Butterboy: VA - Great Lost Elektra Singles, Vol. 1 1964-70 [2005]

Monday, July 18, 2022

VA - Great Lost Elektra Singles, Vol. 1 1964-70 [2005]

ELEKTRA

VA - Great Lost Elektra Singles, Vol. 1 1964-70 [2005]

Elektra Records was founded as an independent folk music label by Jac Holzman in the early 1950s and moved toward more of a folk-rock and rock focus by the late '60s, before Holzman sold it to Warner in 1973 and it became a general-interest subsidiary of the conglomerate. Licensing tracks from the Elektra catalog, mail-order label Collectors' Choice Music's compilation Great Lost Elektra Singles, Vol. 1 traces some of that history, choosing tracks recorded as one-off singles for the label. Some of this material has turned up on albums over the years, notably on compilations by Judy Collins and Phil Ochs, and on the four-LP box set Elektrock: Sixties in 1985, but it remains rare and obscure. The set begins with both sides of a single recorded in 1964 by the Byrds under the name the Beefeaters and concludes with both sides of a single recorded in 1970 by the Stalk-Forrest Group, which evolved into Blue Öyster Cult a couple of years later. In between, Judy Collins contributes a version of Bob Dylan's "I'll Keep It with Mine" in a 1965 folk-rock arrangement that anticipates her hit 1967 recording of "Both Sides Now," and an alternate version of "Who Knows Where the Time Goes." Phil Ochs performs his signature song "I Ain't Marching Anymore" in a folk-rock arrangement released only as a British single. There is a non-LP single by the Paul Butterfield Blues Band. Singer/songwriter David Ackles tries singing one of his songs in French, sounding a bit like Jacques Brel. And the obscure British folk-rock band Eclection (featuring future members of Fairport Convention and Fotheringay) performs a song not included on their sole Elektra album. It makes for a terrific set of rarities that any fan of '60s folk-rock will enjoy. And although a magnifying glass is needed to read Richie Unterberger's liner notes, the risk of eye strain is worth it. Unterberger has interviewed such principals as Holzman, Collins, and Ochs' brother and manager Michael Ochs, and their recollections deepen an appreciation of the recordings. The only objection to the collection is its brevity. With only ten tracks and a running time of 32 minutes, it could have been much longer, particularly since the "Vol. 1" designation suggests there is enough similar material for sequels. (AllMusic review by William Ruhlmann)

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