John's Children - Smashed Blocked! (1968 - basicly)

The only reason most people have ever even heard of this band is because Mark Bolan was briefly a member. Which is to bad realy, because the future Mr. T-Rex only released one song with the band ("Desdamona", not on this album), before leaving the band to once again continue on with out him. What ever most of John's Children's better songs didn't need Bolan's squabbly munchkin voice.

The band was more like a hare-kiri Who. Or, better yet this is what I whished The Who sounded like if more of their meterial was up to "My Generation" standards.

Ok so thay sound like a lot of other British Mod-Psych bands like Tomorow or The Smoke. The few songs with Bolen in the mix are a bit more hippy-dippy-ish, but don't get me wrong their still good, especialy "Mustang Ford" which could have been a Bo Didley cover had I known better.


A good point of reference is the bands manager, Simon Napier-Bell who also briefly managed The Yardbirds. Napier-Bell even got Jeff Beck to play a little guitar solo on the single "But She's Mine." There are some week points (the track "Strange Affai" is an unlistenable toss-off that sounds like the theme song to "Are You Being Served"), but there are more than enough stone-cold killers. The track "Smashed Blocked" is as good as its name implies: swirling psychedilick chreschendos, dreamy breakdowns, jagged-amphedimine proto-punk. "Remember Thomas A'Beckett" features dizzying drum fills, and primitive "oh-ah"'s and a violen-bow-against-the-guitar riff that is reminiscent of The Creations "Makin' Time" guitar solo.

Oh, and they all wore white from head to toe. Pretty cool, huh?

Btw, I've got a few 7" with alternative versions, and other songs not on this album. I'll post them when I can.

- overview by Denez


Tracklist:

1. Smashed Blocked
2. Just What You Want - Just What You'll Get
3. Strange Affair
4. But She's Mine
5. Hippy Gumbo
6. Jagged Time Lapse
7. Midsummer Night's Scene (alternative version)
8. Not The Sort Of Girl You Take To Bed
9. Mustang Ford
10. The Love I Thought I'd Found
11. Remember Thomas A'Beckett
12. Come And Play With Me In The Garden (Inst)
13. Daddy Rolling Stone (BBC)
14. Hot Rod Mama (BBC)
15. Perfumed Garden Of Gulliver Smith (BBC)
16. Jagged Time Lapse (BBC)
17. Sally Was An Angel (Inst)

128 kbps, ripped from Vinyl.

Get it Here.

Listen to it Here.