Skin Alley-To Pagham and Beyond (1970)

Relatively unknown to the general public, Skin Alley was a progressive rock band that remains in the ears of a fortunate few who experienced their music during their career spanning from 1968 to 1974. Originally formed in London, the group consisted of Bob James on guitars, saxophone, and flutes, Krzysztof-Henryk on keyboards, Thomas Crimble on bass, and Alvin Pope on drums. Their style was infused with jazz, folk, blues, and rock. Around mid-1968, the group secured a contract with CBS, who produced and released their debut album, "Skin Alley" (1969). This album contained nine excellent tracks, including "Marsha" and "All Alone", and was produced by Pretty Things guitarist Dick Taylor. The album was a brilliant combination of keyboard arrangements and a solid rhythm section, featuring memorable guitar solos and, in many cases, an exhilarating flute sound. In the following months, the group embarked on a tour of Great Britain, participating in numerous festivals where they unleashed their endless jams with guitar solos, saxophones, and mellotrons, giving their music a nuanced and sonically diverse sound. A year later came their second album, "To Pagham and Beyond", where they brilliantly continued the progressive rock-jazz fusion of their first album with long and complex compositions. All the tracks on the album exceeded six minutes in length, with "Take Me To Your Leader's Daughter" and "The Queen Of Bad Intentions" being particularly noteworthy. At the end of that same year, Crimble left the band to join Hawkwind and was replaced by Nick Graham, formerly of Atomic Rooster. Shortly after, Pope followed suit, and his place was taken by Tony Knight. These departures significantly hampered the group's brilliant continuity, and so in 1972 the modest "Two Quid Deal" was released on the Transatlantic label, followed a year later by the complex "Skintight", criticized for its excessive orchestral arrangements and commercial appeal. These latter albums were released by the prestigious Stax label for the North American market. But despite their enormous quality and talent, the group ultimately succumbed and disbanded in early 1974, thus ending their short but interesting career. In recent years, Eclectic Records has reissued the group's entire discography, adding bonus tracks to the original versions, thus doing some justice to this little-known band that will not disappoint progressive rock fans.