Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Blond - Fontana Records - `69



ok kids - this is a pretty kewl record ! very rare & obscure. nice poppy melodic style , another one rescued from beneath the cracks !
enjoy !

aka`


Blond grew out of the Swedish band Tages, arguably the finest Swedish '60s rock group. After lead singer Tommy Blom left in the late '60s, they changed their name to Blond, the chief creative force being bassist/songwriter Goran Lagerberg (who had also sang some lead in Tages). Blond's 1969 album The Lilac Years was recorded in London and released in both Europe and the United States (where it was simply called Blond). Similar to the later recordings of Tages, and perhaps a bit more Anglo-pop-oriented than Tages, the album was a respectable though unexceptional effort with echoes of the Hollies, the Beatles, the Easybeats, and the like. At times it got into moody, almost early art rock-like textures, particularly on the lengthy title track, though the general mood was upbeat cheery pop/rock. They could have easily passed for a British (or even American) group, but never made significant inroads into the English-speaking market. Two new members replaced a couple of the ex-Tages, lead guitarist Anders Topel and rhythm guitarist Danne Larsson, after the album was recorded (but before it was released). Blond disbanded in 1970.


Blond's sole album is grinning, Anglo-fied pop/rock -- almost with a transatlantic feel at times, so accomplished and slick is the execution -- that might appeal to fans of early Badfinger, the late-'60s Easybeats and Hollies, and more esoteric cult faves like the Idle Race. The accent is on the "might appeal," because Blond really didn't have as strong an identity as any of those groups. Also, their material wasn't as good as the best songs recorded by the Swedish group they grew out of, Tages. It's pleasant, artfully produced, late-'60s British-styled pop/rock with a touch of the Baroque (plenty of orchestration) and psychedelic, but not much sticks in the memory banks. Certainly the best track is "The Lilac Years," a rather out-of-character, moody epic with classical-influenced organ. When the good-timey vibe is leavened by some melancholy here and there in other spots, as on "I'll Bring You Flowers" (which has more of that early Procol Harum/late Zombies-type organ), the results are again more fetching and affecting.

Blond - Fontana Records - `69 - MP3 @ 320 kbps - w/ high rez scans
ALL TRAX FROM WAX


1. Deep Inside My Heart
2. Sailing Across the Ocean
3. Six White Horses
4. Time Is Mine
5. The Girl I Once Had
6. The Lilac Years(De Salde Sina Hemman)
7. I Wake Up and Call
8. I Pick Up the Bus
9. There's a Man Standing in the Corner
10. I Will Bring You Flowers in the Morning
11. Caroline



[new link]
DOWNLOAD : -- HERE --



22 comments:

alphabet said...

I just discovered your blog and already I've seen a few albums which I've been looking for. Thanks!!

Anonymous said...

I have this already (on vinyl and CD), but I just wanted to let you know what a great job you do with this blog. I discovered Blond back in 1970 when I found the album on vinyl for $1. It was in a cut-out bin. I thought it was awesome then and still do to this day. Keep up the good work.

Steve

Anonymous said...

Many thankx!!!! Congratulations for this fantastic blog.

Carlos.

akashaman said...

the more i hear this one , the more i like it !
i bought this one sealed & there were two of em !!

anyone heard this before ?

too cool steve ~

aka

Rsquared (in Dallas too!) said...

Enjoying the music. Thanks Aka.

Anonymous said...

I've liked this record a lot. Thankx from Spain.

Luis Alberto.

gustavo said...

Hey A-

Really enjoyed this one. It completely reminded me of Eggstone, Eggstone is also from Sweden, and still active AFAIK.

If by any chance you don't know them please check them out. Eggstone. I think you would love them. Rumor has it that they are/were also accomplished sportsmen in, well I can't remember what sports exactly.

Anonymous said...

can't wait to listen - your review is great!
-tony

Mud Eel said...

Thank you! Been meaning to hear this one for a while.

Great site with great music!

Anonymous said...

thanks a lot.

BeeQ said...

Thank you this is one of my forgotten favorites; "Sailing Across The Ocean" was one of the most requested songs in my hometown radio station back then, along with Bloodrock's "A Certain Kind" and Demian's "Windy City". and thanks also for the write up I should've known back then that they are not from the USA.

André Breton 2.0 said...

How do I download at Filesavr?

akashaman said...

i re upped it for ya dennis :
incidently , u say on your blog bio ;

"I've spent most of my time trying to replicate The Beatles signal chain in a DAW"

i would be interested in more info on this , plugins etc.
just curious ..........

thanks

aka`

André Breton 2.0 said...

Ah, you see, I got the book "Recording The Beatles", which is just mind blowing in detail about all the recording equipment used and how they used it for The Beatles.

It goes into detail to where they were standing even!

So anyhow, I tried to find musical software that emulated their specific hardware as best it could, even Abbey Road has started releasing their own replicas.

Basically that old bio was from an attempt at a small business venture where I would charge a small fee to master recordings for people.

But thanks for all your wonderful posts and blogging, so many songs here have brighten my days and life in so many ways!

Anonymous said...

Thank you very much and best of luck of your great future....

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DJInnaSoul said...

big thanks man

much peace :-)

macadam9 said...

Glad yer back ! thanks for tages related stuff!

Anonymous said...

thanks a lot man!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Zalgo said...

This is the best music blog!
Thanks for all your work! It's highly appreciated!

akashaman said...

rock on !

aka`

Anonymous said...

Thank you. I've been searching this album for years.

-itingkingkol

Anonymous said...

Had this album as a teenager in the 70's...lost it in move to UK & rediscovered it on line recently...this album never got the recognition it deserved...I still listen to this album today...your review was spot on...melodies & arrangement better than most of their era.
Melodye