Velvert Turner Group - s/t (1972) [2019 Reissue]

Velvert Turner Group - Velvert Turner Group (1972)

2019 reissue with unreleased alternate mixes
ORG Music – 2151  (Discogs)
~ThePoodleBites rip at 96 kHz / 24 bit FLAC + high-res scans!~

This is the first entry in a series of Velvert posts that I plan to make. There are several mixes of this album, including two original stereo mixes released in 1972 and a further set of demo mixes pirated in 1976. This 2019 reissue is the first official reissue of the Velvert Turner Group record, and it is essential not only because of its excellent sound quality (mastered from tapes) but because it introduced a further set of previously-unreleased alternate mixes, including several that compete quite favorably with the 1972 originals.

Many thanks to the record phantom C.F. for turning me onto this great record, and
for loaning out several original pressings, wayyy back in the day...

2019 reissue, front cover artwork

Among psychedelic artists, there are few musicians as widely and deeply loved and respected by fans as Jimi Hendrix, and I am certainly no exception. I still fondly remember my first time 'experiencing' Hendrix after chewing down several hundred heavenly blue morning glory seeds; as dynamically-colored kaleidoscopes filtered my sight and danced along with the multi-layered sonic effects, Jimi's voice echoed in directions that I didn't know existed, causing my young teenage brain to think: "how could mere mortal human beings have made this...??"

It's a shame that, despite some notable attempts, most artists failed continuing on Jimi's footpath after his untimely demise. Velvert Turner, however, is one exception. Velvert was a friend and musical acquaintance of the master himself, and musical similarities are immediately obvious between canonical Hendrix tracks and Velvert's own compositions. That's not to say that Velvert Turner Group is totally derivative, because it's not; there are elements of funk, pop, and soul that make it unique, and the great production makes it an enjoyable record from start to finish. 

There are two original versions of this album, which can be distinguished only by their corresponding runout matrices, and they are commonly referred to as the "rock mix" and "soul mix." This naming convention, however, is somewhat of a misnomer, as many of the tracks are completely different takes (not "mixes"), while other tracks are actually identical (or nearly so) between them. The style doesn't really change significantly between the two versions, though the so-called "rock" version has some extra guitar parts, while the "soul" copies are more generally well-polished. This convention comes from collector folklore, where it has been suspected that the "rock" version, which came earlier, was withdrawn in favor of the "soul" version, which was better aimed at radio airplay (which probably never happened anyway), where Roberta Flack, Stevie Wonder, and Al Green were the rulers, not Jimi Hendrix.

However, it's also possible that after the first stampers (-1 / -1) wore out, Monarch simply created new ones (-2 / -2) using the alternate mix/takes, which stayed in-print for several years as it was repressed at other facilities (e.g. NAMI). Who knows?

There are lots of broad connections to this group. Keyboardist Chris Robison, for example, was previously a member of Elephants Memory (also backing John & Yoko in the early '70s) and Steam. Bassist Prescott Niles later became a founder of The Knack. Tim McGovern would drum for several California rock groups through the 1970s-1980s. Richard Lloyd from the American band Television was also a friend of Velvert's, and Lloyd's quotes are often seen in connection with this record. Velvert produced a track ("Going Home") for the Hendrix tribute CD, Power Of Soul. Crazily enough, there is also a Michael Lang (Woodstock) connection here, as Michael acted as producer along with Artie Ripp. 

Sadly, the great public expectation that Velvert's group would become the next Hendrix live act was simply too much pressure for the group, which caused them to crumble sometime after the release of this sole LP. You can read more about the birth and downfall of the Velvert Turner Group on Klemen Breznikar's excellent It's Psychedelic Baby interview with Prescott Niles here.

Velvert Turner with guitarist Richard Lloyd from Television (courtesy Jenny Lens Punk Archive)

I was very intrigued to see this reissue appear for RSD back in 2019, but I was a bit hesitant to buy it myself after being scarred by the plethora of bad reissues on the market. In preparation for posting the original "rock" and "soul" versions to this blog, though, I decided to cough up the $15 or whatever it was so that I could at least comment on what mixes were found inside. What a great decision that was! I was stunned to find that not only do both "rock" and "soul" versions appear side-by-side, but that many tracks were completely different mixes than I'd ever heard before. These alt versions rock hard and may even be better than the original pressings, especially "Madonna," which features a vocal chorus unheard anywhere else, and "Three O'Clock Train," which feels like the mix it always should have been, complete with emulated chugga-chugga/train whistle sounds in complete Hendrix fashion. Basic details have now been added to the Discogs page, but I will also color-code the track listing below for easy identification.

Overall the repressing has excellent sound quality, and if nothing else this blog post should inspire you to get a copy for yourself. ORG Music and especially the mastering engineer Dave Gardner did a good job here. The album is definitely cut from tapes (probably with a digital step), and though there might be a bit more compression than the original LPs, it's not extensive enough to ruin the dynamic range (DR 12); rather, it might even improve the overall hard-rock impact of the LP. It's definitely not brickwalled in any sense, and the bright pink vinyl does not seem to affect the sound quality. There is a bit less treble response than the original LPs, perhaps signifying that safety tapes were used, but the lows and midrange response is phenomenally clear. It sounds good enough to me that I thought it would be a great starting point for this blog's trek into Velvert territory, though which version you play will always be a matter of personal preference. However, since no version of this album has ever been officially released on CD / digital, this rip is absolutely essential.

Color key: (symbols added to help colorblind folks -- this be an inclusive blog)
* = original "rock mix"
^ = original "soul mix"
† = previously-unreleased alternate mix
Adding both *^ indicates that the "soul mix" and "rock mix" versions are identical, or nearly so.

Vinyl condition: Mint (brand new, virgin playing)
Dynamic range: DR 12

Track listing:
1) "Madonna (Of The Seven Moons)" † -- 2:44
2) "Talkin' 'Bout My Baby" * -- 4:01
3) "Country Chicken" *^ -- 2:48
4) "Strangely Neww" ^ -- 4:56
5) "Scarlet Warrior" * -- 3:32
6) "Three O'Clock Train" † -- 4:57
7) "Just Look And See" † -- 4:08
8) "'Xcuse Me, Gentlemen (The Fall Of Atlantis)" ^ -- 4:38
9) "(Love Rides...) The Slow Swirling Seas" ^ -- 3:42
10) "Freedom" (Jimi Hendrix) † --  6:02
Bonus Track:
11) "Madonna (Of The Seven Moons)" [Alternate Mix] † -- 3:37

Equipment Lineage:
– Audio-Technica VMN40ML stylus on AT150MLx dual moving-magnet cartridge
– Audio-Technica AT-LP1240-USB direct drive professional turntable (internal stock preamp/ADC removed)
– Pro-Ject Phono Box S2 Ultra preamp with dedicated Zero Zone linear power supply
– Focusrite Scarlett 6i6 MkII (96kHz / 24bit)
– Adobe Audition CC 2022 (recording)
– iZotope RX 10 audio editor (manual declicking, EQ subtraction, additional adjustments)
– Audacity 3.4.x (fades between tracks, split tracks)
– Foobar2000 v1.6.16 (tagging, dynamic range analysis)

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