Rock & Indie 321 Items

The Polydor label released a few singles in the late 1960s that became very obscure and unknown, even to researchers. Most of these 7 inches are super psychedelic and very creative, but totally anti commercial. Own compositions, recordings and good productions, always with a top team. These works were not promoted or publicized by the label and very few copies circulated at the time. The impression is that the intention was to freeze or disappear with the artist in question. Vermelho is one of them, a work that is little talked about or known but that always attracts the attention of those who have access to these two tracks. Arrangement by Rogério Duprat, who was proud to have participated in these recordings, with Rafael Moreno on bass, Alberto Niccoli Junior on drums, Bolão on Sax and Marcos Ficarelli, the “Vermelho” on guitar and vocals.

Marcos already knew well the ways of recording and producing an album, having participated in historical groups of Brazilian rock in the 60's such as Top Sounds, Código 90 and Loupha, to name a few. At this stage, he had already acquired good knowledge of recording and studio management. Excerpts such as “And in the hole of the corners, to look for, is what I try in vain” presents the listener with the mood of the dark times of that time, and today seems a premonition about the difficulty of finding this single, even in private collections.

“Parabéns Meu Bem” and “Gira-Gira” are tracks with an advanced rhythm for the time. Drums very well marked, with an original take and very close to North American funk. The bass is consistent and strong and the guitar full of effects and very reminiscent of the sound and energy of Jimi Hendrix, Santana and Blood Sweat & Tears. There is yet another musical layer created by Duprat, who managed to insert a mini orchestra along with the sound mass created by “Banda do Vermelho”.

‘O’Seis’ are the core members of the mighty and legendary ‘Os Mutantes’ – namely Rita Lee and brothers Arnaldo and Sérgio Baptista, accompanied here by Raphael Vilardi, Maria ‘Mogguy’ Malheiros and Luiz Pastura. The record features anthemic, heavyweight, psychedelic rock on ‘Suicida’ b/w deeper, tripped-out MPB-folk on ‘Apocalipse’. Both tracks were written by Rita Lee, assisted by Tobe and Vilardi respectively. The term ‘holy grail’ is a little overused these days perhaps, but this definitely is one. Originally pressed and released by the band themselves in 1966, apparently only a handful of copies are known to exist (sources/numbers vary). The record has changed hands for up to a staggering $5000! Ouch.
Official Mr Bongo reissue. Licensed courtesy of Warner Music UK LTD.

Blue White Marble.

The most elusive Edigsa 7" gets its first ever vinyl reissue on Wah Wah. An unsung moody garage folk-rock act, Brenner's Folk where the embryonic Pic-Nic (of "Cállate niña" fame) and featured a very young Jordi 'Toti' Soler right after he had gone through Els Xerracs (who also had released an EP on Edigsa), drummer Jordi Barangé (also from Els Xerracs) and brothers Vytas and Haakon Brenner. The Brenner brothers were born in Germany but grew up in Venezuela, where their family had emigrated after the devastation of World War II. The Brenner family would return several years later to establish in Europe, first in Italy and later in Barcelona. The new band started to rehearse under the name of The Vytas Brenner Quartet, and their main influences came from american modern folk acts like Peter Paul and Mary or The Mamas & The Papas, a.o. Not long after they started rehearsing, a very young Jeanette joined them thus becoming Brenner's Folk. Edigsa approached them and offered a contract for the recording of their only EP, sung in catalan and issued in 1966. A showcase of their folk and folk rock influences, the Brenner's Folk 7" is a lo fi garagey jewel that has become an elusive piece due to the importance that its band members would gather in years to come. Toti Soler became the biggest master of guitar, he went to psychedelic and progressive / jazz rock with Om prior to trading in his electric for a Spanish guitar and pioneering instrumental flamenco jazz rock fussion sound on his early solo albums. He is still active nowadays, he is one the biggest Catalan geniuses of modern guitar. The Brenner brothers returned to Venezuela where Vytas became a big solo act, recording the sought after LPs "La Ofrenda de Vytas" and "Hermanos" with his brother Haakon on production duties. Vytas continued a solo carrer that would last until his premature death in 2004 at only 57 due to a heart attack. Jeanette, of course, went on to lead the successful Pic-Nic along with Toti Soler and later enjoyed a successful solo career in the 1970s and 1980s, plus a come back in the early 2000s.

The 4 original Catalan sung tunes will appeal to lovers of Catalan sixties aborigen sounds, Euro & Nederbiet or American teen moody folk rock garage a la Rising Storm, Dovers, Nightcrawlers, Tormentors and the likes.

A facsimile reproduction of this mega rare EP, originally released on Edigsa in 1966, coming with remastered sound and an insert with lyrics, photos and notes.

Here is Beybonlar Orkestrasi. Ultra rare Turkish heavy psychedelic single by Beybonlar from 1969.

Amazing stuff from the teenagers band that the drummer was only 12 years old when they recorded the tunes Side A is Gelin Ayse (Bride Ayse) which is very sad traditional Turkish folk song that arranged by the psych form Side B is Nenni (Lullaby) that is a traditional tune, but what a traditional tune by the teenagers!!! Enjoy it..!

The story of Japanese psychedelic band Apryl Fool and their eponymous debut album is simply extraordinary. It was the vehicle by which bassist Haroumi Hosono first came to prominence, years before he became known as the “Godfather of Japanese electronica” as the founding member and leader of Yellow Magic Orchestra, though this musical titan had work released prior to the group’s 1968 founding, such as the song “The Sea Of Summer Day,” recorded with Yuko Okuyama and released by King Records the year before. Drummer Takashi “Rei” Matsumoto was a Beatles maniac that had covered songs by Them and Sam & Dave in his earlier group, Burns, while pioneering prog-rock keyboardist Hiroyoshi Yanagida and guitarists Chu Kosaka and Eiji Kikuchi had all been part of a group called The Floral, formed in 1967 through the Japanese wing of the official fan club of The Monkees (whom they supported during a Japanese tour enacted in October 1968). In September 1969, Apryl Fool played behind musical theatre group Tokyo Kid Brothers, the recording issued in minute quantity as the Love & Banana EP, issued on Columbia Japan’s Musicolor subsidiary; Apryl Fool’s own LP, also issued on Musicolor that year, had extended spacey psychedelic freak jams in the form of “Tanger” and “Pledging My Time,” marathon blues-rock tracks such as “April Blues” and “Honky Tonk Jam,” with the employed English sounding fairly credible, though both parts of epic opus “The Last Mother Land” feature Japanese lyrics. Of course, the day that the LP was actually released is reportedly the day that Apryl Fool announced their termination, giving this scarce release another level of legend for connoisseurs.

An acid rock LP on the Isley Brothers’ T-Neck label? Yes, the unlikely collaboration resulted from a Jimi Hendrix concert at New York’s Syracuse University, supported by the Isleys and mixed soul-rock group, Soul Survivors, who had worked with Tom Bell and Gamble & Huff. When Soul Survivors morphed into Privilege, they convinced the Isleys to sign them to T-Neck, the result being this rare self-titled album, a fine set of hard-rocking originals, expertly produced by the Isleys with plenty of stereo panning, blistering guitar from frontman Edward Leonetti, atmospheric organ from Paul Venturini and melodic bass lines from Jack Douglas, later an engineer for Aerosmith, Lou Reed and Cheap Trick. A true classic, not to be missed!

Signed By Simeon

Slovenly is proud to present the first ever official reissue of a Turkish holy grail—the 1966 tripped-out surf 45 by Istanbul’s Gökçen Kaynatan. Originals of this record—his first ever release, and from 1966—are so rare that none of our Turkish pals have ever seen a copy, and believe us, they’ve been on the hunt! “Moda / Fırtına” is the platter from his early years as a teenage rock’n’roller, and these two tracks each offer a compelling listen and demand motion. While mostly drenched in the twang of his custom built guitar with relentlessly swinging beats, his budding experimentation with electronics steals the show. Imagine the sought-after Countdown! LP by legendary session man Jimmy Haskell with an Anatolian lean during the peak of modernism and you’re starting to get the point. Gökçen Kaynatan was recently honored by Finders Keepers with an LP reissue of his 70s-era pioneering in electronic realms that reminds of Suicide and Mort Garson, but with the pungent tang of Turkey. This dancefloor ready 7-inch, however, fills a glaring gap for the Wild, and satisfies the raw global itch that is the Slovenly Recordings modus operandi.

Insect Trust were an American jazz-based rock band that formed in New York in 1967. The members of the band were Nancy Jeffries on vocals, Bill Barth on guitar, Luke Faust - formerly of the Holy Modal Rounders - on guitar, banjo, fiddle, and harmonica, Trevor Koehler on saxophone, and Robert Palmer (1945–1997) on clarinet and alto saxophone. Elvin Jones and Bernard Purdie both drummed with the group at times. Bill Folwell, who had played with Albert Ayler (and later an original member of The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo), on bass and trumpet; as well as Warren Gardner on trumpet and clarinet, were part of the band by the time they recorded their second album. The band probably took its name from William S. Burroughs's novel Naked Lunch. The music ranges from surreal folk-rock (in the vein of such local heroes like Holy Modal Rounders and Fugs), to Booker T.-like pop-soul, to flat-out free jazz. Never intended to be a traditional pop act, the Insect Trust should be best remembered for extending rock's boundaries and taking the genre to a much hipper level without resorting to a lot of banal technique.

"Their music reaches from blues to jazz into space", proclaimed the original liner notes to this highly collectible record, just released in 1968. Hailing from Boston, the Far Cry were a talented seven-piece blending psych rock and r&b, in the vein of Blood, Sweat & Tears and Rare Earth, with a further look into the realms of Beefheart Magic Band and John Cipollina Quicksilver Messenger Service. Their sole album still maintain a distinctive sound, melting acid guitar, sax and even vibraphone, organ and conga.

More than a single cult, the sole album by Swedish combo Harvester was released as a sort of private press on the small Decibel Records. A magical blend of folk and psychedelic rock, Hemåt was published in 1969. With some extra-rock elements like cello, fiddle and even spare horns, the record is a beautiful and magical ritual. The band eventually morphed into Träd, Gräs Och Stenar.

Del Shannon did not fit the typical teen-idol mould other pop singers of the early Sixties were shoehorned into. Although he certainly had the required good looks, his songs had a brooding intensity to them, with recurring themes of loss and rejection that didn't sit well with the typical pop-star image of the time. In many respects he was similar to the UK's John Leyton and did a lot to pave the way for the British Invasion and the huge expansion to the boundaries of what could be considered pop music.

180 Gram Vinyl

Colored Vinyl

Colored Vinyl

Cool Rock&roll, Surf, Beat AND Garage-rock From Philippines IN THE 60s!! Led by teen guitar wizard Ramon “rj” Jacinto, RJ & THE Riots was one of the first rock&roll /beat bands from the Philippines and certainly the first to release original rock n’ roll songs with lyrics in their own country. This is the first ever reissue of their second album, originally released in 1964 and now impossible to find (four stars rating in Hans Pokora’s 1001 Record Collector Dreams book). Including original songs like the monster instrumental “Fuzzed”, the garage sounding “Advertising Man”, “Girl Nice”, the surf rock of “Trip To Manila” and more plus a few rad covers (Beach Boys, Buddy Holly…). The album was recorded at the home studio built by whizz kid Ramón Jacinto, who also operated his own record label (RJ Productions), magazine (Teenstone) and radio station (from his parent’s backyard!) RJ and the Riots started as a high school band of classmates composed of Ramon “rj” Jacinto (lead guitar), Alan Austria (bass guitar), Jimmy Colayco (rhythm guitar) and Bernie Evangelista (drums) with ages ranging from 15-17 years old. They were one of the first bands with electric instruments in the Philippines and this album marked the transition from instrumental rock to vocals. Today, RJ is a well-known businessman (founder of a TV and radio network), Pinoy rock&roll icon and continues his musical journey performing rock n’ roll hits of the 50’s – 80’s at his own Bistro “rj” music lounge, where the top of Philippine society, movers and shakers, go to dance and sing to RJ’s rock n’ roll classics. *Remastered sound and color insert with liner notes & rare photos. *Download card with the album plus one bonus track from a rare 45 Riyl: Ventures, Beach Boys, Buddy Holly, Stones, JAN & Dean, BeatLES…

Los Syn were born in 1966 in Chile, formed by four young lads from the US whose parents were working in Santiago at the time, and they released this sole 45 before all going back to the US next year. The record is practically nowhere to be found, and such an amazing example of teen garage folk-punk the way we all lose our head for.

Limited reissue of 500 copies, with an insert with liners by Gary Pilgram (bass player), and two postcards with unseen photos!

After briefly replacing Eric Clapton in John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, guitarist/bassist Geoff Krivit formed Doctor K’s Blue Band with pianist Richard Kay and singer/harmonica player Mick Hasse, the lineup completed by bassist Harold Vickers, slide guitarist Roger Rolt and future Steve Hillage drummer Eric Peachey. Their self-titled debut had top-notch renditions of blues classics such as ‘I Can’t Lose,’ ‘Key To The Highway’ and ‘Pet Cream Man,’ as well as spirited originals such as ‘Strobe Lemming’s Lament’ and the piano stomp ‘Crippled Clarence,’ but the album failed to break through. Grab a copy of this rarity to be blown away!

1969 album from the Morgan Blue Town stable, a classic psychedelic prog album. Album features Mike Bobak, Andy Jons & Wil Malone. Now on Limited Edition 180 gram Pearl Colored Vinyl.

180 gram vinyl

Leeds-born folk-rocker John Trevor Midgely, alias Beau, was known for his deft twelve-string guitar work, his poignant voice and distinctive song-writing, which brought him onto the roster of John Peel’s Dandelion label in 1969. His self-titled debut album is arguably his best and includes the outstanding single ‘1917 Revolution,’ said to have inspired America’s smash, ‘Horse With No Name,’ the LP ably demonstrating that all the artist needed was his voice, his guitar, and his individual approach to song writing, the work bearing his haunting hallmarks throughout. In short, an unjustly obscure release that is ripe for current reappraisal. Including 2 Bonus Tracks

The story of Japanese psychedelic band Apryl Fool and their eponymous debut album is simply extraordinary. It was the vehicle by which bassist Haroumi Hosono first came to prominence, years before he became known as the “Godfather of Japanese electronica” as the founding member and leader of Yellow Magic Orchestra, though this musical titan had work released prior to the group’s 1968 founding, such as the song “The Sea Of Summer Day,” recorded with Yuko Okuyama and released by King Records the year before. Drummer Takashi “Rei” Matsumoto was a Beatles maniac that had covered songs by Them and Sam & Dave in his earlier group, Burns, while pioneering prog-rock keyboardist Hiroyoshi Yanagida and guitarists Chu Kosaka and Eiji Kikuchi had all been part of a group called The Floral, formed in 1967 through the Japanese wing of the official fan club of The Monkees (whom they supported during a Japanese tour enacted in October 1968). In September 1969, Apryl Fool played behind musical theatre group Tokyo Kid Brothers, the recording issued in minute quantity as the Love & Banana EP, issued on Columbia Japan’s Musicolor subsidiary; Apryl Fool’s own LP, also issued on Musicolor that year, had extended spacey psychedelic freak jams in the form of “Tanger” and “Pledging My Time,” marathon blues-rock tracks such as “April Blues” and “Honky Tonk Jam,” with the employed English sounding fairly credible, though both parts of epic opus “The Last Mother Land” feature Japanese lyrics. Of course, the day that the LP was actually released is reportedly the day that Apryl Fool announced their termination, giving this scarce release another level of legend for connoisseurs.

The Wynder K. Frog story evolves around Mick Weaver. After he switched from piano to organ he joined a band named The Chapters that would soon be renamed Wynder K. Frog and perform material from James Brown's Flames, Booker T. and The MGs or even songs learned through Georgie Fame's recordings and Graham Bond's repertoire. Wynder K. Frog moved to London and became regulars in the city's R&B scene playing at Swingin' London's clubs like the Tiles or The Marquee. A contract with Island Records was secured and -under the wings of producers like Chris Blackwell, Guy Stevens, Jimmy Miller or Gus Dudgeon- Wynder K Frog, a name that would eventually be used as a pseudonym for Weaver more than a proper band name, did some some amazing Hammond organ-ized recordings and issued in three LPs and a bunch of cool 45s.

At the end of the 1960s, Weaver would quit the "band scene" to become one of the most in demand session musicians and throughout his career he'd be heard backing names such as Eric Burdon, Roger Chapman, Dave Gilmour, Keef Hartley, Alexis Korner, Ralph McTell, Taj Mahal or Otis Rush a.o, but his LPs as Wynder K Frog are classic Hammond sound from the 1960s UK and will appeal to those into Brian Auger, Graham Bond, The Artwoods, Zoot Money, Jimmy McGriff, Booker T. & The MGs and the likes.

OUT OF THE FRYING PAN
Released at the end of the summer of 1968, and with a host of session musicians that included the brass section of John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, producer Gus Dudgeon helped Weaver / Wynder K Frog to improve the results obtained on the debut LP and get one step closer to the live action. The formula was more or less the same, instrumental hammond a go go covers of hits from the era, including The Rolling Stones' "Jumping Jack Flash", a funked up version of the classic Tommy Tucker blues number "Hi Heel Sneakers", an exploding cover of "Tequila" or the standard "Green Door", but it also included the sensational Weaver-penned "Harpsichord Shuffle".

UK psychedelia moved into prog rock with spices of hard rock in the late sixties, some even coined a new label to describe the strong textures resulting of the mixture of rockier blues sounds, jazz, revolutionized freakbeat and the hardest side of popsike - ‘heavy psych’. Amongst the best works of the era were the two splendid LPs recorded by Welsh band Eyes Of Blue.

The Eyes Of Blue where formed in 1966 and soon won the Melody Maker Beat Contest, a fact that secured them a recording deal with Deram records. The label issued their first 45s, they were good but -due to company pressure- more Blue Eyed Soul or even bubblegum oriented. By the time they released their first LP, on Mercury, their real sound had surfaced, showing influences by some of the coolest bands from the US West Coast like The Doors or Love, and also counted on the help of Graham Bond, who penned some of the most significant tunes on the album. Heavily Hammond organ driven athmospheres taking things one step further than The Nice, guitar pyrotechnics, an excellent vocal work, some eastern influenced guitar raga, a great taste in choosing cover versions and strong songwriting make Crossroads Of Time one of the best progressive LPs from 1968.

First ever legit vinyl reissue, in a limited run of only 500 copies, in remastered sound and featuring an insert with photos and liner notes.

Mega rare UK private album (99 copies originally pressed in 1969) by singer/songwriter Jeremy Harmer, featuring David Costa of psych-folk band Trees on guitar.

Melancholic, introspective psych-folk with chamber/ baroque feel. Guitar, flute, viola, bass, drums…

Jeremy Harmer started singing and playing at school and university, where his circle of friends included aspiring folk musicians like Nick Drake and pre-Trees David Costa. Jeremy has a long history as a singer/songwriter and performer, along with his work in the field of English language teaching.

“Idiosyncratics and Swallows’ Wings” was recorded one night in 1968 at the studios of Anglia Television, Norwich, while Jeremy was at the University of East Anglia. Along with Jeremy singing and playing guitar, the album features a mini-chamber ensemble of flute, viola, bass and drums with orchestral arrangements written by John Trevitt from the School of Fine Arts. Jeremy’s friend David Costa (prior to forming the psych-folk band Trees) played guitar on several tracks and co-wrote “Tuesday P.M.”

Only 99 copies were pressed at the time and all were sold to people at the University, making it impossible to find now.

*Original artwork in hard cardboard sleeve *First ever vinyl reissue *Insert with liner notes and photos *Download card

Riyl: Nick Drake, John Cale, Bert Jansch, Incredible String Band, Will Malone…

One album into their career in 1969, Mutantes showed few signs of musical burnout after turning in one of the oddest LPs released in the '60s. Similar to its predecessor, Mutantes relies on an atmosphere of experimentation and continual musical collisions, walking a fine line between innovation and pointless genre exercises. The lead track ("Dom Quixote") has the same focus on stylistic cut-and-paste as their debut LP's first track ("Panis et Circenses"). Among the band's musical contemporaries, Mutantes sounds similar only to songs like the Who's miniature suite "A Quick One While He's Away" -- though done in three minutes instead of nine, and much more confusing given the language barrier. The album highlights ("Nao Va Se Perder por Ai") and ("Dois Mil e Um") come with what sounds like a typically twisted take on roots music (both Brazilian and American), complete with banjo, accordion, and twangy vocals. Though there are several other enjoyable tracks, including "Magica" and a slap-happy stomp called "Rita Lee," there's a palpable sense that the experimentation here isn't serving much more than its own ends. If the first album's relentless eclecticism did in fact occasionally result in dry passages, it's especially true here

Known as ‘the Architect of Rock ‘n’ Roll,’ the flamboyant rhythm and blues extrovert, Little Richard, made an incredible impact with unorthodox piano playing and rasping, shouted vocals, yielding a series of pivotal hits in the mid-1950s, but he abandoned secular music for gospel following a tour of Australia in 1957. Lured back into rock by promoter Don Arden, his UK tour featuring The Beatles as support, Little Richard Is Back was his comeback set for Vee Jay, his voice now deeper and seasoned; the range of covers are tackled with plenty of pep, and original ‘Groovy Little Suzy’ was co-written by Harry Nillson. All hail the King!

Siren was the debut album by Kevin Coyne with Siren, the band he founded with former Bonzo Dog Band bassist Dave Clague and pianist/guitarist Nick Cudworth. The album was originally issued on John Peel’s Dandelion label in 1969. An artist who would later inspire John Lydon, Sting, Ben Watt and Will Oldham and would collaborate with Robert Wyatt, Andy Summers, Dagmar Krause, Brendan Croker, Gary Lucas and The Mekons’ Jon Langford, Kevin Coyne deserves a royal place between the likes of Syd Barrett, Peter Hammill and Daevid Allen. Standing on the verge of british blues, folk and rawk’n’roll Siren could have been easily labeled as the british answer to Canned Heat, but there’s even more. ‘And I Wonder’ is clearly an anticipation of what would happen next, with the solo career of Coyne, more focused on acid folk songwriting. “Most of the album is good time rock-on-out-music a la the Flamin’ Groovies… one of those (albums) you keep coming back to when the night gets cold and the wine is almost out. I play it a lot, and that’s the nicest thing I can say about an album.” Ed Ward – Rolling Stone “Siren just came as a breath of fresh air really, in the same way that like a generation later The Ramones did. When you just thought ‘Thank God for that!’ You hadn’t realised how bored you’d become…” John Peel.

A lecture in 60's psych pop (almost power pop with flashes of hard rock) with consistently solid melodical, up-tempo, organ driven songs, soaring vocal harmonies, anthemic choruses. Psyched, poppy & fun. Not an album that you would listen to regularly, but more like an old friend to go back when you are in that 60s mood.

Originally released in late 1968, La Conferencia Secreta del Toto’s Bar was Los Shaker’s psychedelic masterpiece. Inspired by Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - a milestone that would change the face of pop music forever back in 1967 – Los Shakers created a fundamental album in the history of South American rock music, a seminal record for many artists to come, full of pleasant surprises, magic sounds and sense of humour. It offers a complex fusion of styles, with elements from both rock and jazz, plus the use of exotic instruments like the bandoneon–widely used in tango music but unprecedented until then in pop/rock adventures. It all makes the last album by Los Shakers an essential, innovative record for any collector and aficionado. Sounding as fresh and original today as it did back in the late sixties, here’s the first ever vinyl reissue.