A serendipity story - 

After listening to a track on YouTube last week it then went into something that immediately caught my ear. Glancing at the screen I saw it was titled ‘Conversation with Billy’ ! As I continued listening a whole story emerged concerning a band and their music from 1970 that was never released until 2011. No surprise therefore that you’ve probably never heard of Sabattis. 

Today's video goes part way to telling the story of an underground hard-rock band from New York formed in 1968 by Jim Marvin (guitar & lead vocals), Gary Culotta (keyboard and vocals), Larry Wegman (drums) and Rocky Kaler (bass). Influenced by bands like Deep Purple, Mountain, and Grand Funk, they gigged around town playing a lot of psychedelic clubs and venues. In 1970, they recorded a demo with the intention of securing a record deal which never came. The demo tape was in fact a fully finished album recorded and engineered by a friend of the band, Mick Gauzaski, who despite using a homemade studio, managed to obtain a real professional sound. The Sabattis demo remained unreleased until 2011 when Jargon Records discovered the tapes and put out a CD edition with the band involvement. The album 'Warning In The Sky' was remastered from the original tapes.

There's more background plus an interview on this link: Psychedelic Baby

Here's the track 'Conversation with Billy' - which reminds me of Focus  

What a surprise! It's a really good 70s prog rock sounding LP - great organ playing and drums and guitar > Suggest listening to the whole album [at only 33 mins. long] - why not 😉  

  

" Why do Spirits Walk the Earth ?  You will be haunted by three Ghosts !

-  as the air filled with Phantoms "

Mr. CHARLES DICKENS

The choosing of today's track is not without reason. This group from Sweden came to my attention when I heard their music playing in Hastings HMV shop. A sense of macabre added to when I went there again a few weeks later only for another track by them to be playing as I walked in. Spooky !?

Formed in 2006 Ghost are renowned for their costumed on-stage presence, Band members, except for the lead vocalist, are known as "Nameless Ghouls". The lead-singer Tobias Forge performs under the persona of "Papa Emeritus".

The track I first heard was ‘Spillways’, a single from their 2022 album ‘Impera’.

Further info and recommended listening:

EP of 'covers' called 'Phantomime' [also heard in HMV] has 'Jesus, He Knows Me' among it's tracks. More info here. 

'Revolver Magazine' has a 25 best songs list - if you're really into them: 

Check out ‘Square Hammer’ - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqoyKzgkqR4

- along with ‘Per Aspera Ad inferi’ - ‘Kaisartion’ & ‘Mary on a Cross’.

NB: As mentioned I have deliberately picked today's band for a reason. Some of you will follow this, those of you who don't get the connection - all will be revealed early next week in a new link I will send.

  

Samhain, pronounced “sow-in” (“ow” like in cow), is a Gaelic festival that marks the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter or the “darker half” of the year. It is traditionally recognized on November 1 and considered the 'Celtic New Year'.

I have a song called just that ....

On 'Later... with Jools Holland' from his 2005 'Magic Time' album Van Morrison plays guitar and sings "In the Celtic New Year" >