... CD

Includes 20 tracks. CD

... LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

The Hollies really open up their wings and fly here – taking on more psychedelic elements than ever before, and tripping out their sound in a way that really pushes them past the familiar his! Yet the approach is never overdone, either – as the whole thing is kept in kept in shape by producer Ron Richards, and the record also features some great Johnny Scott arrangements on a few tracks too! The approach is a bit like that which worked perfectly with Donovan during the same stretch in his career – but maybe even better, as it's topped by the wonderfully charismatic vocals and strong sense of hooks that the group had right from the start – so that the odd sitar line or flute chorus is balanced by some fantastic vocals upfront. Titles include "Would You Believe", "Dear Eloise", "Wish You A Wish", "Pegasus", "Try It", "Elevated Observations", and "Step Inside". CD includes both mono and stereo versions of the album. CD

... LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

That's a very strange-looking David Bowie on the front cover – and the issue looks at his tremendous turn of musical events in 1971 – a time when the Thin White Duke was about ready to burst into stardom! There's also plenty more too – including articles on Bill Evans, The Hollies, and Nicky Wire of the Manic Street Preachers – plus a look at Springsteen on stage, and the 30th anniversary of Nirvana's Nevermind! The issue also has the usual huge section of music reviews – plus more great features too – and comes with a bonus CD of new music, with tracks by St Vincent, Father John Misty, and others. Magazine

The Rokes were a British group who headed off to Italy in the early 60s – recording there to great fame, mostly in Italian – but also managing the occasional cut in their native language as well! Tracks were all recorded in Italy, but with a feel that's a nice extrapolation on UK modes of the time – mod rhythms, nascent psyche production, and even some more sophisticated sounds – all in a realm that's somewhere between the hippest late 60s modes of The Hollies or Pretty Things. LP, Vinyl record album

An explosive look at the mighty songwriting legacy of The Beatles – served up here in a giant 3CD package that features the group's famous songs covered by a whole group of their contemporaries on the UK scene! You'd think that most of these artists might be jealous, or resentful – not wanting to give a nod to the songwriting skills of Lennon, McCartney, or Harrison – but instead, they really revel in the tunes – often really transforming them, and completely making them their own – in ways that follow some of the best inspirations of the new psych generation, and which make the whole collection a lot better than just some straight rehash of hits by the fab four! The song selection is brilliant – dozens of tracks that we never would have heard otherwise – and as with all Grapefruit packages like this, the whole thing comes with a detailed booklet of notes on the music – way more information than you'd find even if you spent the whole day searching online. 68 tracks in all – with work from The Sorrows, Ice, The Spectrum, Real McCoy, The Eyes, Loose Ends, Rainbow Ffolly, Affinity, Yes, Blonde On Blonde, Spooky Tooth, Big Jim Sullivan, The Gods, Orange Bicycle, The Tremeloes, Jason Crest, Tomorrow, Circus, The Hollies, Camel, and many others! CD

Tremendous solo work by Paul Jones – originally the lead singer for Manfred Mann, but heard here in his initial years as a single act before going onto greater fame in film and TV! Mike Leander produced, and the tunes have a jaunty, skipping kind of quality – sometimes sing-song, but with a really dark undercurrent that reminds us a bit of some of our favorites by The Hollies from the same years – yet with a different kind of sound overall. The balance is careful, but great – and slightly trippier indulgences are offset by a great way with a pop tune that snaps things very much back into focus! There's loads of great numbers here, and titles include "Little Sadie", "Charlie Brown", "The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll", "Tarzan", "Love Me", "Poor Jenny", and "Trendy Miss Wendy". CD also features 10 more bonus tracks – most previously unissued, and others pulled from singles! CD

Brilliant work from Nirvana – a duo who bring together so many wonderful elements of late 60s Brit pop – from weird trippy touches to tuneful melodies to superb full arrangements – handled here by giants Mike Vickers, Johnny Scott, and Tony Visconti! There's a bounce and a push to all the cuts here – tunes that might be self-indulgent or too weird in other hands, but which bristle with catchy, creative energy throughout – of the sort that should have made these guys huge at the time – and which certainly should have earned them a bigger place on our side of the Atlantic! We love this stuff in the way we like Donovan with Mickie Most, or maybe late 60s Hollies – but Nirvana is weirder than both – as you'll hear on tracks that include "Illinois", "The World Is Cold Without You", "Christopher Lucifer", "Aline Cherie", "Tres Tres Bien", "It Happened To Sundays Ago", "Love Suite", and "Black Flower". CD