Author Archive: dereksmusicblog
THE KINKS-LOLA VERSUS POWERMAN AND THE MONEYGOROUND AND PERCY (50th ABBIVERSARY EDITION).
The Kinks-Lola Versus The Powerman and The Moneygoround (50th Anniversary Edition). Label: Sanctuary. Format: CD. By 1970, The Kinks had been through the ringer and everything that could’ve gone wrong had gone wrong. They had lost of bassist Pete Quaife in 1969 after they released their sixth album The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation …
AL STEWART-24 CARROTS (40TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION).
Al Stewart-24 Carrots (40th Anniversary Edition). Label: Esoteric Recordings. Format: 3 CD Box Set. In May 1980, thirty-four year old Glasgow-born folk rocker Al Stewart entered Davlen Studios in Los Angeles to begin work on his ninth album 24 Carrots. It was the first album to feature his new band Shot In The Dark. They …
HUNTSVILLE AND YUKA HONDA, NELS CLINE, DARIN GRAY, GLENN KOTCHE-BOW SHOULDER.
Huntsville and Yuka Honda, Nels Cline, Darin Gray, Glenn Kotche-Bow Shoulder. Label: Hubro Music. Format: CD. In the spring of 2006, Chicago alternative rock band Wilco and Huntsville were booked to play at the Festival International de Musique Actuelle de Victoriaville in Quebec, Canada. Wilco played first and their guitarist Nels Cline decided to watch …
FORTY YEARS AGO JOHN MARTYN RELEASED GRACE AND DANGER.
Forty Years Ago John Martyn Released Grace and Danger. In November 1977, John Martyn released what’s was undoubtably one the finest albums of his career, One World. It was an atmospheric, experimental and genre-defying album where everything from folk, jazz, reggae and rock melted together during eight tracks. When it was released, it was to overwhelming critical acclaim, …
THE BETA BAND: A CASE OF WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN?
The Beta Band: A Case Of What Might Have Been? The Beta Band was formed in Edinburgh in 1996, and a year later, in July 1997 released their Champion Versions EP, which was the first of a trio of innovative EP’s the folktronica pioneers released. In March 1998 The Beta Band released their sophomore EP The Patty Patty …
CULT CLASSIC: MICHAEL NAURA QUARTETT-CALL.
Cult Classic: Michael Naura Quartett-Call. Michael Naura was just six years old when he first travelled to Berlin with his mother, and began a new life in the city that became his home. It was where he studied journalism, philosophy and sociology. and played piano in a number of swing bands. However, by 1953 the …
CULT CLASSIC: SVEN GRUNBERG-HINGUS.
Cult Classic: Sven Grunberg-Hingus. From the sixties, right through until the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, Eastern Europe was a musical hotbed. The problem was very few record buyers in the West heard that music that was being released during this period. Sadly, that to some extent, is still the case today. Most music lovers have yet …
SUN RA ARKESTRA-SWIRLING.
Sun Ra Arkestra-Swirling. Label: Strut. Format: CD. On May the ’30th’ 1993, Sun Ra passed away aged seventy-nine and that day, music was in mourning at the loss a musical pioneer who had played his part in rewriting the history of jazz. From the late-fifties, Sun Ra was one of the pioneers of free jazz …
THE AWAKENING-HEAR, SENSE AND FEEL.
The Awakening-Hear, Sense and Feel. Label: Real Gone Music. Format: CD. Of the twenty albums that Black Jazz Records released between 1971 and 1975, The Awakening’s Hear, Sense and Feel is a much prized rarity amongst collectors. Copies of the album change hands for hundreds of dollars. That is no surprise given the quality of …
LINKWOOD AND OTHER LANDS-FACE THE FACTS.
Linkwood and Other Lands-Face The Facts. Label: Athens Of The North. Format: CD. Although producers Nick Moore and Gavin Sutherland are both based in Edinburgh, Scotland, they hadn’t collaborated on an album until they began work on Face The Facts which is the first album from Linkwood and Other Lands. It was recently released on …
WALTER BISHOP JR-CORAL KEYS.
Walter Bishop Jr-Coral Keys. Label: Real Gone Music. Format: CD. In 1971, Gene Russell and Dick Schory founded Black Jazz Records and later that year, the nascent label released their first release. This was Doug Carn’s debut album Infant Eyes. It was the first of twenty albums that the label released between 1971 and 1975. …
CULT CLASSIC: DJ SHADOW-PRIVATE PRESS.
Cult Classic: DJ Shadow-Private Press. On September the ’16th’ 1996, DJ Shadow released his critical acclaimed landmark debut album Endtroducing…..on the label Mo Wax Recordings. Endtroducing….which featured uptempo jams and slow, dark and broody tracks was inspired by early hip hop and was hailed as a genre classic-in-waiting. It was no surprise when Endtroducing….was certified …
50 YEARS AGO GEORGE HARRISON RELEASED ALL THINGS MUST PASS.
50 Years Ago George Harrison Released All Things Must Pass On the ‘10th’ of April 1970, Paul McCartney announced his departure from The Beatles. This signalled the end of The Beatles and start of his solo career which began a week later. When Paul McCartney released his debut album McCartney, The Beatles were in the process …
COLIN CURTIS PRESENTS JAZZ DANCE FUSION VOLUME 2.
Colin Curtis Presents Jazz Dance Fusion Volume 2. Label: Z Records. Format: CD. During the late-seventies and early eighties, one of most popular DJs on the UK jazz-dance scene was Colin Curtis, who was born Colin Dimond, in Madeley, Staffordshire 1952. That was where the his lifelong love of music began when he started to …
THE BATHERS-SUNPOWDER.
The Bathers-Sunpowder Label: Marina Records. Format: CD. With Chris Thompson at the helm, the The Bathers could’ve and should’ve, been one the biggest Scottish bands ever. Their music was articulate, beautiful, dramatic, ethereal, elegiac, emotive, languid, literate and melancholy. This is music for those that have loved, lost and survived to tell the tale. Sadly, …
NICK LUSCOMBE PRESENTS TOKYO DREAMING.
Nick Luscombe Presents Tokyo Dreaming. Label: Wewantsounds. Format: CD. Release Date: 27th November 2020. Usually, the compilation market is buoyant with a myriad of exciting, eclectic and esoteric releases hitting the racks of record shops each week. Sadly, 2020 hasn’t been like most years and this has resulted in many record labels have scaled back …
MICHAEL ROTHER-SOLO II AND DREAMING.
Michael Rother-Solo II and Dreaming. Label: Gronland Records. Format: CD. By the early seventies, the German music scene was thriving, and was one of the most vibrant in Europe. Some of the most influential and innovative music was being recorded and released by German bands who were part of a new musical movement and were making Kosmische musik. Its roots …
EABS-DISCIPLINE OF SUN RA.
EABS-Discipline Of Sun Ra. Label: Astigmatic Records. Format: CD. Having orbited planet earth and ascertained that it was safe to land, the spaceship carrying the Sun Ra Arkestra landed in Kalisz, one of the oldest cities in the Polish People’s Republic on the ‘7th’ of December 1986. Martial law had been imposed by the Pro-Moscow …
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