Monday, September 14, 2009

I'm shocked!


We only know them for their 1970 smash Venus, but did you know - indeed, did you even give it a second thought - that there might have been more to Dutch supergroup Shocking Blue than that? In fact, did you even know they were Dutch. I thought they were Swedish.

So it was only when I stumbled across (or rather, bought off eBay) a German compilation of hits of the 1970s that I discovered that actually, they did do other stuff and it's really quite good. I'm digging Inkpot, especially (See clip below).

Currently I'm hugely into what was big on the continent, especially Germany and Holland, in the Sixties and Seventies. I don't know why, but like my recent Australia binge, I like a project where music is concerned and this fits the bill nicely. I love discovering old music I've never heard before, and if something was huge in Austria, Australia, Belgium or Finland then I want to know why. There must be a reason.

According to Wikipedia, they split up at the height of their powers in the very early Seventies, after scoring a string of hits across Europe. And very good they are too. Love that female singer, and sadly she died a few years ago.

So for a Monday morning, bring some Europe into your life. Loving those eastern influences:

2 comments:

Mondo said...

Hot Sand is another Shocking Blue belter. If you're on a retro-Euro buzz, you've got to grab these comps FC

Le Beat Bespoke 3 volumes available : essentially European pop/rock oddities and obscurities from the late sixties and early seventies

The In-Kraut as above but specifically German

And have a peep at this nugget of randomness I found last week - glam in a lamp factory - Bonnie St. Claire & Unit Gloria - Clap Your hands

Jon Peake said...

Yes, got in-Kraut and Clap Your Hands, the latter which spurred my interest. I blogged about that one a while back.

But I'll checking out the other one for sure. Thanks PM.

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