McPhee – ‘McPhee’ (1971/2025) – Album Review

Here we have another review of one of Noble Records Exclusive offerings. This time around we go Down Under to Sydney, Australia with a band named McPhee. The album was originally released in 1971 and has been lost and forgotten through the sands of time. Well, not really as it has been a highly sought after piece in the collecting world and an original LP will cost you well over $2,000 to obtain it. Don’t fret, these reissues by labels such as Guerssen Records help keep these lost gems in the public eye and we are luckier for it.

Guerssen always does such a fine job recreating the original artwork and they use only the best, high quality material. It is reproduced on a stunning green and black splatter vinyl which you will see below. On top of that you get an essay on the band by Ian McFarlane which gives you all the details needed to know about this band.

And speaking of the band, you get Jim Deverell on Organ, piano and vocals; Faye Lewis on vocals and percussion; Terry Popple on drums; Tony Joyce on guitar; and last but certainly not least, Benny Kaika on bass. It is a stellar line-up full of people that now how to use their instruments as you will hear if you check this out, which you should. The album is mostly full of covers but there are 2 original songs out of the 7 on the album. Musically, this is some killer acid rock, psychedelia, prog and pure rock. But enough jibber-jabber, lets get to the music.

SIDE 1:

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Judas Priest – ‘Stained Class’ (1978) – Album Review (The Complete Albums Collection Series)

After finishing up the tour for ‘Sin After Sin’, the band didn’t rest for too long before they jumped right back in the studio. They were on a brutal schedule of album, tour, album, tour, etc… It can be exhausting. The band’s fourth album and second with Columbia records was recorded between October and November 1977. The album, ‘Stained Class’, was released on February 10, 1978 and would barely break the Billboard 200 Albums chart going to #173. But the album did go Gold selling over 500,000 copies, but reality is that album only went Gold after the success of the band in the early 80’s. Still Gold nonetheless.

The band saw something strange happen with this album. They got a new drummer which would now be the fourth drummer in four albums. That isn’t the strange part as their drummer turnover has been legendary. The strange part is new drummer, Les Binks, actually stayed on after the album was done and would go on to record two more albums with the band. That is a huge record for them and they should be so proud of themselves for not letting another drum go. And that wasn’t all. This is the ver first album that all 5 band members got writing credits on an album. Yes, Les got one credit and so did long time bassist, Ian Hill.

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