ProgNotFrog

Changes - Home Again (Germany, 1979)

2012-05-28T14:55:00.010Z

A very similar sound to the Riot album I featured here a while back (Beckerhoff is in both bands), with the same laid-back ecm-like sound recalling Manfred Schoof in the late seventies phase-- boy do I love this german jazz, I don't think I could ever get enough of it. All my previous remarks apply here concerning what I think is the superiority of european jazz to the original american style, particularly in the field of jazz-rock, where compositions tend to be stronger and more varied. And as I said, I grew up with American jazz, in a former life I played jazz piano. I know these are fightin' words, I guess I should qualify by saying I prefer the european style.

They did another album the next year with the same line-up, presumably along the same lines...
Hope you enjoy this Mr Morgan.

A closer look at the beautiful cover painting shows a leaf turning brown with screws bleeding drops-- very interesting death of nature allusion?

Tracklist:

A1 Home Again 7:04
A2 Trees 5:48
A3 Little Waltz 7:56

B1 Samba Du Commerce 5:59
B2 Some Days Of My Life 7:45
B3 Blues For Ed 6:58

Credits▼

Bass– Peter Bockius
Drums– Peter Weiss (4)
Piano– Ed Kröger
Saxophone– Wolfgang Engstfeld
Trumpet, Flugelhorn– Uli Beckerhoff

Phileas Fogg - Coma Depasse 1986

2012-05-23T18:27:00.025Z

Some more French material to complement pollux's posts before we move back to Germany. This lost record recalls Babel-era Cos (esp. the 5th track) with the crystal-clear female singing on top of some really tasty jazz licks with progressive touches. Isabelle Sobkowiak is the singer and she really goes all-out on the out-belted third track demonstrating some ground-fracking high notes in the first part. In the second part of the same song we get those sustained minor chord guitar arpeggios that are so proggy, cf. edition speciale, mahavishnu orchestra, whereupon the keyboardist gets a chance to shine (Jollivet).

The guitarist, Christian Berger, is the other real standout in his gorgeous playing. Phenomenal solos abound. I include the last instr. composition below to get a feel of the jazz vs. rock vs. progressive dosages that go into this potion.

I know some will think it's simple pop, some will think it's too jazzy, but someone out there (based on past comments) might well think it's their favourite record in the world. For me, it sure is beautiful music to my ears, and I will play it numerous times. And at least my wife will like it too! (Although this means I have to leave the headphones off, and listen to her talk about her day at work for a long long time.) I particularly love this singer's voice, she's got diamonds that glitter to make you blind in her vocal cords.

Bass– Pierre Janin
Congas– Lazreg Saidi
Drums, Percussion– François Longuemare
Guitar– Christian Berger
Keyboards– Lionel Jollivet
Vocals– Isabelle Sobkowiak

Paroles - P. Roudergue
Composee et arrangee - Phileas Fogg

Last track:

Chemin Blanc - Chemin Blanc {France}[1977, Hexagone]

2012-05-23T03:43:00.000Z

Artist: Chemin Blanc

Album: Chemin Blanc

Year: 1977

Label: Hexagone

Style: Folk/Prog

Format: 320 mp3 + 3% Recovery

Size: 90.9MB

Lineage: VINYL Rip 16bit 44.1khz

Source: Album Collection

Studio Album Released in 1977

Track Listing

A1	Intermédiaires	3:24
A2	J'ai Perdu La Mémoire	3:45
A3	Matin D'automne	2:25
A4	Tant Qu'il Nous Reste Le Temps	4:00
A5	Les Champs De Béton	2:47
B1	Des Paroles En L'air	3:45
B2	Au Fond Des Mers	5:55
B3	Homme Du XXe Siècle	5:35
B4	Tzi Tzi Ka	1:20
B5	Nous Aurons Franchi La Barrière	3:40

Line Up/Musicians

Baritone Saxophone – Jacques Gouadin (tracks: B2) Electric Guitar – Michel Dedieu (tracks: B2, B3)
Electric Piano, Piano [Acoustic], Percussion – Didier Blanc
Percussion, Xylophone, Drums – Xavier Jouvelet
Synthesizer – Jean-Paul Dedieu (tracks: B2, B3)
Voice, Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Bass Guitar, Mixed By – Gérard Hello
Voice, Percussion – Marie Hello

Chemin Blanc - Chemin Blanc {France}[1976, RCA]

2012-05-23T03:06:00.000Z

Artist: Chemin Blanc

Album: Chemin Blanc

Year: 1976

Label: RCA

Style: Folk/Prog

Format: 320 mp3 + 3% Recovery

Size: 97.8MB

Lineage: VINYL Rip 16bit 44.1khz

Source: Album Collection

Gentle yet complex and intricately played acid folk. This is a true gem of a record, with male and female vocals. Also featured...electro-acoustic guitar playing and other instrumental delights

Track Listing

A1 Ecoute Moi 3:15
A2 Wendy 3:29
A3 Comptine 0:32
A4 Regarde 4:32
A5 Alleuze 4:30
A6 Chemin Blanc 3:58
B1 J'ai Feuillete Ma Jeunesse 4:03
B2 Sabadena 5:40
B3 Ballade Pour Un Chat 4:25
B4 Chanson Pour La Vague 4:37
B5 Ecoute-Moi (Instrumental) 2:10

Musicians/Line Up

Bass Guitar – Serge Massy
Bass Guitar, Harmonica, Guitar – Gérard Hello
Congas, Drums, Electric Piano, Organ, Vocals – Didier Blanc
Guitar – Yves Rakotomalala
Guitar, Dulcimer, Vocals – Eric Le Collin
Percussion, Xylophone, Glockenspiel – Xavier Jouvelet
Piano, Organ – Marc Jaurequiberry
Vocals – Marie Hello

Humus - Whispering Galleries 1999

2012-05-22T01:57:00.000Z

What an incredible find we have here! First I would thank gnosismen Dave and Tom (yes, he from the sister blog cdrwl and under the radar cds) for alerting me to this unbelievably brilliant band, that has been performing now for some twenty + years, down to the present day!
Next, amazingly, master musician Jorge Beltran himself from the band has given his approval to post it for us to enjoy, thanks to undertheradar cds for the connection. I am glad to be able to share this with you with his seal of approval, because I haven't stopped listening to it for days on end now. Also, please check the posts on utr cds regarding the history of humus and their work. http://undertheradarcds.blogspot.ca/search/label/Humus
This record was created as a limited edition on vinyl of 300 copies, unfortunately never released to CD. It is indeed rare to get a hold of and it will be a treasured possession for me-- for many reasons.

Let's start with the stunning foldout cover which without doubt is as beautiful as the masterpiece cover art paintings from the past. How rare it is to see so much work applied to a painting which in this case channels perhaps the great british painter Francis Bacon or american Philip Guston, with a De Chirico feel to it.

Consider just the second track, Suctoria. We start with some gorgeous hard guitars playing a doomy deep blues riff in G, as if Kim Thayil had decided to do progressive music after an intensive Berklee compositional education. Suddenly at the end of the phrase the guitar bends upwards to play F sharp, instead of the expected 7th note of F-- brilliant! The record is full of musical surprises like this. Then one minute in, very abruptly the tempo switches to some wild chromatic figures, then switches out again to deep stairs-like patterns in I think E. It's a bit reminiscent of how Alcatraz created hard guitar prog, but definitely uniquely in a different league. Slowly the guitars attempt to climb their way out of this dungeon of bizarre chromatic notes to get back to the blues in G, like sysyphos, they seem to keep falling back down to the deep E note. Finally a lead guitar makes his way back to a solo as if singing his gorgeous way to freedom in sounds that are almost atonal they are so far away from the usual ledzep-rulebook of blues solo. Or what if indeed Arnie Shoenberg had taken up a dodecaphonal guitar concerto? Then listen to the power chord ending-- a majestic E flat (no 3) an A minor with F, then the G finale-- wow! It's tempting to think no ending like it has ever been heard before in rock history.

I love how they're referencing grungy alternative, especially in the third track with its Hole-like Seattle or insecticide singing. The record is full of surprises along these lines, it's like a dissertation in how to do progressive, with its tempo changes & complex compositions. The long track on side 2, called Whispering Galleries, is a magnificent novella of darkness and light, traveling through worlds of hardship and difficulty, heartbreak and trials, as if the transcription in our tympanic membranes of an imaginary Jorge Luis Borges story that we are seeing for real in our ears, discussing the depths of time and space and the extent of eternity with the stylus of a meandering amplified guitar and perfect rhythm section.

From Mr. Jorge Beltran:

"We still have original CD's of our first three albums... [that are easily available for purchase]
...and also we have a new album on itunes, amazon, etc...it is called HAPPY DAYS AHEAD...please grab your copy (but do not rip one that yet, please!)
(by the way, you can get a physical copy from amazon)

http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/happy-days-ahead/id452745429

If you need more info, please check out:

http://humusmx.es.tl/
"

From wikipedia:
"Early history
Humus was founded in 1987 by Jorge Beltran as a one man band, where he played all instruments in home recordings made through the ping pong recording technique. He chose the name "Humus" based on the earthy, humus-like sound caused by sound degradation caused by the reduction mixing. During the late 1980s and early 1990s Beltran released five cassettes, causing interest in the underground quarters of Mexico City, where there had been a long history of progressive rock that managed to exist despite all the adversity a Latin American country faces in terms of making independent music business.

Jose Luis Garnica, a long time friend of Jorge's and a rock connoisseur, was very much impressed by the quality of sound of these recordings, but mostly by Beltran's musicianship, so he became producer of Humus's first LP, Tus Oidos mienten in June 1992. The album finally gave recording status to Humus, and soon international reviews from the U.S., Germany, France, and in particular from Italy began to emerge, praising the new band from Mexico.

Second Album and Lineup Change

From the second album, called simply Humus (released Dec. 1994), the one man band concept changed to a live performing band, which included old time school friend and bass player Victor Basurto, with whom he had formed their first band, Stomago Sagrado in the late 1970s. Victor had designed the cover for Tus Oidos Mienten, and has been in charge for the art of all recordings both musicians have been involved with ever since.

Several local tours took place, and the drum stool was occupied by no less than 8 drummers during the 1990s and well nigh into the 21st century.

Third and Fourth Albums and Side Project

A third album, Malleus Crease was released in 1995. This album, along with brother Project Frolic Froth's album Ouroboros were also released in Italy by the D-dabliu label in LP format. Humus 4 degrees, released in 1997, is the band's only album to exist only in CD format, all others were both CD and LP productions. This album was released through Smogless Records and newly formed Nuggetphase productions, and from there all albums produced by either of the bands leadered by Jorge and Victor have been released in the Nuggetphase label.

Also in 1997 Humus found themselves in an international tour of England and Italy . In Exeter They recorded an album with American Dave Tor who became singer for the only vocal album ever made by either Jorge or Victor, and for this project a new name was devised: Euphoric Darkness, since it detached completely from the instrumental approach always favoured by Humus. The resulting album was named Colours You Can Hear and only 100 hundred copies were made.

Fifth Album - Present Day

In Pesaro they recorded Humus's fifth album, Whispering Galleries, under the production of Italy's doom metal legend Paul Chain, who also contributed to the album. Three hundred numbered copies were made.

Since 1998 Humus has recorded no less than five albums, though none has been released yet.[clarification needed] The band continues to be active, though members live in different continents: Jorge Beltran lives in Mexico and Victor Basurto lives in The Netherlands. The manage to continue playing together through the use of the new communication technologies. Because of their limited press runs, Humus albums have been rare, and some of them reach up to US$250 in international distributor listings. However, late in 2006 Smogless Records put out new CD editions of the first three Humus albums, Tus Oidos Mienten, Humus and Malleus Crease. A totally new album called Happy Days Ahead was independently released on July 23, 2011, the first one in digital format only, available through some of the main digital stores.
"

Please make note of the comment, Victor is in charge of all cover art, because all their covers are quite masterfully done.

The band uploaded the second song on youtube which you can sample here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IidX2L4W8E

Please note that I have reuploaded many of the mp3s that were cut off by filejumbo service unavailable. Let me know if there are any I missed.

proteus "infinite change" (1980,USA,prog fusion)

2012-05-21T08:27:00.000Z

proteus "infinite change" (1980,USA,prog fusion)

Excellent prog fusion band based in Chicago,USA.
You can read the bio of the band written by the drummer here.

RYM

track1

Petr Novák "Kráska a zvíře"(Czech,1975,male singer's prog))

2012-05-18T15:42:00.000Z

(Czech's rock scene in 1975)

Frankly, if you haven't lived behind the Iron Curtain in the 1970s, I can hardly blame you.
Keep the following in mind when you judge this LP for being or not being a "masterpiece": in 1975, each Czechoslovak record company has released only a *handful* (literally!) of more or less straight rock albums for the domestic market, because in 1975 rock was politically an absolute no-no! In other words: playing rock music was de facto considered a crime! (Ask the Plastic People Of The Universe for a 1st-hand experience with communist jailhouses…)

1975 rock releases on Supraphon:
• Modrý efekt & Radim Hladík (aka Benefit of R.H. for the export market)
• Neckář & Bacily "Tomu, kdo nás má rád"
• Schelinger & Čech "Báječní muži" (although there's a bunch of really silly bubblegum tracks as well)
As well as a couple of "crossover" jazzrock albums like Energit, or Václav Týfa's and Josef Vobruba's "Konstelace".

1975 rock releases on Panton:
• Petr Novák "Kráska a zvíře"
• Schelinger & Čech "Nemám hlas jako zvon" (but see above)
• Synkopy 61 "Formule 1" (a 10" mini album)
• Junior "Hledání radosti" (rather pop than rock)

1975 rock releases on Opus:
• Hammel & Prúdy "Hráč" (rather pop than rock)
• Collegium Musicum "Marián Varga & Collegium Musicum"
• Fermáta "Fermáta" (already more into jazz fusion than rock)

And that was about it for rock LPs in 1975 Czechoslovakia! (As far as I'm aware of; please correct me if I've missed any.)

In this context, already the sole act of having *released* a rock album at all can be called a "masterpiece". In 1975, this album was simply among the best domestic rock albums *available*.

As far as Petr Novák goes: formerly of George & Beatovens - one of the most popular and best selling 60s beat groups - he was probably the first true "rock star" in 1960s Czechoslovakia. Kráska a zvíře was simply an effort to trasfer his talent into the dark and ugly "socialistic reality" of the 1970s. And the guys have made the best of the unique chance which they had back then.

(this album's total concept)
The whole LP is a concept album This is a rock opera inspired by fairy tale Beauty and the Beast. The story of opera takes place in the 70 years of the 20th century, the Beast is a young man disfigured after a car accident, beauty is a woman with child and debts, left by her husband. They meet each other in the library and follow a complicated and painful relationship.

1. Tvář // The Face (2:42)
2. Jen v pohádkách I // Only in fairy tales I (3:16)
3. Knihovna // Library (3:27)
4. Kdybych uměl... // If I could... (2:15)
5. Jen v pohádkách II // Only in fairy tales II (0:39)
6. Východ z nouze // Way out of emergency (4:04)
7. Věř mi krásko // Believe me my beauty (3:07)
8. Knížky // Books (1:57)
9. Proč nejdeš ven // Why do not you go out (3:23)
10. Prstýnek // The Ring (1:03)
11. Týden dlouhý // Week long (2:33)
12. Snadné je zapomínat / Telegram // Easy to forget / Telegram (1:34)
13. Proč // Why? (3:19)
14. Kráska se vrací / Jen v pohádkách III // Beauty goes back / Only in fairy tales III (5:36)

Petr Novak "Kraska a zvire"
Label : Panton
Year: 1975

(Line Up:)

-Petr Novak: Lead vocal
-Vera Mazankova: Lead vocal, backing vocals
-Jiri Cerha and Ladislav Kantor (C & K Vocal): Backing vocals
-Bohuslav Janda: Electric and acoustic guitar
-Petr Formanek: Organ, electric piano, clavinet
-Oldrich Wajsar: Bass
-Jiri Slucka: Drums
Guests
-Jiri Tomex: congas
-Jan Neckar: Moog Synthesizer
-Hanna Frankova: Church organ

(private commentary )
I knew about this album by chance when looking at RYM these days.
Three reviewers rated high scores ,so I was much interested in this album.

And at last ,I got the vinyl.

Looking at the vinyl,
Surprisingly,no grooves on both sides of the record.....Yes,one track only at each side......yes,this album is what we all want..... GREAT PROG !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am very happy that we can share the joy that this real miraculous album gives us.

Strana 1....19:26

Strana 2....19:30

track1 (extract)

or
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gmJHkjSJU6k

This post was made up with the great help of Antony,Pavel and MC.
I appreciate a lot to the three prog mates.

Canzoniere del Lazio - Morra 1978 (Italia)

2012-05-17T14:07:00.001Z

Little by little we've tried to complete the discography of this outstanding band. They belong to that genre of ethnic-progressive-folk I mentioned in connection with Orexis that sadly has disappeared. Our good friend Tom from cdrwl mentioned this album from 1978 as the most fusiony of their output, and ever since he drew our attention to this factor, I've searched high and low for this rarity. I'm sure I'm not the only one to be pleased with its appearance here at last. And Tom was right-- this is their best album.

Notice first up the cover, which is printed with the lyrics at the bottom and the year on top, curiously. In Fellini realismo style, we see an old man washing his face at his table with a cat at the bottom. On the back, the same cat is jumping up to drink from his bowl of soup when he has left. (Morra is an old game btw, for those wondering about the title.) It constitutes the second song on the 1st side. The masterpiece is the long side 2, which I split from its prelude because I love it so much.

First up let's hear what ashram templar Tom had to say:"Update 12/9/2010: I pretty much presumed "Miradas" was Canzoniere Del Lazio's contribution to progressive rock, and was under the impression all of their other albums were pure Italian folk. But that wasn't correct at all (their early albums are indeed just Italian folk), and "Morra 1978" is a very fine fusion effort, taking the reins of "Miradas" and running it into another dimension. Violin and saxophone are the main solo instruments, with percussion and female vocals continuing to play a large role in their sound. Well worth pursuing, and would like to see this one come out on a label like BTF. I also have been told that "Spirito Bono" is worth seeking out as well. (2/15/11 note: And yes indeed, it is. A bit more experimental folk, but a very interesting listen)"

For me the complexity of composition on this effort is what makes the record amazing. There is less droney folk of that 'I'm stoned and I'm strumming the same chords over and over' variety, with the usual commune chanting or hippie-screaming, though the first song is a good sample of that type of folk, and more of the high-energy fusion that brings so much clarity (like a strong cup of espresso) to one's thinking, and more of the really angular, composed, stravinskyesque style. As a complete record, holding the sleeve and as I said before, gazing lovingly at the artwork front and back, it's truly a work of art. I'm reminded of that old animated movie called "The man who planted trees" for those familiar with it, the story of an old man who spends years of his life planting trees one at a time where there is nothing. Many years later the hero-narrator returns to find a large forest there. As an epitaph to the man, he says (paraphrasing of course) "When I think of all he accomplished, it fills me with wonder at what a man can do." And I definitely think the same when I listen to parts of this album.

First part of long side B:

Sevda Live on Swedish Television 1972 (clip only)

2012-05-17T06:14:00.000Z

http://www.discogs.com/Sevda-Sevda-Exclusive-Collectors-Edition/release/2958164
collectors edition:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sevda-Exclusive-Collectors-Edition/dp/B007IJKLB4

thanks to Ergin to let us know about this set!

Ricotti & Albuquerque - First Wind 1971

2012-05-16T15:14:00.007Z

From the back liner notes I will quote verbatim:
When a new band appears on the scene, the same old question always arises.
Are they really new?
Do they have a new sound?
For once the answer is a definite YES
The line-up is as follows.
Frank Ricotti, whose style and musical ability voted him the No 1 vibes player in Britain, doubles occasionally on alto and percussion.
Michael Albuquerque, who wrote most of the material for this album uses his distinctive voice and relaxed country-style guitar to give this band a fantastic edge.
John Taylor who was responsible for a lot of the very good arrangements performs on electric piano with a high degree of subtlety and skill.
Chris Lawrence plays bass just like it ought to be, both electric and acoustic string.
Trevor Thomkins' flawless drumming holds together an awful lot of very good sounds.
Sounds you ought to hear.
Special thanks to Michael Keen and Henry Lowther for solos on Go out and get it and Give a damn.
Pegasus Records, London W.1

Additional credits:
Producer Stuart Taylor
Arrangement: Frank Ricotti, John Taylor, Robin Sylvester
Sleeve Design: Jane de Albuquerque

This album is always hugely in demand, an incomplete copy has been annoyingly circulating for quite some time, so here is the complete album. With regards to the missing songs, I would note that the best songs were left out of the inc version, esp. new york windy day and the last track, how to give a damn. So this is a nice surprise, since oftentimes the worst songs will have been left out. Of course, I am sure others will disagree, hate the pieces I mentioned, and wildly love other songs, such is musical taste. Note that M de Albuquerque made a fantastic solo album in 1973 called We may be cattle, etc. which is well worth seeking out.

Musically, I'd say this is all over the map, with some soul songs, a cover or 2(from J. Sebastian and James Taylor, of all people), some more progressive jazzy passages (the first track in particular), and some really nice tunes all with a strong soul-blues feel. Note that the songs tend to run into each other, but I chopped them up. In typical early seventies british style there is studio talking and noise between many of the tracks. For sure M. de A. is the strongest songwriter here, with the last 2 tracks on side a for me the standouts. Please enjoy this gem which really should be rereleased to cd-- I hope our friends agree.
Priority: 3.14...

John Natchez "Listen" (USA,1977,Jazz rock?RIO ?)

2012-05-15T15:28:00.003Z

John Natchez "Listen" (USA,1977,jazz rock ?RIO?,)

I'm not sure that it is what kind of prog.
But I'm sure that it has a quite distinct quality.......Highly recommended !!!

Further information here

RYM

track1

Dog Watch "Penfriend" (1979,UK,Genesis-style)

2012-05-07T06:20:00.000Z

Dog Watch "Penfriend" (1979,UK,Genesis-style)

As you know,
there are a lot of bands that have Genesis-style all over the world.
Dog Watch is one of them.
One of the regular members plays violin and trumpet and it makes this band much interesting and distinct　performance from the other Genesis clones.
Almost tracks are also attractive and fantastic !!!!!
Moreover,it is one of the best obscure prog LIVE albums.
We can get excited with the audience in this album.

They released this sole live album as a private press.

Highly recommended.

RYM

side one

1. Discopath ....5:22
2. Man In A Cage .....4:27
3. Captain ....9:06
4. Doughnut On The Pier ....3:41

side two

1. Queen Of The Nile .....5:49
2. Ice Cream Man ....4:55
3. Moments .....5:28
4. Oh Joanna ....6:00

Roy Weard ...vo
Roger Clynn ...g
Nick Sack ...ds
Tony Morley ...b & vo
Linda Kelsey ...key
John Trelawney ...violin,trumpet,vo,flugelhorn,guphonium

track2

Das Pferd - Kisses 1988

2012-05-02T17:02:00.000Z

Now for the second outing from this crazy equine fusion outfit from Germany. They are the brainchild of Wolfgang Schmidtke (saxes and keys) and Jan Kazda (bass and keys) who co-composed all the tracks. On this record, we have phenomenal fiddler Billy Bang (remember him?) guesting as well as Randy Becker on trumpets and flugelhorns. A certain Markus Wienstroer is on guitar. Singer is Rosay Wortham (great voice).

Here we have an interesting case, not uncommon, in which the band is being pulled in two different directions. We have the logical extension of the ST's instrumental prog jazz with angular dissonances and tritones, alternating track by track with more commercial sung jazz songs, belted out in that typical loud shouting late-80s jazz style (think Diane Schuur for ex.) which to me are throwaway though I know others will vehemently disagree and find them to be standouts. As before, the musicianship and solos are just shockingly excellent. All of these guys are true 100% professionals.

Das Pferd went on to make some more albums, including a live in 1989, "Blue turns to grey" in 1991, and lastly "The world of das pferd." Would it be a pretty good bet that the commercial songs won out over the progressive instrumentals?

As sample, the most progressive track, note the great tritone opener and gorgeous bass line, and the electric violinwork of Billy recalling Michel Ripoche.

Porta da Barra, track 9

Das Schwere Los, track 6

Finally I really have to mention the coverart... It clearly seems to imply the threatening situation of a stranger in a trenchcoat abducting a little girl. I doubt such a taboo cover would be tolerated today, even in metal music. Remember, this was the eighties, long before the zero tolerance for child abuse became commonplace in western society. In this regard I want to mention a formidably interesting book by Harvard psychologist Steven Pinker called "Better angels of our nature" in which he talks about the very slow evolution of our society towards less and less violence, based on less social tolerance for all forms of aggression, whether school bullying, anti-gay, animal cruelty, even children's cartoons, all things that were not given a second thought as recently as 30 years ago. He points out that the decline in violence in our world has been ongoing since long before history and is evidenced in all kinds of ways today, esp. notable is the shocking drop in crime that sociologists and criminologists find so perplexing in all western societies since the sixties. Correctly, he provides the statistics that make clear this trend started long before the sixties thus, the mystery of dropping violent crime is really a progression of our society that is ongoing and not at all inexplicable-- if viewed within the deepest historical context. What occurred was a reversal in the previous trend, when the drug use and anti-social tendencies of the sixties became fashionable.

So looking at this cover today, we get a completely different visceral reaction from what was intended, 34 years ago when the record was released. For those in N America, who can forget the hysteria of the 'satanic ritual child abuse' cases (remember Geraldo's obsessive anatomizing of it on his show?) and multiple personality disorder obsession of the eighties, leading to the daycare sex abuse convictions of so many innocent people? Some of whom-- believe it or not, are still in jail in the US today.

On a personal note, let me point out how for all my life I thought it would be ok to spank my kids if they misbehaved. Then, when I became a father, I realized I could never really do it-- hit my child. Why? Dr Pinker articulates perfectly (and carries through to the society-wide scale) my personal reasons: It is not effective; there are better punishments; the actual lesson being taught is the power of anger to make one lose control and regret one's actions; another lesson is the strong can hurt the weak with impunity, purely by virtue of being stronger; but most importantly why not strive for a world in which violence or aggression is minimized in every interaction, isn't that a good lesson to teach children too?
For me, it seems obvious now that to a child, the lesson from corporal punishment is a lesson in anger management, it's very easy-- every day-- to lose control and start screaming at them. Far better is it to teach the child that anger control is always better than losing one's temper. And one thing I really didn't understand before is that one can be strict without resorting to violence, it's a classic knee-jerk behaviour. This is the big lesson society learned too, the multiplicity of rules and laws in our world are far more effective than any kind of cruel punishment as was commonplace in medieval times.

Pierre Moreau (L'Engoulevent) - Attentif Piano Solo 1979

2012-04-30T20:05:00.017Z

Pierre Moreau was a graduate of Berklee in Boston (what a source of genius that place is!) as well as McGill in Montreal where he studied composition and jazz. He is or was the primary composer in the famed Quebec group L'Engoulevent, as well, he composed music for children, soundtracks for film (Race de Batard), for theatre (La Scouine), and this incredible lost album of solo piano compositions that travel everywhere from intense to reflective, with an astonishing palette of colours.

Here we have the full range of his creative talents on display, with some gentle songs, quasi-atonal material (Cinquieme), playful passages (Cascade), and the plucked-strings style of piano that one often hears in avant-garde from this period in time. This is not at all like fellow Canadian Andre Gagnon's simplistic classical style, all the education of a university degree is brought to bear to be distilled in the complex harmonies and dissonances like a beautifully deep barolo. As I've said so many times before, this music, progressive rock, goes farther than anything the human mind has ever created before or has since.

It is highly unfair that the impressive works in this record have been lost to time. Like so many others, I would love to let him understand how much I love his work, especially in the master prog-folk band L'engoulevent.

Cascade:

Cinquieme:

astrë "foresight" (1981,USA,sympho,ELP type)

2012-04-27T07:53:00.000Z

astrë "foresight" (1981,USA,sympho,,ELP type)

astrë is a trio with ELP influences. from Oklahoma,USA.

This album is famous for the poor sound quality recording although the tracks are brilliant ones.
I tried to improve them in order to enjoy their excellent tracks than before.

Ripped from the LP

RYM

Recorded at Star Track Studios on August 24,1981

except "lar-asia" recorded live on October 6,1981

Bill Tankersley .....b,bass pedals,key,vo

Mark Loveless .....key,g

Les Mobley .....kit,talking

Hole in the Sky pt1....6:20
Through the Looking Glass.......6:08
Lar-Asia .....6.37 (live recording)
Before the Gods ......6:42

The Doorway.....9:33
World Class.......13:40
1. Nadia
2. Free and expressive Beauty
3. Competition
4. The Waiting
5. The Glory
track 1

Gerard Entremont & Co {France}[1975, Pathe EMI]

2012-04-25T15:04:00.000Z

Artist: Gerard Entremont & Co
Album: Gerard Entremont & Co
Year: 1975
Label: Pathe EMI
Genre: Chanson
Format: Flac (separate) +Artwork + 3% Recovery
Size: 206MB
Lineage: VINYL Rip 16bit 44.1khz

Source: Album Collection

Track Listing

1. A faire l’amour
2. Tire-toi à tire d’ailes
3. Simplement
4. Août 1989
5. Fais comme un rat
6. La folie est en toi comme en chacun de nous
7. Lettre à mon petit frère
8. Mon amour, mon amour
9. Était-ce un rêve ?

Line Up/Musicians

Dominique Blanc-Francard : piano, basse et choeurs
Patrice Cramer : batterie (1, 2, 5, 8, 9), percussions (6), guitares (4)
Jacques Brély : guitares (1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9), basse (2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9), contrebasse (3), choeurs (1)
François Ovide : guitares (1, 6)
Hervé Derrien : violoncelle (1, 3, 6)
Patrick Amar : guitares (3)
Alain Potier : flûte à bec (3), saxophone alto (6, 8), saxophone baryton (8), saxophone soprano (9), harmonica (7), larynx (9), murmures (6)
Éric Miggliaccio : guitares (4, 9)
Geza Fenzl : percussions (5)
Denis Brély : basson (7, 8)
Jean-Luc Quillet : tuba (8)
Dominique Widiez : piano (8), orgue (9)
Jean-Jacques Leurion : orgolia (9), murmures (6)
Jean-Fançois Benatar, Roland Stepczak, Pierre Louis, Hervé Derrien : cordes (5)
Alain Manneval : choeurs (1)
Mauricia Platon : voix (4)
Gérard Entremont chant, choeurs (1), murmures (6), glockenspiel (3)

Hard to classify album with definite prog influences and great musicianship...an unfortunately unknown gem and a delightful album

Das Pferd (1987) (Deutschland)

2012-04-20T21:17:00.004Z

This group (the horse) was a discovery from the mighty osurec and I want to give him credit for it. It reminds me a lot of US band The Inserts from the eighties with its sharp, angular and tritone-heavy dissonant and energetic style driven here by both guitars and knife-sharpened saxes. There are experimental tunes and a kind of industrial overall sound as if you were hearing the soundtrack to a huge factory cranking out creative musician robots out of leftover sheet metal and split riffs cut from dna polymerase reactions and amplified by marshall amps. I like that the production doesn't have the tinny early digital sound, the percussion is nice and tough and rough. The final track features a very slow free experimental jazz number with possibly only a dozen notes in total played by a grand piano and a breathy flute, I've included it as a sample below.

Tracks are composed by Kazda and Schmidtke.

Credits:
Bass– Jan Kazda
Drums– Diethard Stein
Flute– Wolfgang Schmidtke
Guitar– Markus Wienstroer
Keyboards– Jan Kazda, Wolfgang Schmidtke
Saxophone– Wolfgang Schmidtke
Vocals– Jan Kazda, Wolfgang Schmidtke
Vocoder– Wolfgang Schmidtke

Samples:

01 Dynamo Dresden

03 Sie Kommen

11. Komm

Iviron 1981

2012-04-20T17:00:00.002Z

From France back to my home country of Germany for a few albums via Alsace though not without picking up some fine rieslings and sauerkraut along the way. It's odd and I have said it before that the germans are so derelict in their progressive heritage unlike the french for example, which are unearthing palaeontology everywhere. It's certainly not for lack of masterpieces, in the private pressed files there have been tons discovered, amongst which this one-off album by Iviron from 1981. Listen to the opening track, After the Push, initiating F minor with clear minor second dissonances like a subterranean lava flow to introduce the prototype progressive instrument of flute melodicizing behind a co-ed choir. Use of the sustained notes on cello adds the usual spooky-sad dimension.

The second track is typical progressive bizarreness-- note the really weird underlying elec. guitar riff passing into gentle-giant like acoustics with the added classical elements (soprano and alto female singing), and note how abruptly it switches between 2 entirely different songs-- wow! There's throwaway tracks at the end of side 1 (a straight jazz number oddly enough called wings of perception part 2) and at the beginning of side 2 a dumb irish jig that almost makes you want to give up on the record. Why?? why did they do this?? I ask myself. A late-70s roger waters-like song called 'Sister magic" sounds like the band's effort at crafting a radio hit, before we return to the progressive in a big big way, with 'Tales of iviron' and 'Ode' at the close of side 2...

It's absolutely astonishing what some classical training and education provides in terms of harmonic subtlety, originality, and competence for these tracks; essentially they are chamber orchestral works which somehow found their way from a packed concert hall (where they should have been played) on to a 1981 rock record for a few hundred lucky buyers... Musically, the number of creative ideas in the Tales of Iviron is legion, powers of ten beyond any contemporary radio-played weekly set list. Why did this music burn out and die??? And I love how the whole record closes out with a kind of exclamation or question mark, suddenly after an ascending chord pattern, as if an unfinished short story in which you're left hanging as to the death of the hero...

I understand some may feel this is an uneven album but to me, the first half of side 1 and second half of 2 really are stellar -- without the "junk DNA" filler, this would be a superb product of progressiveness.

Now this album was reviewed 2 years ago by our friend ashratom on his sister blog the cd reissue wishlist (sister in the same way Chattanooga Tenessee is the sister city to Marsupilamipotamia, Iraq) where he gave it for the first time a priority 1 five times over, agreeing with me on its masterpiece status, here:
http://cdreissuewishlist.blogspot.ca/search/label/Iviron

And I quote:
" Unusual fusion album with many disparate but incredible ideas. Iviron constructed their album more in an early 1970s exploratory style, though the sound was more relevant to the late 70s / early 80s time frame. There's a real sense of adventure here (a lot of East-West references), and even a touch of the psychedelic. It even has jazz-rock or fusion elements, two synonymous terms as my readers well know. A very interesting find by my excellent contact TS [Tristan Stefan - editor]. At the level of Missus Beastly, I'd say--and readers of this blog will know we take Missus Beastly pretty seriously! Y'all 'll like it [= you all - ed.]"

Tom did tell me recently he has thrown in the towel and given up his blog, due to the competition from us-- he'll never catch up to all the rarities we've posted, in several lifetimes, acknowledging in a personal communication "your collection is so much bigger than mine, Tristan, I admit defeat. As well, you've lived too many lifetimes for me, I'm only on my first here!" For regular readers of the cd reissue wishlist (cdrwl) this comes as a devastating blow, we loved being able to feel superior as Tom was frantically trying to catch up on all the rare progressive records. He continues, "with your four houses and 5 executive positions, and 6 blogs, Tristan, I have no way of competing unless I marry some models (like you) and move to Salt Lake City, Utah". Well sorry Tom-- been there, done that. Before I moved to Wurstenburg, Bavaria, to become CBO (chief burgomeister officer) after getting rich with my fast food burger joints in the midwest (which I sold to AOL Time-Warner at the peak of the dotcom craze for half a billion dollars) I actually was a polygamist mormon personal trainer cum lifecoach who taught Tony Robbins how to be born-- at that time of course he was merely a lost soul without a body who had befriended Oprah's spirit at the local starbucks in purgatory. This is how I made my fortune -- I told Oprah the secret to success was to always change weights, never stay fat or thin for too long, and look at the millions she made off my advice! So RIP cdrwl.

Btw for those curious about the name, from wikipedia:
"The name Iviron originated from the ancient Georgian Kingdom of Iberia (Iveria) where the master architect of the monastery Ioannes was from...
The Holy Monastery of Iviron (Greek: Ιερα Μονή Ιβήρων, Georgian: ივერთა მონასტერი) is an Eastern Orthodox monastery at the monastic state of Mount Athos in Greece. The monastery was built under the supervision of Ioannes the Iberian and Tornikios between 980-983 AD and housed Iberian clergy and priests."

Credits▼
written and arranged by H. Scherner and I. Schleicher-Atanasov
Lyrics by Ronals Bergmayr (Sister Magic) and I Schleicher-Atanasov (Bernie the Faust)

Bass– Thomas Gang
Cello– Dan Fahlbusch
Drums– Peter Hackspiel
Engineer– Bernhard Klein, Walter Brüssow
Flute, Whistle– Ronald Bergmayr
Guitar [6-string Guitar, 12-string Guitar], Mandolin, Mellotron, Vocals, Written-by, Arranged By– Ingo Schleicher-Atanasov
Guitar, Tambura, Vocals, Written-By, Arranged By– Helmut Scherner
Piano– Robert Säbel
Saxophone– Karl Takats
Tabla, Congas, Percussion– Fritz Schoisswohl
Vocals [Alto]– Gerlinde Mayr
Vocals [Soprano]– Eva Meindl

Sample tracks:
Bernie the Faust

Wings of Perception Part I

Wasn't I right when I said we'll all be spoiled with recent and coming material on our blog? Well, you don't know about the coming material yet, but I guarantee we'll feature several albums that don't even exist and never did exist! How's that for a treat?

Kreuzweg (Germany ,1983 ,symphonic rock)

2012-04-20T10:06:00.004Z

Kreuzweg (Germany ,1983 ,symphonic rock)

This very famous but obscure private Xian's conceptual prog album is one of the best German symphonic rock.
Highly recommended to those who love Novalis, Grobschnitt,
and Anyone's Daughter . You will be able to wander into German mystic forests.....

If you hope to watch the pictures of the album carefully ,click it.
I tried to show the original color of my LP using software "Picasa3".
The left peaceful one is the front cover.
The right apocalyptic one is the back cover.

Seite A
1. Menschenkind ...4:30
2. Die Zeit ....4:35
3. Zeichen der Zeit .....8:43

Seite B
1. Schuttle den staub ....9:44
2. Wirst du geh'n ....5:26
3. Passion .....6:50

Markus Greibler ...lead voc
Joachim Haas ....g,vo
Alfred Kirst ....ds
Daniel Pahls ...key
Ellen Muller ...key,vo
Roger Muller ...b

(guest)
Mario Schaub ....sax,flute,oboe
Jorg Botticher ....key

track4

Mimi Lorenzini and Ann Ballester - Orchestra II (1983) [Post-Edition Speciale]

2012-04-19T00:49:00.025Z

Imagine my excitement when I looked on my wife's laptop the other day and saw a folder called "best prog" and I jumped up saying, "finally, you're into my music!" Her laughter was my disappointment: it was the best programs she (as psychologist) had designed for her work in the IBI therapy of autistic children... Well, you know by now what my wife's comments are about this music: "it all sounds the same to me-- are you sure you're not just getting the same record over and over again?" Needless to say this statement drives me crazy. Or "I guess they were all on drugs back then..." Or remember her immortal comment: "another toto blanke??"

Well, things got to a head this past week when she saw the postman come day after day delivering those big square packages that could only be records, and each time she said with increasing frustration, "another one?" So yesterday she told me she got her revenge by buying a new pair of shoes. Unfortunately for me the equation goes: one pair zanotti shoes = 9 records (on average)...
I wonder what the experience of others is (our very own master shige for ex.) in the same situation, if he has to use a secret credit card for his purchases too? Of course this kind of secrecy can work against you in a marriage, she might be wrongly imagining I'm spending thousands on records each month. (When in reality, I'm spending thousands in massage parlours.)

Obviously that was a joke. And what about the lonely world we live through with our tiny minority taste-- will progressive ever become more popular in the future, or, considering the average age of the true fan of two score plus or four dozen plus, is it likely to die off in a generation? Will we really be like the monks of the dark ages, preserving for the future the greatest music the human mind could ever create? Or will it all die off when we do, and digital files can no longer be exchanged in an altogether different world post-population peak? In my darkest moments (i.e. every second) I certainly believe this is true, it has happened before, in fact, every civilization before ours has collapsed in time. I know my dear brother Shige disagrees: "Keep the fire of prog burning!"

Edition Spéciale are by far my favourite prog-fusion group from France, if not from anywhere in the world. From progarchives:

"Martial "Mimi" Lorenzini, one of France's most famous guitarists for his contribution to Canterbury band TRIANGLE, got together with female singer/keyboard player Ann Ballester, bass player Josquin Turenne des Prés and drummer Jean-François Bouchet D'Angely to form ÉDITION SPÉCIALE in 1975. Their style of groovy, accessible jazz-rock is highly comparable to that of RETURN TO FOREVER and BRAND X. Their first album "Allée des Tilleuls" received mixed reviews, in part due to Ann's vocals that spoiled the effect of the excellent musicianship. Featuring virtuoso drummer and newcomer Alain Gouillard, the subsequent "Aliquante" and "Horizon Digital" were a definite improvement. Gouillard's drumming is so tight he could probably rival Bill Bruford. Both albums are rhythmic concepts based on very complex tempo cuts, where the guitar and violin interplay will remind the listener of MAHAVISHNU. Two [3 -- ed.] excellent albums of world-class French fusion."

Good descriptor, though I think the first album is genius too. The duo went on to record more records after the break-up of the band in the eighties, including this slightly less fusion outing, more mainstream jazz and classical-composed, but in a sense it is definitely a follow-up to the amazing Edition Speciale records, taking into account the changing of the guard in that era, wherein progressive and hard fusion were no longer in style, sadly. Same thing as we saw happened to my favourite underrated genius Toto Blanke.

Moving forward into the nineties, from Discogs:
" After having worked together during the Seventies in the same Progressive rock band EDITION SPECIALE, Mimi LORENZINI and Ann BALLESTER unite again for new musical adventures, accompanied by bass-player Jean-Luc PONTHIEUX. The three of them are famous and experimented musicians of the French school, and they perform a kind of music definitely rooted in a mainly acoustic and strongly Americanised jazz. However, it also shows exotic or ethnic ideas, and is particular due to its brilliant and truly elaborated guitar style. Recorded in 1999 on Musea Parallèle, "Question De Temps" is the second record by this band, after the excellent "Le Diable Bleu" (1994).

What an impressive musician this Lorenzini was, particularly when you listen to the ever-inventive riffs he came up with for Ed. Speciale.

His discographie until the present :

BARNEY WILEN “ FREE ROCK BAND “
PHILIPPE MATÉ,RACHID OUARI, CHRISTIAN TRITCH “ EDF “
TRIANGLE ( 3 albums et plusieurs 45 T chez E.M.I )
RENÉ URTREGER - Album compilation sur les pianistes français
EDITION SPECIALE ( 3 albums chez RCA )
DUO LORENZINI / BALLESTER ( Mélodie )
ARESKI / BRIGITTE FONTAINE
5tet ORCHESTRA 5 ( Muséa )
LORENZINI TRIO “S” ( Muséa )
1994 Le Diable Bleu, Lorenzini . Ballester . Ponthieux dist Harmonia Mundi
1996 Percussive Compagnie-Philippe Laccarriere dist Harmonia Mundi
1997 BLUE PHEDRE- François TUSQUES dist Harmonia Mundi
1998 QUESTIONS DE TEMPS - Trio LORENZINI-BALLESTER - PONTHIEUX
2002 Percussive Compagnie-Philippe Laccarriere - acte 2 -
2004 Sortie du CD en duo D’Improvisation (F.Toullec/M.Lorenzini) avec pour invité le poète et comédien J. Luc Debattice

In this record we get that really gorgeous old progressive melancholy carpe diem french sound with the intro 'ballade' (thanks to that intergalactic synth sound), moving into an almost-ed.speciale guitar tune in 'bip bop,' then some pat metheny-like wordless singing on 'feria' in an annoying nod to the eighties, but listen to the incredible fourth track on side 1, 'La ville en rose--' even the title recalls the old group's 'ville en beton'. The two duet quite remarkably on this track moving through some unusual minor chords. Equally the title track has some reminiscences of the old days in the 70s... ah those beautiful angular tritonal prog days of hammering guitars and space-synths!!! (sigh) Beautiful Sophia Domancich guests on the track Salsita from side 2. Note the last track, Grasy M, starts with Bill Evans' chords from Blue in Green.

In some sense this record makes me sad when I think of how much it sounds like the old progressive masters, but is lacking that genius spark of unconventionality and hard amplified guitar/synth edge. In another sense I'm happy to hear more from a group I love so so profoundly. Then the sad desolation returns when I remember how wonderful and beautiful it was to discover those 3 Edition Speciale albums for the first time so many years ago, with my old proverbial friend...

Sample track, the prelude-like intro to the album:

Marguerite (Patrick Lemaitre) - Mr. Ford {France}[1973, CBS]

2012-04-18T14:17:00.000Z

Artist: Marguerite (Patrick Lemaitre)
Album: Mr. Ford
Year: 1973
Label: CBS
Style: Progressive Rock
Genre: Prog-Psych-Folk
Format: 320mp3 + 3% Recovery
Size: 80MB
Lineage: VINYL Rip 16bit 44.1khz

Source: Album Collection

Relatively unknown band/project fronted by Patrick Lemaitre who worked with french psych Gerard Palaprat. Recently rediscovered french progressive/late psych pop gem! Sounds like another great French band IRIS. Good organ/guitar work,some little studio effects. A good addition to any Euro Psych/Prog collection.

Studio album released in 1973

Track Listing

01. Monsieur Ford
02. Etrange Animal En Cavale
03. On Est Un Fleuve
04. La Bataille D'Eldorado
05. Un Bon Caractere Ca N'A Pas De Prix
06. Ailleurs
07. L'Annonciation
08. Parabole
09. Moi Le Jour
10. Sur La Grande Roue
11. Monsieur Ford
12. Epilogue (A Moins Que Je Ne Recommence)

Line Up/Musicians

Patrick Lemaitre - Guitar, Vocals
Georges Varenne - Clarinet, Organ, Vocals
Michel Mouffron - Piano, Organ, Vocals
Alfredo Sarto - Bass, Vocals
Jean Altana - Drums, Vocals

Special thanks to Master Olaf_alien for his help and patience with the restoration work

Hope you enjoy it!

Michel Ripoche - Equinoxe {France}[1975, Atlantic]

2012-04-16T13:21:00.000Z

Michel Ripoche first solo album released in 1975.

Artist: Michel Ripoche
Album: Equinoxe
Year: 1975
Label: Atlantic
Genre: Jazz-Rock-Fusion
Format: Flac (separate) +Artwork + 3% Recovery
Size: 217MB
Lineage:VINYL Rip 16bit 44.1khz
Source: Album Collection

Studio Album Released In 1975

Track Listing

A1 Neptune 2:15
A2 Vimanas 4:18
A3 Hier Aujourd'hui Demain 7:55
A4 Mirage 5:08
B1 Tirer Pousser 2:08
B2 Equinoxe 5:59
B3 Entre Le Ciel Et La Terre 2:15
B4 Ballade Pour B-B. 3:08
B5 Divertissements 3:12

Credits

Bass – Janick Top*
Drums, Percussion – Jean Schulteis*
Engineer – Dominique Blanc-Francart*
Piano, Electric Piano, Arranged By – Philippe Briche
Viola – Hervé Derrien
Violin – Michel Noel*, Michel Ripoche, Pierre Louis
Violin [Alto] – Pierre Llinares
Vocals – Anne-Marie Briche

Michel Ripoche & Andre Demay - Contes Musicaux {France}[1977, Atlantic]

2012-04-16T13:08:00.000Z

Artist: Michel Ripoche & Andre Demay
Album: Contes Musicaux
Year: 1977Label: Atlantic
Genre: Jazz-Rock-FusionFormat: Flac (separate) +Artwork + 3% Recovery
Size: 208MB
Lineage: VINYL Rip 16bit 44.1khz
Source: Album Collection

Michel Ripoche was one of the founding members of Zoo, he was also a very popular session musician and played with Emmanuel Booz and Michel Zacha. He was also involved on early Vangelis albums (Dragon, Hypothesis) and the Aphrodite's Child masterpiece 666. Better known for his Violin work he is also a talented Sax and Trombone player.

Studio Album Released in 1977

Track Listing

A1 Danse Du Crabe
A2 Crépuscule
A3 Violon Fantôme
B1 Sonatélectrique
B2 Nouvelle Valse
B3 Récréation
B4 Sept Boules De Liège

Credits

Guitar – André Demay
Percussion – Charles Benaroch*
Violin – Michel Ripoche

Enjoy!

Noctett - Contrasts (Germany 1979)

2012-04-13T20:59:00.007Z

Now the first album from this nonet of fantastic German jazz musicians, mostly compositions by the trumpeter Peter Herborn save the first track by the keyboardist, there is a lot of big-band jazz sound going on here, and still quite a bit of classical influence. It's a little less rock in comparison to Dauner's Jazz and Rock Ensemble but to me the overall sound is very similar, and the charts are very very strong. There is nothing 'standard,' to use the american word, in the songs. It's too bad there isn't more piano action here from Hufschmidt. Check out the wonderful hair (head and facial) styles of the musicians on the back.

Long live European Jazz and Fusion (and synonymously, jazz-rock, because of course, fusion and jazz-rock mean exactly the same)!

Members:
-Peter Herborn (trombone)
-Thomas Dörr (alto saxophone)
-Remy Filipovitch (saxophone, flute)
-Bernd Krämer (trumpet)
-Raimund Hüttner (trumpet)
-Thomas Ophelders (trumpet)
-Thomas Hufschmidt (piano)
-Martin Engelien (bass)
-Peter Walter (vibraphone, drums)

Tracks:
A1 Springtime 7:10
A2 Polly's Phone 9:14
B1 To Go Is to Think - To Sing Is to Go 4:48
B2 Thoughts to Anthony B. 7:59
B3 ...And Neverthless: Adriana! 9:04

The sample below is the most composed and proggy track, the last one with the very odd title, as in the Full Score album (which came next year) they saved the best for last...

Expresso - First Cup (USA, 1981, Jazz-Rock/Fusion)

2012-04-13T05:59:00.005Z

Expresso - First Cup (USA, 1981, Jazz-Rock/Fusion)

This obscure private-press LP was the sole release by this California fusion group. There's a distinct Dixie Dregs influence at work here, and some Al Di Meola too. However, this is generally lighter and more relaxed sounding than those comparisons would imply. Nothing mind-blowing to be sure, but excellent guitar playing (the band was led by two guitarists) and some good melodic compositions make this an enjoyable listen. (This review was written by my friend "F".Thanks to him !)
RYM
BTW,this record is hard to arrange to listen to.,because your cartridge is easy to pop and skip again and again if you miss the control of the weight of your cartridge with the turntable .

Side 1
1. Vegetable Death (3:29)
2. Telluride Falls (5:02)
3. Moody Shoes (4:49)
4. Skid Row (4:50)
5. First Step (4:25)

Side 2
1. Ice Cuba (4:35)
2. Under The Wing (1:39)
3. Line 'Em Up (3:52)
4. Dear Mr.Food (3:19) ....trad.
5. First Rain (6:30)

(members)
Kurt Kieffer ....lead guitar
Rick Sigman ....guitars
Phil (L.G.)Chidester ...key
Dennis Harper ...b
Casey Smiley ....ds & per

(additinal musicians)
Michael Horne ...per
Mark Ford ....harmonica

Recorded at the Music Annex , Menlo Park ,CA ,Oct & Nov ,1981

track3