All reviews by Kris Holmes

Peter La Farge - Sings Of The Cowboys Peter La Farge - Sings Of The Cowboys

Well if you are like me and consider yourself a bedroom cowboy, then you’re gonna need a helpful record such as this to get your cattle calls up to scratch.  Luckily this record comes will everything you need to get your cowpoke game down.
This was released on Folkways in 1964 and in true Folkways style […]

Quincy Conserve - Epitaph Quincy Conserve - Epitaph

It seems that when you start out collecting records you are magically drawn to find specimens in your preferred genre which were created by local musicians. The problem you often encounter when collecting relatively niche genres is that the local examples you find will usually be pretty sub-standard compared with what you get […]

Ray Brown & The Whispers - Respect Ray Brown & The Whispers - Respect

Australian band The Whispers were probably the best & most successful blue eyed soul group in Australia during their original run of success from 1964-66. The band really loved the burgeoning soul scene coming out of the US at the time & laced their live sets with choice covers. They also had the […]

Ray Columbus & The Invaders - C'mon & Swim Ray Columbus & The Invaders - C’mon & Swim

Ray Columbus & The Invaders were the most commercially successful of New Zealand’s R&B based beat bands. Formed around 1960 in Christchurch, they went through a number of lineup changes before disbanding in 1965. 1962-63 saw them move north to be based in Auckland before leaving for Sydney, Australia for 1964 onwards. […]

Rhythm Accompaniment - Rhythm Accompaniment Rhythm Accompaniment - Rhythm Accompaniment

This record looks to be from the early sixties and was released on Columbia’s budget Harmony subsidiary. It provides rhythm accompaniment for dancers, singers, musicians, instructors and children. Essentially it is a record of drumbeats in a number of different styles. You get fox trots, rock and roll, polka and waltzes on […]

Rodriguez - Cold Fact Rodriguez - Cold Fact

This is definitely one of those “what was the record company thinking” scenarios.  Sixto Rodriguez was a songwriter & musician based in Detroit in the 70s and he recorded this album for a label called Blue Goose at Tera-Shirma Studios.  The weird thing isn’t that this LP is awesome psych/folk/rock with loads of drug, political […]

Ross D. Wyllie - Do The Uptight Ross D. Wyllie - Do The Uptight

This 45 isn’t exactly unknown & actually got a fairly wide international release on a bunch of different labels, but it just so great that I believe it needs to be heard by more people.  This a great example of how a song can stand out as a jewel or anomaly from the output of […]

Roy Budd - Birth Of The Budd Roy Budd - Birth Of The Budd

Everyone knows Roy Budd for his later soundtrack work, but this 45 was the first thing I ever owned by him & it still holds a special place in my heart. This 45 (”Birth Of The Budd”/”M’Ghee M’Ghee”) came out in 1965 & was Budd’s first release. It doesn’t have a whole […]

Simple Image - Spinning Spinning Spinning Simple Image - Spinning Spinning Spinning

One of those frustrating LPs where the music can never live up to the awesome cover art. The Simple Image were a band from Wellington, New Zealand that formed in the mid 60s. This album is their debut from ‘68 and the title track was a local number one single. There were […]

Slinger Community High School - Slinger, Wisconsin Slinger Community High School - Slinger, Wisconsin

A decidely uninspiring high school showcase record from the late sixties/early seventies.  This record was pressed by the Universal Audio Corporation, 2541 Nicollet Avenue, Minneapolis, Minn. 55404.  It features the Concert Band, Jazz Ensemble, Mixed Chorus, Owl Singers & Combined Chorus & band.  The two best cuts are the Jazz Ensemble’s out of tune & […]

Teddy & George - The Condor Teddy & George - The Condor

Teddy Brown & George Hamilton were two refugees from Detroit who trekked to San Francisco in the early 60s. They started singing together in clubs in 1961 & recorded this live album on the Mammoth label in 1963. The show was recorded at the Condor, a nightclub that sat on the corner of […]

The Aggressors - Reggae Steadae Go The Aggressors - Reggae Steadae Go

The budget Marble Arch label from the UK is one that I have a sort of love/hate relationship with. It’s one of those labels that some people actually try to collect the entire run even though in reality 85% of the releases on it are terrible. Here is their stab at a Reggaesploitation […]

The Atlantics - Bombora The Atlantics - Bombora

Without a doubt the greatest & most successful surf band to come out of Australia ever.  Formed in 1961 “Bombora” was the group’s second 45 & was released in 1963.  Produced by Sven Libaek, it was the band’s biggest hit & was one of only two 45s by the band to get released in the […]

The Avengers - Electric Recording The Avengers - Electric Recording

The Avengers were a local New Zealand pop band of the late 60s. This was their first LP & was released in 1967. They came from Wellington & had the good fortune to hook up with US hippie hitch-hiker Chris Malcolm who went on to write over half of the songs on this record, playing […]

The Bag - Red Purple & Blue The Bag - Red Purple & Blue

The Bag were a late sixties blue-eyed soul band from the New York area that made one full length LP for Decca that incorporates enough touches of psych to get mildly sweated by people who collect that stuff. Needless to say the LP sank without a trace upon release. This song is the […]

The Bugs - Twist & Shout The Bugs - Twist & Shout

There has to be heaps of them, the budget “cash-in” labels, every country has them, every record collector knows them. There are labels dedicated to “cash-in” LPs only, 45s only also. The “Hit” label is one of the 45 ones, a reasonably prolific one at that. According to the label discography […]

The Elois - By My Side The Elois - By My Side

This is a monster of a slice of mid-60s Australian garage rock. I haven’t researched that much about this 45, but I do know that it will melt your speakers! (check out when the pummelling guitar riff comes in about 3/4 of the way through) The flip is their version of “I’m […]

The Followers - Gospel Meeting The Followers - Gospel Meeting

Normally I am not a big fan or hunter of gospel records.  The gospel field is so incredibly huge & filled with so many records that are so awful that it is pretty tough to know where to start.  So I guess I am a dabbler at best when it comes to gospel records.  I […]

The Fourmyula w/Shane - Alive The Fourmyula w/Shane - Alive

This album was recorded at the Wellington Town Hall, probably around late 1969 or early 1970 and features two of the biggest artists in New Zealand rock music of the time.  The Fourmyula were at this stage in time between their attempts at breaking the UK market & were playing a much heavier style of […]

The Intentions - Dig It (Shovel) The Intentions - Dig It (Shovel)

This is an interesting soul/funk 45 out of Chicago that would appear to date from about 1969/70. Not much is known about the group & I have been told by different people that they were & weren’t the same group that recorded for Blue Light as the Intensions, so that just really confuses […]

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