Here's a recent interview with Budgie guitarist Tony Bourge, recorded for a community radio station in Bristol, south-west England. Tony talks about the past and his new recordings. You can download the whole thing in mp3 and here's the blurb: Without doubt a very special Rockshow this week as ex-Budgie guitarist, the man who committed that legendary “Breadfan” riff (and so many more!) to vinyl, Tony Bourge joins Andy Fox in the GTFM Rockshow studio to talk about his days in one of Wales’ finest ever bands and introduce tracks from his long time coming solo album “Crank It Up“. The link with mp3/podcast download is over at the GTFM blog. Happy listenin'
For those that don't know, Budgie, from Cardif, Wales, was one the other early hard rock/metal bands that was there right at the beginning along with Sabbath, Led Zep and all the others. Covered by the likes of Soundgarden, Metallica, Iron Maiden, Van Halen, and with songs like 1973's Breadfan their place in history is secured......
This volume mines a time period and style that I don't often concentrate on, the latter part of the 70s and what is often called AOR. Here I am using the term as defined by RYM:
"[Adult Oriented Rock]...characterized by a rich, layered sound, slick production and a heavy reliance on pop/rock hooks, which led to its huge popularity in the late 70s and early 80s".
This volume could also be seen as a document of where US/Canadian rock was going in the latter part of the 70s. Don't worry, it's not a sea-change for the blog, just an interesting diversion in all things 70s.
Setting the scene - some background as I see it to rock in the US in the late 70s
By this time, the rock and roll industry had come of age. The corporate promotion/recording/touring machine was firmly in place, as was the actual machinery; radio/vinyl and the new kids on the block, 8-track, cassette tape and the ultimately unsuccessful quadraphonic sound were established. Bands were becoming more adventurous with their stage setups and newer/bigger arenas were being filled. Cultural influences in music and art were changing; Vietnam war sentiments and hippy ideals were fading and the new record-buying "me" generation's attention was drawn in more materialistic directions. Music got closer to becoming just another cynically-marketed, "safe" product. Lyrical and conceptual themes were dumbing-down as a result of record label's construction of money-making bands. Music tastes were changing as they always do, new recording techniques and improved technology was making slicker-sounding, multi-faceted and bigger-sounding production the norm. Though not directly influential in an artistic sense, innovators like Pink Floyd were inspirational with their ever-increasing commercial success using these new widescreen soundscapes. Queen was a direct influence, their strident pomposity and multi-harmony arrangements were important to the pomp of AOR.
In the UK, Punk was the resulting antithesis to these times, and while punk existed in the US too, it didn't have as much impact in American culture. In the US, simplified riff-based bands like Kiss and the UK's Bad Company were pointing the way for popular hard rock. The well-known American bands that pioneered the typical AOR sound took influences from UK/European progressive rock like Yes and made them commercially viable and palatable for the masses who were tuning in to the burgeoning FM radio stations of the American midwest where this sound was largely evolving. These early bands include Chicago's Styx and Kansas (from Kansas strangely enough). Illinois's REO Speedwagon started very early too but remained a hard rock band for a while (See final track on Vol53). Other famous AOR names will all be familiar to you; Boston, Journey, Foreigner et al.
So....back to volume 91!
It's mostly fun, catchy, uplifting music. I have tried to choose the heaviest cuts, from albums that are all found at the obscure end of the sound and all worth investigating further, which was quite difficult as while searching for this kind of stuff I frequently encountered the situation of an album having one or two great tracks while all the others were sub-par. There's a mix of US and Canadian tracks here, as Canada seemed to have a knack for it too and produced a lot of great bands. Canada seemed particularly adept at turning out pomp-rock, pushing the limits of AOR with grand bombastic arrangements, heavy use of swirling synths and super-melodic lead guitar melodies. As usual, it's impossible to pin down any collection of bands to just one genre and on here are some bands that mix things up, Hounds is a great example with their mix of Queen-ish pomp and new wave rock they show what a big influence Queen had on pomp-rock. Rex Smith was an aspiring star who ended up with the lead role in the 80s 'man and machine' TV show Street Hawk, and the Californian 'Masters of the Airwaves' had a guitarist who used a double-neck 32-string steel resonating guitar for their distinctive sound.
Intro over....I must give another quick thanks to the members of the TDATS fb group, especially Marc Joseph (of Vitamin X), for some top AOR tips. There was also one site which I returned to again and again, and not just because Google searches were frequently pointing me there; GloryDaze Music, an amazing resource for AOR/Pomp rock (they cover other genres too).
Tracks
01. Groundstar - Forced Landing / It's All The Same (1978)
from album 'forced landing'
02. Rex Smith - Dead End Kids (1976)
from album 'rex'
03. Tantrum - Applaud The Winner (1979)
from album 'rather be rockin'
04. Lynx - Lucifer (1976)
from album 'missing lynx'
05. The Hounds - Angel Of Fire (1979)
from album 'puttin' on the dog'
06. Network - Sundown (1978)
from album 'nightwork'
07. Gamma - Solar Heat / Ready For Action (1979)
from album 'gamma 1'
08. Masters of the Airwaves - Light Up The Heavens (1974)
Groundstar were from Fresno, CA, and made one privately-pressed album in 1978 that was re-pressed in 1980. It has some entertainingly theatrical intros that set the scene of a band who are being transported on a space cruiser when it hits an emergency. The band members are listed as Sharon Jordan (vocals, strings), Doug Watkins (vocals, strings), Chris Smith (guitar), Gilbert Jones (guitar), Sam Arnold (bass) and Ron Holt (drums). The album was given a CD release in 2012 by Retrospect Records. More reading on Groundstar here.
Rex Smith LP (1976)
Rex Smith is the brother of Michael Lee Smith, singer in Starz, who I included on TDATS 14 and were managed by Kiss's manager in their early days. Rex was an aspiring star and pin-up who made a few attempts at musical success before becoming better known as a TV presenter and actor. His 1976 debut album (produced by Eddie Leonetti of Angel & Legs Diamond fame) was backed by a solid hard rock band comprising Orville Davis (bass), Mike Ratti (drums), Lars Hanson (guitar, vocals) and Lou Vandora (guitar, vocals). There's a few really great tracks on it, including the one I used here 'Dead End Kids'. Rex has a great voice here, but equally good are his backing band who played convincingly cool hard rock and though I haven't spent any time looking into it yet, I presume that Orville, Mike, Lars and Lou must have had some experience and other connections in rock. Rex's career veered further into pop music on later albums and he had a hit in 1979 with 'You Take My Breath Away', which appeared on an album and TV movie called 'Sooner Or Later' but he still included a few rocking tracks here and there and his final album was in 1983.
Tantrum band photo 1979
Tantrum were from Chicago and had seven members, fronted by three girls on vocals; Pam Bradley, Sandy Caulfield and Barb Erber. The rest of the band was guitarist Ray Sapko, keyboardist Phil Balsano, bass guitarist Bill Syniar, and drummer Vern Wennerstrom. The song I have used here may well be my favourite in this comp, it is fantastic. At this time I don't know which one of the girls is singing this particular track but the vocals and the guitar work are just amazing. They released two albums and recorded a third in 1980 that was not released until 2005. The band has resurfaced for live shows recently, and I found film of them performing at a Chicago show called the Haymakers Reunion, at which another band appearing later in this comp played called Hounds. Their 1979 album 'Rather Be Rockin' was a lot tougher than their pop-rock debut and the track 'Applaud The Winner' I used here was also included on a record called 'Striktly for Konnoisseurs'. This was a compilation put together by Kerrang magazine staff in 1984 and having only just found it recently I realise it included a few other bands I have used before, like Moxy (Vol2), Starz (14), Angel (18 & 24) and Legs Diamond (29).
Lynx - "Missing Lynx" LP 1976
Toronto's Lynx are the first Canadian band to show up. They made three albums between 76-79 and this track is taken from the first, 'Missing Lynx'. This debut sounds different to the next two. It has a few AOR pretensions but these are nicely counterpointed by some heavy tracks with guitar distortion and vocal aggression that was ejected for the next two albums, as was the entire original lineup of the band save for keyboardist Tony Caputo and Guitarist Rob Swartz. There is a good account of Lynx's history here at Canadianbands.com.
The Hounds
TheHounds were another band from Chicago. They played a heady mix of hard rock, glam and pomp rock with a hint of new wave/post punk which was unique and they didn't really fit in with any particular scene of the time. They managed to get two albums out in 78 and 79 without much more than local success. I have taken a track from the second of these, 1979's 'Puttin' On the Dog'. There is more reading on Hounds here and here and in those reviews the debut album is favoured, but 'Angel of Fire' from the second album is my pick as it's a great example of all their skills in one song. That said, the first album is equally good, maybe even slightly heavier and better over-all, and you should definitely seek out both of them! The pure pomp of the rousing intro and outro bookends this great track, which is made even more memorable by the unusual vocals of charismatic keyboardist/vocalist John Hunter. The Hounds performed live in 2012 at a reunion show at which the afore-mentioned Tantrum also played. Here is them playing Angel of Fire.
Network, from rear cover of the Nightwork LP (1978)
New York's Network included the talents of Michael Ricciardella (drums, vocals), Richie Cerniglia (guitar) and John Vinci (vocals). They were all in late 60s heavy psych band The Illusion which I used back on Vol66. The band also included Mike Coxton (keyboards, guitar), Howard Davidson (bass), George Bitzer (keyboards), Jean Paul Gaspar (percussion) and B.C. Gibson (vocals) during it's short life, with B.C. taking on vocals on the 2nd album 'Nightwork' which is where I found track no 6 here, 'Sundown'.
Network's 'Nightwork' LP (1978)
This is a great, involving song with impassioned performances all-round, lush orchestration and a wild-west theme, it really plays out like a story. It's not the heaviest from their second, but it's my favourite. In general the album was a dramatic improvement over the self-titled debut, which was way too slick and commercial for me to use here. Something changed (maybe the producers?) on LP no2 and they played a set of harder rocking songs, Star Gazer being another good one. Previous to Network, Richie Cerniglia and Mike Ricciardella were in 'Wiggy Bits' who made one 1976 album which had a few good tracks on it like 'I'll Write You Off'. Reviews of both Network albums can be found here and here.
Gamma 1 LP (1979)
Halfway through volume 91 now and we come to a name that has appeared on TDATS before, Ronnie Montrose. He started out as a session guitarist who worked for notable names like Van Morrison, Herbie Hancock and Gary Wright. Throughout the 70s, along with solo releases, he recorded with a hard rock band called 'Montrose' and also recorded with The Edgar Winter Group. In 1979 Ronnie started a new band with a more modern AOR sound called Gamma. The singer was Scotsman Davey Pattison who had recently arrived in the US and previously sung in band Kid Gloves with former members of Peter Frampton's band, The Herd.
Gamma band
During Gamma's prime they made three records with the additional musicians Jim Alciver (keyboards, 1979-81), Alan Fitzgerald (bass, 1979-80), Skip Gallette (drums, 1979-80), Glenn Letsch (bass, 1980-82), Denny Carmassi (drums, 1980-82) and Mitchell Froom (keyboards). I have used the track 'Ready For Action' from the debut. Bolted on the front of it is part of the preceding instrumental 'Solar Heat'. These two together are a great example of the spacey/proggy effects that AOR bands often overlaid their hard rock with, and Ronnie had tried doing something similar before with tracks like 'Space Station #5', which appears on Vol87. The atmospheric scene-setting gives way to some of Ronnie's blazing guitar skills as 'Ready For Action' kicks in, ready for action indeed.
Masters of the Airwaves band shot
California's Masters of the Airwaves only made one album. I will quote directly from RDTEN1's review at RYM, you can read the whole thing with a track-by-track breakdown here: "The short-lived Masters of the Airwaves was built around the talents of lead guitarist Jimmy Berick. Berick had been kicking around the Northwest music scene playing in a number of local bands when his unique double-necked, 16 string, steel guitar caught the attention of Epic Records. Signed to a contract in 1973, Berick turned around and recruited singer Jon Flak, who he'd previously worked with in the experimental band Acejet and Heatray. At the time Flak was playing in the Oregon-based blues-rock band Silverhill. Flak jumped at the opportunity, bringing Silverhill drummer David Rada and bassist Randy Rand along with him.
Masters of the Airwaves LP (1974)
Settling on the hopeful name Masters of the Airwaves, the quartet went into Sausalito's Record Plant studios with producers Jorman Kurban and Michael Sunday (who was responsible for signing Berick to Epic). Released in 1974, "Masters of the Airwaves" featured a set heavy on originals written or co-written by Berick (including two tracks with the infamous Kim Fowley's fingerprints on them). On the surface this was a fairly conventional mixture of mid-1970s AOR with occasional progressive nods,. The album mixed the usual formulaic young-horny-guys-suffering-from-an-overdose-of-lust rock songs ('In It for the Thrill') with a couple of pop-tinged numbers ('Highway To Hell'). Flak was certainly a decent lead singer who seemingly picked up most of his cues from listening to the likes of Paul Rodgers and Robert Plant, though he had a tendency to turn shrill (think John Waite) whenever he pushed himself too hard. About all I can say is that in the lead vocalist department you've certainly heard worse and you've certainly heard better. To his credit, most of Flak's performance grew on you after awhile. The band's rhythm section was more than proficient with bassist Rand turning in some impressive moves (check out his work on 'Light Up the Heavens'). Still, the band's not-so secret weapon and major draw was guitarist Berick whose 'rocked-up' steel guitar made for some unique and entertaining material - imagine the sound of a Hawaiian slat-key guitar fed through the biggest fuzz guitar pedal you've ever heard. It probably doesn't sound all that promising, but the man certainly generated some interesting sounds hat should readily appeal to any Jimmy Page fan out there.
The band toured in support of the album, including some Midwest opening slots for the band Kansas, but sales were dismal. Your typical personality conflicts subsequently kicked in and Flak was promptly kicked out of the band which quickly folded. On first listen nothing special, but this is one of those albums that rewards a listener's patience. Definitely worth the price of admission, if only to hear Berick's unique guitar. Under his given name Randy Schuchart, Randy Rand played in he metal band Autograph. Over the next two years Flak struggled on with a number of outfits including Redding, Acejet, Masters, and The Morgan Blackwood Group. In 1976 he dropped out of music, got married, and joined the Air Force where he was trained to repair F-111 Aardvark electronic warfare boxes. In an ironic move, he auditioned for a job singing with an Air Force band and closed out his tour of duty touring worldwide for the military. He's still active in music, fronting a three piece named Man Up."
Striker (l-r): Scot Rosburg, Rick Taylor,
Rick Randle, Rick Ramirez
Striker were a Seattle band that made one s/t album in 1978. They evolved from the band 'Randle-Rosburg' which started in 1971 and guitarist Richard "Rick" Ramirez has appeared on TDATS before, in the band Boomerang way back on Vol9 which also included Vanilla Fudge keys man Mark Stein. It seems that although Randle-Rosburg was around for a few years they did not release. The rest of Striker was Scott Rosburg (Bass, Guitar, Vocals), Rick Taylor (Drums) and Rick Randle (vocals, keyboards, guitar). Norm Lombardo and Rick Troppman are also listed as bass players. The album is a solid, if unremarkable collection of AOR-ish hard rock, but a good example of such. A hard rock band at heart, with the sheen of AOR added as popular tastes were maybe presumed to demand. I picked the track 'Hard On Me' (huhuhuh, he said hard-on), and 'We Got The Power' is a good one too. There's a great collection of pictures of Randle-Rosburg here and Striker here & here.
Wheatstone Bridge - Bad Connection LP (1976)
Wheatstone Bridge are probably the most obscure band in this volume. I came across the album on the Robots For Ronnie blog ages ago and have been saving them up for a suitable comp, and this is it! There's a definite Bad Company sound to this one with it's pleasant verses breaking into the rock solid chorus. Certainly good enough to forgive some of the most hilariously bad album art I have ever seen haha! I will quote Robots For Ronnie directly as I cannot add anything further: "Wheatstone Bridge are one of those bands that few people have any information about. Aside from the fact that the band were based out of Kankakee, Illinois and recorded this LP in 1976 at Bob Millsap's Ironside Studios in Nashville, there are precious few historical traces left behind. Guitarist, Joe Bright was presumably the creative force behind the band, given that he is credited for almost all of the album's songwriting. It is also safe to say that Bright sang the material, although drummer Kim Berry and producer George Marakas were also credited for some vocal assistance as well. "Bad Connection" was issued in 1976 by Marakas' publishing/management company, SanRon Music. The album failed to break nationally but in hindsight has found a second life in collector's circles. Acid Archives featured a flattering review of the album and obscurity lovers have raved about if for years. Musically, the band are a tight well-oiled machine. There's a slight British influence happening in some of the arrangements and a nice blend of distorted and clean guitar tones. Tracks like "Bad Connection", "Make It Rhyme", "Dance The Whole Night Long", "Thunderock" and "Nightflight" all featuring blistering guitars and stand among the best material on the album. There are a couple of ballads present as well that lack the immediacy and impact of the heavier tracks. The production is solid and crisp and the writing is nice and compact. This is definitely one of the better 70's private pressings I've heard in quite awhile. I have no doubt lovers of old-school melodic hard rock will eat this up. Dig this sweet vinyl rip.."
Morningstar LP art (1978)
Morningstar were from Kansas City, Missouri. They made two albums from 78 to 79 and had a fair amount of local success, though not enough to overcome the issues that broke them up. The band comprised Rick Bacus (guitars, keyboards, vocals), Jerry Chambers (guitars, vocals), Michael Edmunds (guitars, vocals), Greg Harris (drums, percussion, vocals) and Greg Leech (bass, bass synthesizer). I chose a track from their debut s/t album, the most successful song from the album was the 'Premeditated Rendezvous' and it's certainly good, but I prefer the hard grinding riff of 'Turn Out All The Lights'. There is a revealing interview with Rick Bacus over at GloryDaze which throws some welcome light on things, and the band have a website here. Here's the brief intro paragraph from the site: "Talk about bad timing. Morningstar started their recording career in the late '70s, a time when disco was going strong and punk rock had just started to change the rock 'n' roll landscape. Rock artists that started their recording careers earlier in the decade (Styx, Journey, REO Speedwagon, e.g.) were changing to a more pop rock sound in an effort to retain airplay. Record companies seemed to be dropping artists who didn't fit into these categories. Morningstar was no exception. After two great rock albums, Columbia/CBS and Morningstar parted ways."
Rose lineup in 1977
For track 12 the second Canadian band appears. Rose is one of the oldest on the comp, having started in the very early 70s and released their debut 'Hooked on a Rose' in 1973. At this point they were nearer the sound of Deep Purple on their heavy tracks (exemplified by this storming track; "Ride the Subway") which is understandable as the LP was produced by John Stewart who had reportedly worked with Deep Purple & Jon Lord (though I have been unable to deduce which records as yet).
Earth, Air & Water LP (1973)
It seems that 1973 was busy for Rose as they also worked on an unusual ecological record for kids called 'Earth, Air & Water', which was commissioned by marketing company Young & Rubicam for their 50th anniversary. It wasn't advertised as a Rose record but RYM lists it in the Rose discography and the label shows writing credits to Lalonde & King, who I presume were Gary Lalonde (bass) and Ken King (drums) of Rose. For Rose's final two records Ken King was replaced by a new drummer called Jim Fox who drummed on the Rose track I have chosen; 'Ride Away' from their 1977 record 'A Taste of Neptune'. It's a great track that mixes the sounds of older-70s, Deep Purplish rock with the newer AOR and Pomp embellishments, especially in some of the keys work. Jim Fox, Brian Allen and Gary Lalonde from Rose all went on to the AOR band 'Toronto' which existed until 1984 and made around five albums. More reading on Rose here and Toronto here.
Airborne
Colorado City's Airborne were a band that made only one album, but it was top notch, good enough to compete with the best out there at the time. It has the glossy AOR production but at the same time the performances are stella and most importantly the playing is solid and heavy while being melodic and catchy as well, which is basically what you want from good AOR eh? The members names are listed as David Zycheck (lead guitar, vocals), Mike Baird (drums, vocals), John Pierce (bass guitar, vocals), Beau Hill (electric guitar, keyboards, lead vocals) and Larry Stewart (lead vocals, electric guitar, keyboards). The LP has recently been issued on CD by Rock Candy and here is the information they have supplied on their site: "We here at Rock Candy love to champion the underdog, acts that slipped beneath the radar before disappearing altogether. It’s a murky and sadly depressing world, one occupied by some of the world’s most talented musicians robbed of success by factors outside of their sphere of influence.
Airborne LP (1979)
Airborne were one such act. They were an amazingly proficient band crafting some of the best melodic rock that had ever been crafted yet somehow their fate was sealed when record company politics reared its ugly head. Featuring future producer Beau Hill (Ratt, Winger, Warrant), and signed to Columbia Records, this highly gifted five piece band recorded the debut album under the superior production guidance of Keith Olsen (Fleetwood Mac, Rick Springfield, Sammy Hagar), in Los Angeles and London (AIR studios) resulting in one of the era’s most compelling and streamlined records. Comparable with the best work of Styx, Touch and Foreigner the accent was on lovingly constructed songs underpinned with meaty guitar riffs and exquisitely crafted vocals, layered to perfection. Originally issued in 1979, the album attracted a slew of favourable reviews but just when things were looking to take off, including a proposed tour with the Cars, the President of Columbia Records jumped ship leaving the band high and dry with the new regime deeming Airborne as yesterday’s news. It was, in effect, a knockout blow. However we still have their sole album to remind us what could have been."
1994's "Please Stand By..." LP (1979)
We reach the closer, and it's the second band here with great female vocals. 1994's track "Keep Ravin' On" is raw and punky in it's delivery, especially Karen Lawrence's performance, while maintaining a melodious edge. This is another band that has had recent CD re-issues on Rock Candy and here are some 1994 excerpts from RC's site: "Fronted by the voluptuous Karen Lawrence, 1994 were one of the greatest North American hard rock bands that time and tide has indeed forgotten. Signed, in a blaze of publicity, to the mighty A&M label, produced by seventies studio wizard Jack ‘Aerosmith’ Douglas and hailed as the next big thing, the band never quite made the commercial impact all had hoped for. Critically, however, their music was bestowed with fervent praise attracting rave reviews both at home and abroad"
1994's band photo from debut LP (1978)
"This [Please Stand By...], their sophomore album, was released in 1979, Geoff Barton, then writing for Sounds magazine, and now, of course, Editor At Large of Classic Rock, made no secret of his love for 1994’s music and the charms of Karen Lawrence, going so far as to acclaim them as a veritable cracker box of explosive guitar based rock topped off by a stellar performance from one of the best (female) vocalists of the era; a deadly yet cool combination of Heart and Aerosmith. Produced by the dynamic duo of Eddie Leonetti (Angel, Legs Diamond) and Jack Douglas, the album was lavished with fervent praise, attracting rave reviews both at home and abroad."
For the 90th comp and I set myself the difficult and time-consuming challenge of making searches for a second collection of the heaviest and most progressive old New Zealand rock I could find. Not expecting to be very successful, I was amazed to find enough original bands to complete another hour of the small and remote country's finest riffing. My efforts were greatly assisted by the existence of two NZ compilations that have clearly saved some very obscure acts from oblivion; the Jayrem Records "New Zealand pop 1964-72" volumes 'Out from the Cold' and 'Get the Picture'.
Following on from the NZ Vol34, this volume includes two more acts that appeared at The Great Ngaruawahia Music Festival; Wellington experimentalists Mammal and Maori Rotorua/Christchurch rural rockers Butler (much humble gratitude again to Mick Mullin for re-mastering the Butler track). There are a couple of rare examples of later-70s styled NZ prog with Wellington's Airlord and Auckland's Think, and an abundance of great hard-fuzzing singles, courtesy of the afore-mentioned Jayrem compilations. Mantis were originally a Fijian funk band that secured a residency in a Wellington club. Two more points of interest, Quincy Conserve are certainly one of the only Kiwi horn rock bands I ever found, and Roy Rutanen's acid folk is a great find, with his Jim Morrison-like vocals. It looks like Wellington, the capital of NZ, was the place to be back then. Over half the bands I used were from there.
Tracks:
01. The Selected Few (Wellington) - Get the Picture (Pretty Things cover) (1966) single
02. Butler (Rotorua) - Southern Magic (1973) from album 'butler'
03. Lutha (Dunedin) - Here and Now (1973) from album 'earth'
04. Kaye Wolfgramm and Cruise Lane (Auckland) - Ego (1972) single
05. Taylor (Wellington) - Simpsons World (1972) from album 'taylor'
06. The Dedikation (Upper Hut)
- Greenburg, Glickstein, Charles, David Smith & Jones (Cryan' Shames cover) (1969) from album 'the dedikation'
07. Airlord (Wellington) - Ladies of the Night (1977) from album 'clockwork revenge'
08. Sam Hunt / Mammal (Wellington) - Beware the Man (1972) from album 'beware the man'
09. Roy Rutanen - Sinful Man (1972) from album 'roy rutanen'
10. The Quincy Conserve (Wellington) - Common Man (1971) from album 'epitaph'
11. The Retaliation (Wellington) - Morning Dew (1969) single
12. Headband (Auckland) - Good Morning Mr Rock n' Roll (1971) from album 'happen out'
13. The Roadrunners (Wellington) - LSD (1967) single
14. Mantis (Fiji/Wellington) - You Don't Love Me (1973) from album 'turn onto music'
15. Think (Auckland) - Our Children (Think About) (1976) from album 'we'll give you a buzz'
We kick off with one of the great singles from the Jayrem comps, by The Selected Few. They were Peter Robertson (Lead Guitar / Vocals), Geoff Dixon (Guitar / Vocals), Kevin Pollitt (Bass Guitar), Bruce Robertson (Vocals) and Paul Moynihan (Drums), a young Wellington pop group who formed in 1966. Most of its members were still at high school throughout their career. They were regular performers in the Hutt Valley and on the Wellington youth club circuit. They released a single, "Get The Picture"/"Understand" on HMV in 1966. "Get The Picture" was a good cover of the Pretty Things song and was released to cash-in on the then big R&B boom [this cover has a substantially heavier, overdriven sound]. Their second single in 1967 was "Needle In A Haystack"/"The Other Side Of Life". The group disbanded in 1968 as a result of parental pressure to get real jobs. (thanks to Bruce Sergent for this info)
Butler LP (1973)
Butler were an all-Maori rock band, a very unusual thing back then. All four members (Steve Apirana-Guitar / Vocals, Heidi Warren-Guitar / Vocals, Angel Adams-Bass Guitar and Hori Sinnott (Drums) were originally from Rotorua, but the band formed in Christchurch in 1970. Predominantly an underground group, they played their early gigs at the Open Door, before moving into Trevor Spitz's nightspot, Aubrey's. Having built a strong Christchurch following, the band took stabs at other South Island centers, before returning to North Island hometown Rotorua in 1971. From there they began building up a northern following, proving popular on the University circuit with their combination of originals and Led Zeppelin / Wishbone Ash covers.
Some television exposure followed with a spot on 'Happen Inn', 'Popco' and 'Free Ride'. This was fairly rare for an underground group and even with this they never really gained much pulling power. In 1973 they recorded a self-titled album for Pye. It was released on the Family label and from it came one single, "Green River"/"Especially For You". (thanks to Bruce Sergent for this info)
Here is the blurb from their album jacket: "The boys, originally from Rotorua, formed the group in 1970 when they were all working and living in Christchurch. They were staying at an Anglican youth centre called the Open Door and it was due to the encouragement of Andy Thompson (their original manager) that they got together and started playing at The Open Door. Then followed a tour of the South Island and appearances in many Christchurch clubs including Aubreys. They also played at the Daddy Cool concert in Christchurch.
The group then returned to their home town of Rotorua and in between touring the North Island, appeared at the Great Ngaruawahia Music Festival, performed on Happen Inn and have been in demand for Varsity concerts. Album produced by "Choppy". Recording Engineer Tony Foster-Moan"
Kaye Wolfgramm and Cruise Lane, 1972 Picture found at audioculture.co.nz
Kaye Wolfgramm (now Kaye Wilson) is a vocalist from Auckland, now living in Melbourne. Daughter of Hawaiian steel guitar player Bill Wolfgramm, Kaye was discovered at age 15 by Roger Skinner and The Motivation, who backed her during an Auckland Easter Show talent quest in the late 1960s. She had an eventful career with many different acts, including a stint with Cruise Lane (link). You can read all about her in an excellent article over at audioculture.co.nz. The song I have used here, Ego, is a b-side from a single and it is not Kaye on vocals here, it is Cruise Lane guitarist Al Hunter (wiki , dead website). Alas I have not heard the a-side yet, "Death Is in the Air". If I find out more I will update this, but enjoy the great song which is some brilliant jazzy, groovy rock! Al sent me an email and said this about Cruise Lane: "Cruise Lane was the little alley where the Embers night club was [in Auckland]. We got a residency there six nights a week, when we started we had a repertoire of about six songs, you can imagine that we had to change that pretty fast playing 45 minute sets from 9pm till 3am plus. Original lineup was Myself on vocals and percussion, Tony Pilcher guitar, Paul Lee sax and keyboards, Jerry Biggs bass and Claude Radics drums. Kaye was added shortly after and Jerry was replaced by Pete Kershaw. We were a covers band formed specificly for the residency, playing songs by Traffic, Santana, Delaney and Bonnie, Clapton, Leon Russell, Van Morrison, Dylan and others I cant recall at the moment. We would add a bevvy of backup singers for special gigs ala Mad Dogs and Englishmen, opening for acts like Mungo Jerry and Aussie rocknrollers Daddy Cool, whose management Mushroom Records were suitably impressed that they invited us to go to Australia to be on that label, unfortunately Kaye fell pregnant and decided that she wouldn't go, Paul and Tony wouldn't go because of that so the Rhythm section and I went but as there was no band as such Mushroom lost interest and the band was consequently buggered. We were like Strangers In A Strange Land, didnt know anybody in Australia at that point, and I returned to my pregnant wife in Auckland".
Lutha 1973 (l-r): Graham Wardrop, Garry McAlpine,
Peter Edmonds and Kevin Foster
Lutha was formed in Dunedin in 1970. They established themselves very quickly, as all five members (Graham Wardrop-Lead Guitar / Vocals, Garry McAlpine-Percussion / Vocals, Peter Edmonds-Drums, Peter Fraser-Bass Guitar / Vocals, Kevin Foster-Keyboards) had previously played in top local bands such as Throb and Pussyfoot. They were insistent on remaining a Dunedin based band even after attracting considerable national interest.
They signed to HMV in 1972 and produced two albums during that year. They were the self-titled "Lutha" and "Earth". Lutha released four singles during 1972 and the beginning of 1973, all coming from their two albums. They were "Then I Saw Her Face"/"Mountain Side", "Stop The Music Is Over"/"My Turn To Cry", "Earth"/"I Really Only Want To Be With You" and "Here And Now (My Friend)"/"Waterfall".
Their first North Island gigs didn't come until late 1972. Had they moved to one of the larger centres, Lutha could have proved to be even more popular, but when they did shift, it was only to Christchurch and by that stage, 1973, it was too late. In November 1972, EMI promoted a concert at the James Hay Theatre in Christchurch. Lutha performed there along with Blerta, Quincy Conserve and Desna Sisarich. The event was recorded and released early in 1973 as an album called "Live". Lutha contributed three tracks to the album. (thanks to Bruce Sergent for this info)
Taylor LP [1972]
For track 5 we have an album cut from a band called Taylor, who made one LP of slightly countrified/Southern rock and 'Simpsons World' ends with some brilliant duelling guitar which I find reminiscent of a laid back Lynyrd Skynyrd jam. The line-up was Keith Norris (Drums / Percussion), Steve McDonald (Keyboards / Vocals), Kevin Bayley (Lead Guitar), Rick White (Rhythm Guitar) and Clint Brown (Bass Guitar). They were a Wellington act that formed in 1971 and although only together for two years, produced one good and very rare album. The band included a couple of members of bands that I used in the first NZ Vol34: Timberjack and Farmyard.
Taylor had moderate success, releasing a single "Hard Life"/"Simpson's World" in 1971, recording a self-titled album which contained both songs from the single in 1972, securing a sought-after residency at John's Place in Auckland.
Keith Norris and Clint Brown had been playing together since 1969, starting in Wellington's Rebirth. In mid-1970, the pair left and headed to Australia, thereby ending Rebirth, and they joined up with expatriates Dave Brown and Milton Parker to form Tangent. This group disbanded in March 1971 and Brown and Norris returned to Wellington, where they joined up with guitarist Kevin Bayley, keyboardist Steve McDonald and guitarist Rick White, to form Taylor. Kevin Bayley playied lead guitar with Chapta in 1970. Steve McDonald had played with his brother Eddie in a Wellington group called the Strangers, before joining Dizzy Limits in 1966. Dizzy Limits became Timberjack in 1970, after which he moved to Taylor. Rick White started back in 1964, while still at school, with a Wellington's The Relics who made one single in 1966. Rick moved to form Tom Thumb and stayed with them until 1970 when he joined Farmyard for a short time, before becoming part of Taylor.
The Dedikation
The Dedikation's track here is a cover of the Cryan' Shames, the Illinois, US band that made a 1968 heavy and brilliant psychedelic pop single which I used back on Vol77 called 'Greenburg, Glickstein, Charles, David Smith & Jones'. The Dedikation's version lacks the production sheen of the 'Shames original, but retains the heaviness. maybe even surpassing it with extra distortion! They were originally formed in the Upper Hutt around 1967, with the original drummer Michael Parlane being replaced by Bruce Whitelaw when they turned professional. The other members were: Ray Mercer (Lead Guitar), Graeme Collins (Keyboards / Vocals) and Graham Harvey (Bass Guitar).
Their first single was released in 1969 and was a huge hit. It was "Wait For Me Maryanne"/"Sally Had A Party" and reached number 2 on the national charts. "Maryanne" was a far superior cover of the original song by the Marmalade from 1968. The Marmalade version lacks the depth of sound that the Dedikation managed to give it. The song was a monster and few bands are capable of following up such a hit with another smash. Their second single was "Hayride"/"Barefootin'" and didn't even make the charts. The third single, a cover of the Rolling Stones did better. It was "Ruby Tuesday"/"Be A Woman" and reached number 12 on the national charts in 1970. One self-titled album was released in 1969 and by 1970 the Dedikation had called it quits.
After their split, Graeme Collins went on to play with Human Instinct (see vol3 & vol34) in 1971 and also was an original member of Dragon in 1972. Graham Harvey had a short time with another Wellington band, the Falcons. (thanks to Bruce Sergent for the info)
Airlord
Airlord were a rare example of 70s kiwi progressive rock in the style of Yes/Genesis etc. I have used a track called 'Ladies of the Night', a charismatic song which ends in a guitar tour de force, taken from their 'Clockwork Revenge' album. This passage is adapted from Bruce Sergent's Airlord page: The band was: Steve MacKenzie (Guitar / Vocals), Ray Simenauer (Guitar / Vocals), Brad Murray (Bass / Vocals), Alan Blackburn (Keyboards) and Rick Mercer (Drums). They formed in Wellington in 1976, played the pubs and flew to Australia the following year, recorded a great albeit ignored album, "Clockwork Revenge", and disbanded in 1978. The group failed to secure a large New Zealand audience, largely because they performed original material. Airlord had to escape to Australia to earn a decent living, and although they were never a top draw card across the Tasman, their lifespan was a lot longer than had they stayed in New Zealand.
In 1979 after Airlord had disbanded, Steve MacKenzie and Alan Blackburn formed Machine with Tony Jax on drums and Steve Kulak on bass. They released one single in 1981 called "They Destroy Me". Before Airlord, Steve MacKenzie had teamed up with Reece Kirk to form a duo called Friends. They released two singles, one in 1974 and the other in 1975. Reece had also released a single by himself in 1972.
Mammal, 1973. Left to right: Tony Backhouse, Julie Needham,
Kerry Jacobson, Mark Hornibrook, Robert Taylor, Rick Bryant
Track 8: from Wellington's "Mammal", is taken from an album which was their collaborative effort with "New Zealand's best known poet" Sam Hunt. Many of the tracks begin with Sam's recitations of his poems, which lead into songs that are themed around the poems. 'Beware the Man' is a fast and eccentric hit of psych. Mammal seem to have had an interesting and unusual career, especially for an NZ band, but there is an unfortunate paucity of recorded material to judge them by as they only printed one single (in addition to the Sam Hunt album). I found a great account of the band here with a lot of pictures.
The album's cover scans include the insert that came with it and here is what is printed on it: "Sam Hunt lives on Bottle Creek and in the past few years has achieved a high reputation as a poet and a bit of notoriety as a pisshead. Now he's accepted by the poetry establishment, the NZBC features him on TV, but his poetry's lost none of its guts and style. Now he's off the booze, writing better than ever. Sam's big, wooly headed, a bit mad. His poems are like songs . . direct . . . like Bob Dylan's poetry a little, rhythmically . . . like rock. Mammal is solid. They love the best music and they've made something else of Sam's words: something beautiful, loud, deep, heavy, lyrical . . . whatever. This LP is the first by Sam Hunt and Mammal. Let it be the first of many to get to you."
Roy Rutanen LP (1972)
So far, this is the only information I can gather regarding Roy Rutanen on-line, and it's mostly unsubstantiated. He was from New Zealand [Edit in 2022: This has now been discovered to be wrong - he was from the USA and I exclusively weeded-out the truth by interviewing him here! - please read his interview after this] and recorded one self-titled album in Australia, released on MCA through Astor Records in 1972. He also made two singles on MCA. They were "Your Day Is Comin' / Hey You" [1970] (MCA 1167 - both non-album tracks), and "Plastic World / The Old Man" [1971] (MCA 1230 - both from the album). The track I have used, Sinful Man, is from the album. It's the most brooding, aggressive one on there, among a collection of largely soothing pastoral music that has been described variously as acid / psych / folk / country rock and features mostly acoustic guitar, flute and electric bass, with some lap-steel guitar and fuzz guitar.
The Plastic World single was engineered by Spencer Lee, who also produced the Sydney hard rockers Buffalo (see Vol1 and Vol21). So far I have only managed to find a few low-res front cover scans of the album, which show a cross-legged guy sitting on grass playing acoustic guitar, partially obscured by a tree, with a blonde-haired girl watching in the foreground. I can only guess this guy is Roy, and I have not found mention of any other names who played on the record. He sings slightly more aggressively on Sinful Man and sounds agreeably like Jim Morrison, but this is not the case on all the songs. As for now, a mystery...
Quincy Conserve 1972 L to R: Mike Conway,Dave Orams,Kevin Furey,
Johnny McCormick,Barry Brown-Sharpe, Malcolm Hayman
and Rufus Rehu.
Track 10 introduces The Quincy Conserve, who debuted at Wellington's Downtown Club in February 1968, were one of the most talented and professional groups to appear on the New Zealand music scene in the late sixties, Wellington's first 'supergroup'. Releasing 4 albums, They had an eventful career which you can read all about on Bruce Seagent's brilliant site here, and included bass player Dave Orams from The Underdogs which I featured back on Vol34. Being a large multi-instrumentalist ensemble/showband with a revolving door lineup, they held residencies at a few Wellington clubs over their time, including the Cornhill Tavern and the Speakeasy Bar in Manners Street. After being signed to EMI they performed backing for pop singer Allison Durbin and another interesting note is they were billed along-side another act appearing later in this comp, Lutha. That was at the James Hay Theatre in Christchurch in 1972, and that resulted in a live album including both acts (and others from the night) called "Live". Their powerful sound is demonstrated by the driving horns-assisted track I used here, 'Common Man', taken from their second album 'Epitaph' (1971).
'On The Beach' movie, inspiration
behind the song 'Morning Dew'.
Another super-fuzz single now, a cover of 'Morning Dew' from The Retaliation. A recent comment on my Youtube channel prompted me to look into the song's interesting history. It was popularised by The Grateful Dead's 1967 cover, but was first performed by Fred Neil and Vince Martin in 1964. The song was written in 1961 by Canadian folk singer Bonnie Dobson in keeping with anti-nuclear sentiments at the time of the cold war, and has a post-apocalypse theme that was inspired by the 1959 WWIII movie 'On the Beach' staring Gregory Peck.
As for The Retaliation, they were a Wellington-based pop group around for a very short time in 1969. Phil Pritchard (guitar) had spent the later part of the sixties in Australia and when he returned to his hometown, Wellington in late-1969, he had a very short stint with this group, before deciding to form an underground band, to play original material, called Highway. Barry Leef (vocals) had recently been with the Simple Image. The rest of the band was made up of Nick Bagnall (Bass Guitar) and Mike Darby (Drums). They only released one single during their short time and that was "If You Think You're Groovy"/"Morning Dew" for HMV in 1969. (thanks to Bruce Sergent for this info) I have been looking for the Highway album, but as yet no luck....it looks like it could be a heavy one...
[EDIT 2/4/2014] Here is an update I received since posting this: "just a quick correction on Retaliation. Barry Leef did not sing on this record and nor did Mike Darby play drums. They both joined just after it's release. I have just recently interviewed Barry for a book I'm writing and he gave me the scoop. By the way, the book is on Australian band BAKERY and will include a companion CD with an albums worth of unreleased tracks.. mind blowing stuff. bookmark my company. www.highvoltagepublishing.com"
Headband
Headband take us onwards, into some awesome rock n' roll flute soloing (not something I say very often). In 1970 Tommy Adderley was inspired by the then current line-up of John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, to form a group; Bluesbreakers had an unusual line-up, including an electric violin, but no drums. This was the sound Adderley had in mind. It didn't take too many rehearsals, however, before Tommy realised that this drumless unit wasn't working out, so Jimmy Hill was brought in on drums. At this point, the group was renamed Headband. Headband debuted at Molly Hatchetts nightclub in February 1971. This club closed shortly after, so Adderley purchased the old Bo-Peep club in Durham Lane in Auckland. He refurbished it and re-opened it as Grannys in June 1971. This gave Headband a permanent venue to play and became the venue at which great bands like Dragon and Ragnarok debuted.
In late 1971 Jack Stradwick (formerly with Action) left and was replaced by Billy Kristian, who along with Jimmy Hill had previously played in Ray Columbus's Invaders. With this line-up and Alan Quinnell (Guitar) and Ronnie Craig (Guitar) an album called "Happen Out" was recorded for HMV. A single was taken from it, "Ballad of Jacques Le Mere"/"The Error Of My Ways". It reached number 14 on the national charts. Two further singles came from the album, "Good Morning Mr Rock'n'Roll"/"Dip Tank" and "Love Is Bigger Than The Whole Wide World"/"The Loving Tree", with the latter reaching number 12 in September 1972. Another single "Time"/"Paranoia" failed to sell.
Headband did a Universities tour during 1972, but apart from that they seldom performed outside Auckland. The group disbanded in 1973, with Adderley concentrating on his nightclub. After numerous run-ins with the law, he was forced to close the venue in 1976. Tommy resurrected Headband for a national tour, single and album in 1975. He had a new line-up featuring himself, Dick Hopp and Hill, plus bassist Neil Edwards and keyboards player Len Whittle. The album was called "Rock Garden" with a single "I Get High (On Music)"/"Hey Little Schoolgirl" coming from it. Nothing more came from the group after this.
The Road Runners
The Roadrunners were from Lower Hutt, just north of Wellington, and formed in 1964. With an average age of sixteen, they were a sensational live r&b band. During 1965 they had a residency at the Intermezzo Coffee Lounge for a short while. The Roadrunners were managed by their friend Jim Pilcher, who later went to the UK in a similar role with the Fourmyula.
This band was the starting point for Chaz Burke-Kennedy and Glyn Mason, who both went on to larger things. Chaz was a member of the Underdogs, Jigsaw and Fresh Air, while Glyn was with the Bitter End and Jigsaw, before replacing Larry Morris in the Rebels. Noel Koskella (Bass Guitar) and Tim O'Connor (Drums) completed the band. Glyn eventually moved to Australia, and joined Chain in 1970. After a spell in England, he came back to Australia, where he joined Ariel in 1975 and later the Stockley See Mason Band (see the Aussie Vol80). In 1966, it just happened that the Roadrunners were forced into a temporary hiatus while guitarist Chaz Burke-Kennedy began to explore the delights of life as a recluse. This left drummer Tim O'Connor free to join the Derelicts for a short time, returning when Chaz decided to venture out into the wide world again.
The group never recorded, but did do a demo session. This session contained a song called "LSD", which has been located and can be heard on the CD "Get The Picture" from the Legenz series, produced by Jayrem Records. Another track from the session was "Get Out Of My Life Woman" and can be found on the other CD in the series, "Out From The Cold". (thanks to Bruce Sergent for the info)
Mantis LP "Turn Onto Music" (1973)
Mantis were a Fijian rock group that came to Wellington and took up a residency at one of the clubs. Their style was very mainly funk but for the track included here I have used the most straight-ahead rocking one, there is also a cover of Mississippi Queen on the record which I could equally have used. While they were in Wellington they recorded an album in 1973 called "Turn Onto Music". They consisted of Joe Heritage (Bass Guitar / Vocals), Ronnie Sammuel (Keyboards), Paul Stephen (Drums), Waisea Vatuwaga (Lead Guitar / Vocals) and Reuben Davui (Guitar / Vocals). The LP was released on theVertigo label (!!! Somehow). Two singles came from the album, "Night and Day"/"Time Is Tight" and "Turn On The Music"/"Get Down". (thanks to Bruce Sergent for this info)
Think 'We'll Give You a Buzz' LP (1976)
Think were an Auckland progressive/art rock group who formed in 1976. Phil Whitehead and Don Mills came from the disbanded outfit Beam, with Phil Whitehead actually having had a short stint with Human Instinct in-between. They produced an album in 1976 called We'll Give You A Buzz and a single "Arrived In Time/Big Ladies" the following year. One further single came in 1979 with "Good Morning/Peanut Joe". Kevin Stanton was also a member at one time. He later went on to play with Mi-Sex. All other sources apart from their myspace site are rare. The band comprised of Alan Badger - Bass, Ritchie Pickett - Vocals, Don Mills - Keyboards, Neville Jess - Drums,Phil Whitehead - Guitars. (thanks to ProgArchives and Bruce Sergent for the info)
Unzip problem? Make sure you enter the password, and for MAC users especially, I recommend using the free, opensource program 7Zip (there is a MAC version too), which is what I make the zips with. Feel free to contact me, or report dead/erroneous links, at: aftersabbath@live.co.uk If you have trouble with any volumes in particular email me.
Recommendations and advice is always appreciated, Cheers! Rich
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