LEGENDA STATO DI CONSERVAZIONE
condizioni ECCELLENTI (o anche EDICOLA e/o MAGAZZINO) = si intende un oggetto nuovo e perfetto oppure usato senza difetti e praticamente ancora come nuovo, tenendone per quest’ultimo caso in conto ovviamente la datazione ; corrisponde a un range di grading internazionale compreso tra 8,5 e 9,8 (non assegniamo punteggi superiori a 9,8 perchè trattasi di tipi ideali a ns avviso più teorici e scolastici che reali e concreti, ogni manufatto umano in natura ha una percentuale insita e congenita seppur infinitesimale di imperfezione)
condizioni OTTIME = oggetto nuovo (o talora anche usato ma maneggiato e conservato con molta cura) in cui non si riscontra alcun difetto rilevante e degno di nota, tutt’al più qualche minimo segno di lettura o di uso ; corrisponde a un range di grading internazionale compreso tra 7 e 8,5
condizioni BUONISSIME = oggetto usato (ed in taluni casi anche fondo di magazzino soggetto a piccole usure del tempo) con lievi imperfezioni e difetti poco vistosi, generalmente molto marginali ed appena percepibili ; corrisponde a un range di grading internazionale compreso tra 5,5 e 7
condizioni MOLTO BUONE = oggetto usato con imperfezioni vistose e difetti abbastanza spiccati, pur se non completamente invalidanti (generalmente specificati nel dettaglio alla voce CONDIZIONI nella parte inferiore della descrizione di ogni singolo oggetto); corrisponde a un range di grading internazionale compreso tra 4 e 5,5
condizioni PIU’ CHE BUONE / MEDIOCRI = oggetto usato con imperfezioni e difetti evidenti, smaccati, madornali ed invalidanti, assolutamente non collezionabile tuttavia idoneo per la semplice lettura o documentazione ; corrisponde a un range di grading internazionale inferiore a 4
Returning to Abbey Road in September 1971, the band were reunited with Jarratt and Brown plus engineer (and Sgt Pepper's veteran) Richard Lush. Most of the new album was recorded in Studio Two at the same time that John Lennon was making his John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band album in Studio One.
According to Wheatley, one of the Masters Apprentices' tracks, "Games We Play", was recorded at George Martin's Air Studios, with Martin himself conducting the children's choir which features on the second part of the track. The album was titled A Toast to Panama Red, in homage to the Central American variety of marijuana. The album was lauded as one of the best Australian progressive releases, but it was largely ignored at the time. Sales were hindered by the lurid cover, which even Keays later admitted was not an ideal choice, being as garish as Choice Cuts was tasteful. Designed and painted by Keays, it was evidently a dig at the UK and featured a grotesque psychedelic caricature of a bulldog's head wearing a Union Jack eye patch, its ears are skewered by an arrow from which dangles a tag emblazoned with the album's title.
The band played sporadic shows to support the album, which was well-reviewed in UK, but EMI Australia did little to promote them. Although Keays' recollections are more positive, Wheatley's own account of the album sessions is that they were an unhappy experience for him. He had a bad LSD trip the night before they went into the studio and began the recording in a negative frame of mind. Tensions mounted steadily during the recording and Wheatley did not play on some of the tracks, with his parts covered by Ford. According to Keays, Wheatley had been working part-time at a management agency over the previous few months and had insufficient time to rehearse because of his day job.
In January 1972, EMI released A Toast to Panama Red and in February they released the single "Love Is", which had been recorded using a twelve-string acoustic specially loaned to Ford for the occasion by one of his heroes, The Shadows' Hank B. Marvin. The classic line-up's last recording was the album's delicate and poignant closing track, "Thyme To Rhyme". According to Ian McFarlane in his Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop the album, A Toast to Panama Red is "one of the great lost treasures of the Australian progressive rock era".
Wheatley tried to convince the rest of the band that they should break up but they disagreed, so he announced he was leaving to work full-time for the management agency. Soon after, Keays announced his own departure and intention to return to Australia immediately. Ford and Burgess decided to keep going and they sent for Burgess' brother Denny, who took over on bass guitar. The final trio line-up soldiered on for a few months, and made one recording, "Freedom Seekers" before finally splitting in mid-1972.
Returning to Australia, Keays undertook some final promotional duties for the "Love Is" single, including a TV appearance in which he performed alone, playing 12-string guitar. He then set about establishing himself as a solo artist, began composing songs, and also wrote for Go-Set magazine.
Etichetta: Regal Zonophone / Emi italiana
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Answer Lies Beyond" | 3:37 |
| 2. | "Beneath the Sun" (Doug Ford) | 6:12 |
| 3. | "Games We Play - Part I" | 7:00 |
| 4. | "Games We Play - Part II" | 4:58 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Lesson So Listen" | 3:09 |
| 2. | "Love Is" | 4:15 |
| 3. | "Melodies Of St. Kilda" | 2:44 |
| 4. | "Southern Cross" | 5:10 |
| 5. | "Thyme To Rhyme" | 2:45 |