THE FIREBALLS - Goin' Away / Groovy Motions (ATCO, 1968)

The Fireballs o Jimmy Gilmer and the Fireballs eran originarios de Nuevo Méjico y fueron básicamente un combo instrumental, casi más conocidos por la polémica suscitada al añadir arreglos a las grabaciones póstumas de Buddy Holly, de hecho compartían productor, Norman Petty, que por sus propias canciones. Casi al final de su carrera tuvieron ocasión de filtrear con sonidos más sicodélicos como en esta estupenda cara B.

PURPLE VELVET - Tribute To Creedence Clearwater (Avenue Recordings, 1972)

Towards the end of the nineteen-sixties, the focus of attention in the field of international pop music swung to the West Coast of America where a new and vital spirit had sprung up amongst the horde of young musicians who had gathered there. It was a period which was to see the emergence of a number of outstanding musical aggregations and individual talents, all reaching out for fame and fortune in the rich and relaxed atmosphere that pervaded the cities of San Francisco and Los Angeles. As the decade moved to a close and the gentle and wistful sounds which had heralded the appearance of flower-power and incense lost favour, the music took on new vitality and drive.

Out of this creative maelstrom came Creedence Clearwater Revival, four young, talented men whose distinctive powerhouse sound was to set a new pattern for American pop music. The group's gutty, raw material, penned mainly by their leader John Fogerty, was based securely in the blues of the deep South, and their dynamic interpretations quickly swept Creedence into the upper reaches of the best-selling record charts, not only in America but also across the international music scene. 

On this album, Purple Velvet recreate and capture the full vitality and force of Creedence's magni­ficent sound in a selection of their twelve best-known performances. A fitting tribute to one of the most exciting groups to appear in recent times and a superb L.P. for your collection. 

MERIT HEMMINGSON - Rollskog (Mer Svensk Folkmusik På Beat) (Columbia, 1972)

Music freak from the day I was born. Started with accordeon at four and the piano at seven.

After school my plan was to attend Oscar Petersons jazz school in Toronto in the beginning of the sixties, but instead I went to New York to get a band together. I was digging jazz in the famous jazz club Birdland almost every night and even sat in with Miles Davis band at Village Vanguard. Got piano lessons from both Joe Zawinul and Lalo Shifrin. Formed a band in the US with four black female jazz musicians, altosax, trumpet, bass and drums and myself on the piano. We were touring in Sweden for six months, "Merit H. and her Girl Stars".

Left the jazz scene and found my real big "Love" the Hammond B3 organ and started the group Meritones, with which I made my first album in 1967.

In the beginning of the seventies Swedish folk music entered my life which resulted in three gold discs ”Huvva”, ”Trollskog” and "Bergtagen". At this time I also recorded a double album together with the great poet Beppe Wolgers. With two fiddlers and a rhythm section I toured all over Sweden with this quite new concept and had great success. 

Later on exploring other musical fields also with synthesizers, playing with different artists, writing and co-writing songs. But in the last few years I´ve been attracted back to the roots and to the organ playing. A compilation album from the seventies ”Merit – Queen of Swedish Hammond Folk Groove” was released in 2005 and the album ”Touch” in 2006. Merit Hemmingson