Lightning - Selftitled (1968 - 1971)

Lightning - Selftitled

I think of this compilation (?) album as a mixture of heavy psychedelia, classic rock and a bit of garage rock. Which means you'll find something just for you, from "William" to "Eagle" to "1930", you'll see a difference in style and sound. "Eagle" is my favorite from this band.

Album information:

01 Prelude To Opus IV

02 Hideaway

03 When A Man Could Be Free

04 Madame Sunrise

05 1930

06 Freedom (Is Live With Giving)

07 They've Got The Time

08 (Ghost) Riders In The Sky

09 William

10 Of Paupers And Poets

11 (Under The Screaming Double) Eagle

12 What Have I Now

13 Rat

14 Hideaway [Edited 45 Mix]

15 Freedom [Edited 45 Mix]

16 William Tell Overture (The Lone Ranger Theme)

Band information:

A Minnesota-based rock band that grew out of White Lightning, a "power trio" consisting of ex-Litter guitarist Zippy Caplan, bass guitarist Woody Woodrich, and drummer Mick Stanhope. Woodrich is said to have pioneered the use of redline compression on his instrument, before such compressors were generally available to the public. The music heard here was performed by this trio and a quintet formed by the addition of second guitarist Ronn Roberts and percussionist Bernie Pershey, who can be heard operating a xylophone on "When a Man Could Be Free." Technically, at least, Lightning was the name usually applied to the five-piece band.

They engaged in such colorful crowd-pleasing routines as an electrified rendering of Gioacchino Rossini's "William Tell Overture" (first performed in this version at the New City Opera House during the autumn of 1968), and a freaky take (à la Jeff Beck's "Bolero") on "Ghost Riders in the Sky" that featuredStanhope singing through a Moog synthesizer. "Of Paupers and Poets" was first released as a 45 rpm single on the Hexagon record label and made it to number five on the Top 40 in Minneapolis/St. Paul in January 1969. "They've Got the Time" was composed on September 18, 1970 in response to the death of Jimi Hendrix and was also dedicated to Janis Joplin and Brian Jones. Lightning was well received at rock festivals throughout the Middle West. They opened for (and reportedly upstaged) Grand Funk Railroad on December 31, 1970 at a concert in Des Moines, IA. One source claims that White Lightning (named after a notoriously potent brand of lysergic acid) existed in five distinct combinations between the years 1968-1974, and that six different Lightnings came and went between 1969 and 1990. None of these Lightnings are to be confused with Detroit's short-lived post-Guardian Angel five-piece unit that went by the name of Lightnin'.

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Lava - Tears Are Goin' Home (1973)

Lava - Tears Are Goin' Home

Tears are goin' home! Oh I wish they would. Another band from Germany, another great album. Best for progressive/psychedelia lovers. Enjoy.

Album information:

01 - Tears Are Goin' Home

02 - Crimes Of Love

03 - Would Be Better You Run

04 - All My Love To You

05 - Mad Dog

06 - Holy Fool

07 - Piece Of Peace

Band information:

LAVA was part of the Berlin underground music scene but produced one album only. Founded in 1971 they developed typically for this time. Brought together spontaneously more or less by the interest of some musicans to play improvised free-minded music in connection with the use of drugs and then disbanded 1974 after Thomas Karrenbach had died.

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Kris Kringle - Sodom (1971)

Kris Kringle - Sodom

A Brazilian progressive/heavy psychedelia band. All songs on the album are sung in English. Great music for those who like heavy stuff.

Album information:

01 - Louisiana

02 - Help

03 - That's My Love for You

04 - The Resurrection Shuffle

05 - Janie Slow Down

06 - Susie

07 - The Monkey Song

08 - Sarabande

09 - Mr. Universe

10 - What You Want

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Kennelmus - Folkstone Prism (1971)

Kennelmus - Folkstone Prism

An instrumental-heavy album by Kennelmus. Songs like "I Don't Know" and "Patti's Dream" will carry you elsewhere. I feel lucky to have found this album, enjoy.

Album information:

01 - I Don't Know

02 - Patti's Dream

03 - Dancing Doris

04 - Goodbye Pamela Ann

05 - Monologue

06 - Black Sunshine

07 - Think For Yourself

08 - The Bug The Goat

09 - Shapes Of Sleep

10 - Cloud Of Lead

11 - Mother Of My Children

12 - 1001 Twice

13 - Sylvan Shores

14 - Bulletin!!

15 - The Raven

Band information:

This really obscure Phoenix band released a late-period psychedelic album in 1971 that, by the standards of self-released LPs of the time, was several layers above the usual such offering. Largely (although not wholly) instrumental, their Folkstone Prism was an authentically oddball, occasionally goofy, and sometimes inspired blend of surf music, spaced-out psychedelia, and silly pop. The exotic dabs of melodica, zither, and special effects by multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Ken Walker added a cloud of eeriness: "I Don't Know" has keyboards straight off the Chantays' surf classic "Pipeline"; "Goodbye Pamela Ann" has scorching psychedelic guitar that sounds like a mating of the Electric Prunes and Haight-Ashbury, and "Mother of My Children" has vocals that sound like a Lee Hazlewood parody. Kennelmus, indeed, can be seen as spiritual forefathers of sorts to several post-punk Arizona bands -- Black Sun Ensemble,Friends of Dean Martinez, and Scenic -- that have made instrumental rock that can function as a quasi-psychedelic desert movie soundtrack. Of course, it's doubtful that those bands, or many others, were aware of Kennelmus, since their album was released in a pressing of 1000 in 1971, and is not even well known among collectors.

Kennelmus evolved from the more standard garage band the Shi-Reeves, who played British Invasion covers and surf music. Ken Walker changed the name to Kennelmus in 1969 (Kennelmus being his full first name), and with singer/guitarist Bob Narloch began recording Folkstone Prism in late 1970, with the help of bassist Tom Gilmore and drummer Mike Shipp. The record was very much the brainchild of Walker, who wrote all but one of the songs. Three of the four bandmembers worked at a pressing plant, making them one of the few, if not the only, group of their sort to literally help press their own recordings. An anomaly of its time (or any other), Folkstone Prism made little impact, and the band broke up around the mid-'70s, although the album was reissued on CD by Sundazed in 1999.

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Kaleidoscope - Discography (1967-71)

Kaleidoscope - Discography

Another great band from England. If you care for lyrics, this band will get to you. Every song on the albums are worth listening. They were later known as Fairfield Parlour, continued with the same quality of music.

Album information:

(1967) - Tangerine Dream

(1969) - Faintly Blowing

(1971) - White-faced Lady

Band information:

Having performed since 1963 under the name The Sidekicks, they became The Key in November 1965, before settling upon the name Kaleidoscope when they signed a deal with Fontana Records in January 1967 with the help of the music publisher Dick Leahy. The group consisted of Eddy Pumer on guitar, Steve Clark on bass and flute, and Danny Bridgman on drums and the vocalist Peter Daltrey, who also played various keyboard instruments. Most of the band's songs were compositions of Pumer's music and Daltrey's lyrics. While the group did not achieve major commercial success in its time, it retains a loyal fan-base and its recordings are remembered in high regard.

The band's first single "Flight from Ashiya" (b/w "Holidaymaker") was released on 15 September 1967 by Fontana Records, a little earlier than the band's first albumTangerine Dream. The song was telling about an impending plane crash. The single got critical acclaim and quite an amount of radio airplay but failed to reach the charts. Years later, the song has appeared on many compilation albums, including Nuggets II: Original Artyfacts from the British Empire and Beyond, 1964–1969, the second box set of the Nuggets series and Acid Drops, Spacedust & Flying Saucers: Psychedelic Confectionery. Two months later, Tangerine Dream - also produced by Dick Leahy - was released. The album included "Flight From Ashiya", "Please Excuse My Face" and "Dive into Yesterday" which are now considered some the band's best songs. Meanwhile the band were aired performing live on several BBC radio shows. A new single was released in 1968 called "Jenny Artichoke" (b/w "Just How Much You Are") that was inspired by Donovan's, "Jennifer Juniper".After the release the band traveled around Europe, and when in Netherlands supported Country Joe and the Fish at the Amsterdam Concert Hall. Faintly Blowing, again produced by Leahy, was released later, in 1969 by Fontana Records. This time the band's sound was heavier but the tracks still included psychedelic elements with notable lyrics but it failed to reach the charts. After the failure of Faintly Blowing, they released two more singles and, after a radio session in BBC Maida Vale Studios, the band took a new name to avoid confusion with the US group.

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Kak - Kak-Ola (1968)

Kak - Kak-Ola

Another favorite of mine, KAK. This album is perfect on all points for me. You will love every single song if you are into heavy stuff. "Trieulogy", "Electric Sailor", "Mirage & Rain", "I Miss You" are the songs I can't get enough of. Listen to the lyrics, enjoy Kak.

Album information:

01 - Hco 97658

02 - Everything's Changing 

03 - Electric Sailor

04 - Disbelievin'

05 - I've Got Time

06 - Flowing By

07 - Bryte 'N' Clear Day

08 - Trieulogy 

09 - Lemonaide Kid

10 - Rain (Single Version)

11 - Everything's Changing (Acoustic Demo)

12 - I've Got Time (Acoustic Demo)

13 - (Medley) Bye Bye & Easy Jack (Previously Unissued)

14 - Bryte 'N' Clear Day (Acoustic Live Version)

15 - (Medley) Mirage & Rain (Acoustic Live Version)

16 - When Love Comes In (Previously Unissued)

17 - I Miss You (Previously Unissued)

18 - Lonely People Blues (Previously Unissued)

19 - Flight From The East

20 - Good Time Music

Band information:

Although formed in Davis, CA, Kak were based in San Francisco for a good part of 1968, when they recorded their only album. Lead singer, guitarist, and primary songwriter Gary Lee Yoder and lead guitarist Dehner Patten had been in the Oxford Circle, an obscure early Northern Californian psychedelic band that had cut one garage/psych single ("Foolish Woman"/"Mind Destruction") and played some shows on the San Francisco psychedelic circuit, while bassist Joe Dave Damrell had been on a 1965 single on Scorpio Records with Group "B".

The self-titled Kak LP was minor-league San Francisco psychedelic rock colored by a lot of influence from bigger Bay Area bands, particularly Moby Grape; the vocal harmonies and curling guitar work on tracks like "Disbelievin'" and "Everything's Changing" in particular sounded like a more pedestrianMoby Grape. There were also more distant echoes of Quicksilver Messenger Service (in the guitar work) and the Grateful Dead (in faint traces of country-blues-rock). Kak were best, and least derivative, at their quietest, as on the gentle country-tinged rocker "I've Got Time, " the good-time wistful psych-folk-rock of "Lemonade Kid, " and the harpsichord-decorated ballad "Flowing By, " which was as derivative of Donovan as much of their other songs were of Moby Grape.

Kak's album was barely promoted and sold little. It didn't help that the band played less than a dozen shows before breaking up in early 1969, Damrell having already quit prior to the split. Yoder did a single for Epic and then joined Blue Cheer. The Kak album eventually became a pricey collector's item, and was reissued on CD by Big Beat (with the new title Kak-ola) in 1999 with plenty of bonus cuts, including previously unreleased acoustic demos and Yodersolo tracks from the late '60s.

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July - Selftitled (1968)

July - July

July is another band from England, like most other bands they were active in the late 60's. songs like "Dandelion Seeds" will carry you somewhere else. Get a taste of July.

Album information:

01. My Clown

02. Dandelion Seeds

03. Jolly Mary

04. Hallo To Me

05. You Missed It All

06. The Way

07. To Be Free

08. Move On Sweet Flower

09. Crying Is For Writers

10. I See

11. Friendly Man

12. A Bird Lived
13. My Clown (Single Version)
14. Dandelion Seeds (Single Version)
15. Hello, Who's There

16. The Way (Single Version)

Band information:

July were a psychedelic rock band from Ealing, London that were professionally active between 1968 and 1969. The band's music was a blend of psychedelic rock and pop, marked by lush harmonies, acoustic guitars, keyboards, and intricate lead guitar work. Although none of the band's records managed to chart in the UK or the U.S., July are today best remembered for their songs "My Clown", "Dandelion Seeds", and "The Way", which have all been included on a number of compilation albums over the years.

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