1974. And Nektar, are they German? English? Or all of them? It’s all Down to Earth.
I bought this because it has Bob Calvert on spouting fake German as the ring master of the Nektar circus. I know this is a ridiculous reason to buy a record. It does however make complete sense as well.
It’s a mixed bag of progressive rock and novelty songs.
Some get funky basses, a brass section and some very earnest singing. Some of dubious subject matter in these enlightened days and some excellent guitar work. And PP Arnold what a voice.
I went out with a girl who was obsessed with Deep Purple and Barclay James Harvest. So it was with a certain sense of melancholy that I played Everyone is Everybody Else from 1974.
It’s an album of its time. Very earnest as befitting that cover with great jackets and large glasses. They all look so happy and strangely serious on the cover. It’s all very CSNY goes prog. Great harmonies nice mellotron and some deeply meaningful and heartfelt lyrics. It’s not great, it’s not bad it’s all good if a little forgetful in a memorable way. You know you enjoyed it you just don’t really know why.
So the other side of the coin is Deep Purples Burn album. All swagger and sway as Coverdale and Hughes relish the raunch and roll trading vocals and seeing who can out macho the other. It’s a bluesier Purple but the main backbone of the band for me has always been Paices drumming.
So this apparently was the mix my then girlfriend was looking for and shortly I became lacking in all the necessary attributes and that was the end of another teen dream.
At least we saw Purple at Knebworth, of course that was the reformed MkII no Coverdale or Hughes but Paicey still held it all together.
So I was sat there as I took the dangerous task on of rewatching Band of Brothers and The Pacific. I cried my way through ten episodes each wondering if the new show about the air war in Europe would affect me the same way.
I was gratified to see that my memory of the shows being more about the horrors and impacts of war than the glory of battle was correct. It was an impactful couple of weeks as I made my way through it all.
At the end Syd gave me a look and we have had many a thoughtful walk since. I think he’s worried I’m taking it all a bit too seriously.
Still not had the heart to begin the next chapter.
1974 and it seemed like Yes with Relayer were determined to wallow in the excesses of prog until they had marinated in their own self importance.
I’m sorry to those who love this album and see it as the pinnacle of the Yes canon. There’s maybe 18 minutes of tunefulness here. Gates of Delirium is spoiled by ten minutes or so of banging and clanging and Sound Chaser can’t be saved. Sorry I don’t hear jazz or funk just a lot of noise. To Be Over is more conventional a song and therefore sounds refreshing after the carnage preceding.
I’ll give it another go in a couple of years.
It’s got a nice cover though.
I’m feeling a little guilt about this writing maybe I’ll give it another try.
Okay so apparently the Yesshows version of Gates is to be preferred so off to that later and we will see how it goes.
And yes Gates of Delirium on Yesshsows is a whole other beast. In fact it is almost unrecognizable. So much so I have given Sound Chaser another go and it wasn’t as bad as the previous time. Maybe it’s because I played it in the morning instead of the being who knows.
This however has to be Yes jazz odyssey album a bit pretentious and overwrought. Not my favorite. Be perhaps this album alone resulted in punk.
I find myself heading down cul de sacs. For a few weeks it was the acapella harmony singing of the Watersons. Especially Hal A Tow.
I found myself intrigued by the interplay between the family and the joy in Norma Watersons face as they sang.
This week for some unknown reason it’s that most unhip of prog rockers The Strawbs. Apparently I own at least nine of their albums and I may have never really listened to any of them until this week. Some of it was the 1974 rabbit hole I’ve headed down and some of it was the memory I have of their strange amalgamation of folk, prog, hippy shit. It’s kind of like Donovan with massive keyboards until Wakeman left. any band that had Sandy Denny as a member for a short time is worth a listen. The bigger question is why I have none records. My guess is I stumbled on a pile in a thrift store and bought them on a whim and now I have no I eventually play them because of cul de sacs.
This week was Grave New World. A strange confection of prog, folk and damn me sitars. It’s not a massively great album but it is fascinating. Somewhere between Yes, The Incredible String Band and Al Stewart. Eventually I’ll get to their 1974 album but this was an interesting diversion. Nice sitars.
I did something this week I hadn’t done since 1985. That’s a long list of things I don’t do any more there. I bought a ticket to go see Hawkwind at the Manchester Apollo on April 4th. Then I bought a plane ticket, yes it was done in that order. I am now stupidly excited.
I’ll be going with one of my oldest friends. Another friend refused as he remembered someone waving a Hoover around and fire breathing last time he saw Hawkwind, maybe Nik Turner was there. Well I guess some traumas cannot be overcome.
1974 and Hall of the Mountain Grill, Hawkwind’s grown up album after the full on blast of Space Ritual. There are violins and mellotrons and an oboe. There’s a definite attempt to keep the chaos factor down and eh space chants have some definition to them. Not that things are normal. We are still full on heading for the outer reaches of the mind. It’s just that this time the captain has managed to figure out how the compass works. So the journey is more direct.
I have a huge affection for this album. It was I think my first Hawkwind album. In some level this lulled me into a false sense of security. It’s proggy and reminiscent of Pink Floyd and the more normal sounds of the 70s. However there is as always a twist. What’s life without a twist though?
There’s also oboe how many rock albums do you know with an oboe.
I remember the sullen teen years laying on the bed reading Moorcock and listening to Hall of the Mountain Grill in the headphones.
Wow that’s a blurry pic.
I’ve listened to the new album in preparation for the big show. It’s pretty good Thighpaulsandra is in the band and they’ve got a more tuneful sax player in there. There’s supposed to be a new album before the tour so maybe there’ll be some new sounds.
If I’m honest I want Born To Go, Time We Left and if I’m lucky beyond belief Robot. I’m sure I’ll be happy whatever happens. Has to be better than then cancelling on me in SanFrancisco last time. And yes I took that personally to be honest.
timeweleftthisworldtoday 