"The Rill Thing/King of Rock And Roll/The Second Coming" by LITTLE RICHARD (2016 Beat Goes On Reissue - 3LPs onto 2CDs - High Def Remasters by Andrew Thompson)

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"...The Beauty On Duty..."

Soul and Funk Albums from LITTLE RICHARD

A typically generous and beautifully presented set from England's 'Beat Goes On Label' covering the Georgia Peach's stay at Reprise Records between 1970 and 1972 (3LPs Remastered In High Def from Original Sources onto 2CDs).

Not surprisingly across three albums it's a tale of two cities - the great and the dismissible - with thankfully more keepers than ditchers. In fact there's very little Rock and Roll as we know it on offer here – these forgotten LPs are more about Little Richard's version of early 70ts Funk with a little old-time R&B style thrown in. Song after song comes at you like its Ike & Tina Turner having a jam-tight-butt-shake - and not as you would expect from one of the Original Rock & Rollers from the Fifties - Chuck Berry twelve-bar.

In fact Soul Boys the world over have been discovering these hip-shaking dancers for years now – Little Richard finding his inner 'sock it to me' Isley Brothers groove - his Allen Toussaint voice and winning (most of the time). There are times when it's shockingly different. Take the instrumental title-track "The Rill Thing" from 1970 – it's the kind of chugging Funkathon that would have customers rushing to the counter of any West End record shop demanding to know which 'Meters' song this is and on what album - only to find that you're listening to the Muscle Shoals House Band having a 10-minute Alabama jam without any lead vocal from LR.

And of course then there's that other aspect to any Little Richard record - the sheer fun of the man on those spoken passages where he sings the praises of – well – himself. Richard Penniman has always thought he's God and I'm quite sure a smiling God would be only too willing to agree (LR's modest declaration of 'The Second Coming' not withstanding). There's a lot to wade through indeed - so once mere mortals unto the beauty on a rooty...

UK released 22 July 2016 (29 July 2006 in the USA) - "The Rill Thing/King Of Rock And Roll/The Second Coming" by LITTLE RICHARD on Beat Goes On BGOCD 1235 (Barcode 5017261212351) offers 3LPs Remastered from first generation tapes onto 2CDs and plays out as follows:

Disc 1  (61:30 minutes):

1. Freedom Blues

2. Greenwood, Mississippi

3. Two-Time Loser

4. Dew Drop In

5. Somebody Saw You

6. Spreadin' Natta, What's The Matter?

7. The Rill Thing

8. Lovesick Blues

9. I Saw Her Standing There

Tracks 1 to 9 are his album "The Rill Thing" (credited as The "Rill" Thing on the label) - released August 1970 in the USA on Reprise RS 6406 and October 1970 in the UK on Reprise RSLP 6406.

10. King of Rock And Roll

11. Joy To The World

12. Brown Sugar

13. In The Name

14. Dancing In The Street

Tracks 10 to 14 are Side 1 of the album "King Of Rock And Roll" - released September 1971 in the USA on Reprise RS 6462 and November 1971 in the UK on Reprise K 44156.

Disc 2 (62:04 minutes):

1. Midnight Special

2. The Way You Do The Things You Do

3. Green Power

4. I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry

5. Settin' The Woods On Fire

6. Born On The Bayou

Tracks 10 to 14 are Side 2 of the album "King Of Rock And Roll" - released September 1971 in the USA on Reprise RS 6462 and November 1971 in the UK on Reprise K 44156.

7. Mockingbird Sally

8. Second Line

9. It Ain't What You Do, It's The Way You Do It

10. The Saints

11. Nuki Suki

12. Rockin' Rockin' Boogie

13. Prophet Of Peace

14. Thomasine

15. Sanctified, Satisfied Toe-Tapper

Tracks 7 to 15 are the album "The Second Coming" - released September 1972 in the USA on Reprise RS 2107 and in the UK on Reprise K 44204 (although allocated a 'K' catalogue in the UK by WEA - I've never seen a British pressed LP - so it's more likely that US copies were imported into Britain and 'K 44204' stickers put on the back of them). 

This 2CD set will allow fans to sequence 6 x 7" singles issued around the three LPs:

1. Freedom Blues b/w Dew Drop Inn - June 1970 USA 7" single on Reprise 0907 (reversed sides in the UK on Reprise RS 20907)

2. Greenwood, Mississippi b/w I Saw Her Standing There - August 1970 USA 7" single on Reprise 0942

3. Green Power b/w Dancing In The Street - November 1971 UK 7" single on Reprise K 14124

4. Shake A Hand (if You Can) b/w Somebody Saw You - December 1971 USA 7" single on Reprise 1005 

5. Mockingbird Sally b/w 1. Rockin' Rockin' Boogie 2. King Of Rock and Roll - August 1972 UK 3-Track 7" single on Reprise 14195

6. 1. Rockin' Rockin' Boogie 2. King Of Rock and Roll b/w 1. The Saints 2. Mockingbird Sally - 1974 UK 'Warner Giants' 4-Track EP on Reprise K 14343

The outer card slipcase adds a real classy feel to this release (as it does to all BGO reissues) and the 12-page booklet with new STUART COLMAN liner notes repros the original LP artwork. The praise-heavy blurbs on the rear of "The Rill Thing" by Pete Johnson and "The Second Coming" by RA "Bumps" Blackwell have been printed too in all their plugger-positive glory. Coleman gives a good insight into Little Richard's state of play when he went with Reprise after years in the chart wilderness - it's just such a shame that after "The Rill Thing" - the albums began a very obvious nose dive with the 2nd studio platter being merely good while the third leaves a lot to be desired (despite its ludicrous title).

What's not ridiculous is the fabulous Audio – High Def CD transfers from Original Sources by BGO’s Engineer ANDREW THOMPSON. I've had the Rhino set for years and the Remasters here pip it by a squeak - but it's an improvement in bottom end and muscularity that you can feel. These CDs sounds stunning - and fans will need to own them.

Album number one opens on a winner – the single that put Little Richard back into the US R&B charts after a 13-year absence - "Freedom Blues" - a co-write with his doppelganger and inspiration of old - Esquerita. A funky 'everybody's got to be free' groove starts up with guitars and keyboards - as LR proceeds to wax lyrical about dumping the past and embracing the new. A great guttural scream like only LR can omit ushers in the Sax Solo and resistance is futile. Written by Arthur Lowe and Travis Wammack - "Greenwood, Mississippi" is the most out-and-out Ike & Tina Turner guitar groove on the album - a tremendous funky-rock dancer to make you shimmy your booty thang to a backdrop of fuzz guitars. You can understand why Reprise in the UK switched sides for their opening single - putting the Rock 'n' Roll based "Dew Drop In" on the A-side instead of "Freedom Blues" in a country undergoing a huge Rock 'n' Roll Revival. Yet you can't help but feel the American side got the choice right. Little Richard's own "Somebody Saw You" is a Wilson Pickett strut with shimmering guitar notes and a seriously tight rhythm section. But the album is dominated by the aforementioned ten-minute work out that is Side 2's "The Rill Thing" - a truly fantastic instrumental that in reality has very little to do with LR - and yet is on his album. In fact when you go to the next song - a Country-Funk Tony Joe White take on the Hank Williams classic "Lovesick Blues" complete with a brass fade out - it feels weird to hear LR singing at all. The album ends on a reasonably cool take on that "Please Please Me" opener "I Saw Her Standing There" - Little Richard sanctifying The Beatles and just about getting away with it.

You can't help feeling that the 'King' on his throne artwork and title of album No. 2 dumbly emphasises a genre (Rock & Roll) that actually doesn't show up much on the record (it's another Funk LP ala The Meters). His cover of the traditional "Midnight Special" comes armed with CCR's warbling guitar underpinned by righteous sisters singing 'chugga-chugga'. He then goes after Motown by going all 'gotta' James Brown on The Temptations and their "The Way You Do The Things You Do". Better is the 'sock it to me' single "Green Power" where the funky rhythm and lady singers sound like they mean business at last. Another Hank Williams song "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" gets wildly rejiggered but it feels like a cover too far. Better is his Bass and Brass cover of Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Born On The Bayou" - where he talks his 'beauty' and his 'title' and the 'kind of excitement that shakes the world' before it breaks into that familiar CCR swing. It's a good way to end an otherwise patchy album.

Despite its farcical title – no one was interested in his self-proclaimed nonsense in 1972. The album came out in September but the first Billboard review didn't appear until December - no doubt someone trying to flag failing sales. It opens with his own "Mockingbird Sally" where it feels like he's actually channelled some of that Specialty wildness once again - a piano-pumping Rock 'n' Roller. The Funk returns with "Second Line" - a co-write between him and Bumps Blackwell. "If Ain't What You Do, It's The Way You Do It" is terrible - clearly an outtake left in the can with his voice sounding like a guide - and a poor one at that. He re-arranges "The Saints" into a bopping 'marching in' travesty best forgotten. Better is the wah-wah-guitar funky "Nuki Suki". As an example of rare grooves from the vaults - Atlantic used it on the 2001 CD compilation "Right On! Volume 3" (it also appeared on the Rhino 4CD Box Set "What It Is!" in 2006). But my own poison is the great rhythm behind "Prophet Of Peace" and the track Soul Boys dig - the seven-minute instrumental "Sanctified, Satisfied Toe-Tapper" - an obvious attempt to recreate some of that ten-minute "Rill Thing" magic from album number one (they just about pull it off).

When all is said and done - you're left with the impression that if Little Richard’s record company (and him) had embraced Soul and Funk full on and not tried to rebrand his genius as the 'latest' version of an old Rock 'n' Roller - with some pruning and sassier material - we'd be talking about these albums in a more genuinely reverential light and not as a curio – an afterthought 47 years on from the event. 

Rhino's "King Of Rock and Roll: The Complete Reprise Recordings" 3CD set in 2005 was the last time these recordings were covered - but that was a limited edition and has been deleted and acquiring high prices for years. So a welcome reissue then and far funkier than you'd imagine. The beauty on duty people...even half-cocked he was capable of magic...

"Let It Be: Black America Sings Lennon, McCartney and Harrison" by VARIOUS ARTISTS (2016 Ace CD Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

"...Don't Let Me Down..."

I'm a huge fan of England's Ace Records and their stunning CD compilations (who isn't). And you look at the premise here - Soul Artists doing their take on the Fabs - and surely the results will be electrifying and funky as a gnat's chuffer.

But then you play "Let It Be: Black America Sings Lennon, McCartney and Harrison" by VARIOUS ARTISTS and song after song just feels wrong. Nothing ever ignites. It's a strange truth but The Beatles (as soulful as their music was) - doesn't translate to Soul. The Isley Brothers doing Carole King or Stephen Stills - Love Sculpture doing Ray Charles - even Grand Funk doing "Some Kind Of Wonderful" by The Soul Brothers Six - these crossovers all work. And of course you could fill box sets full of other covers that add to the original and even bring out more. But no such luck here - here you get one ill-chosen track after another.

The 16-page booklet is (as always) a thing of beauty - classy photos of Screamin' Jaw Hawkins doing "A Hard Day's Night", Mary Well's tackling "Do You Want To Know A Secret" and Dionne Warwick having a go at "We Can Work It Out". 

Released 30 September 2016 in the UK (October 2016 in the USA) - "Let It Be: Black America Sings Lennon, McCartney and Harrison" by VARIOUS ARTISTS is a typically well presented affair from reissue experts Ace Records. The booklet is a feast - rare picture sleeves - 7" single label repros (RCA for Nina Simone, Capitol for Junior Parker, EMI America for Gary U.S. Bonds) with top-quality mastering from Duncan Cowell and a generous 22-track playing time for Ace CDCHD 1483 (Barcode 029667077026) of 77:54 minutes.

1. Eleanor Rigby - Aretha Franklin

2. Dear Prudence - The 5 Stairsteps

3. Got To Get You Into My Life - Earth, Wind And Fire

4. Do You Want To Know A Secret - Mary Wells

5. The Fool On The Hill - Four Tops

6. Lovely Rita - Fats Domino

7. Here Comes The Sun - Nina Simone

8. Ob La Di Ob La Da - Arthur Conley

9. A World Without Love - The Supremes

10. Tomorrow Never Knows - Junior Parker

11. Don't Let Me Down - Randy Crawford

12. With A Little Help From My Friends - The Undisputed Truth

13. A Hard Day's Night - Screamin' Jay Hawkins

14. She Came In Through The Bathroom Window - Ike & Tina Turner

15. For No One - Maceo & All The King's Men

16. It's Only Love - Gary U.S. Bonds

17. We Can Work It Out - Dionne Warwick

18. Hey Jude - The Temptations

19. In My Life - Boyz II Men

20. Savoy Truffle - Ella Fitzgerald

21. Something - Isaac Hayes

22. Let It Be - Bill Withers

I wish I could say the music worth it. Beautifully presented or not - 9 times out of 10 the interpretations offered here feel like half-hearted cash-ins on a very popular band of the time - the most popular and influential group of all time. Yet somehow the Beatles songs don't really suit Soul. Better is the "Hard To Handle" set in this series where Black Artists have a go at Otis Redding – a combo that actually does work.

In the meantime – if you’re tempted by "Let It Be: Black America Sings Lennon, McCartney and Harrison" - I'd try to get a listen to the CD first before committing...

"Love's Been Good To Me: The Songs Of Rod McKuen" by VARIOUS (2017 Ace CD Compilation - Duncan Cowell Remasters)

"...If You Go Away..." 

Despite the beautiful annotation (a 20-page booklet with wads of rare 45 label repros, period magazine covers, in-studio photos of McKuen with Petula Clark and Frank Sinatra) and properly immaculate remastered sound from Duncan Cowell - you're faced with 25 songs of such mind-blowing saccharine that this well-intentioned CD compilation is like licking a spoon of stale honey – 25 times - across 80-minutes.

Here are the details...

"Love's Been Good To Me: The Songs Of Rod McKuen" by VARIOUS ARTISTS on Ace CDTOP 1481 (Barcode 029667076920) is a 25-track CD compilation and for collectors has Three Previously Unreleased Songs - Tracks 7, 20 and 23 (79:51 minutes).

1. Doesn't Anybody Know My Name - Waylon Jennings

2. The World I Used To Know - Glen Campbell

3. Love's Been Good To Me - Tom Jones

4. Lonesome Cities - Frank Sinatra

5. A Single Woman - Nina Simone

6. Les Amants De Coeur - Jacques Brel

7. Children One And All - Mary Travers and Rod McKuen

8. The Wind Of Change - Petula Clark

9. Jean - Oliver

10. A Boy Named Charlie Brown - Rod McKuen

11. If You Go Away - Dusty Springfield

12. The Sea - The San Sebastian Strings

13. I Think Of You - Perry Como

14. Hello Heartaches - Barbara Kay

15. Ally Ally Oxen Free - The Kingston Trio

16. Soldiers Who Want To Be Heroes - The Gateway Trio

17. The Importance Of The Rose - The Limeliters

18. Ain't You Glad You're Living Joe - Michael Sarne

19. This Is Our House - Shelby Flint

20. Kaleidoscope - Nancy Sinatra & Rod McKuen

21. One By One - Barry McGuire

22. I've Been To Town - Glenn Yarbrough

23. Because We Love - Rod McKuen

24. I'll Say Goodbye - Jimmie Rodgers

25. Seasons In The Sun - Terry Jacks

The gorgeous Audio quality aside - McKuen just didn't have the melody or lyrical magic of Bacharach and David - so tunes like "Jean" by Oliver, the awful croaking of a clearly ill Nina Simone on "A Single Woman" (unreleased for a reason) and the truly cringe-making cack that is "Seasons In The Sun" by Terry Jacks and "A Boy Named Charlie Brown" is enough to make you want to scream - please stop - have mercy for pity's sake!

But if you want an inkling of this compilation's true awfulness - try "The Sea" by The San Sebastian Singers where someone speaks lovey-dovey bilge to a backdrop of an ocean wave lapping onto some shore somewhere (and it does this with strings!). Why use water boarding on ISIS terrorists when you can play them this twice or three times and do some real damage.

Love may well have been good for you Rod - but for us it was horrifying. Unless you're an uber-fan - I'd advise a listen first - or perhaps try something easier - like immigrating into the Donster's USA...

"Hollywood Town Hall: Legacy Edition" by THE JAYHAWKS (2011 American/Legacy CD Reissue - Vic Anesini Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

"…It's Not Lost On Me…" 

After two accomplished Indie albums in 1986 and 1989 - "The Jayhawks" and "Blue Earth" - the JAYHAWKS finally made everyone sit up and take notice with their stunning 1992 breakthrough Americana effort - “Hollywood Town Hall".

This January 2011 reissue of "Hollywood Town Hall: Legacy Edition" by THE JAYHAWKS is an 'Expanded Edition' Remaster of that revered 3rd album and now features 5 bonus tracks (two of which are Previously Unreleased).

American 88697 72731 2 (Barcode 886977273124) breaks down as follows (61:12 minutes):

1. Waiting For The Sun

2. Crowded In The Wings

3. Clouds

4. Two Angels

5. Take Me With You (When You Go)

6. Sister Cry

7. Settled Down Like Rain

8. Wichita

9. Nevada, California

10. Martin’s Song

Tracks 1 to 10 are the album "Hollywood Town Hall" released in 1992 on Def American 26829 in the USA (it finally charted in early 1993)

BONUS TRACKS:

Tracks 11, 12 and 13 are "Leave No Gold", "Keith And Quentin" and "Up Above My Head" – they first appeared on a Promo-Only 1993 Def American US CD compilation called "Scrapple" (11 was a bonus track on the European edition of the CD album, while 12 and 13 later turned up as non-album B-sides on the European and Australian CD singles for "Waiting For The Sun")

Tracks 14 and 15 are "Warm River" and "Mother Trust You To Walk To The Store" are PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED

Tracks 1 to 15 are all written by MARK OLSON and GARY LOURIS and produced by GEORGE DRAKOULIAS – except "Witchita" (Track 8) which is co-written with Marc Perlman and Track 14 which is a Sister Rosetta Tharpe and Marie Knight cover version of "Up Above My Head, I Hear Music In The Air" (1949 Gospel tune on Decca)

The 2011 2CD Legacy Edition of "Tomorrow The Green Grass" is missing 3 non-album B-sides (when there was room for them) because they're on the superlative "Music From The North Country" American Recordings 2CD/1DVD compilation from 2009 - the same applies here. There are 2 outtakes on the "Music From The North Country" Anthology called "Stone Cold Mess" and "Mission On 2nd" which are NOT on this issue – the band probably didn't want to duplicate what fans have already bought. It's worth mentioning that if you want a fuller picture, you'll need ‘both’ releases despite this being a supposed all-encompassing 'Legacy Edition'. I've reviewed "Music From…" and "Tomorrow…" separately.

Instead of a 3-way card digipak like "Tomorrow…" – this CD is in a jewel case and features an upgraded 20-page booklet with new liner notes by the album’s produced and long-time band friend and admirer Greg Drakoulias. There’s the original Joe Henry liner notes from December 1991 with new photos of the boys in the studio, out on the road, typed and handwritten lyric sheets - it's very nicely done and in keeping with the original artwork.

Top Remaster Engineer VIC ANESINI has transferred the original tapes and the sound quality is BEAUTIFUL - so sweet and warm (he also did the "Music From The North Country" and "Tomorrow The Green Grass" sets - see separate reviews). Tracks like "Waiting For The Sun", "Martin’s Song" and “Settled Down Like Rain” were standouts anyway on the original CD, but here they sound just gorgeous. The Remaster also makes you rehear a lot of the lesser-lauded gems on the record like the plaintive Ryan Adams guitar-feel of "Take Me With You (When You Go)" and “Nevada, California” - they now sound 'so' good and as growers – they’ve have stood the test of time.

To sum up - the Remaster is superlative, the booklet is improved and the 5 bonus tracks are cleverly chosen and worthy additions. Very, very good indeed….and as a band…I miss them…

"Rainbow Seeker" by JOE SAMPLE [of The Crusaders] (2011 Japan-Only UMC/MCA SHM-CD Remaster Using The RUBIDIUM CD Cutting Process) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"…In All My Wildest Dreams…" 

Wow is the appropriate response! I'm loved Joe Sample's 1978 debut solo album "Rainbow Seeker" like I've loved Steely Dan's "Aja" from the year before. I can't be rational about either. So any excuse to get a better version is Nirvana to my ears...

In June and July of 2011 - Universal Music Japan launched what they called their "JAZZ THE BEST" series of reissues - 150 titles across their vast catalogue and all on the SHM-CD format (Super High Materials) and all apparently using the RUBIDIUM Atomic Clock Cutting Process. Each were pitched at roughly 1800 yen which is about £9 to you or I (mid price) and came in jewel-cases with new liner notes and of course the SHM-CD. 

Whatever the techno mumbo-jumbo - the remastered audio I'm listening to right now for "Rainbow Seeker" (one of those titles) has to be the best I've ever heard - and not just for this album - but in terms of a transfer that retains the warmth of the analogue original. This is gorgeous and has me frantically searching for other "Jazz The Best" titles I can buy in this series (see list below).

Here are the details... 

Released 22 June 2011 in Japan - "Rainbow Seeker" by JOE SAMPLE (of The Crusaders) in on Universal Music Japan/MCA UCCU-6047 (use Barcode 4988005651617) to get the right issue) and breaks down as follows (42:41 minutes):

1. Rainbow Seeker

2. In All My Wildest Dreams

3. There Are Many Stops Along The Way

4. Melodies Of Love

5. Fly With Wings Of Love - [Side 2]

6. As Long As It Lasts

7. Islands In The Rain

8. Together We'll Find A Way

The album was released May 1978 in the USA on ABC Records AA 1050 and in the UK on ABC Records ABCL 5245

The core band is STIX HOOPER and ROBERT 'Pops' POPWELL of The Crusaders on Drums and Bass with RAY PARKER, DAVID T. WALKER, DEAN PARKS and BARRY FINNERTY guesting on Guitars and stunning sessionmen like PAULINHO DaCOSTA providing Percussion. All eight instrumentals are in the Crusaders style of the time - funky one moment - Soulful piano the next (Bernie Grundman did the mastering - always a sign of class). And the whole album is really great - not just bits of it - all of it (something that can't be said of the albums "Carmel" or "Voices In The Rain" that followed in 1979 and 1981).

There's an Obi band around the jewel case and the rear artwork is altered. It doesn't say in the new 8-page inlay which engineer remastered what (the April 2011 liner notes are in Japanese)? There is a blurb on the RUBIDIUM process but again in Japanese. The SHM-CD of course plays in all standard CD players - it feels chunky - and picks out the nuances of the recording better. Regardless of the lack of written info in the booklet for anyone outside of Japan - sonically everything is improved and up for grabs here. Stuff like "Fly With Wings Of Love" has the Rhythm Section crystal clear and Barry Finnerty's fabulous guitar work suddenly alive like never before.  Comparing any of the tracks with the American GRP remaster from 1996 is like chalk and cheese. The soul-easing warmth of the ballad "In All My Wildest Dreams" has amazing clarity now bringing out the stunning musicianship - as does the slap bass and piano/brass funk of "There Are Many Stops Along The Way".

If you've any love for this album - or Jazz Fusion for that matter - I urge you to seek out this reissue and its exceptional sound quality...

PS: of interest are the following "Jazz Is Best" SHM-CD reissues using the same cutting process:

1. THE CRUSADERS - Street Life (June 2011, Universal UCCU-6061, Barcode 4988005651754)

2. THE CRUSADERS - Rhapsody & Blues (July 2011, Universal UCCY-6123, Barcode 4988005652348)

3. THE CRUSADERS - The Vocal Album (March 2012, Universal UCCU-6160, Barcode 4988005696335)

4. JOE SAMPLE - Carmel (June 2011, Universal UCCU-6143, Barcode 4988005652546)

PPS: Thanks Joe for all the great memories - another one of my musical heroes passed - RIP September 2014...

"Bob Stanley and Pete Wiggs Present ENGLISH WEATHER" by VARIOUS (2017 Ace Records CD Compilation - Nick Robbins Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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CLASSIC 1970s ROCK On CD - Exception Remasters  

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"...Edge Of The Sea..." 

In a sort of bleary-eyed screw-you Age of Aquarius mission statement - it says on the back inlay of the brilliantly exploratory CD compilation "English Weather" from those brave blokes over at Ace Records - "...with The Beatles gone and the pound sinking, a new and distinctive sound emerges, led by flutes and Mellotrons..."

I think what decent British chappies BOB STANLEY and PETE WIGGS (of Saint Etienne) are having us believe is that at the beginning of the Seventies over here in Blighty - something seriously Folk-Acid this way comes. Much of this compilation is incredibly mellow with only sporadic hints at Jazz Rock and complicated Prog stretching from early 1969 to mid 1976. But I hear you say (as you choke on your real ale that tastes like a Lindisfarne wetty on the wall) - I need another Prog-type CD compilation in my home like I need the phone number of Donald Trump's hairdresser. But actually there's much to love here and the dynamic duo have come up with an extraordinary set of uncommons (generous too at nearly 79 minutes).

Having said that - many tracks and artists are obscure for good reason (perceived pretty or no). But finds like the Prelude track "Edge Of The Sea", the pre-Pilot B-side "Pamela" and a pairing of obscure library track instrumentals will thrill lovers of melodic Rock like Mellow Candle, Keith Cross and Peter Ross, Trader Horne, Tudor Lodge and Spring. The Nick Robbins mastering is absolutely superb too - bringing out those acoustic flourishes and lovely melodies. And even as a fan of Prog and a long-time reviewer and collector - I can safely say that I've not heard at least 75% of this stuff before. Nice and I don't mean pre ELP. Here are the floatation tank details...

UK released 27 January 2017 (10 February 2017 in the USA) – "Bob Stanley & Pete Wiggs present ENGLISH WEATHER" by VARIOUS ARTISTS on Ace CDCHD 1484 (Barcode 029667077125) is a CD compilation of 18 Tracks and plays out as follows (78:35 minutes):

1. Love Song With Flute - CARAVAN (on their debut LP "Caravan" released February 1969 in the UK on Verve SVLP 6011 in Stereo)

2. Moon Bird - THE ROGER WEBB SOUND (instrumental on the Music Library LP "Vocal Patterns" released 1971 on Music De Wolfe DW/LP 3182)

3. Early Morning Eyes - THE PARLOUR BAND (on the studio album "Is A Friend?" released June 1972 on Deram SDL 10)

4. Pamela - SCOTCH MIST (non-album track, the 7" single B-side to "Ra-Ta-Ta" released July 1974 in the UK on EMI Records EMI 2208)

(Scotch Mist is Billy Lyall and Stuart Tosh before they formed Pilot)

5. Last Cloud Home - THE ORANGE BICYCLE (A-side to a June 1969 UK 7" single on Parlophone R 5789)

6. JLT - T2 (on the LP "It'll All Work Out In Boomland" released July 1970 in the UK on Decca SKL 5050)

7. 'Til The Christ Come Back - BILL FAY (on the LP "Time Of The Last Persecution" released January 1971 in the UK on Deram SML 1079)

8. Refugees - VAN DER GRAAF GENERATOR (A-side to a UK 7" single released April 1970 on Charisma CB 122)

9. Very Nice Of You To Call - AARDVARK (on their debut LP "Aardvark" released March 1970 in the UK on Deram Nova SDN 17)

10. Big White Cloud - JOHN CALE (on his debut solo LP "Vintage Violence" released June 1970 in the USA on Columbia CS 1037)

11. Bottles - BELLE GONZALEZ (A-side of a UK 7" single released February 1972 on Columbia Records DB 8852)

12. Watching White Stars - THE WAY WE LIVE (1971 Tractor Recording - first appeared on the 1998 CD compilation "Before, During And After The Dandelion Years, Through To Deeply Vale" on Ozit/Morpheus OZITCD 0024)

13. Windfall - OFFSPRING (Non-Album A-side to a UK 7" single released April 1972 on RCA Records RCA 2198)

14. Never Let Go - CAMEL (A-side to a UK 7" single released January 1973 on MCA Records MUS 1177)

15. Wise Man In Your Heart - DAEVID ALLEN and EUTERPE (on the LP "Good Morning" released May 1976 in the UK on Virgin V 2054)

16. O Caroline - MATCHING MOLE (on their debut LP "Matching Mole" released April 1972 in the UK on CBS Records S 64850 - Robert Wyatt vocalist)

17. Edge Of The Sea - PRELUDE (A-side to a UK 7" single released March 1972 on Decca F 13292)

18. Evening Shade - ALAN PARKER and ALAN HAWKSHAW (instrumental on the Music Library LP "Alternatives" released 1971 on Music De Wolfe DW/LP 3219)

The 14-page booklet has the usual plethora of rare 7”-single label-repro's (45s on Decca, MCA and CBS) alongside trade adverts for such obscuros as Billy Fay, The Parlour Band and T2. There's even a review of Caravan's Verve Records debut, A Roundhouse Benefit gig poster for Matching Mole with Soft Machine's Robert Wyatt and best of all - hugely informative and witty liner notes from compiler BOB STANLEY. I thought I knew my stuff (I've reviewed Aardvark and the Decca/Deram 3CD Box sets containing T2 and Camel and the like) - but Bob clearly goes deeper than most - offering up his knowledge with real affection for the subject matter (not just a blizzard of dry facts). But the best news is yet another stunning mastering job by NICK ROBBINS on a wide range of sound sources - his mastering of T2's superbly musical "JLT" is spot on. And as much of these songs are Acoustic based - the Audio rises to that challenge with aplomb. A top job done...

Despite the range of dates (February 1969 to May 1976) - the overall listen holds together very well. But as one other reviewer put it (and well) - there's good stuff on here but only a few genuinely stand out. The seven-minute "Watching White Stars" by Tractor saps your patience while I defy people who call the weedy Matching Mole ballad "O Caroline" gorgeous (Robert Wyatt or no) and I think there are better tracks on Bill Fay's album like the piano-beautiful  "I Hear You Calling". But I hadn't expected to be so impressed by the Van Der Graaf Generator single - which is a world away from their fearsome Moog anthems - five and half minutes of Peter Hammill pining for the sunshine of pretty London suburbs to the backdrop of violas, choral voices and unnervingly pretty melodies on strings.

Smart choices include running the Aardvark track immediately before the Velvet's John Cale song "Big White Cloud" – its huge Spector-esque production full of strings and longing and images of skies and trees – Cale's ragged druggy voice moaning his fate like Tim Rose on steroids. The Belle Gonzalez and Camel UK singles are rare as hen's teeth and again smart inclusions. Both display musical beauty and are bolstered up here by superb Nick Robbins mastering – especially on the Acoustic/Mellotron/Flute 'man must survive' eco-message song that is Andy Latimer's "Never Let Go". A clever slot-in is the African rhythms meets Kraut Rock feel of "Wise Man In Your Heart" by Gong's Daevid Allen and his band of the time Euterpe – a lengthy exercise in vibe with sonic rhythms predating those found on "Peter Gabriel 4" in September 1982.

But best of all for me is six and half minutes of Prelude's "Edge Of The Sea" - the only band on the compilation to brush the charts when they placed their beautiful Acapella cover version of Neil Young's "After The Gold Rush" in January 1974 on Dawn Records at the lofty heights of No. 21. Who thought this hippy-tastic acoustic folk tune with singing and spoken passages about mermaids and shaking the foam was a commercial 45 in 1972 was quietly off their rocker - but that doesn't stop "Edge Of The Sea" from being a fabulous slice of Mellow Candle Folk Rock with Acid tinges. And again - Robbins has mastered it so well. And there's no denying the musical brilliance also of Caravan's "Love Song With Flute" nor the truly lovely find in "Pamela" - an obscure B-side by Scotch Mist (Billy Lyall and Stuart Tosh) who would later become Pilot and have a UK No. 1 with "January" in January 1975 (again on EMI).

The Peter Mitchell photos on the front and rear of the booklet show a Britain in pain and even decay – crippling strikes - war overseas impacting here - the hippy dream of everyone loving each other fading fast in a cloud of three-day weeks and unemployment. Yet despite this backdrop of cold-chips and tepid teabags - English musicians produced extraordinary music in the early years of that decade - the Seventies – much of it hopeful. And some of it is here (man).

Not quite genius but brilliant in places (and changeable like its title) - "Bob Stanley & Pete Wiggs Present ENGLISH WEATHER" is a rather cool little CD to start off 2017 with. Deserving of your moody post-Brexit spondulicks - well done to all involved...

PS: the limited edition Vinyl Version is a 2LP set with 1 Bonus Track 
"The Prisoner (9 to 10)" by SPRING

"Trilogy: Deluxe Edition" by EMERSON, LAKE & PALMER (2015 Sony Music/Legacy 2CD/1DVD-A Set – Paschal Byrne/Andy Pearce/Nigel Wilkes/Jakko Jakszyk Remixes and Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

This Review Along With 500 Others Is Available In My

SOUNDS GOOD E-Book on all Amazon sites

CLASSIC 1970s ROCK On CD - Exception Remasters  

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"...It Was All Clear...From The Beginning..." 

As an impressionable 14-year old in 1972 Dublin - I can remember holding the 4th ELP album under my arm in all its gorgeous Island Records Hipgnosis Gatefold Sleeve splendiffery as I trucked along the unsuspecting footpath to my mate's house in Clontarf (he later turned out to be a blindingly great bass player - Raymond "Gally" Kelleher). I was gamely determined to get him away from that grungy hard-rocking Black Sabbath and Budgie stuff and introduce the clearly unenlightened eejet Ray to the wondrous and complicated Moog glories of Prog Rock (some chance). He listened to Part One of "The Endless Enigma" and uttered adjectives beginning with 'f' that his mother wouldn't have approved of. Not even Carl Palmer saying the "s" word at the beginning of "The Sheriff" as he misses a beat (which seemed terribly exciting at the time) bought out the inner Rock ‘n’ Roller in him. No – none of it worked – in fact massively unimpressed - Gally looked at me sideways - like I might need to up the drugs-intake or get more therapy (and real fast). Ah well...

In equal measure ELP’s catalogue has long since been the stuff of devotion and utter derision as the decades roll by – and I’m down with both opinions. They were bloated and preposterous at times for sure – but they were also innovative and magnificent and with "Trilogy" – they moved me. "Trilogy" has always had a place in my clogged-up soft machine and this stunning 3-disc reissue finally does that nugget in their patchy catalogue a long-deserved solid. Here are laced-up boots and moody side profiles...

UK released 27 April 2015 (May 2015 in the USA) – "Trilogy: Deluxe Edition" by EMERSON, LAKE & PALMER on Sony Music/Legacy /Leadclass Limited 88875004902 (Barcode 888750049025) is a 2CD/1DVD Reissue which breaks down as follows:

Disc 1 – Original Trilogy (42:12 minutes):

1. The Endless Enigma (Part One)

2. Fugue

3. The Endless Enigma (Part Two)

4. From The Beginning

5. The Sheriff

6. Hoedown

7. Trilogy [Side 2]

8. Living Sin

9. Abaddon’s Bolero

Tracks 1 to 9 are their 4th album "Trilogy" – originally released July 1972 in the UK on Island Records ILPS 9186 and in the USA on Cotillion SD-9903 (Produced by Greg Lake and Eddie Offord). Original master tapes transferred by PASCHAL BYRNE at Audio Archiving in London – remaster for the original mix by ANDY PEARCE.

Disc 2 – New Stereo Trilogy (46:53 minutes):

1. From The Beginning (Alternate Version)

2 to 10 as per Disc 1 with each track as (New Stereo Mix)

Disc 3 – DVD-A 5.1 Trilogy:

Tracks 1 to 9 (as per Disc 1) offers the album in “Original Mixes Presented In Both MLP Lossless & LPCM – both at 24-bit 96kHz”

Tracks 10 to 18 (as per Disc 1) offers the album in “New Stereo Mixes Presented In Both MLP Lossless 5.1 & Stereo at 24-bit 96kHz, DTS 96/24 5.1 & Dolby Digital 5.1 (48kHz) and LPCM Stereo 24-bit 96kHz

Track 19 is “From The Beginning (Alternate Version)” – as per 10 to 18

The New Stereo and 5.1 Surround Mixes are both by JAKKO JAKSZYK - a musician who has been involved in some of the King Crimson Reissues with 5.1 Surround Mixes (all have been praised greatly). DVD-A Authoring is by NIGEL WILKES at Opus Productions. Both Disc 2 and 3 are listed as PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED.

The DVD-A loads up the screen with the front cover artwork across the full widescreen spectrum as it displays EMERSON, LAKE & PALMER – Trilogy – DELUXE EDITION. It offers 3 options (a) Play (b) Audio Setup and (c) Original Mix. If you press play it will immediately launch into the New Stereo Mix by Jakko Jakszyk while the LPCM Stereo, DTS 5.1 Surround and Dolby Digital Surround options are all off the Audio Set Up link.

The four-flap foldout card digipak is a chunky affair with a picture of Keith Emerson (Keyboards), Greg Lake (Lead Vocals and Bass) and Carl Palmer (Drums) under each of the three see-through plastic trays. The 16-page booklet features new liner notes from noted writer and Musicologist CHRIS WELCH with a superbly in-depth interview from Jakko Jakszyk on the tapes and Surround mixes he had to make. A fan of the band since 1971 when he saw the group at the Oval Cricket Grounds in Kennington, London for £1.25 new pence – his enthusiasm and dedication to getting it right is palatable. The reproduce the inner gatefold trick photo by HIPGNOSIS where they are behind trees (Epping Forest), an advert for the American album on Cotillion and there’s even a fee paragraphs from all three musicians (signed beneath) about how they remember the album. It’s well done - but small change to the musical improvements...

"Trilogy" always had way too much hiss and little or no oomph. I’ve heard (I think) no less than three remasters of it – none of which elevated it beyond 'good'. And while you play Andy Pearce’s gallant attempt on Disc 1 – the truth for me is that the flat transfer doesn’t really sound improved. But all of that goes out the window when you get to Disc 2 and 3 where new Remaster Hero JAKSZYK has finally produced the Audio fans have craved for decades – and in two different ways (no less) that both excel. The New Stereo Trilogy is truly fabulous stuff – the hiss gone – the instruments to the fore – and yet it isn’t trebled up to the nines for effect – the whole sound stage is just better and more ballsy for the want of better words. When Greg Lake sings, "I've begun to see the reasons why I'm here..." as he finishes Part 2 of "The Endless Enigma" – the whole group punch is formidable. And there’s a heartbeat at the beginning of track one (Lake on Bass apparently) that predates "Dark Side Of The Moon" by a year as an intro effect that’s been hidden in the mix for decades.

But then you’re hit with a true sensation – the beautiful ballad by Greg Lake "From The Beginning". Having loved and heard this track for 40+ years in average sound – what an utter blast it is to hear it this clear, this gorgeous and dare we say - this powerful. The acoustic guitars strum with power and warmth, the bass is so sweet and man - when that Keith Emerson solo kicks it – you’re floored. Of the tracks on Side Two the best sounding has to be "Trilogy" with its piano intro and then that massive Synth break in the middle. Those huge keyboard blasts and drum rolls at the end of "Living Sin" also sound incredible.

I popped round to a mate's house to sample the 5.1 Surround and WOW is the only appropriate response. There’s instrumental stuff going in the album finisher "Abaddon's Bolero" that I’ve never heard – rhythm flourishes and guitars that swirl around the room – unbelievably good. The DVD-A is a triumph and I’m really going to have to invest in a decent Surround set up at home.

So there you have it – a good Emerson, Lake And Palmer reissue at last - glory be. Why I’m so animated I might even listen to the side and a half version of "Karn Evil 9" on the dreadful live triple "Welcome Back My Friends To The Show That Never Ends..." set?

Well I might...but then again...I may need to look at those med's levels again as Gally Kelleher once advised...

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