Surfadelic Presents: WANNA BE… PRETTY (60’s Garage teens pulverize The Pretty Things repertoire)

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Back in the 60’s if you wanna hear a real nasty ‘n’ wyld r&b beat you would go for The Yardbirds, Stones, Downliners Sect and yeah! The Pretty Things. This is collection of 60’s garage and beat bands all over the globe doin’ the Pretty’s stuff. Only one band, The Spoons is from 90’s. 28 trax of “pretty” garage rock action! Get the picture? Check some favs down there ‘n’ Dig!!!

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LSD

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THE PRETTY THINGS – The Electric Banana Blows Your Mind + Defecting Grey / Talkin’ About The Good Times

 

By the late ’67 The Pretty Things change their style from raw R&B freakbeat to psychedelia. In November 1967 they released “Defecting Grey” single produced by Norman”Piper”Smith, “An intense hallucinogenic roller coaster ride, with backwards sitars, fairground organs, pastoral trippiness and industrial strength corrosion fuzz blasts, all in the space of around 4 apocalyptic life-changing minutes. And the acid dazzled lyrics veer from playful to surreal to darkly disturbed without batting a heavily stoned eyelid.” This was followed three months later by a double A-side single, “Talking About the Good Times” / “Walking Through My Dreams” which marked the beginning of sessions for the S.F. Sorrow album. Released in December 1968.

“Blows Your Mind” is a compilation of recordings made for the De Wolfe sound library under the name The Electric Banana from 1967-1969. Here you can find some KILLER ace psych stuff as Eagle’s Son, Grey Skies, It’ll Never Be Me, Alexander, Love Dance & Sing, Blow Your Mind… If ya dig ”S.F. Sorrow” kinda psych then this is for you. Blow your mind !!!

 

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THE PRETTY THINGS – Vintage Years [Vinyl Rip!]

 

This is 2LP set compilation of Pretty’s ’65/’66 recordings, issued on Sire records in 1976. Here you got all of their classic rhythm ‘n’ blues influenced garage beat stuff as Don’t Bring Me Down, Road Runner, Come See Me, Rainin’ In My Heart, Honey I Need, Rosalyn, Can’t Stand The Pain, Mama Keep Your Big Shut, Gonna Find A Substitute, Midnight To Six Man, Buzz The Jerk, L.S.D… Maybe you wonder why you should dig this comp. after so many others, well I’ll tell ya. It has kinda different aural mix then other Pretty Things editions, maybe the best Pretty’s mid 60’s sound quality I’ve ever heard. It’s not my vinyl rip but hey… you should dig it anyway!

 

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THE PRETTY THINGS – Attention! vol.1&2 [Vinyl Rip!]

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This is re-post of two German 70’s compilations of Pretty’s ’64 -’66 recordings. I know, I know, you already have every Pretty Things comps and albums that can be found out there but… but these Germ slabs have pretty different, more ballsy full sound, so that’s the ‘selling point’ alright! Top UK 60’s Garage/Rhythm & Blues. Don’t Bring Me Down, Dig!!!

”You buzz around, but you don’t sting
You take a chance, don’t lose a thing
You move on out, then shake around
Now jerk!”

Attention! vol.1 : Don’t Bring Me Down, Road Runner, We’ll Be Together, Mama, Keep Your Big Mouth Shut, Judgement Day, Honey I Need , L.S.D, I Can Never Say, Big Boss Man, Come See Me, Big City, Oh, Baby Doll

Attention! vol.2 : Tripping, Buzz The Jerk, Death Of A Socialite, Gonna Find Me Substitute, The Sun, The Moon Is Rising, Photographer, Rainin’ In My Heart, Bright Lights Of The City, Can’t Stand The Pain, My Time, We’ll Play House

 

THE PRETTY THINGS – Defecting Grey/Talkin’ About the Good Times [67/68]

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By 1967. everybody went psychedelic so did the Pretties. There are a drastic changes in their sound from raw R&B punk to trippy side of rockin’ spectre. The Pretty Things signed to EMI’s Columbia label and recorded these two psych 7″ jewels that marked the beginning of SF Sorrow era of sound. Comparing to the Who or Stones adventures in psych, from my point of view The Pretty Things are way more trippier, natural and succesful inchange of their basicsound. Furthermore, these two 45’s are some of the best examples of 60’s UK psych.

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…Trip Trip Trippin’…

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THE PRETTY THINGS – Midnight To Six [1965]

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Collection of non-LP ’65 sides by the prettiest band in town. KILLER Garage R&B stuff with buzzin’ tunes as Come See Me, Rosalyn, Don’t Bring Me Down, LSD, Midnight To Six… Top-notch sound. Hey freak Get A Buzz!

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THE PRETTY THINGS – Get The Picture? [1965]

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Recording began on The Pretty Things’ second album in around September 1965, just months after the release of their debut. It ended up being a haphazard affair thanks to a growing problem with drummer Viv Prince whose behaviour was becoming ever more erratic and reckless. With Prince being unreliable, the band had help in the form of producer Bobby Graham who was a renowned drummer in his own right, playing on several tracks. John Stax’s flatmate John C. Alder helped out on at least two tracks, one of which was “You’ll Never Do It Baby” Jimmy Page also made a couple of cameos, receiving a partial writing credit on “You Don’t Believe Me.” The album did see the band starting to move away from the staunch R&B direction that dominated the first album, exploring more soulful areas as well as Freakbeat with much use of distortion on guitar and bass parts. [wiki]

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On their 2nd slab, Pretty Things moved up from raw R&B covers of their debut to more original Garage fuzz stuff as BUZZ THE JERK, GET THE PICTURE?, YOU DON’T BELIEVE ME, GONNA FIND ME A SUBSTITUTE or somehow slightly psychedelizied garage classic CAN’T STAND THE PAIN and fine folkrock of LONDON TOWN. Again, there are cool covers as thee best version of Rainin’ In My Heart [Slim Harpo], Cry To Me [Solomon Burke] or fine take on Cops’N Robbers tune You’ll Never Do It Baby. TOP Garage/R&B next to Downliners Sect or Stones and one of thee best rockin’ elpees of ’65. We’ll Play House, Dig!!!

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NOT SO PRETTY – 22 Bands From Around The World Salute The Pretty Things

The Pretty Things were one of the best UK 60’s garage/r&b groups next to Stones, Yardbirds, Downliners Sect or early Kinks. Their brand of raw’n’wyld r&b influenced many garage revival bands in 80’s & 90’s [remember The Crawdaddys or The Tell-Tale Hearts], so this here is kinda tribute collection with 22 Pretty’s tunes covered by NOT SO PRETTY ones. Get The Picture? Dig!