Tasty 1968

Deep Purple are remembered by most folks as the Ian Gillan-fronted hard rock band that recorded the iconic "Smoke on the Water," but as is the case with most recording artists, there's a whole lot more to the story, and in this case, the preamble part of Deep Purple's career might arguably actually be more exciting and interesting. The first incarnation of the band featured Rod Evans as the lead singer, and of course the guitar playing of Ritchie Blackmore, and if there's a better opening single for a band than Deep Purple's classic cover of Joe South's "Hush," well, there's little doubt "Hush" would hold its own.

Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac formed in London in 1967 by guitarist Peter Green, drummer Mick Fleetwood and guitarist Jeremy Spencer, with bassist John McVie completing the line-up for their self-titled debut album, Fleetwood Mac began as a very different beast to the one they would become by the mid-1970s. Danny Kirwan joined as third guitarist in 1968 and keyboardist Christine Perfect, who contributed as a session musician from the second album, married John McVie and joined in 1970. Primarily a British blues band initially, they scored a UK number one with Albatross , and had lesser hits with the singles Oh Well and Black Magic Woman , the latter successfully covered by Santana. All three guitarists left in succession during the early 1970s, changing the sound of the group quite dramatically.

.The Freeborne's sole album is, in common with the mildly better-known '60s Boston psychedelic bands who comprised the Bosstown Sound, something of a goulash of then-trendy underground rock crosscurrents. It's not quite a ghoulish goulash, but it's not too tasty either, though they come up with some nice minor-key vocal harmonies…

With a cast of instrumental all-stars, folk vocalist Judy Collins creates a mini-masterwork on "Who Knows Where the Times Goes".