THE BEST OF M.P.D. LIMITED (MPD LTD) ORIGINAL GO LABEL LP OZ FREAKBEAT GARAGE

	A$		200
	$		132

THE BEST OF M.P.D. LIMITED, original 1967 issue on Go!!

Their only album, collecting their best 1965, 1966 and 1967 45s.

Cat. no. GLP 3006.

Arguably the equal of fellow stars The Easybeats at the time, this was an awesome trio whose recordings (unlike other bands of the era) fully capture their power and energy. All their incredible power is still there in the grooves.... As the Milesago website says:

The handful of MPD records we have are almost uniformly memorable for their full-bodied sound, arguably among the best-sounding productions from that era. The drum sound is uncommonly huge and propulsive, the bass thick and penetrating, the presence of the guitars (both acoustic and electric) slices through convincingly. And the vocals, with liberal and complex harmony parts, are detailed and precise, often bathed in an enormous but sympathetic reverb. The arrangements are consistently imaginative and original and the bands undoubted pop sensibilities are abundantly evident. In fact, the records that MPD Ltd made still sound startlingly powerful and remarkably fresh today.

The vinyl is rated VG. It has plenty of surface marks but nothing that clicks or pops, mainly just surface scuffs. There is background noise throughout. It's a little heavier in some places than others, but the songs cut through loud and clear, thanks to the superb original studio production and the heavy 1960s vinyl. It plays a lot better than it looks.

The flipback cover is rated VG+, with less than the normal age wear for an album of this vintage.

Labels are clean and bright.

I'm sorry to see this one go. It blew me away when I played it again for the first time in years the other day.

More from the Milesago website:

Starting with their first single in July '65, a beat-heavy cover of Johnny Burnette's Little Boy Sad, the group showed their penchant for playful beat arrangements of staid American MOR pop. The driving debut proved simply a "gas" -- it was a huge hit, going to #1 in Melbourne and #5 in Sydney. This hugely successful debut was cemented by the flamboyant, Keith Moon-style drum-driven follow-up, a rambunctious cover of Paul Anka's "Lonely Boy" -- another huge national hit which peaked at #7 in Melbourne.

In just two months, bolstered by regular appearances on TV pop showcases across the country, the boys had rocketed up to the same level as the top stars of the day -- Normie Rowe and Bobby & Laurie, not to mention the invincible Easybeats...... A clutch of characteristically great singles followed in 1966. These were only moderate chart successes, but included their third and last chart hit (#19 in Melbourne). It was a gripping rendition of the legendary madcap George "Shadow" Morton's epic teen ballad, originally recorded by The Shangri-Las, "(Remember) Walking In The Sand", smothered in rich and eerie echo. Next came the first appearance on 45 as a 3-way original songwriting combo, the band's lovely departure into pure beat-fed power-pop called "No Regrets".

I seem to remember that MPD's fifth single, released in August '66, was regarded by quite a few pundits at the time as the groups pinnacle achievement, and was treated as a "double A-side". Coinciding with their departure for England, they released the aptly titled Absence Makes The Heart Grow Fonder b/w I Am What I Am. It was a splendid Finley-Watson-composition, a refined return to the band's earlier beat sound, and it was an enormous radio hit, and a return to top five chart placings in most Aussie capitals for them too. This stunning slab of power-pop also saw release in Germany on Ariola, to enthusiastic press and fan response, while it also gained fair attention when it was released on Mercury in the US.

These two sides are among a classic batch of recordings made during 1966-67 at the small Hurstville studio of producer-engineer Ossie Byrne. One of the unsung heroes of Australian Sixties pop, Ossie and his colleague Nat Kipner, boss of the Spin label, were instrumental in transforming The Bee Gees into an accomplished studio outfit, and among many other now-legendary slices of Oz Rock, Ossie co-produced The Bee Gees' breakthrough hit, "Spicks and Specks". Interviewed by Glenn Baker, Mike revealed an interesting fact about the recording of "Absence": "Maurice Gibb played the solo by plucking the strings of an open piano, like a guitar. All the Bee Gees were in the studio during that one; they all helped out, which was terrific".