The premise for this latest collection of cover versions released by UK vinyl specialist label FRUITS DE MER RECORDS was to set matters straight for 60’s band The Hollies. As the label states on their homepage: “The Hollies – Manchester’s answer to The Beatles, and a bloody good answer at that. Great songs, great vocals, great band – so why are they so massively underrated?”
While I can’t claim to be overly familiar with this band myself, at least the songs presented on this album does showcase a band that most likely is deserving of more attention. It’s unfair comparing this material to The Beatles however, while I do hear quite a few similarities to the Liverpudlians it would appear that The Hollies didn’t have their uncanny feel for chorus lines sticking like glue and recurring themes with a universal appeal. But for fans of 60’s rock with a psychedelic touch it would appear that The Hollies is a band that merits an inspection. At least if these revised versions of their material is a fair representation of their output.
I understand that this particular project started out as a 4 track EP project. By the time it was finalized the 4 track EP had turned into a 4 track bonus single supplemented a full length vinyl album. Which, I guess, documents that the artists involved either had an existing fascination with this band or developed it when exploring their material following the invite to become involved. A development I guess merits an interest in this release for that particular reason alone.
The album itself isn’t among the ones I’d place on the top shelf of Fruits de Mer releases however. The label’s history of releasing good quality productions remains also with this item however, it’s a case of a few more instances of nice material and a few less of the spectacular this time around.
In the bread and butter department this time around Beautify Junkyards take on Butterfly kicks off quite nicely, a smooth and melancholic affair light in tone and spirit. Auralcandy’s version of Heading for the Fall is a pleasant affair with piano and organ as the main identity elements adding a slight The Doors vibe to the otherwise subtly Beatlesesque territories explored, followed by The Bevis Frond taking on Hard Hard Year as a slowly paced, easygoing affair lightly flavoured with psychedelic guitar details. Us and Them gives us the second run through Butterfly, and while different in expression this piece appears to be difficult to recreate in a truly spectacular fashion, at least as I perceive this piece. A nice, smooth and delicate composition, but not of the gossebump-inducing kind. Smooth midpaced rock based around vocals and acoustic guitar is the case for King Penguin’s Dear Eloise too, with some nifty raga flavouring expanding the dimensions of this piece quite nicely. And when Langor concludes this production with Everything Is Sunshine, they do so in a nice and elegant manner, utilizing piano and organ with careful psychedelic touches provided by the guitar.
The remaining tracks are all subtly more intriguing, with a few cases of sheer brilliance thrown in for good measure. The Seventh Ring of Saturn adds raga tendencies and droning textures to the otherwise Beatlesesque All the World Is Love, an effective mix that should find favour amongst a majority of people with an interest in psychedelic music. Jay Tausig also opts for raga and sitar details, alongside psychedelic flavoured guitar details, for his take on Elevated Observations. Hi-Fiction Science opts for more of a minimalistic initial take on King Midas in Reverse, building up quite nicely into an impressive instrumental ending that elevates this piece into something spectacular. and continuing with a secoind piece of minor magic, The Re-Stoned transforms Then the Heartaches Began into a piece that wouldn’t have been out of place on a Hawkwind album, albeit with slightly more of a punk attitude in this case. And when sampled voices and effects have outplayed their initial roles, the bubbly electronic sounds that dominate Moonweevil’s take of Bus Stop is a fascinating encounter concluding side A of this 12 inch slab of vinyl.
The Gathering Grey kicks of the B side with an energetic run through Postcard, light in tine and spirit but maintaining a strong momentum, variation by effective use of Mellotron and light psychedelic flavouring. Gentle rhythms, a nifty bass motif and careful psychedelic guitar details are effectively combined for Sky Picnic’s take on Try It, while The Neutron Drivers actually reminds quite a lot of Madness when they explore Water on the Brain, prior to shifting gears for a splendid psychedelic stomping finale that is. The Higher State appears to have taken a time machine and traveled back in time to a studio in the 1960’s someplace for their rendering of Don’t Run and Hide, a song that comes across as a true to life time piece more than anything and a very well made one at that. And finally The Electric Stars proves the worth of a sticky chorus and verse line with Jennifer Eccles, perhaps not the most impressive standalone track at hand but one that will etch itself into your brain and stick like glue.
All in all another good quality production courtesy of Fruits de Mer, and while these guys generally sell out their releases almost as fast as tickets for Led Zeppelin reunion concerts, a general advice for this one would be that those with a particular interest in 60’s psychedelic rock should take note of this album. Alongside, for natural reasons, fans of The Hollies.
My rating: 75/100
