woensdag 11 januari 2012

Kiss - country style

Kiss' God of Thunder a much friendlier version, nice! Did we ever expect that back in the 70's...

 
MTV Unplugged 1995




.
 

You've got something about you
You've got something I need
Daughter of Aphrodite
Hear my words and take heed 

God of thunder and rock and roll
The spell you're under
Will slowly rob you of your virgin soul 

I was born on Olympus
To my father a son
I was raised by the demons
Trained to reign as the one

God of thunder and rock and roll
The spell you're under
Will slowly rob you of your virgin soul

I'm the lord of the wastelands
A modern day man of steel
I gather darkness to please thee
And I command you to kneel
Before the

God of thunder and rock and roll
The spell you're under
Will slowly rob you of your virgin soul

I am the lord of the wastelands
A modern day man of steel
I gather darkness to please thee And I command thee to kneel
Before the

God of thunder and rock and roll
The spell you're under
Will slowly rob you of your virgin soul

Junior's Eyes

Junior's Eyes was a British group led by guitarist Mick Wayne (born Michael Wayne, 1945, Kingston upon Hull - died 26 June 1994), which recorded one album and is notable for acting as David Bowie's backing band during 1969. (for more info see the two former blogs).

This is about this very excellent album

Junior's Eyes - Battersea Power Station (1967-69)




Mick Wayne - guitar,vocal
Tim Renwick - guitar
John Lodge - bass
Graham Kelly - guitar
John Cambridge - drums

1 Total Power 1:11 2 Circus Days 3:42 3 Imagination 6:09 4 My Ship 2:47 5 Miss Lizzie 2:53 6 So Embarrassed 3:18 7 Freakin' 1:51 8 Playtime 3:55 9 I'm Drowning 1:25 10 White Light 6:38 11 By the Tree 5:02 12 Mr. Golden Trumpet Player 2:25 13 Blake Snake 2:39 14 Woman Love 2:39 15 Starchild 3:57 16 Sink or Swim 3:24 17 Circus Days (Single Version) 2:56 18 White Light (DEMO) 5:14 19 By The Tree (DEMO) 3:52 20 Imagination (DEMO) 3:46 21 Playtime (DEMO) 3:57 22 Subway (Smokey Pokey World) 2:39 23 Good Evening 2:37

The 2000 CD reissue has all the extra's.



 

dinsdag 10 januari 2012

Mick Wayne


Mick Wayne's career

The late Mick Wayne’s best-known piece of work is as the guitarist on David Bowie's Space Oddity – his solos and “rocket launch effect” are as legendary as Bowie’s “Major Tom” lyrics. 

Mick Wayne's first group was 'The Outsiders', with Jimmy Page on guitar. After recording one single for Decca Records in 1965, the Outsiders broke up the following year at which point Wayne joined expatriot Hull musicians "The Hullaballoos", replacing Ricky Knight briefly before they too broke up. He made an attempt to form a new line-up in Hull with drummer John Cambridge but soon returned to London (Cambridge later joined Hull band "The Rats", with guitarist Mick Ronson). Wayne next joined the 'Bunch of Fives' (including ex-Pretty Things drummer Viv Prince) during 1966 and this band evolved into 'The Tickle', with band members Mick Wayne (guitar), Mike Docker (vocals), Dave Williams (keyboards), Richard Dowling (bass) and John Beckerman (drums). The Tickle's only single - "Subway (Smokey Pokey World)" (b-side "good evening") - has appeared on many psychedelic compilation albums, including Acid Drops, Spacedust & Flying Saucers: Psychedelic Confectionery.

After the break-up of the Tickle, Mick Wayne formed Junior's Eyes in early 1968, initially with drummer John 'Candy' Carr and then with John 'Honk' Lodge (ex-Graham Bond Organisation) (bass) and Steve Chapman (drums). They soon recorded a debut single with the help of pianist Rick Wakeman  and producer Tony Visconti. The trio added singer Graham 'Grom' Kelly and (briefly) organist John Redfern in late 1968 and began work on an album. Battersea Power Station was released in June 1969.

That same month, Mick Wayne and Rick Wakeman were among the guest musicians who recorded David Bowie´s breakthrough hit `Space Oddity`. For the follow-up Space Oddity album recorded between June and September 1969, Bowie and producer Visconti were backed by a new line-up of Junior's Eyes comprising Mick Wayne (guitar), John 'Honk' Lodge (bass), John Cambridge (drums) and Tim Renwick (guitar, flute, recorder). The same band backed Bowie on a BBC Radio Dave Lee Travis Show Session in October 1969 and (without Wayne) on single B-side `Conversation Piece`, recorded in January 1970. Wayne had also helped record James Taylor´s debut album  between July and October 1968, and Honk had played on the album Think Pink (track "Rock and Roll the Joint") by Pretty Things drummer Twink in July 1969. These recording session for other artists disrupted the progress of the band, and the new line-up recorded only one single. They played their final gig on 3 February 1970, supporting Bowie. At this gig Cambridge introduced Bowie to his former 'Rats' bandmate Mick Ronson, and within days Cambridge, Ronson and Visconti (playing bass) were Bowie's new backing band 'The Hype', but Cambridge departed at the end of March.

Honk and Renwick formed Quiver, but Honk soon left (briefly joining ex-Pink Fairies drummer Twink in the 'Last Minute Put Together Boogie Band' in Cambridge). Renwick continued with the band, which later joined up with the Sutherland Brothers, and he later recorded with Mike + The Mechanics and both Roger Waters and the David Gilmour-led Pink Floyd, as well as releasing a number of solo albums. Mick Wayne left for the USA after Junior's Eyes to back Joe Cocker and spent a few years doing session work there before returning to London and joining a 1972 Steve Peregrin Took recording session along with Pink Fairies rhythm section Duncan Sanderson and Russell Hunter, whose band was temporarily defunct following the departure of guitarist Paul Rudolph. None of the tracks were completed to Took's satisfaction, due to what Wayne later described as "dope-induced thinking" and consequently, Wayne, Sanderson and Hunter formed a new incarnation of the Pink Fairies, releasing the single "Well, Well, Well" / "Hold On", as well as doing a radio session for BBC Radio One. However Sanderson and Hunter became unhappy with the musical direction Wayne was taking the band in, and they convinced Larry Wallis to join the group as a second guitarist and shortly afterwards sacked Wayne. He later formed pub-rock bands 'Juniors' and 'Ozo' in the mid-'70s before retiring from music. He was about to record a comeback solo album when he died in a fire at his producer's house in 1994.


See my other blogs for Mick Wayne with Junior's Eyes and with David Bowie. ('facts David Bowie - Space Oddity' album).



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Junior%27s_Eyes_%28band%29
http://www.stevetook.mercurymoon.co.uk/mick-wayne.html

Facts: David Bowie - Space Oddity album


One of my favourite David Bowie albums is 'Space Oddity'. Sure it's Bowie's album but I really like to pay attention to the other musicians who also maked this album to be a big succes. Producer is Tony Visconti.


- Rick Wakeman -mellotron, electric harpsichord, keyboards
- Terry Cox - drums
- Tim Renwick -electric guitar
- Keith Christmas - accoustic guitar
- Mick Wayne -guitar
- Tony Visconti - bass, guitar, flute, recorder
- Herbie Flowers - bass
- Benny Marshall and Friends - harmonica
- Paul Buckmaster - cello
- John 'Honk' Lodge- bass


Rick Wakeman
well-known for his work with a.o. the band Yes, the Strawbs, ABWH and his solo-career.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rick_Wakeman


Mick Wayne (see my 'Mick Wayne' blog)
a.o. Junior's Eyes


http://www.stevetook.mercurymoon.co.uk/mick-wayne.html

Herbie Flowers
is an English musician specialising in bass-guitar,double-bass and tuba. He is noted as a member of Blue Mink, T-Rex and Sky and as one of Britain's best-known session bass-players, having contributed to recordings by alot of artists (see the link for more details).  By the end of the 1970s Flowers had played bass on an estimated 500 hit recordings.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbie_Flowers





singer/songwriter 
Keith Christmas
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keith_Christmas

Terry Cox
played drums in The Pentangle, Duffy's Nucleus and Humblebums.
He also drummed with several other artists (David Bowie, Elton John, Charles Aznavour).


(here with the Pentangle, Terry is 2nd right)


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terry_Cox


Paul Buckmaster
is a Grammy-Award-winning English artist, arranger and composer.


http://paul-buckmaster.com/about.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Buckmaster

Tony Visconti
Also the producer of ´Space oddity´
Tony is an American record producer and sometimes amusician or singer.
Since the late 1960s, he has worked with an array of performers; his lengthiest involvement with any artist is with David Bowie; intermittently from Bowie's 1969 album Space Oddity  to 2003's  Reality. Visconti has produced and occasionally performed on many of Bowie's albums.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Visconti


Tim Renwick
Renwick started playing guitar in the 1960s. He performed with many bands, including Little Women, Wages of Sin, Junior's Eyes,  The Hype, Quiver (later Sutherland Brothers & Quiver) and Lazy Racer. He also worked for many artists (see the link).



 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Renwick

John 'Honk' Lodge 
Juniors's Eyes, Quiver,Graham Bond Organisation and worked with Pretty Thing's drummer Twink.
(info from some internet sources)


and about

Benny Marshall and Friends - harmonica
here's the story
http://www.illustrated-db-discography.nl/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=2295