"Howlin Wind" by GRAHAM PARKER (2001 Mercury 'Expanded' CD Reissue - Gary Moore Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...Put Them Right..."

It's 1975 and a young Graham Parker is bored to distraction feeding go-go juice to gas guzzlers on the forecourt of a London Petrol Station. He puts the smelly grubby nozzle back in its equally scuzzy slot for the last time, toddles off home, pens a few caustic tunes in his bedsit about love, drugs and emotional insanity - then sets off to gain instant fame and fortune (well fame anyway).

Like so many Rock Kids of a certain age who remember the advent of Punk and New Wave (and welcomed much of it) – it's always struck me as odd that genuine musical talent like say Nick Lowe and Graham Parker weren't and aren't utterly huge? I mean where’s the statue citizens of Chobham in Surrey for your musical son – eh?. I can remember when Parker's albums were simply three and four-pound fodder in every secondhand shop. Well maybe the 2001 Remasters of his blistering 70ts catalogue can put pay to that short sightedness for good because his 1976 debut is a total winner you need in your life. Here are the Soul Shoes in your face (please don't let the Fuzz in)...

UK released July 2001 – "Howlin Wind" by GRAHAM PARKER (and THE RUMOUR) on Mercury 548 667-2 (Barcode 731454866729) is an 'Expanded Edition' CD Remaster with one Bonus Track and plays out as follows (45:11 minutes):

1. White Honey [Side 1]

2. Nothing's Gonna Pull Us Apart

3. Silly Thing

4. Gypsy Blood

5. Between You And Me

6. Back To Schooldays

7. Soul Shoes [Side 2]

8. Lady Doctor

9. You've Got To Be Kidding

10. Howlin' Wind

11. Not if It Pleases Me

12. Don't Ask Me No Questions

Tracks 1 to 12 are his debut LP "Howlin Wind" – released April 1976 in the UK on Vertigo 6360 129 and in the USA on Mercury SRM-1 1095

BONUS TRACK:

13. I’m Gonna Use It Now – non-album B-side of "Silly Thing" issued as his debut UK 7” single in March 1976 on Mercury 6059 135

GRAHAM PARKER – Lead Vocals, Acoustic Guitar and Rhythm Guitar on "Howlin' Wind"

THE RUMOUR was:

BRINSLEY SCHWARZ – Guitar, Hammond Organ, Tenor Saxes and Backing Vocals

BOB ANDREWS – Lowrey And Hammond Organ, Piano and backing Vocals

MARTIN BELMONT – Guitar and backing Vocals

ANDREW BODNAR - Bass

STEVE GOULDING – Drums and backing Vocals

GUESTS:

ED DEAN – Slide Guitar on "Soul Shoes"

DAVE EDMUNDS – Rockabilly Guitar on "Back To Schooldays"

NOEL BROWN – Dobro Guitar on "Not If It Pleases Me" and Slide Guitar on "Back To Schooldays"

STEWART LYNAS – Alto Sax on "Lady Doctor" and Arranged All Brass

HERSHALL HOLDER – Trumpet

DAVE CONNERS – First Tenor Sax

BRINSLEY SCHWARZ – Second Tenor Sax

DANNY ELLIS – Trombone

JOHN (VISCOUNT) EARLE – Baritone Sax

The '25th Anniversary Reissues' sticker on the CD jewel case promises 'Bonus Tracks, New Sleeve Notes & Expanded Artwork'. Once you open the decidedly skimpy three-way foldout inlay – you know that Universal has gone all ASDA budget range on our Graham. There are new paragraphs from the great man alongside some history of the album by NIGEL WILLIAMSON and one lone bonus track as you can see above. It's good but hardly great – and surely there were outtakes to be had after all these years? But all that budget-priced gripe goes out the boozer window when you hear the muscle and clarity of the Remaster by GARY MOORE... 

There are tracks on "Howlin Wind" that have needed a bit of 'oomph' for years – "Soul Shoes", "Back To Schooldays" and the sadly lovely "Between Me And You" jump to mind. But the improvement is all over. The brilliant build of instruments in the acidic "Not If It Pleases Me" comes at you with incredible power (a forgotten nugget methinks). The perky opener "White Honey" sounds really fantastic (for a song about cocaine that is) and should have been the album's lead-off single instead of Vertigo's choice of the weaker but safer "Silly Thing". The acoustic beginning to "Gypsy Blood" is warm to these tired lugs and when the Rumour do kick in – the whole soundstage has real power without being overly bombastic (gorgeous acoustic playing in this song by Parker). I'm jumping around the room like a snotty brat with a day pass to Rowntrees as the brilliant and rebellious bopper "Back To Schooldays" fills my room – Dave Edmunds giving it some wicked Rockabilly Guitar just when the song needs it. Parker's vocals naturally suit the choppy-angry New Wave rhythms of "Don't Ask Me Questions" – but then like all great songwriters – he floors you with real emotion and pathos. Disguised behind the almost sing-along Eagles rhythm of "Between You And Me" is a razor blade – a song about love and bitter loss. I’ve loved this poison-berry of a melody for four decades now and like much of this brilliant album – still feels fresh and vital in 2016.

In his typically self-deprecating liner notes - Graham Parker reckons that his "Howlin Wind" LP 'was the best album released in the UK in 1976' outside of all that commercial singles chart fodder. On the evidence presented here – the angry Pump Attendant may indeed have a point. Brilliant...

"Second Helping" by LYNYRD SKYNYRD (2009 US Audio Fidelity 24KT Gold Audiophile HDCD - Kevin Gray Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...Dig You Georgia Peaches..."

Containing the epoch-making 9-minute "Freebird" - it's hardly surprising that Lynyrd Skynyrd's 1973 debut album "Pronounced..." usually gets all the plaudits when it comes to appraising their Seventies catalogue. But for me their next platter "Second Helping" has always been their Southern Rock masterpiece and a far better album overall. If anything the years have been more than kind to those 'Sounds Of The South' - up to a point where the album's legend continues to grow and regularly gets rediscovered as people dig out Classic 1970s Rock albums. I bought "Second Helping" in 1974 along with Joe Walsh's "So What" and Todd Rundgren's "Utopia" and all have been firmly wedged in my soft machine ever since.

There are three versions of Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Second Helping" on CD of note – one cheap and the other two pricey (but worth it).

The star in a reasonably priced car is the American 'Expanded' CD Remaster on MCA Records B001171902 (Barcode 602517805125) issued in November 1997 (sells for as little as four quid at times - us the Barcode to get that issue). It was remastered by DOUG SCHWARTZ from the original two-track master tapes, features a nicely featured 16-page booklet and three bonus tracks worth having (53:55 minutes). I own this version and the Remaster is ballsy if not a little overly loud. The three bonus cuts however are a real treat for Skynyrd fans – "Don't Ask Me No Questions (Single Version)", "Was I Right Or Wrong (Sounds Of The South Demo)" (5:33 minutes) and "Take Your Time (Sounds Of The South Demo)" (7:29 minutes). The last two are barroom boogie outtakes and feature some tremendous slide and piano bolstered up here with fabulous audio ("...take my time and love 'em slow...") Ronnie assures the ladies. "Take Your Time" was also a non-album B-side in the USA to the 45 of "Don't Ask Me No Questions".

There's a 2014 Hybrid SACD reissue by the American company Analogue Productions on CAPP 413 SA (Barcode 753088041365) remastered by a Sound Engineer of real repute - KEVIN GRAY (see Joe Walsh's "The Smoker You Drink, The Player You Get" and Randy Newman's "12 Songs" both on Audio Fidelity). The Analogue Productions issue features the straightforward 8-track LP in one of those round-corner jewel cases, restored artwork, wonderfully clear sound quality and doesn't require SACD playback to get the CD Remaster. However it regularly clocks in at thirty quid or more.

But my personal poison is the 2009 HDCD Audiophile straightforward transfer of the eight track album on Audio Fidelity AFZ 054 (Barcode 780014205423) – a limited Numbered Edition of 3000 (No'd on the rear) which is again a KEVIN GRAY remaster (37:16 minutes). Initial pressings of the HDCD had a glitch just ahead of the "Call Me The Breeze" track where it was mastered with a false start. Mistakes were quickly admitted – it was withdrawn and replaced with the AFZ 054 X suffix (same Barcode) and all was well. The die-cut black and gold card slipcase and the foldout inlay (reproduced artwork, Sounds Of The South logo etc) are both very pretty and the 24KT Gold CD itself looks and feels impressive.

1. Sweet Home Alabama

2. I Need You

3. Don't Ask Me No Questions

4. Workin' For MCA

5. The Ballad Of Curtis Loew [Side 2]

6. Swamp Music

7. The Needle And The Spoon

8. Call Me The Breeze

Tracks 1 to 8 are their 2nd studio album "Second Helping" – released 15 April 1974 in the USA on MCA/Sounds Of The South MCA-413 and June 1974 in the UK on MCA Records MCF 2547. It peaked at No. 12 on the US Album charts.

LYNYRD SKYNYRD were:

RONNIE VAN ZANT – Lead Vocals

GARY ROSSINGTON – Lead Guitar (Gibson Les Paul) and Acoustic Guitar

ALLEN COLLINS – Lead Guitar (Gibson Firebird)

ED KING – Guitars (Bass on "I Need You" and "Don't Ask Me No Questions")

BILLY POWELL – Keyboards

LEON WILKINSON – Bass

BOB BURNS – Drums

CLYDIE KING, SHIRLEY MATTHEWS and MERRY CLAYTON – Backing Vocals on "Sweet Home Alabama"

BOBBY KEYS, TREVOR LAWRENCE and STEVE MADIAO – Horns on "Don't Ask Me No Questions" and "Call Me The Breeze"

AL KOOPER – Producer - also Backing Vocals and Piano on "Don't Ask Me No Questions" and "The Ballad Of Curtis Loew"

But what gets you about this remaster is the clarity on all the instruments. You may have to give "Sweet Home Alabama" a bit of welly on your amp for sure – but when you do - the results are thrilling. This simple, funky and cool tune leaps out of the speakers at you rocking and ready to kick your teeth in (even old Neil would be proud of this). Listen close enough too and you’ll hear the dulcet tones of Merry Clayton who did that duet vocal with Mick Jagger on "Gimme Shelter" back in 1969. Their very best Blues song ever "I Need You" follows. I suspect many die-hard fans see "I Need You" as their penultimate track in truth – a gritty slow burning guitar Blues that captures their truly unique sound - Gary Rossington and Allen Collins battling it out on their Gibson Les Paul and Firebird. It's also a tune fans have had not heard in the live environment for over 45 years - check out the YouTube footage of the new band with Johnny Van Zant on Lead Vocals doing the song in Calgary in March of 2015 for the first time. 

The take-no-prisoners lyrics and boogie of "Don't Ask Me No Questions" still sounds so spiky – "...I don't ask you about your business...don't ask me about mine..." as those huge brass punches from Bobby Keys, Trevor Lawrence and Steve Madiao add real power. They issued a 7" 'Single Version' of "Don't Ask Me No Questions" April 1974 in the USA on MCA 40231 with the seven-minute non-album "Take Your Time" on the B-side. Ronnie warns of dodgy contracts and fast bucks "...Along comes some city slicker sayin'...you what I want!" on the staggeringly hard-hitting "Workin' For MCA". I remember thinking - kudos to the label for letting the band vent like that...

Side 2 opens with the life affirming and touching "Ballad Of Curtis Loew" – a young Ronnie enamoured with a black man who'd "...tune up his Dobro..." and play the Blues for a fistful of wine. His mama would whoop him –but Ronnie would go see him again – stunning stuff - and it still gets to me. "Swamp Music" is a down-home 'hound dog' rocker featuring zippy guitar pings and 'fills' from Ed King that will have you doing your best air guitar. The druggy cautionary tale of "The Needle And The Spoon" sounds so close to real life as to be frightening – a band fuelled by Bourbon and other upbeat substances. It ends on their truly fantastic cover version of J. J. Cale's "Call Me The Breeze" (originally on his 1972 Shelter Records debut album "Naturally") – a rollicking barnstormer that sees the trio of brass players come in half way through like a cool breeze. It romps this great Rock LP home in proper gobsmacking style (lyrics from it title this review).

The AF release has been deleted years now and acquired something of a price tag accordingly (as does much of the Audio Fidelity catalogue) – but if you can go the few extra quid – this is one 70ts Classic Rock LP that’s worth the few extra doubloons me hearties...

"Tubular Bells" by MIKE OLDFIELD (2009 Universal/Mercury 2CD/1DVD 'Deluxe Edition' Remasters) - A Review for Mark Barry...

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"...Two Slightly Distorted Guitars..." 

In the first half of 1973 - two chart-annihilating vinyl albums signalled a huge move away from 7" single-driven Rock to something longer and stronger – Pink Floyd's "The Dark Side Of The Moon" which landed on our doorsteps 1 March 1973 – and Mike Oldfield's Virgin Records debut LP  "Tubular Bells" which hit Blighty racks in its gorgeous and highly distinctive 'Bells and Sea' sleeve on 25 May 1973. Both albums have had longevity beyond the wildest dreams of either artist and with the hindsight of more than 40 years – remain iconic and still amaze.

Having said that - fans have had their fair-share of CD reissues for Mike Oldfield's densely overdubbed, side long instrumental musical soundscapes (the HDCD version in 2000 was one) – but this 2009 'Deluxe Edition' which offers Audio and Video finally does that tape consuming beasty a solid. Here are the Sailor's Hornpipes...

UK and USA released 8 June 2009 – "Tubular Bells: Deluxe Edition" by MIKE OLDFIELD on Universal/Mercury 270 354-1 (Barcode 0602527035413) is a 2CD/1DVD Reissue and plays out as follows:

Disc 1 – "The 2009 Stereo Mixes by Mike Oldfield" (56:02 minutes):

1. Tubular Bells (Part One)

2. Tubular Bells (Part Two)

BONUS TRACKS:

3. Mike Oldfield's Single (A-side of a UK 7" single released June 1974 on Virgin VS 101. The original B-side "Froggy Went A Courtin'" (despised by Oldfield) is not on this reissue.

4. Sailor's Hornpipe (Original Version with Viv Stanshall) – Recorded in The Manor Studios in Oxfordshire in Spring 1973 – first appeared as part of "Collaborations" – the 4th LP in the 4LP "Boxed" Set UK issued October 1976 on Virgin VBOX 1.

Disc 2 – "The Original 1973 Stereo Album Mix" (48:48 minutes):

1. Tubular Bells (Part One)

2. Tubular Bells (Part Two)

Tracks 1 and 2 and Side 1 and the LP "Tubular Bells" – released 25 May 1973 in the UK and USA on Virgin V 2001

Disc 3 – DVD (All Regions) – 2009 5.1 Surround Sound Mixes by Mike Oldfield

1. Tubular Bells (Part One)

2. Tubular Bells (Part Two)

3. Mike Oldfield's Single

4. Sailor's Hornpipe (Original Version with Viv Stanshall)

Visual Content

1. Tubular Bells (Part One)

First broadcast as part of the series "2nd House" on BBC 2 – 1st December 1973

The glossy gatefold digipak has been well thought out – each flap with interesting memorabilia – the pregnant lady advert from the Zigzag newspaper advertising the birth of new 'Virgin Releases' – master tape boxes from CBS and BASF and a very well endowed 24-page booklet on the history of the album and its aftermath by Tape Engineer and Music Historian MARK POWELL. You get pictures of The Manor Studio in Oxfordshire – Oldfield with Kevin Ayers & The Whole World (circa 1970/1971), snaps of Producer Tom Newman and a camera-shy Richard Branson along with the ever present mixing desk and Oldfield surround as always by six million instruments.

MARK POWELL, MIKE OLDFIELD and PASCHAL BYRNE are the team of three that has handling the tapes with care because the Audio is gorgeous – clear and warm and full of presence. But I would say that after hearing the 2009 Stereo Version – the original 1973 version does seem a tad flat and more hissy – but the DVD 5.1 version that I've heard on a mate's sound system is simply awesome (far better that the Quadrophonic LP experience in 1974). The "Mike Oldfield Single" (issued in a "Tubular Bells Theme" picture sleeve in the UK June 1974) is based on the Celtic Tympani section on Side 2 with Oldfield having added Oboe and other instruments. And of course the use of the opening piano refrain in the horror movie of the moment "The Exorcist" gave the album considerable exposure and made that piece of music synonymous with the LP for decades to come.

When the first portion of Side One settles into that Acoustic Guitar around 4:07 only to crescendo a few seconds later – the effect is incredible. And those doubled-up high string guitars at 11:30 minutes leap out of the speakers only to be followed by the HUGE rock guitar piece. It all leads towards the layer-after-layer-of-instruments preceded by Viv Stanshall of The Bonzo Dog Do Dah Band acting as 'Master Of Ceremonies' as he introduces each instrument in that wonderfully posh and eclectic voice of his – magic. Fans will love those warbling guitars at 8:02 on Side 2 – the girly vocals mixing with the notes to beautiful effect – even if that Pilt Down Man voice still sounds decidedly creepy. And you gotta love Vivian Stanshall clearly drunk as a skunk on the original version of "Sailor's Hornpipe" as he discusses a painting in the Manor at some ungodly hour in the morning - deliberately slurring his words by the time he gets to the end (God bless him).

I wasn't expected the DVD to be so engaging. Never mind the 5.1 Surround Mix that really leaves the Quad LP from the 'Boxed' set in 1976 in the dust – the performance of the December 1973 concert is an absolute blast (if not a little ramshackle in places). A group of seven musicians are seated in dimly lit silhouette as the piano refrain starts (with a huge Showcase logo behind them). But then as they zoom in and the lights go on – we see Oldfield seated with his Bass Guitar and stripy shirt looking decidedly uncomfortable (grin and bear it baby). Unfortunately there are no credits at the end so you can't tell who the other six musicians are – but with guitars in their hands and other instruments – Side 1 becomes this strange entirely different entity 'live' - where their guitar flicks and piano flourishes differ wildly in some cases from his. A chorus of ladies join them for the acoustic fade out. They even try some ropey water footage in the centre of it as the bells shimmer. The image does get a tad blurry in places in that Seventies kind of way – but for fans this extra is an absolute treat.

"Hergest Ridge" would follow in 1974 and the wonderful "Ommadawn" in 1975 and thereafter a career that seems to have endlessly rehashed his 1973 magnum opus for every anniversary since. A great Deluxe Edition and a milestone in Rock Music's history...

This review is part of my SOUNDS GOOD Music Book Series. One of those titles is CLASSIC 1970s ROCK - an E-Book with over 245 entries and 2100 e-Pages - purchase on Amazon and search any artist or song (click the link below). Huge amounts of info taken directly from the discs (no cut and paste crap). 

"Electric Warrior" by T.REX - September 1971 UK LP on Fly Records featuring Marc Bolan and Mickey Finn (2012 UK Universal/A&M/Fly 'Expanded' SINGLE CD Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...

"...Cosmic Dancer..."

Losing my lovingly kept vinyl copy of the Rex's iconic "Electric Warrior" with the 'sticker' on the front cover (inner and poster inside too) a few years back has remained one of my big LP regrets over the years (needs must at the time and it had to be done). The British album on Fly Records sold loads (sleeve by Hipgnosis) - but for some reasons copies of an original with the sticker still intact (on the front sleeve) are far rarer than most fans know.

A similar tale of selling-woe with CD reissues... I bought the January 2012 Tony Visconti/Paschal Byrne 2CD 'Deluxe Edition' and lived with it for a while (great audio, same as this issue) – but I found the extras lacking (sold it) and I've plumed instead for this single disc version with four 'Bonus Tracks' that I actually want. A case of less is more I think (and its under four quid). Time to 'Get It On' and indeed 'Bang A Gong' for the original Jeepsters - T.REX...

UK released 17 April 2012 (1 May 2012 in the USA) – "Electric Warrior" by T.REX on Universal/A&M/Fly 533 780-1 (Barcode 600753378014) is an 'Expanded Edition' single CD Remaster and plays out as follows (55:58 minutes):

1. Mambo Sun

2. Cosmic Dancer

3. Jeepster

4. Monolith

5. Lean Woman Blues

6. Get It On [Side 2]

7. Planet Queen

8. Girl

9. The Motivator

10. Life's A Gas

11. Rip Off

Tracks 1 to 11 are the 2nd album "Electric Warrior" by T. REX (formerly known as Tyrannosaurus Rex for the four previous LPs) – released 24 September 1971 in the UK on Fly Records HIFLY 6 and in the USA on Reprise RS 6466. It peaked at No. 1 in the UK and No. 32 in the USA.

T. REX was:

MARC BOLAN – Vocals and Guitars

MICKEY FINN – Vocals and Percussion

IAN McDONALD – Saxophones

BURT COLLINS - Flugel Horn

STEVE CURRIE – Bass

WILL LEGEND – Drums

HOWARD & MARK VOLMAN – Backing Vocals

RICK WAKEMAN – Piano on "Get It On" (uncredited)

STRING SECTION – Uncredited

BONUS TRACKS:

12. There Was A Time/Raw Ramp (B-side of "Get It On" – UK 7" single released 2 July 1971 on Fly Records BUG 10. Although listed as a two-part B-side – it has in fact three distinct musical sections in the song with the uncredited Part 3 sometimes known as "Electric Boogie" because of the lyrics. "Get It On" peaked at No. 1 in the UK charts and was billed as "Bang A Gong" in the USA on Reprise 1032 when it was released December 1971

13. Hot Love (Non-Album A-side – UK 7" single released 19 February 1971 on Fly Records BUG 6) – peaked at No. 1 on the UK singles charts

14. Woodland Rock (1 of 2 Non-Album B-sides to "Hot Love" – UK 7" single released 19 February 1971 on Fly Records BUG 6) – peaked at No. 1 on the UK singles charts

15. The King Of The Mountain Cometh (2 of 2 Non-Album B-sides to "Hot Love" – UK 7" single released 19 February 1971 on Fly Records BUG 6) – peaked at No. 1 on the UK singles charts

Reproduced beneath the see-through tray is that gorgeous Fly Records label with the script track lists for Side 1 and 2 - while the CD itself has the Marc Bolan/Mickey Finn photo that adorned the other side of the LP label (nice touches). The generously outfitted 24-page booklet is a fan's dream – beautifully and smartly laid out. You get updated (new research especially for this 2012 issue) and in-depth liner notes from noted Bolan expert MARK PAYTRESS – as well Melody Maker, NME, Sounds and Beat Instrumental front page repros, snaps of Bolan in the studio, on stage with T.Rex and relaxing (the poster shot). There is the rare sheet music for "Hot Love" and a picture of Bolan by a bus with his girlfriend as well as the beautiful George Underwood pencil drawings that were the inner bag (Bolan on one side, Mickey Finn on the other) – they adorn either side of the centre pages.

Original Producer TONY VISCONTI has remastered the album for this issue while the hugely experienced Audio Engineers PASCHAL BYRNE and BEN WISEMAN handled the Bonus Tracks. All of it sounds renewed and incredibly alive. There are hissy passages for sure but no tampering with the original sound has taken place to my ears - it's just breathing better now. A job sensitively done...

Right from the opening guitar chug of "Mambo Sun" – the vocals, the strings and backing singers and those cool swinging guitars – all of it sleeks out of your speakers with the swagger of a man on the up. There is a lot of hiss as "Cosmic Dancer" opens with the Acoustic and Strings – but there's no denying the loveliness of the song. The whack off "Jeepster" is shocking – that foot-stomping guitar boogie still gets me too (another effortless No. 1 single dashed off in his sleep). That lone guitar rip at the beginning of "Monolith" threatens to punch a hole in your speaker cones on this ballsy remaster – the lurching slugger beat somehow now even more epic than I remember it ("...shallow are the actions of the children of the men...oh yeah!") Side 1 ends with "Lean Woman Blues" – a one two and buckle my shoe set of Bolan Blues where he bemoans his lady's 'lean love' while those guitars riff and groan ("...you're the love of my life...then you gorge me with a knife...")

What can you say about "Get It On" - a winner to this day. I was a kid in Dublin 1971 and we'd gone with the scouts to Todd Vale Camp Site near Liverpool in England for a summer outing. On the site someone had a portable singles deck and the rare picture sleeve of "Get It On". Sun shining down – campfires nearby cooking dinner - bopping to that infectious beat - man we must played that sucker nine times in a row (the memory still sends chills up my arms). And here it is again with that fabulous Visconti production only better – bang a gong baby! Many peoples other fave is the slinky Acoustic Rock of "Planet Queen" – a great Bolan groove. Burt Collins provides the Flugel Horn for the pretty "Girl" – a song where Marc sounds most like Bowie - who would of course release "Hunky Dory" in December of that great year (1971). More cool Bolan riffage with the "...love the way you walk..." groove of "The Motivator" – while both 'Life's A Gas" and the angry live-in-the-studio "Rip Off" have healthy amounts of hiss for sure but still sound like they've been given a right old dust off - unleashed even.

What I also love about this reissue is that the Bonus Tracks provide you with four truly great non-album single sides – “Woodland Rock” and "The King of The Woodland Cometh" like some Tyrannosaurus Rex boogie outtakes, the so sexy sway of "Hot Love" and that amazing 3-part B-side to "Get It On". I’ve even isolated "Electric Boogie" as a track by itself (begins at 3:23 minutes) – what a blast.

Marc Bolan would go on to "The Slider" and "Tanx" albums and so much more until his sad loss in London in 1977 – but "Electric Warrior" is the one in the hearts of his original fans. As Bolan sang in the irrepressible "Jeepster" - "...I'll call you a jaguar if I may be so bold..." Amen to that you slinky mother...

This review is part of my SOUNDS GOOD Music Book Series. One of those titles is CLASSIC 1970s ROCK - an E-Book with over 245 entries and 2100 e-Pages - purchase on Amazon and search any artist or song (click the link below). Huge amounts of info taken directly from the discs (no cut and paste crap). 

"Barnstorm" by JOE WALSH (2006 Hip-O Select CD - Gavin Lurssen Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...

"…Sets Me Free Without A Warning…Wonder Why..."

It's hard for me to be rational about Joe Walsh's "Barnstorm" - I've adored it for over 45 years and this brill-sounding American CD reissue has only made matters worse.

First things first though - this Hip-O Select/Geffen CD re-issue on B0006229-02 (No Barcode) has had a troubled existence. It was first released in January 2006 to howls of derision because someone had used the wrong master tapes (laden with unbearable amounts of hiss) and even left gaps between the songs on Side One where certain tracks segue into each other. 

Mistakes were admitted - it was withdrawn and it re-appeared in November 2006. To complicate things further - there are in fact 5 variants of the album on CD - the American 1980s crappy MCA issue, the wonderful silver disc version by Mobile Fidelity in 1990 (now rare and pricey), a 24-bit remaster issued in Japan in December 2004 as a mini-album repro - with a further 2011 reissue of that in Japan on the SHM-CD format - and then this - the Hip-O Select USA November 2006 issue. I've the Mobile CD, the 2004 Japanese one and this - and to my ears - the HIP-O SELECT version remastered by three-times Grammy winner GAVIN LURSSEN out does them all…

1. Here We Go

2. Midnight Visitor

3. One And One

4. Giant Behemoth

5. Mother Says

6. Birdcall Morning [Side 2]

7. Home

8. I’ll Tell The World

9. Turn To Stone

10. Comin’ Down

Having left THE JAMES GANG behind after 3 great albums - Walsh recruited KENNY PASSARELLI and JOE VITALE to record his solo debut in March of 1972. It was finally released in the USA on Dunhill DSX 50130 in October 1972 with its British counterpart released November 1972 on Probe SPBA 6268 (later reissued in 1974 on ABC). It was afforded the luxury of a gatefold sleeve, which is reproduced on both sides of the gatefold inlay in colour (the inside of the UK sleeve was in black and white). There's no new liner notes though - nor any juicy bonus tracks nor outtakes - which is a damn shame - a missed opportunity there.

SOUND:

GAVIN LURSSEN has remastered the album – he's an engineer who did exceptional work on the two STEPHEN BISHOP Hip-O Select titles "Careless" and "Bish" and the stunning 2 CD "Gold" set for Universal by THE CRUSADERS (see separate reviews for them all). Originally produced and engineered by BILL SZYMCZYK, "Barnstorm" was always a ‘sloppy’ album in feel (in stark contrast to say "So What" from 1974) and was always going to be a difficult album to remaster well - but LURSSEN has done a fantastic job. The instruments are live and in your face. There is still hiss on some of the tracks, but in the main it's minimal. Some love the rough feel of the recordings; it drives others crazy; personally I find there's charm in them that's missing in the more polished later albums. Walsh and his guitar have a sound and this album exemplifies that - warts and all.

The production difference for instance when you go from the slightly hissy "Giant Bohemoth" to the all-out riffs of "Mother Says" is marked. MS rocks like a monster now and even in the centre passage where all the instruments crescendo and threaten to get out of hand, this remaster holds it all together - YOU HEAR IT ALL - the drums, the wonderful keyboard flourishes - even the men giggling like loons at the end when it fades out. Superb stuff.

But then comes the gem I've been waiting for - "Birdcall Morning" - I'm lost man - I go to pieces at hearing this. After 30 years it finally sounds a fresh as a new sixpence - a beautiful song now given beautiful sound. I've A/B'd this with the Japanese issue and it's just brighter - fuller somehow - wonderful. "Turn To Stone" is the original version and is just HUGE in sound - a little `too' rough I would say for most tastes. The album ends with the lovely acoustic ditty "Comin' Down" - the strings rattling around the speakers with the harmonica playing it out. 

A little know fact about one of the album tracks is worth mentioning. Alana Gordon and Allan Jacobs of the obscure American band THE MAGICIANS wrote "I'll Tell The World (About You)". Allan "Jake" Jacobs later went on to be JAKE and THE FAMILY JEWELS. The Magicians made 4 excellent 7” singles on US Columbia in the mid Sixties that unfortunately each sank without trace (never got an album out either) and they quickly disbanded. The group’s last single "Lady Fingers" had help in its production from BILL SZYMCZYK - and as Szymczyk produced "Barnstorm" - it was probably he who introduced the lovely “I’ll Tell The World” to Walsh. The US Sundazed label have a wonderful anthology CD of the band's work called "An Invitation To Cry" which has the original of this beautiful song on it - well worth checking out. Someone has posted a video of their original version on You Tube - in fact and it wouldn't surprise me in the least if this long forgotten Sixties gem turns up in a hip 'n' happening advert somewhere near us soon - it's that good.

To sum up - the remaster on this lesser known 1972 gem is an absolute joy. "Barnstorm" is the kind of album you need to get into your life - and this Hip-O Select Remaster is to my ears the best version of it yet. It's been deleted years now and typically garnished a rather nasty price tag - as much as £40 on occasion - but if you can find one - I urge you to seek it out.

Joe Walsh once ran for President of The United States of America. On the strength of this album - I could never understand why he didn't get the job…

PS: (March 2009 footnote) The Japanese-only 2004 24-bit CD Remasters of Joe Walsh's first 3 albums "Barnstorm", "The Smoker You Drink, The Player You Get" and "So What" complete with vinyl LP repro sleeves and inners have now become hugely expensive collector's items. Someone in Japan seems to have noticed this, because the 3 are being 'reissued' on 22 April 2009 in Japan again but on the new SHM-CD format (Super High Materials) - but this time along with the missing 4th title - the live set "You Can't Argue With A Sick Mind". They are available for pre-order from the 2 excellent Japanese mail-order sites "cdjapan" and "mundojapan".

PPS: (October 2009 footnote) see also review for "So What" the SHM-CD

PPPS: check out his 2012 live video with DARYL HALL on “Daryl’s House” where they covered “Funk 49”, “Life’s Been Good” and a stunning version of a forgotten Hall solo track called “Somebody Like You” (see YouTube)

PPPPS (how many Ps can you have, Feb 2016 footnote): For GAVIN LURSSEN REMASTERS see also my reviews for “Driving Wheel” by Little Milton, “Gold” by The Crusaders, “Careless” and “Bish” by Stephen Bishop, “Occasional Rain” by Terry Callier and “All Things Must Pass” by George Harrison

This review is part of my SOUNDS GOOD Music Book Series. One of those titles is CLASSIC 1970s ROCK - an E-Book with over 245 entries and 2100 e-Pages - purchase on Amazon and search any artist or song (click the link below). Huge amounts of info taken directly from the discs (no cut and paste crap). 

"All Things Must Pass" by GEORGE HARRISON (2014 Apple 2CD Reissue - Gavin Lurssen Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

"...Really Want To See You..."

When I bought the 2DVD set of 2002's "Concert For George" – the nearest a mere mortal like me was going to get to that stunning celebration of George Harrison's life and music/film legacy – I bawled my eyes out like a big girl's blouse. I can remember the whole sensory experience of music, emotion and video 'getting to me' on a level I found both profound and ultimately uplifting. I'd simply forgotten how good his songwriting was and I (like others) needed some reminding. Re-visiting his mammoth 3LP debut solo work "All Things Must Pass" on this definitive 2CD Apple Remaster has been the same. Wonder and awe...all over again. Here are the Apple Scruffs...

UK and USA released 22 September 2014 – "All Things Must Pass" by GEORGE HARRISON on Apple/George Harrison Estate 0602537914005 (Barcode is the same) is a 3LP Set onto 2CDs with Bonus Tracks and plays out as follows:

Disc 1 (59:37 minutes):

1. I'd Have You Anytime

2. My Sweet Lord

3. Wah-Wah

4. Isn't It A Pity (Version 1)

5. What Is Life [Side 2]

6. If Not For You

7. Behind That Locked Door

8. Let It Down

9. Run Of The Mill

Tracks 1 to 9 make up Side 1 & 2 of the 3LP Box Set "All Things Must Pass" – released 27 November 1970 in the USA (30 November 1970 in the UK) both on Apple STCH 639

ADDITIONAL/BONUS TRACKS:

10. I Live For You [1970 Outtake]

11. Beware Of The Darkness (27 May 1970 Demo Version, Outtake]

12. Let It Down [Early Version, Remixed in 2000]

13. What Is Life [Backing Track]

14. My Sweet Lord (2000)

Tracks 10 to 15 first appeared as Bonus Tracks on the January 2001 "All Things Must Pass" 2CD Reissue – sanctioned by George Harrison. His son Dhani Harrison and UK singer Sam Brown added vocals to the 2000 Version of "My Sweet Lord" along with percussion from Ray Cooper. Dhani’s keyboards and vocals also bolstered up the remixed outtake "I Live For You".

Disc 2 (65:38 minutes):

1. Beware Of Darkness [Side 3]

2. Apple Scruffs

3. Ballad Of Sir Frankie Crisp (Let It Roll)

4. Awaiting On You All

5. All Things Must Pass

6. I Dig Love [Side 4]

7. Art Of Dying

8. Isn't It A Pity (Version 2)

9. Hear Me Lord

APPLE JAM:

10. It's Johnny’s Birthday

11. Plug Me In

12. I Remember Jeep

13. Thanks For The Pepperoni

14. Out Of The Blue

Tracks 1 to 14 are Sides 3, 4, 5 and 6 of the 3LP set "All Things Must Pass". NOTE: On original issues of the vinyl album the 11-minute "Out Of The Blue", the 50-second "It's Johnny's Birthday" and the 3:15 minutes of "Plug Me In" made up Side 5 - while "I Remember Jeep" (extended from 6:59 minutes to 8:05 on CD) and "Thanks For The Pepperoni" (5:26 minutes) made up Side 6. For both the January 2001 and September 2014 CD reissues – the tracks have been rejiggered as above. All songs on "All Things Must Pass" are Harrison originals except "I'd Have You Anytime" which is a co-write with Bob Dylan and "If Not For You" which is a Bob Dylan cover version.

PLAYERS:

Lead Vocals (All Tracks) – GEORGE HARRISON

Guitars - GEORGE HARRISON, DAVE MASON (of Traffic), ERIC CLAPTON (Derek & The Dominoes)

Pedal Steel Guitar - PETE DRAKE

Rhythm Guitars and Percussion – BADFINGER (featuring Pete Ham and Tom Evans)

Keyboards - BILLY PRESTON, BOBBY WHITLOCK (Derek & The Dominoes), GARY BROOKER (Procol Harum) and GARY WRIGHT (Spooky Tooth)

Saxophone and Trumpet – BOBBY KEYS and JIM PRICE

Bass – CARL RADLE (Derek & The Dominoes) and KLAUS VOORMAN

Drums – ALAN WHITE (Yes), JIM GORDON (Delaney & Bonnie, Derek & The Dominoes) and RINGO STARR (The Beatles)

Congas – PHIL COLLINS on "Art Of Dying" (uncredited)

Backing Vocals – GEORGE O'HARA-SMITH SINGERS

The first thing you notice about the latest 2014 version is that the 'colourised' artwork of the January 2001 Mini Box Set has gone (as has the box) – we're now back to the more sombre original black and white artwork. I can't say I think the 3-way foldout hard card cover is an improvement on the 'colour' box of 2001 (which I rather liked) – but at least we get the fold-out lyric poster reproduced (with the colour shot of a bearded Harrison on the other side) and the three different colour inner sleeves for each album now get spread over two CD inners and the inside artwork. Harrison's own liner notes for the 2001 version return (reappraising the album from a 30-year distance - highlighting the large number of musicians involved) – but you have to go the bottom of the poster to get the real 'new' info...the AUDIO.

PAUL HICKS, GAVIN LURSSEN and REUBEN COHEN are the team of three who have handled the new '2014 Remaster' – done at Lurssen Mastering in California. His in-house team have won 3 Grammies and I've raved about Lurssen's work before on more than one occasion – see reviews for "Barnstorm" by Joe Walsh on Hip-O Select, "Gold" by The Crusaders on Universal, Stephen Bishop's "Careless" and "Bish" both on Hip-O Select and Terry Callier's "Occasional Rain" on Universal 'Originals'. His modern-day mastering work includes top name artists like John Mellencamp, Tom Waits, Roseanna Cash and even actor Jeff Bridges. Just to take a like-to-like comparison – the gorgeous Pedal Steel guitar work of Pete Drake on the 2014 Remaster of "Behind That Locked Door" is so much clearer and that rhythm section positively brimming with bass warmth and gentle snare shuffles. And when Phil Spector's typically OTT Production threatens to swamp everything on "Let It Down" with a Wall of Noise – they've somehow managed to make the overall soundstage clearer yet still keep it properly muscular. And the truly wonderful Version 1 of "Isn't It A Pity" sounds just glorious, as do the huge acoustic guitars and piano on "Run Of The Mill". After the 'all things louder than everything else' remaster of 2001 – this new 2014 version is a welcome controlled tone down - absolutely gorgeous stuff.

If I'm truthful I've never really thought much of the Dylan collaboration song "I'd Have You Anytime" which always felt to me like a poor man's version of the genuinely lovely "If Not For You". But what you can't fault is the audio wallop of both it and "My Sweet Lord" – the only solo Beatles single to hit the Number 1 spot on the UK charts twice – the original Apple 7" on R 5884 in January 1971 and on reissue in January 2002 after his awful and tragic passing in late November 2001. The huge electric guitars and layered vocals of the manic "Wah-Wah" attack your speakers like its "Helter Skelter Part 2" – while the already mentioned "Isn't It A Pity" is surely his greatest solo song (check out the Eric Clapton and Billy Preston live version in HD on YouTube).

The Bonus Tracks (tagged on once again at the end of Disc 1) are shockingly good and I'd argue better than some of the indulgent fluff on the original release. Dhani Harrison's subtle but beautiful vocal and keyboard contributions to "I Live For You" make the outtake sound like a lost gem and will thrill fans. The "Beware Of Darkness" demo is an acoustic ditty and strips the finished track of its bombast. Having been used to the doomy studio swagger of the final version for so long – this wonderfully barebones "Beware Of Darkness" is unplugged - stark - his Liverpool nasal/vocal phrasing filling the speakers as the strings rattle. And that jab at Klein's Abkco – what a hoot. But best of all is "...this is called "Let It Down"..." – a truly beautiful early version of the second last song on Side 2. Frankly this is way better than the finished version for me – the feel and melody is fabulous – containing a prettiness that got strangled on the LP version. The 'Backing Track' of "What Is Life" is a busy Spector affair chugging along as the guitars and brass jab. The sitar-introduced '2000' version of "My Sweet Lord" is a strange beast – liable to be viewed as lovely by some and a 'should have left it alone' travesty by others. I like it and Dhani Harrison, Sam Brown and Ray Cooper all add something to the mix this time around.

Disc 2 opens with a huge "Beware Of Darkness" – the guitars and strings swirling into one collective sound. "...Beware of mire..." Harrison sings and you know he means every word of it. The washboard shuffle of "Apple Scruffs" has that harmonica warbling with renewed clarity and the "...perpetual mirth..." of the strange-odd "Ballad Of Sir Frankie Crisp..." has those acoustic guitars peeping up above the piano and pedal steel. Once again Spector smothered "Awaiting On You All" with so many instruments and voices that it's hard to work out where the song is at times. But then we're hit with his melancholic masterpiece title track "All Things Must Pass" – a song so lovely in melody that surely it would have had a shot a second No. 1 (the USA issued "What is Life" b/w "Apple Scruffs" on Apple 1828 in February 1971 and that achieved a No. 10 placing). It's still got that slightly excessive hiss present as it opens – but the warmth of the song takes over and the remaster is genuinely subtle with the instrumentation (so touching). That drum roll opening on "I Dig Love" has real clout now, as does the keyboard funk that anchors the song throughout. The guitars crash in on "Art Of Dying" (sounds like Clapton) as it races along with that Rubber Soul vocal Spector gives Harrison's lead. The double-LP proper ends on a real musical high – "Hear Me Lord". Sounding at times almost like the Faces circa "Long Player" - big guitars vie with big vocals and even bigger ideas – his personal struggle with faith filling the song with sincerity as that huge organ note lingers in the background while someone fills the whole six minutes with sweetly soulful piano fills. The remaster is a lot less bombastic than the really loud 2001 version too...and very much the better for it.

The placing of the "Johnny's Birthday" ramshackle 50-second snippet first (Phil Coulter's "Congratulations" sung under another guise) in the "Apple Jam" LP portion makes more than sense – it works. We then get four guitar battles – all instrumentals. First up is "Plug Me In" which has the feel of a Derek & The Dominoes "Layla" outtake – all soloing and no vocals – searching for a riff and not quite finding it. The 8:08 minutes of "I Remember Jeep" was fun at the time and that soulful piano interlude towards the end still makes it a cool listen. The Johnny B. Goode grunge boogie of "Thanks For The Pepperoni" is yet another guitar strut that feels like you're eavesdropping on a particularly rocky Blind Faith session. But my poison in the bunch has always been the 11:14 minutes of "Out Of The Blue" (Bobby Keys on Sax) that feels like the Faces with too many beers and one too many amps in the studio. I’m always reminded of The Rolling Stones guitar juggernaut "Can't You Hear Me Knocking" from 1971's "Sticky Fingers". I suspect like so many fans – I haven't played this stoner jam for decades...and I'd actually forgotten just how good it is...

George Harrison would return with the more tempered "Living In A Material World" single LP in 1973 and score another No. 1 with "Give Me Love (Give Me Peace On Earth)" – but many remember him for ATMP. Post Beatles - he splurged - the public loved it then and have held it in affection ever since. And on re-hearing this wonderful remaster of "All Things Must Pass" – is it any wonder.

The quiet and contemplative Beatle passed too damn quickly (aged only 58 in 2001) – I can still feel the shock and hurt of it. Re-listening to this sprawling solo 'White Album' of 1970 has only made me want to re-visit the rest of his recorded legacy – and that's got to be the best Remaster compliment of them all...

This review is part of my SOUNDS GOOD Music Book Series. One of those titles is CLASSIC 1970s ROCK - an E-Book with over 245 entries and 2100 e-Pages - purchase on Amazon and search any artist or song (click the link below). Huge amounts of info taken directly from the discs (no cut and paste crap).