance" is slapped into the middle of Side 1 is anyone's guess - but after an inaudible spoken intro - you can partially hear why - they rocked in a Country way when live. Back to the Pedal Steel and Country Rock for "So Many Times" - a sweetheart of a melody penned by the band's permanent Bassist Ricky Wills. They rock with "Diamonds" - Grabham finding his inner Crazy Horse even if BJ Cole accompanies him too much. That Country rocking continues with "Wishing Well" and the LP ends on the decidedly funky "Midnight Moonshine".

Of the three albums - "So Far" is probably the most accomplished - but in truth none of them light up in a way that would have had punters take notice. With the great presentation and audio - fans should dive in - I'd advise others to nab a listen first...

"Aardvark" by AARDVARK (July 2011 Esoteric Recordings CD Reissue and Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...Put That In Your Pipe And Smoke It..."

Calling your band after a burrowing nocturnal African mammal (of the Tubulidentata family if you must know) and denying your group guitars of 'any' kind was probably not the smartest of moves. And just to annoy punters even further - you release the damn thing in Mono and Stereo at the beginning of a decade when Mono was so last - well - last decade. But then it was early 1970 and this was Prog Rock.

As Jon Wright's hugely informative and level-headed liner notes tell us - AARDVARK hailed from the Midlands of England and were the brainchild of principal Songwriter and Vocalist DAVE SKILLIN who along with trio of hard-shelled hairy-men signed to Decca's Prog and Avant Garde label 'Deram Nova' and released their eponymous and lone album in March 1970 to deafening disinterest and equally cruel sales charts.

However heroes of all things Prog Reissue - 'Esoteric Recordings' of the UK (part of Cherry Red's label roster) feel there's a reason for those £350 and £250 price tags in the latest Record Collector Price Guide (2018 issue) - and its not just that either format is ludicrously rare (£350 for the Mono in its famous Red Inner Bag) - but that the music actually warrants a second look. And I think they're partially right. There’s some genuinely great stuff on offer here for genre lovers - shades of Van Der Graaf Generator, Focus and Rare Bird with a driving Hammond-Organ anchoring the sound. If that grabs you by the Prehistoric Species – then here are long-nosed details...

UK released 25 July 2011 (2 August 2011 in the USA) - "Aardvark" by AARDVARK on Esoteric Recordings ECLEC 2286 (Barcode 5013929738621) is a straightforward CD Reissue and Remaster of their 1970 debut album and plays out as follows (43:04 minutes):

1. Copper Sunset

2. Very Nice Of You To Call

3. Many Things To Do

4. The Greencap

5. I Can't Stop

6. The Outing - Yes [Side 2]

7. Once Upon A Hill

8. Put That In Your Pipe And Smoke It

Tracks 1 to 8 are their debut (and only) album "Aardvark" - released March 1970 in the UK on Deram Nova DN 17 (Mono) and Deram Nova SDN 17 (Stereo) - the Stereo mix is used for this CD. Produced by DAVID HITCHCOCK - All songs are written by David Skillin except "Once Upon A Hill" which is by Steve Aldous.

AARDVARK was:

DAVID SKILLIN - Vocals

STEVE MILLINER - Organ, Piano, Celeste, Vibes, Marimba & Recorders

STEVE ALDOUS - Bass

FRANK CLARK - Drums and Percussion

Co-ordinated by the label's head honcho MARK POWELL - the 18-page booklet is the usual feast of rare photos (Biography Pages, Tape Boxes, the cute Aardvark logo and a bunch of publicity photos of the four-piece looking like students of Tolkien in need of a good wash and a proper day job). The CD is a picture disc and there’s an advert photo beneath the see-through tray for other like-minded bands reissued by Esoteric (Home, Dog Soldier, Earth And Fire and Tudor Lodge) - the album is also available digitally from losttune.com

It's a shame the Mono Mix isn't here as it was the last LP apparently put out by Deram Nova in that format (no room of course). But that mix absence is more than made up for by an amazing Remaster from original tapes by BEN WISEMAN and PASCHAL BYRNE of the Stereo Version. Wiseman and Byrne are Audio Engineers who've handling huge numbers of Rock Reissues both for Esoteric and other labels. This CD sounds incredible - punchy, clear and in amazing clarity...

The music borders on brilliance and boredom - the opening song "Copper Sunset" features a Jon Lord keyboard raunch - like "Fireball" Deep Purple but without Blackmore's guitar. But that's let down by silly knob like "The Outing - Yes" where they sing "we're going away" repeatedly against a swirling backdrop of mad keyboards - the kind of Prog nonsense that stretches your patience at a full ten-minutes. But then there's the very cool Piano shuffle of "Very Nice Of You To Call" when suddenly they're Caravan or even Soft Machine. "Many Things To Do" is very swirling Prog with treated drums and a great underlying Hammond Organ drive.

There's no doubting the chops of Keyboardist Steve Milliner who'd played with the much-revered Black Cat Bones (featured Simon Kirke and Paul Kossoff of Free) - his soloing on "The Greencap" is superb - while even Bassist Steve Aldous gets a go on the track making his instrument sound like a fuzzed-up guitar (very Jack Bruce from Cream or Chris Squire from Yes). The three-minute "Once Upon A Hill" is a whimsical instrumental dance and comes complete with fairy-lore Celeste and Recorder sounds wafting above the C.S. Lewis soundscape. It ends on the near eight-minutes of "Put That In Your Pipe And Smoke It" - a full-on keyboard swirling Prog whig out - all doom laden keys - thumping fuzzy bass and thrashing drums. Proper out-there Prog - but not for the faint hearted frankly...

It's all dreadfully dated of course - but like so much Progressive Rock - there is always something worth returning to and much of it is just so imaginative. Snout down - armour on - once more into the Midlands clay for Aardvark and their truly eclectic underground rarity...