Available again: Teegarden & Van Winkle

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Hilton Valentine – All In Your Head (1969)

Hilton Stewart Paterson Valentine (21 May 1943 – 29 January 2021) was an English musician who was the original guitarist in the Animals.

Valentine was born in North Shields, Northumberland, England, and was influenced by the 1950s skiffle craze. His mother bought him his first guitar in 1956 when he was 13,[2] he taught himself some chords from a book called “Teach Yourself a Thousand Chords”. He continued to develop his musical talent at John Spence Community High School and formed his own skiffle group called the Heppers. They played local gigs and a newspaper described them at the time as, “A young but promising skiffle group”. The Heppers eventually evolved into a rock and roll band, the Wildcats in c. 1959. During this period Valentine played a Futurama III solid guitar, this was the UK brandname of importer Selmer, his next guitar was a Burns Vibra-Artiste which he bought in 1960–61. The Wildcats were a popular band in the Tyneside area, getting a lot of bookings for dance halls, working men’s clubs, church halls etc., and it was during this period that they decided to record a 10″ acetate LP titled Sounds of the Wild Cats (sic).

In 1963, the Animals were starting to form and Chas Chandler heard about Hilton Valentine’s wild guitar playing and asked him to join what was then the Alan Price Combo. Eric Burdon was already a member and John Steel joined immediately following Valentine’s arrival. Within a few months, this group changed their name to the Animals.

While the Animals are often remembered most for Burdon’s vocals and Price’s organ, Valentine is credited with the electric guitar arpeggio introduction to the Animals’ 1964 signature song “The House of the Rising Sun”, which inspired countless beginning guitarists. It was played on his Gretsch Tennessean[3] guitar which he bought in Newcastle in early 1962 while he was still with the Wildcats, and a Selmer amplifier. Later, in 1964, Rickenbacker gave him a 1964 Rose Morris guitar to use along with a 12-string model.

Valentine continued to play and record with the Animals, until the first incarnation of the band dissolved in September 1966.

Valentine subsequently moved to California and recorded a solo album entitled All In Your Head, which was not successful. The album was produced and arranged by later Animals member Vic Briggs. Valentine then returned to the UK, and over the years joined several Animals reunions.

Along with Eric Burdon, Chas Chandler, Alan Price and John Steel, Valentine was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. Along with the other Animals, Hilton was inducted into Hollywood’s Rock Walk of Fame in May 2001. He released a new album, It’s Folk ‘n’ Skiffle, Mate! in 2004.

From that release until October 2009 he played throughout New England, New York and South Carolina, with his Skiffledog solo project. As well, from February 2007 to November 2008 Valentine toured with Eric Burdon. In early 2009 he released two basement demo recordings on his MySpace page.

In 2011, Valentine released a new album titled Skiffledog on Coburg Street and a Christmas album with Big Boy Pete Miller ex-Peter Jay and the Jaywalkers titled Merry Skifflemas!.[citation needed]

In his later years, Valentine resided in Connecticut. He died there on 29 January 2021, at the age of 77. (wikipedia)

Hilton Valentine really got his start playing lead guitar with the Animals. Those were the old raving days, when Scotch and hit records and chicks and shiny limos and riots made up most of an Animal’s life. “House of the Rising Sun” days – and nights. There was even a time when Hilton got sacks of fan mail while the Burdon Himself wistfully shrugged and waited for a card from his Mum. Hilton never did anything on stage, lie just stood and played and maybe grinned. The letters and the girls rolled in. Obviously another pretty face. Everyone loves Mr. Valentine. Very sweet. He kisses the ladies’ hands. Can you stand much more? The poor geezer’s not to blame. A Taurus/Gemini cusper, Hilton exudes charm and gentleness. The Taurus comes out after 10. He is still a dedicated looner. Even after years of Eric Burdon shows, he makes a special trip to see his friend onstage, shouts, “Too much!” and laughs all over everybody’s drinks. Fortunately, he is more Gemini. Hilton’s music and message are airy, yet apt. The stuff you think of, hut nearly always keep to yourself. Things of youth and life and truth and beauty. If it is a wee mite naive it is also optimistic. (taken from the orginal liner notes by Debbi Smith (Strobe Magazine)

There’s always been a special place in the heart of record collectors for late Sixties acid casualty albums. Syd Barrett’s solo work and Alexander ‘Skip’ Spence’s extraordinary Oar LP are probably the best known examples of this intriguing little sub-genre, but there are quite a few others worthy of note, particularly Sky Saxon’s post-Seeds adventures with religious cult/commune Ya Ho Wha and former Monkees songwriter Craig Smith’s equally spaced-out vinyl adventures as Maitreya Kali.

Somehow, though, Hilton Valentine’s 1969 solo effort, the psychedelic folk-flavoured All In Your Head, seems to have slipped through the net, having eluded even the nefarious attentions of those individuals who can’t stumble across a collectable album without bootlegging it. As guitarist with the Animals, Hilton had had a seismic effect on both the British and American music scenes of the mid-Sixties, from his iconic arpeggio intro to ‘House Of The Rising Sun’ to the clanging Rickenbacker chords that had shaped such classics as ‘It’s My Life’ and ‘We’ve Gotta Get Out Of This Place’.

But by the time that the original Animals went their separate ways in the summer of 1966, Hilton was marinated in the acid experience, and he was still attempting to get out of the drug’s clutches when, in 1969, he was given the opportunity to fly to California to record a solo album for Capitol Records.

A fascinating collection of wide-eyed, flowerchild- of-the-universe songs delivered in endearingly ramshackle fashion (though it should be noted that Hilton has subsequently disowned the album, unhappy with the baroque arrangements that were grafted onto his original, largely acoustic recordings), All In Your Head had a similar sense of melody and the same naive, childlike whimsy as similar-vintage recordings by Donovan. Unfortunately, a worsening of relations between Capitol and the Animals’ management meant that, in addition to only being issued in America and Canada, All In Your Head was given little or no promotion.

Forty years later, even some hardcore Animals fanatics remain unaware of its existence. Hopefully this first-ever reissue, which represents the first time that All In Your Head has been made unavailable outside of North America, will bring a little-known but thoroughly charming album from one of the era’s key musicians to wider attention.

As he had been for the last three years or so, Hilton was firmly under the influence of Donovan, so it’s no surprise that All In Your Head followed the Celtic Bard’s late Sixties template: latter-day nursery rhymes with a strong peace’n’love hippie ethos, fey vocals that reflected the childlike lyrics, strummed guitars, baroque orchestration and a general late Sixties psychedelic folk vibe. Two of the songs had already seen the light of day more than a couple of years earlier, ‘Run Run Run’ having been recorded by Keith Shields, and the near-title track ‘It’s All In Your Head’ by Natasha Pyne. Nevertheless, they fitted in perfectly with more recent material like ‘Girl From Allemagne’, a lilting, charming love song that Hilton recently recalled he’d written when “I was tripping at a friend’s place, and I was looking at this giri across the room who was from Germany – I felt we were communicating telepathically, and I wrote a song about it.”

Hilton, however, was (and still is) extremely unhappy with what he felt to be unsuitable or overpowering arrangements, recently claiming that the production “had lost the plot of what I was trying to do”. To be honest, he does have a point. Some of Vic Briggs’ arrangements are perhaps obtrusively florid; ‘Run Run Run’, for example, is punctuated by some ridiculous didgeridoo-style interjections, the charming simplicity of ‘Is There Anything But Love’ is compromised by the horns arrangement, and ‘Little Soldiers’ bears that peculiar late Sixties weakness for vaudeville backdrops.

Nevertheless, there are occasions when the instrumentation matches the song perfectly, and the bulk of the album is a triumph. Hilton’s homespun, Age of Aquarius philosophising blends with a strong sense of melody and his pleasingly wistful vocals on a handful of wide-eyed paeans to Mother Nature, including ‘Listen’, ‘Sitting In The Sun’ and the drowsy, hypnotic ‘Peace’, with its “peace be with you my friend” refrain and general Byrds-like air. The laconic ‘It’s All In Your Head’ has a gently rolling, Dylanish charm that transcends the rather unsympathetic arrangement, but perhaps the strongest track is the gorgeous ‘Everything Returns To Me’, a fragile beauty that’s so catchy that it really should have been issued as a single.

Sadly, Capitol chose not to release a single, and All In Your Head didn’t make too much of an impression. Hilton claims this was due to Burdon leaving Deverich’s management (“everything fell to pieces when Eric left Kevin”), and it may well be the case that Capitol’s dwindling relationship with the Animals’ camp played its part. Vic Briggs was sacked by Capitol in December 1969, having acted as producer on no less than three former Animals’ solo albums (All In Your Head, Danny McCulloch’s Wings Of A Man and Zoot Money’s Welcome To My Head} as well as former Music Machine lead singer Sean Bonniwell’s Close and Mark Eric’s highly regarded A Midsummer Day’s Dream (the latter as arranger only).

Whatever the reason for All In Your Head disappearing into the ether, it left Hilton very much a stranger in a strange land. Burdon once again helped out, employing him as a roadie for the duration of Eric’s two-year liaison with the band War. “LA was perfect for me at the time”, Hilton subsequently admitted. “It was the flower-power thing. I was even chanting ‘Hare Krishna’ for a while. Thank God I’m not still doing that. I couldn’t handle the yellow robes…”

When the Burdon/War gig ended, Hilton signed on the dole. Meanwhile, he was playing in a CSNY-style soft rock band called Oojakapiv, who signed a one-album deal with a local record company, only for the advance to mysteriously disappear. With no money coming in, he accepted an offer to become manager of the Theatre Restaurant in LA. By the time that the original Animals reconvened in late 1975 to make the wittily-titled album Before We Were So Rudely Interrupted (not released until August 1977 due to legal difficulties involving Burdon’s former managers), Hilton had been a Buddhist for two or three years. “In retrospect, I’d always been trying to escape from my life until then -trying to transcend to somewhere else”, he told Andy Blackford in 1986. “When I started to practice Buddhism, I began to realize that this is where it’s all at. There isn’t anywhere else, other than in your daily life.”

Hilton returned to England in 1977, working for Chas Chandler for a year or so before moving back to his native North Shields in 1980. Further musical endeavors followed. On the back of a 1982 reissue of The House Of The Rising Sun’ that peaked at No. 11 in the UK singles chart, the Animals came together once more to record an album of new material, Ark, as well as embarking on an extensive worldwide tour which resulted in the LP Greatest Hits Live!

When the Animals once again found they were unable to tolerate each others’ presence on a permanent basis, Hilton reformed his pre-Animals band, the Wildcats, before joining forces with John Steel and Dave Rowberry (who’d been Alan Price’s replacement back in 1965) in Animals II. He then returned to America, settling down in Connecticut, where he began to concentrate on acoustic music. Using the pseudonym Skiffledog, in 2004 he released a new CD entitled It’s Folk 7V Skiffle, Mate!, which included stripped-down revamps of two All In Your Head songs, ‘Peace’ and ‘Run Run Run1. Having toured extensively with Eric Burdon, he has recently recorded with fellow Sixties survivor, Yardbirds drummer Jim McCarty.

Forty years after the subterranean release of his first solo album, Hilton still claims that he’d rather forget all about it. That’s the artist’s prerogative, of course, but there’s nothing about the charming period-piece All In Your Head that should embarrass him – apart, maybe, from the groovy, astrologically-inclined original sleeve note from the editor of Strobe magazine, one Debbi Smith. But such is life. Here, then, is All In Your Head in all its beautiful, gentle, enigmatic, late Sixties acid casualty glory… (by David Wells August 2009)

Personnel:
Hilton Valentine (guitar, vocals)
+
a bunch of unknown studio musicians

Tracklist:
01. Listen 2.37
02. Everything Returns To Me 2.47
03. Its All In Your Head 3.12
04. Little Soldiers 1.53
05. Eyes Of A Child 2.21
06. Sitting In The Sun 2.36
07. Is There Anything But Love 2.45
08. Land Of Children 2.26
09. Run, Run, Run 2.37
10. Peace 3.33
11..Girl From Allemagne 2.51

All songs written by Hilton Valentine

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We, along with all of the music world, mourn the loss today of Hilton Valentine a founding member of The Animals. Valentine was a pioneering guitar player influencing the sound of rock and roll for decades to come. His death was revealed by his wife, Germaine Valentine.

After taking up the guitar at the age of 13 in his native North Shields, Northumberland, he got involved in the skiffle craze then sweeping the British Isles. He was orphaned at the age of 16 and was focused on his skiffle group, The Heppers. They evolved into The Wildcats, a rock and roll band that built a reputation in his native in in the north of England based on Valentine’s energetic performances – he was known to roll on the ground while playing his guitar. When speaking with Modern Guitars in 2006, Valentine recalled, “What drew me to the guitar was seeing Lonnie Donegan doing “Rock Island Line” on television, on a show called the The Six Five Special. I wanted to play guitar after seeing that, and of course, after hearing Chuck Berry and seeing him do the duck walk.”

Valentine caught the attention of Chas Chandler, Alan Price and Eric Burdon who recruited him to join a new group they was forming in 1963. With the final addition of John Steel they would become The Animals. Valentine remained with the band for the next four years and is heard on such classic recordings as “The House of the Rising Sun,” “Baby Let Me Take You Home,” “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood,” “We Gotta Get Out of This Place,” “It’s My Life” and “Don’t Bring Me Down.”

“The House of The Rising Sun” rose to #1 in the UK, US and Canada and is recognized in Rolling Stone’s Greatest Songs of All Time. Hilton Valentine created one of the most iconic guitar riffs in rock music history with his intro on “House Of The Rising Sun.” Upon induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994, Dave Pirner described The Animals essential standing as a “key link in the evolving transition from black R&B to punk rock.” Biographer John Corcoran’s Rock Hall Induction essay stresses how their working-class experience was key to how their folk and blues interpretations would resonate so distinctly compared to Yardbirds, Beatles, Rolling Stones.

Recently Eric Burdon, speaking to Guitar International, commented on the role Valentine played in bringing the Animals hard-edged sound to the fore. “It really was Hilton who made the early Animals a rock band because I don’t think the element of rock was in the band until we found him. In those days, Hilton wasn’t just playing rock ‘n’ roll, he looked rock ‘n’ roll. Here was a guy with the greased mop of hair combed back, cheap leather jacket, winkle picker shoes, black jeans and a smile on his face playing through an echoplex, which was a secret weapon back then.”

Hilton Valentine released a solo album in 1969 entitled “All in Your Head” for Capitol Records. He later reunited with the Animals three times thereafter and recorded “Before We Were So Rudely Interrupted” with the band in 1977 and joined them again in 1983. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with his former bandmates in 1994. In May 2001, he was inducted into Hollywood’s Rock Walk of Fame along with the other Animals and had a two-night reunion concert at the El Rey Theatre.

In recent years, Valentine who lived in Connecticut, returned to skiffle music and formed the band Skiffledog that toured in the US and UK, and released 2 albums, It’s Folk ‘n’ Skiffle, Mate! and Skiffledog on Coburg ST. He could also be found on stage with the great garage bands, The Woggles and The Headless Horsemen, whom he befriended. In 2011 he recorded a holiday album with Big Boy Pete called Merry Skifflemas! referred to on the package as a “festive blend of traditional oldies and original newbies.” He joined Eric Burdon on tour in 2007-08, with whom he remained close. (by abkco.com)

The Al Di Meola Project – Kiss My Axe (1991)

Albert Laurence Di Meola (born July 22, 1954) is an American guitarist. Known for his works in jazz fusion and world music, he began his career as a guitarist of the group Return to Forever in 1974. Between the 1970s and 1980s, albums such as Elegant Gypsy and Friday Night in San Francisco earned him both critical and commercial success.

Kiss My Axe is an album by jazz guitarist Al Di Meola that was released in 1991. (wikipedia)

Despite the aggression its title implies, Kiss My Axe is the work of a softer, more reflective Al di Meola, who had become greatly influenced by Pat Metheny’s subtle lyricism, but still had a very recognizable and distinctive sound. Di Meola’s new approach was perfectly summarized when, in 1991, he told Jazz Times he wanted to be “enchanted” by the music instead of dazzling listeners with his considerable chops. Di Meola still has fine technique, but avoids overwhelming us with it, and shows more restraint than before. One thing that remains is the guitarist’s strong interest in world music — this imaginative session liberally incorporates Latin influences (Brazilian, Spanish, Peruvian and Afro-Cuban) as well as Middle Eastern and African elements. In that Jazz Times interview, di Meola explained that this CD’s title resulted in part from his frustration over the fact that many labels and commercial radio stations were choosing bloodless “elevator muzak” over more adventurous fusion. Consistently rewarding, Axe makes it clear that di Meola did the right thing by refusing to compromise. (by Alex Henderson)

Brilliantly conceived and performed, this is one of the best highlights of Al DiMeola’s 40+ year career as a virtuoso jazz fusion guitarist. This collection of wonderfully arranged and passionately performed original (save for the wonderful Chick Corea piece “Phantom”) pieces showcases Al’s brilliant and original sound, style and amazing guitar technique. Featuring an all star cast including Rachel Z, Omar Hakim and Anthony Jackson, this is an amazing work of art. Al’s total devotion to his work shines here, from the blazing Les Paul to the gentle odes to his daughters. So listenable and yet challenging, the recording should satisfy anyone seeking guitar fireworks and passionate, emotional work. A gem. (James McCurdy)

Personnel:
Omar Hakim (drums)
Anthony Jackson (bass)
Al Di Meola (guitar, keyboards, percussion)
Barry Miles (keyboards)
Richie Morales (drums)
Gumbi Ortiz (percussion)
Tony Scherr (bass)
Arto Tunçboyacıyan (percussion, vocals)
Rachel Z (synthesizer)

Tracklist:
01. South Bound Traveler (Miles) 5.22
02. The Embrace (Di Meola) 5.49
03. Kiss My Axe (Di Meola) 5.04
04. Morocco (Di Meola) 7.40
05. Gigi’s Playtime Rhyme (Interlude #1) (Di Meola) 2.36
06. One Night Last June (Di Meola) 8.20
07. Phantom (Corea) 7.53
08. Erotic Interlude (Interlude #2) (Di Meola) 2.32
09. Global Safari (Di Meola) 5.41
10. Interlude #3 (Di Meola) 2.00
11. Purple Orchids (Di Meola) 6.45
12. The Prophet (Interlude #4) (Di Meola) 1.18
13. Oriana (September 24, 1988) (Di Meola) 5.19

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More from Al Di Meola:

Eric Clapton – Slowhand (1978) (35th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition 2012)

Slowhand is the fifth full-length studio album by Eric Clapton. Released on 25 November 1977 by RSO Records, and titled after Clapton’s nickname, it is one of his most commercially and critically successful studio albums. Slowhand produced the two hit singles “Lay Down Sally” and “Wonderful Tonight”, reached various international music charts and was honoured with numerous awards and recording certifications. In 2012, a deluxe edition was released to celebrate the album’s 35th anniversary.

Clapton wanted to work with record producer Glyn Johns, because he thought Johns produced great work with famous groups like the Rolling Stones and Eagles and understood how to work with both British and American musicians. While in the studio with Johns, Clapton noted that the A-list producer was very disciplined and disliked jamming, because it would kill important recording time. Although Clapton and his band were intoxicated nearly all the time when recording, Johns liked Clapton’s work and brought out the best in every musician, according to Clapton.

The album was titled after Clapton’s nickname, which was given to him by Giorgio Gomelsky. In his 2007 autobiography, Clapton recalled that the name “Slowhand” seemed to be hanging on to his real name, because it seemed to be well received by both his American friends and fans who think of the Wild West when hearing the nickname. The album’s artwork was done by Clapton himself with the help of Pattie Boyd and Dave Stewart, credited as “El & Nell Ink”. Besides choosing various photos for the inner side of the gramophone record packaging are two pictures, Clapton notes, which have deeper importance to him: one picture, in which he kisses Boyd and another photograph showing a demolished Ferrari 365 GT4 BB, which Clapton bought after seeing George Harrison turning up with the same model at his Hurtwood Edge Estate. The car, which had been involved with Clapton in a car accident after the British recording artist finished touring in Australia, nearly killed him.

The rock song “Cocaine” was censored and removed from the Argentine edition of the album in late 1977. The military government of the time considered the song harmful to young people and inviting them to get high. The ban was lifted in 1984. Clapton later said that it is useless to intentionally write an anti-drug song like “Cocaine” and hope that people grasp the meaning. After several years, Clapton began including the phrase “that dirty cocaine” in live performances to highlight the anti-drug message of the song.[citation needed] In addition, Clapton donated much of their funds to Crossroads Centre, a center that helps drug addicts kick their habit and rehabilitate themselves.

Slowhand was released on 25 November 1977 by RSO Records. In a contemporary review for Rolling Stone, John Swenson found Clapton’s playing more subtle than before but his songs sobering and interesting psychologically, especially “Next Time You See Her”, as they showed him “in touch with the horrible moral power and long-suffering self-righteousness that is the essence of the blues”. Robert Christgau was less enthusiastic, lamenting how most of the record’s best guitar solos were played by George Terry and feeling Clapton had regressed as a singer, “sounding like he’s blown his voice. Doing what, I wonder.”

Yahoo! Music’s Dave DiMartino said the record was full of hits and “tasteful” music. In 2003, Slowhand was ranked number 325 on Rolling Stone’s list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, and again in 2012.

In November 2012, a remastered two-compact-disc 35th anniversary deluxe edition of Slowhand was released. The first disc consists of the remastered album, with additional bonus tracks and studio jam sessions. The second disc features a previously unreleased live concert, recorded in April 1977 at the Hammersmith Odeon; although the concert is of the same era as the Slowhand sessions, it was performed prior to the album’s recording and release, and so does not include any of the album’s tracks.(wikipedia)

After the guest-star-drenched No Reason to Cry failed to make much of an impact commercially, Eric Clapton returned to using his own band for Slowhand. The difference is substantial — where No Reason to Cry struggled hard to find the right tone, Slowhand opens with the relaxed, bluesy shuffle of J.J. Cale’s “Cocaine” and sustains it throughout the course of the album. Alternating between straight blues (“Mean Old Frisco”), country (“Lay Down Sally”), mainstream rock (“Cocaine,” “The Core”), and pop (“Wonderful Tonight”), Slowhand doesn’t sound schizophrenic because of the band’s grasp of the material. This is laid-back virtuosity — although Clapton and his band are never flashy, their playing is masterful and assured. That assurance and the album’s eclectic material make Slowhand rank with 461 Ocean Boulevard as Eric Clapton’s best albums. (by Stephen Thomas Erlewine)

Personnel:
Eric Clapton (vocals, guitar)
Mel Collins (saxophone)
Yvonne Elliman (background vocals)
Marcy Levy (background vocals, vocals on 06.)
Jamie Oldaker (drums, percussion)
Carl Radle (bass)
Dick Sims (keyboards)
George Terry (guitar)
+
Sergo Pastora (percussion (on CD 2 + CD 3)

Tracklist:

CD 1 (original album + bonus tracks):
01. Cocaine (Cale) 3.42
02. Wonderful Tonight (Clapton) 3.45
03. Lay Down Sally (Clapton/Terry/Levy) 3.56
04. Next Time You See Her (Clapton) 4.01
05. We’re All the Way (Williams) 2.35
06. The Core (Clapton/Levy) 8.45
07. May You Never (Martyn) 3.02
08. Mean Old Frisco (Crudup) 4.42
+
09. Peaches And Diesel (Clapton/Galuten) 4.51
10. Looking At The Rain (Lightfoot) 3.42
11. Alberta (Traditional) 2.44
12. Greyhound Bus (Clapton) 2.59
13. Stars, Strays And Ashtrays (Clapton) 4.39

CD 2: Live At Hammersmith Odeon, April 27, 1977 (Part 1):
01. Hello Old Friend (Clapton) 3.58
02. Sign Language (Dylan) 3.58
03. Alberta (Traditional) 4.06
04. Tell The Truth (Clapton/Whitlock) 9.01
05. Knocking On Heaven’s Door (Dylan) 5.18
06. Steady Rollin’ Man (Johnson) 6.56
07. Can’t Find My Way Home (Winwood) 6.06
08. Further On Up The Road (Vease/Robey) 6.34
06. Stormy Monday (Walker) 12.44

CD 3: Live At Hammersmith Odeon, April 27, 1977 (Part 2):
01. Badge (Clapton/Harrison) 8.37
02. Nobody Knows You When You’re Down And Out (Cox) 4.00
03. I Shot The Sheriff (Marley) 14.04
04. Layla (Clapton/Gordon) 6.02
05. Key To The Highway (Segar) 7.28

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More from Eric Clapton:

Sweet Pain – Same (1969)

On the cover of the US edition of this album you can read “England´s heavy Blues Super Session”.

This jam album organised by Keith Tillman and led by Victor Brox:

Victor Brox (born 5 May 1941, Ashton-under-Lyne, Lancashire) is an English blues musician from Manchester, England. He attended William Hulme Grammar School where he played trombone in the school cadet force band.

He has been described by Jimi Hendrix and Tina Turner as their favourite white blues singer.

Brox plays a variety of musical instruments including horns, keyboards and guitar, as well as performing vocals.

Though continuing to perform with the Victor Brox Blues Train, he is most widely known for his performance as Caiaphas on the original recording of Jesus Christ Superstar (1970) and for his collaborations.

He has worked with Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Ritchie Blackmore and Ian Gillan of Deep Purple, Charlie Mingus, Memphis Slim, Dr. John, Aynsley Dunbar, Graham Bond, Alexis Korner, John Mayall, Country Joe McDonald, Peter BardensKeith Moon and Dave Wood.

He was the lead singer of The Aynsley Dunbar Retaliation in which he also played keyboards (usually the organ), and sometimes the cornet.

He appeared as a “look-alike” of Leonardo da Vinci in the film Ever After (uncredited, 1998).

His daughter Kyla Brox is also a blues musician. (wikipedia)

The now highly sought after Sweet Pain sessions (1969) featured the precursor line-up to the Bluesblasters and Mainsqueeze, representing a truly fundamental collaboration of musical protagonists.

Members of Alexis Korner’s Blues Incorporated and John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers assembled to record some impromptu blues sessions, released on Mercury.

The Melody Maker summarised Sweet Pain as simply a, “Hot and heavy blues set from British musicians Dick Heckstall-Smith, John O’Leary, Keith Tillman and Annette Brox.”

An air of competence pervaded the LP and reviews received, but the consensus was undoubtedly that these aficionado blues musicians at this stage lacked a degree of commercial appeal, utilising rather raw and ‘primitive’ rhythms.

Like an experienced vintage the line-up continued under further guises, evolving to The Famous Bluesblasters, whom provided Dick with a semi- professional unit playing as he recalls mainly at weekends, thus caught in the rather lack lustre cultural climate of the time towards cutting edge blues. (grahambond.net)

A really great jam album (featuring Dick Heckstall-Smith) …sometimes a little bit strange (“Song Of The Medusa”), but those were the days, my friends …

Personnel:
Annette Brox (vocals)
Victor Brox (guitar)
Sam Crozier (piano, vocals)
Stuart Cowell (guitar)
Junior Dunn (drums)
Dick Heckstall-Smith (saxophone)
John O’Leary (harmonica)
Keith Tilman (bass)

UK edition:

Tracklist:
01.The Steamer (V.Brox) 2.26
02. Changin’ Your Mind (Cowell/A.Brox/Tillman/O’Leary) 2.23
03. Rubbin’ And Scrapin’ (V.Brox/Cowell/Tillman/O’Leary) 5.39
04. Sick And Tired (V.Brox) 4.44
05. The Rooster Crows At Midnight (A.Brox) 2.29
06. Troubles Trouble (V.Brox) 3.51
07. Don’t Break Down (Cowell/A.Brox/Tillman/O’Leary) 5.16
08. It’s A Woman´sWay (A.Brox) 2.51
09. General Smit (V.Brox/Cowell/Tillman/O’Leary) 6.42
10. Trouble In Mind (Jones) 5.27
11. Song Of The Medusa (Joka) 1.39

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Available again: Various Artists – Cadillac Records (OST) (2008)

By request (click on the pic):

Let me know, if links are dead, and I will make them available again ! Please write to:

post-fuer-sammelsurium@gmx.net

Teaze – Tour Of Japan (1978)

The story of Teaze is one of unbridled success in foreign lands, yet often a constant struggle at times for mere recognition on their native soil. They were formed in Windsor, Ontario in 1975 by Brian Danter on bass guitar and vocals, guitarists Mark Bradac and Chuck Price, and Mike Kozak on drums.

“In the beginning, Teaze played hardly any bars – but highschools – which were still the rage then. We really didn’t play clubs period,” Bradac said.

Powered by a heavy but no-nonsense approach, they honed their sound while playing mostly at highschools, and were signed to Stan Whitcher Management, along with Mel Shaw from Stampeders fame. “Mel was the first to put us on out on exclusively on a label called Force One Records, distributed by London Records,” he added.

Their self-titled debut album was in the stores in ’77, but failed to make a dent in the top 40 charts. Still, driven by straight-forward production, the record was as raw a sound as one could capture in a studio, as evidenced by the tracks “Rockin With The Music”, co-written by George Young – older brother and producer of Ac/Dc’s Angus & Malcolm, “Hot To Trot,” and “Boys’ Night Out”. They caught the attention of Bob Rags at Terry Flood Management, and the group was signed to Aquarius records in 1977, who re-released the album.

Their follow-up, ON THE LOOSE, was released early the next year and although still holding true to the band’s simple approach, the record showed a maturity in the writing and featured the rockers “Nobody’s Fool” and a re-make of “Gonna Have A Good Time Tonight.” Also noteable were the title track, “Ready To Move,” and “Sweet Misery.” It was the band’s only ever hit single, and the tender piano and acoustic guitar driven ballad also showcased their versatility.

The group moved operations from Windsor to Montreal the next year and continued touring eastern & central Canada and in the US, but still couldn’t seem to get their ‘big break’. This all changed for Teaze in the fall of 1978 when they travelled to Japan and were met with sold out stadiums and mobs at the airports. But the jury was still out as to whether or not Teaze simply cashed in on rock and roll starved Japanese kids after the likes of KISS, BTO and Cheap Trick had already paved the way. Whatever the reason, the reception of Teaze in Japan was almost comparable to the reception the Beatles or Rolling Stones enjoyed in the United States. Their ten day tour of the Orient led to 1979’s live album, TOUR OF JAPAN.

Later that year the band released their third studio album, ONE NIGHT STANDS. With Myles Goodwyn of April Wine (also on the Aquarius label) behind the helm, it showed a definite progression from its predecessors. Ranging from the typical ballad “Loose Change”, the record’s only single, to the straight forward – grab you by the balls “Back in Action” and “Young & Reckless”, ONE NIGHT STANDS was typical Teaze, but with a maturity. However the tour that followed was a disappointing failure, considering management’s expectations following the band’s success overseas.

The group cut BODY SHOTS in the summer of 1980, their final album. Though two singles were released, “Roses and Chrome” and “Living On The Edge”, the record still failed to garner enough radio interest to support another full-fledged attempt at cracking the North American market. Management at Aquarius by this time had decided that “Teazemania” was never going to catch on here and chose not to commit to any more records.

Now without a deal, Teaze continued to do arena and theatre dates in and around the Toronto area, but disbanded in 1981. Everyone went on to do individual projects and life outside of music. Bradac opened up a pawnshop, and eventually became so established in the business he landed a role on “Pawnathon Canada,” a TV show where experts buy people’s relics and memorabilia.

A ‘best of’ package titled A TASTE OF TEAZE was released in ’84 and the compilation OVER SIXTY MINUTES WITH TEAZE, the definitive collection with 17 tracks, followed in 1990. (by canadianbands.com)

The band reformed in 2019 and were scheduled to perform live in Europe during 2020.

Reuinon Tourposter:

And here´s their legendary “Tour Of Japan” album:

The band Teaze, formed in Windsor, Ontario, in the mid-’70s, started out as a cover band, and, in 1976, the band released a self-titled debut for a local label. On the success of that album, Teaze signed to Aquarius Records and released their debut album for the label, On the Loose, in 1977. The album and the single, “Sweet Misery,” were a hit, and in 1978 Teaze embarked on a world tour. One of the first stops on the tour was Tokyo, Japan, which was the band’s first performance outside of Canada. The concert was recorded for posterity and technical reasons, but it was not originally intended to be a live album. The show went so well and overseas demand for Teaze recordings was so great that the recording was released as the album Tour of Japan later that year while the band was still on the road.

The album consisted of ten songs from the live set and focused mainly on the band’s live energy and consisted of material from their pre-Aquarius days and the On the Loose album. Noticeably missing from the songlist was the band’s biggest and only hit “Sweet Misery,” a song that did not fit well with the hard rock image of the band. The album was a huge seller in Europe and Asia, and it attracted the attention of Capitol Records in the U.S.A. with an offer of a recording contract. The album also established Teaze as one of Canada’s premier hard rock acts with international recognition. (by Keith Pettipas)

This album shows you how big Teaze was in Japan, which was HUGE if you didn’t guess it. This is full of high energy versions of songs from their earliest albums. As a band this showcases how well these 4 young men fit together as a unit. The vocals, guitar, bass and drums are all precise and the timing shows how much work was put into practicing. Just one of many groups that deserved a better fate.
I recommend this, but would suggest One Night Stands as the best place to start and then perhaps Greatest Hits.

Personnel:
Marc Bradac (guitar, slide guitar, background vocals)
Brian Danter (bass, vocals)
Mike Kozak (drums, percussion)
Chuck Price (guitar, background vocals)

Alternate front+backcover:

Tracklist:
01. Rockin’ With The Music (Bradac) 4.10
02. Lady Killer (Prize/Bradac/Kozak) 3.24
03. Come On Hold On (Danter) 4.34
04. Baby Why Can’t U (Danter)
05. On The Loose (Danter/Bradac) 7.18
06. Open My Eyes (Danter) 6.56
07. Tonite It’s Me (Kozak) 3.36
08. Boys Nite Out (Bradac/Kozak) 7.06
09. Gonna Have A Good Time Tonite (Vanda/Young) 3.43
10. Hot To Trot (Danter/Prize/Bradac/Kozak) 3.56

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More from Teaze:

Teegarden & Van Winkle – Experiemental Groundwork (1973)

Teegarden & Van Winkle were an American musical duo, composed of Skip (Knape) Van Winkle (electronic organ, organ pedal bass, vocals) and David Teegarden (drums, vocals). Formed in Tulsa, the duo took its brand of folksy rock to Detroit.

David Teegarden and Skip Knape (a/k/a Van Winkle) first came together in their hometown of Tulsa, Oklahoma in the early 60’s while in a local singer’s backup band. They later formed their own band, went their separate ways, and knocked around the Tulsa club circuit throughout the 60’s. They found each other by chance years later in Los Angeles at the home of a fellow Tulsa musician made good, Leon Russell. The duo recorded one single as the Sunday Servants that went nowhere, then toured as a backup band, playing at clubs with singer Denny White. When White suddenly quit the act while in Nevada, Teegarden & Van Winkle carried on as a duo to fulfill their obligations. They returned to Tulsa for a while, then set off for Detroit in 1969.

Their single “God, Love and Rock & Roll”, which borrowed heavily from “Amen”, peaked at #22 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #7 in Canada in 1970. Their single “Everything Is Gonna Be Alright” (aka “Shoes”), released the same year, was covered by, among others, The Temptations on their “Live At London’s Talk of the Town” album. The duo occasionally worked with Bob Seger, appearing live at his concert and producing an album with Seger and guitarist Mike Bruce. Teegarden later appeared as the drummer in Bob Seger’s Silver Bullet Band, recording four further albums with Seger.[vague] In 1972-1973, while Teegarden toured with Bob Seger, Knape put his own full band together consisting of horns and female vocals. Sheila “Shea” Chambers and Shaun Murphy (also known as Stoney Reese) were vocalists in Knape’s band, as well as pre-RCA Victor recording artist Dan Schafer on guitar and vocals with Jim Langois on drums, Dave Heater on sax and Jack Muncie on trumpet.

In the early 1990s, former Doors guitarist Robbie Krieger formed a trio called The Robby Krieger Organization featuring Knape on electric organ and organ pedal bass and Dale Alexander on drums and backing vocals.

Teegarden & Van Winkle reunited for another album, Radioactive, in 1997.

In 2012, Knape was working and recording with the Stronghold Rockin Blues Quest in Southern California. He can be seen in the Strong Rhythm and Blues Quartet’s video “Big Girl” featuring Chuck Strong on drums and vocals. In 2016, Van Winkle began performing every Tuesday night at Bergie’s steakhouse in Santa Clarita, California.

Skip (Knape) Van Winkle died on 27 November 2018 at age 74. (wikipedia)

This is their last album from the Seventies and it´s a real cray album /listen to “Audience induction”), a sort a Rock N Roll meditation album … with a lot of great cover versions and two original compositions by Skip “Van Winkle” Knapé .

Mayby you can call it a great, classic, Michigan Folk Psych Rock … a some real great organ sounds (“Don’t Cry No More”).

And I like it, because I m still crazy after all these years !

Personnel:
Skip “Van Winkle” Knapé (keyboards)
David Teegarden (drums)
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Jack Ashford (tambourine)
Mike “Monk” Bruce (guirtar)
Pat “Taco” Ryan (saxophone, flute)

Tracklist:
01. Audience induction 3.07
02. Carol (Berry) 2.46
03. Ain’t Good To You (Russell/Cale/Sanders/Garrett) 2.56
04. Dancing In The Streets (Gaye/Hunter/Stevenson) 3.51
05. Don’t Cry No More (Malone) 3.59
06. Band dehypnotization 0.38
07. Band induction 0.18
08. Let It Roll (unknown) 2.44
09. Dupries Dog (Triplehorn/Davis) 2.45
10. She’s Alright (Knape) 3.11
11. Sweet Things (Knape) 3.15
12. Lucille (Penniman/Collins) 2.07
13. Give Away None Of My Love (Redding) 3.04
14. Band dehypnotization 0.19

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More from Teegarden & Van Winkle:

The Broadside Band – Shakespeare (Songs & Dances) (1995)

After studying at Trinity College Cambridge and the Royal Academy of Music, Jeremy Barlow worked at first chiefly in the theatre as a musical director, flautist and composer, and at the BBC as a radio producer and broadcaster. He then focused increasingly on early music as a performer, playing baroque flute, recorder and harpsichord, and directing the Broadside Band from 1979.

Jeremy has worked closely with historical dancers on several of his recordings with the Broadside Band and has also been involved in many projects, seminars and conferences on the links between historical dance and music.

The Broadside Band has performed at major venues and festivals in England, Scotland, France, Austria, Germany and Sweden and has made many recordings for Harmonia Mundi, Hyperion, Saydisc etc. These include the Edison Award winning Beggar’s Opera featuring Bob Hoskins and Sarah Walker, English Country Dances, Old English Nursery Rhymes and Songs and Dances from Shakespeare. (broadsideband.co.uk)

‘Songs and Dances from Shakespeare’ by The Broadside Band, directed by Jeremy Barlow follows in the footsteps of almost all performances of Elizabethan music in that it is intellectually engaging, but just a bit short on visceral impact. As soon as the first ‘Hey nonny nonny no’ line pops up, something in my mind just shuts down until the next track rolls around.

One thing to keep in mind is that we simply do not know for sure how this stuff was actually performed in the Globe theatre in 1606. I’m not even sure we know if there was music performed in the course of Shakespeare’s comedies.

I have little problem when the music shows up in context, as it does, for example, in Kenneth Branagh’s production of ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ with its faire share of ‘Hey Nonnies’. But that’s in context with the beautiful Tuscan landscape in the background and attractive performers in the foreground, and Shakespeare’s great lines all about.

This is a good and interesting album, but there is not much to grab you and hold your attention. Thus, it may not be the album to turn you on to Renaissance music. But, if you already like it, you will find it engaging. (B. Marold)

This album is an excellent way to get into the spirit of the Shakespeare writings. The recordings were well-done and the voices exciting to listen to. I purchased this as a gift for a college teacher of Shakespeare classes and she was delighted with the production. What an enhancement to any Shakespeare rendering. (S. Younkins)

‘It is good to hear such earthy music on this enterprising disc’ (Daily Telegraph)

Personnel:
Jeremy Barlow (recorder, virginal, pipe snare drum)
Alastair McLachlan (violion)
Rosemary Thorndycraft (viola)
George Weigand (lute, cittern)
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John Potter (tenor)
Deborah Roberts (soprano)

Conducted & arranged by Jeremy Barlow

Tracklist:

Songs with music probably used in the original productions:
01. Full Fathom Five Thy Father Lies 1.50
02. Where The Bee Sucks, There Suck 1.11
03. O Mistress Mine Where Are You Roaming? 1.29
04. The Poor Soul Sat Sighing (The Willow Song) 3.44
05. It Was A Lover, And His Lass 2.32

Popular dance types referred to in the plays:
06. Sellengers Round 1.56
07. Scottish Jigge 0.53
08. Hoboken Brawl 1.16
09. Staines Morris 1.57

Traditional and speculative matchings of song texts in the plays with popular tunes dating back to Shakespeare:
10. How Should I Your True Love Know 1.14
11. Tomorrow Is St Valentine’s Day 1.01
12. And Will He Not Come Again 0.49
13. In Youth When I Did Love 0.49
14. The Woosell Cock, So Black Of Hue 1.56
15. O Sweet Oliver 0.58
16. When Daffodils Btgin To Peer 0.51
17. Jog On, Jog On, The Footpath Way 0.56
18. When That I Was And A Little Tine (sic) Boy 1.36

Divisions on a ground: English dances based on chord sequences from Italy:
19. Kemp’s Jig 1.12
20. Passamezzo Pavan 1.43
21. Bergamasca 0.58
22. QM (Queen Mary’s) Dumpe 1.45

Original versions of songs & ballads used or mentioned in the plays:
23. As You Came From That Holy Land 2.23
24. I Loathe That I Did Love You 3.18
25. Bonny Sweet Robin 2.19
26. Come Live With Me 2.44
27. There Dwelt A Man In Babylon 3.38
28. Farewell Dear Love 3.10
29. Fortune My Foe 3.01

Dances for the gentry and upper classes:
30. The Earl Of Essex Measure In 1.57
31. La Volta 1.21
32. The Sinkapace Galliard 1.09
33. Coranto 1.46

Songs with music probably dating from early revivals of the plays:
34. Take, O Take Those Lips Away 1.41
35. Sigh No More Ladies 2.42
36. Hark, Hark, The Lark 1.41
37. Lawn As White As Driven Snow 1.14
38. Get Ye Hence 1.11
39. When That I Was And A Little Tiny Boy 1.55

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I got this beautiful and rare item from Mr. Sleever
Thanks a lot !!!

Diana Krall – The Look Of Love (Limited Edition) (2002)

Diana Jean Krall OC OBC (born November 16, 1964) is a Canadian jazz pianist and singer, known for her contralto vocals. She has sold more than 6 million albums in the US and over 15 million albums worldwide. On December 11, 2009, Billboard magazine named her the second Jazz Artist of the Decade (2000–09), establishing her as one of the best-selling artists of her time.

Krall is the only jazz singer to have had eight albums debuting at the top of the Billboard Jazz Albums. To date, she has won three Grammy Awards and eight Juno Awards. She has also earned nine gold, three platinum, and seven multi-platinum albums.

The Look of Love is the sixth studio album by Canadian singer Diana Krall, released on September 18, 2001 by Verve Records. It became Krall’s first album to top the Canadian Albums Chart. In 2002, the album earned Al Schmitt the Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical, and received the Juno Award for Album of the Year in Canada.

Arranger Claus Ogerman uses a similar orchestration for “S’Wonderful” as the one he wrote for the 1976 João Gilberto album Amoroso.

Jim Santella of All About Jazz commented “Lush strings and gliding flutes surround Diana Krall’s tender vocals. Even her substantial piano interludes take on the appearance of drifting mists, through the mix of orchestral timbres. With an emphasis on her sultry vocal interpretations, the latest album reaches out to a broad, popular music audience. Nothing wrong with that. It’s just that jazz fans usually want the improvised licks along with their melodies… By interpreting classic love songs, Krall’s latest album turns toward romantic interests. The clutter of a large string orchestra, however, obscures the total picture”

John Kreicbergs of PopMatters added “Simply said, her piano chops are more than adequate to back up her incredible voice. Yet this is exactly what makes The Look of Love so maddening. Krall’s piano work is practically nonexistent on most of the tracks, save for a few perfunctory solos that often sink into in a sea of overly lush string and orchestral arrangements”.

Doug Ramsey of JazzTimes said “The songs, including Burt Bacharach’s title tune, are superb. The arrangements and performances enhance them. Krall’s singing has improved with her every album. It is at a high level. If her record company can make her a major star with albums this good, and if it doesn’t push her piano further into the background, serious listeners should have no complaint”. A reviewer of Cosmopolis noted “With her new album The Look of Love, Diana Krall confirms her exceptional status as a jazz singer. Her new CD is a touch too polished, too clean, but never kitsch, as one might have feared, since the album was recorded together with the London Symphony Orchestra. But the special, sometimes rough-edged character of her previous recordings is missing”.(wikipedia)

Personnel:
Peter Erskine (drums)
Diana Krall (piano, vocals)
Russell Malone (guitar)
Christian McBride (bass)
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Dori Caymmi (guitar on 01.)
Luis Conte (percussion on 07. + 09.)
Paulinho da Costa (percussion on 01., 03. + 05.)
Jeff Hamilton (drums on 01., 03. + 05.)
Romero Lubambo (guitar on 07. + 09.)
John Pisano (guitar on 03. + 05.)
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London Symphony Orchestra (on 02., 04., 06. – 10) conducted by Claus Ogerman
Los Angeles Session Orchestra (on 01., 03. + 05.) conducted by Claus Ogerman

Alternate front+backcover:

Tracklist:
01. S’Wonderful (G.Gershwin/I.Gershwin) 4.28
02.Love Letters (Young/Heyman) 4.55
03. I Remember You (Mercer/Schertzinger) 3.55
04. Cry Me A River (Hamilton) 5.03
05. Besame Mucho (Velázquez) 6.39
06. The Night We Called It A Day (Adair/Dennis) 5-41
07. Dancing In The Dark (Dietz/Schwartz) 5.47
08. I Get Along Without You Very Well (Carmichael/Thompson) 3.44
09. The Look Of Love (Bacharach/David) 4.41
10. Maybe You’ll Be There (Bloom/Gallop) 5.31
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11. I Should Care (Thompson/Eastwood) 4.54
12. Maybe You’ll Be There (live) (Bloom/Gallop) 5.27
13. Charmed Life (Krall) 2.47
14.But Not For Me (G.Gershwin/I.Gershwin) 5.10

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More frome Diana Krall: