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Much fromage has flowed under the bridge
since we first launched our appraisal of the Godfathers of Lounge grooves.
For a start, the number of previously undiscovered releases we have
turned up by our favourite Sultans of Smooth has been little more than
astounding, even to us. Snippets of information have been gathered where
before there seemed little to go on, albums the existence of which was
only talked of in hushed tones have been bagged, and the series now
spills over onto six (count 'em!) glorious pages. With the addition
of the latest volume its time once again for a thorough overhaul...So,
we proudly present to you...
The Original Lords...Take
Three!!!
With phrases like "Lounge", "Elevator Music"
and "Space-Age Bachelor Pad Music" now firmly engraved into British
music culture, the interest in early 1970's easy listening albums continues
to grow. With each new CD compilation issued, the search for fresh grooves
grows harder and harder. Although interest has had an effect on the
price of a few of the original vinyl albums, a small amount of diggin'
will usually turn up a number of gems for very little cost. This is
just as true today as it ever was, even though an increasing number
of record shops are sensing an opportunity for making a fast buck from
an unwary punter with their tactics of pricing up everything in sight
that looks vaguely cheesy. It doesn't have to be that way though. Procuring
these albums can be a just a matter of a simple combination of persistence
and providence. You just never know when someone will drop off a bag
of gold dust at your local charity shop, and that carboot sale on a
crisp autumn Sunday morning just might throw up something worth a whole
lot more than a lie-in...
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Think Herb Alpert
from the Home Counties and you're about there...Ray Davies
appeared on many albums (including writing credits for a number
of library compositions, many of which you will find on your
favourite library comp) during the 1970's but it's his work
as "The Button-Down Brass Featuring The Funky Trumpet Of Ray
Davies" that most people will remember him by. Davies was
one of the top session players of the golden years and you'll
also find him puffing away amid the ranks of the Chaquito
band and many others. For the full low-down on the career
of the maestro of the funky trumpet have a look at elsewhere
on this site for our very own interview with Ray Davies himself.
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There are a number of Ray Davies
albums from the late 60's of dubious merit that can be quite
readily gathered together for a few coppers, kicking off with
'What A Wonderful World' (Fontana, 1968). You'll also see this
one about in its reissue guise of 'This Guy's In Love', and
even though a lot of the LP is very parpy to behold there is
also a really fabby take on 'Hurdy Gurdy Man', that if you are
familiar with The Butthole Surfers, you will swear they ripped
off completely, including the massive axe solo...listen to 'em
back to back and you'll think you've gone mad!!!!
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| Never one to linger,
Ray was soon back with the innocently titled 'Let's Be Gay' (Fontana,
1968). No surprise to find that this was later called 'Ha Ha Ha'
on its re-release. Frankly, its pretty offensive on the ears for
much of its duration, with full-on It's A Knockout style parpings
of old faves like 'Sur Le Pont D'Avignon' and 'Waltzing Matilda'...very
ouch indeed! Fortunately there is a high-water mark of sorts with
his own 'Men Of Menorca', which after several minutes of brass
abuse, gives way to some fine fuzz guitar and organ, but alas,
all to briefly. There is also a ubiquitous 'Best Of' (Fontana,
1969) covering his albums of this time, which is really anything
but true. All you'll get for your money with this is full-on parpy
cheese overload with not a funky moment in sight and neither of
these two half-decent tracks. Nasty! |
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Having parped enough
for any man over at Fontana, Davies then had a brief fling on
the highly curious Morgan label - a safe haven for the talents
of many a session player in its all too brief day. Here Ray
directs and arranges 'The In-Keepers' (Morgan, 1968) very much
in a Merry Olde England musical style and serves up by far his
most tasty offering thus far. Some of the cuts are a bit too
jokey to stomach, but you can't argue with the fine jazzy groove
of 'The Old Lady Of Thread Needle Street'. With the medieval
theme there is a real risk of harpsichord abuse, but on 'Matthew
& Son' it works rather well indeed. Top this up with another
jazzy mover 'Stirrup Cup' and this is a curiosity that you'll
want to track down.
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'16 Startracks'
(Philips, 1971) looks like a compilation of sorts, with a good
few cuts drawn from Davies' Fontana period, but also containing
a good number of superior cuts from the year of release. Stick
with the later ones and you'll have your parping tempered nicely
with Hammond and strident arrangements like the tempting trio
of 'Melting Pot', 'Ain't No Mountain High Enough' and a surprisingly
supple 'La Bamba'. Not quite hitting the highs we'd expect, but
getting there... |
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Next up,
we have 'Everybody's Talking 'Bout' (Pye, 1971), which proves
to be something of a disappointment, as its back to the safe territory
occupied by gentle cover versions like the title track and 'Born
Free' that really don't offer up much in the way of excitement.
There's even an Alan Hawkshaw original on here, but its all very
unremarkable. Perhaps the brightest moment is Davies' own 'Stop,
Look & Listen', but even that is a bit too close to the parpy
precipice to receive repeated plays. Never mind...things are about
to start really hotting up! |
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| The turn of the 70's
saw a marked change in Davies' approach as arranger, moving into
more laid-back and funky territory under the guise of Manzanilla
with a pair of US-only albums; 'The Manzanilla Sound' (Crescendo,
1971) and 'Make Mine Manzanilla' (London, 1972). The first and
superior of the pair really sets the scene for his albums to come
in the rest of the decade with far less parp-mongery and much
more slinky bass, organ and kicking drums - yay! Choc-full of
original compositions like the slow groove of 'Hear What I Say'
and the belting wah-guitar carve-up that is 'Without Reason Or
Rhyme' there is also a quite wonderful cover of 'Ain't No Mountain
High Enough'. Excellent stuff throughout. Not quite to this standard,
but also pretty damn good is the follow up. Perhaps a bit hasty
as its almost free of Davies compositions apart from the wonderfully
groove-some 'Cat Walk', and there is a bit of a reliance on the
dodgy starting material used on those 60's LPs. Fortunately the
new approach shines through, and the album is never anything less
than enjoyable. |
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In the light of
the previous two albums, the return of the Button Down Brass
with 'Why Can't We All Get Together' (Pye, 1972) becomes a little
intriguing. Having road tested the new funky style on the American
record buying public the winning formula continues, but what's
that-new versions of a couple of numbers from the last Manzanilla
LP including the title track itself. Neither of them are much
to get steamed up about in either form tho', so let's move on.
The good stuff here includes a faithful cover of 'Shaft' and
the really quite marvelous 'Truckin' on which Alan Parker turns
on some top class axe strangling and the likes of Harry Stoneham
and Alan Hawkshaw are drafted in on the keys.
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| Other slightly disappointing
Button-Down albums from this time include 'The Real Sound Of...'
(Pye, 1972) which is quite cheesy apart from the slow groove of
'I've Been Lonely For So Long', which gets going nicely after
a while with the injection of flute and Hammond at just the right
time. There's a nice enough take on 'Wave' too, but not a deal
else. Much the same goes for 'The Golden Hour Of…' (Golden Hour,
1972), that collects together all the tracks from the previous
pair of Pye releases. So again there's that pretty solid version
of 'Shaft' and 'I've Been Lonely for so Long', but utterly inexplicably,
'Truckin' is absolutely nowhere to be found! Squeeze it all down
to an hour, yes, but ditch the best funker? Bah!. |
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Now then.
Here's the source of the very first Licorice Soul 45; 'All In
An Afternoon's Work' credited to The Terry Cavendish Orchestra
(Pye, 1973) This is a set of tunes first released in library form
on the Cavendish label and then later picked up commercially by
Pye. Many of the tracks are drawn from vintage jazz sources, but
seeing as they are arranged by Davies himself there are some righteous
funkers to be had. The original tune 'Leagueliner' is top of the
heap-all wah-guitar and cop-shop style. There's also one of the
best goes at 'Organ Grinders Swing' you'll hear anywhere, not
to mention a handful of other brassy crackers! Do not turn this
one down, oh no!!! |
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Next up is 'I Believe
In Music' (Pye, 1973). This one features two top-drawer BDB heavyweights,
namely 'Heavy Water' and 'Mach 1'. Both sound like incidental
music from The Sweeney or another funky 70's cop-show...full of
wah-guitar and kick-ass organ as well as the parp-meister himself
letting rip. The latter of these was on a popular cheesy funk
compilation recently, with good reason! The rest of the album?
Well, prepare yourself for a bunch of standards of the 70's and
the usual visits to stage shows like Godspell (actually, 'Day
by Day' ain't that bad), but still, c'mon...shame on you Ray! |
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As with the Terry Cavendish
album, at first this one appears to be a bit of a trip down memory
lane to revisit some old-time jazz, Ray was on a real roll by
now and his arrangements of Benny Goodman and Duke Ellington tunes
are bang up to date, with the likes of Alan Hawkshaw, Denis Lopez
and all the other top dudes of the day serving up the goods. Its
all fine listening, boasting a banging trip into the classical
realm with 'Paganini Caprice XXIV', the sparkling 'Flying Home'
and Ray's own wah-wah stormer 'Hadrians Wall'. Something of a
rarity too, so if you drop on lucky with this don't miss your
chance! |
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Having dabbled with
the occasional TV or film theme in the past, with a move to
a new record label Ray took the plunge and coughed up an entire
LP's worth and 'Themes From The Exorcist And Other Great Films'
(Phillips, 1974) turns out to be one of his most consistent
offerings in the funk stakes from beginning to end. Again, you'll
find the likes of Alan Hawkshaw adding Moog and organ to the
likes of 'Bullitt', 'Point Blank' and 'Enter The Dragon', so
you know that wherever you drop the needle down it'll come up
trumps!
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| Now its back to The
Ray Davies Orchestra on 'Flashpoint' (Philips, 1975) where he
tackles loads of great movie thriller themes with a fair splash
of Moog and funky guitar to aid Ray's parping horn. Great versions
of not one but two themes to Bruce Lee flicks with 'Big Boss'
and 'Fists Of Fury', a nice 'Kojak' and a spanking 'Magnum Force'
Hmm, tasty! Its a mite disappointing to note though that Ray still
found room in his repertoire for a dose of cheesy parping, which
you'll find in spades on 'Hits Of Sinatra' (BBC, 1975). It does
contain a quite fruity version of 'The Tender Trap' which you'll
appreciate if found for pence, but as the bulk of the LP was drawn
from sessions for BBC Radio 2, you'll know to expect the worst,
and boy, does it deliver! |
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| The next
few BDB releases sees a bit of a lull in quality we are sorry
to report. 'Barbecue Party' (DJM, 1975) is little more than an
excuse to dust off a clutch of tired old western themes, and the
whole of side 1 is particularly rank. Just when you are giving
up hope side 2 kicks off with a good funking up of 'The Virginian',
full of rattling percussion and electric piano. Phew! Another
track making this LP a nice find for pence is a beefy take on
'The Good The Bad & The Ugly'. Next up is one of those ill-advised
medley albums; 'Another Party' (DJM, 1975) really is devoid of
all merit as far as the funk goes. Nothing on show here but highly
parp-some cuts of duff tunes from the charts like 'Shang-A-Lang'
and 'Bye Bye Baby'...ooof! |
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This is more like
it! 'Firedog!' (DJM, 1976) is a right little belter, and very
difficult to turn up. Cop show themes are high on the agenda,
and all the greats are given a really good outing. Top takes
on 'Police Woman', 'Quiller' and 'The Sweeney' to name but a
few, with Davies weighing in with his own title track that tops
the lot for wah wah action. Brilliant!
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Hot on the heals of
his previous triumph appears what is perhaps the most in-demand
Ray Davies item 'Funk in Hell' (DJM, 1976). The reputation of
this record precedes it somewhat, but if you should get hold of
a copy the takes on Santana faves like 'Evil Ways' and 'Black
Magic Woman' will not disappoint. The oddest thing about it though
is the appearance of vocals - and not altogether convincing ones
at that. A good few tracks that would rate as top-drawer Davies
take a bit of a dip because of this; check out 'Lucretia MacEvil'
and 'Hell Fire Brimstone' and see what you think. There are a
couple of spiffing instrumentals cuts though; 'Shades of Hades'
and 'Taboo' proving that Ray still had more than enough of the
old black magic to spare. |
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Also on the same
track is 'Cops And Robbers' (DJM, 1977), as you could possibly
judge by the title. Rest assured it does not disappoint, with
'Charlie's Angels' and 'The Protectors' coming close to Davies'
own Moog-infected title track and companion piece 'Sneak Thief'.
As far as we know this was to be Davies' last worthwhile outing
as he moved into more orchestral realms, but hey, what a trot
he put together...
Play that funky
trumpet, white boy !
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John Keating is regarded
by some as one of the great arrangers of his generation, teaching
himself how to arrange and compose whilst still a teenager.
His first big break was working with British big band leader
Ted Heath, initially as a trombone player and eventually becoming
Heath's primary arranger. After masterminding the short pop
career of Eden Kane that produced a number of top-ten hits during
'61 - '63, Keating proceeded to arrange and produce a series
of his own albums for the Decca Phase 4 label throughout the
1960's. With titles like 'Percussive Moods', 'Swing Revisited'
and 'The Keating Sound'. These albums are easily found in charity
shops for pence.
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When things start
getting interesting is when we reach the 1970's, when Keating
was involved as the arranger (alongside, we think, George Martin)
in some interesting projects. The 'Guitars Unlimited' (Phase
4, 1970) album is rather cheesy but with a version of 'I'll
Never Fall In Love Again' to die for. The precursor to his later
work was 'An Astronomical Odyssey' released under the name Sounds
Galactic (Phase 4, 1971), with burbling keyboards and spacey
strings - and a great version of 'Spinning Wheel'.
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| Shame then
that Keating's spirit of adventure didn't continue with 'John
Keating Conducts The London Symphony Orchestra' (Studio2Stereo,
1972), as faced with guiding the assembled masses of string players
he delivers nothing much of interest apart from a fairly lackluster
run at the eve-popular 'The Persuaders Theme'. Pence only here...Now,
'Space Experience' (Studio2Stereo, 1972) is very much where Mr.
Keating blasts off into orbit, aided and abetted by keyboard player
Francis Monkman, who's lunar wibblings on a range of analogue
synthesizers produce a fabulously odd atmosphere, even when the
tracks don't funk that much. There's a great arrangement of Carol
King's 'I Feel The Earth Move' and Keating chips in with some
original compositions, the best of which are 'The Unknown Planet'
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Sadly, 'Space Experience
2' (Studio2Stereo, 1975) is, a good bit of a letdown. It promises
much, and you'd be licking your lips at titles like 'Lucy In
The Sky With Diamonds', 'Life On Mars'" and the promise of five
original Keating compositions - but in actual fact it delivers
very little. All the tracks are very tame and don't have the
same driving momentum as the prequel, being distinctly downbeat
in approach...still, another smashing cover pic to enjoy and
it'll sit nicely alongside the first one on the racks, even
if it doesn't leave them very often.
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A release that bisected these two, and one that you can often
find for pence is 'Hits In Hi-Fi 1' (Studio2Stereo, 1974). The
cover versions on the album are really pretty lame, and with no
original compositions you are left with very little to savour
from this one, unless Moog-ed out Leo Sayer covers are the thing
to entice you onto the dancefloor of an evening! |
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