Customer Reviews

The Sound of 65 / There's a Bond Between Us

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Few people - other than obsessive Cream fans - have heard of the Graham Bond Organisation, and that's a shame. The group is historically significant because it represents the earliest recordings of Cream's rhythm section - bassist Jack Bruce and drummer Ginger Baker. However, the leaders of this group were singer/organist Bond and sax-man Dick Heckstall-Smith. Quite simply, the Organisation cut some of the grooviest blues- and jazz-rock of the early 1960s. The absence of guitar makes for an unusually "cool" British blues sound. And (hold onto your hats!) Ginger Baker's drum work is understated and tasteful, providing a swinging foundation for the other members' improvisation. Some have mentioned that Bond is not much of a singer and, while that may be true, he's certainly no worse than John Mayall. In short, this is an underrated and underappreciated classic that is a must-have for the fan of early British R&B.

This was another band that never got their true impact down on record. I have this collection on reissue vinyl. There are some excellent tracks (Walking In The Park, Wade In The Water, Night Time Is The Right Time, even if he ain't Ray Charles) but I saw this band live and close up many times in places like the Flamingo, Klooks Kleek, Friars etc. They were always good and on a really good night, they were awesome! The well documented differences in the band seemed to produce something that on paper looked as if it should never have happened. Definitely one for afficionados of British RnB.

Totally underappricated early R&B jazz sound A GREAT CD of GBO's second and third albums (Live at Klooks Kleek (1st)) It doesnt get any better then Hoochie Coochie Man I like "Sound of 65' the best...its a little harder more rock & roll sounding There is definatly a jazz feel here If you get the opportunity pick this up

It took almost 35 years to reissue and remaster smashing hits of Graham Bond Organization from 2 albums that are first official gigs for Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker a day before they formed super trio CREAM.This set of 2 albums is full of great Hammond organs by Graham - Who is afraid of Virginia Wols was Jimmy Smiths favorite.Jack Bruce trains his voice on several tracks and harmonica on Traintime (CREAM! ). Ginger rocks on drums - Camels and elephants (semms to be a Toad). This is #1 CD in my 350 collection of CD in 60/70.

The Graham Bond Organization is famous more for spawning two-thirds of Cream, than for their own accomplishments, at least in the US where it has been virtually impossible to get their recordings until recently. This disc shows them to be great musicians with absoultely no talent for playing it safe or going commercial. Their hard-driving, r&b sound is truly unique. Some have complained about Bond's singing being awful. Well, that's a matter of opinion. Captain Beefheart was an acquired taste, too. Although the vocal on "Tammy" is truly so surreally bad that it does defy description. Not all of the material is great but what comes through consistently is the sheer energy of this group and the virtuosity of the players. Bond, himself, is a true whiz on the organ - it's some of the most powerful and nimble keyboard playing you will ever hear on a pop music recording. And Baker's presence is very much in evidence throughout. Dick Heckstall-Smith, who went on to a long career playing with Jack Bruce and Colleseum, throws jazz licks into a rock environment with inspired results. And Jack, who is quite prominent on back-up vocals, plays a steady and imaginatvie bass. I bought this CD as a Cream fan, just to complete my collection - but I've been playing it constantly, enjoying about 2/3 of the material very much.

The GBO were one of the great British R&B bands, being and off-shoot from Alexis Korner's Blues Incorporated. Enjoyable music throughout is sadly marred by indifferent rather 'flat' sound quality. Whatever the packaging says, I am told the set was actually dubbed from disc rather than taken from the master tapes; that would explain the odd 'tick' here and there.

I scoured record shops all over New England for many years to find this "essential" pre-Cream material. I had only heard bits and pieces in a Cream "Video CD"(the precursor to DVDs) that I picked up a few years ago. When I finally found it here at Amazon, I ordered it with great anticipation.
I was soundly disappointed. If you want to know why this band never went anywhere, here's why: BOND CAN'T SING!! He sounds like he's struggling, frankly, with some of the material, and his blues shouting is downright embarassing. His experimentation with Mellotron on "Baby Can it be True" hasn't aged well and sounds like it should have been left on the cutting room floor.
But i'll tell you why this is a valuable addition to anyone who is as Cream crazy as I am. It's very easy to see the brilliance of Bruce and Baker especially on The Sound of 65. Bruce only sings lead on three or four cuts, but his vocals far outshine Bond's. Pity that they didnt let Jack sing a bit more. As far as Baker is concerned, well what can you say. Even with this spotty material, he's amazing. "Oh Baby" and "Camels and Elephants" give us a glimpse of the "Toad" to come. It is much to Bond's credit that he let Baker have these tremendous solo vehicles to stretch out on in the pop-driven atmosphere of the day.
(I'm constantly amazed at how far Bruce and Baker progressed after meeting up with Clapton just a year or so after these tracks were released. It's very hard to believe that only two years separate The Sound of 65 and Disraeli Gears; they seem about 25 years apart in musical content and style.)
Anyway, this is a must for Cream fans, just sort through the rubbish to find the gems.

It's a shame that this band never made it big beyond the UK. The music is a great mix of R&B and Jazz. You can see the elements of Cream take shape in this band, especially Ginger's drumming on Camels and Elephants. Jack's exceptional bass and vocals are also evident. Graham Bond's loss is Cream's gain.

One of the great tragedies in modern music is that neither of these albums were released in the United States. However, the fact they weren't was a prime factor in Jack Bruce leaving for more commercial avenues with Manfred Mann, and then, when the opportunity presented itself, joing with Eric Clapton, and prying Ginger Baker away from this group, in order to form Cream.

Had these albums made it to the states, that formation would have been doubtful. The sound of the Graham Bond ORGANisation was quite unlike anything the British Invasion sent over here. Deep, dark R&B/jazz/blues based rock in roll, with Bond's onderful organ work, and dark menacing vocals, Dick Heckstall-Smith's unbelievable sax work, and Bruce and Baker weaving their magic that we would later hear in Cream. These two albums are wonderful gems, and should not be missed.

This is great stuff, rather jazzier than most British R&B of the time, and with an unusual sound since there is no guitarist on hand. Bond and Dick Heckstall-Smith make one hell of a front line, and of course the rhythm section of Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker can't be faulted (Baker, in fact, plays with much more restraint than he did later with Cream). In a way it's surprising that Bond doesn't make more use of Jack's fine singing voice, but Bond is a good singer in a rather style openly imitative of Ray Charles (who is pretty obviously the main influence on this music). Graham Bond was a fine talent who unfortunately never found much commercial success and died too young. Fans of the British R&B scene of the '60s should not pass this disc by.