Main » 2011»May»18 » Sundragon - 1964-69 - Listen To The Sky - The Complete Recordings
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Sundragon - 1964-69 - Listen To The Sky - The Complete Recordings
Listen To The Sky is a fascinating journey through the changing musical landscape of the '60s as realised by a group of young musicians from Richmond, Surrey. Influenced by local heroes The Rolling Stones and The Yardbirds, they started out as The Others in 1963. Their guitarist had been kicked out of Hampton Grammar School for wearing his hair too long and they were soon signed up by the Bryan Morrison/Jimmy Duncan agency in London, home of The Pretty Things. With their R&B credentials in place, their first single was a respectable reading of the Bo Diddley staple "Oh Yeah" in 1964. Sadly, various band members were pressured into quitting the band and continiung their studies and the band was reborn with a more pronounced Who/pop-art influence, first as The Army, then as Sands. They were managed by the Marquee Organisation and enjoyed a residency at the esteemed London venue in late 1966/early 1967 before being snapped up by Brian Epstein and Robert Stigwood at NEMS who put them on stage at his one of their infamous Saville Theatre nights as support to Cream and Edwin Starr. By the time they came to record their next single, Sands had lost band members to the Jeff Beck Group and Procol Harum (then at number one!). Stigwood insisted they record "Mrs Gillespie's Refrigerator", a tune by his new darlings The Bee Gees but the B-side, "Listen To The Sky", is all their own work... with a little help from Holst's "Mars God of War" from The Planet Suite. Following Epstein's death, interest in Sands disappeared and half the band quit, leaving just two members to forge ahead as Sundragon. Signed to MGM and assigned to producer Derek Lawrence, they were convinced to cover The Lemon Pipers' recent US smash "Green Tambourine" as their debut and Sundragon's excellent version became a minor UK hit in 1968. This compilation have the original '60s releases by The Others, Sands and Sundragon.(R-O) 01 - Oh Yeah 02 - If You Don't Come Back 03 - Smokestack Lightning 04 - I'm Taking Her Home 06 - Mrs. Gillespie's Refrigerator 07 - Listen To The Sky 11 - Seventeen 12 - Peacock Dress 13 - Five White Horses 14 - Far Away Mountain 15 - Blueberry Blue 16 - Love Minus Zero 17 - I Need All The Friends I Can Get 19 - Empty Highway 20 - Look At The Sun 21 - Drivin' Drivin' Drivin' 22 - Bring Back That Love Again 23 - Hey, Hey, What Did You See LINK (RS) or LINK (FS)
