Hi everybody -

I Drive - I Drive (1972)

I Drive was one of many British groups that played the club circuit in Germany to make a living, and recorded their only album there. Though they were picked up by a former Beatles manager, the album failed due to a lack of promotion and lousy distribution, and the band broke up. Which was too bad because the music is top notch, on a par with the music of the big acts of the day like Atomic Rooster, Budgie, Deep Purple just to name a few. The album contains some brutal rock, some softer material, great production, great vocals and brilliant musicianship. Disc one is the album from 1972, disc 2 contains demos and whatnot from 1969-1972.

Part 1 Part 2

Embryo - Bremen 1971

The German band Embryo performed on 9/23/1971 at the Leibnizplatz High School in Bremen and the gig was recorded by Radio Bremen and broadcast in the series “Jazz Live“. This was just after the release of their second album, "Embryo's Rache" (Embryo's Revenge). The material is experimental psych/prog rock/jazz, but not nearly as jazzy as some of their later material, which is OK by me. The album consists of four tracks, and for me the highlight is the 26 minute long "SpainYes, Franco Finished", which got the group banned from Spain! This is some real tasty stuff, which you will like a lot.

Part 1__Part 2

Eloy - Eloy (1971)

Eloy is one of the most famous German bands, known the world over for their Floyd-inspired brand of space rock. This is their first album, recorded by a short-lived line-up, and the band had not yet found their signature melodic style. But that is neither here nor there, as this is a compelling slice of 70's underground German rock, with tons of percussion and some great guitar solos and edgy vocals. Eloy fans probably don't think too highly of this album, but it is a first-rate example of hard progressive rock.

Part 1 Part 2

Motherlight - Bobak, Jons, Malone (1970)

I could find out almost nothing about this album, other than it is "legendary" and a "highly sought-after rarity". This is a sterling example of early 70's British psychedelic/progressive rock, with wispy vocals, ethereal keyboards, and great lashings of fuzzed-out guitar leads. My impression is that it was a studio project and not an album by a working band. Whatever, it's great stuff!

New Files! Bitrate 320!!
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Armaggedon - Armaggedon - (1970)

""Why didn't this group record more than just one album? Their self-titled album is a heavy progressive masterpiece with excellent, Hendrix-influenced guitar work and vocals by Frank Diez. Armageddon was the start of his long and impressive career. Their album had six tracks, and two of them were cover versions. Most impressive was the 10 minute version of Jeff Beck Group's "Rice Pudding". This track had some of the greatest heavy guitar riffing to appear on a German record. Their version of Spooky Tooth's "Better By You, Better Than Me" was also competent enough. In addition, both Frank Diez and Manfred Galatik wrote great songs, as typified by the tracks "People Talking" and "Open". Michael Nurnberg and Jurgen Lorenzen provided a strong backing. Armageddon's album has rocketed in price during recent years, due to the ever increasing interest. However, demand for the group was poor way back in 1970, and Armaggedon soon broke up." (Cosmic Dreams At Play)

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Ralph Stanley - Christmas Time With Ralph Stanley (1993)

Col. Ralph Stanley was one-half of bluegrass pioneers "The Stanley Brothers" and this is a Christmas album for those that enjoy the "High Lonesome" sound. Beautiful harmonies, great songs, brilliant playing this is a classic Christmas album - if you like this kind of music!

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OK then! See you next week. As usual, comments are appreciated.