Author Archive: dereksmusicblog
CULT CLASSIC: EROL BÜYÜRBURÇ-HOP DEDIK.
Cult Classic: Erol Büyükburç-Hop Dedik. By October 1976, Erol Büyükburç was one of the biggest names in Turkish music. He was a flamboyant showman who looked like, dressed like and conducted himself like a star. Erol Büyükburç wore lame suits and was greeted by a legion of loyal fans every time he took the stage. …
BOB MARLEY AND THE WAILERS-CATCH A FIRE (75TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION).
Bob Marley and The Wailers-Catch A Fire (75th Anniversary Edition. Label: Island Records. Format: LP. Having signed to Chris Blackwell’s Island Records, The Wailers released their fifth studio Catch A Fire on April the ‘13th’ 1973. The first 20,000 copies came encased in Rob Dyer and Bob Weiner’s now famous Zippo lighter’ hinged album sleeve. However, Island Records had underestimated demand for what was a landmark …
CULT CLASSIC KABASA-AFRICAN SUNSET.
Cult Classic: Kabasa-African Sunset. Kabasa was formed in Soweto by vocalist and bassist Tata “TNT” Sibeko and percussionist Oupa Segwa and guitarist Robert “Doc” Mthalane who previously, had been members of the iconic Afro-rock band Harari. The group had started life as The Beaters, but during a tour of Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) in 1976, changed their name …
CULT CLASSIC: AZTECA-AZTECA.
Cult Classic: Azteca-Azteca. When brothers Coke and Pete Escovedo were growing up in Oakland in the sixties, they were surrounded by Latin music which influenced them when they decided to form their own group, Azteca. Just like Santana, Azteca’s music was a fusion of musical genres and influences, including Latin and funk. They were also a group …
CLASSIC ALBUM: THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND AT FILLMORE EAST.
Classic Album: The Allman Brothers Band At Fillmore East. Nowadays, there aren’t many bands who make a commercial breakthrough with a live album. That, however, is what happened to The Allman Brothers Band in 1971 when they released their third album At Fillmore East. It was a gamechanger reaching number thirteen in the US Billboard 200 …
CULT CLASSIC: MOTORHEAD-WHAT’S WORTH WORDS.
Cult Classic: Motörhead-What’s Worth Words. When Wilko Johnson of Dr. Feelgood heard of a project to preserve William Wordsworth’s manuscripts, he decided to put on a fundraising concert on the ’18th’ February 1978. The lineup to the fundraiser featured Wilko Johnson and some of the bands from Chiswick Records’ label which he was signed to. …
CULT CLASSIC: TOHRU AIZAWA QUARTET-TACHIBANA.
Cult Classic: Tohru Aizawa Quartet-Tachibana. For many connoisseurs of jazz, especially seventies J-Jazz, one little known private pressing is their holy grail, and everywhere they go it’s the one album that they always search for. There’s always the hope that in a backstreet record shop, antique centre or thrift store in a town or city somewhere in …
CLASSIC ALBUM: LED ZEPPELIN-PHYSICAL GRAFFITI.
Classic Album: Led Zeppelin-Physical Graffiti. When Led Zeppelin released Physical Graffiti in on the ‘24th’ February 1975 it was the sixth album of their career. It was also the most ambitious and eclectic album that they had released since rereleasing their eponymous debut on the ’12th’ of January 1969. By then, Led Zeppelin had sold over sixteen million albums in America alone. Despite that, Physical …
BOBBY HUTCHERSON-OBLIQUE.
Bobby Hutcherson-Oblique. Label: Blue Note Records-Tone Poet Series. Format: LP. On July the ‘21st’ 1967, Bobby Hutcherson journeyed to Van Gelder Studio, in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, to record Oblique which was his sixth solo album for Blue Note Records. It was just the second album he had recorded with a quartet. The first was Happenings, …
SUN RA ARKESTRA-SWIRLING.
Sun Ra Arkestra-Swirling. Label: Strut. Format: LP. 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 …
STEVE POTTS-MUSIQUE POUR LE FILM D’UN AMI.
Steve Potts-Musique Pour Le Film D’Un Ami. Label: Souffle Continu. Format: CD. Sadly, musical history is littered with artists whose music never received the recognition that it deserved. Often, it’s only much later that their albums start to find the audience that they so richly deserve. That was the case with Alice Clark, Gram Parsons, …
CHARLIE PARKER-THE SAVOY 10-INCH LP COLLECTION.
Charlie Parker-The Savoy 10-Inch LP Collection. Label: Craft. Format: CD. In the early days of bebop, saxophonist Charlie Parker was regarded as a pioneer, and just like Bud Powell, Dizzy Gillespie, Max Roach and Miles Davis was at the forefront of this new, exciting, innovative and radical musical movement. The first bebop albums were belatedly …
NIMBUS SEXTET-DREAMS FULFILLED .
Nimbus Sextet-Dreams Fulfilled. Label: Acid Jazz Records. Format: CD. The roots of the Glaswegian-based contemporary jazz combo can be traced to Scotland’s capital Edinburgh, where pianist, keyboardist and bandleader Joe Nichols was studying at Edinburgh University. That was where he met his long-time collaborators drummer Alex Palmer and bassist Mischa Stevens. They’ve been performing together …
CLASSIC ALBUM: BAD COMPANY-STRAIGHT SHOOTER.
Classic Album Bad Company-Straight Shooter. Just a year after supergroup Bad Company was formed, they were already one of the biggest bands in Britain, and their eponymous debut album was well on its way to selling five million copies in America alone. Bad Company reached number one in the US Billboard 200 and was certified platinum five …
CULT CLASSIC: DEUTSCH AMERIKANISCHE FREUNDSCHAFT-FUR IMMER.
Cult Classic: Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft-Für Immer. History treats groups very differently and that was the case with Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft a.k.a. DAF, who released five albums between 1978 and 1982. They’ve been described variously as the “godfathers of techno,” the pioneers of EBM and the forefathers of electropunk. DAF were an influential and innovative group and …
ALAIN BELLAICHE-SEA FLUORESCENT/KIRLIAN EFFECT.
Alain Bellaïche-Sea Fluorescent/Kirlian Effect. Label: Souffle Continu. Format: CD. Alain Bellaïche was born in Tunis, the capital of Tunisia, but spent his childhood in Cannes, on the French Riviera which was where he discovered music and played his first concerts. Initially, he played in friends’ houses where he was guaranteed a captive and appreciative audience. …
ESTHER PHILLIPS-WHAT A DIFF’RENCE A DAY MAKES.
Esther Phillips-What A Diff’rence A Day Makes. Label: Music On CD. Format CD. Despite releasing eighteen albums during a career that lasted thirty-five years most people haven’t heard of Esther Phillips. That’s a great shame because she was one of the most talented, versatile and underrated singers of her generation. She possessed a totally unique and …
DUKE PEARSON FEATURING BOBBY HUTCHERSON-THE PHANTOM.
Duke Pearson Featuring Bobby Hutcherson-The Phantom. Label: Blue Note Records Tone Poet Series. Format: LP. By June 1968, Atlanta-born pianist Duke Pearson was thirty-five, and was about to begin record the twelfth album of his career, The Phantom. It would be the seventh album he had recorded for Blue Note Records since he first signed …
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