Category Archives: Rock

EVERYTHING IS GONNA BE ALRIGHT: CELEBRATING 50 YEARS OF WESTBOUND SOUL AND FUNK.

Everything Is Gonna Be Alright: Celebrating 50 Years Of Westbound Soul and Funk. Label: Westbound. By 1969, Armen Boladian was a familiar face within the Detroit music scene, and the musical impresario was about to launch a new label Westbound Records. This came as no surprise to those that knew Armen Boladian who previously, had …

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THE BLUE NILE-PEACE AT LAST.

The Blue Nile-Peace At Last. Label: Confetti Records. The Blue Nile were no ordinary band and did things their way. Enigmatic, reluctant and contrarian are words that best of describe the Blue Nile, whose third album Peace At Last has just been reissued by Confetti Records on vinyl. It’s a welcome reissue of The Blue Nile’s third album. Originally, Peace At …

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CULT CLASSIC: JOHN MARTYN-LIVE AT LEEDS.

Cult Classic: John Martyn-Live At Leeds. In January 1975, John Martyn released his eighth studio album, Sunday’s Child. John had been away from the studio for fifteen months. His previous album, Inside Out, was released in October 1973. Since then, John had been concentrating on touring. However, in August 1974, John headed to Island Studios, …

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CULT CLASSIC: NAZ NOMAD AND THE NIGHTMARES-GIVE DADDY THE KNIFE CINDY.

Cult Classic: Naz Nomad and The Nightmares-Give Daddy The Knife Cindy. In 1984, London based Big Beat Records released Naz Nomad and The Nightmares’ album Give Daddy The Knife Cindy. At first glance, it looked like the reissue of a soundtrack to a low budget American horror film. Especially, when the album cover stated copyright …

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CULT CLASSIC: JAMES LUTHER DICKINSON-DIXIE FRIED.

Cult Classic: Luther Dickinson-Dixie Fried. All too often, artists spend days, weeks and sometimes even months recording their debut album. Eventually, the album is complete, and it’s delivered to the record company. Nervously and expectantly the artist awaits as the record company plan a marketing campaign.  If the artist is signed to a major label, it …

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CULT CLASSIC: T-BONE WALKER-EVERY DAY I HAVE THE BLUES.

Cult Classic: T-Bone Walker- Every Day I Have The Blues. T-Bone Walker was, without doubt, one of the most innovative and influential blues guitarists ever. He was a pioneer of both the jump blues and electric blues and one of the first artists to wield an electric guitar. He honed and tamed the electric guitar …

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CULT CLASSIC: THE DAMNED-THE BLACK ALBUM.

THE DAMNED-THE BLACK ALBUM. By 1980, change was afoot for The Damned. This wasn’t new. The last four years had been turbulent for The Damned.  Their lineup had been fluid since The Damned were formed in 1976.  Members came and went, and after the release of their most disappointing album, Music For Pleasure Rat Scabies …

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CULT CLASSIC: MOTORHEAD-MOTORHEAD.

Cult Classic: Motörhead-Motörhead. By the time Motörhead’s  eponymous debut album was  released by Chiswick Records in August 1977, the two previous years had proved eventful for Ian “Lemmy” Kilmister and his band. So much so, that it was a wonder Motörhead was ever got as far as recording, never mind releasing their eponymous debut album Motörhead. Everything that could’ve gone wrong, had gone wrong. It was as …

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CULT CLASSIC: GIL SCOTT-HERON-PIECES OF A MAN.

Cult Classic: Gil Scott-Heron- Pieces Of A Man. Just a year after the release of his 1970 debut album Small Talk At 125 and Lenox, Gil Scott-Heron returned with his landmark album Pieces Of A Man which was his second collaboration with musician Brian Jackson. Together they created a fusion of jazz, blues and soul music, …

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CULT CLASSIC: LEON THOMAS-FULL CIRCLE.

Cult Classic-Leon Thomas-Full Circle. For Leon Thomas, Full Circle represented the end of an era. It was the last album Leon Thomas released on Flying Dutchman Productions, and marked the end of his “classic period.” It had started four years earlier in 1969, when Leon Thomas released his debut album Spirits Known and Unknown. Since …

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CULT CLASSIC: TANGERINE DREAM-RUBYCON.

Cult Classic: Tangerine Dream-Rubycon. Tangerine Dream are, without doubt, the original musical chameleons. Since forming in 1967, Tangerine Dream’s music has been constantly evolving. As a result, they can never be accused of standing still. Far from it.  During the last six decades, Tangerine Dream have flitted between musical genres as they recorded over 125 …

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CULT CLASSIC: THE SEEDS-A WEB OF SOUND.

Cult Classic: The Seeds-A Web Of Sound. When The Seeds were formed in Los Angeles in early 1965 by Sky Saxon, Daryl Hooper, Jan Savage, Jeremy Levine and Rick Andridge nobody had any idea just how influential the nascent garage band would be. Over the next four years, The Seeds released five albums, enjoyed four …

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CULT CLASSIC: CRAIG PEYTON GROUP-PYRAMID LOVE.

Cult Classic: Craig Peyton Group-Pyramid Love. For Craig Peyton, the founder member of Band X, 1976 was the most important year of his nascent musical career. It was the year they released their debut album The Best Of Band X. However, The Best Of Band X a private pressing, wasn’t a commercial success and instead, this innovative, …

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CULT CLASSIC: AIRTO FOGO-AIRTO FOGO.

Cult Classic: Airto Fogo-Airto Fogo. During the seventies, Paris born drummer and percussionist Sylvain Krief was one of France’s top musicians. He was also a talented composer, arranger and producer who founded and lead two bands. The first of these bands was Rupture, who released the spiritual jazz classic Israel Suite/Dominante En Blue in 1973.  Three …

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CULT CLASSIC: MOUVEMENTS-MOUVEMENTS.

Cult Classic: Mouvements-Mouvements. In the late-sixties, self-taught guitarist and jazz aficionado Christian Oestreicher, who was later described as: “a savage in the era of twist and free jazz,” met artist and painter Richard Reimann who was famous for his optical art, at the renowned Aurora art gallery in Geneva, Switzerland. This was the start of …

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MOTORPSYCHO-ANGELS AND DAEMONS AT PLAY-VINYL EDITION.

Motorpsycho-Angels and Daemons At Play-Vinyl Edition. Label: Stickman Canada. Nowadays, not many bands stay together thirty years and  longevity seems to be a thing of the past in the music business. Sadly, so is releasing an average of an album a year. That was common in the sixties and seventies but not any more. Very few bands …

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CULT CLASSIC: HAL BRADBURY-THIS IS LOVE.

Cult Classic: Hal Bradbury-This Is Love. During the late-seventies and early eighties the Hawaiian music scene was thriving, and  generation of artists were making a name for themselves. Many of these artists would go onto release albums. Everyone from songwriters, session musicians and owners of recording studios were enjoying the benefits of the mini-boom. However, …

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THE WHO-LIVE AT THE ISLE OF WIGHT FESTIVAL 1970

The Who-Live At The Isle Of Wight Festival 1970. Label: Ear Music. During the late-sixties and early seventies, some of the most famous festivals took place and become part of musical history. By then, festivals were well established, with jazz fans attending many historic festival since the fifties and early sixties. This included the Newport Jazz …

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MUSIC FROM JARVIS COCKER’S SUNDAY SERVICE.

Music From Jarvis Cocker’s Sunday Service. Label: Ace Records. When it was announced in 2010, that former Pulp frontman, and songwriter-in-chief, Jarvis Cocker, was about to present a show on BBC 6 Music, his statement of intent was posted on the Corporation’s website: “It is my intention to fill these hours with as much dodgy …

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THE STAINED GLASS-THE STORY BEHIND ONE OF SAN FRANCISCO’S SEMINAL LOST GROUPS.

The Stained Glass-The Story Behind One Of San Francisco’s Seminal Lost Groups. Sometimes, and despite their undoubtable talent, a band or artist fails to make the impact that their music deserves and It’s only much later, that critics and record buyers belatedly  realise how innovative they were. That was the case with The Stained Glass, who originally, started life as …

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