Day off...
A few months back after a Top Sounds BBC archive listening session one night and being blown away by the raw power in some of the performances, I made a mental note to dig out a few BBC sessions and give em a proper listen and thats what I've been up to today.
I listened to disc one of the Bowie set and have to disagree with the Amazon product description wherein it calls disc one a disappointment. Far from it, my faves from his Deram period are here.. a very different version of Let me sleep beside you & a longer version of the smashing Silly Boy Blue. The song Bombers is a must have, great versions of Cygnet Committee and Width of a circle lots of John Peel's deadpan amusement and David introducing "my new guitarist Michael, who I met two days ago" What's not to like? Dress me in a nightdress and call me Susan if you must but I think his 60's / early 70's stuff is great...even if some of the Deram stuff is too toytown even for Toytown!

Next up Yardbirds...this disc is a total blast from start to finish...powerful stuff. Compared to todays recordings these may sound thin by comparison, but since I don't listen to many of todays recordings, it's not a problem for me. Crank the volume up on these and you get blown away. Awesome guitar stuff going on throughout. The rave up section in Too much monkey business teeters on the edge of hysteria. The closing track on this disc, a cover, My Baby, I think is one of their finest moments and the version here is way better sounding than the one on Cumular Limit...I had to listen to it twice! Paul Samwell Smith sounds terribly posh in the interview with Jimmy Page sounding like a young girl!
I'd wholeheartedly recommend this set, having quite a lot of Yardbirds stuff in my collection, I think this one is probably my fave.

Moody Blues next 2 disc set '67-70....first time l played this one and I was delighted. It has been noted that a lot of the material on here has appeared on the expanded editions of the original albums and while that may be true, there's a whole lot more than that. I think it takes a little while to get going, the tracks from the first session lack fire to these ears. Leave This man Alone I don't think is as good as the single version, Peak Hour, the same, I thought...A few tracks in I found it starting to get really good, Lost Chord material while sounding less ethereal and spooky than the album has an edginess that you get in a lot of these BBC recordings, a little aggression even, that's what I really like about the BBC stuff. Speaking of aggression, the 2nd session also has a version of Peak Hour, and this time it really delivers!
I've always loved this song, it's the closest the Moodies got to Freakbeat and by the time the great crescendo ending comes I'm thinking..Majestic!! Sure, a few songs appear 2 or 3 times but some of them are very different. I've found that I even prefer a lot of BBC session versions of songs to the released ones or at least they're just as good in a different way, not just with the Moodies but with loads of bands. There's some Lost Chord stuff on disc 2 that's just too similar to the album to be especially interesting but then there's some live audience recordings for the David Symmonds show in '69 which is like...Wow!! Version of the Sun Set from Days of Future that's really different and reminds a little of what Floyd were doing at the same time, a great version of Gypsy and a stunning version of Nights in White that has electric guitar instead of acoustic. Maybe a little more versions than I would need on this set but I couldn't say make it a one disc set as there's more than a discs worth of superb stuff on here, quite brilliant really.

These BBC sessions are a great way of hearing old faves in a different light and falling in love with them all over
again it's easy as you already know and love the songs but the different takes can really delight sometimes and has really got me enthused about the old faves.
Concluded with a bit of The Who to listen to the master of guitar pickup toggle switch shenanigans at work...Their version of Dancing In The Street is great, Pete and Rog could sing some sweet n soft harmony when they wanted to.
That's part of why I prefer the pop - art Who over the 'monsters of rock' Who.
Disguises, A quick One and a, maybe even better than the 45, Pictures Of Lily make this one a delight too.
I've been having a few more beebs recently too but I've said enough for now.
I've got the voice of Brian Mathews in my head with: ( and I quote ) "The beautiful knockout sound of the fantastic
Moody Blues" .....I have to agree!!

Hello Painterman,2 other cds at the BBC are The Pretty Things and The Move,unfortunately The Move is an old cd with the muddy sound that went with it,but still great to hear those songs from the first album and pre album tracks in their raw state,as for The Pretties,cd 1 is terrific,not so keen on cd2 i must admit,but wow!!listening to those tracks on cd1 Defecting Grey,Balloon Burning,SF Sorrow is born and a track that never saw a release Turn My Head which is great uk psych!!What other BBC Session cds are out there featuring 60s and early 70s groups and singers?I know Marc Bolan has a big set out at the mo,anyone heard this one yet??

Hi again Stuart, I've actually been on a BBC sessions kick almost exclusively for the last week.
I used to think that these weren't such an essential must have as I figured it was all stuff I already had in other versions,but digging em out and listening to em properly and loud reveals the magic of em. Also there's lots of cover versions that bands didn't record on their records and some of those are great too.
I was thinking of doing a little series of posts on my views on these BBC discs, maybe 2 or 3 at a time as I'm kinda fired up about em.
I did actually listen to the Pretties one last night and it's another beauty. Walking Through My Dreams is really good with the rhythm guitar and backing vocals a bit louder. Turn My Head is one of their finest I think too and Send You with loving.
Ones I will post about shortly are Kinks ( ace! ) Small Faces, Kaleidoscope, Action, Marmalade & Tremeloes ( mmm...
a bit dodgy that one I'm afraid!! ) I'll give my tuppence worth on these soon, stay tuned!

Always loved this Dusty gem from her BBC sessions-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V98ypfSJz5o

Hi Painterman,i have the double cd of THe Tremeloes at the BBC,ya know ive played it once,i should really get that out and give it a spin.......should i venture into pop blandness?The Trems recorded some excellent stuff which are collected on the cd What a state im in,its a shame they didnt get more adventurous in the BBC studios,i also have DD,D,B,M+T double at the BBC cd,which is very good,they recorded a few more adventurous outings for the BBC and some which they never officially released!!I see you mentioned The Action at the BBC,i didnt even know there was one!!!!Gotta hunt that down!!Caravan at the BBC double cd is pretty fine too,particularly cd 1!!!!Really enjoy that one!!Great booklet too.Looking forward to your writings in the future about your BBC listening pleasure!!

Been listening to the double BBC cd of early Deep Purple,some blistering performances on this,i particularly enjoyed listening to cd 1 with Emmaretta,Wring that Neck and Hush being faves and their fine version of Hey Joe,of course they dont stretch out as they would do on officially recorded versions of those songs as 4 minutes seems to be the max time for the BBC,nice little booklet too with this release.