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Anyone familiar with Billy Childish's work expects a certain amount of willful sloppiness when they put on one of his records, but this collection of early demos and live tapes from the Milkshakes, the combo where he first solidified the sound that would make his name, sounds crude even by his lo-fi standards. The 11 demos that open The 107 Tapes (named for the house in Chatham where the group rehearsed) predate the first Milkshakes album by close to a year, and this is the group at ground zero; the fascination with classic British beat music, the stripped-down attack, and Childish's raw enthusiasm and power as both a guitarist and vocalist were all in place, but Childish appeared to be several leagues ahead of his bandmates in both skill and charisma at this point, which makes for a distressingly ordinary rhythm section, and Martin Waller's sax is too far up in the mix for its own good (though the one-mike production style suggests they couldn't have fixed it if they wanted to). And while the songs are pretty good for the most part, Childish would be turning out better material within a few years. The rest of the disc is taken from two gigs the Milkshakes played in Germany in April 1983; by this point the band sounded a great deal stronger and more confident, and this documents them doing that they did best. The live Milkshakes rock solidly on a set of originals and early rock covers, and the audio, if not exceptional, is better than on the demos, but the audience doesn't seem very enthusiastic, and Childish and his bandmates enjoy throwing uncharitable insults at them in the grand tradition of John Lennon at the Star Club. Serious Billy Childish fans will enjoy this for the live material, but The 107 Tapes is best suited for completists rather than casual admirers, and no one needs to hear the demos more than once. - AllMusic Review by Mark Deming
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…Originally dubbed the International Headless Chickens, the trio -- onetime Children's Hour members Chris Matthews and Johnny Pierce, along with drummer Michael Lawry -- re-formed on a permanent basis in 1986, and soon made their recorded debut with a track on the student radio compilation Outnumbered by Sheep. A self-titled EP followed later that year, and the group began a tour in support of Nico. Tragedy soon struck, however, when bassist Pierce committed suicide in August 1986. The Headless Chickens soldiered on, enlisting another Children's Hour alum, Grant Fell, as Pierce's replacement; with the addition of former Bird Nest Roys member Rupert Taylor, they became a quartet… to be continued - Artist Biography by Jason Ankeny
...The Gibson guitar company introduced the first electric guitar in the 1930s, and the advent of amplification meant the blues could preach louder and longer, which allowed a country acoustic music to transform itself into its own kind of powerfully rhythmic pop music. Taken as a whole, this ambitious Bear Family series traces and surveys that transformation, beginning with jazz-inspired jump blues tracks and following through to the juncture of blues and rock, blues and funk, and beyond, on into the 21st century. This particular volume covers 1960 to 1969, a time when blues and rock & roll really started to join hands, and it features classic tracks like Buddy Guy's "First Time I Met the Blues," Jimmy Reed's "Big Boss Man," Albert King's "Crosscut Saw," and B.B. King's "Rock Me Baby," but it also collects lesser-known gems like Frank Frost's "Jelly Roll King" and Junior Parker's "Driving Wheel," then slides into blues and rock hybrids like the Animals' "House of the Rising Sun," Canned Heat's Henry Thomas-inspired "On the Road Again," and Janis Joplin's "Ball and Chain," before closing things out with Willie Dixon’s "I Ain't Superstitious" done by the Jeff Beck Group. Bear Family Records is known for its quality releases, and this volume is no exception. When the full 12 discs are taken together, with nearly 300 tracks, it makes for a fascinating survey of the blues in all of its electric configurations.(Steve Leggett, Allmusic)
The cuts are all from the late-40's and early-50's after the break-up of the original and justly celebrated "Quintet of the Hot Club of France" featuring Django and the great Stephane Grapelly on violin, and after returning from his only American tour, with the Duke Elliington Orchestra.
The title kind of says it all on this CD-ification of The Milkshakes 1984 vinyl release. The sleeve note's claim that these recordings were made by The Milkshakes' fathers in the early 60s, before they all died in a plane crash in Rochester, may be treated with a certain scepticism but one listen and you could well believe it. Whichever band it was, it is pure unadorned rock & roll, not the kind of ponced up, long haired waIly variety that attempts to pass itself off as such, in endless mindless videos that the 'music industry' shoves at us daily. This is real rock & roll for real men and women - no sexism here - played with a bite that would put the fear of Elvis' sham-burgers into most of these jumped up up-starts. - jpc
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…His Lyrics, Musicianship, and Self Production are all here in one great CD. The two songs on the album that will receive airplay are "See Me Fall" and "Let's Make This Easy". All the songs have his trademark catchy acoustic and rock guitar licks along with perfect harmonies. Except for drums Adam plays all the instruments and shows how to take straight pop and rock music with an edge to a to a new level. If you don't have either of his first two albums they are both well worth getting. Both were critically acclaimed when they came out. (Trouser Press)
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...while Last Night at the M.I.C. is uncontrolled hysteria. Thee Milkshakes vs the Prisoners (recorded live in the studio) is pure libido on parade, and one of the band's vinyl peaks.
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Let's go a little further, so to speak with a 'rest ramp' today. There is a group that called itself 'Mainly Spaniards' and only released a small EP (basically an extended single), but schöööön ... Probably didn't really work out because the kiwis thought the band was Spanish. .. is a vinyl rip that crackles violently. - Gaius
It's just me having fun with my 45's and whatever random record I pull out of the boxes. I will try to give both sides of the 45 unless one side is dull, unbearable or unplayable. I hope you enjoy. (Gyro1966)
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The original lineup included Chase Simpson, Josh Jove, and Sebastian Harris (all three are credited as performers on Tom Petty's 2014 album Hypnotic Eye). Later, they incorporated bassist Jacob Pillot. The trio released its first single, "Birdwatching," in mid-2015. In October of the same year, they released their debut self-titled EP. Petty invited the Shelters to support his band Mudcrutch on tour later that year, and would also go on to co-produce the band's debut self-titled LP. - discogs
...Swap "The Prisoners" for "The Milkshakes" in that paragraph, and you have a fair comment on the second side, too. Although you'd have to take out the Bruce Brand bit, obviously. Storming out of the blocks with the very best available version of "Melanie", there is barely a chance to draw breath until the arrival of "American Jingle" (which the eagle-eared amongst you will recognise and the tune that ended up as the little jingly bit between "Whenever I'm Gone" and "Who's Sorry Now" on The Last Fourfathers). Driven, powerful, impassioned, the chaps turn out a fearsomely tuneful garage racket that temporarily renders all other forms of music quite redundant. The onslaught eases slightly through the second part ("A Taste of Pink" is welcome, but I've never really been a fan of 96 Tears in any of its incarnations) before we close with another of Graham's peerless pipe workouts, a wholehearted and thrusting take on "Love Me Lies". Quality.
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…Three months later, the 1988 album Stunt Clown received the Classic Record Award at the presentation of the year's Taite Music Prize. The album was recorded with the money when the band won the Rheineck Rock Award, 30 years earlier. In August 2018, the all surviving members of the band from the first two albums reformed to play The Others' Way festival in Auckland. In March 2019, Headless Chickens and Flying Nun reissued Body Blow on vinyl, CD and digital. - Russell Brown
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...Richard had been an active recording artist ever since the mid-'60s, when he had signed to Vee-Jay and cut effective but neglected soul singles, but the rock & roll revival of the late '60s gave him the opportunity to launch a splashy, big-budget comeback, and he seized it. Instead of serving up the expected high-energy rock & roll on his 1970 LP, The Rill Thing, he recorded an eclectic, wide-ranging album that touched on country, acoustic blues, hard-driving funk, soul, melodic pop, and rock & roll. While there were wah-wah guitars and electric sitars that clearly marked it as a product of its time, those production quirks fade into the background, since the range and accomplishment of the music are quite staggering. It's overpowering, but not in the familiar Little Richard fashion, where the boundless, reckless energy is the defining characteristic. Instead, The Rill Thing and the albums that followed it -- 1971's King of Rock 'n' Roll, 1972's The Second Coming, and the unreleased Southern Child -- all followed the same musical blueprint and aesthetic: Little Richard opened his music up, slowing things down on occasion, varied his arrangement and styles, and wrote powerful, memorable new songs, while carefully picking songs from Hank Williams, John Fogerty, and the Beatles to showcase the scope of his music. Sure, there still was the familiar piledriving rock & roll, but it was part of a mosaic of American roots music that proved that Little Richard could do it all -- rock, pop, country, blues, soul, gospel, funk -- and do it his own way. There were the occasional missteps -- the instrumental jams all stretch out too long -- but they were rare. On the whole, his Reprise work was all-encompassing, fully realized, and -- in its own way -- as exciting as his timeless work for Specialty. And that's why The King of Rock and Roll isn't just essential for any serious student of rock & roll, it's one of the few reissues of this decade that can truly be called revelatory.(AllMusic Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine)
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The guitar rings the iron wire. The world's best Finns iron wire bands fly their Stratocaster towards the hot summer. 15 cool tub warming songs.
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...The artwork had been lovingly restored by original Milkshake Bruce Brand and its also been remastered from the bands original master tapes. THE MILKSHAKES were a very prolific group, recording nine records in their six years together. Childish and Hampshire split the lead vocal duties and the band was very much a blend of Childish's primitive songwriting and Hampshire's more melodic leanings. THE MILKSHAKES broke up in 1984 and Childish, Brand, and Agnew went on to form THEE MIGHTY CAESARS where Childish's raw punk-blues could roam untainted by any semblance of professionalism.
THE MILKSHAKES were Micky Hampshire (Guitar / Vocals), Billy Childish (Guitar / Vocals), Bruce Brand (Drums) and Russ Wilkins (Bass)
Variations are available with "The Milkshakes" written in red, blue or yellow on the front cover.
Whilst Chris Matthews was struggling within the pop-confines of The Prime Movers, Johnny Pierce (bass), Grant fell (guitar) and Bevan Sweeney (drums) were forming their own brooding rock sound as Children's Hour. Matthews (vocals / guitar) consolidated the group in 1983, and it was this line-up that released two EPs on Flying Nun - and went on to tour New Zealand. - discogs
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...Richard had been an active recording artist ever since the mid-'60s, when he had signed to Vee-Jay and cut effective but neglected soul singles, but the rock & roll revival of the late '60s gave him the opportunity to launch a splashy, big-budget comeback, and he seized it. Instead of serving up the expected high-energy rock & roll on his 1970 LP, The Rill Thing, he recorded an eclectic, wide-ranging album that touched on country, acoustic blues, hard-driving funk, soul, melodic pop, and rock & roll. While there were wah-wah guitars and electric sitars that clearly marked it as a product of its time, those production quirks fade into the background, since the range and accomplishment of the music are quite staggering. It's overpowering, but not in the familiar Little Richard fashion, where the boundless, reckless energy is the defining characteristic. Instead, The Rill Thing and the albums that followed it -- 1971's King of Rock 'n' Roll, 1972's The Second Coming, and the unreleased Southern Child -- all followed the same musical blueprint and aesthetic: Little Richard opened his music up, slowing things down on occasion, varied his arrangement and styles, and wrote powerful, memorable new songs, while carefully picking songs from Hank Williams, John Fogerty, and the Beatles to showcase the scope of his music. Sure, there still was the familiar piledriving rock & roll, but it was part of a mosaic of American roots music that proved that Little Richard could do it all -- rock, pop, country, blues, soul, gospel, funk -- and do it his own way. There were the occasional missteps -- the instrumental jams all stretch out too long -- but they were rare. On the whole, his Reprise work was all-encompassing, fully realized, and -- in its own way -- as exciting as his timeless work for Specialty. And that's why The King of Rock and Roll isn't just essential for any serious student of rock & roll, it's one of the few reissues of this decade that can truly be called revelatory.(AllMusic Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine)
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...Anyone who wonders if Romweber has lost his touch during his layoff (or in the five years since his last album, 2004's Blues That Defy My Soul) will be happy to know that Ruins of Berlin confirms he's still a guitarist, songwriter, and singer to reckon with. However, this isn't the Flat Duo Jets, even if the simple instrumentation and frequent nods to the musical past are familiar stuff; while the FDJ's at their best were a ball of frantic energy, Ruins of Berlin is the sound of a more measured and contemplative Dexter Romweber. There's little in the way of amped-up rockabilly here (though the opener, "Lookout," finds Romweber trading some speedy licks with Rick Miller of Southern Culture on the Skids), and atmospheric midtempo numbers like "Lover's Gold," "Camilla's Gone (Let It Snow)," and "People" (no, not the Barbra Streisand oldie) are more consistent with the album's mood. But anyone who ever spent much time listening to the Flat Duo Jets knows Romweber's taste for classic jazz and pop tunes has always informed his music, and on Ruins of Berlin, he's just allowed them to take a larger place in the picture, alongside the faux-Eastern European folk of "Polish Work Song," the fractured guitar workout of "Grey Skies," and the jaunty travelogue of the title tune. Romweber also gets some well-deserved payback from longtime fans Neko Case, Chan Marshall, and Exene Cervenka, all of whom contribute lovely guest vocals to this set, and if you're afraid this might be a rock & roll-free set, "Picture" and "Cigarette Party" both generate enough heat to make fans happy. If this is a somewhat more sedate effort than the hot-wired Flat Duo Jets of yore, Ruins of Berlin shows Dexter Romweber's passion and gifts are as strong as ever, and the result is a compelling album from a one of a kind talent with plenty to offer. - AllMusic Review by Mark Deming
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Free-wheeling roots rock combo featuring Dexter Romweber (Flat Duo Jets) and his sister Sara (Let's Active)
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Agnew), things are definitely on the upswing, with countless compilation appearances as well as a prominent lip-synch role in a garage rockumentary for British television. They Came They Saw They Conquered rocks as blearily and singlemindedly as anything preceding, but Thee Knights of Trashe really ignites where they previously only sizzled, with great songs (including an alternate version of the excellent "Out of Control," written for the TV documentary), confident (if basic) playing and enormously complementary raw — yet detailed — production. Unfortunately it's the last Milkshakes album proper, their tenth (eight all-original) in three years. The posthumous 107 Tapes — sleeved in a monumental interview — contains one LP of blisteringly ragged, painfully overdriven '81 demos with the Prisoners' bassist on loan and a disc of '83 live-in-Germany drunken mayhem. If not quite the Milkshakes' recorded apex, this package may nonetheless be the band's most representative document.
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...As a solo artist, however, McComb recorded just one solo record, which is the subject of this week’s One Album Wonders.Not long after The Triffids broke up, McComb released a single called The Message. If, like me, you were wondering what that message was, here it becomes clear that it is the eternal one of spiritual fulfilment. Religiosity pervades even the non-overtly Christian songs, giving this album an aura like none other in my collection. Despite this, McComb still reveals himself as a worldly man, with lusts and failings concomitant with that station. 'Heard You Had a Bed' suggests a particularly nasty kiss-off to an ex-lover, 'I Want to Conquer You' and, in a more worrying way, 'Inside of Me' suggest the seeking of a more earthly dominion. I am not sure how to feel about the confessions within, but they don't detract from the majesty of the best work here - 'Setting You Free', 'Lover Sister', 'Nothing Good', Day of My Ascension', 'Lord Burns Every Clue' - well pretty much all of the rest of it.
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From June to August 1993, McComb recorded what would prove to be his only solo ablum, Love of Will, with a band comprised of former Triffid Martyn Casey and Phil Kakulas on bass; Peter Luscombe on drums; Barry Palmer and “Evil” Graham Lee on guitar; Bruce Haymes and Daniel Denholm on keyboards; and Warren Ellis on violin. Backing vocals were sung by Joanne Alach, Lisa Miller, and Rob Snarski. Love of Will was released in December 1993 on White Label and promo videos were filmed for "Setting You Free" and "Clear Out My Mind" -- both of which were released as singles and the latter of which was (according to McComb) inspired by Geto Boys' “My Mind Is Playing Tricks On Me.” A few months after the recording of Love of Will, McComb sang back-up on Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds’ Let Love In and his own band’s Martyn Casey and Warren Ellis both ended up joining Cave’s. Palmer went on to join Hunters & Collectors; Lee performed with Paul Kelly, Robert Forster, and other musicians; and Luscombe, Haymes, and Denholm also went on to play with numerous musicians.
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...Richard had been an active recording artist ever since the mid-'60s, when he had signed to Vee-Jay and cut effective but neglected soul singles, but the rock & roll revival of the late '60s gave him the opportunity to launch a splashy, big-budget comeback, and he seized it. Instead of serving up the expected high-energy rock & roll on his 1970 LP, The Rill Thing, he recorded an eclectic, wide-ranging album that touched on country, acoustic blues, hard-driving funk, soul, melodic pop, and rock & roll. While there were wah-wah guitars and electric sitars that clearly marked it as a product of its time, those production quirks fade into the background, since the range and accomplishment of the music are quite staggering. It's overpowering, but not in the familiar Little Richard fashion, where the boundless, reckless energy is the defining characteristic. Instead, The Rill Thing and the albums that followed it -- 1971's King of Rock 'n' Roll, 1972's The Second Coming, and the unreleased Southern Child -- all followed the same musical blueprint and aesthetic: Little Richard opened his music up, slowing things down on occasion, varied his arrangement and styles, and wrote powerful, memorable new songs, while carefully picking songs from Hank Williams, John Fogerty, and the Beatles to showcase the scope of his music. Sure, there still was the familiar piledriving rock & roll, but it was part of a mosaic of American roots music that proved that Little Richard could do it all -- rock, pop, country, blues, soul, gospel, funk -- and do it his own way. There were the occasional missteps -- the instrumental jams all stretch out too long -- but they were rare. On the whole, his Reprise work was all-encompassing, fully realized, and -- in its own way -- as exciting as his timeless work for Specialty. And that's why The King of Rock and Roll isn't just essential for any serious student of rock & roll, it's one of the few reissues of this decade that can truly be called revelatory.(AllMusic Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine)
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Quietly going about its business since 2003, The Dolly Rocker Movement has evolved through various guises and moods. The Barrett-influenced pysch-pop has traded moves with garage, surf, and wall of sound - a mixture aptly described as ‘melts in your mind, not in your hand’.
The Dolly Rocker Movement were a neo-psychedelic rock band formed in 2002 by singer and guitarist, Daniel Poulter, the Australian line-up included, Ricky Drabsch (bass), Martin Walters (keyboards) and Christopher Rudge (drums).
