BIG BOY PETE – Return To Catatonia
Pete Miller a.k.a. Big Boy Pete - a former member of Peter Jay And The Jaywalkers - recorded the highly sought-after psychedelic single ‘Cold Turkey/My Love Is Like A Spaceship’ in 1968. It was though for many years that this was his sole recording from the period, but fourteen tracks were unearthed by Tenth Planet in 1998 and issued as this album. Apparently recorded while convinced that he was being watched by aliens, some of his songs had a strong extra-terrestrial influence, but luckily most of the music on this release is fine psyche-pop. ‘Twas Not So Long Ago’ is a great upbeat rocker with a catchy riff, and ‘Me’ makes effective use of sitar in another pop-psyche gem, including some inventive lyrical phrases. ‘Summerland’ is a more conventional pop song, although the lyrics still have a psychedelic bent to them, with tales of ginger and yellow men. ‘Nasty-Nazi’ in an intriguing title for a song which if anything sounds a bit ahead of its time, with its fuzz guitar licks and treated vocals on the intoned chorus. ‘The Raid’ veers just a little too close to the tune of The Kink’s ‘Days’ to be listened to without that nagging feeling that you have heard the song before, but ‘Creosote And Cream’ and ‘Crystal’s Tune’ are two more great late 60’s pop tunes showing Miller’s knack with a catchy melody. The sitar makes a welcome return for ‘Strontium Ninety Nel-’, and together with ‘Convercircles’ they are a couple of great summery pop tunes infused with Miller’s nonsensical lyrics. The only tracks on here that are not wholly successful are ‘The Day Stares Straight Back’ and ‘Henry Nut (Part 2)’, with the former’s loping reggae rhythm and vocal effects so unlike the other songs on here, and the speeded up vocals of the latter recalling none other than David Bowie’s much-reviled ‘Laughing Gnome’. Still, they are soon over and the album ends with three more excellent pop ditties in ‘Hung Up’ with its quirky guitar in the chorus, the instantly likeable ‘Sums’ featuring some amusing mathematical lyrics, and the gentle pop of ‘The Shelter’. This has turned out to be an excellent collection of songs by someone that I had only fleetingly heard of, and once again proves that there are still many undiscovered gems from the 60’s waiting to be unearthed.