Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Canned Heat - Christmas Album (@flac)


Merry Christmas & happy New Year people!!!
C U next year (short leave)...

"What would Christmas mean to me?
without some Heated up boogie!

Santa jumps and parties hardy
so have a boogiefied yuletide party!

And deck the halls with something blue
cause that's the way to make it through.


LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=B3XQ7VVR

Sunday, December 21, 2008

The Jethro Tull Christmas Album (@flac)


The holidays have gotten even brighter with Jethro Tull's marvelous offering for this time of year, "The Jethro Tull Christmas Album." Ian Anderson & company serve up a hearty yuletide blend of new Tull Christmas originals, including the terrific "Birthday Card At Christmas," "Last Man At The Party," and "First Snow On Brooklyn," as well as new re-recordings of old holiday-themed Tull favorites like "A Christmas Song," "Another Christmas Song," "Ring Out Solstice Bells," and the signature Tull tune, "Bouree." Along with that classic instrumental, the band give us some more wonderful instrumental tracks, like the brilliant jazz take on "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen," "Pavane," "Greensleeved," and the beautiful closer, "A Winter Snowscape." The band play brilliantly, and Anderson's voice and flute are still in pristine form. "The Jethro Tull Christmas Album" is a magnificent gift from one of rock's most enduring acts.

Happy holidays from Jethro Tull!



LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=8LD8JQ4H

FLAC - SCANS

Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Live At The Isle Of Wight Festival 1970 (@flac)


The Isle of Wight Festival of 1970 has enjoyed a bit of resurgence lately thanks to the video release of a movie of the festival, with a soundtrack, plus individual performance releases by the Who, Jimi Hendrix, the Doors and Emerson, Lake and Palmer. For ELP, this disasterous event -- the European Woodstock -- was a watershed of sorts because it was only their second gig, and amidst all the chaos and gatecrashing ruckus, their appearance was considered top-notch.

If anything, the Isle of Wight Festival clearly signaled an end of the 60's. It would be the last time the world would see Jimi Hendrix or Jim Morrison, both icons of a blossoming period abruptly shut down by the drama of Altamont. Bands like ELP and Jethro Tull would be part of a new wave -- more progressive, less in touch with the earth and man, world issues, and much more immersed in the surreal, tranquil, cosmics and bizarre. The Message of Love was now the Message of ME -- flagrantly displayed in the Isle of Wight movie that seems to center on an unruly crowd of thousands who want to get into the show, but don't want to pay the admission, and the promoters dealing with it. During all the madness, one has to wonder how in the hell half a million people made it to this tiny island off the south coast of England in the first place.

For their performance, ELP's brand of outrageousness seemed to shake the crowd out of their foul mood much more effectively than that of a whining Joni Mitchell, a frightened Kris Kristofferson or a Tiny Tim. From the potency of the instrumental "The Barbarian" (also the debut album opener, still unreleased at the time of this show) to the pacifying melody of "Take a Pebble," ELP seemed to stir up the masses. Then they launched into "Pictures At A Exhibition," the Mussorsky-composed opus that demonstrates how rock could embrace classical music, and sound bigger than the largest of orchestras. The piece climaxes with the blast of two stage-side cannons capping off the building tension hovering over the entire event.

Then it was on to more instrumentals with "Rondo" and "Nutrocker." For years to come, Keith Emerson would establish a routine of letting loose during "Rondo" by assailing his beloved Hammond organ, stabbing and riding it like a bucking bronco. If no one can remember anything about ELP, they can surely say they were one of the most theatrical bands over the course of the three-day show. "Nutrocker" is actually a lift from Kim Fowley, who borrowed the licks from "The Nutcracker Suite," another classical piece, and a favorite musical come Christmas time.

Overall, this CD exhibits an incredible amount of energy coming from the then newly-formed band. On listening to more recent live recordings of ELP, one can tell that in 1970, they were hungrier, hot shots ready to show how talented, inventive and astonishing they could be. For 8 more years, they proved just that.

The CD finishes up with comments from Emerson, Lake and Palmer themselves. Whereas some of the acts who appeared at the Isle of Wight might sooner put it behind them or not even live to tell about it, ELP recalls the event as a monumemtal moment in the history of the band. Over 25 years later, they are able to look back at the whole spectacle with a sincere fondness, and perhaps a bit of off-handed amusement as well.



LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=IM15I2K8
731MB

EAC - CUE - LOG - FLAC - SCANS

Saturday, December 20, 2008

Grace Slick and the Great Society - Collectors Item (@flac)


The Great Society was a 1960s San Francisco rock band in the burgeoning Haight Ashbury folk-psychedelic style pervasive during the time of its existence, 1965 to 1966. The band was also known as "The Great! Society." Remembered as the original group of model turned singer Grace Slick, the initial line-up of the band also featured her then-husband Jerry Slick on drums, his brother Darby Slick on guitar, David Minor on vocals and guitar, Bard DuPont on bass, and Peter Vandergelder on saxophone. Minor and DuPont would not remain with the band for the duration.

In the late summer of 1965, after seeing a new band called Jefferson Airplane at The Matrix club, Grace and Jerry decided to start their own group, assembling it fairly quickly. The band made its debut at the Coffee Gallery in San Francisco's North Beach section on October 15, 1965, and continued to perform throughout 1966.

The band released only one single during its lifetime in 1966, "Somebody to Love" (originally titled "Someone to Love"), written by Darby, backed with "Free Advice." Issued on Autumn Records' tiny North Beach subsidiary label, the single made little impact outside of the Bay Area, but the association with Autumn did lead the band to working with staff producer Sylvester Stewart, still in the process of forming his own band, Sly and the Family Stone. Purportedly, Stewart would eventually walk out as the band's producer during a demo session after it took Great Society over 50 takes just to get one song right.

Momentum for the band began to build as they started opening for Jefferson Airplane and other successful local bands, with Columbia Records offering the Great Society a recording contract. By the time the contract arrived in the mail, however, Grace had been spirited away to replace departing vocalist Signe Toly Anderson in the Airplane, taking "Somebody to Love" and her own composition "White Rabbit," one of Great Society's live showcases, with her. As both the visual and musical focal point, the band could not survive without its lead singer, and disbanded in the fall of 1966. Grace and Jerry would divorce as well.

Columbia would eventually release tapes of live performances by Great Society as two separate albums in 1968 after Grace found fame, repackaging both as a double LP in 1971. In 1995, Sundazed issued a compilation disc featuring the band's lone single amidst unreleased studio session material.

Notably, "The Great Society" was a popular name for musical groups in the 1960s, due to the popularity of the term as used by the Lyndon Johnson administration in Washington, D.C. One so-named four-man group, based in Dallas, Texas, consisted of two British and two American musicians. The group lasted three years, toured extensively in the United States and Canada, then disbanded in 1969. On one occasion, in Ft. Worth, Texas, The Great Society (with Grace Slick) and the British/American version performed on opposite sides of the city on the same evening.

The two American members of that group were Steve Holder (bass) and Preston Thomas (percussion). The British members were Ronnie Deangele (rhythm guitar) and Richard Thomas (lead guitar). All four are successful in other fields today.



LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=K4KGLXI0

EAC - CUE - LOG - FLAC - SCANS

Friday, December 19, 2008

Black Widow - The Ultimate Sacrifice: One (@flac)


"Black Widow may have enjoyed a reasonably long and defiantly varied career. But to anyone who cares, they will be remembered for just one song, "Come to the Sabbat" -- not a hit single, but a standout on a cheapo label compilation in the early '70s, and destined to live on for decades after the band. Naturally, the accompanying Sacrifice album has bounced along in its wake, first as an increasingly expensive vinyl collectors' item, more recently as a regular on the CD reissue circuit, and here it comes again, this time bearing more primal Black Widow than you could ever have dreamed of hearing. Ultimate Sacrifice: One opens, naturally, with the original seven-song album. More fascinating, however, is the chance to hear five of the seven ("Way to Power" and "Attack of the Demon" are absent) in their original demo form, where they are revealed, if anything, to be even more dramatic than on the final vinyl. "In Ancient Days" in particular profits from the looseness of the performance, while "Come to the Sabbat" packs a feel of abandonment that makes the familiar version seem quite sedate. Of course, the bonus tracks are really only of interest if you truly worship the original record, and, once past "Come to the Sabbat," there probably aren't many people who feel that strongly. But the liners tell the band's tale well, the remastering is impressive, and if you're not doing anything next weekend, you might well want to drop by Black Widow's house. They've got somebody visiting, you know.
[In 2004, Castle reissued Sacrifice on CD with five bonus tracks, retitling it Ultimate Sacrifice: One.]



LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=0D147USG

EAC - LOG - CUE - FLAC (separate) - SCANS

Thursday, December 18, 2008

Quintessence - Dive Deep (@flac)


Lead by Australian-born violinist and flutist Rothfield (AKA Raja Ram), keyboardist Phil Jones (Shiva Shankar) and Shambu Babaji on bass, this North-London group had very strong spiritual Indian classical music influences. Their first two albums, In Blissfull Company and their eponymous second album (they had much success riding on the popular sudden passion provoked by the BEATLES) are filled with Indian Sacred Chants and Psalms, but also much more accessible jazz-filled rock tracks full of delightful moments. Their third album Dive Deep was less spiritually oriented and contained more jazz-influenced improvisations with longer intrumental interplay tracks. After the partially live album Self some key members left to form the similar KALA, and QUINTESSENCE released on last album that was simply not quintessential anymore.

At their top , QUINTESSENCE was a magnificient group playing some superb Indian-laced psychadelic rock and are fondly remembered by all etnic fusion music afficianados and old hippies around the world.



LINKS:
h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=ZBK81JTD

Jeff Simmons - Lucille Has Messed My Mind Up (@flac)


"Jeff Simmons is a Rock musician and former member of Frank Zappa's Mothers of Invention. Simmons provided bass, guitar, and/or vocal for the group between 1970 and 1971. He left The Mothers just prior to the filming of 200 Motels in mid 1971. Jeff later returned to the group for a time during 1972 and 1973. Zappa and Mothers albums he appeared on include Chunga's Revenge (1970), Waka/Jawaka (1972), Roxy & Elsewhere (1974).

Years later Zappa released a number of archival recordings that feature Jeff including You Can't Do That on Stage Anymore, Vol. 1 (1988), You Can't Do That on Stage Anymore, Vol. 6 (1992), and Playground Psychotics (1992). Jeff also appears in the Zappa movie The True Story Of Frank Zappa's 200 Motels (1989). Numerous Zappa bootleg recordings from this era also feature Simmons.

Jeff's music career began in Seattle, Washington. In 1967 he became a member of the group 'Ethiopia' which soon changed its name to 'Easy Chair'. They recorded a 1 sided, 3 song album and achieved local recognition. Easy Chair was then booked as the opening act for an August 1968 concert by The Mothers of Invention at the Seattle Center Arena (renamed in 1995 to Mercer Arena.) During the soundcheck Easy Chair was discovered by Zappa, who recognized that the group's musical and lyrical aesthetic was compatible with his own. Only about 1000 copies of locally produced Easy Chair record were pressed. It is now a highly valued collectible.

Easy Chair went to Los Angeles and appeared at more Zappa live performances. They also auditioned for Zappa's Bizarre and Straight record labels, but after unexpected delays the group broke up before any recordings were released.

Simmons stayed in Los Angeles and completed two solo albums for Straight. He co-composed the soundtrack for the biker film Naked Angels (1969). His second album Lucille Has Messed My Mind Up (1969), featured Zappa as producer. Zappa wrote two songs and played lead guitar under the pseudonym La Marr Bruister. The engineer was Chris Huston, who also worked on Led Zeppelin II at about the same time. Lucile was voted the 2nd best album on Straight Records by Mojo Magazine. Both albums were re-issued on CD in 2007 by World In Sound Records.

Simmons is one of only a handful of musicians to share a songwriting credit with Zappa. Their co-laboration Wonderful Wino appears on Lucille Has Messed My Mind Up and on Zappa's 1976 album Zoot Allures. The title song of the album Lucille Has Messed My Mind Up was also re-recorded in a completely different arrangement on Zappa's 1979 album Joe's Garage. During a 1982 guest DJ spot on UK's BBC Radio 1 Zappa played some of his favorite songs including Simmons' I'm In The Music Business.

Jeff continued to play music with various groups in the Seattle area during the 1980s. He appeared in the 1988 movie Rock and Roll Mobster Girls which was produced on video tape in Seattle during the very early stages of the Grunge music scene. Jeff Simmons' most recent work is Blue Universe (2004).

The stuff of interest to Zappa fans are:
1. Includes the songs "Lucille has messed my mind up" and "Wonderful Wino", both of which are good versions.
2. Frank plays guitar on "Lucille" and "Raye."
3. It's produced by FZ
4. Ian Underwood is on it.

jeff simmons: keyboards, bass, vocals
frank zappa: lead guitar on 5, 6
craig tarwater: guitar
ian underwood: saxophones
ron woods: drums, percussion
john kehlior: drums on 5, 6
[produced by "lamarr bruister" (frank zappa) and chris huston]

Lucille Has Messed My Mind Up:
01. appian way (j.simmons)
02. zondo zondo (j.simmons)
03. madame du barry (j.simmons)
04. i'm in the music business (j.simmons)
05. lucille has messed my mind up (lamarr bruister (f.zappa))
06. raye (j.simmons)
07. wonderful wino (lamarr bruister (f.zappa), j.simmons)
08. tigres (j.simmons)
09. aqueous humore (j.simmons)
10. conversations with a recluse (j.simmons)

LINK:
h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=0N041SK7
207MB

EAC - CUE - LOG - FLAC (separate) - COVER (only front)

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

YU grupa - First two albums (@flac)


Bio
"YU grupa was formed in the autumn of 1970 by brothers Dragi and Žika Jelic(guitar and bass guitar), Miodrag Okrugic (organ) and Velibor Bogdanovic (drums). In the beginning the band performed under the name Idejni Posed ("Notional Property"), given by Kornelije Kovac. In November 1970 on their concert in Sinagoga club in Zemun, disc jockey Zoran Modli asked the audience to pik a name for the band. An unknown young man suggested the name YU grupa. Consistening the name, the band continued to hold birthday concerts on November 29, the date of Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia declaration.
Their first song, "Nona", was recorded at the end of December. The song was inspired by folk music of Kosovo, and recording it YU grupa became one of the pioneers of "Balkan rock" sound. Their first concert was organised by Nikola Karaklajic and Petar Popovic, editors of the Radio Belgrade show Vece uz radio. The concert was held in Dadov theatre on January 21 1971. During the year they held a great number of concerts, mostly in Serbia. They recorded fourteen songs for the needs of Radio Belgrade, part of those songs later released on their vinyl singles. All the copies of their first single "Nona" were sold right after the release, but PGP RTB refused to release new number of copies, so Jugoton became YU grupa's record label. The band performed at the Belgrade spring festival with the song "Tajna", also performed by Zdenka Kovacicek. Songs "Drveni most", "Mali medved" and "Devojka Džoj" were hits on all of their concerts. Okrugic's song "Opus 1" was very significant, but it was not released on any YU grupa album.

The band spent the summer performing at the prestigious club Lanterna in Rovinj. Those concerts brought first conflicts inside the band. After they returned to Belgrade Okrugic left the band. Guitarist Miodrag "Bata" Kostić joined the band. He was previously involved in the band's activity: he wrote some of the songs the band performed. Dragi Jelić and Kostic made an effective guitar duo, and Kostic continued to write folk-inspired hits. In March 1972 the band went on Bulgarian tour, during which they held forty concerts. Thanks to the Vece uz radio show, which had a cult status in Bulgaria, audience knew all of their songs. The others were shocked by their appearance. After they returned to Yugoslavia, they performed at the rock evening of Belgrade spring festival, performing at Dom Sindikata Hall with Korni Grupa, Time and Mladi Levi.
They spent the summer playing in Rovinj's Lanterna. Concerts in Rovinj were crucial once again. After returning to Belgrade Kostic and Bogdanovic left the band. Kostic joined Jutro, and Bogdanovic formed Opus. YU grupa continued as a trio, with Ratislav "Raša" Djelmaš, a former Mobi Dik, Pop Mašina and Siluete member as the new drummer. They spent the next year playing all across Yugoslavia, winning new audience in Slovenia and Croatia. At the time, a keyboard player Tihomir "Pop" Asanovic was invited to become a new member, but he joined Novi Fosili instead. In February 1973 YU grupa went to London to purchase new equipment, and the CBS Records producers, who had an opportunity to hear their recordings earlier, organised their concert in The Marquee. Thanks to the concert the band got the term at a studio, recorded demos, and a serios cooperation with CBS records was planned. The band returned to Yugoslavia to hold a concert at Hala sportova, and holding a high position on Yugoslav rock scene, the band blenched the career in England. In the summer their debut self-titled album YU grupa was released. The album brought numerous hits: blues-oriented "More", "Trka", Cudna šuma", and their cult ballad "Crni leptir". In November Kostic returned to the band.

At the beginning of 1974 YU grupa took part on the recording of Srdjan Marjanovic's debut LP Srdjan Marjanovic i prijatelji, and later released their second studio album Kako to da svaki dan? ("How Come Every Day...?"). The album was musically more diverse, but it did not consist from the numerous hits as the previous one. At the end of the year Dragi Jelic went to the army, and until he returned YU grupa performed as trio. In 1975 best Yugoslav guitarists took part in Kongres rock majstora ("Congress of rock masters") concert. Kostic, Žika Jelic and Djelmaš performed with Vedran Božic, Josip Bocek and Goran Bregovic, and the double album Kongres rock majstora was released.
Dragi returned in June 1975, and Kostic left the band conventionally. The band negotiated with a keyboard player Oliver Mandic, but the cooperation was not agreed. At the beginning of 1976, they released YU grupa III, featuring hits "Oprosti ljubavi", "Novi zvuk" and "Ja moram dalje". In September 1976 a compilation album YU zlato ("YU gold"), which featured their single songs, was released. The same year, Djelmaš left the band and formed Zebra. Dragan Micic replaced Djelmaš, and at the end of 1976 guitarist Nedžat Maculja joined the band. In 1977 they went on the Soviet Union tour, during which they held sixty-four concerts. The same year they released their fourth studio album Medju zvezdama ("Among the Stars"). Album featured Bata Kostic as a guest musician. In 1978 YU grupa performed at the pop oriented festival in Opatija, and their song "Spali svoja secanja" was released on the festival album Opatija 78. At the end 1978 Kostic once again became the member of the band, and a former Mama Co Co and Ribeli member Dragoljub Djuricic (drums) and a former Zdravo member Dragan Jankovic (keyboard) joined YU grupa. This lineup held another Soviet Union tour.
The next album Samo napred... ("Ride on..."), released in 1979, featured hits "Identitet, "Udaj se dobro", "Ideš mi na nerve", "Autobus za raj". Album featured Laza Ristovski, Bebi Dol and Sladjana Miloševic as guest musicians. At the time of New Wave expansion YU grupa's popularity began to decrease. At the end of 1981 their van with a part of the equipement burned down, and Žika Jelic was injured. After this incident YU grupa disbaned. The Jelic brothers started organising concerts, Djuricic became a member of Leb i Sol and Midorag Kostic became a Radio Belgrade editor.
Late 1980s and 1990s
At the end of the 1980s Bijelo Dugme made enormous success with their folk-oriented songs, and the band leader Goran Bregovic suggested the Jelic brothers, the pioneers of Yugoslav folk-rock sound, to reunite YU grupa. Although they occasionally performed during the 1980s, YU grupa officialy reunited in 1987. They released their comeback album Od zlata jabuka ("Golden Apple"), with the tittle track inspired by folk music as the main hit. Album featured keyboard player Saša Lokner as a guest musician. YU grupa performed at the Rock legends concert, alongside Indexi, Drago Mlinarec, Korni Grupa, Time and Radomir Mihajlovic Tocak. Live versions of YU grupa's Cudna šuma", "U tami disko kluba", "Crni leptir" and a medley compiled of "Nona", "Kosovski božuri" and "Sama" were released on the double live album Legende YU Rocka ("Legends of YU Rock"). In November 1988, YU grupa released Ima nade ("There is Hope"). Biggest hits were "Mornar" and power ballad "Dunavom šibaju vetrovi". This album was followed by Tragovi ("Traces"), recorded with Djelmaš on the drums once again, and featuring Pera Joe, Saša Lokner and Nikola Djuturilo as guests.
2000s
In 2005, with Igor Maleševic as the new drummer, YU grupa released its latest studio album with a symbolic title Dugo znamo se ("We Know Each Other for a Long Time"). The album was mostly hard rock-oriented, and did not feature many folk music elements. "Pustinja", "Zamolicu te", "Bože, spasi me" became immediate hits. In 2007 the band released its first official live album Live. In 2008 drummer Slobodan Jurišic; replaced Maleševic.

Discography
Studio albums
• YU grupa (Jugoton 1973)
• Kako to da svaki dan? (Jugoton 1974)
• YU grupa (Jugoton 1975)
• Medju zvezdama (Jugoton 1977)
• Samo napred... (PGP RTB 1979)
• Od zlata jabuka (ZKP RTLJ 1987)
• Ima nade (PGP RTB 1988)
• Tragovi (PGP RTB 1990)
• Rim (PGP RTS 1995)
• Dugo znamo se (PGP RTS 2005)
Live albums
• Legende YU Rocka (Various artists live album, Jugoton 1988)
• Live (PGP RTS 2007)
Compilation albums
• YU zlato (Jugoton 1976)



LINKS:

YU grupa - Kako to da svaki dan? (1974)
h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=UP9C764W

Yu grupa - YU grupa (1973)
h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=4N6DZ31X

VINYL RIP FROM BRAND NEW LP`s (NO CLIKS, POPS & OTHER SH.T)

FLAC (separate) - SCANS

Saturday, December 13, 2008

Banco del Mutuo Soccorso - Same 1972 (@flac)


Inspired by progressive rock acts from England, Vittorio Nocenzi and brother Gianni founded Banco del Mutuo Soccorso in Rome, Italy. They later recorded their eponymous debut in 1972, soon to be followed by Darwin!, and in 1973 Io sono nato libero.

Proving popular in Italy and becoming known abroad, the band signed with Manticore Records together with the Premiata Forneria Marconi. In 1975 Banco was released, a collection of translated songs together with new material, targeting the international market. Come in un'ultima cena was also translated as As in a Last Supper.

The 1970s also saw Banco del Mutuo Soccorso going in new directions, with a film soundtrack in 1976's Garofano rosso and recordings with an orchestra in 1978's …di terra. They changed their name to the simplified Banco.

The 1980s saw Banco's musical direction change towards lighter pop and shorter songs, producing some hits. Gianni Nocenzi left the band for a solo career. Other members came and went.

In the 1990s and now back to using the longer name, they started playing their 1970s material again. They performed unplugged versions of their songs live and re-recorded their first albums. New material was also produced.

Today, the band continue to play live, although no new material has been recorded since 1997.



LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=71BZTG1F
215Mb

FLAC - SCANS

Friday, December 12, 2008

TASTE - Same + On The Boards (@flac)


Taste - Same (1969)
The debut of the great Rory Gallagher !! If you love his work you have to check out Taste, his first band. The recording is raw, probably live to 4 track in the studio with little if any overdubbing, and not much in the way of any real production, not unlike the first couple Groundhogs albums, both in style and recording technique. "Blister On The Moon" reminds me of something Cream would have done around the time of Disraeli Gears. Rory did all the writing with the exception of a Leadbelly cover and one other traditional blues. As always, the guitar playing smokes.


Taste - On The Boards (1970)
The production is FAR better than the previous Taste album. Here, Rory seems a little more relaxed with the studio environment. The guitar solos are less meandering than on the first Taste album. The songwriting is much stronger as well. This album is where Rory hits his stride as a writer. The stereo panning, and other studio tricks, although comes dangerously close to rendering this as dated sounding, is still very cool. This is probably as experimental as Rory ever got in the studio. There's even a couple of sax solos played by Rory (!). Some of the tunes get into jazz territory. It's almost a culture shock, if you've been exposed to Rory's solo output, to listen to this. It's very experimental, but it's a great experiment.



LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=2R1ADF84

EAC - LOG - CUE - FLAC - SCANS

Thanx to Poor!!!

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

DEN ZA DEN - Same (1979) @flac


Extremly rare album!!!

Vinyl rip - No cliks & pops - Great sound quality

"Another record balancing between jazz-rock and Balkan folk. Yes, if you think it sounds like LEB I SOL, you're right. It does sound like that. At the moments if this was an offshoot of the band, with aliases in the line-up. As a line of comparison it's like listening to THINK FLOYD. I don't have a problem with that. If someone is stealing the style, that's fine, as long as the songs themselves aren't stolen.

There are a few things distancing this record from the LEB I SOL ones (and distancing even more from SMAK another jazz-rock/folk combo): it's more jazzy. The playing is tight, dense, perhaps too homogenic for my taste, I would rather prefer a bit of collage and a few silent moments here and there.

It's closer to, let's say, WEATHER REPORT, and therefore closer to contemporary fusion/Balkan folk scene (VASIL HADŽIMANOV). And DEN ZA DEN sound more like a combo then a group of individuals; all the instruments are bold, piano is even more daring (in jazz context), but the palette of the soundscapes is somewhat limited. Please note that Limit here still represents a huge area for improvisations.

Maybe, maybe, maybe there was no intention to sound Leb i Sol-like, perhaps it was sort of a coincidence. Is this too streched and naive? Well, Leb i Sol hadn't started the whole thing, SMAK did, if I'm not much mistaken. Perhaps there was a fusion-y trend in the mid-late seventies that gather more names under its blanked while many remained obscure. Such a thing won't be unusal in contemporary Macedonian musical scene - the bands gather around Makedonska Streljba folk-goth-punk movement (late 80's/early 90's) or more recent wave of world/fusion ensembles (mid-late 90's with EZGIJA; OKTOEHOS etc.). From that point of view, DEN ZA DEN have a clear place in Macedonian rock culture, and a good place at that. Even if we force the copycatting argument, Den Za Den sounds like some of BETTER Leb i Sol albums - it was issued just when thing started watering down. With or without any of the contexts, this is a very good record.

Studio Album, recorded in 1979, released in 1980

Line-up/Musicians
- Vladimir Jankulovski / electric bass
- Arian Dema / electric guitar, acoustic guitar, percussion
- Dragiša Soldatovic / electric piano, piano, Moog synth
- Dimitar Cokorovski / drums, percussion

Releases information
LP RTV Ljubljana LD 0587 (1980, Yugoslavia)

1 Svadba (4:05)
2 Galeb (3:52)
3 Ciganka (3:01)
4 Žed (3:27)
5 Fatamorgana (3:59)
6 Ćočor ritam (0:58)
7 A bila je tako draga (4:03)
8 Letnja ljubav (3:24)
9 Vodopad (2:39)
10 Jutro i noč (3:53)
11 Tako treba (4:49)

LINK:
h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=LHFPEFQA

FLAC (separate) - SCANS

Monday, December 8, 2008

Sunday, December 7, 2008

KORNELYANS (Korni Grupa) - Not An Ordinary Life (@flac) 1974


"KORNI GRUPA did it again, this time under the different name: they made excellent record. "Not An Ordinary Life" was aimed for the Western market; all the titles and lyrics are in English, and the band changed it's name from KORNI GRUPA to KORNELYANS. It wasn't huge success, though. However, album do not contain any bad tracks. Overall, band moved towards the symphonic sound, compared to its predecessor, but jazz-fusion influences are still evident, as well as almost funky bass lines. Highlights of this record are synths (used more often then on "Korni Grupa") and excellent guitar work, both electric and acoustic, where electric guitar solos are pushing the boundaries in a same vein as PFM did it in their finest moments. Vocals are more than good, and English pronunciation is...not that bad, at least not for the band from behind the Iron Curtain in early seventies.

Line-up/Musicians
- Kornelije Kovac / keyboards
- Josip Bocek / guitar
- Bojan Hreljac / bass
- Vladimir Furduj / drums
- Zlatko Pejakovic / lead vocals

Tracks
1. rising (2:15)
2. not an ordinary life (10:22)
3. generation 1942 (6:56)
4. fall of the land of woman (5:32)
5. temporary parting (4:00)
6. man with a white flag (11:48)

LINK:
h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=NQGUT6SM
268Mb

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Friday, December 5, 2008

KORNI GRUPA - Last Performance (Live In Novi Sad - November, 1974) @wav


The story behind...
A month ago I got from a friend vinyl rip 2 CD of Korni Grupa`s last concert in 1974. The sound was descent but not as it should be. Then I remembered that friend of mine has many LP`s in perfect condition as he used tu record LP to tape whenever he got a new album and his vinyls are still as they once were becouse he used to listen tapes and not vinyl.
5 songs from the concert were published on 2 diferent albums ("Korni Grupa - Mrtvo More" & "VA - Randevu S Muzikom"). However the sound and mastering of the albums was very much diferent no metter that material was recorded at the same concert.
Here you have new rip from 2 vinyls remastered by me and posted as wav files. I also added a 20+ min very, very rare version of Jedna Zena as bonus track. Unfortunately source for that track was VBR and i did my best from material avaliable.

This is a great album and will show you one of the best bands from ex Yu performing live in concert...

Track List:
01 - Covek sa belom zastavom (6:27)
02 - Blues (10:01)
03 - Jedna zena (5:27)
04 - I ne tako obican zivot (10:48)
05 - Put za istok (19:58)
06 - Jedna zena (with Dado Topic) bonus (20:45)

Sound quality - Tracks 1, 2 & 5 "A" # Tracks 3 & 4 "B+" # Track 6 "B"

LINK:
h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=E7L4DVI4
514Mb
WAV - COVERS (made)

New covers made by Mark:
h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=20ND9XL5

Hope you will enjoy and waiting for your respond...

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Radiohead - Kid A (2000) @flac


Kid A is the fourth album by the English alternative rock band Radiohead, released on 2 October 2000 (2000-10-02) in the United Kingdom and on 3 October 2000 (2000-10-03) in the United States and Canada. A commercial success worldwide, Kid A went platinum in its first week of release in the UK. Despite the lack of an official single or video as publicity, Kid A became the first Radiohead release to debut at #1 in the US. This success was credited variously to a unique marketing campaign, the early Internet leak of the album, or anticipation after the band's 1997 album, OK Computer.

Kid A was recorded in Paris, Copenhagen, Gloucestershire and Oxford with producer Nigel Godrich. The album's songwriting and recording were experimental for Radiohead, as the band replaced their earlier "anthemic" rock style with a more electronic sound. Influenced by Krautrock, jazz, and 20th century classical music, Radiohead abandoned their three-guitar lineup for a wider range of instruments on Kid A, using keyboards, the Ondes martenot, and, on certain compositions, strings and brass. Kid A also contains more minimal and abstract lyrics than the band's previous work. Singer Thom Yorke has said the album was not intended as "art", but reflects the music they listened to at the time. Original artwork by Stanley Donwood and Yorke, and a series of short animated films called "blips", accompanied the album.

Kid A has been considered one of the more challenging pop records to have commercial success, and it polarised opinion among both fans and critics. The album won a Grammy for Best Alternative Album and was nominated for Album of the Year. It also received praise for introducing listeners to diverse forms of underground music.

Track listing
"Everything in Its Right Place" – 4:11
"Kid A" – 4:44
"The National Anthem" – 5:50
"How to Disappear Completely" – 5:55
"Treefingers" – 3:42
"Optimistic" – 5:16
"In Limbo" – 3:31
"Idioteque" (Radiohead, Paul Lansky) – 5:09
"Morning Bell" – 4:29
"Motion Picture Soundtrack" – 6:59
"Motion Picture Soundtrack" contains several minutes of silence and a "hidden track" in its running time. The song proper ends at about 3:24 and an untitled instrumental hidden track starts at about 4:17 and ends at 5:09. The remaining 1:50 of the track are silent. The vinyl version is the same length, however the hidden track starts at about 6:05.

Radiohead
Thom Yorke – Vocals, programming, keyboard, guitar, bass guitar
Colin Greenwood – bass guitar, sampler
Jonny Greenwood – Ondes Martenot, guitar, string arrangements, sampler, synthesiser
Ed O'Brien – guitar, programming
Phil Selway – drums, percussion, programming

Additional musicians
Andy Bush – trumpet
Andy Hamilton – tenor saxophone (credited as "tenor horn")
Steve Hamilton – alto saxophone (credited as "alto horn")
Stan Harrison – baritone saxophone (etc.)
Martin Hathaway – alto saxophone
Mike Kearsey – bass trombone
Liam Kerkman – trombone
Mark Lockheart – tenor saxophone
The Orchestra of St. Johns – strings
John Lubbock – conductor
Paul Lansky – sample of "Mild und Leise" on "Idioteque"
Arthur Kreiger – sample of "Short Piece" on "Idioteque"



LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=KSCEZ8AA
294Mb

FLAC (separate) - SCANS

Sunday, November 23, 2008

Ultimate Spinach - same (1967) @flac


‘Ultimate Spinach’ was founded in 1967 under the name of 'Underground Cinema' as the brainchild of multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Ian Bruce-Douglas. The same year the band changed their name to 'Ultimate Spinach' and recorded their first record for MGM, produced by the ambitious Alan Lorber. Lorber created together with MGM the marketing concept of the 'Boston Sound' (later 'Bosstown' sound) to propose (and sell) an alternative to the West-coast bands. The three Boston bands starting that "movement” were ‘Ultimate Spinach’, ‘Orpheus’ and ‘The Beacon Street Union’. These bands, all produced by Alan Lorber, had musically not much in common and ‘Ultimate Spinach’ was the most interesting band to come out of this hype. Their first self-titled record, inspired by West-coast bands like ‘The Doors’ and ‘Jefferson Airplane’, presented an original mixture of psychedelic rock, folk and classical music. All lyrics and music were written by leader Ian Bruce-Douglas. ‘Ultimate Spinach’ privileged long elaborated suites, alternating instrumental passages, poetry and multipart vocals (the voice of Barbara Hudson reminding Grace Slick and Sonja Kristina) with original arrangements, including flutes, sitar, harpsichord and the electronic Theremin instrument. The record sold well, but the band was a victim of the hype and got negative critics by the press. The second record “Behold and See” was released in 1968 and followed the direction of the first with tighter tracks and the same overall quality. At the end of 1968 the band was reformed with Bruce-Douglas keeping only singer Barbara Hudson, but finally he left the band prior to the recording of the third self-titled ‘Ultimate Spinach’ record, leaving Barbara Hudson as the only original member. The record moved away from the psychedelic sound of the first two records and consisted of mainstream rock songs. ‘Ultimate Spinach’ recorded some of the most original psychedelic rock records.



LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=ADVFYDTI

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PREMIATA FORNERIA MARCONI - Cook (aka Live in USA) - 1974 @flac


The pioneer of Italian Progressive groups, PREMIATA FORNERIA MARCONI (PFM for short) is one of the leaders of the 70s prog movement. PFM developed a style which is uniquely Italian while maintaining links with the rest of the prog world. A lyrical, romantic and delicate music, full of fineness. A great melodic and instrumental richness, somptuous compositions and arrangements. Sometimes compared with the early KING CRIMSON, the group had its own musical personality, with its elegant music.

"Per Un Amico" ("Photos of Ghosts") and "L'Isola Di Niente" as well as their first, "Storia Di Un Minuto" are all virtual classics of progressive music, obviously influenced by early KING CRIMSON and GENESIS yet sounding nothing like them. The instrumentation is superb with fluid guitar, highly original synthesizer sounds, beautiful violin and flute, and ethereal vocals that are so important to the music, that replacing them with English vocals becomes a detriment. "The World Became The World" is another English-language album, but this time with the same music, so it's not as bad as "Photos Of Ghosts".

"Marconi Bakery" is a compilation of music from the first three Italian albums. "Jet Lag", from 1977, had much of the original PFM spirit with a jazz inclination, akin to groups such as ARTI + MESTIERI, though somewhat more low-key. "Suonare Suonare" came out in 1980, and saw PFM turning back toward their original sound, from the style of "Passpartu". On "PFM - Live In Japan 2002 (Tokyo)" the band plays classic tunes from the Seventies. A must for all prog fans...!

About this release:
Part of a five-disc rerelease of classic P.F.M albums (and side projects) digitally remastered in 20bit digital K2 sound with cardboard sleeve replicas of the original LP cases. Series includes "Photos of Ghosts," "Cook," "Chocolat Kings," Pete Sinfield's "Still," and Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso's "Banco."



LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=KA186ENP
318MB

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Saturday, November 22, 2008

Tripsichord Music Box - same (1971) @flac


"Tripsichord Music Box, whose shortened name Tripsichord is sometimes used, came from San Francisco. Even though their album was released in 1971, late for the fast paced 1966-1968 period of San Francisco psychedlia, it is still considered an equal to the best and most brilliantly adept albums from the acid rock movement—a Bay area music specialty based upon distorted (crazy) guitars. Probably formed in 1968 by five relatively fresh musicians, the group had a very classic rock line-up: Randy Gordon on the drums, Frank Straight on guitar, Dave Zandonatti on bass, Oliver Mckinney on keyboards (organ), and B. Carr on vocals. Our five acid rockers quickly assembled a repertoire of original songs, thanks for the most part to the talents of Dave Zandonatti and B. Carr. This doesn’t mean for certain that, in the first part of their career, there weren’t some personnel changes. In any case, in 1969 they were taken under the wing of Matthew Katz. Manager, producer, and the founder and operator of the San Francisco Sound label, Katz was a know Haight Ashbury character, having participated in a good number of music ventures since that day in March 1965 where, with singer Marty Balin (founder of Jefferson Airplane) he purchased the bar “the Honey Bucket”. Situated on Fillmore Street in the Marina district, it was remodeled and redecorated and would become the well-known music club the Matrix. Matthew Katz would, as a result, become the first manager/producer of Jefferson Airplane. Whatever criticisms one could lobby against Katz’s methods of band management, it is undeniable that he often knew how to take full advantage of intuition and taste. Thus, in 1966, he took over the business end of the still fledgling Moby Grape. Then in 1968, he allowed It's a Beautiful Day to press a single and release an LP on his own label before they signed with Columbia.

It was San Francisco Sound that released the first recording of Tripsichord Music Box—the single “Times and Seasons”/“Sunday the Third” (San Francisco Sound 115). The resulting sound was certainly unique, but the LP format was too restrictive in its length to allow the band to express the entirety of their talents. And if these two titles did possess rare qualities, particularly on “Sunday the Third”, they were hardly original and didn’t stand out against the masses of music produced in1969. It was also at this time that Matthew Katz concocted the idea to release a compilation—one that was destined to lift up his young protégés. Titled “San Francisco Sound”, the compilation was released on the mysterious label Fifth Pipe Dream (F.P.D. 11680) and brought together tracks from It’s a Beautiful Day ("Bulgaria" and the imaginative and unedited "Aquarian Dream", the two sides of their first single), Black Swan (a rather ordinary pop group—the weakest of the four), Indian Puddin Pipes (the formidable "Hashish" and "Water and Wine") and of course Tripsichord Music Box. Tripsichord contributed three songs: "You’re the Woman", "It’s Not Good" (these two songs are actually one), and "Family Song". By far the longest tracks on the album, they are superb, and even though the vocals are themselves excellent, it is above all the explosive and burning guitar and organ solos, and the high-tension melodies that keep our attention. The perfect illustration of acid rock at its highest level, these three tunes that are found nowhere else have been added, on this CD, to the nine songs from the original Tripsichord album—providing a more complete look into what was Tripsichord Music Box.

The product of a collaboration between San Francisco Sound and Janus Records (between Katz and Bob Scerbo), Tripsichord Music Box (Janus J.L.S. 3016), was released two years later in 1971. The album cover was particularly beautiful and symbolic. Done in the style of Gustave Klimt and 1920s illustrators, it evokes the surreal, magical and dreamlike atmosphere of fairy tales, and prepares us for the marvelous voyages (trips) of acid rock. As you are able to discover, the content is at the top of its game, and if certain songs like “We Have died” or “Son of the Morning” remind us of Moby Grape (melodies, vocals and bright sounds), the complete record offers spurts of explosive and deafening guitars, beautiful melodies and remarkable energy. The album doesn’t have a single weak spot, and each song, in its proper place, can inspire happiness. For my part, I must confess a preference for the elevated cavalcades that are “On the Last Ride”, “New World”, “Short Order” and especially “Fly Baby” (a high point in the guitar fret board trip of San Francisco art). A beautiful work that must be a part of your record collection, and listened to often, very often, to once again feel the pleasure, the emotion and the lyricism of these cosmic dreams, already nostalgic from a lost paradise



LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=D503N080
377MB

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The Byrds Box Set (1990) 4 CD @flac


The Byrds is a boxed set released by American band The Byrds in 1990 on Columbia Records. A four-CD package, it is a career-spanning set (save for the 1973 reunion album released on Asylum Records, Byrds.).

This release is notable for its inclusion of rare and unreleased songs (many of which turned up as bonus tracks on the remastered CDs of the individual albums). It is also notable for its four new recordings featuring Roger McGuinn, Chris Hillman, and David Crosby. Both Gene Clark and Michael Clarke, still living in 1990, did not take part in the reunion.

Reaching 151 in the U.S. charts, The Byrds provides a well-executed overview of the band and their music. It is currently out of print.

LINKS: ( 2 x 700MB + 1 x 159MB)
h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=OXZZ1IX2
h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=XIUTVLQ0
h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=0ENL8DQJ

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Thursday, November 20, 2008

Spooky Tooth - 4 albums (@flac)


Crucial to their sound was their instrumentation; they were one of the few acts within the rock forum of the time to adopt the twin keyboard approach (both an organ and a piano player) alongside The Band (whose "The Weight" was recorded by Spooky Tooth as a single in 1968) and Procol Harum.

They formed in October 1967, out of a combination of The Ramrods (1960 - late 1963), The V.I.P.'s (late 1963 - April 1967) and Art (April — October 1967).

The line-up changed several times, but typically was:
Mike Harrison (born Michael Harrison, 3 September 1942, Carlisle, Cumbria) (keyboards/vocals)
Greg Ridley (born Alfred Gregory Ridley, 23 October 1942, Aspatria, Cumbria — died 19 November 2003, in Java, Spain) (bass guitar/vocals)
Luther (Luke) Grosvenor (born Luther James Grosvenor, 23 December 1946, Evesham, Worcestershire) (guitar/vocals)
Mike Kellie, (born Michael Kellie, 24 March 1945, Birmingham, Warwickshire) (drums)
Gary Wright, (born 26 April 1943, Cresskill, New Jersey, U.S.) (organ/vocals)

1969's Spooky Two LP is generally considered to be the best effort by the group and was the last album release by the original lineup. It included the song "Better By You, Better Than Me", which was covered by Judas Priest on their 1978 release Stained Class. The track later gained some attention in the media as subject of a court trial in 1990. It was claimed that the subliminal messages in the song's recording by Judas Priest caused two youngsters to commit mutual suicide. The court finally judged in favor of the accused.

Ridley joined Humble Pie in 1969 and was replaced by Andy Leigh (in time for 1970's album Ceremony) who went on to Matthews Southern Comfort with ex-Fairport Convention vocalist Ian Matthews. The experimental nature of Ceremony received mixed reviews and following its release Wright also bowed out. The core of Harrison, Grosvenor and Kellie struggled on for one more album, aptly titled The Last Puff, completed with friends from Joe Cocker's Grease Band.

They broke up in the autumn of 1970, however after solo efforts Harrison and Wright reformed Spooky Tooth in September 1972 with a different (and frequently changing) line-up. The best known member of these line-ups (from March 1973 to September 1974) was Mick Jones (guitar / vocals), later in Foreigner and, from February — May 1974, Mike Patto (vocals) replaced Harrison for the 1974 release The Mirror. The group then split again in September 1974.

Spooky Tooth
discography
1968 - It's All About
1969 - Spooky Two
1970 - Ceremony (with Pierre Henry)
1970 - The Last Puff
1971 - Tobacco Road (=It's All About)
1973 - You Broke My Heart So I Busted Your Jaw
1973 - Witness
1974 - The Mirror
1999 - Cross Purpose
1999 - The Best of Spooky Tooth: That Was Only Yesterday
2000 - Comic Violence
2001 - BBC Sessions
2007 - Nomad Poets (DVD)



Spooky Tooth - It's All About (remastered & expanded)
LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=19D9QUPJ
373MB
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Spooky Tooth - Spooky Two
LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=8PTYMOKN
214MB
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Spooky Tooth - The Last Puff [expanded & remastered]
LINK: h!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=RNQA1VWX
304MB
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Spooky Tooth - You Broke My Heart, So I Busted Your Jaw [remasiered & expanded]
LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=KYV94UAC
273MB
FLAC (separate) - SCANS

People, if you think I do not like comments - you are wrong!!!

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Jefferson Airplane - Ignition 4CD (@flac)


CD 1
Jefferson Airplane Takes Off: Stereo version
Blues from an Airplane (Balin/Spence)
Let Me In (Balin/Kantner)
Bringing Me Down (Balin/Kantner)
It's No Secret (Balin)
Tobacco Road (Warnick)
Runnin' 'Round This World (Balin/Kantner)
Come Up the Years (Balin/Kantner)
Run Around (Balin/Kantner)
Let's Get Together (Powers)
Don't Slip Away (Balin/Spence)
Chauffeur Blues (Melrose)
And I Like It (Balin/Kaukonen)
Jefferson Airplane Takes Off: Mono version
Blues from an Airplane (Balin/Spence)
Let Me In (Balin/Kantner)
Bringing Me Down (Balin/Kantner)
It's No Secret (Balin)
Tobacco Road (Warnick)
Runnin' 'Round This World (Balin/Kantner)
Come Up the Years (Balin/Kantner)
Run Around (Balin/Kantner)
Let's Get Together (Powers)
Don't Slip Away (Balin/Spence)
Chauffeur Blues (Melrose)
And I Like It (Balin/kaukonen)

CD 2
Surrealistic Pillow: Stereo version
She Has Funny Cars (Balin/Kaukonen)
Somebody to Love (Slick)
My Best Friend (Spence)
Today (Balin/Kantner)
Comin' Back to Me (Balin)
3/5 of a Mile in 10 Seconds (Balin)
D.C.B.A. (Kantner)
How Do You Feel (Mastin)
Embryonic Journey (Kaukonen)
White Rabbit (Slick)
Plastic Fantastic Lover (Balin)
Surrealistic Pillow: Mono version
She Has Funny Cars (Balin/Kaukonen)
Somebody to Love (Slick)
My Best Friend (Spence)
Today (Balin/Kantner)
Comin' Back to Me (Balin)
3/5 of a Mile in 10 Seconds (Balin)
D.C.B.A. (Kantner)
How Do You Feel (Matin)
Embryonic Journey (Kaukonen)
White Rabbit (Slick)
Plastic Fantastic Lover (Balin)

CD 3
After Bathing At Baxter's
The Ballad of You & Me & Pooneil (Kantner)
A Small Package of Value Will Come to You Shortly (Blackman/Dryden/Thompson)
Young Girl Sunday Blues (Balin/Kantner)
Martha (Kentner)
Wild Tyme (H) (Kantner)
The Last Will of the Castle (Kaukonen)
Rejoyce (Slick)
Watch Her Ride (Kantner)
Spare Chaynge (Casady/Dryden/Kaukonen)
Two Heads (Slick)
Won't You Try Saturday Afternoon (Kentner)


CD 4
Crown Of Creation
Lather (Slick)
In Time (Balin/Kantner)
Triad (Crosby)
Star Track (Kaukonen)
Share a Little Joke (Balin)
Chushingura (Dryden)
If You Feel (Balin/Blackman)
Crown of Creation (Kantner)
Ice Cream Phoenix (Cockey/Kaukonen)
Greasy Heart (Slick)
The House at Pooneil Corners (Balin/Kantner)

LINK (text): h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=Y9QJJXUD

Tear gas - same (@flac)

Tear Gas was the final album by rock band Tear Gas. After the release of this album, Alex Harvey joined the group. It went on to become The Sensational Alex Harvey Band, without David Batchelor on vocals.






Top 10 UK early seventies heavy prog bands


LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=Q2YVJFME

EAC _ LOG _ CUE _ FLAC

Tea and Symphony - An Asylum For The Musically Insane (@flac)

This innovative band from Birmingham represented one of the best examples concerning the raising of the proto-prog and art rock scene in the late sixties,in the vein of the early King Crimson and regarding also of the experimental side of bands such as East of Eden (listen to "Merkator Projected).Naturally Tea&Symphony, sometimes considered as an obscure cult band,could not think of emulating the successful debut of Fripp&c... anyway They were much closer to classic prog than the majority of the proto-prog bands of the same period. This stuff is one of the most experimental and exoteric as well, in comparison to their contemporary english bands of the late sixties, by using a different set of instruments and interesting vocal harmonies too!! Moreover the odd instrumental combinations and strange dissonances as well, are performed skillfully ...even though not all this stuff will appeal to you. Some obscure tunes and a sort of brainmstorming too, complete this memorable album, which will be an important reference also for bands such as US 70's Cathedral or the european Shylock in the following years...
If you are into this crazy treatment of lyrics and music in the same time,typical of some UK 60's proto-prog bands,without remarking their immature arrangement too much, sometimes being a bit raw, you will remain appealed to such stuff. Besides their defined lyrics and good construction of the songs as well, are well worth checking out !!
Of course this is not a masterpiece,nevertheless it exercised a strong influence on the 70's classic progressive bands, characterized by some barbered-wire dissonances and a different approach too, in comparison to the usual romantic bands of that period.

Recommended as an historical document!!

LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=YXHJTRQL
245MB

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Monday, November 17, 2008

Tananas - Alive in Jo`burg (2001) @flac

"Tananas were a trio of world class musicians from South Africa and Mozambique who got together in 1988. Their improvisational and rhythmic sensibility established them as one of the most original and compelling groups that emerged in South Africa in the late 20th century.

The individual band members were Gito Baloi (bass/vocals), Ian Herman (drums) & Steve Newman (guitar). Baloi, a Mozambican, had been playing with Pongola, and Herman had been drumming with Cape rockers The Genuines.

The first Tananas album was released in 1988. The group recorded two albums for a major label and ran into problems following the release of 1992's Time, with artistic differences between the three members cited as the main reason for the decision to put the band on hiatus. Newman began working with guitarist Tony Cox, while Baloi launched a critically applauded solo career. Herman and Newman relaunched Tananas in 1994, but with Baloi unwilling to rejoin his former colleagues the duo was forced to use additional musicians on the commercially driven Orchestra Mundo and Unamunacua. Baloi recorded two solo albums during that period.

Tananas used to be essentially an instrumental band allied to jazz but unmistakably African at heart. In the group's latter stage the recordings have included more vocals by Mozambican singer and bass player, Gito Baloi, who sang in Shangaan, Tsonga and Portuguese.

Following another long separation, the original line-up of Tananas reunited in the late 90s, signed a new recording contract with Sony, and recorded Seed.

Long regarded as South Africa’s most gifted drummer, Herman took up an offer of work in the United States. In New York he worked with luminaries such as Paul Simon and George Duke, later settling in San Francisco. He returned only briefly, to record with Peter Sklair and Paul Hanmer’s band, Unofficial Language. In 2000 Herman got a call from from Newman and longtime Tananas manager Kerry Friedman, imploring him to come home and make a new start with Tananas. The trio joined the WOMAD tour and finally began to receive some international recognition.

Unfortunately, the annual reunions won't take place anymore. Gito Baloi was shot dead while returning home from a performance in Johannesburg in April 2004 (Mozambican Music Star Gito Baloi Murdered in Johannesburg), ending any chance of a band reunion.

LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=VW0O4NE9
387MB

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Friday, November 14, 2008

La Revolución de Emiliano Zapata - same (@flac)

"In the era of psychedelic rock and under the influence of American hippies of the late 1960s, a young band from Guadalajara headed by Javier Martin del Campo, formed with the intention of interpreting contemporary popular songs of the era in their own style. Initially, their hobby led them to play at local parties, but the resulting fame soon spread beyond their city. The group won the most call-in votes during a contest organized by a local radio station called "Radio ondas de la alegria" "Waves of Happiness Radio", and earned themselves an audition with an important record label.

Initially reluctant, they signed a contract with Polydor Records, launching their brief but successful foray into the world of rock music. With an original musical concept and creative sense, the group moved to Mexico City, continuing to adapt their urban rhythms and establish a base for their new musical launches. In 1970, they released their first record, containing songs "Nasty Sex" and "Still don't (Not yet)", which quickly shot up the popular charts both locally and worldwide. The head office of Polydor Records sent the group five medals as recognition for their high level of sales in the Americas, United Kingdom, and Europe of their one big hit, "Nasty Sex."

The relative obscurity of the band did not reduce the great impact achieved in those far-off areas. Later, they recorded their second hit, "Shit City," which earned only moderate success compared to their first.

They were invited to perform in the Avandaro festival in 1972, but declined the invitation due to an already very busy schedule. In that year, they took part in the film "La verdadera vocación de Magdalena" "The True Calling of Magdalena", starring singer and actress Angélica María, which more or less seriously addresses the topics that concerned young people of the era.

The members of the group at that time were: Oscar Rojas (vocals), Carlos Valle (lead guitar, harmony vocal), Francisco Martínez Ornelas (bass guitar), Marco Carrasco (drums) and Javier Martin del Campo (guitar).

Because the group's musical concepts varied between several trends and influences, the search for new hits was fruitless, producing only the song "Pigs," among the last to achieve fame. Adding to this was the emotional turmoil that the band members began to experience, unleashing a series of fights and disagreements that eventually led to changes in the lineup. Lead singer Oscar Rojas grew weary of both the city and the group environment, and left the group permanently in 1974, beginning the decline of La Revolución de Emiliano Zapata.

Facing a somewhat hostile political and social reaction, the group's fortunes experienced a downturn. Changing musical trends ended by subduing psychedelic rock, and while some groups managed to survive on the fringes of Big Media (the group "El Tri" for example, becoming popular in suburban areas), the band members of "Rev" decided to radically change their musical style, becoming singers of romantic ballads, thus ending their time as a rock band. This change, according to Antonio Cruz, was carefully considered, and it was this decision that allowed the group to continue existing in the current musical climate.

La Revolucion de Emiliano Zapata - La Revolucion de Emiliano Zapata CD
Reissue of classic early 70s psychedelic rock from Mexico. Great songs and tons of smokin' guitars and twangin' fuzz. One of the very best from Mexico! If you like late 60s U.S. psych rock don't miss this one! It really kills!



LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=4T7EK1W6
253MB

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Wednesday, November 12, 2008

EPITAPH - same (1971) @flac

"Comprised of 2 Germans and 2 Brits, Epitaph's sound is similar to the traditional British progressive heavy rock genre along the lines of Uriah Heep, Deep Purple, Led Zepplin. However, one can not overlook the effect which King Crimson had on Epitaph. Non-Crimson fans should note that the Crimzoids had a track titled 'Epitaph' on their 1969 debut LP; oddly enough, there is a track on Epitaph's debut which could easily be mistaken for this track! Coincidence?

'Epitaph 1971 (remastered & expanded in 2005)' features five guitar driven rock tracks + 5 bonus tracks , which are quite derivative at times of more popular British bands. The album opens with 'Moving To The Country' is a straight forward rock number reminiscent of early Uriah Heep. Following this is 'Visions', a slow atmospheric ballad heavily influenced by King Crimson's 1969 track 'Epitaph', the track contains lush mellotron and the chord sequence and lyrics similar to Pink Floyd's 'Echoes'. Though derivative of both of these two great bands, 'Visions' sticks out as the best track on this album. 'Hopelessly' is another progressive heavy rock tour de force. This track builds slowly and contains an extended instrumental section. 'Little Maggie' contains a nice chorus hook and a playfully jangly blues/folk guitar similar to Jimmy Pages' work. Perhaps the most original composition from the LP, 'Early Morning', contains a fairly complex arrangement and an ominous sound. The album manages to stand on its own and should appeal greatly to fans of progressive heavy rock.

Remastered - Expanded

Musicians:
Cliff Jackson - Guitar, Vocals
Klaus Walz - Guitar, Vocals
Bernd Kolbe - Bass, Mellotron, Vocals
Jim McGillivray - Drums, Vocals

LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=F5UMVWMU
445MB

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Captain Beefheart & the Magic Band - Shiny Beast (Bat Chain Puller) @flac

If you consider "Doc at the radar station" to be Beefheart's best, which many do, then this cd is for you. Using basically the same version of the Magic Band, Beefheart delves deep into his free-blues-rock hybrid. The title track is almost disturbing in it's hypnotic ranting. "Floppy Boot Stomp" is great lyrically and the band sounds amazing in it's rythm. Then there is the sublime "Harry Irene" which sounds like Tom Waits by way of the Beatles, if you could imagine such a thing. "You Know You're A Man" almost delves into 70's rock territory, (but with the Captain you know he doesn't quite get there.) "Doc" is probably the pivotal album, "Trout Mask Replica" the watershed. But "Shiny Beast" is definitely in the same league.



LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=MGV5LVPJ
303MB

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Tuesday, November 11, 2008

John Paul Jones - Zooma (@flac)

"While Jimmy Page and Robert Plant carried on the Zep torch with hit-and-miss projects such as the Firm, the Honeydrippers, Coverdale/Page, and Page/Plant, John Paul Jones got his hands artistically dirty, producing the Butthole Surfers' Independent Worm Saloon, working on film soundtracks, and collaborating with radical punk diva Diamanda Galas. Not surprisingly, several of the tracks on Jones's gutsy first solo album, Zooma, breathe post-punk fire: the pile-driving title track, wrapped in a gurgling sound collage, pummels a JPJ bass riff with a "sick guitar solo" by the Surfers' Paul Leary. Jones reclaims Zeppelin as his own even as he transcends it."Snake Eyes," an eerie blues epic arranged with orchestral strings around Jones's superb organ playing, suggests "When the Levee Breaks" filtered through Igor Stravinsky or Bernard Herrmann; and you can't miss the echoes of "Trampled Under Foot" in the bass figures of "B. Fingers." The instrumental Zooma reinforces Jones's integral role in Zeppelin, his influential and still vital bass playing, and his...well, balls.



Personnel:
John Paul Jones - bass guitar, double bass, keyboards, guitars, electric mandola, Kyma
Pete Thomas - drums, percussion
Paul Leary - lead guitar
Trey Gunn - rhythm guitar, Warr guitar
Denny Fongheiser - djembe, drums

LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=ANMGZQ33
308MB

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Friday, November 7, 2008

Dr. JOHN - Gris Gris (@flac)

Covered in a variegated spray of New Orleans Mardi Gras feathers and shiny voodoo baubles, Mac Rebennack's highly personal mythology was finally made real on this 1968 album. This was his first appearance made under the new guise of Dr. John Creaux, the Night Tripper. Before then, he'd been a pivotal figure on the Crescent City R&B circuit. Afterward, he became one of its most significant blues ambassadors. This album is a classic of the admittedly specialized psychedelic swamp-gumbo genre, boasting at least four tracks that have become cult favorites. "Gris-Gris Gumbo Ya-Ya," "Mama Roux," "Jump Sturdy," and "I Walk on Gilded Splinters" each delicately mix catchy choruses and weird spatial sound effects, with radical stereo separation, intensely croaking, close-quarter vocals from the doctor, pneumatic keyboard riffs, pinprick electric guitar, and booming Afro-Caribbean percussion.



LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=NOQXU18Z

Thanx to POOR!!!

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

FRANK ZAPPA - Trance-Fusion (@flac)

"This is by far the best release since LATHER. And the sound quality is amazing, particularly for a Zappa CD. There is breadth, depth, "space" between this instruments, etc.. In fact, The Zappa Family Trust should task Mr. Ludwig with remastering all of the pre-1993 catalog, most of which sounds like its had the life sucked out of it by Mr. Stone's previous remastering efforts. Think I'm kidding? Just compare the depth/quality of sound on any vinyl Zappa album to that of the same release on CD and you'll see what I mean. The sound of those pre-1993 albums on CD is pretty awful.

Now on to the music. There is some truly diabolical string-mangling on this gem of a disc!! This is an excellent sequel to the "Shut Up N' Play Yer Guitar" and "Guitar" releases. Be forewarned, however, that 2 tracks (the first and final) feature Dweezil, NOT Frank as soloist (while there is a bit of noodling from Frank toward the end of "Chunga", its Dweezil's solo that is the focus of the piece). That said, sandwiched between those two bookends (which are pretty good themselves) are some moments of pure sonic delight. Check out "Ask Dr. Stupid", which features the Coliauta lineup from the late 70's: the solo is taken from a performance of "Easy Meat", and Vinnie's drumming turns the piece into a somewhat deranged permutation of a "cha-cha" while Frank "puts the eyebrows on it"!! Most of the other solos are from the 1988 and 1984 tours. As with the previous "Guitar"-oriented releases, its interesting to note the very different sounds of the various lineups represented, particularly in the drums. While Chad Wackerman is an amazing drummer, his sound on all of Zappa's releases always comes off as somewhat mechanical, particularly when contrasted with Vinnie's much more "organic" approach. Vinnie and Frank always seemed to have some sort of "mind meld" happening when Frank was soloing, with Vinnie somehow able to anticipate what Frank was about to play most of the time. That quality simply isn't there with Wackerman (or Bozzio, for that matter), giving the Coliauta lineup's output a slight edge over the others (in my opinion). Maybe we'll be fortunate enough to get an official release of some of Mr. Coliauta's live work with Jeff Beck from this past summer so we can find out if he's still the same type of musician that played with Frank so long ago.

Other highlights are "Light is All That Matters", "Bowling on Charen", and the title track. But its ALL good stuff! And its VERY HARD to find anyone else around these days who can hold a candle to Frank's sheer brilliance on guitar and his mastery of so many varied tones/moods (Jeff Beck and Nels Cline come to mind, but that's about it). So go out and get this thing, crank it up, and annoy the heck out of your neighbors!!



LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=PSR0XUEZ
437MB

FLAC (separate) - SCANS

Monday, November 3, 2008

EDUARDO BORT - same (1974) Spain (@flac)

Eduardo Bort is a Spanish guitarist who released his eponymous album in 1974. It mixes symphonic pieces with raging guitar and romantic interludes to make an album which rewards repeated plays. 'Thoughts' opens with good use of orchestra, including tubular bells, overlaid with synth swoops and a passionate vocal, making for an excellent introduction to the album. The nine minute 'Walking On The Grass' closes with a frenetic guitar solo, showing just what a good guitarist he is. 'Pictures Of Sadness' shows his other side, with a lyrical solo punctuating the riffs that hold the song together. 'Yann' features a magnificent guitar and mellotron duel, leading into the almost pastoral 'En Las Riberas Del Yann' which closes the album in a lush mix of strings and guitar. Although credited to Bort he only has a hand in composing four of the six tracks, but the overall writing blends in so that the whole album flows very well. It has lyrics that are split between English and Spanish, although to be honest you don't really notice too much when you are listening to the great music, and you can hear why this has been hailed as one of the best ever Spanish progressive albums.



LINK: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=J0P5HOFM
253MB

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