JUNIPHER GREENE was a Norwegian progressive rock band who were formed in Oslo in 1967. The initial line-up included Bent Aserud on guitars, keyboards, flute and vocals, Geir Bohren on lead vocals, drums and sax, Helge Groslie on keyboards, Freddie Dahl on guitar and vocals and Oyvind Vilbo on bass. They released their ambitious debut album in 1971 called "Friendship". It stands as one of Norway's earliest progressive album and the country's first double LP.They were one of Norway's best bands together with RUPHUS and HOST, although they only released one album in 1973 "Communication" (also very good) before splitting in the mid 70s. Two compilation albums, "Best Of" (1975) and "Rewind" (1981), which also featured a number of unreleased tracks recorded between 1969 and 1980, were issued. Helge Groslie left the band to join TITANIC in 1972, Aserud and Bohren kept the JUNIPHER GREENE name for various incarnations during the 80s, although these were very different to the original group. Line-up / Musicians Helge Groslie/vocals,keyboards Bent Aserud/guitars,flute,harp,vocals Oyvind Vilbo/bass,vocals Geir Bohren/drums,vocals Freddy Dahl/vocals,guitars,vibraharp Discography(Album)
Friendship 1971
1.Try To Understand 2.Witchesi' Daughter 3.Music For Our Children 4.A Spectre Is Haunting The Peninsula 5.Sunrise/Sunset 6.Magical Garden 7.Autumn Diary 8.Maurice 9.Attila's Belly-Dance 10.Friendship
Hole In The Wall was the first country folk rock band in Norway. Starting out in 1971, they wrote all their own material and released their first LP “Hole In … Their first record has been released as a CD on Panorama/Pan Records.The frontman here is Rune Walle, known best for his later work with Ozark Mountain Daredevils. That should give you some clue to what sort of music this is. Rune Walle also played in a band called The Flying Norwegians, which took its name from Gram Parsons and his Flying Burrito Brothers one assumes. Line-up / Musicians Erik Moll/vocals,guitar Rune Walle/guitar,vocals,piano Trygve Thue/guitar Harald Dyb/accordion Kaare Oivind Moldestad/bass Gunnar Bergstrom/drums Lasse Berntzen /guitar,accordion Inge Glambek/mandolin,banjo,vocals Carmen de la Nuez/vocals,percussion Bjorn Aarland/bass Stein Nilsen/fiddle Kare Sandvik/piano Hans Petter Gundersen/guitar Atle Mjorlaug/bass Discography(Album) Hole in the Wall 1972
1.Restless Man 2.The Letdown 3.Lookout Mountain 4.End of the Effort 5.Big Nancy 6.Come on Over 7.Four Tomorrows 8.Pass the Word 9.Kilimanjaro Monday 10.Love Is Arranging My Life 11.Double or Nothing
Saft was a band from the Norwegian city of Bergen, formed in 1969-70, and disbanded in the spring of 1974. Saft was formed by Ove Thue (vox), Trygve Thue (guitar), Tom Harry Halvorsen (flute 1970-1972), Rolf Skogstrand (bass 1970-1972) and Magne Lunde (drums 1970-1972). They've had several re-unions since then. Saft were one of the first bands in Norway to sing in nynorsk. (“Fjøsvise” in 1971), and one of the first to mix hardingfiddle with rock (“Halling” with Sigbjørn Berntoft Osa in 1973). Saft also wrote musical history when they won “Europatoppen” with the song “People In Motion” in November 1971.Their debut album ”Saft” was the first of three major albums the band recorded. The musical was unusually varied, ranging from progressive rock, Norwegian middle-age ballads, classical music and heavy metal. The best known song from the album is “All The Time”. Ove Thue had based the lyrics around a slogan originating from the USA during the Vietnam war: “Fighting for freedom is like fucking for virginity”. This was used as the chorus, which too proved too much for the BBC. The powerful radiochannel refused to play the album when it was send in as a Norwegian contribution to Europatoppen in 1971. Saft replied by printing “Censored by BBC” on the cover to the single – which showed a photograph of a naked Ove Thue. The record was eventually played, but the naughty words were bleeped out. Line-up / Musicians Ove Thue/vocals Trygve Thue/vocals,guitar Tom Harry Halvorsen/keyboards,flute Magne Lunde/bass Rolf Skogstrand/drums Discography Saft 1971
1.Introduction 2.Couple Of Freaks 3.Eleanor Rigby 4.Fjosvise 5.Don't Look Back 6.All The Time 7.Fly 8.This Is Not Today 9.Opus 1 10.Min 11.So Long
A heavy rock group which formed in 1972. The first Flax album sold poorly at the time of release in 1976 and has become something of a collector's item. It contained theatrical heavy rock (vocalist Hermod Falch was occasionally dressed in a skeleton costume when the group performed live), strongly influenced by Deep Purple (at the time of Machine Head) and, to a lesser degree, Uriah Heep and Queen. Their music also had some symphonic elements.Flax disbanded in 1975 some months before their debut album was released but a new line-up appeared in 1978. Line-up / Musicians Hermod Falch/vocals John Hesla/guitar,flute Bruce C. Rasmussen/drums Arve Sakariassen/bass Lars Hesla/keyboards Discography One 1976
1.Demon in Your Heart 2.The Way Here 3.Have You Seen My Friend 4.Hell on Earth 5.Wanna Rock You 6.Pain in the Ass 7.Clever Man 8.Crusaders 9.Leaving Home 10.Mirrors
Having roots as far back as 1959 with The Scavers and later releasing a single Arman Stumpe Dur Express, this Norwegian quintet that released two albums under the Popol Vuh moniker (a Maya mythology-related name), until they became aware of a German band using the same name, they changed their names to Popol Ace. The group went on to release another two albums before folding at the end of the decade. Musically, they sounded much straighter progressive rock than their German mystical homonyms: mellotrons and flute parts, funky jazz-rock and softer ballads were among their usual tricks found in their first two albums (S/T and Quiche Maya) under the Vuh name. In 75, with the name change to Popol Ace, the group embarked in their most ambitious project the expensive and studio time demanding Stolen From Time, a concept album strongly influenced by Genesis, but too rigidly produced to gather the hoped-for international success. Lead singer Jan Teigen then left the group to become one of the country's leading pop singer and entertainer. The group hired a new vocalist in 78, but their last album is best forgotten by everyone (PV/PA included) and the group disbanded later that year. Line-up / Musicians Arne Schulze/guitar Pete Knutsen/guitar,keyboards Thor Andreassen/drums Terje Methi/bass Jahn Teigen/vocals Discography(Album) Stolen From Time 1976
1.Bury Me Dead 2.Today Another Day 3.Jester 4.Soft Shoe Dancer 5.Mr. Bigalow 6.Sweet Tune 7.Sleepwalker 8.I Can See Tears 9.Suicide
PRUDENCE was one the most important bands on the Norwegian prog scene in the 1970s, a scene that included the likes of AUNT MARY, JUNIPHER GREENE, TITANIC, POPOL VUH (ACE), RUPHUS, FOLQUE and HØST. They fused rock with old party/dance music from Trøndelag and (on their last album) sang in their local dialect, thereby creating a rock style dubbed Trønderrock.Hailing from Namsos, a small town in Nord-Trøndelag county in Middle Norway, their roots can be traced to 1967 and the band THE TUNES, later named WHOOPEE CHOOP. At that time the band consisted of Kaare SKEVIK jr. (drums), Per Erik Prikken WALLUM (vocals and later also flute), Sturla HUSTAD (keyboards), Per FORMO, Hans Jacob BUSCH (both guitar) and Terje TYSLAND (bass), who left to work as a sailor and was replaced by Kjell Ove Nille RISETH (bass) shortly before Åge ALEKSANDERSEN (vocals and guitar) joined in October of 1968. In 1970 PRUDENCE released their first of three singles on the newly formed label, Experience Records. Side A was a cover of DEEP PURPLE's "Into the Fire", while side B contained an original composition "Kom, bli med til København" (Come to Copenhagen), a song about having fun with drugs in the Danish capital that was banned from radio airplay. PRUDENCE's sound was created from three equal approaches. ALEKSANDERSEN mostly listened to Bob DYLAN and American rock and TYSLAND had a strong relationship with jazz, gammaldans and the music of Jimi HENDRIX, while WALLUM was obsessed with JETHRO TULL and British folkrock. Other significant influnces were THE BEATLES, BLACK SABBATH, BLODWYN PIG, KING CRIMSON and DEEP PURPLE. This mix made their sound unique and something not heard before in and from Norway.Two new singles were released on Experience - "Small Things in Life"/"Happy Fairies" and "My New Day"/"The Sky Gets Blue" before the band signed with Polydor and released their first LP 'Tomorrow May Be Vanished', cryptically subtitled 'Victoria Så bærre pass dæ!' (Victoria so just watch out!) in 1972. The album received great reviews, in which the band was compared to greats as JETHRO TULL and THE BAND.The album hit the market the week after PRUDENCE's very successful performance at The Kalvøya Festival where they, according to Paul KARLSEN (the man behind the festival) went on stage as total unknowns and left half an hour later as Norway's most popular band, upstaging the headlining act FAMILY in the process.In 1973 they released their second LP 'Drunk and Happy' which opened doors in Denmark, where the band was a great succes at The Roskilde Festival of that year. There were talks of launching the band in Europe, but instead of getting rich and famous PRUDENCE ended up disappointed, and also broke, because they were always investing in the newest equipment available even though success outside of Scandinavia eluded them. The following year they released their third LP simply called 'No. 3', which was a great success in Denmark. But with increasing debt the band had to tour nonstop all around the country and some of the members also had to get side jobs to make a living. The rough life on the road, RISETH's tragedy and the fact that the label wasn't going to launch the band in Europe after all were the most important reasons for the band deciding to break up, but not before releasing a fourth album, with Norwegian lyrics this time, and going on a farewell tour. Frode VIKEN (later a member of the popular trønderrock band D.D.E.) had a short period in the band as bassist, before RISETH was permanently replaced by Jan DEVIK.Their fourth and last studio album, released in 1975 'Takk te dokk' (Thank You). The last tour was a triumph where ever they went. Their last concert, at Studentersamfunnet in Trondheim, 11. December 1975, was recorded, with Jahn TEIGEN (of POPOL ACE and, later, one of Norway's most popular pop artists) as producer, and released as a double LP.In February 1976 after the band had split up, they won Spellemannsprisen (the Norwegian equivalent to the Grammys) for best pop/rock album with 'Takk te dokk'. Line-up / Musicians Age Aleksandersen/guitar,vocals Per Erik Wallum/flute,vocals Terje Tysland/guitar,accordion,vocals Kaare Skevik jr./drums Johan Tangen/mandolin,congas,vocals Kjell Ove Riseth/bass,vocals Discography(Album) Tomorrow May Be Vanished 1972
1.North in the Country 2.Mild Grey Fog 3.Tomorrow May Be Vanished 4.What Man Has Made of Man 5.14 Pages 6.Going Through This Life 7.Oh, Grandpa 8.Lost in the Forest 9.Kerre Volin 10.Daida
UNDERTAKERS CIRCUS is a jazz-rock band from Lillestrøm, Norway, with their most active period between 1967 and 1976. With a full horn section accompanying traditional rock instruments their sound resembles bands like CHICAGO and BLOOD, SWEAT & TEARS, but with melodies and harmonies more of the BARCLAY JAMES HARVEST and THE MOODY BLUES mode.They were one of the first rock bands in Norway to sing in their native language, and they often wrote lyrics with political and social content. Undertakers Circus differed from many other Norwegian rock bands because of their characteristic horn section and the fact that they are influenced by jazz. The first single released 1968 is named “Little Boy Blue/Gotta Get Away”, but their first LP, which was a revolutionary release, was released as long as five years later by Polydor Records and got the name “Ragnarock”. At the time the band counted 11 members: Thor S. GRENI (vocals), Per Kristian LINDSTAD (guitar), Frank MYRSETH (guitar), Stein GUDMUNDSEN (vocals, congas), Erik THOEN (bass), Frode KILDAL (drums), Øystein BJØRK (trumpet), Johnny TORP (trombone), Kjell KRISTOFFERSEN (trumpet), Ivar HOVDEN (tenor sax) and Wiggo NILSEN (trombone). Line-up / Musicians Thor S. Greni/vocals Erik Thoen/bass Per Kristian Lindstad/guitar Øystein Bjørk/trumpet Frank Myrseth/guitar Stein Gudmundsen/vocals,congas Johnny Torp/trombone Kjell Kristoffersen/trumpet Ivar Hovden/tenor sax Frode Kildal/drums Wiggo Nilsen/trombone Discography(Album) Ragnarock 1973
1.Ragnarock 2.Løfte 3.Nettenes prinsesse 4.På Stiklested 5.Nå sitter vi og venter 6.Menuett silikose 7.2007 8.Arbeidsløs jul igjen 9.Mor Norge
