England - "Last Of The Jubblies" [1977] @ VBR 207 (British Progressive Rock)

Yes, England, the band that released that marvellous album Garden Shed in 1977. The tapes for the first, Japanese re-issue of that very rare LP, was taken from a heavily worn vinyl version, thus with a lot of irritating clicks. I think Robert Webb, keyboard player, got hold of a copy, realised there was still a lot of interest in the music, and thought it was time to get the master tapes out of his files and re-issue the disc properly. I still thank him for that.

Another result of this, probably, was that some time ago, Last Of The Jubblies was released, a collection of unreleased tracks, including some demo recordings. The CD is under forty minutes, which is a shame, but of course, it could be all of the recordings the band ever made.

England are known for their very Genesis-influenced style. However, there are some differences. England, for example, paid more attention to the music than the lyrics. But when it comes to singing, I think England are more diverse in lead vocals as well as harmony vocals. Well, I am not talking about charisma, of course...

Most of the music is not as good as the songs on Garden Shed (so, a good choice what to put on that album, then...). A bit more song-structured tunes and less of the good bits with many things going on at once. For example, A One-Day Legged Tale (nine minutes) is not as interesting as thirteen-minute Three-Piece Suite from Garden Shed.

But there's still some really good stuff here. Tooting Bec Rape Case contains a great gutar riff, and would have been great on Garden Shed. Mister Meener lacks the genius that marks Garden Shed, but still is a good, and original song. The middle section contains strange keyboard sounds that can be heard on Paraphernalia as well. The last track, Nanogram, contains something that reminds me of a track on Garden Shed, and is closest to that LP than any of the other songs on this CD. This is actually the best track. Er, wasn't this the B-side of the one and only single the band released?

I know, I compared a lot of this CD to England's original LP. But let's face it, there's nothing else to compare it to. If there are any, I would love to hear some live recordings. This CD is not as essential as Garden Shed, but if you really like that album, you should get this one as well. It is available from Vinyl Tap Records, 1 Whitecloth Hall, Leeds LS1 7BR, United Kingdom.

--- reviewed by Jerry van Kooten @ http://www.dprp.net

Track 1 - Creepin' Instrumental.......
Track 6 - Nanogram........................

Keep Listening!!!!

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