Luv Machine Turns You On! (1971) [reissue 2006]

15 of our [Mojo Magazine's] favourite new tracks of the year thus far. Starring Courtney Barnett, Ezra Furman, Jonathan Wilson, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Goat Girl, Natalie Prass and more.

They may sound like the quintessential English prog band but, in fact, Westfauster hailed from the rust belt, Cincinnati to be precise, and this gem of an album was initially released on the Nasco label in 1971. A guitar-free trio, the band did encompass a rhythm section, a variety of keyboards from harpsichord to Moog synthesizer, and a flute and saxophone within their multi-instrumental ranks. The Moody Blues and the Beatles were Westfauster's avowed influences, and you could hear subtle inflections of both on In a King's Dream. Blissful jazz ripples through the epic "Everyday," one of a clutch of flute-led numbers on the set. On that song, it's twinned with piano and organ; on "Blind Man's Epitaph" the flute flutters and flies amidst the harpsichord and choral vocals; and the harpsichord itself is showcased again on the Beatles-esque "Low Sun"…

Octopus's sole long-player Restless Night is something of a treasure among '60s Brit-psych fans due to its mixture of proto-progressive riffs, accomplished pop tunes and sparkling Beatlesque flourishes. The band evolved out of the thriving Hertfordshire beat scene that also gave us The Zombies, The Gods and those other cult pop-psych heroes Forever Amber. Octopus' music was coloured by the use of keyboards and layered vocal harmonies in much the same way. As The Cortinas they enjoyed several years of local success which culminated in the 1968 CBS single "Phoebe's Flower Shop". The single was pure pop confectionery and betrayed little of the band's tight, melodic brand of rock. By the time they'd been signed to Larry Page's Penny Farthing label in 1969, their sound had expanded to encompass the burgenoning progressive scene, the dawn of the solo troubadour and the omnipresent influence of The Beatles…

Following the demise of the legendary Blossom Toes in December ’69, guitarist Brian Godding and bassist Brian Belshaw backed vocalist Julie Driscoll at two London concerts in early 1970, along with drummer Barry Jenkins. The second of these concerts took place at The Roundhouse on 27th February 1970. A highlight of the performance was a rendition of Godding’s rousing composition ‘New Day’, a song recorded by Blossom Toes but sadly not released.
The concert was enthusiastically reviewed by the underground press prompting the event organiser, Peter Swales, to propose the band re-record ‘New Day’. By this time Jenkins had departed and so former Blossom Toes drummer Kevin Westlake stepped in. Recording sessions took place at Olympic Studios with guest contributions from musicians such as Driscoll, Mick Taylor and Brian Auger along with jazz musicians Marc Charig and Nick Evans…

Scratch the surface of early-seventies progressive rock and underneath all the classic albums and famous musicians you will find a series of lesser-known bands and artists who failed to hit the big-time but still managed to create all manner of excellent prog. Dig a little deeper and you'll find Mainhorse, a little-known European prog-rock group who produced one excellent album and introduced the world to the enigmatic swiss-born keyboardist Patrick Moraz, who would later on find fame with both Yes and The Moody Blues. The eponymously-titled Mainhorse debut was released to little fanfare in 1971 after the group had signed with Polydor Records 12-months previous, but dis-banded soon after the completion of their one-and-only album. It's a genuine shame, because it's a wonderfully constructed and highly-original seven-track album that was made at a time when groups such as Yes, ELP and Genesis…

Although Fresh Maggots' sole album has a greater range of arrangements with a folk-rock base than many U.K. folk-rock albums of the time do, the songs aren't special enough to move this out of the desirable-mostly-for-the-sake-of-its-rarity category. While much of the material is acoustic and folky at the core, it's embellished by a good deal of instrumentation by Mick Burgoyne, who plays tin whistles, violin, and glockenspiel, in addition to some surprisingly burning distorted electric guitar. The tunes are pleasant but not brilliant, and kind of repetitive. If "Dole Song" takes an unusual subject as its focus (signing on to "the dole," or welfare, in Britain), other compositions can be simplistic to the point of awkwardness…

After Family concluded their second stateside tour in mid-1971 they were to again face personnel changes as John Weider (bass) was replaced by John Wetton (bass/guitar/vocals) just in time to chip in for Fearless, their sixth long-player in four years. Listeners who had enjoyed their most recent platters might have been a bit nonplussed when confronted with this disc, as the combo's direction was notably altered. Wetton brought along his trademark propulsive performance style, which is immediately evident on the heavy midtempo opener, "Between Blue and Me." Charlie Whitney (guitar/mandolin/percussion) presents some expressive strings weaving through Wetton's full bottom-end bombs. The decidedly English "Sat'd'y Barfly" recalls the inebriated vibe of lighter-weight numbers à la the Faces, and the Ladbroke Horns do little to help as a prominent tuba rhythmically poots along…

In his powerfully insightful book of blues-inspired poetry Fattening Frogs for Snakes - Delta Sound Suite, John Sinclair cites blues and jazz scholar Robert Palmer as a source for the theory that the linguistic taproots of the word "boogie" probably reach back to West Africa, as the Hausa "buga" and the Mandingo "bug" both mean "to beat" as in "to beat a drum." This makes sense given the rhythmic potency of boogie-woogie, a style that emerged during the early 20th century among Southern black laborers who lived, toiled, and partied near the very bottom of the U.S. social hierarchy, usually living in an environment that was secluded from the rest of the population and often engaging in the production of turpentine…

Take a Look Inside was recorded in 1971 in London - while the semi-obscure guitarist and songwriter Mickey Baker was living in Paris. The session players include Chris Spedding, Conrad (Reg) Isidore (later of Robin Trower fame), Fuzzy Samuels, and a host of others on percussion and backing vocals. One of the he most startling tracks here is the medley of Spirit's "Fresh Garbage" and "Water Woman." The segue is seamless, the music is raw and immediate, and the loose feel of the musicians in the studio is utterly warm and inviting. Baker then slips into the R&B classic "I'll Be Doggone," and then his own "Checking Out My Garden." Everything here is utterly present and loose - its closest comparison is a feeling like that inspired by Delaney & Bonnie's Motel Shot album…

Chilean band Embrujo's lone self-titled album, originally released in 1971, is one of those records that was beyond the grasp of the public at large for decades, unless you wanted to fork over an unreasonable amount of money for it. Progressive rock was still in its embryonic stages in 1971, and even though the Summer of Love was already receding into the mists of history, psychedelia still had some steam left, probably even more so in South America, where there was still a bit of a time lag for Anglo-American musical influences to take root. In fact, Embrujo had already released an album in the late ‘60s under the name Kissing Spell, but due to the highly charged political climate of the time, with foreign intervention being a particular hot-button issue, they abandoned their English-language moniker in favor of the Spanish word for "spell"…