Uncanny

The Omni Recording Corporation is quickly becoming one of my most favorite record labels. They specialize in re-issuing obscure sonic artifacts from the ‘60s and ‘70s. TORC has brought back to life some very interesting folk-rock, outlaw/obscure country, groovy electronic, etc. records. The amazing strength of the two releases I’ve heard so far (by Hoyt Axton, and Biff Rose) convinces me that any of the twenty or so other releases would be well worth investigating.

Biff Rose came on my radar screen earlier this year with Vetiver’s cover of Rose’s song “To Baby” on its Thing of the Past album. Later, I stumbled across an original copy of Rose’s ’68 album Children of Light at a local used record store. The first tune on “Children of Light,” originally released on the Tetragrammaton label in '69, features Van Dyke Parks on moog. Finally, I receive a copy of TORC’s re-issue of Rose’s self-titled mysterious orchestral folk rock album, released in '70. Rose’s piano led music is a perfect channel for his curious stories.

Even better is Hoyt Axton’s “My Griffin is Gone.” TORC’s re-issue has everything you could wish for: the entire original album lovingly remastered from the original tapes, A & B sides of two non album singles never before released on CD, unreleased home demos, contemporary unreleased radio broadcasts, tons of rare pictures, informative and thoughtful liner notes, and on and on. If you watched TV or movies from the ‘60s to the ‘80s you almost certainly saw Axton’s formidable presence as a character actor. Somewhat less well acknowledged was his equally successful career as a musician and songwriter. He wrote some huge hits in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s: “The Pusher” by Steppenwolf and “Joy to the World” by Three Dog Night to name just two.

I first became aware of Axton’s solo recordings through the enjoyable compilation Flashes of Fire: Hoyt’s Very Best 1962-1990 released by the Australian record label Raven. (They must really love Axton down-under; TORC is also based in Australia.) The two best songs on “Flashes of Fire” were from Axton’s ’69 album “My Griffin is Gone.” It’s no wonder then that my musical taste buds began to salivate once I learned that TORC had put together a comprehensive re-issue. Simply put, “My Griffin is Gone” is a stone cold psych-folk masterpiece. It features some of the era’s finest musicians [e.g. Jim Burton, Larry Knechtel, Jim Gordon (Derek and the Dominos)]. It also features some of Axton’s best songwriting. “Snowblind Friend” is a harrowing tale of drug addiction. Supposedly, it’s based on the life of the amazing, but underappreciated, blues guitarist Steve Mann. Mann played with such luminaries as the Jefferson Airplane, Janis Joplin, Frank Zappa and members of the Grateful Dead and recorded some enjoyable albums on his own right. Mann’s solo recordings really deserve more exposure. Other standout tracks on “My Griffin is Gone” are the deeply emotional “It’s All Right Now” and the totally cool bonus track demo of “The Pusher.” The demo has Axton singing this great song with just acoustic guitar accompaniment. I prefer Axton’s full studio recording of “The Pusher,” from his ’71 album “Joy to the World,” to Steppenwolf’s version from the “Easy Rider” soundtrack. The demo version on this re-issue is filled with a tremendous amount of echo, but still shows the strength of Axton’s songwriting, and performing, abilities.

Apparently, Axton was experimenting with LSD around the time he recorded “My Griffin is Gone.” Psychedelic elements shine mostly though Axton’s introspective lyrics rather than through electric guitar pyrotechnics. One of the bonus tracks is titled "Bathtub LSD." It’s a very strong folk rock album that still stands up well nearly 40 years after it was recorded. If you’re at all interested in folk rock from this time period you simply have to get this CD. It’s too good to pass up.

One side note: there’s a very subtle Beach Boy’s connection to “My Griffin is Gone.” The album cover artwork is a photograph of Axton sitting on a couch. On the wall behind him is a reproduction of Appeal to the Great Spirit , based on the sculpture by Cyrus Dallin. As keen Beach Boys fans know, this image was also used as the logo for Brother Records.

Kudos then to The Omni Recording Corporation for a job well done. Highest marks all around are in order. I’m definitely going to be tracking down more of their releases.

One final note: check out totally hep avant-guitarist Eugene Chadbourne’s review of “My Griffin is Gone” at allmusic . To quote Chadbourne, “Axton settles into some remarkable moods on the best parts of the album, communicating with such a sense of the natural that it makes the work of many other recording artists seem stilted. He can evoke the feeling of Colorado simply by mentioning the state as if in passing conversation; other singers would have to be recorded riding up and down a ski lift strumming in order to establish any equivalent sense of time and place.”