I was the one (Elvis) (LP 439)

Elvis Presley Elvis Presley (Vinyl, RCA, 1956 - 2000 edition) ***

Genre: Rock 'n' Roll 

Places I remember: Marbecks Records - Roger gave me this when it looked like vinyl was dead as a format and he was getting rid of it from the shop. He was down to one bin and gave me the pick of what I wanted. Hence this album.

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Shake Rattle and Roll

Gear costume:  Blue Suede Shoes  

Active compensatory factors: I have never been much of a Presley fan. Well, I was born a year after this album came out so he was never part of my generation in the seventies. By then he'd become a rather pathetic bloated version of himself.

It's quite hard in 2020 to see how this was so revolutionary at the time (I'm sure modern teenagers feel the same way about early Beatles, Sex Pistols, Devo and so on). While for me, it's all rather tame as Elvis tries every style he can except for gospel on these tracks, other listeners will marvel at his depth and breadth.

The peak rock'n'roll tracks do contain plenty of oomph and reward repeat listens. On those, Elvis does give it his all, and as an original, he will forever be the King.

Where do they all belong? A one off in my collection - not even a greatest hits, just some Sun era tracks on sampler collections.

Poor man's Moody Blues (Barclay James Harvest) (LP 434 - 438)

Barclay James Harvest Once Again (Vinyl, Harvest, 1971) ***

Barclay James Harvest Everyone Is Everybody Else (Vinyl, Polydor, 1974) *** 

Barclay James Harvest Gone To Earth (Vinyl, Polydor, 1971) ***

Barclay James Harvest XII (Vinyl, Harvest, 1978) *** 

Barclay James Harvest Live (Vinyl, Polydor, 1974) ***

Genre: Progressive rock 

Places I remember: Real Groovy, Chaldon Books and Records (Caterham on the hill)

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Fiction: The Streets Of San Francisco (from XII)

Gear costume: Galadriel, Child Of The Universe, Crazy City

Active compensatory factors: I have a soft spot for Barclay James Harvest. For me, the early days, in the seventies, are the best - all that mellotron and guitar and soft vocal style. Lovely.

These albums aren't too distinguisable - I rate them all the same because it's sometimes hard to figure out which songs belong on which albums. 

The double Live album from '74 is a good summation of how things were for the boys in the early days - lengthy guitar wig outs amid indechipherable vocals and mellotron washes are the order of the day. Negative Earth is a great example.  

Where do they all belong? Any of the Greatest Hits style compilations are the best places to start if you are new to BJH.

Those were the days (Mary Hopkins) (LP 431 - 433)

Mary Hopkin Postcard (Vinyl, Apple Records, 1968) **

Mary Hopkin Earth Song/ Ocean Song (Vinyl, Apple Records, 1971) *****

Mary Hopkin Live At The Royal Festival Hall 1972 (CD, Mary Hopkin Music, 2005) ***   

Genre: Apple, Dark Horse catalogue

Places I remember: The vinyl - Marbecks Records, The live CD HMV East Croyden

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Water Paper and Clay (From Earth Song/ Ocean Song)

Gear costume:  Martha, Streets Of London (From Earth Song/ Ocean Song)  

Active compensatory factors: The first one, Postcard, is a mess really - Paul McCartney was trying to provide/impose all sorts of styles on his discovery - which is why we get things like folk songs sung in Welsh, pre-rock standards like Show Business, and twee Donovan offerings along the way. 

Side two is more cohesive, but really Postcard says more about Macca's taste than Mary's.

Earth Song/ Ocean Song is a real triumph in comparison, as Mary sings material more suited to her folky approach. The backings are lovely (Toni Visconti in charge really helped) and her voice is now more mature. Her version of Streets Of London is sublime.

It's a brilliant record!

The live one is interesting for me as it is a record of her live performance just as she left Apple Records, but still singing material from her Apple years. 

It's a lovely performance too. Her innocent, winning personality is an honest one and her singing is wonderful throughout.

Where do they all belong? I may not have ever bought a Mary Hopkin album if it wasn't released on Apple Records, but I'm still very glad I heard Earth Song/ Ocean Song.

Don't pass me by (The Beatles) (LP 429 - 430)

The Beatles The Beatles (Vinyl and CD, Apple Records and Parlophone, 1968) *****

The Beatles The Beatles and Esher Demos (Vinyl, Apple Records, 2018) *****

Genre: Beatles pop/rock

Places I remember: Variety of sources - original album came from DJ Records in Otahuhu, subsequent copies have come from friends (the Parlophone vinyl from Paul O'Neill), the CD 30th anniversary edition from The Warehouse, The vinyl reboot with outtakes boxset from HMV Oxford St. and then there is the CD remaster version from the box set bought from Kings Recording in Abu Dhabi (shout out to them - great bunch of guys there - hope you are well and surviving in this post Covid-19 world).

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Long Long Long (my favourite George song of all time - listen to it at night, with the lights off, on headphones, while lying on your bed, for the best effect). Ringo in great form and listen out for the rattling of a Blue Nun wine bottle left on top of an amp that George decided to leave in the mix.

Gear costume:  Everything else - it's the bloody Beatles (as Macca would say). Yes that includes the harrowing Revolution 9.  

Active compensatory factors: Along with the Hey Jude compilation, these are my favourite two Beatle albums. 

# 71111 (vinyl)
and #0194522 (CD)

The sheer variety of music in The Beatles (a.k.a. The White Album), is always a revelation. It sometimes feels like they had a policy of dogmatically refusing to repeat an idea or a style so that the invention from 1963 to 1969 is mind numbing.

When I got this in the early seventies I played it over and over and marvelled at the various wonders on offer. By then I was a Lennon fan primarily but George's songs also stood out, then Paul's versatility was a feature (heavy metal, acoustic, country, folk, granny music, pop, avant garde a clue - all within these four sides) and, of course, Ringo's cameos were perfect as well.

Where do they all belong? My go to is always my original vinyl copy, #71111. It still sounds the best - even though the fidelity on Long Long Long has suffered through the years. So that rattle really does rattle.

You left your mark on me (Marty Balin) (LP 426 - 428)

Bodacious DF Bodacious DF (Vinyl, RCA, 1973) ***

Marty Balin Balin (Vinyl, EMI America, 1981) ***

Marty Balin Lucky (Vinyl, EMI America, 1982) ***

 
Genre: American pop/rock

Places I remember: Marbecks (Balin), Amoeba Records - San Francisco (Lucky, Bodacious DF)

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Hearts (Balin)

Gear costume: I Do Believe In You (Balin), Heart Of Stone (Lucky) 

Active compensatory factors: When Marty Balin left Jefferson Airplane in 1971, he embarked on other projects until rejoining in 1975 (he left again in '78). 

One such activity was this one off album by a loose supergroup called Bodacious DF. What a ridiculous name. I never would have found this if it hadn't been positioned in the Airplane/Balin racks at Amoeba Records.

Other members of the band included personel from other San Francisco bands (Quicksilver Messenger Service, Country Joe and The Fish). 

Thanks to the bass moves, the music is funkier than Airplane's early style of folk/rock music. Marty is the lead vocalist and he proves he can do funk as well.

After leaving Airplane that second time, he went solo and produced regular solo albums right up until 2016. 

Balin was the first and Lucky the second; they are close in style - mianstream rock, and could be Volume 1 and 2 of a double album. 

Each has some great moments, with his trademark quality vocals. They utilise his strengths in a glossier package but class will out!

Where do they all belong? Sadly Marty passed away in 2018. It was a shock. I read about it on the train into London and gasped. Jacky asked me what was wrong - that sort of shock. 

No more creamy Balin vocals and wonderful music from this San Franciscian legend. 

RIP Marty.

The dawn (Osibisa) (LP 425)

Osibisa Osibisa (Vinyl, MCA, 1971) ***

Genre: African pop/rock

Places I remember: Real Groovy

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: That cover, and Oranges

Gear costume:  Phallus C  

Active compensatory factors: In the liner notes of this, their debut album, it says Osibisa is about 'criss cross rhythms that explode with happiness'. And that's accurate.

Side one starts off with some scene setting before getting down to some horn embellished african prog (hence the reason for the terrific Roger Dean cover I guess).

Side Two is the commercial side - loads of catchy chant vocals (like Santana in the early days) and head shaking, foot tapping, body swaying rhythms.

Where do they all belong? In the International section - it's a unique mix of jazz, prog, pop, and Womad style otherness.