Greezy Wheels - Juz Loves Dem Ol' 1975

Greezy Wheels is an Austin, Texas-based progressive country band formed in the 1970s. They played more frequently at the Armadillo World Headquarters than any other band in the history of the venues. They are regarded as the Armadillo house band and are elected members of the Austin Music Hall Of Fame.

Greezy Wheels' music is a raucous blend of rock, funk, R&B, alt-country, and Ozarks. In their early days, they were the only band with a female fiddler, Sweet Mary Hattersley. Sweet Mary consistently brought the crowd to a screaming frenzy state with her version of the "Orange Blossom Special." The music of Greezy Wheels reflected the cultural dichotomy of Austin in the 1970s — a unique place where hippies had roots deep in the heart of Texas. Greezy Wheels opened Willie Nelson's first-ever Armadillo World Headquarters show, putting him in front of the hippies who then adopted him and have been his fans ever since. They have shared the stage with (literally) too many greats to name. 

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Boz Scaggs - Boz Scaggs 1969

Departing from the Steve Miller Band after a two-album stint, Boz Scaggs found himself on his own but not without support. Rolling Stone publisher Jann Wenner, his friend, helped him sign with Atlantic Records and the label had him set up shop in Muscle Shoals, recording his debut album with that legendary set of studio musicians, known for their down-and-dirty backing work for Aretha Franklin and Wilson Pickett, among many other Southern soul legends. The Muscle Shoals rhythm section, occasionally augmented by guitarist Duane Allman, gives this music genuine grit, but this isn't necessarily a straight-up blue-eyed soul record, even if the opening "I'm Easy" and "I'll Be Long Gone" are certainly as deeply soulful as anything cut at Muscle Shoals. Even at this early stage Scaggs wasn't content to stay in one place, and he crafted a kind of Americana fantasia here, also dabbling in country and blues along with the soul and R&B that grounds this record. Suppose the country shuffle "Now You're Gone" sounds just slightly a shade bit too vaudeville for its own good. In that case, it only stands out because the rest of the record is pitch-perfect, from the Jimmie Rodgers cover "Waiting for a Train" and the folky "Look What I Got!" to the extended 11-minute blues workout "Loan Me a Dime," which functions as much as a showcase for a blazing Duane Allman as it does for Boz. But even with that show-stealing turn, and even with the Muscle Shoals musicians giving this album its muscle and part of its soul, this album is still thoroughly a showcase for Boz Scaggs' musical vision, which even at this stage is wide and deep. It would grow smoother and more assured over the years, but the slight bit of raggedness suits the funky, down-home performances and helps make this a great debut and an enduring blue-eyed soul masterpiece. AMG.

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Gravy Train - Gravy Train 1970

Jethro Tull and Comus had a baby, and they named it Gravy Train. That's not strictly accurate, of course, but as the band's eponymous debut opens with the fluid changes of "The New One," it's not too far of a reach, either. Richly harmonic, daringly jam-laden, and peppered with guitar roars that simply defy comparison, Gravy Train is the sound of the British underground at its most joyously liberated peak -- a time when a bunch of apparent freaks could simply go into a major recording studio and let rip. Except Gravy Train's concept of "letting rip" has more in common with a symphony orchestra than the Edgar Broughton Band. Without, of course, the orchestra. But there's a moment in the midst of "Think of Life" that cannot help but put one in mind of later Deep Purple, as the flute and guitar battle for supremacy, while the blues workout "Coast Road" is as breathtaking as any of that genre's better-feted exponents. If Gravy Train has any faults whatsoever, the fascination with peculiar vocal effects can grow a little wearing, especially as frontman Norman Barrett already appears to have a fabulous range of his own -- "Dedication to Sid," in particular, glories in such trickery, although the heartbeat bassline that runs through the number is so hypnotic that it's easy to forget everything else that's going on. In fact, Gravy Train is littered with moments like that, an album of so many surprises that even when you think you know it, you can still find something else you'd never noticed. And it all adds up to a genuine minor classic. AMG.

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Bold - Bold 1969

ABC released plenty of psychedelic LPs in the late '60s that were weird, awkward mixtures of West Coast psychedelia, heavy rock, blues, pop, and more, often burdened by subpar songwriting and performers who seemed ill at ease or inexperienced in the studios. The sole Bold album fits into that niche, but if it's any recommendation or consolation, as such records go, it's certainly one of the better ones. Actually it's not bad, and a little lighter and less ponderous than most such efforts, though the lack of outstanding original material or mega-personality limits its appeal to psychedelic collectors. In addition to the trendy psychedelic-age ingredients listed earlier, Bold also added some quasi-classical organ once in a while, particularly on the opening instrumental, "Lullaby Opus Four"; "Free Fogue" even sounds like new-age music. They're also good vocal harmonizers, which lends otherwise generic late-'60s psychedelic hard rockers like "Friendly Smile" a nice buoyancy. And a bent for folk-rock asserts itself once in a while, in the wistful "Changing Seasons," the Buffalo Springfield-flavored "Child of Love" and "Words Don't Make It," and the pretty nice, stretched-out cover of Bob Dylan's "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue." The entire album is included on the Misty Lane CD reissue Lullaby Opus Four, which also adds both sides of the two more garage-oriented singles they recorded prior to the album for Cameo and Dynovoice, as well as both sides of the mid-'60s single by the Esquires, the group that evolved into Bold. AMG.

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Catapilla - Catapilla 1971

The debut album by one of the most dramatic and certainly the most visionary of all the British prog bands saddled with the epithet jazz-rock opens with little care for any of that. Taking a deep draught from the King Crimson/Van Der Graaf Generator book of sonic brutality, the opening "Naked Death" is a hard-riffing, thunderous clatter of apocalyptic imagery which -- if Crimson hadn't already dropped the same bomb with "21st Century Schizoid Man" -- might have proved as lethal as the weaponry it discusses. The same taste for Armageddon permeates the remainder of the album. Some spectacular moments drift through the carnage; Robert Calvert's sax and Graham Wilson's guitar might be most comfortable in full bludgeoning mode, but they can show restraint as well. Unfortunately, vocalist Anna Meek is allowed no such luxury, coming across in places like an extremely bad-tempered Sonja Kristina and in others like a dehumanized version of Lydia Lunch. But if the first three tracks, clocking in at 15, four, and six minutes, respectively, leave you feeling battered, bruised, and maybe not inclined to walk this way again, 24 minutes of the closing "Embryonic Fusion" place Catapilla firmly back on course. A solid, sax-driven suite, of course, it has its share of death, doom, and destruction-type lyrics and enough moments of spine-chilling chaos to remind you that Van Der Graaf's similarly side-long "A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers" was fresh on the racks as this album came together. Unfortunately, such comparisons -- though valid -- are also unhelpful. No matter how influenced one band might be by another, it takes a lot more than a Xerox mind to pull off a piece of music this long this successfully. The fact is, Catapilla not only completes the marathon, they also leave you wondering how 24 minutes passed so quickly. AMG.

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Atomic Rooster - Atomic Rooster 1970

The incipient incarnation of Atomic Rooster -- with Vincent Crane (organ/vocals), Nick Graham (vocals/bass), and Carl Palmer (drums) -- was together just long enough to document its debut, Atomic Roooster (1970) -- (note: the extra O is intentional). Before the last-minute addition of Graham -- the only bassist Atomic Rooster ever had -- the band emerged from the remnants of the then recently defunct Crazy World of Arthur Brown. The material was primarily courtesy of Crane and consisted of heavier sides. His versatility is evident throughout the impressive array of styles ranging from the folk-inspired pastoral "Winter" to the bluesy horn arrangement heard on "Broken Wings." This directly contrasts driving rockers such as the album's edgy opener, "Friday 13th," or the aggressive "S.L.Y." "Decline and Fall" is a jazz-infused number boasting some exceptional if not incendiary instrumental interaction, most notably from Crane and Palmer. Lyrically, Crane reveals his penchant for dark imagery, including the fatalistic "What is the point of going on?" chorus that runs through the aforementioned "Winter" or the sexually snide "And So to Bed." Support was bolstered by strong live appearances, positive word-of-mouth, and a few significant BBC Radio sessions -- all of which resulted in Atomic Roooster making a respectable showing at number 49 on the U.K. LP charts. By the time the platter was picked up by Elektra Records in North America, the personnel had already changed with John Cann (guitar/vocals) replacing Graham. In an interesting move, they decided that Cann should also overdub guitar parts to "S.L.Y." and "Before Tomorrow," as well as provide a new vocal to "Friday 13th." The transformation didn't end there, either, as the original running order was also significantly altered. Parties interested in hearing both should locate the 2004 reissue, as the supplementary selections feature the U.S. version(s), plus a pair of uniformly excellent selections broadcast on BBC Radio -- "Friday 13th" and "Seven Lonely Streets" (aka "Seven Streets") from Atomic Rooster's follow-up LP, Death Walks Behind You (1970). Of further historical note is that the live-in-the-studio BBC recordings were documented less than a week before the departure of Palmer, effectively ending the first lineup. AMG.

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Bonnie Koloc - Wild and Recluse 1978

Folk singer/songwriter Bonnie Koloc was a major presence in Chicago's songwriting scene during the 1970s, recording two albums for the major Epic label at the end of that decade. Born February 6, 1946, Koloc grew up on the outskirts of Waterloo, Iowa, in difficult circumstances. Her father made a meager living at a John Deere tractor factory, and her parents divorced when she was 12. "I wore a lot of hand-me-downs, and I thought that people who had indoor johns must be rich," she told The Chicago Tribune in 1988. But she loved singing from the age of three. At the University of Northern Iowa, she did poorly in classes because she was beginning to find club gigs, and she dropped out in 1968 to travel to Chicago and try to make her way in the city's burgeoning folk music scene. A fixture at the Earl of Old Town club, she rivaled John Prine and Steve Goodman in popularity in the early '70s. With a distinctive songwriting style shaped by jazz and blues inflections (the Ed Holstein composition "Jazzman" became one of her trademarks, and she also often appeared in his club, Holstein's), she was signed to the Ovation label and released the album After All This Time in 1971. Five more albums on Ovation followed, with enough success that Koloc was signed to Epic, issuing the Close-Up and Wild and Recluse albums in 1976 and 1978, respectively. She took time off to begin a second career as a visual artist in the early '80s but returned with the Flying Fish album With You on My Side in 1987. In 2010 she issued Beginnings, collecting live recordings of some of her early shows in Chicago and downstate Illinois. As of the late 2010s, Koloc was living in Iowa and teaching art but often returned for performances in Chicago, where she has maintained a strong fan base. An appreciation of her role in the city's folk scene has been impeded by a lack of CD reissues of much of her work and its absence from major online music services. AMG.

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Bitter Blood Street Theatre - Vol. 1 (1978)

Bitter Blood Street Theatre was a performance art troupe-slash-acid rock band formed at Cincinnati's University in 1969 and active through the 1970s and disbanded by 1980. Their music was a swirling dervish of bong-hitting psychedelia with slashing hard rock guitars and a penchant for exotic instrumentation, including a few saw solos.

The band was colorful kooks in Kiss-style masks, draped in capes and/or dominatrix outfits, and the ‘street theatre’ bit involved exactly that: extras culled from the local freak scene who would perform on stage with the band, or in the audience, or out on the sidewalk in front of the club. Performances would range from a guy in a wheelchair calmly eating live locusts out of a cigar box, to flashers showing their private bits to whoever caught their eye. The band played with all the heavy hitters of the era and the area, from The MC5 to Alice Cooper (who, some believe, nicked a thing or two from Bitter’s stage performance), but never made any headway beyond Ohio’s borders. Anyway, they had the chance to open for such acts as the Allman Brothers, Joe Cocker, Mountain, Savoy Brown, MC5, Frigid Pink, and Dr. John. In 1975, the band was briefly part of the Columbia Records roster, but the exec who signed them was reportedly fired the same day, and the band was unceremoniously dropped.

They did manage to eke out one single in ’75, but the band broke up soon after, morphing into a still-active ‘fringe-rock’ outfit, Blacklight Braille. In the late 70s, BBST mainman Tom Owen was able to cobble together the band’s various demo tracks and release them as a two-volume anthology. Both are now considered minor masterpieces of 70s weird-psyche. Sadly, no vintage footage of the band has surfaced yet, so we are left to imagine what it might be like to catch these pioneering maniacs live.

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Candido's Latin McGuffa's Dust - Brujerias de Candido 1971

Candido's first album for Tico is a pure triumph. Fortunately, there's only one crossover cover ("Shadow of Your Smile"), and once that's safely programmed out (or left in as a break), listeners are left with ten tracks of impossibly dense features for Candido, each of which proves how apt his "Thousand Finger Man" title was. The studio band is mid-size, punchy, and energetic enough to prove a foil for Candido's conga, but never overly focused on themselves. Nearly every song features plenty of solo space, and the man finds great things to say even on hoary old chestnuts like "Almendra" or "El Manicero" (aka "The Peanut Vendor"). The opener, "Here Comes Candi," and the side-one closer, "Take More Candi," are two of the most frenetic arrangements Candido's ever been a part of, and they're just two songs on a joyous, celebrative album. Vocalist Gran Alfonso joins the festivities for great features on "Negrito" and the calypso tribute "Back to Back." AMG.

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Jacksons Garden - How Do I Get Into Jacksons Garden 1968

Danish soul-rock band originally from Fyn. The band was formed in 1967 and disbanded in 1969 after releasing a single LP. Live recordings from this era were released after the band reformed in 2000. Drummer Per Stan would become a producer with Danish Polydor in the '70s

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Brother To Brother - In The Bottle 1974

St. Louis native Michael Burton formed Brother to Brother with studio musicians Billy Jones, Frankie Prescott, and Yogi Horton in the mid-'70s. They enjoyed success with a good cover of Gil Scott-Heron's "In the Bottle" in 1974, scoring a number nine R&B hit. It was the only one of their releases for Turbo that made any impact. AMG.

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Alkatraz - Doing A Moonlight 1976

Alkatraz was based in Wales and was put together by bassist Will Youatt and guitarist Jimmy Davies. Will Youatt was formerly of Man and The Neutrons, whose album - The Neutrons - Tales From The Blue Cocoons also featured drummer Stuart Halliday. Jimmy Davies could previously be heard in the Welsh prog band Quicksand. Alkatraz split up while recording their follow-up album, during the onslaught of punk and new wave in Britain.

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Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band - Lick My Decals Off, Baby 1970

Produced by Captain Beefheart himself, Lick My Decals Off, Baby was a further refining and exploration of the musical ideas posited on Trout Mask Replica. As such, the imaginative fervor of Trout Mask is toned down somewhat, but in its place is an increased self-assurance; the tone of Decals is also a bit darker, examining environmental issues in some songs rather than simply concentrating on surreal wordplay. Whatever the differences, the jagged, complex rhythms, and guitar interplay continue to amaze. Those wanting to dig deeper after the essential Trout Mask Replica are advised to begin doing so here. AMG.

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Tomorrow's People - Open Soul 1976

Interesting album from a Soul funk disco group from Chicago, USA. Active in the mid-1970s. 

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Horse - Horse 1971

Originally released in the UK on RCA Victor in 1970, Horse's self-titled debut record is a nice mix of '70s hard rock with psychedelia and progressive overtones. Some excellent guitar work by Rob Roach and powerful vocals by Adrian Hawkins set the pace of this solid LP. This is one of those treasures that kind of faded into oblivion. While very rare and pricey, pick it up if you can find it. AMG.

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