Long John Silver / Thirty Seconds Over Winterland (Jefferson Airplane)Baron Von Tollbooth And The Chrome Nun (Kantner - Slick- Freiberg) If anyone is unfamiliar with the work the Airplane did in that historical 'no-man's land' between the end of the '60s and the arrival of the Starship they will find this pair of releases enlightening..
ARS NOVA – Fields Of People: The Elektra And Atlantic Recordings 1968-69 (Esoteric)
The first thing to get straightened out before diving into this particular artefact is not the question ‘who are Ars Nova?’, but rather ‘which Ars Nova is this?’ as, strange though it may seem, there have been two bands both laying claim to this fairly unlikely title. The ‘other’ Ars Nova are a Japanese progressive..
Renaissance – Turn Of The Cards (Expanded 2020 edition – Esoteric Antenna)
This isn't the first (and won't be the last) time I've rattled on about the Esoteric label and their powerhouse reissues of classic progressive rock titles, such as their new four-disc expanded edition of the triumphant Renaissance album Turn Of The Cards. Released in 1974 - squarely in the middle of their legendary run of..
BE BOP DELUXE – Modern Music 2CD Set (Esoteric)
Like Sunburst Finish before it, it's a meticulously arranged album, with not a note out of place and everything in the service of the song Be Bop Deluxe, led by the closest thing the '70s had to a second Bryan Ferry in the shape of the dapper and stylish Bill Nelson, were always a square..
SPIRIT – Two Sides Of A Rainbow (Esoteric)
When the Rainbow encores finally come to the last song, California proceeds to invite the entire audience along to a party afterward in the lobby of their hotel! Remember Spirit? You should. Emerging in the 1960s playing an eclectic mix of acid-flavoured rock, the band were led by Randy California, a young and mercurial guitar..
GREENSLADE – Sundance: A Collection 73-75 (Esoteric)
If you’re a casual listener – this is probably all you’ll need. If you’re a fan, that Reading track you’ve been after is finally here... Greenslade are one of those peculiarly ‘1970s’ prog bands who had a fairly high profile in that decade yet dropped of the proverbial cliff as the ‘80s dawned (much of..
DAVE COUSINS – Two Weeks Last Summer (Esoteric)
As a slight annex built on to their ongoing Strawbs reissue campaign, Esoteric have unearthed this 1972 solo album by Strawb Supremo Dave Cousins, so named because he did, in fact, record it in two weeks in the Summer of 1972, in between the Strawbs albums Grave New World and Bursting At The Seams. Although..
STRAWBS – DEEP CUTS (Esoteric)
a mix of more commercial, easily melodic material alongside harder-edged fare for those who didn't want too much sugar with their Strawbs! By 1976, when Deep Cuts originally appeared, The Strawbs were getting to the end of their original 1970s run, and would split following two more albums, in 1978. The previous album, 1975's Nomadness,..
ALAN PRICE – BETWEEN TODAY AND YESTERDAY (Esoteric)
Many people still cite this album as the high point of Price's solo career, and who can argue with them? Concept albums can be a funny sort of beast. Logically, the idea of putting out a set of songs as an album linked together thematically should be an obvious one whatever the genre, and indeed..
ANNIE HASLAM – ANNIE IN WONDERLAND (Esoteric)
... the old classic Nature Boy, a song whose other-worldly, slightly surreal melody has always made it sound like a song simply waiting for Annie's voice to join it ... In 1977, while Renaissance were taking a short hiatus in order for John Tout to recover from illness, Annie Haslam decide to take advantage of..