TYBURN TALL

Interesting Hammond-driven band from Speyer, Germany, that recorded a solo independent album in 1972. I heard they pressed only 200 copies and rumour said half of that number burned in a fire, making it one of the most rare and sought after prog albums of all time. That until Garden Of Delight released it as a CD, with two bonus tracks. But was all that worth it? Well, listening to their music nowadays is a pleasure for sure: it reminds me of other great Hammond organ drenched bands like Atomic Rooster, Colosseum II, Jane and Uriah Heep. Ok, they were well behind those great bands, and came kind of late, for at the time of the release of this LP this style was waning fast. No wonder they did not make it as they were.

Reinhard Magin pretty much calls the shots here, even if the other members of the band were pretty good too. But his Hammond is the main instrument and he is a very accomplished musician. Guitarist Werner Gallo provides some nice solos and licks and the rhythm section is tight. Singer Klaus Fresenius is the weak link here: the man has a good voice but his insistence in delivering high pitched vocals, which is clearly beyond his range, is quite annoying. A real shame since when he stays at the lower registers he sounds much better. The four compositions that were released with the original LP are proof that they could have gone very far: not very outstanding, but nice anyway, with nods to all those aforementioned bands I noted above. The two bonus tracks are Colosseum II covers that do justice to the originals, but don´t add anything special either. In other words, it was a nice, albeit nothing special, start. The only real bad move they did here is the drum solo at the end of I Am America Too. It is understandable in a live album, and they are boring enough, but those on a studio offering were never a good idea, and dated badly. Fortunately it is not a very long one and the remaining music compensates for this mistake.

Rating: 3 stars. This one is recommended for heavy, Hammond-drenched prog lovers who don´t mind the lack of originality. Good, but not essential in any way.