Booker T. - Evergreen (Rare Memphis Soul/Funk Album US 1974)

220:- (24-Bit Limited Remaster Edition. Som AMG skriver i sin recension: "one the greatest R&B and soul bands in the history ". Denna Mini LP släpptes 2010.)

Playing organ and keyboards in the MG's, one the greatest R&B and soul bands in the history of pop music, Booker T. Jones was no stranger to the pop world when he recorded Evergreen in 1974. As part of the MG's, he played on innumerable Stax Records sessions backing everyone from Otis Redding to Sam & Dave, and the MG's hit the charts a few times themselves, beginning with the timeless "Green Onions" instrumental in 1962. 

But things began going south for Stax in the early '70s, and Jones could see the writing on the wall, leaving the label well before it filed for bankruptcy in 1975 and signing with A&M Records in 1971 and consequently releasing a series of albums with his then-wife Priscilla Coolidge. He signed with Epic Records in 1974, issued Evergreen, and then returned to A&M Records. Evergreen isn't a soul record, at least not the way the MG's did it, and Jones wore several hats at the sessions, playing some guitar and bass on it in addition to organ and keyboards, handled most of the vocals, and also wrote, arranged, and produced all the tracks (with the exception of a cover of Kris Kristofferson's "Why Me"). 

It's really a laid-back roots album, and one doesn't get any of Jones' famous organ playing until the fourth cut, an instrumental called "Flamingo," and it's there on the title track, "Evergreen," as well, but most of the album is a light-breezed mix of folk melodies, subtle calypso, and reggae rhythms, ragtime, and what is know these days as soul-jazz, and it's all very pleasing, but far from the greasy soul-funk sound of the MG's. Wounded Bird Records reissued Evergreen in 2013, adding in six bonus tracks, which included the single version of "Evergreen" and interesting cover versions of "Take Me to the River" and "Whiter Shade of Pale," none of which change the overall mood and feel of the original album.

Booker T. Jones was one of the architects of the Memphis soul sound of the 1960s as the leader of Booker T. & the MG's, who scored a number of hits on their own as well as serving as the Stax Records house band. But Jones' accomplishments don't stop there, and as a producer, songwriter, arranger, and instrumentalist, he's worked with a remarkable variety of artists, from Willie Nelson to John Lee Hooker, from Soul Asylum to the Roots.

Booker T. Jones was born in Memphis, Tennessee on November 12, 1944. Jones developed an keen interest in music as a boy; while working a paper route, he used to pass by the house of jazz pianist Phineas Newborn, and would often stop and listen to him practice as he folded newspapers. By the time Jones was in high school, he helped to direct the school band and was proficient on saxophone, trombone, oboe, and keyboards; he also played organ during services at his church, and would occasionally sneak out and sit in with R&B combos at local nightclubs. 

In 1960, Jones, a frequent customer at Memphis' Satellite Record Shop, was recruited to play sax on a Rufus and Carla Thomas recording session when the proprietors of the store, Estelle Axton and Jim Stewart, decided to start their own record label. The label soon evolved into Stax Records, and Jones, along with guitarist Steve Cropper (who was managing the record store when he met Jones), bassist Lewis Steinberg (later replaced by Donald "Duck" Dunn), and drummer Al Jackson Jr., would form the MG's, who would back up Stax artists Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Eddie Floyd, Albert King, and many others, as well as releasing a steady stream of instrumental recordings on their own, including the smash hit "Green Onions." Jones' productivity in the early to mid-'60s is all the more remarkable as he was also a full-time student at Indiana University, where he studied composition and music theory while doing shows and recording sessions during weekends and vacations.

HomeBooker T. & the MG's enjoyed considerable success in their heyday -- cutting hits, backing Stax's leading artists, touring Europe and the U.K. with the Stax/Volt Revue, and accompanying Otis Redding for his legendary set at the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival -- but between internal disputes at Stax (mostly regarding the spoils of their successful distribution deal with Atlantic Records) and the increasingly busy schedules of the various members, the group was on the verge of breaking up, and in 1970, Jones relocated to Los Angeles. 

He had already been branching out, appearing on Delaney & Bonnie's 1969 album Home and Mitch Ryder's ambitious The Detroit-Memphis Experiment, and after 1971's Melting Pot, the MG's quietly broke up. Jones stayed busy with session work, playing on albums by Bob Dylan, Steven Stills, Kris Kristofferson, and Rita Coolidge, and in 1971 he released Booker T. & Priscilla, the first of two albums he would record with his then-wife, Priscilla Coolidge-Jones (the sister of Rita Coolidge). 

The same year, Jones produced Just as I Am, the outstanding debut album by Bill Withers, which featured the hits "Ain't No Sunshine" and "Grandma's Hands." In 1975, Jones and the MG's were working on a reunion album when Al Jackson, Jr. was murdered; the group continued to record with drummer Willie Hall, but they parted ways again in 1977. In 1978, Jones released his first solo album, Try and Love Again, and enjoyed one of his biggest successes as a producer with Willie Nelson's Stardust, a collection of pop standards that established Nelson as one of country's biggest crossover acts.

01. Jamaica Song  02:25

02. Mama Stewart  02:52

03. Tennessee Voodoo  04:46

04. Flamingo  03:38

05. Song For Casey  04:52

06. Evergreen  06:30

07. Country Days  04:35

08. Why Me  03:35

09. Front Street Rag  02:14

10  Lie To Me  06:00

The Belmonts - Carnival of Hits (Superb R&B/Doo Wop US 1962)

240:- (24-Bit Limited Remaster Edition. Utgiven av ett nytt litet skivbolag i Japan. Mycket liten upplaga av detta album.)

Angelo D'Aleo, Fred Milano, and Carlo Mastrangelo were all friends from the area around Arthur Avenue in the Bronx. They attended Roosevelt High School and hung out together. They began singing together and named themselves The Belmonts after the street  on which Freddy Milano lived.  As a trio, they recorded for the Mohawk label in 1957, making their debut with the song, "Teenage Clementine.” Dion, who lived in the neighborhood, joined the group for the recording, “We Went Away.”  It was cut for Mohawk Records under the direction of conductor/arranger Hugo Montenegro.

The group moved to Laurie Records, newly founded by Bob Schwartz (who had been a part-owner of Mohawk) and his brother Gene and cut their label debut,  "I Wonder Why"  that made it to the top of the charts. It was followed by a pair of hits, "No One Knows" and "Don't Pity Me" that also made it to the top of the charts. "A Teenager in Love" made number five and further hits with "Where or When" and "When You Wish Upon a Star" elevated The Belmonts with Dion to a major worldwide act. Their vocal talent as a singing group was displayed prominently on all the recordings with their collective musical tastes ranging  from rock ’n roll to jazz, to country, to pop and blues. Of note is one particular performance at the Surf Ball Room in Clearlake, Iowa, the night on which Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and the Big Bopper lost their lives in a plane crash. 

In 1960, Dion and The Belmonts went their separate ways.  The Belmonts continued to enjoy success on the stage as well as on the charts. The group remained with Laurie Records for one single, "We Belong Together,” and then formed their own label -- originally named Surprise, then Sabrina, and finally christened Sabina Records. The label became active (as Surprise) in March of 1961 with the recording of "Tell Me Why" which rose to the top of the charts nationally. The follow-up record late that summer, "Don't Get Around Much Anymore," and the next release, "I Need Someone," also became chart hits. 

The Belmonts'  next hit record was their Sabina single, "Come On Little Angel," written by Ernie Maresca.  A major lineup change then occurred when Carlo exited The Belmonts in favor of trying to record solo for Laurie Records. The group replaced him with Frank Lyndon and released their next chart recording, “Diddley Dum,” while continuing to enjoy their busy stage career. 

In 1963 Warren Gradus, a studio musician/song writer, joined The Belmonts. and the group next became visible in the early '70s, amid the oldies boom. They cut an album for Buddah Records, entitled Cigars Acappela Candy, on which they performed several classic oldies tracks and also applied their sound to contemporary hits like "My Sweet Lord" and "Na Na Hey Hey (Kiss Him Goodbye).”  In 1972, The Belmonts reunited with Dion  for a performance at New York's Madison Square Garden, which was not only a sell-out event but was also recorded for posterity in the album entitled Dion and The Belmonts Reunion Live at Madison Square Garden.  Milano, Mastrangelo, D'Aleo, Lyndon, Bank and Gradus were the participants in that performance, which was released on Warner Bros. Records.

01. Come On Little Angel  02:58
02. Don't Get Around Much Anymore  02:00
03. I Don't Know How To Cry  02:25
04. Have You Heard  02:56
05. Searching For A New Love  02:19
06. I Need Someone  02:33
07. Tell Me Why  02:29
08. How About Me  02:40
09. This Love Of Mine  02:24
10. That American Dance  02:46
11. I Confess  02:28
12. Hombre  02:22

+ Bonus Tracks

Dion and The Belmonts - Presenting "Dion and The Belmonts" (Great R/B, Doo Woop US 1959)

240:- (24-Bit Limited Remaster Edition. En verklig klassiker med många hitlåtar. Släppt av det japanska skivbolaget "Oldays Records" i en starkt begränsad upplaga.)

1959's Presenting Dion And The Belmonts is the seminal debut album from the Italian American doo-wop group who got their start singing on the street corners of the Bronx. Revealing a musical soul that transcended the limitations of teenage pop (and foreshadowing group leader Dion Di Mucci’s future solo career), the release features such immortal rock and roll hits as “I Wonder Why” and “Teenager in Love,” still among some of the best examples of white vocal R&B to come out of New York in the '50s.

Rock & roll albums were something of a novelty, if not a rarity, in 1959 -- apart from Elvis's releases, few of them sold well, and most that were out there by white artists, apart from hits compilations, didn't always reflect well on the music. The debut album by the Bronx-based doo wop group holds up well, however, and is well worth hearing beyond the hits "I Wonder Why," "Where or When," "Don't Pity Me," and "A Teenager in Love." 

Albumets Baksida

The predominant subject is girls, no surprise as the work of an R&B vocal group in 1959, but there's amazingly little feeling of repetition on these 14 cuts, partly because the producers and the group did vary the sound. There are surprisingly successful attempts at a mild country sound ("You Better Not Do That") as well as pop ("Just You") and an amazing blues ("I Got the Blues") that reveals some of the real depth behind Dion DiMucci even at this early stage of his career -- he may have looked and sounded like a teen idol on some of those records, but he had a musical soul all of his own that transcended the limitations of teen pop; it also goes a long way toward explaining why he was responsible for some of the best white rock & roll to come out of New York during this period. It may not be in a league with Elvis Presley's first three albums as essential listening, but it is all well played as well as beautifully sung, showing off a prodigious array of talent from the group on down to the session players involved.

Dion Francis DiMucci (born July 18, 1939), better known mononymously as Dion, is an American singer-songwriter whose work has incorporated elements of doo-wop, pop oldies music, rock and R&B styles—and, most recently, straight blues. He was one of the most popular American rock and roll performers of the pre-British Invasion era. He had more than a dozen Top 40 hits in the late 1950s and early 60s. He is best remembered for the 1961 singles, "Runaround Sue" and "The Wanderer", written with Ernie Maresca.

Dion's popularity waned in the mid-1960s, perhaps due to the public's changing taste in pop music, and perhaps in part due to personal difficulties he had during this period. But toward the end of the decade, he shifted his style and produced songs with a more mature, contemplative feeling, such as "Abraham, Martin and John". He became popular again in the late 1960s and into the mid-1970s, and he has continued making music ever since. Critics who had dismissed his early work, pegging him as merely a teen idol, praised his later work, and noted the influence he has had on other musicians.

Poster - Sunday, January 25, 1959

Dion was born to an Italian-American family in the Bronx, New York. As a child, he accompanied his father, Pasquale DiMucci, a vaudeville entertainer, on tour, and developed a love of country music – particularly the work of Hank Williams. He also developed a fondness for the blues and doo-wop musicians he heard performing in local bars and on the radio. His singing was honed on the street corners and local clubs of the Bronx, where he and other neighborhood singers created a cappella riffs.

In early 1957, he auditioned for Bob and Gene Schwartz, who had just formed Mohawk Records. They recorded Dion singing lead on a song which had been arranged by Hugo Montenegro and pre-recorded with everything but the lead vocals. The backing vocals were by a group called "The Timberlanes", whom Dion had never met. The resulting single, "The Chosen Few", was released under the name, Dion and the Timberlanes, and became a minor regional hit. Writing about this experience later, in his autobiography, The Wanderer, Dion said that that he had never met the Timberlanes and didn't even know who they were. "The vocal group was so white bread, I went back to my neighborhood and I recruited a bunch of guys --three guys-- and we called ourselves Dion and the Belmonts."

Bob and Gene Schwartz also signed Dion's friends, the Belmonts, (Carlo Mastrangelo, Fred Milano, and Angelo D'Aleo), a vocal group named for nearby Belmont Avenue, and teamed them, with Dion singing lead. The new group's breakthrough came in early 1958, when "I Wonder Why" (on their newly formed "Laurie" label) made No. 22 on the U.S. charts. Dion said of the Belmonts; "I'd give 'em sounds. I'd give 'em parts and stuff. That's what 'I Wonder Why' was about. We kind of invented this percussive rhythmic sound. If you listen to that song, everybody was doing something different. There's four guys, one guy was doing bass, I was singing lead, one guy's going 'ooh wah ooh', and another guy's doing tenor. It was totally amazing. When I listen to it today, often times I think, 'Man, those kids are talented.'"

Their initial hit was followed by "No One Knows" and "Don't Pity Me", which also charted the Billboard Top 100. This success won Dion and the Belmonts a place on the tragic "The Winter Dance Party" tour with Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, the Big Bopper (J.P. Richardson) and other performers. On February 2, 1959, after a concert stop in Clear Lake, Iowa, Holly and others decided to take a flight to the next venue rather than travel on the tour bus. Dion was invited to accompany the group but decided that he did not want to spend $36 for the flight, as it was the same monthly rent his parents paid for his childhood apartment and he couldn't justify the indulgence. The plane crashed, killing all on board; Holly, Valens, Richardson, and the pilot Roger Peterson. Dion and the Belmonts continued on the tour, while Bobby Vee, then an unknown artist, performed in Holly’s place at the very next concert. Later, Jimmy Clanton, Frankie Avalon, and Fabian were added to replace the other now-deceased headliners.

Dion and the Belmonts' next single, "A Teenager in Love", was released in March 1959, eventually hitting No. 5 on the U.S. pop charts and No. 28 in the UK. The trio's biggest hit, "Where or When", was released in November of that year, and reached No. 3 on the U.S. charts. However, in early 1960, Dion checked into hospital for heroin addiction, a problem he had had since his mid-teens. Further single releases for the group that year were less successful. There were musical, personal and financial differences between Dion and members of the Belmonts, and in October 1960, Dion decided to quit for a solo career. By the time of their breakup, all eight Laurie releases had charted on the Hot 100.

01. I Wonder Why  2:20
02. Teen Angel  2:37
03. Where Or When  2:31
04. You Better Not Do That  2:31
05. Just You  2:45
06. I Got The Blues  2:45
07. Don’t Pity Me  2:36
08. A Teenager In Love  2:37
09. Wonderful Girl  2:13
10. A Funny Feeling  2:13
11. I’ve Cried Before  2:48
12. That’s My Desire  2:31
13. No One Knows  2:36

Gary Benson - The Concert (Pop/Rock Album UK 1973)

170:- (24-Bit Limited Remaster Edition. Utgången utgåva sedan länge.)

Gary Benson (born Harry Hyams, London) is an English singer-songwriter.

Benson spent eight weeks in the UK Singles Chart in 1975 with his own composition, "Don't Throw It All Away". The single, released on the State label (State Records STAT10), reached No. 20 in the chart, leading to an appearance on BBC Television's Top Of The Pops. 

The song had originally been recorded by The Shadows, and they had performed it in the 1975 A Song for Europe contest, where it finished fourth of six entries.

Benson had further attempts at winning the UK ticket to the Eurovision Song Contest, reaching the UK finals in 1977 with "After All This Time", performed by Wesley, Park and Smith, finishing fifth of 12; in 1981 with "All Cried Out", which he performed himself to place fourth of 8, and was later released on the WEA Records label; and in 1993 with "It's Just a Matter Of Time" performed by Sonia, finishing last of eight entries.

Benson's song "Let Her In", oddly credited to both Gary Benson and Harry Hyams, was recorded by John Travolta in 1975. 

Another of Benson's composition's, "Close To You", was recorded by Maxi Priest. In 1977, he composed and sang one of his sweetest melodies: "You" but never ranked in the UK charts.

01. Concert
02. Let Her In
03. Almost Forgot About Losing You
04. To Kill Another Day
05. Quiet Man
06. Safe Place To Live
07. Help Me Get Through
08. Sausalite
09. Best Things I Can Do
10. Closing Down Of The Old Porland Railway Company
11. No Guarantee

Zoot Money's Big Roll Band - It Should've Been Me (UK 1965)

250:- (24-Bit Limited Remaster Edition (Gruppens 1a album från 1965. Laminerat konvolut + "flipback omslag" precis som originalet från 1965. 10 bonus tracks. Rekommenderas varmt.)

01. "I'll Go Crazy" (James Brown)  3:44 
02. "Jump Back" (Rufus Thomas)  2:19
03. "Along Came John" (John Patton)  4:56
04. "Back Door Blues" (Robert Brown)  6:14
05. "It Should've Been Me" (Memphis Curtis)  2:56
06. "Sweet Little Rock and Roller" (Chuck Berry)  2:59
07. "My Wife Can't Cook" (Gerald L. Russ)  4:53
08. "Rags and Old Iron" (Norman Curtis, Oscar Brown Jr.)  3:35
09. "The Cat" (Lalo Schifrin)  3:35
10. "Feelin' Sad" (Eddie "Guitar Slim" Jones)  6:22
11. "Bright Lights, Big City" (Jimmy Reed)  5:00
12. "Fina" (Stuart) 2:50 

Bonus Tracks:
13.  Uncle Willie  2:54
14.  Good  2:26
15.  Bring It Home To Me  3:43
16.  Please Stay  3:40
17.  You Know You'll Cry  3:14
18.  Something Is Worrying Me  2:56
19.  Stubborn Kind Of Fellow 2:19 
20.  Big Time Operator  2:42
21.  Zoot's Sermon  3:53
22.  It Should've Been Me (Alternative Take)  2:49

Biografilänk: Zoot Money  Biografilänk: Zoot Money

Raspberries - Fresh (Deras 2a Album US 1972) (SHM-CD)

240:- (SHM-CD Limited Remaster Edition (Nysläppt album från Universal Japan Music. Gruppen har inte funnits som Mini LP förut, endast 1 exemplar i lager.)

01. "I Wanna Be With You"  (Carmen) Eric Carmen  03:05

02. "Goin' Nowhere Tonight" (Carmen, Smalley) Dave Smalley  02:30

03. "Let's Pretend"  (Carmen)  Carmen  03:42

04. "Every Way I Can"  (Smalley) Smalley  02:44

05. "I Reach for the Light" (Carmen) Carmen  04:01

06. "Nobody Knows"  (Carmen) Carmen, Smalley  02:19

07. "It Seemed So Easy"  (Smalley) Carmen, Smalley  03:53

08. "Might as Well"  (Bryson) Wally Bryson  02:25

09. "If You Change Your Mind" (Carmen) Carmen  03:59

10. "Drivin' Around" (Carmen) Carmen, Smalley  03:03

Bonus Track

11. "Let's Pretend"

Biografilänk: Raspberries  Biografilänk: Raspberries

John Buck Wilkin - In Search of Food, Clothin, Shelter and Sex (Psychedelic Folk US 1970)

270:- (24-Bit Limited Remaster Edition. Ny utgåva från "Big Pink Records". Bra US Folkrock/Psychedelia.)

John "Bucky" Wilkin, the son of Marijohn Wilkin (author of the country classic "Long Black Veil"), is most noted as a session guitarist on numerous country and rock records of the 1970s, particularly outlaw country releases by Waylon Jennings, Kris Kristofferson, Kinky Friedman, and Jessi Colter. He was also a songwriter and put out a little-known solo LP, In Search of Food, Clothing, Shelter & Sex, on Liberty.

The record was easygoing, though sometimes moodily eccentric, country-folk-rock with frequent orchestration. Prior to his solo album, Wilkin had been in Ronny & the Daytonas, famous for their 1964 hot rod hit "Little GTO." Wilkin was also in the American Eagles (not to be confused with the much more famous Eagles), who also included keyboardist Chuck Leavell, and put out a single in 1969.

Wilkin's obscure solo album is a rather strange, and not always comfortable, interface of singer/songwriter, MOR pop, folk-rock, and country influences. At times he sounds like early James Taylor with Glen Campbell-ish orchestration; "My God and I" doesn't sound far from early Elton John. Although his songs are a little odder and moodier than those of the young Taylor, they're not as good or memorable either. 
Sometimes there are suite-like structures reflecting the ambitions of much late-'60s music, as in "Mary Jackson," "Nashville Sun," and "Apocalypse 1969." "Boy of the Country," for its dark edginess, is a standout, though even so the orchestration somewhat dilutes the overall effect. 

Kris Kristofferson fans might find this an interesting collector's item due to the presence of an early, pre-Janis Joplin version of "Me and Bobby McGee" as well as "Apocalypse 1969" (one of the better and harder-rocking cuts, though not as interesting as its title indicates), which is co-written by Wilkin and Kristofferson.

01. Apartment Twenty-One
02. Faces And Places
03. My God And I
04. Boy Of The Country
05. Apocalypse 1969
06. Me And Bobby McGee
07. The Daydream
08 Mary Jackson
Medley
09.1 Long Black Veil
09.2 The Nashville Sun
Medley
10.1 About Time
10.2 Nashville Sun Reprise

Jackie McAuley - S/T (Bra Progressiv Folkrock UK 1971) + Mini LP CD Single

250:- (24-Bit Limited Remaster Edition. Mycket fin utgåva, släppt av Japanska "Arcangelo" 2005. Laminerat utvikomslag + Mini LP CD singel. Svår att hitta nuförtiden.)

Biografilänkar: Jackie McAuley 1971 och Jackie McAuley 1971

Spirogyra - Old Boot Wine (Progressive Folkrock UK 1972)

250:- (24-Bit Limited Remaster Edition. Deras 2:a album från 1972. Nu sedan länge utgången utgåva, svår att hitta.)

Well, finally I have been lucky enough to track down an LP of this highly coveted album, however, its reputation exceeds its worth - to an extent. We are greeted with 'Dangerous Dave', which rocks out nicely, with a brief melancholic bit in the middle and back again. Hardly the stuff a prog-head looks for but the track is well composed. Van Allen's Belt is in a more sombre mood with acoustic guitar and piano. 'Runaway' strikes me as the most proggy piece on the album. 

It features 3 distinctive movements, some organ and lovely piano playing, vocals from Mark Francis and the beautiful Barbara Gaskin, and some bars in 7/8 !! Starting out uptempo, but finishing in a dreamy way with Gaskin's gorgeous voice - a well performed proggy-folk epic in under 5 minutes ! 'Grandad' is again a sombre piece of fragile beauty featuring a delicate Cockerham with his acoustic guitar, backed by Cusack's string arrangement. 'Wings of Thunder' is another rocker which is pleasant but without any 'twists and turns'. 

Side 2 opens up with the only long number, 'World's Eyes', of which the first half of the song recalls a bit of the eccentricities of their debut, 'St. Radigunds', containing a brief moment of manic energy which reminds me of zeuhl (don't ask how I get this, but it does), hyperactive bass from Borrill, some semi-tone riffs and strange vocals. The second half of the song settles into more conventional territory but still holds the attention. 

Most 'standard' track I find is 'Don't Let it Get you', a non-offensive ballad which doesn't out-stay its welcome. 'Disraeli's Problem' features more dreamy vocals from Gaskin, with mellow sections that I enjoy immensely. Last track, 'A Canterbury Tale', has a sombre first half which is beautiful, finishing with a multi-tracked Gaskin vocal backing with Cockerham singing over the top. A fine album for sure, but not quite the masterpiece I was hoping for.

Formed in Canterbury, England in 1970, Spirogyra was one of a group of young progressive folk bands signed to B&C Records at the same time as Steeleye Span. The band was formed by writer Martin Cockerham, vocalist Barbara Gaskin, Julian Cusack and Steve Borrill. Dave Mattacks played drums on their debut album in 1971. The sound on St. Radigund’s and the follow-up Old Boot Wine was similar to early Strawbs but also drew on the progressive ideas of the Incredible String Band. The songs sounded whimsically English and Gaskin’s voice gave them a pure, unsullied air. 

The final Spirogyra album, 1973’s Bells, Boots And Shambles, was recorded by Cockerham and Gaskin alone. Gaskin went on to work with Hatfield And The North and enjoyed a surprise UK chart-topper in 1981, in partnership with Dave Stewart, with a cover version of Lesley Gore’s ‘It’s My Party’. (NB: Not to be confused with the US jazz rock group Spyro Gyra.)

Musicians:
♦ Martin Cockerham - vocals, guitar
♦ Steve Borrill - bass
♦ Barbara Gaskin - vocals
♦ Marc Francis - vocals, guitar, keyboards

Guest musicians:
♦ Dave Mattacks - drums
♦ Julian Cusack - violin, keyboards
♦ Alan Laing - cello
♦ Rick Biddulph - mandoline

01. Dangerous Dave (4:16) 
02. Van Halen's Belt (2:35) 
03. Runaway (4:55) 
04. Grandad (3:23) 
05. Wings of Thunder (3:08) 
06. World's Eyes (7:31) 
07. Don't Let It Get You (4:28) 
08. Disraeli's Problem (4:15) 
09. A Canterbury Tale (4:03)

German Single 1972

Roy Orbison - At The Rock House (1:a Albumet US 1961)

250:- (24-Bit Limited Remaster Edition. Roy Orbison's 1:a Album på SUN Records.)

Roy Orbison at the Rock House is the first album by Roy Orbison. It was released in 1961 by Sun Records at a time when Orbison had already moved to the Monument label but had not yet put out an album. Sun Records owner Sam Phillips had a collection of songs Orbison had recorded at Sun between 1956 and '58. Phillips capitalized on the national recognition Orbison had achieved at Monument through three major hit singles in 1960 and '61 that had gone to the top of the Billboard charts.

Most of the songs on Roy Orbison at the Rock House were written by Orbison but the songwriting credits were assigned to Sam Phillips, and are in the traditional rockabilly style the Sun label was known for. Notable exceptions are compositions by other Sun artists Harold Jenkins (better known as "Conway Twitty") and Johnny Cash. "Rock House" was written by Orbison and Twitty.

For this release all tracks except Devil Doll have been overdubbed with background vocals and/or additional instruments.

Although it was technically Roy Orbison's first album, At the Rock House wasn't really an LP effort on his part so much as a cash-in effort by Sun Records in the wake of Orbison's later success on Monument Records with "Uptown," "Only the Lonely," etc. And understandably, the sound is very retro for 1960-1961, comprised as the record is primarily of the rock & roll and hardcore rockabilly numbers that he cut for Sun in 1956 (with his original group the Teen Kings) and 1957, including the Johnny Cash-authored "You're My Baby," the Orbison/Harold Jenkins collaboration "Rock House," and Sam Phillips' "Mean Little Mama" and "Problem Child." 

Not everything is quite as briskly paced as those two numbers, but even the ballads, such as "Sweet and Easy to Love" and "Devil Doll," and the melodic "This Kind of Love" and "It's Too Late," have an edge to them -- they stand midway between the rock & roll that was happening in 1956 and the more lush and dramatic sound that Orbison would perfect at Monument Records from 1959 onward. All of the material is fascinating as a sort of alternate-universe version of where Orbison might've headed musically, and most of it is downright bracing and exciting, though it's easy to see why it never succeeded at the time -- numbers like "You're Gonna Cry" and "Problem Child" were a little too intense and ambitious as rock & roll, with too many changes and involved lyrics, to hold that audience en masse. It was some of the best and most intense rock & roll you could buy in 1961 this side of Elvis Presley, however, and heard today the album is a fascinating curio from what's usually thought of as a fallow period in rock & roll history.

01. "This Kind of Love"
02. "Devil Doll"
03. "You're My Baby" (Johnny Cash)
04. "Trying To Get To You"
05. "It's Too Late" (Chuck Willis)
06. "Rock House" (Phillips, Harold Jenkins)
07. "You're Gonna Cry"
08. "I Never Knew"
09. "Sweet and Easy to Love"
10. "Mean Little Mama"
11. "Ooby Dooby" (Wade Moore, Dick Penner)
12. "Problem Child" (Roy Orbison)

Led Zeppelin - Presence (Classic Album UK 1976) (SHM-CD)

270:- (SHM-CD Limited Remaster Edition. Reliefomslag + klistermärke. Utgången utgåva sedan länge.)

Presence is the seventh studio album by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, released by Swan Song Records on 31 March 1976. It was written and recorded during a tumultuous time in the band's history, as singer Robert Plant was recuperating from serious injuries he had sustained in a recent car accident. The album received mixed reviews from critics and is also the slowest-selling studio album by the band (other than the outtake album Coda), only managing to achieve triple-platinum certification in the United States. Nonetheless, guitarist Jimmy Page describes Presence as the band's "most important" album, proving they would continue despite their turmoil.

Jimmy Page made the decision to record the album after Robert Plant sustained serious injuries from a car accident on the Greek island of Rhodes on 5 August 1975, which forced the band to cancel a proposed world tour that was due to commence on 23 August. At this point, Led Zeppelin were arguably at the height of their popularity. When he was taken to a Greek hospital after the accident, Plant recalled:
I was lying there in some pain trying to get cockroaches off the bed and the guy next to me, this drunken soldier, started singing "The Ocean" from Houses of the Holy.

During a convalescent period on the Channel Island of Jersey and in Malibu, California, Plant wrote some lyrics, and when Page joined him at Malibu, these compositions were fleshed out. The two prepared enough material for rehearsals to begin at Hollywood's SIR Studio, where drummer John Bonham and bass player John Paul Jones joined them.

After a month of rehearsals, the album was recorded in just eighteen days at Musicland Studios in Munich, Germany, with Plant in a wheelchair. This was the fastest recording turnaround time achieved by the band since their debut album. The rushed recording sessions were in part a result of Led Zeppelin having booked the studio immediately prior to The Rolling Stones, who were shortly to record songs for their album Black and Blue. Upon their arrival, the Stones were amazed that Zeppelin's album had indeed been completed (both recorded and mixed) in a mere eighteen days. Page had simply stayed awake for two days straight to perform all of the guitar overdubs. As he later explained:

I just had to lay it down, more or less: first track... second track – you know, really fast working on that. And all the guitar overdubs on Presence were done in one night. But I didn't think I would be able to do it in one night, I thought I'd have to do it across maybe three different nights to get the individual sections. Everything sort of crystallised and you'll notice everything was just pouring out. I was very happy with the guitar playing on that whole album, you know as far as the maturity of playing goes.

Six of the seven songs on the album are Page and Plant compositions; the remaining song being credited to all four band members. This can be explained by the fact that the majority of the songs were formulated at Malibu, where Page (but not Bonham and Jones) had initially joined a recuperating Plant. With Plant at less than full fitness, Page took responsibility for the album's completion, and his playing dominates the album's tracks.

Both Page and Plant had planned this album's recording session as a return to hard rock, much like their debut album, except at a new level of complexity. It marked a change in the Led Zeppelin sound towards more straightforward, guitar-based jams. Whereas their previous albums up to and including the previous year's Physical Graffiti contain electric hard rock anthems balanced with acoustic ballads and intricate arrangements, Presence was seen to include more simplified riffs, and is Led Zeppelin's only studio album that features no keyboards, and with the exception of a rhythm track on "Candy Store Rock", no acoustic guitar. The record stands in sharp contrast to their next album In Through the Out Door, which features keyboards on all tracks and pushes Page's guitar into the background on several songs (most notably on "Carouselambra", where Jones takes the lead on a synthesizer for most of the song, and Page is not truly heard until four minutes into the song).

The changed stylistic emphasis on this album was a direct result of the troubled circumstances experienced by the band around the time of its recording. As Page said at the time:
I think it was just a reflection of the total anxiety and emotion of that period. There's a hell of a lot of spontaneity about that album. We went in with virtually nothing and everything just came pouring out.

Plant expressed similar views, stating:
It was really like a cry of survival. There won't be another album like it, put it like that. It was a cry from the depths, the only thing that we could do.

In contrast to earlier albums that contained several tracks that the band chose to play live at Led Zeppelin concerts, only two tracks from Presence were played in full on stage while the band was active. "Achilles Last Stand" and "Nobody's Fault but Mine" were added to the setlist for the 1977 tour of the United States and stayed through the band's final concerts in 1980. Some of the guitar solo from "Tea for One" was also incorporated into "Since I've Been Loving You" in these shows, but the actual song was never performed live until the Page and Plant tour of Japan in 1996, where it received three airings backed by an orchestra. "For Your Life" was played in full by Led Zeppelin for the first time at the Ahmet Ertegün Tribute Concert on 10 December 2007.

The cover and inside sleeve of this album, created by Hipgnosis, features various images of people interacting with a black obelisk-shaped object. Inside the album sleeve, the item is referred to simply as "The Object." It was intended to represent the "force and presence" of Led Zeppelin. In the liner notes of the first Led Zeppelin boxed set, Page explained:

There was no working title for the album. The record-jacket designer said 'When I think of the group, I always think of power and force. There's a definite presence there.' That was it. He wanted to call it 'Obelisk.' To me, it was more important what was behind the obelisk. The cover is very tongue-in-cheek, to be quite honest. Sort of a joke on [the film] 2001. I think it's quite amusing.

The background used in the cover photograph is of an artificial marina that was installed inside London's Earl's Court Arena for the annual Earl's Court Boat Show that was held in the winter of 1974–75. This was the same venue where the band played a series of concerts a few months after the boat show, in May 1975.

In 1977 Hipgnosis and George Hardie were nominated for a Grammy Award in the category of best album package.

01. "Achilles Last Stand"   Page, Plant 10:25 
02. "For Your Life"   Page, Plant 6:24 
03. "Royal Orleans"   Bonham, Jones, Page, Plant 2:58 
04. "Nobody's Fault but Mine"   Page, Plant 6:27 
05. "Candy Store Rock"   Page, Plant 4:11 
06. "Hots On for Nowhere"   Page, Plant 4:43 
07. "Tea for One"   Page, Plant 9:27