CLIMAX - Heavy Prog • Bolivia

Climax biography (http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=4029)

Painfully obscure trio from Bolivia that made a bold, raucous but jazzy and deceptively simple heavy prog during the early 1970's. The band formed in 1969 (or possibly even '68) and was constituted by guitarist/keyboardist/singer Jose EUGENIO, drummer Alvaro CORDOVA, and Javier SOLDIAS on bajo [a 12-string bass/guitar]. They recorded throughout the early '70s but no official album was released until 1974's 'Gusano Mecanico' on Discolandia. On the surface the material may remind more of hard rocking cousins Zeppelin or Jimi Hendrix than anything Prog but the jazz elements, sense of experimentation, and clear influence from ELP and PINK FLOYD on certain cuts - as the three-part title on the '74 LP - leave very few doubts this is a vintage Heavy Prog band worth its salt.

The Bolivian Power Trio formed in the late 60's, Climax released only one album in the year 1974 with 6 tracks that was recently reissued with another 8 bonus tracks, with covers by Cream, Hendrix and Steppenwolf. The band brings not only the best example of Bolivian rock of the time, but also one of the best hard rock / progressive albums coming from South America in the 70's! Listening to the mechanical worm one can notice a great influence of the three bands mentioned above and others like Santana and Pink Floyd. The sound is based on hard rock, but it has progressive and psychedelic passages too, the songs are all in Spanish. The three musicians work very well, but the main highlight goes to the guitar that brings matador solos.

Gusano Mecanico 1974

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Zbigniew Namysłowski Quintet - Fusion Jazz Funk (Poland)

Zbigniew Namysłowski is a gradute of music schools in Kraków and Warsaw, he learnt there how to play the piano and then the cello. He made debut in 1957 in Student Club Hybrydy and then at the Jazz Music Festival in Sopot. He played the trombone in famous Polish dixieland bands. After, he discovered modern jazz and started playing the alto saxophone. He performed in all European countries and in the USA, Canada, India, Australia, New Zealand, Cuba, Mexico, Brazil, Kuwait and South Africa. He recorded almost 30 author's records. Many of them were published abroad, ex.: Lola (1964) the first Polish record published abroad or Song Of The Pterodactil with famous drummer Tony Williams. Records Winobranie (1973) and Kuyaviak Goes Funky (1975) became super jazz hits in Poland and were voted the best records of all times in Polish jazz.

He debuted as a jazz pianist in 1955 with the Five Brothers band formed at the Hybrydy student club. A year later, he joined Mieczysław Wadecki's amateur Dixieland band as a trombonist, and then transferred to the Modern Dixielanders of pianist Witold Krotochwil. In 1957 he joined Modern Combo, Krzysztof Sadowski's band, as its cellist, appearing with them at the Jazz Festival in Sopot. He returned to the trombone in 1958, collaborating with the band Hot Club Melomani with whom he took part in a historic event - the first ever jazz concert at the National Philharmonic in Warsaw. He also took part in the first post-war visit to Western Europe by Polish jazzmen. In subsequent years he collaborated with such well-known formations as the Polish All Stars, Modern Dixielanders, Traditional Jazz Makers, New Orleans Stompers, and Modern Jazz Group.

Alto Saxophone, Composed By – Zbigniew Namysłowski

Bass – Paweł Jarzębski

Drums – Czesław Bartkowski

Electric Piano – Wojciech Karolak

Soprano Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone – Tomasz Szukalski

Recorded in Warsaw, March 1975

Made in Poland

Kujaviak goes funky

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Casa Amarela - Psych Jam Rock (Brazil)

Casa Amarela is a band from São Mateus do Sul, in the interior of Paraná, that emerged as a project based on improvisation. All songs are created the moment they are played, while `REC` is pressed. There are no previous lyrics or riffs. There are no trials or plans. The songs come from the synthesis of the feelings of each one, their personal influences and experiences and the fluidity of the time and space in which they happen. In addition, the 'do-it-yourself' feature is clear, reflected in sound through the musicians' own work.

After a year in the process of post production, 'Outravida' is released as the fifth disc of the band 'Casa Amarela', from São Mateus do Sul - PR. Following the same formula as the other discs, recordings took place over the course of several weeks without any rehearsals or planning. Mixing and mastering were performed by the band itself. The songs on the disc comprise recordings from 2015 to 2018. The concept of the album is based on the idea that everything is in motion and in the changes that take place in the lives of the members. translated musically into the songs in the form of contemplation of terms and beginnings and in the taste left by the transformed worlds which then remain only in thought and soul. In addition, the album brings simple references and honors to the details of the place where the band was conceived, since today it has become a meeting point and souvenirs for almost all the members ...

Outravida (2018)

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Charles Mingus - Jazz

Mingus at Antibes was originally issued by BYG Records under the title Charles Mingus Live With Eric Dolphy in Japan in 1974. It was recorded at a live 1960 performance at the Jazz à Juan festival at Juan-les-Pins by jazz bassist and composer Charles Mingus; and was re-released by Atlantic Records in more complete form as a double album with the title Mingus In Antibes in the United States in 1976.

The album captures a performance at Jazz à Juan, and features some of Mingus's then regular musicians in a generally piano-less quintet, though the band is joined by Bud Powell on "I'll Remember April", and Mingus himself plays some piano on "Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting" and "Better Git Hit in Your Soul".

Personnel:

Charles Mingus – bass, piano (on tracks 1 and 6)

Ted Curson – trumpet

Eric Dolphy – alto saxophone, bass clarinet (on track 3)

Booker Ervin – tenor saxophone (except on track 3)

Dannie Richmond – drums

Bud Powell – piano (on track 4)

1976 - Mingus At Antibes (Vinyl)

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Labelle - Soul Blues

Labelle is an American all-female singing group who were a popular vocal group of the 1960s and 1970s. The group was formed after the disbanding of two rival girl groups in the Philadelphia/Trenton areas, the Ordettes and the Del-Capris, forming as a new version of the former group, later changing their name to The Blue Belles (later Bluebelles). The founding members were Patti LaBelle (formerly Patricia Holt), Cindy Birdsong, Nona Hendryx and Sarah Dash.

As The Bluebelles, and later Patti LaBelle and the Bluebelles, the group found success with ballads in the doo-wop genre, most notably "Down the Aisle (The Wedding Song)", "You'll Never Walk Alone" and "Over the Rainbow". After Birdsong departed to join The Supremes in 1967, the group, following the advice of Vicki Wickham, changed its look, musical direction, and style and reformed as Labelle in 1971. Their funk rock recordings of that period became cult favorites for their brash interpretation of rock and roll and for dealing with subject matter that was not typically touched by female black groups. Finally after adapting glam rock and wearing outlandish space-age and glam-rock costumes, the group found success with the proto-disco smash "Lady Marmalade" in 1974, leading to their parent album, Nightbirds, which achieved gold success. They are notable for being the first contemporary pop group and first black pop group to perform at the Metropolitan Opera House. They were also the first black vocal group to appear on the cover of Rolling Stone.

The group members each went on their own after the end of a tour in 1976, going on to have significant solo success. Nona Hendryx followed an idiosyncratic muse into her own solo career, which often bordered on the avant-garde,[1] Sarah Dash became a celebrated session singer while Patti LaBelle enjoyed a very successful Grammy winning and receiving lifetime achievement awards from the Apollo Theatre, World Music Awards and BET Awards .

The group returned with their first new album in 32 years with 2008's Back to Now.

Labelle had nine Top 20 R&B hits between 1963 and 1976.

1971 - Labelle

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Midnight Oil - Pop Rock (Australia)

Midnight Oil (known informally as "The Oils") are an Australian rock band composed of Peter Garrett (vocals, harmonica), Rob Hirst (drums), Jim Moginie (guitar, keyboard), Martin Rotsey (guitar) and Bones Hillman (bass guitar). The group was formed in Sydney in 1972 by Hirst, Moginie and original bassist Andrew James as Farm: they enlisted Garrett the following year, changed their name in 1976, and hired Rotsey a year later. Peter Gifford served as bass player from 1980–1987.

Midnight Oil issued their self-titled debut album in 1978, and gained a cult following in their homeland despite a lack of mainstream media acceptance. The band achieved greater popularity throughout in Australasia with the release of 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 (1982) – which spawned the singles "Power and the Passion" and "US Forces" – and also began to attract an audience in the United States. They achieved their first Australian number one album in 1984 with Red Sails in the Sunset, and topped their native country's singles chart for six weeks with the EP Species Deceases (1985).

The group garnered worldwide attention with 1987 album Diesel and Dust. Its singles "The Dead Heart" and "Beds Are Burning" illuminated the plight of indigenous Australians, with the latter charting at number one in multiple countries. Midnight Oil had continued global success with Blue Sky Mining (1990) and Earth and Sun and Moon (1993) – each buoyed by an international hit single in "Blue Sky Mine" and "Truganini", respectively – and remained a formidable album chart presence in Australia until their 2002 disbandment. The group held concerts sporadically during the remainder of the 2000s, and announced a full-scale reformation in 2016.

The band's music often broaches political subjects, and they have lent their support to multiple left-wing causes. They have won eleven Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Awards, and were inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 2006. Midnight Oil's legacy has grown since the late 1970s, with the outfit being cited as an influence, and their songs covered, by numerous popular artists. Aside from their studio output, the group are celebrated for their energetic live performances, which showcase the frenetic dancing of Garrett. Guardian writer Andrew Street described Midnight Oil as "one of Australia's most beloved bands".

Midnight Oil (1978)

Midnight Oil - Diesel and Dust (1987)

Midnight Oil - Blue Sky Mining (1990)

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Kid Dynamite - Hard Funk Rock

KID DYNAMITE is another one of those ultra mysterious bands whose story is murky at best. It is known that the band emerged in 1975 when two former members (bassist Dicky Thompson and drummer John King) of the STEVE MILLER BAND decided it was time to strike out on their own. Vocalist Val Garcia and guitarist Michael Mallen were later added and Kid Dynamite was born. Opting for a label who would allow the band total control over their direction, the band signed with Alvin Bennett's Cream Records in late 1975 and began working on their self-titled debut with producer Hal Winn at the helm. "Kid Dynamite" was released in January of 1976, but flagging sales and little label support abruptly killed the band at the conclusion of the year.

*Confusingly, Flightstream Records also released an album by Kid Dynamite that same year. Also entitled "Kid Dynamite", this 9 song album had a black & white sleeve featuring a design incorporating boxing gloves, and although it duplicated two songs from the other record, these were different versions.*

Very little is known about the members post-split activities, though Michael Mallen is rumoured to be teaching guitar in California.

This elusive gem is one that is often discussed in collector circles, but rarely ever recognized as a musically viable effort. I beg to differ. "Kid Dynamite" is a dynamic exercise in genre splicing which works effectively from start to finish. Blending blues, hard rock, soul and funk, the band shows off their musical chops throughout, with a notably scorching effort from Dicky Thompson in particular. Sounding quite similar to Joey Newman's hard soul act, BANDIT, the band merges the groove and conviction of classic funk with the forcefulness of 70's hard rock. The outcome is pretty spectacular and it's a real travesty that Kid Dynamite were merely a blip on the radar. Though this band is undoubtedly anonymous in all respects, some listeners may recognize the track "Uphill Peace of Mind", which was sampled and used by Dr. DRE (Nuttin But a G Thang) and ULTRAMAGNETIC MC's (Feelin' It) almost twenty years ago.

This one comes highly recommended for fans of soulful hard rock. This tweaked and cleaned vinyl transfer should satisfy ardent lovers of obscure 70's rock. Dig it...

Band:

Val Garcia - Vocals

Michael Mallen - Guitar

Dicky Thompson - Bass (STEVE MILLER BAND)

John King - Drums (STEVE MILLER BAND)

Kid Dynamite (1976)

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