★Trading Places
Thank You For...
The English singer and guitarist Bridget St John was introduced to the London folk scene by guitarist John Martyn, her rich and unusually deep voice making John Peel one of her greatest champions, and when Peel formed the Dandelion label in 1969 with former Elektra record plugger Clive Selwood, the original intention was to issue St John’s music. Following debut album Ask Me No Questions and follow-up Songs For The Gentle Man, 1972’s Thank You For had Martyn’s stunning guitar on “Fly High” and a…
Ben
Canterbury-based progressive jazz-rock act Ben only released one obscure album, issued on Philips’ prog subsidiary Vertigo in 1971, but it’s a lovely collective of extended instrumental jams, worthy of discovery for those that missed it the first time around. Peter Davey’s saxophone and clarinet melodies push the material to high peaks, against an understated backing from future Nashville Teens bassist, Len Surtees and former Graham Bond drummer, David Sheen, keyboardist Alex Macleery and guitar…
Sound Trek
Pioneering space music duo Emerald Web, comprised of Bob Stohl and soulmate Kat Epple, made some of the most ethereal, divine and healing sounds between 1979 and 1990. Crafting their debut album in a haunted mansion in northwest Connecticut, their second disc was created in a small log cabin.
A subsequent move to the San Francisco Bay Area brought an extended stay at an Indonesian martial arts ashram, which led to the Valley of the Birds, a remote avian haven in which the duo produced Sound Trek…
Green Eyed God
Fabled British prog-rock band Steel Mill was formed in Wandsworth, a working-class district of south London, during the late 1960s, after singer / keyboardist David Morris began working with saxophonist / flautist John Challenger, who had played with a folk group - The Garret Singers - the initial Mill line-up completed once they were joined by former Roadrunners' drummer Colin Short, Derek Chandler on bass and Terry Williams on guitar. The nascent band rehearsed for about one year, playing very…
As I Am
Recording a solo album in 1969 allowed Troggs guitarist Chris Britton to take a stab at greater artistic freedom, though the presence of a familiar set of suspects meant that the resultant LP, As I Am, didn’t veer too far from The Troggs’ standard blend of poppy psychedelia and garage rock, constructed with a particular English bent. Producer and keyboardist Colin Frechter shaped the group’s Mixed Bag release, and his wistful harpsichord on tracks like If You Really Care lend a baroque air to th…
The Signal To Noise Set
Trading Places present a reissue of The Signal To Noise Set, originally released in small numbers in 1984 on London's short-lived Only A Revolution label. The ultra-rare various artists release showcased the Australian variant of minimalist wave AND analog synth-pop. The eleven exclusives featured on the compilation are all prime examples of Australia's synth band underground, and although each group was totally unknown outside of their sphere of influence, some have gone on to attain legendary …
Oh Really!?
The guitarist and singer-songwriter Mike Cooper was a key figure in the British blues boom of the late 1960s. Born in Reading in 1942, Cooper began playing guitar as a teen in local skiffle groups. After seeing Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee perform in 1961, Cooper caught the blues bug and began to play the harmonica and formed The Blues Committee, supporting John Lee Hooker, Sonny Boy Williamson, Alexis Korner and Long John Baldry, while Cooper was also performing solo. Acquiring a lap steel gu…