English pop group The White Plains scored a  world-wide hit in 1970 with their debut single ‘My Baby Loves Lovin’.  More major and minor hits would follow, largely thanks to the song-writing talents of Cook, Greenaway and Macauley. It’s rather impossible not to remember ‘When You Are A King’ or ‘Julie Dou Ya Love Me’: light, sweet, tailored to the charts and, let’s admit it, easy to hum along with. Their music sounded out of time, as the early seventies were a period of change and turbulence which was also reflected in pop music, now called ‘rock’. The White Plains wouldn’t last too long and eventually embraced the new era. As The Crucible, they laid down four rocking, rhythmical ‘progressive’ tunes for the movie ‘Extremes’ (1972). But they weren’t made for these times.
Not all of it is throwaway pop though. There are some nice songs here, even if they are confined to the soft, balladry, innocent genre. ‘Look To See’ is a nod to Simon & Garfunkel, ‘Dad You Saved the World’ has an orchestration akin to ‘prog’, whereas ‘Young Birds Fly’ is not too far removed from The Fortunes.  The set features 11 bonus tracks to check out, but also later recordings as Crucible and Zenith. A booklet explains the somewhat complex story of the band. Cherry Red did another great job.
Radio 68 plays choice tracks in Rock On on Wednesday 17 November from 11 a.m. till 11 p.m.  

​One of the greatest, if not the greatest voice the Belgian music scene has ever produced is Luc Renneboog, better known as Luke Walter Jr. founder and frontman of Blue Blot. Sadly, he passed away in 1996. It was always great to see Blue Blot perform. The creativity and perfection with which the band performed the songs made their gigs unforgettable. It is impossible to name beautiful songs of the band, because then you would have to name the entire repertoire. Blue Blot unfortunately no longer exists, but a number of former Blue Blot members, including bassist Jan Meijers, backing vocals Catherine Mys and Chelsy joined forces and with the addition of a number of top musicians, Yo Yo Men was born.
Personally, I don't think Yo Yo Men did themselves a favor with the rework of some Blue Blot songs.
Is that why this is a less good album? Not at all, but it would be better for Yo Yo Men to tear themselves away from Blue Blot and set their own course with songs that could not be associated with Luke Walter Jr.'s band. They prove that they can handle this with songs like 'Hot Steppin' and 'Blunk Tonight'. With this in mind, Yo Yo Men's next album could be a blast!

The Beau Brummels scored two major and one minor hit in the USA in 1965 and that was it. Hit wise. They emulated The Beatles splendidly and their name alone makes it perfectly clear they desperately wanted to sound English … Anyway, their success ended there (US) and then (1965), but guitarist Ron Elliot and singer Sal Valentino kept on writing beautiful  pop songs, slowly but surely putting their own souls and craftsmanship into it, moving towards folk and country. To no avail, as a concept LP (‘Triangle’) and a country-soaked piece of work by Elliot & Valentino backed by Nashville’s finest couldn’t change the public’s mind.
Still, Cherry Red has succeeded in releasing no less than eight discs here. The first five feature their regular albums, number six equals sessions for the Autumn label, seven is all about Elliot & Valentino and eight lists the As and Bs of their singles. As this box set totals over 160  tracks, it is filled with demos, promo mixes, alternate takes, backing tracks, you name it. They don’t come more comprehensive that this!
The Beau Brummels are all about true pop tunes and harmonies, infused with folk and country.
Radio 68  plays some tunes in My Generation on Sunday 14 and Tuesday 16 November, from 11 a.m. (GMT) onwards

​Again, volume 6 of the compilation series ‘Down & Wired’ is a must for collectors of psychedelic funk, soul and garage rock from the sixties. Chan The Man was again responsible for it.

In America, the word ‘hootenanny’ is used for something or someone that one cannot immediately name. With us, the term more or less became established through the music program 'Jools Holland's Hootenanny' broadcast by the BBC on New Year's Eve. The album 'Atomicat Hootenanny' is not only a wonderful compilation to dive into the new year, but also a collection of 30 songs that you can enjoy all year round. Rock 'n' roll, rhythm & blues and blues of the very best kind!
It is already self-evident, but this 'Atomicat Hootenanny' compiled by Mark Armstrong is again a bull's eye and ideal to provide your end-of-year parties with stylish music.

​This is the debut album by Flemish singer-songwriter Arnisty. She composed all the tracks herself, and brings dreamy, acoustic indie pop. For those who like dodie, Agnes Obel and Kimya Dawson. 

​This fifth compilation in the series ‘Down & Wired’ by the German label Perfect Toy Records contains lots of obscure tracks, thanks to veteran Chan The Man. It’s highly recommended to collectors of old school funk & soul!

​This jazz-related album contains very short musical outings with unexpected texture. 

​This album harks back to the eighties, when jazz rock and fusion were popular. The Israeli drummer Asaf Sirkis leads here his trio, and infuses atmospheric and ambient sounds. Recommended to fans of jazz rock and fusion!

​Willie Jackson has a powerful Baptist preacher voice and his original sound is carved in the South Georgia tradition, a mixture of soul and rousing blues. The album contains twelve original songs and features guest appearances by Mary Davis of the SOS Band and Jimmy Williams of the band Brick. Blues, a lot of soul and swing are the main ingredients. He had a masterpiece on the shelves with the EP 'Chosen By The Blues'. Now he comes into the spotlight with the release 'All In The Blues'. Highly recommended release..!

​This third album from the Italian guitarist Roberto Tola combines musical genres like smooth jazz, Latin, bossa nova and light funk in an harmonious total. Genres that influenced him in his earlier days. And I enjoyed it thoroughly! 

​A Murder In Mississippi, a six-piece crazy musical gang from Ghent. With a shared passion and many different musical influences, they present a wide range of contemporary timbres. Country, folk, Americana and Irish tinged tunes wrap A Murder In Mississippi with a lick of blues. The flawless vocals and dynamic instrumentation let us float away in that retro-symphonic folk sound palette. 'Hurricana' is a wonderful album..!

​Mother Nature inspired this talented young man to compose the course of a day on guitar while running through the wood and fields.  Peace in mind and soul!

​This re-mastered set contains all eight Steppenwolf albums released  on ABC / Dunhill between January 1968 and November 1971, that’s less than four years folks! It’s an impressive series of hit singles, covers, John Kay and group compositions, live renditions, and experimental versions. It truly is an impressive run of semi-heavy, blues-inspired rock with a message delivered by the unique voice and storytelling phrasing of John Kay. You can never forget ‘Born To Be Wild’, but here are dozens of tunes worth investigating for the riff, the experimental setting (a 21-minute live version of ‘The Pusher’ introduced by a threatening sound-scape) and improvisations, but, it needs to be repeated: listen to the lyrics! ‘Monster’ (1969) is one long cry against war and in favour of peace. They are only equalled by The Doors, who were equally brought up on blues, delivered an anti-establishment message and thought nothing of improvising.
This collections offers 26 bonuses and comes with an excellent 55 page-booklet. 

​Albertine creates a playfulness and intimacy with her natural musical feeling. And a fantastic idea to use her viola as a plucked string instrument.  Great debut!

Together with 'More Doo-Wop Christmas Gems', of which you could already read the review on this site, the KokoMojo label is releasing two more Christmas compilations. Those are ‘Meet Mrs. Santa Claus' and 'Bronze Christmas', of which you can expect the review later. Now it's the turn to 'Meet Mrs. Santa Claus'. Mrs. Santa Claus is personified in 28 Christmas songs performed by female singers. Tracks that feature both big and lesser known names.
With ‘Meet Mrs. Santa Claus', Little Victor has found a nice angle again. It becomes clear more than once that the ladies are certainly not inferior to their male colleagues when it comes to Christmas songs. Awesome rhythm & blues, blues and rock & roll!

​The name Joseph Veloz probably won't immediately ring a bell with many of us. Yet he has been a fixture in this blues world for decades. He touched the bass lines in many blues, soul, funk and Top-40 bands. You will find the name Joseph Veloz on albums by the likes of Shawn Kellerman, Biscuit Miller and The Mix, The Nouveaux Honkies, Mississippi Heat, Drew Abbott, Joanne Shaw Taylor and Greg Nagy. Veloz had his debut album 'Offering' in 2017. Now there is Joseph Veloz present Joseph Veloz And The Velozians. And spiced it up with a lot of funk, blues, soul and some remarkable instrumental songs. A Worthy earwig. Great stuff..!

​Brazilian pianist Antonio Adolfo has delivered a fitting homage to the late Antonio Carlos Jobim with this album. It contains new arrangements for 9 songs, and the music is timeless and stays “in the picture”! 

​Wonderful exciting album from Brixton’ band Alabama 3.  They take you to the church of reality and invites you to dance with the strange fellow man.

​This is the long awaited Christmas album from superstar Norah Jones. She composed songs herself and added covers of Christmas classics. It thrives on her lovely voice and soft piano play. To cherish and listen to every year!