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Rose Tattoo (1978)





No to na zakończenie wakacji dosyć sentymentalnych pierdolencji - Rose Tattoo. Bezkompromisowa muzyka, czad ... a przede wszystkim szczery przekaz. Duch rock'n'rolla na dalekich Antypodach jest zadziwiający, ale może przede wszystkim dlatego, że rozwijał się w oderwaniu od komercyjnego kierunku nadanego przez USA i UK. W tej muzyce można znaleźć proste przesłania, bez ściemy i ukłonów pod publiczkę. Tak narodził się "wielki komercyjny Moloch" - AC/DC i z tego samego źródła - chociaż nieco w cieniu - The Rose Tattoo.


Rose Tattoo is an Australian rock and roll band, now led by Angry Anderson, that was formed in Sydney in 1976. Their sound is hard rock mixed with blues rock influences, with songs including "Bad Boy for Love", "Rock 'n' Roll Outlaw", "Nice Boys", "We Can't Be Beaten" and "Scarred for Life". Their first four albums were produced by Harry Vanda and George Young who also worked with AC/DC. They disbanded in 1987, subsequently reforming briefly in 1993 to support Guns N' Roses on an Australian tour. They reassembled again from 1998 and have since released two more studio albums.

According to Australian rock music historian Ian McFarlane, Rose Tattoo are "one of the most revered bands of all time. The Tatts played peerless, street-level heavy blues with the emphasis on slide guitar and strident lyric statements". Guns N' Roses, L.A. Guns, Keel, Nashville Pussy, Motosierra, Pud Spuke and Helen Schneider have covered Rose Tattoo songs. On 16 August 2006, they were inducted into the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Hall of Fame. Five former members have died in recent years including four of the original recording line-up, Dallas Royall (1991), Peter Wells (2006), Ian Rilen (2006) and Mick Cocks (2009), and Lobby Loyde (2007), who was a member between October 1979 and September 1980.

Rose Tattoo was formed in Sydney in 1976 with Leigh Johnston on rhythm guitar, Tony Lake on lead vocals and were led by slide guitarist Peter Wells—who had just departed as bass guitarist of heavy metal band Buffalo. Drummer Michael Vandersluys completed the line-up. Ian Rilen from Band of Light joined on bass guitar. He had taught himself to play while in prison and gave Wells' band the street-cred he was looking for. Rhythm guitarist Mick Cocks soon replaced Johnston; Lake and Vandersluys were substituted by former Buster Brown members Angry Anderson and Dallas "Digger" Royall respectively. Melbourne-based Buster Brown had enjoyed local notoriety, playing at the 1974 Sunbury Festival and had included future AC/DC drummer Phil Rudd. Rose Tattoo made their public debut on New Year's Eve at the rock club Chequers.

Chiefly inspired by The Rolling Stones, Faces and Billy Thorpe and his 1970s Aztecs, Rose Tattoo's hard-rocking sound quickly earned a devoted following in the Sydney area. Members of AC/DC were fans and recommended them to their label, Albert Productions. The band's debut single "Bad Boy for Love" was written by Rilen, who left to form punk rock group, X, prior to its release in October 1977. "Bad Boy for Love" was produced by Vanda & Young (ex-The Easybeats, AC/DC's producers) and peaked at No. 19 on the Australian Kent Music Report Singles Chart. Initially Cocks switched to bass guitar to cover Rilen's departure, then Chris Turner (ex-Buffalo) was brought in. The band toured nationally on the pub rock circuit competing with The Angels, Cold Chisel, Dragon and Kevin Borich Express.


One-time Buster Brown bass guitarist Geordie Leach was recruited to record their self-titled debut LP, Rose Tattoo, which reached the top 40 on the Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart in November 1978. The album, produced by Vanda & Young, was released in some markets as Rock N' Roll Outlaw after their second single, "Rock N' Roll Outlaw" which did not reach the top 50. Leach left the band in May 1979 to be replaced in October by guitarist Lobby Loyde filling in on bass (Coloured Balls, Purple Hearts, Wild Cherries). During his brief tenure, they recorded "Legalise Realise" which was released as an independent single in March 1980, backed with the track "Bong on Aussie" by country singer Colin Paterson, to publicise a campaign to legalise marijuana

Also in 1980, Rose Tattoo with Lobby Loyde on bass recorded an unreleased album for Albert Productions, the original Scarred for Life (Unreleased Album). This unreleased album included a completely different early version of the song "Scarred For Life" than the one that officially appeared on the Scarred For Life 1982 album. Other unreleased tracks dating from the 1980 Scarred For Life (Unreleased Album) include an early version of "Suicide City" with the early title "Suicide", along with unreleased songs "The Creeper", "It's A Shame", "Holocaust", "High Line", "4th Form Fantasy", a version of the Rolling Stones "Street Fighting Man", and a ballad with piano titled "Rosetta" written by Ian Rilen. The Scarred For Life (Unreleased Album) may see an official release in 2011. Later in 1980, they toured the United States and then toured Europe (including UK), but by September Loyde had left and Leach had returned.

Early in 1981, "Rock N' Roll Outlaw" started to chart in Europe, peaking at No. 2 in France, No. 5 in Germany and No. 60 in UK. The line up of Anderson, Cocks, Leach, Royall and Wells toured Europe from April. Three years after their debut the band issued the follow-up album, Assault and Battery in September, which reached the top 30 in Australia. Both Rock N' Roll Outlaw and Assault and Battery peaked at No. 1 on the UK heavy metal albums chart.

Rose Tattoo's 1981 tour of Europe included an appearance at the Reading Festival, where Anderson repeatedly head butted the amp stacks until his scalp started bleeding. They were hailed as the loudest band to play London's Marquee Club since Led Zeppelin. Returning to Australia, the band began work on their third album; with new guitarist Robin Riley replacing Cocks, who went on to join Heaven, they issued Scarred for Life in 1982, subsequently touring the US in support of Aerosmith and ZZ Top. The band's US visit was not a major success but proved to be influential on the underground sleaze metal scene in Los Angeles, with bands such as Guns N' Roses which later cited Rose Tattoo as a favourite and recorded a cover of "Nice Boys" on Live ?!

In 1983, after the US tour, Riley, Royall and Wells all left. The remaining duo of Anderson and Leach recruited guitarists Greg Jordan and John Meyer from Perth progressive metal band Saracen. With drummer Scott Johnston, the band recorded 1984's Southern Stars, their last album for Albert Productions and Vanda & Young as producers. Leach then exited to join Cocks, Rilen, Royall and Wells in Illustrated Men which toured during 1984–1985. Anderson took time out to play the character 'Ironbar' Bassey in the 1985 film Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. That year Rose Tattoo, as Anderson, Johnston, Meyer, Andy Cichon (bass) and Tim Gaze (slide guitar), released a cover of Steppenwolf's "Born to be Wild", their first release for Mushroom Records. Meyer left and the group recorded 1986's Beats from a Single Drum as a four piece for Mushroom. Soon after Anderson started his solo career and the band separated by the end of 1987.

Anderson mounted his solo career from mid-1987. He released the ballad, "Suddenly" as a single. It was taken from Beats from a Single Drum, which was then re-released as his debut solo album in 1988. "Suddenly" had little chart success until it was used on television soap opera, Neighbours for the wedding of characters Scott Robinson (Jason Donovan) and Charlene Mitchell (Kylie Minogue). "Suddenly" peaked at No. 2 in September 1987 and was kept out of top spot by Minogue's debut single, "Locomotion". In the early 90s, Anderson tried to reunite Rose Tattoo, but the death of Royall, who died in 1991 of cancer while trying to overcome substance abuse in the form of a heroin addiction and alcoholism, stalled the reformation.

In an interview with Australian journalist Nick Milligan on March 25, 2011, Anderson explained, "I was in Los Angeles in 1989 recording an album which the 'Bound For Glory' single came off and I was hanging around with the Gunners and a whole lot of other LA bad boy rock bands that we supposedly influenced. I realised then that apart from the fact that I was there to establish myself as a singer songwriter, there was still this great following for the band. I rang up the other members and said 'Let's reform. We've been apart for three years or more.' It was long enough for us to settle our differences and let all the wounds heal.

I rang up each of the original members that were still interested and they all said, 'Yeah, let's get together.' So I said we should negotiate a deal where the band can come over and record in Los Angeles. But, of course, that was the year that our original drummer "Digger" Royall kicked his heroin habit. While he was recovering on methadone, cancer exploded through his body, quite sadly. That was the irony of it, because the cancer had been suppressed by the heroin addiction. Within months he was dead. That shook the band so badly on a personal level, because we had been so enthusiastic to reform. We didn't reform until '92. In '93, the word got around, because we had reformed with our existing drummer Paul DeMarco. The Gunners heard we were out playing again and said, 'We want you to do our support gigs throughout Australia.' We did those two [Guns N' Roses] raceways gigs - Eastern Creek in Sydney and the raceway down in Melbourne."

Rose Tattoo supported Guns N' Roses on the Australian leg of their Use Your Illusion Tour. Anderson, Wells, Cocks, Leach and new drummer Paul DeMarco from Wells' solo band reunited for the 1993 tour. The reunion was brief and each returned to solo projects.

Around this time, ex-members of Rose Tattoo formed a short lived band with ex-Candy Harlots vocalist Aiz Lynch. This band had numerous rehearsals, but only recorded one demo before disbanding. Rose Tattoo, with original bassist Ian Rilen replacing Leach, reformed yet again in 1998 for the "All Hell Breaks Loose!!" tour, however Rilen remained with the band only for the duration of this tour. By the following year, Leach had returned to the fold once more, although his place was taken by Steve King in 2000. Rock music historian Ian McFarlane wrote that they are "one of the most revered bands of all time. The Tatts played peerless, street-level heavy blues with the emphasis on slide guitar and strident lyric statements" in his Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop.

Since that time Rose Tattoo has toured regularly around Australia and throughout Europe. In 2000, the band appeared at the Wacken Open Air festival as part of their tour. These shows formed the basis of the 25 to Life live album. 2002 saw the release of Pain, the band's first studio album in 16 years. Cocks rejoined the group and they prepared material for a future album.

Plans for their next album, Blood Brothers were disrupted when Wells died on 27 March 2006, four years after his diagnosis of prostate cancer. On 16 August, Rose Tatto were inducted by musician, Sarah McLeod, into the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Hall of Fame alongside former member Lobby Loyde and Daddy Cool, Divinyls, Icehouse and Helen Reddy. Founding member Ian Rilen died on 30 October from bladder cancer. One of his last public appearances was at the Hall of Fame induction.

Also in October, a number of Rose Tattoo songs were voted upon and ranked in the Triple M Essential 2006 Countdown of songs, including "Bad Boy for Love" (voted #1060 out of 2006) and "We Can't Be Beaten" (voted #397 out of 2006). That month they were one of 55 acts voted and played in Triple J's Impossible Music Festival of 2006, with their live recording of a gig performed on New Year's Day 1980 at Mount Druitt, New South Wales being selected out of over 1000 Live at the Wireless recordings produced over the radio station's 31-year history. Man playing a guitar, right arm strumming strings. He is facing slightly right, hair falls below his shoulders.

On 21 April 2007, Lobby Loyde died, aged 65, in Melbourne, two years after being diagnosed with lung cancer. In June, Rose Tattoo supported Guns N' Roses with Sebastian Bach on their Chinese Democracy Tour's Australian leg. In October they supported Motörhead on their Australian tour dates. In an interview with Australian rock magazine Unbelievably Bad, Anderson announced his intention to retire the band after one more album.

In 2008 they played the Super Bock Super Rock festival in Lisbon, Portugal, and the Download Festival in England. In April 2009 it was announced that guitarist Mick Cocks had liver cancer—he died on 22 December. Five former members have died, all of cancer—Dallas Royall (cancer, 1991), Peter Wells (prostate cancer, 2006), Ian Rilen (bladder cancer, 2006), Lobby Loyde (lung cancer, 2007) and Mick Cocks (liver cancer, 2009).

Rose Tattoo are currently preparing to celebrate their 35th anniversary in 2011. They are demoing songs for a new album in 2012. In an interview with Australian rock journalist Nick Milligan on Friday, March 25, 2011, Anderson confirmed that the new record would be the group's "final statement".

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The Crayon Set (2011)




Robert Baker – Guitars, Vocals, Cavaquinho, Melodica, Kazoo
Stephen Byrne –Guitars, Vocals, Banjo, Bass, Harmonica, Lute
Labhaoise Brennan – Vocals, Flute, Percussion
George Guilfoyle – Double and Electric Bass, Mellotron, Vocals
Pete Farrell – Drums, Percussion, Washboard, Vocals
Kama Swoboda – Violin, Vocals, Bass
Anna Keogh – Oboe, Vocals, Piano

Just to let you know The Crayon Set are releasing their debut EP this October - any reviews of the EP or coverage you could give us would be very much appreciated. It will be available as a free download and we are very happy for it to be streamed or for you to include on playlists etc.

Info on how it can be easily downloaded in the band bio below. If you require anything else please just get in touch. We think it's good - hope you enjoy the songs too!

Regards,
Kama /The Crayon Set


The Crayon Set are a music collective based in Dublin, Ireland and they play an upbeat, hook-filled mix of alternative indie pop/rock with some elements of folk and chamber also thrown in. They use a wide variety of instruments including oboe, double bass, wurlitzer, violin, cavaquinho, trumpet and flute and specialise in multi-layered harmonies.

They have just recorded their debut album in Leeders Farm Studios which was co-produced with Nick Brine (The Beta Band, Ash, Super Furry Animals) and Teenage Fanclub’s Raymond McGinley guests on guitar. The album was mixed in Leeders Farm and Rockfield Studios.

The album will be preceded by a downloadable EP designed as a free introduction to the band.

EP Release Date: 12th October

Recent Gig Highlights: FMC Showcase Tour 2011, The Phantom FM Next Becks Thing Final, Ben and Jerry’s Sundae on the Common Festival, London (Main Stage).

For their live shows the band extends to up to 10 members, which often includes a little brass section and, of course, their giant inflatable crayons.

Influences: The band have been compared to Arcade Fire, Belle and Sebastian, The Velvet Underground, Stars and Teenage Fanclub amongst others.

The EP will be available as a free download from www.thecrayonset.com and www.soundcloud.com/thecrayonset .

(We are happy for these to be streamed on your blog or to appear on playlists. The songs we are pushing are “No.1 Fan” and “I Wanted You”. )

The EP has been designed as a free introduction to the band - our debut album is recorded and is scheduled for release in late 2011 / early 2012.

The EP can also be downloaded from this link (MP3s & a press pack). If you would prefer WAV (with press pack) here.

(If you have trouble opening this due to browser settings please copy and paste the link into Internet explorer,firefox etc).
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RE: Nirvana - In Utero Demos



Amerykańska grupa rockowa spod znaku grunge i alternatywnego rocka. Istniała w latach 1987 – 1994. Założycielem grupy był Kurt Cobain (gitara, wokal) oraz imigrant chorwackiego pochodzenia - Krist Novoselic (bas). Przez formację przewinęło się w sumie 7 perkusistów, ostatnim był Dave Grohl (od 1990 roku). Wspólnie z Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, czy Soungarden nadawała kierunek rockowej scenie przełomu lat 80. i 90.

Cobain i Novoselic spotkali się po raz pierwszy w 1985 roku. Obaj zafascynowani byli formacją Melvins. Mieli już za sobą próby założenia własnych zespołów, ale dopiero poznanie perkusisty Aarona Burcharda zaowocowało powstaniem pierwszego składu formacji, która do historii muzyki miała przejść pod nazwą Nirvana. We wczesnej fazie – muzycy określali swoje brzmienie jako połączenie Scratch Acid z Gang of Four. Perkusista nie zagrzał miejsca w zespole – został z niego usunięty, a na jego miejsce przyjęto Dale’a Crovera, z którym nagrano pierwsze taśmy demo. Po jego odejściu – za bębnami siadł Dave Foster. Zmiany personalne nie były jedynymi, z którymi borykał się zespół – muzycy nie mogli zdecydować się na ostateczną nazwę formacji – pojawiały się - Skid Row, Pen Cap Chew i Ted Ed Fred. Ostateczna nazwa – Nirvana pojawiła się w 1988 roku. A jej debiut sceniczny – miała z kolejnym perkusistą – Chadem Channingiem w marcu tego roku.

Zadebiutowali singlem „”Love Buzz/Big Cheese” (1988), a rok później wydali pierwszy longplay – „Bleach”, jak podkresla wielu – odtwórczy w stosunku do dokonań Melvins, Pixies i legendy hard rocka – Black Sabbath. Koszty albumu pokrył Jason Everman i choć nie pojawił się w żadnym utworze na płycie – został umieszczony w składzie jako gitarzysta. Przetrwał w formacji jedynie trasę promocyjną krążka, a potem został wyrzucony ze składu.

W 1990 roku Nirvana rozpoczęła pracę nad kolejnym wydawnictwem długogrającym. Po zakończeniu pracy w studiu – z zespołu odszedł dotychczasowy perkusista - Chad Channing, coraz mniej angażujący się twórczo w komponowanie utworów. Do zespołu dołączył więc ponownie Dale Crover oraz Dan Peters, który zagrał jednak tylko w jednym utworze – „Sliver”. Kilka tygodni później Cobain i Novoselic poznali Dave’a Grohla. W ten sposób ukonstytuował się klasyczny skład zespołu.



Po zerwaniu kontraktu płytowego z Sub Pop – w 1990 roku związali się z DGC Records. Niedługo potem ruszyły prace nad nowym krążkiem – „Nevermind” (1991). Materiał częściowo był już gotowy („In Bloom” oraz „Breed”), nad innymi pracowano i długo nie było widać ostatecznej wersji utworów. Ostatecznym miksowaniem zajął się producent Slayera – Andy Wallach. Sami muzycy określili wydawnictwo jako „zbyt gładkie”. Promował je singiel „Smells Like Teen Spirit”, który z dnia na dzień stał się niebywałym sukcesem komercyjnym zespołu. Trasa promująca krążek uczyniła w zespołu megagwiazdę – na koncerty brakowało biletów, fanów wpuszczano ponad dopuszczalny limit miejsc, a do tego wszechobecne kamery telewizyjne. Tymczasem, po trzech miesiącach od wydania – „Smell Like Teen Spirit” sprzedawał się w imponującym nakładzie 400 000 egzemplarzy tygodniowo! W styczniu 1992 roku zajął 1. miejsce prestiżowego zestawienia Billboard Top 200, deklasując „Dangerous” Michaela Jacksona. Podobnie było z całym longplay’em, który sprzedawał się znakomicie.

W lutym 1992 roku Kurt ożenił się z Cortney Love, liderką zespołu Hole. Pięć miesięcy później na świecie pojawiło się ich jedyne dziecko – córka Frances Bean Cobain. Kilka dni po jej narodzinach Nirvana dała słynny koncert na Reading Festival. Krążyły plotki o kłopotach zdrowotnych wokalisty oraz możliwym rozpadzie grupy. Cobain wykorzystał to, by zadrwić z dziennikarzy – wjechał na scenę na wózku inwalidzkim, potem jednak wstał i dał świetny występ. Prawdą było jednak to, że zespół wydawał się przytłoczony sukcesem oraz był wykończony trasą koncertową. Dlatego muzycy zdecydowali się jedynie na kameralne występy w drugiej połowie roku.

Kilka tygodni później zespół wystąpił na rozdaniu nagród MTV Video Music, na który ustalono wspólnie z dyrekcją stacji – wykonanie najnowszego singla grupy – „Lithium”. Nie zgodzono się bowiem na utwór „Rape Me”, jako zbyt mocny w przekazie. Kurt jednak nie byłby sobą, gdyby choć nie próbował postawić na swoim – bezpośrednio przed wykonaniem „Lithium” zaśpiewał dwie linijki zakazanej piosenki. Występ przeszedł do historii również z tego powodu, że basiście odmówił posłuszeństwa wzmacniacz – ten rzucił w górę swoją gitarę, która spadając dość mocno uderzyła go w głowę. Widząc to – wokalista zaczął niszczyć pozostały sprzęt, a perkusista krzycząc – pozdrawiał ze sceny Axla Rose’a, wokalistę Guns N’ Roses siedzącego na widowni.

W grudniu 1992 roku pojawiła się w sklepach - „Incesticide” - składanka utworów z tak zwanych stron B, niepublikowanych dotąd nagrań studyjnych oraz piosenek z dotychczasowych minialbumów i singli, materiał na potrzeby BBC oraz covery The Vaselines i Devo.

Do pracy nad kolejnym krążkiem „In Utero” grupa zaprosiła Steve’a Albiniego, który miał przywrócić na albumie ciężkie brzmienie formacji. Kurt był zachwycony efektem końcowym, tym bardziej, że longplay nagrano w iście ekspresowym tempie 14 dni. Niestety wytwórnia nie podzielała tego entuzjazmu. Wokalista narzekał potem, że miksowanie zepsuło pierwotny efekt – między innymi ustawiono zbyt nisko linię basów. Do pomocy zaangażowano Scotta Litta, znanego ze współpracy z R.E.M., a Kurt dodatkowo dołożył więcej instrumentarium oraz wokal wspomagający. Wydawnictwo zadebiutowało we wrześniu 1993 roku na 1. miejscu zestawienia Billboard Top 200. Niewątpliwie krążek odniósł komercyjny sukces, choć już nie tak spektakularny, jak poprzednik. Niedługo potem zespół ruszył w promocyjną trasę koncertową po USA, wspomagany na scenie przez gitarzystę Pata Smeara (The Germs).



W listopadzie tego roku formacja zagrała bez prądu dla MTV. W repertuarze znalazły się tylko dwa przeboje – „Come as You Are” oraz „All Apologies” oraz covery mniej znanych kompozycji. Zarejestrowano wszystko przy pierwszym podejściu w niecała godzinę, co było mistrzowskim wynikiem, jak na dotychczasowe doświadczenia MTV. Premiera wydawnictwa miała miejsce w grudniu 1993 roku.

Początek kolejnego roku zastał muzyków w trasie koncertowej. Kurt zachorował na zapalenie oskrzeli i krtani. Tracił głos. Kolejny występ trzeba było odwołać. 4 marca, żona artysty znalazła go nieprzytomnego w pokoju hotelowym. Natychmiast odwieziono go do szpitala, gdzie stwierdzono standardową reakcję na zażywany lek oraz alkohol, który znaleziono we krwi muzyka. Pozostałą część tournee trzeba było odwołać. Następne tygodnie okazały się jego powrotem do uzależnienia od heroiny. Umieszczono go w ośrodku odwykowym, z którego po tygodniu uciekł i samolotem wrócił do Seattle. Tydzień później, 8 kwietnia został znaleziony martwy z raną postrzałową głowy w swoim domu. Jak stwierdziła policja – nie żył od trzech dni.

Wraz z jego śmiercią skończyła się historia zespołu Nirvana. (miastomuzyki.pl)

Kurt Cobain – guitar, vocals
Krist Novoselic – bass
Dave Grohl – drums, backing vocals
Kera Schaley – cello on "All Apologies" and "Dumb"
Steve Albini – producer, engineer



In Utero is the third and final studio album by the American grunge band Nirvana released on September 13, 1993 by DGC Records. Nirvana intended the record to be significantly divergent from the polished production of its previous album Nevermind. To capture a more abrasive and natural sound, the group hired producer Steve Albini to record In Utero during a two-week period in February 1993. The music was recorded quickly with few studio embellishments, while the song lyrics and album packaging incorporated medical imagery that conveyed frontman Kurt Cobain 's outlook on his new-found fame and personal life.

Soon after recording was completed, controversy erupted as rumors circulated that DGC did not like the sessions with Albini and might not release the album in its original state, as it considered the result "uncommercial". Although Nirvana publicly denied the statements, the group was not fully satisfied with the sound Albini had captured. Albini declined to alter the album further, and ultimately the band hired Scott Litt to make minor changes to the album's sound and remix the singles "Heart-Shaped Box" and "All Apologies".

Upon release, In Utero entered the Billboard 200 chart at number one and received critical acclaim as a drastic departure from Nevermind. The record has been certified five times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, and has sold over four million copies in the United States alone.

Nirvana broke into the musical mainstream with its major label debut, Nevermind, in 1991. Despite modest sales estimates—the band's record company, DGC Records, forecast that 50,000 copies would be sold—Nevermind became a huge commercial success, selling millions of copies and popularizing the Seattle grunge movement and alternative rock in general. However, all three members of Nirvana—singer and guitarist Kurt Cobain, bassist Krist Novoselic, and drummer Dave Grohl — later expressed dissatisfaction with the sound of the album, citing its production as too polished. Early in 1992, Cobain told Rolling Stone that he was sure that the band's next album would showcase "both of the extremes" of its sound, saying "it'll be more raw with some songs and more candy pop on some of the others. It won't be as one-dimensional [as Nevermind]". Cobain wanted to start work on the album in the summer of 1992. However, the band was unable to since Cobain and his bandmates lived in different cities, and the singer and his wife Courtney Love were expecting the birth of their daughter Frances. DGC had hoped to have a new album by the band ready for a late 1992 holiday season release; since work on it proceeded slowly, the label released the compilation album Incesticide in December 1992.



In a Melody Maker interview published in July 1992, Kurt Cobain told the English journalist Everett True he was interested in recording with Jack Endino (who had produced the group's 1989 debut album Bleach) and Steve Albini (former frontman of the noise rock band Big Black and producer for various indie releases). Cobain said he would then choose the best material from the sessions for inclusion on the group's next album. In October 1992, Nirvana recorded several songs (mainly as instrumentals) during a demo session with Endino in Seattle; many of these songs would later be re-recorded for In Utero. Endino recalled that the band did not ask him to produce its next record, but noted that the band members constantly debated working with Albini. The group recorded another set of demos while on tour in Brazil in January 1993. One of the recordings from this session, the long improvisational track "Gallons of Rubbing Alcohol Flow Through the Strip", was included as a hidden track on non-US copies of In Utero.

Nirvana ultimately chose Albini to record its third album. Albini had a reputation as a principled and opinionated individual in the American independent music scene. While there was speculation that the band chose Albini to record the album due to his underground credentials, Cobain told Request magazine in 1993, "For the most part I wanted to work with him because he happened to produce two of my favorite records, which were Surfer Rosa [by the Pixies] and Pod [by The Breeders]." Inspired by those albums, Cobain wanted to utilize Albini's technique of capturing the natural ambiance of a room via the usage and placement of several microphones, something previous Nirvana producers had been averse to trying. Months before the band had even approached Albini about the recording, rumors circulated that he was slated to record the album. Albini sent a disclaimer to the British music press denying involvement, only to get a call from Nirvana's management a few days later about the project. Although Albini considered Nirvana to be "R.E.M.with a fuzzbox" and "an unremarkable version of the Seattle sound", he told Nirvana biographer Michael Azerrad he accepted because he felt sorry for the band members, whom he perceived to be "the same sort of people as all the small-fry bands I deal with", at the mercy of its record company. Before the start of recording sessions, the band sent Albini a tape of the demos it had made in Brazil. In return, Albini sent Cobain a copy of the PJ Harvey album Rid of Me to give him an idea of what the studio where they would record at sounded like.

The members of Nirvana and Albini decided on a self-imposed two-week deadline for recording the album. Wary of interference by DGC, Albini suggested the band members pay for the sessions with their own money, which they agreed to. Studio fees totaled US$ 24,000, while Albini took a flat fee of $100,000 for his services. Despite the suggestions of Nirvana's management company Gold Mountain, Albini refused to take percentage points on record sales, even though he stood to earn approximately $500,000 in royalties. While a common practice among producers in the music industry, Albini refused to take royalties because he considered it to be immoral and "an insult to the artist".



In February 1993, Nirvana traveled to Pachyderm Studio in Cannon Falls, Minnesota to record the album. Albini did not meet the band members until the first day of recording, though he had spoken to them beforehand about the type of album they wanted to make. Albini observed that "they wanted to make precisely the sort of record that I'm comfortable doing". The group stayed in a house located on the studio grounds during the recording sessions. Novoselic compared the isolated conditions to a gulag; he added, "There was snow outside, we couln't go anywhere. We just worked." For most of the sessions, the only people present were the band members, Albini, and technician Bob Weston. The band made it clear to DGC and Gold Mountain that it did not want any intrusion during the album production, going as far as not playing any of the work in progress for its record label A&R representative. To prevent the group's managers and label from interfering, Albini instituted a strict policy of ignoring everyone except for the band members; the producer explained that everyone associated with the group aside from the musicians themselves were "the biggest pieces of shit I ever met".

The album sessions began slowly but would ultimately gain momentum; the band arrived at Pachyderm Studio without their equipment, and spent much of the first three days there waiting for it to arrive by mail. However, once recording began on February 13, work moved quickly. On most days the group began work around midday, took breaks for lunch and dinner, and continued work through midnight. Cobain, Novoselic, and Grohl recorded their basic instrumental tracks together as a band. The group utilized this setup on all songs except for faster compositions like "Very Ape" and "tourette's", where the drums were recorded separately in a nearby kitchen due to its natural reverb. Albini surrounded Grohl's drum kit with approximately 30 microphones. Cobain added additional guitar tracks to about half the songs, then added guitar solos, and finally vocals. The band did not discard takes, and kept virtually everything it captured on tape. Albini felt he was more an engineer than a producer; despite his personal opinions, he ultimately let the band judge which were decent takes. He said, "Generally speaking, [Cobain] knows what he thinks is acceptable and what isn't acceptable [. . .] He can make concrete steps to improve things that he doesn't think are acceptable." Cobain reportedly recorded all his vocal tracks in six hours. The band completed recording in six days; Cobain had originally anticipated disagreements with Albini, whom the singer heard "was supposedly this sexist jerk", but called the process "the easiest recording we've ever done, hands down". The only disruption occurred a week into the sessions, when Courtney Love arrived because she missed Cobain. The band, Love, and Albini refused to go into specifics, but Weston's girlfriend—who served as the studio's chef—stated that Love created tension by criticizing Cobain's work and being confrontational with everyone present.

Audio mixing is the process by which a multitude of recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics and panoramic position are commonly being manipulated and effects such as reverb might be added.... process for the album was completed over the course of five days. This rate was quick by Nirvana's standards, but not for Albini, who was used to mixing entire albums in a day or two. On occasions when work on a song mix was not producing desired results, the band and Albini took the rest of the day off to watch nature videos, set things on fire, and make prank phone calls for amusement. The sessions were completed on February 26.

Albini sought to produce a record that sounded nothing like Nevermind. He felt the sound of Nevermind was "sort of a standard hack recording that has been turned into a very, very controlled, compressed radio-friendly mix [. . .] That is not, in my opinion, very flattering to a rock band." Instead, the intention was to capture a more natural and visceral sound. Albini refused to double-track Cobain's vocals and instead recorded him singing alone in a resonant room. The producer noted the intensity of the singer's vocals on some tracks; he said, "There's a really dry, really loud voice at the end of 'Milk It' [. . .] that was also done at the end of 'Rape Me,' where [Cobain] wanted the sound of him screaming to just overtake the whole band." Albini achieved the album's sparse drum sound by simply placing several microphones around the room while Dave Grohl performed, picking up the natural reverberation of the room. Albini explained, "If you take a good drummer and put him in front of a drum kit that sounds good acoustically and just record it, you've done your job."

Azerrad asserted in his 1993 biography Come as You Are: The Story of Nirvana that the music of In Utero showcased divergent sensibilities of abrasiveness and accessibility that reflected the upheavals Cobain experienced prior to the album's completion. He wrote, "The Beatlesque 'Dumb' happily coexists beside the all-out frenzied punk graffiti of 'Milk It,' while 'All Apologies' is worlds away from the apoplectic 'Scentless Apprentice.' It's as if [Cobain] has given up trying to meld his punk and pop instincts into one harmonious whole. Forget it. This is war." Cobain believed, however, that In Utero was not "any harsher or any more emotional" than any of Nirvana's previous records. Novoselic concurred with Azerrad's comments that the album's music leaned more towards the band's "arty, aggressive side"; the bassist said, "There's always been [Nirvana] songs like 'About a Girl' and there's always been songs like 'Paper Cuts' [. . .] Nevermind came out kind of 'About a Girl'-y and this [album] came out more 'Paper Cuts'". Cobain cited the track "Milk It" as an example of the more experimental and aggressive direction the band's music had been moving in in the months prior to the sessions at Pachyderm Studio. Novoselic viewed the album's singles "Heart-Shaped Box" and "All Apologies" as "gateways" to the more abrasive sound of the rest of the album, telling journalist Jim DeRogatis that once listeners played the record they would discover "this aggressive wild sound, a true alternative record".



Several of the songs on In Utero had been written years prior, some of which dated back to 1990. With tracks like "Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge on Seattle", Cobain favored long song titles in reaction to contemporary alternative rock bands that utilized single-word titles. Cobain continued to work on the lyrics while recording at Pachyderm Studio. Nonetheless, Cobain told Spin in 1993 that in contrast to Bleach and Nevermind, the lyrics were "more focused, they're almost built on themes." Michael Azerrad asserted that the lyrics were less impressionistic and more straightforward than in previous Nirvana songs. Azerrad also noted that "[v]irtually every song contains some image of sickness and disease". In a number of songs Cobain made reference to books he had read. "Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge on Seattle" was inspired by Shadowland, a 1978 biography of actress Frances Farmer, whom Cobain had been fascinated with ever since he read the book in high school. The song "Scentless Apprentice" was written about Perfume: The Story of a Murderer, a historical horror novel about a perfumer's apprentice born with no body odor of his own but with a highly developed sense of smell, and who attempts to create the "ultimate perfume" by killing virgin women and taking their scent.

Cobain stated in a 1993 interview with The Observer that "for the most part [In Utero]'s very impersonal". The songwriter also told Q that year that the abundance of infant and childbirth imagery on the album and his newfound fatherhood were coincidental. However, Azerrad argued that much of the album contains personal themes, noting that Grohl held a similar view. Grohl said, "A lot of what he has to say is related to a lot of the shit he's gone through. And it's not so much teen angst anymore. It's a whole different ball game: rock star angst." Cobain downplayed recent events ("I really haven't had that exciting a life") and told Azerrad that he didn't want to write a track that explicitly expressed his anger at the media, but the author countered that "Rape Me" seemed to deal with that very issue. While Cobain said the song was written long before his troubles with drug addiction became public, he agreed that the song could be viewed in that light. "Serve the Servants" contains comments about Cobain's life, both as a child and as an adult. The opening lines "Teenage angst has paid off well/Now I'm bored and old" were a reference to Cobain's state of mind in the wake of Nirvana's success. Cobain dismissed the media attention given to the affect his parents' divorce had on his life with the line "That legendary divorce is such a bore" from the chorus, and directly addressed his father with the lines "I tried hard to have a father/But instead I had a dad/I just want you to know that I don't hate you anymore/There is nothing I could say that I haven't thought before". Cobain said he wanted his father to know he didn't hate him, but had no desire to talk to him.

Cobain originally wanted to name the album I Hate Myself And I Want to Die, a phrase that had originated in his journals in mid-1992. At the time, the singer used the phrase as a response whenever someone asked him how he was doing. Cobain intended the album title as a joke; he stated he was "tired of taking this band so seriously and everyone else taking it so seriously". Novoselic convinced Cobain to change the title due to fear that it could potentially result in a lawsuit. The band then considered using Verse Chorus Verse—a title taken from its song "Verse Chorus Verse", and an earlier working title of "Sappy"—before eventually settling on In Utero. The final title was taken from a poem written by Courtney Love.

The art director for In Utero was Robert M. Fisher, who had designed all of Nirvana's releases on DGC. Most of the ideas for the artwork for the album and related singles came from Cobain. Fisher recalled that "[Cobain] would just give me some loose odds and ends and say 'Do something with it.'" The cover of the album is an image of a Transparent Anatomical Mannikin, with angel wings superimposed. Cobain created the collage on the back cover, which he described as "Sex and woman and In Utero and vaginas and birth and death", that consists of model fetuses and body parts lying in a bed of orchids and lilies. The collage had been set up on the floor of Cobain's living room and was photographed by Charles Peterson after an unexpected call from Cobain. The album's track listing and re-illustrated symbols from Barbara G. Walker's The Woman's Dictionary of Symbols and Sacred Objects were then positioned around the edge of the collage.

After the recording sessions were completed, Nirvana sent unmastered tapes of the album to several individuals, including the president of DGC's parent company Geffen Records Ed Rosenblatt and the group's management company Gold Mountain. When asked about the feedback, Cobain told Michael Azerrad, "The grown-ups don't like it." He said he was told his songwriting was "not up to par", the sound was "unlistenable" and that there was uncertainty that mainstream radio would welcome the sound of Albini's production. There were few people at Geffen or Gold Mountain that wanted the band to record with Albini to begin with, and Cobain felt he was receiving an unstated message to scrap the sessions and start all over again. Cobain was upset and said to Azerrad, "I should just rerecord this record and do the same thing we did last year because we sold out last year—there's no reason to try and redeem ourselves as artists at this point. I can't help myself—I'm just putting out a record I would like to listen to at home." However, a number of the group's friends liked the album, and by April 1993 Nirvana was intent on releasing In Utero as it was. According to Cobain, "Of course, they want another Nevermind, but I'd rather die than do that. This is exactly the kind of record I would buy as a fan, that I would enjoy owning."



The band members began to have doubts about the record's sound. During this time Cobain admitted, "The first time I played it at home, I knew there was something wrong. The whole first week I wasn’t really interested in listening to it at all, and that usually doesn’t happen. I got no emotion from it, I was just numb." The group concluded that the bass and lyrics were inaudible and approached Albini to remix the album. The producer declined; as he recalled, "[Cobain] wanted to make a record that he could slam down on the table and say, 'Listen, I know this is good, and I know your concerns about it are meaningless, so go with it.' And I don't think he felt he had that yet [. . .] My problem was that I feared a slippery slope." The band attempted to fix its concerns with the record during the mastering process with Bob Ludwig at his studio in Portland, Maine. Novoselic was pleased with the results, but Cobain still did not feel the sound was perfect.

Soon afterward, in April 1993 Albini remarked to the Chicago Tribune that he doubted Geffen would release the completed album. Albini commented years later that in a sense he felt he spoke about the situation "from a position of ignorance, because I wasn't there when the band was having their discussions with the record label. All I know is [. . .] we made a record, everybody was happy with it. A few weeks later I hear that it's unreleasable and it's all got to be redone". While Albini's remarks in the article drew no immediate reply from the group or its label, Newsweek ran a similar article soon afterwards that did. Nirvana denied there was any pressure from its label to change the album's sound, sending a letter to Newsweek that said that the article's author "ridiculed our relationship with our label based on totally erronous [sic] information"; the band also reprinted the letter in a full-page ad in Billboard. Rosenblatt insisted in a press release that Geffen would release anything the band submitted, and label founder David Geffen made the unusual move of personally calling Newsweek to complain about the article.

Nirvana wanted to do further work on the recorded tracks, and considered working with producer Scott Litt and remixing some tracks with Andy Wallace (who had mixed Nevermind). Albini vehemently disagreed, and claimed he had an agreement with the band that it would not modify the tracks without his involvement. Albini initially refused to give the album master tapes to Gold Mountain, but relented after a phone call from Novoselic. The band decided against working with Wallace and chose to remix and augment the songs "Heart-Shaped Box" and "All Apologies" with Litt at Seattle's Bad Animals Studio in May 1993. One song, "I Hate Myself and Want to Die", was omitted from the final listing as Cobain felt there were too many "noise" songs on the album. The rest of the album was left unaltered aside from a remastering which sharpened the bass guitar sound and increased the volume of the vocals by approximately three decibels. Albini was critical of the album's final mix; he said, "The end result, the record in the stores doesn't sound all that much like the record that was made. Though it's still them singing and playing their songs, and the musical quality of it still comes across."

To avoid over-hyping the album, DGC Records took a low-key approach to promoting In Utero; the company's head of marketing told Billboard before the album's release that the label was taking a promotional strategy similar to that of Nevermind, and explained that the label would "set things up, duck, and get out of the way". The label aimed its promotion at alternative markets and press, and released the album on vinyl record as part of this strategy. In contrast to the previous album, the label did not release any of In Uteros singles commercially in the United States. DGC sent promo copies of the album's first single "Heart-Shaped Box" to American college Campus radio, modern rock, and album-oriented rock radio stations in early September, but the label did not target Top 40 radio. Despite the label's promotion, the band was convinced that In Utero would not be as successful as Nevermind. Cobain told Jim DeRogatis, "We're certain that we won't sell a quarter as much, and we're totally comfortable with that because we like this record so much."

In Utero was released on September 13, 1993 in the United Kingdom, and on September 14 in the United States; it was initially only available in vinyl record and cassette tape formats, with the American vinyl pressing limited to 25,000 copies. Although the album was issued on compact disc in the UK on September 14, a full domestic release did not occur until September 21. In Utero debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 album chart, selling 180,000 copies in its first week of release. Meanwhile, retail chain stores Wal-Mart and Kmart refused to sell the album. According to The New York Times, Wal-Mart claimed it did not carry the album due to lack of consumer demand, while Kmart representatives explained that the album "didn't fit within our merchandise mix". In truth, both chains feared that customers would be offended by the artwork on the album's back cover. DGC issued a new version of the album with reworked packaging to the stores in March 1994. This version featured edited album artwork, and listed the name of "Rape Me" as "Waif Me". A spokesperson for Nirvana explained that the band decided to edit the packaging because as kids Cobain and Novoselic were only able to buy music from the two chain stores; as a result they "really want to make their music available to kids who don't have the opportunity to go to mom-and-pop stores".

In Utero received acclaim from critics. Times Christopher John Farleystated in his review of the album, "Despite the fears of some alternative-music fans, Nirvana hasn't gone mainstream, though this potent new album may once again force the mainstream to go Nirvana." Rolling Stone reviewer David Fricke wrote, "In Utero is a lot of things – brilliant, corrosive, enraged and thoughtful, most of them all at once. But more than anything, it's a triumph of the will." Entertainment Weekly reviewer David Browne (who gave the album a rating of B+) commented "Kurt Cobain hates it all", and noted that the sentiment pervades the record. Browne argued, "The music is often mesmerizing, cathartic rock & roll, but it is rock & roll without release, because the band is suspicious of the old-school rock cliches such a release would evoke." NME gave the album an eight out of ten rating. However, reviewer John Mulvey had doubts about the record; he concluded, "As a document of a mind in flux - dithering, dissatisfied, unable to come to terms with sanity - Kurt [Cobain] should be proud of [the album]. As a follow-up to one of the best records of the past ten years it just isn't quite there." Ben Thompson of The Independent commented that in spite of the album's more abrasive songs, "In Utero is beautiful far more often than it is ugly", and added, "Nirvana have wisely neglected to make the unlistenable punk-rock nightmare they threatened us with." Critics ranked In Utero as one of the best releases of the year. It placed first and second in the album categories of the Rolling Stone and Village Voice Pazz & Jop year-end critics' polls, respectively. Additionally, The New York Times included it on its list of the top ten albums of the year. The album was nominated for Best Alternative Music Albumat the 1994 Grammy Awards.

That October, Nirvana embarked on its first American tour in two years to promote the album. A second single, a split release that featured "All Apologies" and "Rape Me", was issued in December in the United Kingdom. The band began a six-week European leg of the tour in February 1994, but it was cancelled after Cobain suffered a drug overdose in Rome on March 6. Cobain agreed to enter drug rehabilitation, but the singer went missing soon afterwards, and on April 8 he was found dead in his Seattle home as the result of suicide by a shotgun blast. The intended third single from In Utero, "Pennyroyal Tea", was cancelled in the wake of Cobain's death and the subsequent dissolution of Nirvana; limited promotional copies were released in Britain. Three days after Cobain's body was discovered, In Utero moved back up the Billboard charts, from number 72 to number 27.

In the ensuing years, In Utero has continued to perform commercially and gather critical praise. In a 2003 Guitar World article that commemorated the tenth anniversary of the album's release, Cobain biographer Charles R. Cross argued that In Utero was "a far better record [than Nevermind] and one that only 10 years later seems to be an influential seed spreader, judging by current bands. If it is possible for an album that sold four million copies to be overlooked, or underappreciated, then In Utero is that lost pearl." That same year, Pitchfork Mediaplaced In Utero at number 13 on its list of the 100 best albums of the 1990s, and Rolling Stone ranked it at number 439 on its list "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time". In 2004 Blender ranked it at number 94 in its "100 Greatest American Albums of All Time" list, while in 2005, Spin placed it at number 51 on its "100 Greatest Albums 1985-2005" retrospective. In Utero has been certified five times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America for shipments of over five million units, and has sold a total of four million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. (absoluteastronomy.com)

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Tim Hardin - Hang On To A Dream:The Verve Recordings (1994)



Komentarz naszego czytelnika (Bydloga) skłonił mnie do przedstawienia sylwetki jednego z zapomnianych "wielkich" przełomu lat 60-tych i 70-tych - Tima Hardina.

Tim Hardin (1941-1980) – urodził się w Eugene w stanie Oregon i tam przebywał do 18 r. życia. Chociaż jego dzieciństwo, jak sam twierdził, nie było szczęśliwe, to jednak rodzice obdarzyli go miłością do muzyki. Jego matka robiła karierę w muzyce klasycznej a ojciec był jazzowym basistą.

Po ukończeniu szkoły wstąpił do piechoty morskiej (marines), aby uciec z ograniczającej go, surowej rodziny. Jednak wojskowa dyscyplina była zupełnie nie do pogodzenia z jego bardzo zmiennymi nastrojami). Gdy powrócił w 1961 r. do domu po zakończeniu służby na Dalekim Wschodzie, był już nałogowym heroinistą.

W tym samym roku przybył do Nowego Jorku z zamiarem zostania aktorem. Wstąpił do Amerykańskiej Akademii Sztuk Dramatycznych i tu zetknął się z folkowymi kręgami Greenwich Village. Później pojawił się na Harvardzie, gdzie nauczał na wydziale muzykologicznym. Zaczął występować w tym mocnym (Boston, Cambridge) folkowym środowisku (w klubie Unicorn i innych), w którym w tym czasie wiodącymi postaciami byli Tom Rush i Joan Baez. Ale nawet wtedy separował się od innych, głównie z dwu przyczyn. Po pierwsze był entuzjastą jazzu. A po drugie był obojętny na lewicowo-liberalne protest songi Boba Dylana, Phila Ochsa, Joan Baez i innych.

Był także muzykiem wyjątkowo mocno skoncentrowanym na swoim wewnętrznym życiu i związkach. Wierzył także, iż jego piosenki tak naprawdę nie należą do niego; on jest jedynie kanałem dla muzyki, która już istniała gdzieś poza nim.

Prawopodobnie w sierpniu 1964 r. podpisał roczny kontrakt z Columbią. Odbyło się kilka sesji nagraniowych, na których Hardin koncentrował się głównie na bluesie i folku oraz na swoich piosenkach utrzymanych w tych stylach. Często używał elektrycznej gitary, czyli wyprzedził samego Boba Dylana. Nagrań tych wtedy nie wydano i kontrakt się skończył.

Jednak w ponad rok później podpisał kontrakt z nową filią MGM Verve-Forecast i w 1966 r. zaczęły się ukazywać jego pierwsze nagrania. Nastąpił 8-miesięczny złoty okres piosenkarza od końca 1965 do drugiej połowy 1966 r. Artysta komponował swoje utwory w Los Angeles, w pokoju w mieszkaniu także heroinisty, słynnego komika Lenny'ego Bruce'a.

Wtedy także spotkał swoją muzę Susan Morss, aktorkę, która pod artystycznym pseudonimem Susan Yardley grała w popularnej serii telewizyjnej The Young Marrieds. Jego klasyczna piosenka "Lady Came from Baltimore" jest zmitologizowanym opisem ich związku. Uromantycznił siebie przedstawiając się jako postać poza prawem, co można odnosić do jego nałogu, ale przedstawiał siebie jako renegata i twierdził (fałszywie), że jest krewnym słynnego XIX-wiecznego wyjętego spod prawa Johna Wesleya Hardina. Nieustanne napięcia w ich związku spowodowane jego nałogiem, zdominowały resztę jego kariery i życia.

Pierwszy album Tim Hardin 1 ukazał się w połowie 1966 r. Była to bardzo dobra płyta, z której "Reason to Believe" rozsławiona została później przez Roda Stewarta. 12 piosenek reprezentowało pełny zakres stylów, które na niego wpłynęły; od delikatnego, zmysłowego popu po ostry rhythm and blues. W nagraniu albumu wziął m.in. udział John Sebastian.

W kwietniu 1967 r. ukazał się drugi album artysty Tim Hardin 2, jedna z najlepszych płyt lat 60. Co ciekawe, wbrew modzie na wydłużanie utworów, większość piosenek trwała zaledwie ok. 2 minut. Wydaje się dziwne, że Hardin po wydaniu całkowicie skrytykował album twierdząc, że według jego zamiarów miała to być płyta właściwie tylko śpiewana przez niego przy akompaniamencie gitary, a aranżer, któremu dał taśmę z tymi piosenkami, dodał do tego zespół muzyczny.

Mimo tego, że te płyty nie cieszyły się wielkim powodzeniem, materiał był tak świetny, że wiele piosenek Hardina było wykonywanych przez innych artystów. Najbardziej znany z nich jest utwór "If I Were a Carpenter", który w wykonaniu Bobby'ego Darina stał się przebojem numer 1 w październiku i listopadzie 1966 roku. W dwa lata później słynna grupa The Four Tops także sięgnęła po ten utwór, z takim samym komercyjnym sukcesem. Jeszcze później ten sam utwór stał się przebojem duetu Johnny Cash & June Carter.


Był to świetny okres w życiu artysty; miał dwie udane płyty, szansę na zawojowanie Ameryki, wiódł chyba idylliczne życie rodzinne z żoną Susan Morss i synkiem Damianem urodzonym w lutym 1967 r.

Niestety wkrótce nałóg heroinowy w połączeniu z jego wrażliwą i delikatną psychiką pchnęły go kierunku samodestrukcyjnych działań i niemożności wykorzystania swego sukcesu i innych nadarzających się okazji. Ze względu na nałóg ale i niezwykłą tremę nie mógł często występować. Gdy w lipcu 1968 r. przybył do Wielkiej Brytanii, otrzymał propozycję tournée ze znakomitą grupą Family; skończyło się na jednym występie w Royal Albert Hall w Londynie. Już po trzecim kawałku zwolnił swój zespół akompaniujący i występował solo. Otrzymał znakomite recenzje.

We wrześniu 1967 r. ukazał się kolejny album (wydany przez Atlantic) This Is Tom Hardin, który zawierał także materiał nagrany jeszcze przed pierwszą płytą.

W kwietniu 1968 r. artysta nagrał swój koncert w Town Hall w Nowym Jorku, który ukazał się na dobrym albumie Tim Hardin 3 we wrześniu tego roku. Hardin wykonał swoje najlepiej znane utwory, ubarwiając je jazzowymi akcentami.

W maju 1969 r. ukazał się album Tim Hardin 4, mieszkanka starych, niewydanych utworów własnego autorstwa, jego opracowań tematów folkowych i bluesowych oraz nagrań opisanych jako pochodzących z tego samego koncertu w Town Hall, ale być może nagranych jeszcze na sesjach dla Columbii. Słychać wyraźnie, że większość utworów z This Is Tim Hardin i Tim Hardin 4 pochodzi jeszcze z okresu zanim artysta ukształtował swój styl.

W drugiej połowie 1968 r. Hardin podpisał kontrakt z Columbią. Został posłany do Nashville w Tennessee, gdzie dokonał nagrań, które ukazały się dopiero po 30 latach na zbiorczym albumie Simple Songs of Freedom. Pierwsza jego płyta dla Columbii ukazała się w czerwcu 1969 r. i nosiła długi tytuł Suite for Susan Moore and Damion – We Are One, One, All in One.

Płyta była ambitna. Zawierała kilka konwencjonalnych utworów przedzielonych mówionymi pasażami i na wpół improwizowanymi utworami, o wyraźnie bluesowym charakterze. Płyta miała charakter bardzo osobisty i dotyczyła jego życia rodzinnego. Album ten był śmiałą próbą poszerzenia a nawet przekroczenia granic emploi artysty. Płyta była nagrywana w domu artysty. Każde pomieszczenie było naszpikowane mikrofonami podłączonymi do centralnej konsoli. Ilekroć artysta czuł natchnienie (a zwykle trwało to klika minut), zawiadamiał mieszkającego w pobliskim hotelu Gary'ego Kleina, który przychodził i nagrywał wszystko. Mimo że płyta ta poświęcona była jego rodzinie, to właśnie w tym okresie Hardin-ojciec i mąż zaczął przegrywać z Hardinem-narkomanem.



Columbia żądała od artysty przebojowego singla, ale Hardin nie potrafił komponować na rozkaz. Ratunek przyszedł od Bobby'ego Darina, który z wdzięczności za "If I Were a Carpenter" dał mu piosenkę "Simple Song of Freedom", którą Tim nagrał ze świetnymi muzykami stydyjnymi (m.in. z Bernardem Purdie). Utwór dotarł do 50 pozycji na liście przebojów, co dało szansę na przełamanie złej passy i wejścia do szeregu najpopularniejszych wykonawców. W tym celu trzeba było nagrać drugiego przebojowego singla i wyruszyć na ogólnoamerykańskie tournée. Ale Hardin nie miał ani żadnej piosenki, ani sił na turę koncertową.

W sierpniu 1971 r. ukazał się jego drugi album dla Columbii Bird on a Wire; najlepsza jego płyta nagrana w latach 70. Nie miała już oczywiście tego optymizmu, co wcześniejsze nagrania – artysta wiedział, że utracił już właściwie wszystko bezpowrotnie. Głównym utworem albumu była kompozycja Leonarda Cohena "Bird on a Wire". Znakomitym utworem był także "Love Hymn", rodzaj gorzkiego lamentu po odejściu żony. W nagraniu płyty, która zebrała pozytywne recenzje, wzięli m.in. udział muzycy ze świeżo powstałego zespołu Weather Report.

W lutym 1972 r. Hardin opuścił Woodstock (gdzie mieszkał od ponad 3 lat, nie kontaktując się zresztą z innymi artystami) i udał się do Anglii, gdzie poddał się leczeniu narkomanii. I tutaj także nagrał swój kolejny album Painted Head z najlepszymi brytyjskimi muzykami studyjnymi (m.in. Peterem Framptonem). Niestety nie było na nim ani jednej nowej jego kompozycji.

Wkrótce podpisał kontrakt z firmą GM Records, która wydała jego album Nine. Znalazło się na nim m.in. 6 oryginalnych utworów. Stała się też ostatnim całkowicie ukończonym albumem artysty.

Po jego wydaniu w czerwcu 1973 r. Hardin zniknął z widoku. Był rozpatrywany (obok Tima Buckleya) do zagrania postaci Woody'ego Guthrie w filmie biograficznym, ale nic z tego nie wyszło. W ciągu około 10 lat, kilkakrotnie dochodziło do czasowego pojednania między nim a byłą żoną.

W 1976 r. artysta powrócił do USA i zamieszkał w Seattle. Od czasu do czasu pojawiał się w klubach, gdzie występował. Jego występy były nierówne; potrafił zupełnie zniszczyć kiepskim wykonaniem jakiś utwór, a w minutę później porywać publiczność śpiewając przez dwie godziny a cappella.

W 1980 r. w telewizyjnym dokumencie o nim (zrobionym z okazji nagrania koncertowego albumu The Homecoming Concert) mówił m.in. o swoim nałogu, dlaczego używał heroiny i dlaczego znów ją weźmie. Raczej żałował, że porzucił nałóg i święcie wierzył, że był w lepszym zdrowiu, gdy był narkomanem, a po kuracji antyheroinowej bardzo przytył. Mówił także, że sprzedał prawa do swoich piosenek za 23 mln. dol., których nigdy nie otrzymał. Koncertowy album został nagrany w styczniu 1980 r. w rodzinnym mieście artysty Eugene w Oregonie.

Wkrótce po tym występie muzyk przeprowadził się do Los Angeles aby być bliżej syna Damiona i Susan. Bardzo się zmienił.

Ważył już ponad 200 funtów i stracił włosy. Groził Susan, że jeśli do niego nie wróci – zabije się. We wrześniu tego roku Susan z synkiem opuściła Los Angeles aby ukryć się przed Hardinem.

29 grudnia Tim Hardin zmarł po wzięciu dużej dawki heroiny. Było to tuż po śmierci Johna Lennona i nikt właściwie się nie dowiedział, że Hardin także zmarł.

Został pochowany na Twin Oaks Cemetery w Turner w stanie Oregon.

W latach 90. przywrócono pamięć o tym znakomitym artyście wydając antologie (Polydor) i niewydane utwory (Columbia). Robert Plant znów uczynił przebojem "If I Were a Carpenter" w 1993 r.

Pozostaje do dziś pytanie, jak Hardin mógł stracić tak całkowicie swój dar. Cześciowej odpowiedzi udzieliła Susan Morss.

Opisała artystę jako introspektywnego pisarza, mocno związanego ze swoimi emocjami. Gdy narkotyki zerwały więzi z jego uczuciami – nie miał już o czym pisać. I to był koniec. (wikipedia)


It was the fag end of the summer of '66 when a sharp-suited singer walked onto my TV screen and sang "If I Were A Carpenter". I just couldn't believe that Bobby Darin, hitherto famous for songs such as "Mack The Knife" and "Multiplication", was singing what I presumed to be a beautifully arranged traditional folk song, in the same vein as "The Raggle Taggle Gypsy" or "Black Jack Davey". I set out the following day in search of the album, which I found in a local record shop, then dashed home to persuade my mother to go into the shop on my behalf - I just couldn't bear to be seen buying a Bobby Darin record. The album was a real gem - the track listing boasting several Tim Hardin songs (a name I hadn't previously heard). Each of the songs was a mini-masterpiece. I don't think any of the songs lasted more than two and a half minutes, but that was it, I was hooked.

Tim Hardin was born in Eugene, Oregon on December 23rd 1941. His parents Molly and Hal had both been musicians: his mother had once had a career in classical music, his father at one played bass. Tim spent a great deal of time during his formative years under the strict supervision of his maternal grandmother who went by the wonderful name of Manner Small. Tim had known from the outset that he wasn't like the rest of the boys in the small lumber town. He wanted to act and to sing. When he eventually left Eugene, it was to join the Marines, not one would say, the most direct route to an acting or singing career. He was shipped out east and came back, like many of his fellow soldiers nursing a deadly heroin habit.

Leaving the Marines in 1961 he returned briefly to Eugene, before moving to Greenwich Village, where he was enrolled at the rather grand sounding American Academy of Dramatic Art. In the village he met Karen Dalton (who is curiously in the position of gaining posthumous fame through the re-release of her second album It's So Hard To Tell Who's Going To Love You The Best on Megaphone) and Richard Tucker, and it was almost certainly their influence that encouraged him to think more seriously about his music.

He was dismissed from the Academy after skipping too many classes, and re-merged in Boston around 1963, where he received a call from Erik Jacobsen, a one-time banjo-playing folkie (and more recently producer of Chris Isaak). Jacobsen invited Tim down to New York to work on some songs. Tim moved back to Greenwich Village in 1964 and through Jacobsen, he gained an audition at Columbia Records. He was still on heroin and heavily into marijuana, and the resulting sessions were a nightmare. Columbia passed on him, But Jacobsen's faith was unshaken. Eventually, Tim was placed with the partnership of Koppelman and Don Rubin, who were at that time working jointly on the Lovin' Spoonful. They found a home for Tim on the Verve-Forecast label, a division of MGM and Tim's first single, "How Can We Hang On To A Dream?" was issued in February 1966.



His first album Tim Hardin 1 was released in the summer of 1966, by which time he had married Susan Moehr - who was to be his muse for some of his finest love songs. None of Tim's albums sold well. He had a cult following that probably accounted for sales of between ten and fifty thousand per album. Even so the first album and its innovatively named follow-up, Tim Hardin 2, were two of the best albums of the 60's, influencing many artists, from those who covered his songs, Johnny Cash, The Small Faces, Waylon Jennings, Scott Walker and Bobby Darin (who threw away his toupee) to those artists such as Nick Drake, Astral Weeks-period Van Morrison, and latterly Ron Sexsmith who were influenced by him. When Ron Sexsmith was asked by his record producer to give some kind of reference as to how he wanted his debut album to sound like he told him to listen to the first two Tim Hardin albums.

In 1969 Hardin arrived in England to take what was then known as the "sleep cure" for heroin addiction. This involved the use of barbiturates to get over the initial withdrawal stage from heroin, sadly, Tim emerged from the "cure" addicted to barbiturates.

Back once more in the States, Tim was living in Woodstock, where he recorded a highly personal and confessional Suite for Susan Moore and Damion - We Are-One, One, All In One. There were no songs on this album for Bobby Darin to cover, but, in a strange reversal of fate, Tim covered Darin's "Simple Song Of Freedom" and it gave him his only "Hot 100" hit. Shortly after, his life in Woodstock took a downward turn when Susan left him. He then recorded his second album for Columbia: Bird On A Wire. Although there were few self-penned songs, for me, this was his finest moment. He makes Leonard Cohen's much-covered "Bird On A Wire" his own, with an impassioned vocal performance, and the entry of the choir just before the end, although potentially tacky, is one of his greatest moments on record. Hardin's version of the traditional song "Moonshiner" matches even Dylan's version and standards such as "Georgia On My Mind" are sang with real feeling in his voice. The strands of his varied life and musical influences, plus his fine vocal technique all come together and, with the sympathetic backing of jazz luminaries, like Joe Zawinul, the tracks were imbued with the depth of sweet melancholy that I had never before experienced. It was rather like pressing your tongue to a bad tooth - both painful, yet irresistible.

Tim, still in Woodstock, felt trapped. He had lost his driving licence and even though he had given up heroin again, he was drinking heavily, and like most alcoholics and substance abusers, Tim lost touch with his feelings, and hence his songs. He made one last record for Columbia Painted Head, which although a good workman-like album did not contain one original song.

Tim left Woodstock and went to England again, where as a registered addict, he could receive his heroin on the National Health. Whilst in London he and Susan had a brief reconciliation, but he lost her again and lost his songs too, by signing away the copyrights.

Returning to the USA he stayed in Seattle and then moved to Los Angeles to be close to his son, Damion. By this time, Tim cut a different figure, bald and overweight, almost unrecognisable, even to his old friends. He was on a downward spiral, hurting those close to him and back on heroin (he had been clean in Seattle).

During his last troubled months Tim worked once again with Don Rubin. They had two tracks ready for an album, but Tim Hardin died in Los Angeles on December 29th 1980. When the County Coroner's Office handed down its verdict, his death was "due to acute heroin/morphine intoxication".--- Ian Sharrock (triste.co.uk)

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The Spike-Drivers - 60's Folkrocking Psychedelia from The Motor City (1965-1968)



Marycarol Brown - vocals
Sid Brown - guitar
Ted Lucas - guitar, vocals
Richard Keelan - bass, vocals
Steve Booker - drums
Larry Cruise - drums (in late 1965)

With such a descriptive title, perfectly capturing the general mood of this Detroit band, this collection almost needs no review at all. You'll be assured to this fact as soon as you hear the opening lines of their '66 debut single's b-side (the longest single track at the time) "Often I wonder" or (appropriately titled) "Strange Mysterious Sounds", both with a doze of US "Kaleidoscopic" darkness combined with Eastern influenced folk-psych. Even when they get a bit more conventional musically, like in the 'Spoonfulish "Baby won't you let me tell you how I lost my mind" or the Hendrix-gone-folky "Blue Law Sunday", the lyrical concept is still a bit moody. Though they've never reached the commercial hights proportional to their possibilities, the one that should've taken them to the toppermost of the poppermost is their super-jangly a-side of their debut called "High Time", and besides all of these, there's also an unexpected goofy, Bonzo-Doggish take on the Californian saga, "Baby can I wear your clothes". The Spike-Drivers' second edition was a bit "wilder and freer" though not necessarily "stranger and funnier" as band member Sid Brown puts it in the liner notes. "Portland Town" continues the eerie folk-psych sound of the early singles in a kinda Slick-y, way with an addition of almost classical string arrangement, to be followed with a couple of classic psych tracks, with an omnipresent middle eight fuzzed-out rave-up, like in "Everybody's got that feeling", the spiritual "I know" or "Time will never die", and you'll even find a bit of a honky tonk finger pickin' in "Grocery store". The third segment of the CD is made of two folk-rockin' '65 demos, "Can't stand the pain" and the Holly-ish "I'm so glad". By the way: Sid Brown was the guy who told Mike Bloomfield of the Paul Butterfield Blues Band who to play an "Eastern" guitar; the result can be heard on "East-West", their second album on Elektra in 1966!


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Ten Years After - Eagles Auditorium (1969)





Even though Woodstock showcased Ten Years After to the world, the blues-rock band could not really break out to the masses the way Cream did on their own. Here is an old press report about Alvin Lee when he was in The Jaybirds before the group turned into Ten Years After (in 1966):

Alvin broke new ground when he was forced to play a lashing, stinging five-minute solo intro to “Money” as chairs and fists flew dangerously close to the stage. But in those days Alvin had quite a reputation as an innovator. Many have still never recovered from the traumatic effects of the time he tottered into the hall on the first pair of Cuban heel boots ever seen in Sutton… But Alvin had a certain polish even then. The group’s “Poison Ivy” was thought by many to be an improvement on The Stones’ EP version, and nobody could change from rhythm to lead guitar with quite the same smooth panache as Alvin.

Those who feel that the blues ended with Eric Clapton would be surprised at how good Alvin Lee was. Lee was simply blistering at this 1969 Seattle show.

This is what Ten Years After fan DaBoss posted on the net:

Great show! The ferocity of Alvin Lee’s guitar is incredible - he just pounds and shreds his way through these cuts like a meatgrinder making sausage. This is when they were young and hungry and it shows. Loud, fast and fun. The mix is pretty good, the guitar is the most forward, vocals are mid, drums and cymbals slightly behind vocals and bass somewhat in the back and not all that muddy - considering. The sound quality is at least as good, if not better than the commercially released “Undead” of about the same period - but the performance is much more intense here.

Thanks to 38f for sharing the tracks on the net back in 2005 and to Novella1949 for the artwork. (bigozine)

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Speed Limit 35 (1970-1971)





Stephen "Carlos" Scott - bass, vocals
Bobby "LG" Walker - guitar, vocals
Paul "Pablo" Swenson - drums

In 1968, Stephen Scott, who had played in bands like Homer & The Don’ts and Ladies WC (see our review of the latter’s wonderful reissue) in his native Venezuela, relocated to South Carolina and joined Speed Limit 35, a band that had built up a loyal following at the nearby University of South Carolina. Having graduated from a local bar band playing Hendrix and Cream covers to the first acid rock band in S.C., they made it all the way to New York City before returning to Columbia, where, according to Scott’s liner notes, “they became more involved in acid and less in rock.” By 1969, the band, now a three piece including Paul Swenson on drums and Bobby Walker on guitar and influenced by Scott’s blues background, began playing at local clubs in the Carolinas. Opening for artists as diverse as Linda Ronstadt, Brownsville Station and the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band! In April, 1970, the band scored the opening slot for Steppenwolf at the Columbia Coliseum and that performance is lovingly captured on side A of this reissue.

Opener “Song in ‘A’” has a good-time, Grateful Dead party feel to get the crowd on their feet and “Anthem” features a laidback, bluesy psych vibe. The jammy “Song in ‘E’” demonstrates the band’s considerable chops, eliciting favorable comparisons with mid-flight CSNY, and is liberally seasoned with Walker’s bluesy solos. The band’s sound may actually be closer in spirit to John Kay’s bluesier pre-Steppenwolf band, Sparrow, but nevertheless serves them well in their allotted task of pumping up the kids for the main course.

The success of the gig brought the band to New York where they recorded demos at Mercury Studios, selections of which are presented as the album’s B-side. The two-part, 111-minute “Shoeshine Man” is a heavy lidded headnodder. Part one combines laid-back acoustic jamming with bluesy guitar runs from Walker, while part two captures the band headed full steam into the stratosphere, highlighted by some wicked harp blowing and tasty guitar runs. “Break My Day” finds the boys in a more acoustic, reflective mood, with some unidentified sax work particularly effective and Scott’s mournful, bluesy wail hitting all the right emotional buttons.

In 1971, the author/director of an Off-Off-Broadway play, Alice (based on Alice in Wonderland) saw the band perform at USC’s Campus Club South and was impressed enough to invite them to write the score for his play. While Scott does not believe the play was ever produced, Swiss label owner Raymond Dumont (who is responsible for this reissue), also bought the rights to their score, so hopefully we’ll be hearing more from Speed Limit 35 before too long. Until then, sit back and enjoy these boogie boys bleed the blues and marvel at Walker’s screaming solos, which are particularly awe-inspiring. Fans of better-than-competently played bluesy rock (laced with the occasional acid flourish) in the styles of Paul Butterfield, Steve Miller, and Canned Heat as well as collectors of similarly sounding artifacts from the Rockadelic label have cause for celebration at the unearthing of this buried treasure and should place it at the top of their wish list.

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Aksak Maboul - Un peu de l'âme des bandits (1980)

 
Aksak Maboul - belgijski zespół awangardowy założony w 1977 roku przez Marca Hollandera i Vincenta Kenisa. Nagrali dwa albumy studyjne, "Onze danses pour combattre la migraine" (1977) i "Un peu de l'âme des bandits" (1980). Pierwszy album to zabawne połączenie różnych form muzycznych, kultur i gatunków, przeważnie  instrumentalna mieszanka jazzowych improwizacji, muzyki etnicznej, elektroniki a nawet muzyki klasycznej. Druga płyta to ciąg dalszy twórczych eksperymentów, jest równie ciekawa, ale już bardziej wyrazista, ostrzejsza i eksperymentalna, w ciemniejszej atmosferze, nagrana z gościnnym udziałem m.in. Chrisa Cutlera i Rreda Fritha.


Aksak Maboul (also spelled Aqsak Maboul for a while were a Belgian avant-rock band founded in 1977 by Marc Hollander and Vincent Kenis. They made two studio albums, Onze Danses Pour Combattre la Migraine (1977) and Un Peu de l'Âme des Bandits (1980), the last one with ex-Henry Cow members Chris Cutler and Fred Frith. They were also active in the Rock in Opposition movement.

Aksak Maboul began in 1977 as a duo of Marc Hollander (keyboards, reeds, percussion) and Vincent Kenis (guitar, bass guitar, keyboards). Marc Moulin (keyboards) and Chris Joris (percussion, keyboards) joined later, and with this line-up, plus guests Catherine Jauniaux (voice) and others, they recorded their first album, Onze Danses Pour Combattre la Migraine (French for "Eleven Dances for Fighting Migraines"). It was released in 1977 under the name Marc Hollander / Aksak Maboul on an independent record label, Kamikaze Records.

Onze Danses Pour Combattre la Migraine was a playful mix of musical forms, cultures and genres. With drum machines and looping organ lines, it shuffled between improvised jazz, ethnic music, electronics and classical music. It was largely an instrumental album with snatches of singing and voices.

In late 1977 Aksak Maboul started performing live, during which time Frank Wuyts (percussion, keyboards) replaced Joris and Moulin, and Denis van Hecke (cello) and Michel Berckmans (bassoon, oboe) of Univers Zéro joined. In early 1979, Hollander invited Chris Cutler and Fred Frith of the recently defunct avant-rock group Henry Cow to join Aksak Maboul on their next record. They rehearsed together, performed in a few concerts and then went to Sunrise Studio, Kirchberg in Switzerland to record their second album, Un Peu de l'Âme des Bandits (French for "A Little of the Bandit Spirit"). This was released in 1980 on Crammed Discs, a new independent record label Hollander had created to release the album.



Un Peu de l'Ame des Bandits was more intense and experimental than their first album. It contained complex written sections as well as improvised ambient pieces. It used sampling before samplers were invented and was a mixture of tangos, Turkish tunes, chamber rock, noisy punk rock and pseudo-Varese music. Like the first album, it was instrumental with a little singing and voices.

Back on the road again, Aksak Maboul joined the Rock in Opposition (RIO) movement and in April 1979 they performed at an RIO festival at the Teatro dell'Elfo in Milano, Italy. Aksak Maboul were one of the last of the original RIO bands.

In early 1980, Hollander founded the Crammed Discs independent record label. A few months later the original nucleus of Aksak Maboul (Hollander and Kenis) and the core of a Brussels band Les Tueurs de la Lune de Miel joined forces to become The Honeymoon Killers. They toured Europe between 1980 and 1981, although still under the name Aksak Maboul. "Bosses de Crosses", one of the first pieces they composed, was included on the CD re-issue of Un Peu de l'Ame des Bandits. They later recorded an album Tueurs de la Lune de Miel / Honeymoon Killers and toured for a few months under that name.

The last recorded work by Aksak Maboul appeared on a 1984 compilation album, Made to Measure Vol. 1, where the original duo of Hollander and Kenis contributed seven tracks of new material composed for a play by Michel Gheude based on the life of Maiakovsky. The music here has been described as "minimalist rock" and is very different from their two studio albums. By the mid-1980s Aksak Maboul ceased to exist as a group, but Hollander and Kenis continued to play an active role in Crammed Discs' musical policies.

However, Aksak Maboul have produced a new track in 2010, for Tradi-Mods vs Rockers on Hollander's Crammed Discs label, the tribute album to the Congotronics series. Aksak Maboul's contribution is "Land Dispute", a new take on a song by Congolese band Kasai Allstars. (wikipedia)

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Moby Grape - Live Grape & Live At Keystone (1978)





Peter Lewis – Guitar, Vocals
Jerry Miller – Guitar, Vocals
Skip Spence – Guitar, Drums, Vocals
Cornelius Bumpus – Keyboards, Saxophone
John Oxendine - Drums
Chris Powell – Bass
Daniel Spencer – Drums

[PL]

O grupie Moby Grape - przy okazji prezentacji pierwszej, znakomitej płyty zespołu - napisał w swoim poście pięknie Conradino, więc nie będę się już powtarzał. Chciałbym natomiast przypomnieć dwie moim zdaniem znakomite płyty koncertowe, bo w okolicach 1977 roku grupa przeżyła tak zwany "reunion" w prawie-oryginalnym składzie. Z nagrań można wywnioskować, że zespół jest w świetnej formie. Słychać to przede wszystkim na płycie "Live Grape" i moich ulubionych dwóch kawałkach - That Lost Horizon i You Rider. Drugą płytę załączyłem niejako na zasadzie bonusu, bo jest to bootleg nagrany podczas występu w Palo Alto i zawiera więcej klasycznych nagrań z pierwszych płyt.

[ENG]

The album features core members Peter Lewis, Jerry Miller and Skip Spence. Original members Bob Mosley and Don Stevenson did not participate in the recordings, though Bob Mosley did appear with the band on occasion during this period.

The recordings were made of performances in 1977 and early 1978, in and around Santa Cruz. At the time, band members were in a protracted legal dispute with former manager Matthew Katz over ownership of the Moby Grape band name. As a result, Moby Grape is not named anywhere on the cover.

The album was originally released by Escape Records in 1978. It was reissued on CD by Line Records in 1994 and Akarma Records in 2007.

"Live Grape" is a welcome addition to any Moby Grape fan's collection because of its historical importance, being the 1978 reunion album. Truth be told, the contents are slight because of the absence of original drummer Don Stevenson and original bassist Bob Moseley. Skip Spence apparently makes a cameo or two ("Must Be Goin' Now Dear"). With substitutions Cornelius Bumpus (later in the Doobie Brothers) and John Oxendine, the playing is very well executed and the energy level is high. However, the creative songwriting impetus that carried them through their first five albums seems to be lost. There are some highlights, including the Peter Lewis compositions "That Lost Horizon" and "Up In The Air". Overall, one gets the impression that Moby Grape were, at this stage, a great bar band (the Cornelius Bumpus tune "Set Me Down Easy" is a great example). Unfortunately, without the full quintet of principals, the writing isn't as varied. One misses the the throaty soulfulness of Moseley, the other half of the Miller/Stevenson writing duo and the mercurial fire of a fully-participative Skip Spence.

This is a great album! Issued in 1978 without any mention of "Moby Grape" anywhere (no pictures either) it was a record that fell into the bins because it was released by a small label that didn't promote. But hey, any album that is released on a small indie label gets that treatment. This features all the original Grape guitarists together again for "Must Be Goin' Now,Dear", a new Spence track. Recorded some 10 years after he left the band (discounting the reunion in 1971)after his last performances. Also featuring Cornelius Bumpus (Doobies,Steely Dan,etc.) and John Oxendine on drums. The record sounds part studio, part warm-up, some live. Out of print, but worth finding. (amazon)

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