Various - Back on the Street Again

  by Malcolm Carter

published: 8 / 5 / 2017

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Subtitled ‘Australian Funk, Soul and Psych (mostly) From The Festival Vaults', and compiled by Pete Pasqual, Erica Olson and DJ Kinetic, this compilation is the latest in an impressive line of releases from the Festival label which includes the excellent ‘Down Under Nuggets’ and ‘Heavy Soul’ collections. Released at the same time as ‘Back on the Street Again’ is ‘Running the Voodoo Down’, a companion compilation featuring similar music but with more familiar names than those which feature on this collection. But it’s concentrating on Australian artists producing a type of music not generally associated with that country which makes ‘Back on the Street Again’ marginally more appealing than ‘Running The Voodoo Down’. While there’s little doubt that those living in Australia during the period covered by this album will recognize the artists featured throughout the double vinyl or single CD versions of ‘Back on the Street Again’, it’s only the very hip and informed that can truthfully lay claim to having knowledge of many of those featured. There are a handful of tracks that were originally released in the late 1960s. The rest of the songs on this twenty tracker are all pulled from the ‘190s. While there are a few psych flourishes and a touch of soul plus a smattering of pop/jazz fusion, Festival could have just subtitled the collection ‘Australian Funk’ without worrying the Trades Description Act too much. As the album unfolds though some heavy rock/prog gems are revealed. The compilation opens with a cover of the Etta James classic which this album takes its name from (kind of; wasn’t Etta’s version titled ‘Out on the Street Again’?), but no matter it’s a fine way to kick off the album and lays its funk credentials down early and firmly, Billy Thorpe’s take dispenses with the swamp-funk of Etta’s cut and replaces it with a more menacing feel, especially in the opening section before the wah-wah guitar takes hold. It’s dirty, funky and can hold its own against Etta’s version, which is no mean feat. While the following song, ‘Feel Awright’, by the ID is a stomping slice of 60's R’n’B which would have gone down a storm in any UK club in the mid-Sixties, there’s still a funk element there (and the track sounds so fresh and direct; there are no details of who handled the re-mastering on this album but the sound is fantastic), and it’s a perfect example of how these bands were pulling in elements from soul, jazz, funk and rock even back then to create exciting music. Try standing still to this track, as it’s impossible. Not all the twenty tracks offer up something as exciting as those opening two songs; track three, ‘Do the Uptight’ by Ross D Wyllie, a Sixties stomper that unfortunately does show its age, is a pedestrian run through of all the dance crazes of the time, not a bad song and certainly not a bad performance which in a club it would have you up and moving but it’s nothing new and been done so many times before. The (fake?) audience participation just reminds UK soul boys that Geno Washington was rarely bettered. But then we are back to pure funk with ‘Funky Max’ from the Johnny Rocco Band. Again the sound is crystal clear and we are transported back to a sweaty club in the mid-Seventies; it’s a brilliant dance track, an absolute killer which ends all too soon. What gives ‘Back on the Street Again’ its edge is the range of styles it covers, while there’s little doubt that funk rules the day here tracks such as the Daly-Wilson Big Band's ‘City Sounds’, which features sweet, stunning lead vocals from Kerrie Biddle, even flits through a number of different genres in that one song. Taking in sweet soul, Biddle’s opening vocals are almost childlike before she really lets rip. The song starts like a nursery rhyme before the big-band kick in, and turn the song into a soulful, funky workout. While the Ray White Revival’s version of ‘Superstition’ is not without merit - it increases the funk quota of the original but lacks, unsurprisingly, vocally - tracks like ‘Voodoo Lady’ from Dalvanius And The Fascinations more than make up for the occasional disappointment. An atmospheric slice of funked-up mid-Seventies soul it shows that not all music that came out of the disco boom only has a place on the dance floor. Renee Geyer is one name that might be more familiar than most on this collection, her ‘Be There in the Morning’ subtly mixes jazz touches into her interpretation of smooth soul to stunning effect. Drummer John Sangster is another name that listeners outside of Australia might be aware of; unsurprisingly one of the two tracks here under his name is the title song from the musical 'Hair', Sangster having appeared on stage with Tully. the band who provided the musical backing for its original Australian production. It’s a version that certainly showcases just why Sangster was regarded so highly. His other contribution is a version of the Beatles' ‘A Day in the Life’ which closes the album. Led by Sangster’s vibraphone, it’s one of the most interesting and innovative versions of the song available. It’s proof that, despite the inclusion of a couple of cover versions that really don’t demand repeated listening (the aforementioned ‘Superstition’, Al Styne’s uninspiring take on the Ides Of March’s ‘Vehicle’ despite being a powerful vocalist), the majority of the covers here work extremely well. McPhee’s version of Richie Haven’s ‘Indian Rope Man’ with lead vocals from Faye Lewis can stand proudly against the Brian Auger/Julie Driscoll take of the same song and rates as one of the most inventive versions of the song. At seven minutes long it includes not only stunning wah-wah guitar from Tony Joyce and some heavy organ breaks but that rare thing, a drum solo that you actually want to hear again. The band's other contribution is ‘The Wrong Time; try to imagine Grace Slick fronting Iron Butterfly and you’re some way there. ‘Back on the Street Again’ is a diverse collection of songs. It starts by making a good case for Australia producing some absolute funk classics, and along the way reminds us just how close the jazz, soul and rock genres are intertwined, and how brilliant the artists featured in this collection were at fusing all these sounds. A few years back this writer was convinced that, despite some excellent compilations from Festival, they would never better the job they did with the Bee Gees' early work but this latest collection even leaves that in the shade.

Track Listing:-

1 Back On The Street Again
2 Feel Awright
3 Do The Uptight
4 Funky Max
5 City Sounds
6 Voodoo Lady
7 Be There In The Morning
8 Hair
9 Superstition
10 Africa (L'ete Indien)
11 Weird And Wonderful
12 The Wrong Time
13 Odyssey
14 Sea That Swells
15 The Rat Suite (Main Title)
16 Vehicle
17 Indian Rope Man
18 Oz Bump (Soul Thing)
19 Painted Ego
20 A Day In The Life

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