Sundazed

The Trashmen - Surfin' Bird (1964) {Sundazed Music ‎SC 6064, Expanded Re-issue rel 1995)
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© 1964, 1995 Garrett / Sundazed Music ‎| SC 6064
Rock / Surf Rock / Garage Rock / Rock'n'Roll

Hailing from the wintry heartland of Minneapolis, the Trashmen achieved cult immortality with a passel of landlocked surf anthems and reckless garage-rock gems, best exemplified by their immortal anthem "Surfin' Bird," two and a half minutes of inspired, unhinged mayhem that's never been equaled. But "Surfin' Bird" is just the tip of the iceberg of the 1964 album that bears the song's name. The only longplayer that the band released during their original lifespan, Surfin' Bird demonstrates that the Trashmen were no novelty act or one-hit wonder, but a brilliant, original outfit who filtered their R&B and surf influences through their own cheerfully demented sensibility to make some of their era's most reckless, uninhibited rock 'n' roll.

The Trashmen - Live Bird '65 - '67! (1990) {Sundazed Music SC 11006}
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© 1965-67, 1990 Sundazed Music ‎| SC 11006
Rock / Surf Rock / Garage Rock / Rock'n'Roll

Although marketed as a surf band, Minnesota's Trashmen were decidedly landlocked by geography, but not by spirit. The group's odd mix of surf, R&B, sneering garage pop, and psychotic instrumentals made them one of the most eccentric and interesting of the groups that sprang up around the surf craze of the early '60s. This delightful collection of rare live tracks shows the kind of offhand, humorous dementia that they channeled into their shows, climaxing in a near six-minute version of their wacky masterpiece, the manic "Surfin' Bird."

Zakary Thaks - Form The Habit (2001) {Sundazed BRCD131 rec 1966-1969}
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© 1966-69, 2001 BeatRocket / Sundazed Music | BRCD 131
Rock / Garage Rock / Psychedelic Rock

Both sides of all six of Zakary Thaks' singles are on this last-word compilation, along with three instrumental versions of tracks from the 45s. All of this material has been reissued before on Eva's J-Beck Story 2, with the exception of instrumental versions of "Face to Face" and "Green Crystal Ties." Still, this marks the first time everything's been available in this fidelity in the U.S., bolstered by the inclusion of a lengthy interview with lead singer Chris Gerniottis in the liner notes. It takes its place as one of the very best single-artist '60s garage reissues, the songwriting and musicianship at a far higher level than most '60s garage bands could boast, with just as much insouciant youthful energy.

Minneapolis blues-rock quintet Crow was formed in 1967 by frontman Dave Wagner, guitarist Dick Wiegand, his bassist brother Larry, and keyboardist Kink Middlemist. Originally dubbed South 40, they added former Castaways drummer Denny Craswell to the lineup prior to recording their 1969 debut LP, Crow Music, for the Amaret label; the single "Evil Woman Don't You Play Your Games with Me" cracked the U.S. Top 20, even though its distinctive horn arrangement was overdubbed against the band's wishes. Crow by Crow followed in 1970, although the single "Cottage Cheese" failed to attract much attention. In the wake of 1971's Mosaic, Crow disbanded, although Wagner resurfaced in 1973 with a solo LP, David Wagner D/B/A Crow.

The debut album of Ryder and the Wheels, fresh from the teenage ballroom circuit in Detroit, where they held court in earlier days as Billy Lee & the Rivieras. One of the defining moments in the history of Motor City music, Take a Ride is the sound of poor White kids claiming the music as theirs, too, while infusing it with the manic energy of the color-blind dreams of anybody who ever wanted to be somebody. Built entirely around their stage act, this album captures a band in full cry at the peak of their powers. This is what they mean when they say the words "high-energy Motor City rock & roll."

In total, The Blues Magoos released three amazing albums and eight incredible singles on Mercury. Longtime fans, Sundazed has now gathered all sixteen A- and B-sides together on The Blues Magoos: Mercury Singles (1966-1968). Featuring the accurate, original mono single mixes from the Mercury masters.

Gandalf's self-titled album has some attractive baroque-psychedelia with a spacey air, though its quality depends very much on the standard of the material. Generally they're better the more they rely on the slightly weird and spacey production, as on "Scarlet Ribbons" and their cover of Tim Hardin's "Hang on to a Dream." On tracks like "You Upset the Grace of Living" there's a nice balance of melody and quasi-classical keyboards on the cusp between pop, progressive rock and psychedelia. "Can You Travel in the Dark Alone," one of the few originals (by Peter Sando), is nice, harmonic sunshine pop with a slightly experimental feel, along the lines of some of the better things being done by Californian cult figures like Gary Usher and Curt Boettcher at the time.