VARIOUS ARTISTS - The In-Kraut Vol. 2 (Marina Records)
VARIOUS ARTISTS - Le Beat Bespoke Vol. 2 (Circle Records)
Uppers Music Editor Bill Luther Tackles Two New CD Comps
One of the perks (the only I think) of being the Uppers music editor is that people send me a lot of free CDs. 90% of them go in the trash.
These two haven't left my CD player yet!
Back when I used to actually go out there was a German ex pat DJ who called himself DJ Franco who ran a DJ night in NYC called “Vampyros” in the late 90s where he played funky/kitschy/pseudo erotica groovers with a heavy dose of funky tunes from Der Fatherland. With the receipt of The In-Kraut Vol. 2 I was soon hearing tunes I’d sworn I’d heard there. One for certain was Hugo Strasser with a big band/organ version of (or so I’m told by the liner notes) a Deep Purple number called “Black Night” that never failed to get the floor moving. It sets the tone for the CD which has, for the most part, a hefty dose of big bands led by semi respected bandleaders in Germany with funky organ, heavy drums laid over an infectious groove. Something magical happens, regardless of whether it’s in Germany, Italy or the UK when stodgy old(er) “band leaders” or A&R men put together crack session men (and women) to tackle “contemporary” numbers or compose their own in what they perceive to be “way out” or “hip”. This can fail miserably (witness the bludgeoning by American Enoch Light ) or it can kick ass (as in the Reg Guest Syndincate’s ”Underworld” LP), luckily here it’s all a “hit’ and not a “miss”. The upbeat “Swinging London” by the oddly named Hazy Osterwald Jet Set is a standout. The band shouting out London landmarks and addresses of “The Swingin’ City” over a KPM styled groove are amusing, esp. since it was delivered in 1972 when Ziggy and Bolan had firmly slain any trace of the Carnabetian army! Mary Roos offers a take of the Jorge Ben penned Sergio Mendez mega hit “Mas Que Nada” here in German as “Blauer Montag” (Blue Monday). Its funky cocktail bossa nova kitsch is offset, in a good way, by the Germanic lyrics! Take that space age bachelor pad cheeseballs! The legendary James Last provides a number titled “Soul March”. It's uptempo, full and well produced with a nice touch of phlanging to give it that “sky-ing” effect. Trippy! My fave of the disc is by an attractive gal named Hildegard Knef . In her slightly accented English she talks deadpan over a light jazzy groove on “Holiday Time”. It’s way out, monotone but enjoyable . Try to imagine Nico pretending to be a dominatrix reading news headlines and you’ve got the drift. On an eerie note there’s a verse that prophetically says “In Munich there’ll be a beer festival, there was a bank robbery, the police shot the hostage, Olympic games next year”. This was 1971, a full year before police opened fire on the Israeli Olympic team and their P.L.O hostage takers, killing all. Dieter Reith’s brilliant funky Hammond n horns “No No No” reminds me of Georgie Fame and The Blue Flames take on Earl Van Dyke’s ”Soul Stomp”. No wonder it’s culled from an LP entitled “Hammond Explosion”. One can’t help but wonder what the rest of the LP is like! The organ and sitar groove of Carlos Fendeira on “Gimmi Moro” is an wild mix that really works and sounds like a deleted cut from the Vampyros Lesbos film soundtrack! “Moon Mission” by Kai Rautenberg & Orchester Jurgen Ehlers is a fuzz guitar VS organ duel that is definitely my favorite instro excursion on the disc. If kitschy organ/horns and Hammonds are your thing you need The In-Kraut Vol 2 for your next soirre, gig, love-in et al. Get with it………
2004's “Le Beat Bespoke” CD put out by UK New Untouchables DJ Rob Bailey has been a steady fave of mine since it’s appearance so when Volume Two surfaced I was avidly looking forward to hearing it. I didn't have to wait long as Rob kindly sent us a second copy after the initial one failed to arrive. Cheers sir!
LBB 2 differs a bit from it’s predecessor as there are a number of more “funky” soul cuts from all over the globe and the United States is represented on almost equal footing with the Continent this time around. There are also a few interesting blue eyed soul meets garage cuts! There are 20 cuts so I’m going to be brief and tell you about my faves, though in truth there isn’t an unlistenable cut here! The opener, the oddly titled “Dude” by Pappy’s Haunted House reminds me of what Graham Bond would’ve sounded like if he joined Deep Purple or vice versa. Nice. Germany’s Moody Five offer the upbeat reworking of the “traditional” number “Blue Tail Fly” which is like a poppy Rupert’s People , one of the CD’s strongest tunes. My fave of the disc is "Madeline" by Dick Turpin(a British band from 1970 named after the legendary UK highwayman). It’s freakbeat meets pop formula recalls the slew of brilliant obscure bands on the Rubble series who slapped together Nicky Hopkins style piano trills with bursts of searing guitar and a good pop hook! “Little Louise” by Shere Khan (another mystery UK act) repeats the previously mentioned technique with horns . Next we have The Tops moody acoustic “I Found You”, a slice of dreamy/dreary pop psych from Belgium that’s actually from 1972, but sounds firmly Decca/Deram ’68!! The Martells , a Brit 60s girl group has some nifty distorted guitar worthy of a late Joe Meek production on “Time To Say Goodnight” while Mary McCarthy serves up a horns n handclaps led take on The Hollies “You Know He Did” that has cool backing vocals and a freakbeat guitar solo. Magic! Mr. Paul Nicholas had an interesting career. His father was the lawyer for The Who and under the moniker as Oscar he cut previously unreleased compositions by both David Bowie AND Pete Townshend for the Reaction label(as well as the stunning “Club Of Lights”). His contribution here is “Run Shaker Life” from 1970 which sounds like Sean Bonniwell , in fact until I looked at the sleeve I thought it was a “pre-Jesus” Bonniwell cut. The biblical lyrics didn’t help deny my suspicions. Mods seem to be wetting themselves over this one (so I’ve heard)but I’ll stick with “Little Louise” or “Madeline” or the closer “Mrs Watson” by M.U.5 a brassy pop affair that melds easy kitsch backing with pop hooks, like Paul & Barry Ryan doing a session with the KPM all-stars!. My next question is when Rob Bailey will be putting together LBB3 !?! Though if he’s the music crazed individual like the rest of us who obsessively compile CDs for parties or create DJ set lists five hours long for a half an hour set I’m sure he’s got a few prototypes in the starting gate!
[Published 28 October 2006]
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| Dan Geddes | okt 29 2006 7:54PM |
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| Nice reviews as usual Bill. "Run Shaker Life" is by the wonderful Richie Havens, an artist whose 60s recordings should be on any 60s fan's "must have" list. Luckily these LPs go for about $3 in the used bins these days. Having ignored Paul Weller since the 80s, something tells me that Weller MUST have covered some Havens tunes in his lame attempts to age gracefully and morph into an earnest folkie. Too bad he hasn't had anything to say for ages. | |
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