PLAYS

PUSSY were a Psychedelic Rock band with a rather risque name that invites all sorts of rude double entendres, so no sniggering at the back. Their one and only album "Pussy Plays" (1969), featured a bizarre image on the cover of a startled pussy cat with VERY sharp claws. The band were formed in Hertfordshire, England in the mid-1960's and went through various name changes before apparently deciding on "Pussy" as the ideal name for a psychedelic sixties group, and why not. And so, without further ado, let's play Pussy.

There's an air of mystery surrounding "Come Back June". It's a typical American west coast Psychedelic Rock song (from England) but who or what is June? Is it the month of June or is it a lady of the female agenda? Well, let's find out by delving into the lyrics:- "My world's breakin' in pieces, My world's breakin' in two, My heart's breakin' in pieces, My heart's breakin' in two, Come back, June." ..... Mystery solved. The song is a boulevard of broken dreams where the lovelorn singer is clearly going through some deep emotional turmoil here after being dumped by his lovely lady June. Some of the best songs are written as the result of broken relationships though, and that's certainly true with this song too. It's no lilting ballad though. It's a rousing, rip-roaring opening burst of psychedelic sixties Rock. There's another great song on the way with "All of My Life". You can wait all of your life for a great song like this to come along, and then they all arrive together at once on one awesome album, and that's proving to be the case here. "All of My Life" is like a gorgeous summer breeze. It's a song that's perfect for surfing the soaring California breakers at Big Sur, although you don't see too many surf boards in the heart of Hertfordshire, England, where this particular band hails from. We're continuing the sunny California theme now with "We Built The Sun". This is an altogether mellower groove, and not the psychedelic purple haze of the first two opening sunbursts of raw solar energy. No, this sounds more like the saccharine sweet Psychedelic Pop of The Association than the wild and far-out Acid Rock of Jimi Hendrix. The clear honey-voiced vocals are what really shine like a beacon on this lovely laid-back song, featuring some beautiful sun-drenched Beach Boys-style harmonising from the whole band singing together in unison. Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it's "Comets", a weird out-of-this world excursion into the dark and mysterious realms of deep space where no one can hear you scream. "Comets' are in a highly irregular orbit if this wacky Twilight Zone song is anything to go by. To paraphrase Hawkwind, "Comets" represents an album highlight of "Astounding Sounds, Amazing Music". We've waited over half a century for "Comets" to come around again, a bit like Hailey's Comet, but the wait is now over, because this long-lost icy snowball (named "Pussy Plays") has returned with a stream of fantastic songs in its glowing wake. "Comets" is a scintillating sci-fi fantasy ride across the universe, featuring an exotic cosmic extravaganza of spooky voices and weird sound effects that could have come straight out of Doctor Who or Star Trek. Beam me up another great song Scotty!

Side Two opens magnificently with "Tragedy In F Minor", which is no tragedy at all, but an absolutely sensational instrumental that's simply sublime. It's a lavishly-produced lush symphonic epic that's positively awash with sensational strings, creating a rich tapestry of sound, guaranteed to carry you away on an ecstatic pleasure wave of sweet blissful dreams. We have lift-off! Just when you think this album couldn't possibly get any better, along comes "The Open Ground" to astound and delight us in equal measure. This is a psychedelic supernova of truly epic proportions! Heavens above! This earth-shattering blast from the past has enough stored energy to lift the Space Shuttle up into orbit way above the Earth. This tremendous spacey music might even take you to the Dark Side of the Moon and back again, long before Pink Floyd travelled there with their stellar 1973 album. We're plunging back down to Earth now for "Everybody's Song", a storming psychedelic Jazz-Rock number where the dynamic keyboard player and wild wah-wah guitarist battle it out together to see who's the greatest musician of them all. "Everybody's Song" is indeed a song for everyone. It's almost impossible not to like this song. We've reached the ultimate piece of music on the album now with the intriguingly-titled "G.E.A.B." There's no clue as to what the initials might mean as it's an instrumental number, although to call this thunderous high octane blast of super-charged Rock & Roll an "instrumental", can't possibly do it justice. Make no mistake. This is a relentless all-out sonic assault, and just to remind us that this album is titled "Pussy Plays", there's a loud "Meow" from a pussy cat right at the end!

Pussy Galore! This timeless psychedelic relic is a supersonic blast from the past. The album is an absolute masterpiece that sounds as fresh and original as it ever did, over half a century on from when Pussy first played. This outstanding album is the cat's whiskers!