The Day After The Sabbath 164: Hungary pt 3: Fehérlófia (Son Of The White Mare)

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Welcome to volume 164: Hungary part 3! I wrote an introduction to Hungarian rock in the first part and you can read the details there (link). The full set of Eastern European volumes is now:
41: Eastern Roc | 101: Poland | 120: Serbia | 134: Macedonia | 153: Hungary 1 | 157: Hungary 2 | 164: Hungary 3

The cover for this volume is from the 1981 Hungarian feature-length animation 'Son Of The White Mare'. I discovered it while looking for art for this volume, and was immediately struck by the visual style, so I watched the movie, which was released on blu-ray (with English subtitles) in 2022 (link) and I can recommend it as a mesmerising piece of moving psychedelic art form start to end!

Director Marcell Jankovics (1941-2021) worked to bring Hungarian folk tales to the screen from the 1960s onwards and Son Of The White Mare is his magnum opus. The tale of 'Fehérlófia' (Hungarian) was first interpreted for print in 1862 and describes the heroic odyssey of a boy to a man, with super-human strength, born of a white horse that's depicted as a Gaia-like, earth-mother figure.

First I must give big thanks to another blog for supplying the two un-released and impossible to find tracks that bookend this set, openers 'Scampolo & Kati Bontovics' and the closer from Dzsuvox. I had finalised this third Hungarian comp a while ago, but recently saw the Dzsuvox song on youtube recommendations and this lead me to the source, a Hungarian comp at a blog called 'Music For Ironing' (link). So for this third and final (for now) Hungarian TDATS I had to include them!

The rest of the songs here can be found on the region's familiar labels Pepita, Qualiton and Amiga, with two outliers from acts Locomotive GT and V'73 explained further below.

So, in this set we have the same level of musical virtuosity that inspired me to plan two more Hungarian volumes after posting the first one a few years ago (link). Satisfyingly, this volume adds ten new acts that have never been on here before, and rounds-off songs from the final few acts that have been mentioned in name only in the previous Hungarian volumes. This includes the funky energy of Scampolo & Kati Bontovics, the dirty freakbeat of Neoton, Deep Purple vibes from Illés, frantic pop hooks from Generál, and driving horns with Bergendy. We also have speeding prog from Karthago, contagious country breaks from Locomotive GT and Levente Szörényi, V'73's crazy prog wig-out, Kék Csillag's relaxing fuzz bath, Non-Stop's flute vs. guitar jam and Dzsuvox's jazzy neck-breaker.

TRACKS

01. Scampolo & Kati Bontovics - Tétova Utakon Tanulok Járni (1970s)
                                from Best of Hungarian Rock 1968-1976 Vol 3
02. Kati Kovács & Gemini - Fémzene (1975)
                                from album Intarzia
03. Neoton - Nehéz Fiúk (1970)
                                from album Bolond Város
04. Locomotiv GT - Back Home (1974)
                                from album Locomotiv GT
05. Illés - Szorits Erosen (1971)
                                single
06. Generál - Törökméz (1973)
                                from album Staféta
07. Bergendy - Hej, Te Szép Kemény Legény (1976)
                                from album Fagypont Fölött Miénk A Világ
08. Hungária - Eredeti Rubin (1970)
                                single
09. Karthago - Csak Egy Szót Akarok (1979)
                                single
10. Levente Szörényi - Zazi (1973)
                                from album Utazás
11. Tolcsvayék És a Trió & Kati Kovács - Láttam, Ne Tagadd-Vihar Előtt, Vihar Után (1972)
                                from album T&T
12. V'73 - Gondolatok (1975)
                                from album Seven Pieces For Keyboards, Bass Guitar And Drums
13. Kati Kovács & Juventus - Wind, Komm, Bring Den Regen Her (1973)
                                single
14. Kék Csillag - Ki Volt Az Az Ember (1970)
                                single
15. Non-Stop - Szelíd Tüzek (1972)
                                single
16. Sarolta Zalatnay & Locomotiv GT - Itt A Nyár (1972)
                                single
17. Dzsuvox - Éjszaka (Orosházi Beat Fesztivál) (1975)
                                from Best of Hungarian Rock 1968-1976 Vol 1

The Stars Of This Volume

Kati Bontovics

Scampolo & Kati Bontovics - Tétova Utakon Tanulok Járni (1970s Radio Recording)

from 'Best of Hungarian Rock 1968-1976 Vol 3'

Scampolo seem to have been an important early rock 'n roll band that didn't put much on record but played from the early '60s into the '80s on stage and radio. At one time in the early '70s, pop singer Kati Bontovics was a member, singing on singles, and this infectious groovathon 'Tétova Utakon Tanulok Járni'. Before that, Sarolta Zalatnay often sung with them in the '60s.

Many players passed through the ranks from other acts I've mentioned, including Zoltán Kiss (Karthago, Korál), Komár László (Sprint), Szidor László (Gemini), Tamás Mihály (Omega) and Váradi László (Sakk-Matt). Scampolo became a regular live draw at the Buda Youth Park in Budapest, along with familiar acts Bergundy, Gemini and Syconor (link). More on Scampolo at zene.hu (link), wiki (link) and rimretro.hu (link).

Kati Kovács & Gemini (album rear)

Kati Kovács & Gemini - Fémzene (1975)

from album 'Intarzia'
This track is one of Kati's diversions into heavy psych that you can find in her work in the 60s and 70s. She is a famous pop singer in Hungary, who gladly for us made a few heavy songs in co-operation with rock bands like Locomotiv GT, Juventus, Gemini, Hungária and Tolcsvayék És A Trió, bands who appear in this and other volumes.

Kati won TV & Radio's 'Táncdalfesztivál ’72' with the song 'Add Már Uram Az Esőt!' (Lord, give me the rain!), with Juventus backing her. It was released on single the same year and she was popular in East Germany where it was released in German, as were many of her songs. It became one of her perennial favourites and she performed it on stage as recently as 2024 (link). Later she made an English version on a curious album in 1996, which also includes interpretations of Vangelis's 1492 soundtrack. You can hear that version on my youtube (link).

Neoton - Bolond Város LP 1970

Neoton - Nehéz Fiúk (1970)

from album 'Bolond Város'
Neoton's first album reminds me a bit The Netherlands' Q65 (see vols 63 and 138), clearly a product of the 1960s but with a nasty, dirty edge that wasn't typical of beat bands. This early formation included names from previously mentioned heavies such as Omega (Ferenc Debreceni), Piramis (Som Lajos), Taurus Ex-T: 25-75-82 (Som Lajos and Ferenc Balázs) and Korál (Ferenc Balázs).

The formation that made that first album had changed out of all recognition by 1976, when they combined with a trio of girls called Kócbabák to become the 'Neoton Família', embarking on a disco pop career, reportedly steered by the head of the Pepita record label. It was good news for all involved though as Neoton Família went on to huge success as one of Hungary's biggest pop exports by far, rivaling the success of ABBA in some countries.

Locomotive GT (1974) on Epic UK

Locomotiv GT - Back Home (1974)

from album 'Locomotiv GT'
One of the Hungarian bands along with Omega and Skorpió that is likely to be known to TDATS readers already, and like those bands, Locomotiv GT also attempted to export their popular hard rock sound to the west. This track sung in English is from the self-titled 1974 LP released abroad on such labels as ABC in the USA and Epic in the UK. It's a version of the song 'Visszamegyek A Falumba' (trans: I'm Going Back To The Village) from the previous years' Hungarian release 'Bummm! (Locomotiv GT III.)' on the Pepita label.

Formed in 1971 by ex-Omega members Presser Gábor and Laux József, they released one LP almost every year until around 1985, after which time they recorded and toured occasionally, finally splitting after the death of long-time bassist Tamás Somló in 2016.

Illés - A Lány És A Csavargó /
Szoríts Erősen 7" 1971

Illés - Szorits Erosen (1971)

single b/w 'A Lány És A Csavargó'
What's not to love about the Deep Purple-like swagger this develops into? It's just missing a screaming chorus.

The communist government of Hungary did not seemingly have quite as much detrimental affect on rock music as authorities in other communist states, but the state-owned record label Magyar Hanglemezgyártó Vállalat (M.H.V.) did have complete record-publishing control, and occasionally used it to stifle bands which they took any stylistic or ethical dislike to. For instance, Illés, one of the country's most successful rock acts, was banned from performing or releasing records for a while after saying unfavorable things to "the enemy" in a BBC TV interview in London.

Similarly to Hungária, Illés trod the familiar beat band path of Beatles inspiration in the mid '60s and then psychedelia, prog and some harder rocking songs into the '70s, but during that period Illés was more prolific in output and variety, so no two albums sounded the same, and they didn't make a consistently heavy LP to the extent that Hungária's 1971 S/T was, but they played a few hard songs across albums and singles. The band first officially broke up in 1973 with some of them joining-up with members of Tolcsvayék És a Trió to start 'Fonográf' the same year.

Generál - Staféta LP 1973

Generál - Törökméz (1973)

from album 'Staféta'
In the summer of 1972, Hungarian Television (MTV) broadcast two events that helped shape the nation's music scene: the Ki Mit Tud? (Who knows what?) talent show, followed by the Táncdalfesztivál (Dance Song Festival). Generál won votes in these events and quickly became popular.

The first album from the band has around four really cool and hard rocking pop songs like the one here 'Törökméz'. Another equally good one is 'Tűzmadár', with doomy prog juxtaposed by pop vocals from the girls in the band. The sound is fresh and something that I could totally buy as being from an eccentric new band of today. The second album 'Generál II' has some great heavy glam songs, bursting with creativity. In some ways they remind me of the German band Nine Days Wonder (vol82), stylistically diverse and falling somewhere in the middle of pop, glam, art rock and prog. The band went through many changes after core members started to leave in the mid-'70s but albums were still released until 1979. A major reunion happened in 1999 and since then there have been more reunions, as recently as this year (2026). More at rockbook.hu (link) and wiki (link).

Bergendy - Hej, Te Szép Kemény Legény (1976)

from album 'Fagypont Fölött Miénk A Világ'

From what I have read, Bergendy were among the biggest bands in Hungary during the 1970s, along with Hungária and Illés. Originally starting out as a jazz band, brass and jazz remained a constant part of their sound as they progressed into pop, prog and fusion in the '70s. There is a great cover of Black Night on their first LP (link), adding more keyboard improv, and a brass section that sounds like it should have always been there!

Bergendy band

While not producing any hard rock albums, you will find many heavy prog and brassrock tracks throughout their LPs. The band's main career continued with regular albums into the '80s, with some spin-offs and reformations occurring until the sad case of founder member István Bergendy's covid-related death in 2020.

Hungária 1971 Lang Klub

Hungária - Eredeti Rubin (1970)

single b/w 'Ítéletnap'

I had not heard of this band until first investigating the country, but i'm sure anyone in or near Hungary has, as they are described as the most successful rock n roll band of the country.

I really like their sound! They definitely drew influence from The Beatles, in terms of production and vocal style at least, but much of their second album verges on hard rock, with warm, over-driven bluesy guitar. This melding of pop and heaviness is instantly likable, and if you dig the single 'Eredeti Rubin' included here, the album that came a year later is equally good and consistent.

Self-Titled LP 1971

According to beatkorszak.hu (link), after the initial '60s beat/psych-pop period of the early singles and first album, they made a decisive move towards hard rock in 1971, introducing covers of Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, Steppenwolf and Uriah Heep to their live shows. Of the core members at this time, singer/keys man Fenyő Miklós, bassist Peter Sipos and guitarist Csomós Péter were also in Syconor and Juventus, guitarist Tamás Barta was also in Locomotiv GT, Syconor and Syrius, and drummer József Tóth also played in Juventus. 

Early '80s Hungária

After 1971, there was a long period with no albums, but frequent singles, some on the GDR's Amiga label. According to Wikipedia, the all-powerful state-owned record company M.H.V. was to blame for refusing to let them make albums, as they did not approve of the band's hard rock direction but were scared that they would still out-sell bands that were more agreeable to them, which may explain why around 1980 it seems the band had been through an overhaul, with major line-up changes and an album that reverted to a traditional rock n roll sound and rockabilly appearance.

At this point Hungária became very successful, breaking records in terms of sales and popularity, but broke-up in 1983 for the first time, due to internal disagreements. They have re-formed at various times since then, and in 2024 it was announced that the band would reunite for a concert in the Puskás Arena, with the four surviving members of the most successful line-up. Further info: Wikipedia (link), beatkorszak.hu (link). There is a huge article that goes into details of their post-'70s career at recorder.hu (link).

Karthago 1979 (source)

Karthago - Csak Egy Szót Akarok (1979)

single b/w 'A Fények, A Hangok, Az Árnyak'

This is a quirky track with a bit of a fusion sound, just staying within the realms of good taste enough to get away with it haha (you may have noticed that fusion type sounds are not something you'll often see here at TDATS).

Karthago is one of he few acts in this comp that is still touring, with the next show this September 2026 (link), the lineup having barely changed since they started, with founding members Ferenc Szigeti (guitar, vocals, ex-Corvina), Zoltán Kiss (bass, ex-Korál, Scampolo), Attila Gidófalvy (keys), Miklos Kocsandy (drums) and Tamas Takáts (vocals) all still on board since 1979.

Ferenc started the band and was already an established talent in Corvina, which I have used in both previous Hungarian volumes (153 & 157). Karthago became one of the prominent '80s hard rock acts that also had success in other countries, and released two albums sung in English. More: Official website (link), Facebook (link).

Levente Szörényi - Utazás LP 1973

Levente Szörényi - Zazi (1973)
from album 'Utazás'
Here's a piece of country rock with one of the more infectious riffs i've heard in a long time, from a big name in Hungarian rock who was a founder of the previously mentioned Illés, and the post-Illés act, Fonográf. In fact, Fonográf re-recorded this solo song of Levente's on their first single released on the Amiga label in east Germany in 1974.

Levente is still well-known in Hungary, having been involved in many important bands and the writing of hits, and writing music in other avenues such as stage, TV and film. He is also noted for successfully introducing traditional folk elements into modern music, encouraging Hungarian pop to have more of its own cultural identity. More at wiki (link) and facebook (link).

Tolcsvayék És A Trió - T&T LP 1972

Tolcsvayék És a Trió & Kati Kovács - Láttam, Ne Tagadd-Vihar Előtt, Vihar Után (1972)

from album 'T&T'

Somehow, Kati Kovács is never far away in Hungarian rock that catches my ear! Here's an effortlessly cool, rolling riffer, with her distinctive vocals. At the time of this album, simply entitled "T&T", the titular "Trio" was the Tolcsvayék brothers, Béla and László, on guitars/keys, and Czipó Tibor on bass, although many other players are credited on the album, such as Németh Oszkár on drums and Móricz Mihály on guitar.

On the album they had vocal contributions from two more of the girls who I have featured in these Hungarian comps, Zsuzsa Koncz and Sarolta Zalatnay. Tolcsvayék És A Trió's music often rocked in a US country rock type way and I enjoyed a lot of what I heard when checking them out. More about them at wiki (link) 

V'73 - Seven Pieces For Keyboards,
Bass Guitar And Drums LP

V'73 - Gondolatok (1975)

from album 'Seven Pieces For Keyboards, Bass Guitar And Drums'
Time for a turn-around and some bombastic, twisting prog. V'73 put out very few records of their own but played in various live situations including supporting Locomotiv GT and Omega. They were a trio styled after ELP and took a classical, keyboard-heavy approach to progressive rock when they were playing their own material, something unusual in Hungary at the time. Wikipedia states that they were yet another band that backed Kati Kovács at times (i'm starting to wonder if there was a Hungarian band that didn't, haha) and the first album for that is her 1977 LP 'Csendszóró'.

V'73 was absorbed into the 'V'Moto Rock' band soon after that, with the addition of Ferenc Demjén, ex-Bergendy, and that outfit continued to back Kati, while also becoming a popular new-wave pop band of their own in the '80s, moving away from music of interest here. 'Gondolatok' is a track from an LP of rare unreleased V'73 recordings, put out by Moiras Records a few years ago (link). More: wiki (link).

Kati in 1975

Kati Kovács & Juventus - Wind, Komm, Bring Den Regen Her (1973)

single b/w 'Komm Und Laß Uns Gehn'
And Kati is back yet again! This is the German version of her 1972 signature song I already used on v157, it is very similar to that version, but rocks a little harder and was put out in east Germany on the Amiga label a year later, where she and many Hungarian acts were popular, as mentioned many times before.

Kék Csillag band

Kék Csillag - Ki Volt Az Az Ember? (1970)

single b/w 'Öt Fiú Balladája'
Seemingly an elusive group, that existed for the best part of 20 years but only put out three 7-inchers, according to the usual sources like Discogs. This track spreads-out with delectable waves of fuzz. They were another act that first came to the country's attention by appearing on the Ki Mit Tud? TV show, ten years previous to Generál, one of the other bands here with the same distinction. In fact Kék Csillag (Blue Star) appeared at the beginning of the show's life in the early '60s, and Generál in 1972.

There is a regional newspaper interview with member Frankl Gábor at minalunk.hu (link) and a lot of info has been collated at netadoradio.hu (link) but i'm not confident in online translation to repeat much from those sources, so take a look if so inclined. They have two jazzy, fuzzy b-sides on singles in 1970, this one included, and they played backing to a pop crooner called Pál Szécsi.

Non-Stop band

Non-Stop - Szelíd Tüzek (1972)

single b/w 'Szép Margit'

A great song here, starts out with some up-beat prog pop but soon turns into a psych guitar jam with some sweet flute breaks. The guitarist in question here is János Závodi (later of Piramis) according to the label that produced Non-Stop's anthology CD in 1999, though I may be wrong there as band info is patchy across other sources, the only extended article specifically about Non-Stop I could find is at rocknemzedek.hu (link), and János Závodi's own website (now defunct) states he was in the band from 1973 which doesn't line up with this single (link).

What ever the truth is, Non-Stop produced a number of high quality singles in a short space of time and various members went on to more well-known bands such as Piramis, Generál, Locomotiv GT and others.

Someone has posted a comment on this post since it was first published, and it reads: "I want to mention Máté Victor, one of the main creative forces behind Non-Stop. He was sort of a super low profile Hungarian Conny Plank. The guy knew the ins an outs of studio work and used to hang around with more academically minded electronic composers / engineers, such as Iván Patachich, Zoltán Pongrácz and István Horváth. For his studio mastery, check out his song 'Rosszkor szóltak rám' & for his more experimental approach, 'Viscositas'."
Thanks for that extra info!

Sarolta Zalatnay - Álmodj Velem LP
rear cover

Sarolta Zalatnay & Locomotiv GT - Itt A Nyár (1972)

single b/w 'Hidd El, Ha Mondom'

Here's an original song from the pairing of Sarolta Zalatnay & Locomotive GT. Sarolta is one of Hungary's famous pop singers, and her material included a number of psychedelic songs of interest to TDATS. Sarolta, like Kati Kovács, recorded with a host of the best Hungarian bands and in 1972 made an album with LGT called 'Álmodj Velem', although the song I selected here from the same year is from a unique single, written by LGT and Skorpió's Frenreisz Károly.

The punchy, hook-laden musical style of LGT and Skorpió is evident here, and Sarolta's vocals in rock queen mode are perfect for it.

Dzsuvo - Éjszaka (Orosházi Beat Fesztivál) (1975)

from 'Best of Hungarian Rock 1968-1976 Vol 1'
Here's a cool live recording from a festival held in southern Hungary. Quoted from facebook (link): "The first Orosháza beat festival was organized in 1974 by the Petőfi Cultural Center, the sixth competition was held in 1981. The driving force of the Orosháza festivals was Benedek Péter Benkő, an employee of the cultural center, who organized these events until 1978. Zoltán Varga, who was the secretary of the festivals at the time, later became a library director and member of parliament."

Dzsuvox were a band who, according to rockkluboh.blogspot (link), were the most renowned act in the area local to the festival. Unfortunately, Dzsuvox never released any official records, but luckily this video of them is available, playing the same song at a later time on the Ki Mit Tud? show, the third time this show has come up here after Generál and Kék Csillag (link).

----------------------------------------------------------------------

If you liked this please explore this site further, with 160+ similar collections, articles and interviews. My social links are below, I also have a youtube channel (link).

Thanks for reading, until next time, rock on!
Rich

Further listening:

The Day After The Sabbath 153: Hungary pt 1: Mátyás' Dark Array
The Day After The Sabbath 157: Hungary pt 2: Death's Dark Heralds
The Day After The Sabbath 101: Polski Hazy [first Polish special]
The Day After The Sabbath 120: Wolf of Iron Jaw [Serbian rock pt1]
The Day After The Sabbath 134: Former Yugoslavian Republic of Macedonia special

[Summary of all previous volumes]

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The Day After The Sabbath 133: A Lot Of Bottle [heavy slide guitar special]

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password:  tdats



Welcome to another installment of heavy nugget searches. This one is dedicated to the wonderful sound of guitar played with a slide, and the expressive, snarling, powerful sound that humble slide guitar can make, especially when driven through a hard-rock guitarist's amp! As usual, the tracks here are not just slide guitar, but hard rock / blues rock with slide, with Highway Robbery being one of the heaviest.

I'm happy to say this volume also brings nine new bands to the blog, with a few like Possessed and Sam Apple Pie that some may have considered conspicuous by their absence so far.

Although a technique traditionally of the afro-american blues heroes, the majority of acts here are from all kinds of places including the UK, Hungary & Australia, showing the draw that blues rock has all over the world, and still does!

TRACKS

01. Nobody's Business - Bleed Me Dry (1978)
       from album 'Nobodys Business'
02. Gun - Drown Yourself In The River (1969)
       from album 'Gunsight'
03. Jukin' Bone - Nightcrawler (1972)
       from album 'Way Down East'
04. Climax Chicago Blues Band - Reap What I've Sowed (1970)
       from album 'A Lot Of Bottle'
05. Band Of Light - The Four Horsemen Of The Apocalypse (1973)
       from album 'Total Union'
06. SNAFU - Lock And Key (1975)
       from album 'All Funked Up'
07. Mushroom - Gulf Of Mexico (1978)
       from album 'Freedom You're A Woman'
08. Terry Stamp - Itchy Feet (1975)
       from album 'Fatsticks'
09. Castle Farm - Island In The Sun (1972)
       from album 'The Studio Sessions 1971-72'
10. Sam Apple Pie - Old Tom (1972)
       from album 'East 17'
11. Locomotiv GT - Ő Még Csak Most 14. (1973)
       from album 'Bummm!'
12. Shanghai - Let's Get The Hell Off This Highway (1976)
       from album 'Fallen Heroes'
13. Possessed - Reminiscing (1971)
       from album 'Exploration'
14. Highway Robbery - Promotion Man (1972)
       from album For 'Love Or Money'
15. Yancy Derringer - Weedburner (1975)
       from album 'Openers'

Nobody's Business was a band of old hands which lasted briefly in the late '70s, consisting of Bobby Harrison (Procol Harum, SNAFU), Tony Stevens (Savoy Brown. Foghat), Joe Jammer (Olympic Runners) and Jerry Frank (session drummer). They recorded an eponymous LP in Nice, France and some promo videos were made, which were produced by Gerry Anderson's wife, Sylvia Anderson! The Nobody's Business LP offers some good boogie rock and 'Bleed Me Dry' is filled with Joe's great slide guitar. Angel Air reissued it, including six of the promo videos on DVD, in 2007 (link).

American Joe "Jammer" Wright is one of these guys who you might've never heard of but he's played with loads of famous and not so famous names, as a roadie for Hendrix, founding member of Olympic Runners and live guitarist for Maggie Bell and Screaming Lord Such and others, You can read some more at his website (link). Joe made a decent eponymous solo record in 1973 too, which is worth hearing. Bobby Harrison is and will continue to be a bit of a TDATS regular, having appeared here in Freedom and coming up again in this volume in SNAFU...

Gun - 'Gunsight' - 1969

Gun and the Gurvitz brothers shouldn't need too much of an introduction here, I concentrated on them for vol 125 (link). I have used a track from the second Gun record, 'Gunsight'. One of those bands that were there right at the very start of hard rock and made some great music that, aside from their famous single 'Race With The Devil', didn't have the success of the big names of the time or just after. Gunsight is a great early hard rock record (1969) that can be picked up in original form for non-ludicrous prices, putting it in the reach of us mere mortals.

Sounding completely different to 'Race With The Devil' for instance, Adrian Gurvitz's performance in 'Drown Yourself In The River' sounds like something straight out of the Deep South.

Jukin' Bone (1972)
Way Down East LP

Over to the US now for some Jukin' Bone (formerly 'Free Will'). Here's the bumph from the back of their final second album, 1972's 'Way Down East': "Take a rock band from the gentle, quiet, grassy green, calm-as-a-Holiday-Inn-Swimming-Pool, Finger Lakes area of upstate, rolling hills New York and you'd expect to have anything but a Jukin' Bone. Gentle and quiet they most assuredly aren't. Raunchy and steeped in the blues they are.

Out front, moving with the lissome grace of a jungle cat, is Joe Whiting, whose visage (a mixture of Marlon Brando and Paul Newman when those two were young and scarily beautiful to behold) belies the gut vocals he emits with the fervor of a Marjoe gone wild on rock and roll.

Jukin' Bone (1972)
Way Down East LP

Stoking the fire is a hard-charging yet cohesive combo at whose heart stands Mark Doyle, riffing and chording his guitar with a demonic fury and virtuosity that rates him with anybody currently playing that axe. Doyle and Whiting, who've been sharing stage and trips together for about five years are also responsible, along with the prolific George Egosarian, for much of the band's repertoire.

Laying out what can only be described as the band's "stone down funk" is John DeMaso who brings his brand of bass all the way from Caracas, Venezuela. And, underneath, down at the bottom where the beat that won't quit is, there are the two drummers, Danny and Kevin, kicking the bone along, stickin' it, so to speak, to Whiting, booting him into the physical and vocal runs that give Jukin' Bone its flavour. This Jukin' Bone is a moving, dance-to-it force. This Jukin' Bone has meat on it. How's your Jukin' Bone?" - written by: Elliot Horne, RCA press agent and jazz writer (link).

The British Climax Chicago Blues Band, which was just one variation of the name they used, now usually known as 'Climax Blues Band', are still going, as can be seen at their website (link). Through the years they've had many members and many links to other bands, too many to go into in detail here! I really like the track 'Reap What I've Sowed' which is taken from the third LP, 1970's 'A Lot Of Bottle'. I love it when that aggressive slide riff kicks in, it was exactly the kind of thing I was looking for to go in this set! The slide player on this record was Pete Haycock, who sadly passed away in 2013.

Pete Haycock circa 2008

Band Of Light

Band Of Light are an Australian Sydney-based band that I first used back on the bluesy vol 54 (link). They were started by guitarist Phil Key and bassist Peter Roberts, who had both just left The La De Das, a band that originated in New Zealand and spawned other Kiwi artists that moved to Aus like Kevin Borich.

Here's a snipet from the essential Aussie rock site, Milesago (link): "Band Of Light's distinctive blues-rock sound was built around the dual slide guitar work of Key and their other superb guitarist, Norm Roue (who had come from Sydney band Gutbucket). Peter Roberts left after only three shows and was replaced by Ian Rilen, who was to become a fixture on the Australian rock scene in the '70s and '80s. The band worked consistently on the Sydney and Melbourne pub/festival/dance circuits, alongside other staple acts of the day like Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs, Carson, Coloured Balls, Chain, Madder Lake and Buffalo."

As it says, slide guitar was Band of Light's forte and 'The Four Horseman' from the album 'Total Union' funks and grooves along with the great combination of wah and slide that makes them distinctive. A real ass-shaker this one.

The sixth track is from another act with Bobby Harrison at the mic. SNAFU was started by Bobby (post-Freedom), along with Mick Moody fresh from Juicy Lucy and Harrison's solo record 'Funkist'. They made three records with differing lineups but never quite cracked the big time, although they did garner some success and tour widely.

One song in particular grabbed me, being 'Lock and Key', which actually appeared on both their final two records in different versions. This version is from the third and final LP 'All Funked Up', and is the heaviest, most stomping of the two. I listened through the SNAFU albums some time ago and initially wasn't that impressed, although the musicianship is top-notch it wasn't generally a sound that I liked, but some time after that Monte Conner (Nuclear Blast, formerly of Roadrunner Records) posted this live performance of Lock And Key in the tdats fb group and I realised this one is a kick-ass tune and perfect for a planned slide comp, so thanks for that Monte!

SNAFU appearing on UK TV's 'Supersonic' in 1975

Mushroom

Mushroom were a Brooklyn-based act that veered between smooth AOR and ballsy blues rock on their only record, 1978's privately-pressed 'Freedom You're A Woman'. I have used the track 'Gulf Of Mexico'. This is an interesting song! It starts out with some ambient voices and a girl propositioning a guy in a bar, followed by some boogie blues with lyrics about the usual freebird sentiments on sowing wild oats etc, but it takes an unexpectedly heavy turn soon after and some weighty over-driven riffing comes in, all the time laced with slide guitar and wah solos over the top.

Mushroom (1978)
Freedom You're A Woman

It sure is a cool development and as the song changes pace and moods again and again towards the end, you are left with one of those epic tracks that feels like a journey. Brilliant stuff! You can read some more about Mushroom and it's main man Frank Annunziata at the old reliable Badcat Records (link).

Another point of note is the art work on the album, a large hand-drawn mushroom, (phallic overtones maybe? could explain the track 'Comin For You') that doesn't give any idea of the music within, being more suited to some other mushroom-related bands, like late '60s psychedelic offering The Sacred Mushroom or the Irish folk-rockers 'Mushroom'. The same opinion could be leveled at the reason for the cover art, the band's name. It's not a name/image I would have chosen for their music, but then I guess I haven't been eating the particular variety of mushroom they presumably were at the time!

Next up is Terry Stamp's solo record from 1975, cryptically called 'Fatsticks'. I'm sure i'm being dense as usual but answers on a postcard if you know what that means, the drummer's preferred tool of his trade maybe? Singer/guitarist Terry was in Third World War, which many of you will know as that rather cool British proto-punkish band. So Fatsticks was mainly written by Terry, a collection of new and old songs of his, some from before TWW, with some assistance from Jim Avery (The Attack, Thunderclap Newman). Terry had been writing/playing since the early sixties and you can hear two of his compositions on Harsh Reality's 1969 LP, 'Heaven And Hell'.

Fatsticks has an interesting story behind it that can be read at the Terry Stamp/Jim Avery website (link) and I recommend reading it, it's a great example of talented musicians making an album in an off-the-cuff way and going about their business afterwards without thinking about it again, like it was just another day's work for a musician back then.

Terry Stamp - Fatsticks

I may be a bit presumptuous there as I have only heard four tracks from Fatsticks, that's all I can find at the moment. It has not been re-issued (it should be!) and seems to command higher prices than I am prepared to pay at the moment! The four tracks I have heard from it would lead me to think it's a great album, with plenty of the proto-punk attitude that Terry injected into TWW. I have used a track from it called 'Itchy Feet' which displays some absolutely blazing lead and slide guitar work from Peter 'Ollie' Halsall (deceased 1992) who was in Boxer (also Timebox, Tempest, Patto) later and covered a couple of tracks from Fatsticks with Boxer.

I have covered Castle Farm in an interview I did with drummer Steve Traveller a couple of years ago (link). Aside from a great single the band didn't release an album, but Steve has since made some recordings available via 'The Studio Sessions 1971-72'. They were retrieved from a low-grade tape so sound quality is not the best, but it's still good enough to enjoy Gram 'Tex' Benike's ripping guitar that propels the track 'Island In The Sun', seven minutes of slide heaven which doesn't let up and doesn't get boring.

It's certainly a shame we never got to hear a real album from these guys as it would surely have been excellent.

Sam Apple Pie - East 17

Walthamstow, London's Sam Apple Pie are up next and I guess some people might think it's about time they appeared on this blog. They are often mentioned in various obscure hard/blues rock forums but I must admit to being a bit under-whelmed by them myself, although not from a lack of musical ability. I have however found a great track for this comp, from their second album called 'East 17'.

The slide skills come from Andy 'Snakehips' Johnson, who seems to have been a main member of the band but I cannot uncover much else about him, other than he reportedly passed away in 2010. The track 'Old Tom' certainly displays a great array of slide and lead guitar grooving, lead coming from Denny Barnes who I haven't found much about either, other than he was previously in Portsmouth bands Blues Convention, Whiskey River and Gilbey Twiss. Two members of SAP left after their first record to join pub-rockers Help Yourself.

Locomotive GT - Bummm!

A bit of a change for track 11 and a talented band from Hungary called Locomotive GT. I have used them before, on the eastern Europe vol 41 (link) and they were successful in their home land, scoring many hits after being formed by two ex-members of another great Hungarian band, Omega. Slide comes from Tamás Barta who was also in formative band 'Hungaria', and unfortunately died in 1982. LGT made a range of music including hard rock to pop, as well as acting as backing-band for singer Kati Kovács, and there's no denying their skills and infectious humour. 'Ő Még Csak Most 14.' is from their third album, amusingly called 'Bummm!', which apparently translates to Bang!

Shanghai - Fallen Heroes

Shanghai was a band of UK guitar hero Mick Green, but the slide parts were played by Brian Alterman. The band had an almost complete change of personnel between LP no1 and no2, the first being a smooth 'n funky soul rock affair with singer to suit (Chuck Bedford) and the second, 'Fallen Heroes', being a harder-rocking set with the fantastic pipes of Cliff Bennett (Toe Fat etc) which is far more TDATS-friendly. This is a nice affordable album for those that like a bit of hard boogie blues, and Cliff is on fine form. I have used 'Let's Get The Hell Off This Highway' which really does the business with the powerful vocals and wall of guitars!

Possessed - Exploration

I'm glad to include another band that's been a long-time coming for the blog, Possessed from Birmingham, UK. This is one of the unreleased bands that Lee Dorian's Rise Above Relics has done the honours for (link), and here is the blurb from them. Possessed - "Mastered from original tapes, this is the story of a band whose tragic legacy could never have been predicted. Possessed were born out the thriving underground West Midlands’ Rock & Blues scene of the mid-to-late 60s. This was a scene in which band leader, Vernon Pereira, had been a key figure.

Possessed

The band were formed in late 1969 when Vernon (after a spell playing next to Robert Plant in The Band Of Joy) teamed up with Mick Reeves, who had been playing in Sugarstack with Al Atkins, amongst other bands. This was the band that would eventually evolve into being the first incarnation of Judas Priest.

‘Exploration‘ was originally intended for release in 1971 but ultimately never saw the light of day. The band were finally on the verge of signing a major deal when tragedy struck. Whilst returning home from a gig in Carlisle on October 21st 1976, the band’s van drove into a stationary tanker, taking the lives of all three band members."

Possessed had a nice crunchy guitar sound, unconventional chord progressions, and a funky edge, quite a unique sound with the whole band chipping in vocals to back up Vernon Pereira who sounds a little reminiscent of Lynden Williams of Jerusalem and plays some mean slide guitar on the track 'Reminiscing'.

Highway Robbery
'For Love Or Money'

Nearing the end now and it's another appearance from Highway Robbery's excellent 'For Love Or Money' album.

Here's the Californian's own introduction from the back cover: "Declaration. For Love Or Money, Highway Robbery hereby dedicates itself to roar, to drive, to sensitive joy and, above all, the emission of the highest levels of energy rock. Let it be known that Michael Stevens - lead guitarist, vocalist, writer of all material contained herein, child of a gypsy commune - carries out this pledge in the true manner of his forebears. Further be it known that he is in allegiance with Don Francisco, drummer, lead singer and a New York native whose main influences have been traditional New Orleans-based bands such as Robert Parker and the Royals and Deacon John and the Ivories, and with John Livingston Tunison IV, bassman, vocalsit and painter who's first sound-memories are of Muddy Waters and B.B. King........For Love Or Money: Signed, sealed and created by the aforementioned Highway Robbery, in this age, on this day, in the name of storming, beautiful rock and roll."

'Promotion Man' is a desperate and maybe satirical plea to music promoters to plug Highway Robbery like crazy, packed with V8-revving slide guitar from Michael Stevens. Drummer Don Francisco was previously in Atlee, who made a worth-hearing record in 1970. Julian Cope has written a great article about Highway Robbery at his Head Heritage site (link).

This volume is rounded off by one of my favourite tracks found in the whole time I've been looking for obscure nuggets. 'Weedburner' is the closing track from the only album made by Yancy Derringer (link), who later became known as The Vers. In comparison to Weedburner, the rest of the album is forgettable, I've forgotten it any way, and I really don't care as Weeburner is so fantastic I can forgive them for anything.

Through the power of slide guitar and constant, disorientating pitch-shifts, guitarist Boyd 'Zoid' Williamson has managed to put in a performance which dominates a song that actually has the power to make you feel like you're high. Of all the 'stoner rock' I have ever heard, this one actually is intoxicating, stoned rock, rather than just rock music for stoners. Hear it and believe it, and it's all down to the humble guitar played with a slide.

Long shall they let it slide!

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