Smoke High In A Room: Anthology CD

Recorded in 1967 and 1968. Includes liner notes by Brian Hogg.

New arrivals to this compilation might ask, "Will the real Smoke please stand up?" One minute the band exudes classic '60s mod aloofness on its epochal song, "My Friend Jack," in which grating fuzz guitars couldn't conceal knowing references to "taking trips." (A panicked EMI ordered the track recut -- just weeks after yanking the Game's equally notorious "The Addicted Man"). Fast forward to the '70s, and the boys are banging out trashy glam pop odes to homosexual rats ("Sweet Winifred, A Rodent Of Note" on their downtime as studio engineers at Morgan Sound.

Both eras are faithfully represented on this double-disc reissue, which kicks off with a classic blast of '60s mod snarkiness with "Keep A Hold Of What You Got," the only single by the pre-Smoke band the Shots).(Like their peers the Creation, the Smoke achieved their greatest peak in Germany, after weathering crucial setbacks at home.) In some ways, "My Friend Jack" proved a red herring, because their only album It's Smoke Time -- which appears here in its entirety -- leans more toward a psychedelic pop sound that compares favorably to the Kinks or Small Faces.

Disc Two is the flip side of the coin. The '70s-era incarnation exists as a vehicle for soggy ballads ("Time To Go"), knees-up bawdiness ("The Man With One Leg"), shameless recyclings ("Jack is Back"), and a French-only disco(!) mix that leaves the song largely intact. Quality varies greatly from track to track, but knockoffs like "Shagalagalu" wouldn't have given Marc Bolan any sleepless nights.

True believers won't revisit Disc Two more than once, but it makes for fun listening if you don't think too hard. Throw in a classic Phil Smee design, and an extensive foldout recounting the band's ups and downs, and you've got a smart, winning package. Thanks to Jack and his sugar lumps, the Smoke enjoyed a lengthier run than anyone could have imagined; what a difference a decade makes! ~ Ralph Heibutzki

Regardless of who came up with the term "freakbeat" -- either Bam Caruso czar Phil Smee created it in the mid-'80s or Richard Allen came up with it as the name for his psych fanzine -- it's generally agreed that the Smoke were one of the best examples of the style (along with the Birds, the Creation, Les Fleur de Lys, and a few others) during the "swinging London" era of the mid-'60s. This 23-track comp of feedback-rich primeval psych-beat is highlighted by their finest moment right up front: "My Friend Jack" hit the U.K. Top 50 in 1967, despite the fact that it was banned by the BBC. (According to the excellent liner notes, the Beeb banned the song after the Bishop of Southwark -- who misconstrued it as a celebration of drug abuse -- contacted EMI head Sir Joseph Lockwood to complain about the song right in the midst of hysteria over a then-recent Rolling Stones drug bust, LSD, and "moral decline.") In fact, as the liner notes explain, "My Friend Jack" (included here in both the single and the sensational longer version) received airplay on pirate radio stations in the U.K. and shot to number one in Germany for an incredible seven weeks. Also included is their scorching version of Otis Redding's "She Put the Hurt on Me" and their Jeff Beck/Dave Mason-produced "Utterly Simple" (which had appeared on Traffic's Mr. Fantasy album). However, a few tracks are missing here from the Yorkshire group's outstanding oeuvre. The now out of print 1994 Repertoire CD included their 1967 album plus rare acetates and live tracks; their first single -- 1965's "Keep a Hold of What You Got" b/w "She's a Liar" -- is also sadly missing in action. Even so, Retroactive/Sin-Drome's compilation is a solid improvement on previously issued collections, due to clean remastering and a colorful booklet. Also, a track written by the band called "I Am Only Dreaming" -- falsely attributed to them as being recorded under the Chords Five alias on p

All tracks have been digitally remastered.