World In Sound The Id : the inner sounds of the Id (US,1966-1967)***°°
The Id is a studio project between some musicians who all had their own busy life in music business of which most of them had some fame as arranger or studio artist in the past, and who would also continue like this after this project.
-Guitarist Jerry Cole appeared before on “Tequilla” from the Champs and worked with numerous famous artists, like Jerry Lee Lewis, The Righteous Brothers, Little Richard, Aretha Franklin, Steely Dan, James Taylor, Blood, Sweat And Tears, Chicago, the Byrds, Greg Allman, the Righteous Brothers, Henry Mancini, Kenny Rogers, Hank Williams Jr., and so on, working for Phil Spector as a steady studio musician. Around the time of working on the Id he was recording with the The Beach Boys on their "Pet Sounds" album, besides he was playing kind of surf guitar with his Spacemen. Later he became producer for Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin, and always showed a certain vivid guitar style, while drummer Don Dexter also worked with artists like Rick Nelson ; bass player Glenn Cass went later into country music while his younger brother Norm Cass, as a guitarist, later will do arranging for more than 15 years with country music star Gene Watson ; several of these artists participated in various TV shows).-
It took two years of weekend meetings to get the tracks together before the quartet finally, in July and August 1966 recorded the album, and it was released in January 1967. Where they got their ideas for it, I cannot tell for sure, but the back of the LP says “The primitive rhythms brought back to popular rhythms” which explains partly where some inspiration came from. It was also with American primitive guitar explorations that at least since 1965 or earlier people began to adapt different explorations, also from Indian (that was the easiest part), and a bit less from Middle Eastern origin (often a bit too complicated to make any real start), stimulated by the publication of ethnic records in US, that might have given extra ideas. The same notes also say “The Primitive rhythm has been brought back to popular music.” To the ethnic music reference of opening up rhythms, I also remember how the ideas from the South-African Shangaans,was pioneering real African rhythms and ideas in their early beat music from 1965, which led to the hit of “Lion sleeps tonight” a song and context which also became known in those years.
The recording had used a few unusual experiments for its time. Not only in the guitar, but also rhythmically unusual rhythms for Western standard pop/blues/rock were used, like in 17/8, 20/8, and 7/4, amongst the usual easier pop/blues/rock standards. In general one can say the style of the album was rooted in a whole range of history, mostly expressed itself as powerful and almost aggressive playing of a '60's avarage pop style with a good taste for music, but casually completely different areas opened up, wherever it took them.
“The Rake” is a very unusual psychrock track for its rhythms, and for its different time schedule of layers for the song arrangement. “Wild Times”, which starts as an average rock track, has a very experimental part on guitar (?) with an eastern influence and flavour, and psychedelic effect. “Don't Think Twice” (not the Dylan song) is like a pre-Beatles harmony-vocal rock, with a guitar sound which I recognise from The Byrds’ “Mr.Tambourine Man”, a track where the incredible guitar that made the song so special, and big hit, actually was played by the same guitarist, Jerry Cole (who's contribution made that song so strong). After a more average ‘60’s poptrack “Stone and Steel”, “Baby’s Eyes” distinguishes itself with the heavy bass and rockin’guitar, loud and aggressive which was some key to success of many ‘60’s hits. “Boil The Kettle, Mother” is great and hot rock’n roll with “almost-spoken-word-singing with bass”, and really heavy and roaring guitar, a highly original track, which was one of the regular airplay tracks popular on L.A. radio in those days. “Butterfly Kiss” has an unusual arrangement of classical music with an operatic female voice, until the rock song appears and mingles. After two more good rock songs, “Short Circuit” and “Just Who”, “The Inner Sound Of The Id” is the most renewing track of all. With a reference to Freud’s id, the track predates Timothy Leary’s meditation with tampura on the background on “Turn on, tune in”, (-it is mostly given a reference to the later Beatles with Ravi Shankar sitar-use, I have no clue why, because this is a different approach). This kind of approach found several other examples later in the early sixties, like from Don Robertson and several other hippie-versions. It is not really for any other reason, than as a mind spell presented like a kind of soft psychedelic raga. The vocals recite as if some voodoo is partiticed to release something from the soul. And it is enriched with very psychedelic, harsh but colourful guitar sounds, a steady repetitive bass and rhythm, and some sitar.
The unused tracks from the session which didn’t appear on the LP, were simply sold by the label for recycling without the band’s approval. Several tracks were first of all used to make ‘Sounds of Today’ by 101 Strings', which is a psych-exploitation group whose albums sold like sandwiches. Other missing tracks from the Id session masters reappeared later as The Animated Egg, a fake group’s record, using nine more of these tracks. Alternative versions surfaced later as the Give Me Some Lovin' by the Projection Company, released on Custom Records in 1967, then were once more re-launched as “Are You Experienced” (with a Hendrix association to attract costumers) by T.J. Swift & the Electric Bag, in 1968. It was I think these last sessions which reappeared here now as bonus tracks. But still, the story didn’t end. Because The Animated Egg didn’t sell well enough for the label, they made a commission to rearrange them with extra strings as “Eggs and Strings” for another 101 Strings record ‘Astro Sounds from Beyond the Year 2000’, an even more popular game. Other outtakes include “the Exotic Sounds of Love” (with heavy breathing added by electronic composer Bebe Barron). Even until today his material still is sampled by people like Public Enemy and Fatboy Slim of course again without any credits.
The first two bonus tracks, "Wild Times" and "Don't Think Twice", are in the already earlier described much-forward aggressive ‘60’s style, with harmony vocals and with the great recognisable guitar by Jerry Cole. The very different, moody “Kimeaa” is played on resonating guitar (which sounds a bit in the direction of a sitar-guitar, I wonder how this is done or with which instrument), with additional piano and bass on calm rhythms. “Our Man Hendrix” with bass, piano and freaking fuzz guitar, is the first a-go-go psychrock track, making it understandable how such tracks were used for psychploitation. Also “Tune out of that place” with smooth-jazzy guitar, on very danceable a-go-go rhythms with hammond organ are surely attractive for the same reasons. “Give me some lovin’” is the only cover, by Steve Winwood, in a (psych)poprock style, a track with a noticeable freakabilly influence. The intro for “Boil the kettle” is lead by dance-rhythmic bluesy and very heavy electric guitar. Also “What Else” has again this a go-go reference, with very rhythmic drums, wild organ, and the always great guitar. “Uh Uh Uh” is a bluesy rock track, with an effect that I was encouraged to shake while listening, is once more a great danceable track, followed by the slightly more soulful rocking “I can’t stand it”. These extra tracks fit well with another second story which wasn’t exploited by the group themselves before, but from which the cow was milked secretly, having brought forward several different calves that grew pretty big as well. The bonus tracks now deserve their second start.
A great compilation. I only wish the background story (which I just told) was included.
German review :
