Brett Smiley - Breathlessly Brett 1974 (released 2003) mp3@320

Though he released just one single, made just one TV appearance, and has barely been sighted in public in over a quarter of a century, Brett Smiley can rightfully claim to rank among the true legends of glam rock. American born, but a thoroughbred Anglophile, Smiley (that is his real name, incidentally) spent four years with the touring company of the stageshow Oliver before moving into pop music.
In 1972, an aspiring manager tried launching him on the U.K., only to find there was no room past the then-prevalent mania for the Osmonds and David Cassidy. Smiley returned to the U.S., moving between Seattle, Hollywood, and New York, and recorded a set of demos with future Knack supremo Doug Fieger's band Sky. They failed to land a deal, but did catch the ear of Andrew Loog Oldham, former manager/producer of the Rolling Stones.
In early 1974, Oldham arranged a 100,000 dollar record deal with the U.K. Anchor label; Smiley's debut single, the effervescent "Va Va Va Voom" was recorded in London with Steve Marriott laying down some blistering guitar. They then traveled to Nashville to begin work on an album -- the sessions moved to New York and back to London before the set was completed. In the meantime, Smiley made his TV debut on Britain's Russell Harty - Plus that October and was pictured on the cover of the music paper Disc.

"Va Va Va Voom," however, bombed in the U.K. and a projected U.S. release through Sire fell apart soon after. Anchor then withdrew their support, shelving the album release before the recordings had even been paid for.
Smiley returned to the States, where he now lives in New York and continues to perform on a semi-regular basis. He reunited with Oldham during the late '80s for a handful of recordings, but they, too, remain unreleased. (allmusic.com)

allmusic.com review:

Brett Smiley was a legend in glam rock circles, but a legend only to those who lived through the times or fanatically dug through old, yellowed copies of Melody Maker, NME, and Disc, seeking to re-create the times. Such is the fate of a singer whose only album was shelved following a disastrous performance of a heavily hyped single. Smiley deserved better, but fate has been kind to him, since his longstanding cult reputation led to the much belated but still celebrated release of his scrapped 1974 album, Breathlessly Brett, on RPM in 2003. Its release was tied into RPM's Lipsmackin' 70s series, which debuted with Velvet Tinmine, a collection of glam and glitter singles forgotten to all but die-hard record collectors. Smiley comfortably fit into this category, of course, and his storied bomb, "Va Va Va Voom," received its CD debut there, whetting the appetite for this disc. Everybody who's

heard the collection or the single will know what to expect, and will be delighted with what they get -- a fabulously fey, coyly campy, and smashingly swishy glam pop album; it's Bowie and Bolan filtered through Judy Garland and performed by the prettiest boy to sigh into a microphone in the '70s. These are precisely the ingredients for a cult classic, of course, but it's hardly something that would have burned up the charts, unless it hit at precisely the right moment and was sold to the hilt.
Smiley did have Andrew Loog Oldham, the man who sold the world the Rolling Stones in the '60s, behind him, producing his record, pushing his image, and selecting his material. Oldham often had his finger on the pulse of pop currents and his genius was promotion, but he was simply off here. He was a little late on the glam bandwagon, he relied too heavily on Smiley's gorgeous visage, he bizarrely encouraged Smiley to play up MOR and traditional pop links (he covers "Young at Heart," names one original "April in Paris," and adds "Over the Rainbow" to the end of his cover of the Four Tops' "I Can't Help Myself"), and when it didn't sell, he jumped ship immediately.

To be frank, this music minces and swishes so much and has so much old-fashioned theatricality that it's hard to see how it would have been a big hit, no matter how pretty Smiley is or how catchy each of these songs are. But these are all the reasons why Breathlessly Brett is a delight for obsessive glam fans and unrepentant pop record collectors. It's the kind of record where even the bad moments -- and there are undeniably silly patches -- have a kind of absurd charm, such as ending a fizzy, trashy glitter-bubblegum album with "Young at Heart," or how Smiley twists the words of "I Want to Hold Your Hand" to "You got that something/You got that hand." But the real strength of the album is in Smiley's original songs. Prior to this, it seemed like he peaked early with "Va Va Va Voom" and its B-side, the tremendous Ziggy Stardust rip "Space Ace," but the rest of the originals are on par with these two peaks: "Highty Tighty" speeds by on sleazy horns and a tight, sexy rhythm; "April in Paris" has a foppish swagger like the best Marc Bolan, while "Pre-Columbian Love" kicks like a good T. Rex rocker; "Run for the Sun" is Roxy Music for the teen set; "Queen of Hearts" has a Baroque art pop spaciness that proves Smiley was not just a keen alchemist, but was developing a voice of his own.
Though he continued to write and record demos over the years, he never had a chance to follow through on the promise of this LP, since after all the hype, it simply vanished. Fortunately, RPM has unearthed this buried treasure and, in doing so, proves that the legend surrounding Brett Smiley was not wrong.

Pretty good glam rock/pop record from 1974. If i'm in the mood for listening glam, this record is

always on the shortlist. If you like glam this is for you and you will love it.

Brett Smiley died january 8th in 2016 at age 60.

Frank    mp3@320

Focal Point - First Bite Of The Apple 1968 (2005) mp3@320

Focal Point released one fair pop-psychedelic single in 1968, "Sycamore Sid"/"Love You Forever." "Sycamore Sid" was typical of much British rock of the time in its sketch of an eccentric character, played out against a pleasant medium-tempo power pop arrangement combining hard rock guitar riffs, organ, and piano. "Love You Forever" was an altogether more romantic, dainty piece, like a woozy update of late-'50s/early-'60s teen rock ballads. A few other unreleased
The Liverpool band's Beatles/Apple connection arose in 1967 when vacationing songwriters Paul Tennant and Dave Rhodes came across Paul McCartney, who was walking his dog in London's Hyde Park. McCartney actually gave them the name and number of Terry Doran, who was then starting Apple's music publishing company (Apple had yet to start its record label). After hearing the pair play some songs in his office, Doran was impressed enough to record some demos with the duo, which he played to Brian Epstein and John Lennon. Epstein suggested that the two form a band called Focal Point, and although he died shortly afterward, Tennant and Rhodes did form the group in Liverpool and sign a contract with Apple Publishing. Apple even rented the group a flat in London and gave them access to a recording studio in the Apple office for cutting demos. They got a contact with Deram and recorded their single, but after it made few waves, Apple's interest in the band seemed to peter out, and they never recorded again. Both sides of the single, as well as two outtakes from the recording session and a demo, appear on the CD compilation 94 Baker Street: The Pop-Psych Sounds of the Apple Era 1967-1969.

  Although the Focal Point put out just one single (1968's "Sycamore Sid"/"Love You Forever," included on this CD), they did record about an album's worth of unreleased material. This 20-track compilation has (in addition to the aforementioned 45) all of it, though a few of the half-dozen bonus cuts are previously unissued demos and alternate versions of some of the songs. If the principal section of the disc is to be considered a facsimile of what the album might have been like had it been issued, you can see why it might not have been considered as quite demanding of official release at the time, but also how it can certainly be appreciated these days by late-'60s psychedelic pop collectors. The group were very much in the dreamily fanciful storytelling/observational school of British psychedelia, though with a little darker and more melancholy edge than many such outfits. Echoes of the 1967-era Beatles, Zombies, and, more specifically, Bee Gees and Hollies are often present, and while the songs aren't superb, they're pleasing in a low-key, broodingly ethereal sort of way. It falls between those cracks of not being distinctive enough to command much attention, yet promising enough to show potential of developing into something more worthwhile. Like many such groups then and since, however, they didn't get the opportunity to do so. Unlike many such special-interest reissues from the era, the sound quality of most of the material is very good, though it's a little shakier on some of the demos and alternates.

Hello folks, later more. No time at the moment!!! Enjoy
Frank
mp3@320