VELVET THUNDER

The remastered version creates a striking separation of the instruments which allows you to identify all of the elements at play, especially the ones you might not normally notice

1972 was surely the seminal year for Hawkwind. 1971’s sophomore release In Search Of Space was a mixed bag, even if tracks such as Master Of The Universe and You Shouldn’t Do That tentatively laid down the templates for space rock. Late in 1971, a new and at that time unknown bass player arrived – Lemmy, who famously came to audition as guitarist and had no experience of playing the bass. And in early 1972, Lemmy’s old bandmate (from Opal Butterfly) Simon King joined on drums. It is this combination of Brock-Calvert-Turner-Dikmik-Dettmar-Lemmy-King that is generally considered to be the classic line-up, and their 1972 release, Doremi Fasol Latido is widely considered to be the at the pinnacle of Hawkwind’s considerably large catalogue of studio albums. Without a doubt, it is the album that cemented Hawkwind’s space rock paradigm, and as such merits this lavish release. The ‘basic’ two-CD package contains remastered and remixed versions of the album, along with bonus tracks, while a three-CD/two-Blu-ray version adds a remixed version of the Greasy Truckers live album (also from 1972), and 5:1 mixes of both albums. Alternatively, for vinyl fans, there’s a remastered edition with a bonus 7” single. Hawkwind fans are certainly spoilt for choice!

On the 13^th of February 1972, Simon King played his first Hawkwind gig – at the Greasy Truckers Party, that was fortunately recorded. The Greasy Truckers were part of the underground community in Notting Hill and the purpose of the concert was to raise funds to purchase a building for the community to use (feasible at the time because this was before Notting Hill became desirable and gentrified!). During the concert, Hawkwind played Silver Machine, and a version with Calvert’s vocals replaced by Lemmy’s (added in the studio) came out as a single and was a surprise top ten hit in the UK over the summer.  Under pressure from their record label to produce a new album on the back of Silver Machine and to promote the upcoming Space Ritual tour, off they went to the studio. Within an absurdly brief period – the original tapes suggest a five-day period in October – Doremi Fasol Latido was laid down, with the vinyl copies hitting the streets just five weeks later. Despite their record label’s eagerness to exploit the visibility created by Silver Machine, remarkably it was excluded from the album. Nevertheless, this didn’t stop Doremi Fasol Latido from reaching the top 20 in the UK charts.

Doremi Fasol Latido opens with eleven minutes of quintessential space rock in the form of Brainstorm. The remastered version creates a striking separation of the instruments which allows you to identify all of the elements at play, especially the ones you might not normally notice – some of the swirling electronics and King’s ferocious drumming, for example. The sound is generally ‘brighter’ and while this loses some of the Hawkwind weightiness, it does create more forward momentum. Space Is Deep is equally impressive, with the layers of acoustic guitar sounding crystal clear.

Side one of the original vinyl closed with the rather irrelevant 50 seconds of electronica called One Change, and then side two opened with the classic Lord Of Light. Again, the separation of instruments is striking, and while the core of the song was always Lemmy’s bass riff, his whole performance here is breathtakingly clear. I’d never picked up the ‘flying is dying’ spoken part before but here it is quite distinct. The final section sounds a little strained which is probably a limit of the original recording. Like Space Is Deep, Down Through The Night is an acoustic track with the warmth of the layered guitars coming through clear on the remastered version, as well as Nik Turner’s flute work being more audible. Next is Time We Left This World Today with its atypical (for Hawkwind) angular riff shared between guitar and sax. This one had perhaps the muddiest sound on the original vinyl and the clarity here allows plenty of new detail to be picked up.  Listen for example to the extraordinary two minutes of bass work by Lemmy starting from the 4:20 mark. Lemmy as songwriter closes the album with The Watcher, a strangely downbeat and slightly menacing acoustic number, that always struck me as slightly out of place (couldn’t they have wrapped up more satisfactorily with Silver Machine?).

In addition to the remastered version of Doremi Fasol Latido, the first CD contains four (remastered) bonus tracks – three singles (Born To Go, Lord Of Light, Urban Guerilla) and Brainbox Pollution which was the flip side of Urban Guerilla – all of which are interesting without being essential.

The second CD contains the remixed version of Doremi Fasol Latido, courtesy of Stephen Tayler who has a burgeoning Hawkwind catalogue, having already done superb and sympathetic jobs remixing Space Ritual and In Search Of Space.  Here Brainstorm comes across as even more aggressive and energetic than the remastered version, probably due to Brock’s guitar being to the fore compared to Lemmy’s bass. Brock’s vocals also seem higher in the mix in Space Is Deep, and the acoustic guitars in the bridge and closing sections are wonderfully dense, sounding almost like a sitar, giving an almost Indian feel to the music. As if to stay with the Eastern theme, One Change, now sounds distinctly Japanese too!

The one piece of Tayler’s remixing that left me dubious was Lord Of Light. He’s pushed Lemmy’s bass down in the mix which might appease modern ears unaccustomed to such a bass-heavy sound but for me Lemmy’s riff is the essence of Lord Of Light and to scale back his contribution is a critical flaw. Tayler uses the same trick in Time We Left This World Today and this time it works much better. The heavy bass on the original made it powerful but ponderous while here the riff is crisp and exciting and the whole song works better for me as a result.

Overall, Tayler has produced a fascinating remix, which to these ears has pros and cons compared to the straight remastering. Personally, I might prefer to listen to the remastered album and dip into the remix for tracks like Time We Left This World Today, but everyone’s taste is different.

Bonus tracks on the second CD include further versions of Urban Guerilla and Brainbox Pollution, an excellent studio run-through of Seven By Seven (marked as ‘October 1972 remake’), and most interesting of all, the relatively rare Take What You Can which has an enjoyable Hurry On Sundown type of vibe.

Those investing in the deluxe edition will also get a third CD, the Live Greasy Truckers Party, again newly remixed by Stephen Tayler. Highlights include Master Of The Universe and Born To Go, which brings them both pretty much in line with the sound found on Tayler’s remixed Space Ritual. There’s what may appear as an odd introduction to Born To Go where Calvert says that the song is ‘dedicated to the miners….and will probably sound like a mining disaster’. The song is of course about exploring space, and not mines, but the concert was almost cancelled due to a power cut caused by the miners strikes at the time. Whether Calvert said that ironically or with genuine support for the miners’ cause, I don’t know. It’s also fascinating to hear Silver Machine with Calvert’s original vocal, even if you can see why they went with Lemmy for the commercial release. Brainstorm Jam is more of a poor cousin than a precursor to the song that graced Doremi Fasol Latido. It has a rather undeveloped version of the famous riff and there are no lyrics apart from Calvert mumbling the word brainstorm a few times.  At the end of the day, Brainstorm Jam and Live Greasy Truckers Party as a whole, shows that Hawkwind were still very much an underground band at the start of 1972. Moving on from the Greasy Truckers event, Hawkwind matured remarkably quickly during the year, producing the landmark Doremi Fasol Latido album, and by December they were on the road playing and recording the gigs that would become the legendary live album Space Ritual. Yes, 1972 was the seminal year for Hawkwind, and any fan should have this remastered/remixed version of Doremi Fasol Latido in their collection.