posted 8/20/2007 4:41:02 PM

New Releases 8/20

by Stormchild

First up is Catalan singer/songwriter Pau Riba's psych/folk masterpiece, ' Jo, La Donya I EL Gripau'. Recorded in seclusion on the island of Formentera 'Jo, La Donya..' is a concept album about Riba's first born son coming into the world. Originally released on the Spanish Nuevos Medios label in 1971 the album is almost entirely acoustic and features recordings of nature interspersed with wonderfully upbeat songs that bring to mind the finer moments of The Incredible String Band or at times the spirit of the Tropicalia movement (Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil etc). This is the first in a series of reissues we will be doing of Pau Riba's early work. Next up is Riba's debut double album 'Diotriopa I & II' which will be released in conjunction with a full article/interview in the new extended editorials section of our website. ...more on that below.

Although the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane and Moby Grape helped define the San Francisco scene in the 60s, there was one band that was the catalyst for it. The Charlatans are unsung heroes of the era -- a band that not only have been credited with starting the Haight/Ashbury Psych scene, but are also the originators of the 'San Francisco sound'. Born out of the ashes of the SF Folk/Jug-band scene, the band formed in 1964 and began making a name for themselves. The group was started by George Hunter and Richard Olsen and also featured Dan Hicks (later of Hot Licks fame), Michael Ferguson and Mike Wilhelm. The bands 1965 residency at the Red Dog Saloon is cited to be the legendary and inspiring stint that helped the stylistic shift on the scene. Two key things are said to have happened during that residency - the band took LSD (not yet the norm), which fueled several of the performances and also created psychedelic poster art to promote the performances (the artwork was later aped by the Filmore in 1966 to promote their gigs).

Although they recorded and released a single following their stand at the Red Dog, the band went through some line up changes and did not manage to release a proper album until 1969. By this time, the backlash against SF psych bands and the hippie scene was strong and the album would not stand a chance. However, the mark they left remains intact and Anthology is incredibly proud to make this collection of music available digitally for the first time.

Yet another new collaboration that we are quite excited about... South American Psych connoisseurs take note, Re-psych-led has been collecting some of the finest moments in Peruvian Psychedelia for a little while now and this is the first of their titles that we will be making available digitally. If you already know about Laghonia and their albums: "Glue" & "Etcetera" ( 1971 ), you probably wonder what exactly this release is. It is a dream made true. 54 minutes of unprecedented music recorded between 1967 and 1970, plus two unreleased tracks from the rehearsals sessions of their first album. The song "Confusion in the Street" was recorded in concert. If you collect South American psychedelic music or are starting to get involved with this kind of music, you should know this unique Peruvian band, one of the few in South America that used Hammond B2 organ in the studio and live performances. This band played only original compositions influenced by The Beatles, The Kinks, The Yardbirds, Cream and many others. Their first album is one of the best rock albums in South America. Now, you can listen to what came before.

Once upon a time, when the music business was more music than business (but only just), there was a band called Odyssey that created a quintessential dose of New York sixties psychedelia -- strong harmonic vocals, heavy swirling organ, and fuzz guitar riffs of the greatest ferocity. Their lone album, Setting Forth, one of the ten rarest and most sought after US psychedelic albums, is now available digitally. This is truly one of the cornerstones of underground psychedelic music, recorded in 1969, released in an edition of fewer than 100 copies, and impossible to find as it only came in a plain white cardboard sleeve. Enjoy!!

Classical M could have made a great album if given the chance. As it is, the songs contained on Bad Guys (taken from several 45's as well as a bunch of unreleased tracks) make for a stunning collection, with the band's psychedelic flourishes, outrageous melodies, and fantastic attention to production detail evident throughout. This profoundly original music was made in three short years (1967-1970): twenty-four delirious and provocative songs that establish Classical M as perhaps the best, and certainly the most intriguing French band of all time. Their offbeat sense of rhythm and harmony, the complex intertwining of voices, and perhaps more than anything, their unusual practice of trying to play all sorts of instruments--be they electronic or traditional--these elements make the music of this odd French trio unique and very special. We are proud to make this music available to the world.

Terry Manning's 'Home Sweet Home' is best known as the recording debut of Big Star's Chris Bell. This outrageously enjoyable blend of psychedelic rock, Memphis soul and dirty R&B kicks off with one of the most audacious and successful Beatles covers ever. A feast of fuzz guitar, sweet vocals and funky rhythms, Home Sweet Home is a tongue-in-cheek blast from start to finish, and guaranteed to delight fans of power pop worldwide.

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