“Standing Ovation - The Very Best Of The Dells 1966 – 1981” by THE DELLS (2007 Universal 2CD Compilation with Erick Labson Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"…Stay In My Corner…"

As you can see from the track listing below - both discs in this superlative 2CD Anthology are jam-packed full of goodies. 10 are new to CD (out of a total of 39) with the rest of the songs being hard-to-find – and especially in top sound quality.

Released June 2007 - "Standing Ovation: The Very Best Of 1966–1981" by THE DELLS on Universal 9849280 (Barcode 602498492802) is a 39-track 2CD set of Remasters and plays out as follows (all catalogue numbers are USA):

Disc 1 (78:23 minutes):

1. Run For Cover ("There Is", May 1968 LP on Cadet LPS-804 (Stereo)/LP-804 (Mono))

2. Thinkin' About You (June 1967 7" single on Cadet 5538, A-side)

3. There Is [Raynard Miner (of The Gems) & Bobby Miller song] (as per 1)

4. When I'm In Your Arms (as per 1)

5. (Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher And Higher (Jackie Wilson cover) (as per 1)

6. Make Sure (You Have Someone Who Loves You) ("The Dells Musical Menu - Always Together", February 1969 LP on Cadet LPS-822)

7. Believe Me (as per 6)

8. Wear It On Our Face (as per 1)

9. Stay In My Corner (as per 1)

10. Dos Anybody Know I'm Here? (as per 6)

11. Always Together (Bobby Miller song) (as per 6)

12. Oh, What A Night (Remake of their 1956 Vee-Jay Doo Wop hit) ("Love Is Blue", August 1969 LP on Cadet LPS-829)

13. Medley: I Can Sing A Rainbow/Love Is Blue (as per 12)

14. A Whiter Shade Of Pale (Procol Harum cover) (as per 12)

15. One Less Bell To Answer (5th Dimension cover/Burt Bacharach song) ("Freedom Means", August 1971 LP on Cadet CA 50004)

16. It's All Up To You (Terry Callier/Larry Wade song) (as per 15)

17. The Love We Had (Stays On My Mind) (Larry Wade/Terry Callier song) (as per 15)

18. I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself (Bacharach/David song) ("The Dells Sing Dionne Warwicke's Greatest Hits", July 1972 LP on Cadet CA 50017)

19. Just As Long As We're In Love (Terry Callier/Larry Wade song) ("Sweet As Funk Can Be", November 1972 LP on Cadet CA 50021)

20. Give Your Baby A Standing Ovation ("Give Your Baby A Standing Ovation", June 1973 LP on Cadet CA 50037)

21. Closer (as per 20)

Disc 2 (79:42 minutes)

1. I Miss You ("The Dells", November 1973 LP on Cadet CA 50046)

2. Learning To Love You Was Easy ("The Mighty Mighty Dells", September 1974 LP on Cadet CA 60030)

3. Strung Out Over You ("The Dells Vs The Dramatics", March 1974 LP on Cadet CA 60027)

4. Bring Back The Love Of Yesterday (as per 2)

5. We Got To Get Our Thing Together ("We Got To Get Our Thing Together", November 1975 LP on Cadet 60044)

6. I'll Be Waiting There For You (as per 5)

7. Thank God You're My Lady (as per 5)

8. No Way Back ("No Way Back", June 1976 LP on Mercury SRM-1 1084)

9. Slow Motion (as per 8)

10. Our Love ("They Said It Couldn't Be Done, But We Did It", May 1977 LP on Mercury SRM-1 1145)

11. Could It Be (as per 10)

12. Private Property ("Love Connection", January 1978 LP on Mercury SRM-3711)

13. Don't Trick Me, Treat Me (as per 12)

14. (You Bring Out) The Best In Me ("Face To Face", February 1979 LP on ABC Records AA-1113)

15. Your Song ("I Touched A Dream", August 1980 LP on 20th Century T-816)

16. I Touched A Dream (as per 15)

17. All About The Paper (12" Remixed Version) [Album version on 15)

18. Whatever Turns You On ("Whatever Turns You On", 1981 LP on 20th Century T-633)

The 12-page booklet has an informative and very affection essay by lifetime fan RICHARD SEARLING with 2 pages of basic track lists (unfortunately the pictures of the band, the tasty Cadet labels and the album sleeves are very small and almost unreadable).

It opens with a peach "Run For Cover" and frankly never lets up. No less than 6 tracks from their sensational Cadet debut "There Is" are included - and rightly so - but a big omission from the period is the truly gorgeous "O-O, I Love You" - a November 1969 USA 7" single on Cadet 5574 - as lovely a soul ballad as you could possibly hear with searing duet vocals from the boys and stunning Charles Stepney string arrangements. It's available elsewhere - seek it out.

Speaking of soul heroes - Stepney was heavily involved in the Cadet label (a Chess offshoot) and The Rotary Connection featuring Minnie Riperton, while he arranged and produced at least 6 of The Dells LPs for the label. He also worked on the beautiful Terry Callier trilogy for Cadet in the early 70's (see reviews for "Occasional Rain" and "I Just Can't Help Myself"). His classy stamp is all over most of Disc 1 and the beginning of 2 - sweet, sweet soulful arrangements.

A really clever choice too is the 12" extended mix of "All About The Paper" - exclusive to this disc; it's a funky little gem backed with Eugene Record's "I Touched A Dream" (sides were reversed on 12" in the UK). I also adore the slinky groove of Anthony Hester's "I Miss You". And on it goes...

Although it doesn't say who remastered the set, earlier Universal compilations were all done by ERICK LABSON (has over 1000 mastering credits to his name) and the sound quality here matches those - BEAUTIFUL and CLEAR. Bobby Miller's original production values shine through also. And even though it gets a bit Stylistics cheesy towards the end - the quality of songs throughout is alarmingly good - there really is so much on hear to admire and enjoy. If anything - the discography provided above shows how many of their albums 'aren't' on CD and need to be...

The Dells are now the longest-running group in the world (remaining members are in their Seventies) and this gem of a release does them proud. Big time recommended.

PS: Dear compilers in Universal/Hip-O Select - A Dells/Charles Stepney box set please...

“The End – Confessions Of A Cockney Gangster” – A Review Of The 2008 DVD.

“…Apples And Pears Darling…”

Only a few days ago, I was cycling into work in the morning sunshine and had stopped at the traffic lights immediately beside Holborn Tube station in Central London. And I heard something really unusual. It was a Cockney accent. By the railings just as you come out of the entrance was a brand new fruit trader shouting his Beau Bells head off like they do - prices of plums, bananas, apples and pears, weather reports, comments on the ladies and their pencil skirts, lurid remarks about their wobbling bums and heaving cleavage. And I thought now that's refreshing...

I mentioned it to the boys when I got into work a few minutes later because - (a) apart from the fruit market at the bottom of our Berwick Street, you just don't hear that 'exclusive' London accent anymore... and (b) there is no one more politically incorrect and therefore as funny as a Cockney.

"The End - Confessions Of A Cockney Gangster" is about the East End of London and the criminals that arose out of it. If you are born within earshot of the bells of the London Church of St. Mary-Le-Bow in Cheapside - you're a proper Cockney from the East End of London (nicknamed "The End"). The style of the film is a daughter interviewing her criminal Dad and associates - trying to understand why they did what they did - and still do. It's done in a documentary style and consists of interviews with 11 people - some are reformed Christians, some unrepentant who still spend their lives avoiding the law and its consequences.

Written, filmed and directed by NICOLA COLLINS, the danger in this film is that the cheeky-wide-boy antics of these thugs becomes mere entertainment and the very real destruction they reaped on people's lives and their communities gets lost in a wave of sappy nostalgia that isn't deserved. But Nicola bravely doesn't shirk it in what she leaves 'in' about her Dad and his buddies...what she could have edited out and didn't. So there are times when the reminiscences are sickeningly violent, grotesque and tortuous to a point where you think these uneducated yobs are little more than animals, but there are also times when the remembered characters and events are ball-breakingly funny - violent and funny - and at times of course - a strange mixture of both.

All of them talk of 'bird' - doing prison-time. Some can hack it, many can't. Some are even smart enough to realize the staggering waste of it all - all those years banged up because they couldn't shut up and control themselves. As to why they turn to crime, there's the convenient and shallow excuse about poverty and having to find a way out of it - few seem willing to admit that they took the easy road while ordinary people simply grafted for their families and loved ones. Some talk about keeping the violence away from their loved ones - but again it reeks of hypocrisy. Dad gets banged up while the wife, son and daughter get left behind and screwed by it... Two are now born-again Christians - sickened to their very souls by the corruptive nature of what they were doing. They actually seem saved to me...and not in the least bit sappy.

But as the Capitol city of Great Britain literally becomes the melting pot of the world, you can't help but feel that 'suited 'n' booted' Cockneys are a life force that's disappearing in a sea of other Nationalities... In a few years, will they even exist at all? Who knows?

So what's it all about Alfie?

Although there's a sort of guilty voyeuristic pleasure to be had in this strange film, I was finally left with an all-abiding feeling of sadness, a way of life that led too many of these men into wasted years behind bars at her Majesties Service - which is exactly where you can't help but feel the snot-noses who run Great Britain want all of them. Keep them uneducated; you keep them in their corner...

Cockneys are both full of shit and full of fun. Underworld Cockneys are even more so. Everyone knows that. And I don't know why we have such affection for them - I really don't.

But a part of me hopes that in some way, that Fruit Trader makes it...

“2010: The Year We Make Contact” – A Review of the 1984 Peter Hyams Movie Now Reissued on BLU RAY in 2009.

“…I Want To Play A Game With You Dr. Floyd…It’s Called The Truth…”

When MGM began making "2010: The Year We Make Contact" in February 1984, the CD was in its infancy, nothing was digital and portable and the Internet and the global sharing of ideas and images was non-existent. Showing its film age badly - in one particular scene Roy Schreider even talks of information being given to his astronauts on 'cassettes' - on board a Jupiter spaceship mission for God's sake!
Even the television monitors were black screens with monosyllabic block lettering on them and nothing else... Why mention all of this, because it has of course - in some places - dated the film very badly...

But - and this is a big but - for its time (finally released in 1985), "2010" was an extraordinary vision and a technological marvel. It provided the moviegoer with a superbly detailed and realistic depiction of future space travel, shots of the majestic Jupiter and its moons Io and Europa that were and still are incredibly accurate. Even the story of the Americans and Russians coming together so as not to annihilate each other was both relevant and damn good - and made for a great end message by Bowman (Keir Dullea - who looked like he hadn't aged a day since 1968's original "2001"). Throw in model makers from the Star Wars Trilogy, Raiders Of The Lost Ark, Poltergeist and Ghostbusters - and the goodies were bound to be on display and they are. Which brings us unfortunately to the bad news...

...this is one of those instances where the enhanced BLU RAY image has only worsened an already hazy print...

You see - once you go from the entirely model-led outside shots (say of outer space) which are clean, beautiful and impressive to look at - into the interior shots and live action on dimly-lit stages - the blurriness and shading act as a direct contrast to the clarity you just saw - it drive you nuts. And because a good 70 to 80% of the movie is 'inside' - the effect of the wonderfully realized and designed interiors is almost completely lost. It's like watching Aliens without the clarity - or Star Wars on blurry videotape. It's as if a heavy filter hangs over every frame - and it makes the BLU RAY picture feel and look very dated.

Don't get me wrong - the picture 'is' lovely in some places - but in the main - it's not - which is a huge disappointment.

The only real extra is a 10-minute 1984 'making of' called "2010; The Odyssey Continues" which is fascinating and contains very brief interviews with all the principals - Roy Scheider as Dr. Floyd, Helen Mirren as the Russian pilot Tanya, John Lithgow as Dr. Curnow, Elya Baskin as the loveable Russian Max, Bob Balaban as Chandra the genius who created Hal-9000 - Discovery's malfunctioning computer (voiced by Douglas Rain). There's interesting stuff too with Richard Edlund the model maker - the make-up people - interior designs - even words from author Arthur C Clarke and director Peter Hyams about the screenwriting process in 1983 when they were prepping for the film.

I really had such high hopes for this BLU RAY release, but unfortunately I'd say hire it first before you buy...

The film was - and still is - excellent - an impressive one even.
But this BLU RAY reissue of it is anything but.

It's not "full of stars" folks, it's barely pushing three.

And what a shame that Roy Scheider is no longer with us...



PS: the above Blu Ray of the original "2001" is by direct contrast probably one of the most beautifully transferred oldies - ever. Up there with "Zulu", "Pinnochio" and the Bond films...

"What Color Is Love" by TERRY CALLIER (March 2008 UK Universal/Verve 'ORIGINALS' CD Series Reissue and Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...All Those Notes Won't Take The Pain Away..."

At about 1:58 into the astonishing "Dancing Girl" (the opening nine-minute track of "What Color Is Love") it gets very quiet and the acoustic guitar holds the speakers alone – then Don Myrick's tasteful sax work floats in followed by keyboard flourishes and some wickedly arranged strings by Charles Stepney. The effect is absolutely magical…

And after you've put your jaw back into place - you're left standing there with a genuine incomprehension…how has something this lovely and genuinely soulful been forgotten? Why isn't this huge?

"What Color Is Love" was released on LP in March 1973 in the USA on Cadet CA 50019 and is the second of three albums TERRY CALLIER made for the Chess offshoot label Cadet in the Seventies – the first was "Occasional Rain" in 1972 (see separate review) and the third was "I Just Can't Help Myself" in late 1973 (see review for Japanese CD import).

Both "What Color Is Love" and "Occasional Rain" are part of Universal’s “ORIGINALS” CD reissue series – Jazz, Soul, Fusion and Latin LPs reissued and remastered onto CD from a multitude of labels under the Universal umbrella. All use generic artwork (the originals name and band on the left of the sleeve as pictured above) and are gatefold card digipaks issued at mid-price. Although the card digipaks are aesthetically pleasing as mini-repro LP sleeves, unfortunately most come without booklets - this album’s recording credits on the inner flap for instance are barely legible. Which is a bummer because if ever an album deserved fresh liner notes, history, photos, a new interview - but alas…

Released on CD in March 2008 - "What Color Is Love" by TERRY CALLIER on Verve Originals B0011921-02 (Barcode 602517829749) is a straightforward transfer of the album onto CD and plays as follows (40:44 minutes):

1. Dancing Girl

2. What Color Is Love

3. You Goin' Miss Your Candyman

4. Just As Long As We’re In Love

5. Ho Tsing Mee (A Song Of The Sun)

6. I'd Rather Be With You

7. You Don't Care

The good news is that the Remaster is beautiful - the tapes transferred by a name I’ve seen on hundreds of quality reissues - KEVIN REEVES. So mellow, so lovely… a great job done.

 As well as the wonderful breath of "Dancing Girl" (lyrics above) - highlights include the huge build up on Side One’s closer “You Goin’ To Miss Your Candyman” (co-written with Phyllis Braxton), the “I-must-hit-the-road but I wanna…” soft-soul of "I'd Rather Be With You" (co-written with Larry Wade and Jerry Butler) and the so 5th Dimension girly vocals of Kitty Haywood, Shirley Wahls and Vivian Harrell on "You Don't Care" – a song so up with hippy-love-and-harmony that it may have some of you going to work in a sunny disposition on the drizzliest of Monday mornings…

PHIL UPCHURCH features on Guitar throughout, while another soul-hero associated with the album is CHARLES STEPNEY who arranged, conducted and produced the project to such sweet effect (also played keyboards). He was involved in The Rotary Connection with Minnie Riperton, produced four albums with The Dells and even twiddled the knobs on the iconic and now much-vaulted psych-blues-fusion album "Electric Mud" by Muddy Waters. I'd personally scour down anything he had a hand in - a genius...

Like Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On", Donny Hathaway's "Extension Of A Man", Stevie Wonder's "Innervisions" and Callier's predecessor to this "Occasional Rain" - this is a proper soul album - a gem all the way through and still beautiful and inspiring to this day - some 30/40 years after the event. Why isn’t the LP artwork of this masterpiece on someone's t-shirt somewhere as the ultimate street-cool – who knows? But you owe it to yourself to check it out. 

In his later years Terry Callier had morphed (like Richie Havens) into a sort of elder statesman of Soul - still spreading his gospel of love and understanding (check out "Timepeace" from 1998 - unbelievably good and relevant to the now and not just past glories). I've warbled on a bit I know but Callier’s run of three albums on Cadet in the Seventies deserve it...

The "BACKTRACK" LP Series. 14 Albums from 1970 on Track Records. A Detailed Discography.

NUMERICAL ORDER - DETAILED

1. VARIOUS ARTISTS – Backtrack 1
Track 2407 001, Issued May 1970

Side 1:
1. Walk On Gilded Splinters – MARSHA HUNT
2. Hey Joe – JIMI HENDRIX
3. Devil’s Grip – THE CRAZY WORLD OF ARTHUR BROWN
4. Pictures Of Lily – THE WHO
5. All Along The Watchtower – JIMI HENDRIX
6. Desdemona – JOHN’S CHILDREN [featuring Marc Bolan of T.Rex]

Side 2:
1. Fire – THE CRAZY WORLD OF ARTHUR BROWN
2. I Can See For Miles – THE WHO
3. Follow Me – EIRE APPARENT
4. It’s Been A Long Time – ANDY ELLISON
5. Call Me Lightning – THE WHO
6. The Wind Cries Mary – JIMI HENDRIX

2. VARIOUS ARTISTS – Backtrack 2
Track 2407 002, Issued May 1970

Side 1:
1. Under My Thumb – THE WHO
2. Desdemona – MARSHA HUNT [John’s Children/Marc Bolan cover]
3. Purple Haze – THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE
4. Come And Play With Me In The Garden – JOHN’S CHILDREN
5. If I Had A Ribbon Bow – FAIRPORT CONVENTION
6. Magic Bus – THE WHO

Side 2:
1. Something In The Air – THUNDERCLAP NEWMAN
[Written by John “Speedy” Keen]
2. Cherry Smash Sings Songs Of Love – HUGG
[Written by and featuring MIKE HUGG of Manfred Mann]
3. Pinball Wizard – THE WHO
4. Nightmare – THE CRAZY WORLD OF ARTHUR BROWN
5. Let Me Light Your Fire – THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE
6. The Last Time – THE WHO
[A Rolling Stones cover]

3. THE WHO and THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE – Backtrack 3
Track 2407 003, Issued May 1970
(Contained Previously Unreleased STEREO Mixes of WHO Songs)

Side 1:
1. Substitute – THE WHO
2. Disguises – THE WHO
3. Run, Run, Run – THE WHO
4. I'm A Boy – THE WHO
5. Whiskey Man – THE WHO
6. Happy Jack – THE WHO
7. So Sad About Us – THE WHO

Side 2:
1. Hey Joe – THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE
2. I Don’t Live Today – THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE
3. Purple Haze - THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE
4. Can You See Me - THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE
5. The Wind Cries Mary - THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE
6. Stone Free - THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE

4. THE WHO and THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE – Backtrack 4
Track 2407 004, Issued May 1970

Side 1:
1. Pictures Of Lily – THE WHO
2. Relax – THE WHO
3. Sunrise – THE WHO
4. I Can See For Miles – THE WHO
5. Armenia City In The Sky – THE WHO
6. Our Love Was – THE WHO
7. Call Me Lightning – THE WHO

Side 2:
1. Burning Of The Midnight Lamp – THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE
2. Are You Experienced – THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE
3. If Six Was Nine – THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE
4. Remember - THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE
5. Gypsy Eyes - THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE
6. All Along The Watchtower - THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE

5. THE WHO and JIMI HENDRIX – Backtrack 5
Track 2407 005, Issued May 1970
(Rear sleeve credits JIMI HENDRIX, the label THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE)

Side 1:
1. Magic Bus – THE WHO
2. Boris The Spider – THE WHO
3. Mary Anne – THE WHO
4. Tattoo – THE WHO
5. Pinball Wizard – THE WHO
6. I'm Free - THE WHO
7. Rael - THE WHO

Side 2:
1. Rainy Day, Dream Away – THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE
2. Manic Depression - THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE
3. Love Or Confusion - THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE
4. Come On - THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE
5. Spanish Castle Magic - THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE
6. Voodoo Chile (Slight Return) - THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE

6. VARIOUS ARTISTS (Soul Acts) – Backtrack 6
Track 2407 006, Issued May 1970

Side 1:
1. Love Power – THE SANDPEBBLES
2. I Can Feel The Ice Melting – THE PARLIAMENTS [aka Parliamment]
3. If This Is Love (I’d Rather Be Lonely) – THE PRECISIONS
4. Headache In My Heart – THE DEBONAIRES
5. Because Of Love – THE SANDPEBBLES
6. Let Hurt Put You In The Loser’s Seat – THE PARLIAMENTS [aka Parliament]

Side 2:
1. I’m In Love Again – THE DEBONAIRES
2. You’ve Got To Pay The Price – AL KENT
3. (I Wanna) Testify – THE PARLIAMENTS [aka Parliament]
4. You’ll Soon Be Gone – THE PRECISIONS
5. Don’t Be Sore At Me – THE PARLIAMENTS [aka Parliament]
6. Where Do I Go From Here – AL KENT

7. VARIOUS ARTISTS (Rock Acts) – Backtrack 7 - Mixed Bag
Track 2407 007, Issued May 1970 (Pink Sleeve)

Side 1:
1. How Would You Feel – JIMI HENDRIX and CURTIS KNIGHT
2. Hippy Gumbo – MARSHA HUNT
3. It’s Only Me – BENT FRAME
4. The Seeker – THE WHO
5. I See It All- THUNDERCLAP NEWMAN
6. Keep The Customer Satisfied – MARSHA HUNT

Side 2:
1. Summertime Blues (Live) – THE WHO
2. What’s Happening – THE CRAZY WORLD OF ARTHUR BROWN
3. Long Hot Summer Night – JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE
(misspelled on label as "Lot Hot Summer Night")
4. Accidents – THUNDERCLAP NEWMAN
5. Here For More – THE WHO
6. The Stars That Play With Laughing Sam's Dice – JIMI HENDRIX
EXPERIENCE

8. THE WHO – Backtrack 8
Track 2407 008, Issued November 1970
(Mono Version of “A Quick One”)


Side 1:
1. Run, Run, Run
2. Boris The Spider
3. I Need You
4. Whiskey Man
5. Heatwave

Side 2:
1. Cobwebs and Strange
2. Don't Look Away
3. See My Way
4. So Sad About Us
5. A Quick One While He's Away

9. THE WHO – Backtrack 9
Track 2407 009, Issued November 1970
(Stereo Mix of “Who Sell Out”)

Side 1:
1. Armenia City In The Sky
2. Heinz Baked Beans
3. Mary-Anne With The Shaky Hands
4. Odorono
5. Tattoo
6. Our Love Was
7. I Can See For Miles

Side 2:
1. Charles Atlas
2. I Can't Reach You
3. Medac
4. Relax
5. Silas Stingy
6. Sunrise
7. Rael

10. THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE – Backtrack 10
“Are You Experienced” (Stereo Version – see Notes)
Track 2407 010, Issued November 1970


Side 1:
1. Foxy Lady
2. Manic Depression
3. Red House
4. Can You See Me
5. Love Or Confusion

Side 2:
1. I Don't Live Today
2. May This Be Love
3. Fire
4. 3rd Stone From The Sun
5. Remember
6. Are You Experienced

[Notes: this is a reissue of his debut album on Track 612 001 in 1967, which was originally only issued in MONO; this Backtrack was the first in STEREO]

11. THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE – Backtrack 11
“Axis: Bold As Love” (Mono Version – see Notes)
Track 2407 011, Released May 1970


Side 1:
1. EXP
2. Up From The Skies
3. Spanish Castle Magic
4. Wait Until Tomorrow
5. Ain't No Telling
6. Little Wing

Side 2:
1. If Six Was Nine
2. You've Got Me Floating
3. Castles Made Of Sand
4. She's So Fine
5. One Rainy Wish
6. Little Miss Lover
7. Bold As Love

[Note: this was a budget reissue of his 2nd album originally issue in 1967 in both MONO and STEREO versions – this reissue is the rare MONO mix]

12. ARTHUR BROWN – Backtrack 12
“The Crazy World Of Arthur Brown” (Stereo Version)
Track 2407 012, Issued May 1970

Side 1:
1. Prelude – Nightmare
2. Fanfare - Fire Poem
3. Fire
4. Come And Buy
5. Time/Confusion

Side 2:
1. I Put A Spell On You
2. Spontaneous Apple Creation
3. Rest Cure
4. Money
5. Narration (Child of My Kingdom)

[Notes: this is the Stereo version of an album that first appeared 2 years earlier on Track Records in both Mono (Track 612 005) and Stereo (Track 613 005).
It also features VINCENT CRANE of ATOMIC ROOSTER. “I Put A Spell On You” is a Screaming Jay Hawkins cover; “Money” is a Barrett Strong cover]

13. MURRAY ROMAN – Backtrack 13
“You Can’t Beat People Up And Have Them Say I Love You” (Stereo)
Track 2407 013, Issued November 1970
(Is a reissue of his 1969 debut LP on Track 613 007)

Side 1:
1. Three Kinds Of Highs
2. That's A Bust
3. The Banana Thing
4. Anything You Want To Do
5. Good Chicks And Bad Chicks
6. Three Ways To Score
7. The Baja Marimba Band Story
8. The Riots

Side 2:
1. Be There, Be There
2. Horror Films
3. Twiggy
4. Try This, Little Joe!
5. Good News
6. Join The Navy
7. War Films
8. The Real Enemy

14. THE WHO – THE OX [John Entwistle Their Bass Player] – Backtrack 14
Track 2407 014, Issued November 1970

Side 1:
1. Heinz Baked Beans
2. Heaven And Hell
3. Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde
4. Fiddle About
5. Cousin Kevin
6. Doctor Doctor

Side 2:
1. Medac
2. Boris The Spider
3. I’ve Been Away
4. Whiskey Man
5. In The City
6. Someone’s Coming
7. Silas Stingy

NUMERICAL ORDER - CONCISE

1. 2407 001 – VARIOUS ARTISTS – “Backtrack 1” (May 1970) £25.00
2. 2407 002 – VARIOUS ARTISTS – “Backtrack 2” (May 1970) £12.00
3. 2407 003 – THE WHO and JIMI HENDRIX – “Backtrack 3” (May 1970)
(Contained Previously Unreleased STEREO Mixes of WHO Songs) £15.00
4. 2407 004 – THE WHO and JIMI HENDRIX – “Backtrack 4” (May 1970) £15.00
5. 2407 005 – THE WHO and JIMI HENDRIX – “Backtrack 5” (May 1970) £15.00
6. 2407 006 - VARIOUS ARTISTS (Soul) – “Backtrack 6” (May 1970) £15.00
7. 2407 007 – VARIOUS ARTISTS (Rock & Soul) – “Backtrack 7”
(November 1970) £12.00
8. 2407 008 – THE WHO – “Backtrack 8”
(Mono Version of “A Quick One”) (November 1970) £18.00
9. 2407 009 – THE WHO – “Backtrack 9”
(Stereo Version of “Who Sell Out”) (November 1970) £12.00
10. 2407 010 – JIMI HENDRIX – “Backtrack 10”
(Stereo Version of “Are You Experienced”) (November 1970) £15.00
11. 2407 011 – JIMI HENDRIX – “Backtrack 11”
(Stereo Version of “Axis: Bold As Love”) (November 1970) £15.00
12. 2407 012 – ARTHUR BROWN – “Backtrack 12” –
(Stereo Version of “The Crazy World Of Arthur Brown”) (Nov 1970) £12.00
13. 2407 013 – MURRAY ROMAN – “Backtrack 13” –
(Stereo “You Can’t Beat People Up And Have Them Say I Love You”)
(November 1970) £12.00
14. 2407 014 – THE WHO – THE OX (John Entwistle songs) – “Backtrack 14”
(November 1970) £22.00

Compiled March - August 2009

"Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere" by NEIL YOUNG (2009 Reprise/Neil Young Archives HDCD Reissue and Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"…It's So Hard To Say No To Yourself…"

As we all know - Neil Young has famously resisted the remastered reissue of his huge catalogue on CD because of what he feels is the format's less than stellar representation of analogue tapes' original sound as laid down by the artist - and almost a full 20 years after 1989's first issue of his 2nd album on a dullard CD - it looks like the guy is having the last laugh - because this meticulously prepared tape transfer is GLORIOUS. It really is. I've bought all 4 of his new NYA CD remasters and to my ears this is fact the best sounding of them all.

First to the details - "Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere" by NEIL YOUNG was originally released on vinyl LP in May 1969 on Reprise Records RS 6349 in the USA and RSLP 6349 in the UK (July 1969).

This August 2009 Reprise/NYA-OSR Remaster on Reprise 9362-49790-3 (Barcode 093624979036) is Disc 2 of 4 and carries the HDCD code on the label and rear inlay (High Density Compact Disc). 

NYA ORS is the Neil Young Archives - Original Release Series. As these are the first four albums in a long reissue campaign - to identify them from the old CDs - the upper part of the outer spine has his new NYA OSR logo at the top and an 'issue' number beneath - D1, D2, D3, D4...on upwards of course.

“Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere" (40:47 minutes):

1. Cinnamon Girl [Side 1]

2. Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere

3. Round & Round (It Won't Be Long)

4. Down By The River

5. The Losing End (When You're On) [Side 2]

6. Running Dry (Requiem For The Rockets)

7. Cowgirl In The Sand

Until now - 2004's "Greatest Hits" set (which offered us three "Everybody..." tracks remastered into HDCD sound quality) was the only real indication of just how good the album could sound (this is the first time the entire album has been given a sonic upgrade). The Audio Tape Restoration and Analog-To-HDCD Digital Transfer of the Original Master Tapes was carried out by JOHN NOWLAND (24-Bit 176 KHZ) with the Editing and Mastering done by TIM MULLIGAN - and they've done a stunning job.

The inlay reproduces photos of Danny Whitten (Guitar), Billy Talbot (Bass) with Ralph Molina (on Drums) and David Briggs (Engineer and Producer) - but there are no lyrics. However, the big and obvious disappointment is the complete lack of musical extras or any new info in the booklet - and in the case of this album in particular the omissions are going to be a sore point for fans who've waited decades for these releases. While some rarities have turned up on the 2009 mega box set "The Archives Vol.1 1963-1972" - some tracks are still missing. "Down By The River" was edited for single release in the UK in August 1970 on RS 23462 with an alternate take of "Cinnamon Girl" on the B-side. To my knowledge, neither is available in remastered sound anywhere. Also - "Oh Lonesome Me" was extended for the US 7" and it's B-side, an alternate mix of "I've Been Waiting For You" is again a no-show. All of them would have made for ideal extras material and it's infuriating that they're not on here.

Still - at mid price - this remaster of "Everybody..." is still great value for money and with this hugely upgraded sound - it makes you focus on the music as is and not anything else. The sound is exceptional on the big rocking tracks "Down By The River" and the near 10-minute "Cowgirl In The Sand" - while the clarity is just beautiful on Richie Furay's "Round And Round (It Won't Be Long)" - Robin Lane's duet vocals being particularly lovely. Bobby Notkoff's violin on "Running Dry" is very clear - and as the band loosely ramshackles its way into the song - it sounds like they're in your living room - miked up and live - fabulous stuff.

The remaster is not bombastically loud either, trebled up to the nines, but subtle - the music is just THERE in your speakers to a point where everything seems new and up for grabs again. Fans will love it and will feel like they're revisited long cherished old friends while newcomers will now understand what all the 5-star fuss is about.

The gold sticker on the jewel case of each of these issues says "Because Sound Matters" - and I think Rock's great curmudgeon was right to wait to get it right...

PS: I’ve also reviewed “Neil Young”, “After The Gold Rush”, “Harvest” and “Official Release Series Discs 1-4”