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Mojo Music Newsletter Vol 6 No5 July 2008
Here's what will be available during the next few weeks at Mojo.

Velvet Underground
Unripened
CD

Rock On
Various Artists
CD

Much has been written about how this mono acetate of their first lp was bought for 75 cents in a garage sale in Chelsea, New York. As no master tapes exist from these sessions , this cd release enables us to hear one of the most important albums in rock history in a completely different light.

Recorded with producer Norman Dolph, the end result was a darker, more primitive and abrasive version than the final version released by Verve. This acetate features either different recordings or different mixes of each song, some with different lyrics, and in a substantially different running order with only 9 of the album's 11 songs included. ("Sunday Morning" and "There She Goes Again" weren't added until later) .

Dolph cut the acetate after hours at Columbia records and when Warhol presented the record to Columbia it was greeted with horror / rejection and Tom Wilson was brought in to oversee the new sessions in Los Angeles which is the record you already own. If you love this masterpiece then you must own this !!

The Rock On store in the UK was possibly the first in the world to adopt the stance of only keeping retro records from the classic decades of the 50's, 60's and 70's across all genres.

Founded by Ted Carroll, it started in 1975 before closing some 25 years later. It was to essentially become the Ace Label store.

This compilation features 28 monster tracks from Amos Milburn, Roky Erickson, Flamin' Groovies, Dr Feelgood, Link Wray, The Shangri-Las, Vince Taylor, Charlie Feathers, Koko Taylor and more.

It's our fave cd at Mojo right now, and in many ways it reflects what it's like to hang out here when we're spinning tunes on our late night Thursdays and Fridays. Mojo bows down to Rock On and aspires to maybe one day to be revered in the same way.

Needless to say - every home should have this. Get it now!

Dennis Wilson
Pacific Ocean Blue
2 CDs

King Fox
The (Unforgotten) Album
CD

Besides being the first solo album by a member of the Beach Boys, Pacific Ocean Blue is a lost classic of '70s West Coast rock. This moody, introspective and soulful record released in 1977 only remained in print for 6 months when originally released on cd in 1991. Subsequently it became a much sought after artifact amongst Beach Boy collectors and widely bootlegged.

This limited edition first pressing includes the original 12 track lp sounding incredible plus 21 bonus tracks including songs from the unfinished follow up " Bambu ".

Quite possibly the most sought after reissue of 2008.Triple vinyl version to follow soon.

This album was recorded over thirty eight years ago by a group of 15/16 year old high school students who had a top five hit with their psychedelic epic song 'Unforgotten Dreams'.

Frank went to school with two of the band members and was right in the middle of the hysteria created by having success whilst still so young. The album was originally recorded over their summer vacation in 1970 but delayed due to the pressure of huge demands on the group caused by massive airplay, media and TV exposure which interfered with their final year studies.

Unfortunately due to a studio move, the tapes were lost, for nearly forty years. Recently found, nobody had heard this highly original recording - til now. Lovingly produced by Du Monde founder Martin Erdman and Paul Radcliffe.

Tamam Shud
Goolutionites
CD


Velvet Underground
Dispatches from the
Dream Factory
3CD

 

Aztec records have come up with goods again with their deluxe edition of the classic second album from Tamam Shud. The lp not so long ago changed hands for over $1000 !! on Ebay

.As bonus tracks you get the " I Got a Feeling " b/w " My Father Told Me " 45, the 3 songs from the " Morning Of The Earth " soundtrack plus 4 tracks recorded live at the Regent Theatre, South Yarra in December 1971 .An all time great slab of Oz history .

This set is an absolute monster collection of rarities, on a par with the label's Boston Tea Party and Caught Between The Twisted Stars box sets -
( both back in stock ! ).

32 tracks in total of rehearsals, live recordings and demos,all in killer quality !! Too many highlights to single out but how about the recently unearthed complete set from The Gymnasium in New York from 1967 with perfect sound and amazing performance. Time to get very excited !!!!!

The Doors
Vinyl Box Set - 7 LPs

Pere Ubu
Datapanik in the Year Zero 5CD Box Set

 

Say “Hello, I Love You” to THE DOORS VINYL BOX, the ultimate Doors vinyl reissue collectable. Cloaked in faux lizard skin, Rhino's limited edition, seven-disc boxed set contains 12” 180-gram HQ virgin vinyl reissues of the original stereo mixes of the legendary band's six Jim Morrison-fronted studio albums plus a second version of their revolutionary 1967 debut LP pressed in mono.

The deluxe box presents the now-historic albums - all originally released between 1967 and 1970 - as replicas of their initial vinyl offerings, including artwork and inner sleeves. Copies are individually numbered and from what we can gather it's already out of print !!!


No, this hasn't been reissued !! We have a copy of this mega rarity. You're guaranteed a place in Ubu heaven if you own this.The albums represented are The Modern Dance, Dub Housing, New Picnic Time, Art Of Walking, Song of the Bailing Man as well as the original Datapanik in the Year Zero ep and Hearpen 45's.That's Three And A Half Hours of Studio Ubu!

But that's not all! Also included is more than an hour's worth of never before released live recordings in Ubu's official bootleg series. Plus One And One Quarter Hour's Worth of gem-like Ubu related rarities from the Cleveland Years!! 6 hours all up. You won't be seeing another one of these in a hurry.

The Beat Club 1970
Various Artists
4DVDs
(available separately)


Fleetwood Mac
The Early Years
DVD

 

Oh boy, where to start with these. German TV show Beat-Club featured the best performers of the day live in the studio. These 4 volumes ( available separately ) are all from 1970 !!!

Spread across the 4 dvds are jaw dropping clips from the likes of Led Zeppelin, Ike & Tina Turner, Atomic Rooster, T. Rex, The Move, Taste, Humble Pie, Ginger Baker's Airforce, Johnny Winter, Canned Heat, The Pretty Things, Black Sabbath & more. So great !!

The only footage of Peter Green era Fleetwood Mac to surface is contained in this 40 minute documentary featuring promo videos and live performances. So fantastic to see Green at this time and this is a must for any blues fan to own !!!

The Graham Bond Organisation
Live At Klooks Kleek
CD

If you want to know why there was such a fuss about the Graham Bond organisation - then look no further than this album which was recorded back in 1964. At the time when most of the music world was enamoured with the Fab Four and the Mersey sound, this band was cranking out gutsy R & B with jazz elements thrown in to the mix. Besides Bond on organ, the band included the super rhythm section of future Cream members Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker as well as the always excellent Dick Heckstall-Smith on saxophone.

The band carves up a storm on standards such as "Wade In the Water," "Big Boss Man," "Stormy Monday," and "Early In the Morning". Heckstall-Smith blows hard and Baker probably played better than he did with Cream. This album is not only enjoyable in its own right, but is also a historic document in period known as the British blues explosion.


Late Breaking News

CD Explosion - Still On

Yes - the CD Explosion is still on. If you haven't dropped in recently then you should as you may pick up that out-of-print title or grab a number of special priced bargains.

Jazz LPs - Still Some Titles Left

Jazz heads - we still have a few of those out-of-print classic jazz albums - most in mint condition. But you better be quick.

 

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Frank's Fave Rave
Peter Laughner - Take The Guitar Player For A Ride  

Peter Laughner was probably the single biggest catalyst in the birth of Cleveland's alternative rock scene in the mid-'70s. Initially a staff writer with his friend Lester Bangs at Creem , he died at the same age as Bangs, at 27, from acute pancreatitis, brought on by drug and alcohol abuse, in June 1977.

As a founding member of Pere Ubu before they threw him out as well as Rocket From The Tombs , this essentially bootleg recording of home demos and live songs only hint at what might have been had he not been consumed by his personal demons. Showing influences of Beefheart, Lou Reed , The Stooges and to an even greater degree Bob Dylan, these songs show a brilliant songwriter and guitarist. The last 2 songs on the disc were recorded at his bedside the night before Peter died. Chilling stuff !! Lester Bangs was at least able to leave behind a reasonably significant body of writings. We just have to cherish this small but important body of songs.

.

Nev's Picks Returns Next Issue

If you are after anything on CD, DVD, or vinyl, email us at info@mojomusic.com.au


Amped Up Trailblazers
Hard Rock Gems from the late 60's and early 70's

Spirit

Spirit was a "family affair" type band - led by (the Yul Brynner look-alike - drummer Ed Cassidy and his step-son - guitar genius Randy California.

Formed in LA in 1967 - the band started gigging and eventually came to the attention of legendary music producer Lou Adler who oversaw their first album Spirit (1968) - an eclectic album of jazz, blues, hard-rock and folk that showed promise as well as show-casing the guitar prowess of California. The album was notable for the California penned instrumental Taurus - the opening of which seems to have inspired Led Zeppelin's classic Stairway to Heaven

The band really found their feet with the follow-up album, the classic The Family That Plays Together (1968). Kicking off with the excellent driving hard rock of I Got A Line On You (a US Top 40 Hit) - the first side of the album is an outstanding and memorable suite. The second side of the album is also of a high standard. The album did respectable sales and charted for a number of months in the US.

The record company demanded another release so the band put out Clear in mid-1969. Whilst not as consistent as "Family", nevertheless it still had some great moments - the best being the opening rocker Dark Eyed Woman - with California again outstanding with a knockout solo. This track proved inspirational to Traffic with Shoot Out at the Fantasy Factory.

Clear lacked the sales success of its predecessor and the band had a number of set-backs during the following 12 months (including losing producer Lou Adler and California suffering a horse-riding accident), However, at the end of 1970 they managed to release another classic album - The Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus. Despite the artistic success of the album, it failed to gain the sales it deserved. Consequently, two of the original members - Jay Ferguson and Mark Andes - left to form Jo-Jo Gunne. California left the band to make a solo album - Kapt. Kopter & The Fabulous Twirly Birds (which allowed him to show his chops on covers like Rain, Daytripper and Paul Simon's Mother and Child Re-Union).

This left Cassidy and keyboard player John Locke as the "last men" standing to keep Spirit going. They managed to get some new members in - the Stahley Brothers - and the band went under some re-invention. They produced the excellent and under-rated Feedback (1972) - which at times surpassed some of the efforts of the original line-up. The bands sound had more space and it employed jazz elements more successfully than previous endeavours. Locke came to the fore with some of his contributions. In fact this albums spacey approach foreshadowed the later triumphant Spirit of 76.

In 1973 - the Stahley Brothers were out and California was back in - but the bands' Potatoland project was rejected by their record label - although it did come out a number of years later.

1975 saw the release of Spirit of 76 - a double album of songs that was like a tribute to the USA Bicentennary. The effort was a mix of originals and covers including The Stones Happy, Hey Joe and an ethereal version of Dylan's Like A Rolling Stone. The album furthered the spacey trippy restrained approach of Feedback with California outstanding in his use of acoustic guitar and electric guitar effects like phase shifter. It was an artistic and critical success but again, it didn't do the sales it deserved.

Subsequently, the band soldiered on - with original members coming back in and leaving. And they kept putting out albums and touring for the next two decades, but their best days were behind them. In fact, the band only finished up when California drowned in 1997 (although Cassidy aged in his 70s - toured for a while after in an act called Spirit Revisited).

Raven have just released a 2-for1 CD of The Family That Plays Together and Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus - highly recommended as a starting point.

The Dot Man.

M

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