OFF: Amon Duul

[Keith Henderson]

Max inquires about the 2nd greatest band in history (IMHO)...

>    Yesterday, I went to a quite good record fair, and amongst all the
>other things, I bought Amon Duul's album Wolf City. I've heard quite a
>few of their songs on various compilations, Space Daze, Space Box, etc.,
>and I've also got a compilation of theirs, too.
>    From what I know of them, they evolved from a kind of hippy freak out
>band, to a tight psychedelic outfit, then went off to disco realms. Wolf
>City is very very good, and the question I'd like to ask, is what other
>albums are similar to this/worth buying? Also, is it still possible to
>get Die Losung?

Well, as Andy has already mentioned, most of the contemporary ADII albums of
the 'Wolf City period' (ie., 1970-75) were very good.  I'd say, though, that
Wolf City is my favourite of the bunch.  'Dance of the Lemmings', 'Made in
Germany' (now available in it's original 2LP format on CD - Repertoire),
'Carnival in Babylon', and the spin-off band 'Utopia' album are also
definitely worth picking up.  These are available from various
places...mainly Repertoire (GR), Spalax (FR), Captain Trip (JP), and finally
Mantra (FR) for the earlier, dodgier releases.  Often, each album has been
released several times...check Andy's page for more details.  Other ADII
fans really rate 'Yeti' highly, although I don't see it as being on the par
with the albums from the next couple of years.

Lemmingmania (a comp. with four rare B-sides - good ones too!), available
from Cap'n Trip only, the Milestones double disc comp. (Castle-Holland
release), or the new Purple Pyramid (Cleopatra) 'Best of..' are all good
intros to the band, and are mainly from this classic period.  The latter is
the only US release I believe, although I think the BBC Radio 1 Live might
have been distributed here.  It's only OK though, and probably already hard
to find.

I have every (original) release they've ever put out, including the UK stuff
from the 80's (mixed results), so at least I think that this stuff is worth
having.  Meetings w/ menmachines and Fool Moon are doubtful, though...Julie
Waring's voice is pretty ghastly, other than in 'space whisper' mode.  Fool
Moon is unknown people, with the exception of Ozrics and Groundhogs
members...no ADII members whatsoever.  Die Losung is alright, interesting
for Calvert's performance mainly.  The two instrumental/
improv-type tracks 'One Moment's Anger...' and 'Olaf...where's my $20,000?'
(I believe a remake of a VDGG track?) from 'Hawk meets Penguin', and the
otherwise useless compilation 'Airs on a Shoestring', respectively, are the
two most interesting pieces from 80's ADII (eventually becoming only AD with
no II).

But as Andy said, no need to be concerned with this stuff until you've
filled up your collection with pre-1976 stuff.  As far as the late 70's
Stefan Zauner era is concerned, you'd be better off finding his 1978 solo
album 'Prism & Views' than going for any of the Pyragony/Almost Alive/Only
Human trilogy, although I think this stuff is better than what most people
give it credit.  1981's 'Vortex', a confused reunion of sorts, is a
hit-and-miss affair, with two or three real winners ("Holy West" is one of
them) but with some forgettable stuff as well.

Keith H. (FAA)