Ας περάσουμε και στην χώρα του Ανατέλλοντος ηλίου (λόγω του άλμπουμ των The Happenings Four που ζητήθηκε) προκειμένου να θυμηθούμε ένα από τα πιο γνωστά άλμπουμ της εποχής από την απομακρυσμένη αυτή περιοχή. Η επίδραση του Δυτικού πολιτισμού σαφώς είναι έντονη στην μουσική τους, ωστόσο πέρασαν και θέματα από την δική τους κουλτούρα.
A legendary group formed out of the remnants of The Flowers. The lineup was Akira ‘Joe’ Yamanaka [vocals; ex-491], Hideki Ishema [guitar; ex-Beavers, Flowers], Jun Kosuki [bass], and Joji ‘George’ Wada [drums; ex-Flowers].
Their first album proper was ‘Anywhere’ [Philips, 1970], which had surely one of the coolest rock album covers ever – a gatefold photo of the band speeding down the road, naked, on motorcycles! Musically, it was good but only of passing interest to non-FTB fanatics, as it contains nearly all cover versions [such as ‘21st Century Schizoid Man’, ‘Black Sabbath’ and ‘House of the Rising Sun’], the only ‘original’ compositions being a heavy progressive blues jam track and a very short harmonica piece. Perhaps for hardcore fans and completists only, although some people might want to own a copy just for the cover! That being said, they do give the covers a good treatment and the album is very enjoyable.
Their second album, ‘Satori’ [Atlantic, 1971], was a huge leap forward in strength and originality, and is arguably their monolithic masterpiece. It contains lengthy, and usually very loud, hypnotic psychedelic heavy progressive rock, with pummeling riffs and a great stoned, mystical feel. The next album, ‘Made in Japan’ [Atlantic, 1972], was better distributed internationally and even featured a sound-bite from a radio ad for a rock festival at which they played with numerous big names of the day, including ELP. Musically it was in a similar vein to the preceding album but more song-oriented and varied overall – an excellent album, and one friend even likes this one better than ‘Satori’.
Their last album, ‘Make Up’ [Atlantic, 1973] was a double LP, and had Yuya Uchida guesting on vocals. The album featured studio and live material, including a 20-minute version of ‘Hiroshima’ from the previous album [with bass solo] and a live-in-studio version of ‘Satori Part 2’. Of the studio material, some is in a heavy progressive vein [though leaning more towards an oriental King Crimson in parts than their older style], some is in a more commercial softer style. Some of the live material is rather throwaway, including a bluesy rock’n’roll number and a soppy ballad. Overall it’s patchy but with plenty of good to great stuff – it could have been edited down to a single great LP in my opinion.
Tracks:
1. Satori Part 1 (5:22)
2. Satori Part 2 (6:56)
3. Satori Part 3 (9:40)
4. Satori Part 4 (10:53)
5. Satori Part (6:56)
A legendary group formed out of the remnants of The Flowers. The lineup was Akira ‘Joe’ Yamanaka [vocals; ex-491], Hideki Ishema [guitar; ex-Beavers, Flowers], Jun Kosuki [bass], and Joji ‘George’ Wada [drums; ex-Flowers].
Their first album proper was ‘Anywhere’ [Philips, 1970], which had surely one of the coolest rock album covers ever – a gatefold photo of the band speeding down the road, naked, on motorcycles! Musically, it was good but only of passing interest to non-FTB fanatics, as it contains nearly all cover versions [such as ‘21st Century Schizoid Man’, ‘Black Sabbath’ and ‘House of the Rising Sun’], the only ‘original’ compositions being a heavy progressive blues jam track and a very short harmonica piece. Perhaps for hardcore fans and completists only, although some people might want to own a copy just for the cover! That being said, they do give the covers a good treatment and the album is very enjoyable.
Their second album, ‘Satori’ [Atlantic, 1971], was a huge leap forward in strength and originality, and is arguably their monolithic masterpiece. It contains lengthy, and usually very loud, hypnotic psychedelic heavy progressive rock, with pummeling riffs and a great stoned, mystical feel. The next album, ‘Made in Japan’ [Atlantic, 1972], was better distributed internationally and even featured a sound-bite from a radio ad for a rock festival at which they played with numerous big names of the day, including ELP. Musically it was in a similar vein to the preceding album but more song-oriented and varied overall – an excellent album, and one friend even likes this one better than ‘Satori’.
Their last album, ‘Make Up’ [Atlantic, 1973] was a double LP, and had Yuya Uchida guesting on vocals. The album featured studio and live material, including a 20-minute version of ‘Hiroshima’ from the previous album [with bass solo] and a live-in-studio version of ‘Satori Part 2’. Of the studio material, some is in a heavy progressive vein [though leaning more towards an oriental King Crimson in parts than their older style], some is in a more commercial softer style. Some of the live material is rather throwaway, including a bluesy rock’n’roll number and a soppy ballad. Overall it’s patchy but with plenty of good to great stuff – it could have been edited down to a single great LP in my opinion.
Tracks:
1. Satori Part 1 (5:22)
2. Satori Part 2 (6:56)
3. Satori Part 3 (9:40)
4. Satori Part 4 (10:53)
5. Satori Part (6:56)
