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Annette Peacock
Kevin Pearce
Pearl Jam
Jim & Jody Pearson
Elliott Peck
Nick Peck
Pedro & Capricious
Pee Shy
The Pee Wee Fist

David Peel & the Apple Band
Pell Mell
Mauro Pelosi
Dan Penn

Michelle Penn
Pentwater
Peppermint Circus
Victor Peraino's Kingdom Come


Pazzo Fanfano di Musica  (Japan)  see: Samples etc.

Annette Peacock  (US)

Annette Peacock, 'Been in the Streets Too Long'

Been in the Streets Too Long  (1983, recorded 1974-83,  46.02)  ***/T

Been in the Streets Too Long
So Hard, it Hurts!
So Hard, it Hurts!
A Song to Separate
½ Broken
Safe Inside the Fantasy
Pillow-Lined Prison
Both
No Winning, No Losing

Current availability:

Mellotron used:

Going by 1983's odds'n'sods collection Been in the Streets Too Long, including material recorded during a six-year hiatus in her release schedule, Annette Peacock's music is probably best described as avant-garde jazz, only (relatively) more straightforward closer No Winning, No Losing really bucking the trend. Of most interest to the (relatively) casual listener is the twelve-minute So Hard, It Hurts! (the first of two versions here) featuring backing from a band including Bill Bruford (Peacock performed on his Feels Good to Me opus), bassist Steve Cook (CMU) and guitarists Brian Godding (Blossom Toes) and the legendary Chris Spedding, the bulk of the remainder consisting of Peacock's sparse, sometimes atonal piano and whispered vocals, with contributions from various musicians.

I presume it's Peacock who plays the uncredited Mellotron on ½ Broken, with a fairly brief-yet-inventive part that's probably the most 'normal' thing about the track. Sadly, this appears to be currently unavailable; surprising, since Peacock appears to run her own label through her website. I can't really say it's worth it for twenty-odd seconds of Mellotron, but those exploring the nearer end of the further reaches of the jazz field (!) may well wish to explore.

Kevin Pearce  (UK)

Kevin Pearce, 'Matthew Hopkins & the Wormhole'

Matthew Hopkins & the Wormhole  (2013,  41.41)  ***½/½

Walking Oceans
Tides
Freezing
Brian Haw
Antediluvian
Tortured By Ghosts
Like a Butterfly
Peaceful Skies
We've Been Lovin'
Winter Atmosphere Head
We Can Help Ourselves
The Wormhole

Current availability:

Mellotron used:

Kevin Pearce's second album, 2013's Matthew Hopkins & the Wormhole (subtitled Act One: Matthew Hopkins in the Woods), is a modern folk-rock release, its vague concept somehow involving the legendary witchfinder of the title, who hailed from rural Essex, as does Pearce. The album's twelve songs shift between more introspective material (Freezing, Brian Haw, named for the sadly late anti-war protestor, the Strawbs-esque Tortured By Ghosts, Winter Atmosphere Head) and more rhythmic, if no less mournful (opener Walking Oceans, Tides, Antediluvian, Like A Butterfly's programmed percussion), although 'top track' award possibly goes to closer The Wormhole.

Jarrod Gosling (I Monster, Skywatchers) plays his own M400, with background choirs on Freezing, although all other 'Mellotron' parts are Pearce's samples. Enough to make this a worthwhile Mellotronic purchase? Probably not, although it's a fine album in its own right. Worth hearing.

Official site

Pearl Jam  (US)

Pearl Jam, 'vs'

vs  (1993,  46.15)  ***/½

Go
Animal
Daughter
Glorified G
Dissident
W.M.A.
Blood
Rearviewmirror
Rats
Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town
Leash
Indifference
Pearl Jam, 'Vitalogy'

Vitalogy  (1994,  55.22)  ***/½

Last Exit
Spin the Black Circle
Not for You
Tremor Christ
Nothingman
Whipping
Pry, to
Corduroy
Bugs
Satan's Bed
Better Man
Immortality
Hey Foxymophandlemama, That's Me

Current availability:

Mellotrons used:

Like Alice in Chains (an ex-glam outfit) and the Stone Temple Pilots, what was it about Pearl Jam that makes them inherently 'grunge'? If 'grunge' was Mudhoney, Soundgarden and Nirvana, why was it also dodgy metal bands in lumberjack shirts and no makeup? In fairness, Pearl Jam are better than AiC or STP, which isn't to say that they're particularly good; everything's relative, you know. They certainly sucked a dead dog's dick when I saw them supporting Neil Young back in '93; what possessed him to take them on as his backing band for an album and tour I shall never know. Anyway, vs was their second effort, after the critically-acclaimed (why?) Ten (why?), seeing them already in a musical rut, doing that 'rock with emotions' thing, somewhere in between Led Zep on an exceedingly off day and, er, Neil Young, I suppose. While better than expected, I'm afraid I find this stuff terribly unexciting; not a patch on their influences, anyway. Faint (uncredited) Mellotron strings on W.M.A. from Brendan O'Brien, but that's yer lot.

Follow-up Vitalogy is both better and worse than its predecessor, full-on punk like Spin The Black Circle contrasting sharply with muckabouts such as Bugs. Guitarist Stone Gossard is credited with Mellotron, presumably the faint flutes that weave their way into the mix. Rumours have it that 2002's Riot Act also features Mellotron, but close listening has proven this to be fallacious. I find it difficult to recommend Pearl Jam, while their Mellotron use is so utterly minimal as to be almost non-existent. Go elsewhere.

Official site

See: Stone Gossard

Jim & Jody Pearson  (US)

Jim & Jody Pearson, 'We Have This Moment Today'

We Have This Moment Today  (1982,  30.17)  */T

We Have This Moment Today
Thank You, Lord
Old Time Preacher Man
Born Again
You and Me and the Lord
I Saw the Light (Medley)
Thanks to Calvary
Making Melody
Supper Time
Jesus Feet

Current availability:

Mellotron used:

More hellish '70s CCM from my 'friend' Mark Medley, folks... What can I tell you about Jim and Jody Pearson? And why would you care? 1982's We Have This Moment Today may or may not be their debut, a shatteringly bad Christian country record, every bit as bad as that suggests. Highlights? Don't be silly. Lowpoints? Other than the sleeve 'design', that is? Too many to mention, frankly, particular horrors including Jim's shaky grasp of the finer points of vocal intonation on I Saw the Light (Medley), Jody's yodelling (yes, yodelling) on the tragically inappropriately-titled Making Melody and both parties' sick-making down-home narration on Supper Time.

One Tom Smith plays Mellotron on a couple of tracks, in full-on 'we can't afford a string section' mode, with, yes, strings on the opening title track and Thanks To Calvary. As with practically everything else Mark sends me, this is to be avoided at all costs, on the remote offchance that you should run into a thrift-store copy somewhere. Absolute shite.

Elliott Peck  (US)

Elliott Peck, 'Further From the Storm'

Further From the Storm  (2018,  38.31)  **½/T

River's Path
Silver & Gold
One of Those Days
Highway Song
Out Sailing
Good for You I Guess
Leave Me By the Sea
Hard Lines
I Lost it
Another Life Ago
Give it Away

Current availability:

Chamberlin used:

Californian country-rock crew Midnight North's Elliott Peck (what is it about Americans and their 'boys' names used for girls'?) released her first solo album in 2018, Further From the Storm. And it's... country-rock. Not even really Americana, which suggests a level of 'alt.' This is simply rehashed '70s West Coast country, albeit a perfectly good example of the genre, if you happen to like that kind of thing. Better tracks? The slightly rockier Silver & Gold and the sparse Out Sailing, perhaps, but it's slim pickings here, folks.

Patrick Warren on Chamberlin, with distant strings on Highway Song and chordal flutes on Hard Lines and closer Give It Away, although the cellos on a couple of tracks sound real; Warren's also credited with 'strings', after all.

Official site

Nick Peck  (US)

Nick Peck, 'Under the Big Tree'

Under the Big Tree  (1997,  63.20)  ***½/T

Prologue
Mouths and Frogs
Writer in a Rainstorm
The Teepee Morgue
Into the Opera House
Mars
Boulder and Cactus
The Mountain, the Mirror and the Pocket Watch
The Candle Card Game
Portrait/Bow in the Cabin
Where Do We Connect?
Finale: Into the Trunk

Current availability:

Mellotron used:

Nick Peck is the ex-keyboard player for rather lightweight US proggers Episode, who released a handful of albums on various formats between the late '80s and mid '90s; their career peaked when they played Progfest 94, along with luminaries such as the mighty Änglagård and Anekdoten. Peck has recorded several solo albums, although Under the Big Tree confuses the issue by not actually mentioning him anywhere on the cover; it's so obviously his album, though, that I feel justified in crediting it to him. Lyrically/conceptually, the album is based on a profound experience of Peck's during a lengthy meditation session, while musically, it's in the 'modern prog' category, rather than Episode's typical neo-prog. The album features eleven guest musicians, including two other Episoders and, while I wouldn't put it up there with, say, Spock's Beard, it's a worthy effort in the genre.

Peck plays a variety of keys, old and new, principally a grand piano and Hammond B3, but there's a couple of snatches of Mellotron choir on Portrait/Bow In The Cabin and Finale: Into The Trunk, if nowhere near enough to make it worth buying on those grounds. If you like modern US prog, there's a good chance you'll get something from Under the Big Tree, but more 'trad' proggers might be better off going elsewhere.

Official site

See: Inner Ear Brigade

Pedro & Capricious  (Japan)

Pedro & Capricious, 'Goban Machi no Marī e'

Goban Machi no Mari e  (1974,  15.30)  **/T

Goban Machi no Marī e
Jonyi e no Dengon
Yesterday Once More
Wakarenoasa

Current availability:

Mellotrons used:

Despite their female vocalist, Pedro & Capricious appear to have been Pedro Umemura and his band - I think. They used a Mellotron, if briefly, on 1973's Kareinaru Nyū Poppu no Sekai, with strings on their version of Roberta Flack's Killing Me Softly (With His Song); review forthcoming when I get to hear the whole album. Their Goban Machi no Mari e EP contains their take on the hideous Carpenters' (no, they are not a 'guilty pleasure', or any other sort) Yesterday Once More, every bit as gloopy as the original, along with three other dreary ballads.

Someone plays a Mellotron strings part on Yesterday Once More, for what it's worth. Did Pedro & Capricious use a Mellotron on anything else? Without hearing several early '70s albums, I really couldn't say and, if it's all the same to you, I'd rather avoid that particular task. I thank you.

Official site

Pee Shy  (US)

Pee Shy, 'Don't Get Too Comfortable'

Don't Get Too Comfortable  (1998,  42.03)  **½/T

Mr. Whisper
Bathroom Door
Big Blue Sky
Rope Waltz
Greatest Show on Earth
Jad Fair
Much Obliged
Fear
Tree Craps
Some Day Soon
Too Punk

Current availability:

Mellotron used:

Pee Shy were the Floridian duo of vocalist/accordionist Cindy Wheeler and clarinettist/keyboardist Jenny Juristo, other musicians coming and going. Don't Get Too Comfortable was their second and last album, best described as, well, indie, I suppose. It features both Wheeler's accordion and Juristo's clarinet on several tracks, making them distinct from their contemporaries, although the album doesn't have a great deal to recommend it to non-fans of the genre.

Brad Jones plays Mellotron, with a melodic flute part on Greatest Show On Earth, although I suspect the album's cellos are real. Generally speaking, you're probably not going to like this, unless you've found your way here as a fan of the band. Better than the subsequent non-genre of 'landfill indie', it still requires the listener to be tolerant of the low-fi aesthetic and to have a blatant disregard for the conventions of a tight rhythm section. One passable Mellotron track.

The Pee Wee Fist  (US)

The Pee Wee Fist, 'Flying'

Flying  (2001,  65.51)  **½/½

The Seeds of the Day - 1.1, 1.2 & 1.3
Beauty & the Beats
Let's Go (Deja Blue)
Pedicure
Golden Voices
Ghost of a Plastic Bag
Chinese Star in Metal Shop
Full Stride
Hi, Hi
Mnemonic Hordes
Falling Out
Flying

Current availability:

Chamberlin used:

I believe Boston's Pee Wee Fist, led by Peter Fitzpatrick, released two albums, 2001's Flying being the second and last. It's an uneasy cross between jammed-out psych and indie; as AllMusic so accurately note, more psych OR indie than a combination of the two. It might just be at its best on near-nine-minute opener The Seeds Of The Day, although several tracks had me physically restraining myself from hitting the 'next' button, sadly.

Michael McLaughlin plays Q Division Studio's MusicMaster 600 Chamberlin on Let's Go (Deja Blue), with a background string part that adds little to the track, frankly. What a dreary album; no wonder they called it a day. Seriously, don't bother.

David Peel & the Apple Band  (US)

David Peel & the Apple Band, 'Bring Back the Beatles'

Bring Back the Beatles  (1977,  46.57)  *½/T½

Beatles Pledge of Allegiance
Bring Back the Beatles
Coconut Grove
Imagine
Turn Me on

Lollipop Fish
The Wonderful World of Abbey Road
Apple Beatle Foursome
The Ballad of James Paul McCartney
With a Little Help From My Friends
My Fat Budgie
Keep John Lennon in America
(The John Lennon Interview)
B-E-A-T-L-E-S

Current availability:

Mellotron used:

I've pondered at length upon the point of David Peel & the Apple Band's Bring Back the Beatles, as I clearly have nothing better to do with my life. It seems the estimable Mr. Peel didn't either, as the independently-released album must have consumed a considerable quantity of resources, although, going by the cheap typescript on the rear of the sleeve, maybe not that many. Basically, this is a rather odd Beatles tribute, consisting of Peel's songs, all of which reference the Fab Four in one way or another, all sung in his highly unappealing, flat tones, for no readily apparent reason whatsoever. To be fair, Peel's a street performer/political activist, on the eccentric side of an eccentric field, although I'm not sure that excuses this abortion of a record, although some reviewers see it as parody rather than shite.

Musically, we're looking at a series of poor Beatles pastiches (Lollipop Fish, the title track) intercut with decidedly average folk-rock material (The Wonderful World Of Abbey Road, The Ballad Of James Paul McCartney) and (get this) rewrites of Beatles-related material (Imagine, With A Little Help From My Friends); believe me, you've ain't heard nuthin' till you've heard Peel's 'reinterpretation' of the latter, the original lyrics 'sung' to a new, vastly inferior tune. My Fat Budgie is apparently a Lennon lyric, to which I can only say, "On a bloody off-day" and I can't say Peel's music helps its cause any. I can only imagine (ho ho) that the whole thing was basically a scam, attempting to draw people in with the Beatles titles on the sleeve, set to new 'tunes' in a doubtless failed attempt to avoid paying too many royalties, although I can't imagine this sold that many copies, or was that widely available. Or was it? Or was it simply the product of a deeply eccentric mind and should be taken in that spirit?

American sessioneer Les(lie) Fradkin plays guitar, bass, assorted keys and Mellotron here and has listed his contributions for me (thanks, Les). Nothing obvious on the title track, although Les says it's strings, background strings and apparently flutes on Coconut Grove, more strings (and apparently flutes again) on Imagine and flutes (and apparently strings!) on Turn Me On, none of which exactly set the world alight, to be honest, making this rather less than essential on the Mellotron front.

If I'm being generous, I'd describe this as a 'curio', although a more honest summation might be 'crap'. I can't imagine (ho ho again) at whom, exactly, this disaster was aimed. Mid-'70s US Beatles fans desperate for anything referencing their heroes? (See: the bizarre Klaatu debacle). I mean, who else would buy this rubbish? Its *½ rating is more for its laugh value than anything else, although it's not even really that funny, just sad, not to mention utterly interminable (the execrable Keep John Lennon In America is almost nine minutes of the title repeated ad nauseam with minor variations). The only thing here of any real interest is a brief Lennon street interview, where it seems he not only met Peel, but recorded with him. Christ, he's not on this record, is he? Maybe I'm being unkind and this is regarded as a lost classic of outsider music, but I doubt it. Fradkin's Mellotronic input is pretty minor, too, so I can't even say it's worth picking up on those grounds. Avoid. Please.

Julie Peel  (Québec)  see: Samples etc.

Peixe: Avião  (Portugal)  see: Samples etc.

Pelican  (US)  see: Samples etc.

Pell Mell  (Germany)

Pell Mell, 'Marburg'

Marburg  (1972,  40.00)  ****/T½

The Clown and the Queen
Moldau
Friend
City Monster
Alone
Pell Mell, 'Rhapsody'

Rhapsody  (1975,  39.53)  ***½/T

Rhapsody
  Frost of an Alien Darkness

  Wanderer
  Can Can

Prelude
Desert in Your Mind
The Riot
Paris the Past
Pell Mell, 'Only a Star'

Only a Star  (1977,  39.58)  ***/T

Count Down
Daydreamer
Only a Star
Across the Universe
Disillusion

Trailors in Movie Halls
Phoebus is Dead

Current availability:

Mellotrons used:

Pell Mell (not to be confused with the American avant-garde outfit of the same name) were one of many German progressive bands who 'grew out' of their Krautrock beginnings, becoming more symphonic along the way. Their debut, Marburg, named for their home town, is an intriguing mix of slightly old-fashioned UK 'proto-prog' and German Krautrock, pastoral, organ-led passages coexisting peacefully with bizarre multi-vocal parts like Focus on speed (Friend). Another occasional influence is early Pink Floyd, particularly in the organ part in Alone; in fact, the Floyd seem to be a constant in the Krautrock arena, several bands obviously getting stoned to A Saucerful of Secrets on a regular basis. Anyway, the band's violin use is notable, sometimes confusing the ear as to the album's Mellotron content, to the point where all I can hear is a string part under the violin on Moldau and a similar part doubling the organ on Alone.

Album no. 2, From the New World, is more progressive (and Mellotron-free), while 1975's Rhapsody (with co-writing credits for Liszt and Rachmaninoff) is full-on prog, complete with eccentric interjections like the Can Can (yes, that one). Did you know it was written by Liszt? The band were a six-piece by this time and, with three people credited with keyboards, it's impossible to know who plays the rather minimal Mellotron on the album, so take your pick from Thomas Schmitt, Ralph 'Flipper' Lippmann or Cherry Hochdörfer, although my money's on Schmitt, one of the band's two main men, along with vocalist Rudolf Schön. Anyway, the only audible evidence is a few seconds of choir on part 1 of Rhapsody itself, Frost Of An Alien Darkness and a short choir part, repeated once, on Paris The Past. Not a bad album, but not one for the Mellotron enthusiast.

'77's Only a Star was noticeably more straightforward, in keeping with the times. I've seen comparisons with Kansas; there are certainly a couple of violin parts that recall Robby Steinhardt's style, but, overall, it sounds like a mainstream version of their earlier sound, although their classical influence is still apparent, particularly on side two. Again, very little Mellotron (definitely played by Schmitt this time), with faint choirs on Disillusion and the rather ropey Across The Universe (not the Beatles' song).

Mauro Pelosi  (Italy)

Mauro Pelosi, 'La Stagione per Morire'

La Stagione per Morire  (1972,  33.51)  ***/TT½

Paura
Cosa Aspetti ad Andar Via
Vent'anni di Galera
Vendero
La Stagione per Morire
E Dire Cha a Maggio

Che Poi Non e Vero
Caro Amico
Suicidio

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Mellotron used:

Mauro Pelosi is an Italian singer-songwriter from Rome, who, for a brief period in the early '70s, recorded in the semi-progressive style popular at the time. He debuted with 1972's La Stagione per Morire (A Season to Die), a dark, embittered-sounding album, of the kind where not understanding the language makes a major difference to one's appreciation. While loosely 'progressive', this is never going to seriously challenge the big Italian players, or even most of the smaller ones, most of its material (nine tracks in under thirty-five minutes, note) being lyric-driven and acoustic-based.

Mike Logan and Il Balletti di Bronzo's Gianni Leone play Mellotron, with limpid string and flute parts on Vent'Anni Di Galera, more powerful strings in the closing seconds of the title track and more of the same on E Dire Cha A Maggio and closer Suicidio, although the flute part opening E Dire Cha A Maggio is clearly real. So; no classic, at least on the prog front, but a decent enough listen, with some nice Mellotron. Put it on your 'B' list.

Official site

Piero Pelù  (Italy)  see: Samples etc.

Dan Penn  (US)

Dan Penn, 'Do Right Man'

Do Right Man  (1994,  37.10)  ****/½

The Dark End of the Street
Cry Like a Man
It Tears Me Up
You Left the Water Running
Do Right Woman Do Right Man
Memphis Women and Chicken
Zero Willpower
He'll Take Care of You
I'm Your Puppet
Where There's a Will There's a Way

Current availability:

Mellotron used:

Dan Penn, of course, is best known as a songwriter and producer, often in collaboration with Spooner Oldham; a list of artists who've recorded Penn's songs would take me the rest of the day to compile and it's only 10.30 a.m. Suffice to say; Aretha Franklin, Linda Ronstadt, Gram Parsons, Emmylou Harris... Penn generally prefers a back-room role, so, despite starting his career around 1960, 1994's Do Right Man is only his second solo album, seeing him revisit some of his most famous songs, not least opener The Dark End Of The Street. This is one of those albums that, even if you're not a fan of Penn's southern soul/blues style, it's almost impossible not to like, or at the very least, respect; it just kind of... strolls by, minding its own business, while gently letting you know it's written and performed by one of the major American songwriting talents.

Spooner Oldham turns up, of course, playing keyboards, including plenty of lovely Rhodes and Hammond work and no bloody modern synths. Credited with Mellotron, it's only even slightly apparent on He'll Take Care Of You, with a very background string part, so you're not going to be rushing out and buying this on that account. Nevertheless, an album stuffed full of soul classics played and sung by their author. More please, Mr. Penn.

Michael Penn  (US)  see:

Michael Penn

Michelle Penn  (US)

Michelle Penn, 'How Do You Live'

How Do You Live  (1998,  35.51)  **½/T

Good
How Do You Live
Here I Go
Not Lovin' Anybody
Save My Life
House of Blues
Fool Come Down
Drown
Cold World
Runaround

Current availability:

Mellotron used:

Michelle Penn plays a kind of Americana-influenced singer-songwriter thing, which means (naturally) she's played Lilith Fair. To be honest, 1998's How do You Live is a pretty unexciting album, but I'm sure I should be concentrating on the lyrics, rather than the run-of-the-mill music. Trouble is, I almost invariably listen to the music first... It's not rubbish, by any means, but there's nothing here that grabbed my attention, unlike the best artists of her genre.

Aaron Swihart plays Mellotron, with flutes and strings on Drown, plus one or two possible (though unlikely) string sightings elsewhere. So; a somewhat average record, although I can't fault Ms. Penn's enthusiasm. Her other 'Mellotron' album, 2001's irritatingly txtspk 2 Good 4 U (or is it meant to be referencing Prince?), turns out to feature samples.

Official site

See: Samples etc.

La Pentola di Papin  (Italy)  see: Samples etc.

Pentwater  (US)

Pentwater, 'Pentwater'

Pentwater  (1977,  37.31)  ***½/T

EM 54
Take
Cause & Effects
Necropolis
Billboard Smiles
Gwen's Madrigal (the Violation Version)
The Journeys

Oceans
Kill the Bunny
Pentwater, 'Out of the Abyss'

Out of the Abyss  (1992, recorded 1973-76,  62.41)  ****/T½

AM
Living Room Displays
Memo
Orphan Girl
Frustration Mass
Palendrode
War
Gwen's Madrigal
Pentwater, 'Ab-Dul'

Ab-Dul  (2007, recorded 1972-2006,  60.26)  ****/T½

It Feels Like Stealing
Luncheon at the Parade
Autumn
Kill the Bunny
The Tale of Clear Fog
Sealed in Today
Across the Mediterranean
Somehow Feelin' Fine
The Tale of Clear Fog (Reprise)
The Cry of Eugene
Entropal Pause
Chasing
Descends
You Knew
Turn the Key
It Feels Like 3 a.m.
Awakening

Current availability:

Mellotrons used:

Pentwater were one of a surprisingly large number of US prog bands who couldn't even get a foot in the door, managing one self-financed album and never breaking out of their own region, in this case, the Illinois area (see: Leviathan, Lift et al.). Pentwater crept out in 1977, only finding its way onto CD in 2003, replete with four bonus tracks and a slightly revised running order, making it awkward reviewing the original tracklisting. It's a good album, while not really displaying the odder side of their repertoire, opening with the average hard rock of AM (moved to track five on the CD, swapping places with Frustration Mass), rarely moving into non-(prog) mainstream territory from then on. This isn't a criticism, merely to say that it doesn't especially stand out from the pack. Not that much Mellotron; I don't believe the band owned one, so keyboard man Ken Kappel would probably have decided where to use it pretty much on the spot in the studio. There are a couple of string chords on Orphan Girl and Gwen's Madrigal, with more serious use on Palendrode, but that seems to be it, with nothing on the CD's bonus tracks.

Given that very few people would've heard their sole album at the time, it was a wonder of the modern age that an archive disc, Out of the Abyss, appeared in 1992, triggering interest in the band among the newly-organised progressive community (praise be for the Internet...). It contained nine of the fifty-four (!) songs the band wrote in their lifetime, most of which are now, sadly, presumably lost to the ravages of time. It seems that their more interesting material was kept on the shelf at the time, so, going by this disc alone, you'd probably describe their sound as complex, driving prog, their Gentle Giant influences, amongst others, reminding me slightly of another obscure US outfit, Yezda Urfa. Kappel is listed as playing a wide range of 'boards, but, going by the rehearsal pic in the CD booklet, he probably owned the cheaper end of the list, the one highly visible instrument being an Elka string synth. At least they had the nous to borrow/hire some good kit for recording, unlike other bands I can think of (how much better would Fruupp have sounded if they'd hired a Mellotron?). Saying that, the Mellotron gets very little use indeed, naught but short (if intense) bursts of strings on EM 54 and Gwen's Madrigal (The Violation Version) and slightly more of the same on The Journeys.

Like many of their contemporaries, the band reformed in the 2000s and recorded some new (and old) material, combining it with more archive recordings, releasing the composite album as Ab-Dul in 2007. Bad news first: the cover. What were you thinking, guys? Even if it's meant as a joke, it's possibly the ugliest (not to mention cheapest) prog sleeve design I've ever seen; maybe I'm missing something. Anyway, the good news: it's excellent. It seems a few more of those fifty-four songs have now been made available, which has to be good news; while neither of the newly-written tracks are exactly jaw-dropping, nor are they offensive, which is a distinct result. I'm not sure if anything here is as adventurous as some of the Out of the Abyss material, but most of it is more satisfying than most of their original album. As always, very little Mellotron, but, given the number of different sessions over which it was recorded, that's hardly surprising. Near-as-dammit identical flute parts on the exceedingly short and near-as-dammit identical The Tale of Clear Fog and The Tale of Clear Fog (Reprise), plus a monophonic string line (along with a real violin) on Chasing, only just tipping the album over the one-T level.

Official site

Pepe Deluxé  (Finland)  see: Samples etc.

Peppermint Circus  (UK)

Peppermint Circus, 'I Won't Be There' 7"  (1968)  ***/T½

I Won't Be There
Keeping My Head Above Water

Current availability:

Mellotron used:

Peppermint Circus? Yup, yet another obscure late '60s British psych act who've only really come to light again due to a slew of compilations of lesser-known efforts from the era. The 'A' of their first (of four, surprisingly) singles, I Won't Be There, is a vaguely skalike effort of no great quality, but the flip, Keeping My Head Above Water, is a pretty decent number, described (correctly) on bassist Alan Tallis' website as 'the B side that should have been the A side'.

Presumably the band's keyboard player at the time (possibly Clive Hartley) plays a perfectly pleasant, if unexciting string part that runs through most of Keeping My Head..., adding to its 'worth hearing' status. Thankfully, those nice Past & Present people have included it on part two of their estimable Piccadilly Sunshine series, the 'A' being on part one.

Victor Peraino's Kingdom Come  (US)

Victor Peraino's Kingdom Come, 'No Man's Land'

No Man's Land  (1975,  38.31/49.43)  ***½/TTTTT

Sun Sets Sail
Demon of Love
Empires of Steel
Tru
Lady of the Morning
Garden of Death
Run Through Your Life
At Last a Crew
[CD adds:
We're Next
Demon of Love
Fire
Athena]
Victor Peraino's Kingdom Come, 'We're Next'

We're Next  (1981,  9.17)  ***/½

We're Next
Demon of Love
Fire
Athena

Current availability:

Mellotrons used:

After Arthur Brown's Kingdom Come disintegrated following the release of the wonderful Journey, US keyboard player Victor Peraino somehow retained the name, releasing No Man's Land in '75 as Victor Peraino's Kingdom Come. It doesn't sound a million miles away from Journey, if you could imagine that album being played by a full band and sung by an American (go on - try). There don't seem to be any genuinely great songs on the record (although Lady Of The Morning's pretty good), but all the material's reasonable, in a hard rock/prog vein, although some of the tuning discrepancies between synths and Mellotron are enough to set your teeth on edge.

Peraino's Mellotron use is, again, quite magnificent, with lashings of strings, choir, cellos and brass all over the album. Too many individual highlights to name, although Lady Of The Morning has especially good use on all fronts. Peraino frequently used two sounds at once (strings and choir being popular choices), although I doubt if he was able to reproduce this live. To my knowledge, his Mellotron ended up on the West Coast with Syn-Phonic label owner Greg Walker, who occasionally hires it out for gigs or recording. So; not a bad album, finally out on CD, but an absolute Mellotron Monster, so highly recommended on those grounds.

Incidentally, the bonus tracks on the CD are from Peraino's 1981 EP, We're Next, in a very similar style to the album, despite being from several years later. Unfortunately, they've been 'mastered' from rather tatty vinyl, complete with distortion and considerable surface noise, no obvious attempt made to clean them up. The tracks aren't bad (OK, Victor's version of Arthur's Fire is rather ordinary), although only two of them are actually new songs, Demon Of Love being on the album in its original form. Practically no Mellotron, with only a couple of choir chords at the end of Demon Of Love, although I'm surprised there's any at all. Anyway, you won't find this on vinyl, so you've got 'em whether you want 'em or not.

See: Arthur Brown's Kingdom Come | Samples etc.


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