Folk /
Dr. Ragtime And His Pals
Jack Rose's new full length, Dr. Ragtime And His Pals, coupled with a reissue of last year's self-titled CD/LP housed in a custom designed and fabricated off-set printed card cover with j-card style obi (there is also a jewel case version on the UK label Beautiful Happiness). Limited edition of 1000. "The Appalachian Trail runs 2175 miles south from Mount Katahdin in Maine to Springer Mountain in Georgia, though there are those who want to stretch it further, into Alabama, because the mountains …
Changing Horses
They really don't write them like this any more. "Big Ted's dead / He was a great old pig," sings Robin Williamson. "He'd eat most anything / Never wore a wig." Although the Incredible String Band had always been delightfully ramshackle, 1969's Changing Horses found the innovative folk-rock duo of Williamson and his mate Mike Heron becoming almost a slipshod stoned parody of themselves--with assistance from their girlfriends Rose and Licorice. Of the six tracks, two ramble on at such length (ove…
The Big Huge
This quartet incarnation of the Incredible String Band featured primary songwriters Robin Williamson and Mike Heron as well as their significant others, Christina "Liquorice" McKechnie and Rose Simpson. The ISB's tradition of quirky, and at times atonal, acoustic material is well served by the nine compositions on this platter. The lengthy opening track, "Maya," foreshadows their less-focused upcoming works I Looked Up and U. Although there are a few moments of brilliant playing, the ambling nat…
The 5000 Spirits Or The Layers Of The Onion
The 5000 Spirits or the Layers of the Onion was the second LP by The Incredible String Band, released in July 1967. Since recording their debut album the previous year, the original trio had been reduced to two, Mike Heron and Robin Williamson. They recorded The 5000 Spirits... in London in early 1967. The album also featured Pentangle's Danny Thompson on double bass, Williamson's girlfriend Licorice McKechnie on vocals and percussion, master sitar player Nazir Jairazbhoy (credited as "Soma"), a…
Valentine
The songs are also a rather gentle and melodic bunch, with "I'll See You Again" and the tender "Forever" being particular highlights. Harper's usual collection of heavy friends are present, including Ian Anderson, Keith Moon, Jimmy Page and David Bedford, all of them contributing well. But as always, this is strictly Harper's show. 10 track album originally released in 1974. Guests include Jimmy Page, Keith Moon, Pete Sears and Max Middleton. Originally released on Valentine's Day 1974, VALENTIN…
Lifemask
The follow-up to Roy Harper's career-defining song cycle STORMCOCK, 1973's LIFEMASK does an excellent job on building on some of the most successful aspects of the previous album without sounding like a mere retread. Wisely, Harper doesn't attempt ... Full Descriptionto repeat the unusual four-lengthy-songs structure of STORMCOCK, instead favoring shorter songs and mood pieces which cohere into a satisfying whole. Jimmy Page, used sparingly and to great effect on STORMCOCK, plays on nearly ev…
HQ
Originally released in 1975, HQ is Roy Harper's 8th studio album. Roy describes HQ as his most integral 'rock record'. It featured Harper's formation of Trigger, a relatively straightforward hard rock trio anchored by ace guitarist Chris Spedding and former King Crimson/Yes drummer Bill Bruford. (The unit disbanded after this album, however.) Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour and Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones are among the other all-star contributors on this album. The album was original…
Folkjokeopus
Eccentric, prolific British singer/songwriter Roy Harper is a legend on the U.K. folk-rock scene. He began recording in the late 1960s, as something of a cross between Bob Dylan's troubadourism and Syd Barrett's freewheeling, wild-eyed visions. Though Harper has had an impact on British rockers who gained greater fame (he's feted in Led Zeppelin's "Hats Off To Roy Harper," sings lead on Pink Floyd's "Have a Cigar," and was a major influence on Jethro Tull), his mix of folk and prog-rock has earn…
Flat Baroque And Berserk
Flat Baroque and Berserk was the first record of Harper’s to go into the charts. Peter Jenner was assigned by EMI Records to produce the recording – the two have been good friends ever since. EMI Studios, Abbey Road was at that time the most advanced studio in Europe, and over the next ten years Roy Harper was to record in near-perfect conditions. Over those years, the studio buzzed with four separate Beatles, some Stones, The Pink Floyd, Cliff and the Shadows, Gracie Fields, three of four music…
Swaddling Songs
Classic, highly regarded and sought after acid folk / progressive rock album. Now 24-bit remastered from the original master tapes. New fully restored artwork. Extensive booklet with new essay. Featuring girl singers Clodagh Simonds and Alison Williams, Mellow Candle never achieved commercial success they deserved spawning a legendary psychedelic folk-rock album akin to Fairport Convention or Fotheringay. Touring to support Thin Lizzy (Simonds played on Lizzy's album Shades of a Blue Orphanage) …
Pass The Distance
Repressed. The official legit re-issue of this incredibly rare dark acid folk masterpiece, originally released in England on the legendary Mushroom label in 1970, has been remastered from the original two-track tapes. Four extra tracks, including the never-released seven-inch single of which only a solitary acetate remains, are also included on this 54-minute CD. The 20-page booklet, with full-color cover reproduction of the original artwork, contains all the lyrics to the album, photographs of …
Parallelograms
Classic folk soul masterpiece reissued on CD for the first time! This is an amazingly beautiful 1970 album of fragile, ethereal, melodic and soulful acid folk which has attained cult status as a soulful folk classic! Gentle acoustic guitar and sweet, drifting vocals combine with subtle electronics to create music of rare depth and beauty! Features eight bonus tracks and detailed liner notes from Linda Perhacs herself! Essential! Highly recommended!
Marsupilami
Esoteric Recordings are pleased to announce the release of Marsupilami's debut album from 1970. This unique masterpiece is a much sought-after collector's item originally released on the Transatlantic label. Initially a folk-based group, the band evolved into one of the most adventurous, if unsung, progressive bands of the early 1970s, producing two stunningly original albums. Featuring a line-up of brothers Fred and Leary Hasson (lead vocals and harmonica and keyboards respectively), Dave Laver…
Heart Food
Now available in miniature replica gatefold LP style sleeve. On Sill's 2nd album, rather than using an outside arranger for the strings (as she did on her previous album), she did all of the work herself. Her lack of formal training and the immense amount of orchestral overdubs certainly would have made such an outing a hardship for anyone. But the results are outstanding with echoes of Bach supporting the stellar early 70s Laurel Canyon singer/songwriter melodies. The supporting cast of top L.A…
Kissing The Contemporary Bliss
For over 30 years troubadour walier DAN IRETON has called upon the spirit of 78 shellac blues n' psychedelic Stooges n' Velvets to fuel his guttural, pure soul ethos of the song. Hints at the classic forms of Dylan's Blood On The Tracks, Buckley's Starsailor & the celestial fug of Sun Ra' third-eye vision to create an approach untraveled yet increasingly influential. Kicks up the most outward bound & staggering approaches to Gus Cannon's "Walk Right In" & Robert Johnson's "Stones In My Passway" …
Blues Run The Game
This is a piece of folk history that slipped through the cracks. Buffalonian Frank traveled to London in the mid-'60s and recorded this album with the help of his still unknown pal Paul Simon. After its release, Frank became the toast of the town, though his music never hit the States. His poetic, Dylan-influenced lyrics, complex fingerpicking, and artsong-like structures influenced everyone from Bert Jansch to Nick Drake. Except for a young Al Stewart's recorded debut playing second guitar on "…
Jackson C. Frank
The folksinger's folksinger, Jackson C. Frank was regarded as a giant by his contemporaries, but somehow missed out on the stardom which awaited many of his admirers. Paul Simon produced this classic 1965 album (it came out originally on Columbia), which introduced the world to Frank's best-known song, 'Blues Run The Game'. The teenage Al Stewart also played guitar on this album.
I Belong To This Band: 85 Years of Sacred Harp Recordings
This current collection of Sacred Harp singing is the first to offer a full range of recordings by traditional Sacred Harp singers from 1922 to the present, and is a companion to the Sacred Harp documentary by Awake, My Soul: The Story of the Sacred Harp, the first feature documentary about Sacred Harp singing. This CD is unique in a number of respects. It contains several prewar and mid-century recordings never before released on CD, some of which have never been released at all. Sacred H…
Wijdan: The Mystery of Gnawa Trance Music
The Gnawa people have been shrouded in mystery since they were exiled from the Malian empire and brought as slaves to Morocco in the 16th century. In the last two decades, the power of their trance music has come into the spotlight thanks to Western musicians. Led Zeppelin, Archie Shepp, among others, have been fascinated by the mystical dimension of the music and its role in the rise of the blues. In this captivating documentary, filmmakers Bella Le Nestour and John Allen paint an intimate port…
Und
Time to unearth another Kraut obscurity, sought-after by collectors worldwide since his inclusion on the legendary NWW list. Franz De Byl's second album, released by Thorofon in 1971, was actually his debut as a solo performer, an eccentric collection of freaky acoustic folk songs with bluesy elements and an extra satirical, political twist (not unlike Floh De Cologne). Weird sounds and compulsive chanting from this master of the acoustic guitar, one of the most curious characters to ever emerge…