Category Archives: Folk

THE LIFE AND MUSIC OF VASHTI BUNYAN.

The Life and Music Of Vashti Bunyan. Vashti Bunyan was just twenty when she was “discovered” by Andrew Loog Oldham. This wasn’t the direction Vashti envisaged her career heading when she left her London home and headed to the Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art, the art school at Oxford University.  Alas, the dreaming …

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LINDA PERHACS: THE NEWLY CROWNED QUEEN OF PSYCHEDELIC FOLK.

Linda Perhacs-The Newly Crowned Queen Of Psychedelic Folk. The Linda Perhacs story is a case of what might have been, for the seventy-four year singer who nowadays, is regarded as the true Queen of psychedelic folk. Linda Perhacs career began in 1970, when she released her debut album Parallelograms on Kapp Records. Sadly, Parallelograms which nowadays, is regarded as a psychedelic folk …

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THE LIFE AND CAREER OF KAREN DALTON.

The Life and Career Of Karen Dalton. Karen Dalton could’ve, and should’ve, been one of the most successful singers of her generation. She certainly had the talent. Her peers agreed. Bob Dylan described Karen Dalton as his favourite singer in his autobiography. He compared Karen’s voice to Billie Holliday, and her guitar playing to Jimmy …

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THE STORY OF ZEPHYR: ONE OF THE BEST BANDS YOU’VE NEVER HEARD.

The Story Of Zephyr: One Of The Best Bands You’ve Never Heard. Like many bands who don’t reach the heights that their music deserves, the story of Zephyr is one of what might have been. They released a trio of albums between 1969 and 1972, which nowadays, have a cult following including Zephyr, Back To Colorado and …

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THE LIFE AND TIMES OF JUDY HENSKE.

The Life and Times Of Judy Henske. It was in 1962, when Judy Henske was living in Los Angeles, that the Queen of the Beatniks first came to the attention of Elektra Records’ founder Jac Holzman. He had just setup A&R and marketing operation in LA and was on looking for new artists to add …

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L.A. EXPRESS: TOM SCOTT’S SHORT-LIVED JAZZ SUPERGROUP.

L.A. Express: Tom Scott’s Short-Lived Supergroup. Musical history is littered with artists and groups that never enjoyed the commercial success that their music deserved. That was the case with L.A. Express an oft-0verlooked fusion supergroup who released a quartet of albums between 1973 and 1976. Sadly, these albums never found the audience they deserved and it was only later, that L.A. Express’ music started to be appreciated by jazz …

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THE LIFE AND CAREER OF CHI COLTRANE.

The Life and Career Of Chi Coltrane. The word prodigy is an overused word, but that is the only way to describe Chi Coltrane who could play eight different instruments by the time she was twelve. What makes this all the more remarkable is that Chi Coltrane had absolutely no formal musical training. Instead, her …

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THE STORY OF THOS. RAPP AND PEARLS BEFORE SWINE.

The Story Of Thos. Rapp and Pearls Before Swine. When Pearls Before Swine  released their fifth album City Of Gold in April 1969. it was the first  album credited to Tom Rapp and Pearls Before Swine. This seemed only fair, as Tom Rapp was the only original member of Pearls Before Swine left. The rest of the …

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CYMBELINE-SWEDEN’S LOST GROUP.

Cymbeline-Sweden’s Lost Group. Nowadays, Norway and Sweden both have vibrant and thriving music scenes, where pioneering musicians record and release some of the most ambitious, important and innovative music that is currently being released in Europe. This is nothing new, and both countries have a long and illustrious musical history stretching back to the early …

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THE LIFE AND TIMES OF PAUL BRADY.

The Life and Times Of Paul Brady. When Irish singer-songwriter Paul Brady celebrates his seventy-second  birthday on the ‘19th’ of May 2019, one of the elder statesmen of Irish music will have spent fifty-four years as a professional musician, first with The Kull, then The Johnstons and Planxty. Then in 1976, Paul Brady and Andy …

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JON SAVAGE’S 1968-THE YEAR THE WORLD BURNED.

Jon Savage’s 1968-The Year The World Burned. Label: Ace Records. When the Rolling Stones released Street Fighting Man as a single in America in August 1968, it was called their most political song to date. The song started life as Did Everyone Pay Their Dues, but it’s alleged became Street Fighting Man after Mick Jagger …

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THE BETA BAND-HEROES TO ZEROES.

The Beta Band-Heroes To Zeros. Label: Because Music. 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 Sound, with Los …

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BOB DYLAN-THE BOOTLEG SERIES VOLUME 14:MORE BLOOD, MORE TRACKS-VINYL.

 Bob Dylan-The Bootleg Series Volume 14: More Blood, More Tracks-Vinyl. Label: Legacy Records. On January the ’20th’ 1975, Bob Dylan released his fifteenth album Blood On The Tracks, to mixed reviews. Despite that, Blood On The Tracks, which was recorded in New York and Minneapolis during September and December 1974 topped the US Billboard 200 …

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TOM WAITS-HEARTATTACK AND VINE-VINYL.

Tom Waits-Heartattack and Vine-Vinyl. Label: Anti. In June 1980, thirty year old Tom Waits began work on his sixth studio album, Heartattack and Vine, which was the last album he released on David Geffen’s Asylum Records. The Asylum Records’ years had been frustrating for Tom Waits, who had released his debut album Closing Time in …

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THE BETA BAND-HOT SHOTS II.

The Beta Band-Hot Shots II. Label: Because Music. When The Beta Band was released to widespread critical acclaim in June 1999, everyone at Regal Records celebrated as The Beta Band reached number nineteen in the UK, However, not everyone was happy with the album. Despite their eponymous debut album giving them a hit in the …

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TOM WAITS-THE HEART OF SATURDAY NIGHT-VINYL.

Tom Waits-The Heart Of Saturday Night-Vinyl. Label: Anti. As 1973 drew to a close, Tom Waits had just turned twenty-four and was taking stock of what had been the most important year of his career so far. He had released his debut album Closing Time in March 1973, and then embarked upon a three-month tour …

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BOB DYLAN-THE BOOTLEG SERIES VOLUME 14:MORE BLOOD, MORE TRACKS.

Bob Dylan-The Bootleg Series Volume 14: More Blood, More Tracks. Label: Legacy Records. On January the ’20th’ 1975, Bob Dylan released his fifteenth album Blood On The Tracks, to mixed reviews. Despite that, Blood On The Tracks, which was recorded in New York and Minneapolis during September and December 1974 topped the US Billboard 200 …

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JETHRO TULL-THIS WAS (50TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION).

Jethro Tull-This Was (50th Anniversary Edition). Label: PLG UK Catalog. By April 1978, Jethro Tull was still one of the most successful British bands of their generation, and were about to release their eleventh album of their career, Heavy Horses. It was the second album in a trilogy of folk rock albums and Jethro Tull hoped that Heavy Horses, …

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THE BETA BAND-THE BETA BAND-VINYL.

The Beta Band-The Beta Band-Vinyl. Label: Regal Records. Buoyed by the success of 1998s critically acclaimed The Three E.P.s compilation, The Beta Band’s thoughts turned to recording their debut album. Initially the plan for the Edinburgh-based band was to record parts of the album on different continents. However, financial constraints put paid to this plan, …

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IF MUSIC PRESENTS: YOU NEED THIS- WORLD JAZZ GROOVES.

If Music Presents: You Need This-World Jazz Grooves. Label: BBE. Release Date: ‘23rd’ November 2018. Compilation Of The Week. Recently, If Music supremo Jean-Claude has been on something of a roll, compiling a trio of critically acclaimed compilations for BBE. This included two volumes of A Journey into Deep Jazz and an introduction to Black …

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