I've got to get through the bulk of this batch of records so I can move on to other stuff, so here we go, down and dirty.

The Eloise Trio - s/t

Eloise is the singer/guitarist in this Bahamian calypso trio. I'm guessing this album is from the early-to-mid-'60s. It's got a lot of calypso standards like "Zombie Jamboree (Belly to Belly)" and "Shake Senora," but also some original tunes penned by Eloise, who strums a hollow-body electric guitar and sings, with bass and maracas adding minimal but effective lilt. There are even a couple of tunes where she throws in some weird semi-dissonant chords that turn the ear in an interesting way and almost seem like a primitive attempt at jazz harmony.


Providence - Ever Sense the Dawn

Interesting. I never heard anything quite like this before, sort of a folk/baroque/prog group. I forget where they're from, Colorado maybe? They're definitely American. Apparently they toured with the Moody Blues in the mid-'70s, and this is on the Moodies own label, Threshold. Excellent singing, playing and arrangements. There's a touch of Moodies folk-rock-pop-prog here and there, but they definitely had their own style, with more classical chops (and compositional sensibilities) than you usually find in prog-oriented bands no matter how much they ape classical tradition.


Mudcrutch - Depot St. 45

This single is (please correct me if I'm wrong) as far as I know the only recording by Mudcrutch, who made the 45 for Leon Russell's Shelter label in the mid-'70s. Shortly thereafter, the band would change it's name to Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, and you know the rest. What does it sound like? Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers! Surprise! Except with a lower recording budget. And the A side even hints at a reggae undercurrent.


Positive Noise - Charm 45

In between being a scritchy-scratchy, doomy Wire/Gang of 4-like post-punk band led by singer Ross Middleton (with two other Middleton brothers in the group, if I remember right), and becoming a slick, peppy synth pop dance band (who also had some fine moments nevertheless), Scotland's Positive Noise was a groovy, arty, PiL-inspired post-punk-dance-rock band. The A side is them at their peak, with very effective horns and a moody production that's nevertheless full of forward motion. If you care, Middleton left after this to form Leisure Process with new-wave sax sessionman Gary Barnacle. Ironically they sounded pretty similar to the latter-day synth-pop sound of Positive Noise, and had a minor hit in the UK (I think) with "Love Cascade," which is worth checking out.