What’s this? Another offering from the Fruits de Mer label? Hell’s teeth! Are they trying to spoil us or something?

The fourth FdM release in a matter of a month is by the Sidewalk Society. They appeared on A Phase We’re Going Through, the fine Fruits de Mer album released earlier this year, performing the rare Bee Gees psychedelic excursion, ‘Red Chair, Fade Away’.

For this EP, released on limited edition vinyl as per, it’s once again a case of lesser known tracks from household names. Four, in fact.

There’s ‘In the First Place’, originally by George Harrison and The Remo Four; ‘(Tell Me) Have You Ever Seen Me?’ by The Small Faces; ‘Lazy Old Sun’ by The Kinks; and finally, ‘Dandelion’ by The Rolling Stones.

These are all given a jolly good seeing to by L.A.’s own, Sidewalk Society. That’s right; it’s our colonial cousins reinterpreting songs by some thoroughly British bands. I say, dashed unsporting, what? God Save the Queen and all that!

But wait. Before questions are asked in the House and heads encouraged to roll, let’s take a listen.

By George! I do believe they’ve got it. The rain in Spain does fall mainly on the plain, or, in this case, the Mojave Desert.

Such Rex Harrison caddishness aside, Fruits de Mer Vol. 14 is a rare vintage indeed. One bottled in 1967 and decanted now, just in time for Christmas. All four of the tracks were originally recorded in that year and Sidewalk Society manage to capture the essence perfectly.

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psych-pop, psychedelic rock

This day will never happen again. There’s no disputing that, but so what? Stating the bleeding obvious doesn’t impress me or anybody else unfortunate enough to be reading this…

Wait though. This Day Will Never Happen Again is, in fact, the name of the new album from veterans of the late 1980′s UK neo-psychedelic boom, The Chemistry Set. Those in command of a memory unaddled by booze and other such substances may well remember that The Chemistry Set were the band I singled out for particular praise in Head Full of Snow’s review of the A Phase We’re Going Through compilation album.

Their epically atmospheric version of Del Shannon’s psychedelic sojourn ‘Silver Birch’ was the best track on the album and one that gets many a hard-earned repeat play on the HFoS sound system. If you managed to get a hold of A Phase We’re Going Through via fair means or foul, you’ll be pleased to know that ‘Silver Birch’ makes an appearance on This Day Will Never Happen Again, this time minus the phasing, in all its original glory.

Both versions are exceptional and modern classics as far as HFoS is concerned. Indeed, the best track here as well. But that’s not said lightly, considering some of the stiff competition this album has to offer.

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album reviews, psychedelic rock

The story behind the rather radio-unfriendly Rolling Stones song, ‘Cocksucker Blues’ – sometimes referred to as ‘Schoolboy Blues’ – is slightly more interesting than the purposely offensive curio itself.

In 1970, between the releases of Let it Bleed and Sticky Fingers, the Rolling Stones, looking to go it alone and handle their own business affairs, finished with both their record company Decca and their manager Allen Klein. The contract with Decca required the band to deliver one more single.

‘Cocksucker Blues’ was the result.

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classic rock, song reviews, the blues

During the late sixties and early seventies, each and every rockstar worth their salt considered themselves to be the new Che Guevara. They communicated with the masses via soundbites of revolutionary rhetoric – more often than not from the comfort of their three storey mansion or tax exile in the South of France – and once the imminent uprising that had been promised burned itself out, they retired to count their money.

Revolution was, after all, big business.

So in honour of some of these Che charlatons who turned tail and fled as soon as the going got tough, Head Full of Snow brings you 5 songs with which to spark a revolution (or not).

The Rolling Stones – Street Fighting Man

An absolute stormer of a track and one that was written at a time when the anti-Vietnam war protests had spread as far afield as London, sparking riots and encouraging Mick Jagger himself to take to the streets and… stand on the sidelines taking photos of the ensuing chaos. Jagger was perhaps the biggest pretender to the revolutionary throne, toying with the imagery during the era of Beggars Banquet and Let It Bleed, but soon getting bored and leaving it all behind to concentrate on becoming the mucky little devil we all know today. ‘Street Fighting Man’ appears on 1968′s Beggars Banquet.
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feature, folk rock, freak rock, music vid, prog rock, psychedelic rock

In June of 1967 when The Beatles released the now defining Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, swinging London was in the kaleidoscopic throes of a psychedelic haze. This was the summer of love for those that could afford it and a hippy ideal of “peace and love”, culminating in the naive Flower Power movement shipped over from San Francisco, was rife amongst those fortunate enough not to have to work for a living.

Not to be outdone amidst this polychromatic swirl, The Rolling Stones, who all things aside were the only real contenders to The Beatles crown (justly or otherwise), recorded their answer – what was anticipated to be their very own Sgt. Pepper – Their Satanic Majesties Request.

Expectations were high and amidst such hopes it was a dead-cert that a certain faction would be left disappointed. Unfortunately for the Stones and the public at large who took press response as being gospel, the hostility from the critics was almost universal. For an album that kick-started The Rolling Stones’ golden period, its reception left a lot to be desired. Which is completely unfair.

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album reviews, psychedelic rock

The End’s one and only album, Introspection, may have fallen along the wayside following its much delayed 1969 release but in the intervening years up until its CD reissue it acquired a certain amount of mystique amongst lovers of psychedelia. This was as a result of the Rolling Stones connections the album enjoyed, having none other than Bill Wyman on production duties.

Partially recorded at the same time as the Stones were recording Their Satanic Majesties Request one might be forgiven for expecting to hear a powerhouse of psychedelic rock; a companion piece to the Stones’ album.

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album reviews, psych-pop

Hereby (is that the right word?) begins an occasional series that aims to celebrate, applaud or simply take the piss out of album covers from the psychedelic and prog era. First up for this admittedly dubious honour are The Rolling Stones and the album cover of 1968′s Their Satanic Majesties Request.

What can you say?

Michael, dear boy, what the devil had you, Keith, Brian, Bill and Charlie been smoking to think you might get away with this? The album may be great (despite the critical mauling it received) but the cover?

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cover of the week, psychedelic rock

As was so often the case with many a band signed during the psychedelic heyday of the late 60s (Focal Point being a case in point), The End remain one of those enigmas lost to time amidst a swirl of colour and a cloud of  hash smoke.

Image from: Marmalade Skies

In fact, mentioning Focal Point is no mere accident as two of the similarities between the misfortunes of the two bands sits firmly on the less desirable side of uncanny. Both had the sort of backing other bands could only dream of – Focal Point had The Beatles and The End had the Rolling Stones (more specifically Bill Wyman). Both were allowed to slip into obscurity through no fault of their own. The death of Beatles manager, Brian Epstein saw Focal Point’s priorities at Apple Records thrown onto the backburner, whilst Rolling Stones’ business manager Alan Klein sat on The End’s one and only album, Introspection, for eighteen months before it saw a release, at exactly the time when musical trends had moved on.

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band, feature, psych-pop

The Rolling Stones were long over their brief psychedelic phase when they released Sticky Fingers in 1971. And what more can be said other than it’s singularly the greatest album ever written, recorded or released by any musical act this side of hell. Does anything need adding to that?

Oh well, I suppose if needs must.

Sticky Fingers represents the pinnacle of the Jagger/Richards songwriting partnership and a band at the peak of their musical prowess, narrowly shaving Exile On Main Street to steal the hard-contested honour. It also came at a time when they could do no wrong. You have Their Satanic Majesties Request (much maligned, but loved for its psychedelic goodness by this reviewer), followed by Beggar’s Banquet, followed by Let It Bleed, then Sticky Fingers, Exile On Main Street, and Goats Head Soup. Just one of those albums would be enough to cement the name of any lesser band in the halls of music immortality. But indeed, ‘the hardest working band in rock ‘n’ roll’ pumped them out in a space of five years and were never quite the same again.

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album reviews, classic rock

Mojo Magazine have released their rather excellent celebration of 1969 (the 40th anniversary, you know), following on from the 1967 ‘Summer of Love’ special, a couple of years back.

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