4.5.

1. The Treez - You Lied To Me Before
2. The Secrets - Cryin' Over Her
3. Goodsons - Twisted Mind
4. Baker Street Irregulars - It Don't Mean Nothing
5. King Bees - Little Girl
6. The Trolls - Something Here Inside
7. Richie Knight & The Mid-Knights - Homework
8. The Jesters III - Say That I'm The One
9. Keith Allison - Louise
10. The Bells Of Rhymny - She'll Be Back
11. The Blue Beats - I Can't Get Close (To Her At All)
12. Dee & The Yeomen - Say Baby
13. Emotions - I Just Do
14. The Northwest Company - Hard To Cry
15. Nobody - Follow Me
16. Systems - How High Is High
17. The Painted Ship - Frustration
18. Luke & The Apostles - Been Burnt
19. Magical Mist - Time Out To Fly
20. Threads Of Fybre - Believe Me
21. Simple Simon & The Piemen - Anyhow
22. Me & Dem Guys - Come On Little Sweetheart
23. Tommy Jett - Groovy Little Trip
24. The Weeds - It's Your Time
Gravel Volume 4

1. (Those) Rogues - Wish I Could See You Again
2. Cloudwalkers - Never Told Me So
3. Our Gang - Careless Love
4. The Midnight Angels - I'm Sufferin'
5. The Jury - Who Dat?
6. The Liverpool Set - Seventeen Tears To The End
7. Skaliwags - Turn Him Down
8. The Dominions - I Need Her
9. Media - Girl, I Want You
10. The Painted Ship - Little White Lies
11. Characters - Tell Me
12. Robb London & The Rogues - Who'll Be The One
13. Southampton Story - Leave Me Behind
14. The Tempos - All That I Really Want
15. Torques - It's Me Not You
16. Tyde - Psychedelic Pill
17. 8th Wonders Of The World - You You Yeah
18. The Wrong Numbers - I Wonder Why
19. The Young Men - A Thought For You
20. The Roks - Transparent Day
21. Threads Of Fybre - Mama
22. The Hustlers 4 - How Does It Feel
23. The Herd - Things Won't Change
24. Dropouts - I'm Leaving
Gravel Volume 5

Gravel 2-3

Gravel Volume 2 continues in the series of rare and ultra obscure garage rock from the 1960s with more unreleased acetates, more hard to find sides and more regional garage rock (from locales like Florida and New York) that have been compiled on other garage rock comps that have since no doubt gone out of print.

There are some true obscurities here that even garage rock collectors may not have heard but obscurities which aren't just being collected for rarities sake. Both the garage rock collector and the garage rock novice should really give these a listen for those few songs which they really need to have in their collection.

This collection on Kumquat May Records, like Volume 1 in this series, is limited to only 500 copies, and while it again is hard to figure out what is rare and what has been compiled before due to the lack of any liner notes, it can be said that most garage comps of this nature give even less information that the Gravel series. Listed with each track to help us out is the band, where the band is from, the song title, and the release label... Gullbuy

1. Epic Five - I Need Your Lovin'
2. Something Else - I Can't Believe
3. Satins - Get Out Of My Life
4. Us Too - I'll Leave You Crying
5. Sounds Unlimited - Cool One
6. Motion - The Thief
7. The Aztecs - What Mood
8. Sloths - Makin' Love
9. Branded "X" - Society And Me
10. Hyperions - The Truth Always Hurts
11. The Lime - Love A Go Go
12. Chaparrals - It May Be My Fault
13. The Aardvarks - I'm Higher Than I'm Down
14. The Staffs - Another Love
15. The Trolls - Are You The One
16. Vectors - What In The World
17. Wild-Ones - Just Me
18. Try-Angle - The Writing On The Wall
19. Bondsmen - I Don't Want Your Lovin' Anymore
20. Conner Family - A Lesson In Love
21. Next Step - I Said No
22. The Edicates - She's Gone
23. Sounds Unlimited - Nobody But You
24. Witness Inc. - Not You Girl
25. The Changing Tymes - You Make It Hard
26. The Destiny's Children - The Fall Of The Queen
27. The Baroque Brothers - So Glad I Was
28. Casuals, Incorporated - I Realized
29. The Changing Tides - Don't Say Good-Bye
30. The Trackers - You Are My World
Gravel Volume 2


1. Dick St. John - You Know What I Mean
2. The Striders - Am I On Your Mind
3. Last Words - She'll Know How
4. Inferno 5 Plus 1 - I Can Take It
5. The Infinitives - Heidi
6. Jack & The Beanstalks - Don't Bug Me
7. The Chosen Few - Get In On Life
8. The Chessmen - Love Didn't Die
9. The Sands Of Time - Red Light
10. Pentagons - About The Girl I Love
11. The Stitch In Tyme - Point Of View
12. The Surrealistic Pillar - I Like Girls
13. The Timetakers - At Least I'll Try
14. The Nocturnals - Because You're Gone
15. The Outer Limits - Walkin' Away
16. The Kingz English - Doctor Hunger
17. Citations - The Day That She'll Go
18. The WordD - You're Gonna Make Me
19. The Yo Yo's - The Raven
20. The City Zu - I'll Find Another
21. Chaz & The Classics - Girl Of The 13th Hour
22. Dalek: The Blackstones - Never Feel The Pain
23. The Crucibles - Beware Of Birds
24. The Shaprels - A Fool For Your Lies
25. The Esquires - Cry Is All I Do
26. The Gestures - Run, Run, Run
27. The Jury - Please Forget Her
28. The Groop Ltd - As Time Goes By
29. The No-Na-Mee's - Gotta Hold On
30. Sugar Cube Blues Band - My Last Impression
Gravel Volume 3

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1. The Cirkit - Yesterday We Laughed (ALT VERSION!)
2. Thursday's Children - Dominoes
3. Blue Boys - I Know
4. Unwritten Law - This Whole World Is Blind
5. The One Way Street - Illusions
6. Fabulous Courdels - And You Believe Me (PREV. UNRELEASED)
7. The Spacemen - Run For Your Life
8. Thorns - I Want You (PREV. UNRELEASED)
9. Buck Rogers Movement - Baby Come On
10. The Checkmates - Get It While You Can
11. The Chants - Hypnotized
12. The Pack - Baby I Ask You Why
13. The Soothsayers - Please Don't Be Mad
14. Yesterday's Children - Feelings
15. The What-Nots - I Need You Baby
16. The Trolls - They Don't Know
17. Next Step - I Said No
18. The Grim Reepers - Two Souls
19. Facts Of Life - I've Seen Darker Nights
20. The Jagged Edge - Gonna Find A Way (PREV. UNRELEASED)
21. The Run-A-Rounds - I Couldn't Care Less
22. The Counts - Night Of Misery
23. Beau Gents - Three Letter Word
24. Del Rays Inc. - I'm A Lovin'
25. Sons Of Sound - He's Gonna Ride
26. Secrets - Somethin Good For Me
27. The Runaways - 18th Floor Girl
28. The Circus - Bad Seed (You're A Bad Seed)
29. Jads - Miss Pretty
30. The Moon-Dawgs - Baby As Time Goes By (ALT VERSION)

Gravel Volume 1 is the first in what hopefully will be a series of rare and ultra obscure garage rock from the 1960s. The series starts out strong, thanks to a fine mix of unreleased acetates, some hard to find sides and a handful of regional garage rock (from locales like Texas and PA) that have been compiled on other garage rock comps.

There's no doubt that Kumquat May Records decided to put together this series (limited to only 500 copies) based around the 5 unreleased alternate versions and acetates and a few of the astounding uncompiled tracks which are the main reason to get this compilation because they are fantastic. It helps to have a slew of other great garage rock to go along with those rarities. I only wish the compilation came with liner notes to help understand just how great the music is here.

There's nothing quite as exciting as finding unreleased acetates - and when those acetates contain fiery, pounding garage rock it's even better. The 5 unreleased acetates found on Gravel Volume 1 include Yesterday We Laughed (an alternate version) by The Cirkit, And You Believe Me by The Fabulous Courdels, I Want You by The Thorns, Gonna Find A Way by The Jagged Edge, and an alternate version of Baby As Time Goes By by The Moon-Dawgs. And all five of these songs are incredible with only The Fabulous Courdels being a little less than fab.

The original version of The Cirkit's (from Indiana) Yesterday We Laughed was originally released on the Unicorn label and has been compiled on the Quagmire Vol 2 compilation, but Gravel Volume 1 starts out with an incredible, rocking alternate that sounds like the drums are battling it out with the singer and that is worth the price of the entire compilation. There's ripping guitars, scorching vocals, and shaking rattling drums to accompany the whole thing and it just totally rocks.

Another unreleased tune is the fuzzed out rocker called I Want You by The Thorns which has an incredible harmony backing vocal, fuzz guitar and a raunchy lead vocal which is quite close to plea-perfection.

The Jagged Edge's Gonna Find A Way is an upbeat unreleased tune that sounds like The Pretty Things with harmonica and organ battling it out as the vocalist looks for a way out. You won't find better rhythm guitar than this track.

The original version of The Moon-Dawgs' (from New Orleans) Baby As Time Goes By was originally the b-side to You're No Good on the Bofuz label in 1966 and can be found on Highs In The Mid Sixties #13: Texas Part Three - but here we get an organ drenched alternate version which is incredible.

My least favorite unreleased track is called And You Believe Me by The Fabulous Courdels which just has some off key vocals - other than that the scream before the instrumental break and the rhythm is really sweet.

A truly amazing obscurity which has never been compiled and is highly sought after is Houston, Texas' own Thursday's Children - whose Dominoes was originally the b-side to their Air Conditioned Man released on the International Artists label (the same label for the Thirteenth Floor Elevators). This sounds like a garage pop tune that could've been created with the Bosstown sound thanks to its grooving guitar riff, faltering rhythm, handclaps and harmony vocals. Sadly, Jan Pedersen, the lead guitarist and lead vocalist of Thursday's Children, died in 2003 in a freak windsurfing accident, and Texas lost one of its unsung garage rock pioneers. How this band went under the radar for so many years is unexplainable.....---Patrick (read the whole review at Gullbuy)

Gravel Volume 1

From The Kitchen Sink

Born in the early 80's they were one of the most important bands of Brithish rock'n'roll sound, even one of the best british bands. They are one of the first bands who made a sound nowdays we called psychobilly. Their sound mixed rock'n'roll and garage and that make it really savage. Founded in Crouch End (north of UK) they were sticking and alive from 1981 to 1987 touring all along Europe. The members of the band changed in those years but the spirit and writer of almost all the songs was Alec Palao.

"Dinosaurs", their debut album, caught the Stingrays crossing a bridge most other bands would have fallen off, poised between styles that would take them a while to reconcile.

As the time passes the Stingrays changed and their sound turned less savage(you will notice it if you hear their last album). At the end of the life of the band Alec played with the Go-Betweens and the Pogues, getting turned on to folk rock. In 1988 when the band was already disolved an ex-member , Charity Case , created a band called Minux and Alec finished playing in The Sneetches, a band whose sound remember the 60's. From the other members of the band we don't know anything.

During the six years that they were playing edited five albums, six singles and appeared in lot of compilations albums, but if you want to know what's the meaning of savage R'n'R try with their compilation album "the essential stingrays". (wrekingpit)

"The Stingrays ruled. You should all go buy whatever Stingrays records that you can find. There is a CD retrospective called "From The Kitchen Sink" that is quite awesome. Do not be fooled by the other shitty bands that have called themselves The Stingrays. Only one of them ruled."(Carl-Matablog)

The Sting-Rays:
Dinosaurs
On Self Destruct EP
From The Kitchen Sink