Rhea, Switzerland

Sad Sorceress. 1980 private (HD 363)

And here it is - probably one of the most mythical of the sought-after releases by progressive rock fans around the world. I first heard of this title about five years ago from Heavyrock. Once I started to search for it, I realized it was on tons of want lists, including from some of the world's largest collectors (which would include Heavyrock!). So it sat on my want list untouched - until now. Of course, leave it to the Alaskan Connection to turn this one up. When it comes to digging for rare treasure, he has no peer.

And with that fanfare out of the way, let's reveal the big secret....

.... exciting isn't it? ....

....Genius Hans pulls back the curtain....

Oh NO! It's a banana creme pie! (Let's Make a Deal anyone?)

While listening to Rhea I was most reminded of another treasure I hunted down for years: Sustain's debut from the Netherlands.

There were a few of these kind of European progressive rock acts in the late 1970s and early 80s. Long on ideas, but short on execution. You can tell they had talent, but without the major label funding and expertise, the level of professionalism was incredibly lacking. So I thought it was very astute of the AC to call out Schakta below, as that's a very apt comparison. They are both from 1980, Swiss, amateurish, feature cool covers, nominally progressive, and mythical for collectors. In fact, Schakta was one of my top curiosities throughout the 1990s, after first hearing about it in a 1980s issue of Marquee Magazine (Japan). My review of Schakta here.

All the same, I enjoyed this album a bit more than both Sustain and Schakta. It is quite charming in its ineptitude. The melodies are not bad, and I enjoyed the organ work - which was surprisingly good. Perhaps this latter element is the separator. Most of these type of albums rely heavily on thin sounding string synths (there is that too though).

So for every Genshi-Kyodotai, there are five Rhea's. That is to say, for every mythical album that is great, there are five that are hardly worth bothering with.

So unfortunately we have no choice but to demystify Rhea. Certainly my words alone will not stop the search, nor would I recommend that. But just be prepared: Rhea isn't going to be the next Dun or Kultivator.

Here are the excellent liner notes from The AC: "Swiss private press mega-rarity that has haunted the want lists of many a prog collector for years. The only problem is that it's not very good. The stumbling, amateurish musicianship and shaky, heavily accented female vocals are no treat to begin with, but are even further marred by a lo-fi, barely produced "live in the studio" sound that quickly grates on the ears. To put it in Swiss progressive terms, these guys make Schakta sound like Flame Dream in comparison. Most of the material is very basic and song-oriented, with only one brief instrumental that doesn't exactly light the world on fire either. About the only highlight here is the lengthy second track, "Going Through the Time To Live", with its droning organ and depressingly morbid lyrics, which has a sort of anachronistic proto-prog feel. I'm afraid it's all down-hill from there, though. At least the typically crude hand-drawn fantasy sleeve art is kind of cool, but that's only going to take you so far. In any case, the band seems to have been from the French speaking part of Suisse, and the album was recorded in Montreux. Oh, the irony..."

Priority: none

1/24/12

Irolt, Netherlands

De Gudrun Sege. 1975 Universe
Kattekwea. 1977 Philips
De Smid Van Earnewald. 1979 Philips

These three albums were sent in courtesy of StrawbsFan (thanks again!), one of our more dedicated folk experts. As stated prior, I'm not the world's most famous progressive folk fan, but I do have an appreciation of the genre. My issues probably stem from my early childhood when my old man would torture me with his Irish/Celtic folk collection (when I just assume go out and throw the baseball with him instead...) And we're not talking the good stuff either - I mean this was the hardcore gather-round-the-pub drunken singalong stuff. But after hearing bands like Mellow Candle and Hoelderlin's Traum, that provided a whole other dimension of the folk genre for me, and I know many of you out there are big fans, so I'll report what I can with my somewhat limited knowledge / palate.

To my ears, Irolt straddle the line between progressive and contemporary folk. This is primarily acoustic folk with inventive arrangements. In this way, they are to folk what fellow countrymen Flairck are to classical music. I love hearing the Dutch language (Oops - correction. Thanks to reader Bas - the language is West Frisian. More info here.) , something that is sadly missing in almost all of the region's progressive rock recordings. If pressed for comparisons, I was most reminded of the German band Ougenweide or perhaps even the first Emma Myldenberger album. These are the Germanic equivalents of Fairport Convention and Pentangle. Though there's not really much of a rock element present here at all. Very professional and worth seeking out for fans. And the album covers are pretty cool too!

There appears to be cd-r reissues of these (which we don't count). On Discogs, Kattekwea is shown as a CD, though I suspect it's a cd-r not properly identified (same label). Anyone know?

Priority: none

1/22/12

Tempo e Modo, Portugal

Tempo e Modo - Um Mundo a Construir. 1982 RCS

Given that Tempo e Modo are of Portuguese origin and supposedly from the early 80s, I had presumed the album would be a symphonic fusion along the lines of Tantra and Ananga Ranga (which would have been great as well). But that's not really the case. Primarily it's a mixture of instrumental symphonic progressive rock combined with a distinct new wave element, that tilts the album towards the neo-prog camp. This latter style, as I've noted in prior posts, was quite a good genre in its early stages, and Tempo e Modo are an excellent example of it. Think early 80s IQ / Pendragon / Twelfth Night. The instrumental tracks are the highlight here, with a strong melodic content coupled with excellent guitar and keyboard runs. A very nice surprise. 

Priority: 3

1/20/12

Robin Runge, USA

Robin Runge - Don't Give Up the Ship. 1974 QCA
Robin - Don't Give Up the Ship. 1977 Century

Apparently Mr. Runge decided to skip his Creative Writing class or he really, really doesn't want you to give up on the ship (though perhaps a recent Italian captain would have benefited from such sound advice). Regardless of the motivation, these two distinct albums caused quite a bit of confusion for this author anyway.

The 1974 album is considerably more raw and amateurish than the follow-up as might be expected from a one man band - though there still is plenty of keyboards, including a cool mellotron blast to open the album, which continues on through most of the track. Of interest to DFW readers - one track is recorded live at Six Flags over Texas in Arlington.

Though his name is Robin Runge, the male/female duo on his second album is known as Robin. The album overall is primarily an acoustic, but sophisticated folk rock work, with plenty of synthesizer to add color. The guitar playing is clearly inspired by Steve Howe and the vocals have a pleasant lilt like Jon Anderson. Could have been a song based Yes album from the same time period (1977-78), with overt Christian, rather than Eastern religious / mystic based lyrics. A good progressive folk album from an unlikely source.

Priority: none

1/19/12

Louis Banks' Sangam / Jazz Yatra Sextett, India

City Life. 1982 CBS (UK)

Also released in Germany as Jazz Yatra Sextett - Sangam on Eigelstein Musikproduktion.

Back in the 1980s, one of my favorite discoveries was Embryo's Reise (1980 Germany). Embryo was only a name I'd seen in passing to that point, and so I took a chance on this sprawling double album that documented their musical and literal journey through Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India. Even to this day, I think it's one of the most successful East meets West blending of styles. A true fusion of cultures. Back then, I had presumed perhaps there may be similar bands from the regions they had ventured to. 25 years on, without much evidence to support that theory, I had pretty much given up hope.

Until The Alaskan Connection sent in this gem from Louis Banks' Sangam. Certainly I'm familiar with L. Subramanian, Vasant Rai and others, but its clear right from the get-go that Banks' album is different - much more of the underground rock fusion that Embryo had provided my ears years earlier - and as you will read below, that is not coincidental. Not all of the ideas on the Sangam album work or flow perfectly, but it's exciting to know that an indigenous artist from India was exploring the vast reaches of the 70s jazz and rock underground.

Here are the fantastic "liners", as it were, from The AC:

CBS: IND 1006, 1982, UK

"Louis Banks (real name Dambar Bahadur Budaprithi), is an Indian jazz pianist who's worked with some of the big names in the jazz/fusion scene, including John McLaughlin. In the early 80s he got together with percussionist Ramesh Shotham and a group of musicians from the Karnataka College of Percussion to form the band Sangam, with the clear goal of mixing jazz-rock fusion with the virtuosic traditional music of India. They went on tour in Europe, and ended up collaborating with Embryo, who Shotham (the composer of all of Sangam's material) would play with off and on throughout the 80s. The group apparently didn't stay together for too long, but their album, recorded in Munich and co-produced by Christian Burchard, is a great piece of classic jazz-rock/ethnic fusion that has remained surprisingly obscure, despite its notable lineage. The first side is dominated by a massive, nearly side-long track, reaching a frenzied level of intensity that will leave your head spinning. Things calm down and get a bit moodier after that, but the standard remains very high throughout. Now, the strange thing here is that there are actually two different versions of this album. The first was released on the small German label Eigelstein under the title "Jazz Yatra Sextet", followed less than a year later by the CBS version reviewed here. Having heard both of them, I can say that the track orders are completely different, as are some of the track lengths, although the recordings themselves seem mostly identical. I'm only speculating here, but I think what might have happened is that once they received a little bit of exposure in Europe and got signed to a major label, they decided to re-arrange the material a bit to better suit their liking. However, the CBS version actually seems to be the rarer of the two, oddly enough."

Priority: 3

1/17/12

VSOP, Japan

VSOP. 1973 London / King

Ahhhh, finally a band from Japan that doesn't require me to type a book as the title! :-)

Here's the last of the Japanese rarities sent in by The Alaskan Connection, though we have a few more non-Japanese albums to cover, including one that's a total mindblower! For me anyway...

VSOP are a fairly typical early 70s blend of blues rock and various other styles. Side 1 is a pedestrian "trail mix" of genres, whereas Side 2 has a nice raw, grungy underground feel about it (and it's a live concert recording). This latter element recalls the Argentinian blues psych scene such as Pappo's Blues or Cuero.

Fortunately for us, The AC has provided a much more insightful review:

"London/King Record (Pop Shop): SKD (L) 1018, 1973, Japan

Side 1:

1 - Shizuka da kara

2 - Ame

3 - Omiyage

4 - Henji wa Irimasen

5 - Tengoku e Ikou

Side 2:

(Recorded Live 3/31/73)

1 - Haru

2 - Yuuwaku sarete

3 - Shinkyokushoukai:

- Chotto dake yo (Taboo)

- Shizuka da kara

4 - Kami ni Sugaru Yowaki Mono ni Utau Uta

Hard rock/heavy psych rarity by this largely unknown unit. Led by guitarist/vocalist Kazumi Mukai, they manage to kick up a pretty good racket here. The first side is a regular studio recording and runs the gamut from blazing guitar-led heavy rock to psych ballads, standard blues rock, etc, and features some fine songwriting throughout. The action really picks up on side two, a live concert recording from early '73. Long, jamming tracks filled with blistering heavy fuzz guitar soloing that will peel the paint off your walls if played at the proper volume. A very good album in this style, and should be a lot more well-known. Cool cover art, too. They also released an even more obscure second LP in 1975 called "Epilogue", which I haven't heard but apparently saw them heading in a less interesting pop-rock direction, as well as a few singles."

And like The AC, I love albums that peel the paint off the wall! Would be interesting to know if they had some archival material from this era.

Priority: none

1/11/12

Galorn, France

Galorn (aka Jezaig). 1978 Velia
Galorn (aka Sands et Derobee). 1980 Velia

This one comes in courtesy of StrawbsFan, who has sent in a nice batch of folk and electronic rarities that we'll also be covering this month.

Galorn are one of many participants in the 1970s/80 Breton folk scene. I haven't really focused too much on the genre for the CDRWL (though I own my share of Malicorne albums), but I do have some peppered throughout the main list and a few more featured on the blog. And while the music is no doubt folk first and foremost, there are underground progressive elements in all of these albums to crossover to our interest area. I'll probably pull a few more out to feature over time.

I've only heard the first album to date, but it's on the darker side of the genre. This isn't gather by the campfire and put-your-hands-together music. Rather these are musical representations of the mystical Dark Ages. The kind of sound that might keep you up all night if you're easily spooked. Violin, flute, acoustic guitar, hand percussion and bass make up the instrument palette, and the atmosphere is misty and haunting. The album cover itself (top one) gives a pretty good idea of the contents within.

Priority: none

1/10/12

Toshio Tanioka / Tom & Jerrys, Japan

Nippon Minyou In New Country. 1972 Tam (Toho)
Human Being. 1973 Tam (Toho)

Here are a couple more major Japanese rarities sent in by the Alaskan Connection. This is stuff you can't find listed anywhere (including Rate Your Music). The 70s Japanese underground continues to reveal mysterious recordings not heard of prior. We're in 1600's era exploration mode for the modern age.

I'll admit that many of these albums are difficult to absorb at first. Similar to how we were first able to listen to Zeuhl or Krautrock or Canterbury. At some point all of us into experimental music made a leap from normal convention. To illustrate what I mean, perhaps I should use a food reference. It should come as no surprise that I'm also very much into exploring restaurants as well as trying new beers. One thing you notice over the years is tolerance for different flavors and styles. In effect, you train your palate to be able to distinguish the various ingredients and tastes. I feel the same about music. One has to train their ear palate as it were.

For this particular brand of Japanese rock music, my ear palate is untrained. I have a particular aversion to anything "country", and yet I found both of these albums fascinating. Tanioka has a smooth voice, almost like Marty Robbins (my Old Man had a pretty large C&W collection, so I do have some background knowledge of the genre). As well, harmonica is an instrumental that usually has me coiling in despair, and yet here it has a gratifying Spaghetti Western scene setting mood about it. There's also plenty of loose underground rock sections as well, so this isn't something out of scope.

The Alaskan Connection, on the other hand, has an advanced ear palate for this genre. So that's one reason (of many) on why I copy in his reviews- especially for those that are right there with him. So take it away AC!

Toshio Tanioka & Tom & Jerrys - Nippon Minyou In New Country

Tam (Toho): MX-4001, 1972, Japan

Toshio Tanioka - Violin, Guitar, Harmonica. Taisho-Goto, Percussion

Kazuo Mizobuchi - Vocals, Acoustic Guitar

Yuichiro Toyama - Electric Guitar. Acoustic Guitar

Iwao Tsujita - Electric Bass, Piano, Cembalo

Shotaro Tanaka - Drums, Percussion


Side 1:


1 - Soran-bushi

2 - Tabaru-zaka

3 - Kobiki-uta

4 - Taue-uta

5 - Dompam-bushi

6 - Suisen no Hana

7 - Kiso-bushi


Side 2:


1 - Itsuki no Komori-uta

2 - Tairyo utaikomi

3 - Chamomi-uta

4 - Kuroda-bushi

5 - Asadoya Yunta

6 - Aizu-Bandaisan

7 - Kokiriko


Toshio Tanioka & Tom & Jerrys - Human Being (Ningen De Aru Koto)

Tam (Toho): AX-4005, 1973, Japan

Toshio Tanioka - Violin

Kazuo Mizobuchi - Vocals, Acoustic Guitar

Yuichiro Toyama - Electric Guitar

Iwao Tsujita - Electric Bass

Shotaro Tanaka - Drums

Kazuko Katagiri - Lyrics


Side 1:


1 - Yukidoke

2 - Mike to Tama

3 - Kaminari

4 - Rengesou to Tentoumushi

5 - Okiwasureta Natsu


Side 2:


1 - Akimatsuri

2 - Taian Kichijitsu

3 - Asamoya no Naka de

4 - Furikaereba

5 - Kamakura

Toshio Tanioka is a violinist who made the rounds as a studio session-man in the early 70s Japanese rock scene, even scoring a playing credit on Yosui Inoue's "Koori no Sekai", probably the biggest selling Japanese pop/rock album of the entire decade. Soon afterward, he struck out on his own as the leader of the group Tom & Jerrys. Initially conceived as something of a country-rock band (American country music having a surprisingly large following in Japan), what they ultimately came up with bore scant resemblance to that style. You'll notice from the title of their first LP that, much like the Jirou Inagaki "Dousojin" album which I recently covered, this is another attempt at fusing traditional Japanese "minyou" folk songs with the emerging New Rock movement (or in this case "New Country", confirming their self image as a country-rock band). However, far from standard Japanese folk styles and even farther from any kind of country music you might have heard, the concoction they brewed up here is an exquisite mixture of deep, earthy Japanese folk-rock and languid jazzy psych that is nothing short of extraordinary. There's an incredible emotional depth to this work, something that's very hard to put into words. Each note is perfectly placed, seemingly filled with a deeper meaning related to the whole. The songs are compact and precise, with no wasted or excessive effort, but still fluid and expansive, filled with fascinating small details and nimble musical diversions. Kazuo Mizobuchi's vocals are incredibly beautiful, calm and reflective but filled with melancholy. All of these elements weave together to create an elevated, almost sacred atmosphere that seems to emanate from the very soul of old Japan. A haunting masterpiece which words fail to adequately describe.

Now, how does a group of mere mortals follow up such a transcendent work of art, merely a year later? Well, there's no way they really can, but "Human Being" is still a wonderful album in its own right. Leaving the traditional adaptations behind and concentrating on their own compositions, they created a fully realized concept album using the passing of seasons as an analogy for growing up and aging. A more light-hearted folk-rock sound predominates, and at times their country-rock roots finally come to the fore. But the musical imagination, impeccable performances, and focus on creating a unified whole all make this much, much more appealing than that description might imply. A subtle undercurrent of psychedelia is still present, and the many interesting sound effects and sonic colors evoke a palpable atmosphere, creating a sort of received nostalgia for a childhood spent in the rural Japan of an era long since passed. Aside from these albums, the group also appeared on the soundtrack of the film "Nippon Sanjuushi", which resulted in a single featuring a couple more original songs.

These LPs were both released on the Tam label, a subsidiary of the famous Toho film studios. Japanese prog fans might recognize this as the same label that also released the excellent Yasuo Inada and Bemi Family LP, but that minor classic is practically growing on trees compared to the mind-numbing level of rarity we're dealing with here. Even in Japan, these incredible albums are almost completely unknown. I sincerely hope that this lamentable situation will be rectified by a full reissue campaign at some point in the future. But until that time, Toshio Tanioka & Tom & Jerrys will remain one of Japan's greatest buried musical treasures.

Serious rarities for sure. And we've covered the Yasuo Inada and Bemi Family here on the CDWRL prior.

Priority: none

1/9/12 

Mio Hani / Osamu Kitajima, Japan

Mio to Juuippiki no Neko. 1972 Warner Bros. (aka Mio and 11 Cats)

Now here's an odd bird! Mio Hani is a 7 year old girl who pretty much recites non-stop throughout the whole album about her 11 cats - in Japanese of course. So it's basically a children's record... BUT... with the psychedelic band Far Out providing the background music. I won't lie to you, this one's a tough listen. However I think plenty of folks out there will be interested in this one, especially some of the darker fuzz laden moments towards the end of the album.

As usual, The Alaskan Connection writes a far better review and detail (not to mention providing the music itself!):

"Mio Hani was a young girl whose father was film director Susumu Hani, known mostly for his French-style New Wave films of the 1960s. In the early 70s, he apparently decided to give his little girl a star turn, casting her in the leading role of his latest film, "Yousei No Uta" (known simply as "Mio" in the west), a Japanese/Italian/French co-production (you can actually watch the whole thing on Youtube, just search for "Mio Hani"). Undeterred by its relative lack of success, he pressed on, conceiving an integrated media tie-in which included a children's book full of Mio's photographs and poems, as well as this unusual children's record of the same name. The whole concept behind this thing seems to be her obsession with cats and the strange fantasy dream-world that she inhabits with them. Anyway, her father decided to charge Osamu Kitajima with the job of providing musical backing for Mio's silly little songs/poems and odd ramblings, who naturally brought along his buddy Fumio Miyashita and the rest of the nascent Far Out (who had already released a single and appeared on the "Rock Age Concert" compilation and were just about to record their debut LP) to help him out. The end result is a concept album of sorts, although full comprehension will obviously be lost on those who don't speak Japanese (I can say that the lyrics are often quite amusing, for what it's worth). Musically, the best way to describe this is as a children's folk-rock album, although that doesn't really do it justice. It flows quite nicely through a variety of moods, and there are lots of neat little psychedelic touches going on in the background, if you listen closely. Occasionally (primarily on side two), the whole band gets brought in for a bit of Far Out-style psych/prog jamming, although that only lasts for a few minutes in total. Overall, it's probably closer to the Fumio & Osamu "Shinchuugoku" LP that was released around the same time than Far Out, but I honestly like this one a lot more. Maybe my brain was warped from watching too much of Carole and Paula's "The Magic Garden" as a young child back then, but I find the whole "psychedelic 70s kids show" atmosphere highly appealing. Comes in a really nice gatefold with an illustrated booklet."

And our friend Isabel copied this review from Tilapia Records of Japan into RYM:

"Mio Hani & Osamu Kitajima with Fumio Miyashita, SAYU EIICHI, ISHIKAWA KEI and ARAI MINAMI (basically Far Out backing up): “Mio To 11 Piki no Neko” (Warner – L-8014W) Hideously rare and impossible to get Japanese psychedelic masterpiece by ex-Far Out and Far East Family Band main man assisting a 7 year old kid on his trip through the love and death of 11 beloved cats. Basically this by Osamu Kitajima produced album was completely backed up by the band Far Out, who did not record their eponymous album until the following year in 1973 but their slowly acidic drenched lysergic jamming is already present on this monster album, only to fully explode when the second side rolls in and which they would perfect for their sole album the following year. The whole affair starts off with a distinct Far Out vibe backing up this young kid singing and talking about her cats. So basically this is a children’s disc where the musicians are tripped out lysergic gunslingers and although it may be deceptively innocent at beginning to dive into this album, it slowly grows darker and darker and acidic intoned. Mio starts singing off in an upbeat, playful and joyous style, interrupted by instrumental breaks where she lovingly raps away about her beloved cats. The scenery is almost folky but with some stoned laidback vibes shimmering throughout. The mood is light, upbeat and optimistic but as soon as side a draws to a close and side b begins the whole affair gets darker and darker as one of the cats gets sick and eventually dies, sucking you into a distorted perceptive and hallucinational vortex of slow bubbling paranoid dementia. And on that moment the true lysergic downer jam-infested riffage of the backing band comes shining through, revealing the true identity of the hired, longhaired acidic gunslingers that are Far Out in the making. Just a splendid record that till this day is still undetected by non-Japanese psychedelic music lovers. The reason for this is that it is a hideously rare album and that it basically always got rightly labeled as a children’s album but no one bothered to point out the lysergic nature of this gem. Largely unknown, but mind-blowingly great, this is one of my all-time treasured and favorite Japanese children/ psychedelic/ hybrid records of all time. Just never shows up on these shores since the album sold so depressingly badly upon its release that only a handful copies remain in circulation. Still affordable at a cheap price until a larger crowd will get air of it and push it through the roof. Just a massive disc and possibly the one to pick up out of this list. Filled with great acid deranged guitar licks and that will please everyone who is into Far Out and Far East Family Band discs. Simply a MUST!!!!! Price: 600 Euro"

Crazy.

Priority: none

1/6/12 (new entry)

Iliad, USA-California

Distances. 1976 Northern Lights

Lead by keyboardist Sandy Owen, Los Angeles based Iliad present a fairly mellow and relaxed symphonic progressive album. At times the tranquil piano and flute give off a proto New Age feel. Features a couple of rockin' rave-ups, as well as an extended jazzy improvisation on the familiar Beatles chestnut Norwegian Wood. The mixed classical-progressive-jazz-new age style recalls Minnesota's Sailor (1974) in many places. Two groups from completely different regions drawing a somewhat similar musical conclusion.

Sapphire House. 1978 Northern Lights

A stunningly beautiful album. I've already written about the debut Distances, but Sapphire House takes everything to a new level. Piano remains the primary instrument, and the music is a mix of deep grooves, high flying jazz fusion, and melancholic atmospheric numbers with oboe and wordless female vocals. 'Beyond the North Wind' is a jaw dropper - a sixth dimension type of composition that will leave you speechless in wake of its beauty. This is an album still awaiting its discovery and audience. There's enough breaks and grooves here, that even the DJ crowd would find plenty to latch onto.

Priority: 1 (for Sapphire House)

2/22/15 (new entry); 11/8/16; 12/29/24

Rayuela, Argentina ***REISSUED***

Rayuela. 1977 Orfeo

***Reissued by Fonocal, Dec 2024

Moved to UMR

Priority: 1

3/16/14 (new entry); 12/10/24 (complete)

Formas, Spain ***REISSUED***

Largos Suenos. 1981 Surcosur

***Reissued by 5 Lunas Producciones Dec 2024

Formas also has two cassettes I haven't heard to date.

One of the many Rock Andaluz albums from Spain during the late 70s and early 80s, which Triana had popularized to great success starting in 1975. It can be argued that Formas isn't progressive rock at all, but rather straight up Flamenco rock, with short, compact tunes. The irregular rhythms, hand claps, synthesizer,s and Arabian voices add an exotic flair, and I personally find this style of music highly appealing. This is a second tier work for the style, but a good one all the same, and it's too bad the album missed the first wave of CD reissues coming out of Spain in the 1990s. As with most Spanish albums, it features fetching art work.

Priority: 2

3/18/11 (new entry); 12/7/24 (complete)

Random, USA-Illinois

Nothin' Tricky. 1977 Hell Yes Productions

Random are a very interesting avant progressive band from Illinois. Starts off with a disco (?!) track, but you know it's a head fake from the beginning. Mostly the band goes for a chamber music sound, with all sorts of other styles mixed in, most notably jazz. Highly inventive for 1977, and one has to presume Henry Cow were an influence here.

Priority: none

12/27/11 (new entry)

Columbus Circle, USA-Connecticut

On Saint John's Eve. 1976 Pharoah

Columbus Circle are a very interesting group from Connecticut. Side 1 is a bombastic serious symphony with rock elements thrown in. Almost like a proto-Art Zoyd if you can imagine that. Side 2, on the other hand, is almost the complete opposite and features a more simplistic horn rock sound with female vocals, organ, and guitar. The second side of the album is about half a dozen years too late on the pop scene, but I found it the more enjoyable portion. Really strange, almost anachronistic album. 

Priority: 3

12/20/11 (new entry)

Apprentice, USA-Illinois

Rough Draft. 1982 Mainstream Records (not the Mainstream Records)

Chicago based Apprentice could be classified as a straight ahead fusion album, but it has just enough of an edge, especially in the 70's inspired guitar work, to add it here as a featured item. There's no mistaking its 1980s heritage though, especially noticeable in the thin sounding synthesizers, warm bass tones, and slick production qualities.

Priority: 3

12/17/11 (new entry)

Smoke, USA-California

Smoke - Everything. 1973 MPS

Everything is a varied, but super cool atmospheric jazz rock album. Freaky in the MPS tradition, though group is California based (rather than German as is often thought). The bass clarinet piece recalls Lard Free on I'm Around Midnight. Speaking of which, lots of great midnight lounge organ sounds. No other album like this one. A kozmigroov classic.

They have another album from 1970 that I understand to be different (more jazz influenced), though I haven't heard it.

Priority: 2

***Reissued on LP by Q-Tape (2004)

12/16/11 (new entry)

Tony Palkovic, USA-California

Deep Water. 1980 Deep Water

And, as you'll see below, guitarist Tony Palkovic has a couple of other 1980s albums. I've only heard this title.

Throwing this one out there for you fusion fans who are looking for new items to uncover. The one element of Palkovic's music I enjoyed is the heavy use of electronic-music styled synthesizer within the usual guitar fronted jazz rock instrumental setting. The guitar tone is a bit too light for me to sink my teeth into, and it's not exactly a tear-up session ala Bill Connors on Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy. But that's not the purpose of the album I'm sure. Apparently Palkovic is an artist who has received great praise from the guitar playing community. The below segment is taken directly from Palkovic's own website. Best I can tell, none of his 1980s works are available, and the original LPs currently sport a high price tag.

"Praised by the prestigious Guitar Player and 20th Century Guitar Magazines, Tony Palkovic has performed in clubs and concert halls including the BET television network... He studied music and film for six months at Columbia College in Chicago before transfering to Berklee College of Music in Boston where he spent the next four years finishing with a Bachelors Degree in Composition... After graduating, he started leading his own band playing jazz-fusion in the Midwest, but eventually moved to Los Angeles which has been his home since 1983... In 1980, Palkovic released his first album "Deep Water" which made many Top 10 lists for airplay on Jazz Radio stations all over the U.S. , Canada and eventually in Europe. This led to the recording of his second album "Every Moment" following the same path in '83, "Born With a Desire" in ’85...

...If you haven't yet heard Tony Palkovic's brand of music, you don't know what you're missing - Guitar Player Magazine"

Priority: none

***Born With a Desire (1985) was reissued on LP by Numero (2024)

12/12/11 (new entry)

Pollen, Belgium

Ry d'Oxhe. 1978 Beo

Pollen's sole album is an odd combination of Dylan-esque street folk, depressing blues, and dramatic Ange inspired progressive rock - all sung in French. A bit outside my interest area, but there's some challenging and compelling music to be found here. 

Priority: none

12/10/11 (new entry)

Mike Warren + Survival Kit, USA-California

Please Yourself First. 1978 Xound (or Dobre)

Mike Warren's sole album is a fine mix of typical late 70's fusion (side 1) with a more ferocious side 2, bordering progressive rock, and which even includes some psychedelic guitar. Progressive rock laced fusion with acid guitar is one of my favorite mixes! And this has to be the only jazz rock album I've heard that uses timpani extensively. Overall a mixture of Pierre Moerlin's Gong, Colosseum II, Randy Roos, and Frank Zappa. I'm sure the latter was a major influence and one hopes Frank's philosophical outlook is the inspiration behind the title of the album. Otherwise, a rather unfortunate choice of words...

Priority: 2

12/6/11 (new entry); 7/1/18

Henk Werkhoven, Netherlands

Orphical Positions. 1982 VMU

Once I saw the album cover, I was intrigued. After hearing this once, I bought an LP on the spot. Based on an article I read, Werkhoven is another one of those Renaissance guys, constantly in creativity mode, yet few know who he is or what he does. As you read the bio, you could come away thinking this is a new age album. Couldn't be further from the truth.

Basically Orphical Positions is good old fashioned instrumental progressive rock lead by flute, violin, and guitar (acoustic and electric), along with exotics like sitar. A crack rhythm section keeps the proceedings moving along at a crisp pace. At once I'm reminded of Camel's Snowgoose and Rousseau's Flowers in Asphalt. But I also hear Anthony Phillips, Kenso, Flairck, Coda, and Verdaguer. 

Priority: 2

12/5/11 (new entry)