LPCDreissues: Looking forward to the past

• Packaging: Six-panel fold-out gimmick sleeve that opens into an illustrated poster

Mike Absalom is the eccentric 1971 Vertigo album by British singer, songwriter and guitarist Mike Absalom. Combining acoustic folk, psychedelic humour, street observation and surreal storytelling, it stands apart from the heavier progressive-rock recordings normally associated with the famous Vertigo swirl label.

Absalom had spent years travelling and performing as a busker before attracting the attention of Patrick Campbell-Lyons, co-founder of the British psychedelic group Nirvana. Campbell-Lyons produced the album, placing Absalom's voice and acoustic guitar at the centre of arrangements supported by uncredited bass, keyboards and drums.

“Saga of John the Bog” immediately introduces Absalom's unusual narrative style, combining spoken and sung passages with absurd characters and sharp observations of London life. “Don't Tell It on the Telephone” and “Let Me Give You Roses, Rose” are more concise, melodic songs, while “Old Woman in the Moon” moves into gentler and more reflective territory.

The comic storytelling continues with “Saga of Ernie Plugg's Bust” and the extended “Saga of Suzie Grapevine and Pusher Joe.” Although the lyrics are frequently humorous, the music is not simply novelty folk: carefully developed melodies, changing rhythms and understated psychedelic touches give the songs considerable musical character.

“Frightened of the Dark” has a more vulnerable atmosphere, while the provocatively titled “Gaza Striptease” returns to Absalom's satirical side. “It Must Be Spring” provides one of the album's warmest and most immediately accessible melodies before the lengthy “Saga of Peaches Melba and the Hash Officer” closes the record with another elaborate comic narrative.

The original sleeve was designed and illustrated by Roger Dean shortly before his internationally famous work for Yes. Opening into a large illustrated guide to Notting Hill Gate, it incorporates locations and characters from Absalom's songs and is an essential part of the album's distinctive identity.

This Akarma vinyl edition reproduces the complete ten-track album and its elaborate fold-out poster artwork, making it an attractive reissue for collectors of British underground folk, Vertigo recordings and early Roger Dean sleeve designs.

Track listing:

Side A

1. Saga of John the Bog – 4:05
2. Don't Tell It on the Telephone – 2:14
3. Let Me Give You Roses, Rose – 2:43
4. Old Woman in the Moon – 4:35
5. Saga of Ernie Plugg's Bust – 3:34

Side B

1. Saga of Suzie Grapevine and Pusher Joe – 5:02
2. Frightened of the Dark – 3:25
3. Gaza Striptease – 2:20
4. It Must Be Spring – 4:25
5. Saga of Peaches Melba and the Hash Officer – 5:55