CAROLYN HESTER COALITION orig UK '69 KILLER fuzz psych
$
56
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Description
Here’s a RARE original British pressing of the Carolyn Hester Coalition album from 1969 on the UK Pye label. And man, if this isn’t definite proof that Bob Dylan going electric in 1965 completely changed the course of folk music, then I don’t know what is. Witness the incredible transformation of Carolyn Hester. Carolyn was a New York folkie back in the early 60’s – famous for asking the young Dylan to join her onstage and even got him to play harmonica on her first Columbia album – which, of course, helped land Bob a record deal of his own. And we all know where that led. Of course, Carolyn was still a sell-out folk performer, but I can only imagine that in the late 60’s, after Dylan plugged in and the rest of the world was moving on to acid rock, well, that must’ve been too much of an attraction for Ms. Hester not to try her hand at the electric rock sound. And so, no doubt influenced by the Jimi Hendrix Experience, she and three fellow musicians, one with the rather unfortunate name of Skeeter Camera, became the Carolyn Hester Coalition. No, her signature song was NOT “Are You Coalitioned?” Curiously enough, once Carolyn plugged in, she also stopped wearing shirts, as you can see there on the cover, possibly another tactic to appeal to the “free love” generation. But unlike Dylan’s brand of electric music, when Carolyn plugged in, she REALLY plugged in – and fuzzed up – and rocked out. Makes Dylan still sound acoustic. Opening track “Magic, Man” is a good example of the new Carolyn Hester sound – a total brain-fryer of a song, both musically and lyrically – swirling heady psychedelia with lots of far-off distorted slashing guitar riffs and furious strumming. “I can send you flying through a trip in time, or leave you where you are” purrs the former Village folkie turned sex kitten, beating Sheena Easton to the punch with the next line – “I can take you to my special place and bring you back and not go far”. Special place, indeed. Miss Hester turns up the heat even MORE by knowing the value of a well-placed pause – “I can make you come…and go, and leave you and never say goodbye” – and that ellipsis is there because that’s where she pauses ever so briefly, giving you a knowing wink and a “come hither” look and leaving you to contemplate how the two of you were sipping herbal tea and listening to Joan Baez albums just one week earlier. But things have now changed for our little Carolyn Hester Experience – she’s gotten her braces off and has now discovered the power of female sexuality that goes with electric rock music, which she successfully channels into sassy little grrrrl power anthems like “Be Your Baby” – “If you want me to be your baby, bring it on home and I don’t mean maybe. Just what will you give me to keep you on my mind?” Me, I gave her a fuzz guitar, which she then put to good use on “East Virginia”, a slow funky blues number that sounds like a less intense “ Signed DC” with some LOUD fuzz guitar that buzzes in the right channel like a fly trapped in your ear. On the third verse, Carolyn raises her voice another octave, and dogs from all five boroughs respond. There’s more soaring fuzz guitar in the potential single “The Journey”, which skips along on a bouncy electric piano rhythm and runs Carolyn’s vocals through some sort of echo chamber like Annie Haslam trapped in the 4th dimension. Shoulda been a big hit here in the 3rd dimension, but that’s how things go in Carolyn’s world – it’s a great floaty pop concoction with a superb Top 40-made melody and just enough trippiness provided by a nice minor key twist at the end of each chorus. The Carolyn Hester Conglomerate gets WAY out there for the grand finale, “Buddha (Was Her Best Man)”, a heady mystical magic carpet ride trip to visit the shaman, with inexplicable lines like “Buddha makes you tickle, Buddha makes you dance. First time she saw him, they stole away to France.” I guess by this time, Dylan was no longer available for freelance work. No matter – this is the sound of Carolyn Hester all the way – sans shirt and plugged in, tuned in and turned on. Stare at that cover one more time, and guess which one you’ll be? Original 1969 UK pressing on the Pye label. Cover’s in EXCELLENT shape, vinyl plays nice VG++.
Winning bidder pays $4.50 for media mail shipping plus tracking in the US, $8 air mail to Canada, $14 everywhere else. Paypal, Bidpay, checks and money orders accepted. And please be sure to check out my other auctions for more vinyl obscurities, and I will combine shipping costs on multiple wins.
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