SF SORROW

The Pretty Things: Wally Allen (vocals, guitar, winds, piano, bass); Dick Taylor (vocals, guitar); John Povey (vocals, sitar, organ, percussion); Twink (vocals, drums); Phil May (vocals). Includes liner notes by Phil May and Mark St. John. Digitally remastered by Mark St. John and Andy Pearce (Masterpiece Mastering). 2 LP's on 1 CD: SF SORROW (1967)/RESSURECTION (1999). SF Sorrow was recorded at Abbey Road Studios in England in 1967 and Resurrection is a live recording of a radio broadcast of SF Sorrow in it's entirety at Abbey Road Studios in England in 1998. The Pretty Things include: Dick Taylor (guitar). One of the great lost classics of the psychedelic rock era, S.F. SORROW was recorded at the same time (and in the same studio with the same engineer) as SGT. PEPPER and PIPER AT THE GATES OF DAWN, and is on par with both. Unfortunately, the commercial fate of the album (and the group) wasn't as rosy as that of its peers, but that doesn't diminish S.F. SORROW'S quality or historical importance. The record marked an important turning point for the Pretty Things, who began as a Stones-ish R&B band, but by this time were ready to take the leap that a sudden personnel change made easier. The band launched itself whole-heartedly into a more sophisticated style, both musically and lyrically. S.F. SORROW was even more of a concept album than SGT. PEPPER; in fact, thematically the songs hold together a lot better here. The theme concerns the life and times of a British everyman, and the songs are very much in the SGT. PEPPER mold, with production touches and vocal harmonies (not to mention song structures) very much in the Beatles vein, but it was a sound the Pretty Things arrived at more or less independently. Adding to the import of this release is the addition of some excellent, previously unreleased tracks.