GS I Love You: Japanese Garage Bands Various Artists (Big Beat International)

£12.56

Genre:
Psych / Garage
Label:
Big Beat
Format:
CD
Catalogue Id:
CDWIKD 159

Proof that the Japanese have always excelled at anything they put their hand to, including interpreting Western rock, comes with this new Big Beat collection GS I Love You, packed with some of the most impressive beat and garage sounds you'll hear from any country. GS refers to Group Sounds, the name the Japanese media gave to the local explosion of bands circa 1967.

Japanese rock really got going with the instrumental eleki boom of 1964-1965, but obviously the Beatles and other British groups were as popular in the Far East as they were anywhere else in the world, and many of them, including the Fabs, helped inspire the Group Sounds boom by visiting Japan. Amongst the tunes covered (phonetically!) on GS I Love You are frantic versions of the Mojo's Everything's Alright, Arthur Brown's Fire, and an unintentionally hilarious mangling of Long Tall Sally by the Out Cast, which has to be heard to be believed.The casual listener will also be impressed by the high standard of production and performance in many of the original tunes included. While Japanese-language vocals can occasionally take a little getting used to, the instrumental backing tracks are consistently energetic and exciting, and fans of instrumental rock are in for a treat, as the guitar playing on many cuts is amongst the wildest and most manic of the era. for an example look no further than top GS combo the Spiders' rocking treatment of Cliff's Dynamite, which puts the Shads to shame, or their refreshing take on that old warhorse Wipeout.Elsewhere, the guitar work features plenty of fast 'n' furious fuzz and whammy bar, the legend being that, used to cheap home-manufactured instruments with a high-neck action, the skill of the average Japanese guitarist was doubled or tripled in mind-boggling fashion when slinkier Western equivalents were imported. As a bonus, most solos, even on the ballads, come with bloodcurdling screams, enthusiastic yells and shouts of such stock GS phrases as "Let's Go!!" and "Awwright Boys!!"The cynics out there may regard GS I Love You as a compilation of limited appeal, but in fact quite the opposite is true. It will bring a tap to the foot and a smile to the face of any open-minded student of 1960s pop. In researching this project, I even visited Japan (actually I was there on tour as a member of the Sneetches, but still managed to blow a small fortune on GS records). Original pressings of GS singles and albums by such heavyweights of the scene as the Golden Cups, Mops, Out Cast and Spiders can sell for hundreds of pounds on the collectors' circuit, but here's a chance to hear the 'A' selection of the best Group Sounds, at just a fraction of that cost.Trivia note: whilst there have been several GS compilations over recent years, this is the first legally-licensed one outside of Japan.

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Track listing

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Side 1

  • 01 Preview You Gat A Call Me - The Out Cast

  • 02 Preview Everything's Alright - The Out Cast

  • 03 Preview Dynamite - The Spiders

  • 04 Preview Monkey Dance - The Spiders

  • 05 Preview One More Please - The Blue Jeans

  • 06 Preview Stop Dance - The Terrys

  • 07 Preview Sheivide De Yuko - The Playboy

  • 08 Preview Kaette Okure - The Playboy

  • 09 Preview Ajoen Ajoen - The Swing West

  • 10 Preview Fire - The Swing West

  • 11 Preview Let's Go Rangers - The Rangers

  • 12 Preview Koi O Kesunda - The Napoleon

  • 13 Preview Aphrodite - The Cougars

  • 14 Preview Suki Nanda - The Cougars

  • 15 Preview Wipe Out - The Spiders

  • 16 Preview Furi Furi - The Spiders

  • 17 Preview I Saw Her Standing There - The Burns

  • 18 Preview Bara O Anokoni - The Days And Nights

  • 19 Preview Let's Go On The Beach - The Out Cast

  • 20 Preview Bokuno Sobakara - The Out Cast

  • 21 Preview Hold On, I'm Comin' - The Voltage

  • 22 Preview J And A - The Cougars

  • 23 Preview Seishun A Go-go - The Spiders

  • 24 Preview Hey Girl - The Van-Dogs

  • 25 Preview Omiyasan - The Toys

  • 26 Preview Long Tall Sally - The Out Cast

  • 27 Preview Kimamana Shelly - The Out Cast

  • 28 Preview Jane Jane - Miki Obata And The Out Casts

Delivery & Returns

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We use Royal Mail First Class for UK deliveries and standard Air Mail for all other territories, very large orders will usually be sent via parcelforce. You may cancel your order at any time prior to your order being dispatched by emailing us at orders@acerecords.com ensuring that you quote your name, address and order reference number or by telephoning +44 (0) 208 453 1311 between 9am and 5pm GMT/BST, Monday to Friday. Please note: As music downloads are dispatched immediately after purchase, there is no possibility of cancelling these orders.

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You have the right to cancel your order within seven days of purchase, or seven days of receipt of the goods (whichever is the longer). If you choose to cancel your order, full payment will be returned to you. Returned items should be sent to: “Returns” c/o Ace Records, Such Close, Letchworth Garden City SG6 1JF, United Kingdom. Music downloads should be returned to us via the email address: orders@acerecords.com including a copy of your notice of cancellation and order number.

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