Obscure Singer-Songwriter LP's 1968-1973 | Acid Folk, Folk Rock, Psych |

[@Pluralofvinylisvinyls]

This was a great list. Never heard of any of these artists. ‘Welcome to the citadel’ isn’t cheap! The cover reminds me of that movie ‘The Fall’

[@vinylstockholm]

Thanks! I just love the cover art of Welcome to the citadel, so good. Haven't seen that film, I should check it out. Hope you found some new music you liked. Cheers!

[@aquatarkus2022]

My favorites are Keith Christmas, "Fable of the Wings" and Jimmie Spheeris, "Isle of View."

[@vinylstockholm]

Keith Christmas is great! I have his first album but not "Fable of the Wings". It's on my want list though. I just love the song Travelling Down from his first. Cheers!

[@paulbennett772]

Wow! A veritable blast from my past, Marc Brierley

[@vinylstockholm]

Very cool! Marc Brierley is great. Cheers!

[@snowyherge1549]

Superb posting- first time to check you out and I am delighted to find- great content! More please

[@vinylstockholm]

Thanks a lot, glad you dig it! Cheers

[@plophlegm]

Thanks! I've always been fascinated by that era's "singer songwriters", collecting albums at thrift stores, based on the vibe of the cover (pre-internet); these artists are all new to me, so I thank you! BTW, I have my own obscure album, Trees, "Sleep Convention", '82. It's out there now, like a wayward child, carving out a reputation. Again, thanks to efforts like yours, the singer songwriter can still be discovered.

[@vinylstockholm]

Hi, thanks a lot! I'll check out that Sleep Convention album. Cheers!

[@TheSixthBeatle-p9k]

This is way over Concert Characterless' head.....to him, Jim Croce is obscure.

[@vinylstockholm]

Haha, thanks for tuning in! :)

[@TheSixthBeatle-p9k]

@@vinylstockholm great video!

[@keithrh7599]

Always like to find music from that period that I have missed,this was very interesting and well organised with a study of sleeve,label,artist , accompanying musicians and excerpt of music.THANKS

[@vinylstockholm]

Hi Keith! Glad you enjoyed it. Peace!

[@Vinylfromtheunderground]

Ace showing VS!! That burns lp is fantastic. Reminds me of Duncan browne a bit. Love the Kunkel and quick lp too. Cheers

[@vinylstockholm]

Thanks! Yes, you're right. I love Duncan Browne, both his first on Immediate and second on RAK, two wonderful records. Cheers!

[@GreenManalishiUSA]

Great video, Jonas. I am fascinated by this topic. All of the artists that you featured are new to me. I collected many albums by obscure singer-songwriters from the 1960s and 70s, and honestly, many of them were quite forgettable. It seems as if record companies were signing just about any guitar-strumming song-poet they could find, in the hopes of landing a new Bob Dylan or Paul Simon. Nevertheless, a few artists whom I think stand above the crowd include: - Buzzy Linhart. Enjoyed moderate fame in the Greenwich Village folk scene, and as the co-writer of Bette Midler's hit Friends, but faded largely into obscurity by late 1970s. - Bill Puka. Recorded one album for Columbia in 1970, with a noticeable Laura Nyro influence. - Michael Wendroff. I can't find much information on this singer-songwriter other than he recorded at least four albums in the 1970s including the pleasantly MOR Southpaw, and that he sang backup vocals on Lou Reed's album Coney Island Baby. - John Buck Wilkin. Recorded one album of slickly-produced country folk: In Search of Food, Clothing, Shelter and Sex. I admit it; I bought it just for the title.

[@vinylstockholm]

Hi Ben! Thanks a lot. Comments with new recommendations like this is much appreciated. Many of these artists are new to me, I will check them out. Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@keithrh7599]

I only know JBW from the The American Dreamer soundtrack album but I like what he did on there

[@markbrooks7157]

I actually backed up Buzzy Linhart on bass once in the late 90's. He was in pretty sad shape.

[@ExplodingPsyche]

I loved Buzzy Linhart. Had all his albums and even saw him once in a small club in New York State, in the seventies. He should have been way more popular.

[@markbrooks7157]

@@ExplodingPsyche I backed him up on bass once in the mid 90’s. He was in bad shape then.

[@billstill1794]

Thanks for showing these - liked all of them! New sub!

[@vinylstockholm]

Awesome! Thank you Bill!

[@Papermac]

Thank you for this presentation. I will certainly check out the ones I don't know. I'm glad that you speak fondly of Marc Brierly. I never understood the negative review he got on Allmusic.

[@vinylstockholm]

Hi Peter, I have loved Marc Brierly a long time, especially "Citadel", but also "Hello" from the same year. Two great records. Thanks for tuning in. Peace!

[@smythharris2635]

Shelagh McDonald, Nigel Mazlyn-Jones, Robin Lent and Mike Cooper are worth a listen.

[@vinylstockholm]

Great suggestions! I know everyone except Nigel Mazlyn-Jones, will check it out. Thanks for tuning in and recommending!

[@johncrocker-nh7ey]

Just stumbled upon you I have subscribed and I enjoyed your videos you have certainly let me hear music that I'm not familiar with and I appreciate you giving samples of that music and I think he did a very good job Thank you again and can't wait to see you next video back where you

[@vinylstockholm]

Hi John! Many thanks for subscribing, there will be more content like this. Cheers!

[@TheVinylVoyage-ud3uf]

Great video 👍 Love that kind of thing too. Looking forward to seeing more videos!

[@vinylstockholm]

Thanks! There will be more 😎

[@Oakenshield69]

I took a chance on that Karen Beth album some time ago. Really like it. Interesting stuff, nice showcase! / Jens

[@vinylstockholm]

Hej Jens! Yes, it's a pretty cool one. Thanks for tuning in!

[@stephenlegg262]

Hi from Wales. Yes Robin Scott is the same guy from M.

[@vinylstockholm]

Hi! Yes, quite a big difference musically between his first record and "M". Thanks for tuning in!

[@dancingbear86]

Great video! Enjoyed it! I just recently bought the 2 reissued CDs of Marc Brierley on the Cherry Tree label. I also have the CD of the Robin Scott album on the Sunbeam label. Great stuff!

[@vinylstockholm]

Very cool! Two great CD:s. I also have the Marc Brierley CD. Thanks for tuning in, cheers!

[@marcus3518]

Grand stuff, thank you!

[@vinylstockholm]

Glad you enjoyed it! Cheers!

[@ExplodingPsyche]

Really interesting selection of singer songwriters, none of whom I've ever heard of. I'll have to check out whatever is available on KZbin. Good luck with your channel!

[@vinylstockholm]

Thanks a lot! I think they're all available on KZbin.

[@christopherkibler511]

Jonas, interesting video. I have heard of several, but don't own any of these albums. The Karen Beth might be the first one I look for, but also interesting that you referenced John Cale for a different album. Thanks, Chris

[@vinylstockholm]

Hi Chris! Yes, Karen Beth is quite easy to track down, and a good one. Thanks for tuning in!

[@tamirmoav3774]

thank you! very enriching!

[@vinylstockholm]

Glad you liked it! Cheers!

[@lashers]

Hello! This turned up in my recommendations and was a most interesting watch. I can firstly echo the suggestion of Nigel Mazlyn Jones; his first LP "Ship To Shore" from 1976 is well worth looking out for - I saw him perform at my university's folk club in that year and he was stunning, including the use of effects pedals similar to John Martyn. I would also suggest Tom Yates from the North-West of England; a friend of mine from the folk club turned me on to him. His first three albums Second City Spiritual (from 1967 as Thomas Yates), Love Comes Well Armed (1973) and Song of the Shimmering Way (1977) are all worth listening to. The music of both artists is available to be sampled here on KZbin.

[@vinylstockholm]

Many thanks! I know about Tom Yates but don't have any records (yet). His first has a very cool psychedelic cover if I remember correctly. I'll check them out again. Thanks for the recommendations!

[@anotherfatbeardedmantalkin5893]

Hi Jonas. Some interesting records there. I’m familiar with a couple of them. I’ve got a later Randy Burns album from 1971, called Randy Burns and The Sky Dog Band. It’s the same personnel, but they had ditched the psych folk and embraced country rock. It doesn’t have fiddle and pedal steel, but it’s still quite rootsy. I have to admit that I’m not a huge fan of the late 60s fey psych folk, it come across as a bit too twee for my taste. I’m definitely more of an Anne Briggs guy than Vashti Bunyan…(Although I enjoyed reading in Rob Young’s Electric Eden of her journey through England and Scotland in a gypsy caravan, on her way to live on a remote Scottish island owned by Donovan.) I tend to like a more rootsy sound. For example, unlike most people I don’t really like Mighty Baby’s first album, but but love their second, A Jug Of Love. I’m just odd that way. I’ve got an album on Tumbleweed by Danny Holden, who plays guitar on that Robb Kunkel record, which…You guessed it…Is a kind of a rootsy psych country rock record. Funny to think that shortly after Tumbleweed folded, Bill Szymczyk made his name producing the Eagles. Cheers - Hedley

[@vinylstockholm]

Hi Hedley! I like rootsy music too, but I definitely like the psychedelic side of folk more. Anne Briggs is on the edge of being too "folksy" for me, but there are certainly some beautiful moments, like Sandman's Song from her second. Don't have her records though. Vashti Bunyan is one of my all time favorites, her first LP and the story behind it can only be described as magic. I have also read Electric Eden, and the music reaches another level when you know about her journey up to the Hebrides. And Joe Boyd's production, and the arrangements by Robert Kirby. I can go on. Just love it. I also have the Danny Holden LP. It has some very fine moments. "Colorado" is great, like a soundtrack to Tumbleweed. Haha. Thanks a lot for sharing your thoughts and keeping the conversation going on. Cheers!

[@alperry7346]

great stuff!...tbank you...an album i recommend which i always loved is miller anderson "bright city" (1972)...and keith cross & peter ross "bored civilians" (1972)...

[@vinylstockholm]

Thanks! Two great recommendations. I love Cross and Ross, but it was a long time since I listened to Miller Anderson, I have to check him out again. Cheers!

[@Texeq]

The Randy Burns reminds me of Arthur Gee's first album on Tumbleweed Records. My favorite of the Tumbleweed label.

[@vinylstockholm]

Very cool, I don't have the Arthur Gee LP. Must check it out. Cheers!

[@friendlier]

The Karen Beth album is criminally unknown. Thanks!

[@vinylstockholm]

True! Thanks for tuning in 😊

[@marcsmirnoff936]

Totally agree.

[@AndrewHogarth-o8b]

Good to see some non mainstream vinyl presented. Keep up the interesting work

[@vinylstockholm]

Many thanks!

[@40isthenew40]

I enjoyed your video. I'm not familiar with these artists but I will definitely check them out. If you don't know the album Isle of View by Jimmie Spheeris (1972) please take a listen. It's great.

[@ulpana]

I'll enthusiastically second yer recommendation of Jimmie Spheeris to this loose category\time frame\pop lingo\default cult artist (redundant cuz all artists are cult artists until or unless some biz person markets their work or identity\persona. I got the 4 Jimmie Spheeris vinyls while working at a New\Used record shop called Amoeba in Berkeley, CA. Local community, jazz and adult format radio on non-commercial part of the dial had some DJ's that worked wonders with Jimmie Spheeris's genre-bending harmonics and lyrical poetics. It still hurts to think he died so young and at the hands of drunk-driver on night of July 4 (my least favorite holiday due to my mistrust of nationalism and the way our nation's nationalism is so intertwined with explosives and their enthusiasts). Wiki this for a fascinating yet succinct glimpse of a young creative that based on his creativity and family background would be very difficult to group with anyone else whose work has spoken to me in such personal and interior ways: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimmie_Spheeris To think that a son of Carny folk from the deep south would share an apartment and musical tastes with the Goddess in my pantheon of female recording artists, Laura Nyro, someone I so identify with a combination of soulful and sophisticated musical composition and improvisational prowess. Although, Laura Nyro sure seemed to like rehearsing down to the finer points of her and her vocal harmony singers' vocal harmonies and presentations from the stage and on her recordings, while keeping the instrumentation and herself at the piano quite loose and willing to explore beyond repetitive arrangement....) Soulful dreams Health and balance Tio Mitchito Mitch Ritter\Paradigm Sifters, Code Shifters, PsalmSong Chasers Lay-Low Studios, Ore-Wa (Refuge of Atonement Seekers) Media Disc-US-sion List\Looksee

[@vinylstockholm]

Hi, thanks for the tip. I know that album, but it's been a long time since I heard it. I'll listen again. Cool cover too :) Cheers!

[@nigelcampag1290]

Been a bit slow catching up on this vid but got there in the end. Awesome selection, most I'm familiar with (all in the Discog wants) but only own Karen Beth. Brierley is high on the wants. You're right about the Tumbleweed label...some very worthy releases on it (love Arthur Gee) although I'm still missing the Kunkel. A SSW lp I recently bought that I really like is Alan James Eastwood - Seeds. I was just randomly looking at the President label on Discogs and spotted this release which I hadn't heard of. Listened to the title track and it blew me away. Title track is very much Richie Havens in style but that's no bad thing. It's not a solid lp but it's still a nice listen throughout. Cheers Nige

[@vinylstockholm]

Thanks Nige! I'm not familiar with Alan James Eastwood, but it sounds interesting. I have to check it out. I'll start with the title track. Thanks for the recommendation and for tuning in! Cheers!

[@nigelcampag1290]

@@vinylstockholmWell worth checking out mate. I wish the rest was as good as the title track but there's certainly one other great track with sitar that I think you'd appreciate as well. Cheers Nige

[@brianorakpohit]

Enjoyed that thanks. Will listen to your recommendations. Off the top of my head a record by Ora (rec 1968, rel 1969) on Tangerine might be of interest and is of similar ilk.

[@vinylstockholm]

That's a rare one! I don't have it, only on my want list 😊 Thanks for tuning in and recommending!

[@Harrispilton22]

Ok that a heap of obscurities right there! Apart from heavy metal (which i'll never like) These are probably the only genres ive got minimal knowledge of. I always think the folk/psyche is something I would enjoy. I love Fairport & John Martyn's 'Bless The Weather; is one if my favourite albums ever. I had a mix compilation called 'The Trip; by Bob Stanley which had some incredible stuff. like 'I Dont care' by Marsha Maramet & 'Happiest Day Of My Life' by Queens Annes Lace,. Its all just too expensive. May go for a few more comps.

[@vinylstockholm]

Hi Harris! Fairport with Sandy Denny is just great. That Trip comp sounds interesting, comps are great way to explore the genre and find new artists. I will check out some of it from that. Cheers!

[@seekingathread]

great feature Jonas. Randy Burns is one I would still be hoping to find. Know the lp, at least the ESP pressing. The Robin Scott is the one I'm most interested in acquiring since I have the first Mighty Baby and really love it. I had the reissue of the Brierley but sold it, I dig enjoy it though and the brass were actually a welcome addition. I also used to have the Robb Kunkel but sold it as well. Was a little inconsistent to me but nice moments. And haha, don't think I made it past the first track on that Karen Beth. Gonna have to track that one down again. Thoughts on the Goldberg "misty flats" record? like it?

[@vinylstockholm]

Members from Mighty Baby played on so many record from that time. I could do a video just about records they appeared on. Great band! I hadn't heard Misty Flats, but it sounds great. I had a couple of Michael Yonkers LPs in my wantlist, added Misty Flats now. Thanks for the tip :)

[@heavybliss]

All killers, no fillers! Peace ✌ ☮ 🕊

[@vinylstockholm]

Yes, for sure! Peace!

[@MaxCardwell-y7k]

Yes it was a random thing . Had a sense about it . She comes over as a kind of joni Mitchel who went relatively under the radar

[@rocketpost1]

I didn't really know what to expect here Jonas but I didn't expect to have heard of none of the artists...maybe I've just forgotten them. Albums that came to mind include Al Stewart's Bedsitter Images, Shawn Phillips' Second Contribution or maybe anything by Michael Chapman or Roy Harper. Possibly these aren't obscure enough. I liked your selection and also liked Karen's Beth's voice. My only reservation is your advice to skip tracks. If the artist thought they were good enough to include on an album, then I'm going to listen to them. If you don't like certain tracks Jonas, it doesn't follow that others will also dislike them.

[@vinylstockholm]

Hi, Bedsitter Images is great, especially the closing track Bleeka Doodle Day is a fave for me. Roy Harper is also great. I have Shawn Phillips' Second Contribution, but it was a long time since I listened to it. Have to do it again. I totally get your point about skipping tracks, of course you should listen and make up your own mind. But when it comes to the first track on the Karen Beth's LP, it's so different from the rest of the album that I'd think the record label insisted on including it, to get a hit or something. So in that case I thought my advice was justified. But overall you are absolutely right. Thanks for commenting and recommending artists!

[@markbrooks7157]

Do you know the album by MIJ on ESP Records? Late 60's weird acid folk singer. Only made 1 album. Would fit right in.

[@vinylstockholm]

Absolutely! I know it, but don't have it, it has some nice songs. PsycheDerek did a video about it in the Acid Archives series: kzbin.info/www/bejne/pYewpWycaKmXoLM

[@suzannelawson9215]

I don't have this Randy Burn's album but have a different album. I think he has a really good voice!! I do have that Karen Beth album. I like some of the songs, not all songs, but an unusual voice and I do like the cut you played. She has other albums and I do have a few cassette tapes of hers that are nice. I liked Marc Brierley's voice, the little I heard of the song but didn't care for the arrangement, horns, etc. An obscure American female folk singer from Massachusetts, USA had two folk albums in the earlier 60's by the name of Dayle Stanley you might want to listen to. Both her albums can be found to listen to on KZbin. She does a stunning cover of the song called "Shenandoah.." I also love her songs called, "Letter from the Willow Tree" and song "'After the Snow."

[@vinylstockholm]

Hi, thanks for the tip about Dayle Stanley, sounds interesting. I will definitely check her out. Thanks for tuning in and recommending!

[@suzannelawson9215]

@@vinylstockholm I would be interested to know your thoughts after you have a chance to listen to the two Dayle Stanley albums. She only had those two albums and both were never released on CD's. I met her ex-husband once, in the early 1980's when I was visiting a friend in Massachusetts. Steve also wrote some of the songs she sang, tried to help her in the music business. His name, Steve Scotti. Dayle passed away several years ago and Steve has passed away too. He did tell me, and I still remember the conversation about it. He said Dayle had the chance to have become very successful at the time, lots of interest in her from clubs she did perform in, (in the early and mid 1960's, and he totally supported her music (they were married at that time) but she was very shy and didn't want to go out on the road, etc and pursue the music business and all that it entails.

[@MaxCardwell-y7k]

Hi a few years ago I found a judee sill cassette in a Junk shop . Worth anything ?

[@vinylstockholm]

Very cool find! I love Judee Sill. I have no idea if it's worth anything, but if you have a cassette player, play it and enjoy it. Cheers!

[@Pluralofvinylisvinyls]

Which album? Probably get decent money for it if you don’t want it

[@dennishickey7194]

Check out Patrick Sky and Paul Gerimia from this era.

[@vinylstockholm]

Thanks for the tip, I will check them out. Cheers!

[@rikstrange662]

Try a cat from LA in 70’. His name is Philamore Lincoln. Heavy production that will blow your mind. Always on the prowl for new material. Dig your scene. 🖖🚀

[@vinylstockholm]

Hi Rik! Thanks! If you mean Philamore Lincoln who did the LP "The North Wind Blew South", I have it and I love it! Great one. But maybe you mean someone else, he was British I believe. I subscribed to your channel, Perfumed Gardens, sounds like my style! Thanks for tuning in. Cheers!

[@rikstrange662]

@@vinylstockholm Well thank you for the sub. Yes it’s the American artist.

[@rikstrange662]

Sorry I meant to say the UK born artist who did his thing in LA.

[@vinylstockholm]

@@rikstrange662 Ok, that is a great one. Jimmy Page is rumored to play guitar on that record.

[@rikstrange662]

@@vinylstockholm I do believe you’re correct on that note. I was turned onto him by my young apprentice and copilot. He’s the next generation picking up the musical mantel. About 40% of my lps shown are from his suggestions. He’s very cool and with it. Be well. TIL the Twain Shall Meet. 🖖🚀 Rik

[@ulpana]

Some fahcockta algorithm thought I'd be interested in your posts to U. of Tube, Jonas, and in this case Al GoRhythm was correctamundo. Also love your writing and presentation style along with these artists and clearly hipper than me base of reader\listener support dating back to the Vinyl Age and festishistas of that geo-logical aural epoch! I'm mid-60's age and had a hefty Vinyl Age library I shlepped across North America seeking a stable gig that would allow me to pay the spiraling rents. Wage Stag-Nation did me in along with most of the so-called developed world that over decades since the 1960's have been concentrating all human wealth with little regard to the subject matter of these mostly idealistic idyllic indulgers of escapism and part of the pacification machinery of our personally indebted Debtor Nations and HIGH FINANCE or HI FI Feudal Lords that made those turntables of RCA and Philips spin. I will be listening carefully to every post Jonas and others from generally more culturally attuned Scandinavia. Fact is that despite my sizable vinyl and later smaller discs and traded self-blendt cassettes and mix tapes various, I've not heard the majority of recording\performing artists named by you and the even more interesting sounding artists referenced by the knowledgeable listeners contributing terrific comments below and above. I've had relatives in Canada that I've visited from my yoot who also turned me on to cultural stuff (books, records, indie films, theater and a very dry style of stand-up comedy) that never got much media exposure here in United States of Amnesia (thanks to Gore Vidal for that truism). One I'd like to hear you or readers comment on that doesn't quite fit in Acid Folk or Acid Jazz genres and is more of a blue collar Foster Home Drifter bard troubadour of what author Batya Ungar-Sargon (she is also an Op-Ed editor at Newsweek magazine) now calls the SECOND CLASS as the title of her new book on the immaterial MUDDLE CLASS by now reflects of social critiques and observations in a Studs Terkel kind of oral his\herstory of the past half-century of WAGE STAG-NATION, Food Stamp Nation, Financialization, Privatization, De-Regulation (or willful lack of enforcement of the few regulations that remained on the books after the Neo-Liberal E-CONomics bid-net model was so warmly embraced by the Social and Militaristic Neo-Conswervatives). Meanwhile, Wealth Concentration abetted by Bank Secrecy legislation and the soaring homeless rates of even the Working Class cuz Real Estate is among the great magnets of money-laundering and tax avoidance of often mobbed-up and HI FI'd up ill-gotten gains and hoarded non-investment capital from White Collar crime: www.city-journal.org/article/review-of-second-class-by-batya-ungar-sargon Struggling, Floating, Rising by Aaron M. Renn May 14, 2024 "Batya Ungar-Sargon’s portrait of the working class contains useful policy prescriptions." "Second Class: How the Elites Betrayed America’s Working Men and Women, by Batya Ungar-Sargon" (Encounter Books, 232 pp., $29.99) The Canadian foster home drifter laborer, merchant marine with acoustic guitar and access to Vancouver and BC's studio and performance scenes who so impressed me with his only 2-3 albums of fine inner-ear lit muses small combo and acoustic ensemble interplay was Bob Carpenter: www.canuckistanmusic.com/index.php?maid=718 "Silent Passage Reprise - 1975 by Mike Milner "Guitarist Bob Carpenter was a Canadian folk singer and songwriter active in the early 1970s. Carpenter was born and raised in the North Bay area of Ontario but is generally associated with the West Coast. Although not well known, even during his performing years, he was well respected by his peers, with artists such as Emmylou Harris and Billy Joe Shaver recording his songs. "His early years are somewhat murky. When he was two, his family split up and Carpenter grew up in foster homes. He would later join the navy, but was discharged for mischievous conduct while drunk on leave in Edinburgh. He would eventually make his way to Toronto, and like many other Canadian 'folkies' - Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, and Gordon Lightfoot to name a few - he started out in the city's bustling Yorkville neighbourhood in the mid-sixties. "In 1970, he somewhat mysteriously appeared at a farewell party for the Festival Express, the cross-country drugs-and-alcohol-laced rock and roll adventure that featured, among others, Janis Joplin, the Grateful Dead, the Band, the Flying Burrito Brothers and Ian and Sylvia's Great Speckled Bird. Carpenter's performance was impressive enough to merit special recognition in Rolling Stone. "After the final Festival at Calgary, a young guitarist mysteriously showed up at the York Hotel where the farewell party was taking place," Rolling Stone's correspondent wrote, "and with the deep and painful voice of some Ancient Mariner performed songs of unbelievable dignity. No one knew his name. He said: 'It doesn't matter the kind of music I play. Your mind sort of melts and becomes that one place of beautiful bliss which is the only place to be.'" "Carpenter did some demos in Toronto in the early seventies with Neil Young's producer, David Briggs. He also spent time with Briggs in Southern California, hanging out with the likes of Spirit and Buffalo Springfield, and taking in local live acts like Taj Mahal, the Byrds and Flying Burrito Brothers. In 1972, Carpenter, then 26 years old, spent the winter in a remote cabin in British Columbia. When he emerged, he started performing his new songs to rapt audiences, becoming as one record company bio described him a "familiar figure with the Canadian coffee-house circuit". He signed a contract with Warner Brothers in 1974, which led to recording sessions in Los Angeles with noted Canadian producer Brian Ahern. The result was the cult classic LP, Silent Passage. "For the recording of Silent Passage, Ahern had assembled a first-rate group of musicians to support Carpenter. Among them, there was Little Feat's Bill Payne and Lowell George on piano and slide guitar, respectively, and guitar ace Buddy Cage on pedal steel. Session musician-extraordinaire Lee Sklar supplied bass and Russ Kunkel helped out on drums. Emmylou Harris, Dianne Brooks and Anne Murray (yes, our Anne Murray) supplied backing vocals. "On listening to Silent Passage, it seems one could not have found a more sympathetic musical partner than Ahern. The production is not lush, but the instrumentation provides support and context to Carpenter's sparse guitar and vocals. His voice has to be heard; the gentle intensity and sincerity is stunning. Comparisons do not come easily. Perhaps one can detect a hint of Harry Chapin here and some Bob Dylan there, but really, Carpenter was his own man, and these are his songs. "He was not at all a technical singer. But the songs on Silent Passage were written to provide a vehicle for the stories he wanted to tell, and the ability to tell those stories through his own voice was his strength. Although all the tracks are outstanding, the title cut simply knocks it out of the park. 'Silent Passage' is a meditation on wanderlust and self-discovery, which Carpenter delivers in his typically fragile, achy vocal. It is a wonderful tune, in which he sings of his need to travel, only to realize in the end that "it's only coming home that brings you near [and] it's only coming home that brings the tears". "For whatever reason, Silent Passage was not issued at the time (though a few copies on Reprise did manage to slip out). But Carpenter had his supporters, and in 1984 the album finally saw the light of day, thanks to Holger Petersen and his Canadian label, Stony Plain Records. It has since been reissued on CD and again on vinyl. "Carpenter was a very spiritual person, and it seems in the years after the recording of Silent Passage, he decided to move on from the music business to pursue a more religious life. He died quite tragically and far too early to cancer when he was only 50. I am a very recent convert, and so I admit I may lack objectivity. But Silent Passage really is extraordinary and the music on it definitely deserves recognition." Thank you reviewer and folk-lorist of muse-laden Second Class citizens that emerged from our rather short span of Middle Class opportunities represented by these Northern Americas, by now the wealthiest if most stratified continents on earth as the poverty porn of our Empire Cities, States and Provinces reveal when scanning the return to Great Depression Normalization of Homelessness and mostly BUST rather than BOOM TIMES (that used to be regulated by an unwritten Social Contract, long since torn to shreds by our Corporate Overlords and Oily or Uranium or Water\Air\High Tech Lords of Cyberia and hyper E-CONS of extraction and Wealth Management Portfolios for the few and bread, circuses and Weapons of Mass Distraction provided by Daddy Warbucks' weekly Wage Slave and Privately Contracted National Security States of de-industrialized paternalistic welfare and calorically calculated Supplemental Nutrition Allowance Program or SNAP (as in Food Stamp Nation) allowance to pacify the kinder of crushed bodies and spirits in the wreckage of celebratory Uber Continents of natural resources to extract. Mitch Ritter\Paradigm Sifters, Code Shifters, PsalmSong Chasers Lay-Low Studios, Ore-Wa (Refuge of Atonement Seekers) Media Disc-US-sion List\Looksee

[@vinylstockholm]

Hi! That was quite a comment, I must say! 😂 Nice to hear that the "Al GoRhythm" worked and I'm glad I could introduce some new artists for you. Bob Carpenter, Silent Passage is new to me, sounds like a very interesting artist and story behind his record. I will definitely check him out. Thanks for the tip!

[@2ridiculous41]

Head Records was run by John Curd who later became a promoter and was responsible for much of the spread of punk music round Britain as Straight Music. I used to work there.

[@vinylstockholm]

Very cool! Thanks for sharing this info, I didn't know. Cheers!

[@edwardtmarsh884]

E.S.P. -- ESP.... ESP!!!! Like "Extra Sensory Perception....

[@vinylstockholm]

Hi, you are not the first to point this out. I mixed up the letters. Cheers!

[@spacecaptain87]

The album by Karen Beth is quite nice indeed. Oh, and yes, do skip the first track....

[@vinylstockholm]

Haha, yes it's great. Thanks for tuning in!

[@jeffwilliams196]

ESP Disk.

[@vinylstockholm]

I know I mixed up these letters. Thanks for pointing that out.

[@mrneds1]

I really hoped I’d like this, but mainly their lack of success was pretty understandable. Most artists from this period had one good song and a lot of soundalikes.

[@vinylstockholm]

I agree that a lot of singer songwriters from that time don't measure up. But there are also many good ones, and I really like the ones I've shown. Too bad you didn't dig them. They can't be for everyone. Thanks for sharing your views. Peace!

[@mrneds1]

@@vinylstockholm you too. I'm not saying that you're doing a bad thing !✌️

[@peteradams6574]

play the music best songs and share it audio thanks...p i dont know any of these...lov rare stuff..

[@edwardtmarsh884]

OKAY -- I theoretically agree that ol' TIM is NOT obscure... but walk down the street & ask 35 folks if they know who TIM BUCLEY was & I'll bet maybe 1 or 2 (3?) of 'em will claim to be familiar with him. It's the traditional "shove in the back of yer vinyl discs for listening when one gets around to it." Am I wrong? To me, this IS functionally "obscure" & the fact that his son became a 'nova' star in the nineties helped elevate TIM out of his obscurity... a little. But --you must agree-- TIM was still thought of as JEFF's father rather than a '60s-'70s star in his own right. I used to see TB in metro Boston, from time to time, in various dive bars where one could walk in with 3 or 4 other people & get a front-row table with NO fuss!!! Whatta shame! TIM was fronting in this time-frame a 6 or 8 piece jazzy group which played transcendent music the likes of which ONLY TIM BUCKLEY could've written. It got to the "Hi, ED" stage from TIM off the cruddy riser where the group was situated, given a whole new meaning to the word "jam", if you will. The last place I experienced this wonder was in a bar off Comm. Ave. just east of Boston College. One would've thought TB would've packed the house, but --sadly-- no. ***Speaking then of really obscure, how about another ESP Disk recording genius by the name of ED ASKEW? Your humble, ETM

[@vinylstockholm]

Hi again! Yes, I completely agree, if you go out in the muggle world, he is obscure. And thanks for sharing your all your stories, really interesting to hear from someone who met him. And, of course, he's a fantastic artist! I know about Ed Askew and heard it a few times, but I don't have the LP. Cheers!

[@edwardtmarsh884]

TIM BUCKLEY. . please, for gosh sake!

[@vinylstockholm]

I don't consider Tim Buckley to be an obscure singer songwriter. He's pretty well know. And this video is about a few obscure singer songwriters. For gosh sake! 😉

[@Pluralofvinylisvinyls]

Have you ever heard of Bob Dylan? Very obscure but you should Check him out

[@instantparty8856]

Couldn't really hear any "Acid Folk" in this lot.., just singer songwriters some good, some should remain obscure?

[@vinylstockholm]

Yes, they're first and foremost singer songwriters for sure. But I think on some tracks they go into more acid folky territories. And I think they're all good! Cheers!