I'm Here, Dammit! Read Me!

The next few posts are going to be a blatant grasp at getting noticed. I'm going to pull the rarities from my record collection, suck up to other bloggers, and see if I can't get a listing or two. I'm having fun doing this, but I think it would be more fun to get noticed. We're all attention-whores, after all.

First off today is something I happened to stumble across, I guess about 20 years ago. In April 2003, Brian May of Queen got together some friends to record a hard rock version of the theme music to Star Fleet, a British children's program. Along with that song, they laid down two other tracks: "Let Me Out," a song Brian wrote, and "Blues Breaker," which the musicians dedicated "to E.C."

Oh yeah, I almost forgot to mention Brian's friends: Eddie Van Halen (guitar), Alan Gratzer (drums), Phil Chen (bass), and Fred Mandel (keys). Quite a line up. The track I picked is "Let Me Out," which features a terrific jam from Brian and Eddie.
Let Me Out.mp3


The Green Bullfrog album was, for a long time, a musical mystery. I found it, if I remember, at the old Vinyl Disk record store in the town where I grew up in California (the store's been closed for many a year, but I gots ta give 'em props!). According to the information on the back of the album, it was recorded in 1971.
"For reasons that remain unclear, the artists' names were not used to promote the album; as a result, the LP sank without a trace," Ed Chapero wrote in the album notes.
The album was credited to Speedy, Sleepy, Bevy, Sorry, Boots, Pinta, the Boss, the Vicar, and Jordan on vocals.
In a 1978 interview with Guitar Player magazine, Richie Blackmore finally let the cat out of the bag. Or at least let some of it out.

"That was me, Albert Lee and Jim Sullivan. Ian Paice and Roger Glover were on it and whoever else was around at the time..." Blackmore told Guitar Player in Sept 1978.
Answers.com identifies some of the other culprits as Tony Ashton, Chas Hodges, and Matthew Fisher, British rock luminaries all. The two songs from the album are both rockers of the late 60s, early 70s mode, sort of in the vein of the Yardbirds.
My Baby Left Me.mp3
Walk a Mile In My Shoes.mp3

One other thing. The back of the Green Bullfrog album refers the listener to Trouser Press magazine for obscure albums and music. I'm going to do the same.

posted by aikin @ 12:15 PM