STARS OF BEARDS 10 UK underground classics

2024-04-01 -

Tomorrow

(Parlophone

PMC 7042

(Mono) PCS

7042 (Stereo),

UK, 1968)

£500/450

Tomorrow initially suffered from the year’s delay between recording and release – seemingly missing the psychedelic boat. But while the life of the band may have been curtailed, Tomorrow can lay claim to a seminal psychedelic album that blends Steve Howe’s embryonic guitar chops with British garden-fete psych plus an excellent proto-metal version of Strawberry Fields Forever.

The Deviants

Ptooff!

(Underground

Impresarios

IMP1, private pressing via IT magazine, UK,

1968) £400

One of the earliest albums to emerge from the UK underground and one of the most political. With its proto-punk aesthetic, Ptooff! sees an enraged Mick Farren stoking the revolutionary fire with his lyrical offensive. The Deviants’ ride may have been bumpy, but their debut remains a hippie call to arms.

Pink Floyd

A Saucerful

Of Secrets

(Columbia SX

6258 (mono),

Columbia

SCX 6258

(stereo), UK,

1968)

£600/£400

The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn may be a more obvious choice, but

A Saucerful Of Secrets tips the balance with its shift from Barrett’s childlike psychedelia to Waters’ dark protoelectronica. Aside from Jugband Blues, Barrett’s idiosyncratic farewell, Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun, and the title track map out new terrain and make this album an underground must-have.

The Edgar Broughton Band

Wasa Wasa

(Harvest SHVL 757, UK, 1969) £170 As with most of the Ladbroke Grove bands, it is the debuts that pack the hardest punch and while Wasa

Wasa doesn’t feature their most famous track, Out

Demons Out, it demonstrates the same level of punk-inflected garage rock and aggressive protest, all the more powerful with Edgar Broughton’s brusque-blues vocal.

Third Ear

Band

Third Ear

Band, aka

Elements

(Harvest

SHVL 773,

UK, 1970) £60

The second album from the musical collective featured only core members, utilising oboe, strings and percussion for their folk-ambient aesthetic. Comprising four experimental pieces, The Elements is a radical departure from the guitar-heavy sounds of the other underground bands.

Quintessence

(Island ILPS

9128, UK,

1970) £90

Quintessence’s second selftitled album sees them setting out their spiritual stall from the off with Jesus, Buddha, Moses, Gauranga. Very much of its time, it nevertheless moves away from the pervading underground garage-rock into a new age frame, blending

Eastern ragas with jazz and an improvisational bent.

Twink

Think Pink

(Polydor

2343 032, pink lyric insert, UK

1970) £500

Twink’s solo outing – in between his time with Pretty Things and Pink Fairies – stars a who’s who of the Ladbroke Grove underground including Steve Took, Mick Farren and two Pretty Things. A cornucopia of styles, this is a psych-rock classic featuring the wonderful The Sparrow Is A Sign.

Pink Fairies

Neverneverland

(Polydor 2383

045, printed

PVC outer, gatefold card inner, in yellow bag with photos and notes, UK; plus c.100 pressed promo in pink vinyl 1971) £200/£800

Opening with the punk classic Do It, Never-neverland heralds the philosophy of the underground – action. Musically, Pink Fairies’ debut is a mix of heavy blues, garage rock and improvised extrapolations. Featuring Twink and The Deviants (sans Farren), this is an era-defining moment.

Hawkwind

In Search

Of Space

(United

Artists UAG

29202, foldout door sleeve with logbook, UK,

1971) £150

With Robert Calvert now part of the inner circle, Hawkwind’s space-rock credentials were firmly in place. Opener You Shouldn’t Do That immediately sets out their stall, mixing traditional rock with electronics; band classic Master Of The Universe also features. A seminal album in the world of progressive and space-rock from the ultimate hippie band.

Steve

Peregrine

Took’s

Shagrat

Lone Star

(Captain Trip

Records, CD,

Japan, 2001)

£15

During their short tenure, Shagrat never managed to release a long-player. With music from their various different line-ups, Lone Star appeared almost 30 years after the band split and contains almost everything the band recorded including Boo! I Said Freeze and demos recorded a year later.