Misty In Roots - Salvation (1988) **UPGRADE**

Another album that I listened to recently on headphones was my compilation of Misty In Roots' 12" singles, and as this is one of my very favourite reggae albums that I have posted, it was a bit annoying to hear that I'd had to use scratchy 12" singles as source material for some of the tracks. I have now managed to find CD quality versions of 'Rich Man', 'Salvation', 'Wondering Wanderer' (with corrected spelling), and 'Zapatta', and I've created a much smoother transition from the latter into the dub b-side, 'Viva Zapatta'. I've also located the dub versions of 'Own Them Control Them (Version)' and 'Together', and grafted them onto the singles, so here is a much improved, and extended, version of some hard to find music from one of the UK's best ever reggae bands. 

Track listing

01 Six One Penny (single 1978)
02 Oh Wicked Man (single 1978)
03 See Them Ah Come (single 1979)
04 How Long Jah (b-side of 'See Them Ah Come')
05 Rich Man (single 1979, plus dub)
06 Salvation (b-side of 'Rich Man')
07 Zapatta, Viva Zapatta (single 1980, plus b-side)
08 Wondering Wanderer (single 1981)
09 Cry Out For Peace (b-side of 'Wondering Wanderer')

10 Own Them Control Them (Version) (single 1986, plus dub)

11 Together (single 1988, plus dub)

Genesis - The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway Suite (1974) **BONUS**

When I posted Mike Solof's early version of the Genesis classic, 'The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway', a couple of people expressed interest in hearing one of the other versions that he'd put together, with the piece split into five individual suites. It seems that he's currently busy with other projects at the moment - I know that he's attempting to produce an improved version of the band's 'Six Of The Best' concerts - so I've dug out the original file that he sent me, before it was sent over to Captain Acid to work his magic. It still sounds pretty good even in this early version, so it you want to hear Mike's original mixes in a slightly different format, then give this a listen.

Track listing

01 Suite 1: Lamb / Fly

02 Suite 2: Broadway / Cocoon / Cage / Parade / N.Y.C.

03 Suite 3: Hairless / Counting / Crawlers

04 Suite 4: Chamber / Lilith / Waiting / Anyway / Supernatural / Lamia

05 Suite 5: Silent / Colony / Ravine / Light / Scree / Rapids / It

Snow Patrol - Post Punk Progression (2014)

Snow Patrol were originally formed in early 1994 by University of Dundee students Gary Lightbody, Mark McClelland, and Michael Morrison under the name Shrug, and after performing gigs at the university and surrounding pubs, they released their first EP 'The Yogurt vs. Yoghurt Debate' in 1995. The following year they changed their name to Polarbear to avoid issues with any American bands that were also named Shrug, and shortly afterwards, drummer Michael Morrison left the group after suffering a breakdown. In mid-1997, Polarbear released a three-track EP, 'Starfighter Pilot', on the Electric Honey label, but after this they again renamed themselves, this time to Snow Patrol, because of a naming conflict with another band named Polar Bear, fronted by ex-Jane's Addiction bassist Eric Avery. After the name-change the band joined independent label Jeepster, who intended to replicate approach they had with Belle & Sebastian, who had become popular by word of mouth, without heavy promotion. The band were happy to be associated with an indie label, because it provided them greater independence than a major label would, and their debut album, 'Songs For Polarbears', was released in 1998, after the band had relocated to Glasgow. It was a critical success but did not make any impact commercially, although they did win the "Phil Lynott Award For Best New Band" from Irish music magazine Hot Press. 

In 2001, while still living in Glasgow, the trio followed up with their second long-player 'When It's All Over We Still Have To Clear Up', but once again its critical success did not translate into sales. The band began to work harder and tour more, sleeping on fans' floors after concerts, and pretending to be members of Belle & Sebastian to get into nightclubs. After the commercial failure of the second album, Snow Patrol began to realise that the label's lax attitude towards management and record promotion was likely holding them back, and in a decision that was declared "brainless" by Hot Press magazine, Jeepster dropped the band in 2001. This left the door open for some major labels to show an interest in the group, but despite Lightbody being confident they would get signed to another label quickly, the music scene in the UK had turned its attention to American bands, and British groups were not getting signed. Lightbody, bored at this point, assembled The Reindeer Section, a Scottish supergroup, and found a record label to release the project's recordings, while Snow Patrol continued to write and rehearse new material. Guitarist Nathan Connolly, previously a member of the band File Under Easy Listening, moved from Belfast to Glasgow to join Snow Patrol in the spring of 2002, and through a fellow student at the University Of Dundee, who had since gone on to become Polydor's Scottish A&R representative, talent scouts from the label approached the band in Glasgow to listen to their demos. 

A deal was made, and their third album 'Final Straw' was released on 4 August 2003, under Black Lion, a subsidiary of Polydor Records. Its music was along the same lines as the band's first two albums, and no attempt was made to change the sound to something more radio-friendly, but the time was right for their style of indie-pop, and the release of the record in the US in 2004 saw it sell more than 250,000 copies, as well as becoming 26th-most popular album in the UK of that year. In mid-2005, during a two-year their tour to support 'Final Straw', the band played with U2 as an opening act on their Vertigo Tour in Europe, as well as playing a short set in London at the worldwide benefit concert Live 8. On 16 March 2005, McClelland left the band, with Lightbody citing conflicting relationships within the band, and he was replaced by former Terra Diablo member Paul Wilson, with longtime touring keyboardist Tom Simpson also becoming an official member of the band. With 'Final Straw' producer Jacknife Lee returning, the band released their new album, 'Eyes Open', in May 2006, with the first UK single, 'You're All I Have', coming out a week earlier, and the US having 'Hands Open' as their introduction tot he album. 

However, after the track 'Chasing Cars' was featured during an emotional scene in the second-season finale of the American medical drama 'Grey's Anatomy', it forced it's way into the charts on downloads alone, eventually peaking at number 6 on the UK Singles Chart when it was officially released as a single. By November, 'Eyes Open' had become the best-selling album of 2006 in the UK, selling 1.5 million copies, and is still one of the best-selling albums in UK chart history. 'Chasing Cars' was nominated for Best Rock Song at the 2007 Grammy Awards, and for Best British Single at the 2007 Brit Awards. Recording for the follow-up to 'Eyes Open' was to begin in Autumn 2006, with Jacknife Lee returning a third time for production, and 'A Hundred Million Suns' was released on another Polydor subsidiary, Fiction, in 2008, followed the next year by a compilation album titled 'Up To Now', featuring tracks from their fifteen-year history, plus three new songs, including 'Just Say Yes', which was track written by Lightbody, and earlier recorded by Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger and X Factor star Diana Vickers. In 2009, Snow Patrol stated they would enter their "next phase" with the release of their sixth album, and so fans were to keep an open mind regarding the new material. 

'Called Out In The Dark' (remixed by Fatboy Slim) was released for radio airplay on 21 July 2011, as was the lead track of an EP which came out two months later. The parent album 'Fallen Empires' was released on 14 November 2011, alongside second single 'This Isn't Everything You Are', with a launch party held at the O2 Shepherd's Bush Empire. A greatest hits compilation entitled was released in May 2013, but a few months later it was announced that Simpson would be leaving the band. The follow-up to 'Fallen Empires' was initially due for release in 2016, but Lightbody first had to overcome a bout of writer's block, and so 'Wildness' did not actually appear until May 2018. In November they released the EP 'What If This Is All The Love You Ever Get?', but apart from another compilation album, 'Reworked, which came out in 2019, nothing was hheard from the group until Lightbody announced in September 2023 that Quinn and Wilson had decided to leave. Snow Patrol would be continuing as a trio of himself, Connolly, and McDaid, and a new album is supposed to appear in September this year, so while we wait for that, here is a reminder of the band at their best, with a collection of non-album b-sides from the first decade and a half of their career. 

Track listing

Disc I - 1998-2004      
01 Sticky Teenage Twin (b-side of 'Little Hide' 1998)
02 Limited Edition (b-side of 'Little Hide' 1998)
03 Jj (b-side of 'Little Hide' 1998)
04  My Last Girlfriend (b-side of 'One Hundred Things You Should Have Done In Bed' 1998)
05 T.M.T. (b-side of 'One Hundred Things You Should Have Done In Bed' 1998)
06 I Could Stay Away Forever (b-side of 'One Hundred Things You Should Have Done In Bed' 1998)
07 When You're Right, You're Right (b-side of 'Velocity Girl' 1998)
08 Raze The City (b-side of 'Starfighter Pilot' 1999)
09 Riot, Please (b-side of 'Starfighter Pilot' 1999)
10 In Command Of Cars (b-side of 'Ask Me How I Am' 2000)
11 Talk To The Trees (b-side of 'Ask Me How I Am' 2000)
12 Monkey Mobe (b-side of 'One Night Is Not Enough' 2001)
13 Workwear Shop (b-side of 'One Night Is Not Enough' 2001)
14 Steal (b-side of 'Spitting Games' 2003)
15 Brave (b-side of 'Spitting Games' 2003)
16 Post Punk Progression (b-side of 'Run' 2004)
17 You Are My Joy (b-side of 'How To Be Dead' 2004)
 
Disc II - 2006-2014
01 The Only Noise (b-side of 'You're All I Have' 2006)
02 Perfect Little Secret (b-side of 'You're All I Have' 2006)
03 Play Me Like Your Own Hand (b-side Of 'Chasing Cars' 2006)
04 It Doesn't Matter Where, Just Drive (b-side Of 'Chasing Cars' 2006)
05 Warmer Climate (promo single 2006) 
06 I Am An Astronaut (b-side of 'Open Your Eyes' 2007)
07 Signal Fire (single from the soundtrack to the film 'Spider-Man 3' 2009)
08 The Afterlife (b-side of 'Take Back The City' 2008)
09 Cubicles (b-side of 'Crack The Shutters' 2008)
10 In A Dream I Saw Satellites (b-side of 'If There's A Rocket Tie Me To It' 2009)
11 My Brothers (b-side of 'Called Out In The Dark' 2011)
12 Plastic Jesus (b-side of 'This Isn't Everything You Are' 2011)
13 I Won't Let You Go (single from the soundtrack of the film 'Divergent' 2014) 

Natasha Ramos - Show And Prove (2006)

Natasha Ramos started singing at a very early age, catching the attention of Linda Casey through a talent search that landed her a deal alongside Letoya Luckett and Latavia Roberson (formerly of Destiny's Child) in their new female group Anjel. After about a year with the band, she sought new opportunities after rumours surfaced of her not getting along with other band members, and she left Anjel. She started working with Andre Deyo, who wrote 'Jenny From The Block', and on which Ramos sang the demo, and JLo loved what she heard so much that she had Ramos record background vocals for the 'This Is Me...Then' album. She also kept most of the vocals on 'Jenny From The Block', and this all helped Ramos land a deal with Arista Records, although that fell through due to label issues, but it did lead to the opportunity to work with Pharrell Williams of The Neptunes. He fell in love with her voice and asked her to be a part of an all Latina girl group, Affair, which she accepted. She started to work alongside Vanessa Marquez, but just us Tiffany Villarreal was added as a third member, the group folded and parted ways. Ramos then signed a solo deal with Star Trak, and she had a slew of underground hits such as 'Midnight Hour', 'Invisible', and 'Strawberries', as well as singing background vocals with artists such as Jennifer Lopez and others. She recorded a solo album for Star Trak, tentatively titled 'Show And Prove', which was due to be released around 2006, and an early and unmastered reference version of it does exist. No official singles were released, but many tracks, including 'Deeper (feat. Robin Thicke)', appeared on several mixtapes and received some airplay, while the album cut 'Screwed' was set to be released as a single featuring Kanye West, but it was cancelled after West used his verse for another project. After the album's cancelation in 2007, interest in her skyrocketed when it was revealed that she and fellow singer Ashanti recorded a large percentage of vocals on several Jennifer Lopez projects, and although it's reported as being unmastered, her debut album is an R&B stormer, with many highlights, and so is well worth hearing. 

Track listing

01 Midnight Hour
02 Deeper (feat. Robin Thicke)
03 Got Me On Lock
04 Invisible 
05 Screwed (feat. Kanye West)
06 Pack Up
07 Dope Boy (feat. Pharrell Williams)
08 This Love (Interlude)
09 Last Night
10 Feelin' Myself
11 One Way
12 That Moment
13 Say Uh 
14 Running Out Of Love

Like Wendy - The Tower (1995)

Like Wendy is a Dutch band, the creation and brainchild of multi-instrumentalist Bert Heinen, and their formation is a somewhat unusual story. In the late 1980's, a group of friends would meet up at a local pub in Amersfoort, Utrecht, in the Netherlands, to enjoy some beer and talk about current events and other topics on their minds, but music was the overriding subject. Out of this revelry and good cheer, Like Wendy was born, being mainly the vision of Heinen, who has kept the concept, both as an idea and an actual recording group, going over these last 25 years. The group named themselves after a character in J. R. R. Tolkien's 'Lord Of The Rings', being a play on the name Laiquendi, and the music they produce is very much as you would expect, being a compendium of breath-taking neo-progressive symphonic rock. After seven years of rehearsing and recording together, Heinen had gathered enough material to self-release an album, 'Dream Of The Falcon', so he started to send demos to different magazines, and after a good response from Background Magazine he was signed to LabraD'Or records in 1997. In 1998 the band released their first record on the label, 'The Storm Inside', which featured Heinen on guitars, keyboard and vocals, plus Marien on drums and additional keyboards, and they produced a very melodic progressive rock album, similar in style to Marillion, Pendragon, Pallas or IQ. The critical reception was very favourable, and so the next year the duet released 'Rainchild', on which their sound evolved, keeping the style intact but with a more professional sound. In 2000, 'Songs From The Moonlit Bay' proved to be very different from 'Rainchild', with the first track, 'Falcon Suite', being a 21 minutes epic, and this time there was a distinct echo of Steve Hackett in the guitar-work, with the sound moving towards symphonic rather than neo-progressive rock. 

Two years later saw the appearance of 'Summer In Eden', but it was felt that it didn't have the same appeal as 'Songs From The Moonlit Bay', sounding like a blend of Pendragon and 'Foxtrot'-era Genesis, and it paled in comparison with the previous albums. 'Homeland' marked a change in 2004, as the band turned into a one man project following the departure of drummer Marien, with the only other musician being trumpet-player Jos on the song 'Flood'. This time influences included Pink Floyd, but keeping the original style almost intact, except for some electronic touches. The saga of Like Wendy ended in 2005 with the release of 'Endgame', and for this album Heinen recruited another multi-instrumentalist called Mark-Jeroen Heek, but the result was disappointing, with a simpler and more pop-orientated approach. Nothing more was heard from them until they suddenly re-appeared in 2020 with the 'This Beautiful Lie' album, once again credited solely to Heinen, and then the same year a mysterious demo CDr started doing the rounds, which turned out to be a 'reissue' of a collection of demo's by Heinen from 1995, self-released as a cassette before they'd even recorded 'Dream Of The Falcon'. Listening to this album you can hear that the vision of the band was there right from the start, and it's an excellent collection of neo-progressive rock which deserves a wider audience, not only for the fans, but for anyone who is into well-played prog-rock. If you like what you hear, then do check out the rest of their catalogue, as it's generally well-worth hearing. 

Track listing

01 The Big Lie
02 The Price For Trust
03 Eyewitness (The Fool)
04 Losing Sight On Reality
05 Breathe Deep
06 Asua's Fall
07 Dreaming
08 Birth (Pre-Version)
09 Wandering

Cassie - Supermodel (2012)

The final collection of unreleased tracks from Cassie is titled 'Supermodel', and is a pure pop collection of starburst synths, bubblegum beats, and cotton-candy production, with her versatile voice shining on belting ballads and chanting club anthems in this diverse mix.

Track listing

01 Sex, Drugs, Rock 'n Roll (Intro)
02 I Never Knew
03 B.F.F. (feat. Young Deion)
04 Radio (feat. Fabolous)
05 Push It
06 I Don't Love You (Interlude #1)
07 Sometimes (feat. Ryan Leslie)
08 Shakespeare
09 Sound Of Love (feat. DJ Komori)
10 Diced Pineapples (Interlude #2)
11 Breathe Again
12 Runaway Love (feat. T-Pain)
13 Baby Girl (feat. N.O.R.E.)
14 Hide (Interlude #3)
15 I'm In Love With You 
16 Fly With U (Outro)

Jack White - No Name (2024)

On 19 July 2024, visitors to Jack White's Third Man Record Store found a mysterious vinyl album bundled in with their purchase. No stranger to the guerilla record drop – he once hid a bunch of seven inches inside re-upholstered sofas - White has come up with a unique release strategy for his surprise sixth album, which is his first new music since 2022’s 'Fear Of The Dawn' and 'Entering Heaven Alive'. The anonymous white label, 'No Name',  was given away free with any purchase at White’s Third Man stores on Friday, while a very limited number of copies were also sent to customers at random in the mail. Its mysterious grooves contained 13 tracks of raw, fresh, fierce garage blues, and although there were no official song titles, and no hint at the artist, there was no doubt that this was the work of Jack White himself. Bashing out the bluesiest rock riffs that he’s released since the White Stripes, every song is crunchy as hell, filled with ragged yelps and preacher-on-the-pulpit declarations, with not an acoustic guitar in sight. He's accompanied by nothing more than a rhythm section and the occasional organ, and judging by posts he’s shared on Instagram, the line-up consists of longtime bassist Dominic John Davis, recent keyboard addition Bobby Emmett, and Raconteurs drummer Patrick Keeler, although there’s no word on the whereabouts of White’s usual solo drummer Daru Jones. Third Man has seemingly encouraged fans to rip the album and, as White declares in the A-side’s rap-rocking fifth track, “You must tell seven friends.” It seems likely that the so-called 'No Name' will get more traditional distribution soon, but it’s also entirely possible that last weekend’s guerrilla release is all that the album will ever receive. Such is the benefit of White owning his own label, he’s free to do whatever he wants. Shortly after the album's release, White played a show at American Legion Post 82 in Nashville where new copies of 'No Name' on blue vinyl, with cover art, track titles, and liner notes, were made available for attendees to purchase, but if that's the only release 'No Name' ever receives, then I'm posting it here for any fans who missed it, and might not get to hear it if it doesn't appear officially in the future. Most copies out there have some serious surface noise at the end of track 13, but this rip comes from the cleanest copy that I found. 

Track listing

01 Old Scratch Blues

02 Bless Yourself

03 That's How I'm Feeling

04 It's Rough On Rats (If You're Asking)

05 Archbishop Harold Holmes

06 Bombing Out

07 What's The Rumpus?

08 Tonight (Was A Long Time Ago)

09 Underground

10 Number One With A Bullet

11 Morning At Midnight

12 Missionary

13 Terminal Archenemy Endling

Track titles taken from the blue vinyl edition.

Thanks to Reddit user lookanew for the inspiration for the alternate cover. 

Marion - The Collector (1998)

Marion were formed in Macclesfield, Cheshire in 1993 by Jaime Harding and Anthony Grantham, along with Phil Cunningham, who had all previously been in various bands together including Cloud, Chief, Push The King and The Shags. After recruiting bassist Damian Lawrence and drummer Murad Mousa, they recorded a demo that was sent to former Smiths manager Joe Moss, who agreed to manage the band. After replacing bassist Damian Lawrence with Julian Phillips, they rehearsed six days a week for nine months, commuting each day from Macclesfield, before playing in London to try and gain record company attention. After releasing debut single 'Violent Men' on Rough Trade Records, a bidding war began between the major record labels, with Marion eventually signing to London Records, and gaining a publishing deal with Island Music Publishing in October 1994. In March 1995, bassist Phillips left the band to join Electrafixion and work with Ian McCulloch, and was replaced by Nick Gilbert, formerly of the Hot Bananas. They released their debut 'This World And Body' in February 1996, which entered the UK Top 10 Album Chart, and constant gigging saw them supporting the likes of Morrissey, Radiohead, Ian McCulloch, and Manic Street Preachers. After a gruelling 18 month international touring campaign for their debut, the band found it difficult to write a second album, and so Moss brought in Johnny Marr to co-write and produce 'The Program'. It was released in September 1998, however Harding's heroin habit saw him become increasingly unreliable, which led to a lack of promotion. 

Following a mammoth tour of the US in 1999, the band split up, with the rest of the group blaming frustration and bitterness at not being able to get through to the drug-addicted Harding. Guitarist Cunningham toured with Bernard Sumner's and Johnny Marr's band Electronic, and subsequently went on to become a full-time member of Bad Lieutenant and New Order, while second guitarist Tony Grantham, who left the band in 1998, formed Chalk and Ryna, but bassist Nick Gilbert was deeply affected by the break up, selling his equipment and starting working in graphic design. In December 1999, it was revealed the frontman 

Harding was working with longtime friend Wayne Ward on new material, and although all the band's music had been written by Cunningham and Grantham, the new songs were was to be released under the Marion name, with Harding stating that "the name Marion belongs to me and only I use it". In June 2000, Harding pleaded guilty to theft charges and possession of heroin, after stealing garden ornaments and selling them to an antiques dealer to fund his heroin habit, and he was put on probation. Nothing from the sessions was ever released. Marion attempted further reunions in 2006, playing gigs in Bath, Manchester and London, and also in 2011, which produced a live album, but they fell apart again when a planned studio album was abandoned. It's an ignominious end to a band who had so much potential, and could have been a bigger part of the Britpop scene than they were, so as a tribute to their early work, here are all the non-album singles and b-sides from their short career.  

Track listing

01 Violent Men (original single 1994)
02 Today And Tonight (b-side of 'Violent Man')
03 Father's Day (b-side of 'Sleep' 1995)
04 Moving Fast (b-side of 'Sleep' 1995)
05 Waiting For No-One (from the 'Sleep' EP 1995)
06 The Collector (from the 'Sleep' EP 1995)
07 Down The Middle With You (b-side of 'Toys For Boys' 1995)
08 Changed For The Same (b-side of 'Toys For Boys' 1995)
09 The Late Gate Show (b-side of 'Let's All Go Together' 1995)
10 Chance (b-side of 'Time' 1996)
11 Speechless (b-side of 'Miyako Hideaway' 1998)
12 We Love Everything (b-side of 'Miyako Hideaway' 1998)
13 Minus You (b-side of 'Miyako Hideaway' 1998)
14 Promise Q (b-side of 'Miyako Hideaway' 1998)
15 The Present (b-side of 'Sparkle' 1998)
16 Journey To The Centre (b-side of 'Sparkle' 1998)
17 Psycho Killer (b-side of 'Sparkle' 1998)
18 Our Place (b-side of 'Sparkle' 1998)

Neon Hitch - Eleutheromaniac (2015)

In May 2014 Neon Hitch announced via a live chat that after almost four years she had parted ways with Warner Bros. Records, and that her 'Beg, Borrow & Steal' album had been scrapped. She also announced that she would be releasing a new album titled 'Eleutheromaniac', and that her mixtapes, 'Happy Neon' and '301 To Paradise' would be released to digital retailers on 20 May 2014. On 4 August 2015 she issued a new single, 'Yard Sale', which she said represented her moving forward and letting go of her past, with the yard sale being symbolic of her selling all her past belongings. In January 2015 she released 'Sparks' as the first single from 'Eleutheromaniac', and in March she released her EP '24:00' for free, as a surprise release, and which she'd recorded in 24 hours. The EP was followed in April by the digital release of 'Eleutheromaniac', the title track of her debut album, and in August by a new song titled 'Pussy PowR', which was made available on YouTube and for free download. In May 2016 she announced the official name of her debut album would be 'Anarchy', which was a different project than the previously mentioned 'Eleutheromaniac', and that this would be released on 22 July 2016. It was preceded by the lead single 'Please', and when the album appeared it did not include any of her previously released material, although it did include a remixed version of 'Freedom' from the 'Eleutheromaniac' sessions. With the scrapping of a second set of songs, Hitch finally released her debut album six years after first signing a record deal, and so to rescue all the work that she'd done up to that point, here is the scrapped 'Eleutheromaniac' album from 2015.   

Track listing

01 Yard Sale 
02 Freedom
03 Sparks 

04 Wall St. 

05 Fresh Out The Box

06 Warner Blvd.

07 London (feat. Jon Bellion) 

08 Eleutheromaniac 
06 Like Fruit
10 Salt & Honey
11 No Angels

12 Colors

13 I'm Doing Me

Various Artists - The Hitmakers Sing J. J. Cale (2021)

John Weldon (J.J.) Cale was born on 5 December 1938 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and was raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma, graduating from Tulsa Central High School in 1956. As well as learning to play the guitar, he began studying the principles of sound engineering while still living with his parents in Tulsa, where he built himself a recording studio. After graduation he was drafted into military service, studying at the Air Force Air Training Command in Rantoul, Illinois, where he learned a little bit about electronics, which he later used to create the distinctive sound of his studio albums. Along with a number of other young Tulsa musicians, Cale moved to Los Angeles in late 1964, where he found employment as a studio engineer, as well as playing in bars and clubs. He first tasted success that year when singer Mel McDaniel scored a regional hit with his song 'Lazy Me', and the following year he managed to land a regular gig at the increasingly popular Whisky a Go Go. It was the club's co-owner Elmer Valentine who rechristened Cale as J.J. Cale, to avoid confusion with the John Cale of the Velvet Underground, who had started to gain a reputation on the scene. 

In 1966 he cut a demo single with Liberty Records of his songs 'After Midnight' and 'Slow Motion', which they released as a single, and Cale distributed copies of it to his Tulsa musician friends living in Los Angeles, many of whom were successfully finding work as session musicians. In 1967 he returned to Tulsa, as he'd found little success as a recording artist in Los Angeles, and he couldn't make enough money as a studio engineer, so had to sell his guitar. In 1970 it came to his attention that Eric Clapton had recorded 'After Midnight' on his debut album after hearing it being played on his radio, and he finally started to make some money from his music. It was suggested to Cale that he should take advantage of this publicity and cut a record of his own, and his first album, 'Naturally', was released in October 1971, and it immediately established his style, described by Los Angeles Times writer Richard Cromelin as a "unique hybrid of blues, folk and jazz, marked by relaxed grooves and Cale's fluid guitar and iconic vocals". His biggest U.S. hit single was 'Crazy Mama', which peaked at No. 22 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1972, and this was later covered by Johnny Rivers, who had appeared at the Whiskey A Go Go at the same time as Cale. Over the next few years other tracks were covered by Lynyrd Skynyrd, Poco and Kansas, with the rest following over the years, until by 2021 every song from the album had a cover version, and here is a collection of the best of them.

Track listing

01 Call Me The Breeze (Lynyrd Skynyrd 1974)
02 Call The Doctor (John Faulk 2021) 
03 Don't Go To Strangers (Ali Claudi & Friends 1975) 
04 Woman I Love (Janos Huba Group 2014) 
05 Magnolia (Poco 1974)
06 Clyde (Dr. Hook 1978)
07 Crazy Mama (Johnny Rivers 1972)  
08 Nowhere To Run (Bo Fortin 2021) 
09 After Midnight (Eric Clapton 1970)
10 River Runs Deep (Romuald Slawinski 2016)
11 Bringing It Back (Kansas 1974)
12 Crying Eyes (Steve Gunn 2009)

And so ends this series, as I've exhausted the supply of suitable singer/songwriter's albums where every track has received a cover version. I really enjoyed putting them together, so if anyone has a suggestion for someone that I've missed then just let me know. The criteria is one album with all, or most, of the songs written by the artist, and with a large majority of them being covered by other artists. 

James Freud - China Crimes (1980)

James Randall Freud was born as Colin Joseph McGlinchey on 29 June 1959 in Melbourne, Australia, and his interest in music began before he even started school. This passion for music continued through to his teens, but despite his musical talent, his mother, Hannah, was against the idea. He later changed his name to James Randall Freud, and at the age of 17 he left home to pursue his career, and didn't contact her for over two years. Freud formed his first band, Sabre, at the age of 16, with high school friend and guitarist Sean Kelly and drummer Ian McFarlane, but after hearing the Sex Pistols' 'God Save The Queen' in 1977, Freud formed The Spred with Kelly, and three other members, followed by the glam-punk Teenage Radio Stars in late 1977. By early 1979, with ex-members of Colt, he formed James Freud & the Radio Stars with Murray Doherty on bass guitar, Roger Mason on keyboards, Glenn McGrath on drums and Bryan Thomas on guitar, and later Tony Harvey playing guitar and Mick Prague on bass. This line up plus various guest artists recorded the album 'Breaking Silence' between July and November 1979, with Tony Lugton and Peter Cook contributing before the completion and release in 1980. Many line-up changes later, they signed with Mushroom Records and their debut single, 'Modern Girl', was released in May 1980, peaking at No. 12 on the Australian Kent Music Report Singles Chart. They supported Gary Numan on his Australian tour, and he was so impressed by 'Breaking Silence' that he offered to produce an album for Freud in the UK. Because there was already a British band known as the Radio Stars, a name change occurred for Freud's backing band, who became known as James Freud & Berlin. In October, they released 'Enemy Lines' from 'Breaking Silence' as a single, followed by 'Automatic Crazy', produced by Numan, in March 1981. The promised album was recorded in London, and produced by Numan, but neither Freud nor Numan were happy with the final result, and so it was put on hold. A month later Freud disbanded the group, and the album was permanently shelved. In 1982, he joined Models as bass guitarist after the departure of Mark Ferrie, reuniting with old collaborator Kelly, remaining with the band until they split in 1988, and they are now the band with whom he is most associated. It's still nice to hear the music that he was making with Numan in 1980, before he progressed to the alt-rock of the Models, and so here is the unreleased 'China Crimes' album, with a subtly coloured and updated cover.   

Track listing

01 China Crimes
02 Imagination
03 Pretenses
04 Receiving Me
05 Shy Boys
06 Central
07 Over My Head
08 Rescue
09 Lies
10 Automatic Crazy

Salad - Palm Trees On The Moon (1997)

Salad was formed in London in 1992 by Dutch vocalist/keyboardist Marijne van der Vlugt, who had previously worked as a model, but rose to prominence as a video jockey for MTV Europe. Initially performing as The Merry Babes with her then-boyfriend and guitarist Paul Kennedy, the addition of Pete Brown on bass and Rob Wakeman on drums resulted in the creation of Salad. Songwriting duties were mainly borne by Kennedy and van der Vlugt, with significant contributions from Wakeman who was also responsible for sampling, and a distinctive part of Salad's sound was the inclusion of the Kawai K1 synthesizer, which was always present on stage next to van der Vlugt during live performances. The band's first two releases, the 'Kent' EP and 'Diminished Clothes', were released on their own Waldorf label, and gained them significant coverage in the music press, as well as the main support slot on Blur's Sugary Tea tour in late 1993. This led to a deal with Island Records, initially on the 'indie' sub-label Island Red, which released the 'On A Leash' EP in 1994, and their debut album, 'Drink Me', the following year, reaching No. 16 of the UK Albums Chart. Four of its tracks were released as singles, with 'Motorbike To Heaven' just missing out on a top 40 placing in the UK Singles Chart, and their next release was the non-album single 'I Want You' in 1996. Their second album, 'Ice Cream' came out in 1997, but failed to match the success of the first, and the band were subsequently dropped by Island and disbanded in 1998. Van der Vlugt later formed Cowboy Racer, whose song 'Yellow Horse' featured on the US television show, 'Grey's Anatomy', while Pete Brown and Rob Wakeman established the popular entertainment site, BoreMe, which Pete Brown now runs on his own, and Wakeman also released a few Tech House and Techno singles between 1999 and 2002. In 2016, Van der Vlugt and Kennedy began performing Salad songs acoustically as Salad Undressed, and by 2017 the original band had reformed and released a new Salad single in 2018 called 'The Selfishness Of Love', as well as a new album, 'The Salad Way', the following year. Considering that the band were only together long enough in their first incarnation to release two albums, it's astonishing that they managed to include three dozen non-album tracks on singles, EP's and b-sides in their short career, and so we need this 3-Disc set to collect them all together in one place. 

Track listing

Disc I - 1993-1994
01 Kent (from the 'Kent' EP 1993)
02 The King Of Love (from the 'Kent' EP 1993)
03 Heaven Can Wait (from the 'Kent' EP 1993)
04 Mistress (from the 'Kent' EP 1993)
05 Diminished Clothes (single 1993)
06 Clear My Name (b-side of 'Diminished Clothes')
07 Come Back Tomorrow (b-side of 'Diminished Clothes')
08 On A Leash (from the 'On A Leash' EP 1994)
09 What Do You Say About That? (from the 'On A Leash' EP 1994)
10 Planet In The Ocean (from the 'On A Leash' EP 1994)
11 Problematique (from the 'On A Leash' EP 1994)

Disc II - 1994-1995
01 Plank (b-side of 'Your Ma' 1994)
02 Open (b-side of 'Your Ma' 1994)
03 Kiss My Love (b-side of 'Drink The Elixir' 1995)
04 Julius (b-side of 'Drink The Elixir' 1995)
05 Diary Hell (b-side of 'Motorbike To Heaven' 1995)
06 I Am December (b-side of 'Motorbike To Heaven' 1995)
07 It's For You (b-side of 'Granite Statues' 1995)
08 Ici Les Amigos (b-side of 'Granite Statues' 1995)
09 Rip Goes Love And Lust (b-side of 'Granite Statues' 1995)
10 Roadsex (b-side of 'Granite Statues' 1995)
11 Dream A Little Dream (Salad & Terry Hall, from the 'HELP' charity album 1995)

Disc III - 1996-1997
01 I Want You (single 1996)
02 Fly In A Sheet Of Winter (b-side of 'I Want You')
03 Decade Of The Brain (b-side of 'I Want You')
04 Ugly Fashion Town (b-side of 'I Want You')
05 One In The Bag (b-side of 'I Want You')
06 A Size More Woman Than Her (b-side of 'I Want You')
07 Bridesmaid's Gimmicks (b-side of 'Cardboy King' 1997)
08 Down At Monty's (b-side of 'Cardboy King' 1997)
09 One Imitation Smile (b-side of 'Cardboy King' 1997)
10 Moon Above My Shoulder (b-side of 'Cardboy King' 1997)
11 Palm Trees On The Moon (b-side of 'Yeah Yeah' 1997)
12 Sleepwalking (b-side of 'Yeah Yeah' 1997)
13 Love Song (b-side of 'Yeah Yeah' 1997)
14 Party (b-side of 'Yeah Yeah' 1997)

Cassie - Dope 'n Diamonds (2012)

The second collection of unreleased tracks from Cassie is entitled 'Dope 'n Diamonds', and it's a collection of dark electro songs, with her icy-cool, detached vocals being immersed in stabbing synths, ice cream beats, heavy bass & tribal-jungle inspired production.

Track listing

01 Warning Shot (feat. M.G.K.) (Intro)
02 Leave You A Message
03 Fuck U Silly (feat. Nicki Minaj)
04 I'm A Lover

05 I Got One 2Night (Interlude #1)
06 I.V.
07 Can You Feel Me
08 I Need Love (feat. K-Young)
09 H.D.
10 Trying To Be Cool (feat. Chester French) (Interlude #2)
11 The Boys (feat. Nicki Minaj)
12 King Of Hearts
13 Gimme That
14 Swagga Like Puff (Interlude #3)
15 She Can't Love You
16 Look What U Done
17 Roc Boys (feat. Jay-Z) (Outro)