Coven : Witchcraft Destroys Minds And Reaps Souls 1969

Witchcraft Destroys Minds & Reaps Souls is the debut studio album by the American rock band Coven. Released in 1969, it was unusual in that it dealt with overtly occult and satanic themes and was removed from the market soon after its release due to controversy.
However it remains a classic of its genre, and in some ways set groundbreaking trends for later rock bands. This album marked the first appearance in music of the sign of the horns, inverted crosses, and the phrase Hail Satan. Today, these are characteristics of the occult and heavy metal genres. 

According to rock journalist Lester Bangs, "in England lie unskilled laborers like Black Sabbath, which was hyped as a rockin' ritual celebration of the Satanic mass, something like England's answer to Coven".[3] As a further coincidence, Coven's bass guitarist and co-writer (Mike Osborne) is credited as "Oz Osborne", and the opening track is "Black Sabbath".

The music on the album was considered underground rock; what made it distinctive was the heavy emphasis on diabolical subject matter, including songs such as "The White Witch of Rose Hall" (based on the story of Annie Palmer), "For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge", "Black Sabbath" and "Dignitaries of Hell".

The album concluded with a 13-minute track of chanting and Satanic prayers called "Satanic Mass" (written by their producer, Bill Traut, of Dunwich Productions, and described as "the first Black Mass to be recorded, either in written words or in audio"). This Satanic Mass was also the first time Latin phrases such as "Ave Satanas" (Hail, Satan) were used in occult rock music, and later Satanic and Black Metal bands continued this innovation (see List of songs with Latin lyrics for some examples).

The debut LP from the group Coven is noteworthy for reasons more historical than musical. That is not to say it is a bad record; it is more of an interesting record that is unique and listenable. With an elaborate package released on Mercury in 1969, a good trivia question can be made of the fact that bassist Oz Osborne performs on this album, whose opening track is "Black Sabbath." That the group Black Sabbath formed in 1969 when this album was issued seems to indicate that Witchcraft Destroys Minds and Reaps Souls may have had more than a little influence on the more popular heavy metal band.

With the "evil" prayers during "Coven in Charing Cross," Coven get a bit heavy-handed; the group goes over the top trying to push the black magic stuff. "Pact With the Devil" is written "Pack With the Devil" on the label, and the 13-plus minute "Satanic Mass" is more of a curiosity piece than musical adventure; it's no "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida," and that's the flaw with this unique album. Had there been a song to hold onto or had "Satanic Mass" possessed the musical individuality of the Seeds' "Up in My Room," this disc would be more than just a novelty. "Choke, Thirst, Die," which ends side one, is actually one of the best performances on the record, though it also suffers from its excesses, with Jinx Dawson acting like a satanic Ruby Starr when she should have gone in the Wendy O. Williams direction.

In 1972, the band released a self-titled album that included "One Tin Soldier" which was rated as a hot pick in Billboard and Cashbox.[citation needed] By this point, the occult posturing was toned down to just one spooky black cat and a band member surreptitiously flashing the sign of the horns on the album cover.

Their third album, Blood on the Snow, was produced by Shel Talmy and released by Buddah Records in 1974. A music video was filmed for the title track.

An ad hoc version of Coven was assembled to back up Dawson and Ross for the 1990 film Heaven Can Help.

Jinx Dawson recruited a new line up of musicians in late 2016 - early 2017 in order to perform at Roadburn Festival in Tilburg, The Netherlands on April 20, 2017. This was Coven's first performance in Europe.

TRAXS

01."Black Sabbath"    Donlinger    3:32
02."White Witch of Rose Hall"    Donlinger    3:08
03."Coven in Charing Cross"    Donlinger    4:04
04."For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge"    Dawson, Ross, Wilkerson, Osborne    4:41
05."Pact with Lucifer"    Donlinger, Wilkerson    3:32
06."Choke, Thirst, Die"    Donlinger    3:32
07."Wicked Woman"    Dawson, Ross, Wilkerson, Osborne    3:01
08."Dignitaries Of Hell"    4:09
09."Portrait"    Dawson, Ross, Osborne    2:37
10."Satanic Mass"    Traut    13:19

Personnel

    Jinx Dawson: lead vocals
    Jim Donlinger: guitar, vocals
    Jim Nyeholt, John Hobbs, Rick Durrett : organ, piano, keyboard
    Alan Estes, Oz Osborne: bass guitar
    Steve Ross: drums, percussion

Line-up / Musicians

- Jim Donlinger / guitars, vocals
- Steve Ross / drums
- Chris Neilsen / guitars, vocals
- Rick Durret / organ
- John Hobbs / keyboards
Releases information

Released by Nevoc Musick

COVEN IN CHARING CROSS

Thirteen cultists
Held a secret meeting,
Bringing powers of the darkness
Upon those who opposed them.
The cheif of the circle,
Known as Malchius
Drank the blood of a young baby
Offered unto him.

They danced ecstatically,
The orgied frantically.
The demon had arisen
From the circle on the floor.
The chanting was much louder
And more piercing than before.

They are seven.
They are seven.
Seven are they.

Out of the abyss they rise,
When day sinks into darkness.
Seven are they.
Coven in charing cross...
Coven in charing cross...

Soon, a certain family
Living in the village,
Would die one by one by
The curse of the cult.
The head of the family,

A witchhunter named Mead,
Had burned their leadser at the stake;
Soon he'd regret his deed.
Pain from Devil's we evoke!
Thirst and suffer til he'd choked.

The magic did take over
And the soul did feel the roar.
Incantations were much louder
And more piercing than before.
Born in the bowels of the hills
Evil ones, sources of ills.

Setters of unseen snares,
Death to all pity, all prayers.
Male they are not.
Female they are not.
No wives have they known.
No children begot.

The fiends they are seven,
Disturbers of heaven.
They are seven.
They are seven.
Seven they are.
Coven in charing cross...
Coven in charing cross...

PACT WITH LUCIFER

The farmer'd lost most all he had
His crop had failed, his stock went bad
He cursed his fate, wife and son
Vowed to sell his soul for dollar one

In disbelief he'd uttered such words
He'd hoped and prayed that no one had heard
With the smell of sulfur and a flash of light
Appeared a demon in the dead of night

The plan was for the farmer to sign
His name in blood upon the line
They'd meet again to seal the sign
In 1840, in seven year's time
Time!

The farmer prospered, did do well
Good fortune was his story to tell
Still he pursued the path he feared
The time was short, the dark day neared




The seven years had passed away
Now it was the judgement day
In memory of the words he said
Lucifer appear in a flash of red

It's the day I said I'd come for you
And now it's time to pay your due
I'm here to claim the soul I've won
To seal the bargain and take your son!

Flac  Size : 260 MB

Matching Mole : Matching Mole 1972

Matching Mole were an English progressive rock band associated with the Canterbury scene. Robert Wyatt formed the band in October 1971 after he left Soft Machine and recorded his first solo album "The End of an Ear" (4 December 1970).

Their first, eponymous album was released in April 1972, the bulk of which was composed by Wyatt himself, with the exception of "O Caroline" (a Dave Sinclair composition with lyrics by Wyatt about his recent breakup with girlfriend Caroline Coon) and Phil Miller's "Part of the Dance".

Sinclair soon dropped out of the group and was replaced by New Zealand-born keyboard player and composer Dave MacRae who had already played a guest role on the first album. Their second album, Matching Mole's " Little Red Record " produced by Robert Fripp of King Crimson was released in November 1972. This album was more of a team effort, with Wyatt concentrating on lyrics and vocal melodies and leaving the composing to his bandmates.

The opening track, "O Caroline," is indicative of Wyatt at his best: art rock with a human face, a playful vocal, and soul. Much of the record is instrumental improvisation, though, with the humor largely confined to the song titles ("Instant Pussy," "Dedicated to Hugh, But You Weren't Listening").
For every nifty passage (the extended melancholy Mellotron solo on "Immediate Curtain," the goofy scat vocals on "Signed Curtain"), there's equal or greater instrumental patter. Some art rock devotees really get behind this album, but it doesn't count among the more enduring statements by the Canterbury crowd.

Matching Mole disbanded in late September 1972 immediately upon completion of a European tour supporting Soft Machine, with Sinclair and Miller going on to form the more successful Hatfield and the North.

A new lineup – consisting of Wyatt, MacCormick, ex-Curved Air keyboardist Francis Monkman and jazz saxophonist Gary Windo – was due to record a third album in 1973. This was cancelled when Wyatt fell from a window in June 1973, and was paralysed from the waist down, and therefore unable to continue drumming.

Personnel

    Phil Miller – guitar
    David Sinclair – piano, organ
    Bill MacCormick – bass
    Robert Wyatt – drums, voice, mellotron, piano

Additional musicians

    Dave MacRae – electric piano

Label : Esoteric Recordings – ECLEC 22311
Format : 2 CD, Album, Reissue, Remastered, Expanded Edition
Country : UK
Released : 2012
Genre : Jazz, Rock
Style : Psychedelic Rock, Prog Rock, Experimental

ROBERT WYATT

Robert Wyatt (born Robert Wyatt-Ellidge, 28 January 1945[1][2]) is an English musician, and founding member of the influential Canterbury scene band Soft Machine.
In 1966, the Wilde Flowers disintegrated, and Wyatt, along with Mike Ratledge, was invited to join Soft Machine by Kevin Ayers and Daevid Allen. Wyatt both drummed and shared vocals with Ayers, an unusual combination for a stage rock band. In 1970, after chaotic touring, three albums and increasing internal conflicts in Soft Machine, Wyatt released his first solo album, The End of an Ear, which combined his vocal and multi-instrumental talents with tape effects. A year later, Wyatt left Soft Machine and, besides participating in the fusion bigband Centipede and drumming at the JazzFest Berlin's New Violin Summit, a live concert with violinists Jean-Luc Ponty, Don "Sugarcane" Harris, Michal Urbaniak and Nipso Brantner, guitarist Terje Rypdal, keyboardist Wolfgang Dauner and bassist Neville Whitehead,[9] formed his own band Matching Mole (a pun, "machine molle" being French for 'Soft Machine'), a largely instrumental outfit that recorded two albums.

Accident

Matching Mole were about to record their third album when, on 1 June 1973, during a birthday party for Gong's Gilli Smyth and June Campbell Cramer (also known as Lady June) at the latter's Maida Vale home, an inebriated Wyatt fell from a fourth-floor window.
He was paralysed from the waist down and has used a wheelchair for mobility ever since. On 4 November that year, Pink Floyd performed two benefit concerts, in one day, at London's Rainbow Theatre, supported by Soft Machine, and compered by John Peel. The concerts raised a reported £10,000 for Wyatt.

 PHIL MILLER

Philip Paul Miller (22 January 1949 – 18 October 2017) was an English progressive rock/jazz guitarist who was part of the Canterbury scene.
Miller was born in Barnet, Hertfordshire. He was a member of the bands Delivery,Caravan, Matching Mole, Hatfield and the North, National Health, Short Wave (with Hugh Hopper(†), Pip Pyle(†) and Didier Malherbe), and worked in solo projects and in his band In Cahoots, which he founded in 1982 with Richard Sinclair, Elton Dean(†), Peter Lemer, and Pip Pyle.
In 2005 and 2006, Miller toured with the re-united Hatfield and the North.

DAVID SINCLAIRE

 David (Dave) Sinclair (born 24 November 1947 in Herne Bay, Kent, England), is a keyboardist (organ, pianos, synthesizer) who has been strongly associated with the progressive rock Canterbury Scene since the late 1960s. He became famous with the band Caravan and was responsible as a songwriter for creating some of their best-known tracks: "For Richard", "Nine Feet Underground", "The Dabsong Conshirtoe", "Proper Job/Back To Front".
In between his stints with Caravan, he was a member of Matching Mole (1971–72), Hatfield and the North (1972–73), Polite Force (1976–77) and Camel (1978-1979).

BILL Mac CORMICK

Bill MacCormick (born 15 April 1951, London) is an English bassist and vocalist. After attending primary schools in Brixton they were both awarded free places at Dulwich College. There Bill met Phil Targett-Adams (now better known as Phil Manzanera) and they developed an interest in playing music. In 1966 Bill's mother worked with Honor Wyatt, the mother of drummer Robert Wyatt, and Bill saw his band Soft Machine play their first gig in August 1966 at Coombe Springs in Kingston and, thereafter, became a regular visitor at Honor Wyatt's house in Dalmore Road, West Dulwich, where the band lived and rehearsed. In 1968 Phil Targett-Adams and Bill formed a band at Dulwich College with a floating membership except for drummer Charles Hayward, two years their junior. Under the name Pooh and the Ostrich Feather they played gigs around the school and at parties. Bill and Phil both left Dulwich College in 1969 and they reunited with Charles Hayward the following year to form a band called Quiet Sun.

One of the band's last gigs was supporting Symbiosis at Portsmouth Polytechnic. This band featured Robert Wyatt who was about to leave Soft Machine and, when he did, he contacted Bill asking him to play bass in a new band to be called Matching Mole. They were joined in the band by the late Phil Miller and Caravan's keyboard player Dave Sinclair.

DAVE MAC RAE

Dave MacRae (born 2 April 1940, Auckland, New Zealand) is a keyboardist from New Zealand, noted for his contributions in jazz and his collaborations with people from the Canterbury scene.
He relocated to London in 1971, working that year with jazz musicians Clark Terry, Chet Baker, Jon Hendricks, and Gil Evans.
He continued working with Canterbury musicians such as Robert Wyatt, Mike Gibbs, and Richard Sinclair through the 1970s.

In the 1980s MacRae worked briefly with False Alarm and then played in a reconstituted version of Soft Machine in 1984. He returned to Australia later that year, and played in the Sydney area with Bernie McGann and Ronnie Scott.


TRACKS

     Album Remastered

01. O Caroline
    Written By : David Sinclair, Robert Wyatt  5:06
02. Instant Pussy
    Electric Piano : Dave McRea , Written By : Robert Wyatt  3:02
03. Signed Curtain
    Written-By – Robert Wyatt  3:03
04. Part Of The Dance
    Electric Piano : Dave McRea , Written By : Phil Miller  9:14
05. Instant Kitten
    Written-By – Robert Wyatt  4:59
06. Dedicated To Hugh, But You Weren't Listening
    Electric Piano : Dave McRea , Written By : Robert Wyatt  4:40
07. Beer As In Braindeer
    Electric Piano : Dave McRea , Written By : Robert Wyatt  4:02
08. Immediate Curtain
    Written By : Robert Wyatt  5:58

    Bonus Tracks

09. O Caroline (Single Version)
    Written By : David Sinclair, Robert Wyatt  3:33
10. Signed Curtain (Single Edit)
    Written By : Robert Wyatt  3:05
11. Part Of The Dance Jam


Flac  Size : 399 MB

Various : Children of Nuggets: Original Artyfacts from the Second Psychedelic Era, 1976–1995 CD 3 - CD 4 2005

Children of Nuggets : Original Artyfacts from the Second Psychedelic Era, 1976–1995 is a four compact disc compilation album of alternative Rock music recorded between 1976 and 1995, although most of the recordings are from the 1980s. It was released on Rhino Records in 2005. The title refers to the original Nuggets LP, which was first issued in 1972 and whose music influenced the bands featured on Children of Nuggets.

Various : Children Of Nuggets : Original Artyfacts From The Second Psychedelic Era 1976-1996
Box set by Various artists
Label : Rhino Records – R2 74639
Format : Box Set
4  CD, Compilation, Remastered
Country : US
Released : August 30, 2005
Recorded : 1976–1995
Genre : Rock
Style : Garage Rock, Power Pop, Pop Rock, Psychedelic Rock, Punk,Various

CD 3

01. The Church : The Unguarded Moment    
02. The Barracudas : I Can't Pretend    
03. Died Pretty : Out Of The Unknown    
04. The Last : L.A. Explosion    
05. Flamin' Groovies : I'll Cry Alone    
06. Julian Cope : Sunspots (Single Remix)    
07. Lipstick Killers : Hindu Gods Of Love    
08. Green On Red : Death And Angels
09. The Sinners : Barbed Wire Heart    
10. The Chills : Pink Frost    
11. The Chesterfield Kings : She Told Me Lies    
12. The Smithereens : Beauty And Sadness    
13. The Mummies : Test Drive    
14. DMZ : Busy Man (E.P. Version)    
15. The Stems :   Love Will Grow    
16. The Spongetones : She Goes Out With Everybody    
17. The Plimsouls : Hypnotized    
18. The Unclaimed : No Apology    
19. Teenage Fanclub : God Knows It's True    
20. The Hoods :  You Keep On Lyin'    
21. The Sting-Rays : Don't Break Down    
22. The Fleshtones : The World Has Changed    
23. The Cynics : Baby What's Wrong    
24. Laika & The Cosmonauts : Psycko (Themes From Psycho And Vertigo)    
25. The Jigsaw Seen : My Name Is Tom

Take it HERE 

CD 4

 
01. Primal Scream   :  Gentle Tuesday    
02. The Three O'Clock  :   With A Cantaloupe Girlfriend    
03. The Hoodoo Gurus  :   Like Wow - Wipeout!    
04. The Fuzztones   :  Bad News Travels Fast    
05. Sun Dial   :  Plains Of Nazca (Single Version)    
06. The Bangs  :   Getting Out Of Hand    
07. Mickey & The Milkshakes  :   Please Don't Tell My Baby    
08. The Rain Parade   :  One Half Hour Ago    
09. The Aardvarks  :   You're My Loving Way    
10. Screaming Trees   :  Transfiguration    
11. United States Of Existence  :   A Scandal In Bohemia    
12. The Nomads   :   Where The Wolf Bane Blooms    
13. The Vipers   :  Cheated And Lied    
14. The Dentists   :  Strawberries Are Growing In My Garden (And It's Wintertime)    
15. Tell-Tale Hearts   :  Won't Need Yours    
16. Inspiral Carpets   :  Weakness    
17. Miracle Workers  :   You'll Know Why    
18. The Unknowns  :   Not My Memory    
19. The Prisoners  :   Far Away    
20. The Optic Nerve   :  Ain't That A Man    
21. Plasticland   :  Mink Dress    
22. The Raybeats   :  Tight Turn (Album Version)    
23. The Nerves  :   One Way Ticket    
24. The Wondermints   :  Tracy Hide (Cover Version)    

Take it Here

    Compilation Producer – Alec Palao, Gary Stewart
    Liner Notes [Discographical Annotations], Research [Discographical] – Ted Myers
    Management [Product Manager] – Matt Abels, Tanya Welsch
    Other [Godfather] – Lenny Kaye
    Other [Licensing] – David Ponak
    Remastered By – Bill Inglot, Dave Schultz
    Research [Editorial] – Steven Chean
    Research [Photo] – Steven P. Gorman
    Supervised By [Editorial Supervision] – Sheryl Farber

Various : Children Of Nuggets : Original Artyfacts From The Second Psychedelic Era 1976-1996 CD 1. - CD 2. 2005

Children of Nuggets: Original Artyfacts from the Second Psychedelic Era, 1976–1995 is a four compact disc compilation album of alternative Rock music recorded between 1976 and 1995, although most of the recordings are from the 1980s. It was released on Rhino Records in 2005. The title refers to the original Nuggets LP, which was first issued in 1972 and whose music influenced the bands featured on Children of Nuggets.

Various : Children Of Nuggets : Original Artyfacts From The Second Psychedelic Era 1976-1996
Box set by Various artists
Label : Rhino Records – R2 74639
Format : Box Set
4  CD, Compilation, Remastered
Country : US
Released : August 30, 2005
Recorded : 1976–1995
Genre : Rock
Style : Garage Rock, Power Pop, Pop Rock, Psychedelic Rock, Punk

CD 1 

01. The Dukes Of Stratosphear :    Vanishing Girl    
02. Lyres : Help You Ann    
03. Bangles : The Real World    
04. The Barracudas : We're Living In Violent Times    
05. The Nashville Ramblers : The Trains    
06. Watermelon Men : Seven Years    
07. The Smithereens : Strangers When We Meet    
08. The Soft Boys : Wading Through A Ventilator    
09. Flamin' Groovies : I Can't Hide    
10. The Fleshtones : The Girl From Baltimore    
11. That Petrol Emotion : It's A Good Thing    
12. The Stems :  She's Fine    
13. The Point  : All My Life    
14. The Creeps : Down At The Nightclub    
15. The Spongetones : (My Girl) Maryanne    
16. Salvation Army : She Turns To Flowers    
17. The Rain Parade : You Are My Friend    
18. The Inmates :  Mr. Unreliable    
19. Chris Stamey And The dB's  :   (I Thought) You Wanted To Know    
20. The Last : She Don't Know Why I'm Here (Single Version)    
21. Biff, Bang, Pow! : There Must Be A Better Life    
22. The Lime Spiders : Slave Girl    
23. The Posies : I May Hate You Sometimes    
24. The Times :  I Helped Patrick McGoohan Escape    
25. The Pandoras : It's About Time    
26. The Swingin' Neckbreakers  :  I Live For Buzz    
27. The Hoodoo Gurus  :  I Want You Back

 

Take it Here

CD2

 

01. The Godfathers : This Damn Nation     2:46
02. The Dream Syndicate : Tell Me When It's Over     3:33
03. The Prisoners : Whenever I'm Gone     2:47
04. The Cramps : New Kind Of Kick     3:29
05. The Long Ryders : And She Rides     4:31
06. Revillos : Motorbike Beat     2:23
07. The Vipers  : Tears (Only Dry)     2:57
08. The Dukes Of Stratosphear  :  25 O'Clock     5:05
09. Lyres : Don't Give It Up Now     3:37
10. Chris Stamey And The dB's :  If And When     2:40
11. The Untamed Youth :  Pabst Blue Ribbon     2:42
12. The La's : There She Goes     2:43
13. Vibrasonic : Kingsley J.     4:33
14. The Crawdaddys : I Can Never Tell     2:45
15. The Green Telescope : Make Me Stay     3:06
16. The Plimsouls : Everyday Things     2:29
17. The Soft Boys : I Wanna Destroy You     2:53
18. Mickey & The Milkshakes : It's You     2:18
19. The Posies : Apology     5:15
20. The Bevis Frond : Lights Are Changing     4:57
21. The Droogs : Ahead Of My Time     2:41
22. The Funseekers : Welcome To My Love     2:48
23. The Revolving Paint Dream  :   Flowers In The Sky     2:25
24. Teenage Fanclub : Metal Baby     3:39


 

Take it Here 

    Compilation Producer – Alec Palao, Gary Stewart
    Liner Notes [Discographical Annotations], Research [Discographical] – Ted Myers
    Management [Product Manager] – Matt Abels, Tanya Welsch
    Other [Godfather] – Lenny Kaye

    Other [Licensing] – David Ponak
    Remastered By – Bill Inglot, Dave Schultz
    Research [Editorial] – Steven Chean
    Research [Photo] – Steven P. Gorman
    Supervised By [Editorial Supervision] – Sheryl Farber