Doc Holliday - Doc Holliday 1973

Singer/guitarist Frank Carillo was the band's driving force. Carillo had previously been a member of the band Hot Soup which recorded an obscure single and album in the mid-'60s before calling it quits. Carillo's next job was as a member of Peter Frampton's post-Humble Pie recording and touring band (he played in "Winds of Change" and "Frampton's Camel").  With support from manager Phil Loritoe he then decided to form his own band, recruiting the talents of bassist Thomas Arlotta, drummer Robert Liggio, and singer/guitarist Robert Mayo.  Signed by the small Metromedia label, the band's debut album teamed them with Rolling Stones producer Chris Kimsey. Metromedia apparently had high hopes for the band, shipping them to London to record 1973's "Doc Holliday" at the famed Olympic Sound Studios. With Carillo and Frank Paul Spagnuolo credited with writing most of the eight tracks (bassist Arlotta wrote 'Come Down Sally'), the album wasn't particularly original, reflecting a wide array of outside influences including FM rockers like Humble Pie, boogie bar band (Faces), more pop oriented groups (Badfinger), and even a touch of glam. In this case the lack of originality was a major criticism. Among other gifts, the band was blessed with a pair of strong lead singers. Carillo was the gruffer of the two, which made him wonderful on tracks like the opener 'Fix Me' and the single 'Whiskey Lady'. In contrast Mayo's voice was a bit more commercial which was great for tracks like the ballad 'Captain Cooke'. As mentioned, musically they were all over the place including a stab at country-rock ('Restless Days') , but for these guys it wasn't a major drawback since there wasn't a single truly awful performance on the LP. Hard to put my finger on it, but "Doc Holliday" is an album with a distinctive British rock feel and it's an album far better than the individual compositions (which are themselves quite good).RYM.

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British quintet, Fable, are perhaps better known for their connections to Trapeze and Uriah Heep than they are for their own music. The Wolverhampton band came together in 1973, with Peter Goalby at the helm handling vocals and guitar. The lineup also included Mac Bailey (guitar), Peter Mackie (bass), Paul Robbins (keyboards) and Keith Tully (drums). Their history is a bit blurry, but the band had a very short lifespan. Magnet Records (owned by Alvin Stardust) picked up the band after hearing demos they'd been working on and in 1974, "Fable" was issued. The response was tepid at best and after a few short mini-tours of the UK, Fable disbanded. Goalby and Mackie would later resurface in a late period lineup of Trapeze. By 1980, Goalby had joined Uriah Heep and remained with them for several years and albums. 
 

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Wally Richardson - Soul Guru 1968

Richardson was mostly known in the 50s and early 60s for some sweet swing sessions with Pete Brown for Bethlehem and Verve. So when Soul Guru came out in 1968 (engineered by Van Gelder!) in all of its groovy psychedelic glory it was something of a revelation. Deep soul, some blues jamming, some odd instrumentation (bass clarinet?) on a few tracks, and even a radio friendly “Monday Monday” that veers toward kitsch but never goes all the way. An absolute joy and highly recommended! Discogs - dharleyserlin

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Maffit And Davies - The Rise And Fall Of Honesty 1968

Maffitt/Davies was a short lived duo who released one album off Capitol in 1968. Judging by the cover you’d expect psychedelic fireworks but The Rise and Fall of Honesty is really an Ameriana folk-rock record. This is another good one that never saw release in the cd era. I found a vinyl copy in the Boston area for only $15 dollars though lately this lp has been somewhat hard to come by. While labelmate lps by the Common People and Food attract more attention I think that Maffitt/Davies was a much, much better group.
The record starts off with a brilliant version of Bob Dylan’s Just Like A Woman. Maffitt/Davies transform this standard into a heartbreaking orchestrated folk track that must surely rank as one of the best versions of this song.
Forest Lawn, the album’s failed single, has a distinct Face to Face Kink’s sound though it’s notable for its dobro and freaky church organ. Tom Thumb’s Blues is the other Dylan cover on this record and shows the band taking a Byrds/Everly Brothers vocal harmony approach. The playing is topnotch throughout the record (check out instrumental Lungi Dal Caro Beni) and the duo’s vocal harmonies are tight if a bit unconventional. This is a quiet, tranquil record that never bores and reminds me of prime late 60’s Dillards on their folk-rock outings.
One of my favorite tracks on the album is Landscape Grown Cold. This is a visionary slice of American music that predates the alt. country/folk boom with dark lyrics, strings, phasing towards the end, and a vibe similar to Texas band Euphoria. More noteworthy tracks are Kingswood Manor which is a good folk-rock track that flirts with psychedelia by way of tabla (and drug references within the lyrics) while country-rocker City Sidewalks is very trancey and will appeal to any true Byrds fan. About 3 or 4 tracks on the album include drums though electric guitar fans should note with caution that most of this disc is acoustic.
The music is time worn, ancient and has that lived in feel but always inventive and never short on ideas. What ever happened to these musicians? Does anyone know? Anyway, if Americana or folk-rock is your bag, prepare yourself for a really good one. The Rising Storm.

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The Korgis - The Korgis 1979

British pop outfit the Korgis reunited singer/bassist James Warren and singer/drummer Andy Davis, who previously teamed in cult favorites Stackridge. Guitarist Stuart Gordon and keyboardist Phil Harrison completed the original lineup, which issued its debut single "Young 'n' Russian" in March of 1979; the follow-up, "If I Had You," cracked the UK Top 20, and that summer the Korgis issued their self-titled debut LP. In 1980, the group scored their biggest chart smash with "Everybody's Got to Learn Sometime," the lead single from their sophomore album Dumb Waiters; although the record also launched the minor hit "If It's Alright with You Baby," subsequent outings like "Rovers Return," "That Was My Big Mistake" and "All the Love in the World" failed to generate much excitement, and in the wake of their third album, 1981's Sticky George, the Korgis were dropped by their label Rialto. The band soon dissolved, and in 1986 Warren issued a solo LP, Burning Questions; four years later, he and Davis reformed the Korgis to issue a re-recorded "Everybody's Got to Learn Sometime," followed in 1992 by a new album, This World's for Everyone. The group again parted ways soon after. AMG.

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Wayne Shorter - Speak No Evil 1966

On his third date for Blue Note within a year, Wayne Shorter changed the bands that played on both Night Dreamer and Juju and came up with not only another winner, but also managed to give critics and jazz fans a different look at him as a saxophonist. Because of his previous associations with McCoy Tyner, Elvin Jones, and Reggie Workman on those recordings, Shorter had been unfairly branded with the "just-another-Coltrane-disciple" tag, despite his highly original and unusual compositions. Here, with only Jones remaining and his bandmates from the Miles Davis Quintet, Herbie Hancock and Ron Carter on board (with Freddie Hubbard filling out the horn section), Shorter at last came into his own and caused a major reappraisal of his earlier work. The odd harmonic frameworks used to erect "Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum," with its balladic structure augmented with a bluesy regimen of hard bop and open-toned modalism, create the illusion of a much larger band managing all that timbral space. Likewise on the title track, with its post-bop-oriented melodic line strewn across a wide chromatic palette of minors and Hancock's piano pushing through a contrapuntal set of semi-quavers, the avant-garde meets the hard bop of the '50s head on and everybody wins. The loping lyric of the horns and Hancock's vamping in the middle section during Shorter's solo reveals a broad sense of humor in the saxophonist's linguistics and a deep, more regimented sense of time and thematic coloration. The set ends with the beautiful "Wild Flower," a lilting ballad with angular accents by Hancock who takes the lyric and inverts it, finding a chromatic counterpoint that segues into the front line instead of playing in opposition. The swing is gentle but pronounced and full of Shorter's singular lyricism as a saxophonist as well as a composer. AMG.

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Little Johnny & Ted Taylor - The Super Taylors 1973

Now here'a a relic from Little Johnny Taylor's prolific early '70s Ronn tenure that also features soul-blues singer Ted Taylor. Although they weren't related (except by label), the "Super Taylors" shared this album like long-lost brothers. Four duets find the two complementing one another most soulfully; otherwise, the album is comprised of solo sides by both (including Johnny Taylor's "Everybody Knows About My Good Thing"). AMG.

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Mama's Pride - Mama's Pride 1975

"The debut album from St. Louis (St.Louis, State of Missouri). Was established in 1972, signed a contract with Atco Records. The album was produced Arif Mardin, in what follows a repeated winner of the "Grammy" ... The group performed about the same fate as The Allman Brothers Band (ie, Soulful Southern Rock), is no coincidence that they both performed at the concerts ... Also participated in these concerts Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Charlie Daniels Band, The Outlaws, Todd Rundgren, Alice Cooper, REO Speedwagon ...The band, Mama's Pride, was originally from St. Louis, Missouri USA. In their hometown, they were fondly referred to as "The Pride of St. Louis". The group was formed by brothers Pat and Danny Liston. Members of the original band were: Pat Liston - vocals, slide, electric and acoustic guitars, organ, Danny Liston - vocals, electric and acoustic guitars, Kevin Sanders - drums, percussion, back ground vocals, Max Baker - lead electric guitar, 12-string and acoustic guitars, background vocals, Joe Turek - bass, background vocals, Frank Gagliano - keyboards and synthesizer. Mama's Pride signed with Atco Records (a division of Atlantic Records) in 1974. They recorded and released their first album a short time later. According to Frank Gagliano, the Muscle Shoals tapes are still the highlight of the band then and now! The reason being is those recordings actually sounded live and in concert! Ten tunes--rhythm tracks--vocals--and overdubs recorded and mixed down in "three days"! David Johnson the engineer recorded all the tracks and we had been playing six nights a week for some time and the band was smoking hot!! All the labels that heard those tracks came to Atlanta to make a bid. Atlantic Records and the whole staff flew down to Tampa, Florida to see the group at a club called the PAC--Performing Arts Center. They offered us a major deal after the first show!! We actually met Amet Ertugen the CEO of Atlantic and he offered us a deal we couldn't refuse! Frank Gagliano auditioned for Pat Liston in one of the first groups he had in St. Louis. At the time Frank was 14 years old and played accordian. Pat liked the way Frank played but told him to get a Wurlitzer electric piano and the gig was his! Well Frank picked up a used Wurlitzer and called Pat back and he had already hired somebody else, Ten years later Kevin Sanders---Kevin and Frank played together in bands since they were kids-- joined the group in December of 1973 in Tucson, Arizona and Frank hooked up with the group in April of 1974 in Kearny, Nebraska" 

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Here Comes Everybody - Here Comes Everybody 1974

Prog/psych álbum released in 1974 by an Oklahoma, US' band. Enjoy it.

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Yvonne Fair - The Bitch Is Black 1975

As Alice Clark's eponymous 1972 epic on Bob Shad's Mainstream Records label is a thing of beauty deserving a wider audience, so is Norman Whitfield's 1975 supervision of Yvonne Fair entitled The Bitch Is Black. A title that shocked and grabbed attention upon its release, it may also have played a part in not revealing the majestic voice and soul-stirring ballads within. If you can't tell a book by its cover, be careful if the title throws you off base as well. Sure, Harvey Fuqua's "Stay a Little Longer" has some gutsy vocals reflecting that title -- and stunning production by Fuqua as Whitfield had collaborators in that department on this disc -- Pam Sawyer, Gloria Jones, and Clay McMurray also chipping in, but this is Yvonne Fair's moment in the sun and her big U.K. hit, "It Should Have Been Me," should have been a monster in the U.S. as well. There's a hilarious parody of it on YouTube under the name Vicar of Dibley, a British TV sitcom with a comedienne, Dawn French, doing the lip sync to Fair's popular rendition. Stevie Wonder's "Tell Me Something Good," a Top Three hit for Chaka Khan in the summer of 1974, is absolutely grand here, with bubbling guitar and sweet horns that give it an entirely different perspective. A cover of Barbara George's 1962 hit "I Know (You Don't Love Me No More)" moves with authority, and is a great selection on one of those albums that not only doesn't have a bad track, it's one that you wish would just keep on going. The re-release on reissue supervisor Paul Williams' Reel Music label has a generous 7,500-word essay by liner note writer A. Scott Galloway, over 20 pages with photos and information that has never been revealed about the singer before. Galloway interviewed Dionne Warwick, Chuck Jackson, Venisha Brown (daughter of Fair and James Brown), and many others specifically for this release. There's also a stunning and quite rare wedding photo of Fair in the tray when you lift the CD out of the jewel case, those in charge making it a labor of love that shows great respect for the artist. Packaged with the tender loving care this music deserves, and impressively remastered by Bill Lacey, it's a project that sets a new standard and is an absolute delight in every aspect. AMG.

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The Meters - The Meters 1969

Initially created to be the house band for Allen Toussaint and Marshall Sehorn's Sansu Enterprises, the Meters started out backing such famous names as Lee Dorsey and Betty Harris. Led by organist Art Neville, the quartet was rounded out by jazz-influenced guitarist Leo Nocentelli, along with the bubbling rhythm section of bassist George Porter, Jr. and drummer Joseph "Zigaboo" Modeliste. Booker T. & the M.G.'s may have been the most obvious influence, but the Meters differentiated themselves by injecting a healthy dose of New Orleans funk into their sound. Led by Neville's fat-sounding organ, the Meters quickly scored hits with the sinewy "Cissy Strut" and the more languid "Sophisticated Cissy." Simplicity is the hallmark of this impressive debut and nuance is paramount, whether it's Nocentelli's lazy riffs echoing throughout "Ease Back" or Modeliste unobtrusively riding his hi-hat along the perimeter of the Memphis-fried "6V6 La." Not unlike the M.G.'s, the Meters were masters of interpretation -- the band here moves easily from a chugging reading of Sly Stone's "Sing a Simple Song," to kicking back on a smoky version of the Classics IV's "Stormy." AMG.

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England - Garden Shed 1977

England is a progressive rock band from Maidstone, South East England, United Kingdom, formed in 1975. The band existed (in one form or another) from 1975 to the early '80s. Reformed around 2005.

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Klaatu - Hope 1977

A somewhat disappointing follow-up to the promise left by the group's inspired debut, Hope was actually recorded just before the first album was released (and prior to the subsequent "Are Klaatu the Beatles?" rumors). The band opted for a more conceptual, rock opera sound, but they ended up sounding pretentious, and in some cases like a rip-off of Queen. If you're into LP sleeve art, though, this one is breathtaking. The artist, Ted Jones, did several of the band's striking album sleeves, but this is certainly the most beautiful. Drummer and band archivist Terry Draper later tried to retrieve the original oil painting from which the cover was shot, but discovered it had been pilfered by an unknown employee of Capitol. AMG.

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Gwen McCrae - Rockin' Chair 1975

This album marked the long-playing debut of Gwen McCrae, a sultry voiced singer who remains popular with soul music cultists today. Rockin' Chair collects the material that she had been recording for the Cat label, a subsidiary of disco giant TK Records. Despite the fact that it was not technically conceived as an album, all the material on Rockin' Chair hangs together nicely: everything here was produced by Miami soul stalwart Steve Alaimo, who strikes an effective balance between silky soul and gospel-tinged funk on all the tracks. The obvious standout is the title tune, a mid-paced invitation to romance that frames McCrae's seductive vocal with stately horns and churning, infectious percussion. The end result is downright hypnotic and it deservedly became a massive hit on both the R&B and pop charts during 1975. None of the remaining tracks are as instantly infectious as the title hit, but they all make for fine listening: "Move Me Baby" is a gently-loping funk jam built on some silky keyboard riffs, and "Your Love Is Worse Than a Cold Love" is a convincing declaration of frustrated passion that gets a gutsy, gospel-tinged treatment from McCrae. Trivia fans will also want to take note that Harry Casey of KC and the Sunshine Band lent a hand on the production of "Move Me Baby." However, the album's unsung gem is "90% Of Me Is You": this hypnotic tune is a grand showcase for McCrae's emotive skills, allowing her to unfold a tale of emotional enslavement over a sleek backing track that balances yearning strings with a moody funk groove. All in all, Rockin' Chair is an exciting collection that will appeal to any fans of 1970s soul. AMG.

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Nucleus - Under The Sun 1974

Nucleus began its long jazz-rock journey in 1969, when it was originally formed by trumpeter Ian Carr. They attracted a following after a successful performance at the Montreux International Festival in 1970, which led to the critical success of albums Elastic Rock and We'll Talk About It Later. The other members consisted of saxophonist Karl Jenkins, drummer John Marshall, and guitarist Chris Spedding. Spedding split after the first two albums, but the rest of the lineup lasted until 1972, when Jenkins and Marshall both left to join Soft Machine. Belladonna was the first album with only Carr, and although he enlisted the help of guitarist Allan Holdsworth, the band eventually became a solo venture for his music. They finally broke up in the mid-'80s after several Carr-only albums. AMG.

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