Sky Saxon RIP - Sky Saxon Blues Band - A Full Spoon Of Seedy Blues

LINK IS UP! Another one bites the dust. "If there’s ever a day you don’t want to die on, publicity-wise, it would be the day Michael Jackson dies. That kind of sucks up all the ink in the room, and if there’s a drop left, it goes to Farrah Fawcett." I couldn't have put it better… read the rest here. Hilarious account of gigging with Sky's New Seeds in the late 70's.
Back to this LPee: a lot of people really despise this album, but I think it showcases a very eerie quality Sky always had about him. Creepy might be the better word. Do not listen to this album late at night kids, it WILL unnerve you. Think Manson with talent and you'll be close. Thanks to YaHoWha, Sky always (?) stayed on the right side of the fence. So, it's time to pay our last goodbies to one of American Garage true icon. Godspeed, Sky.

On a lighter note, you have to wonder what Muddy Water took before writing these liner notes… I suspect a combination of hard liquor, young hippie vestals and a manager sleeping in the bath tub.
This is a rip off my original Crescendo LP, in all its glory. Enjoy and get your spoonful here.

Incredible Sound Show Stories 5 - Yellow Street Boutique

Time for instalment 5 of the Incredible Sound Show Stories, this time centered on the UK R&B scene circa 1964-65. Many gems à la Them and Yarbirds are to be discovered thanks to Dig The Fuzz Records and their world known Rubber Biscuit Studios. As stated on the original Lp, there has been NO digital remastering… and it does sound very original, let's say. Of particular note on this volume is The Silence, an early incarnation of John's Children and probably one of the few bands to really capture the essence of an era.

Enter the Yellow Street Boutique here.

Incredible Sound Show Stories 4 - A Trip on the Magic Flying Machine

Short post for today. This is one of the best psych volume in the Incredible Soundshow Stories series…so good I am still listening to it years after ripping it. There's just one heavy prog/psych in the track listing, all the rest is absolute classics. The word "Psychedelic" is mentioned so many times on this comp that I will spare you the track listing! There's also too many favourites in there to start commenting them… you'd end up with another monster post.

Just climb aboard the magic flying machine here.
We enjoy your comments… get typing!.

Fools On The Hill 23: Pre-Kraut Pleasures- 29 garage psych and post-beat late 60's forgotten gems from the German scene

It took some time but the wait is finally over: here is the new FOTH comp! This relies heavily on the famed Prae-Kraut Pandemonium series of comp which has now stopped being published in vinyl. I suppose most of you have heard about Kraut Music and the bands who invented it: Can, Amon Düül etc. You certainly also heard about the infamous Beat scene and the Star-Club in Hamburg. But what happened in-between? I think the Pre-Kraut sound is heavily influenced by the political situation of the time. While the US was directly influenced by the end of the Vietnam war, Germany was recreating painfully its identity. The youth were trying to invent a new way of living but in a very explosive political moment. Extremism was rife, left-wing terrorism was on the brink of plunging the country into years of fear. Peace and love were not quite understood the same way as in the US. Alternative lifestyles such as creating communes and squatting were starting to happen. This is the sound of an angry and loose generation, shaking the sins of their fathers off their back and creating their own world.

Where else could a band have sung in 1968: "If you see a policeman, strike him down as fast as you can"? Quite far from Flower Power isn't it? This comp spans a wide range of styles but all songs are infused with an umistakable sound and energy. From tongue-in-cheek themes like modern surgery to class struggle reflections, from furious post-beat instrumentals to wacky english-sung psych songs (not to mention deeelicious german accents), the quality and variety of the songs is simply amazing. Another defining trait of Pre-Kraut is the will to invent something new and trying to sound different from the current British or US sound: Experimentation leads songs into some wild directions, be it quasi Stoogey punkers or etheral rave-ups. This experimentation will become the foundation of Kraut music… another subject.

You can find more about Pre_kraut at Spurensicherung , the blog home ofthe makers of the original Prae-Kraut comps. This is where they publish their new finds. Many thanks to them for all their hardwork and dedication.

This is, simply put, one of our best FOTH volume, get it here.
Your comments are always very welcomed… do not hesitate.

Track Listing:
1- Hab Keine Lust Heut' Aufzusteh'n -The Blizzards
I don't want to get up today - the perfect song for Mondays.

2- The Old Hangman Is Dead - The Kentuckys
A beat rehash of a traditional german folk song, the Dubliners wouldn't have recorded it that way.

3- Why Can't It Be Me - Ian & The Zodiacs
4- Leave This Lesbian World - Improved Sound Ltd.
A perfect example of a bent Pre-Kraut theme for a song.

5- Hypodermic Needle - Novak's Kapelle
Quasi-punker drug song.

6- I'm An Unskilled Worker - The Dukes
Typical of a them never touched by the US bands. I think the only song that comes close is
"(Would I Still Be) Her Big Man" by the Brigands on the Original Nuggets.

7- The Dentist - The Dukes
Yes. It's a song about going to the dentist… or avoiding to.

8- Hullabaloo - The Guards
Big Noise indeeed…

9- Kamera Song - The Inner Space & Rosy Rosy
What starts as a nice and gentle lullaby suddenly veers off towards anguish… and back.

10- Stupid Generation - The Kentuckys
A comment still valid today.

11- What Do You Think - The Rainy Daze
I think this one popped up already on one FOTH volume,
it has the closest US sound of this selection, could be Texas or Louisiana folk punk.

12- Round The World - The Rebbels
An interesting ditty about rocketships with a few snotty musings thrown in.

13- Panic - The Slaves
Do you know what's the matter with me? It's a real panic!

14- All Right - The Wildcats
Teenage angst in the best tradition.

15- Indiano - Andy Nevison & his Rythm Masters
Peter Gunn influenced piece of beat fury.

16- I'm So Lonely - Les Copains
Start as a completely tart song and then suddenly grabs Iggy by the throat.

17- Wild Woman - Jo Hamann
Cool declamation that includes some strange Velvet like rumble.

18- Who Knows - John Deen & The Trakk
One of my fave: very loose but catchy.

19- Doing That Rhythm Thing - Novak's Kapelle
Again, nothing like what was done elsewhere in the world.
Trying the break the mould here.

20- Smile Please - Novak's Kapelle
Their signature song, MC5 here we come.

21- I'm Your Guy - The Blizzards
Another splendid beat/pop nugget.

22- Heart Transplantation - The Dragons
After the dentist, the heart surgeon gets the treatment.

23- Wieder Auf Der Gass - The German Of The Bored
You will never listen to the Canned Heat version the same way.
I'm on the gas (pedal) again.

24- Understand - The Loosers
Slow downer sung weez an eery German accent.

25- Tartarex - The Petards
This one veers towards prog, but the theme of the song alone is wirth the listen.

26- Can't You See - The Renegades
Another classic garage piece.

27- Give Your Love To Me - Les Copains
A desperate call for love from Les Copains.

28- The Things She Says - The Cherry Stones
This could have been Freakbeat if it were English.

29- Stop This War - The Seals
This one has its feet firmly in the period, both lirycally and musically.

Incredible Sound Show Stories 3 - 200 Feet Deep In A Purple Idea

More Freakbeat and Psych insanities from Dig The Fuzz label.
This volume, interestingly, features 2 french psych bands among the usual british Freakbeat fare. This is certainly only the tip of the iceberg and we are thinking of making a FOTH comp exploring the french psych/prog scene. Les Goths made only one but excellent 4-song EP, highly sought after, and Tacpoum Système made several psych 45, from which "Asmodai" is lifted. They sadly transformed into a prog band after this initial effort. All in all, this is yet another classic comp in the Bam Caruso mould.
There is a small mistake in the tagging of one song: "XK 1LX" is by the Nashville Teens, not by The Lemon Drops, I'll let you correct that.


The next FOTH volume "Pre-Kraut Pleazers" is ready and should be out and posted this week.


Hold your breath and dive 200 Feet Deep In A Purple Idea here.

Incredible Sound Show Stories 2 - When the Tangerine Strikes Twelve

Second Volume of the ISSS series now up for grabs. This one has a definite Freakbeat/early Brit psychedelic tint to it. Again compiled from (very) hard to find acetates and master tapes, and ripped from the original Vinyl LP. Featuring rare John's Children tracks along with a BBC Interview… They sound all a bit full of themselves or were they out of their brains? There's also a heavy serving of the later incarnation of the Downliners Sect, when they discovered R&B was out and psych was in. All recorded as demo in a Medium's House with a band that was on the brink of exploding.

When the tangerine strikes twelve…get your fresh fruits & veggies here!

1- Daddy Rolling Stone - John's Children
The band attacks the song from every direction and they at least manage to play a verse and a chorus fromthe original version before smashing it up in true punk style. A good opener.

2- Every Minute of the Day - The Primitives
Great band already featured on ISSS 1 respected for their Pye 45 punker "You said". The track selected here shows their move into '66 mod style.

3- Little Piece of Leather - The Hipster Image
Slice of mod-influenced from Sheffield, they managed to hop on Jimmy Saville charity flexi with this Sue standard. Backflip is an organ instrumental (not featured here).

4- Shame Shame Shame - Unknown Band
Great '65 sound with a menacing rythm guitar from a band who strikes a close resemblance with the Kinks (Kontaversy period).

5- Eiderdown Clown - The Scots of St James
From Scotland indeed! Had their start on the Go label (subsidy of CBS) at the end of '66. This is their follow-up in 67, a classic psycher on the Spot label. Without much success, they went on to become the Hop Scotch and then Forever More. Graham Maitland then also appeared in pop psycher The Five Day Rain

6- White Caterpillar - The Downliners Sect
Proof that a good band can switch to different sound without being ridicule.

7- Shalom - Hell Preachers Inc.
You already had a taste of them on our FOTH 22 comp here. Proof of our good taste.

8- Boring Song - Charge
Early Floyd influence all over that slab of Art College psych from Derby. Double sided privately pressed 45. Recorded quietly in the college Library, believe it or not.

9- Spider - Downliners Sect
See White Caterpillar for description. When you start being obsessed with insects, it's time to lay off the drugs.

10- Perfumed Garden of Gulliver Smith (& Interview with John Helwett)
According to them, they were trying to expand the genre… the interview has them sounding like arty poofs, but the track is much better.

11- Never Mind - Elli
This single was released on the same day as the Fab Fours "Strawberry Fields Forever" ensuring instant obscurity. Elli will pop up on a number of other ISSS volumes… One of the UK's unknown national treasures.

12- Second Glance - Timothy Grass
A great slice of Psych from a totally unknown band…

13 - The Wind Out of Nowhere - Whichwhat
Track from a surviving master tape and an excellent find from Nottingham's late 60's pop/rock scene. The band stayed together long enough to record an album and 6 singles before splitting. Their late 70's reunion produced this fine lazy pop psych track.

14 - All Lead Back to You - The First Impression
One of the many late 60's London acts who fitted into the jigsaw of the underground circuit of the time. Also featured on the Saga label " Swingin' London" LP– a pretty ridiculous attempt at grasping the era ensured them well deserved obscurity.

15- Strange Loves of Gwyneth - St Davids Road
Welsh psych obviously… From a promo copy.

16- Hot Rod Mama - John's Children
Shades of Bolan to come. Nuff said.

17- Lord of the Rings - John's Children
Keith Grant uses the leftovers of the original Sect to record this strange attempt at psychedelia. Well, it HAS a very clear psych feel but you can still feel the good ol' R&B influence while declaiming verses about Tolkien's epic saga… what were they taking?

Incredible Sound Show Stories 1 - The Technicolour Milkshake

As promised, we're starting a new parralel series, with the re-upping of The Incredible Sound Show Stories. There are seventeen tracks by fifteen groups: standouts are "Action Painting" by the Ricketts, "I'm so Glad" (the Skip James song) by the Maze (two members of which would later be in Deep Purple--but this track sounds nothing like "Smoke on the Water"), and "Red and Green Talking Machine" by an unknown group. This is from the original vinyl pressing, full of 1960's acetates/private pressings/obscurities. It seems to a have a slight Deep Purple fixation: the Purple Barrier had to change their name to The Barrier because of DP and you'll find a track by The Maze (not the US bands) which featured Ian Paice and Rod Evans. The first track is an insane freakbeat instrumental by The Ricketts, which was worth buying the LP alone. Other track of note is "Devil" which sadly never made it past the acetate stage and "Silence of the morning" which has since then appeared on a number of comps.

Technicolour Milkshake here!

Fools On The Hill 22: Fabulously Fake Freakouts – 25 wannabe psychedelic tunes from all over the world

At last! The New Foth series is getting online. In our search for more 60's scenes and genres, we selected the exploito - psych or psych exploitation style as our first subject. When I started listening to "Garage" music a few decades (!) ago, I wasn't aware that some of the coolest stuff I was digging was fake. If truth be known, it doesn't really matter, it just sounds too good, specially when frolicking nude in an Alpine river, under the influence.
What makes something "psych exploitation"? We decided on 5 possibilities: records done by studio sharks (usually for a dollar-bin record company), bands where none (or so few) of the original members remain at the time of recording, producer or band projects that clearly try to jump on a bandwagon, records done by bands so ashamed of what they're doing, they prefer to use a pseudo name and finally, movie score music, usually linked to some exploitation B-Movie, exploiting the hot themes of the 60's (drug, sex, bikers, hippies, or any combination thereof). There were some tough cases: for example, we didn't include The Deep's "Psychedelic Moods", it didn't fit any of the above rules: that record is an UFO, probably the first explicitly psychedelic record… so can't really be exploito. Nor did we include Davie Allan: he can be credited for starting the whole Movie Biker genre, check the definitive compilation of the style here. A heartbreaking task, but it must be said: Psych exploitation is a land where the pick of the crop is far and few between, hence the long wait for this comp. While most of the Expoito Lp are so bad you can't listen to them twice, the ones we selected have an excellent audio quality as, one way or the other, some studio pros were involved in the making. For us dedicated followers of fashion, a vast majority of the music in this comp is easily detected as wannabe chart makers trying to ride the wave (Hey, Psychedelia was the "Next Big Thing" then!). I don't think that it mattered then and it certainly doesn't matter now. We tried to arrange most of the songs in this comp in chronological order (what a headache!) so you actually get to experience the artistic slide from "Let's be psychedelic, guys" to "Hey, Man, let's be far out!" Enjoy!
I also couldn't resist showing you the covers… some of the best (or worst) psychedelic art around.

Get your rare and bizarre psychedelic songs with weird vocals, a lot of fuzz guitar, garage-band rhythms, and freaky covers HERE!

Track listing:
1 – Sunset And Clark – The Leathercoated Minds from the fictious A Trip Down The Sunset Strip LP movie. (1967)
Fake music for a fake film, a very young J.J. Cale plays on this.

2 - Psyched - Out - The Ventures from Super Psychedelics LP (1967)
Even the Ventures felt the need to be slightly hipper… surf was out, psych was in.


3- Skip To My Mary Lu – Stu Phillips from Hell's Angels On Wheels (1966)
Also exists as "Skip to my Mary J" (recorder by The Poor, same guy), oh so subtle double-entendre for wannabe Hippies.





4- Fendabenda - Friar Tuck And His Psychedelic Guitar (1967)
This has the hand (and voice) of Curt Boettcher all over it, and it features Mike Deasy, heavy L.A. session cat and sometime-member of Phil Spector's Wrecking Crew on guitar, musical arrangements and producing…A really odd combination of gonzo guitar soloing and the Living Voices on acid.

5 - Naked Angels Theme - Randy Steirling From the Naked Angels Movie score. (1966)
Not Davie Allan under disguise, Studio Cat Randy Steirling rips on that tune. I mean NAKED angels… really?




6 - The Trip - The Fire Escape (1967) from the PSychotic reaction LP (1967)
This mind-blowing psychedelic garage collection was put together by the legendary Kim Fowley and Michael Lloyd (October Country, West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band, Smoke) in San Francisco, 1967. Comprising of "far out" covers of garage songs, the album's personnel remains a mystery, though it's rumoured to feature involvement from The Seeds' Sky Saxon and Steppenwolf's Mars Bonfire.

7 - Boil the kettle, mother - The ID from The inner Sound of the ID LP (1967)
Probably the best Exploito project. So good, it might also be one of the best psych LP…
Bandleader, Jerry Cole started with, "The Champs" (Tequila, anyone?). The members of the group were all playing with other groups and as studio musicians, but, came together to rehearse, develop and build the album. When things didn't work out trying to promote the LP, the musicians went their separate ways. This LP was way ahead of its time and is one of Exploito Psych greatest gem.

8 - The War For My Mind - The Mesmerizing Eye from the A Musical Lightshow LP 81967)
This is about as psychedelic as it gets. Trippy stuff my man. Created by two producers Larry Goldberg and Hank Levine with a few studio freak musicians. Its got it all baby, fuzzed out guitars, sound effects galore and lots of random brain sizzle.

9 - Psychedelic Vibrations - The Underground from the Psychedelic Visions LP (1967)
Great exploito album by a faceless bunch of session hacks. Psych for ageing surf heads that couldn't come to terms with the acid era. Suzi-Q gets the treatment here.

10 - Behind the mind - The Freak Scene from Psychedelic Psoul LP (1967)
Very similar tho' not as exceptional as The Deep's "Psychedelic Moods" LP, which was a recording studio only project of Rusty Evans. Supposedly members of The Deep are playing on the Freak Scene album, as this is another of Rusty's projects. The Freak
Scene LP is one of those albums where the "great stuff" is truly great, and the "awful stuff" is indeed truly pretty awful.

11 - Kyrie Eleison - The Electric Prunes from Mass In F Minor LP (1968)
Or rather what's left of The Prunes under the ruling hand of producer Dave Axelrod… HArd luck: it was to be their greatest success!

12- Something's wrong with Bokaj - Bokaj Retsiem from Psychedelic Underground LP (1968)
A german singer with an obsession for the lullaby "Meister Jakob" (hint, hint) tries to stretch a bad trip for the length of a full LP… Not. Educational but scary.

13 - Flash' bam' pow' - The Electric Flag - from the Trip Movie score. (1967)
Established band needs extra cash and contributes to exploito movie in order to give it a bit of street cred. Embarrasing for them but fun.

14 - Aries-The Fire Fighter - Mort Garson From the Zodiac cosmic sounds LP (1967)
Dave Axelrod look alike Mort Garson produces an entire Lp based on zodiac signs… Pay attention to the lyrics: the label says "Must Be Played In The Dark!"

15 - Sock It My Way - The Animated Egg - from the Animated Egg LP (1968)
Really, it's the ID tracks without vocals. How to make the most of a session. Still one of the best Psych instrumental out there.

16 - Karma Sitar - 101 Strings Orchestra from Astro Sounds From Beyond The Year 2000 LP (1968)
Budget Label buys the ID sessions (again!) and adds strings to them. Goofy but nevertheless a classic Exploito album.

17 - Utterly simple - Traffic - from Here We Go 'Round The Mulberry Bush movie score (1968)
Traffic should have known better than recording songs for that score. They could have at least hidden their name. Interesting sitar ditty from a very forgettable film.

18 - Eight Miles High - the Folkswingers - Raga Rock (1968)
They're really not the Byrds, but why create when you can imitate and, hey, it's got some sitar on it!

19 - Voyage Of The Trieste - The Chocolate Watch Band from The Inner Mystique LP (1968)
Was it really the Chocolat Watch Band? Not even the singer is left in the band. Still one of exploito's best result.

20 - Expo in sound - T Swift & The Electric Bag from Are You Experienced ? LP (1968)
Don't let Jimmi get away! No one besides the folks who made Are You Experienced? knew exactly who T. Swift, let alone his Electric Bag, was. And it's a good thing. Another dollar bin LP to cash in the sudden Hendrix (and others) success.

21 - Free Fuzz - Firebirds from the Light my Fire LP (1969)
The Firebirds or the 30 Flavors? - we will probably never know. Not that it matters. From all accounts this isn't even a real band. Just a group of studio muscians cramed in a studio to make a quick buck on the wild and untamed youth and their endless hord of disposable income. Blue Cheer, here we come.

22 - Fying - Braen's Machine from Underground LP (1971)
Italy gets into the game. An ex-Morricone sideman teams up with a friend for this Exploito psych prog LP. Not as bas as my spelling.

23 - Courante - Hell's Preachers Inc. from Supreme Psychedelic Underground (1968)
This has all the right catchwords in the title, but the music is a session players' offering. One of the better period exploito albums. Rumour has it it was Deep Purple in disguise, but the singer has a strong german accent. Go figure.

24 - Microchaos - Blue Phantom from Distortions LP (1971)
A popular album among european psych and prog collectors, Distortions was released in Italy in 1971, along with a single, by a group of unknown studio musicians.

25 - Revolution - Head Shop from The Head Shop LP (1969)
Similar in spirit to Arthur Brown. Intensely psychedelic, high energy and feverish with far more hot tracks than some famous albums. The version of the Beatles' Revolution is far better than the original!

Fools On The Hill: New series soon to be up

FOTH Volume 23: A last splash of colors marks the end of the original FOTH series that was sold as CDs way back when it was fashionable. The new series which we will post shortly is designed as a continuation and aims to cover all the other scenes and genres we missed the first time around. We will start with Volume 22: Faboulusly Fake Freakouts, centering on exploitation psych, Volume 23 will showcase the best of the Pre-Kraut style and Volume 24 will introduce you to the wonders of the Sitar. Further Volumes are planned with European Beat Explosion, French Yé-Yé and Weird Hippie Shit as subjects.
Stay tuned for more Rock 'n' Roll!

Fools On The Hill 21: A last Splash of Colours - 19 fabulous mid-60's POP Masterpieces that time forgot

Sorry for the late post – we need holidays too! This nifty pop compilation is the last volume in the original FOTH series published on CD. Don't worry: we have 3 other Internet-only volumes ready to be published when we resume our normal rythm and we will keep up making them.
True to Sylvain's POP sensibility, this (not so) last splash of colours features songs that really should have made a dent on the charts… but didn't. No snarling vocals here, but a rather subdued and mellow sound that served as godfather to the future 70's powerpop scene. It also ends with one of my all-time fave "I go to sleep", which showcases how much Chrissie Hind defaced the song when she was given it by her then-husband… hard to beat a Davies!

Making these comps does take a while and we will put up another series to fill in the gaps… the incredible Psichodelicias compilations, handwrought way back when email was cutting edge technology, by the same team who brought you FOTH. Psichodelicias is centered on the (then) little-known South-American garage scene, all ripped from original 7". You'll be in for a surprise, even if the savage scene from Peru and the mellow hipsters from Brazil are better known today. It is also under study that we start the Incredible Sound Show series, with a few unknown volumes… Wait and See.

Get your little POP masterpieces here.

Track Listing:
1●Randy Fuller ●It’s love, come that way (USA)
2●Jerry J. Nixon ●Miss Lonely (USA)
3●? & the Mysterians ●Love me baby (USA)
4●Elli ●That’s what they say (UK)
5●The Clefs of Lavender Hill ●So I’ll try (USA)
6●Herman’s Hermits ●Upstairs, downstairs (UK)
7●C.A Quintet ●Blow to my soul (USA)
8●The Critters ●Don’t let the rain fall down on me (USA)
9●The Conquests ●Is it right ? (USA)
10 ●West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band ●Transparent day (USA)
11 ●The Cyrkle ●Don’t cry, no fears no tears comin’ your way (USA)
12 ●Nirvana ●The touchables (all of us) (UK)
13 ●West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band ●She may call you up tonight (USA)
14 ●We The People ●Half of Wednesday (USA)
15 ●The Zombies ●Girl help me (UK)
16 ●The End ●Dady loves baby (UK)
17 ●Mike Furber & the Bowry Boys ●You stole my love (Australia)
18 ●The Mascots ● A sad boy (Sweden)
19 ●Kinks ●I go to sleep (unreleased demo) (UK)

Fools On The Hill 20: Love is a hurting thing - 19 rare mid 60's Northern soul mid-tempo nuggets

You might think we are stretching the subject a bit, but really we aren't. Northern Soul has its roots firmly in the 60's, as most of the records play at allnighters are obscure Tamla Motown 45s, released in limited numbers in the US. Some of them are the most expensive 45s in the world! A large proportion of northern soul's original audience came from within the mod movement, hence the inclusion on FOTH. In the late 1960s, some mods started to embrace freakbeat and psychedelic rock, but other mods - especially those in northern England - stuck to the original mod soundtrack of soul and blue beat. From the latter category, two strands emerged. Some mods transformed into what eventually became the skinheads, and others formed the basis of the northern soul scene. The northern soul movement is cited by many as being a significant step towards the creation of contemporary club culture and the development of the superstar DJ culture of the 2000s. As in modern club culture, northern soul DJs built up a following based on satisfying the crowd's desires for music that they could not hear anywhere else. The competitiveness between DJs to unearth 'in-demand' sounds led them to cover up the labels on their records, giving rise to the modern white label pressing. We were lucky when Sylvain compiled this, to be in contact with two avid Northern soul fans: DJ Soulful Chris and her husband, who opened to us their extensive 7" collection and were not short on advice. Thanks again to them (where are you now?). We will also eventually upload their Hypnotism tape collection, given permission, although a few volumes are missing.

Get your rare mid-tempos floaters, crossovers and beat ballads here.

Track Listing:

1●H.B Barnum ●The record
2●Bobby Bland ●Shoes
3●Cressa Watson ●Sweet temptation
4●Roosevelt Grier ●In my tenement
5●Maxine Brown ●One step at a time
6●Bettie Swan ●You gave me love
7●Tommy Hunt ●Lover
8●Mitty Callier ●Pain
9●The Charmels ●Sea shells
10 ●J. Montgomert●Don’t turn your back on me
11 ●Tommy Hunt ●Just a little bit of your sweet lovin’
12 ●Roy Hamilton ●Let the music play
13 ●Garnet Himms ●It was easier to hurt her
14 ●Eartha Kitt ●There comes a time
15 ●D. Coleman&H. Rivera Orchestra ●My foolish heart
16 ●Big Maybelle ●If I ha you
17 ●The Shadows ●My love’s gone
18 ●Wade Flemons ●That other place
19 ●Lou Rawls ●Love is a hurting thing

St. Patrick's Day Special - Jackie Daly & Séamus Creagh

This was intended for yesterday, but abuse of Guinness prevented me from showing you that we also have a fine taste in traditional music. While I am listening at the moment to lots of Cajun music, this LP has been in the family since I was a kid. See, my mother is Australian from Irish stock and that part of my family come from the dingle region, slightly inland. Been there many times as a kid, to visit the little tatched farm from where the family spread to Australia, Canada and Europe. This is still owned by relatives. Castleisland was also the place were I first tasted Guinness with my parents… My initial reaction, being all of 8 or 9 years old, was Yeeeach!. Times and tastes change. I'll let the backsleeves notes speak for themselves:
"One of the greatest musical traditions in Ireland is thta which belongs to the 200 square miles in East Kerry and North-East Cork– situated roughly between the four towns of kanturk, Castleisland, Killarney and Millstreet and known as Sliabh Luachra– the home of some of the finest traditional music we are ever likely to hear.
The music of Sliabh Luachra has a number of unique features: its lively rythms and the lovely warm style in which it is played; the dance tunes known as slides and polkas, which are found in no other part of the country and the many good musicians who played them down the years. One of the most famous musician was the late Pádraig O'Keeffe – "The last of the fiddle masters"– A school teacher from Glountane, Cordal near Castleisland, who died February 22, 1963 and whose legendary playing was a very strong influence on his fellow musicians and on the music of the region where he lived."
He is also famous for his way of tuning his fiddle: "Pint, Please, Thank You" spoken while sounding the four open strings of the fiddle (EADG)!
I have not since then heard anything about these two local lads (Jackie and Séamus) and couldn't find anything on the web about them. Feel free to drop a line the comments if you know anything. What foine players they were!

Get your jigs, slides and polkas here.

Don't forget: without Irish music, you wouldn't Apalachian music, without Apalachian you don't get Country and without Country lashed with a good deal of Blues, there is no rock 'n' Roll: hence NO Garage!

Fools On The Hill 19: That's cool, that's trash - 19 obscure garage punk greats from the american mid-60's

Time for the usual weekly update… We're back to Garage with a capital G! As usual, there is a twist with Fools on the Hill. We wanted a volume that would showcase the harder sounding trend, without sacrifying the Pop sound. Most of the Crypt comps were really too trashy for us, so we carefully selected 19 songs with a tough and edgy sound that still manage to add something to the game. To top it off, most of these songs and bands are fairly rare. Think of it: it's the one comp that took our own Sylvain FuzzyMental weeks to prepare. Hell with over 600 period vinyl comps to ruffle through, it could have taken him months! This is not a subgenre definying comp, rather a good mix of harder sounding (with a few surprises) pop-tinged garage songs. They could all have been re-recorded in the 80's by the Revival bands… why did they miss them? Heavy reliance on Nuggets/Boulder series? Lack of good taste? Too influenced by the "Crypt Trash" sound? or all the above? Enjoy them now!

Kool Trash is found here

Track Listing:

1●The Charles ●Motorcycle
2●The Fountain of Youth ●Don’t blame me
3●Floyd Dakil Four ●Bad boy
4●The Plymouth Rockers ●Don’t say why
5●The Plagues ●I’ve been through it before
6●The Sleepers ●I want a love
7●The British North American Act ●Don’t run away
8●The Soulbenders ●I can’t believe in love
9●The Pictorian Skiffuls ●In awhile
10 ●The Fabulous Depression ●I can’t tell you
11 ●Fly by nites ●Found love
12 ●Soul Inc. ●Love me when I’m down
13 ●John English III ●I need you near
14 ●The Spiders ●Baby doll
15 ●The Marauders ●Since I met you
16 ●The Vibrasonics ●Send her to me
17 ●The Barbarians ●Hey little bird
18 ●The Rationals ●I’m feeling lost
19 ●The Effects ●I’ve been told (partial)

Fools On The Hill 3: Shaking Along Mersey River - 19 worldwide Mersey Beat and early Beat gems from the mid-60's

At last! Thanks to Captain Groovy, who kindly sent me the lost files, we can now switch from the East to the West, right to where it all began: Liverpool! Of course, the first thing springs to mind is the Beatles… certainly unique but not alone.Their sense of melody, drive and enthusiasm was a slap in the face for most early teenager bands. A song like "I should have known better", while still rooted in Rock 'n' Roll and in the Beat sound, was moving boldly forward in a then unknown direction. It served them well and triggered a world musical revolution: bands changed their names, revamped their looks (moptops now compulsory) and started paying attention to lyrics, arrangement and melody. It was that or the assurance of not having screaming girls at your gig… an easy choice. This also signalled the end of the surf band and the start of the long lasting rivalry between "Pop" (Beatles) and "Rock" or blues-influenced bands (read Rolling Stones influenced). It is also the start of the first universal fad and did it spread! From Iceland to South Africa, from Canada to Australia, you'll find here 19 choice cuts of the Mersey sound, done by the best "Dedicated Follower Of Fashion"… The Kinks had it in for the Beatles (did someone says jealous?).

Thanks again to the Captain for his help.

Take the ferry 'cross the Mersey here!

Track Listing:

1●The Rave-Ons ●Love pill (USA)
2●The Mascots ●Words enough to tell you (Sweden)
3●The Beatles ●Anytime at all (UK)
4●unknown ●Soldier of love (?)
5●The Searchers ●Someday we gonna love again (UK)
6●The Escorts ●Night time (UK)
7●The Merseybeats ●Last night (UK)
8●The Roulettes ●Bad time (UK)
9●The Beatles ●I should have known better (UK)
10 ●The Allusions ●Fever (burns my brains) (Australia)
11 ●The Bats ●All I got (South Africa)
12 ●The Game ●But I do (UK)
13 ●The Fourmost ●I’m in love (UK)
14 ●Thor’s Hammer ●A memory (Iceland)
15 ●The Swinging Blue Jeans ●Promise you’ll tell her (UK)
16 ●The Mojos ●Forever (UK)
17 ●JB & The Playboys ●My delight (Canada)
18 ●Brian Poole & The Tremoloes ●What do you want with my baby (UK)
19 ●The Merseybeats ●I stand accused (UK)

Fools On The Hill 18: Asian Take-Away - 19 asiatic beat monsters from the late 60's and early 70's

What a coincidence: just as Comrade Duch, infamous chief of the Tuol Sleng S-21 prison, is facing his trial, Volume 18 of FOTH comes out… We should really say "South-East asian", as most of the songs come from Cambodia with a peppering of Thai Beat. If you've never hear about Cambodian Rock, you're in for a surprise! This has nothing to do with piped-in music you heard at your local noodle shop.No, we're talking about the savagest fusion ever recorded between the East and the West. Cambodia in the late 60's was on the brink of disaster: bombed secretly by the US, with the Viet Cong operating from some of its provinces, a rising mad Communist rebellion and a chronically weak and corrupted government, it was tethering on the brink of hell.
Bad as things were, the music scene was thriving and the proximity of US Radios inspired them to create a strange two-headed hybrid: combine the cambodian love of the drums and cymbals and US guitar heavy psych, you'll get the most danceable, raucous breed of 60's Rock. The vocals are most peculiar: the high-pitched voices of the female singers are very asian, but you will soon forget that you can't understand a word of it. If you hear "Coca Light, Coca Light" as a chorus, you're bound to be wrong. Same applies to "Fraulein" which pops repetedly in the songs… God only knows what it means. On the other hand, the Thais only get a passing mention because, true to their roots, they much prefer sweet love songs and these pale in comparison with the energy of the cambodian songs. You'll find more info about Cambodian Rock and the aptly named "Don't Think I've Forgotten" film on this site.

Listen here to people dancing at the edge of a very steep cliff…

Track Listing:

1●Yol Aularong ●Cyclo (Cambodia)
2●Ros Sereysothea ●WaitTen More Month (Cambodia)
3●Sinn Sisamouth ●A diamond ring (Cambodia)
4●Ros Sereysothea ●I Am Sixteen (Cambodia)
5●Sin Sisamouth & Ros Sereysothea ●Ma Pin Naok (Cambodia)
6●Viparat Piengsuwan ●Rak Tong Rorn (Love Passion) (Thailand)
7●Pan Ron ●Ooh, he’s mute (Cambodia)
8●Ros Sereysothea (?) ●Unknown Song (Cambodia)
9●Ros Sereysothea ●What girl is better than me (Cambodia)
10 ●Sinn Sisamouth ●I'm Still Waiting For You (Cambodia)
11 ●Vicham Maneechot ●Dance dance dance (Thailand)
12 ●Pan Ron ●Why follow me (Cambodia)
13 ●Ros Sereysothea (?) ●Another Unknown Song (Cambodia)
14 ●Pan Ron ●Leftover smile(Cambodia)
15 ●Ros Sereysothea ●Have You Seen My Love(Cambodia)
16 ●Ros Sereysothea ●If you wish to love me (Cambodia)
17 ●Pan Ron ●Wedding day (Cambodia)
18 ●Ros Sereysothea ●Haircut (Cambodia)
19 ●Sinn Sisamouth ●Other than you (Cambodia)

This is the album that started it all: Terrible sound quality, unnamed songs and artists but groundbreaking. Amazon link on pic.


You can also get the newer version (4 volumes, color covers), much better sound, liner notes etc.
Without forgeting Chhom Nimol pretty smile… she's the singer of Dengue Fever, an LA band that started by replaying the old Cambodian Psych and are now moving into newer territories. Much recommended!

Fools On The Hill: new volumes almost ready.

Hi ladies and germs. Just a quick note to tell you that we are now busy expanding the original 21 volumes of "Fools On The Hill".
Volume 22 is ready to go and is centered on Psych-exploitation and should be the definitve introduction to these debased but oh-so-good songs and instrumentals. Volume 23 will be about Pre-kraut and german Proto-punk. I had lots of interesting surprises while compiling it. This one is almost ready. Sylvain is supposed to be working on volume 24: "Superlative Sitars Sizzlers"… I bet I'll have volume 25 A-Ok before he's ready with it :-).

Could the person who kindly offered to re-up Volume 3 contact me? Just leave your email when commenting this post.
Thanks in advance.

Fools On The Hill 17: The Blue Electric Butterfly - 19 mid 60's greats from the UK forgotten psychedelic underground

This is yet another "classic" 60's music subgenre. So classic that everybody knows the words "Pink Floyd". There was no point in including them here, so we focused instead on the lesser-known bands that tried their luck at the same time. Each and every UK town of some importance sported a healthy musical scene at the time. Most of these bands sunk into oblivion as they often were live bands and didn't clinch a deal for an LP. But some others were offered contracts by labels who were desperate to not miss this new wave. Of course, once the contract signed, little to no effort was provided to advertize the LPs, insuring commercial failure. For the bands, it was really a case of being there at the right place (London) and at the right time… most of them would miss the boat because of haphazard management or being in the wrong town for too long.
You can consider this style to be Sergeant Pepper's little nephew: you know, the one who would pilfer your liquor cabinet and visit your pharmacy for goodies. This all leads to fairly dreamy and out-of-whack lyrics, not to mention high pitched vocals. The rise of this UK psychedelia lead, of course, to an army of dazed imitators springing up in the rest of the world. After all, this was the "now sound" of the Beatles' homeland. This style would last up untill around 1972, when it fell victim to both Pink Floyd's success and the rise of "Progressive" (and boring) music.

Get your little acid prezzie here
As usual, your comments and suggestions are very welcomed.

Track Listing:
1●Sweet Feeling ●Sherry Cherie (UK)
2●Calum Bryce ●Love maker (UK)
3●The Object ●She’s gone away (UK)
4●Argosy ●Imagine (UK)
5●Mood of Hamilton ●Why can’t there be more love (UK)
6●The Gurus ●Come girl (USA)
7●Jimmy Curtiss ●Psychedelic situation (USA)
8●Kaplan ●I like (UK)
9●The Bunch ●Looking glass Alice (UK)
10 ●The Difference ●Sweet sounds everywhere (Norway)
11 ●The Scene ●Scenes (from another world) (Australia)
12 ●Roger Denison ●She wanders through my mind (UK)
13 ●Nimrod ●Don’t let it get the best of you (UK)
14 ●The Timothy Grass ●Second glance (UK)
15 ●George Bean ●Floatin’ (UK)
16 ●Argosy ●Mr. Boyd (UK)
17 ●Elli ●Mister Man (UK)
18 ●1984 ●There is music all around me (UK)
19 ●The Silence ●To Sarah B. (UK)

Fools On The Hill 16: Voices Green & Purple - 19 US acid-punk and soft punk from the mid-60s

Aaaaah Acid punk… it's probably what turned most people on this whole garage thing. All the right ingredients are here, creative compositions, fuzzed-out guitars, reverb-drenched vocals and frequent drug induced lyrics. The first sound effects and snippets make their presence felt. It must have been a good time for guitar pedal manufacturers… But what really sets these songs apart is their attitude: there's none of the hippie, love-in feel in these songs: they're punk! Even what could have been nice ballads are usually snarled across your speakers or recited forlornly in the middle of a bad acid downer.
You'll find plenty of much loved classics in this comp, keep in mind it was meant as an introduction to wild & wacky world of 60's punk.

There you go, enjoy your comp here.


Track Listing:

1●Kenny &the Kasuals ●Journey to tyme
2●Grains of sand ●She needs me
3●West Minist’r ●Bright lights windy city
4●The Sound Sandwich ●Apothecary dream
5●The Hooterville Trolley ●No silver bird
6●Crystal Chandelier ●The setting of despair
7●The Skeptics ●Ride child
8●The Ballroom Farm●A question of temperature
9●The Troyes ●Help me find myself
10 ●Unrelated Segments ●It’s gonna rain
11 ●The Tropics ●As time’s gone
12 ●The Xtreems ●Facts of life
13 ●The Swingin’ Machine ●Do you have to ask ?
14 ●Soul Inc. ●60 miles high
15 ●The Grammy Fones ●Now he’s here
16 ●Crystal Chandelier ●Suicidal flowers
17 ●The Bit a sweet ●Out of sight out of mind
18 ●The Birdwatchers ●Mary Mary
19 ●The Chocolate Watch Band ●Loose lip sync ship

Fools On The Hill 15: Captain Groovy - 20 hip-shaking garage floor fillers from the mid-60s

Sorry for the delay in posting the follow-up volume from our "Fools On The Hill" series. Some things neede to get addressed first. This Volume is not centered on a specific genre, rather it's made up of eminently booty shaking numbers, all from the same period. Their only common point is their timeframe: they're all from the 66-68 period. Most of them also had a scratch at the local charts. This would be a good soundtrack to a period party… if it had been organized by a real hipster. Of course it would have been impossible for a US teenager to have access to some of the songs here: people were listening to local radio and artists who could cross from the East to the West Coast, let alone the Atlantic Ocean, needed to be a lot more famous. Thankfully, we are not limited by this now. We've kept the fuzz content low, at the time, it would probably clear the floor and send peeps rushing to the bar. Not what you expect from a good record spinner in a club. We've also mixed in some songs that tagged as "novelty" by the purists now. At the time though, they were enjoyed on the dancefloor because of their thumping R'n'B beat. Then as now, you had to keep the girls dancing… The last song hints a the shapes of things to come: acid is slowly creeping up on the scene. If the DJ at your local garage club is lacking inspiration, just drop this on his desk to point him in the right direction! The only thing we've carefully avoided are the "slow" songs, feel free to insert your favourite sweetheart hugger in the playlist. Don't forget to tell us in the comment section what songs you feel belong on the compilation.

Get your period hip-shaking, floor-filler selection here.

Track Listing:

●Captain Groovy & his bubblegum army ●Captain groovy (USA)
2●? & the Mysterians ●Do something to me (USA)
3●The Guess Who ●It’s my pride (USA)
4●The Shadows of Knight ●Shake (USA)
5●St Louis Union ●East Side Story (UK)
6●Wimple Winch ●Save my soul (UK)
7●3’s a crowd ●Evergreen blues (USA)
8●The Shadows of Knight ●Someone like me (USA)
9●The Cherry Slush ●I cannot stop you (USA)
10 ●Unrelated Segments ●Where you gonna go (USA)
11 ●The Wild One ●Please (USA)
12 ●The Shandells ●The gorilla (USA)
13 ●The Preachers ●Who do you love (USA)
14 ●Zen ●Hair (Holland)
15 ●The Caretakers ●East side story (USA)
16 ● Jack & the Sundowners ●Come back baby (USA)
17 ●Oscar & the Majestics ●Can’t explain (USA)
18 ●The Artesians ●Trick bag (USA)
19 ●Mike Proctor ●Mr. Commuter (UK)
20 ●The Nazz ●Open My Eyes (US)

Fools On The Hill 14: Walruses all around - 16 greatest songs Lennon never wrote (+ 3 treasures from the Dakota Hotel vaults)

To keep in line with our Volume 9 about McCartney, we just had to produce the equivalent about John Lennon's wannabes. It's bittersweet and dreamy and at the same time has all the marks of good Rock 'n' Roll… of which John was the connoisseur inside the Beatles. We hope you thoroughly enjoy this little hour of mind play… Happy New Year to y'all!

Get your Lennonisms here.
As usual, your comments are very welcomed.

Track Listing:
1●John Lennon ●Real love (demo, 1979)
2●The Spongetones ●You’re the one (USA, 1982)
3●The Rutles ●I must be in love (UK, 1978)
4●The Redcoats ●You had no right (USA, 1965)
5●Utopia ●When does the world go to hide (US, 1980)
6●The Spongetones ●Don’t you know ? (USA, 1982)
7●Jade ●Rest of my life (USA, 1968)
8●Lazy Smoke ●Come with the day (USA, 1967)
9●The Rutles ●Let’s be natural (UK, 1978)
10 ●Grapefruit ●Lullaby (UK, 1969)
11 ●Tin Tin ●He wants to be a star (USA, 1970)
12 ●We all Together ●Little boy (Peru, 1974)
13 ●Rockin’ Horse ● Delicate situation (UK, 1970)
14 ●Key ●Pamela (Germany, 1978)
15 ● John Scoggins ●Love you two (USA, 1976)
16 ●Sleepy Hollow ●Sincerely yours (USA, 1972)
17 ●Hudson Brothers ●So you’re a star (USA, 1974)
18 ● John Lennon ●Free as a bird (demo, 1977)
19 ●John Lennon ●Now and then (demo, 1979)