John Lennon - Mind Games (1973) [Vinyl Rip]

Year: 29 October 1973 (US) 16 November 1973 (UK) (LP 1973)
Label: Apple Records, EMI Records (UK), PCS 7165, OC 062-05491
Style: Rock
Country: 9 October 1940 Liverpool, England
Time: 41:20
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 251 Mb

Mind Games is, to my knowledge, the first release from the conceptual country Nutopia, whose existence John and Yoko proclaim in a Declaration on the lyric sheet. Oddly enough, it isn’t all that different from the records he has been making in America these last few years. Those have revealed a steady decline from the high points of his post-Beatle work, Plastic Ono Band and “Instant Karma.” There, he distilled his simplistic humanism into a single moving statement of belief — at once his most accessible and intelligent attempt at autobiography and philosophy.
With Imagine he began affecting attitudes bereft of emotional force. As he turned to petty gossip and didactic social commentary, his gambit of combining simple thoughts with simple music backfired. What was moving when applied to his own life was unbearably pretentious when used to offer aphorisms concerning larger issues.
Musically, Mind Games is a return to the form of Plastic Ono Band, employing some of the same simple chord progressions, similar instrumentation, and tunes that on closer inspection prove devoid of melodies, consisting only of pleasant collections of pop song, gospel and folk-rock cliches, particularly dependent on Dylan’s apocalyptic mid-Sixties style.
The album’s music might have served as the basis for a good LP if it had been paired with some new lyrical insight and passion. But instead, Lennon has come up with his worst writing yet. With lines like, “A million heads are better than one/So come on, get it on,” a listener can only accept or reject them. I’ve done the latter.
Lennon’s lyrics aren’t offensive, per se — just misguided in so underrating his audience’s intelligence. John Lennon’s admirers do not need to be preached at about the importance of love. They might even be able to withstand something more challenging than the repetition of the hollow shells of ideas they already share. But then, perhaps Lennon’s didacticism, preaching and banality are part of the mind game of the album’s title, yet another attempt to push his luck to the brink of self-annihilation.
Mind Games remains listenable, which is certainly more than can be said for Some Time in New York City. Lennon’s voice is in good shape, his production a cut above average and his performance occasionally forces us to take him more seriously than we would if he seemed less determined. “Mind Games,” “One Day,” “Intuition” and “Only People” (with some lines remarkably reminiscent of “Revolution”) all have one or another touch to recommend at least a few listenings.
Mind Games reveals another major artist of the Sixties lost in the changing social and musical environment of the Seventies, helplessly trying to impose his own gargantuan ego upon an audience that has already absorbed his insights and is now waiting hopefully for him to chart a new course.
(Rolling Stone magazine; By Jon Landau, January 3, 1974 5:00AM ET)

01. A1 Mind Games (04:14)
02. A2 Tight As (03:40)
03. A3 Aisumasen (I'm Sorry) (04:48)
04. A4 One Day (At a Time) (03:11)
05. A5-A6 Bring on the Lucie (Freda Peeple) A6 Nutopian International Anthem (04:16)
06. B1 Intuition (03:12)
07. B2 Out the Blue (03:25)
08. B3 Only People (03:30)
09. B4 I Know (I Know) (03:52)
10. B5 You Are Here (04:15)
11. B6 Meat City (02:52)

Listen. Full Album: John Lennon - Mind Games (1973) [Vinyl Rip]





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Lord Sutch and Heavy Friends - Lord Sutch and Heavy Friends (1970) CD

Year: February 1970 (U.S.) 25 May 1970 (UK) (CD Germany 1990)

Label: Linea Records (U.S.), LECD 9.00947 O

Style: Hard Rock, Rock

Country: England

Time: 35:38

Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz

Size: 214 Mb

Jimmy Page spoke about the album in a 1970 interview, just after the LP was released:
"Well, I've known Sutch for years and years, and he's been in the business for 12 years and he's never had an album out. Last time we were in L.A. he came to me and said, "I wish you could help me out, I've got a chance to make an album and I've been in the business for 12 years," and he started citing other people who had been in the business for a long time, and even died, as did one particular chap, Johnny Cato, but you wouldn't have heard of him. He was in the business for about 12 years and he got killed in a car crash, I think it was, and he didn't have an album out.
So, Sutch is telling me all this, saying, "Oh dear, I must have an album out, you've got to help me," and I said, "Look, I'll help you if I can."
It was all fixed that I'd go down there and just do a bit, so we went down and played and I just did some backing tracks to numbers like "Good Golly Miss Molly" and "Roll Over Beethoven." You've got the picture, right? I didn't do any solos, no solos at all. I did a little bit of wah wah on one track, but I didn't do the solo in the middle, which isn't a wah wah thing. Somebody else put that on.
So, to cut a long story short, he rewrote all the tunes and he put another guitarist on over the top. But, and this is where the criminal side of it comes in, he didn't put "Extra guitar: So and So" or "Lead guitar played by so and so"; he put "Guitar: Jimmy Page," so everybody thought, "Oh, Jimmy Page played that heap of crap," and it became more than an embarrassment. He also wrote me in as producer, which was very nice of him (Jimmy laughs). I wasn't interested in that, I just went down to have a laugh, playing some old rock and roll, a bit of a send-up. The whole joke sort of reversed itself and became ugly."
(www.ledzeppelin.com)

Album chart 1970 Billboard Pop Albums (Billboard 200) #84

Screaming Lord Sutch – Lead vocals
Jimmy Page – Acoustic and electric guitar (on tracks 1–3, 5, 7, 8, 11, 12), backing vocals, producer
Jeff Beck – Electric guitar (on tracks 4, 5, 11)
John Bonham – Drums (on tracks 1–3, 7, 8, 11, 12), percussion, backing vocals
Nicky Hopkins – Piano, keyboards (on tracks 4, 5, 11)
Kent Henry – Guitar (on tracks 5, 6, 9–11)
Noel Redding – Bass guitar (on tracks 7, 9–11)
Rick Brown – Bass guitar (on tracks 4, 5, 11)
Deniel Edwards – Lead guitar and Bass guitar (1–3, 5, 6, 8, 11, 12)
Martin Kohl – Bass guitar (on tracks 5, 6, 9–11)
Carlo Little – Drums (on tracks 4–6)
Bob Metke – Drums (on tracks 6, 9, 10)
Written-By – Jay Cee (3) (tracks: 5 & 11), Jimmy Page (tracks: 1,2,3,7,8,12), Lord Sutch* (tracks: All except 5,11)
Produced by Jimmy Page & Lord Sutch Productions.

01. Wailing Sounds (Jimmy Page, Sutch) – 2:38
02. Cause I Love You (John Bonham, Deniel Edwards, Jimmy Page, Sutch) – 2:46
03. Flashing Lights (Jimmy Page, Sutch) – 3:14
04. Gutty Guitar (Sutch) – 2:33
05. Would You Believe (Jay Cee) – 3:20
06. Smoke and Fire (Sutch) – 2:38
07. Thumping Beat (Jimmy Page, Sutch) – 3:07
08. Union Jack Car (Jimmy Page, Sutch) – 3:03
09. One for You, Baby (Sutch) – 2:44
10. L-O-N-D-O-N (Sutch) – 2:56
11. Brightest Light (Jay Cee, Sutch) – 3:57
12. Baby, Come Back (Jimmy Page, Sutch) – 2:31



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Captain Beyond - Sufficiently Breathless (1973) CD

Year: May 1973 (CD 19 May 1998)

Label: Capricorn Records (U.S.), 314 558 380-2

Style: Hard Rock, Rock

Country: Los Angeles, California

Time: 33:20

Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz

Size: 231 Mb

CAPTAIN BEYOND (Self-Titled) 1st ALBUM. This album has stood the test of time! It is one of the most listened to ever!
Captain Beyond is the self-titled debut album by Captain Beyond, released in 1972, and featured former members of "Iron Butterfly", "Deep  Purple", and "Johnny Winter And". All songs written and composed by Bobby Caldwell and Rod Evans.
CAPTAIN BEYOND was formed from the ashes of ?Deep Purple?, ?Johnny Winter And? and ?Iron Butterfly?.  The line-up consisted of Rod Evans, vocals (Deep Purple); Bobby Caldwell, drums-vocals (Johnny Winter And; Larry ?Rhino? Reinhardt, guitar (Iron Butterfly); and bassist, Lee Dorman (Iron Butterfly). 
After hearing the bands demo, long-time friends Duane and Gregg Allman introduced CAPTAIN BEYOND to the late Phil Walden and Capricorn Records.
After the release of the first album ?CAPTAIN BEYOND? and a most successful launch at the Montreaux Jazz and Pop Festival followed by a relentless touring schedule (with Alice Cooper, The Allman Brothers, Black Sabbath and many others) Bobby left for a short time during the recording of the second album called ?Sufficiently Breathless?.
Bobby then returned and CAPTAIN BEYOND set out once again on a new round of touring with the likes of King Crimson, Trapeze, ZZ Top, etc.  In the mid-seventies lead singer Rod Evans decided to leave music and was replaced with Willie Daffern on vocals. The band then signed with Warner Bros. and recorded the album ?Dawn Explosion?.  After further touring and management changes CAPTAIN BEYOND in 1978 went on hiatus.
In 2000, Rhino and Bobby decided to reform CAPTAIN BEYOND which included Jeff Artabasy who is a current member, and recorded a four-track EP.   Unfortunately, this line-up was short lived as Larry Reinhardt was having health problems and it was decided to not continue.  In addition, a tribute album to CAPTAIN BEYOND?s music was recorded by some of Scandinavia?s best musicians titled ?A Thousand Days of Yesterdays?.
In January of 2012, Larry Reinhardt passed on, followed by CAPTAIN BEYOND?s original bassist Lee Dorman, who also passed on some nine months later. Rod Evans has been involved in the medical field and is not currently involved in music.
Bobby Caldwell has resurrected the new Captain Beyond with the intention of recording some new master works and bringing this historic music back to their many fans!  The current line-up in addition to Bobby ?Fire? Caldwell and Jeff ?The Count? Artabasy, is Simon Lind, Don Bonzi and Jamie Holka.  They look forward to meeting everyone!
(officialcaptainbeyond.com)

01. Sufficiently Breathless (05:15)
02. Bright Blue Tango (04:11)
03. Drifting In Space (03:12)
04. Evil Men (04:51)
05. Starglow Energy (05:04)
06. Distant Sun (04:42)
07. Voyages Of Past Travellers (01:46)
08. Everything's A Circle (04:14)

Listen. Full Album: Captain Beyond - Sufficiently Breathless (1973)




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Tami Neilson - Chickaboom (2020) CD

Year: 14 Feb 2020 (CD 2020)
Label: Outside Music, OUT9130CD
Style: Rockabilly, Folk, World, Country
Country: Born 1977, Canada, New Zealand
Time: 26:13
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 163 Mb

Rockabilly singer Tami Neilson hosts a brief but potent party straight from New Zealand on her new album, Chickaboom!
Need a break from the 21st century? Throw Tami Neilson's new album Chickaboom! into your preferred music player and, for the next 26 minutes and 13 seconds, you'll be hurled into a word of twangy guitars, rockabilly rhythms, big hairdos, and even bigger singing. On Chickaboom! Neilson, a New Zealand resident by-way-of-Canada, proves herself to be the heiress apparent to legendary rockabilly/country queen Wanda Jackson. Neilson produced the album and wrote or co-wrote every song on Chickaboom! – aside from album-closer "Sleep", written by the album's lead guitarist and co-producer, Delaney Davidson – and it's easy to imagine nearly any of these songs showing up on a Wanda album circa 1962.
The danger with any artist who is deeply rooted in a specific era or genre is that the music could be perceived as kitschy and derivative, rather than as a fresh take on an older style. Neilson transcends this potential dilemma with that huge voice of hers, but also by writing a solid set of songs that manage to cover quite a bit of entertaining ground throughout the brief album. And that brevity is important: Neilson clearly intends to get started, blow the listener away with one cool song after another, and then leave them wanting more. It's a winning strategy.
Chickaboom! opens strong with Neilson growling her way through "Call Your Mama", a rockabilly rave-up with R&B undertones. "Changed the locks, threw your box of things / Out on the street, but sure as hell kept your ring," she informs her hapless man, who best not be thinking he's irreplaceable. "Call Your Mama" is followed by a pair of road songs, "Hey, Bus Driver" and "Ten Tonne Truck", that nicely encapsulate the general feel of the album.
In addition to Davidson, Neilson's brother Jay is a key contributor to Chickaboom! and the trio stick to an appropriately stripped-down production of acoustic and electric guitars, plus bass and drums throughout the album. Sometimes, the songs are even more basic: "Queenie, Queenie" is mostly just percussion and backing vocals courtesy of a couple of kids, and it might just remind you a little bit of "Iko Iko".
Neilson occasionally slows things down. "You Were Mine" and "16 Miles of Chain" are torchy country/blues hybrids, while "Any Fool with a Heart" is a snappy acoustic duet sung with Jay Neilson. "Sleep" closes the album on a decidedly dreamy note. These diversions bring a pleasing variety to Chickaboom!, without adversely affecting the party atmosphere.
Neilson revs up the closing moments of Chickaboom! with its penultimate tune, a righteous and rollicking tribute to "Sister Mavis" Staples. "Send in Sister Mavis / Mahalia and Rosetta, no, you won't find a better / Holy trinity to save us / Send sister Mavis," preaches Neilson, and you have to cry, "amen!" to that sentiment.
There is at least one tiny reference to the 21st century on Chickaboom! That's on "Queenie Queenie" when Neilson notes, "Mama's gotta hustle, do another show / 'Cause they won't play a lady-o on country radio." In the case of Tami Neilson and Chickaboom!, that is clearly country radio's loss.
(www.popmatters.com; by Rich Wilhelm 11 Feb 2020)

01. Call Your Mama (02:26)
02. Hey, Bus Driver! (02:13)
03. Ten Tonne Truck (02:22)
04. Queenie, Queenie (02:09)
05. You Were Mine (03:43)
06. 16 Miles of Chain (03:29)
07. Tell Me That You Love Me (02:03)
08. Any Fool With a Heart (02:43)
09. Sister Mavis (02:44)
10. Sleep (02:19)

Listen. Full Album: Tami Neilson - Chickaboom (2020)

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Kieran White (Steamhammer) - Open Door (1975) CD

Year: 1975 (CD 1993)
Label: Repertoire Records (Germany), REP 4361-WY
Style: Funk, Rock, Pop
Country: England
Time: 44:17
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 254 Mb

Kieran Raymond White (died March 1995, Oregon, United States) was an English baritone rock vocalist and guitarist. He sang and played in the blues-rock band Steamhammer, formed in 1968. Their debut album, Steamhammer. was released in 1969, on which White co-wrote many of the songs and played harmonica.
White left Steamhammer in 1971 and recorded a solo album, Open Door (released in 1975). He also worked for Gull Records as a staff songwriter, and later sang for the jazz-rock band Nucleus. After this period, he emigrated to the United States and became a truck driver, settling in Oregon. He died in 1995 from cancer.
(www.wikiwand.com/en/Kieran_White)

01. Open Up Your Door (03:40)
02. Cajun Moon (03:38)
03. Cold City Night (05:12)
04. I May Be Wrong (04:56)
05. Lay Your Love Down (04:38)
06. Cadillac (04:28)
07. Stone Ground (03:34)
08. Janie (05:55)
09. Dark Star (04:33)
10. Cargo County (03:38)

Listen. Full Album: Kieran White (Steamhammer) - Open Door (1975)

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Bob Mosley (Moby Grape) - Bob Mosley (1972) CD

Year: 1972 (CD 2005)
Label: Wounded Bird Records (U.S.), WOU 2068
Style: Hard Rock, Rock, Pop
Country: December 4, 1942, San Diego, California, U.S.
Time: 37:13
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 213 Mb

Singer/songwriter and bassist James Robert Mosley was born December 4, 1942, in Paradise Valley, CA, and spent his teens playing in a number of garage combos, including the Misfits, the Strangers, and the Frantics. The Frantics eventually morphed into Moby Grape, and with a lineup of Bob Mosley, Peter Lewis, Skip Spence, Don Stevenson, and Jerry Miller, the band recorded the brilliant but ill-fated Moby Grape album, released by Columbia in 1967.
If ever a band was snake-bitten, it was Moby Grape, and thanks to backfiring publicity stunts, poor management, and record company snafus, the band never found a steady mass audience. It didn't help, either, that at least two of the members -- Spence and Mosley -- begin to show sings of mental disorder. Moby Grape managed to record two more albums with its original configuration participating before Spence and then Mosley left the band.
In 1969 Mosley joined the U.S. Marines, making it through basic training, only to be diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic (a mental condition that also afflicted Skip Spence) and was discharged from the Marines nine months later. He rejoined Grape for 1971's 20 Granite Creek album, but the group splintered after the album was completed. Mosley next signed with Reprise Records and his solo album, Bob Mosley, was released in 1972. By 1973 Mosley was listed as a ward of the State of California. He resurfaced in the late '70s as a member of the Ducks, who backed Neil Young on a series of impromptu bar gigs around Santa Cruz in 1977. In 1989 the odd Live at Indigo Ranch by Mosley Grape was released, and Mosley joined former Grape members Miller, Stevenson, and Lewis as the Melvilles (they weren't legally allowed to use the name Moby Grape at this point) to record Legendary Grape, which was released on cassette that same year, and has floated around as a bootleg ever since. Eventually the album was reissued on CD with eight bonus tracks in 2003 by DIG Music.
Moby Grape has reunited in different configurations (and under a variety of names) several times for shows and other projects over the years, sometimes with Mosley and sometimes without him. A soulful singer whose songs deftly bridged the gap between country and blues, Mosley contributed "Mr. Blues," "Bitter Wind," "Rose Colored Eyes," "Trucking Man," "Hoochie," "Lazy Me," "Come in the Morning," and other solid songs to the Grape canon in the early years.
By the mid-'90s he was homeless, sleeping under a freeway overpass in San Diego. Other members of Moby Grape have attempted at various times to help Mosley, and he still occasionally surfaces to play a show, but he appears to prefer life on the street, either by design or as a result of his illness. An album he recorded in the 1970s with members of Buddy Holly's band, the Crickets, was released as Never Dreamed in 1999 by the German label Taxim Records.
(allmusic.com; Artist Biography by Steve Leggett)

Bob Mosley
I started on acoustic guitar at fourteen years of age and was playing electric guitar by the time I was sixteen. My first band, called the Misfits, I formed myself in 1964 . We opened for the Rolling Stones that same year in San Diego, California where I was living. In 1965 I joined with Joel Scott HIll and Johnny Barbata to play the San Francisco bay area clubs where I also played some dates with the Vejtables.
In 1966 Moby Grape was formed and we have been working on and off together thru the years. In 1996 Peter Lewis picked me up along the side of a San Diego freeway where I was living, to tell me a ruling by San Francisco Judge Garcia gave Moby Grape their name back. I was ready to go to work again. I started this project recording acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass and vocals up in Marin County close to where I had recently moved. Taxim was interested in my project and since the first tracks were laid, I got in touch with J.P. Whitecloud, producer of "Never Dreamed", a recording which was done with James Burton and the Crickets released in 1999 on Taxim. Prairie Sun Studio is where this was finished by adding Dale Ockermon from the Doobie Brothers on keyboards and slide guitar. I called old friend James Preston of the Sons of Champlin to add the drums.
Thank you Hans and JP and especially to my family for your support and love.
(Bob Mosley 2005)

Listen. Full Album: Bob Mosley (Moby Grape) - Bob Mosley (1972)

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Steamhammer - Steamhammer (Reflection) (1969) CD

Year: March 1969 (CD 2010 )
Label: Repertoipre Records (Germany), REP 5187
Style: Hard Rock, Blues Rock
Country: England
Time: 38:47
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 256 Mb

Steamhammer's debut was released at a time when the British blues-rock wave was finally starting to get some steam (hence the name, eh?) - Cream had dissolved, but a new tide of bands were coming in its place, and this time, not just boring purists like the original Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac or something like that, but actually daring, brave guys who weren't afraid to let their hair down, make their sound more aggressive and sharp, on one hand, and somewhat more experimental and adventurous, on the other. Heck, this is when Led Zeppelin made their debut, after all, but there were also gazillions of 'simpler' bluesy outfits, like Ten Years After or Taste, for instance, and Steamhammer's self-titled debut should be regarded in that category, and out of that category, it's definitely one of the better albums of the epoch.
At this point, the band wasn't yet taking too many chances. The nine main tunes on here are all bluesy, ranging from pure blues to mid-tempo blues-rock. But, of course, it's not the exact melodies that count when we're speaking blues, it's the attitude and the atmosphere. And these guys had it wired. All the five members were experienced and well-trained musicians by that point, and the rhythm section rolls along with enough fire to redeem its existence; the main stars of the album, though, are the vocals guy and the main guitar guys. Kieran White is a really wonderful vocalist, with a powerful baritone that blows away nearly all competition, unless you count extreme cases like Rod Stewart... one thing that has always struck me about guys like Alvin Lee and Rory Gallagher was the absolute technical weakness of their vocals - I never had a real problem with that, as both of them had the youthful energy, sincerity, and sheer performing power to compensate for lack of a wide range or ability to always stay on key, but still, occasionally this kind of stuff kinda rubbed me in the wrong way. Kieran White, on the other hand, sings just perfectly, maybe even too perfectly for a blues guy, but then again, he does have the necessary rawness, so that's all right by me.
And the guitarists are good. I'm not sure what parts are played by Martin Quittenton and what is played by Martin Pugh on here, but just about everything about their guitars sends nice vibes up my alley: a serious variety of guitar tones (sometimes a bit too clean, but you get used to that), cool unnerving riffage when it's necessary, and fluent, emotional, soaring solos played with dexterity that might be somewhat below the level of, say, Clapton, but which is definitely high above, say, Tony Iommi (at least the early Seventies Iommi).
So the Achilles' heel, of course, is the songwriting. Basic blues songs and even more basic blues-rockers don't really make my day when there's nothing to dilute them with, and even if only two of the songs are direct covers (a B. B. King and an Eddie Boyd tune), none of the others seem to betray any kind of individuality through the melodies. Thus, the record is essentially only saved by the guys' inventiveness - you'll meet a lot of wonderfully sounding passages on here that weren't all that common on rock records in the late Sixties. For instance, my favourite number, the scorching rocker 'She Is The Fire', prefers to - for no obvious reason - begin with a short brass introduction, then contrasts Kieran's ominous vocals with a creepy wah-wah rhythm in the background and then uses the volume increasing trick to good effect when the main riff of the song almost seems to explode in your ears after the first verse. And then there's the psychedelic guitar duel which seems to be taking place in some mysterious hidden underground caves, particularly when you're in headphones.
'Even The Clock', on the other hand, doesn't just employ the same guitar battle style, but actually complements it with moody flute soloing a la Jethro Tull. And 'Down The Highway' has this weird three-note riff that repeats for several times at the end of each verse, as if saying to you: 'in case you didn't know it, I'm the hook and I wanna be forcefully introduced to you!'. 'On Your Road' is a short folksy acoustic ballad for a change, but even then it features a weird quasi-San Franciscan electri guitar tone when it comes to the solo. And even the lengthy 'blues-de-luxe' style workout (epithet stolen from Jeff Beck's Truth, of course) 'Twenty Four Hours', while it has nothing original or even particularly memorable about it, is just tasty to listen to, what with all the atmospheric guitar/harmonica solos and stuff. Really, that's good stuff out there, with a big "G", although it doesn't even approach great. It's obvious that this album couldn't have hit much popularity in the light of all the Led Zep trickery, but maybe it didn't deserve such oblivion...
Oh, one thing I forgot to mention is 'Water', the little two-part instrumental dirge that opens and closes the album - the second part of it, with the depressive and lamenting guitar, has almost reminded me of Can's 'Deadlock', if that means anything to you: the same broken-hearted end-of-the-world-ish tone that makes an unstable person wanna kill himself. That's really weird, as I don't believe the Can tune was already written by that point, nor do I believe the German band ever heard Steamhammer... but maybe that's just one good indication of how the rock business is so huge that similar ideas keep popping out from different heads all the time. Ah, talk about originality...
(starling.rinet.ru/music/steam.htm)

01. Water (Part One) (00:51)
02. Junior's Wailing (03:18)
03. Lost You Too (03:27)
04. She Is The Fire (03:10)
05. You'll Never Know (03:26)
06. Even The Clock (04:07)
07. Down The Highway (04:29)
08. On Your Road (02:50)
09. Twenty-Four Hours (07:27)
10. When All Your Friends Are Gone (03:49)
11. Water (Part Two) (01:48)

Listen. Full Album: Steamhammer - Steamhammer (Reflection) (1969)




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Captain Beyond - Captain Beyond (1972) CD

Year: July 1972 (CD 19 Aug 1997 )
Label: Capricorn Records (U.S.), 314 536 107-2
Style: Hard Rock, Psychedelic Rock
Country: Los Angeles, California
Time: 35:20
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 231 Mb

CAPTAIN BEYOND (Self-Titled) 1st ALBUM. This album has stood the test of time! It is one of the most listened to ever!
Captain Beyond is the self-titled debut album by Captain Beyond, released in 1972, and featured former members of "Iron Butterfly", "Deep  Purple", and "Johnny Winter And". All songs written and composed by Bobby Caldwell and Rod Evans.
CAPTAIN BEYOND was formed from the ashes of “Deep Purple”, “Johnny Winter And” and “Iron Butterfly”.  The line-up consisted of Rod Evans, vocals (Deep Purple); Bobby Caldwell, drums-vocals (Johnny Winter And; Larry “Rhino” Reinhardt, guitar (Iron Butterfly); and bassist, Lee Dorman (Iron Butterfly). 
After hearing the bands demo, long-time friends Duane and Gregg Allman introduced CAPTAIN BEYOND to the late Phil Walden and Capricorn Records.
After the release of the first album “CAPTAIN BEYOND” and a most successful launch at the Montreaux Jazz and Pop Festival followed by a relentless touring schedule (with Alice Cooper, The Allman Brothers, Black Sabbath and many others) Bobby left for a short time during the recording of the second album called “Sufficiently Breathless”.
Bobby then returned and CAPTAIN BEYOND set out once again on a new round of touring with the likes of King Crimson, Trapeze, ZZ Top, etc.  In the mid-seventies lead singer Rod Evans decided to leave music and was replaced with Willie Daffern on vocals. The band then signed with Warner Bros. and recorded the album “Dawn Explosion”.  After further touring and management changes CAPTAIN BEYOND in 1978 went on hiatus.
In 2000, Rhino and Bobby decided to reform CAPTAIN BEYOND which included Jeff Artabasy who is a current member, and recorded a four-track EP.   Unfortunately, this line-up was short lived as Larry Reinhardt was having health problems and it was decided to not continue.  In addition, a tribute album to CAPTAIN BEYOND’s music was recorded by some of Scandinavia’s best musicians titled “A Thousand Days of Yesterdays”.
In January of 2012, Larry Reinhardt passed on, followed by CAPTAIN BEYOND’s original bassist Lee Dorman, who also passed on some nine months later. Rod Evans has been involved in the medical field and is not currently involved in music.
Bobby Caldwell has resurrected the new Captain Beyond with the intention of recording some new master works and bringing this historic music back to their many fans!  The current line-up in addition to Bobby “Fire” Caldwell and Jeff “The Count” Artabasy, is Simon Lind, Don Bonzi and Jamie Holka.  They look forward to meeting everyone!
(officialcaptainbeyond.com)

01. Dancing Madly Backwards (On A Sea Of Air) (04:02)
02. Armworth (01:48)
03. Myopic Void (03:30)
04. Mesmerization Eclipse (03:48)
05. Raging River Of Fear (03:51)
06. Thousand Days Of Yesterday (Intro) (01:19)
07. Frozen Over (03:46)
08. Thousand Days Of Yesterday (Time Since Come And Gone) (03:56)
09. I Can't Feel Nothing' (Part I) (03:06)
10. As The Moon Speaks (To The Waves Of The Sea) (02:25)
11. Astral Lady (00:16)
12. As The Moon Speaks (Return) (02:13)
13. I Can't Feel Nothin' (Part II) (01:13)

Listen. Full Album: Captain Beyond - Captain Beyond (1972)

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Pentangle - Basket Of Light (1969) CD

Year: 26 October 1969 (CD 2010)
Label: Universal Music (Japan), UICY-20062
Style: Folk Rock, Folk Baroque
Country: 1967-1973; 1981-present; United Kingdom
Time: 53:23
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 336 Mb

Jacqui McShee - VOCALS - Born in London on Christmas day 1943 Jacqui grew up listening to the music played on her parents gramophone - from Fats waller, Ella Fitzgerald and big bands through to popular classics. Jacqui showed little interest in music though until she heard Miles Davis and John Coltrane at CND friends, becoming the most important thing for her – it quite literally changed her life, On CND marches she would lead the singing with her sister Pam and did many gigs locally in South East London for charities such as War On Want and Oxfam.
Through these gigs Jacqui met Chris Ayliffe who played 12 string guitar - they performed as a duo and also got involved running the folk club at the Red Lion in Sutton. John Renbourn and Bert Jansch would often come and play and they liked the way Jacqui sang. When Chris went off busking in Europe John asked Jacqui to sing on his album Another Monday and do the folk circuit with him. In fact, Chris was instrumental in getting this to happen.
After about a year John announced to Jacqui he was forming a band with Bert and that she was going to be the singer! This was on a train waiting on the Hungerford bridge by the Royal Festival Hall. John said ‘they’d be playing in in a year. “Yeh, right..” was Jacqui’s reply. Within a year they were - as Pentangle - along with later recruits Danny Thompson on bass and Terry Cox on drums.
Pentangle’s manager Joe Lustig soon had the band signed with Warner Reprise Records and before long they were touring extensively and playing historic venues including Carnegie Hall, Fillmore East and West, Newport Festival, the Isle-Of-Wight festival and of course the Royal Festival Hall. On these historic tours the band would appear alongside Hendrix, Miles Davis, Bob Dylan and James Taylor. Jacqui recounts:
“During the summer of 1969 we toured the USA and played at the Newport (Rhode Island) Folk and Blues Festival. Our set was interrupted, to tell the audience that the US Apollo 11 mission to the moon had been successful, and that Neil Armstrong was the first man to set foot on the moon.
Some of the audience actually booed and cat called - They were upset that the music had been interrupted and wanted it to continue! In a news programme later that evening there was a coast to coast TV show, looking at what was happening around the world at the precise moment that the U.S. had put a man on the moon. There we were, it was very exciting.
On the same day I remember standing back stage with John, hunched together around a corner, listening to a conversation between Big Mama Thornton and Muddy Waters talking "Jive". Neither or us could understand a word they were saying. I couldn't believe I was standing so close to two of my heroes.
In that Same week we were taken out to dinner courtesy of our record company Warner/Reprise - I sat next to Phil Everly, another of my heroes, What a week that was...”.
Up to their demise in 1973 the band cut six albums that remain classics to this day. John and Jacqui continued as a duo then formed the John Renbourn Band in the late 1970’s. The early 1980’s was family time for Jacqui with son Matt being born in 1979 and daughter Leah in 1984. Touring naturally took second place but it wasn’t long before Jacqui was back on the road.
An Italian promoter approached John wanting to do a tour with the original Pentangle. John approached everyone and they toured Italy, the UK and Australia. This reunion was short lived however as John left the band to pursue a long-term ambition of studying classical music, taking up a place at Dartington College of Arts. There then followed a series of personnel changes, including Mike Piggott on violin, Rod Clements on guitar,  Nigel Portman Smith on keyboards and bass, and Peter Kirtley on guitars and vocals, with McShee and Jansch finally remaining as the only members from the original line-up.
Gerry Conway took over on drums and percussion in 1986. The incarnation consisting of Jacqui, Bert, Nigel, Peter and Gerry survived almost as long as the original Pentangle and recorded three albums: Think of Tomorrow, One More Road and Live 1994. This line-up completed their final tour in March–April 1995, after which Bert left to pursue his solo work.
1994 saw Jacqui begin a brand new project with Gerry and Spencer Cozens. This manifested itself in the 1995 release About Thyme album which gained rave reviews including a no.1 spot for several weeks in the Tower Records folk charts. They toured this album with Alan Thomson on bass and Jerry Underwood on saxes - this was the beginnings of Jacqui McShee’s Pentangle (JMP). The 1998 release of Passe Avant marked the true start of JMP with the band still touring and recording regularly.
As well as focussing on JMP, Jacqui has become involved in Alan Simon’s Excalibur project in 1998, a rock opera about King Arthur – Jacqui playing the character Morgana. This has developed into an arena filling show and continues to grow. She has also appeared on several recent albums alongside David Hughes, Eddie Reader, Chris While, Julie Matthews and Christine Collister.
(www.pentangle.info/JMPentangle/THE_BAND)

01. Light Flight (03:19)
02. Once I Had A Sweetheart (04:45)
03. Springtime Promises (04:09)
04. Lyke-Wake Dirge (03:36)
05. Train Song (04:48)
06. Hunting Song (06:45)
07. Sally Go Round The Roses (03:40)
08. The Cuckoo (04:29)
09. House Carpenter (05:32)
10. Cold Mountain (02:02)
11. I Saw An Angel (02:55)
12. Sally Go Round The Roses (Alternate Version 1) (03:40)
13. Sally Go Round The Roses (Alternate Version 2) (03:38)

Listen. Full Album: Pentangle - Basket Of Light (1969)





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Paul Rodgers - Muddy Water Blues - A Tribute To Muddy Waters (1993) CD

Year: 1993 (CD 27 Mar 1993)
Label: Victor Musical Records (Japan), VICP-5231
Style: Rock, Blues Rock
Country: 17 December 1949 Middlesbrough, England
Time: 65:58
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 426 Mb

Muddy Water Blues: A Tribute to Muddy Waters is the second solo album by Paul Rodgers of Free and Bad Company fame.
Although attributed solely to Paul Rodgers, this album features many other artists including Brian May, Buddy Guy, David Gilmour, Jeff Beck, Neal Schon, Gary Moore, Brian Setzer, Richie Sambora, Slash, Steve Miller, Jason Bonham and Trevor Rabin. Producer: Billy Sherwood (guitarist and keyboardist from 1997 to 2000 and as full-time bassist since June 2015 the English progressive rock band Yes).
(en.wikipedia.org)

Whilst the late sixties and seventies were kind to Paul Rodgers the eighties and early nineties were someting of a mixed bag. Bad Company stuttered to a halt in 1982 with the largely disappointing Rough Diamonds. A self indulgent solo album arrived the following year on which Rodgers played all the instruments himself and whilst it was pleasant enough it lacked the quality it would have had if some top notch musicians had been on board to back up Rodgers top quality vocals. The Firm was an experiment with Jimmy Page which never really worked and was hampered in live shows by the brave but questionable decision to totally disregard both Rodgers and Page’s back catalogue from Led Zeppelin, Free and Bad Company. Following that The Law was never really a band just a one album collaboration with Kenney Jones which featured mostly outside writers material and was a little too swamped in a middle of the road AOR production for most.
So when 1993’s “Muddy Water Blues” album came along Rodgers was really in need of a decent product to get him back up with the elite. A return to the blues roots, a collection of heavyweight special guests, and lengthy tours during which the Free and Bad Company back catalogue was heavily plundered did the trick though and Rodgers was back.
Rodgers assembled a pretty heavyweight outfit for the album and as well as the numerous legendary guitar players, most tracks feature a different six stringer, the main band was packed with talent too. Jason Bonham on drums, Ian Hatton on rhythm gutar and no less than Pino Palladino on bass. The album kicks off with the only original composition on the album, the Rodgers penned title track ‘Muddy Water Blues’. The song actually tops and tails the album and it is the acoustic version that starts proceedings. It has a real delta blues swamp feel with great backing vocals from Alexandra Brown, Carmen Carter and Jean McClain which along with Mark Williams bass drum give it a great old time feel. Buddy Guy is the guitarist for this one and he provides some great picked blues guitar. Rodgers himself plays some nylon guitar to go along with his easy laid back vocal. A vocal which he as usual manages to make sound effortless. ‘Louisiana Blues’ is the first of the hard hitting electric tracks and has a great chugging riff from Trevor Rabin and a nice harmonica solo from Jimmie Wood. Whilst ‘I Can’t Be Satisfied’ starts with a nice funky solo from Brian Setzer before the drums come in and then it turns into a classic mid tempo blues stomp before ending as it began with some nice funky guitar. ‘Rollin Stone’ is the first of the lengthy classic blues tunes and has Rodgers delivering a vocal in the same sort of style as he did on Mr Big when with Free. The steam train guitar is provided by Jeff Beck and the two share the limelight perfectly. A proper Beck / Rodgers collaboration would have been interesting if this is anything to go by. Beck stays on board for ‘Good Morning Little Schoolgirl’ which is probably not the most politically correct lyric for these times but is still a great track written by Sonny Boy Williamson. Rodgers totally nails the vocal as ever and Becks guitar provides some great colour both above and below the vocal. When it comes time to let rip with a solo it is a superb understated chugger of a solo full of atmosphere. Brilliant stuff. Mark Williams is back with his rhythmic bass drum and some brushes to give the track even more old time delta blues authenticity.
The first of the Wilie Dixon tracks is up next with ‘Hoochie Coochie Man’ a track which must have been recorded by just about everyone you’ve ever heard of but still manages to sound reasonably fresh in the hands of Rodgers and Steve Miller who is the guest guitarist this time around. Jimmie Wood is back with the obligatory harmonica.  A couple of false endings and some interplay betweem Miller and Rodgers bring the song to a nice close. ‘She’s Alright’ features some Hammond from Ronnie Foster, an instrument which I always feel works well with Rodgers’ voice but that he doesn’t use often enough. Trevor Rabin is back on the guitar but despite the Hammond it is still one of the weakest tracks on offer here. ‘Standing Around Crying’ on the other hand may just be one of the best. Done in a standard rock blues way it reminds me in feel of one of those early Led Zeppelin blues tracks. The guitar this time comes from David Gilmour who puts in a good solid performance with some nice touches and a great solo. Again the use of the Hammond organ, this time played by Paul Shaffer, gives the song an extra dimension. Vocally it is similar in delivery to the bluesier Free cuts such as ‘Goin Down Slow’ from their debut album “Tons of Sobs”.  Slash makes an appearance on ‘The Hunter’ and despite his good performance it seems a pretty silly idea to include it here to me. Rodgers of course had already recorded this track in the Free days with Paul Kossoff on guitar and who is going to better a Kossoff version. If it is not the worst track on the album it is certainly the most pointless and I would have loved to see Slash given a different vehicle to collaborate with Rodgers on. As good as his solo is you just want it to be Koss. ‘She Moves Me’ is a slower track which features Gary Moore on guitar this time and is pleasant enough without being anything too special although Moore’s guitar is as ever top notch.
Full time swing comes to the fore with ‘I’m Ready’. It is interesting for me as I am more familiar with the Frankie Miller version. My two favourite singers covering the same track is interesting but in the same way as you can’t prefer one of your children over the other I have to call it a draw ……. at least publicly !!  Brian May provides some good funky swing time blues guitar and this led onto the ‘Reaching Out’ project and subsequently Rodgers collaboration with Queen. The third and final Willie Dixon track ‘I Just Wanna Make Love To You’ is another heavily covered track but Rodgers again lets rip with a belting vocal. As on the earlier track Jeff Beck’s guitar is the perfect foil to the vocal and as I said earlier it would surely have been nice to hear them make a complete album together. ‘Born under A Bad Sign’ doesn’t really fit with the rest of the album for me but is still a decent enough track, as you would expect with Neal Schon and Rodgers together. It just lacks the same blues feel as the rest of the album for me and is closer to Rodgers’ other solo output. The piano and Hammond help though but it would still be close to the albums low point. Part two of ‘Good Morning Little Scoolgirl’ is a more electric version and features Richie Sambora on guitar. It hasn’t got quite the same blues feel as the earlier one but this is done in a more straight up rock style and is not dis-similar to early Stones or Faces. The final track is a second version of the title track but this time done in an electric style rather than the acoustic version of the opener. The lyric is slightly different and the addition of the Hammond is a nice touch. Neal Schon provides the guitar and as well as he plays it still misses the blues picking that Buddy Guy provided on the acoustic version for me. Some sort of mixture of the two would have been my preference. Maybe the acoustic version to start turning into the electric version. There is no reason why Guy’s guitar couldn’t have contributed to the electric part as well although that could possibly have been seen as overkill I suppose. The piano under the vocal in places is a good touch and the song builds nicely to a climax before slowing down to end almost acoustically. Impossible to choose a favourite version I’m afraid. So maybe the decision to record two versions was justified after all.
The first pressings of the album also came with a bonus disc which featured Rodgers, Bonham. Palladino and Hatton revisiting some old Free and Bad Company tunes.  ‘All Right Now’, ‘Wishing Well’ and ‘Fire and Water’ from Free and ‘Feel Like Makin Love, Can’t Get Enough’ and the track ‘Bad Company’ from Bad Company. In truth they are pretty ordinary run throughs and are obviously nowhere near the quality of the originals but it is still interesting to hear them in slightly reworked form.
“Muddy Water Blues” was recorded at various studios due to the many guests on the album but producer Billy Sherwood managed to keep the sound pretty similar throughout and the album has a real feel of a live jam about it particularly on the lengthier numbers. The album was nominated for a Grammy and Rodgers was back on track. This is an essential album for not only lovers of Rodgers but also of good solid blues music.
(Martin Leedham. First published on RYM October 2011. martinleedham.wordpress.com)

01. Muddy Water Blues (Acoustic Version) (w/ Buddy Guy) (04:51)
02. Louisiana Blues (w/ Trevor Rabin) (04:02)
03. I Can't Be Satisfied (w/ Brian Setzer) (04:11)
04. Rollin' Stone (w/ Jeff Beck) (05:28)
05. Good Morning Little School Girl - Part I (w/ Jeff Beck) (04:03)
06. I'm Your Hoochie Coochie Man (w/ Steve Miller) (05:06)
07. She's Alright (w/ Trevor Rabin) (03:44)
08. Standing Around Crying (w/ David Gilmour) (06:24)
09. The Hunter (w/ Slash) (03:38)
10. She Moves Me (w/ Gary Moore) (04:48)
11. I'm Ready (w/ Brian May) (02:59)
12. I Just Want To Make Love To You (w/ Jeff Beck) (04:01)
13. Born Under A Bad Sign (w/ Neal Schon) (04:44)
14. Good Morning Little School Girl - Part II (w/ Richie Sambora) (03:03)
15. Muddy Water Blues (Electric Version) (w/ Neal Schon) (04:49)

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