VARIOUS ARTISTS
‘TOO FAR OUT’
(Cherry Red)
A three CD 88 track dive into the 1960’s world of Joe Meek’s recording studio on London’s Holloway Road. The studio was Joe’s flat and is renowned as a hotbed of creativity and sonic innovation, but this takes our understanding of just how creative and prolific Joe and his artist’s work to a new level. Most of these tracks were taken from the newly rediscovered ‘Tea Chest’ archives and cover a broad spectrum of styles predominantly rock n roll and garage, including auditions, alternative takes, previous unknowns and plenty of gems including deranged freakbeat, modernists, psyche and R&B. A lot of these tracks would have been too experimental and out there for the record buying public of the day but glory be that Joe Meek was just happy to experiment and roll with what were no doubt his ideas in the first place. The Tony Dangerfield tracks stand out for me, astonishing stuff. This is a musical treasure trove.
Simon Nott
VARIOUS ARTISITS
‘SO REAL – COLONIAL ROCKERS FROM CHAPEL HILL NC’
(Bear Family)
This is a cracking, 10” vinyl which plays at 45 rpm with a dozen tracks emanating from the Colonial label of North Carolina. These are some of the best from a label that released all manner of stuff, including comedy gospel and bluegrass. Luckily, they also put out some excellent rock n roll and rockabilly in their 14 year history. There was some novelty value in recordings of the rocking ilk too, E C Beatty’s ‘Ugh! Ugh! Ugh!’ with its fascination for scalping with ‘Tarzan’ on the B side, as well as to a lesser extent Geroge Hamilton IV’s breakthrough hit, when rereleased on ABC Paramount. ‘If You Don’t Know’. The label certainly persevered with rock n roll as The Goldtones’ 1965 recording ‘Oriental Shake’ will testify. This is 10” of quality completed by an excellently illustrated and informative booklets.
Simon Nott
VARIOUS ARTISTS
‘TRIUMPH – A&B SIDES’
(Trophy)
Joe Meek’s ‘Triumph’ label lasted less than 12 months, but you get 12 tracks on this vinyl 10” here, remastered and in superb quality from ‘The Tea Chest Tapes’. This album is presented in a quirky track format which really works, singles from RGM 1000 to the final RGM 1012 with tantalising gaps in the release schedule, the A sides on side A and the B sides on side B. I had to check that the first track wasn’t Gene Vincent, he has turned up on these tapes, but it wasn’t it’s Peter Jay & The Blue Men who rock along with ‘Just Too Late’. An interesting band that don’t really sound like anyone are The Fabulous Flee-Rackers – Dutch for little rascals or something of that nature come up with two unlikely instrumental covers ‘Green Jeans’ which is basically Green Sleeves and ‘You Are My Sunshine’ but they both work, the single dented the charts. Ricky Wayne’s offerings are hot slabs of rocking wax, ‘Hot Chick A’Roo’ and ‘Don’t Pick On Me’, just some highlights of another outstanding release, highlighting the lesser known could have been greats and the genius that was Meek.
Simon Nott
VARIOUS ARTISTS
‘HEADIN’ FOR THE POOR HOUSE’
(Bear Family)
The musical net is cast wide both chronologically and musically for this latest Bear Family themed compilation. Dr Clayton’s Buddy and Jimmy Witherspoon both date from 1948, the clock doesn’t stop ticking until Carl Perkins’ February 1967 composition and recording ‘Poor Boy Blues’. While the theme here is evident the music is rich ranging from earthy blues the epitome of back luck stories, evidence of the cross over both Clyde McPhatter and Elvis’ version of ‘Money Honey’, the Sarg classic ‘My Money’s Gone’ by Cecil Moore, the Hawaiian strains of Ted Daffan’s Texans ‘ Got Money On My Mind’ and so much more, the genre gamut is run and it’s a hell of a ride, the sleeve notes and packaging are different class as you’d expect from Bear Family, a superb collection.
Simon Nott
JOHNNY LEE WILLS
‘THE BAND’S ‘A ROCKIN’
(Bear Family)
This is the latest in the long established ‘Gonna Shake This Shack Tonight’ series which has highlighted that bands were indeed rocking before rockabilly was a thing. The ingredients were often there in late 1940s and early 1950’s hillbilly and western swing, the percussive nature of a slapped bass was easier to capture in recordings than drums in those early days. This is Johnny Lee Wills turn, the lesser-known brother of Bob Wills but with arguably as much talent and a an equally good band though mix and matching went on. There are 31 tracks here from the 1940s and early 1950s that demonstrate how near western swing came to rock n roll. Saxophone and clarinet along with steel guitars and fiddles really does rock along and gave country music an urban feel. This really is a wealth of the rare and rocking roots of rock n roll, real danceable stuff, of course the booklet is packed with info for geeks like me who like to learn about the artist as well as bopping around the room to them, there will be plenty of that listening to this.
Simon Nott