Graham Bond

Darcey Bussell and Roberto Bolle star in Frederick Ashton’s Sylvia, restored to the splendour of its elegant and opulent three-act form for the 75th anniversary celebrations of The Royal Ballet. Ashton was inspired by the music of Léo Delibes to create such great choreographic sequences as the famous Act 3 pas de deux and the mischievous role of Eros, one of the delightful, darkly comic characterisations for which Ashton became known and loved.

Graham Bond was getting more into "magick" in his private life at the beginning of the 1970s, and those interests are heavily reflected in this album. That's particularly true of the side-long medley that occupies the first half of the LP, with its attempts to musically re-create rituals. The problem was a mundane one afflicting many ambitious concept albums of the era: The music wasn't as interesting as the concept. It was meandering, sometimes improvised-sounding blues-jazz-soul-rock, featuring Bond's distinctive organ, female soul backup vocals, and John Gross' tenor sax. The irony was that it actually didn't sound as sinister as Bond's more demonic recordings in the mid-'60s as leader of the Graham Bond Organisation, even though those earlier recordings had no explicit magickal references in the lyrics…

How about an album featuring Ginger Baker, Jack Bruce, John McLaughlin, Dick Heckstall-Smith and Jon Hiseman?! And, oh yeah, Graham Bond, too much like John Mayall s various groups, Bond s bands, as proving grounds for soon-to-be superstars. often overshadowed the man at the center of them. For example, this record, though it came out in 1970, features Bruce, Baker and McLaughlin playing fairly straight-ahead jazz on three tracks recorded live at Klook s Kleek in 1963, a far cry from the heavy blues-rock and fusion that would later make them famous. The rest of the album is composed of 1966 tracks that mark the only recordings made by Bond with Heckstall-Smith and Hiseman before they left to form Colosseum…

One of the founding fathers of the British blues movement, Graham Bond released two spectacular albums in 1965 as the Graham Bond Organization. When Bond broke up the Organization, he moved to the United States where he recorded two "solo" albums in 1965. In 1966, he returned to England where he became a member of Ginger Baker's Air Force for a time then left and formed the band Magick with his wife Diane Stewart. Holy Magick, the band's debut album, was originally released on the "progressive" Vertigo label in 1970. The album was based on Bond's interest in white magic and Druid and Celtic mysticism…

One of the cornerstones of the Royal Danish Ballet, Napoli – created in 1842 by the Company's most celebrated choreographer and ballet master, August Bournonville – is a timeless tale of love set in the beautiful, rustic surroundings of Naples and which centres on young fisherman Gennaro's quest to rescue his beloved Teresina, supposedly drowned at sea. For their latest production of this seminal Danish work, the Company chose to propel the action forward to the 1950s, taking inspiration from the early films of Federico Fellini in their masterly portrayal of raw, urban life. Elaborate sets and costumes by Maja Ravn and an entirely new musical score for Act II assist in the updating, while Nikolaj Hübbe and Sorella Englund's striking new choreography melds with Bournonville's classic routines, inviting ‘superb’ character dancing (New York Times) and providing a showcase for the Company's young dancers in virtuosic solo roles – the sensational Alban Lendorf among them.

Bond's second album stakes out similar territory as his debut in a more polished but slightly less exciting fashion. Some of the covers are a bit routine and hackneyed, and the original material isn't quite as strong (or frequent) as on the first effort. On a few tunes, the group expands from rave-ups to mellower, jazzier ballads that retain an R&B base. Highlights include the early Jack Bruce composition "Hear Me Calling Your Name" (to which he also contributes a fine lead vocal) and the excellent Bond tune "Walkin' in the Park," which holds up to the best early British R&B numbers. The album is also notable for being one of the very first rock LPs to feature the Mellotron, which Bond uses subtly and well.

In 1968 Graham Bond left the britain after the collapse of the Graham Bond Organisation to make two legendary albums for mercury records. In Los Angeles, he recorded Love is the Law, soon followed by Mighty Grahame Bond. Both records saw Bond play all instruments on the album (except drums) & featured material that featured jazz influences alongside emerging psychedelic & underground rock influences resulting in a truely unique and highly sought after work,Laced with fine musicianship and mystical lyrics. Previously bootlegged on cd with poor quality sound, this esoteric release of Mighty Grahame Bond joins the release of Love is the Law and has been re-mastered from the original master tapes and restores the original artwork with a new essay to make the definitive edition of this classic album.

In 1968 Graham Bond left the Britain after the collapse of the Graham Bond Organisation to record two legendary albums for mercury records in the us. Recorded in Los Angeles, Love Is The Law saw Bond play all instruments on the album (except drums) & featured material that featured jazz influences alongside emerging psychedelic & underground rock influences resulting in a truely unique and highly sought after work, laced with fine musicianship and mystical lyrics. Previously bootlegged on CD with poor quality sound, this Esoteric release of Love Is The Law has been re-mastered from the original master tapes and restores the original artwork with a new essay to make the definitive edition of this classic album.