NYEPLAK

The Music Explosion Little Bit O Soul 1967 us marvelous garage psych beat 2002 remaster This is an improvement over the best previous Music Explosion compilation, One Ways Anthology, in that it not only contains all 21 of the songs from that release, but adds three non-LP B-sides not on that CD. Granted, all three of these B-sides are psychedelic instrumentals that most likely feature session players and not the Music Explosion. But those are rather cool tracks, in the manner of the trippy fuzz guitar-organ psychedelic songs heard on soundtracks to films exploiting the hippie movement. More importantly, perhaps, the package also includes respectful detailed liner notes, with quotes from several bandmembers. All that borne in mind, you still cant get around the fact that the group didnt have anything too great to offer other than "Little Bit o Soul." They did virtually no original material, and their songs were average, OK-to-unexciting pop garage rock with a bit of soul and b...

The Mystery Trend So Glad I Found You 1966 67 us marvelous folk psych garage rock extra tracks edition If the Airplane and the Dead were the Beatles and Stones of San Franciscos mid-1960s rock heyday, then the Mystery Trend were its Zombies or Left Banke, peddling craftsmanship and high quality pop songs in an era of burgeoning indulgence. Ahead of anyone else except perhaps the Charlatans, the Trend was the first alternative rock group in the Bay Area, debuting in May 1965. Unlike the ex-folkies and beatniks that comprised the rest of the scene, the group, led by keyboardist and songwriter Ron Nagle, were older and came from an art school background, eschewing the jams and free-form modality of other local groups for concise ensemble arrangements. "The kind of writing that was going on in San Francisco then, to me, it was dogshit" says Nagle."Everyone was into this wankingsoloingpsychedelic-droneout. It was very uncool to play three minute pop songs." Nagle and gui...

The Rowans Sibling Rivalry Jubilation 1976 77 us marvelous country silk rock 2004 issue Jerry Garcia called them the California Beatles. Rock critic Dave Marsh quipped that Garcia must have been tripping at the time. The truth about the Rowans can be found where the truth often resides: somewhere in the middle. Between Garcias adulation and the critics damnation with faint praise, the Rowans made an eclectic and uneven body of work for Asylum Records in the mid-70s�a trio of albums through which disparate styles, from bluegrass and reggae to straightforward pop and rock, intersected and combined. Some of the Rowans songs from this period continue to be sung today and, thanks to Collectors Choice, their original albums are back in print nearly thirty years later. Peter, Chris and Lorin Rowan recorded their self-titled Asylum debut in 1975, and that story can be found in the booklet of The Rowans, reissued on compact disc by Collectors Choice in 2002. This disc is the second chapter in t...