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Jefferson Airplane “Bark” (1971)

It is hard to believe that upon its release in 1971, Bark was poorly reviewed. In retrospect, its musical closeness to Jefferson Airplane’s earlier work, especially 1969’s Volunteers, is striking. “When the Earth Moves Again” is a collective, anthemic song in the same mould and of the same quality as “We Can Be Together,” and “Crazy Miranda” is clearly by the author of “rejoyce.” What makes Bark special is the move of Slick and the astonishingly under-valued Jorma Kaukonen to the foreground and the new casual, almost frayed approach to performing and recording. Also new is a shift away from the already-qualified counter-culture sentiments of Volunteers towards a more resigned, knowing worldview: “Third Week in the Chelsea” is painful in its directness, but gorgeous in its craftsmanship and execution; Slick’s “Law Man” projects a tired, slightly annoyed, spirit that Slick could tap into so well. New to the band was the funky and sensual punch of tunes like “Feel So Good” and “Pretty As You Feel,” which project a randy-to-sultry adult sexuality absent from their more whimsical “love” songs of the ’60s. Confirms that the early ’70s were the high water mark for the extended Airplane family. —Toolshed4

Jackie McLean “Destination Out!” (1964)

Based on the title, I was expecting some blistering, fast-paced jazz, probably dominated by squalling saxophone and so on. For those of you who have listened to Destination Out! already, you will know that I found this not to be the case. Perhaps I should have taken more heed of the exclaimation mark, because in many ways I can draw similarities between what Jackie does here and what Eric Dolphy was doing on Out To Lunch! Admittedly, this tends not to have the skronkier qualities of that album, but firstly, the replacement of piano with vibes is obvious, and then there’s the combination of weird, staggering music that’s somehow also really accessible and exuberantly fun to listen to. This is often cited as a pretty essential jazz album, especially in the context of post/hard bop, and honestly, I can really say it is. There are few albums which really nail experimentation and accessibility at the same time, but the sophisticated and restrained, often atmospheric playing on Destination Out! means that even with the odd rhythms and wonderfully wonky playing this is still a pleasure to listen to over and over again. A classic. —Timmay

Led Zeppelin “Houses of the Holy” (1973)

Houses of the Holy finds Led Zeppelin happily accepting their status as king of the mountain rock gods, operating on a level far above and beyond the bluesy cock-rock of their contemporaries. A grander Zeppelin is on display from the get go, with Page’s swooping battalion of guitars and Plant’s sped up elfin vocals sending “The Song Remains the Same” on a whirlwind tour of the stars, while epic entries like the lush, mellotron orchestrated “The Rain Song” and eerie creeper “No Quarter” prowl similarly heady terrain. The acoustic ditty turned bruiser “Over the Hills and Far Away,” Bonham stomp of “The Ocean,” and summer nights hippie haze of “Dancing Days” provide more folds to the Zeppelin mystique, while tongue in cheek offerings like the reggae meets 50’s doo-wop of “D’yer Mak’er” and funky filler “The Crunge” find the band working well outside the box. Factor in the album’s beefy, yet crystalline production job, and their most bizarre album graphics yet, and Houses of the Holy solidifies Zeppelin’s lofty stature. —Ben

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Atomic Rooster “Death Walks Behind You” (1970)

I find it utterly astonishing that, even based purely on the strength of this album, Atomic Rooster are not hailed as Gods of 70s hard rock. Now, I really enjoyed their debut, a prog rock classic, but Death Walks Behind You is fucking phenomenal! Seriously, any fan of hard/psych rock needs to hear this one right now. Where the debut was mostly a prog album with heavy leanings, light on guitar, but employing King Crimson-esque melancholy in the songwriting & structure, this album just goes all out, with the late great John DuCann firing out blazing riffs & solos that rival many of his contemporaries in the likes of Led Zeppelin, AC/DC and so on.

Opening with the dark, doom-laden title track, with it’s clever blend of rockin’ riff & crazy hammond organ, it should have you hooked. But it only gets better from there. Moving on to the crazy Jethro Tull style instrumental “VUG”, this should please anyone who thought AR had left their prog roots behind. “Tomorrow Night” should be farmiliar to some rock fans, and is a cheery, superbly infectious tune withc a catchy piano track. “7 Streets” is another melancholy hard prog track in the vein of the title track, with a superb dirty rock riff to lead in atop the creepy organ. My personal favourite is the seriously amazing “Sleeping For Years”, easily one of the most epic 70s rock anthems I’ve ever heard, with a brilliantly air-guitar riff, catchy vocals and a lurching psychedelic freakout in the middle, it should be hailed as a legendary track for all to here. “I Can’t Take No More” sounds almost like AR were jamming with The Stooges, very gritty, garage-esque street rock. “Nobody Else” is another piano driven tune, and is haunting and marvellous. Ending with the Crimsonian “Gershatzer” instrumental, which is a prog classic, meandering mechanically like the best math-rockers of the time.

All in all, this album should be preserved as a lost treasure, and deserves to be heard and worshipped at the altar of rock for all of time. Go out there and get listening!! —MetroidVania

Van der Graaf Generator “Pawn Hearts” (1971)

Here’s a band operating on their own plateau, located in the center of a triangle formed by King Crimson, Pink Floyd, and the sacrificial altar of Crom, Pawn Hearts is not so much three distinct tracks as one elongated inner monologue of madness courtesy of Peter Hammill and company. While there’s those who would portray dementia through scatterbrained ramblings, Pawn Hearts is all the more harrowing and impressive in it’s focus and lucidity, it’s makeup of dense keyboards and saxophone sounding both ancient and timeless, with Hammill’s overwrought expression giving the proceedings an air of theatricality without resorting to parody. If at times the journey through these catacombs winds up at a dead end, particularly during moments of the side-long “A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers,” there are too many glorious moments here to ignore, and the lack of reliance on stock progisims set this one apart. —Ben

Pink Floyd “Relics” (1971)

“Relics” is a collection of very early Pink Floyd singles and rare tracks, covering the band’s first couple of years from 1967 to 1969. Consider it “Pink Floyd: The Early Years,” if you like. Five tracks come from the group’s first three albums: the classic, trippy instrumental “Interstellar Overdrive” and the half children’s song/half freak-out number, “Bike” (both from “Piper At The Gates Of Dawn”), the breezy “Remember A Day” (from “A Saucerful Of Secrets”), and a pair of tunes from the “More” movie soundtrack: the eerie “Cirrus Minor,” and the thunderous rocker, “The Nile Song.”

All superb stuff, but the main selling point of “Relics” are the six rare Floyd tracks that make up the remainder, such as the classic early singles “Arnold Layne” and “See Emily Play,” both great little blasts of late-60’s psychedelic pop, the jaunty “Paintbox,” and the lovely, mysterious atmosphere of “Julia Dream.” Also included is the original studio version of “Careful With That Axe, Eugene,” an outstanding Floyd instrumental that’s probably more famous in it’s live version from the “Ummagumma” album. Although the live version of “Eugene” IS more monstrous and powerful, as the Floyd were able to slowly build it up and expand on it in concert, the slightly-faster studio version is nothing to sneeze at either, and the band give it a studio performance that’s very impressive, skillful, and passionate. And finally, there is what is quite possibly the happiest, most upbeat song in the entire Pink Floyd catalog, “Biding My Time.” Although the song starts out softly, before long the band turn it into a full-throttle jazz-rock rave-up, complete with horn section! Sounds to me like the Floyd had a grand ol’ time in the studio when they recorded this number, and it shows. Love it!

Pink Floyd’s “Relics” may indeed be, as the album cover says, “a bizarre collection of antiques & curios,” but oh, is it good. Floyd fans everywhere should definitely add this album to their collection. —Alan

Dave Holland “Conference of the Birds” (1972)

This is not an ordinary record in any respect. Free jazz and the 1960s avant-garde had ironically generated its own conventions. Conference of the Birds ignores them and sets up its own outstanding performance standards for both individual voices and ensemble. The compositions are all Holland’s, inspired by the dawn chorus outside his flat in London in the early summer mornings.

The first theme, “Four Winds” is a delightful opener, marked by Holland’s characteristic firm, precise fingering. The bass immediately sets the atmosphere of the record: a light, free dance of notes. Holland’s bouncing fingering sharply contrasts with Barry Altschul’s fizzing cymbals. Sam Rivers and Anthony Braxton converse almost indistinguishably, politely exchanging commentary. On “Q & A” Altschul converses with himself, quietly alerting his companions, who gradually make their appearance with little interjections. These fragments progressively accumulate to form a kind of dance of free individuals, like birds pecking at grain, each jumping according to its own whim, chasing its morsel. Then, the title-tune, “Conference of the Birds”; It’s one of the great compositions of jazz, perhaps the most distinctive and memorable 1970s original (in retrospect, an accolade it should probably share with Weather Report’s “Birdland”, released four years later). It is a delicate, contemplative song to beauty and quietude, both melancholy and uplifting, evocative of both aching loneliness and the intimacy of companionship. Holland’s double bass figure must be one of his most celebrated. Altschul’s marimba is divine in its simplicity, accompanied by the plain, unadorned flutes of Braxton and Rivers. “Conference of the Birds” is almost like the calm before the storm – the track that follows it, “Interception”, is a wild, intense vehicle for each soloist to give free rein to his passions. This is followed by “Now Here (Nowhere)”, the most spacious of all six pieces. It offers a cautious reconciliation to dissenting voices after “Interception”, underscored with the ubiquitous bass. Holland cultivates a tone here honed into a ovoid, sculpted sound with a hint of vibrato. Finally, on “See-Saw”, we have Altschul again creating a effervescent ambience to a blistering Rivers solo. This is the final climax to an awesome, astonishing album, one of the great classics of the post-free era. —Ricard

Gregg Allman “Laid Back” (1973)

With The Allman Brothers Band tearing up the charts, it was probably only natural that Gregg Allman would have wanted to test his own capabilities by taking a stab at a solo career. Though he’d apparently started recording the album shortly after brother Duane’s death, it took more than two years for Allman to complete the effort. Produced by Johnny Sandlin, musically 1973’s “Laid Back” was a modest surprise in that it showcased a set that was far more diverse than his blues-rock repertoire with The Allman Brothers. In fact, anyone expecting to hear blistering, twin lead guitar Southern rock was going to be left scratching their heads. Mind you, Allman’s voice remained instantly recognizable, though his patented Hammond B3 organ was largely absent from the proceedings. And that’s where the similarities ended. While you couldn’t label this a pop album, it’s hard to imagine the Allman Brothers recording anything with intricate orchestral arrangements like ‘Multi-Colored Lady’ or ‘All My Friends’. Similarly, the upbeat cover of Oliver Sain’s ‘Don’t Mess Up A Good Thing’ was a far cry from The Allman Brothers patented driving rock genre. One other comment, with the exception of the Oliver Sain cover, virtually the entire set was soaked in a sense of loss and sadness.

Side one’s biggest surprise came in the form of Allman’s bouncy cover of Sain’s ‘Don’t Mess Up A Good Thing’. I’d be hard pressed to pick another song where he sounded as happy and pleased with himself. It would have made a great single.

The thought of Allman doing a Jackson Browne cover set off alarm bells in my head (damaged Southern rocker covers damaged West Coast singer/songwriter), but the concerns were unwarranted given Allman turned in a cover of These Days that was beautiful and aching and mournful slice of self-doubt and regret. The performance stood as a highlight across Allman’s entire career and simply beat the crap out of Browne’s own version.

Backed my strong reviews and an extensive American tour (documented for his next release), the album sold well, peaking at # 14 on the US charts. All told, probably still my favorite Allman solo venture. —Scott

Pete Townshend & Ronnie Lane “Rough Mix” (1977)

This would be ex-Faces Ronnie Lane’s next-to-last record. (He would release only one more solo album, 1979’s See Me, before multiple sclerosis no longer permitted him to record.) Together with Pete Townshend they create a memorable album.

Rough Mix kicks off with the most Who-like of the albums tracks–“My Baby Gives It Away,” which is propelled by the drumming of Stones’ drummer Charlie Watts. Townshend’s vocal performance is fine, but he doesn’t have the instensity that Roger Daltry could have added to the song. Only two other tracks rock as hard as the opening track. The instrumental “Rough Mix,” which features Eric Clapton’s lead guitar and the organ work of John “Rabbit” Bundrick, who would go on to tour with the Who in 1979. The other is Ronnie Lane’s “Catmelody,” a jumping number featuring Stones sideman Ian Stewart on piano.

The rest of the album is a mostly accoustic affair. One of the album’s many standout tracks is Lane’s absolutely gorgeous “Annie,” which features his former Slim Chance members Graham Lyle on guitar and Benny Gallagher on accordian. Equally lovely is Lane’s “April Fool” with Clapton on Dobro. Townshend also turns in one of his prettiest melodies and excellent acoustic guitar playing with “Keep Me Turning.” The album closes with the melancholy “Heart to Hang on To” with Lane and Townshend sharing vocal chores, and the Don Williams country classic “Till the Rivers All Run Dry.”

This is one of Townsend’s strongest non-Who projects and Lane’s contributions are stunning. If you enjoy either of these artists you will enjoy this collaboration. Highly Recommended! —Steve