Seeds of Space
Nelson Yandura | Lakewood,ohio | 04/16/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I had a Virgin gift certificate burning a hole in my pocket and went to check out what they had to offer.I perused the placards A-Z stopping at (hopefully) individual ones for some of my fave raves,Bolan,Ayers,Daevid Allen and Gong,to name a few and HAWKWIND.Most stores don't even have a placard for Hawkwind,let alone selections.When there are selections they are usually reissues and rehashes.That happens a lot with Hawkwind.The last selection was titled "Dawn of Hawkwind",just the song roster on the back ,no info .(Yes one day I WILL join Hawkfan.) I surmised from the title and some of the songs that this was a pre Hawkwind offering. I have seperated it in three parts.Part One starts with COME ON,MY BABY'S GONE,DEALING WITH THE DEVIL,ROLL 'EM PETE BRING IT ON HOME(the great Willie Dixon song).These are the songs produced when England was having a love affair with American Blues.Just hearing these transported me to some smokey,noisy blues dive from a past era.(see Dave Brock was even helping us travel even then!)Brock honed his talents that were essential for the future.Part Two consists of ILLUSIONS,GET YOURSELF TOGETHER,WHAT'S THE MATTER,BOTTLEUP, songs penned by Brock that show his blues influences.Part THree consists of HURRY ON SUNDOWN,a wonderful extended version which made me want to slap on the first Hawkwind lp.CYMBALLINE ,the Pink Floyd song in which Brock reminds me of Daevid Allen vocally and trippily.Then the song my friend Angela L. took on as her theme....MASTER OF THE UNIVERSE,a good wind up to the cd.Which also wound me up to slap on Hawkwind lp's for the rest of the day.So all you Hawkfans out there should try to add this to your collections not only because this is one tasty offering;but it stands as the historic beginnings of the band we all love.I always prefer vinyl because I came from the era.(Theres something soothing in holding a gatefold record jacket).Yet I redeemed my hard earned cd gift certificate and got a shiney disc that will satisfy my yearnings for early recordings for years to come.Oh yeah,Dave Brock gives some insight on this cd too giving it cohesiveness.Plus it's always great to hear his voice.BUY IT!!"
Hawkwind - 'Dawn Of Hawkwind' (Voiceprint)
Mike Reed | USA | 12/20/2003
(3 out of 5 stars)
"The compilation disc here provides the listener with a chance to hear very early Hawkwind,between 1966-69 - even before Nik Turner joined.In fact,the only cut that features Turner is a rehearsal version of "Master Of The Universe".Some old blues covers that Dave Brock and various musicians had cut their teeth on are "Come On","Dealing With The Devil","Roll 'Em Pete",and "Bring It On Home".The rough demo of "Illusions" is an unreleased track of what later became "Mirror Of Illusion" on the band's 1970 debut lp."Get Yourself Together" is a 45 second snipet from a talent show in which Brock came in second place.Brock narrates as the songs on 'Dawn Of...' progress,telling how he went from playing blues to psychedelia.Also from the band's debut is "Hurry On Sundown".One of the best tracks on the entire CD is their nifty cover of Pink Floyd's "Cymballine".Includes a nice 12-page booklet with memorabilia,including copy of a citation that he was issued for playing in public.Beautiful cover.Aimed at Hawkwind completists."
Track Listings (13) - Disc #1