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Highlighting in album tracklistings denotes 'contains Mellotron'. On 'multi-part' tracks I've tried to indicate which parts contain 'Tron, although this isn't always possible.
Ratings:
The * rating (½-5) is my personal, entirely subjective and completely partisan rating of the music.
The 'T' ('Tron, of course...) rating (0-5) is an only slightly more objective indicator of an album's Mellotronness.
By the way, if you know of any Mellotron albums that aren't listed here, please look at my albums page first! Thanks.
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Second Hand Secret Cinema Bob Seger Il Segno del Comando |
Seks Bomba Semisonic Serenade/Shingetsu Sergeant Petter |
Seventh Wave Shaa Khan Shadowfax The Shadows |
Shakary Shakira Vonda Shepard |
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Reality (1968, 43.11) ****/TTT½ |
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| A Fairy Tale Rhubarb! Denis James the Clown Steam Tugs Good Old '59 (We Are Slowly Gettin' Older) The World Will End Yesterday Denis James (Ode to D.J.) Mainliner |
Reality The Bath Song A Fairy Tale |
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Death May Be Your Santa Claus (1971, 39.13/44.09) ***½/TT½ |
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| Death May Be Your Santa Claus Hangin' on an Eyelid Lucifer and the Egg Somethin' You Got Cyclops Sic Transit Gloria Mundi Revelations Take to the Skies |
Death May Be Your Santa Claus (Reprise) Funeral [CD adds: Dip it Out of the Bog Fred Baby R U Anudda Monster] |
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Mellotrons used:
Second Hand have been described as 'cult psychedelic heroes'; I can't find out anything about the core members before the band's formation, but keys man Ken Elliott and drummer Kieran O'Connor kept the band alive through several years and three albums, although the last of these, Chillum, was released under that name, for reasons now lost in the mists of time.
1968's Reality (Second Hand Reality, I suppose), is a typical late-ish period psych album, with all the usual influences, including the music-hall of Denis James The Clown and the rather overwrought balladry of The Bath Song (which reminds me of Simon Dupree, for some reason), amongst others. The album appears to be as good as dedicated to a gentleman by the name of Denis James (a friend? A fictional character?), with no fewer than three songs referencing him, including the sad tale of his untimely passing. Elliott gets plenty of MkII 'Tron onto the album, with flutes, strings and brass on opener A Fairy Tale, fairly heavy string use on Steam Tugs and a very upfront flute melody on Denis James (Ode To D.J.), distinctly different to the real flute to be heard in places. More strings and flutes in The Bath Song, including a 'Psycho'-style discordant string chord at one point, and finally more strings in the closing A Fairy Tale, a heavily-rearranged version of the album's opener. All in all, this is an excellent, rather overlooked psych gem from an undeservedly obscure outfit, with plenty of 'Tron to boot. Incidentally, I'm told that the MkII in question was Manfred Mann's (thanks, Roy).
It took the band another three years to come up with the strangely-titled Death May Be Your Santa Claus, by which time, of course, the world (music and otherwise) had moved on noticeably. Second Hand's answer to this was to produce an odd little album of shortish material, not exactly psych, or prog, or mainstream pop/rock; not exactly anything, really, and all the better for it if you ask me. Saying that, it's not that fantastic an album, but it definitely has its moments (Revelations stands out particularly), despite being slightly uncohesive. I've no idea if Elliott had a new M400, or whether the old MkII was still in use, but he gets some strings in on all the highlighted tracks above, with some excellent pitchbend work on Hangin' On An Eyelid, and an odd, choppy flute part on Death May Be Your Santa Claus (Reprise), along with some brass (so is that the MkII?). Unfortunately, the two bonus tracks Elliott (presumably) has elected to add to the disc are largely a waste of time, and to add insult to injury, are stuck in the middle of the running order, rather than at the end, where you'd expect, and could easily flick the 'off' switch.
After splitting up acrimoniously after the Chillum album, Elliott and O'Connor eventually got back together as Seventh Wave, recording another two albums with minor 'Tron action in the mid-'70s before a final parting of the ways. Sadly, O'Connor has subsequently died, but Elliott continues to work in the business, playing sessions, as he did in the early' 70s. So; Reality is probably the better of the two albums, although if late-'60s psych isn't your bag, you're not going to like it, simple as that. Death May Be Your Santa Claus is odder, and possibly more adventurous, though I suspect it'll take rather more work to get into. Better 'Tron on the former than the latter, but not bad throughout.
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Dreamin' of My Past (1994, 66.28) ***½/TTTTIn the Autumn of My DreamsThrough the Windows of Time |
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Secret Cinema are an odd one; ex-Arti e Mestieri keys man and general mover and shaker in the '90s Italian progressive scene, Beppe Crovella, plus four younger musicians combine to make a long-format symphonic album, and partially succeed. Partially? Well, Dreamin' of My Past's major let-down is its proclivity for neo-proggish structures and sounds, punctuated with a more '70s vibe that doesn't always quite fit. Mind you, it shits on Crovella's hilariously awful Romantic Warriors project of the previous year from a great height, thankfully. Another problem is the length of the material; if you're trying to sound like you're from the '70s, don't write two sprawling half hour-plus tracks and expect to sound authentic. In fairness, I'm sure 'authenticity' wasn't top of their agenda; it sounds like they were trying to mix the '70s and the '90s, and to a great degree, they succeeded. Both pieces do rather lose their way after a while, though, and some editorial work may've been a good idea somewhere down the line.
For all that, it's not a bad album (ignore the awful sleeve), and I haven't even got to its best feature yet: (what else...) the Mellotron. Crovella sticks loads of real 'Tron all over the record, usually right at the top of the mix, mostly strings, ignoring the IQ effect, i.e. 'choirs, choirs and more choirs'. It's actually done very subtly, without the blanket coverage that a lesser band might've used (usually a sure pointer to sample use, as it happens), with periods of some minutes passing with nothing at all, before another raw burst of strings come leaping out at you. Saying that, this isn't a five-T effort, but I've heard an awful lot worse.
So; good music but not great, very good 'Tron but also not top-notch. I think this has been out of print since the Vinyl Magic label went under; some of their titles have been reissued on the new VM2000 label, but I don't think this is among them. As a result, it's not the easiest thing to find, and I'm not advocating that you spend a fortune on it, but if you see a second-hand copy, it's definitely worth a blast.
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Seven (1974, 30.33) ***/½Get Out of DenverLong Song Comin' Need Ya School Teacher Cross of Gold U.M.C. (Upper Middle Class) Seen a Lot of Floors 20 Years from Now All Your Love |
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Beautiful Loser (1975, 32.57) ***/TBeautiful LoserBlack Night Katmandu Jody Girl Travelin' Man Momma Nutbush City Limits Sailing Nights Fine Memory |
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Live Bullet (1976, 71.15) ****/T |
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| Nutbush City Limits Travelin' Man Beautiful Loser Jody Girl I've Been Working Turn the Page U.M.C. Bo Diddley |
Ramblin' Gamblin' Man Heavy Music Katmandu Lookin' Back Get Out of Denver Let it Rock | |
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Bob Seger's seventh studio album, er, Seven, defines his down to earth, blue-collar style perfectly, with its 'that HAD to've happened' opener, Get Out Of Denver, followed by another seven tracks of all-out, Midwest, mid-'70s rock'n'roll, plus the token ballad, 20 Years from Now. I'm not saying it's especially exciting in the cold light of day, mind, but it definitely defines a time and a place, and Seger was always about playing live anyway, so his studio recordings are almost irrelevant, really. Next to no Mellotron from Robin Robbins, with a brief (but potent) string part in closer All Your Love, which surprised me by NOT being a ballad.
The following year's Beautiful Loser is a lot more varied, mixing rock'n'roll (Katmandu, Ike and Tina Turner's Nutbush City Limits), countryish balladry (Jody Girl, Momma) and more straightforward slowies (Sailing Nights, Fine Memory). Although Seger's chief keyboard player on the album was Barry Beckett, Robbins guests here again on various instruments, including Mellotron. It's on one track only, with fragile flute and string parts on Jody Girl, that vaguely enhance the song without being in any way essential. All in all, a reasonable album of its type, but for the real meat'n'two veg, see below.
Seger had been plying his thing around the States for the better part of a decade by the time he elected to record a live album in front of a hometown Detroit crowd. Like so many straight down-the-line rock'n'roll artists, Seger was at his best on stage, making this a fairly obvious option, and it kicked his career into high gear, although he's let it slide in recent years, apparently preferring to race sailing boats. Although not especially to my personal taste, there isn't a bad song on Live Bullet, with the album capturing the Silver Bullet Band's live sound as well as a recording ever does. Highlights include opener Nutbush City Limits and Turn The Page, also known as 'The Road' (the lyrics are excellent), covered (well) by Metallica many years later. Robin Robbins' keyboard work (mostly Hammond and Wurlitzer) is excellent throughout, and he uses Mellotron (or, according to some sources, Chamberlin) on a couple of tracks. Jody Girl, which also has 'Tron on the original version has a few string chords here and there, but Turn The Page is the album's Mellotronic highlight, with a rather nice string part coming in part of the way through the song, although two relatively sparsely-'Tronned tracks don't really make a Mellotron Album as such.
So; two reasonable and one good album of their type, four OK 'Tron tracks over all three. That's it.
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Il Segno del Comando (1996?, 48.46) ****/TTenebrose PresenzeIl Segno del Comando Salmo XVII di Baldassarre Vitali o "Della Doppia Morte" Messaggero di Pietra Ritratto di Donna Velata (Lord Byron's Night Promenade) Missa Nigra La Taverna dell'Angelo Ghost Lovers in Villa Piuma |
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There seems to be some confusion over exactly what or who Il Segno del Comando are or were, but I've had it confirmed (hi Mauro) that they're most definitely a '90s outfit, taking their name from a cult '70s Italian TV series, translating as 'the sign of command'. Il Segno del Comando has a doomy, early-'70s sort of vibe about it, like so many of Black Widow's more contemporary releases, and the guitar work gives its recent origins away; no-one played like that thirty years ago.
Mellotron credited on one track only, with guest musician Osvaldo Giordano playing strings on the lengthy title track. There's the occasional 'Tron-alike sound elsewhere on the album, but if the strings on Messaggero Di Pietra and La Taverna Dell'Angelo are anything to go by, they're samples. Anyway, it's a pretty cool album, but a long way from 'Mellotron Classic' status. There's a second album, 2002's Der Golem, but I've no idea whether or not there's any Mellotronic involvement.
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Operation B.O.M.B.A. (1999, 38.30) ***½/T |
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| Jet City The Right Track (Baby) Theme From "To Kill 89" Bright Lights and You, Girl The Car Theme From "Mondo Edgar" Do You Know the Way to San Jose? Klown Kar |
Operation B.O.M.B.A. Main Title & Love Theme From "Satan's Shriners" Last Call It Had Better Be Tonight Rum Holiday The Seks Bomba Theme (Part 1) The Seks Bomba Theme (Part 2) |
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Somewhere in This Town (2001, 42.36) ***/0 |
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| Bomba Au Go Go Happy Hour It Takes Two to Tango 5-0-5!!! Morfina Love Me Sicilian Civilian I.R.O.C. |
Strangely Familiar Agua de Beber (Water to Drink) Casino Royale Charade Fresh Perked Somewhere in This Town |
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Seks Bomba's schtick lies in playing (mostly) instrumentals in a '60s style. Not psych, not beat, more spy thriller themes, surf and easy listening; imagine mini-skirted girls go-go dancing to The Ventures while Bond and Blofeld reminisce and sip martinis at the bar. Shaken, not stirred, of course. Don't know about the martinis, though. 1999's fake soundtrack album, Operation B.O.M.B.A., is loads of fun, reminding you what's so good about the era's 'grown-up' music, as against all that Beatles rubbish. It'll all be over by next year, eh? George Hall plays Mellotron, amongst other keyboards, with string parts on Theme From "Mondo Edgar" and Do You Know the Way to San Jose?, which is probably all the album needs, really, and it's not often I say that.
Two years on and Somewhere in This Town has a few more vocal tracks and, somehow, is marginally less appealing than its predecessor. Too much of a good thing? Dunno, but it didn't conjure up the same mental images as Operation B.O.M.B.A., or indeed, any at all. While Hall is credited with Mellotron again, there's none obviously to be heard, so no idea what that's about.
If you like the sound of this lot, Operation B.O.M.B.A. is the one to go for, both musically and Mellotronically, although it's far from a major work on that front.
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Feeling Strangely Fine (1998, 50.20) ***/T½ |
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| Closing Time Singing in My Sleep Made to Last Never You Mind Secret Smile DND Completely Pleased This Will Be My Year |
All Worked Out California She Spreads Her Wings Gone to the Movies |
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I've seen Minneapolis natives Semisonic described as 'alternative rock'; alternative to what? Rock, presumably, as there's no getting away from the fact that they're full-on indie-schmindie (US division). In fairness, their second album, Feeling Strangely Fine, isn't entirely unappealing, with the Beatlesy piano-driven Never You Mind, with its weird lyrical sidetrack into Star Trek territory managing to hold my attention throughout its length. Pity about the cheesy Secret Smile, but there you go.
Plenty of vintage keys here, with Wurly piano and/or Hammond on at least half the tracks. Only one credited 'Tron track, with a nice string part on She Spreads Her Wings, which is odd, as it's also clearly audible on two others, with a string part on opener (and largish hit) Closing Time, and understated flutes on the other hit, Secret Smile, although the strings on DND sound real.
So, three so-so 'Tron tracks, but a medium-dull album, so don't go too far out of your way.
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Night Collector (1995, recorded 197?-198?, 59.47) ****/TTTT |
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| Yomigaeru Kioku Kaiki part 1 Kaiki part 2 Satsui Henu Funade part 2 Syuumatsu Sakin No Uzu Sima He Kaerou Papa To Isshoni |
Return of the Night Take Hikaru Akane Sasu Roman Fuu Maborosi |
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Shingetsu only ever released one album 'proper', a self-titled effort from '79, but Night Collector (possibly also known as Kagaku no Yoru) appeared in 1995, collecting unreleased Shingetsu material along with recordings by their earlier incarnation, Serenade. The two bands shared a vocalist (Makoto Kitayama) and keyboard player (Akira Hanamoto), but they sounded noticeably different, largely due to the differing guitarists. Due to my somewhat non-existent Japanese, it's difficult to tell when the material dates from, but I think it says the Serenade stuff is from around '76, with the Shingetsu being from '79 and (probably) later. Whatever, it's a more than worthwhile release, with the more symphonic Serenade stuff being particularly worthy of mention.
The disc breaks down as follows: tracks 1-5, Serenade, tracks 6-9, Shingetsu Mk.1, tracks 10-13, Shingetsu Mk.2. The Mk.1 Shingetsu stuff isn't that great, to be honest, but the Mk.2 tracks are as good as the Serenade ones, both of which feature Hanamoto's Mellotron pretty heavily. Kaiki Part 1 has some serious string swells, while Part 2 has 'Tron cellos on the intro, followed by a lengthy flute part. Satsui Henu Funade Part 2 (no part 1, it seems) sounds like it's going to be 'Tron-free until several minutes into the lengthy piece, as some sterling strings work rushes in, including a wonderful pitchbent chord at the end. Despite the tape hiss, the 'Tron flutes/strings/cellos of the under-two minute Syuumatsu are absolutely beautiful, proving Hanamoto-san to be a master of the instrument; why is he not more widely known? Two Mk.2 Shingetsu tracks have more strings/flutes/cellos (guess what tape set they had?), making for some serious 'Tron content, despite the four dodgier (note: not dodgy) tracks.
I found this by complete accident in a cheap CD section, only picking it up because of its striking sleeve design; as you can see, there's no band name on the cover, and I didn't even know there was a Mellotron on board. I can't see you being quite so lucky, but I'll put my reputation (which reputation was that?) on the line and say; buy.
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It's a Record (2003, 53.50) ***/½ |
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| Let's Play in D-Major Perfection Flame Waiting Song The Amazing Face of Grace City of Greens No Trouble How About 25? Tunes & Rhythms |
WUSLOYS Mediocre Magic Tricks Urban Dreams Sparkle Let's Play in C-Major Drugstore Slowdown Time Will Tell |
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Sergeant Petter (ho ho!), a.k.a. Petter Folkedal, is a Norwegian singer-songwriter with a strange countryish edge to his style, though not to the point of offensiveness; his debut album, It's a Record, is reasonably good in an Americana kind of way, although it left me a little cold, I'm afraid. Surprisingly for this stuff, the upbeat songs tend to work better, although I noticed a faint Richard Thompson influence on a couple of the slower tracks, though I expect it's just coincidence.
On the Mellotron front, played by Folkedal himself, I can't tell if the brass on Let's Play In D-Major is or not, but the flutes in Perfection most certainly are, but... that appears to be it. Very odd. Wonder if it's real? I mean, it's not like it once was, when bands would go into a studio and find a machine in the corner, which they might stick on one track; now you've got to hire one in specially, although that doesn't seem to stop plenty of other artists from using one in a somewhat minimal manner...
So; one for Americana fans, I suppose, but don't even think about it for the 'Tron.
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Things to Come (1974) ***½/T | |
| Sky Scraper Metropolis Intercity Water Rat Escalator Old Dog Song Smog, Fog and Sunset Fail to See Premonition |
Festival Eversolightly Communication Skyways Things to Come 1999½ Dance of the Eloi |
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Psi-Fi (1975, 45.37) ***/½ |
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| Return to Foreverland Roads to Rome Manifestations Loved By You Only the Beginning Aether Anthem Astral Animal El Tooto |
Camera Obscura Star Palace of the Sombre Warrior |
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Seventh Wave were one of those odd little British progressive bands who never escaped from the third division, saleswise, although they did actually have something to offer in places. Rising from the ashes of psych-monsters Second Hand (themselves Mellotron users), the duo of the (now sadly late) Kieran O'Connor and good keyboardist/bad vocalist Ken Elliott operated mainly in the short song format (these are only regular-length LPs), just with a 'progressive' feel, not to mention keyboards, so there's plenty of those mid-'70s instruments, largely ARP, Moog and EMS synths. The material on Things to Come is a little variable, to be honest, with the instrumental stuff tending to work better than the vocal. Apart from the above-mentioned synths and various pianos, there's some 'Tron on a couple of tracks, with a few string chords on Premonition and similar on 1999½, but they're not exactly classics of the genre.
For some odd reason, a (British) south coast minor cult apparently sprung up around Psi-Fi at its time of release, or maybe that was just among the sickos I know. Anyway, I'm afraid to say I think it's pretty ropey; Seventh Wave accentuated the vocal aspects of their music, which was, musically at least, a trip in entirely the wrong direction. Instead of their debut's two-piece band, they toured six or seven musicians, but the end result sounds, to my ears at least, like a bit of a mess, although it does pick up noticeably towards the end, on Camera Obscura and the ridiculously-titled Star Palace Of The Sombre Warrior. The only Mellotron on the album appears to be played by guest Hugh Banton (from Van der Graaf Generator), with about two string chords on Manifestations, although Star Palace... has some choirs that may or may not be real.
I can't really say these are lost classics, but Things to Come isn't at all bad, although neither album is even remotely worth it on the Mellotron front. A 1999 2-on-1 CD reissue apparently replaces Psi-Fi's lone 'Tron track, Manifestations, with its single version, so I've no idea if there's more 'Tron or even less.
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The World Will End on Friday (1978, 38.00) ***½/TWhite RoomWorld Will End on Friday Graveyard Ocean Seasons |
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Shaa Khan are one of those rather second-division German progressive bands who ended up on the Sky label, presumably because Brain didn't want them. They're not bad, exactly, just not that great, either. The World Will End on Friday is a mid-paced sort of affair, with White Room (not that one) and Graveyard being the best tracks, albeit a little unexciting.
The only Mellotron on display, played by Horst Schlechtriemen, is some choir on the title track, but I wouldn't rush out to buy it on those grounds, to be honest. An OK album, but not exactly something to quicken your heart; probably a good, job, as I believe it's been unavailable for some years, along with its successor, Anything Wrong? (***½).
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Watercourse Way (1976, 41.34) ****/T½The Shape of a WordLinear Dance Petite Aubade Book of Hours Watercourse Way Song for My Brother |
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Shadowfax (yup, another Lord of the Rings reference) are best-known for their rather dull '80s work on pioneering New Age label Windham Hill, assuming anything about the label could be described as 'pioneering'. However, the Chicago-based act had been in existence in one form or another since 1972, releasing the original version of their debut album, Watercourse Way, in 1976. So, is it full of wussy Chuck Greenberg Lyricon passages? Is it fuck. This is great, dynamic mid-'70s American prog, with nary a hint of the blandness to come, full of angular riffage and fab instrumental interplay, with the energy of a fusion band, without the jazziness. Some combination... The Shape Of A Word and Linear Dance stick pretty closely to this template, while Petite Aubade, with its vague renaissance feel (era, not band), or the title track's proto-World Music stylings could be seen as a portent of things to come, or
simply as gentler progressive pieces in the context of a high-energy album.
There's no one overriding instrumental texture on the album, with Greenberg's wind instruments (acoustic and electric) being more or less prevalent on different tracks, alongside G.E. Stinson's ripping guitar work, particularly on acoustic, and Doug Maluchnik's keyboards. Speaking of which, it's alleged that Maluchnik used a Chamberlin on the album, but he's assured me that it's definitely an M400, not that he uses it very much; a short burst of strings in opener The Shape Of A Word, and a brief orchestrated section opening Petite Aubade, leaving the nearest the album gets to full-on use being closer Song For My Brother, although 'full-on' is something of a misnomer, actually translating to 'a bit more than anywhere else'.
Watercourse Way was reissued on Lost Lake Arts, a Windham Hill subsidiary, in remixed form; I've no idea whether or not the Mellotron parts survived the remix, and I don't feel inclined to track a copy down to find out, to be honest. The band went on to considerable fame and fortune, incorporating 'World' influences into their laid-back chillout style, before Greenberg's untimely death at the age of 45. The album's original release wasn't entirely obscure, being on the worthy Passport label, and is worth keeping an eye out for, although I suspect you're unlikely to find a copy outside the States. Happy hunting!
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Shades of Rock (1970, 34.34) ***/T½ |
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| Proud Mary My Babe Lucille Johnny B. Goode Paperback Writer (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction Bony Moronie Get Back |
Something River Deep, Mountain High Memphis What'd I Say |
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The Shadows, eh? To Brit rock fans of a certain age, the Shads will always be fondly remembered, not so much as Cliff Richard's original backing band, but as the nearest thing our post-war, just post-rationing country got to the spirit of American rock'n'roll. In those dark days post-rock's initial surge, when it looked like the whole thing could've just been a flash in the pan, The Shadows kept the dream of guitar-based music alive, holding the forces of Light Entertainment at bay, and in the absence of anything even remotely resembling rebellion in the media, the Shads, and Hank in particular, provided a focus for Britain's future guitar elite; almost all the major names who came up in the '60s have quoted Mr. Marvin as an influence. Unfortunately, with the benefit of considerable hindsight, they look as safe as milk, and were probably the first Heritage Act, decades before the term meant anything.
In case you've never heard them, their schtick was the Guitar Instrumental, with the melody line taken by guitar, usually with unfeasible amounts of mild whammy-bar action. After their original run of hits, they took to making albums of reasonably current songs, delivered in their own inimitable style, aimed at their already ageing audience, a position they've held till the present day. It's easy to sneer at The Shadows' squeaky-clean image and middle-aged takes on other peoples' songs, but it's just as easy to forget the massive impact they had on a whole generation of British musicians, many of whom went on to conquer the world, metaphorically speaking. Hank was allegedly the first UK muso to own a Fender Strat, a guitar that still looks cool and space-age over fifty years later, although the whole band went through a dodgy phase of using and endorsing the British Burns guitar range, whose unfashionability is only matched by their extreme ugliness.
Shades of Rock was The Shads' ninth non-compilation album, and was actually recorded after the (non-)'original' band had split, temporarily losing co-guitarist Bruce Welch. Unsurprisingly, even in 1970, it's a collection of mostly laid-back instrumental versions of already well-known songs, including some from the original rock'n'roll era, which had probably already attained the status of a 'golden age', even then. Nothing here offends, but then, nothing The Shadows do ever offends; they are inoffensiveness incarnate, then and now, so while a few tracks are interestingly re-interpreted, nothing exactly leaps out at you as innovative. The faux-rebellious sleeve looks a little silly now, too, assuming it wasn't meant ironically, which I doubt. Wonder who the 'biker' model was? Agency bloke, I expect. Nice BSA, though.
The album's prominent keyboards were played by 'the undisputed king of library music composers', Alan Hawkshaw, who adds Mellotron to their slightly 'tribal' take on The Beatles' Paperback Writer, with saxes in the verse and flutes in the chorus, plus flutes in George Harrison's major Beatles contribution Something, although that's it on the 'Tron front. I've actually been keeping an eye out for a cheap copy of this for years, since seeing a mention of its Mellotronic contribution in Record Collector magazine; for once, I haven't been let down by someone's faulty hearing or lack of knowledge of what a Mellotron actually is. Anyway, despite a couple of passable 'Tron tracks, you really don't want to buy this for that reason. Hey, I buy 'em so you don't have to.
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Alya (2000, 87.30) ***/TT |
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| Sunset Lost Angels Time Trap Starless Nights Seals Alya The First Inquisition Pain? |
Pain! Sentence The Dark Kingdom The Last Drink Alya Babylon New Angels Open Skies |
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Shakary seem to be more of a project than a band, led by multi-instrumentalist Scandy. Although they're based in Switzerland, there's a noticeable connection with current Italian proggers Clepsydra, with one of the other two 'full' members involved, while their vocalist guests throughout. Their debut, Alya, is a slightly over-ambitious double CD featuring some sort of Biblical concept, although it manages not to be too intrusive. The music? Somewhere between several progressive styles, to be honest; I hear classic symphonic, '80s neo-prog and the more modern hybrid style of Spock's Beard et al., with the latter tending to dominate.
I'm not personally that blown away by the album; it's overlong, while short on ideas, particularly in the melody department, although there are some nice moments here and there. It's pretty derivative, too; other online reviews have pinpointed bits of IQ (specifically their Subterranea opus, oddly), and a very 'Waiting Room'-like piece in Pain! I really don't like Aluisio Maggini's voice, either; it tends to grate, and he over-emotes at every opportunity. Good points? Carlo Cantini's violin interjections stand out (it's the first sound you hear on the album), and the occasional use of Stefano Pista Salvadè's trumpet is unusual enough to be noteworthy, but the persistent digital synths scattered all over the place drag the whole thing down - in my humble opinion, of course. Anyway, the (real, studio) Mellotron is played by secondary keys man Giovanni Galfetti. It certainly isn't overused, with not-especially-overt string parts on Sunset and Seals on disc one, and some polyphonic flutes on disc two's The Dark Kingdom, with some more upfront strings on Babylon and Open Skies.
So... Some of you will love this; some of you won't. I'm willing to accept that it may grow on me with subsequent listens, but I suspect not by that much. It most certainly has its moments, but there's far too much unnecessary faff, and editing it down to a single disc should've been pretty easy; after all, if the fantastically verbose Dream Theater managed to trim their surprisingly excellent Scenes From a Memory to below 80 minutes, why can't this bunch? Anyway, a so-so release, with a modicum of 'Tron, but I've certainly heard better in the last few years. Incidentally, their second album, 2002's The Last Summer 'features' some rather poor 'Tron samples and is reviewed here.
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Laundry Service (2001, 49.20) ***/½ |
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| Objection (Tango) Underneath Your Clothes Whenever, Wherever Rules The One Ready for the Good Times Fool Te Dejo Madrid |
Poem to a Horse Que Me Quedes Tu Eyes Like Yours Suerte Te Aviso, Te Anuncio (Tango) |
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Laundry Service is by far and away Colombian superstar Shakira Ripoll's best-selling album, at least to date. I have to admit, I was expecting a typical American light, fluffy pop record, so I was pleasantly surprised to be presented with a bright'n'breezy, Latin-flavoured pop/rock album (I was unaware of Shakira's nationality, I'm ashamed to say). No, this isn't exactly going to be a regular fixture on my stereo, but it's so nice to listen to a mainstream album and not have my beleaguered ears assaulted by lowest common denominator crud, and to know that the young lady in question has written and produced the album herself. She sets out her stall from the off, with the Latin intro to Objection (Tango), and even though the songwriting quality fluctuates (Te Dejo Madrid), I have to give this the thumbs-up simply for not offending me.
Keyboards are played by Lester Mendez, so I presume it's him on Mellotron flutes on The One. There may be some background strings on one other track, but it's difficult to tell, so it stays unhighlighted. Y'know, I'm not even sure where I found out there was 'Tron (or is it Chamberlin?) on this album; there's no credit in the booklet, and I can't find any 'Net reference. Sounds like it, though... So; not one for you progheads (you mean you're even READING this?), but rather better than expected. Minimal 'Tron, though.
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The Radical Light (1992, 49.47) **½/0 |
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| Searchin' My Soul The Radical Light 100 Tears Away Wake Up the House Clean Rain Dreamin' Good to Yourself Love Will Come and Go |
Out on the Town Cartwheels |
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Songs From Ally McBeal (1998, 43.01) **/½ |
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| Searchin' My Soul Ask the Lonely Walk Away Renee Hooked on a Feeling You Belong to Me The Wildest Times of the World Someone You Use The End of the World |
Tell Him Neighborhood Will You Marry Me? It's in His Kiss (the Shoop Shoop Song) I Only Want to Be With You Maryland |
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Ally McBeal: A Very Ally Christmas (2000, 37.24) **½/0 |
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| This Christmas The Man With the Bag Please Come Home for Christmas Silver Bells Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow Winter Wonderland (Macy Gray) Run, Rudolph Run (Jane Krakowski) |
Santa Claus Got Stuck in My Chimney (Lisa Nicole Carson) I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus (Jane Krakowski) Santa Baby (Calista Flockheart) Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas River (Robert Downey, Jr.) White Christmas (Robert Downey, Jr. & Vonda Shepard) What Are You Doing New Years Eve |
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Chinatown (2002, 39.16) ***/0 |
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| Rainy Days Chinatown My Whole World Lose My Way Rain or Shine Downtime Gyroscope In July |
Sunset Marquis 7 Days Promising Grey Day |
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Vonda Shepard is best-known for her role in the tedious Ally McBeal, where she not only appears most weeks singing in the characters' favourite bar, but even sings the title song. Bit of a result, that... She actually released her eponymous first album in 1989, and spent the early '90s struggling in LA, before being picked up for the show by its producer. She released her first tape-replay album, The Radical Light, in 1992, best described as 'mainstream pop/rock', I think. Her voice is fine, for those who are interested in such things, but the music is entirely anodyne, blandola nonsense, which means it's more popular than nearly everything I like. David Campbell plays viola and Mellotron on the record, though I'll be buggered if I can hear where he uses the latter. The strings on a handful of tracks sound sampled, and there isn't even a hint of the flutes, the usual fallback for minor-use 'Tron albums.
Shepard's first McBeal album, 1998's Songs From Ally McBeal, is a bland (mostly) covers collection, although, in fairness, that was precisely what the series apparently required. All tracks are performed in a safe, light country-rock style, with far too much pedal steel for my liking, although Shepard has an excellent voice, which I'd like to think is the only reason the programme's producers chose her. Yeah, right. Worst track? Hard to say, although her ugly reinterpretation of the great Tell Him (anyone else remember late-period denim-clad UK glamsters Hello's killer version?) is pretty awful, as is her balladic take on I Only Want To Be With You. One Chamberlin track, from Jebin Bruni, with a reasonable string part, once again sounding quite like the real thing on Will You Marry Me, but not exactly the sort of thing that'll have you rushing out to your local rekkud store.
The following year's Heart & Soul: New Songs From Ally McBeal is often referenced as having Chamberlin contributions from Mitchell Froom (later to become Shepard's husband), but the detailed track-by-track credits in the CD booklet make no mention of it, and listening to the album proves inconclusive (not to mention boring). Is that Chamby strings or some form of generic sample in Confetti? The Chamberlin's propensity for merging seamlessly into a mix goes against it here, making it near-impossible to tell whether or not it actually appears at all.
It is credited, however, on 2000's part-compilation, Ally McBeal: A Very Ally Christmas, where half the songs are sung by Shepard and the other half by various cast members, oh, and Macy Gray. It's dull, but even an old 'bah, humbug' type like myself can't entirely object to an album of Christmas songs performed in a bland but generally inoffensive manner, although I probably should. Patrick Warren's credited with Chamberlin, but yet again, while several things might be it, none are definite, so although it's credited, I can't reasonably highlight anything.
2002's Chinatown is back to Shepard's own material, away from McBeal, but proves to be barely any more interesting than anything else she's done, I'm afraid. Co-producer Mitchell Froom is credited with Chamberlin, but I'll be buggered if I can hear it amongst the real strings, though I'm sure it's doing its usual trick of hiding away in the background somewhere. So; a batch of somewhat dullsville records, the Ally McBeal ones doing good business at a charity shop near you. Despite four definitely credited Chamby albums, there's next to nothing to be heard across the lot of 'em. What a waste of time.
