JOHNNY BLACKBURN MARY LAUREN Private Press Psych LP

$

355

JOHNNY BLACKBURN & MARY LAUREN (TN) "Echoes of Love's Reality" 1981 (Wind's Eye Music jb-5463) Despite the 80s recording and release date, this album has a wonderful mid-70s acid folk vibe. The two voices blend together beautifully, and the occasional fuzz guitars give the music an appealing floating quality. It's dreamy and occasionally meandering, kind of like a lazy day at the park. The only obvious 80s nod is the use of string synthesizers. Unlike 80s rarities like Alshia or Child's Art this one just plain sounds good. The neat arrangements include oboe, a unlikely but wholly effective instrument for this type of music. There's not a lot of melodic variety; it's a long album that maybe could have been trimmed a bit, but that's a minor complaint. This is a good one. Most copies are missing the large booklet, which may have been sold separately from the album (it was not included inside sealed copies). [AM] ~~~ Most would probably agree that this is one of the very best psych-style LPs from the 1980s. Not retro at all but (like Bobb Trimble) a piece of the late 1960s preserved from time's rust. Male/female vocals lament and serenade "the quest for knowledge of love and beauty" in an appealing soundscape, with lyrical guitar leads throughout, good use of mellotron, occasional tablas, flute and bells. The recording has a definite 1981 sound but (again like Bobb) this somehow becomes an advantage. The vocal blend is superb and may recall Anonymous and Bermuda Triangle, while the wistful mood and beautiful melodies is a bit like British band Ithaca or the melodic sides of Seventh Dawn. Moments such as "Beautiful Dreamer" go truly deep and there's not a questionable song on it. Obviously superior to "collectable" 1970s hippie couple albums like Susan & Richard Thomas, this is recommended to anyone open for a folkpsych trip inside the melancholy and bliss of romance; starry-eyed as a Valentine Day card written on LSD. [PL] Thats what the Acid Archives has to say about this incredible record. I love both Bobb Trimble lp's and the Jeff Eubank record but I like this album even more than those. This album is just sublime and very dreamy sounding. I wish that someone would reissue this, its an amazing record. - The vinyl grades NM and looks flawless. The cover grades VG to VG+ Lower right hand corner has a promo cut. Upper right hand corner has a 4 inch split seam. The spine is in fine shape. The back cover has some light ringwear. To the left of the sun on the graphics is a shooting star that looks like ringwear but is not, just to clarify. Last copy of this sold for $375 a few months back here on ebay just to give you an idea of how rare this lp is. Thank you for looking and be sure to check out my other record auctions up this week. Unless sealed, I ship records outside of the sleeve to avoid seam splittage during transit. Paypal only please. Buyer is expected to pay within 5 days of auctions end. Add $7.50 for Insurance. Shipping costs as follows: $4.00 Media Mail Shipping in the US, $8.50 Priority Shipping in the US, $7 Shipping to Canada & $14.00 Worldwide Shipping. US buyers, I can combine shipping on up to 5 records media mail for $4. Combined Priority shipping is $1 each additional record. Overseas customers, add $2 shipping for each additional record you purchase. I ship in standard cardboard record mailers w/ padding, no amateur pizza box shipping here. Good luck and happy bidding. Please feel free to ask me any questions, I'd be happy to answer them for you.