The Dark Elf File

Thank you, Mosh. I could have chosen Reynardine or Tam Lin as well. Either is stellar. And Sandy Denny's voice! I don't think Fairport ever reached the same heights without Sandy.

Oh, I agree in regards to "One More Chance". My favorite of hers has always been "Fotheringay", a song that certainly sounds traditional, but which Sandy wrote. In addition to her haunting voice, the acoustic guitar interplay between Richard Thompson and Denny is excellent as well.

Hi,

A very nice list, though I would probably list more Europeans that are not as well known, as the majority of the ones you got.

But, damn .... I went on a listening binge just for fun ... very enjoyable listing.

Possible additions, even if the music is very different:

Big Brother and the Holding Company - Ball and Chain. I always thought this taught the English how to use a guitar screaming ... and Janis always saying I can scream just as good as you!

CAN - Mother Sky. The hard part for American audiences in listening to this is how the improvisation develops and sometimes repeat. It's very European in its music traditions, and consequently not something that American audiences can stay with a lot, since it is more fluid and kinda never stops.

Amon Duul 2 - Yeti (the title song)/Dehypnotized Toothpaste (Dance of the Lemmings)/Apocaliptyc Bore-Mozambique (Vive La Trance). In my book, this is the perfect mix of improvisation and song. This guy can rip it non stop in Yeti ... and make David Gilmour sound like he can only do scales and one note ... and then goof around with sound effects non stop in DotL.

Guru Guru - Very early stuff with Ax Genrich deserves attention here, although I doubt that most here can enjoy some Cosmic Junk and Slop and noise and not want to go get their toothbrush and haircut right after it! I always thought that he did not fancy himself a Jimi, but that if noise was part of the music, and in the early "krautrock" it was, and then some. Even in Dance of the Flames, the new guitarist is influenced by Jon McGlothlen and GG just turns it up and lets it rip.

Richard Pinhas/Heldon - Sadly these albums are not exactly "listenable" for anything that resembles a commercial style or design. And Richard's philosophical discussions in the Eurock periodicals are even more out there and difficult to interpret and you wonder where the strings and the fingers meet ... if at all!

Maybe this is your next list ... the great stuff that is not listenable for most ... hehehe ... and then add a Jon Mc and a Terje Rypdal ... doing Jimi's chamber music with DAvid Darling ... wait a minute ... that's music?

Great fun reading your stuff and go chase it down for a listen.