The Mandrake Memorial: Discography 1968 - 1970

 

Mandrake Memorial was an American psych/progressive rock band active between 1967 and 1970,

known for their Baroque sound and unique songwriting. The mandrake Memorial were a short-lived outfit disbanded by Michael's withdrawal shortly before the last album 'Puzzle' released, but much influenced by 60s psychedelic rock or folk rock, and moreover blended with their unique originality such as Craig's epochmaking electronics or Michael's Rock-Si-Chord, their soundscape was worth calling a pioneer of Psychedelic Progressive Rock and Acid Folk.
              

The Mandrake Memorial formed in late 1967 when producer/promoter Larry Schreiber was asked to

put together a house band for Manny Rubin's downtown Philadelphia club, The Trauma. Schreiber started with Michael Kac (pronounced "Katz"), a folksinger/guitarist/banjoist/keyboardist who was already a regular performer at both The Trauma and Rubin's other club, The Second Fret. Kac had been in a band called The Candymen, later known as Cat's Cradle, recently broken up (Schreiber had been their manager).
            

Guitarist Kim King (of Lothar and the Hand People, another Trauma Club regular) told Schreiber about a drummer he knew in a similar situation. J. (John) Kevin Lally was from a band called The Novae

Police, a fixture at the Night Owl Club and The Bitter End in Greenwich Village, playing with bands like The Flying Machine (with James Taylor) and The Ragamuffins (from Canada). Schreiber visited Lally in the basement of New York's Albert Hotel, where Lally kept his drums in Lothar's practice room. Suitably impressed, he brought Lally back to Philadelphia to meet Michael, and the two musicians hit it off immediately.
                    

Kac then recruited a young guitarist he had seen, Craig Anderton from a University of Pennsylvania

college band called The Flowers of Evil, who'd been opening for Todd Rundgren's first band Woody's Truck Stop.  Last, Lally convinced his friend Randy Monaco, bassist/vocalist from The Novae Police, to relocate to Philly and join them. Although everyone was already working musicians, they jumped at the chance to be a house band, with a guaranteed gig every weekend and the chance to open for all the big-name bands brought in by Rubin.
              

Anyone who lived in Philadelphia in the late '60s would remember the Mandrake Memorial well. They opened for many of the star rock bands who passed through the city, and in terms of local popularity,

they were probably only second to the Nazz. Outside of Philadelphia, they were scarcely known whatsoever, though they did manage to produce some fine second-division psychedelia. As vocalists they were adequate, but they were accomplished players and interesting writers, dressing their solid melodies with liberal jazz and Middle Eastern influences. Guitarist Craig Anderton became a noted music technology writer, contributing to magazines such as Electronic Musician.
                 

The new sound was an immediate success. Mandrake opened for The Doors, Big Brother and the Holding Company, Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention, Moby Grape, and Strawberry Alarm

Clock, among others, and appeared on TV with Pink Floyd. Soon Mandrake was performing college circuit clubs like Boston Tea Party, Psychedelic Supermarket, Electric Circus, New York's Cafe Au Go Go, the Second Fret and The Main Point. Rubin got them signed to Poppy Records, the new experimental music label of MGM Records. Their first self-titled LP, produced by Tony Camillo and Tony Bongiovi (cousin of Jon Bon Jovi), sold over 100,000 copies, mainly in the Philadelphia, New York and Boston areas. A second LP, Medium was completed in early 1969 to similar high acclaim.
              

Kac (and his Rock-Si-Chord) left the band following Medium, citing musical differences, and in the summer of 1969 the remaining trio traveled to England to record a live-in-the-studio acoustic album

with record producer Shel Talmy. Booked to tour the U.K. with Todd Rundgren's new band The Nazz, an English union disagreement prevented any American musicians from performing that summer. Returning to Philadelphia, the band began working on a new album, re-working some of the songs from their failed acoustic album. They were teamed up with New York producer Ronald Frangipane with the result that he brought in an orchestra and filled out the songs with full choir, children's choir, orchestral splashes and elaborate production. This album, Puzzle, fell into the progressive rock category, but did not sell well enough to make back its considerable production costs.

LINE - UP

Craig Anderton (Guitar, Sitar, Electronics)
Randy Monaco (Bass, Vocals)
Kevin Lally (Drums)
Michael Kac (Keyboards, Vocals, 1967-69)

THE MANDRAKE MEMORIAL - THE MANDRAKE MEMORIAL 1968

                 

Overall this album shows a band starting out with an ambitious goal of creating interesting and unique

psychedelic pop music. The band's next two albums will prove how willing they are to do the hard work to bring their music up to the "A level. By far their best album, this suite-like collection features some haunting, first-rate songs, such as "Bird Journey," "Here I Am, " and "Dark Lady." With their harmonies and interplay between guitar, electric keyboards, and occasional sitar, they were very much a band of their age, but played with a drive and precision that anticipated progressive rock.
              

The Mandrake Memorial – The Mandrake Memorial
Label: Collectables – COL-0691
Format: CD, Album, Reissue
Country: USA & Canada
Released: 1996
Genre: Rock
Style: Psychedelic Rock

TRACKS

                       

01. Bird Journey   2:40
02. Here I Am   3:50
03. Raíny May   3:45
04. This Can't Be Real   3:45
05. Dark Lady    4:14
06. House Of Mirrors   2:28
07. To A Lonely   3:50
08. Strange   3:55
09. Next Number   4:11
10. Sunday Noon   7:08

LINE - UP

Bass, Vocals – Randy Monaco
Drums, Timpani – J. Kevin Lally
Guitar, Sitar – Craig Anderton
Keyboards, Vocals – Michael Kac
Composed By, Arranged By, Performer – The Mandrake Memorial
    

Flac  Take It Here

THE MANDRAKE MEMORIAL - MEDIUM 1969

               

Orginally issued on the Poppy label in 1969, the second LP recorded by The Mandrake Memorial came

in a nice gatefold cover by designer Milton Glasser, an icon of '60s and '70s illustration and design and one of the big names in the advertising field since then. More psychedelic sounds in glorious 180 gram black vinyl on our deluxe series. If your gods are The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band or Pearls Before Swine, this LP shall be in your altar!
                

The Mandrake Memorial – Medium
Label: Collectables – COL-0692
Format: CD, Album, Reissue
Country: US
Released: 1996
Genre: Rock
Style: Psychedelic Rock

TRACKS

           

01. Snake Charmer    2:16
02. Witness The End/Celebration    5:44
03. Other Side    3:20
04. Last Number    4:26
05. After Pascal    6:41
06. Smokescreen    5:06
07. Barnaby Plum    6:15
08. Cassandra    5:42

LINE - UP

Drums, Percussion – J. Kevin Lally
Flute – Louis Delgado (tracks: 5)
Guitar – Craig Anderton
Keyboards, Vocals – Michael Kac
Vocals, Bass – Randy Monaco

Flac Take It Here

THE MANDRAKE MEMORIAL - PUZZLE 1970

             

 

The fabulous third LP by Mandrake Memorial, one of the best bands of the US psychedelic sounds history, is the release chosen to open our new Wah Wah Deluxe series.  For those unfamiliar to this top

band's sounds, we'll just add that their three LPs shall be up there with the best works of the best bands that came out from the States in the psychedelic era. Think of The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band, Pearls Before Swine, United States Of America and the likes. Puzzle is a masterpiece that not only benefits from the master work of the Mandrake members, but also from that of producer Ron Frangipane. The combination of talents delivers a perfect mix of classic psychedelia with beautiful orchestra passages
             

        

The Mandrake Memorial – Puzzle
Label: Not On Label – MM 02371
Format: CD, Album, Reissue
Country: US
Released: 1995
Genre: Rock
Style: Psychedelic Rock, Progressive.

TRACKS

          

01. Earthfriend Prelude    3:50
02. Earthfriend    4:49
03. Just A Blur (Version 1)    0:46
04. Hiding    3:01
05. Just A Blur (Version 2)    1:38
06. Tadpole    2:17
07. Kyrie    3:16
08. Ocean's Daughter    3:32
09. Volcano Prelude    1:53
10. Volcano    0:41
11. Whisper Play    4:55
12. Bucket Of Air (1)    0:36
13. Bucket Of Air (2)   14:21
14. Children's Prayer    
15. Puzzle    1:24
16. Just A Blur (Version 3)    

LINE - UP

Craig Anderton / guitars, electronics
Randy Monaco / bass, voices
John Kevin Lally / drums

NOTES

The CD has 15 tracks, but on the CD rear cover there are 16 tracks listed - an erroneous duplicate of Bucket of Air. T9 Volcano Prelude and T10 Volcano are misspelled on the rear cover as "Volcanoe".

Flac Take It Here

THE MANDRAKE MEMORIAL - 3 Part INVENTIONS 1969 (2016)

                

Having made two superb psychedelic albums and gigged with The Doors, Frank Zappa, Pink Floyd,

The Velvet Underground and many others, in June of 1969, The Mandrake Memorial came to London. The plan was to record with famed producer Shel Talmy (The Kinks, The Who, Pentangle), but when that fell through, they persevered alone. Long thought to be lost, 3 Part Inventions anticipates the woozy, dream-like vibe of their 1970 masterpiece Puzzle, combining eerie vocals, trippy guitar and otherworldly electronics to create a unique whole. Transferred directly from the master tape, it's released here for the first time.
                    

The Mandrake Memorial – 3 Part Inventions
Label: Flashback – FLASHCD1008
Format: CD, Album
Country: UK
Released: 2016
Genre: Rock
Style: Psychedelic Rock, Prog Rock

TRACKS

             

01. The Puzzle   2:51
02. Ocean's Daughter   2:56
03. Tadpole   2:32
04. Part Of My Dreams   5:47
05. Wouldn't You Like It   2:13
06. Bucket Of Air   7:28
07. Witness The End   10:05

BONUS TRACKS        

    
08. Cassandra    4:54
09. The 12th Brigade   5:14
10. Rock Star Interview   2:38

LINE - UP

Craig Anderton / guitars, electronics
Randy Monaco / bass, voices
John Kevin Lally / drums

NOTES

Previously unreleased third album, contains different recordings of several of the songs that ultimately came out on the subsequent Puzzle album.

Flac Take It Here