Morgan Blue Town

This obscure little gem was only released in England in 1970. It sold zilch, so original copies change hands for absurd sums on the collector’s market. Apparently it took all of twelve hours to record. Possessing a solid blues-rock sound, akin to Ten Years After, Savoy Brown or early Captain Beefheart; singer Dave Richardson possesses that same gargled glass voice as Don Van Vliet. Elsewhere, “Song For Pauline” dips a foot in Robert Johnson’s Mississippi Delta.

The bonus songs are from an aborted second album that shows them gazing homeward to traditional English folk music, similar to Fairport Convention or the acoustic side of Jethro Tull, and Richardson’s growl softened to where he could be a stand-in for Ian Anderson.

Not the Rosetta Stone, but fans of British progressive rock will definitely enjoy.