Both Kinds Of Music

This compilation Turkish Delights, 26 Ultrarities from Beyond the Sea of Marmara, Beat, Psych & Garage, released by the Dutch label Grey Past, delivers what its title promises. Recorded between 1965 and 1971, garage psych doesn’t get much better, and some of the tracks show a strong Turkish music influence to boot. Unfortunately, according to the folks at Aquarius Records both the CD and the LP are currently out of print. However, before you fall into deep depression and kill yourself, here is a track listing with a few mp3’s:

1. Mogollar - Eastern Love
2. Cem Karaca and Apaslar - Hudley
3. Mavi Isiklar - The Great Airplane Strike of 1967
4. Istanbul Erkek Lisesi - In the Deep End
5. Haramiler - Aya Bak Yildiza Bak
6. Bunalimlar - Tas Var Kopek Yok
7. Cahit Oben - Makaram Sari Baglar
8. Izmir Ozel Karsiyaka Lisesi - Over Under Sideways Down
9. Baris Manco & Kaygisizlar - Trip
10. Apaslar - Sans Cocugu
11. Mavi Isiklar - Ask Cicegi
12. Mogollar - Lazy John
13. Cem Karaca & Apaslar - Suya Giden Alli Gelin
14. Mavi Isiklar - Kanaman
15. Beybonlar - Nenni
16. Erkin Koray - Cicek Dagi
17. Baris Manco & Les Mistigris - Il Arrivera
18. Selcuk Alagoz - Saklan Saklanabilirsen
19. Baris Manco - Derule
20. Cahit Oben - Halimem
21. Mogollar - Kaleden Kaleye Sahin Ucurdum
22. Haramiler - Camlica Yolunda
23. Cem Karaca and Apaslar - Anadolu Oyun Havasi
24. Erkin Koray - Sana Bir Seyler Olmus
25. Mavi Cocuklar - Tamzara
26. Yabancilar - Agit

A few words about the artists and tracks follow. Most of the information was taken from the excellent website about Turkish progressive music by Gerald van Waes.

Mogollar was founded in 1967 and apparently still exists. Read more about them here. They have three quite different tracks on this compilation, of which “Kaleden Kaleye Sahin Ucurdum” is my favorite, being distinctly Turkish and psychedelic. The other two songs are more like light-hearted beat music.

Then there is Cem Karaca & Apaslar, and you have to check out that link if only for the album covers. Don’t forget the second page with more pictures and audio samples. Cem Karaca was somewhat political, and one of his albums is entitled “Poverty Isn’t A Destiny”. He moved to Germany in 1979, just in time before the right-wing military coup in Turkey in 1980. The fascist government stripped him of his Turkish citizenship, and he could not return to Turkey until 1987, when he was finally accepted again by the civilian government of Turgut Ozal, under the promise not to engage in political activism. The music of Cem Karaca & Apaslar is great psychedelic surf’n'roll, and the track Suya Gidden Alli Gellin does not only have the same opening chords as the Dead Kennedys’ “California Uber Alles”, it has the same guitar sound as well. Freaking unreal.

Mavi Isiklar were a successful garage beat and cover band. I find their cover of “The Great Airplane Strike Of 1967″ by Paul Revere & The Raiders solid, but not exceptional. However, “Kanamam” is something else, with its infectious beat and nice vocal harmonies it would not be out of place in a Bollywood film.

Istanbul Erkek Lisesi and Izmir Ozel Karsiyaka Lisesi were high school bands, whose recordings survive thanks to a high school band contest by the Turkish newspaper Milliyet. The first time I heard “In The Deep End” by the kids from Istanbul, I did not even recognize that the song is in English. The English lessons seem to have been better in Izmir, as their “Over Under Sideways Down” demonstrates. These recordings are important documents of the times.

Haramiler was a very successful live band, but apparently the studio recordings did not live up to their live act. However, the psychedelic middle-eastern surf instrumental “Camilca Yolunda” on this CD is pretty damn good.

Bunalimlar deliver dirty heavy acid-drenched psychedelia. A pity that there is only one track of them here, but their whole recorded output is only a few singles.

Cahit Oben is inexplicably compared to the Beatles by an anonymous source. The two tracks on this compilation are probably best classified as Turkish surf-folk. I like them a lot, even though they bear no resemblance to the Beatles. And don’t forget to check out the link, it has and incredible 7″ single cover with a topless blonde blowing soap bubbles.

Baris Manco appears with three different bands, singing in three different languages (English, French, Turkish), and three different musical styles. Whereas the collaboration with Kaygisizlar is pretty straight-forward garage beat, his French and Turkish tracks are definitely French and Turkish musically. They will blow your mind, check them out. He recorded lots of different types of music, and later on in his career he produced ambient soundscapes. There is a webpage which probably has more info and audio samples, but you need Flash to see it, so I can’t check.

Beybonlar is one of the gems on this already outstanding release. Their song “Nenni” starts out with baby cries and turns into a heavy psychedelic instrumental with spaced-out guitar and intense drumming. Beybonlar was an amateur band whose members ranged in age between 11 and 18. It is especially hard to believe that the amazing drummer was the 11-year old. They released only one single (by winning an amateur band contest) and their drummer allegedly went on to play in “famous rock bands” when he grew up. I don’t know which bands these are and would be grateful for any info.

Erkin Koray is represented with two tunes. “Cicek Dagi” is a very nice guitar-driven surf tune with middle eastern and psychedelic influences, whereas I think “Sana Bir Seyler Olmus” is a cover version of that generic 60’s rock’n'roll song with handclapping and “Naa-na-na-na-naaa” chorus. (What the hell was it called again? I think I have Alzheimer.) Though it is better than the original, it can’t elevate it to greatness.

Selcuk Alagoz has an OK track here, definitely not annoying as the Turkish pop kitsch for which he became famous. However, you probably will have a better time checking out the link for his album covers and photographs. There is an unbelievably irritating series of pictures with people dressed up as Indians (as in Native Americans, not the people from the subcontinent).

Mavi Cocuklar, the “Blue Kids”, also won a song contest to record their first album. The instrumental tune “Tamzara” is probably the rhythmically tightest tracks on this compilation, featuring fuzz-guitar, saxophone, and organ over a driving middle-eastern beat. If you don’t start dancing when you hear this, you should see a doctor.

“Agit” is the perfect closer for this compilation, brought to you by Yabancilar, who released only one single. Like several other musicians on this compilation, they were finalists in the Altin Mikrofon Contest in 1967. The song is slow, sad, just beautiful.

As an addendum, there is good news for the fans of Turkish psychedelic music on silver or black round disks with liner notes and all that. Head over to Aquarius Records and check their Records of the Week for Love, Peace & Poetry: Turkish Psychedelic Music on the Shadoks label. This should still be available if you hurry up. You can thank me later for bringing the joy back into your life.

This entry was posted on Saturday, December 3rd, 2005 at 2:30 pm and is filed under mp3, Middle East, Rock'n'Roll. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.