I've been driftin' (Burdon/ Witherspoon) (LP 3400 - 3403)

Ginger Baker's Airforce  Ginger Baker's Airforce 2 (Vinyl, Atco Records, 1970) ****  

Jimmy Buffett  A1A (Vinyl, ABC Dunhill Records, 1974) **** 

Eric Burdon & Jimmy Witherspoon  Black & White Blues (Vinyl, LA International Records, 1976 - originally released as Guilty! 1971) *** 

Dragon  Dragon (Vinyl, Portrait, 1978) *** 

Genre: Jazz rock, country, blues, pop rock

Places I remember: Wax Trax Records (Denver), Amoeba Music (LA)

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: 12 Gates of the City (Ginger Baker's Airforce 2)

Gear costume: This Time (Dragon)

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

Active compensatory factors: This post continues with the albums I picked up from a trip to California and Colorado. First up in this group of 4 is an album I hesitated to buy. It was the most expensive album I bought from Wax Trax ($US16) but I couldn't leave without it. I'm talking about Ginger Baker's Airforce 2.

My hesitation was because I had read some reviews of it over the years that were quite negative.

Just goes to show you often can't rely on critical reviews. It's a great continuation of the big group jazz rock approach of the first album. Denny Laine and Graham Bond are on hand to provide some sympathetic musicianship to the Airforce.

As the AllMusic says: something should be said for the honesty and purity of Ginger Baker's Airforce 2, and if it is too musical and avant garde for an audience that embraced Clapton, it should be commended for its sense of adventure and elegance. "12 Gates of the City" is a delight, swimming with sounds from the Arabian nights and the swamps of New Orleans, a sublime and uncharted mix that sounds better years after it was recorded. A timeless, yet pretty much forgotten record.

I managed to complete my Jimmy Buffett list while in Wax Trax Records, as I'm not too interested in his slicker post seventies output.

A1A is an excellent album - pure laid-back easy-going Jimmy Buffett. In many ways it is one of his best, and that's without a big hit song. The Third Coral Reefer Band are locked in, and the songs are spot on. It's a great place to start for those who are wondering what all the fuss is about regarding Jimmy's cool dude persona.

Black & White Blues (originally called Guilty!) was the first album Eric Burdon did after leaving War. That said, the album mainly features members of War!

It's a solid set of covers for the most part, that includes songs by John Mayall, James Taylor and Chuck Berry, alongside some original Burdon songs.

The Dragon album, called Dragon, is the international version of Sunshine (their third album, released in 1977), designed to introduce Americans to the band.

It's the one with Get That Jive, This Time (renamed In The Right Direction for this album) and Sunshine on it. Some reasonable hits in 1977.

Where do they all belong? Another bunch of American purchases coming right up.

Young years (Dragon) (LP 615)

Dragon Bondi Road (Vinyl, RCA Victor Records, 1989) ****

Genre: NZ pop/rock 

Places I remember: Marbecks Records

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Young Years

Gear costume: Family Man, Ice In This Town

Active compensatory factors: This was the last Dragon album of new material released during Marc Hunter's lifetime and it serves as a fitting ending for him and Dragon.

By 1989, thanks to a variety if drug fuelled deaths, Dragon was down to Marc and his brother Todd, plus Alan Mansfield. 

Even though there is a faint whiff of eighties big production about it, this album just gets better as the years go by - so many great performances on a worthy set of songs for once. Marc's voice is incredible and the band lock in some great performances.

Where do they all belong? Marc Hunter - what a voice (what a tragedy that smoking gave him throat cancer and a very premature death).

I'm gonna pack my bag, head out of town (Dragon) #103

Dragon Education/ Swell Foot Sue (Vertigo, 6036 909, 1975)

Okay - this is an odd one. You know that expression - fall between the cracks? Well this is one of...um...Dragon's cracks, if you will.

Education does not appear on the album Dragon released on Vertigo in 1975 (Scented Gardens For The Blind) nor is it in that album's progressive style.

Instead it's a guitar led poppy song, with great Todd Hunter bass lines, that points toward the direction this great Nu Zild band would go in once they moved across the ditch to Aussie. Which they did just after this single was released. I lost interest in them around that time btw - mainly because they didn't release anything here for a couple of years and by 1977 my tastes had shifted a little.

It's a transitional single that did pretty good business in 1975 as I recall - I certainly bought the single after hearing it on Radio Hauraki and tried to buy the album but I got distracted by other sounds before I could get around to it.

What's kind of unusual is it doesn't actually sound like Dragon. Marc Hunter developed a really distinctive vocal style in time but this doesn't sound like him. Maybe it's guitarist Robert Taylor, writer of the song, who's singing? I don't know.

Hidden gem: The B side is written by fellow guitarist Ray Goodwin and is a rocky little number that also points towards the good time Dragon sound we came to know and love. Just not quite there yet.

I know that I just need you like, I've never done before (The Fabs)

1. The Exponents – Like She Said (1994)/ Nameless Girl (1992)
2. Blerta - Dance All Around The World (1972)/ Joy Joy (1972)
3. Dragon – Young Years (1989)/ Rain (1984)
   
   
   
   
   

Third in the Wozza countdown of the 10 best Nu Zild bands and their two best songs is the best from the reconstituted Dragon. Actually I think it was maybe just the Hunter brothers on Young Years but I could be wrong. They are certainly the only members to grace the video.

The album they did in 1989 (Bondi Road) is a great album pure and simple, even though its faux aussie title is annoying. In fact the way Australia tries to claim our NZ bands as their own when they get some aussie exposure is also damned annoying.

The Hunter brothers (bass player Todd and the great singer/frontman Marc) are definitely kiwis so for my money they are a Nu Zild band!

Unfortunately Dragon's manager and members developed a reckless reputation for drugs and debauchery (just check out the emaciated and heroin addicted Paul Hewson on the Rain video) - resulting in a number of drug related deaths and Marc Hunter's death from a smoking related cancer in 1998.

How they managed to make such outstanding music is something of a mystery. But make it they did.