Band Biographies

I will start from bottom and do Under the Big Tree

South of No North  (and also) Limbus 3 & 4 - have very little info.... anyone have anything on them?

Limbus 3 & 4: From: http://wasistdas.co.uk/Krautrock/limbus-4-mandalas/

 

Bernd Henninger, Gerd Kraus and Gerd “Odysseus”Artner recorded as Limbus 3  (“New Atlantis“, 1969) before releasing “Mandalas” in 1970 as a quartet with second percussionist Matthias Knieper. In 1971 the project fell apart.
 
The music on both records is heavily influenced by ethnic music styles from all over the world, mainly African and Indian music. It’s an all acoustic and fully improvised affair: Viola, Percussion and various exotic instruments that Kraus got from friends who travelled foreign continents and brought tablas, a sitar, a bul-bul tarang, different kinds of pipes and other stuff to the hippie-commune based in Heidelberg back then.'New Atlantis' referred to above is in fact track four (the whole of side two) of the album 'Cosmic Music Experience', and indeed the album was actually also known by this title - hence the use of the alternative name 'New Atlantis' in the above text.

Edited by yam yam - December 09 2013 at 06:51

No probs Scott - I have a fair amount for Jonathan, which I will try to post here tonight, and a tiny bit only for Kreuzweg (so far...!)

I could have a crack at Ramses (assuming it's the German band) and Strange Days, if nobody objects

A collection of info about Jonathan: (It will need a lot of editing ).

But for now another german gem called Jonathan. The same titled LP dates from 1978 and was released on Heinz Ulm's AAR first and later (soonish) rereleased on Bellaphon.
Jonathan consists of 2 basic members - Peter Garrattoni (Nexus, Euenspygel) on drums and Helmut Grab (Matter Of Taste) on the keys and electronics.
Back cover says they were accompagnied by Emil Wirth playing bass on Funky's Visit and Uli Buehl playing a Roland synth on Raising Winds, Fender Rhodes on Waters and Grand Piano on Moved Earth.

Here's the complete tracklist:
A1 Li Song (5:49)
A2 Raising Winds (3:47)
A3 Funky's Visit (4:13)
A4 Waters (2:58)
B1 Moved Earth (5:17)
B2 Stormy Days (8:20)
B3 Melotary (4:14)

http://www.amayana.com/aar5052EN.php

Jonathan "Jonathan" LP, May 1978
Produced by Heinz Ulm
With: Helmut Grab, (Minimoog, Rhodes, Roland, Solina),
Peter Garattoni, (drums)

After it’s very successful release, this album was also licenced by Bellaphon Records, where it was manufactured with the same cover artwork and LP number BBS 2583 >. Another release of this album was in Greece on the "music box"-label with order number SMB 40081. A curiosity is that the front-side of the album is the same color artwork like on our original, the backside of the cover is in black-white only.

http://gnosis2000.net/reviews/jonathaninfo.htm

http://www.popsike.com/Rare-Jonathan-Funk-Psych-Prog-Drum-Breaks-LP/4882307204.html

Legendary electronic krautrock private release from 1978 by German electronic duo featuring PETER GARATTONI & keyboarder HELMUT GRAB plus guests - spacy progrock instrumentals - sought after item for club DJs and producers has killer drum break on 'Li Song' which drops out at the end to another drum break with wild moogs and spacy sounds.

Peter Garattoni plays drums and Helmut Grab (Sw. Shantiprem) plays the Minimoog on "In The Still Of The Night", "Friends" and "Child of Venus" on Li Garattoni's album "Find Out What I'm Dreaming" (1982).

Peter Garattoni was also a member of Krautrock band Eulenspygel (http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=2113), playing drums on their last two albums.

Other bands that Peter Garattoni was a member of include German hard rock band Rebel (one album - 'Stargazer', 1982, with the excellent John Lawton on vocals) & heavy metal band Veto (formed 1984)...not to mention other bands such as Floating Opera, Harry Ab , Luxster, Maniac, Maxwell Blues Band, Nexus, Passenger, & Tox.

Helmut Grab played on two of New Age artist Friedemann Witecka's albums - 'The Beginning Of Hope' (1979) and 'Voyager In Expanse' (1983) - he also played keyboards & harp as a member of Matter of Taste, together with Uli Bühl (piano, synthesizer), who guested on three tracks of the 'Jonathan' album (A2, A4, B1,). The other guest musician was Message's (http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=1456) former bassist Emil Wirth, who played bass on track A3 - Funky's visit.

Kreuzweg were formed in Lörrach, Baden-Württemberg, West Germany in 1981.

Markus Greibler - Lead vocal
Joachim Haas - guitar, vocal
Alfred Kirst - drums
Daniel Pahls - Keyboards
Ellen Müller - Keyboards, vocal
Roger Müller - Bass

Guests: Mario Schaub - sax, Flute, Oboe
Jörg Bötticher - Keyboards

Mario Schaub played on the first and third albums by the German Christian band Eden: http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=2106

Their only limited edition album was released on Pila Music, LP 20212, in 1983: http://www.discogs.com/Kreuzweg-Kreuzweg/release/4108514

Kreuzweg (Germany ,1983 ,symphonic rock)
 
This very famous but obscure private Xian's conceptual prog album is one of the best German  symphonic rock.
Highly recommended to those who love  Novalis, Grobschnitt, and Anyone's Daughter . You will be able to wander into German mystic forests.....

...and that's about as much as there is for these guys. 

Edited by yam yam - December 10 2013 at 12:32

Ramses bio is added

Working on South of No North and Limbus 3 & 4 now!

Edited by AtomicCrimsonRush - December 13 2013 at 02:54