Ruthann Friedman - Constant Companion (1969)

Ruthann Friedman’s chief claim to fame is having written The Association’s 1967 hit “Windy.” Less well known, however, is Constant Companion , her sole solo album recorded for Reprise in 1969. Water’s reissue of the album seems timed to follow the success of other recently-rediscovered female singer-songwriters (Vashti Bunyan, Judee Sill) and the resurgence of ’60s-inspired folk in general. Constant Companion, however, is no mere nostalgia trip, nor is its re-release a case of opportunistic bandwagoning. While Friedman’s music will undoubtedly be grouped with that of Bunyan and her present-day heirs (Devendra Banhart, for one), she has little in common with them. Contrary to what her song titles (“Piper’s Call,” “Fairy Prince Rainbow Man”) might suggest, she doesn’t indulge in idyllic flower-power folk. While Constant Companion doesn’t immediately elicit comparison to any particular artist, it is perhaps closest in spirit to the first two albums of Friedman’s Reprise labelmate Joni Mitchell. Like Mitchell, Friedman is a skilled guitarist and gifted songwriter, attributes that separate her from the era’s horde of would-be folkies. She possesses a deep, powerful voice, and her impressive vocal control suggests that she may have been classically trained. In other words, she’s no amateur dilettante who got lucky enough to record a one-shot album, but rather a fully mature and practiced artist. The songs on Constant Companion cover a range of styles, from Simon and Garfunkel style folk (“People”) and Mitchell-inspired psychedelic ruminations (“Fairy Prince Rainbow Man,” “Danny”) to jazz-inflected pop (“Morning Becomes You”). The arrangements are sparse, consisting solely of Friedman’s acoustic guitar and voice, with the exception of lead guitar by Peter Kaukonen (brother of Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna’s Jorma, and creator of Constant Companion’s cover art). Friedman’s wide stylistic range suggests that the suits at Reprise may have been a little too eager to force her into the role of “the next Joni”; several of her songs cry out for further orchestration (the fingerstyle guitar intro to “Looking Back Over Your Shoulder” being one case in point). While they work as acoustic compositions, they may have benefited from more complex arrangements, as does the post-album single “Carry On (Glittering Dancer),” a quirky track that indulges in Van Dyke Parks-style baroque orchestrations (apparently Parks and Friedman were briefly an item, and he executive produced the track.) Given the fact that Friedman hasn’t recorded anything since, Constant Companion can hardly help but evoke imaginings of what might have been had she stayed in the business longer. As it stands, though, the album is a fine effort, and its rescue from the archives is certainly to be applauded. -Dusted-

Track Title

1. Topsy-Turvy Moon
2. Piper's Call
3. Fairy Prince Rainbow Man
4. Too Late To Be Mourning
5. Ringing Bells
6. Looking Back Over Your Shoulder
7. People
8. Morning Becomes You
9. Peaceable Kingdom
10. No Time
11. Danny
12. Look Up To The Sun
13. Carry On (Glittering Dancer)* *Bonus Track Length

Line Up and Credits

Ruthann Friedman - Vocals, Guitar Peter Kaukonen - Improv Electric Guitar on Morning Becomes You Van Dyke Parks - Executive Producer [Carry On (Glittering Dancer)] Ed Thrasher - Art Direction (Original Release)

Bitrate 320

Link removed as requested by the artist

Constant Companion

Judee Sill - Judee Sill (1971)

Judee Sill was a true original. A singer-songwriter with a wealth of influences and a fascination with religion, she referred to her work as "country-cult-baroque." She was the first artist signed to David Geffen's Asylum label, and, along with Joni Mitchell and Carole King, exemplified the breezy "Laurel Canyon Sound" of the early '70s. Sill scored moderate hits with "Lady-O" (originally written for The Turtles) and "Jesus Was A Cross Maker" and released two albums -- 1971's Judee Sill and 1973's Heart Food -- before suffering chronic pain and eventually dying of a drug overdose at age 35.
Sill grew up in Oakland, California, and began playing piano at age three. A troubled family life and brushes with the law landed her in reform school, where, as church organist, she developed the gospel style that would characterize her future recordings. After a stint in college and three down-and-out years of addiction, she cleaned up and began work on her dream of becoming a songwriter. She spent a short time penning songs for The Turtles' production company before signing her own deal with Asylum.
For her self-titled debut, Sill gathered a production team that included Jim Pons and John Beck of The Leaves, as well as engineer/producer Henry Lewy, known for his work with Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, The Flying Burrito Brothers, and Leonard Cohen. Her guitar playing provides the foundation for most of the songs, joined by various combinations of pedal steel, strings, and brass. "Jesus Was A Cross Maker," built on a bed of Sill's gospel-flavored piano, was produced by Graham Nash and crafted as a single. Rich with cosmic imagery and ambiguously spiritual lyrics, the songs on Judee Sill often blur the line between the earthly and the divine.

Bitrate 320

http://rapidshare.com/files/6625815/JSJS.rar

Robin Scott - Woman From The Warm Grass (1969)

Beautiful folk-rock album with psychedelic touches.Thoughtful, earnest, acoustic guitar-led folk ballads. Backing on the album came from psychedelic legends Mighty Baby. With vinyl copies changing hands for hundreds of pounds, it's finally available on CD, showing itself to be a lost gem of British acid folk.

Robin Scott's 1969 album Woman from the Warm Grass was very much in the mold of many British folk-ground artists of the time who were gingerly making the transition to a folk-rock sound. In fact, in material and presentation, Scott was fairly similar in feel to a few other artists that producer Sandy Roberton worked with, including Al Jones, Keith Christmas, and Shelagh McDonald. Scott's vocals and songs were earnest and verbose, with the reflective fragile moodiness (and yearning, sometimes florid romanticism) found in many British folk/folk-rock singer/songwriters of the era, from Al Stewart and Donovan on down. As artists in this genre go, Scott's pleasant and reasonably interesting, though not distinguished. He and Roberton do vary the arrangements, sometimes opting for just solo acoustic guitar and voice, at others using full rock backing from the band Mighty Baby. Generally, the unplugged tracks work better; "The Sound of Rain," with subdued orchestration backing the acoustic guitar, has the sort of narrative-oriented mystical acid folk pioneered by Donovan, while "Song of the Sun" has the poetic wordy gray melancholy very particular to this period of British folk. So there's a lot here for listeners who dig this particular micro-style in general, with the notable exception of an overwhelmingly strong vocal or songwriting individuality, though Scott's likable enough. [The 2006 CD reissue on Sunbeam adds a nice bonus cut from a BBC session, "Tattoed Lady," that doesn't appear on the original album in any form. This track has lead singing by Scott's girlfriend of the time, Penny Lamb (with Scott on guitar and vocal harmonies), and a slightly brighter, poppier, and more melodic feel than the material that had been recorded for the LP.] ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide


1. The Sailor
2. Song of the Sun
3. The Sound of Rain
4. Penelope
5. The Day Begins
6. Woman From The Warm Grass
7. I Am Your Suitcase Lover
8. Mara's Supper
9. Point Of Leaving
10. The Purple Cadger
11. Tattooed Lady [Bonus Track]

Download selected tracks 2, 3, 4

http://rapidshare.de/files/25905546/Robin_Scott_-_Woman_From_The_Warm_Grass__1969_.rar

Justin Heathcliff - Justin Heathcliff (1971)

Beautiful laid back trippy Japanese psych album. Strong compositions, English vocals and a late '60's UK psychedelic rock/pop sound make this better than many UK albums of the era! Superb from start to finish. Featured on the Love Peace and Poetry series.

http://rapidshare.com/files/6625786/Justin_Heathcliff_-_Justin_Heathcliff__1971_.rar

PW: lysergia.blogspot.com

Baldwin And Leps - Baldwin And Leps (1971)

Great album from 1971 by a New York hippie folk duo who use guitar and fiddle to embellish their songs about dope, social issues and headin' west. This can best be described as hippie folk with a strong rural vibe and features top quality musicianship and vocals. Open air, back to the country, freedom music.

http://rapidshare.com/files/6626434/Baldwin_And_Leps_-_Baldwin_And_Leps__1971_.rar

PW: lysergia.blogspot.com

Magenta - Canterbury Moon (1978)

Recorded in 1978 this is a fine and rare slice of UK folk rock with great interchange male/female vocals over lilting acoustic tracks that use a selection of instruments such as dulcimers, mandolins, guitars, flutes etc.

http://rapidshare.com/files/6625828/Magenta_-_Canterbury_Moon__1978_.rar

PW: lysergia.blogspot.com

Flower Travellin' Band - Satori (1972)

"Satori" is the second album, after they had changed their name. It contains five long songs, titled "Satori Part I-V". The whole album had a very special atmosphere. It's not easy to describe, maybe mystical, dark and melancholic are some words I like to drop. In some songs, as in "Satori Part I", they play some kind of a proto epic Doom, brutal heavy riffs with nice tempo-changes. The clear and high voice of singer Joe completes this great song. But it's different to BLACK SABBATH. I think, you can hear, that FLOWER TRAVELLIN' BAND are strongly influenced through ancient Japanese/Eastern music. Like the second song "Satori II" , an instrumental, which starts with a hypnotic psychedelic guitarsound and then turns into a instrumental part with Eastern percussion. But the song doesn't "freak-out" into a endless jam. The band played still very compact. "Satori III" is a very doomy instrumental. The song is like a crossover between Doom/Heavyrock and this typical ancient touch. It changes into a heavy groovy part which goes into something experimental and then back to the opening theme with an oriental-like ending. Really fantastic! "Satori IV"starts more progressive to change then into a groovy Blues part with a harmonica. Joe had a very unique vocal-style on "Satori Part V", maybe not everybodys flavour. The album closes with this song, that goes more in it the Heavy-Prog direction. At least, the production sounds very clear and powerful. Finally,I will give you the advice to discover the world of FLOWER TRAVELLIN' BAND, if you're into early 70's Heavyrock. The original is not easy to find, but there is a CD re-release on WEA, only released in Japan.
Review taken from cosmiclava.de/FLOWER_TRAVELLIN__BAND.27.0.html

http://rapidshare.com/files/6625797/Flower_Travellin__Band_-_Satori__1972_.rar

PW: lysergia.blogspot.com