acid folk BRUCE MACKAY 1967 vinyl ESP LP NM awesome

$

45

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Bruce Mackay - self-titled album in stereo on ORO-1 (stamped matrix reads ESP 1069). Incredible album for several reasons. I had to look closely to make sure this was not a reissue (but I learned that this album was never reissued on vinyl) - it's not, heavy vinyl, typical rough ESP jacket and stamped matrix in dead wax told me this was an original 1967 pressing (date on back of jacket).

Notwithstanding Richie Unterberger's lukewarm (see below) review (I think he completely missed the boat on this one), I find this to be quite an amazing LP. What makes it acid folk in my book are the smokey, detached vocals which often lead into impassioned singing, often a bluesy or dreamy ambience; unusual mix of instruments (piano, organ, flute, drums, guitar, bass, etc.) and the length of the songs (all in the 4-6 minute range). It's rough around the edges but yet most of the musicianship is excellent - this isn't primitive in the way the Godz (the epitome of amateurish) or even the Fugs were.

Amazing thing about this album #2: (and what led me to believe at first this was not a 1967 pressing); all songs listed on side 2 label; side 1 is a custom photo label (see below); that had to be 10 years or more ahead of its time.

Unterberger's review portrays Mackay as a Dylan-Donovan clone. There are some Dylan influences here, that's true, such as on the excellent Geneva Brown - but that song also incorporates early Blues Project who I think is more of an influence on Mackay than Dylan. I also hear a lot of Phil Ochs in Mackay, a bit of Tom Rapp (Pearls Before Swine) and maybe a little bit of early Floyd.

Amazing thing about this album #3 - the second song on Side 2 - "This Song About a Railroad Shack" - is The Doors "Roadhouse Blues" , I couldn't believe the bass riff when I first heard it... man, I thought to myself, this is all too familiar.... I know this song. But it took me about 30 seconds to place it. This album came out in '67, Roadhouse Blues? 3-4 years later I believe. Roadhouse Blues is one of my favorite Doors songs (I don't have many favorites by them, not my favorite group by a long shot). Chuck Raney plays great bass on this tune (I would think that's the same as Chuck Rainey but credited without the 'i' on this LP). You gotta hear this to believe it.

Record Grade: Near Mint

Cover Grade: Mint-

Labels: Custom photo (side 1); white and black (side 2)

Tracks:

• In the Misty - Eyed Shores of Morning
• Geneva Brown
• The Half-Masted Schooner
• The Girl of Stone
• This song About the Railroad Shack
• Feet of Clay
• So Little it Seems

  About the Artist (All Music Guide review): by Richie Unterberger

  Although the ESP label is most known for its far-out free jazz and wacky rock bands, it also made a few bids at recording folk-rock in the last half of the 1960s, albeit folk-rock of a somewhat off-kilter kind. In addition to Pearls Before Swine, there was Randy Burns and the even more obscure Bruce MacKay, who did an album for the company in 1967. The self-titled LP combined elements of Bob Dylan (in the free-associative rambling wordplay), Tim Buckley (in the reverbed guitar lines), Donovan, and the aforementioned Pearls Before Swine without adding up to anything substantial. The long-winded songs tend to drift along interminably, without enough melodic interest and lyrical insight to spark, let alone maintain, interest. It branches out a bit beyond the usual folk-rock guitar/organ instrumentation with some flute, brass, and (on "The Song About the Railroad Shack") a dueting woman vocalist. The ESP ethic comes into play with ragged timekeeping and execution, implying that the songs were either somewhat improvised or not given much, if any, of a polish in the studio.

  About Chuck Rainey: by Ron Wynn

  No other instrumentalist is more widely associated with soul, pop, funk, and R&B, yet highly respected by jazz musicians, Chuck Rainey's been a star electric bassist since the '60s. While Jaco Pastorius and Stanley Clarke featured flashy, blistering playing and approached electric bass as if they were improvising on a guitar, Rainey's forte has been a heavy, steady pulse and vigorous support, fitting into a rhythm section and locking onto a groove with a vengeance. Rainey studied violin, piano, and trumpet in his youth, then moved from Youngstown to Cleveland at 21. He played electric guitar and bass in various R&B bands, then joined King Curtis' group in New York during 1964. Rainey's done hundreds of recording sessions since then, but has also done a fair number of jazz dates. He played with Jerome Richardson, Grady Tate, Mose Allison, Gato Barbieri, and Gene Ammons in the late '60s and early '70s, as well as with Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson at the 1971 Montreux Festival. Rainey toured and played that same year with Aretha Franklin. He moved to Los Angeles in 1972, and worked there with the Crusaders and Hampton Hawes, and recorded with Donald Byrd, Sonny Rollins, and John Handy in the mid-'70s. Rainey recorded in Japan with Hiroshi Fukumura in 1978. He's made two rare dates as a leader for Cobblestone in 1971 and for Hammer n' Nails in 1981. Neither is around today, but Rainey can be heard on many discs by Franklin, Curtis, Rollins, and others.

  MY GRADING SYSTEMS: I’ve been told that I grade conservatively. My NM (near mint) is my highest grade for opened records (which would also include unplayed records). It’s a 9 or 10 on a 1-10 scale. M- would be equivalent to an 8; VG++ to a 7; VG+ to a 6; VG to a 5; VG- to a 4; G to a 3; F to a 2 and P to a 1. The same scale applies when I grade covers (jackets). Significant defects are specifically noted and taken into consideration in the grade.

  GRADING DESCRIPTIONS

  
  RECORDS:
  • GRADING Grading is based on the following criteria
  • Sealed = store stock new
  • Near Mint = like new or near new with only one or two small insignificant defects, a 9 or better on a 1-10 scale
  • Mint- = extremely nice. Would be Near Mint, except for a couple of light hairlines or scuffs, which do not affect play
  • VG++ = still a very nice record with all or nearly all of its original gloss but may have a few more light, surface marks, hairlines, needle tracks or the like which should not materially effect play
  • VG+ = a nice, but used record that may have a series of light scuffs or scratches. It probably plays with a few pops, but has no serious problems.
  • VG = a well-used record that still should sound OK when played, but may have moderate surface noise, pops, etc.
  • VG- = a very well-worn record that plays through without skipping, but will do until a better copy comes along.
  • Good = not actually good at all but probably will play through but with much in the way of surface noise, pops, crackles, etc. Still, will have no cracks, chips or the like
  • Fair = you’re getting this record just to own but not to play
  • Poor = the sky’s the limit, generally I will discard a record this bad (and sell the cover, jacket or sleeve alone) unless the label holds some particular interest

    VISUAL GRADING: All records are visually graded only unless I state that they are play-graded. Some labels such as RCA, Capitol, Colpix, Atlantic, MGM were pressed on better quality vinyl and will sound better than a record which visually appears the same on labels such as Crown, Score or Design. Recording techniques also varied. The sound on live albums may be far inferior to studio recordings. There may also be defects in the pressing which are invisible. The point is that an album on RCA graded VG+ may sound far better than an album on Crown graded Near Mint. I have no problem issuing a refund if you are dissatisfied with the sound on a record as long as it’s requested as per my stated return policy below. But please don’t be shocked if a record visually graded Near Mint doesn’t sound state of the art. If I base my grade on a PLAY GRADE, I will state this specifically in my grading section.

    COVERS: There are really too many possible defects regarding covers to be as specific in my definitions as I had been with my record grades. But please keep in mind these general grading guidelines:

    • I will give greater weight to the condition of the front cover than back cover when assigning an overall grade
    • No cover with a cut out hole or saw mark will be graded Near Mint even if it is still in factory shrink and there is no other wear
    • I will not reduce the grade of a cover for stickers which are glued to the jacket by the record company (eg. Contains the hit song Expressway to Your Heart); but will reduce the grade for stickers glued on the cover by stores, previous owners, etc.
    • If I write that a cover has a bb hole, I’m talking about a small cut out hole
    • A saw mark is a narrow cut in the perimeter of the cover, could be anywhere and vary in length from 1/2” to 2” at the most.
    • The overall grade takes into consideration any stated defects. For example, if I grade a cover VG+ and then state it has 6” top and bottom seam splits - I’ve already reduced the grade because of the seam splits. If the seams weren’t split, the cover would be graded higher such as VG++ or Mint-.

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