Intro Record Reviews | Part One

Rick Sanders of Intro reviews the latest discs. Published in the magazine during September and October 1967

GILBERT GREEN— GERRY MARSDEN:

After hearing Gilbert Green, which Robin and Barry Gibb of The Bee Gees wrote for merry Gerry, you might well make the mistake of thinking it was by the Beatles. The lyrics are very much in the biography-of-a-small-person vein like Eleanor Rigby, Mr. Kite and other Beetle heroes. The music too owes much to you know who. There are slow minuettish bits, hard core pop bits, and a super-glossy piano finale crashing away just like they did in the slush movies of the fifties. This may sound awful, but on the contrary—this is a great record. Gerry’s voice is dead right. It’s raw yet vaguely wistful at times, squeezing maximum meaning from the oddball words.

TRY MY WORLD—GEORGIE FAME:

Our revered mummies and daddies, bless their unmusical hearts, are always asking: “when is good music coming back?” Here’s good news for them, if nobody else, in the unlikely shape of Georgie Fame‘s Try My World. It’s a disastrous step for Georgie already on the path to becoming an all-round (i.e. all-square) entertainer and showbiz personality. Don’t be fooled by the dramatic special cover. Not much drama to this disc with its boring arrangement and drab vocal of a blank song. Against all hope I pray that Fame will either revert to his soulful ways of old, or find some other scene for his huge talent.

MY WORLD FELL DOWN, SAGITTARIUS:

All devout ravers must zoom out and get My World Fell Down by a character called Sagittarius. A bit like Good Vibrations gone berserk, this record will immediately blossom out at the top of all charts everywhere, if there’s any musical justice.

HOLE IN MY SHOE—TRAFFIC:

Behold, o my beloved children and fear not, for, in case you hadn’t noticed, Traffic are with us. Who am I, a mere record reviewer, to pass judgement on Hole In My Shoe? I had my doubts whether they’d be able to follow up Paper Sun with anything half as good. Oh me of little faith! This record shows Winwood isn’t the only genius—Hole is sung and composed by previously unknown (why?) David Mason. Traffic have enlisted a six year old B.P. (Beautiful Person) who speaks in Hole In My Shoe. Sheer poetry! Let’s get down on our knees and give thanks for the best single in ages. Rick Sanders (23/09/67)

SO LONG DAD—MANFRED MANN:

This track kicks off with a rocking bit of boogie from Manfred just like they did in the good old days. But the excitement ends there, and I’m afraid this record is just another production line pop sausage. Mike D’Abo sings quite pleasantly, but he simply hasn’t got the power of the late lamented Paul Jones. The record, a wry sort of story about how a son has grown up to be a man, is far too watery. Bound to get many plays on Family Favourites, it will probably do pretty well in the charts —all the same, I reckon Manfred Mann are slowly but surely sliding down the nick.

REFLECTIONS—THE SUPREMES:

Well, O.K., it’s been out a few weeks but I’ve just got to rave about Reflections by Diana Ross and the other Supremes. Not only is Diana the most fantastic-looking bird, but she can sing rings round anyone you care to name. On Reflections she brings the most searing emotion out of rather dull lyrics above a subdued Tamla backing complete with outer space bleeps and moans. Diana proves that you don’t have to bellow your head off to generate soul. Another thing I like is the way the girls always turn out something new yet definitely the Supremes. Even The Happening, not one of their greatest, was miles ahead of most samey Tamla. Reflections is totally different again and I can’t hear it often enough.

FLOWERS IN THE RAIN—THE MOVE:

Just can’t figure out why so many people rave about the Move—their records don’t seem all that good to me. They have even offered to play to U.S. troops in Vietnam for free—unbelievable. Their Flowers In The Rain isn’t a terrible record but, on the other hand, it’s no mind-boggler either. The rhythm is solid and loud, so no doubt some boppers will do their small nuts to it at the local Palais de Danse. Good luck to them! Predictably, the words tell us how great it is to sit in the rain watching the garden grow, which is fair enough by me but a bit hackneyed. Still, I’m told that potato power is the in thing to turn on to now, so maybe that’s what we’ll be hearing next from the Move.

FLIGHT FROM ASHIYA—KALEIDOSCOPE:

A big find for Fontana are Kaleidoscope, a new pink Freudian group from London. Their first single Flight From Ashiya is pretty damned supernatural, baby, and I love it. In fact I played it three thousand times on the trot as I mastered transcendental meditation with the rats in my attic. You can practically smell the Ally Pally incense on this freeky, compelling record, with its pounding belly-rumble bass line, beautiful shimmering, attacking guitar work, and apostolic harmonies to blow all minds. Definitely for tomorrow! Kaleidoscope write their own material and, if it’s all half as groovy as this, we’re in line for some wondrous works.

FUNKY BROADWAY—WILSON PICKETT:

Still pumping out the same old song is Wilson Pickett with this one. A wonderful record for keeping the neighbours awake. Sorry, Wilson.

THEME FOR A. NEW LOVE—DAVY JONES:

God help us all. This year’s worst record is Theme For A New Love by Davy Jones, the maraca-shaker of the Monkees. It’s a recitation, no less, with Davy whining just about every cliché ever heard. Totally revolting! Rick Sanders (30/09/67)

WHITE RABBIT-JEFFERSON AIRPLANE:

Wonder group from the West Coast, Jefferson Airplane have come up with a beautiful single. It’s sung by Grace Slick (who also wrote it), and what a great girl she is. The record opens with a quiet bolero beat, is joined by this wonderful Slick voice, and then builds up to a towering wall of climactic sound. I bow down before it and pray that it will get the success it deserves—but the lyrics mention psychedelic-type mushrooms so maybe the B.B.C. will ban it. This wouldn’t be so funny with no pirates to give the possible victims of the chopper an airing. A great record.

ZABADAK—DAVE DEE, DOZY, BEAKY, MICK AND TICH:

Well, at last. Lovable Dave Dee and friends are shuffling in the right direction with Zabadak (which their record company insist I spell with a little Z). Anyway, it’s a bit better than their previous discs. This record is somewhat Hawaiian influenced, as opposed to that gipsy epic Okay. It starts off with someone clapping a horse’s jaw (it happens every day), gently mingled with chanting. Then it breaks into some highly unintelligible words—which even I wouldn’t like to guess the meaning of—before a grade A corny violin break. It’s a pleasant commercial sound and is bound to make the top ten.

WEDNESDAY—THE ROYAL GUARDSMEN:

Remember what a drag Snoopy and the Red Baron was? The only reason it got anywhere was because of a few young groovers who were under the impression it was different. Well, the Royal Guardsmen have come up with another nice, nothing record, Wednesday. A worse drag is that this may be another surprise hit. “Ah, but it’s a nice record,” you say the first time round. Maybe, but what is it? Unstable harmony, a predictable tune and uninspiring lyrics. Rather boring and yeccccchy. What more can you do but yawn?

HOMBURG—PROCOL HARUM:

O.K. everybody—whip out your bread and take a trip down to the record shop and don’t get trodden underfoot in the stampede. Procol Harum strike again with a brilliant single. We’ve been waiting some time, but this shows they aren’t one hit flashes in the pop pan. Homburg is fairly like A Whiter Shade Of Pale in general mood and tune, except it’s got about twice as much raw power. It’s one gigantic crescendo from start to finish with piano, organ, and the voice of Gary Brooker all combining to give a blockbusting sound. Soon to be on the lips of everyone in Britain, Homburg just has to earthquake right up to number one in the charts. Rick Sanders (07/10/67)

YOU KEEP RUNNING AWAY—THE FOUR TOPS:

It’s a crying shame that a great group like the Tops saw fit to put out this record which, although full of excitement and professionalism, is exactly the same as their previous releases. It’s the same old formula with the phenomenal lead voice, harmonies and backing, but with nowhere near as much impact as, say, Reach Out. Of course, it’s certain to skyrocket into the charts, but I give You Keep Running Away a few weeks of glory, being played to death everywhere-and then everyone will forget it ever existed.

WHAT ON EARTH/MRS. MURPHY’S BUDGERIGAR—THE BLOSSOM TOES:

For the first time ever, here are two separate full-length tracks on one side of a single. So it’s congratulations to Blossom Toes and producer Giorgio Gomelsky for giving value for money. Sadly, the songs themselves are not as great as the idea behind them. What On Earth is a what’s-life-all-about sort of thing, with a voice that sounds like Ray Davies taking the mick out of Ray Davies. Mrs. Murphy’s Budgerigar is much more bouncy and light-weight. Both songs are O.K. but they aren’t the kind that’ll cause riots in Scunthorpe. They seem to have drawn much too much on the Bee Gees and The Beatles, without having much of a style of their own. Still, the label is the prettiest I’ve ever seen.

A PROLOGUE TO A MAGIC WORLD—RUPERT’S PEOPLE:

Good stuff here from Rupert’s People (bears?). Their Prologue To A Magic World captures a fairytale world of legends and make-believe right from the tinkling start, which is a take-off of one of those tunes I know so well but can’t put a name to. It goes on about a girl called Alice and a world where you don’t have to worry or hurry—just play croquet all day. You may well think it’s Alice In Wonderland all over again. That’s about right. I’m a great fan of the actual Alice and more important, I’m a great fan of this record. It must be a fair-sized hit or I will eat my favourite toadstool.

YOU CAN’T RUN AWAY FROM YOUR HEART—JUDY CLAY:

This is the first thing I’ve ever heard from Judy Clay and it had better not be the last. This record is totally wonderful. It’s got everything that’s greatest from the Memphis tradition of the best in blues. It starts deceptively with a rocking guitar break, then slows down into a moody ballad, with this wonderful majestic voice of Miss Clay bursting in to sing of the troubles of love. Bound to go down a bomb in the discotheques, top quality shows through on this disc in singing, production and arrangement.

BABY YOU’VE BEEN ON MY MIND—LUCIEN ALEXANDER:

Folk-rock rides again. A few years ago Joan Baez made a fantastic recording of this song, one of Bob Dylan’s best. This remake isn’t in the same class. He’s trying too hard to sound like King Dylan. The guitar sounds a bit out of tune and it’s all a bit too jazzed-up for me. Rick Sanders (14/10/67)

I CAN SEE FOR MILES—THE WHO:

Oh yes, yes, yes! Out of fire and thunder comes this shattering work of art by the Who. This is a typically brilliant musical H-bomb from the flaming pen of Pete Townshend—the absolute ultimate in hard, violent, blasting music for now. Even with the volume control at medium, the sheer power of the sound is overwhelming. You wonder just how much the human mind can take without breaking into a million pieces. It’s like being on your knees at the foot of some massive shuddering cliff which is going to come crashing down to destroy you any minute. Twisting, screaming guitar, unstoppable earthquake bass, menacingly explosive drums, wave upon wave of harsh but subtle harmonies punctuated with sarcastic “oh yeahs.” It all adds up to what hack pop writers used to call “mean, moody and magnificent.” Only in this case it’s the gospel truth.

LOVE IS ALL AROUND—THE TROGGS:

As INTRO pop columnist Peter Roche said the other week, groups like the Troggs are doing very nicely by playing it completely safe. Well, here we go again with yet another record which is about as simple and commercial as a soap powder ad. It’s quieter than previous Trogg records, incorporates strings and was written by Reg Presley. Finish. What annoys me is that it seems to be a rehash of all the Bobby Vee-type sound rampant a few years ago, jumbled up with musical clichés of other Trogg records. Afraid we’ve heard it all before. And the Troggs can continue to commute from Top Of The Pops to the bank with big rich grins all over their faces.

SHE—ROY ORBISON:

Once more, with feeling—and it’s another unmistakable Orbison hit. Doesn’t do anything for me, but I can’t see what should stop this big, slow, dramatic number selling in thousands. At least the man’s got style.

JESSE JAMES RIDES AGAIN—THE BEES:

First product of the new Columbia Blue Beat label is a real beauty from Jamaican group The Bees. Straight out of the Wild West (Indies, that is), the saga of Jesse James Rides Again is a relaxed yet uninhibited rhythm which I defy anybody with two feet to sit out. Following the success of The Guns Of Navarone and Train To Skaville, the British ice must be to a certain extent broken, leaving the way clear for The Bees to lollop into our charts with this wonderful happy sound. Flipside, The Girl In My Dreams, has got that same insistent shuffle beat, and should go down a bomb in the clubs. Looks like ska, blue beat or whatever you want to call it is coming back on the scene with a bang.

LIKE NOBODY ELSE LOS BRAVOS:

Proving that you don’t have to come from London and wear a caftan to make good, honest rocking sounds is the Spanish group Los Bravos. Like Nobody Else could well have walked out of the early days of unsophisticated rock and roll—which is surprising when you discover that the song was written by B. R. and M. Gibb of the Bee Gees. Be that as it may, this record belts along like an express train and is a huge improvement on their previous hits. Rick Sanders (21/10/67)

SUSPICIONS-JOHN MAYALL’S BLUESBREAKERS:

Hot on the heels of the superb Crusade album, make way for John Mayall‘s first single for ages. It’s as great as you’d expect and is bound to win hordes of disciples for the cause of the blues. It’s loud, brassy and raucous, and a bit less ethnic than the usual Mayall. But who really cares about authenticity when the music itself is as good as this? John’s magnificent voice tends to get drowned, but there’s some sparkling guitar work from Mick Taylor, a worthy follower in the giant footsteps of Eric Clapton and Peter Green.

IF I PROMISE—JOHN WALKER:

The name alone should be good for selling a few thousand copies of this, which is a reasonably pleasant, fast-moving ballad. John’s voice doesn’t exactly grate, but compared with his ex-brother Scott, he’s a bit watery. He doesn’t get much feeling into this single. I’m sure he can do better than this. Let’s hope his next one has a bit more guts and bite.

HUSH NOW—JIMI HENDRIX AND CURTIS KNIGHT:

When I saw the label, London American, I took it for granted that this was early stuff dug out of the archives and released to cash in on the success of the hirsute Hendrix since he made it big in England. Apparently not. Decca say that this was recorded when Jimi was recently in the States, with Curtis Knight singing.

Sounds just like our Jimi to me. Hush Now is a typical chunk of Hendrix meat, with wild electric guitar poetry and enigmatic lyrics. This may be too far out to be a hit—it’s all very fragmentary and hard to get hold of. All the same, it’s the real stuff—and how does he get those sounds out of his guitar?

WHERE’S THE MELODY—BRENDA LEE:

Did you know Caruso’s voice could shatter a wine glass? I’ll bet my favourite raver’s hat that Brenda Lee, the original little Miss Dynamite, would make short work of a pint mug! Apart from that, her latest effort is a pretty ordinary soul thing with a touch of the blaring Herb Alpert’s. It won’t make the charts and I can’t help thinking how much better it would have been by someone like Aretha Franklin.

THERE IS A MOUNTAIN—DONOVAN:

I’ve been itching to hear this for weeks. Why is it that we in Donovan‘s home country get his records months after they’ve come out in the U.S.A? This one was worth the wait. It’s a complete departure from Donovan the folk-rocker, and is a sort of riddle song with a pungent West Indian flavour. It’s happy and infectiously rhythmic and should be yet another hit for every-body’s favourite minstrel. The flipside, Sand And Foam, comes off the Sunshine Superman LP. One of his most moving songs, it seems sad it’s just a B side when it would have been a certain hit on its own. Rick Sanders (28/10/67)