As the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967) had done a year earlier, Super Session (1968) initially ushered in several new phases in rock & roll's concurrent transformation. In the space of months, the soundscape of rock shifted radically from short, danceable pop songs to comparatively longer works with more attention to technical and musical subtleties. Enter the unlikely all-star triumvirate of Al Kooper (piano/organ/ondioline/vocals/guitars), Mike Bloomfield (guitar), and Stephen Stills (guitar) – all of whom were concurrently "on hiatus" from their most recent engagements. Kooper had just split after masterminding the groundbreaking Child Is Father to the Man (1968) version of Blood, Sweat & Tears. Bloomfield was fresh from a stint with the likewise brass-driven Electric Flag, while Stills was late of Buffalo Springfield and still a few weeks away from a full-time commitment to David Crosby and Graham Nash. Although the trio never actually performed together, the long-player was notable for idiosyncratically featuring one side led by the team of Kooper/Bloomfield and the other by Kooper/Stills.

With its endless, droning minor-key riff and mumbled vocals, "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" is arguably the most notorious song of the acid rock era. According to legend, the group was so stoned when they recorded the track that they could neither pronounce the title "In the Garden of Eden" or end the track, so it rambles on for a full 17 minutes, which to some listeners sounds like eternity. But that's the essence of its appeal – it's the epitome of heavy psychedelic excess, encapsulating the most indulgent tendencies of the era.

Two classic easy-listening albums by Paul Mauriat and His Orchestra, originally released in 1968 on the Philips label, together on one CD and remastered from the original analogue stereo tapes for Vocalion's trademark crystal-clear sound. French composer/conductor Paul Mauriat is a classically trained musician who decided to pursue a career in popular music. His first major success came in 1962, as a co-writer of the European hit "Chariot." In 1963, the song was given English lyrics, renamed "I Will Follow Him," and became a number one American hit for Little Peggy March. Mauriat is best remembered for his 1968 worldwide smash "Love Is Blue."

Of the numerous British blues-rock bands to spring up in the late '60s, the Aynsley Dunbar Retaliation was one of the better known, though solid reception on tours did not translate into heavy record sales. Musically, the group recalled John Mayall's Bluesbreakers during the 1966-1967 era that had produced that group's A Hard Road album, though with a somewhat more downbeat tone. The similarities were hardly coincidental, as the band's founder and leader, drummer Aynsley Dunbar, had been in the Bluesbreakers lineup that recorded the A Hard Road LP. Too, bassist Alex Dmochowski would go on to play with Mayall in the 1970s, and guitarist Jon Morshead was friendly with fellow axeman Peter Green (also in the Bluesbreakers' A Hard Road lineup), whom he had replaced in Shotgun Express.

The product of producer Paul Rothchild, Rhinoceros were conceived, planned, and executed as a "supergroup." This was the group's raison d’être and, ultimately, its downfall. Pieced together after a marathon series of jams at the producer's house in the spring of 1968, Rhinoceros were intended to be the heaviest band of the time. Rothchild and Elektra came very, very close. With former members of Iron Butterfly (Danny Weis, guitar), the Daily Flash, and Buffalo Springfield (Doug Hastings, guitar), as well as some highly respected studio aces such as Billy Mundi on drums, they formed a very good band indeed, but not really a group. Fortunately, although the chemistry is a bit skewed, the music isn't half bad. There are some excellent soul-drenched rock recordings here - from the album-opening "When You Say You're Sorry" to possibly one of the best-ever versions of "You're My Girl," the group was capable of some mighty music…

After dispensing with his services in December 1967, the remaining members of Traffic reinstated Dave Mason in the group in the spring of 1968 as they struggled to write enough material for their impending second album. The result was a disc evenly divided between Mason's catchy folk-rock compositions and Steve Winwood's compelling rock jams. Mason's material was the most appealing both initially and eventually: the lead-off track, a jaunty effort called "You Can All Join In," became a European hit, and "Feelin' Alright?" turned out to be the only real standard to emerge from the album after it started earning cover versions from Joe Cocker and others in the 1970s.

Since it's billed as "Directions in Music by Miles Davis," it should come as little surprise that Filles de Kilimanjaro is the beginning of a new phase for Miles, the place that he begins to dive headfirst into jazz-rock fusion. It also happens to be the swan song for his second classic quintet, arguably the finest collective of musicians he ever worked with, and what makes this album so fascinating is that it's possible to hear the breaking point - though his quintet all followed him into fusion (three of his supporting players were on In a Silent Way), it's possible to hear them all break with the conventional notions of what constituted even adventurous jazz, turning into something new. According to Miles, the change in "direction" was as much inspired by a desire to return to something earthy and bluesy as it was to find new musical territory, and Filles de Kilimanjaro bears him out…

The Sundowners' sole album suffers from the problems afflicting many similarly obscure late-'60s pop/rock LPs on major labels. One, the group can't really decide what they want to be, which though leading to some admirable versatility, also ensures a sort of anonymity. Two, there aren't any really good songs, though one or two come close. It might be backhanded praise, but as those sort of records go, this is considerably above the average; the production's very good and full, the singing and harmonies are decent and committed, and the Sundowners play pretty well. Still, they almost sound like different groups from track to track, or at the very least like they're not quite sure whether to be all-out commercial, or try and slip some hipness in on the side. There are some engaging near-Association-strength vocal harmonies and bouncy melodies that put them close to the sunshine pop camp at times…

The Blackbirds were originally formed in south-west Germany and they released their first album "No Destination" on UK-Label Saga in 1968. The Blackbirds consists of psychedelic beat/pop music with a touch of the Mothers of Invention type satire (Something Different) and some progressive touches. Strong vocals by singer and guitar player Werner Breinig and some interesting Hammond organ work by Hubert Koop are characteristic of the group's music which proves a great talent of specific song writing. The German label OPP released 5 tracks of this first album on the "Snake in the Grass" album later on. 2nd album "A Touch Of Music", originally released in 1971 on German label OPP with a complete new line-up - with the exception of singer and guitar player Werner Breinig who now played violin and flute as well- and a complete new style of music…

Can - Monster Movie (1969). Though Monster Movie was the first full-length album in what would become a sprawling and often genre-defining discography, Can were on a level well ahead of the curve even in their most formative days. Recorded and released in 1969, Monster Movie bears many of the trademarks that Can would explore as they went on, as well as elements that would set the scene for the burgeoning Krautrock movement. This would be the only album Can's first singer Malcolm Mooney would sing the entirety of, as he was replaced by Damo Suzuki by the time of 1970's Soundtracks, leaving the band after going through a highly unstable time. Mooney was known for his erratic ways, and some of that mania undoubtedly comes through here, with his caterwauling howls on the unexpectedly garage-influenced "Outside My Door"…

What made Vanilla Fudge so intriguing was how they and producer Shadow Morton mutated hit songs by stretching the tempo to slow motion so exquisite that even an overexposed song by the Supremes sounded new on the radio. The formula worked fine on covers, but despite their collective talent, the material they composed on Renaissance feels more like psychedelic meeting progressive and has less of that commercial magic. Renaissance is a concept album, produced and directed by Shadow Morton, the man who brought you the Shangri-Las and who produced the second album for the New York Dolls.

One of the relatively few New York psychedelic groups to achieve national recognition, Autosalvage's day in the limelight was fairly dim and brief. The band included bassist Skip Boone, the brother of Lovin' Spoonful bassist Steve Boone, and Rick Turner, who contributed guitar to most of the tracks on Ian & Sylvia's 1966 album Play One More. Autosalvage's self-titled 1968 album revealed a fairly large palette, with touches of folk, blues, and strings. The group's cheerful harmonies owed a bit to the Lovin' Spoonful, and Frank Zappa (perhaps impressed by their sometimes-disjointed and improvisational material) was a fan, but their material was not strong enough to forge a distinctive identity. Boone and drummer Darius Davenport also appear on the obscure 1968 album by Bear, but otherwise Autosalvage's debut was also their curtain call.

Alice Coltrane's 1968 solo debut on Impulse still stands tall in the artist's excellent discography. Coltrane had already gained a considerable education playing in the band of her late husband John during one of his boldest and most exploratory periods. The searching quality underpinning the saxophonist's last albums is also present on A Monastic Trio, as are the Eastern modalities and the balance between density and expansiveness often associated with Trane.
But to consider Coltrane's debut a mere offshoot of her late husband's inventions is to do her a great disservice. Coltrane distinguishes herself as a composer (all the tunes on the album are hers), and as an instrumentalist (her harp playing, in particular, is noteworthy). A Monastic Trio also benefits from a superb personnel list, including Rashied Ali on drums, Jimmy Garrison on bass, and the irrepressible Pharoah Sanders on saxophone, flute, and bass clarinet…