Help 藤井风 Fujii Kaze

Extending their previous collaborations during the time of pandemic, NY electronic improviser Ikue Mori and Japanese improvisers Natsuki Tamura on trumpet and Satoko Fujii on piano developed this extraordinary ea-improv album via file exchange, starting with Fujii's piano improvisations to which Mori & Tamura added their layers, with Mori mixing the final, startling results.

Pianist Satoko Fujii introduces a new trio with two younger and very active musicians on the Japanese jazz scene–bassist Takashi Sugawa and drummer Ittetsu Takemura–recording in 2020 at Pit Inn in Tokyo for their 3rd live date together, performing five lyrical Fujii original compositions, including "Aspirations" from her album with Leo Smith & Ikue Mori.

When you read books with day-by-day chronologies of the concerts of big rock bands, Help is the kind of group you might see listed as third-billed in the early '70s to the Who, the Kinks, or whoever. It's prototypical early-'70s American album rock, not unlikable in any significant way.
Help's first album hasn't attracted as much attention as their collector-friendly second, but it's by far the superior record. It's a solid mix of rural rock, folk rock and pop, and rocks really hard despite there not being any distortion on the guitars. There appear to be no instrumental overdubs, just a trio of guitar, bass and drums, yet the excellent musicianship (especially the rock-solid rhythm section) makes the sound full and rich…

Help Yourself (1971). There's no question that Help Yourself's debut album was a product of its times - something about the whole easygoing boogie vibe and gentle psych-inspired trippiness, the way of singing, the production, and more just screams early-'70s non-metal and non-glam rock & roll. Look at it one way and Help Yourself was just a cut above incipient bar band culture but, heard with fresh ears years after its release, it strikes a great balance between entertaining the crowd and exploration. Call the band a more down-to-earth Pink Floyd or Hawkwind set somewhere in the English countryside without specifically owing anything to either band. Morley, who takes vocal lead throughout, shows a fine voice similar to Neil Young's, with just that hint of twang while not sounding quite so cracked and strained…

Esoteric Recordings are pleased to announce the release of PASSING THROUGH – THE COMPLETE STUDIO RECORDINGS, a 6CD boxed set by the unsung heroes of British early ‘70s rock, HELP YOURSELF.

This reissue on the British-based BGO label contains the band's second (Strange Affair) and fourth (The Return of Ken Whaley) albums along with the bonus LP Happy Days, which was included free with the Ken Whaley album. The LPs were originally released on the United Artists/ Liberty Records label in 1972 and 1973, respectively. Help Yourself remained on the second tier of British bands and was never able to break out commercially. On this set, the band blends its hippie pastoral sounds with a West Coast-styled psychedelia that will appeal to fans of such acts as the Grateful Dead, Quicksilver Messenger Service, or even Phish. While the band did achieve some degree of success in the early '70s and developed a large fan base, it broke up after The Return of Ken Whaley…

Esoteric Recordings are pleased to announce the release of “Reaffirmation”, a comprehensive anthology by the unsung heroes of British early 70s rock, Help Yourself.
Help Yourself were a terrific, idiosyncratic band that straddled the line separating prog and pub rock in the era both sounds were at their peak. Unlike the vast majority of prog bands, Help Yourself were grounded in country-rock, blues, and folk (which includes British folk), not pop, classical, and jazz, and unlike most pub rockers, they had an expansive definition of rock & roll that stretched far beyond boogie. This elasticity is what made the band interesting, both then and now, and it's showcased on the terrific 2014 compilation Reaffirmation: An Anthology 1971-1973…

Fifth album by London-based country/pub rock band features 11 tracks, drawing heavily on the US west coast sound at the time. Initially recording began in 1973, but the sessions were never completed, the album never released, & the band split up. Eventually , in the winter of 2002, the original band members, with a new drummer, finally completed their fifth album. Includes original illustrated artwork along with a booklet containing new liner notes by band member Malcolm Morey.