Tony (Tony Williams) (LP 3397 - 3399)

Jan Hammer  The Early Years (Vinyl, Nemperor Records, 1986) ***

Tony Williams  The Joy Of Flying (Vinyl, CBS Records, 1979) ****

Jean-Luc Ponty  Imaginary Voyage (Vinyl, CBS Records, 1976) *****

Genre: Jazz fusion, prog rock

Places I remember: Wax Trax Records (Denver, Colorado); Secondhand tool shop (also Denver)

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: The Gardens Of Babylon (Imaginary Voyage)

Gear costume: Open Fire (The Joy Of Flying)

They loom large in his legend (The Album Collection playlists): Part 1; Part 2; Part 3; Part 4; Part 5

Active compensatory factors: While on our Californian saga and the wedding trip to Denver, I inevitably managed to visit a number of record stores. The next few posts will feature my purchases. There were some real bargains, and some albums I've been after for a while. 

I'll start with these three jazz fusion albums. 

My eyes lit up when I spied the Jan Hammer compilation on Nemperor Records in Wax Trax Records. The First Seven Days is featured mostly (4 tracks), then Little Children (2 tracks). I already have both of those albums. The remainder is a track apiece from two albums I don't have (yet) - Oh Yeah! and Melodies.

Tony Williams has also featured in my catalogue so far and The Joy Of Flying features Jan Hammer on a number of tracks.

Apart from the free jazz skronk of final track Morgan's Motion (with Cecil Taylor), the bulk of the album is brilliant jazz fusion. Tony doesn't ever showboat, instead he is a great team player. Apart from Jan and Tony, other stellar musicians appearing are Brian Auger, George Benson, Herbie Hancock, Stanley Clarke and Ronnie Montrose on guitar.

I was thrilled to find the Ponty album for $3 from a secondhand tool shop in Denver. It was a bit dusty but after a clean it looks and sounds excellent.

The music is terrific, with a side-long title track just skipping past with Ponty and his sidekicks (including Tom Fowler on bass) in complete command.

Where do they all belong? Next up are the A to O albums.

Hold your head up (Argent) (LP 3211 - 3216)

Argent  All Together Now (Vinyl, Epic Records, 1972) ***  

Donovan  Neutronica (Vinyl, Interfusion Records, 1981) **  

Henry McCullough  Mind Your Own Business (Vinyl, Dark Horse Records, 1975) **  

Jean-Luc Ponty  Individual Choice (Vinyl, Polydor Records, 1983) *****  

Andy Pratt  Shiver In The Night (Vinyl, Nemperor Records, 1977) ***  

Andy Pratt  Motives (Vinyl, Epic Records, 1979) ***  

Genre: Prog rock, folk-rock, rock, jazz-fusion, pop 

Places I remember: Real Groovy Records (on a recent trip to Auckland).

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Individual Choice (Jean-Luc Ponty)

Gear costume: In Spite Of All (Jean-Luc Ponty); Hold Your Head Up (Argent)

They loom large in his legend (The Album Collection playlists): Part 1; Part 2; Part 3; Part 4; Part 5

Active compensatory factors: A recent trip to Real Groovy meant that I could spend an hour going through the sale bins and this is what I came up with (all of these plus three Al Stewart albums for just over 50 dollars). Score!

I'd been after the Pratt and McCullough albums for a loooong time (you may remember I collect Nemperor and Dark Horse labels). A real bonus to get them $3 each in great condition.

So this lot have surnames A to M or are on labels I love - hence me bundling them here (we'll get to Al in the S section eventually).

First up Argent. I have looked longingly at the cover of this, their third album, since 1972 and have long known that Hold Your Head Up was the standout track, and so it proves to be when I finally get a copy ($6 - how could I resist?). 

It's definitely of its time - Rod Argent's keyboards are a feature natch, but the whole band deliver solid prog rock in 1972 on: Be My Lover, Be My Friend;I Am The Dance Of Ages; and especially Keep On Rollin'. 

I continue to look for Donovan albums and Neutronica is the latest. It's a bit of a weird one - not released in the UK or America, it has a preoccupation with topical issues like militarisation, nuclear proliferation and world hunger. All very worthy causes/issues, but they don't make for great folk-rock songs. Especially if you throw in eighties synths to the mix. They are all over the songs on side one.

Side two is the better of the two because it mostly takes a more acoustic approach and he uses some older anti-war songs like No Man's Land to make his point. Still - while it has its moments (all his albums do), this isn't an essential Donovan album.

Henry McCullough is reasonably well known from his time as a Wingman to Paul McCartney (that's his solo on My Love), and before that to Joe Cocker in The Grease Band (and before that Spooky Tooth). The Northern Irishman was in high demand before Wings and after leaving he played with a wide range of famous types before succumbing to the effects of a heart attack in 2016.

Mind Your Own Business was his first solo album and it appeared on George Harrison's Dark Horse label in 1975. He uses musician friends from before Wings to help him with it, such as most of The Grease Band and Mike Harrison from Spooky Tooth.

In keeping with most of the albums on Dark Horse, there are very little concessions paid to commercial interests. Basically, it appears Henry was left alone to do his rollicking goodtime pub rock chug thing. His vocals aren't particularly strong but meh. Who cares.

His comparatively rough and ready approach is so very different to McCartney's that it's no surprise he only lasted eighteen months in Wings.

Jean-Luc Ponty's Individual Choice has been a target for me ever since I saw the video of the title track on Radio With Pictures (the Karen Hay years) in the early eighties. Yes, it sometimes takes me a while but I eventually get my album!

The whole instrumental jazz-fusion album still sounds current and modern, even though it came out in the eighties and featured synths and violin. The whole thing works - spectacularly on some tracks (the violin virtuosity is breathtaking at times). Plus, Allan Holdsworth plays some terrific guitar on In Spite Of All.

The two Andy Pratt albums are okay - solid pop rock from the late seventies. Nice harmonies, okay songs, and professionally arranged. Bit bloodless though - I wouldn't normally bother with Andy. Still - my Nemperor Records collection just gained two new recruits. 

Where do they all belong? I love the sale bins at Real Groovy. I probably need another visit!

Lovely cruise (Jimmy Buffett) (LP 2925 - 2929)

Donovan  HMS Donovan (Vinyl, Dawn Records, 1971) *** 

Charlie Ainley  Bang Your Door (Vinyl, Nemperor Records, 1978) *** 

Harpers Bizarre  Anything Goes (Vinyl, Warner Bros Records, 1967) *** 

Jimmy Buffett  A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean (Vinyl, ABC Records, 1973) ***

Jimmy Buffett  Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes (Vinyl, ABC Records, 1977) **** 

Genre: Folk, rock, baroque pop, country rock, Nemperor Records

Places I remember: Real Groovy Records

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Margaritaville (Jimmy Buffett)

Gear costume: The Great Filing Station Holdup (Jimmy Buffett)

They loom large in his legend (The Album Collection playlists): Part 1; Part 2; Part 3; Part 4

Active compensatory factors: These are all from a recent batch of purchases from Real Groovy (and the last vestiges of my voucher from my previous employer). I also bought a Wings double that will have to wait until I get up to Macca.

The Donovan is a double album, and the second attempt at writing songs for children (as opposed to children's songs). The second disc in A Gift From a Flower to a Garden is far superior to HMS Donovan but that doesn't mean there aren't some lovely moments on HMS Donovan - most notably on the second disc. The first one has a lot of Lewis Carroll poems set to music and Donovan's processed vocals have dated a lot.

Donovan had been working on the songs since 1968 and had even played some of them to the aforesaid Macca. I wish he'd included that instead of these versions. You can hear them here though, thanks to modern technology.

HMS Donovan wasn't successful when it was released (Epic refused to release it in America and it only came out in the UK on Dawn, making it the rarest and most sought after item in his catalogue).

There is a lot to digest on the double and it will take me a few listens to sort the wheat from the chaff.

The Charlie Ainley record is on Nemperor Records and I wouldn't have bothered to track it down otherwise. It's pretty standard 1978 pub rock. One thing to note is Neil Aspinall's appearance on the liner notes as Charlie's manager/ music publisher. Weird.

Speaking of weird, Harpers Bizarre hold a strange hold on me. Critically the band get slaughtered but I don't care. I love their nerdy Californian soft baroque rock. 

Anything Goes was their second album and sort of sums them up - they'll have a go at anything! Chattanooga Choo Choo? Why not!

Van Dyke Parks is a quirky presence on the album. Enough said as far as I'm concerned. Sign me up.

I also signed up to the charms of Jimmy Buffett a while ago. I've added another two to his corner of the collection. A White Sports Coat is country rock, or even straight country at times, and his easy-going personality is present and correct.

Changes In Latitude etc has the huge hit on it, of course, but Margaritaville's success is fully justified. It's an inspired song and I love the lyric - Some people claim that there's a woman to blame/But I know it's nobody's fault.

Where do they all belong? Still looking for a few Donovan records, plus I need one more Charlie Ainley album on Nemperor, Harpers Bizarre's 4 is the last of theirs on my list, as is Jimmy Buffett's A1A.

Settle down (Steve Forbert) (LP 2565 - 2568)

Steve Forbert  Alive On Arrival (Vinyl, Nemperor Records, 1978) ****  

Steve Forbert  Jackrabbit Slim (Vinyl, Nemperor Records, 1979) *** 

Steve Forbert  Little Stevie Orbit (Vinyl, Nemperor Records, 1980) **** 

Steve Forbert  Steve Forbert (Vinyl, Nemperor Records, 1982) ***  

Genre: Pop rock 

Places I remember: Real Groovy Records, Slow Boat Records

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Get Well Soon (Little Stevie Orbit)

Gear costume: Cellophane City (Little Stevie Orbit)  

Active compensatory factors: Full disclosure - I am not the world's greatest Steve Forbert fan. Ask my mate, Greg Knowles!

Steve recorded all of his first four albums for Nemperor Records and I collect Nemperor Records. So, I own all four - even though I am not the world's greatest Steve Forbert fan.

But, I've decided to give him a fair go and embark on a reassessment. 

First album - Alive On Arrival is a strong debut. It's actually pretty good and makes me wonder what my problem is.

Then I listened again to Jackrabbit Slim and I realised a couple of things. I heard this one first back in 1979 because of the hit - Romeo's Tune and it turned me off him. The vocal quirks are more accentuated on that album.

Whereas, if I'd heard any of the other 3 in this list I could have actually been a fan. They each contain the kind of enjoyable, tuneful, articulate folk/pop songs that I was into at the time.

Little Stevie Orbit would be my favourite album of these four. He seems to be in full control of his talent on this one. 

Where do they all belong? That will do it for Steve, snuggled into the Nemperor Records collection.

The grind (Tommy Bolin) (LP 2534 - 2535)

Tommy Bolin  Teaser (Vinyl, Nemperor Records, 1975) ***

Stanley Clarke  I Wanna Play For You (Vinyl, Nemperor Records, 1979) ****   

Genre: Rock, jazz fusion, Nemperor Records

Places I remember: Real Groovy Records, Slow Boat Records

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Homeward Strut (Teaser)

Gear costume: Rock'n'roll Jelly (I Wanna Play For You)

Active compensatory factors: I used to have Teaser back in the days of audio cassettes, and played it frequently, not knowing it was on Nemperor. Since deciding to complete a collection of the label I found a US copy in Real Groovy.

Usually, US copies retain the Nemperor label but this one, alas, uses Columbia. The Stanley Clarke album is on Epic. Nevermind. It's still a Nemperor album!

Teaser came out around the same time as Deep Purple's Come Taste The Band, so it retains some of the same aesthetics - funky rock and not hard rock. Bit more like his work with The James Gang actually.

I Wanna Play For You is a double live album. It shows Stanley exploring a variety of funky jazz fusion styles. The one constant being his brilliant bass playing.

The only downside is the album doesn't play as a full concert - always a bugbear for me.

Where do they all belong? Next up - a slew of Steve Forbert albums on Nemperor. Yes - this is what happens when you collect labels - you end up owning music you don't actually like!

Prince of the sea (Lenny White) (LP 2267)

Lenny White  Venusian Summer (Vinyl, Nemperor Records, 1975) *****  

Genre: Jazz fusion 

Places I remember: Amoeba Records (LA)

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Venusian Summer Suite

Gear costume: Prince Of The Sea 

Active compensatory factors: Lenny White is an outrageously gifted drummer who plays in the jazz fusion world, mainly with the fusion band Return To Forever. 

He has played with Jackie Mclean and Miles Davis as well, so he knows what he's doing!

He also has a solo career and Venusian Summer was his debut album in 1975. Some of the other musicians joining him on the album - David Sancious and guitarists Larry Coryell/ Al Di Meola on Prince Of The Sea.

I really like this funk fusion groove Lenny gets going on the album. Doug Rauch on bass is a big part of that as he and Lenny lay down the rhythms.

Where do they all belong? I don't have any other solo albums aside from a best of compilation on CD. Elsewhere though he pops up in various places - most notably in Return To Forever.

In the past, I have flirted with the idea of collecting the Nemperor jazz label (the 1974 to 1977 version before they were absorbed into CBS/Epic). Mainly because I like what they released and as with Grunt, Apple, Ring 'O' and Dark Horse records - I really like the label design (the stylised 'N' and the colour really appeals). Plus, there is a Brian Epstein connection.

One of the problems is that Nemperor was distributed by Atlantic Records from 1974 to 77, so some of the catalogue is listed on the cover as being Nemperor, but the actual label is Atlantic. Little Children by Hammer/Goodman is a case in point.

The other slight issue is the eclectic nature of the catalogue (jazz fusion, pop, rock) but that didn't stop me with Apple or Dark Horse.

So far I've resisted the temptation but I remain on the lookout.