The near-complete work
of one
of the all-time great but overlooked groups
of the UK scene
of the late 60s – a group who jumped between a few different labels, mostly issued a handful
of singles, yet managed to create a huge amount
of magic at the time! You'll not find The Mirage in the history books, but they definitely gave the UK scene a few great singles, enough to get them onto the BBC – where a few
of these tracks were recorded – and somehow managed to keep on working on great music, despite record label politics that would have buried most other acts
of the generation. There's a tuneful approach to psych that begins some
of the material, with maybe the odd freakbeat moment too – a quality that comes out even more strongly as the group morphs through a few later identities, including Yellow Pages, Portebello Explosion, and the really great Jawbone – the last
of whom finally got a chance to record a full length album! The 3CD package divides up nicely – CD1 features singles and BBC tracks by The Mirage, plus a few by Portebello Explosion and Yellow Pages; CD2 features some stunning
unheard outtakes that are maybe even more amazing than some Mirage singles; and CD3 features the full Jawbone album from 1970, a set that echoes some
of the earlier moments, but with even sharper instrumentation and a nicely compressed sense
of production. 3CD set features 60 tracks in all, and very detailed notes on the group and their music!