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Saturday, December 12, 2015

Carole King - Writer (Great First Album US 1970)


Size: 93.9 MB
Bitrate: 256
mp3
Ripped by ChrisGoesRock
Artwork Included
Source: Japan 24-Bit Remaster

Writer is the debut album by Carole King and was released in 1970. King already had a successful career as a songwriter, and been a part of The City, a short-lived group she formed after moving to Los Angeles in 1968. Tracks on the album include "Up on the Roof" which was a number 4 hit for the Drifters in 1962, and "Child of Mine", which has been recorded by Billy Joe Royal, among others. The album did not receive much attention upon its release, though it entered the chart following the success of King's next album, Tapestry, in 1971.

Reviewers rate it positively if not as highly as Tapestry, one noting that it was the "most underrated of all [her] original albums". And, in a review that also covered Tapestry in Rolling Stone, Jon Landau wrote, "Writer was a blessing despite its faults" and that though the "production was poor", King herself made the album "very worthwhile".

Writer is the most underrated of all of Carole King's original albums, in that it was completely ignored when it came out in 1971 and didn't really start to sell until Tapestry whetted everyone's appetite for her work. It's an album of its time, in both King's life and career, and the music of its era -- singer/songwriters were still something new, and in 1970, it was assumed that anyone in rock had to tend toward the extrovert and flashy to attract attention. Thus, Writer has a somewhat louder sound than the relatively lean, introspective strains of Tapestry which followed. 

"Spaceship Races," which opens the record, features Danny Kootch Kortchmar playing full-out electric guitar, chopping and crunching away with his amp turned way up, and King belting out a number behind his bluesy licks that makes her sound like Grace Slick and the song come off like a pounding (and good) Jefferson Airplane number of the same era, with a great vocal hook at the end of the verses. "No Easy Way Down," with its soulful instrumental and backing arrangement, calls to mind not only her own "Natural Woman" as done by Aretha Franklin, but also (in terms of New York white women belting out soul) Laura Nyro at her best, and it's also a great tune with a killer performance by King, whose wailing voice is extraordinarily powerful here.


"Child of Mine" is the closest that the album gets to the voice that she found on Tapestry, while "Goin' Back" gives a more personal and elegant take to a song that is otherwise thoroughly identified with the Byrds; and "To Love" has King diving into country music, which she pulls off with exceptional grace, the song's title referring to a beguilingly innocent and free-spirited chorus that, once heard, stays with you. Even the least interesting of the songs here, "What Have You Got to Lose," is unusual in the context of King's overall work, with its heavy acoustic rhythm guitar, soaring backing vocals, and King's bold near-falsetto on the choruses. 

And that's just Side One of the original LP -- Side Two opens a little more slackly with the beautiful, reflective, but slightly too languid "Eventually," and the delightful "Raspberry Jam," which offers a soaring guitar showcase for Kortchmar (whose playing intersects the sounds of Roger McGuinn and David Crosby off of the Byrds' "Eight Miles High"), and a head-spinning, swirling organ from Ralph Schuckett weaving below and around King's piano, plus one of King's most playful vocals on record. The album ends on a special high note, King's singer/songwriter-styled reinterpretation of "Up on the Roof," which anticipates the sound she would perfect for Tapestry, emphasizing words and their feeling and meaning as much as music, and expressing herself principally through her voice and piano, moving the band out of the way. 

Ironically enough, if Writer had been released by almost any other artist, it would command a near-top rating and probably be a fondly remembered period cult item today; instead, for all of its merits, it must stand in the shadow of King's more accomplished and distinctive work that followed -- but even slightly "off-brand," under-developed Carole King music from 1970 is still worth hearing today.

Personnel:
Carole King - piano, vocals, backing vocals, and arrangements
 Ralph Schuckett - organ
 John Fischbach - Moog synthesizer
 James Taylor - acoustic guitar and backing vocals
 Daniel Kortchmar - acoustic guitar, electric guitar, conga
 Charles Larkey - Fender bass
 Joel O'Brien - drums, percussion, vibes
 Abigale Haness and Delores Hall - backing vocals

01. "Spaceship Races" – 3:09
02. "No Easy Way Down" – 4:36
03. "Child of Mine" – 4:05
04. "Goin' Back" – 3:20
05. "To Love" – 3:39
06. "What Have You Got to Lose" – 3:33
07. "Eventually" – 5:01
08. "Raspberry Jam" – 4:35
09. "Can't You Be Real" – 3:00
10. "I Can't Hear You No More" – 2:46
11. "Sweet Sweetheart" – 2:46
12. "Up on the Roof" – 3:37

1. Carole King 1970
or
2. Carole King 1970

Thursday, December 10, 2015

Grateful Dead - Soldier's Field 2015-07-04 FM (Bootleg)


Size: 454 MB
Bitrate: 320
mp3
Found on the Radio
Some Artwork Included

Twenty years after the Grateful Dead wrapped up their 1995 summer tour at the same venue, the group took the stage at Soldier Field for the second of three Fare Thee Well shows in Chicago. The band showed they’d come a long way in just one week.



Joined again by guests Bruce Hornsby, Jeff Chimenti, and Phish‘s Trey Anastasio, the Grateful Dead was tighter, brighter and more dynamic last night (July 4) than their tentative start in Santa Clara. Anastasio continued to impress in his role as lead guitarist, but everyone in the Grateful Dead got their chance to shine, especially Bob Weir.

The “core four” of Mickey Hart, Bill Kreutzmann, Phil Lesh and Weir kicked off an energetic first set with the funky groove of “Shakedown Street.” Weir nailed the vocal while Anastasio emulated Jerry Garcia’s old “Mutron” guitar sound. 


“Liberty” was an obvious choice, considering the date. A much later entry in the Robert Hunter and Jerry Garcia songbook, “Liberty” was one of the new batch of songs that the Grateful Dead played in 1993-1994. Weir’s vocal delivery was strong as the band delivered a near-flawless backing.

The Jerry Garcia ballad “Standing on the Moon” was next. Anastasio took the lead vocal, and while very competent, it lacked the emotive weight that one of the elder statesmen could have brought to the delivery. After “Moon,” the Grateful Dead dipped into its road-tested songbook with “Me and My Uncle,” “Tennessee Jed,” “Friend of the Devil” and the first repeat from last weekend’s shows in Santa Clara – “Cumberland Blues.”

Bob Weir led the band through an impressive rendition of Willie Dixon’s “Little Red Rooster,” a staple of the Grateful Dead’s repertoire that did their host city proud with a sleek slide guitar from Weir and bluesy licks from Anastasio. Keyboardist Jeff Chimenti then stole their thunder as he lit up the crowd with a smoky organ solo.

The second set opened with a sublime version of “Bird Song,” a song that Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter originally wrote upon the death of Janis Joplin. 



Phil Lesh changed the original lyric – “all I know is something like a bird within her sang …” – to the masculine pronoun for the entire song. There was a brief jam in the center of the tune, comprised of rolling guitar notes over Lesh’s bass and Hornsby’s delicate piano.

The band’s 1967 party hit “The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion)” followed. The entire band were grinning ear to ear as they harmonized the classic “Hey hey! Come right away!” refrain. Bruce Hornsby and Anastasio took the lead vocals and the band fired on all cylinders until its spacey finale.



Bob Weir’s two-parter “Lost Sailor” / “Saint of Circumstance” followed. Weir quickly swapped guitars for the custom Stratocaster design that he’s been using for the majority of these concerts. The dour “Sailor” had been booted from Grateful Dead setlists in the mid-1980s (others in the band reportedly hated it), but its sister composition – the joyful and upbeat “Saint of Circumstance” – stuck around.

In the hands of Bob Weir’s longtime Ratdog project, “Lost Sailor” would have been just a fan-service curio. On this night, however, “Sailor” became nothing short of mesmerizing. This was the tightest we have heard the band yet. The Grateful Dead dropped into “Saint of Circumstance” without missing a beat. While it wasn’t played with the frenetic pace of shows in the 1980s, it still had plenty of power and drive.


Bruce Hornsby took the reins on a snarling rendition of “West L.A. Fadeaway.” The Grateful Dead had stumbled across the riff the previous night coming out of the “Playing in the Band” jam, but tonight’s payoff was an absolute delight punctuated by Hornsby hammering the piano keys and Chimenti following with that funky Hammond sound.

Before the “Drums” and “Space” improvisations of the night, the band launched into another later-period Garcia song, “Foolish Heart” from 1989’s Built to Last.

Coming out of “Space,” Bob Weir tried several times to get the rest of the band to follow his lead into “Stella Blue,” but it seemed like everyone else was having way too much fun utilizing their guitar-effects boxes. 


Finally, “Stella” began with Weir at the lead. If Trey Anastasio shone the night before, July 4th was Bob Weir’s turn. His voice sounded fairly ragged, but he delivered this beloved Garcia ballad with so much emotion and grace that it was hard to find fault.

The show-closing “One More Saturday Night” and “U.S. Blues” encore weren’t surprises to anyone, but both songs were bursting with energy. 

As “U.S. Blues” reached its climax, fireworks filled the night sky over Soldier Field just as they had done 20 years prior.

The Grateful Dead - Fare Thee Well Show 4
Soldier's Field Chicago, Illinois
July 4, 2015 WXRT FM 

Disc 1 
01. WXRT Intro
02. Shakedown Street
03. Liberty
04. Standing on the Moon
05. Me & My Uncle
06. Tennessee Jed
07. Cumberland Blues
08. Little Red Rooster

Disc 2 
01. Friend of the Devil
02. Deal
03. WXRT Outro
04. WXRT Intro
05. Bird Song
06. The Golden Road
07. Lost Sailor >
08. St. of Circumstance

Disc 3 
01. West L.A. Fadeaway
02. Foolish Heart >
03. Drums >
04. Space >
05. Stella Blue
06. One More Saturday Night

Encore
07. Donor Rap
08. U.S. Blues
09. Fireworks (Stars and Stripes Forever)
10. WXRT Outro

Part 1: Grateful 2015
Part 2: Grateful 2015
Part 3: Grateful 2015 (changed, thank you)
or
Part 1: Grateful 2015
Part 2: Grateful 2015
Part 3: Grateful 2015
.

Sunday, December 06, 2015

Chris Youlden - Nowhere Road (ex. Savoy Brown UK 1973)



Size: 75 MB
Bitrate: 256
mp3
Ripped by ChrisGoesRock
Source: Japan 24-Bit Remaster
Artwork Included

The album featured a number of well-known session musicians. Nowhere Road is the first solo album by ex- Savoy Brown vocalist Chris Youlden.

Nowhere Road is the first solo album by ex-Savoy Brown vocalist Chris Youlden, released in 1973. The album featured a number of well-known session musicians including Chris Spedding, Ray Fenwick, Roy Babbington and ex-Fleetwood Mac guitarist Danny Kirwan.

A single was released in March 1973 to accompany the album: "Nowhere Road" / "Standing on the Corner".

01. "Nowhere Road" – 4:51
02. "One October Day" – 2:25
03. "Chink of Sanity" – 4:01
04. "Crying in the Road" – 3:38
05. "Mamma Don't You Talk So Loud" – 3:13
06. "Standing on the Corner" – 3:29
07. "In the Wood" – 4:14
08. "Wake Up Neighbour" – 2:39
09. "Street Sounds" – 4:31
10. "Time Will Tell" – 2:43
11. "Pick Up My Dogs" – 2:40

1. Chris Youlden
or
2. Chris Youlden


Thursday, November 26, 2015

The Byrds - Washington D.C. 1970-04-18 (Bootleg)


Size: 191 MB
Bitrate: 320
mp3
Founded in my Garage!
Artwork Included
Some Artwork Included

Live at the American University, Washington, DC, April 18, 1970. With their intricate harmonies and chiming guitars, from folk rock to acoustic rock to country rock, The Byrds probably covered them all. While the group formed in the ’60s with Roger McGuinn, Gene Clark, David Crosby, drummer Michael Clark and bassist Chris Hillman, by 1970 when they played this Washington gig, only McGuinn from the original members remained.


With guitarist Clarence White, bassist Skip Battin and drummer Gene Parsons in the lineup, anyone thinking that this is a second-rate band should seriously reconsider. While fans have commented favourably on the nice sound of this show, the highlight is the classic 20-minute jam on Eight Miles High (where the casual listener might even mistake them for Santana doing a spot of jazz improv!). On the other hand, the the band sounded suitably rustic on the instrumental Black Mountain Rag.

While The Byrds have covered Bob Dylan right from the beginning (after all, their debut album was called Mr Tambourine Man), they continued this fine tradition here with what sounds like The Byrds doing the Bob Dylan songbook - You Ain’t Going Nowhere, My Back Pages, This Wheel’s on Fire, It’s Alright Ma and the perennial classic, Mr Tambourine Man.

The original Byrds reunited briefly in 1972 and while McGuinn, Clark and Hillman have worked with each other subsequently, the full-fledged reunion of the three continue to seem as elusive then as it is now. Gene Clark died in 1991 and Michael Clark died of liver disease in 1993.

And while today’s younger music listeners think of R.E.M. when they talk about jangle rock (especially on their Murmur album), not many would remember that musical path was long charted by acts that included The Byrds.

The Byrds - Leonard Gymnasium American University Washington D.C. April 18th 1970

Lineup:
Roger McGuinn - guitar, vocals
 Clarence White - guitar, vocals
 Gene Parsons - drums, vocals
 Skip Battin - bass, vocals

01. You Ain't Going Nowhere
02. Old Blue
03. You All Look a Like
04. My Back Pages > Baby, What You Want Me to Do ?
05. He Was A Friend Of Mine
06. Willin'
07. Black Mountain Rag
08. This Wheel's on Fire
09. It's Alright Ma (I'm Only Bleeding), Ballad Of Easy Rider
10. Jesus is Just Alright
11. Nashville West
12. Turn, Turn, Turn 
13. Mr Tambourine Man 
14. Jam > Eight Miles High **
15. Instrumental Outro
16. Crowd, So You Want to be a Rock and Roll Star 
17. Mr Spaceman
18. Instrumental Outro
19. Crowd, Amazing Grace (acapella version)

** The version of "Jam > Eight Miles High" is something unbelivable, a psychedelic trip
20 minutes long!

1. The Byrds 1970
or
2. The Byrds 1970
or
3. The Byrds 1970
.





Wednesday, November 18, 2015

Zephyr - Zephyr (Blues-Based Hard Rock US 1969 w. Tommy Bolin)


Size: 161 MB
Bitrate: 256
mp3
Ripped by ChrisGoeRock
Artwork Included
Source: Japan 24-Bit Remaster

Zephyr is the debut album by the band Zephyr, released in 1969.

Zephyr was guitarist Tommy Bolin’s first recorded band before he joined the James Gang for two albums and his performance on Billy Cobham’s jazz fusion landmark Spectrum convinced David Coverdale to invite him to replace Ritchie Blackmore in Deep Purple (co-writing and playing on 1975’s Come Taste The Band).


Recording at Wally Heider’s state-of-the-art LA studio but with over-worked engineer Bill Halverson falling asleep at the desk, the band felt their volcanic live power diluted by the mixing. Producer Greg Hampshire has now remixed the original tapes with founding bassist David Givens (whose wife Candy was the band’s Joplin-style vocal powerhouse), finally doing justice to the band’s dynamic blues-rock and Bolin’s stinging pyrotechnics. 

Zephyr was a blues-based hard rock band formed in 1969 in Boulder, Colorado by guitarist Tommy Bolin, keyboardist John Faris, David Givens on bass guitar, Robbie Chamberlin on drums and Candy Givens on vocals. Although the charismatic performances by Candy Givens were originally the focal point for the band, it was the flashy guitar work of Tommy Bolin that the band is best remembered for. 

This late-'60s Denver group is most notable as the starting point for guitarist Tommy Bolin, who was still in his teens when they recorded their first album in 1969. A rather routine slab of bluesy, heavy rock, it made the Top 50. 

Aside from Bolin's extended hard rock riffing, it prominently featured the lead vocals of Candy Givens, who affected a blues-wailing pose along the lines of Janis Joplin. But she didn't have the full throat or guts to back it up, ending up closer to also-ran female psychedelic singers like Lydia Pense (of Cold Blood). Zephyr recorded one more album before Bolin left for stints with James Gang, Deep Purple, and a solo career; the group carried on throughout the 1970s.

After Bolin left, he was replaced by Jock Bartley, and the band recorded the album Sunset Ride, their second for Warner Brothers Records. The album is still in print and is much loved by a small but loyal following. On Sunset Ride, Candy Givens displayed her gifts as a singer, composer, and harmonica player. 

The album was produced by David Givens who also authored the majority of the tunes. As a result of his stint with Zephyr, Bartley went on to a successful career with Gram Parsons and Firefall and drummer, Michael Wooten, went on to play for several years with Carole King. Various versions of Zephyr continued to play in Colorado until Candy's death in 1984. The release of "Heartbeat" in 1982 was promoted by a video that incorporated very early examples of analog computer animation combined with live action.

Other Zephyr members of note include trance blues maven, Otis Taylor, who played bass during the mid-1970s, Kenny Wilkins (Drums) and also later on as (guitarist), guitarist Zack Smith (founder of Columbia Records band Scandal), and blues guitarist, Eddie Turner, who played guitar in the last incarnation during the early 1980s. 

Candie and David, Tommy, and John Faris were all founding members of The Legendary 4Nikators, Boulder's oldest and best loved party band. Taylor and Turner were later additions to The Legendary 4Nikators - Taylor noted for playing motorcycle on stage during "Leader Of The Pack" and performing in a kilt and Turner for his renditions of Jimi Hendrix classics.

Personnel:
♦♫♦ Candy Givens – lead vocals, harmonica
♦♫♦ Robbie Chamberlin – drums, backing vocals
♦♫♦ David Givens – bass, backing vocals
♦♫♦ John Faris – keyboards, flute
♦♫♦ Tommy Bolin – guitar, backing vocals

01. "Sail on" (Tommy Bolin, Candy Givens) – 7:22
02. "Sun's a Risin'" (Bolin, David Givens) – 4:45
03. "Raindrops" (Dee Clark) – 2:40
04. "Boom-Ba-Boom" (D. Givens) – 1.20
05. "Somebody Listen" (D. Givens, C. Givens, Bolin, John Faris) – 6:10
06. "Cross the River" (C. Givens, D. Givens) – 4:43
07. "St. James Infirmary" (Joe Primrose) – 5:15
08. "Huna Buna" (C. Givens, Bolin) – 2:26
09. "Hard Chargin' Woman" (Bolin, Robbie Chamberlin, Faris, C. Givens, D. Givens) – 8:40

1. Zephyr 1969
or
2. Zephyr 1969
or
3. Zephyr 1969




Monday, November 16, 2015

Wednesday, November 11, 2015

Alex Harvey Band - Hot City (Unreleased Album, UK 1974)


Size: 94.3
Bitrate: 256
mp3
Ripped by ChrisGoesRock
Artwork Included
Source: Japan 24-Bit Remaster

Hot City has long been one of the legends of the Alex Harvey collecting world, a full LP recorded at the near peak of the band's creative powers and then abandoned after band and management had second thoughts about the entire thing. 


The tapes were shelved and presumed lost forever -- when they were rediscovered, even the surviving bandmembers had forgotten about one of the songs, "Ace in the Hole," while all professed amazement at just how radically rearranged favorites "Vambo" and "Man in the Jar" were; of course, most of the abandoned album was then re-recorded as the Impossible Dream LP, and it would be foolish to suggest that Hot City comes close to eclipsing that masterpiece. 

But it does afford listeners the opportunity to contemplate an alternate history, as original producer Shel Talmy leads the Sensational Alex Harvey Band through a far harsher musical landscape than they ultimately created, and songs like "Man in the Jar," "Sergeant Fury," and "Anthem" (or "Last Train" as it was then titled) slash out with electrifying freshness. The full album is here, spread across nine tracks; two bonus cuts offer reprises of the anthemic "Tomahawk Kid" and "Anthem" itself.

The production master tapes of a previously unreleased full length studio album by The Sensational Alex Harvey Band, recorded in 1974 and hitherto discarded, have been unearthed, dusted down, fully re-mastered and lined up for release on March 30th on the MLP label, distributed by RSK Entertainment.

‘Hot City – The 1974 Unreleased album’, which has been fully authorised and approved by the band, features 9 great quality tracks, and comes in a deluxe Digi Pack Sleeve which includes a separate inner sleeve and a 20 page high quality booklet with rare photos and extensive liner notes from the band, with track by track comments and opinions, plus an introduction by SAHB author and ex-manager Martin Kielty.

By 1974, the SAHB steamroller was working at full power. Their first album, ‘Framed’, had promised great things, the follow-up, ‘Next’, delivered them, and now the group were planning to record their upcoming third album. The band had been constantly touring and were well rehearsed when in late January, they went into Advision studios in London with legendary US producer Shel Talmy (The Who/The Kinks) to record their biggest album to date. By April, the sessions were finished and the album was mixed.

However, after completion, the band and management had a rethink about the overall sound and amazingly, they decided to scrap the entire album. Shel Talmy then returned to Los Angeles with his tapes. Most of the song titles were later re-recorded and eventually showed up later that year on the official album ‘The Impossible Dream’ with a different producer on board and the songs changed dramatically.


You can now hear how the album sounded with the original versions of these songs. SAHB fans will be totally surprised and amazed at the different styles, delivery and lyric arrangements of well known favourite songs such as ‘Vambo’ and ‘Man In The Jar’. ‘Anthem’ and ‘Tomahawk Kid’ and there is a previously unreleased song ‘Ace In The Hole’ which has not been heard even by the band, since those studio sessions in 1974.

As SAHB became the biggest band of 1975, these recordings were quickly forgotten about. Now after 34 years, MLP have re-discovered the fully mixed unreleased album by a rock group on the verge of stardom. The recordings have been re-assessed by both Shel Talmy and the band members and a decision was made that they would make a great release. Now re-mastered and with the band’s full approval, you can hear how songs like ‘Vambo’, ‘Man In The Jar’, ‘Anthem’ and ‘Sgt Fury’ originally sounded.

Alex Harvey, who tragically died of a massive heart attack in 1982, aged 46, was renowned for his charismatic persona and daredevil stage antics, and, above all, his astonishing, passionate, demonic vocal delivery. Nowhere is this better captured than on ‘Hot City – The 1974 Unreleased album’, a treasure trove of re-discovered musical gems.

01. Vambo  04:45
02. Man In The Jar  05:06
03. Hey You  00:44
04. Long Haired Music  05:05
05. Sergeant Fury  03:39
06. Tomahawk Kid  06:23
07. Ace In The Hole  02:37
08. Weights Made Of Lead  02:36
09. Last Train  09:49

1. Alex Harvey
or
2. Alex Harvey
or
3. Alex Harvey

Monday, November 02, 2015

John Sinclair - Message To The People Of Woodstock Nation 1970




(Open the pictures in a NEW WINDOW for 100% size)




Hydra - Selftitled (Great Southern Rock Album US 1974) + Live 2005 Album as Bonus


Size: 97.1 MB
Bitrate: 256
mp3
Ripped by: ChrisGoesRock
Artwork Included
Source: Japan SHM-CD Remaster

Based in the southern states of America, hard rock band Hydra formed in the early 70s around a line-up of Wayne Bruce (vocals, guitar), Spencer Kirkpatrick (guitar), Orville Davis (bass) and Steve Pace (drums). Signed to the Allman Brothers and Marshall Tucker Band’s record label, Capricorn Records, they made their debut in 1974 with a self-titled collection that drew heavily on Lynyrd Skynyrd’s southern boogie tradition, but also added elaborate pop hooks and disciplined rhythmic codas. 


Songs such as ‘Glitter Queen’ won them a fervent fanbase, though the subsequent Land Of Money, a more abrasive collection, was less successful. By the advent of Rock The World Davis had departed to join Rex and the resultant instability stalled the group’s progress.

Hydra is an American Southern rock band founded in the late 1960s by Spencer Kirkpatrick (guitar), Wayne Bruce (vocals and guitar), and Steve Pace (drums). In 1977, it became a three-piece band (with Wayne Bruce now on bass) and the band broke up later that year. It released three albums, Hydra (1974), Land of Money (1975) and Rock The World (1977). In 2005, the band reunited for two shows (with Vickery on bass). A live album, Hydra: Live After All These Years was released.

Pace and Kirkpatrick first played together in 1968 in the band Strange Brew. Wayne Bruce was playing with the band Nickelodian and accepted the offer to join Pace and Kirkpatrick in the short-lived Noah Mayflower. These three remained together in the band Osmosis until 1969 when, after enlisting a succession of bassists, Hydra finally emerged with the inclusion of Trip Burgess in 1970, and later Orville Davis in 1971. 

Orville remained with Hydra on their first two LP's before leaving the group to join the hard rock outfit Rex and then briefly Starz. Hydra's reputation as a solid live act in the Atlanta, Georgia area began to spread and the band expanded their territory. They began supporting major internationally known acts in concert. They have been referred to[by whom?] as the first heavy southern rock band.

The band signed a recording contract with Capricorn Records in 1973 and released a self-titled album Hydra in 1974. In 1975, Land of Money followed. The producer Dan Turbeville used a horn section (without the band's knowledge) on the first album and musicians like Chuck Leavell (Allman Brothers band, The Rolling Stones, and Eric Clapton) (piano and keyboards) and Randall Bramblett, who later founded his own Randall Bramblett Band, on the second.


In 1977, as a three-piece band (with Wayne Bruce now on bass), Hydra released Rock The World. Some reviewers[who?], including Edgar Brimer, their road manager, consider this to be their best record. By the end of 1977, the band broke up and reformed only occasionally thereafter, except for a series of shows in 1997, first with Jimmy Cobb and later with Tommy Vickery on bass, replacing Davis.

Hydra was one of those 70’s Southern rock bands that didn’t quite reach the commercial success they deserved. Hydra released three excellent albums between 1974 and 1977 before becoming frustrated with the growth of their success along with some management issues. They broke up in 1977 and have since only played handful of live shows in few different occasions.


Hydra was started in Atlanta, Georgia around 1968 by Steve Pace (drums) and Spencer Kirkpatrick (guitar) and Wayne Bruce (vocals/guitar) under the name Noah Mayflower. They briefly changed their name to Osmosis before taking the name Hydra in 1971 and added Orville Davis to bass.

After building a reputation as killer live band by supporting various major bands like Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Allman Brothers Band and ZZ Top, Phil Walden signed them to his Capricorn Record label in 1973. Hydra´s self-titled debut album came out in 1974.

After year of touring and writing new songs  on the road, their sophomore effort, Land Of Money, was released in 1975 and bassist Orville Davis left the band soon after to launch his own career as a country singer.

In 1976 Hydra signed a deal with Polydor Records and Rock the World came out in 1977 featuring three piece band with Wayne Bruce switching from guitar to bass, but by the end of 1977 Hydra broke up only to make a brief come back in 1997 with handful of live shows.

In 2005 Hydra played two more live dates, which were recorded into a live album called Hydra: Live After All These Years. The band haven´t completely shut out the option of recording new music under Hydra name in the future.

Personnel:
Wayne Bruce (vocals, guitar)
 Spencer Kirkpatrick (guitar)
 Orville Davis (bass)
 Steve Pace (drums)

01.Glitter Queen - 4:02
02.Keep You Around - 5:16
03.It's So Hard (Music by Kirkpatrick, W. Bruce) - 4:45
04.Going Down (Don Nix) - 3:07
05.Feel A Pain (Will Boulware) - 6:24
06.Good Time Man (Words by W. Bruce, Steve Pace) - 3:23
07.Let Me Down Easy - 4:20
08.Warp 16 (S. Pace, S. Kirkpatrick, W. Bruce, Trip Burgess) - 4:20
09.If You Care To Survive - 2:54
10. Miriam - 7:42

Bonus: HYDRA - Live! After All These Years (2005)
01. Introduction
02. Glitter Queen
03. Wasting Time
04. Feel A Pain
05. You're The One
06. Baby Please Stop Messing Round
07. Making Plans
08. Feel Like Running
09. Diamond In The Rough
10. Land Of Money
11. Keep You Around
12. Miriam
13. Rattlesnake Shake
14. Going Down

Part 1: Hydra 1974
Part 2: Hydra 1974
or
Part 1: Hydra 1974
Part 2: Hydra 1974
or
Part 1: Hydra 1974
Part 2: Hydra 1974
.

Sunday, November 01, 2015

About "The Rolling Stones - Sticky Fingers" (Tounge Zipper)


Just wonder wich release of "Sticky Fingers" this zipper 
came from?

Anyone who can help?

//ChrisGoesRock

Answers from:
"Micky Blue": The Stones tongue zipper was on the 2015 remastered and expanded vinyl LP (which came with a second LP of live material), and had a working zip with the tongue logo puller. Sticky Fingers was the first Stones LP to feature the now famous logo"

"Jobe": From what I know, it is on the vinyl re-issue deluxe version. However the vinyl copy that I received for buying the cd version of the new re-issue came with just a picture (not a working zipper) Hope that helps.

Thank you for your help.