MANFRED MANN’S EARTH BAND — GLORIFIED MAGNIFIED
The 1972 debut album by Manfred Mann’s Earth Band was a kind of rock ’n’ roll stew, with a range of styles. Country rock, blues rock, a ballad or two, AOR… it’s fine, but lacked focus. So it’s great to report that the follow up found the quartet beginning to define their rock-with-progressive-keyboard-influences sound. Glorified Magnified still has a great range of textures and is a very satisfying listen that will appeal to fans both rock and prog early 70s music. The interplay between Mann’s keyboards and Mick Rogers’ guitar is very fresh while Colin Pattenden’s bass playing is really very good, and the excellent cover of Dylan’s “It’s all over now, baby blue” continues a fine tradition of Mann covering (and exploring) His Bobness. Highlights: “Ashes to the wind” into “Wind”. [Released 29 September 1972]
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PASSPORT — SECOND PASSPORT
Klaus Doldinger’s Passport were a robust and energetic progressive jazz-rock outfit who were very popular on the early 70s festival circuit. Many notable fusion players crossed international borders to play with Klaus; Brian Auger, Alphonse Mouzon and Philip Catherine all held temporary visas at some point. Doldinger was a jazz tenor sax player who loved electronic keyboards, leading to music appealing to both jazz-rock fans and fusion aficionados. If you love Return To Forever’s Romantic Warrior album, try some early Passport, it’s great. Oddly, my vinyl LP (a promo, I believe) is just called Passport, while the lovely Japanese CD re-issue reinstates the title indicating a sophomore release. Highlights: “Lemuria’s Dance”; “Mandragora”. [Month of release unknown]
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JANE — TOGETHER
Jane were a heavy prog outfit from Germany. I discovered them not long after I’d started working at Max Rose electronics. Musician Steve Maxwell von Braun was part of a company distributing krautrock (and other European band) to Melbourne record stores. As I already knew some of this music via the legendary Pipé Records, Max was happy to try a dozen or so titles in our suburban emporium. I’m not sure we actually sold any at all, but it allowed me to make a few excellent cassette copies for my private enjoyment. This was one, Jane’s debut. It is a very solid LP in the Atomic Rooster/Deep Purple tradition and one I still enjoy spinning. Highlights: “Wind”; “Hangman”. [Month of release unknown, but probably early ’72]
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DEEP PURPLE — MADE IN JAPAN
Embodying the best and worst of 70s double live albums, Made In Japan is simply iconic. This is the famed Mark II line-up — Blackmore, Lord, Gillian, Glover, Paice —responsible for the preceding three LPs, upon which the band drew for their 1972 set list. But this was the era of excess and exploration, so the songs weren’t just churned out as per the record, but feature lashings of solos, primarily from Blackmore on guitar and Lord on keys. While throughout it all Ian Gillian’s trademark shriek wrote the heavy metal book on vocalists going over the top. Wonderful, bloated, indulgent and thrilling. Somewhere along the line I picked up an Italian 25th anniversary re-issue that includes a bonus CD adding three more tracks from the same concerts. Nice. Highlights: “SOTW”, obs. “Highway Star”. [Released December 1972]
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TIM BUCKLEY — GREETINGS FROM L.A.
It’s been referred to as Tim Buckley’s sex album, not without justification. Radiating lust and glistening with sweat, Greetings exudes funk and libido from every pore. Buckley Senior’s catalogue is tricky to navigate for the newcomer, but if the Ohio Players ring your bells and “Love To Love You Baby” makes your windows steam up, try this as your TB entry. Fabulous design by Cal Schenkel, including (for the original US release) a pop-out postcard you could send to a friend, leaving a gaping hole in the cover to remind you of your impulsive and ill advised communication. Highlights: “Sweet surrender”, “Nighthawkin’”. [Released August 1972]
vinylconnection.com.au 
A fine year for music, indeed. The year I left school and entered wage-earning record-buying. And two MMEB albums in that year!
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Love that description of a major life transition, Richard. School –> Record buying.
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Good stuff. During my teenage years, I really dug “Watch” by Manfred Mann’s Earth Band – I still like it. I also got the successor “Angel Station” and liked it at the time. Now I don’t think I feel as excited about it. I’m not as familiar with the Earth Band’s earlier albums.
That Passport album by the guy who wrote the excellent theme of German TV crime drama series “Tatort” (crime scene) sounds pretty groovy. Klaus Doldinger who is now 85 years old continues to be active – pretty amazing!
It’s also always great to see Deep Purple, especially around the time they did “Machine Head,” a longtime favorite hard rock album. I generally prefer the studio recordings over the live versions on “Made in Japan”. That being said, they are really kicking butt on “Highway Star”!
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Three neat little vignette’s Christian. Thank you for sharing them. Doldinger has had an amazing career in music; great to hear he’s still going! And ‘Machine Head’ will definitely make an appearance… quite a way further up the ladder. 😊
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It’s hard to know how much I would have enjoyed SECOND PASSPORT without the enduring tutelage of VC. But enjoy it I did. Perfect music for segmenting and eating a fine Ruby Red Grapefruit.
Album rating: Four Pips.
Thanks,
DD
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Grapefruit: a fusion of sweet and sour?
Thanks, DD.
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More memories via the collections of my older siblings: my brother had that Deep Purple album in heavy rotation. My intro to Manfred Mann came with their cover of Blinded By The Light, and I’m not familiar with their earlier releases. Since I can never pass up the opportunity to comment on album art, I have to say “Wow!” to Passport; it looks like it just *had* to have been done with Adobe software, but in 1971/72? Nope. Jeff Buckley’s resemblance to his father is so striking. I’m not as familiar with dad’s work…but since I did like the Ohio Players, I’ll have to give Greetings From L.A. a listen.
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‘The Roaring Silence’ was the MMEB album with Springsteen’s ‘Blinded by the light’. Strong LP, that.
There’s more Passport cover magic, JDB! In fact, I might have do a little cover art post just for you.
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More into my Glam Rock at that time, but recall kids at school walking round with Made in Japan’ under heir arm. Eventually I got to hear it in a ‘bring & play’ music lesson, and it got me into listening to more ‘heavy’ music. 🙂
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Those ‘gateway’ music moments are memorable, aren’t they?
If your Glam phase included Slade, stick around. 🙂
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I have the Purple, but that is it on this list. good stuff though.
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That postcard idea is kind of interesting. An opportunity to reveal a second image underneath.
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True. One used to occasionally see secondhand copies with the postcard missing, suggesting that (a) it had fallen out; or (b) it was posted. Either way, Tim was revealed.
The diecut cover revealing something underneath is a neat design device, isn’t it? One of my favourites is PFM’s ‘The World Became The World’ where an idyllic tropical island gives way to a polluted wasteland.
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[…] for the inspiration. He included the group’s sophomore release Second Passport in a recent installment of his ongoing countdown of 1972 albums. Passport were formed by German saxophonist Klaus Doldinger […]
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Cheers Christian. What a great band. Amazing to read in your piece that there was a 2020 album!
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[…] 1972 COUNTDOWN… #60—#56 was certainly a variety pack, covering a classic live heavy rock album, a funky sex-driven sweatshop and some German fusion. And more. […]
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[…] 1972 COUNTDOWN… #60—#56 was certainly a variety pack, covering a classic live heavy rock album, a funky sex-driven sweatshop, some German fusion, and more. […]
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