The Sorrows - Old Songs New Songs (1966-80 uk, awesome mod freakbeat bluesy psych rock, 2009 double disc remaster)

Long after Fardon split, however, some of the band grabbed a last chance (for an extended holiday, at least) and relocated to Italy in 1966 to try and cash in on an Anglophilic scene. During this footnote era, they did achieve some squealing success as a placebo live draw, and hung around for years playing Family and Traffic songs, plus numbers by the ex-pat rockers who made up a bewildering, revolving cast list (two relatively major players are remembered only as “Kit” and “Rod”). 

They recorded singles for a tiny Italian indie label and, eventually, an LP. Old Songs New Songs is rare, inevitably hailed as a legendary cult classic. This two-disc set contains a complete bonus demo album and various 45 sides, including the sole outstanding track Ypotron – feedbacking freakbeat recorded in ’66 for an Italian spy caper movie.

by Derek Hammond , 21 August 2009

The first-ever official reissue of this legendary Italian-only late sixties album! British freakbeat/garage R&B giants the Sorrows relocated to Italy in 1966, recording the album Old Songs New Songs a couple of years later for a small independent label based in Milan. Now extremely rare as an original pressing, the album has been shoddily bootlegged a couple of times, including a CD pressing that slowed down the recordings and also managed to chop off the final minute of the album's title track! 

This new, band-approved reissue features the fully restored album in sparkling sound quality and adds an extra 100 minutes of music, nearly all of which is previously unreleased. Among the highlights are the magnificent heavy psychedelia of the band's aborted early 1968 Pye single 'Which Way'/'My Way Of Thinking,' the theme song to the cult Italian spy caper Ypotron, a couple of movie collaborations with soundtrack maestro Ennio Morricone, and even an entire late 1968 demo album that, following the departure of two group members, was eventually scrapped and replaced by Old Songs New Songs!

Completed by a previously unheard live gig from 1980 that proved the Sorrows' savage garage band instincts were fully intact a decade later, this package features new, extremely detailed sleevenotes concerning their time in Italy, with fresh band quotes and some superb, previously unpublished photos. Forget what you may have read and heard elsewhere, this incredible 2CD package is the final word on the band's lengthy but previously little-documented Italian sojourn!" Includes 16-page booklet.

1. Hey Hey (Chuck Fryers) - 3:12

2. New York Mining Disaster 1941 (Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb) - 4:48

3. Answer My Questions (Chuck Fryers) - 2:57

4. Dear Mr. Fantasy (Jim Capaldi, Steve Winwood, Chris Wood) - 5:04

5. We Can Work It Out (John Lennon, Paul McCartney) - 4:19

6. The Makers (Chuck Fryers) - 6:41

7. Heaven Is In Your Mind (Jim Capaldi, Steve Winwood) - 3:35

8. Dogs And Cats (Chuck Fryers) - 3:14

9. Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood (Bennie Benjamin, Gloria Caldwell, Sol Marcus) - 5:51

10.Move Da Show (Nevada) - 3:17

11.Matchbox / Rock And Roll Music (Carl Perkins / Chuck Berry) - 5:40

12.Baby What You Want Me To Do (Jimmy Reed) - 3:04

13.Bye Bye Bird (Willie Dixon, Sony Boy Williamson) - 3:27

14.Let Me In (Miki Dallon) - 3:06

15.What'd I Say (Ray Charles) - 3:11

16.Dizzy Miss Lizzy (Larry Williams) - 3:05

17.No Reply (John Lennon, Paul McCartney) - 3:12

18.A Little Rock 'n' Roll (Pip Witcher, Roger Lomas) - 2:07

19.5-4-3-2-1 (Manfred Mann, Mike Hugg, Paul Jones) - 2:20

20.Take A Heart (Miki Dallon) - 3:28

*Chuck Fryers - Vocals, Organ, Guitar

*Simon Catlin - Vocals

*Chris Smith - Keyboards, Vocals

*Mick Bradley - Drums

*Rod Davies - Guitar, Vocals

*Pip Witcher - Vocals, Harp, guitar 

*Wez Price - Guitar

*Philip Packham - Bass

*Bruce Finlay - Drums

1965-67  The Sorrows - Take A Heart (2006 double disc edition)