The music on this sixth volume of Fuzz, Flaykes & Shakes is mostly very fine, but the names of the groups also stand out: Thackeray Rocke, Randy & the Rest, Those Guys, A Group Called Eve, West Minister, the Tasmanians, King James & the Royal Jesters, the Bucket City Distortion Racket...bands knew how to get attention in those days with their names. The catchy, fuzzed-out punk of "Bawling" by Phoenix, AZ-spawned Thackeray Rocke makes a suitable opening, but it's eclipsed by the punchier "Confusion," the work of the Birmingham, AL-based Randy & the Rest. Cleveland's A Group Called Eve was probably too languidly folk-rock oriented for their own good, in a city that spawned the Outsiders and the Choir, but "Within a World of You" should have done better than the obscurity in earned. Omaha, NE -- or the corner that West Minister resided in -- must have been in a time warp, because the fuzz-driven "Bright Lights, Windy City" seems three years out of date for a 1970 release (which makes it perfect for this collection). The best song on this set, however, has to be "Feathered Fish" by the Sons of Adam, some of whose members also went on to longer and more lucrative careers than almost anyone else who worked on any of these sides. But a lot of the rest could easily have fared well on radio, and on the national charts -- "The Night Is Almost Gone" by the Delicate Balance has lots of drama and some great hooks; "I Lied" by the Bucket City Distortion Racket isn't far behind; and "The Children Have Your Tongue," from This Generation, whose female lead singer provides a welcome contrast with everything else here. Some of the rest, such as "The Life of a Day" by the Bridge, and "Come in into My World" by the Endd -- which is rescued in its second half -- seem like self-indulgent mood pieces, more appropriate as B-sides than A-sides. And some of it is too generic, such as the Insects' "Then You Came My Way," which manages to sound like a lot of other folk/rock-based garage rock of the period. But mostly what's here is highly worth hearing, more than once, and the annotation is amazingly thorough, given the lack of information about a lot of the people behind this music. And as usual with this series, the sound quality is excellent.
A very fine sixth vol. of the series and i think you will like it.
Have fun
SB1 Flac p1 & Flac p2 mp3@320
thanks!
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