ILLES Es Pofonok orig 69 Hungarian Beatles pop psych LP

$

55

If there ever were a band who got cheated out of worldwide fame because of where they lived, it has to be Hungary's ILLES.  In their native land, they were the biggest thing since sliced bread dumplings - the Beatles of Budapest, for sure - and went on to release many albums, all worth picking up.  This one was their third, I believe, from 1969, titled "Illesek es Pofonok", and if you're taking my "Beatles of Budapest" thing as seriously as I hope you are, then this could be seen as their Sergeant Pepper - or Sergeant Popov as the case may be.  Both albums begin with sound effects - Illes' begins with a locomotive - and while there's no "Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" theme song on Illes' LP, the opening number is VERY similar to "With A Little Help From My Friends", a bouncy statement of purpose by the band that's probably sung by the Illes' own equivalent of Ringo.  "At Night I Remember" follows a few songs later, and it's a TERRIFIC piano-led psychedelic creeper with the echo FX on 11 - might remind you a bit of a little number called "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds" - and ends with the sound of a phone ringing and the footsteps of someone walking over to answer it.  This leads into "The Story of M.", which features the most blatant Beatles rip so far (although not for Sergeant Pepper).  Check out that raw bluesy guitar riff and compare to the one in "Don't Let Me Down" - it's REAL close - but since Illes write such great melodies, if they wanna keep using the Fab Four for inspiration, I say god bless 'em.  And they do.  "Answering Your Letters" begins with some people-on-the-street conversation, then it's a straight magic carpet flight to the Maharishi's palace on a bed of Indian instruments, mystical 3-part harmonies and stoned, blissed-out vocals.  If this WERE a Beatles LP, this one would almost certainly be George's contribution.  "Ad Man" is another overlooked, unknown popsike MASTERPIECE that any self-respecting fan of the genre would fall in love with instantly.  It's a terrific pounding tune with a killer spy flick riff, decked out with some very Pepperish horns and Lennonesque distorted megaphone vocal break.  Imagine "Lucifer Sam" rewritten for the soundtrack of "Yellow Submarine", the Eastern European answer to "Hey Bulldog".  And if it all sounds too good to be true, then you'll begin to understand why this band is such a hidden treasure trove of popsike gems.  Anyone into the mystical psychedelia of the Electric Sitar Headswirlers series of compilations would LOVE something like "Two Years Are Not Very Long", which floats along on a cloud of Indian instrumentation, heavy tribal drums and soaring John Lennon vocals.  I can't figure out why Illes albums aren't more widely known and respected - and I keep coming back to the thought that, if these songs weren't sung entirely in Hungarian, they just might be.  But don't let the language barrier deter you - this is some of the finest psychedelic pop music of the 60's that doesn't bear the "Lennon-McCartney" credit.  How about "Lendvai-Makkai"?  Original 1969 pressing on the Hungarian Qualiton label.  Cover's in VG++ shape  - real cool groovy psychedelic cover too.  Vinyl has very light scuffs, plays VG to VG+ with the standard crackle and pops you find with most European pressings - it doesn't help that there are 8 songs on each side and the grooves are very close together.  Still, the music obliterates most of the surface noise, and this is a rather well-preserved album.  Winning bidder pays $4.00 shipping in the US, $8 air mail to Canada, $14 everywhere else.  Paypal, Bidpay, cash, checks and money orders accepted.  Please check out my other auctions for more vinyl obscurities, and I will combine shipping costs on multiple wins.