Sweet music (Lon and Derrek Van Eaton) (LP 992)

Lon and Derrek Van Eaton  Brother (Vinyl, Apple Records - UK pressing, 1972) *** 

Genre: Apple Records, pop/rock

Places I remember: Marbeck's Records

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Help Us All

Gear costume: Without The Lord

Active compensatory factors: George Harrison heard a demo recording by the brothers and liked it enough to make the American brothers one of the last signings for Apple Records. 

I suspect he liked being reminded of the soulful gospel vibe being generated by Delaney and Bonnie. And again - a lot of the songs sound like Harrison's own.

Ringo makes an appearance, along with Jim Gordon and Klaus Voormann who took over the production duties for George. So it naturally sounds Beatlesque in parts, in terms of the music.

Although it wasn't commercially successful at the time, its appeal has grown with the years. However, it's not an album I reach for on a regular basis!

Where do they all belong? Their only album for Apple Records, they subsequently moved back to the US and to A&M, but not Dark Horse, which is interesting. I didn't have any desire to collect their non Apple efforts.

No bed for Beatle John (Yoko Ono) (LP 950 - 953)

Yoko Ono/ John Lennon  Unfinished Music #1: Two Virgins (Vinyl and CD, Apple Records, 1968) * 

John Lennon/ Yoko Ono  Unfinished Music #2: Life With The Lions (Vinyl and CD, Zapple Records, 1969) * 

John Ono Lennon & Yoko Ono Lennon  Wedding Album (Vinyl and CD, Apple Records, 1969) * 

The Plastic Ono Band  Live Peace In Toronto 1969 (Vinyl, Apple Records, 1969) **** 

Genre: Beatle pop/rock

Places I remember: Vinyl: Noel Forth helped me get Two Virgins, Wedding Album (from Japan), and Live Peace. Life With The Lions came from Marbecks before I knew Roger and all the CDs are from Real Groovy.

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Blue Suede Shoes (Live Peace)

Gear costume: Yer Blues (Live Peace); No Bed For Beatle John (Unfinished Music #2)

Active compensatory factors: These first four albums outside of The Beatles will severely test your resolve and commitment to both John and Yoko. I passed that test but it was a close thing at times.

Unfinished Music #1 (and yes my vinyl version came in a brown paper sleeve with cut outs for the faces and the album name as pictured above) is more infamous for its cover (the pair celebrating their union with a frontal nude shot - as you do) than its contents. 

It's not music as such - more a continuation of the sound collage they started with Revolution #9 on The Beatles.

Except, I really like Revolution #9. Two Virgins is much less effective as a collage.

Unfinished Music #2 collects an appearance the two made at Cambridge University - John on squawking feedback and Yoko on screaming for 26 minutes and 31 seconds, with material from a hospital stay in 1968 during which Yoko tragically miscarried.

She sings No Bed For Beatle John, the baby's heart beat is recorded, followed by a 2 minute silence and then a track where John flicks restlessly around a radio dial. Shesh.

By comparison, Wedding Album is relatively straight-forward with a side of John and Yoko repeating each other's names and a side of various press conferences from their bedisms.

Finally, there is some music on Live Peace in Toronto 1969! Wahoo, and for the most part it's spirited and remarkably coherent - given the band (Eric Clapton, Klaus Voormann, Alan White and the Lennons) rehearsed on the plane ride to Toronto.

Side One's a fab mix of old rock'n'roll numbers, a Beatle song (Yer Blues) and a couple of solo singles. I love it!

The second side is Yoko doing her thing (all over you) on two songs. Don't Worry Kyoko (Mummy's Only Looking For Her Hand In The Snow) has its moments with John and Eric supplying some grunty guitar but the lengthy John John (Let's Hope For Peace) again tests that resolve.

Where do they all belong? After he got those four albums out of his system, our hero put out a five star classic and only my favourite album of all time (coming soon).

Ain't that cute (Doris Troy) (LP 778)

Doris Troy  Doris Troy (CD and Vinyl, Apple Records, 1970) ****

Genre: Apple Records 

Places I remember: Real Groovy Records for both formats (five bonus tracks on the CD)

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Gonna Get My Baby Back

Gear costume: Get Back (Bonus track on the CD)

Active compensatory factors: This is one terrific album and I have no idea why it wasn't a huge seller in 1970. Seriously - the players and the playing alone would make people sit up and take notice I would have thought.

I mean - George, Peter Frampton, Steve Stills and Eric Clapton on guitars; Billy Preston, Leon Russell, Bobby Whitlock on keyboards; Klaus Voormann on bass; Ringo, Alan White, Jim Gordon on drums!!!! All that, and Doris Troy's vocals are superb!

Even if you are not impressed by that, the songs are great too - every single one pops and shines.

All this makes Doris Troy a strong candidate for best Apple Records album.

Where do they all belong? That's it for Apple Records on CD - more to come when I return to the vinyl collection.

Love you to (The Beatles) (LP 358)

The Beatles Revolver (various copies on Vinyl and CD, Apple and Parlophone, 1966) *****

Genre: Beatles pop

Places I remember: Marbecks Records, Kings Recording (Abu Dhabi), The Warehouse and elsewhere since the early seventies

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Love You To




Gear costume:  Everything else!  

Active compensatory factors: A contender for best Beatle album, therefore often a contender for best album of all time, Revolver often fights it out with Sgt Pepper for those honours, The Beatles (a.k.a. the white album) is my all time fav from the fabs. Then there's Abbey Rd.

It's all subjective isn't it, relevant to how old you are, when you chanced upon these glorious albums, what you associate with listening to them and so on.

What is beyond subjectivity is how these songs STILL sound cutting edge. Chuck on Doctor Robert, or Taxman, or Love You To (sic), or I'm Only Sleeping, or Got To Get You Into My Life, and wind up the volume! 

See what I mean? George Martin's genius for a suitably exploratory sound landscape complements the brilliant songs, singing and playing.

Note well: I didn't even mention Tomorrow Never Knows in that revelatory song list above. Or Eleanor Rigby. Or Yellow Submarine.

Maybe it IS the best album of all time!


Where do they all belong? That heading comes from Eleanor Rigby btw. Capitol were still playing silly buggers in the U.S. with Beatle releases. That would finally end with their next release: Sgt Pepper.

Let's fight for people's rights (Bill Elliott etc) #112

Bill Elliott and The Elastic Oz Band God Save Us/ Do The Oz (Apple, APPLE 36, 1971)

A Lennon side project this one. Bill Elliott would later spend time as a Dark Horse recording artist as part of soft rock duo Splinter but here he's the vocal replacement for John. Former Beatle roadie, Mal Evans, had suggested Bill and John's guide vocal was replaced with Bill's.

John and Yoko are co-credited with Mal Evans AND Phil Spector with production!!!! What the hey? This must be one of the most unique production credits ever. In case you're wondering what Mal brought to the party - he recorded/produced Bill's vocal.

The Oz of the song refers to a radical underground newspaper published in London that was targeted by the man at the time. There was an obscenity trial and John wanted to show his support. Hence the single.

I quite like it (I'm a Lennon completist so I would say that) - it's got spunk and spirit and heart and it's nicely played (Ringo on drums, Klaus Voormann on bass, John guitar) and sung. It was never going to be a hit but nevermind. Everyone's hearts were in the right place.

Hidden gem: The B side and A side were swapped around at the last minute and so the more general God Save Us became the A side with the specific Do The Oz support becoming the B side. It's Ono influenced in it's directness and reminds me of Scumbag on the Zappa collaboration.