Wednesday, January 8, 2025

The Youngbloods - Rock Festival [Live] (1970)

Year: March 29 - July 21, 1970 (CD 1990)
Label: Line Records (Germany), LECD 9.01012 O
Style: Blues Rock, Psychedelic Rock, Folk Rock
Country: Greenwich Village, New York City, U.S.
Time: 39:07
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 229 Mb

The Youngbloods embarked upon a lengthy American tour in the spring of 1970, which lasted well into the summer months. The plan was to record several dates on the tour, and release them as The Youngbloods’ first live album, Rock Festival
Between March and July 1970, the tapes were running during five concerts. The first was on March ’29th’ 1970 at The Family Dog, in San Francisco. Three weeks later, the concert at The Barn in Marshall, California on ‘16th’ April 1970 was recorded. Two nights later, on ‘18th’ April 1970, the tapes were running at the Santa Clara University. Then when The Youngbloods played at Provo Park in Berkeley, California on ‘19th’ May 1970. There was one final recording session on July ’21st’ 1970, at Pacific High Recording in San Francisco. At last, The Youngbloods’ fourth album was ready for release.
When The Youngbloods released Rock Festival later in 1967, it was to the same critical acclaim as previous albums. Rock Festival was another eclectic album, where The Youngbloods showcased their versatility. However, it’s a quite different album from their three studio albums. Rather than play to the audience, and win them over with some of their best known songs, The Youngbloods headed in new directions with covers of a traditional song including Fiddler A Dram and the free jazz workout Ice Bag.
When Rock Festival was released in 1970, it reached number eighty in the US Billboard 200. This made Rock Festival The Youngbloods’ most successful album. So much so, that a year later, The Youngbloods  decided to release a second live album, Ride The Wind.
(dereksmusicblog.com/2019/03/16/the-rise-and-fall-of-the-youngbloods/)

01. It's A Lovely Day (02:37)
02. Faster All The Time (04:29)
03. Prelude (01:01)
04. On Beautiful Lake Spenard (04:54)
05. Josiane (06:33)
06. Sea Cow Boogie (00:25)
07. Fiddler A Dram (05:15)
08. Misty Roses (04:12)
09. Interlude (02:14)
10. Peepin' 'N' Hidin' (05:02)
11. Ice Bag (02:21)

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Tuesday, January 7, 2025

Raspberries - Raspberries [Japan Ed.] (1972)

Year: April 10, 1972 (CD Apr 25, 2007)
Label: Capitol Records (Japan), TOCP-70206
Style: Power Pop, Pop Rock
Country: Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Time: 35:24
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 228 Mb

Charts: US #51, AUS #30, CAN #22.
The Raspberries were an American pop rock band formed in 1970 from Cleveland, Ohio. They had a run of success in the early 1970s music scene with their pop rock sound, which AllMusic later described as featuring "exquisitely crafted melodies and achingly gorgeous harmonies." The members were known for their clean-cut public image and matching suits, which brought them teenybopper attention as well as scorn from some mainstream media outlets as "uncool". The group drew influence from the British Invasion era—especially the Beatles, the Who, the Hollies, and the Small Faces—and its mod sensibility. In both the US and the UK, the Raspberries helped pioneer the power pop music style that took off after the group disbanded. They also have had a following among professional musicians such as Jack Bruce, Ringo Starr, and Courtney Love.
The group's "classic" lineup consisted of Eric Carmen (vocals, guitars, bass, piano), Wally Bryson (guitars), Dave Smalley (guitars, bass) and Jim Bonfanti (drums). Their best known songs include "Go All the Way", "Let's Pretend", "I Wanna Be with You", "Tonight", and "Overnight Sensation (Hit Record)". Producer Jimmy Ienner was responsible for all four of the Raspberries' albums in the 1970s. The group disbanded in 1975 after a five-year run, and Eric Carmen proceeded to a successful career as a solo artist. Bryson and Smalley resurrected the group's name in 1999 for an album, which included singer/songwriter Scott McCarl as vocalist. In 2004, the original quartet reunited and undertook a well-received reunion tour in 2005.
(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raspberries_(band))

01. Go All the Way (03:25)
02. Come Around and See Me (03:11)
03. I Saw the Light (02:43)
04. Rock & Roll Mama (04:40)
05. Waiting (02:47)
06. Don't Want to Say Goodbye (05:08)
07. With You in My Life (02:49)
08. Get It Moving (02:34)
09. I Can Remember (08:03)

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The Doors - Live In Philadelphia [2CD] (1970)

Year: May 1, 1970 (CD November 29, 2005)
Label: Bright Midnight (Germany), RHM2 7912
Style: Rock, Psychedelic Rock
Country: Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Time: 76:18, 27:15
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 483, 187 Mb

Live in Philadelphia '70 is a double live album recorded by American rock band the Doors in 1970. The performance took place in The Spectrum. This is part of previously unreleased material of the Bright Midnight Archives collection of live albums by the Doors.
(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Live_in_Philadelphia_%2770)
One of several concerts from which 1970s official live Doors album Absolutely Live was sourced is offered in its entirety on this double-CD, Live in Philadelphia, of a May 1, 1970 show, available through the Internet only. Like Absolutely Live, it finds the band in a loosey-goosey state that drifts close to sloppiness, albeit with an engaging tipsy humor. Except for a few obligatory staples ("Light My Fire," "Break on Through," "Roadhouse Blues"), the group seemed determined not to play overly familiar tunes, even reaching back on occasion to their bar band days as a poor man's Rolling Stones for B.B. King ("Rock Me Baby"), Elvis Presley ("Mystery Train"), and Chuck Berry ("Carol") covers. Most of the tracks are previously unreleased, and it's not all hits or covers, the set list including such relatively little-traveled songs as "Ship of Fools," "Universal Mind," and "Maggie M'Gill." Certainly Jim Morrison's in a lewd 'n' bluesy mood, and for a guy with obscenity charges hanging over his head (from the group's infamous 1969 Miami concert), he lets it all hang out with surprisingly graphic recklessness on "Rock Me Baby" -- could anyone have doubted what "you feel so wet...let me slide inside" really meant? In common with most of the limited-edition releases the Doors have made available from their archive, this isn't up to the standards of their official catalog, even the relatively loose ones of Absolutely Live. But it's a good souvenir for committed fans, with much better sound than the usual bootlegs of the Doors from this era, though it's curious that the material is split into a lengthy 76-minute CD on disc one, and a mere 26-minute CD on disc two.
(allmusic.com/album/live-in-philadelphia-70-mw0000702198)

01. Announcer 'Sit Down' (05:20)
02. Tuning (01:25)
03. Roadhouse Blues (04:40)
04. Break On Through (To The Other Side) (05:12)
05. Back Door Man/Love Hides (06:51)
06. Ship Of Fools (06:55)
07. Universal Mind (04:31)
08. When The Music's Over (14:27)
09. Mystery Train (13:21)
10. Wake Up! (01:46)
11. Light My Fire (11:46)

01. The Concert Continues (00:41)
02. Maggie M'gill (05:49)
03. Roadhouse Blues (Reprise) (02:39)
04. Been Down So Long/Rock Me Baby (09:31)
05. The Music Capital Of The World, Philadelphia (00:29)
06. Carol (01:48)
07. Soul Kitchen (06:15)

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Styx - Man Of Miracles [Japan Ed. SHM-CD] (1974)

Year: November 8, 1974 (CD Jul 27, 2016)
Label: Universal Music (Japan), UICY-77822
Style: Rock, Pop Rock
Country: Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Time: 37:52
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 264 Mb

Man of Miracles is the fourth album by Styx, released in October 1974. It entered the Billboard Album charts on November 9, where it reached No. 154.
The album had a diverse sound, it showcased the style of two band members and a pre-commercial sound: James "JY" Young songs were more straight ahead hard rockers, while Dennis DeYoung songs were more mellow ballads, classical, and prog rock songs.
The original issue contained the catchy upbeat cover of "Lies" by The Knickerbockers in 1965. A second release of Man of Miracles substituted this with "Best Thing", a song also contained on the first Styx album from 1972, as the opening track on side two. The album was again reissued in 1980 with new artwork and a newly abbreviated title, Miracles. This version started the second side with the ballad "Unfinished Song", which is sung by Dennis DeYoung.
(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Man_of_Miracles)

01. Rock & Roll Feeling (03:04)
02. Havin' A Ball (03:58)
03. Golden Lark (03:37)
04. A Song For Suzanne (05:04)
05. A Man Like Me (02:59)
06. Lies (02:49)
07. Evil Eyes (04:10)
08. Southern Woman (03:11)
09. Christopher, Mr. Christopher (04:01)
10. Man Of Miracles (04:55)

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Monday, January 6, 2025

National Health - Of Queues And Cures (1978)

Year: December 1978 (CD 2009)
Label: Esoteric Recordings (UK), ECLEC2130
Style: Progressive Rock, Instrumental, Jazz Fusion
Country: Canterbury, England
Time: 53:21
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 328 Mb

With John Greaves replacing the departing Neil Murray, and neither Gowen or Parsons involved, Of Queues and Cures may be a more collective effort- -Stewart contributes three of the album's seven tracks, Pyle two (well, sort of; more of that in a moment) and one each by Miller and Greaves—but it's still dominated by Stewart's powerful playing and unmistakable harmonic construction. Opening with "The Bryden 2-Step (for Amphibians) (Part One)"—which possesses such a strong melody that Stewart would reprise it two years later in "Land's End" from Bruford's swan song, Gradually Going Tornado (Winterfold, 1980), that would also prove to be Stewart's final progressive gasp for three decades—there's a strength about the new line-up that makes its short-lived duration all the more unfortunate. Episodic in construction, with more things going for its nine minutes than most entire albums have, it's brighter, more committed and more powerfully played than anything on the group's first effort. And while Greaves has spoken about uncertainty and lack of confidence in joining the group and tackling National Health's knotty compositions, he's a perfect fit; as capable as Murray at navigating its rough waters while being an even more melodic soloist, as he proves on the opening track's fade-out.
Stewart's "Collapso," a track revisited by Stewart in 1990 for Complete's "The Apocalypso," introduces a new texture to the group: Selwyn Baptiste's steel drums. But this is no calypso tune; in fact, there's no hint of the Caribbean to be found anywhere, as yet another challenging context with an unforgettable melody leads into even greater contrapuntal complexity. Given, at this point, that American bassist Jaco Pastorius was using steel drums in his own group, it's hard to say if that was an influence on Stewart's choice to bring the texture into National Health. But regardless, it's a different space, as the song evolves into an unrelenting, high velocity passage that sets up a visceral fuzz bass solo from Greaves before returning to its theme to close.
(full version: allaboutjazz.com/national-health-national-health-of-queues-and-cures-by-john-kelman)

01. The Bryden 2-Step (for Amphibians) Part 1 (08:54)
02. The Collapso (06:19)
03. Squarer For Maud (11:51)
04. Dreams Wide Awake (08:50)
05. Binoculars (11:45)
06. Phlakaton (00:09)
07. The Bryden 2-Step (for Amphibians) Part 2 (05:31)

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Mike Oldfield - Tubular Bells [Japan Ed.] (1973)

Year: 25 May 1973 (CD Sep 5, 1984)
Label: Victor Music (Japan), VDP-64
Style: Progressive Rock, Instrumental, Pop Rock
Country: Reading, Berkshire, England (15 May 1953)
Time: 48:54
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 233 Mb

I used to listen to Tubular Bells endlessly when I was about sixteen. Back then it seemed like some the most exciting music ever made, two massive suites of throbbing instrumental prog recorded by one bloke, a few mates, and one of the great British raconteurs as Master of Ceremonies. Two dozen years later my opinion of Tubular Bells is somewhat more realistic. While it is a hugely influential album, and it is a supremely clever piece of music, its reliance on repetition can render some parts of it a little dull, that is until the next layer of music is added to the mix. If nothing else you’ve got to admire Mike Oldfield’s skill and patience in putting this album together, though I do suspect that there might have been the odd overdub.
Tubular Bells has moments of gentle beauty, big slices of widdly prog, some strangely exciting moments where Oldfield just decides to rock out, parts which defy explanation (The entire Piltdown Man section still baffles me, as does ending the album with “The Sailor’s Hornpipe”), and it still has time to be one of the key releases in the evolution of electronic and ambient music. As instrumental orchestral rock music goes, there’s little than can compare to it.
As much as his fans salute the intense genius that is Mike Oldfield, he has admittedly struggled to match the artistic and commercial success of Tubular Bells ever since, despite repeated attempts to recapture its slippery appeal by way of sequels, orchestral follow ups, and even complete re-recordings using new fangled technology. Perhaps part of this is the fact that, despite the technical virtuosity, and it being painstakingly constructed from dozens of overdubs, the original version of Tubular Bells was largely organic, and subsequent attempts to remove even the most minute error have robbed this largely instrumental behemoth of its humanity.
(backseatmafia.com/classic-album-mike-oldfield-tubular-bells/)

01. Part One (25:30)
02. Part Two (23:23)

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