Ruperts People - Dream In My Mind - Anthology 1967-1999

While there have been other compilations documenting the musical output of Rupert's People, the newly released 19 track CD Dream In My Mind – Anthology 1967-1999 is the most comprehensive.  Along with the three singles they released are a German B-side, two cuts from previously unreleased acetates, seven live recordings (three from 1969 and four from a reunion show in 1999), another previously unreleased cut and a single from their earlier band The Sweet Feeling.  Comprised of vocalist Rod Lynton, bassist Ray Beverley and drummer Steve Brendall, The Sweet Feeling caught the attention of Howard Conder, who quit his job with the Robert Stigwood Agency, and became their manager.  He got them a deal with Columbia Records who released their only single, which opens the CD.  Although it wasn’t successful saleswise, “All So Long Ago” is an impressive track that walks the line between The Beatles and The Kinks with the driving psychedelic “Charles Brown” on the flipside.  That song takes us to the first twist in their story when Conder asked Lynton to rearrange it to the tune of Bach’s “Air On The G String,” which ironically (or most likely not ironically) was also the tune that was the inspiration for Procol Harum’s just released single “Whiter Shade Of Pale.”  He then got the mod group Fleur De Lys to record the song under the name Ruperts People and released it as the single “Reflections Of Charles Brown,” which sounded nothing like the original, but instead was almost a clone of the Procol Harum song.  They also recorded the b-side, the hard-rocking “Hold On,” co-written by Lynton and Fleur De Lys’s Gordon Haskell, which has some great driving organ from future Procol Harum member Peter Solley.  To make the story even stranger, when the single was released the members of Fleur De Lys didn't like it and refused to do any promotion, so Conder asked The Sweet Feeling to change their name to Ruperts People to promote it.  Since they had their own songs, they didn't want to do that either.  Conder ended up putting together another band fronted by Chris Andrews, the Les Fleur de Lys singer who actually sang the song, but they broke up during rehearsals.  At this point he once again begged them to change their name, which they did, adding Dai Jenkins on guitar and John Tout on organ and recording their next single, “A Prologue To A Magic World”.  The Alice In Wonderland themed song is a dreamy piece of psychedelia that fits that theme perfectly, and the b-side “Dream In My Mind” is a heavier psychedelic gem with a bit of a freakbeat edge.  Strongly reminiscent of The Small Faces, “I Can Show You” was the final single released by the band, with the pop-tinged psychedelic rock of “I’ve Got The Love” on the back.  As for the bonus cuts, first up is “Love/Opus 193”, a raw, bluesy rock tune that was the German b-side to “Reflections Of Charlie Brown” and is rumored to have been recorded by session musicians.  Also included are a couple of unreleased acetate recordings.  "Water To A Stone" is an interesting cut that was produced by The Beatles' roadie Mal Evans and is an organ heavy tune with a lighter “Born To Be Wild” vibe at times, while “Flying High” is a gorgeous and mellow, somewhat psychedelic instrumental (a second version is also here, where in 1992 a reformed version of the band and some friends took the acetate and built on it, including adding vocals).  The remaining tracks are live cuts, three recorded in London in 1969 and four more from a 1999 reunion show featuring the three original members.  The 1969 tracks are from an audience recording and are surprisingly good.  They include “I See You’ve Changed,” a rocker with some really good guitar and organ playing, the heavier bluesy psychedelic “Reflecting,” and an interesting organ heavy cover of The Rolling Stones’ “You Can’t Always Get What You Want,” that’s a little slower and bluesier.   As for the reunion tracks, along with fairly faithful covers of The Small Faces’ “My Mind’s Eye” and The Beatles’ “Rain” are another run through “I See You’ve Changed,” along with “Hold On”, both of which sound great.  These definitely make for a nice addition to this outstanding collection that is well-worth the listen.  

(Strawberry)