I found this one out there on the www. Do not know much about it except
it has a good amount of good old fashioned Hippie music. I always liked
this image which came from a Rick Griffin poster for a Quicksiver
concert at the Avalon. The music is a little rough around the edges but
considering it's age and the history it makes for some interesting
listening for some of us
Penguin Records
Dble LP.
(Penguin Egg Eleven/Twelve) 1985
Side One
1. Byrds - Hey Joe
2. Byrds - My Back Pages
3. Byrds - Mr. Tambourine Man
4. Byrds - He Was A Friend Of Mine
5. Byrds - So You Want To Be A Rock and Roll Star
6. Byrds - Roll Over Beethoven Side Two
1. Country Weather - Time Is Leaving Me Behind
2. Country Weather - New York City Blues
3. Country Weather - Carry A Spare
4. Country Weather - Fly To New York Side Three
1. Kaleidoscope - Oh Death
2. Kaleidoscope - Taxim
3. Kaleidoscope - Egyptian Gardens Side Four
1. The Factory - No Place I'd Rather Be
2. The Factory - Smile, Let Your Life Begin
3. The Mystery Trend - Johnny Was A Good Boy
4. Dino Valenti - Birdses
5. International Submarine Band - Sum Up Broke
6. The Misfits - The Uncle Willie
7. Vibra-Sonics - Thunder Storm
8. The American Four - Lucy Baines
Early Morning Hush - UK Acid-Folk Compilation 1969-1976
1. Lord Of The Reedy River - Donovan
2. Sheep Season - Mellow Candle
3. Coming Home To Me - Dando Shaft
4. Fine Horseman - Briggs, Anne
5. Cuckoo - Renbourn, John
6. Eleanor's Song - Shide & Acorn
7. Mendle - Mr. Fox
8. Lir's Lament - Loudest Whisper
9. Forest And The Shore - Christmas, Keith
10. Go By Brooks - Sweeney's Men
11. Skater - Midwinter
12. Cherry Blossom Fool - Browne, Duncan
13. Sovay - Pentangle
14. Bell Of Dunwich - Stone Angel
15. Salisbury Plain - Green Man
16. All In A Dream - Tilston, Steve
17. Poor Murdered Woman - Collins, Shirley
18. Twelve Hours Of Sunset - Harper, Roy
19. Blacksmith - Steeleye Span
It would have been great to have been at the opening night of the festival as the headliners were the ever excellent Show Of Hands,
who no doubt filled the stage with their usual musical clutter of
fiddles, guitars, squeezeboxes, mandolins, tales of old and new and
good time vibes.
Back at Wychwood Festival this year, Tunng put in the gig of the year for me (so far) as they were promoting the new album Comments Of The Inner Chorus. It was their first album Mother’s Daughter And Other Songs
that put an end to the idea that folk was (once again) as ancient and
irrelevant as “dyed-in-the-wood politico folkies like Ewan MacColl”
back in the 1950s — even if the album was inspired by the music of the
film The Wicker Man.
The first track on Gather In The Mushrooms
is taken from the soundtrack to the film. Tunng’s Sam Genders told me
that he hadn’t even scene the film when they were writing Mother’s Daughter.
The original soundtrack was by Magnet, a group put together
specifically to record the soundtrack by an American composer Paul
Giovanni. Magnet quickly disintegrated afterwards and Giovanni never
recorded anything again, but the music resonates more today than it did
even at the time of the film’s release in 1973.
While Eighteen Day Of May
are not shy of a touch of the Wicker Man influence, ‘Queen Of The
Moonlight World’ (by Andy Roberts, ex-The Scaffold and Pink Floyd’s The Wall
Tour Band) is a song arrangement that could have been written for them
when (in their Byrds mode). I bumped into the band’s guitarist Ben
Phillipson recently and he tells me the band are hoping to do some more
recording around Christmas, which is good news.
Eighteen Day Of
May covered a Bert Jansch track on their debut album and he’s
represented on the compilation with a track called ‘Silly Woman’. In
the mid sixties, Jansch and John Renbourn were a guitarist duo
(imaginatively called Bert & John) who went on to form the folk
rock super group Pentangle. John Renbourn (with Benjamin Wetherill)
will be appearing on 28th September and Jansh will be joining and Beth
Orton (and a very special guest) on stage the following day. When John
Peel saw Pentangle in 1969, commenting that the average age of the
audience was less than seventeen, in typical fashion he said “The hall
is so quiet between waves of ‘Lyke Wake Dirge’ that you can actually
hear people holding their breath.”
I’ll be bringing you some more retrospective news on John Peel
next month as I’ve been in touch with Julie Dyble, who I first came
across earlier this year as part of the short lived duo, Trader Horn
(with Jackie McAuley) on the album Loose Chippings from the Fairport Convention Family Tree.
It was good to hear that she has recently started recording new
material so, you never know, she may be at a future Festival Of Folk?
Julie was the first singer with Fairport Convention so she has been ‘on
the scene’ from the very start.
Talking of Fairport, arguably
their best-known singer was Sandy Denny and ‘Milk And Honey’ (written
by ex-boyfriend Jackson C. Frank) is one of her solo tracks from the
mid sixties. Vashti Bunyan is described in the sleeve notes as having a
‘quavering near-whisper of a voice’ but she was another leader in the
sixties folk rock explosion (while today, Mia Doi Todd has been
compared to Bunyan). Another great song by a female singer is ‘Love
Song’ by Lesley Duncan.
The CD ends with a very long track by a
group called Comus that is all about the mushrooms (or witchcraft, rape
or murder?) that as first you think is the usual psych / prog rock come
free jazz self-pandering that you need to ignore. I’d urge you to
reconsider, this is the opus that falls between an unlikey mix of
Tunng, Eighteenth Day Of May and Pere Ubu.
While on the subject of odd, on the edge as ever is Lupen Crook (supporting Jim Moray, 20th September). The debut album Accidents Occur while Sleeping
contains nothing like his ‘Rosemary Hill’ elegance but then again,
there are similarities with arrangements and tempos, if not the subject
matter, of Lupen’s tunes.
There are some great tracks on this
CD and by the strength of the line up The Spitz, whether its acid,
alt., nu, psych or just plain old folk, I think it’s safe to say the
underground has survived the mushrooms. The Spitz is definitly the
place to be in September for a festival of great music, even if the
average age of the crowd will be over seventeen. How times change? ~Gerry Hectic
(Compiled By John Reed) (Castle Music) Cat. No.CMQCD 840 Released: 2004 Tracklisting: 1 Magnet - Corn Riggs (2:36) 2 Sallyangie - Love In Ice Crystals (3:03) 3 Pentangle - Lyke Wake Dirge (3:34) 4 Forest - Graveyard (5:44) 5 Sandy Denny - Milk And Honey (4:22) 6 Trader Horne - Morning Way (4:36) 7 Writing On The Wall - Buffalo (3:12) 8 Bert Jansch - Silly Woman (3:15) 9 Shelagh McDonald - Liz’s Song (2:50) 10 Heron - Lord And Master (4:53) 11 Spirogyra - Old Boot Wine (4:16) 12 Vashti Bunyan - Winter Is Blue (2:54) 13 Al Jones - All My Friends Are Back Again (2:36) 14 Fresh Moggots - Rosemary Hill (3:35) 15 Lesley Duncan - Love Song (3:09) 16 Mr Brooks - The Family (3:08) 17 Andy Roberts - Queen Of The Moonlight World (4:43) 18 Comus - The Herald (12:15)
Released: 1967 Name: A Cid Symphony Attributes: Colored Vinyl, Gatefold Country: United States Medium: Vinyl(-Rip) Label: n/a - Self-Released
Tracklist: 1 Loudusphone, Pt. 1 ... 1:17 2 Loudusphone, Pt. 2 0:35 3 Loudusphone, Pt. 3 14:01 4 Pierced Hand, Pt. 1 6:30 5 Pierced Hand, Pt. 2 4:11 6 Pierced Hand, Pt. 3 8:50 7 Golden Gate, Pt. 1 7:34 8 Golden Gate, Pt. 2 3:21 9 Golden Gate, Pt. 3 1:33 10 Golden Gate, Pt. 4 3:57
Unquestionably
a harbinger of the times, A Cid Symphony -- a folk-and-ethnic music
collective that incorporated instruments as wide-ranging as dulcimer,
hand-held brass, and Hindustani ankle bells into their extended Middle
Eastern-cum-country and folk music drones -- was instigated and helmed
by Dustin Mark Miller. Miller, was a part of the mid-'60s Free Speech
Movement at UC Berkeley, spending his time selling protest records to
raise money for the movement. The musical passion stuck, so in 1966 he
enlisted old pal and neighbor Charles Ewing, whom he had known since
kindergarten, and Ernie Fischbach to start a folk/ethnic flower-child
band aligned with the San Francisco Diggers. Ewing was an avid flamenco
guitar aficionado, and he had met Fischbach while the two were in
graduate school together at Cal State Long Beach. The two shared a
passion for music, and Ewing soon discovered Fischbach could play any
instrument with strings, as well as drums and harmonica. The trio
converged in Los Angeles and A Cid (originally Acid) Symphony was born.
Early
in the band's genesis, Fischbach married teenage model Deborah Cleall,
who promptly became a part of the group, which, more like a collective,
soon grew into a loose group of nomadic friends, a family, a tribe.
John Goeckermann and Tom Harris often added their percussive skills, and David Goines contributed as well. A Cid Symphony began
playing mostly at colleges, often with like-minded peers the Firesign
Theatre and sponsored by friends, Students for a Democratic Society, or
whoever would support the music. They also crashed the Monterey Pop
Festival, playing on the grounds of the festival and meeting Ravi
Shankar. According to Digger principles, the band would hold free
concerts at which they fed everyone that showed up.
When the
band earned its first write-up in the Sunday Los Angeles Times, they
all quit their jobs on the spot and migrated to the San Francisco Bay
Area, where Ewing and Fischbach studied Hindustani music at the Ali
Akbar (Khan) College of Music. San Francisco music columnist Ralph J.
Gleason introduced Miller to Max Weiss of Fantasy Records. Weiss
allowed the band to use Fantasy's studios, and they recorded and
released their first and only record, a self-titled triple LP, in 1967,
published by the Thermal Flash Music label of Denise Kaufman, an
original Merry Prankster. Fischbach and crew went on to play with the
Golden Toad, one of California's premier folk/ethnic music bands led by
Bob Thomas and a sister band of sorts to the Grateful Dead. They would
often join A Cid Symphony at functions such as the Renaissance Pleasure
Faire. By the late '60s, after three years together, A Cid Symphony
dissolved for the most part as a collective musical entity. Miller and
Ewing's families, however, went on to live communally for the next two
decades. ~ Stanton Swihart, All Music Guide
I'm
glad present to you first record of Dept. Experimental Psychonautics
And Studies Of Internal Space - new russian psychedelic-kraut heroes.
IT'S EXCLUSIVE and ultra rare! Album printed on underground label in
number ONLY 30 COPIES(!) and give out in internet free for everybody
but only on special russian sites, and now international file hosting! Interesting synthesis of american 60's psych rock and german kraut with space sounds and nice female voice.
tracks:
1 Summertime (We are the One) (Gershvin/Kafedra) 2 On other side of mushroom 3 Silently looks in a fire 4 Somebody to love(Love me in trip,bitch!) (Kafedra/G.Slick) 5 Freedom(R.Havens) 6 Remember!-Rap for Stanislav Grof 7 Sound check 8 Remix for track 3
01 Ausgesetzt 02 Looper 03 Die Festzeit 04 Krauter 05 Der Amerikanische Albtraum
Giant Brain is: Andy Sutton: Bass, Programming, Keyboards Philip Durr: Guitars, Effects, Drums, Vocals Al Sutton: Loops, Programming, Arrangement, Production
Additional Musicians: Eric Hoegemeyer: Drums, Effects Kenny Tudrick: Drums Bob Ebeling: Drums Charles Hughes: Keyboards Scott MacDonald: Drums, Keyboards Billy Reedy: Guitar Billy Rivkin: Guitar
01 Marsby Legend 02 Resignation 03 8 years later 04 Senseless No. 6 05 Wall bungalow 06 Empty land 07 Groove inside 08 Change your mind (bonustrack,recorded 1969) 09 Sarah Girl (bonustrack,recorded 1969) 10 One day (Bonustrack,single 1972)
http://lix.in/-41cd5f http://lix.in/-38a599
@320
Mythos - 1971 Mythos
01 Mythoett 02 Oriental Journey 03 Hero's Death 04 Encyclopedia Terra Part 1 05 Encyclopedia Terra Part 2
01 Katakomben.mp3 02 Song for two.mp3 03 Volkstanz.mp3 04 Primary Stage.mp3 05 Flight of Ideas.mp3 06 Triumphzug.mp3 07 Barcelona.mp3 08 Memories.mp3 10 Space Trip Part II.mp3 11 Space Trip Part III.mp3 12 Space Trip Part IV.mp3 13 Try Bach.mp3 http://lix.in/-3d3986
http://lix.in/-3ec027
@320
1973 And The Waters Opened
01-And The Waters Opened 02-Uroboros 03-Syn 04-Devotion 05-Happy Satge 06-Samum
http://lix.in/-41cd69 http://lix.in/-38a5ad
@320
1974 Dharana
01 Joy Sadness Joy 02 Om Namo Buddhaya 03 Sunset 04 Listen to the light 05 Dharana 06 The voice of Silence
http://lix.in/-3bb2ef http://lix.in/-3d3990
@320
1975 Hesse Between Music
01 - Suicide (Instrumental) 02 - Om Namo Buddhaya 03 - Whistlin 04 - Jesus War Zwölfjährig 05 - From Tom's Diary 06 - Glück 07 - Ich Halte Es Nicht Für Das 08 - Chinese Legend 09 - Suicide 10 - Om Namo Buddhaya(Instrumental) 11 - Zarathustra (Instrumental) 12 - When You Are Smiling 13 - Ein Faustschlag Ins Gesicht 14 - Zarathustra 15 - Zwischen Marx Und Mir 16 - Variationen Über Eisenach 17 - Besinnung 18 - Leb Wohl, Frau Welt 19 - Govinda 20 - Lachen, Lachen, Lachen
http://lix.in/-3a2d20
1977 Contemplation
sorry, no cover
01 Contemplation 02 Watch the Trees 03 Circle 04 Ivory and Steel 05 Orphikon 06 State of Sound
Ibliss wurden 1971 im Rheinland gegründet und spielten progressiven Jazzrock mit Hauptaugenmerk auf den Schlaginstrumenten, ohne Gesang, vergleichbar vielleicht mit Embryo, Brainstorm, Xhol oder Thirsty Moon.
Andreas Hohmann hatte auf der ersten LP von Kraftwerk das Schlagzeug gespielt und Basil Hammoudi auf der einzigen LP der Kraftwerk-Vorläufer Organisation die Perkussion. Bekannte Namen also.
Die einzige Ibliss-LP, 'Supernova', wurde 1972 unter der Leitung von Conny Plank aufgenommen und in kleiner Auflage auf dem Aamok-Label veröffentlicht, einem Unterlabel von Spiegelei. 2008 erschien eine illegale CD-Ausgabe von 'Supernova' auf dem Bootleg-Label Retro Disc International. Dieses billige Machwerk wurde laut den Angaben auf der Hülle in Spanien gefertigt, stammt aber in Wirklichkeit aus Deutschland.
The latest Opus Magnum of Magical Unicellular Music was recorded on 08.08.08 (dauy of Russia -Georgia-Osetian war started) at "Snegiri" studio in Moscow.
It implements not a regular groove only but a big architectural form of dynamic development created together with noise wizard Lampi from Minsk, famous Bimka from St-Petersburg, playing with his fingers on the naked electronics boards and Bad Seed on sax.
A finest event in a Magical Unicellular Music so far.
Of the many garage bands who released unrecognized and obscure singles in the mid-'60s, the Mystic Tide were one of the very best. The Long Island group released four singles on their own labels in 1965 and 1967, mostly for distribution at their own gigs (and apparently they didn't sell too well there, either). While the production on these is fairly raw, the group had genuine original talent, pursuing a dark, psychedelic vision with overloaded distorted guitar breaks. Their tunes (all written by guitarist Joe Docko) combined the minor-key melodies of British Invasion groups like the Zombies with the raunch of acts like Them. Unlike most other American groups following this path, however, they added a mysterioso (at times vaguely Middle Eastern) element that echoed the innovations of groups like the Doors, the Velvet Underground, and the very early Pink Floyd and Soft Machine, though the Mystic Tide most likely didn't hear any of these groups. Their sound and outlook were perhaps too foreboding for even local success, and the group disbanded in 1967, ironically finding a much greater audience when their singles were reissued for psych/garage collectors in the '80s (~Richie Unterberger - allmusic.com) Line-Up: Joe Docko - lead guitar and vocals Jim Thomas - rhythm guitar, back vocals Paul Picell - bass, back vocals John Willians - drums
01 A Winter's Tale.mp3 02 Snake.mp3 03 Dark River.mp3 04 Joanne.mp3 05 Obedience.mp3 06 Morning Hymn.mp3 07 May Queen.mp3 08 The Demon Trucker.mp3 09 Lady Of The Lake.mp3 10 Borne On The Solar Wind.mp3
Line-up/Musicians
- Tony Duhig / electric guitar - Jon Field / alto & concert flutes, congas, percussion - Glyn Havard / vocals, bass, acoustic guitar - Allan Price / drums - David Duhig / lead guitar (1), guitar (8)
01 Assult And Battery 02 The Golden Void 03 The Wizard Blew His Horn 04 Opa-Loka 05 The Demented Man 06 Magnu 07 Standing At The Edge 08 Spiral Galaxy 28948 09 Warriors 10 Dying Seas 11 Kings Of Speed 12 Motorhead
1. Atom Heart Mother Suite (23:42) [Gilmour/Waters/Wright/Mason/Geesin] — Father's Shout — Breast Milky — Mother Fore — Funky Dung — Mind Your Throats, Please — Remergence 2. If (4:26) [Waters] 3. Summer '68 (5:29) [Wright] 4. Fat Old Sun (5:22) [Gilmour] 5. Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast (13:00) [Gilmour/Waters/Wright/Mason] — Rise And Shine — Sunny Side Up — Morning Glory
David Gilmour — guitars; bass, drums and lead vocals on "Fat Old Sun" Roger Waters — bass; acoustic guitar, lead vocals on "If"; tape effects, tape collage Richard Wright — keyboards, piano, orchestration; lead vocals on "Summer '68" Nick Mason — drums, percussion, tape editing, tape collage
with: Ron Geesin — orchestration ("Atom Heart Mother") John Aldiss choir — vocals ("Atom Heart Mother") Philip Jones brass ensemble & Abbey Road Session Pops Orchestra – brass and orchestral sections ("Atom Heart Mother") Alan Stiles — voice on "Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast"
I have translated the Bandname and Songs with bubblefisch from kyrillisch.
01 Mountains 1 02 I will want Zakhokhochu 03 Africa inside 1 04 Pressure 05 Mountains 2 06 Rhinoceroses 1 07 Africa inside 2 08 Air 09 Rhinoceroses 2
Die neuste Publikation der Magneten der Sonnenblumen. Vollständig improvisierte Liveaufnamen. Die Hymnen der Sonnenblumen sind traditionsgemäß zu hören. Uns schlugen sie vor, unsere Musik für einen Film zu verwenden und sie zahlten die Studiokosten. Wir nutzten die Gelegenheit und erfüllten uns einen alten Traum.
Es gab zwei Abschnitte bei den Tonaufnahme der Magneten. „Magnet 1“ sind vollständig klassische klingenden Hymnen der Sonnenblumen, „Magnet 2“ - die gleichen Hymnen in der improvisierten Fassung.
Vutri und Tkhel schrieben die gesamte Instrumentierung, die für zwei vollständig verschiedenen Versionen der Lieder. Geplant wird ein Anfüllen im Geist von Ingvi von Malmstina. Die Idee der Lieder, für die jedes mal ein neuer Text geplant ist, entstand im Laufe der letzten fünfzehn Jahre.
Transkontinentales Lied 2: Afrika-Vutri der SONNENBLUMEN. Bei der Aufzeichnung nahmen die Musiker von dieser Seite der terrestrischen Kugel teil: Suvik spielte Gitarren und etwas Ähnliches wie Violine und einen Synthesizer. Er sampelte das Saxophon von Vitalik von Eppov. Zwölf Minuten eines sich ständig ändernden Tones - Begriffsopposition zur magischen Einzelligen Musik.
„Afrika-Inside“ – ist eins von fünf grundlegenden Themen der Magneten der Sonnenblumen. Ein lebendiger Verlauf des improvisierten Lebens. „Magnet 2“, an dem Zabor - Trommeln, Fil am Baß, Krivulya an der Gitarre und später die Kinder von Tubbi an Gitarren teilnahmen. Und dann hören wir noch die Geräusche der sonnigen Ottaevsheystraße, die bei dem gesamtem Aufbau des Hintergrundes mitklingt.
Bei Nashörner 2, eins unserer ältesten Liede, erklärten sie uns, das daß Anaka - Chymbalon von Nagualya nicht aufgenommen werden kann, nie und unter keinen Umständen stimmt sie mit uns überein es zu spielen. Es war mir trotzdem möglich, es in das Studio zu schaffen. Und es als Matrix für die Improvisationen zu nutzen.
Das Lied Iznochalno gehört Zyklus Lobknishte von Baakubuml, der uns in der Ansicht bestärkte es wieder zu beleben. Tubbi spielt auf den Trommeln, Krivulya am Baß, Hockey auf der Gitarre, Anaka an Chymbalon. Dazu Krivulya am Akkordeon, noch eine Gitarre und orchestrale Perkussion (Klingeln, Kettledrum, Becken und andere).
A weird mix of Acid Folk and experimental Psycedelic (& Acid-) Rock
1
Armchair Theatre
3:55
2
Feel How So Cool the Wind
3:19
3
Sometime
4:16
4
Maybe My Mind
3:44
5
The Come On
4:32
6
Terror in My Soul
6:08
7
Travelling Shoes
4:27
8
Winter
3:19
9
Nothing Will Come to Nothing
6:15
Line-up/Musicians - Dave Clempson ('Clem') / guitar - Jeff Daw / flute, guitar, vocals - Gus Dudgeon / drums - James Langston / guitar, vocals, woodwinds - Nigel Phillips / keyboards, vocals, percussion - Bob Lamb / drums
Releases information LP Harvest SHVL 761 CD Repertoire REP 4559-WP 1995 CD Si-Wan SRMC 6021
This Birmingham group consisted of core members Jeff Daw, James Langston, and Nigel Phillips with this line-up being supplemented by additional musicians as required. They were managed by Jim Simpson whose "Big Bear" agency included a number of other local groups such as Locomotive and later, Black Sabbath. Jim's bands used to be known locally as 'Jim Simpson's Big Bear Follies'. The original Tea & Symphony were basically an acoustic-based group similar to Marc Bolan's 'Tyrannosaurus Rex'.
Tea & Symphony gained a reputation early on, for their strange stage-shows and presentation which included as much theatrical as musical content. They were probably the first local group to perform at Erdington's legendary Mothers club that opened in August of 1968. This internationally famous venue that specialized in booking the top "progressive" groups, was previously known as the Carlton Ballroom where a number of local acts including The Moody Blues had got their start in the early 1960's.
In 1969, Tea & Symphony toured with progressive blues outfit Bakerloo who were from nearby Tamworth in Staffordshire. Both groups were signed to the Harvest Records label in 1969 and Tea & Symphony were able to record under the direction of producer Gus Dudgeon who had previously worked with the famous Nottingham group Ten Years After and would later produce records by Elton John. To supplement the recordings, Mick Hinks (bass guitar) and Bob Lamb (drums) from Locomotive were used to play on two of the album's tracks.
The resulting Tea & Symphony album, brilliantly and appropriately titled An Asylum For The Musically Insane certainly lived up to its name and was made up of nine original songs all composed by the group themselves. To describe the recordings as eccentric would be an extreme understatement and reviews in the music press ranged from "brilliant" to "self-indulgent" although the latter is probably a more accurate description.
The album cast aside all commercial considerations with most of the tracks featuring weird vocal arrangements and a largely acoustic backing. Drums on the album were played by Bakerloo member Dave "Clem" Clempson with additional percussion and noises by producer Gus Dudgeon. Most of the songs were composed by Jeff Daw and one of them Armchair Theatre (a reference to the popular U.K. television series) was even put out as a single. The only almost "conventional" song on the album was The Come On which displayed a strong blues influence as well as some brilliant lead guitar.
After the album's release, Nigel Phillips, possibly because of a reluctance to "go electric" with a bass and drums line-up, decided to leave the group. He asked a friend Bob Wilson to take his place in Tea & Symphony as Bob was proficient in both guitar and piano. The group then went down to London to record their next album. Session musicians Pat Donaldson (bass) and Gerry Conway (drums) were hired to play on the album as they had a history of playing with similar kinds of bands. With the recording completed, James Langston approached Birmingham drummer Peter Chatfield at the famous musician's hang-out Bull's Head Pub on 'The Green' in Moseley. Pete agreed to join the group as a full-time member and was present at the final mixing of the second album. Tea & Symphony in 1970
The new Tea and Symphony album entitled Jo Sago, produced by Tony Hall and Tony Cox was released in 1970 and according to available accounts, was little more accessible musically than the previous release. For the live line-up, Tom Bennison from Bellbroughton Worcestershire, who played bass guitar and French horn was then recruited to the ranks of Tea & Symphony. He stayed for only a short time before he left and was replaced by Dave Carroll who played bass, electric/acoustic guitars, violin and helped out on the vocals.
Towards the end of 1971, Bob Wilson went on holiday and was replaced by Stewart Johnson (guitar/vocals). Not long after, Pete Chatfield who had spent two years in the group also decided to leave. He recalls; "I left due to the lack of any real money coming in and the need to pay rent and eat!". Pete's place was taken by Micky barker who went on to greater things. Pete Chatfield went on to playing in all sorts of bands including Greek music for 12 years at the Ulysses Restaurant on Bristol Street as well as time with Peter Lee Stirling (Daniel Boone) and guitarist Dave Ball from Procol Harum. He also backed Coventry's Don Fardon of "Indian Reservation" fame.
The rest of Tea & Symphony also went their separate ways. James Langston in the later 1970s, became vocalist for Brum group Mean Street Dealers of which Jim Simpson was also a member. Guitarists Dave Carrol and Bob Wilson joined the Steve Gibbons Band (formerly the Idle Race) as did drummer Bob Lamb who later produced and recorded the famous Birmingham reggae group UB40's first record release at his home studio in 1979.
Although Tea & Symphony made little impact as far as the record charts were concerned, their two (now rare) albums continue to attract the attention of those collectors interested in the more off-beat and unconventional recordings from that era. (~brumbeat.net)
