Sandy Nelson: "drums and more drums!"

Released in 1968

by Sunset Records,

under the category "budget compilation."

This is a great LP to have

because it includes Sandy Nelson's top hits,

"Let There Be Drums," "And Then There Were Drums,"

and "Day Drumming."

AND it features enjoyable covers

of other major songs such as

"All Shook Up," "Splish Splash," "Be Bop Baby,"

and "No Matter What Shape (Your Stomach's In)"

I couldn't find this album on YouTube,

but here is his signature

LET THERE BE DRUMS

Read more about Sandy Nelson HERE.

Art Direction: Woody Woodward

Design: Gabor Halmos

Cover Photography: George Whiteman

Sammy Davis, Jr.: "I've Gotta Be Me"

Released in 1968,

the title song became

one of Sammy Davis, Jr.'s signature songs.

This song was covered by numerous artists.

"I've gotta" believe this one song set Walter Marks (composer)

up for life.

Cover photo: Ron Joy

Art Director: Ed Thrasher

Back Cover: B. Tanenbaum

Blood, Sweat & Tears: "Blood, Sweat & Tears"

Released in 1968,

this was Blood, Sweat & Tears' second LP.

I believe the primary reason it was self-titled

is because the line-up was almost

entirely different from their first album.

In particular,

they boasted a new front man,

David Clayton-Thomas,

who replaced Al Kooper.

This album was hugely successful,

with major hits

"Spinning Wheel,"

"You've Made Me So Very Happy,"

and

"And When I Die."

It even won the Grammy

for Album of the Year,

beating out the Beatles'

"Abbey Road,"

Crosby, Stills, & Nash's debut LP,

Johnny Cash's "At San Quentin,"

and

The Fifth Dimension's "The Age of Aquarius."

This was an influential recording

for the world

and for me personally.

The stunning musical complexity,

the songwriting, and the vocals

had a lasting impact on my approach

to music composition and appreciation.

Cover Art: Timothy Quay

Back Cover Photo: Harrie George

Inside Art: Bob Cato

Design: John Berg

Steppenwolf: "Steppenwolf"

Released in 1968,

this was Steppenwolf's

highly successful debut LP.

Includes their mega-hit, "Born to Be Wild,"

plus "Sookie, Sookie" and "The Pusher."

"Berry Rides Again" is also a great track!

If you are not already a fan,

I'm not sure there is much I can say

to convince you of this group's

iconic role in the late '60s

progression of rock music.

If you ARE already a fan,

there's not much I could say

that would change your mind

or add to your knowledge,

probably.

How 'bout this:

a) the silver cover made it difficult for an

amateur photographer like myself to get a clean shot of the cover;

b) this album came to me second-hand (garage sale, I think),

so the disturbing, unfortunate red enhancements are not mine.

Read more about Steppenwolf HERE.

Art Direction, Cover and Liner Design: Gary Burden

Photography: Tom Gundelfinger

Jose Feliciano: "Feliciano!"

Released in 1968,

this was Jose Feliciano's fourth (4th)

and most successful studio LP (in the US).

This LP includes several excellent covers of great songs,

but it Jose's cover of The Doors' "Light My Fire"

that literally caught fire with listeners everywhere.

The album also includes enjoyable covers of

"Sunny"

"California Dreamin'"

"Here, There, and Everywhere"

"Always Something There To Remind Me"

"And I Love Her"

"The Last Thing On My Mind"

Illustrations: George Bartell

Bobbie Gentry & Glen Campbell

Released in 1968,

this was one-time collaboration

that was Glen Campbell's tenth (10th) LP.

The country duo's version of "Let It Be Me" -

which has been recorded before and since

by countless artists -

was a well-loved hit in 1969.

Cover Photo: Dick Brown

Tom Jones: "Fever Zone"

Released in 1968,

this was Tom Jones' tenth (10th) LP.

(or 8th or 9th, depending on how one counts,

since "Green, Green Grass of Home" was

released on Decca, then Parrot;

and "13 Smash Hits" was a compilation,

which many discographers do not count, per se)

Read more about Tom Jones' life and career HERE.

Taj Mahal: "Taj Mahal"

Released in 1968,

this was Taj Mahal's debut studio recording.

Read more about Taj Mahal, the American Blues artist, HERE. 

[album cover photo borrowed from Wikipedia because I lost mine]

Jimi Hendrix: "Electric Ladyland"

Released in 1968,

this was the third (3rd) and final LP

for "The Jimi Hendrix Experience"

Read more about this LP HERE.

Art Direction: Ed Thrasher

Cover Photography: Karl Ferris

Inside Photos: Linda Eastman, David Sygall

John Williams: "The Guitar Artistry of..."

Released in 1968,

this LP by Australian-born guitarist, John Williams,

is one of nearly one-hundred sixty (so far).

John Williams began recording at the age of 17 in 1958,

and is still performing and recording.

Read more about John Williams HERE.

Ed Ames: "When the Snow Is On The Roses"

Released in 1968.

Read more about Ed Ames

(including the Johnny Carson "tomahawk" story)

HERE.

Janos Sebestyen: "J. S. Bach: Music for Solo Harpsichord"

Released in 1968,

the music on this LP

is of course utterly timeless, stunning, and beautiful.

The striking (pun intended) sound of the solo harpsichord

makes it all the more appealing and noteworthy.

Iron Butterfly: "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida"

Released in 1968, this album and its title song are arguably the epitome of "psychedelic rock."

The band's name "Iron Butterfly" remains one of my favorite band names ever.

This recording features the legendary and iconic guitar talents of Erik Brann, who was all of seventeen years old at the time of its recording.

Iron Butterfly made plenty of great music, but nothing really to compare with the strident power and popularity of "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida."

Read more about 'em HERE.

This album went to a fan in Missouri.

Gordon Lightfoot: "Did She Mention My Name?"

The first of two LPs released by Gordon Lightfoot in 1968, this was his third studio album.

This was Lightfoot's first album to make it to the charts, but only in Canada.

After he switched record labels - from United Artists to Reprise - and recorded his sixth LP in 1970 (the first with Reprise) did he achieve widespread success beyond Canada.

That sixth LP was originally called "Sit Down Young Stranger" but was renamed "If You Could Read My Mind" because of the commercial pop success of that song.

Cover photo: Charles Steiner

Liner photo: Dan Kramer

Cover design: Tim Lewis, Push Pin Studios

This album went to a fan in California.

Walter Carlos: "Switched-On Bach"

This is a truly delightful and groundbreaking album.

Released in 1968 this recording is an early and entertaining example of Moog Synthesizer.

It was the first in a small series of recordings by Walter Carlos (now known as Wendy Carlos).

More about these recordings HERE.

I sent this LP to an afficionado in Turkey.

The Rolling Stones: "Beggars Banquet"

This LP hit the streets in late 1968.

After experimenting a bit with psychedelia on the previous album, this recording was a return to The Stones' R&B roots.

This LP made the long trek to Canada from the USA.

The Young Rascals: "Time Peace: The Rascals' Greatest Hits"

Released in 1968, this is absolutely one of THE GREATEST rock artist Greatest Hits albums OF ALL TIME.  Go find the downloads and prove me wrong.  I'm telling you.  You will completely love every single track. No question. You should go find this music RIGHT NOW!

Word has it that Dino Danelli (The Rascals' drummer) had something to do with the design and artwork of this LP.

Cool stuff.

Here's some bonuses.

Both sides of the inner sleeves, featuring over 100 more album covers from those days.

This fantastic LP (thank goodness I digitized the music!) traveled safely to a fan in Japan!

Boogie with Canned Heat

Fantastic cover art. A great representation of the psychedelic motifs that were prevalent in 1968 when this LP was released.

This was Canned Heat's second LP, and it contained their huge hit "On the Road Again." What an utterly iconic staple of the era. It is so unlike Willie Nelson's later hit of the same name, and even less like Katie Melua's latest entry (not that either of these were necessarily "bad"). It is hynotic, captivating, and delightful. Canned Heat's "On the Road Again" should absolutely be included on anyone's list of favorites.

That well-loved song aside, I was in awe again of the whole LP when I played it. It had been so long since I had listened to it I had completely forgotten how great it was. Actually, I am pretty sure I appreciated it MUCH more in my middle-age than I did in my stupefied teen years.

A delighted collector in France found this one in his mail one day a few years ago (Oct 2007). I'll be happily keeping all of its tracks in rotation on my iPod indefinitely.

The back of the jacket is also worth sharing:

The Beatles: 'White Album' and 'Rubber Soul'

OK. Well. I said in my previous post that I would follow it with a straight list of the 90 LPs from which I have disencumbered myself already. BUT honestly that idea does not appeal to me in the least. In particular, as I looked at the list in preparation for that expedient method of disposing of their mention in these esteemed digital halls of history, I really began to feel that I had to give the LPs a bit more attention than just to list them with little or no elaboration.

I reckon I still am not going to give these LPs nearly as much attention as I would like to do, but then again I'm pretty sure I am not the first or only person ever to mention and make comments on these albums. I don't have the time or knowledge really to do each one quite that much justice. So, I'll report off the top of my head and that will be it, pretty much.

The first two albums that flew out of my collection (on the same day) were two Beatles albums.

One was the so-called 'White Album.' It came to be called that because it was released in a plain white cover with "The Beatles" embossed unobtrusively on it. Released in 1968, it is actually TWO LPs - aka a 'double album.' I read just recently in Geoff Emerick's book "Here, There, & Everywhere" that the 'White Album' got no other name because The Beatles could not settle on one in consensus. They had not too long before suffered the death of their manager, Brian Epstein (drug overdose at age 37), and they were just returning from their trip to India when they began recording the tracks that became the 'White Album.' So, their perspective, their camaraderie, their outlook were quite different for the making of this album than it was for the previous recordings. This album marked a significant turning point in the lives of these men who made such an irreversible impression on the world of their day. I believe the effects of their contribution are still reverberating.

The other Beatles LP that slipped from my fingers that day (not so unwillingly because it fetched a decent sum in return!) was 'Rubber Soul.' 'Rubber Soul' is The Beatles' sixth LP, but due to separate releases in countries outside the UK, it could conceivably be counted as somewhere between the tenth and fifteenth album recorded by The Beatles. Released in 1965, it included fourteen tracks. Among them was a Grammy-winning song called "Michelle" as well as "Norwegian Wood," "Drive My Car," "You Won't See Me," and "Nowhere Man."

Like so much of their music, the appeal is truly timeless.

You can see by the pics that these records saw a lot of use - and a great deal of love - over the years.