KHAN — Space Shanty (1972) RM | SHM-CD | Three Version | APE + WV + FLAC (image+.tracks+.cue), lossless

Almost stereotypically overreaching early-'70s progressive rock, with quasi-operatic vocals, spinning guitar solos, and lengthy suite-like tracks on the order of "Stargazers" and "Hollow Stone (incl. Escape of
the Space Pilots)." The highlight is Dave Stewart's effervescent organ work during the gentle and meditative passages. Richie Unterberger

Tracklist :
1 Space Shanty


2 Stranded

3 Mixed Up Man Of The Mountains
4 Driving To Amsterdam
5 Stargazers
6 Hollow Stone
7 Break The Chains
8 Mixed Up Man Of The Mountains (First Version)
Credits :
Bass, Vocals – Nick Greenwood
Drums – Eric Peachey
Guitar, Vocals – Steve Hillage
Organ, Piano, Marimba, Celesta [Skyceleste] – Dave Stewart

ARZACHEL — Arzachel (1969) Two Version | FLAC (image+.tracks+.cue), lossless

Take off your shoes, socks, turn off the lights, shut all windows and blinds and turn up your amplifier to 11... here comes some pure progressive psychedelia. ARZACHEL were in and out of the world of music for only a short period and have left behind this one and only little treasure of wonderful wierdness. ARZACHEL was really the young genius of Steve HILLAGE (guitars) and Dave STEWART (keyboards) and although never really intended for wide distribution has become one of the most collectible and trasured gems of this era. ARZACHEL contains classic HILLAGE acid guitar windouts and Dave STEWART's psychedelic keyboard drones and solos. ARZACHEL contains 2 longer length tracks (11 & 17 Mins) and 4 shorter numbers. The sound repro is as you might expect not in full digital, but does not detract from your listening enjoyment. The fine folks at Drop Out Records have included a nice little history and package about this band as well... Progarchives
Tracklist :
1    Garden Of Earthly Delights    2:44
Songwriter, Arranged By – Clive Brooks, Dave Stewart, Mont Campbell, Steve Hillage

2    Azathoth    4:22
Songwriter, Arranged By – Clive Brooks, Dave Stewart, Mont Campbell, Steve Hillage
3    Queen St. Gang    4:26
Written-By – Keith Mansfield
4    Leg    5:41
Songwriter, Arranged By – Clive Brooks, Dave Stewart, Mont Campbell, Steve Hillage
5    Clean Innocent Fun    10:28
Songwriter, Arranged By – Clive Brooks, Dave Stewart, Mont Campbell, Steve Hillage
6    Metempsychosis    16:51
Songwriter, Arranged By – Clive Brooks, Dave Stewart, Mont Campbell, Steve Hillage
Credits :
Bass Guitar, Vocals – Njerogi Gategaka (Mont Campbell)
Drums – Basil Dowling (Clive Brooks)
Lead Guitar, Vocals – Simeon Sasparella (Steve Hillage)
Organ – Sam Lee-Uff (Dave Stewart)

GONG — Flying Teapot (Radio Gnome Invisible, Vol. 1) (1973-1996) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Produced by Giorgio Gomelsky, notable for his work with the Yardbirds, Brian Auger, and Magma, this relatively early Gong project is a great representation of the Daevid Allen-era Gong. Though not as intricate as its follow-up companion piece, Angel's Egg, The Flying Teapot is more of a true prog/space rock outing, where hippie-trippy lyrics and space whispering abound, as evidenced in the opening track, "Radio Gnome Invisible." The following cut, "Flying Teapot," is the sprawling highlight of the album. At times reminiscent of some early Weather Report jams, though not as jazzy, the tune features prominent bass, standout percussion/drums, and space whispering courtesy of Smyth. Improvisational groaning and percussion bring this jam to a close. "Pothead Pixies" is a fun pop (pot?) tune which probably received very little, if any, airplay due to the lyrics, followed by Blake's brief synth interlude, "The Octave Doctors and the Crystal Machine." "Zero the Hero and the Witch's Spell," another lengthy composition, features Malherbe's sax playing, which, at this early point in the Gong evolution, is credited for most of the jazz sounds heard in the music (remember, Pierre Moerlen has yet to join the band). This cut becomes quite heavy near its end before making a clever transition into the final cut, "Witch's Song/I Am Your Pussy." Here you hear Smyth's strange, sexually explicit lyrics, which she embellishes with ethereal voicings and cackling. This, combined with a jazzy sax from Malherbe and some very groovy musical lines near the closing, make for another fun tune. David Ross Smith 

Tracklist :
1.     Radio Gnome Invisible 5:32
Written-By – Daevid Allen
2.     Flying Teapot 11:51
Written-By – Daevid Allen
3.     The Pot Head Pixies 3:02
Written-By – Daevid Allen
4.     The Octave Doctors And The Crystal Machine 1:51
Written-By – Tim Blake
5.     Zero The Hero And The Witch's Spell 9:37
Written-By – Christian Tritsch, Daevid Allen
6.     Witch's Song, I Am Your Pussy 5:08
Written-By – Daevid Allen, Gilly Smith
Credits :
Bass, Piano – Francis Bacon
Congas – Rachid Whoarewe
Design [Cover Design] – Dingo, Maggie, Tom Fu
Drums, Percussion – Lawrence The Alien
Flute, Tenor Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone – The Good Count Bloomdido Bad De Grass
Guitar – Stevie Hillside, The Submarine Captain
Guitar, Vocals – Dingo Virgin
Vocals [Spacewhisper], Organ – The Good Witch Yoni
Synthesizer, Vocals – Hi. T. Moonweed

GONG — Angel's Egg (Radio Gnome Invisible, Vol. 2) (1973-2015) RM | Mini LP SHM-CD Universal Japan | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

The companion piece to The Flying Teapot, Angel's Egg is not your usual progressive rock album. Very quirky, with many, mostly brief compositions, the album is a tad less spacy than Teapot, with just a few psychedelic-inspired lyrics, and it's very technically adept. Angel's Egg opens with a true space rock cut (one of the few on the album), filled with the usual Gilli Smyth space whispering and Daevid Allen voicings, then leads into the cleverly titled "Sold to the Highest Buddha," with Steve Hillage and Didier Malherbe prominent figures. The instrumental "Castle in the Clouds" finds Hillage coming into his own, with a sound identical to his solo work. "Givin' My Love to You" sounds like a bar song, with no music and a cluster of seemingly drunken fellas trying to sing. The instrumental "Flute Salad" gives way to "Oily Way," a showcase for Malherbe's jazzy flute. "Inner Temple," an instrumental space rock track, moves along with a jazz edge, provided by Malherbe's sax. The final three tracks are the real highlights on Angel's Egg. "I Never Glid Before" is a fantastic prog rock tune, replete with blistering Hillage solo, primo Allen lyrics and vocal, and the precise percussion of new bandmember Pierre Moerlen. This eclectic composition travels through several movements and time changes, and comes across as a perpetually progressing piece. The imaginative and jazzy "Eat That Phone Book Coda" brings the album to a close. David Ross Smith  
Tracklist :
1.     Other Side Of The Sky 7:40
Written-By – Allen, Blake
2.     Sold To The Highest Buddha 4:25
Written-By – Allen, Howlitt
3.     Castle In The Clouds 1:09
Written-By – Hillage
4.     Prostitute Poem 4:53
Written-By – Smyth, Hillage
5.     Givin' My Luv To You 0:42
Written-By – Allen
6.     Selene 3:38
Written-By – Allen
7a.     Flute Salad 2:09
Written-By – Malherbe
7b.     Oily Way 3:37
Written-By – Allen, Malherbe
8.     Outer Temple 1:09
Written-By – Hillage, Blake
9.     Inner Temple 2:34
Written-By – Allen, Malherbe
10.     Percolations 0:46
Written-By – Moerlin
11.     Love Is How Y Make It 3:26
Written-By – Allen, Moerlin
12.     I Niver Glid Before 5:37
Written-By – Hillage
13.     Eat That Phone Book Coda 3:09
Written-By – Malherbe
Credits :
Bass – T. Being Esq
Drums, Vibraphone, Marimba – Pierre de Strasbourg
Glockenspiel – Mirielle de Strasbourg
Lead Guitar [Lewd Guitar] – Sub Capt Hillage
Producer – Gong
Synthesizer, Vocals [Lady Voce] – T. Moonweed
Tenor Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone, Flute, Vocals [Bi-Focal Vocal] – Bloomdido Bad de Grass
Vocals [Local Vocals Aluminium Croon], Guitar [Glissando Guitar] – Dingo Virgin
Vocals [Space Whisper & Loin Cackle] – Shakti Yoni

GONG — You (Radio Gnome Invisible Vol. 3) (1974-2015) RM | Mini LP SHM-CD Universal Japan | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

You is the final installment in Gong's legendary Radio Gnome Trilogy, and it marks an important turning point for the band. By 1974, the psychedelic hippie/folk-rock element of the sound that was leader Daevid Allen's most important contribution was beginning to disappear. In its place was a more sophisticated musical vision that owed as much to jazz-rock fusion as to fellow space rockers like Pink Floyd and Hawkwind. Ironically, this is Gong's most "spacy" album, full of extended, ethereal passages that would inspire future generations of space rockers. The sound was equally defined however, by the jazzy flights of saxophonist Didier Malherbe and the sinuous rhythms of bassist Mike Howlett and drummer Pierre Moerlen (the band would eventually become the fusion-oriented Pierre Moerlen's Gong). Allen's songs still provide a crucial link to the rest of the trilogy, though the conceptual/mythological aspect is less crucial to You. Rovi Staff
Tracklist :
1.     Thought For Naught 1:30
2.     A P.H.P.'s Advice 1:37
3.     Magick Mother Invocation 2:11
4.     Master Builder 6:09
5.     A Sprinkling Of Clouds 8:42
6.     Perfect Mystery 2:25
7.     The Isle Of Everywhere 10:21
8.     You Never Blow Yr Trip Forever 11:24
Credits :
Bass Guitar – Mike Howlett
Illustration [Scandalous Mandalous On The Back] – Daevid Allen
Lead Guitar – Steve Hillage
Percussion – Benoit, Mireille, Pierre Moerlen
Synthesizer [Moog And EMS Synthesisers], Mellotron [Mellowdrone] – Hi T Moonweed
Vocals [Vocal Locust], Guitar [Glissandoz Guitar] – Dingo Virgin
Voice [Poems], Vocals [Spacewhisper] – Shakti Yoni
Voice [Wee Voices], Backing Vocals [Chourousings] – Bambaloni Yoni
Wind [Wind Instruments], Vocals – Bloomdido Bad de Grass
Written-By – Gong

GONG — Shamal (1975-2015) RM | Mini LP SHM-CD Universal Japan | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Between Daevid Allen's departure from the band and Pierre Moerlen's official takeover of the band, there is Shamal. This transitional album contains none of the Allen-inspired psychedelia, but also very little of Moerlen's jazz influence. Shamal is, for the most part, a progressive rock album, half vocal, half instrumental. Its most accessible tune, the opening "Wingful of Eyes," had the potential for airplay if only it hadn't been so lengthy. Penned by Mike Howlett, his not-so-great-but-appealing vocal style and lyrics will grow on you, given the opportunity. "Bambooji," mostly instrumental, opens with Didier Malherbe's flute, which at times gives this tune an Asian sound. Percussion and flute dominate and yield a Scottish feeling as well. "Mandrake" is the soft, laid-back piece on the album, followed by the closing title cut, a slight foreshadowing of the sound Pierre Moerlen and company assumed on the next several albums. Moerlen, an outstanding, classically trained drummer/percussionist, along with Jorge Pinchevsky on violin color this piece with a Mahavishnu Orchestra hue, although it's still distinctly Gong. David Ross Smith
Tracklist :
1.     Wingful Of Eyes 8:19
Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar – Steve Hillage
Written-By – Howlett
2.     Chandra 7:16
Lyrics By – Howlett
Music By – Lemoine
Violin – Jorge Pinchevsky
3.     Bambooji 5:21
Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar – Steve Hillage
Violin – Jorge Pinchevsky
Vocals – Miquette Giraudy
Written-By – Malherbe
4.     Cat In Clark's Shoes 7:45
Violin – Jorge Pinchevsky
Voice – Jorge Pinchevsky
Written-By – Malherbe, Howlett, Lemoine
5.     Mandrake 5:07
Written-By – Moerlen
6.     Shamal 8:58
Violin – Jorge Pinchevsky
Vocals – Sandy Colley
Written-By – Malherbe, Howlett, Bauer, Lemoine, Moerlen
Credits :
Bass Guitar, Vocals – Mike Howlett
Violin, Voice – Jorge Pinchevsky
Drums, Vibraphone, Tubular Bells – Pierre Moerlen
Marimba, Percussion [Assorted], Glockenspiel, Xylophone, Gong – Mireille Bauer
Piano, Organ, Synthesizer [Mini-moog] – Patrice Lemoine
Producer – Nick Mason
Tenor Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone, Flute [Bamboo, C&g Flutes], Gong – Didier "Bloom" Malherbe

GONG — Gong Est Mort (1977-2015) RM | 2 Mini LP SHM-CD | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Live album recorded during the first « Gong reunion » in May 28, 1977 in Hippodrome de Pantin (Paris), organised by Jacques Pasquier. The classic Gong line-up with founder Daevid Allen didn’t exist anymore at this date, but reconvened for this event, which also featured all bands formed by ex or current Gong members : Daevid Allen with Euterpe, Didier Malherbe’s Bloom, the « official » Gong led by Pierre Moerlen, Mike Howlett’s Strontium 90, Tim Blake’s Crystal Machine, Steve Hillage’s band etc…
When the newly created label Tapioca announced they will release the Gong recording of this concert, Virgin interjected by legally trying to prevent the release of this album, saying the band and name Gong was signed to Virgin, as well as other artists like Steve Hillage. In an attempt to sabotage the release of the Hippodrome concert, Virgin also quickly compiled live tapes of Gong and issued the Live Etc. album in August 1977, including many pictures of the Hippodrome concert on the insert sleeves ! As a reaction, Daevid Allen and Gong freaks invaded the Virgin offices in London, claiming that Gong belonged to no-one. Eventually, Tapioca was able to release their Gong Est Mort album in September (or November ?) 1977. Though as a side-effect of the dispute with Virgin, Steve Hillage could not be credited on this recording and his face was blanked on the inner gatefold picture. web
Tracklist 1 :
1.     Can't Kill Me 7:59
2.     I've Been Stoned Before / Mr Longshanks / O Mother 06:42
3.     Radio Gnome Invisible 03:01
4.     Zero The Hero & The Witches Spell 10:03
5.     Flute Salade / Oily Way / Outer Temple 10:26
(0:38:13)
Tracklist 2 :
1.     Inner Temple (Zero Meets The Octave Doctor) 05:54
2.     IAO Chant & Master Builder 06:49
3.     Sprinkling Of Clouds 04:24
4.     From The Isle Of Every Where To The End Of The Story Of Zero The Hero 12:18
5.     You Never Blow Your Trip Forever 10:27
(0:39:54)
Credits :
Bass [Souper Bass] – Mister T. Being
Drums – Le Pere Cushion De Strasbourger
Guitar [Glissando Guitar], Vocals [Chant] – Bert Camenbert
Guitar [Uncredited] – Steve Hillage
Mixed By – Christian Gence, Daevid Allen
Saxophone [Saxo Selmer], Flute [Float] – Bloomdido Bad De Grass
Synthesizer, Keyboards – High. T. Moonweed
Vocals [Space Whisper] – Shakti Yoni