Incredible Hog-Volume 1 (1973)

Incredible Hog was a short-lived British band that released only one album packed with heavy doses of blues rock in the early 1970s. Formed by guitarist and singer Ken Gordon, bassist Jim Holmes, and drummer Tony Awin, they managed to put out a solid record where bluesy influences and hard rock intertwine in intricate tracks like the superb "Lame", while the hypnotic "Execution" offers a respite from the breakneck pace that follows with powerful hard blues numbers like "Tadpole", "Another Time", and "Warning", before bringing the energy down a bit with the more subdued "Walk The Road" and "There's A Man". However, as we've mentioned countless times, this was another band that would pass without fanfare through the annals of rock, and which is now so highly regarded by fans eager to discover obscure groups with little media exposure but enormous talent.

Tony Williams-The Joy Of Flying (1979)

This album is the second solo effort from the great drummer Tony Williams since the release of "Spring" thirteen years earlier in 1966. This time, Williams presents a collection of jazz fusion, funk, and jazz-rock, continuing the various incarnations and experiments of the seven albums he had previously released with his Tony Williams Lifetime Band. Recorded with other jazz and rock luminaries such as Jan Hammer, Herbie Hancock, Randy Brecker, David Sanborn, Tom Scott, George Benson, Brian Auger, Ronnie Montrose, and Stanley Clarke, the repertoire is primarily composed of that joyful and dynamic jazz-rock with funk, rock, and more progressive passages. While in "Going Far" and "Hip Skip" the drummer continues down that funk path, in other tracks such as the jazz-rock "Open Fire", the smooth jazz "Tony", the avant-garde "Coming Back Home" or the experimental "Morgan's Motion", Williams stays within the canons of the genre, producing an excellent sampler of the best jazz rock of the late sixties, a very complicated time for musicians and artists of avant-garde and progressive sounds or jazz fusion.

Jim Capaldi-Let The Thunder Cry (1981)

By now, it's hard to find someone who doesn't know Jim Capaldi, the legendary drummer of the iconic band Traffic, with whom he released such emblematic works as "Mr. Fantasy", "John Barleycorn Must Die", and "The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys", in addition to collaborating with other great artists like his former Traffic bandmate, Steve Winwood, and giants such as Eric Clapton and George Harrison, among others. His solo career began while he was still with Traffic with the album "Oh How We Danced", where he showcased his great talent as a composer and multi-instrumentalist, creating brilliant albums with superb compositions that, without adhering to a specific style, were always well-received by fans and critics alike. In 1981, his eighth album, "Let the Thunder Cry", was released, on which Capaldi enlisted the help of his former Traffic bandmates, Steve Winwood and Rebop Kwaku Baah, as well as Mel Collins and Andy Newmark, with Capaldi handling vocals, guitar, and production. An album that stands out for its exquisite production, where tracks like the opening and powerful “Let The Thunder Cry” contrast with the slow and brilliant ballads “Child In The Storm”, “Warm”, “Old Photographs” or “Bright Fighter”, while its melodic side can be found in the rhythmic “Favela Music”, “Only Love”, “Dreams Do Come True” or “We Don’t Need”, all of them with Capaldi’s captivating voice and irresistible choruses, making it an essential work in rock music.

UFO-Force It (1975)

"Force It" is the fourth release from the British band UFO, a much harder and more forceful album than its predecessor, "Phenomenon" (1974), which featured a somewhat excessive use of acoustic guitars, despite also including some of their immortal heavy rock anthems, "Doctor Doctor" and "Rock Bottom". For "Force It", they enlisted the production of Ten Years After bassist Leo Lyons and keyboardist Chick Churchill, who also contributed Hammond organ to the melodic "Out In The Street". With Michael Schenker now fully integrated into the band, he creates dizzying melodic riffs with his powerful guitar, perfectly complemented by the power and delicate vocals of the immeasurable Phil Moog. Packed with energetic hard rock, this album solidified UFO's musical identity, as demonstrated by the vigorous tracks "Let It Roll", "Shoot Shoot", "Love Lost Love", and "Mother Mary". "Too Much of Nothing" and "Dance Your Life Away", while the atmospheric "Between The Walls", integrated into the middle part of the dominant "This Kids", adds the psychedelic note to this legendary album.

UFO-The Wild, The Willing and the Innocent (1981)

At the start of the 1980s, the British band UFO faced a new era without their lead guitarist Michael Schenker, and a year later without their keyboardist Paul Raymond. They began this new chapter with their ninth release, "The Wild, The Willing and The Innocent". To replace both musicians, they recruited guitarist Paul Chapman and keyboardist Neil Carter, with the lineup completed by the usual members Phil Moog (vocals), Andy Parker (drums), and Pete Way (bass). While this new release didn't quite surpass the brilliant and classic works of "Phenomenon", "Force It", and "Lights Out", they still managed to create a very respectable and commendable album, showcasing Chapman's consummate talent on the guitar and a series of songs that relied more heavily than usual on Phil Moog's sensational vocals. Solid and compelling songs like "Making Movies", direct and forceful rock like "Chains Chains" and "Long Home", approaches to light and commercial rock with "It's Killing Me", or the melodic song that gives the album its title, are more than enough guarantees to consider this work as one of their best works.

UFO-Mechanix (1982)

This is another classic UFO album, a record that showcases the band's unmistakable hard rock, but this time seasoned with infectious melodies and elegant arrangements courtesy of keyboardist Neil Carter. Carter, along with guitarist Paul Chapman and bassist Pete Way, are the musicians most heavily involved in the composition of most of the album's tracks. Pure hard rock anthems like "Dreaming", "Something' Else", "The Writer", "We Belong to the Night", and "All for You" alternate with intense, powerful songs like "Terri" and "Back Into My Life". In short, with this album, the London band's tenth, they delivered another memorable release, further cementing their magnificent career and confirming their status as one of the leading hard rock bands in the world.

UFO-UFO (1970)

In 1968 Pete Way (bass), Mick Bolton (guitar) and Tic Torrazo (drums) formed the "Hocus Pocus" group, then enter Phil Mogg (vocals) and Andy Parker (drums) and the band was renamed "UFO". In 1970 they recorded their first album, "UFO", and 72 come "UFO 2" and "UFO Live", these three albums were remarkably successful in countries like Japan, Germany or France.
Then Mick Bolton left the band and after trying several guitarists (Larry Wallis and Bernie Marsden), replaces a very young Michael Schenker would mark the band's sound in the coming years. In 74 released "Phenomenon" and a year later they are joined by Paul Chapman (guitar) leaving the group before the publication of "Force It" (1975). For the recording of their sixth album, "No Heavy Petting" (1976), joins the group Danny Peyronnel (keyboards, guitar) who was replaced by Paul Raymond for recording "Lights Out" (1977). This training would publish "Obsession" (1978) and the magnificent "Strangers in the Night" (1979). Michael Schenker decided to fly solo and left the group and was replaced by Paul Chapman with that record "No Place to Run" (1980). The changes are happening and Paul Raymond left the band and was replaced by John Sloman and later by Neil Carter. In 81 came "The Wild, the Willing and the Innocent" and a year later "Mechanix". In 82 Pete Way left the band and was replaced by Billy Sheehan place with which released "Making Contact" (1983) but sales are not appropriate and decide to separate.
Some time later the band would return to relive a second youth with very good albums like Walk On Water, Covenant and The Visitor among others ...
In this first album of UFO clearly noticed its roots blues mixed with psychedelia and experimentation, the road to the hard rock was still to come. The production is not very good because they counted as few resources but we can appreciate a superb Pete Way on bass. In the recording are two versions, "Who Do You Love" by Willie Dixon and "C'mon Everybody" Eddie Cochran it would be a remarkable success in Japan. Other outstanding issues would "Unidentified Flying Object", "Boogie" or "Follow you Home".

David Bowie-The Man Who Sold The World (1970)

David Bowie's third album marked, among other things, the beginning of his glam rock journey, although it is also, to some extent, one of his most intense works, imbuing his music with a powerful hard rock sound, a style that was the pinnacle of rock music at the time. On this new album, the Thin White Duke began to gravitate towards the sounds that would forever elevate him in the following years, as would soon be proven with the iconic "Ziggy Stardust". To begin with, "The Man Who Sold the World" already features several future members of Spiders and Mars: guitarist Mick Ronson and bassist, arranger, and producer Tony Visconti, both of whom would be fundamental to this release. Released by Mercury Records in the United States, it came out near the end of 1970, while RCA Records released it in the United Kingdom (and subsequently worldwide) six months later in April 1971. The album opens with a powerful "The Width Of A Circle", a titanic, nearly nine-minute track of mighty rock, where Ronson showcases his six-string prowess. In a similar vein are the frenetic "Black Country Rock" and the orchestral and melodic "All The Madmen". "Saviour Machine", on the other hand, is a strange piece somewhere between gothic and psychedelic, while "She Shook Me Cold" is the rare exception, a chaotic, odd instrumental that might seem like it was recorded as filler to pad out the album's runtime. The final two tracks are the enchanting "The Man Who Sold The World" and the powerful "The Supermen". This third album became one of David Bowie's best works and the prelude to his most musically creative works such as the aforementioned "Ziggy Stardust" or the fantastic "Aladdin Sane", "Hunky Dory" and "The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders of Mars".

Van Der Graaf Generator-The Quiet Zone/The Pleasure Dome (1977)

The departure of Hugo Banton's timeless organ and the diminished role of David Jackson's saxophone led to a profound shift in Van Der Graaf Generator's musical structures. This compelled their leader, Peter Hammill, to rework his original musical approach for the band's eighth album, "The Quiet Zone/The Pleasure Dome", released in 1977. This album would ultimately serve as VDGG's epilogue until their return 28 years later with "Present". Abandoning the dark, lengthy compositions and the vast, chaotic musical intricacies of their earlier work, the band here strived for shorter pieces, though nonetheless of immense complexity. Guy Evans' drums, along with Nic Potter's bass, are the driving force of an album that, together with Jackson's fleeting appearance and Graham Smith's feverish violin, strikes us as the least conventional and epic work in their entire discography released in the 1970s. Tracks like the uncertain "Lizard Play" or the resilient "The Habit of the Broken Heart" offer unchallenging developments, while the Floydian "The Siren Song" or the hypnotic "The Last Frame" stand out as the album's highlights. However, we still find glimpses of their past with the frenetic "Cat's Eye/Yellow Fever (Running)", the psychedelic "Chemical World", and the intense "The Sphinx in the Face" and its closing track, "The Sphinix Returns".

The Allman Brothers Band-Idlewild South (1970)

On their second album, The Allman Brothers Band embraced a more complex and sophisticated style, a clear foreshadowing of what the band would do in the following years. The masterful fusion of blues, rock, and funk is reinforced on "Idlewild South" by a country essence, as demonstrated in the wonderful and enthusiastic "Revival", the magnificent bluesy "Please Call Home", and the folk-rock "Midnight Rider", which contrast with the powerful bluesy "Don't Keep Me Wonderin' " and "Leave My Blues At Home". We mustn't forget the incendiary version of Willie Dixon's classic "Hoochie Coochie Man", while "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed", is the band's classic tour de force, where each member has their moment of brilliance with guitar, percussion, and organ solos, making it the high point of another masterpiece from the Jacksonville-based group.

Spyro Gyra-Alternating Currents (1985)

"Alternating Currents" is one of the essential albums by the jazz fusion and smooth jazz group Spyro Gyra. Released in 1985, it was the ninth album by the Buffalo, New York-based group and the first to feature only the core lineup, without any backing musicians or guest collaborators. At that time, the band consisted of Jay Beckenstein, Tom Schuman, Julio Fernández, Dave Samuels, Gerardo Vélez, Kim Stone, and Richie Morales. Recorded at Bear Tracks Studios in New York during the first months of 1985, the group ventured into jazz-rock territory on this album without abandoning their signature jazz fusion sound. Among their repertoire of nine tracks, the excellent "Shakedown", "Alternating Current", "PG", "Heartbeat", "Mardi Gras" and "Sunflurry" stand out. In all of these songs, the band achieves an exquisite sound, particularly highlighting the contributions of Jay Beckenstein on saxophone, Tom Schuman on keyboards, and Julio Fernández on guitar. "Alternating Currents" would eventually reach number 41 on the Billboard R&B Albums chart and number 3 on the Jazz Albums chart.