Adam Marsland - Daylight Kissing Night - Adam Marsland's Greatest Hits 2008 (Karma Frog Records) mp3@320

Growing up in California, Adam Marsland shared studio space with three other musicians in the early '90s. In February 1994, after various bands broke up or were unsuccessful, the musicians at the studio decided to join forces. The result was Cockeyed Ghost, a pop/rock band that released four studio albums as well as a rarities compilation dating from 1996 to 2001. The group shared the stage with Redd Kross, Fastball, and Third Eye Blind, among others. By the release of Ludlow 6:18, however, Marsland opted to temporarily break away from the band and pursue a solo career.

Clocking in close to 200 shows from Los Angeles to New York and back, Marsland released his debut solo album, 232 Days on the Road, on Karma Frog. Taped on the final night of his 8000 Consecutive Days on the Road Tour, the album was widely praised for mixing new songs with staples from his former band's discography. He has also worked with the Negro Problem as well as opened for Glenn Tilbrook(allmusic.com)

This is a very good album of a gifted songwriter in my opinion. There are a lot of Power pop acts out there with more studio trickery for impressive sounds and for every song an other producer and all those things but Marsland had a very fine songwriting. Great guy.
Enjoy
         Frank        mp3@320

Psychedelic Garage Pop: Butch Engle And The Styx - No Matter What You Say 1964-67 (2000 Beat Rocket/Sundazed) Flac & mp3

This has a pretty funny title, considering that the group only put out three singles (one of them under a different name) and never had anything close to a hit. A better title might have been "The Entirety of Butch Engle & the Styx," since it's difficult to imagine that any more material could have been retrieved than appears on this CD. In addition to both sides of the three singles (the first done in 1964 when they were still called the Showmen), this also includes 11 previously unreleased tracks, including some alternatives and multiples.

The unwary might initially dismiss this as a subpar, more garagey Beau Brummels, a comparison that becomes even more valid upon the discovery that Beau Brummels songwriter Ron Elliott wrote or co-wrote everything except the Showmen single. To be brutal, Elliott was wise to cast off most of these instead of recording them with the Beau Brummels.

The songs just aren't nearly on the level of his usually excellent efforts for his own band, although they have some similar trademarks (particularly the minor-based melodies and moodiness). Butch Engle & the Styx were lesser musicians and singers than the Beau Brummels, too, although they were OK, adding some cheesy garage organ that you'd never find on Beau Brummels sessions. "Hey, I'm Lost," which was one of the singles (and appears along with two alternate versions of the same tune), was just about their best moment: a charging, slightly ominous and doubtful number with good vocal harmonies.

This is certainly worth getting for major fans of the Beau Brummels, as none of these songs were actually recorded by that group. As a '60s garage record, though, No Matter What You Say is average, even unremarkable.(Richie Unterberger)

A fine, more softer, effort of psychedelic garage pop.
If you like sixties american psychedelia with a little baroque touch
grab it.
Have fun
               Frank         Flac p1 & Flac p2       - mp3@320

Dusty Springfield - Dusty In Memphis1969 (1999 Rhino Deluxe Edition) Flac & mp3@320

Sometimes memories distort or inflate the quality of recordings deemed legendary, but in the case of Dusty in Memphis, the years have only strengthened its reputation. The idea of taking England's reigning female soul queen to the home of the music she had mastered was an inspired one.

The Jerry Wexler/Tom Dowd/Arif Mardin production and engineering team picked mostly perfect songs, and those that weren't so great were salvaged by Springfield's marvelous delivery and technique. This set has definitive numbers in "So Much Love," "Son of a Preacher Man," "Breakfast in Bed," "Just One Smile," "I Don't Want to Hear About It Anymore," and "Just a Little Lovin'" and three bonus tracks: an unreleased version of "What Do You Do When Love Dies," "Willie & Laura Mae Jones" and "That Old Sweet Roll (Hi-De-Ho)." It's truly a disc deserving of its classic status.

Wonderful blue eyed soul voice from the sixties. British female singer Dusty Springfield had a string of hits in the sixties on both sides of the ocean.

Have fun
               Frank            Flac p1  & Flac p2 & Flac p3   - mp3@320  -  mp3@320 p2

British PopPunkJangleRock from the 80's: The Darling Buds - Pop Said 1988 Flac & mp3

The Darling Buds' first studio LP is a potent mix of Blondie and Velocity Girl. Not as streetwise as the former but rougher than the latter, it's a solid collection of 12 straight-ahead pop-punk songs, some of which were re-worked and glossed up from earlier EPs released on the Native label. It's not earth shattering, and the relentlessly upbeat nature throughout could be better taken in moderation, but the excellent performance from this Wales group makes for a fine debut. Rarely does a band sound this confident and focused on their first full-length.

With their Beatles-influenced vocal harmonies and hook-laden melodies, the Darling Buds were one of the most promising bands in Wales during the late '80s and early '90s. Firmly entrenched in the "blonde" period of British indie music, the group is remembered for the singing of blonde female vocalist, Andrea Lewis (born: March 25, 1967) and the beatnik-like black clothing worn by the band's instrumentalists.
Formed in Cardiff, Wales in 1986, the Darling Buds took their name from a comic novel, Darling Buds of May by British author H.E. Bates. Releasing their debut single, "If I Said," on their own label in February 1987, the group began attracting considerable attention. Reissued by the Native record label, the single was heard numerous times on John Peel's BBC Radio 1 show.

Signing with Epic in 1988, the Darling Buds released several singles before issuing their debut full-length album, Pop Said, in January 1989. The album quickly reached the British Top 30 and led to an appearance on popular British TV music show, Top of the Pops.

Just as it looked as though the Darling Buds were headed for stardom, things began to fall apart. Original drummer Bloss was replaced by Jimmy Hughes, formerly with British rock band, Black. Although they reached for a more-sophisticated sound with their second album, Crawdaddy, they lost the raw edge of their initial sound. The release of their third album, Erotica, in 1992, did little to recapture the Darling Buds' early glory. Released a few weeks before a Madonna album with the same name, it faded into obscurity before making a dent on the charts. Although they toured the United States in support of the album for a year, the members of the Darling Buds grew increasingly frustrated by their lack of commercial success and disbanded. Moving into acting, Lewis worked for a Cardiff theater company before agreeing to host a show, The Slate, for BBC Wales.(allmusic.com)

Best album by the band with a lot good songs.
Have fun
               Frank   Flac p1 & Flac p2   - mp3@320

Scottish Pop of the seventies: Pilot - A's, B's & Rarities (2005 EMI Gold, EMI Records) Flac & mp3

It seems strange to see the output of Mickie Most's RAK label finally being taken seriously by record labels as well as collectors, 30-plus-years after the imprint established itself as the epitome of disposable pop tunes. Yet EMI's ongoing A's, B's & Rarities series offers nothing less than the same thorough treatment that any other, more hallowed, label could expect. The format is essentially the same throughout: a gathering up of every RAK single (A-sides and B-sides) released by a given band, with the remainder of the CD filled with choice outtakes and oddities. Sadly, whereas other entries in this series -- Mud, Arrows, CCS, Hot Chocolate, Suzi Quatro -- can effortlessly address that criteria, Pilot really should have been saved for some future "best-of the rest of" set. The fact is, despite the four U.K. hits they racked up in a year (including the Top Ten "Magic" and the chart-topping "January") they really weren't that great a band, the missing link between Smokie and 10cc, with a shot of Fox thrown in for good measure. Yet A's, B's & Rarities avoids many of the pitfalls that this set should have laid bare, by virtue of some genuinely cunning programming. The original (non-hit) version of "Just a Smile" is replaced by a remix; 1975's "Lady Luck" single makes its CD debut, alongside David Paton's scarcely known 1980 solo single "No Ties No Strings," while the sequence of flop 45's that led up to Pilot's departure for Arista are all brought together. And the stuff does grow on you, to the point where even "January" doesn't sound quite so annoying as it used to. This remains the weakest link in the A's, B's & Rarities series so far. But maybe it isn't as redundant as one originally thought.(allmusic.com)

 Note: This collection got 4 and a half stars by allmusic and the same by its readers.
Quote: ...they really weren't that great a band, the missing link between Smokie and 10cc, with a shot of Fox thrown in for good measure. End of quote! Hahahahahaha....

If you like pop music from the seventies on a top notch level you are right here.
Have fun
               Frank   Flac p1 & Flac p2 & Flac p3     - mp3@320