Budgie - Breadfunsy (1975) Bootleg

(U.K 1967-1988, 1995-1996, 1999-2010)
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Looking back to the 1970's most major rock bands released at least one live album in order to capture the excitement and spontaneity of a live performance. It therefore seems unusual that Budgie or their record companies of the period did not pursue this avenue to the fullest extent. Budgie were essentially a live act and the studio albums did not truly capture the same excitement as a live concert. The only official live recordings from this period appear to be concerts broadcast by radio (see Budgie's Website)

In 1974, the original drummer Ray Phillips had left the band and a replacement was needed to fulfill tour commitments. Pete Boot was drafted in and due to an album being required by the record company he ended up staying to record the album (In For The Kill). As Burke has said of the period "it was chaotic, we were trying to rehearse the live set, do the shows and write and record new material for the new album".

Pete Boot stayed for only one year and was eventually replaced by Steve Williams, just in time to record their next album, Bandolier. One of the shows from that time was broadcast from the Roadhouse, London in August 1975, one month before the new album 'Bandolier' was released. The album subsequently went on to reach #36 in the UK and was certified gold in 1976.  This show features early versions of "Napoleon Bona Part I&II" and "Who Do You Want For Your Love" from this album. The recording quality of 1975 radio is a long way from recordings that are done with today's technology however due to so much interest in the band in it's early days this show is another 'lost treasure' presented here for your enjoyment.

The 3 bonus BBC tracks were actually taken from a mega rare early 1973 UK 1st Press released by BBC Transcription Services. A 100 copies were pressed for radio stations only!!! Each band played for 28 minutes. They had fantastic audio quality - recorded live for small invited audience in Autumn 1972.
Without a doubt they are the rarest Budgie (and folk-progressive JSD Band) recordings ever!
Budgie segment were released on Heavier Than Air CD but in slightly lesser sound quality and without some announcements.

These 3 tracks were also made available through a 4 CD compilation called 'Don't Dare To Forget' which featured other bands, released by Oh Boy in 1991.
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This post consists of  FLAC files (ripped from a Japanese Bootleg CD) and includes full album artwork. The three bonus BBC tracks were sourced from the internet many years ago and are only in MP3 format (160kps). If anyone else has these three rare tracks with a better bitrate, I'd love to hear from you. The quality of the Breadfunsy material is excellent and the guitar work by Tony Bourge is awesome - as you would expect.  Note that Shelley introduces Steve Williams at the start of Parents indicating that he had only just joined the band.
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Track Listing:
01. Breadfan (9:41)
02. In For The Kill (8:43)
03. Parents (10:49)
04. Who Do You Want For Your Love? (6:39)
05. In The Glip Of A Tyrefitter's Hand (6:03)
06. Napoleon Bona (Part I&II) (7:15)
07. Rape Of The Locks (BBC - 1973) (6:52)
08. Rocking Man (BBC - 1973) (6:20)
09. Young Is A World (BBC - 1973) (9:13)

1975 Line-up:
Burke Shelley - bass, vocals
Tony Bourge - lead guitar
Steve Williams - drums

1973 Line-up:
Burke Shelley - bass, vocals
Tony Bourge - guitar
Ray Phillips - drums



Breadfunsy FLAC Link (311Mb)
   

W.O.C.K On Vinyl - OL' 55: (I Want A) Rockin' Christmas (1976)

Before things get too serious here at Rock On Vinyl, I thought it might be fun to post a song / album at the end of each month, that could be categorized as being either Weird, Obscure, Crazy or just plain Korny.
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Ol’ 55 is a retro-fifties band from Sydney, Australia, formed in 1975. OL’55 enjoyed enormous popularity with a style that bordered on parody. The band took its name from the Tom Waits song (as covered by The Eagles).

The rock band Ol' 55 had some memorable top 40 hits when they first burst onto the scene in the mid 1970s then they went off the boil when Frankie J. Holden left to go solo. By the time they finished up they were recording sound-a-like medleys of oldies a bit like the Stars On 45 people....

"(I Want A) Rockin' Christmas" came out in 1976 and was still on the play lists in January 1977 when it was yanked because that's when Christmas hits are supposedly removed from radio play lists....it was done so when still at number one in Melbourne. In fact, it was number one for almost 7 weeks before it was dropped.

A version of the song has been released on CD, on a Festival collection called "Spin Into Christmas" but the version on CD is a remixed longer cut. The CD mix is from the Russell Crowe movie "The Sum Of Us" and was remixed by the original producer Charles Fisher. The original single was also 22 seconds shorter and had less bass.
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Here for download is the original single version sung by Frankie J. Holden also starring Rockpile Jones and Wilbur Wilde. It was written by bassist Jim Manzie and Glenn A. Baker (manager). The B-Side "Little Saint Nick" was written by Brian Wilson and is an adaptation of the Beach Boy's "Little Deuce Coupe" [extract from Tom Music Mix with thanks].
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As usual, I'm posting the December 'WOCK on Vinyl' a little earlier this month to coincide with Christmas Day and of course the C in WOCK is for Christmas Cheer.  Post consists of FLACs ripped from vinyl and includes full artwork and label scans.
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I would like to wish all of my wonderful blog followers (and visitors) a Very Merry Christmas and trust that you will take care when travelling during the Festive Season. May your Santa stockings be filled with lots of treats and especially with loads of Aussie Music CD's (please support our local artists)
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I Want A Rockin' Christmas Link (48Mb)

New Link 01/07/2022  

Various Artists - The GTK Tapes Vol 3 & 4

(Various Australian Artists 1969-75)
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The series title was an abbreviation of the phrase "Get To Know". GTK is one of several significant popular music programs produced by the ABC, and like the later establishment of Double Jay, GTK was created to address the perception that the Australian youth audience was being poorly served by commercial radio and TV and that much important international music and especially Australian popular music was being ignored by commercial TV and radio at that time.

GTK premiered on 4 August 1969 and ran until 1974, after which it was superseded by the even more successful weekly show Countdown. The first series of GTK was directed by noted TV and event director Ric Birch, who was at the time the youngest director in Australian television. Because colour television was not introduced in Australia until early 1975, most of GTK was shot on black-and-white film or videotape, although segments of programs ca. 1974 are known to have been shot in colour.

GTK ran for ten minutes and was broadcast daily from Monday to Thursday, at 6.30 pm just before the ABC's popular rural soap opera Bellbird. GTK's magazine-style format—which gave strong emphasis to local Australian rock and pop music—included interviews, reports, music film-clips (music videos) and occasional footage of local and visiting international acts in concert.   

GTK (1969-74) aimed to introduce 'new teens and twenties … to the world of trendsetting fashions, records, movies and events’. The first program included a profile of Sydney rock band The Cleves and most episodes featured a live performance filmed for GTK at the ABC’s Gore Hill studio in Sydney.

A feature of every episode—and one that makes GTK a unique document of that period of Australian music—was the daily live-in-the-studio performance segment, especially recorded by GTK. These segments featured hundreds of notable and lesser-known Australian acts of the period. The band chosen as featured group for the week would often record their own 'cover' version of the GTK theme (composed by Hans Poulsen), which was played at the start of each of the programs.

Certainly the nightly viewers -always devoted and dismayed in equal parts - were served up the readily familiar likes of Zoot, Axiom, Doug Parkinson In Focus, Autumn, Jeff St John, Sherbet, Country Radio, the La De Das, Blackfeather, Billy Thorpe, Chain, Hush, Max Merritt & The Meteors, Russell Morris, Daddy Cool, Spectrum, and Flake, but they were also exposed to new, challenging contemporary acts such as Company Caine, Captain Matchbox, Pirana, Tamam Shud, Bakery, Sun, Third Union Band, Syrius, Glenn Cardier, Kahvas Jute. Band of Talabene No Sweat, Gungan Dim; Mother Earth, Human Instinct, Langford Lever, Duck, Jeannie Lewis, Friends, Wendy Saddington, Wild Cherries, Band of Light, Gary Young's Hot Dog, Moonstone, Mighty Kong, Home, Buffalo, King Harvest, Headband and Carson.

These live performance segments were filmed in Studio 21 at the ABC's Gore Hill complex, which had originally been used for drama during the early days of live-to-air production. Groups were called in early on Monday mornings, and four songs/pieces were recorded, with one segment broadcast each day. Another aspect that makes this GTK footage important is that many of the bands were asked to play material from their live repertoire—including cover versions—rather than their current or recent hit song/s, since it was felt that the groups would perform these better and because it would show off other facets of their music. It is believed that because these live performances were filmed (and later transferred to videotape for broadcast) most of this footage was preserved, despite the fact that many of the broadcast master tapes were later erased.

It was thought for many years that most of the videotapes of the program had been erased during an ABC economy drive in the late 1970s, but recent discoveries at the ABC, notably during and after the closure of the old Gore Hill studio complex in Sydney, have revealed that much of the series (including location pieces and in-the-studio performances) was shot on film and then transferred to video. Recent estimates from the ABC indicate that as much as 90 percent of the series has survived, although regrettably most of the first year of the show was only videotape, which has since been erased.

Recent discoveries have included Mick Jagger discussing his role in Ned Kelly (1970), an exclusive GTK interviews with Pete Townshend and Marc Bolan and unique colour footage of Lou Reed's 1974 Sydney concert (including one of the earliest known films of Reed performing "Walk on the Wild Side") and his legendary Sydney press conference, which features noted Australian television journalist Ian Leslie.

GTK's final show was broadcast in late 1974 and was superseded by the highly successful ABC pop music show Countdown (1974-87).  [extracts from Wikipedia and Australian Screen website]
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This post consists of MP3's (320kps) most likely ripped from YouTube snippets of GTK episodes (and sourced with thanks from Deutros) along with full CD artwork.  Vols 1 & 2 are also available on my blog. The GTK tapes are a wonderful chronology of the diverse and highly talented Aussie musos that dominated our music charts in the early 70's.
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Vol 3. Track Listing
01 - Who Said What (Carson)
02 - Blow In D (Chain)
03 - The Devil's Disciple (Coloured Balls)
04 - Mango's Theme (Blackfeather)
05 - Winter Song (Country Radio)
06 - If Only (Ted Mulry)
07 - Only You And I Know (Doug Parkinson)
08 - Woman With Reason (Company Caine)
09 - Poem Of Joy (Healing Force)
10 - Lucille (John Farnham)
11 - 64,000 Dollar Question (Daddy Cool)

12 - Launching Place Part II (Spectrum)
13 - Way Out West (The Dingoes)
14 - Gee (Daddy Cool)
15 - Private Eye (Skyhooks)

GTK Tapes Vol 3 Link (83Mb)
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Vol 4. Track Listing
01 - Don't You Know That I Do (Sherbet)
02 - Ginger Bread Man (Brian Cadd)
03 - Munge (Chain)
04 - Boogie (Friends)
05 - Down At The Station (Daddy Cool)
06 - Nile Song (Human Instinct)
07 - Johnny B. Goode (Johnny Farnham)
08 - Message (Renee Geyer & Sun)
09 - Wishing Well (Sherbet)
10 - Sunset Song (Mighty Mouse)
11 - I've Grown Tired Already (Syrius)
12 - Speak To The Sky (Rick Springfield)
13 - Come Back Again (Daddy Cool)
14 - Make Your Stash (Spectrum)
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GTK Tapes Vol 4 Link (121Mb)
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Felix Pappalardi - Creation (1976) + Bonus Live Tracks

(Japan 1976-77)
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Felix Pappalardi was most famous as the producer of Cream and the bassist for one of the first American hard rock acts, Mountain; sadly, he's also remembered for the tragic shooting that claimed his life at age 43. Pappalardi was born December 20, 1939, in the Bronx and studied classical music at the University of Michigan; upon returning to New York, he was unable to find work as a conductor and soon drifted into the Greenwich Village folk scene. He soon made a name for himself as a skilled arranger, and from there moved into record production, initially concentrating on folk and folk-rock acts like Tim Hardin, the Youngbloods, Joan Baez, Richard & Mimi Farina, Ian & Sylvia, and Fred Neil. However, it was Pappalardi's late-'60s work with the psychedelic blues-rock outfit Cream — beginning with their second album, Disraeli Gears — that really established his reputation.

Pappalardi sometimes contributed additional instrumentation for his imaginative studio arrangements and he and wife, Gail Collins, co-wrote "Strange Brew" with Eric Clapton. In 1968, Pappalardi was asked to produce an Atlantic Records band

called the Vagrants, which featured a young guitarist named Leslie West. The following year, he produced West's solo album Mountain; after Cream disbanded, Pappalardi and West formed the hard rock band Mountain, whose hit single "Mississippi Queen" remains a staple of classic rock radio. Mountain broke up in 1972, reunited in 1974, and disbanded again in 1975; afterwards, Pappalardi was forced to, for the most part, retire from performing due to partial hearing loss caused by Mountain's extreme volume. However, he was able to return to production, and also recorded an album with the Japanese hard rock outfit Creation, who had opened for Mountain on their Japanese tours; Felix Pappalardi & Creation was released on A&M in 1976. In 1979, Pappalardi released his first proper solo album, Don't Worry, Ma, which reflected his growing interest in funk, jazz fusion, and reggae, and featured a large supporting cast, including bassist Chuck Rainey and drummer Bernard "Pretty" Purdie. On the night of April 17, 1983, tragedy struck: Pappalardi was shot once in the neck by his wife, Gail Collins, and killed. He had been involved in a long-standing affair with a younger woman, of which Collins had knowledge; however, a jury supported Collins' claim that the shooting was accidental, occurring while Pappalardi was showing her how to use the gun. She was convicted of criminally negligent homicide rather than the far more serious charge of second-degree murder; sentenced to four years, Collins quietly disappeared afterward.
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(Blues) Creation was formed by guitarists Kazuo Takeda, Koh Eiryu and singer Fumio Nunoya, in early 1969, after the dissolution of their Group Sounds outfit The Bickies. Takeda played many guitar sessions and slowly began to gain confidence in himself as a lead vocalist, so much so that when he returned to the Japanese music scene, in 1973, to support Mountain, it was as the lead singer/guitarist of a new power trio called simply Creation.
The urbane and gregarious Takeda hit it off with Leslie West and Mountain drummer Corky Laing, but became even bigger mates with bassist Felix Pappalardi and his wife Gail Collins, who had written most of the lyrics for Mountain's hits.
However, Creation did not release their first LP until 1975, by which time Takeda, nervous of his new role as lead singer invited rhythm guitarist Yoshiaki Iijima to join drummer Masayuki Higuchi and bassist Shigeru Matsumoto in the new line up. Takeda contacted Felix Pappalardi and asked him to produce the second Creation LP.

Pappalardi, temporarily deafened by the high volume at which Mountain always played concerts, had already decided to concentrate on studio production, and so he and his wife began to write songs with Takeda at their Nantucket home in Massachussets. In April 1976, the results were released in Japan as "Creation With Felix Pappalardi" and in the US as  "Felix Pappalardi & Creation". Unfortunately, the international acclaim that Kazuo Takeda so longed for was still unforthcoming, although the record was once more a mighty success in Japan [by Julian Cope ]
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Album Review
Recorded in 1976 at Bearsville Studio in NYC, this album was the result of a collaboration between Japanese guitar hero Kazuo Takeda of Creation and American bassist Felix Pappalardi of Mountain. Pappalardi and Takeda first began hanging out in London in the early seventies, a friendship which soon led to Mountain touring Japan alongside Creation in 1975. This in turn led to Creation being invited to the US by Pappalardi to record their next album, 1976’s Creation with Felix Pappalardi. This album is a collection of tunes written by Pappalardi, Pappalardi’s wife, Gail Collins, and Takeda, and finds Pappalardi playing bass, keyboards and vibraphone on the LP as well as handling production duties. The songs are a blend of melodic hard rock akin and would not seem out of place on a Mountain album.
The songs range from fairly psychedelic power ballads reminiscent of early Mountain to a more robust brand of Heavy Metal exercises in a showcase of almost-tremendous talent, if not the same force, rather than art, Pappalardi's group Mountain really gave their material...
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Interview with 'Flash' Kaz Takeda (Blues Creation Guitarist)
[taken from Felix Pappalardi's Tribute Website]

Dog: Flash, tell us what you've been up to these days. Where are you located and what projects have you been involved in?

Flash: I live in Los Angeles, and playing in my own band [Jazz & Blues). Also playing as session guitarist for local blues,R&B, and Gospel artists. My group has just returned from a three week Asian tour. I also occasionally work as producer, mainly for Asian Blues, Jazz, and R&B artist.

I understand that "Thunder" Higuchi is still quite active as well. Are you guys doing anything together? 

Flash: It was lucky enough for me to play with him for that Asian tour. From now on I want to play with him as often as possible.

Creation was quite popular in your part of the world prior to Felix joining the band. How did it come about that you wound up playing with him?

Flash: In '73 Creation toured with Mountain as the opening act, and on this tour Felix and I became close and he liked our music too. In '75 Felix came to Japan for a Summer Rock festival. That was the first time we played together with his Special Band named "The World Rock Festival Band." Around that time, Creation was about to make our 2nd album for EMI , and we asked him to produce our next record. He gave us the green light. The band flew to the States, and while we were rehearsing at Felix's Nantucket home, things has changed to another dimension... which was the new project "Felix Pappalardi & Creation." After two month of rehearsal we went to the Bearsville studio to cut the album.

How did you guys and Felix manage to pull it off, given the distance between you? 

Flash: At the time our agency and record company were fully supportive of our over- seas activities. Also Felix liked Japan so much! So either we go to the States or Felix comes to Japan. That worked well.

Did the distance limit or have any effect on your ability to do concerts?

Flash: Physically it didn't. However, mentally there was a few. Especially when I played his hit tunes in the States. I tried to play appropriate licks in order to fit its original record, e.g., Nantucket Sleighride and Imaginary Western were typical.

Felix was known for being, shall we say, "in charge" in the studio. What was it like recording with him? 

Flash: It was like everything was already done in rehearsal room. Meaning Felix gave us every essential advice and direction from the day one to the end. But what still impressed me was his studio skills. It was like magic!

How much input did you and the rest of the band have in the process of recording the Creation album with Felix? Who wrote the songs and who decided what made it on, what got left off and so forth?

Flash: I prepared and wrote about 10~15 songs for this record, and after we arrived at his home we (Felix, Gail & Me) selected materials again, had discussions almost every day and worked together to decide songs. Also around that time('75~76 ) the music scene was changing from '60's flavored Hard Rock to more Rhythm oriented music. Simply said, funk and new types of Jazz were on the market. Also, Felix was so curious about Reggae music. Incidentally, even though I like our album, I like his "Don't Worry, Ma" album a lot.. we can see his reggae influence, or at least his more rhythm oriented side on that record. He recorded Albert King's "As The Years Go Passing By" on that album. That was the song he picked up from my traveling cassettes collection. And we played that song many times together live. Also I remember he said Chuck Rainy was his favorite bassist. Except Jack Bruce. I guess to him Jack was more like his brother.

Were you happy with the final outcome of the album?

Flash: Oh, Yes!
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This post consists of an MP3 rip (320kps) taken from my vinyl copy and includes full album artwork, including the covers for the French pressing (see below). As a bonus, I have also included some live tracks from a concert they recorded at the Budokan indoor Arena, in 1976. These live tracks not only cover repertoires by Blues Creation and also Pappalardi's earlier band Mountain. In particular, their rendition of Nantucket Sleighride is quite impressive and demonstrates just how good these guys were. If you're are a big fan of Mountain, then you'll definitely enjoy this album.
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Track Listing

01 She's Got Me
02 Dreams I Dream Of You
03 Green Rocky Road
04 Preachers' Daughters
05 Listen To The Music
06 Secret Power
07 Summer Days
08 Dark Eyed Lady Of The Night
09 Ballad Of A Sad Cafe
10 - Watch 'n' Chain (Bonus Live)
11- Dreams I Dream Of You (Bonus Live)
12 - Preacher's Daughter (Bonus Live)
13 - Lonely Night ~ You Better Find Out (Bonus Live)
14 - Secret Power (Bonus Live)
15 - Nantucket Sleighride (Bonus Live) 
* Live tracks recorded at the Budokan, 1976
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Felix Pappalardi & Creation:

Felix Pappalardi - Bass, Keyboards, Vocals, Producer
Shigeru "Sugar" Matsumoto - Bass
Kazuo "Flash" Takeda - Lead Guitar
Yoshiaki "Daybreak" Iljima - Guitar (Rhythm)
Masayuki "Thunder" Higuchi - Drums
Guest Artists:
Ralph Moss - Percussion
Paul Butterfield - Harmonica
Gail Collins - Producer
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Felix Pappalardi and Creation Link (188Mb) New Link 20/12/2023

W.O.C.K On Vinyl - Vince Sorrenti: Unbelievable (1985)

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Before things get too serious here at Rock On Vinyl, I thought it might be fun to post a song / album at the end of each month, that could be categorized as being either Weird, Obscure, Crazy or just plain Korny.
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Vince Sorrenti (born 25 March 1961 in Sydney, New South Wales) is one of Australia’s best known and leading comic entertainers, a respected and successful Australian stand-up comedian from Punchbowl, New South Wales. He is of Italian heritage which really gives him the edge with his comedy routines, and plays the 'language misinterpretaion' card to advantage (ie. gender reversal).
Vince Sorrenti has a long performance history, cutting his teeth in Architecture Revues in the early 1980s and in the burgeoning stand up comedy scene that he helped create. Graduating as an Architect in 1985 he threw full weight behind his real talent and has performed to ecstatic crowds on thousands of stages all over the world. 
The following press release for this 1985 comedy hit "Unbelievable' pretty much says it all:

 Of course, this month's WOCK of Vinyl post has alot of Crazy and Komedy associated with it.
Really!  No seriously, it has.  What, you don't think so - Unbelievable !
To make this post a little more believable, I'm also throwing in the 12" release which features his second single "Dancink (Never Cum Fat)". All tracks ripped from Vinyl to MP3 (320kps) and full artwork included.
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Track Listings
01 - Unbelievable
02 - Thailand
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01 - Dancink (Never Cum Fat) Fat Mix
02 - Dancink (Never Cum Fat)
03 - Unbelievable
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Unbelievable Link (62Mb)
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Gregg Sneddon - Mind Stroll (1975)

(Australian 1974 - 1980)
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Australian composer and instrumentalist Greg Sneddon is a man of which not much is known today, but he has written himself into Australian history books due to one particular event: He assembled a group of backing musicians while he was recording the soundtrack of a musical called "Riff Raff", and following these recording sessions this group of musicians would later eastablish a solid career as Men At Work.

Prior to that Sneddon released a single solo album however. "Mind Stroll" was recorded in 1974 and released in 1975. A nice and varied example of keyboard driven, accessible symphonic rock, by some described as similar in style to Australian band Sebastian Hardie. 

Greg Sneddon (Synthesizer - Arp) has been in the music industry since the early 1970’s, working in various bands (Alroy 1974 and Rainbow Theatre 1976), as a session man for the likes of Skyhooks (Living in the 70’s and Ego) and even the Comedy Company (Kylie Mole’s ‘I Go I Go’). Greg was also one of the founding members of Men At Work.
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While studying economics in 1979 at university, Colin Hay met drummer Jerry Speiser and invited Speiser to one of the duo's informal jams at the Grace Emily Hotel. With a drummer on board Men at Work joined prog-rocking keyboard player Greg Sneddon to provide backing music for the amateur musical Riff Raff to which Sneddon had written the lyrics and music. For a short time Sneddon was an official member of Men At Work but multi-instrumentalist Greg Ham who provided keys, sax, flute and other instruments to the Men at Work sound replaced him.

Sneddon released a solo album in1974 called ‘Mind Stroll’ with a follow up single ‘Take It Slow and Easy / Minuet In E’ in 1975. Rare and essential mid 70s piano/synth driven melodic progressive rock, but was never picked up by the radios. With flavours of Rick Wakeman in his keyboard playing and vocals similar to Peter Gabriel, this album is still worth a listen, and a vital addition to any collector’s vault. One could say that this album was a launching pad for many oz progressive rock bands of the 70’, in particular Sebastian Hardie (aka Windchase).

Review 1
I'm in two minds about this album, first off it's an album by an exceptionally gifted youg Australian guy who displays great imagination and skill, but on the other hand you only get to hear him for a total of thirty minutes and 38 seconds. All of which makes you hold your breath, but Christ,  it's a bit steep to fork out nearly six dollars (full price for an album back in 1975!) for half an hour!
Greg writes all the material and plays (here goes) Acoustic Piano, Hammond B B3, ARP Pro Synthesiser, Mellotron, Clarinet, Spinnet, Fender Rhodes, tootles around with percussion, vocals and a Two Handed Plectrum, for which he composed a concerto.
The title track opens with a drifty chaotic Pink Floydian feel which soon gives way to the gentle voice of Mr. Sneddon singing lyrics a cut above the average love song
The strongest point on the whole album is the final cut on side two "Madman" which is an eight minute long ditty that posses an amazing number of changes and some superb synthesier playing and production. The lyrics on this one have been prepared with what looks like a great deal of thought to present inherent insanity:
"Madman to the rescue for a sandwich
Which he finds hard to find The Insides out"
I don't think Greg will be able to produce this album on stage unless he has two sets of hands as there is a fair amount of over dubbing (natch!). The voice of Dayle Alison blends naturally with Greg's keyboards most effectively on "Madman"
I can only recommend this record to you musically, he is streets ahead of any other solo performer in this land, but thirty minutes long just ain't long enough!  [review by Andrea Jones, RAM #7 May 31, 1975]
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Review 2
A keyboard driven album, to me very reminiscent of Wakeman's early solo work. The two dominant elements to me are, on the one hand, a strong commercial soft-rock/pop edge, particularly to the fore on the ballad "Take It Slow And Easy", and the main themes of the title track, and "Concerto For Two Handed Plectrum"; on the other hand, busy keyboard solos (sometimes approaching Emerson territory, eg "A Spell of Destruction" and "Concerto"), and 'classical' flourishes (eg the main theme of 'Minuet in E", "Winter", the secondary theme of the title track). Layers of keyboards dominate the sound, with much use of the most voguish synth sounds of the day. Sneddon shares lead vocal duties with Dayle Alison, who has a lovely voice. Not a prog masterpiece, but a very interesting record, one that stands out among the minimal output of the symphonic or symphonic-influenced bands found in Australia during the 1970s [review by s175 at www.progarchives.com]
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I gotta say I'm a sucker for anything keyboard related, and this album fits beautifully into this category. Although Sneddon was not a Rick Wakeman or Ken Hensley, he certainly had great talent on the keyboard and was well ahead of his time in creating a unique style of symphonic rock. It is just a shame that he never recorded more as a solo artist and could have easily joined ranks with the likes of Mario Millo to produce some great Australian movie soundtracks. One can only wonder what the pair would have dreamed up.
This post is a rip (MP3 at 320kps) taken from my cassette tape which still plays as good as the day it was released some 38 years ago.  Full album artwork for Vinyl, CD (thanks to Woodynet at Midoztouch) and Cassette are included and a scan of the RAM record review.
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Track Listing

01 - Mind Stroll
02 - Winter
03 - Take It Slow And Easy
04 - A Spell Of Destruction
05 - Minuet in E (Concerto For Two Handed Plectrum)
06 - Madman

Musicians:
Dayle Alison-vocals,percussion
Phil Bustson-guitars
Jerry H. Spieiser-drums
Gary Ricketts-vocals,bass
Greg Sneddon-acoustic piano,Hammond B3,ARP Pro Synthesizer,Melltron,Hohner Clavinet,Fender Rhodes,percussion instrument,vocals,spinet
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Mind Stroll Link (82Mb)
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Ramatam - Selftitled (1972)

(U.S 1972-73)
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Ramatam was a sort of mini-supergroup, formed in the early 70's by Mike Pinera, from the Blues Image, Iron Butterfly and Mitch Mitchell, former drummer for Jimi Hendrix. They also had one other distinction, a female lead guitarist, April Lawton, a rare thing in those days. On the surface Ramatam had an impressive musical heritage which should have seen them become a major act, however, the band only stayed together for two years (releasing 2 albums) and then disbanded due to lack of popularity.
Signed by Atlantic, the band debuted with 1972's cleverly-titled "Ramatam".  Produced by Tom Dowd, the album had it's moments, but ultimately was too diverse to make much of an impression.  With stabs at blues, country-rock,  hard rock, and jazz it was simply impossible to figure out who these guys were.  Adding to the problems, horn arrangements sank several tracks, while Dowd gave the album a weird muddy sound.
The band toured all across the U.S during 1972, supporting ELP, Humble Pie and playing shows of their own.
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Recalls Bob O´Neal, Ramatam´s roadie:
"I can't pinpoint the exact dates. I don't have any photos but I can definitely remember some of the cities where we did shows and who was headlining on those shows(...) I was living in Memphis, Tennessee with my friend, Steve Dabbs. We were working for a concert promoter in Memphis named Bob Kelley. His company was Mid-South Concerts(...) Ramatam was the support act on a Humble Pie show at the North Hall of Ellis Auditorium. Ramatam's tour manager was Paco Zimmer. This show was one of the first after the band formed. The band was Mitch Mitchell on drums, April Lawton on guitar, Mike Panera on guitar and Carlos Garcia on bass. I can't recall who else may have been in the band.Anyway, Steve and I knew Paco from when he had been in Memphis the year before with Cactus. He offered us jobs as roadies for the band. We accepted the offer and left with the band going to the next show, which was playing in New Orleans at a venue called The Warehouse with Humble Pie. 

From there we continued doing shows all over the country for the rest of that summer.We played shows with Humble Pie, Edgar Winter and ZZ Top. I can remember playing Akron, Ohio at a stadium show at the Rubber Bowl with five acts on the show. We also played on a multi-day festival in the Pocono mountains in Pennsylvania. Between tour segments, the band and the crew lived in a large mansion in Huntington Harbor out on Long Island. It was a really big house with about six bedrooms. We didn't actually spend very much time there but that's where Mitch's wife, Lynn and young daughter lived(...) The band was on Atlantic Records and they were created to be a "super group" made up of stars from previously successful groups with the unique innovation of a "chick" lead guitarist. It was a flop. They didn't sell many records and the whole project dissolved rather quickly after the first few months of playing shows.
Steve and I together set up all of the band equipment. We both handled everything when loading and unloading but then he set up guitars and amps and I set up the drums and we attended to those players during the shows. I would have to say that my relationship with Mitch was a working relationship rather than a social relationship. Like everyone else in the early 70s, I had been a HUGE Jimi Hendrix Experience fan and could occasionally get Mitch to relate some stories of their touring days. I can't say that I recall any particular tales though." [extract from Mitch Mitchell's website]
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.Album Review
Tom Dowd produced 1972's self-titled debut from Ramatam, a poor-man's Blind Faith featuring co-author of The Blues Image hit "Ride Captain Ride Mike Pinera on guitar and vocals, and Mitch Mitchell on drums. The "star" of this group was alleged to be April Lawton, a chick who had the Hendrix riffs down, to be sure, but not as creative as Robin Trower and all those other gents who carried Jimi's sound and stylings into the seventies.
An appearance by the group in Boston at the old Music Hall was pure white noise and not very memorable outside of that. The album is a bit more refined, but ultimately fails to deliver the goods.
"Whiskey Place" opens the record sounding like a brazen blend of Ten Wheel Drive meets The Jimi Hendrix Experience without a Genya Ravan or a Jimi to save the day. The horns actually clash with the guitar while the bass has a mind of its own. The production work by Dowd on the first track is totally uninspired and it certainly feels like the act was left to its own devices.

Mike Pinera and Les Sampson's "Heart Song" works much better, a jazzy vision of Traffic's brand of Brit rock meeting that of the West Coast's /Quicksilver Messenger Service.
But it's not enough - Rare Earth type macho vocals do much to implode the disc's potential totally sinking Pinera's "Ask Brother Ask".
Mitchell's great drum work is wasted on the monotony of the hook, and the musicianship gets so fragmented it sounds like Eno's Portsmouth Sinfonia without the humor. The Tommy Sullivan / April Lawton composition "What I Dream I Am", on the other hand, almost gets it done - it's pretty tune with flutes, acoustic guitar work and simple percussion from Mitch.
It fails because of vocals which just can't cut it, painful singing obliterating the disc's best chance for recognition. Was Tom Dowd out having coffee or just not interested in this whatsoever?
America could've used an answer to Steve Winwood's poppy jazz, and a Genya Ravan would have brought this experiment out of the quagmire it finds itself in with her voice and production intuition.
The blues here undefined and the tape mix far from cohesive on the other band collaboration,"Wayso". Ramatam, diffused and confused, is a tragic statement of record labels trying to make a talent rather than finding one. "Changing Days" is another decent Sullivan / Lawton easy feeling co-write with horrible vocals eradicating the core goodness of the songwriting. Mike Pinera's "Strange Place" takes the Kiss riff, from "Shout It Out Loud" and puts it in a jazz setting with vocals that sound like they are auditioning for Savoy Brown...and failing to get the gig.

If that sounds awful just be thankful you're reading about it without having to hear this mess. By 1973 the group would be pared down to a power trio of Lawton, Sullivan and Jimmy Walker on drums.
Perhaps bassist Russ Smith, ex-Iron Butterfly Pinera and Mitch Mitchell saw the writing on the wall, but how they couldn't come up with something much, much better than this is the mystery.
There's enough combined talent here to have delivered a real gem. With this album Ramatam have re-written Euclid's axiom and turned it on its head: here the whole is less than the sum of its parts. The final track, "Can't Sit Still", sounds like producer Dowd looped his old Ornette Coleman and Allman Brothers tapes with his Black Oak Arkansas projects. And if Ramatam hadn't toured, people might've thought that's exactly what this was [Review by Joe Viglione]
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Although my initial interest in this band and album was the connection with the Jimi hendrix Experience via drummer 'Mitch Mitchell', the similarity with Grand Funk (particularly the vocals) and the complex guitar work of April Lawton makes this album a worthy inclusion on my blog. Although the album cover is nothing to write home about, the music on this album is very colourful and diverse. It is a shame however that the the brass sections on this album are so badly produced, and somewhat stifle the brilliant guitar work of  Lawton on many of the tracks.
This post consists of a MP3 rip  (320kps) taken from my almost virgin vinyl and includes artwork for both CD and LP.  If you haven't heard this band before, then you should give it a listen.
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Track Listing
01 - Whiskey Place 3:23
02 - Heart Song 4:50
03 - Ask Brother Ask 5:00

04 - What I Dream I Am 4:00
05 - Wayso 3:23
06 - Changing Days 3:31
07 - Strange Place 6:00
08 - Wild Like Wine 3:51
09 - Can't Sit Still 6:00
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Ramatam were:
April Lawton (lead guitar)
Mitch Mitchell (drums)
Mike Pinera (guitar)
Russ Smith (bass, vocals)
Tommy Sullivan (keyboards, reeds, vocals)
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Ramatam Link (95Mb) New Link 2/8/2022
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Peak - Ebondàzzar(1980)

(Australian 1980)
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Often thought to be a German band because they’re on Klaus Schulze’s label, Peak is actually from Australia.  Nice electronic album but unfortunately Ebondàzzar seems to be their only release.
Formed in Adelaide, South Australia, Peak is the duo of Robert Reekes-Parsons and Paul Fisher. Both men are multi-instrumentalists, with Reekes-Parsons gravitating more to keyboards and Fisher to guitars.
How would you classify Peak's music? If you were to listen solely to Innovative Communications (Klaus Schulze's record label) promotional spiel after the 1983 re-issue of the album "Ebondàzzar" you may think Peak was a group largely influenced by King Crimson, Pink Floyd, Genesis and perhaps even Godley & Creme and Vangelis. The reality is that Peak has moments where they emulate the style of these prog giants, as well as progressive electronic great Tangerine Dream. Having said this, the complex intertwining of guitar and synthesizer may mostly remind of Manuel Göttsching's Ashra and seems to belong in the sphere with the Berlin School-aligned artists, though this is not always the case as is witnessed when listening to the whole album.

Peak has only the one album, "Ebondàzzar", initially released on Cement Records, Australia in 1980, then re-issued in Germany by Innovative Communications in 1983. On "Ebondàzzar" Reekes-Parsons is credited with playing keyboard synthesisers, vocoder, strings, electric piano, tubular bells and fragmented guitar; Fisher's credits are guitar synthesisers, electric and acoustic guitars, keyboard synthesizers and electronic effects. The duo was assisted with drumming throughout the album by John Haffert. Additional assistance on the track 'Ocean Of Dreams' came from Kym Martin with the military snare and Lindon Lisk on bass. To date "Ebondàzzar" has not been issued on CD.

Robert Reekes-Parsons and Paul Fisher

Review 1
Ebondàzzar is a reasonably rare album from Australian duo Peak - Robert Reekes-Parsons and Paul Fisher - with able assistance on drums by John Haffert. It is a purely instrumental affair with vocals limited to vocoder output, effects and grunting.
Ebondàzzar has been issued twice on vinyl. The original Australian release was in 1980 on Cement Records, followed by a re-issue in 1983 by Innovative Communications from Germany. Despite two different releases the work appears to be relatively unknown.
Ebondàzzar has nine tracks with the longest, "Along For The Ride" clocking in at a little over the nine minute mark. Having said that, all the tracks from side one segue seamlessly making a suite of sorts with a running time of 23:02, though each track is quite different and there is no real hint of a concept. (All tracks on side two are clearly segregated.)
Not a masterpiece by any means, Ebondàzzar is an album of varied soundscapes, journeying mostly into the territories of electronica, space rock and possibly Krautrock. At one point there is a step towards synthesized heavy prog as "The Hunt" goes into full flight in its last half. And to cap things off there is even a hint of blues rock with the final track, "Agent's Lunch". With the variation presented on Ebondàzzar it is a difficult album to pigeonhole.
Highlights are: the hypnotic "Along For The Ride" opening with nice guitar and synthesiser interplay that moves into a Kraftwerk-style of electronica; "Encounter" with guitar synth pyrotechnics conjuring visions of King Crimson, before turning a corner into the symphonic realm; "Nightmist" with vocoder voices and its soaring sequencer melody so readily reminiscent of Tangerine Dream; and the dreamlike "Ocean Of Dreams" that opens with the peal of tubular bells before the synthesisers takeover, and then with the synths being overlaid with military-style snare drumming and tubular bells for much of the journey.
I like this album, but have a bias towards works from Australia. That said, I don't believe fans of electronic music or space rock wherever they be from would be disappointed if they were to stumble upon Ebondàzzar in their travels (review by T.Rox at progarchives.com)

Review 2
This subgenre isn't my specialisation, but I'm on somewhat of a mission to collect as much vintage Australian prog as I can, hence I tracked down this album. I love it more than I expected I would.
The compositional style is fairly minimalist, most of the pieces are built on simple repeated patterns and a fairly limited harmonic palette; like most minimalist music it makes up for a lack of complexity by creating hypnotic moods. Their strength is the diversity of their sound palette - their mix of various synthesizers and electronic effects with more organic instruments (especially their use of guitar), and music concrete approaches. (One guest instrumentalist is crediting with 'swimming', and they're serious - the swimming is an important part of the sound world of "Penguin")
The tracks of the first side segue seamlessly, but very diverse moods are evoked - heavy guitars and drums to open the album, calming down quickly to a more pastoral sound (with much use of flute colours); then a more strictly electronic soundworld with Tangerine Dream -style use of sequencers; then a more abstract soundworld with unsettling doppler-effect sounds sweeping in and out; then into a more ambient mood with lightly arpeggiated guitar, a simple and soothing synth contribution, ocean sounds (and, incongruously, military-style drumming), and fading out with the ocean. The second side offers more discrete compositions, again each exploring a unique soundworld - the final two tracks offer a more organic guitar-dominated approach (an acoustic, pastoral vibe for "Snail's Pace", a more electric rock feel for "Agent's Lunch"); "Penguin" and the lengthy "Along For The Ride" is back in Tangerine Dream-style territory (but with a prominent, if low-mixed, role for guitar in the latter); "The Hunt" mixes both soundworlds. [ review by S175 at progarchives.com]
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Considering this was recorded on a 4 track machine in the lounge room of a house at Henley Beach - South Australia, the quality is actually very good. I was lucky enough to grab a copy of this album at one of their "survival" shows in the backyard of the house. The live sound was superb with a surround sound speaker set-up. From memory it was a limited 500 unit pressing they financed themselves. They were the "house band" at Portobello in Adelaide for a while too I think. [Misanthropist, 2009]
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I myself only stumbled upon this album recently and was totally blown away with the progressiveness that it exhibits and can't believe that Peak didn't go onto record more. Every track on this album has a unique sound and the musicianship of these two artists is equal to any of the great Kraut Rock artists from the 70's and 80's. My favourite tracks would have to be "The Hunt" with its Troll like groans overlaying the soaring guitar riffs, "Nighmist" with its mesmorizing synth sequences echoing the sounds of Vangelis, and "Abyss" which is a dead set lift from Pink Floyds Dark Side Of The Moon. "Penguins" is an interesting track, commencing with a swimming sequence (reminiscent of Pink Floyd sound effects from "Lapse Of Reason") but quickly moves into a bouncey, boppy tune that is probably trying to portray a penguin when it walks. Being an Adelaide band, I'm sure the boys would have ventured across to Kangaroo Island at some stage in their life to visit the Penguin rookaries, and consequently influenced this track.
Needless to say, I really like this album, and highly recommend you give it a go, even if the progressive sound is not your thing. This truely is a lost gem!
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Track Listing
01. Encounter (7:44)
02. Nightmist (6:24)
03. Abyss (3:29)
04. Ocean Of Dreams (5:25)
05. Penguin (4:38)
06. Along For The Ride (9:13)
07. The Hunt (4:21)
08. Snail's Pace (3:36)
09. Agent's Lunch (2.28)
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Line-up / Musicians:
- Robert Reekes-Parsons / keyboard synthesisers, vocoder (A2), strings, electric piano, tubular bells, fragmented guitar, vocal effects
- Paul Fisher / guitar synthesiser, electric guitars, acoustic guitars, keyboard synthesisers, electronic effects, grunting
Additional Artists
- John Haffert / drums
- Kym Martin / military snare
- Lindon Lisk / bass
- Brook Mostyn-Smith / swimming
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Peak Link (87Mb)  New Link 7/08/2018

Queen - Live Unlicensed (1997) Bootleg

(U.K 1970-2009)
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This bootleg was recorded in London on the 12th July, 1986 at the Wembley Stadium, during Queen's 'A Magic Tour', as indicated at  [bootlegzone.com]
The Magic Tour took in 26 dates around Europe's stadiums, in support of their newest album 'A Kind of Magic'. The tour commenced in Stockholm on June 7th, made its way back to London in July and then finally finishing in Spain on August 5th, before heading home again for their last concert at Knebworth. The Magic Tour was the biggest and final tour by Queen with their lead singer Freddie Mercury. In 1987, Mercury was diagnosed with AIDS and the band together made the decision to cease touring, making the concert at Knebworth on 9 August 1986 the last time the four members of Queen would perform on stage together.

Large as it is, Wembley Stadium is not the biggest stadium in the world, but in many ways it's the most important, the 'Wimbledon of rock' so to speak. There aren't that many groups who can fill it once, so the knowledge that it was full for two consecutive nights was a proof and a demonstration to the four members of Queen of their power. Attendances on each night were 72,000.
If it's of any interest, the architect's plans for Wembley Stadium are wrong. They are, in fact, four feet out. This may not matter much to a fan, but it nearly spelt disaster for Queen. Working to the plans, a special stage had been built, designed to fill one complete end of Wembley, and working against the dock the crew found it was precisely four feet too long. This wasn't the only problem at Wembley. The local authority are famous for their stringent regulations, and they refused permission for the gas torches that when lit flared out from the side of the stage (to make sure that Queen didn't use them on the second, and final concert, they even posted a guard on the gas cylinders all night!)

But God must be a Queen fan. On the Saturday it poured all day, drenching the 72,000 crowd and Status Quo as well. But it miraculously stopped for a while when Queen came on (not permanently, though - He doesn't like all their numbers). Freddie got wet as well as the band moved out from the covered part of the stage, to the front, as the lights were turned on the crowd. Four huge inflatable dummies of the group were released into the air. Two were hauled down by fans but two floated up to land in someone's garden miles away.

If the atmosphere at the concert was special because it was Wembley, the party afterwards was special because it was after Wembley. The group took over the Gardens night club, high over London with a huge roof garden filled with exotic food and strange sights. Members of the band joined other rock stars in impromptu jam sessions, and John Deacon didn't leave for home until 9 in the morning. [extract from Queen: A Magic Tour, Queen Productions Ltd, 1987. page 15]

Concert Review
The second night at Wembley Stadium is probably the most famous and well-documented concert of Queen's career. It was filmed by 15 cameras with the initial intention to air it on TV in October. David Bowie was rumoured to join the band on stage for Under Pressure, but it never materialized. Mick Jagger was in the audience, and hung out with the band before the show.
The band, particularly Freddie, seem to be a bit nervous at various points tonight, knowing well that this was the big show that was being filmed to be seen by millions of people throughout the ages. His voice is in not quite as good shape as it was last night, which led to many vocal overdubs being done for the TV/radio simulcast and official releases. Brian's nerves also reveal themselves early on, as he messes up the tapping solo in the middle of One Vision (the only time he ever missed it), and later he completely omits the first half of the Hammer To Fall solo (which he also did in Brussels).

All of these slight flaws aside, the video demonstrates how Queen had simply mastered their craft, having arguably orchestrated the perfect stadium show. It reveals a band who, through the unparalleled showmanship and charisma of Freddie Mercury, were able to connect with every one of the 72,000 people on hand. Brian May would later refer to Queen's touring work ethic as becoming "a well-oiled machine" when in the swing of things.

Pictured above is a great shot of one of the blow-ups of the band members released into the sky during 'A Kind Of Magic'. One of them was found by an old lady in her back yard the next morning.
After the impromptu, Brian May puts on a clinic of how to construct a guitar solo. A polar opposite of last night's mediocre solo spot, tonight's rendition is simply magnificent, and perhaps the definitive example of his musicality in the spotlight.

This is another one of those shows where Freddie shouts "Go Johnny!" during the instrumental part of Now I'm Here, referencing 'Johnny B. Goode' by Chuck Berry. The band attempt a couple more covers tonight, both for the last time - Gimme Some Lovin' and Big Spender. The songs had been tried out earlier in the tour, and the latter had been performed often throughout the 70s (unfortunately neither of these tracks appear on this bootleg release).
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After the show, billed as "Dicky Hart And The Pacemakers" for fun, Queen and some other stars, including Cliff Richard and Samantha Fox, had a jam session at the Kensington Roof Gardens Night Club. Tutti Frutti and Sweet Little Rock And Roller were among the songs played. Short video clips have turned up in documentaries, like The Magic Years. The picture above shows Brian May and Roger Taylor moonlighting under the name of "Dick Hart And The Pacemakers".

The first lengthy official release of this show was a 1990 VHS, missing eight songs. The studio version of Brighton Rock is heard at the beginning while showing the stage and rig being set up by the crew. Vocal overdubs were present on this release and all future releases: One Vision, A Kind Of Magic, Who Wants To Live Forever, and We Are The Champions (at least) were patched up, and backing vocals for the bridge of Hammer To Fall were added as well. The usual level adjustments were done on vocals and all instruments, but many of Spike Edney's synth parts are notably much lower than they were at the show.

A 2CD version was released in 1992, with only the Tutti Frutti reprise cut. The complete show was released on CD and DVD in 2003. The US version includes three songs from the first night, and one from the Budapest show as bonus tracks. The DVD included plenty of extras, including rehearsal footage and 5 songs from the first night at Wembley. It was released once again on CD and DVD in 2011, with the DVD including the entire first night
The radio and TV broadcasts, as well as the official releases, have led to dozens of bootlegs released over the years - many of which were disguised as other shows [extract from queenlive.ca]
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This post consists of MP3 rips (320kps) taken from the 1997 AMCOS Bootleg and features approx 75% of the original concert - the recording originating from a Radio Broadcast most likely. Included is full album artwork for this Australian bootleg, but I have also included some additional covers from alternative bootleg releases. Also included are an extensive number of concert photos taken from queenlive.ca and their Magic Tour booklet. The sound quality on the bootleg is exceptional and will not disappoint.
Note: Support bands at the Wembley concert were Australia's very own INXS, Status Quo, and The Alarm.
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Track Listing

01 - Brighton Rock
02 - One Vision
03 - Tie Your Mother Down
04 - In The Lap Of The Gods
05 - Seven Seas Of Rhye
06 - A Kind Of Magic
07 - Under Pressure
08 - Another One Bites The Dust
09 - Who Wants To Live Forever
10 - I Want To Break Free
11 - Is This The World We Created

12 - Tutti Frutti
13 - Bohemian Rhapsody
14 - Hammer To Fall
15 - Crazy Little Thing Called Love
16 - Radio Gaga
17 - We Will Rock You
18 - Friends Will Be Friends
19 - We Are The Champions
20 - God Save The Queen
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Queen were:
Freddie Mercury (lead vocals, piano, electric guitar),
Brian May (electric guitar, backing vocals, acoustic guitar, keyboards),
Roger Taylor (drums, backing vocals, tambourine),
John Deacon (bass guitar),
Spike Edney (keyboards, piano, electric guitar, backing vocals)
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Queen Link (177Mb) New Link 15/10/2023