After Barrett was tossed out of Pink Floyd in 1968 for his psychotic behaviour, he was soon convinced to record again. By 1970 there was enough material to release Madcap. Most of the songs come right from 1966-67 and with everyone expecting something disjointed the album was judged harshly. It is actually a very, very good record.
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Led Zeppelin III Led Zeppelin 1970 [Atlantic]
The pounding blues-metal of Led Zep's first two albums gave way to some folksy hard-rockin' flower-powering on the band's third outing. A big favourite with psych fans, despite only the occasional trimming. The original hippy-dippy album sleeve with its rotatable cardboard inset was well-and-truly tripped out. Some nice acoustic pieces as well.
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Yeti Amon Düül II 1970 [Liberty]
Starting life as a radical art commune in Munich, Amon Düül II eventually morphed into one of the seminal early Krautrock outfits. Originally a double-LP, fuzzy avant-garde dominates most of the proceedings with the closing 'Sandoz in the Rain' improvisation eventually proving to be protypical ambient space rock.
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Starsailor Tim Buckley 1970 [Straight]
The musically restless Tim Buckley managed to alienate just about all the fans he had left with this tripped-out mix of avant-garde, jazz and psych. Today the album is recognised as an uncompromising statement of artistic integrity sparking plenty of renewed critical interest. Buckley tragically died as a consequence of substance abuse in mid-1975.
Debut album from the legendary 'space rock' group that became an underground classic. The group came together in London in 1969 based on a shared interest in electronic music, with the genesis of their trademark sound evident in places here. The interest of some members in taking hallucinogenic drugs soon led to a couple of lineup changes.
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UFO Guru Guru 1970 [Ohr]
Highly regarded Krautrock band that got its start with this somewhat heavy psychedelic effort. Leader Mani Neumeier was already well-known in the free jazz movement as a pretty mindbending drummer. The band was heavily involved in left-wing politics through an association with the Socialist German Student Union.
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The Ultimate Prophecy JD Blackfoot 1970 [Mercury]
Listeners have to wait until side two of the album to get to the psych stuff, replete with bombastic Moody Blues-style narrations and tripped-out guitar work. Side one is pretty standard fare, sounding a little bit like CCR on the first track. The band was reportedly in disarray during recording with Blackfoot disgusted by all the bickering and pretence.
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Barrett Syd Barrett 1970 [Harvest]
The second (and last) solo album made by Pink Floyd founder Syd Barrett after he was dumped from the band in 1968. Produced by Floyd's Rick Wright and David Gilmour, the pair also play on the record. Generally regarded as less essential than its predecessor, the record still has its merits. Barrett would become a virtual recluse after this.
