New York Rock Ensemble - Roll Over 1971

After three daring, experimental albums, this was the band's biggest seller. Considering the original trio's lofty ambitions to meld classical and popular music, their fourth release is solid but unexceptional rock whose standout track "Fields of Joy appeared on an excellent Columbia sampler called Different Strokes that helped to expose the band to a wider audience. AMG

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Hawk - Africa She Too Can Cry 1972

The mighty Hawk's second album, recorded in the UK and originally released by Charisma Records in 1973. This officially sanctioned release includes all the original vinyl tracks, 2 songs from the Live And Well album plus some rare gems Orang Outang, Kalahari Dry, and Mumbo Jumbo. Digitally remastered Africa, She Too Can Cry is a must for all connoisseurs of Afro progressive rock. The year was 1973 and in South Africa, the stranglehold of apartheid and the oppression of its opponents is increasing all the time, the noose growing ever tighter. These are dark and dangerous times and the watershed 1976 Soweto student uprising - which began a chain of events that would ultimately lead to the collapse of apartheid and the birth of democracy in South Africa – is still three years away. These were strange and scary times, when the law forbade marriages across the colour bar, legislation enforced the separation of the different races – and having friends of different races could land you in trouble with the authorities. It was also a time of a huge surge in original local music, an era when South Africa produced some of its finest bands. And leading the charge was Hawk, who going against the trend, turned their backs on the music coming out of Europe and America and turned to their African musical roots. Buoyed by the success of their first album, African Day – a thinly disguised commentary of South Africa and its insane politics - in 1971, followed by the seminal Africa She Too Can Cry, in 1972, Hawk had already established itself as one of the country's premier rock outfits. Explains Braam Malherbe, a member of the original Hawk line-up: "It (African Day) was political, you know. I mean there's the elephant destroying things left, right and centre – driving people from their land. We were making a huge comparison – if anyone had analysed the words then, they would have realised what we were all about." Like its predecessor, Africa She Too Can Cry, was a concept album, a social commentary on the madness that was South Africa in the 1970s. "Hawk was a concept band and the album Africa She Too Can Cry, came at the right time, it was meant to be," say Dave Ornellas, former lead vocalist and front man for Hawk, the owner one of the definitive rock voices of his era. It tells the story of a young African man, Kakawa and his village and the people who lived in it. "It is a sad story of how the tribe was torn apart," explains Ornellas, remembering the lyrics that captured the mood of the album. The album, not counting this latest reincarnation, has been released three times before, with three different track listings, first in 1972, then again in 1973 – with a slightly different track listing and credited to Joburg Hawk (redone in South Africa for European release). The final release, until now, was around 1998 as a cheap bootleg CD on Japan's Never Land Label.

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Harari - Harari 1977

Harari made a fortune as South Africa's premier importers of soul and funk music. While singing in Zulu and Sotho, the group were, stylistically, pure American pop. During the 1970s, they enjoyed a wide multi-racial following that only ended with the untimely death of a band member in 1979 and the group's subsequent dissolution. AMG.

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Four Seasons - Genuine Imitation Life Gazette 1969

This wildly ambitious opus lives up to its reputation as the most bizarre album in the Four Seasons' catalog. With the help of young songwriter Jake Holmes, the straightest of pop groups went psychedelic to create a concept album that casts a satirical eye on American life. The end result is often excessive both lyrically and sonically, but it's also relentlessly inventive, skillfully constructed, and never dull. Genuine Imitation Life Gazette never feels like a cheap cash-in because the group chases its cosmic muse without any worry of pandering to commercial concerns. In fact, fans of concise Four Seasons pop classics like "Dawn" and "Big Girls Don't Cry" will be shocked by songs like "American Crucifixion Resurrection" and "Soul of a Woman," both multi-minute epics that abandon tight pop song structure in favor of symphonic structures spiked with all manner of psychedelic sonic trickery and elliptical, satirical lyrics reminiscent of Van Dyke Parks' late-'60s work. The best of these epics is "Genuine Imitation Life," a critique of artificial pleasures in modern life set to a psychedelicized lounge backing that remains surprisingly sharp by modern standards. These moments are interspersed with shorter songs that combine sharp lyrics with lysergic but catchy melodies: highlights include "Mrs. Stately's Garden," a jazzy, up-tempo pop track with society send-up lyrics worthy of Ray Davies, and "Saturday's Father," a haunting ballad that underscores its tale of a divorced father visiting his kids with a ghostly tapestry of vocal and keyboard textures. Despite all these musical flights of fancy, Genuine Imitation Life Gazette retains a stylistic consistency throughout thanks to the group's stellar vocals.Valli delivers some of his finest leads on songs like "Genuine Imitation Life" and "Saturday's Father" and the rest of the group provides lush, flawless harmonies that match the varying moods of each song. The end result is an album that, while not for all tastes, offers a stunning example of the artistry of the Four Seasons at their most ambitious. AMG.

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Hallelujah - Hallelujah Babe 1971

Hallelujah were in fact an Anglo-German duo, split off from Doldinger's Motherhood. They absconded to England to make their album, and sought the aid of much travelled top session-musicians Rick Kemp and Pete Wood. Incidentally, Pete Wood had somewhat of a global career in subsequent years with Al Stewart ('Year Of The Cat'). And good, old Rick Kemp had heads turning, at least in the British Isles with his group, "Steeleye Span". But, strangely the album only gained release in Germany! Adventurous and creative, though quite wordy in the song department, Hallelujah's influences were wide: a touch of the Beatles' "A Day In A Life", a hint of Wonderland, and lots of Pink Floyd folky Roger Waters influence - an accessible blend of progressive and psychedelic styles.

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Otis Waygood Blues Band - Otis Waygood Blues Band 1970

Southern African rock/blues group from Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). Formed in Bulawayo around 1968. They toured Europe in the early 1970s eventually settling in the UK in 1977.

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Indian Puddin' & Pipe - Hashish 1966-69

Psych-rock combo Indian Puddin' and Pipe formed in Seattle in 1966--originally dubbed the West Coast Natural Gas, the group initially comprised singer/guitarist Kep, guitarists Chuck Bates and Kris Larson, bassist Dave Burke and drummer Jeff LaBrache. A latter-day lineup minus Kep and Bates and featuring vocalist Pat Craig and guitarist Steve Mack relocated to San Francisco and in late 1967 issued the lone WCNG single, the Matthew Katz-produced "Go Run and Play." Katz--the manager of Moby Grape, It's a Beautiful Day and other luminaries of the San Francisco psych scene--structured his contracts so that different lineups could appear under a given group's name anytime and anywhere he desired; one lineup of Indian Puddin' and Pipe already existed, but Katz nevertheless rechristened West Coast Natural Gas with the name as well, moving Craig to keyboards and recruiting vocalist Lydia Mareno for what is now considered the definitive version of the group. Indian Puddin' and Pipe never recorded a full-length LP, but did produce four excellent tracks for the compilation Fifth Pipe Dream, issued on Katz's San Francisco Sound label in 1968. This incarnation of the group split soon after, with Mareno later resurfacing in Stoneground and Craig and Mack reuniting in Pipe. AMG.

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Prince Buster - The Outlaw 1969

The legendary Jamaican musician Prince Buster is regarded as one of the most important figures in the history of ska music. Prince Buster released many classic ska tracks on Jamaica’s Blue Beat label, and these have inspired ska and reggae artists ever since. Prince Buster was born Cecil Bustamente Campbell on 28 May 1938 in Kingston, Jamaica. He began his singing career in 1956, performing under his own name in nightclubs across Kingston. Eventually, Campbell came into contact with Clement Dodd, who operated one of Kingston's most popular sound systems. Across Jamaica, music promoters drove vans filled with stereo equipment to stage mobile parties. Campbell was hired not as a musician but as security, since he had been an amateur boxer as a teenager. Rivalries between fans meant that parties could become rough, and security was vital. In this line of work, Campbell earned the nickname ‘The Prince’. This was joined with his boyhood moniker ‘Buster’ (derived from his middle name Bustamente) to form ‘Prince Buster’ - the name under which he became famous.

In 1960, Buster produced a record for the Folkes Brothers. It was an instant hit in Jamaica and Buster was soon recording his own compositions, which were crucial in developing the ska sound. Buster's early records were released in Britain by Blue Beat Records, and for this reason ska is often known as ‘Blue Beat’ in the UK.
Buster toured Britain extensively during this period. He appeared on the TV show Ready, Steady, Go! in 1964. While in England, Buster met Muhammad Ali, the World Heavyweight Champion boxer. After this meeting, Buster joined the Nation of Islam. He also name-checked Ali in hissong ‘Earthquake on Orange Street.’ Today, Buster is also known by his Muslim name Muhammed Yusef Ali.

In 1965, Buster released ‘The Ten Commandments (From Man To Woman)’, a track which is a highly-sought-after by collectors of ska and reggae, despite being incredibly misogynistic.

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Jim Keays - Boy from the Stars 1974

Jim Keays fronted the successful Master's Apprentices until they broke up in the U.K. 1971. This marked a career change and he returned to Australia, where he worked for Go-Set magazine, formed the Rock On Agency, and appeared at the Mulwala Rock Festival in April 1972. In March 1973, he starred in the Australian version of the Who's Tommy and in January 1974, Keays participated in the third annual Sunbury Festival.

Keays then returned to music, recording his debut solo album, The Boy From the Stars, a concept album about an extraterrestrial visitor who attempts to warn people of the earth's imminent destruction. Keays, playing the role of the boy from the stars, wrote most of the music and all of the lyrics. "Kid's Blues"/"&Inter-Planetary Boogie" (December 1974) and "The Boy From the Stars"/"Take It on Easy" were released as singles and Keays undertook an ambitious tour in support of the album, but due to the size of the show, only three concerts were staged.

The anti-drug song "Give It Up"/"Love Is" was released in June 1975. He then formed Jim Keays' Southern Cross with Mick Elliot, Rex Bullen (keyboards), George Cross (bass), and Rick Brewer (drums). They released a reworking of the Masters Apprentices' "Undecided"/"For Someone" in December 1975, by which time the lineup had changed to Peter Laffy (guitar), Ron Robinson (bass), and John Swan.

In 1977, Keays formed the Manning/Keays Band with Phil Manning. The next year, Keays formed the Jim Keays Band with Ron Robinson, James Black (guitar), and David Rowe (drums). Guitarists John Moon and Geoff Spooner replaced Black, and by 1979, the band had evolved into the Keays with a revamped lineup of Moon, Bruce Stewart (guitar), Peter Marshall (bass), and Nigel Rough (drums). In early 1980, the band began recording an album which was never finished due to Stewart's ill health. The single "Lucifer Street"/"The Living Dead" was released and the band broke up.

The unfinished album was finally released in 1983 as a solo Jim Keays project titled Red on the Meter and "Lucifer Street" was re-released as a single. Keays then began working as a DJ until a new deal with Virgin in 1987 saw him fly to the U.K. to record with producer Craig Leon (the Ramones, the Bangles) and ex-Sweet guitarist Andy Scott. Two singles were released from the sessions: "Undecided"/"Dubcided" (July 1987) and "Reaction"/"Bates Motel" (October 1987). The Masters Apprentices then re-formed until Keays issued his second solo album in 1993, Pressure Makes Diamonds, on the Gemstone label. BMG reissued the album in mid-1994, after which Keays revived the Master's Apprentices again.

Keays and his fellow Master's Apprentices bandmembers were inducted into the Australian Record Industry Association (ARIA) Hall of Fame in 1998. In 1999, Keays published his first book, His Master's Voice, which told the story of the Masters Apprentices. In January 2000, Raven Records reissued Keays' 1974 solo album, The Boy From the Stars, with five bonus tracks. The Mavis's contributed a cover of "The Boy From the Stars" to the original soundtrack of the Australian film Sample People in May 2000. AMG.

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Mandala - Soul Crusade 1968

Originally known as the Rogues, Canadian quintet Mandala were led by Italian-born Domenic Troiano, and quickly became known as one of the hottest bands on the Toronto R&B scene in the '60s. The group featured Troiano on guitar, keyboardist Josef Chirowski, Don Elliot on bass, vocalistGeorge Olliver, and drummer Whitey Glan. Famous for their blistering live performances, Mandala's unique sound blended elements of soul, funk, R&B, and psychedelic rock, delivered with an aggressive attack. On-stage, the group always provided a memorable experience, with strobe lights and bandmembers in matching suits, encouraging crowd participation akin to a religious revival.

After making the rounds in the Toronto area, the band began playing shows in the U.S., making several high-profile appearances in Los Angeles and New York. In late 1966, they signed a deal with KR Records and recorded their first single, "Opportunity," at Chess Studios in Chicago. The Troiano-penned cut became a Top Ten hit in Canada and was swiftly followed by "Give and Take," issued in May 1967. Despite the band's rapidly rising stardom, Olliver left Mandala in mid-1967 and was shortly followed by Chirowski, who went on to play with Alice Cooper and later appeared on several Peter Gabriel albums. They were replaced by vocalist Roy Kenner, a friend of Troiano's, and Henry Babraj, both from R.K. & the Associates. Mandala soldiered on, prepping material for their debut album and touring the U.S. and Canada. Record exec Ahmet Ertegun soon discovered the band and liked what he heard, signing Mandala to Atlantic. Before long, Henry Babraj was out of the band, and Hugh Sullivan was recruited as Mandala's new keyboard player.

Following the breakup of Mandala, Troiano, Kenner, and Glan formed Bush with bassist Prakash John; they released one album in 1970 before splitting. Glan played drums for Lou Reed and then backed Alice Cooper with Chirowski and John in the mid-'70s. Hugh Sullivan worked withSteppenwolf vocalist John Kay before passing away in 1978. Kenner and Troiano joined the James Gang in 1972 and collaborated on various musical projects through the '80s. Unfortunately, Troianopassed away in 2005 after fighting cancer for a decade. George Olliver continues to perform and remains a local R&B hero in Toronto. Although Mandala's recordings have been mostly out of print since their heyday, interest in the band has held steady. Classics, an anthology of singles and album tracks, was delivered in 1985. The group was featured heavily in the 2005 CBC documentary Shakin' All Over, examining the history and influence of Canadian music from the '60s. Soul Crusade was released for the first time on CD by Canadian indie Pacemaker Entertainment in June 2010.In the summer of 1968, Mandala's debut LP, Soul Crusade, was released. The album was dominated by Troiano, producing all but one track (the single "Love-itis") and solely writing seven of the album's ten songs. "Love-itis" gave the band some airplay in the States, and the record was greeted with positive response. Leaving the band around this time was Don Elliot, whose exit was prompted by an auto accident. He briefly played with Leigh Ashford in the early '70s before dropping out of the music business. After the departure of Elliot, the group continued as a quartet withSullivan covering bass parts using his keyboard pedals. Nonetheless, frequent personnel shifts, creative stagnation, and record label politics damaged the band's momentum. Ertegun reportedly battled with Mandala's manager, Randy Markowitz, over the direction of the group; Troiano once stated that Ertegun wanted him to sing lead vocals instead ofKenner. The band embarked on a short Canadian tour in October, but it wasn't enough to stir up new interest. A single released in December, "You Got Me," also did little for the band's fortunes. They played a handful of dates in 1969 but soon decided to call it quits, giving their last live performance in June at the Hawk's Nest in Toronto. AMG.

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Pugh's Place - West One 1969

The band was formed in Leeuwarden, Fryslan. Hans Kerkhoven (guitars) played in a local band called Example in 1965. The band started to play some covers before writing some new songs into a progressive rock style They released a first album in 1971, called ''West One''. They toured Netherlands in those years and made a live album in 1972 that contains some previously unreleased tracks. During that period Henk Kooistra (organ) and Jan Ottevange (bass guitar) left the band. When Jan Van Der Heide (guitar, flute, vocals) and George Snijder (drums) left, it was the end for Pugh's Place.

Their music is in the in the heavy rock genre with the use of flute that gives a Jethro Tull's sound and also they use the Hammond sound, that brings a Deep Purple's influence . They show a more progressive style in their instrumental parts.

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Matata - Feelin' Funky 1974

Matata was a Kenyan band that based itself in Britain in the early 1970s. Their third single, I Feel Funky, went to No. 3 in the Black Music chart. Borrowing from the JB's with tough brass, crisp funky bass and guitar riffs, sax solos and throaty vocals, the band earned a reputation as one the best funk outfits to come from outside the States. Featuring Dudu Pukwana on sax.

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Elephant's Memory - Take It To The Streets 1970

More cohesive than their RCA release in the mid-'70s, the New York underground band who worked with John Lennon, Yoko Ono, and David Peel finds themselves on Metromedia, the label which had hits with Bobby Sherman, unleashing eight originals written mostly by drummer Rich Frank and lead vocalist/tenor saxman Stan Bronstein. Guitarist David Cohen contributes to a couple of tunes, with pianist Myron Yules and guitarist Greg Peratori also involved in the songwriting, but it is Frank (listed on the credits as Reek Havoc) and Bronstein who are the major forces behind this well-known-but-not-often-heard group. Clearly it was Lennon's participation on an early disc and not the band's notoriety which made them almost a household name, but one hit record could have changed all that. There is no hit here, but there is some experimental rock that Frank Zappa should have snapped up for his Straight Records. A bubblegum label could only move this if they were called Crazy Elephant and had something akin to "Gimme Gimme Good Lovin'." Rather you have the antithesis, "Mongoose," followed by "Power" and the revolutionary "Piece Now." The technical proficiency is traded in for angst and lots of rock & roll attitude. "Piece Now" could very well be MC5, and the music on all three of the first tunes is dense and noteworthy. "Tricky Noses" ends side one with a flurry of bullets stopping a country-ish protest song, making the point quickly and with uneasy ease. Away from their famous friends, the seven-piece group is at least interesting here, with "She's Just Naturally Bad" sounding likeBlue Cheer when they abandoned the sonic onslaught for laid-back folk-rock. Flashes of Dylan andLou Reed make their way onto the tune. Pianist Myron Yules delivers the only song that Rich Frankand Bronstein aren't associated with, "I Couldn't Dream," a light Paul McCartney-style throwaway number."Damn" gets things somewhat heavy, a nice counterpoint to side one's "Power." This is where the band shines, solid ensemble rock with riffs and lots of not-so-quiet energy. For collectors who need anything by anyone ever associated with the Beatles, the Elephant's Memory's collection is not to be forgotten. "Ivan" is smooth New York rock a few years before Lou Reed would enter his Coney Island Baby phase, but definitely sounding like it could fit on that epic. Take It to the Streets is a true rock & roll artifact and holds some surprises worth rediscovering. AMG.

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Fat Mattress - Fat Mattress 1969

Fat Mattress' first album must have come as a surprise to fans expecting something at least somewhat related to the former activities of its most famous member, ex-Jimi Hendrix Experience bassist Noel Redding. But Fat Mattress doesn't sound at all like Jimi Hendrix (and, for that matter, Redding plays guitar on the album, not bass). Instead, it's passable, pleasant late-'60s psychedelia with a far lighter touch than the hard bluesy psychedelic rock Redding played with Hendrix. From the sound of things,Redding (who had a hand in writing much of the material) and his new cohorts were doing some heavy listening to California psychedelic rock and folk-rock, as this is far breezier and more oriented toward harmony vocals. It's often like an amalgam of the Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, Moby Grape, and Love, with some passing nods to British psychedelia by Traffic (whose Chris Wood plays flute on "All Night Drinker"), the Move, and the Small Faces; there's even a bit of a Monkees-go-spacy feel to "I Don't Mind." In the manner of Forever Changes-era Love, the lyrics have a fleetingly opaque feel, easy on the ear but not really about anything, save soaking up good-time vibes. The problem, at least inasmuch as playing this back to back with something like Forever Changes, is that the words and music don't penetrate nearly as deeply, or coalesce into nearly as strong a group identity. They're pleasing but indeed fleeting in their impression, lacking the indelible hooks or songwriting brilliance of their apparent inspirations, the songs tending to run together in their similar moods. All that said, this isn't a bad album at all; had it not been dismissed by many Hendrix collectors as irrelevant, it might well be getting rediscovered by revisionists and championed as a minor nugget of obscure British light psych. The 1992 reissue on Sequel adds five previously unreleased bonus tracks, undated but from the sound of things cut around the same time as the album or slightly afterward, most of them using a heavier instrumental approach. (All 15 songs from the 1992 reissue are also included on the 2000 Fat Mattress compilation Black Sheep of the Family: The Anthology.) AMG.

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Demon Fuzz - Roots and Offshoots 1976

Demon Fuzz, were 5 musicians who released a single EP in 1970. Kweebeker (at Melo's Prog Baazar) described this music as "an amalgam of Santana, If, Traffic, Sly Stone and Osibisa. Their sound presents heavy and groovy Hammond organ,afro-percussions and bright sounding horn section. There's jammy vibe to some of the songs ,yet the tightness of the arrangements brings the music in a rock direction." Progarchives.

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Blo - Chapter One 1972

Blo fused the Afrobeat rhythms of their native Nigeria with the mind-expanding psychedelia and funk of late-'60s Western rock to forge a wholly original sound embracing the full spectrum of black music. The roots of the group lay in the Clusters, already one of the most popular Nigerian highlife acts of the mid-'60s even prior to a stint as the support band for the Sierra Leonean pop superstar Geraldo Pino, once dubbed "the West African James Brown." In 1970, guitarist Berkely "Ike" Jones, bassist Mike "Gbenga" Odumosu, and drummer Laolu "Akins" Akintobi left the Clusters to join Afrocollection with twin sisters Kehinde and Taiwo Lijadu (featured a decade later on the British television show The Tube), moving away from their highlife roots to explore a more pronounced Afro-Rock approach. While performing at the Lagos club Batakuto, Afrocollection jammed with Ginger Baker, the renowned drummer from the British blues-rock supergroup Cream; in late 1971, the members of Afrocollection joined Baker in forming the jazz-rock ensemble Salt, making their live debut the following year alongside the legendary Fela Kuti.

Despite a series of well-received live appearances throughout Western Europe and North America, the Salt project proved short-lived, and in late 1972, Jones, Odumosu, and Akintobi formed Blo, touring relentlessly in the months to come, prior to recording their EMI Nigeria label debut Blo: Chapter One. Drawing equally on the pioneering Afrobeat of Fela and Tony Allen as well as the American psych-rock of bands like the Grateful Dead and the Byrds, the record failed to live up to EMI's commercial expectations, and after signing to Afrodisia, Blo resurfaced in 1975 with Phase 2, pushing further into funk and R&B territory. Grand Funk Railroad and the Isley Brothers were the primary influences on the trio's third LP, Phase 3, but as lackluster sales continued to dog the group, Blo faced greater corporate pressure to reflect contemporary musical trends -- specifically, disco, a shift culminating with 1980's Bulky Backside, recorded in London. Blo dissolved following the 1982 release of Back in Time; the retrospective Phases 1972-1982 appeared on the Afro Strut label in 2001. AMG. Thanks to Plixid.

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Earth Opera - Earth Opera 1968

The stylistic explorations pursued by the Beatles in 1966-1967, and the commercial success the group continued to enjoy, inspired other popular musicians to be similarly ambitious and persuaded record companies to take chances on more daring music. Earth Opera is a good example. The Boston-based group's self-titled debut LP featured a heady mixture of pop, rock, folk, jazz, and classical elements in involved arrangements played on such unusual instruments as mandocello and harpsichord. Less a rock band than a highly eclectic chamber orchestra, Earth Opera played in an arty style that suited singer/songwriter/guitarist Peter Rowan's songs, with their complicated structures and highly poetic lyrics. Rowan sang those lyrics, which dealt here and there with anti-war and more generalized sentiments of social dissatisfaction, in a distanced, somewhat artificial tone of voice, using an accent that sounded vaguely British, even when he was mentioning the Red Sox. But he was rarely so specific, more often concerning himself with "the stage inside my mind" or "the picket fenceposts of your mind," internal landscapes in which wordplay and allusions substituted for specific meaning. It was a psychedelic language matched by the music, which hurried and slowed, making room for sudden solos and unexpected juxtapositions of instruments. The result ultimately may have been too ornate and inaccessible for a pop recording, even in 1968, but Earth Opera was very much of its time. AMG.

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