Joe_Stax
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Side Long Songs...Well, there's always In A Gadda Da Vida, but what are some of the side long tracks you've dug?
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JimENight
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Okay I've got two that spring to mind:
First, and far and away the best ever side-long piece is John Mayall's Bare Wires Suite. I discovered that one in college - there was a time that I had unlimited access to one of the music libraries at my University and someone had purchased a respectable amount of blues and progressive rock albums from the late 60s/ early 70s. I would take albums home with me and keep them for an entire semester at a time. I recall many late Saturday nights in the wee hours lying in my dark room (sometimes the bed was spinning) while floating to the groove of Bare Wires. I highly recommend this to anyone - if you have not heard it, make this your next CD purchase (I've seen it on Amazon for like 9 bux, new)!
The other side-long album that I really dug once upon a time is side two of the self-titled album by Fields (ca. 1969). It's on the Uni label. I came across this album a few years back and picked it up because I was curious if it had any connection to the 1966 group, The W.C. Fields Memorial String Band which had one single on the HBR label called Hippie Elevator Operator (it's kinda novelty, but more of a groove than an annoyance). Anyway, if you get a chance to check out the self-titled album by Fields, I recommend skipping directly to side 2; it's a stone groove.
p.s. this side-long song called Love Is The Word was featured on Lost Discs #97 on June 18, 2004. I will have to upload this show to our archive soon...
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Astrakhan
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Have you heard of the Corporation? They seem to be pretty obscure, and only put out a single album on Capitol in 1969.
However, the second side of their self titled album is their version of the John Coltrane tune India. The band really effects a powerful blend of jazz and rock for a piece that keeps you intrigued throughout. It's jazz-rock, but without the dreadful indulgence that label usually implies.
This album remains elusive, but worth listening to if you can find it. The German Repertoire label reissued it a few years ago, and it may still be available.
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Joe_Stax
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How about Sister Ray by the Velvet Undergroud? A challenging number, but well cool.
It's not a full side, but it's close; there are only two songs on the side!
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Joe_Stax
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This one's just kinda weird. I don't know if I like it or not yet, but it's an album of two side long tracks...
The band's Beat of the Earth, and each side is titled This Is An Artistic Statement (parts 1 & 2, natch).
They're really just jams, with (I'm guessing) improvised lyrics shouted out every so often. The mastermind of this was a guy named Phil Pearlman, who'd had some singles out earlier in the 60's as a part of Phil & the Flakes.
Side 1 isn't bad, but I don't know how often I'll be in the mood to come back to this.
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