British progressive rock band, early 1970s. Glencoe was one of those bands people tend to overlook, which is a pity since they have a surplus of significant music to offer. Having recorded two albums under the Forever More nameplate, in 1971 the four principals (drummer Stuart Francis, bassist Alan Gorrie, and guitarists Onnie McIntyre and Mick Strode, decided to reinvent themselves as Glencoe. Before the band could record anything Gorrie and McIntyre bailed, reappearing in The Average White Band. Francis and Strode quickly recruited keyboard player Graham Maitland and bassist Norman Watt-Roy. The quartet hit the road touring the English club and college circuit, but in early 1972 Strode quit. He was replaced by guitarist John Turnbull, whose resume included time with The Chosen Few, ARC, and Skip Biffery.

Thanks in part to the luridly alluring title and the enthusiastically informative liner notes by Bob Koester, this solid collection was many a young musician's introduction to the men who pioneered blues piano in the first half of the 20th century. Roosevelt Sykes is the best represented artist here, and his leering vocals are hard to resist: After hearing the ribald metaphor of "Dresser Drawers," you'll never view furniture quite the same way again. His "Kickin' Motor Scooter" is truly a marvel of smiling euphemism, with the song devoted to boasts of how he's "A dangerous motor scooter…A tricky motor scooter!" Other artists, while not always as inventive lyrically, show a wide range of piano styles, from the bouncing syncopated jazz of "Stendahl Stomp" to the trickling upper registers and restrained bass coaxed by Curtis Jones from a battered old piano in "Tin Pan Alley Blues #2"…

If any musical justification were needed for the breakup of Simon & Garfunkel, it could be found on this striking collection, Paul Simon's post-split debut. From the opening cut, "Mother and Child Reunion" (a Top Ten hit), Simon, who had snuck several subtle musical explorations into the generally conservative S&G sound, broke free, heralding the rise of reggae with an exuberant track recorded in Jamaica for a song about death. From there, it was off to Paris for a track in South American style and a rambling story of a fisherman's son, "Duncan" (which made the singles chart). But most of the album had a low-key feel, with Simon on acoustic guitar backed by only a few trusted associates (among them Joe Osborn, Larry Knechtel, David Spinozza, Mike Manieri, Ron Carter, and Hal Blaine, along with such guests as Stefan Grossman, Airto Moreira, and Stephane Grappelli)…

An interesting rarity, prog rock from South Africa in the early '70s. Other than the African lyrical themes, the music does has African flavour, but is mainly UK-styled prog/folk rock.
This album has actually been released in 3 different versions; the first was in 1972 a year or so after the phenomenal 'African Day' album. In 1973 'Africa She Too Was Cry' was released in the UK (and Europe) by the Charisma label (home of Genesis at the time) with a revised track listing and credited to JoBurg Hawk. In the late 90's an unofficial CD with the same title was released by the Japanese Never Land label. Despite the fact that this was a pirate CD, it was also more of a compilation than a re-issue, as it featured tracks from all 3 Hawk albums…

Based in Los Angeles, California, USA, Joyous Noise comprised Lee Montgomery (vocals), Marc McClure (guitar, keyboards, dobro), Lance Wakely (lead guitar), Happy Smith (bass) and Dennis Dragon (drums). McClure was previously a member of Levitt And McClure, an excellent country-influenced act associated with San Francisco’s Beau Brummels.
A similar style of music was present on both Joyous Noise albums, but an interest in jazz was equally apparent. McClure subsequently embarked on an ill-starred solo career before joining the reformed Spanky And Our Gang in 1976. Dennis Dragon, brother of Daryl Dragon of Captain And Tennille, later joined the irreverent Surf Punks.
"Wanderingman" is the band's 2nd effort. Compared to the first album, it is more progressive/psychedelic oriented as 'Wanderingman Suite' is a killer track in the album which reminds of typical American progsters in the same era. First time on CD!

The first two albums are blessed with a wonderfully damp, wooden power trio sound full of great, effortlessly sweet playing and fine material. This, their final album takes a slight dive into harder driving waters. The guitars are a bit sharper, the tempos and pace a bit more propulsive. But the overall sound remains the same, an open sound with loud, prominent bass tones, snaky melodic lines and thick guitar sounds. It's at least as good as their first two albums, better maybe, if only because of the more purposeful, aggressive performances.

A Swedish rock kaleidoscope Arbete Och Fritid, founded in 1969 by the key player/cellist/composer Ove Karlsson, had established themselves by means of versatile rock inquiry, based upon purified Swedish folk music. The members, frequently changed except Ove depending upon music styles, had had the point in common that they had been remarkably influenced by experimental jazz/underground rock, and also avantgarde/minimalism like John Cage, Terry Riley, or La Monte Young.
Mainly in 1970s around Sweden or Northern Europe, they had given thousands of gigs, that liberated lots of people from "typical rock" with eclectic music essence merged with folk, jazz, rock, avantgarde, dadaism, meditation…

After a couple of years of relentless touring, Humble Pie capitalized on their loyal U.S. following to capture the market with this, their fifth studio album. Although lead guitarist Peter Frampton was replaced by Clem Clemson – an excellent player – the band remained essentially the same. Led by singer/guitarist Steve Marriott's soulful wail, the group enjoyed a huge hit from this record, "30 Days in the Hole" – the track which defined the Pie's not-so-subtle appeal. The rest of the record is equally funky and intriguing. Stephen Stills guests on "Road Runner 'G' Jam," playing some nasty Hammond organ fills. In the end, though, the group defined themselves as the undisputed leaders of the boogie movement in the early 1970s, as a band.

If Wishbone Ash can be considered a group who dabbled in the main strains of early-'70s British rock without ever settling on one (were they a prog rock outfit like Yes, a space rock unit like Pink Floyd, a heavy metal ensemble like Led Zeppelin, or just a boogie band like Ten Years After?), the confusion compounded by their relative facelessness and the generic nature of their compositions, Argus, their third album, was the one on which they looked like they finally were going to forge their own unique amalgamation of all those styles into a sound of their own. The album boasted extended compositions, some of them ("Time Was," "Sometime World") actually medleys of different tunes, played with assurance and developing into imaginative explorations of new musical territory and group interaction.

Providence were the only American band signed to the Moody Blues' Threshold label back in the seventies. The group hailed from the Pacific Northwest, and distinguished themselves by their lack of a drummer, featuring instead nothing but various stringed instruments and a keyboardist. The keyboardist played piano, harpsichord, and sometimes organ, rather than ARP or Mellotron like so many of the band's contemporaries. The band's lone released album was produced by longtime Moody Blues producer Tony Clarke, and the band's music, particularly the vocals, reveal the strong influence of that band. The band recorded original compositions that featured languid string arrangements, sometimes psychedelic guitar as well as acoustic, and a bass that pretty much comprised the rhythm section for the band. Their lyrics ranged from fantasy to nature to hippy philosophy, and tended toward naively-positive themes.

A very obscure and difficult to locate album produced in Germany in the early-70's. This is a dreamy progressive folk album that appears to be a duo augmented by sessions musicians (in the manner of Witthuser + Westrupp but with vocals sung in English). The album does venture out into a tougher rock sound at times while at others it will float on a bed of mellotron sound which hazily recalls the sound of early King Crimson or The Moody Blues. A very interesting and rare album which is well worth a listen.