DOREMI FASOL LATIDO

I was a kid when I first heard this, I didn't know anything about Hawkwind or space rock or liquid lightshows or hallucinogens. I had no idea where this band came from, I had even less idea where these sounds came from - what was it that made these noises like machines inside my head ? Who were these blokes on horses on the inner sleeve ? Why was it "Time We Left This World Today" ? Why wouldn't it last forever ?

I had to find answers, on the strength of this record I changed my life, I sought out every recording by the band, by members and ex-members of the band, by other bands mentioned in Hawkwind reviews and interviews, I discovered a world of fantastic music thanks to this album.

Thirty years on it's still the best Hawkwind album, it's when the spaceship took off, some folk might prefer the live versions of some of the tracks but this is where they came from and for me they never sat so well together as they do here.

Nothing since has blown my mind in quite the same way, I doubt it ever will, from the opening dirty guitar riff and the falling down stairs drum-roll to Lemmy's broken-larynx growl telling us "This is the end" it's a trip, just over half an hour of pure magic.

My feeling is that the CD extras detract a little from the essence of the original album and I tend to listen to them separately but the build up and change towards the end of "Space Is Deep" still makes me shake with pleasure so it's got to be worth five stars.

And yes I have thought very carefully about that.