Fools On The Hill 13: A Trip through Unicorn's Forest - 18 fabulous acid folk and folky psychedelic greats from the late-60s /early 70s

Don not confuse Acid-Folk (or Folk Psych) with Folk Punk… We've briefly touched the subject in FOTH Volume 4, as Acid-Folk lends itself naturally to the female voice. This volume is entirely devoted to the genre. After the renewed interested in all forms of folk, it was only a mattter of time untill some acid-dropping freaks decided they were bored by the straightness of folkies. How many reprise of "Scarborough Fair" can you stand? The Folk revival in Britain became rapidly very straight-laced, you were supposed to interpret these lovely Middle-Age songs note-by-note and very earnestly. It very clearly was The Incredible String Band, who also used sitar and semi-Indian singing, who helped fuse Psychedelia and Folk together. Most european countries would also sport bands playing this type of music, as their own folk scene was evolving into rigid reinterpretation of the past. Only Ireland, it seems, never produced acid-folk bands maybe because rediscovering and playing their folklore was essential to the very notion of Irishness. The weirdest group from that period without doubt was Comus, still a trademark for how far in expressions a “folk”-related group from that period could be. While most groups in England remained inspired by the traditional genre, many of the late 60s, 70s acid/psych and progfolk bands from Germany, France and Holland enjoyed a period of making creative experiments with longer improvisations and structures.
So what will you find here? A mix of acoustic bands often known for a peculiar, trance-like, and atmospheric sound, often drawing on musical improvisation and Asian influences. Their lyrics are often concerned with such subjects as the natural world, love and beauty and try to evoke a state of mind associated with the effects of psychedelic drugs. So, in other words, quiet acoustic music with "mystical" themes, often with acid flashbacks and psychedelic effects… enjoy.
NB: this is what I used to call "Hippie Shit" although I now know better… Hippie Shit is way more haphazard and is a whole complete style in itself. I'm not sure we will do a Volume on that, though. This is just to tell our 60's Punk readers to brace themselves! Keep an open ear… some of these songs might make you cringe but you might discover new ground with some others.

Don't get down, don't get down…here's the good stuff

Track List:

1●Tyrannosaurus Rex ●Chariots of silk (UK, 1969)
2●Arthur ●Blue museum (USA, 1968)
3●Duncan Browne ●Give me take you (UK, 1968)
4●Dave Morgan ●Hey Paul (UK, 1970)
5●Heaven & Earth ●Sixty years on (USA, 1973)
6●Tudor Lodge ●Help me find myself (UK, 1970)
7●Mark Fry●Dreaming with Alice (UK, 1972)
8●Paul Parrish ●Suzanne (USA, 1968)
9●Virgin Insanity ●Don’t get down (USA, 1971)
10 ●Dave Morgan ●I’ll wind (UK, 1970)
11 ●Transformer (with David Stoughton) ●Evening song (USA, 1968)
12 ●Skaldowie ●Keep the flowers from blossoming (Poland, 1967)
13 ●Linda Perhacs ●Chimacum rain (USA, 1970)
14 ●David Pomeranz ●Singin’ on the train (USA, 1971)
15 ●Jake Holmes ●Did you know (USA, 1968)
16 ●Bob Ray ●Woman of the highlands (USA, 1969)
17 ●Tyrannosaurus Rex ●Nijinsky hind (UK, 1969)
18 ●Mike Softley ●Ship (UK, 1970)

Fools On The Hill 12: Balls & Chains - 18 mid-60's fuzz-driven pop masterpieces from the US

Well, the opening track on this one was a real ear-opener for me. I couldn't believe the song was from the mid-60's! it could have come from the 90's England. This volume is one of our strongest: using the word "masterpieces" is not as far-fetched as you could think. All of these songs feature an instant pop catchiness and a good dose of fuzz. What seems at first to be an eclectic collection of songs (the Rolling Stones?) paints a perfect picture of the mid-60's, where hopes a crafting a hit were high… Only a few of these bands achieved any (deserved) success. Even more surprising for me was to find The 5-Man Electrical Band, whose album I had dismissed as uninteresting, compiled here. This goes to show our man Sylvain has sharp ears. Timeless stuff indeed and worthy of heavy rotation on your stereo.

Get your fuzz nuggets here.
Still diggin' your comments…

Track Listing.

1●Public Nuisance ●America
2●The Guess Who ●If you don’t want me
3●The Kitchen Cinq ●Please come back to me
4●The Music Machine ●Trouble
5●The Rolling Stones ●Think (UK)
6●The Buckhinghams ●C’mon home
7●The Tuneful Trolley ●Hello Love
8●The Great Scotts ●Show me the way(Canada)
9●The Ides of March ●I’ll take you back
10 ●The Grassroots ●Feelings
11 ●Teddy & The Pandas ●Running from love
12 ●The Five Man Electric Band ●We go together well
13 ●The Uniques ●Run and hide
14 ●The Tuneful Trolley ●Written Charter
15 ●Powder ●Gladly
16 ●Public Nuisance ●Time can’t wait
17 ●The Springfield Riffle ●100 or two
18 ●The Great Scotts ●The light hurts my eyes (Canada)

Fools On The Hill 11: Maybe in a Dream - 19 US Psychedelic Lullabies from the mid-60's

NEW FILE! A fine collection of early psychedelic American music, a lot of my faves are featured here. Unlike some of our other comps, most of these bands produced full albums which are at the least interesting, some of them being real classics (thinking of The Golden Dawn here, for example). It's interesting to see that psychedelia was devoid of gimmicks at the start, all the bands have a quite distinctive if mellow sound. Call it sonic exploration if like, there's none of the stereotyped "psych" sound here, no lengthy guitar heroics in sight, Jimmi Hendrix had yet to appear on the scene and radicalize this young movement. The Indian dream is gently creeping through some of the songs, with sometimes hints of acoustic blues, traditional folk and 30's ragtime. The provocation and protest attitude of late-60's (which I find quite boring personally) are also nowhere to be found. People were just enjoying new found mellow drugs and not yet into a bad acid trip… it's all mellow, man.
We've just completed another volume (22!) on which you'll hear again The Animated Egg… the whole volume is dedicated to psych exploitation or exploito psych, one of my favourite sub-genres. I wasn't too much in favour of including them here because of that, but they do fit in nicely. Just remember that this band was not a "real" band… but studio musicians trying to emulate the "now" sound. All the other bands were really earnestly trying their best and stretching the envelope.

Dig these psychedelic lullabies, download them here
Don't forget: comments are the lifeblood of blogs!
NEW FILE! It seems I don't quite get the hang of my iTunes… sorry. The zip now has all 19 songs. Last three were missing.

Track Listing:

1● Animated Egg ●Sock it my way
2●The Freeborne ●Images
3●The Golden Dawn ●This way please
4●Those Guys ●Looking at you behind the glasses
5●West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band ●Eighteen is over the hill
6●Flat Earth Society ●Satori
7●Bo Grumpus ●Yesterday’s thoughts
8●Kaleidoscope ●Please
9●The Rising Storm●Frozen laughter
10 ●Faine Jade ●Piano interlude
11 ●Jade ●My Mary (more than ever)
12 ●Merrel Fankhauser & HMS Bounty ●A visit with Ashiya
13 ● First crew to the Moon ●We walk the rain
14 ●The Freeborne ●Land of Diana
15 ●Food ●Fountains of my mind
16 ●Gandalf ●Hang on to a dream
17 ●Love ●The castle
18 ●Strawberry Alarm Clock ●Pretty song (from "Psych-Out")
19 ●Sopwith Camel ●Maybe in a dream

Fools On The Hill 10: Soft as Snow - 23 mid-60's soft beat and popsike acid greats from northern Europe

NEW FILE, you get 5 extra songs on this one. A seasonal offer with yet another strong volume in this series. Northern Europe was always more of a "beat" country as opposed to the more known "garage" sound. This, coupled with a great pop sensibility created a very specific sound.
Clean, often mid-tempo, with nice harmonies… quite far from today's Viking invasion. A quiet compilation for those winter mornings.

Get these fresh litlle beat ditties here
And don't forget to leave comments!

Track Listing:

1● Palmer/G B Graeff ● Bye Bye Baby (Norway)
2● The Golden Earrings ● Nobody but you (Holland, 1965)
3● Chapter II ● She won’t even let me in (Holland, 1966)
4● The Pussycats ● Love her (Norway, 1966)
5● The Pussycats ● Just a little teardrop (Norway, 1965)
6● The Outsiders ● Keep on trying (Holland, 1967)
7● The Motions ●Who’ll save my soul (Holland, 1965)
8● 126 ● Mailbox execution system (Norway, 1968)
9● The Golden Earrings ● That day (Holland, 1966)
10● The Pussycats ● The craftsman (Norway, 1966)
11● The Motions ● For another man (Holland, 1965)
12● 126 ● Today (Norway, 1968)
13● Sharks & Me ● Buses (Holland, 1966)
14● The Divorced ● I'm gonna leave you satisfied
15● Les Baroques ● We’re both to blame (Holland, 1967)
16● Trolls ● Alone (Sweden, 1966)
17● The Hounds ● The office girl (Sweden, 1967)
18● The Motions ● You’re my Adee (Holland, 1968)
19● The Jackpots ● The sound of silence (Sweden, 1968)
20● The Golden Earrings ● Must I cry (Holland, 1968)
21● The Zaks ● Take special care
22● Mayfly ● Blue sofa (Holland, 1971)
23● Chapter II ● To my girl (Holland, 1966)

Fools On The Hill 9: McCartnisms on my Mynd - Fabulous McCartneys that Time Forgot

Here is one of FOTH best volumes (in my humble own opinion). Until a couple years ago, I couldn't stand listening to the Beatles, my sisters had them on heavy, near continuous rotation at home. On top of this anecdote revealing my age, it also explains my love of all things punk. Lennon, McCartney? Old hippies, all of them! Pauls' marvelous ease of composing only caught my ear when I listened to a Beach Boys bootleg where he visits Brian Wilson during the ill-fated Smile sessions. Paul quickly bangs up during 20 seconds a Beatle song they've recently been working on… absolute magic! It sounded instantly catchy, in total opposition to Brian's convoluted and painfull process of working.

Paul's gift was at least 30% of the Beatles' success and it spurred a legion of aspiring songwriters in the 60's and 70's. While a lot of them missed the mark by a mile, the few bands and artists featured here issued unknown effortless classics. Some of these songs sound so close to the real thing that it's unnerving. This was also their downfall: who would buy a McCartney clone when they could buy the real thing? Most of these LPs failed to chart significantly, despite the high hopes of labels (Emmit Rhodes was thought to be "the next big thing"). Some achieved critical success, only to disband faced with the lack of sales. 30 + years later, we were able to buy most of these LPs still shrinkwrapped… never played.

Listen to all these songs that should have been hit songs long ago,
get your comp here!

TRACK LISTING

1● Paul McCartney ●Your mother should know(1967 demo)
2● Emitt Rhodes ●You should be ashamed (1970)
3● The Leopards ●Psychedelic boy (1987)
4● The Ruttles ●With a girl like you (1978)
5● The Aerovons ●With her (1969)
6● Utopia ●Alone (1980)
7● Blond ●Sun in her hand (1969)
8● Colours ●Where is she ? (1968)
9● Chameleon Church ●Flowers in the field (1968)
10 ● The American Revolution ●In the late afternoon (1968)
11 ● The Raspberries ●Come around and see me (1972)
12 ● Utopia ●All smiles (1980)
13 ● Elmer Gantry’s Velvet Opera ●What’s the point of leaving ? (1967)
14 ● Blond ●I wake up and call (1969)
15 ● The Ruttles ●Another day (1978)
16 ● Fargo ●Places everyone (1969)
17 ● The Raspberries ●I saw the light (1972)
18 ● Emitt Rhodes ●Someone made for me (1970)
19 ● Paul McCartney ●Fool on the hill (1967 demo)

Fools On The Hill 8: Love Songs in the Night - Last gasps of the golden pop era (Pop Greats from the 70's)

This is yet another compilation of "Pop" music with a twist. It all started on the pop 45 newsgroup when the compiler of the "Fading Yellow" series introduced us to this strain of music. As such it is not really a genre in itself, but more the last work of artists who started in the mid-60's and issued albums until 1974. Of course, their type of music was by then very unfashionable… the public was getting into progressive and heavy Rock music.
So Beatlesque pop ditties were not what was expected. As a consequence, most of these albums are difficult to find and expensive if you go for the original pressing. You'll find lots of private pressing due to label's frilosity about this type of music. Some artists like Billy Nicholls and Emitt Rhodes have now rightly achieved worldwide cult status, while others comitted the unthinkable (Rick Price went on to play with ELO). This is also the very start of the Power Pop bands, as demonstrated by The Raspberries. To sum it up: this is 60's influences pop played with a 70's sound, the last moments of brilliance for a certain breed of songwriters, before getting drowned out by Prog's flutes, Black Sabbath's clones and ultimately Punk.

Download this comp and start talking to flowers…

Track Listing:

1● Bob Siller ●Drive Inns (1968)
2●Rick Price ●Talking to the flowers (1971)
3● Michael Brown ●Love songs in the night(1972)
4● Eyes ●Probate me baby (1977, private press.)
5● Charlie Bleak ●Let me in (1976)
6● Matthew Ellis ●Avalon (1972)
7●Richard Twice ●The finest poet (1970)
8● Philamore Lincoln ●The north wind blew south (1970)
9● News ●Loser (1974, private press.)
10 ● Billy Nicholls ●White Lightning (1974)
11 ● Pilot ●Lucky for some (1974)
12 ● Sheridan &Price ●Beautiful Sally (1970)
13 ● Emitt Rhodes ●Love will stone you (1971)
14 ● Vaughan Thomas●One more time around (1972)
15 ● Stories ●Kathleen (1972)
16 ● The Toms ●You Must Have Crossed My Mind (1979)
17 ● The Raspberries ●I wanna be with you (1972)
18 ● Dialogue ●On every shore (1972, private press.)
19 ● Don Agrati ●Love, come my way(1973) 

Fools On The Hill: A few questions and a poll

Next update (Volume 8) this coming Friday!
Sorry for the delay, I need to have a good chat with the Comp Master, the great Sylvain FuzzyMental, as I am unsure of what to say about Volume 8. This is tentatively titled "Love Songs In The Night", a late sixties pop collection… certainly interesting but not my usual aural food. I'd like to write a little meaningful paper on that one, as it's chock-full with rare songs. Volume 9 will be something a lot more funny… should be an ear opener for some. We're also thinking of posting some of the LP from which the songs of the previous volumes were lifted.
What would you prefer?
1) We post the LPs straight after the compilation they're featured on?
or
2) We post the LPs at the end of the FOTH series (this will take at least another month)

I'm leaning towards 1), simply because some of you obviously enjoy our selections… and it gives us a bit of time to craft more comps.
I'm also bugging Sylvain to put his headphones on and start churning out more volumes… your comments are a great help and incentive. I am at the present deep in New Orleans Funk and Mariachi music… lodsa discoveries coming soon!

Fools On The Hill 7: Sons of the Golden Dawn - 19 neo-garage psych greats from the mid-80's/early 90's NEW FILE!

New file uploaded now! We could have called it "New Psych Explorers from the 80's" or something similar… Psych being the important word here. We have another volume devoted to the harder/merseybeat/garage revival bands. Talking about revival, this is maybe what seperates the bands on this volume from the revivalists of the same period: Originality. I got sick of listening to punk rehash of every Nuggets/Pebbles songs out there. While fun while they were doing it (specially live), most of the revivalists sounds a bit "passé" now. The psych bands on this volume have certainly covered some classic psych stuff, but most of their LPs boast a lot of original songs. Their sound, although based in the classic 60's, also attempts to move forward and still prevents them from becoming aural postcards of a by-gone era.

The other interesting point is that bands from all over the world got into the act. You'll find US, English, French and Spanish bands. Included is also my fave: the Vietnam Veterans. Hope this comp will give you new incentive to score some of their albums the next time you visit your neighbourhood Vinyl Dealer.

We're building tomorrow with the comps of today.
OOps, it appears that the previous zip file was corrupted. You will have to dowmload it again. I've just reupped a new file that is fine. Sorry!

Track Listing:

1●The Leopards ●Recess
2●Los Negativos ●¿Quien Aplasto A La Mariposa?
3●The Last James ●Better put some light in there
4●No Strange ●Sailing out
5●The Hairy Fairies ●Mary Jane leaves
6●Head & the Hares ●Why must you fade away
7●The Mystreated ●Sometimes
8●The Wylde Mammoths ●Gone away
9●The Clockwatchers ●This could be love
10 ●The Vietnam Veterans ●With the dreams of today
11 ●Running Stream ●She’s my queen
12 ●The Things ●It’s not that way
13 ●The United States of Existence ●Volunteer fireman
14 ●The Cornflake Zoo ●Rainy day
15 ●Tyrnaround ●Suicidal flowers
16 ●The Chesterfield Kings ●Satisfaction guaranteed
17 ●The Satelliters ●She got all the cards
18 ●The Monsters ●And then you cry
19 ●The Last ●She don’t know why I’m here

Fools On The Hill 5: Sunny Sunday Smiles - 19 worldwide pop, soft pop and harmony pop greats from the mid-60's

Psych-Pop, Folk Pop, Harmony Pop and just plain Pop! What's wrong with pop? Most aficionados of sixties music shun the genre, but it is an essential link between the rougher early music and the next decade. You will notice that most of these songs are from 1967 onwards. As much as the Byrds' jangly sound triggered an (r)evolution, the Beach Boys' new sound direction paved the way for many of the bands featured here. "Brian Wilson's IS a genius" slowly entered many aspiring songwriter's mind. How right they were! Emphasis is now on orchestration, arrangement and production of the songs. This is no longer Garage music but studio music what with orchestras and exotic instruments no longer playable by young teenager musicians. The vocals are often layered, the production techniques refined, the lyrics more complex. This is "Baby I love you" with a introspective tweak. Notice how the song's title also become longer and longer? The "Concept Album" is not far away. As a matter of fact, most of these bands produced a full LP, not just a flash-in-the-pan 45. The essence of Pop music also lies in the urge of bands to reach the top of the charts, usually with the help a good producer. They wanted to be taken seriously and that alone explains the care devoted to the music. While most of the albums sunk without trace, the bands certainly tried hard because they were aware that this was their one only chance at success.
If the Beach Boys did it while mutating from the campfire "Barbara Ann" to "Pet Sounds", why couldn't a unknown band or artist have success doing it their own way?

While most of them never reached such heights, there are some real diamonds in the rough here. This compilation covers the whole range of this style: from quasi-easy listening to little pop-psych masterpieces, there's even some near bubblegum in here. My personal fave goes to Smoke's "Cowboys and Indians", from their Kim Fowley produced LP. This will be the subject of a future post, as we recorded/remastered many of the albums these songs were lifted from. They used to be fairly hard to find (usually in the 1$ bin), but this has changed a lot in the last 5 years thanks to renewed interest from collectors.

Get your sunny Sunday smile here!

Track Listing:

1●The Sundowners ●Always you (USA, 1968)
2●Mark Eric ●Move with the dawn (USA, 1969)
3●Brian Hyland ●On the east side (USA, 1970)
4●Thomas & Richard Frost ●Gotta find a new place to stay (USA, 1969)
5●Bread ●Look at me (USA, 1969)
6●The Deep Six ●What would you wish from the golden fish (USA, 1966)
7●Chris & Peter Allen ●My silent symphony (USA, 1968)
8●The Jackpots ●King of the world (Sweden, 1968)
9●Colours ●Lovin’ (USA, 1968)
10 ●Springfield Riffle ●I loved her (USA, 196?)
11 ●The Suggar Shoppe ●Baby baby (Canada, 1968)
12 ●The Gordian Knot ●The world keeps spinning (USA, 1968)
13 ●Eternity’s children ●Mrs. Bluebird (USA, 1968)
14 ●De Megas ●The running Mr. So & So (Holland, 1968)
15 ●The Motions ●Memories of fair haired Mary (Holland, 1967)
16 ●The Robbs ●Race with the wind (USA, 1967)
17 ●Fun & Games ●Sadie (USA, 1969)
18 ●Gary Lewis ●Jill (USA, 1967)
19 ●The Smoke ●Cowboys & indians (USA, 1968)
bonus track:
20 ●Brian Wilson ●Surf’s up (demo) (USA, 1967)

Fools On The Hill 6: Red fuzz with purple flashes - 24 worlwide wild freakbeat masterpieces from the mid-60's

We've skipped volume number 5 to give you a little dash of much-needed fuzz, as #5 was about soft pop. We thought better to keep you wide awake. So what is Freakbeat?
Freakbeat was essentially the bridge between the beat groups and psychedelia. It was an adventure, albeit a brief one. Its influence, certainly among musicians, was widespread, although it's only in retrospect that it's been seen as any kind of movement. Usually made by rare British blues and garage rock artists, bands that sounded a bit like the Rolling Stones, Yardbirds, or the Bluesbreakers, but occasionally some of the tougher Merseybeat bands fit this category, too. It was often primitive (indeed, one of the bands was called the Primitives), with a foundation in blues and R&B, but it was a vital cog in moving music forward. Elements of the freakbeat sound include strong direct drum beats, loud and frenzied guitar riffs, and extreme effects such as: fuzztone, flanging, distortion and compression or phasing on the vocal or drum tracks. Think proto-psychdelia, or how to aim for the charts while stretching the envelope a bit further.
Early albums by The Who and The Kinks supplied the blueprints, but The Yardbirds were really the detonators for freakbeat bands that followed, such as The Creation, The Sorrows and The Move. Of course, there were many, many more freakbeat bands than the ones mentioned above. Most of them lasted for one, perhaps two singles, offering three minutes of pure abandon before returning to their regular lives. A fair number of them are commemorated today on compilations, even if they made no impact at the time.
Admittedly, we often use this term as a UK-only music, but it does stretch to some Commonwealth countries and Northern Europe who were looking up to Britain for inspiration.
The term "freakbeat", incidentally, was coined in the 1980s by Phil Smee of the Bam Caruso reissue label, a man of serious good taste.


Your life won't be like it was before get the fuzz 'ere
Tell us about it in the comments section.

Track Listing:

1●The Creation ●Makin’ time (UK, 1966)
2●The Clique ●You’ve been unfair (UK, 1965)
3●Shel Naylor ●One fine day (UK, 1964)
4●The Master’s apprentices ●War or hands of time (twisted bootleg version) (Australia, 1966)
5●Rupert’s people ●Dream in my mind (UK. 1967)
6●Edwin Rumbold ●Come back (?)
7●Thane Russal ●Security (UK, 1966)
8●The Animals ●Outcast (UK, 1966)
9●The D-Coys ●Bad Times (Australia, 1966)
10 ●The Bluestars ●Social end product (New Zealand, 1966)
11 ●The Allusions ●Gypsy woman (Australia, 1966)
12 ●Thor’s Hammer ●My life (Iceland, 1966)
13 ●Mickey Finn ●Garden of my mind (UK, 1967)
14 ●The Chasers ●Inspiration (UK, 1966)
15 ●The Master’s apprentices ●Undecided (Australia, 1967)
16 ●Thor’s Hammer ●Better days (Iceland, 1966)
17 ●Q65 ●From above (Holland, 1966)
18 ●The Master’s apprentices ●Burried and dead (Australia, 1967)
19 ●The Eyes ●Man with money (UK, 1966)
20 ●The Creation ●How does it feel to feel (UK, 1968)
21 ●Rick & Sandy ●Lost my girl (UK, 1965)
22 ●The Moondogs ●Tryin’ to make you see (Denmark, 1967)
23 ●Cool Stove ●Big Sensation (Germany, 1967)
24 ●The Creation ●If I stay too long (UK, 1968)

Fools On The Hill 4: Goddesses in the sky with Diamonds - 19 psych pop, psych and acid folk female gems from the mid-60's and early 70's

Well, it's all in the title. Although I never was a huge fan of female singers in the 60's, I just can't stand Grace Slick anymore, this selection was quite an ear-opener for me. It's got a very gently psyched vibe and I sure discovered that some artists that I usually find too hippy for my taste, like Saffron, could put out some very interesting (if sometimes unwittingly funny) songs.
Once again these comps are not centered around a region or label but rather themes. Some of these songs are pretty hard to find, mainly because the focus of collectors is squarely into the hardcore Garage and Psych. There's probably still a wealth of material of this genre waiting to be discovered. The overall mood of these songs allow them to blend seamlessly into the next. Even über-gloomy chanteuse Nico fits strangely nicely in there, which I think exposes the underlying trend most of the female singers were following the world over. This is why you'll find a bonus track at the end by Mazzy Star, it fits so well that I didn't even notice it the first I listened. There's a gap of 20 years between them and the youngest performer on this comp… it's as if nothing had changed.
This is not a comp for you punkers out there, more something to listen at dawn or dusk.

Don't forget that vision is a lonely word and grab this compilation.

Oh, don't forget to tell us in the comments how (or if) you liked it!
Next post will jump numbers again to have a more energized compilation following this one.

Track Listing:
1●Claudine Longet ●God only knows (USA, 1972)
2●Margo Guryan ●Come to me softly (USA, 1968)
3●Saffron ●All your ambitions (?, 196?)
4●These Trails ●Hello Lou (Hawaï, 1973)
5●The Third Estate ●Useless things (USA, 1976)
6●Music Emporium ●Gentle thursday (USA, 1969)
7●Bridget St. John ●I like to be with you in the sun (UK, 1969)
8●Karen Beth ●Something to believe in (USA, 1969)
9●Judee Sill ●The kiss (USA, 1973)
10 ●Saffron ●Vision is a lonely word (?, 196?)
11 ●Linda Perhacs ●Parallelograms (USA, 1970)
12 ●Claudine Longet ●Long long time (USA, 1971)
13 ●Paige Claire●Sunny day (USA, 1970)
14 ●Bridget St. John ●Song for the laird of Connaught Hall pt.2
15 ●The Deep Six ●Unlock the door (USA, 1966)
16 ●Fairport Convention ●Book song (UK, 1969)
17 ●Serpent Power ●Gently, gently (USA, 1967)
18 ●Nico ●These days (USA, 1966)
19 ●Margo Guryan ●California shake (USA, 1968)
Bonus track:
20 ● Mazzy Star ● All your sisters (USA, 1996)

Thanks and additions to the posts.

By popular demand, I've added tracklisting for each of the Fools on the Hill volume. I didn't want to do that initially, as some of songs and artists are quite well known. Normally, if you use iTunes, you will retrieve (upon importation) all the info in the ID3 tags. Same goes for the formats: .m4a is MPEG-4 audio and is supported by iTunes. Most of the volumes are in MP3, which is not as good quality-wise. I will eventually post all the next volumes in MP3. BTW, it is possible to convert m4a into mp3 using SoundConverter for example. We just have a small problem: Volume 3 has gone missing. It was the Mersey Beat volume. We will locate another copy, but it will take some time. So next post will jump straight to Volume 4.
I have to give credit where it's due: the compiler is Sylvain, not me. He has a far more extensive knowledge of 60's music (not to mention good taste) than me.
Thanks for the comments!

Fools On The Hill 2: Autumn Songbook - 23 moody punk-folk greats from the mid-60s

This set is centered on the "moody garage" or folk-punk styles. The success of the Byrds gave a whole lot of new ideas to teeenagers Statewide. The band mixed the British Invasion sound with elements of contemporary folk and pop music. McGuinn's jangling, highly melodic guitar playing (using a 12-string, heavily compressed Rickenbacker for its extremely bright tone) was immediately influential. That gimmick can be heard on the opening track as well as "I'd rather you leave me" by the choirs (#9) and "Why must you fade away" by Dennis & His Times (#22). This is strictly a US only style, England was still in the midst of Beatlemania. Apart from the Rickenbacker sound, the other defining aspect is that the general mood is well… gloomy at best. Visions of devastated world, lost love and broken hearts are central to the songs. As hairs grew longer, the level musicianship also bettered, in keeping the pace with the Beatles and the Byrds. It is much more difficult to play a 12-string guitar than to quickly bash 3-chord punkers on a cheapo plywood plucker. As a consequence, the arrangements and the songwriting are also much more refined. You can even whistle to some of these songs! No screamers here, but some of Garage's most enduring songs.

Get them here.

Track Listing:
1●The Squires ●Going all the way
2●The Paradox ●There’s a flower shop
3●The Illusions ●Wait till the summer
4●The Shaynes ●From my window
5●The Escapades ●I tell no lies
6●Kreeg ●How can I
7●Kenny & The Kasuals ●I’m gonna make it
8●The Gants ●I wonder
9●The Choir ●I’d rather you leave me
10 ●The One Way Street ●Tears in my eyes
11 ●The Dovers ●What I am gonna do
12 ●The Choir ●It’s cold outside
13 ●The Psychopaths ●See their girls
14 ●The Band of Wynand ●Day time nite time
15 ●Eddie Cunningham & The Lone Rangers ●Girl don’t change your mind
16 ●The Weads ●Don’t call my name
17 ●Burgundy Blues ●Get you back
18 ●The Fantastic Deejays ●Fight Fire
19 ●The Stoics ●Enough of what I need
20 ●The Index ●Paradise beach
21 ●Dennis & his Times ●Why must you fade away
22 ●The Excentrics ●What can I do what can I say
23 ●New Chains III ●The end

Fools On The Hill - Volume 1 – My Tailor Is Rich – 19 necessary beat winners from the swinging 60's french-o-phonic countries

At last! Here it is - the first volume of our encyclopedia of 60's music that matters. Never blogged before! Why? Because originally this series was hand made on CD in a limited edition of 15… Yessir, each one of them numbered by hand by the one and only Sylvain FuzzyMental! You don't know what "Garage" Music means? Are you getting lost between the fine line that separates early 60's British R&B and Freakbeat? What's the difference between 66 psych and 67 psych? What the F is Popsyke? and Acid-Folk, for Chrissake?

Fools on the Hill was intended as an introduction (for the unwary) to the magical mystical and fuzzy world of 60's lost gems and musical subgenres. Originally intended for a US audience, this series of comps grew (after much heated debates) into probably the finest starter for the 60's music lover. Over 20 volumes long, and still growing, it attempts to cover all the aspects of this fabulous musical decade. Love the music? Track down some of the artists featured… We'll even post some of their LPs and EPs.

My Tailor Is Rich gathers most of France (and Belgium and Canada's) finest combos, playing songs in french. You will find household names (for us, at least) such as Jacques Dutronc and Serge Gainsbourg… but also little-known artists such as Alex Fontaine and Eric Ghardin. This online comp differs slightly from the CD version: some duplicate songs by better known individuals have been replaced by more interesting and lesser-known songs. This is the francophonic take on Garage… fuzz and snot abounds. There is a lot of controversy about this take on "french" music. The truth is that during that period there was no pirate radio… most teenagers were in fact listening to "Yé-Yé" which is a tamed, radio-friendly version of the UK and US sound. Pretty sanitized. What we're showcasing here is the the punkier sound, which didn't get played very often.
The other defining factor is that these songs, more than often, were recorded by studio sharks on a mission to lay out a beat with the "today's sound". As a result, the compositions and the arrangements are of unusual quality, while relying heavily on sound gimmicks (reverb, backwards tracks, sitar and fuzz).
What also sets the French-o-phonic artists apart is their distance from the subject of their songs– 2nd or 3rd degree of humor is prevalent on most tracks. While the US punks were embedded in their subjects, the French-o-phonics usually lay a good layer of humor and irony over their songs. Unbearable for some guardians of the french temple, but all the more fun for us. Oh, and you gotta love the sleaziness of some tracks… only in France…

Bouge ton cul and download cette compilation!

P.S Ladies and Germs, leave comments… it's the fuel of blogs… knowing that you reach people out there.

Track Listing:
1● Jacques Dutronc ●Le responsable (France, 1969)
2●Les Problèmes ●Je ne vois rien (France, 1966)
3● Serge Gainsbourg●Qui est " in " qui est " out " (France, 1966)
4● Christine Pilzer ●Ah Hem Ho Hu Err (France, 1967)
5● Delphine ●La fermeture éclair (Belgium, 1967)
6● Sullivan ●Hashish Faction (France, 1966)
7●Les Papyvores ●Le papyvore (France, 1967)
8● Laura Ulmer ●Amoureux d’une affiche (Canada, 1967)
9● Le Bain Didonc ●4 cheveux dans le vent (France, 1966)
10 ● Les 5 Gentlemen ●Si tu reviens chez moi (France, 1966)
11 ● Alex Fontaine ●Tu n’es pas sincère (Canada, 1966)
12 ● Les Problèmes ●Dodécaphonie (France, 1966)
*13 ● Jacques Dutronc ●Je suis content (France, 1967)
13 ● Eric Ghardin ●Amour Limite Zéro (France, 1967)
14 ● Normand Frechette et les Hou-Lops ●J’étudie mon grec (Canada, 1967)
15 ● Les Misérables ●Une lettre (Canada, 1967)
*16 ● Serge Gainsbourg●Initials B.B (France, 1967)
16 ● Messieurs Richard de Bordeaux et Daniel Beretta●La drogue (France, 1967)
17 ● Ariane ●Tu voudrais que j’oublie (France, 1967)
18 ● Elsa Leroy ●Mieux vaut tard que jamais (France, 1966)
*19 ● Jacques Dutronc ●Hippie Hippie Hourrah (France, 1967)
19 ● Philippe Nicaud ●Cuisses nues bottes de cuir (France, 1967)

* Tracks that were on the original CD and replaced by new ones.

Demon Fuzz - Afreaka !

Well, here is the last Afro-something post. Next posts will be our own "Fools on the hill" encyclopedia for the new garage lover. But for now, this is the classic long lost British psychedelic funk album by Demon Fuzz. It is amongst the most bootlegged and sampled bands from the early 70s British underground.
In a just world, Demon Fuzz would have been very successful. Sadly, however, the only real success they enjoyed is the fact that many club DJs now use their samples frequently. Although the band played most of the British underground festivals in the early seventies, Demon Fuzz were simply too way-out to make a significant impact on the college crowd and as a result they broke up after 18 months on the scene. Released in 1970 the band’s only album, the extraordinary Afreaka!, demonstrates their excellence in playing psychedelic soul, dub-heavy funk, progressive rock, Afro-jazz and black acid rock.
They have a Santana mixed with the J.B.s mixed a little with Booker T and the MGS with lots and lots of Jazz sensibilities style that keeps you hooked; and the way the pace of the songs keep changing is also influential. However,putting the music aside; the lyrics are atrocious and are very unintentionally hilarious for example in the song 'Hymn to Mother Earth', which is an ode to our lovely planet, they say stuff like 'Im gonna make you mine!' and 'of all the planets you are the best' which is what you might expect from a 12 year old who has just smoked a blunt…
Freak out and get it here.

Amanaz - Africa : African Psych… did you know it existed?

Well, until I stumbled onto this LP, I would never have thought Africans could have set their minds onto this peculiar genre… No offense meant, but this has a very strange feel to it. Although dating from 1975, it has the hallmarks of period end-60's psych, full-on fuzz, droning songs, while maintaining a very "African" feel. This is not Afrofunk, it is a bunch of guys sitting under the baobab tree and who decide to make music after listening to way too many pirate radio stations. Obviously, the radio programs in Zambia were a few years behind the US and European trends. At the time when the mainland was getting into progressive music, these guys were making period 67-68 psych. I forgot to tell you they sound doped up most of the time… as in "too many spliffs, brother".
Apart for a couple of songs that could be passed over, this LP has a timeless quality and will insidiously creep on you.

Love it or hate it: here's african fuzz!

Twilightzone is back!

Here is the new address: http://twilightzone-rideyourpony.blogspot.com/

Rideyourpony-twillightzone: R.I.P. RYP

Rideyourpony-twighlightzone.blogspot.com appears to have been
shot down in flames by Blogger…
Bad news for everybody. Since I was DLing everyday from RYP,
I have possibly the largest archive of his shares.
As soon as this Afrofunk thread reaches the end of my (small) collection, I will try and put up the 60's, New Orleans, Soul and Rockabilly stuff I enjoyed from rideyourpony. I also have most of Gyro's Amazing Compendium of US garage (over 130 volumes!)
So long RYP!

Unknown Afrofunk LP – Manu Dibango possibly?

I might be stretching your patience with this one… very tribal feel. I think I found it on a russian blog and even then it was labeled as "Unknown Artist - Unknown Album". At first it sounded so modern that I thought it was out of the 90's England. After a bit of research, the sound is analogic for sure, so all the breaks you hear were performed live… The chanted intros are possibly from the Eastern Coast (Kenya? South Africa?). The sax parts make think of Manu Dibango, somebody who is always stretching the genres, so that's how I tagged it. Would love to know more about it – there's a 1-month Rapidshare subscription for anybody who can shed some light on this album.

Meanwhile: Whey! Here it is.

Africa Funk - Return To The Original Sound Of 1970s Funky Africa

This fantastic introduction to the African Funk sound was what I'd originally had in mind as a post… then I thought a short refresher's course in American funk might be needed. All major artists are featured here from Manu Dibango to Fela and Tony Allen.
The songs run the whole gamut from James-Brown Carbon copies (Matata) to "real" Afro-funk (Fela et al). You can also spot Blaxploitation touches and soul influences all over them. The killer track is, in time-honored compilation-style, the first by the Rwenzori's: an absolute killer. To answer a frequent question, sadly there is NO other known track by these guys, only an EP was ever produced. This comp will be the start of a series of Afro-funk or Afro-psych in the next week. I was really surprised by the quality of what I found, so stay tuned for more weirdness from the oldest continent.

Once this series of posts will be over, I'll start a 20-plus volume series centered around Garage and Psych. This was intended as a beginner's guide to the genre but soon evolved into a encyclopedia. Should be interesting for both beginners and die-hard fans alike.
Shake your booty to the sound of Africa.

Big Bad Muthafucka Vol. 3 - Black Action Cinema 1970-1980 – Scores and Themes in three volumes -BLAXPLOITATION CONTEST

Voilà! Third volume of these incredible Funk comps is uploaded.
Wettbewerb/constest will follow its due course until November 30, 2008… don't hesitate to drop me an email, your tracklisting will be published without your contact details. We will be back with an African note in the coming days.

Rip your heart out with this mutha-fucking volume!

Big Bad Muthafucka Vol. 2 - Black Action Cinema 1970-1980 – Scores and Themes in three volumes -BLAXPLOITATION CONTEST

Part 2 of this little contest… Another 31 tracks of the best Blaxploitation soundtracks and movie dialogues. Read the previous post for the contest's rules. Of course, some of the tracks are pretty obvious: Shaft, Supefly and Black Caesar come to mind. But what about all the others? Before trying to solve this puzzle, pay a visit to the Blaxploitation reference website. This should wet your appetite.
As said before, I did not create these comps, so I am pretty much in the same position as you: I do know some of the tracks, but I haven't got a clue about the others…
Get Volume 2 here

Big Bad Muthafucka Vol. 1 - Black Action Cinema 1970-1980 – Scores and Themes in three volumes -BLAXPLOITATION CONTEST

First Volume of what is without doubt the best Blackexploitation music compilation ever. These were lifted from the now deceased RecordBrother blog.
It was one of the first blog I discovered and the owner seemed every bit as ecclectic as I am. I was lured there by a search for Movie Biker Music. Sadly, the owner had already pulled his compilation off… Anybody has it? Drop me a line! If it is of the same quality as his Blackexploitation comps, it must be the MOTHER of all 70's Biker Movie comps. Reward given to anybody who can shift it my way - end of disgression. RecordBrother was obviously a DJ and these 70's Black music were pulled from his tape comps, that means there no info on song title/artist or movie the dialogues were taken from.
That's where my little contest kicks in: Identify all tracks in this comp, complete with artist's name, song title (or movie name) and I will give a free Premium Rapidshare account for one month. You just need to leave your findings in the comments section of this post… be sure to ID yourself as I can't give the prize to A. Nonymous… Drop me your email (I won't publish it).
It gets better: there are three volumes in all in this series and they all suffer from the missing info. The contest will be reconducted for each volume. Even more: if somebody finds ALL song info on all 3 VOLUMES, I will offer you a ONE-YEAR Premium Rapidshare account.
If not all info is found, the participant with most correct answers will win the final prize.
I have to warn you: finding all the info won't be easy, but could be a good occasion to search through your record and video collection…

A Premium Rapidshare account is vital if you like the blogs listed on the right. This type of account will allow you to download without restriction and without waiting time as many albums in parralel as you 'puter will stand. For example, DLing all of rideyourpony's post will take you more than a month…full time!

Have fun, here is Volume one

Service Announcement

The Joe Meek Freakbeat will be the last purely 60's Psych/Garage
for a while.
We are going to make a slight detour towards Africa… Fear not: no unbearable lengthy bongo jams will be allowed. What you'll discover is some pretty crazy & interesting psych and funk. But first, I'll give you a refresher's course in Blackexploitation with a little contest (hey, Wettbewerb-time!) with a prize at hand.
This will be up in the next few days. Stay tuned!

You're holding Me Down: Joe Meek Freakbeat

Bent. Paranoid to the extreme. Control freak. Closet Queen. Weirdo. Everything has been said over Joe Meek. All that is left of him now is his music. Although better know for his instrumental successes (Telstar, anyone?), he also produced some fine R&B-derived rock music, much of which prefigured the British Invasion sound by several years. Joe Meek, inventor of the Freakbeat?

Although touted as Britain's own Phil Spector, it is safe to say that Phil's character pales in comparison. Given the social and moral environment of early ‘60s Britain, it’s tempting to think that Joe Meek’s repressed sexuality and fragile mental state played the major part in shaping his creativity, but he built the first TV in his town, was an RAF radio engineer, a technician with the Midlands Electricity Board, and before branching out on his own was a BBC sound engineer. He did not last at the BBC because his methodology of altering recordings was completely at odds with tradition.

So, in his rooms above a leather goods store at 304 Holloway Road in London, Meek became Britain’s first independent record producer, pioneering special effects, tape reversal, direct imput of the bass guitar, close-mic’ing, and multi-tracking. It remains remarkable that he was able to emulate stereophonic sound on his 1959 recordings I Hear a New World, possibly the world’s first concept album.
Anyone who’s ever thought they sounded better singing in the bathroom, or felt that drumming on a table or door felt right should be able to relate to Joe Meek, who covered his lack of musical talent with his use of echo, reverb, compression, home made electronics, innovative sound sources, and ideas about the separation of instruments. Understanding of technology was one of his strengths, but instead of using equipment to emulate what already existed or make it cleaner, Meek was on a quest to harness his imagination
into sound.

This CD comes from the later part of his carrer, when, deprived of the income his hits had generated, tortured by the implications of his sexual orientation, he was desperately trying to invent a new sound. Sadly, just when the Beatles were expressing an interest in his work, Joe killed his landlady in a fit of paranoia-driven madness and then shot himself, on the anniversary of the death of his hero, Buddy Holly.

30 nuggets indeed…

Wall Of Voodoo - Dark Continent

Bent. Off-kilter. Twisted. But no words can nail Voodoo's odd, dissonance--or its catchy tunes and sinister, cynical view of the world in which every person is a time-clock punching, end of the road loser about to be hammered. This album captures the sick conventionality of modern life--as apropos now as in 1981--and the odd, empty shells that masquerade as living, thinking beings. Every song is great, but I especially like Back In Flesh, Call Box, and Good Times.
I still can't understand why this isn't reedited in CD. The file is off my beloved Vinyl.
Here it is.

Don't forget to pay good ol' Stan a visit here
I noticed the Mosquito Lp isn't up for sale at his site… More ideas for a future post.

Justification CD: 20 Trippers from the 60's UK Psychedelic Subculture

Off good Ol' Freak Emporium: Limited to 500 copies and a compilation of the best tracks from the first two deleted vinyl releases from the Justa.. series. Includes some new gems, this features some of the best obscure UK Sixties psychedelia. Includes cuts from Kippington Lodge, Murray Head, Cupid's Inspiration, Jet Harris, Sharon Tandy and lots lots more. Perfect for those retro pill-popping parties... Contains a wad of Justification 2 LP songs and some unissued material as bonus. If somebody has the Justification 2 LP, please leave me a comment with your email (i won't publish it). Cheers.

Get it here.

Justification - 13 Rare as Hell 1960's UK R&B Stompers !!!

Last Volume of this series in my possesion. Anyone has has Justafixation #2? If so drop me a line in the comments (always welcomed). NExt post will be some Wall of Voodoo for a change.
Here it is.

Yup… Something strange happened… the track list is scrambled. Somehow the song titles and artists names are attached to the wrong files. I'll fix it when I can… means a new archive.

EDIT: The new Archive is linked now, with the correct bands tagged to the corresponding songs.

Justavibration - 14 Flower Powered nuggets from the 60's psychedelic UK subculture

Second offering from Funny Rec, the first song was worth alone the price of the LP!
As usual, this was a very limited edition of 300 and was sold-out in a few weeks.
Very much in a Bam Caruso / Circus Days vein.
A must hear!

Justafixation - 14 rare trippers from the 60s U.k. psychedelic subculture

Justafixation came out in '96, and is more psych than beat. I think Voyage Through the Sugarcube has the edge, but there's some great stuff on Justafixation, including the Koobas' freakbeat track "Gypsy Fred". There were 3 other volumes in the series: Justafixation #2, Justavibration (softer British psych in a Circus Days vein) and Justification, which is the beat volume and the best of the lot. They aren't so hot in the sound quality department, unfortunately.
This comp had been issued at around 200 or 300 copies in 96, and was nearly sold out in the first weeks after it appeared....
This is a Rip from the original LP.
Dig it!

I'll follow-up with the "vibration" and "fication" Lps, but sadly haven't got Justafixation #2…

The Eastern Dark - Long Live the New Flesh

Our friend DorfDiscoBraunsFeld has closed his blog a while ago. This means the brilliant first EP from the Eastern Dark is now offline. This is a must-hear for all Aussie Rroch fans.
Off AMO "… The group achieved early notoriety for their habit of opening their sets with a Ramones song; in fact playing each Ramones song once only in chronological/album listing order. A growing audience followed them as much for heir on stage goofiness and strong harmonies as their no nonsense rock. By early '85 the group was ready to record a single. Released in July and produced by Rob Younger, 'Julie Is A Junkie/Johnny And Dee Dee' was hailed as a power pop classic in underground press the world over. An inspired homage to the Ramones, it even got the group some mail from da Brudders.

With Rob Younger again at the helm, the band put to tape the EP Long Live The New Flesh, with which their scope was widened without losing any power or immediacy. With a cassette of the freshly mixed record with them, the band routinely set off for the 900 km drive to Melbourne for some shows when tragedy struck. The EP was released soon after to a mixture of wonder at its contents and renewed grief for such potential cut short…"

Long Live The New Flesh!

All links have been fixed

Says it all, really.
All files have been reUped on a RapidShare server, including the rare Beasts Of Bourbon 45. Enjoy!

New links for downloads - ReUp!

Hi all,
all the Band of Outsiders and the The Eastern Dark files have new Rapidshare.com links.
They disappeared when my old rapidshare.de account petered out.
Will work on all the other files (Triffids, Go-Beteweens, etc.) soon.

Have fun.