Missus Beastly
Missus Beastly

Pill review because there's not much to say about this group whose name is derived from that of an African-American TV puppet.

Their career lasted more than ten years and produced four LPs that, after a more psychedelic debut, decidedly leaned towards Jazz Rock.

Wrongly, then, we often see the work of Missus Beastly classified as Prog, a genre to which the group is linked solely due to geographical and chronological coincidence, without any connection to the humus that was producing remarkable record releases in Germany during those years.

We're in "Krauto" territory and the album, the group's vinyl debut, was released in 1970, with strong ties to the German musical underground, centered on psychedelia and featuring forays into Rock Jazz Blues territories.

The lineup of four elements is the tried and tested Voice - Guitar - Bass - Organ - Drums; significant in the first album are the collaborations with members of Xhol Caravan, Amon Düül II, and the future Embryo.

A couple of notes on the most significant tracks: "Uncle Sam", the second, which contains an acid and very Hendrixian electric guitar that blends well with bass and organ. "Decision", the fourth track, has strong reminiscences of Cream, yet it manages to be convincing. In "Mean Woman", the sixth track, we're with the guitar in typically Claptonian territories but there's also great work done by the Hammond.

Everything else flows well without thrilling; the overall value of the release lies in the fact that it is a respectable and well-constructed product, played with good mastery, but, above all, it has the merit of being pioneering in German soil, as well as giving us a comprehensive view of the electric German rock landscape.

Curiosity for collectors: the first vinyl version now exceeds a thousand dollars in value.

Recommended for those who want to delve into the jammy German scene of primitive psychedelic rock, reissued in CD in 2002 by "Garden Of Delight".