VARIOUS ARTISTS - 3 x Tonkraft

Before there was ”Progglådan” and before there was a Mellotronen label raiding the Swedish Radio archives for other previously unreleased live tapes by notable bands, there was ”Tonkraft – Levande musik från Sverige”, three double LP volumes of Swedish bands recorded for the Tonkraft radio show that ran from 1971 to 1980. (It was preceded by another show, Midnight Hour.) All in excellent sound quality, the first volume covered 1972-74, the second 1975-76, and the third one 1977-78, all of them with a number of bands featured with one track each. Today the 'one band, one song' format is antiquated with the demand for preferably complete sessions, but the Tonkraft albums were long the only place to go if you wanted more progg than what was available on the artists' original albums and singles.

Despite that the 40CD ”Progglådan” box set contains many of the recordings from the original ”Tonkraft” albums, they aren't entirely redundant since they still feature recordings not available elsewhere. Also, there are a couple of bands here that never released any discs of their own, or bands that at least were underrepresented on vinyl back in the day, such as Plus Gäster, Kolossos Sandaler, Doggers Bankar, Kapten Krok, and Harem to mention a few. Also, some of the better known artists have tracks here not on any of their regular releases, among them Anna Själv Tredje, Mikael Ramel, Mount Everest, Berits Halsband, Elda Med Höns and Ensamma Hjärtan.

Taken together, the three 2LP's work as a quick (i.e. not sufficiently representative) 'here and now' (or now, rather a 'there and then') guide to what the music movement and progg had to offer.

Tonkraft – Levande musik från Sverige 1972-74 (Tonkraft, released 1980)

Featured artists: Peps Bluesband / Pugh & Nature / Hoola Bandoola Band / Trotsålderns Barn / Södra Bergens Balalaikor / Mikael Ramel & Unga Hjärtan / Kebnekajse / Solar Plexus / Plus Gäster / Blå Tåget / Samla Mammas Manna / Hörselmat / Mount Everest / Berits Halsband

International relevance: ***

Swedish vocals, instrumental

Several good ones here, most notably from Peps Bluesband, Pugh Rogefeldt with Nature, and Kebnekajse going berserk in a version of ”Comanche Spring”. Of the otherwise undocumented bands, the completely unknown Plus Gäster's ”I badkaret” is the best, like a blend of Kebnekajse and Fläsket Brinner.

Tonkraft – Levande musik från Sverige 1975-76 (Tonkraft, released 1981)

Featured artists: John Holm / Kolossos Sandaler / Norrbottens Järn / Doggers Bankar / Omlopp / Första Förband / Fläsket Brinner / Elda Med Höns / Östan Sol, Västan Måne / Eldkvarn / Kornet / Vargavinter / Kjell Höglund / Iskra / Guran / Trettioåriga Kriget / Kapten Krok / Resa

Swedish vocals, instrumental
International relevance: ***

With the ”Tonkraft” series following the chronological trends, the 1975-76 volume provides a fair bit of fusion and symphonic rock inspired music such as Kolossos Sandaler, Första Förband (with Thomas Wiehe), Östan Sol Västan Måne, Kornet, Trettioåriga Kriget and Resa. Some good stuff here though, especially John Holm (although now redundant as it has been released elsewhere since) and Fläsket Brinner's ”Barbarella” (later issued on their Swedish Radio sessions box set).

Tonkraft – Levande musik från Sverige 1977-78 (Tonkraft, released 1982)

Featured artists: Rolf Wikströms Hjärtslag / Moder Svea / Horizont / Dimmornas Bro / Norrlåtar / Ensamma Hjärtan / Folk Och Rackare / Harem / Solen Skiner / Rekyl / Little Big Horns / Mora Träsk / Alter Ego / Anna Själv Tredje / Hot Salsa / Contra / Ramlösa Kvällar / Tintomara

Swedish vocals, English vocals, instrumental
International relevance: ***

The weakest of the three ”Tonkraft” sets, with only a couple of interesting selections; Anna Själv Tredje's otherwise unavailable ”Snöfall och daggyra”, and Ramlösa Kvällar's ”Den maskulina mystiken”. Of the unknown bands, Harem is the best, coming off almost like a power version of UK renaissance folk rockers Gryphon. Apart from that, too much fusion, B grade symph and crappy blues rock. (Alter Ego is the same band that had an archival release on Musea as Alter Echo.)

As a sample of progg's stylistic development from 1972 to 1978, the ”Tonkraft” volumes are fine, but from a musical point of view, a 'best of' would be much more listenable.

PUGH ROGEFELDT – Complete albums 1970-1977

Pughish (Metronome, 1970)

Swedish vocals, English vocals, other languages

International relevance: *** 

Pugh Rogefeldt is widely acknowledged for being the first one to make a rock album in Swedish, but he was also the first artist so sing in Pughish. No wonder – he invented the language himself and it can be heard on the track ”Aindto”. The rest of the album is in Swedish with parts of it in English.

As on debut album ”Ja dä ä dä”, Janne Carlsson appears on drums and Georg 'Jojje' Wadenius supplies bass. It's a very different album to his first LP however, somewhat darker in tone with a greater melancholy permeating the breezier tracks like ”Sail With Me, Come on and Try – I Love You” and the aforementioned ”Aindto”. ”Föräldralåten” rocks out a bit more (but isn't very good), while ”Om du vill ha mej” and ”Stinsen i Bro” have a bluesier sound (although the two part ”Stinsen i Bro” really is hard to pinpoint in style). Remaining track ”Klöver Linda” is a summery track, not unlike ”Små lätta moln” on ”Ja dä ä dä”.

”Pughish” is Pugh's second album (housed in an eerie cover) and so a part of his classic informal 'trilogy' beginning with ”Ja dä ä dä” and ending with ”Hollywood” in 1972. It's a good album but it has something oddly insular about it that makes it harder to connect with. My guess is that Pugh wanted to try something entirely different this time, and while he succeeded doing so, he wasn't exactly sure what he was aiming at. ”Pughish” drifts off in so many peculiar directions that it's hard to percieve it as a coherent work. It's mystifying and intriguing, but mostly I play only a few tracks off it.

Hollywood (Sonet, 1972)
as Pugh

Swedish vocals

International relevance: ***

 

If ”Pughish” was a bit confused, this is the product of a much clearer vision. Great songs with the fantastic ”Jag är en liten pojk” leading the way to ”Jag har en guldgruva” (where Pugh shows his remarkble blues harmonica skills), ”Till gröna skogar” and the heavy ”Home, Home” to mention but a few.

With a different set of musicians to his first two albums – no Jojje Wadenius or Janne Carlsson here – it's obvious already one beforehand that ”Hollywood” is different in nature to ”Ja dä ä dä” and ”Pughish”. It's tighter and more lavish sounding, but without losing in strength one bit. There are moments I actually think this is even better than some on ”Ja dä ä dä”.

Pugh on the Rocks (Metronome, 1973)
as Pugh
Swedish vocals

International relevance: * 

It's sometimes said that a live album or a covers album is something you put out when creativity is running low. That's of course not always the case, but I dare say that it's a much valid assertion when it comes to Pugh Rogefeldt's ”Pugh on the Rocks”. With three excellent albums behind him, why would he bother with something like this had he more top notch material to choose from?

The title is supposed to be funny I guess, referencing the album's content of only translated rock & roll classics made famous by the likes of Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley and Little Richard. But the other meaning of the expression is even more appropriate, because Pugh is really on the rocks with this one.

I love old rock & roll, I think the 50's were one of the true and few really golden ages of rock, but I already have all the aforementioned artists and I don't need somebody hyperventilating his way through versions of their songs. I can't even pick one track here that's even decent but if you point a gun to my head and threaten to lock me up in a cupboard and play the complete works of Guns 'n' Roses on repeat, then I'd probably say ”Långsamma timmar” (”Seems Like a Long Time”) but only to escape the inhumane torture.

An outtake from the sessions was released on Gump compilation ”Voice of the Wolf”.

Bolla och rulla (Metronome, 1974)
as Pugh Rogefeldt & Rainrock
Swedish lyrics

International relevance: **

There's something about this album that makes me feel very unpleasant. Maybe it's the profound discomfort the hit song ”Dinga Linga Lena” provokes in me – with a 27 year old man lusting for a 15 year old girl – that rubs off on the rest of the album, but I think there's someting more (if the paedophiliac vibe of the aforementioned track wasn't disturbing enough). Maybe it's in the way Pugh's then newly formed backing band Rainrock plays (it sounds like fake rock), maybe it's how Pugh sings with a sleazebag sneer, or maybe the songs just aren't very good. Except for the title track and perhaps and ”Kajans sång”. Whatever the reason, I can't stand listening to ”Bolla och rulla”.

Just to make it clear: Pugh gave up playing ”Dinga Linga Lena” live many years ago, for the same reason I find it disagreeable.

Ett steg till (Metronome, 1975)

as Pugh & Rainrock, Ola Magnell, Lucas Persson

Swedish vocals, English vocals

International relevance: ***

Following the release of "Bolla och rulla", Pugh took his new band Rainrock on a package tour that also featured newly baked record artist Ola Magnell and veteran pianist Janne 'Lucas' Persson. It was probably a great show to attend, but the surviving tour document is very uneven. Lucas Persson is basically a Swedish Elton John (make what you will of that), Ola Magnell wasn't an entirely convincing live artist this early on, and Pugh's contributions are a bit hit and miss. He sings with that sleaze voice he developed for "Bolla och rulla", but some of his contributions work quite well in this setting, such as the acoustic "Hog Farm" and old chestnut "Små lätta moln". New track "Storseglet" is the highlight in this collection, a towering and gut-wrenching track that goes on for a full ten minutes without ever letting go of the grip.

Bamalama (Metronome, 1977) 
as Pugh

Swedish vocals, English vocals, instrumental
International relevance: *

OK, so this dull exercise in AOR rock with the occasional stab at disco and country (the obvious mix, no?) doesn't quite belong here but I didn't want to miss the opportunity to bring some attention to Rogefeldt's excellent Swedish language version of Woody Guthrie's ”Vigilante Man”, entitled ”Vår kommunale man”.

The 4CD box set simply entitled "Pugh" features several demos, alternate takes, live recordings and singles from his golden years. He was also supposed to be included in "Progglådan", but failed to approve his participation in time, why he was left off the set.

Pugh Rogefeldt has released plenty of albums after "Bamalama"; some of them are OK, others are not, but none of them comes even close to what he did in the early days of his career.

Pughish full album playlist
Hollywood full album playlist

Pugh On The Rocks full album playlist

Bolla och rulla full album playlist 

Ett steg till full album playlist
Bamalama full album playlist
"En gång tog jag tåget bort" with Nature full single playlist

"Slavsång" with Nature full single playlist

NATURE – Nature (Gump, 1972) / Earthmover (Sonet, 1974) / LASSE WELLANDER – Electrocuted (Sonet, 1976) / WELLANDER & RONANDER – Wellander & Ronander (Polar, 1978)

Nature was an Örebro blues rock outfit that evolved out of Blues Quality who made one album with blues and reggae master Peps Persson. Harmonica player and singer Mats Ronander's Hendrix styled vocals ais one of their foremost characteristics, with his sidekick Lasse Wellander taking care of the heavy guitar sound. Nature was often hired as a back-up band to artists such as Pugh Rogefeldt and nationally successful singer/songwriter acts Ulf Lundell and Ted Gärdestad. There are two 1972 Pugh 45's co-credited to Nature, and one Lundell album, ”Natten hade varit mild och öm” released around the time of Nature's demise in 1977. 

NATURE – Nature (Gump, 1972)

English vocals, Swedish vocals

International relevance: ***

Mats Ronander's vocals are too derivative and in your face, but that's not the only thing that makes this a pointless album. Nature's blues rock is pedestrian, dull and redundant. It features both English and Swedish vocals, and partly because of the Swedish lyrics, ”Den killen är en stjärna” sounds a bit like power trio November. ”Nature” was produced by Pugh Rogefeldt who worked for Metronome subsidiary Gump who released the album, which alone makes it an expensive item. But that's all there is to pay for: the label, not the music.

 

NATURE – Earthmover (Sonet, 1974)

English vocals, Swedish vocals

International relevance: ***

Their second album has a more luxurious production with additional musicians like Björn J:son Lindh, sax player Bernt Rosengren, pianist Alain Leroux and conga player Malando Gassama expanding the sound. Thankfully Ronander had also toned down some of his Hendrix complex which makes for more 'natural' sounding vocals. But multiple session musicians and Claes af Geijerstam's production Nature makes this an even weaker effort than their debut, and unnecessary cover versions of Lovin' Spoonful's ”Summer in the City” and Dylan/The Band's ”This Wheel's on Fire” certainly don't help. ”Earthmover” is overproduced and too glossy. Best track is the instrumental ”Meating” which sounds a bit like Kebnekajse with Gassama's congas a crucial element.

A couple of unreleased early 70's Nature radio sessions exist, and there's a 1972 recording with Dave Greenslade in ”Progglådan”.

LASSE WELLANDER – Electrocuted (Sonet, 1976)

Instrumental

International relevance: ***

For his solo debut album, Wellander went for ”Earthmover” producer Claes af Geijerstam to get the desired sound. Geijerstam also plays guitar and adds some background vocals on ”Electrocuted”, and other high level session musiciani including Wlodek Gulgowski and Tommy ”Slim” Borgudd appears as well. Even UK keyboard player Dave Greenslade who Nature played with in 1972. Without a singer to balance the music, it's a guitar album through and through. Wellander solos and solos and solos and solos, and just in case, he overdubs himself so he can play solos twice or more at the same time. Sometimes funky, sometimes bluesy, sometimes semi-progressive, sometimes romantic, always boring. Best track is the Kebnekajse pastiche ”Lingonskogen”.

WELLANDER & RONANDER – Wellander & Ronander (Polar, 1978)

Swedish vocals, instrumental
International relevance: *

After Nature's break-up, Lasse Wellander again teamed up with Mats Ronander for an album, this time released through ABBA's label Polar. Constipated blues rock, rheumatic funk, thickheaded hard rock... As great as a heart attack.

Nature full album playlist
Earthmover full album playlist

Electrocuted full album playlist

Wellander & Ronander full album playlist
Tonkraft 1972 full album

CARSTEN REGILD / VARIOUS ARTISTS – Voice of the Wolf (Gump, 1975)

Swedish vocals, spoken word

International relevance: *

The final and most peculiar album on the collectable Gump label. Actually, it's one the most puzzling progg related releases ever. It features abbreviated versions of tracks from previous Gump albums by Sten Bergman and Joakim Skogsberg, an extract from ”Mr. Smith in Rhodesia” by sound poet and author Åke Hodell, pieces by avantgardists Sten Hanson, Leo Nilson, and J.O. Mallander (of legendary Finnish experimental band The Sperm) plus several previously unreleased recordings including a not very good outtake from Pugh Rogefeldt's not very good 1973 ”On the Rocks” album. (Metronome artist Rogefeldt was a sort of A&R man for Metronome subsidiary Gump.)

The entire second side of the album is dedicated to Hans Anton Knall's ”Merde”, comprising excerpts from all the tracks on side one, electronically treated by Knall into one dizzying electronic composition. The album was credited to and edited/produced by Carsten Regild at Sweden's leading studio for electro-acoustic music, Fylkingen. Regild had previously released the massively rare ”Be My Baby” 7” on Gump in 1970, and provided graphics to several albums in 70's and 80's (among them ”Alla vi barn” by enfant terrible Tom Zacharias).

As a showcase for Gump it's pretty useless as it only includes a couple of edited tracks from previous Gump LP's. It doesn't work as a general representation of the Swedish experimental audio scene either as the selections are so wildly inconsistent stylistically. It's much more of an aural installation piece. Far from a regular spin but undeniably intriguing on its own terms. 

Full album playlist

PUGH – Ja dä ä dä! (Metronome, 1969)

Swedish vocals

International relevance ***

 

Ranked #8 on the blog's Top 25 list

If the words ”legendary” and ”classic” were invented for a reason, then ”Ja dä ä dä!” is that reason. Generally considered the first proper rock album entirely sung in Swedish, this is where the whole Swedish progg music really began. True that bands like Baby Grandmothers and Hansson & Karlsson had been going on prior to the release of Pugh's debut, but this album took it all one step further. If not three steps further. Because there had never been an album like this before, not in Sweden, and not internationally.

It's an utterly groovy album (groovy as in ”groovy, man!” and as in organic, swinging, moving rhythms), recorded after Pugh escaped mandatory military service. The playing is top notch, loose and free and yet with excellent discipline. It's amazing how richly textured a trio can be, but then again, the musicians are among the very finest Sweden had to offer at the time. Janne Carlsson is the Karlsson (note the change in spelling!) in the aforementioned Hansson & Karlsson, while Georg Wadenius, popularly known as Jojje, later had fame in Made in Sweden, fortune in Blood, Sweat and Tears, and sheer excellence on the children's album ”Goda' goda'”. He's best known as a guitarist so it's curious to hear him pounding away on the bass on ”Ja dä ä dä!”. Guitars are in fact played by Pugh himself; wild, stoned, crazy guitars at its finest. In many ways, the trio is closer to jazz than rock music. No wonder, as Carlsson was a jazz drummer from the beginning.”Ja dä ä dä!”.

What makes this a Swedish classic is of course the lyrics. Not only because it was the first time we had a rock album sung entirely in Swedish, but also because Pugh had a very original way to use the Swedish language. No one has every written lyrics in a similar fashion as Pugh. They are deep and naive at the same time. At a first glance they might appear as simple banalities, but nothing could be further from the truth. There's a whole lot of depth beneath the surface of the playful sentences, and it's a pity that this is lost on a foreign listener not familiar to the Swedish language. (He even touched on homsexuality in the song ”Du tände lyset Andersson” – not a common topic in 60's lyrics.) But don't let the language put you off, because even if you don't know a single word of what Pugh sings, the music speaks on a level that can be fully understood by anyone with a heart and a soul. The great playing would mean nothing at all if it wasn't for the excellent songwriting. ”Ja dä ä dä!” doesn't have a single weak track.

But it does offer some favourites. ”Här kommer natten” is one of the best songs ever to emerge from the pen of a Swedish songwriter, and ”Små lätta moln” is summer at its most romantic. The cover of Kurt Weill's ”Surabaya Johnny” (in Swedish, of course) slips effortlessly in with the original numbers. When speaking of classic debut albums, this is among the very best.

A curious fact is that US label Vault licensed this for an American release in 1970. Vault obviously specialized in albums with no commercial potential whatsoever, but even by their standards, ”Ja dä ä dä!” (renamed ”Ja da a da!” for the domestic market – as if that would make any more sense!) is among their very weirdest releases. The vocals weren't overdubbed with English lyrics, but the back cover sported English translations of the words, complete with some unintentional humour to Swedish readers. (”You switched the light on Andersson” just doesn't sound very catchy in English.) If the lyrics was a mystery even translated, one can only imagine what troubles Pugh's name might have caused over there. Pugh's real name is Torbjörn Rogefeldt, and even that would have been a better name when trying to market his album to non-Swedish record buyers. I mean, how do you pronounce Pugh? Like ”Pew”? ”Pewg”? ”Puff”? ”Pah”? The correct answer is something like ”Puhgg” but who could tell?

I have no idea how many US copies were pressed, but it's a safe bet that the lion's share of the edition were shipped to Sweden. Every once in a while US copies turn up for sale here, and I've seen more of these than of Swedish originals over the years. (The album has since been rereleased many times. Those who take notes of sleeve variations, originals have the title in black lettering, whereas later copies are in white. It also comes with a foldout cover with an orange lyric sheet stapled to the spine inside. Also, blue record label.)

Another funny anecdote regarding Pugh is that the politically questionable writer Michael Moynihan in his book on the Norweigan black metal scene, ”Lords of Chaos”, stated that Pugh was the guy behind Swedish black metal pioneers Bathory. I can hereby clarify that this is NOT the case...

Hopefully, time has turned for the better as regards this album's international appeal. What must have been nothing more than a confusing curio on the international market in 1970 ought to stand out as a striking masterpiece some 40 years later. Given the ever growing interest in international progressive music, this should be hailed worldwide as the true masterpiece it is. Like I said, there never was an album like it, and I'll even go as far as to say there never will.

By the way, the title means ”Yes, it is!” and is spelled in the dialect of Västerås, the town where Pugh grew up. 

Full album playlist