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TheCellarTapes · 11-21-2009, 02:28 PM

The C.A. Quintet - Trip Thru Hell
(1968)

Tracks

1 Trip Thru Hell, Pt. 1 9:09
2 Colorado Mourning 2:31
3 Cold Spider 4:41
4 Underground Music 4:43
5 Sleepy Hollow Lane 2:04
6 Smooth as Silk 2:12
7 Trip Thru Hell, Pt. 2 3:40
8 Dr. Of Philosophy 2:09
9 Blow to My Soul 1:59
10 Ain't No Doubt About It 2:31
11 Mickey's Monkey 2:26
12 I Put a Spell on You 2:47
13 I Shot the King 2:22
14 Fortune Teller's Lie 2:09
15 Sadie Lavone 2:49
16 Bury Me in a Marijuana Field 2:11
17 Colorado Mourning 2:13
18 Underground Music 2:08
19 Smooth as Silk 3:20

In the two years or so that I have been researching and collecting for The Cellar Tapes radio show, it has never ceased to amaze me where a few quid can take you when shopping for an album or two. Sure you own a CD at the end of the day but you may have bought much more than that, you could also have an epiphany in musical form. One such enlightening moment occurred to me a few weeks ago on listening for the first time to an album from 1968; it was entitled a Trip Thru Hell and was by a band by the name of The C.A. Quintet.

The C.A. Quintet were from Minneapolis and that’s about it really, to say they are a bit of a mystery is an understatement. They never made it big anywhere outside of the twin cities, and furthermore they only ever made this one album, a record which sold less than a thousand copies on its original release in 1968. It is sad but true to say that this band faded from memory quicker than they actually arrived. But encouraged by its obscurity, the loving and genius people at Sundazed Records have blown the dust off this forgotten gem and reissued it for the benefit of mankind.

The first thing to mention about this record is the direction of it, on the excellent linear notes accompanying the music, the writer and producer Ken Erwin comments that basically he wanted to write an album like no other as his band’s first release. Both brave and foolhardy, you cannot argue that this has not been achieved. On listening to the first track, which is entitled Trip Thru Hell (Part One), you’re hit by a feeling of desperation and anguish, was music ever this powerful before I first heard this album? This is a stunning musical creation which goes to all kinds of places, and it is by no means alone here.

This is followed by the trumpet led Colorado Mourning, by the standards set in the opening song, this second track is a pretty upbeat number with lyrical content far from it. By the end of this second song, the music descends back into the tune which ran through the bleaker opening track, this is not the last time this happens on this album. On some of these songs like Dr of Philosophy, you can just about hear that original Garage influence that The C.A. Quintet must have had in their earlier days, with a deranged organ taking pride of place. But for sure the power of the vocal harmonies, the trumpet and the overall direction of the record has ensured that this is not your typical post ’66 record

Whatever sound The C.A. Quintet wanted for their debut album it was certainly ambitious, but you know I would wager that even they didn’t realise what intensity could have been provided by their music. The Sundazed reissue of this album also includes some extra pieces of Psychedelic gold, the best of these songs is probably their cover of I Put a Spell on You, and it’s actually a triumph as covers go.

The thing about this album is that I am struggling to place it, I hate to say that it is truly unique, but I cannot imagine more than one band ever coming up with a sound as dark as what The C.A. Quintet have thrown up with a Trip Thru Hell. Combining Pychedelia with Acid Rock, what has been created is something truly unnerving and as close to terrifying that music can possibly bring you. People bang on about the power of Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of The Moon, but what this unknown band from Minneapolis has done here is to have created the first decent of man to a backdrop of rock music, this album can only be described as a brutal yet beautiful masterpiece, not bad for a band nobody ever heard of eh?

11-21-2009, 02:28 PM	#4 (permalink)
TheCellarTapes Music Addict Join Date: Dec 2008 Posts: 490	The C.A. Quintet - Trip Thru Hell *(1968)* Tracks 1 Trip Thru Hell, Pt. 1 9:09 2 Colorado Mourning 2:31 3 Cold Spider 4:41 4 Underground Music 4:43 5 Sleepy Hollow Lane 2:04 6 Smooth as Silk 2:12 7 Trip Thru Hell, Pt. 2 3:40 8 Dr. Of Philosophy 2:09 9 Blow to My Soul 1:59 10 Ain't No Doubt About It 2:31 11 Mickey's Monkey 2:26 12 I Put a Spell on You 2:47 13 I Shot the King 2:22 14 Fortune Teller's Lie 2:09 15 Sadie Lavone 2:49 16 Bury Me in a Marijuana Field 2:11 17 Colorado Mourning 2:13 18 Underground Music 2:08 19 Smooth as Silk 3:20 In the two years or so that I have been researching and collecting for The Cellar Tapes radio show, it has never ceased to amaze me where a few quid can take you when shopping for an album or two. Sure you own a CD at the end of the day but you may have bought much more than that, you could also have an epiphany in musical form. One such enlightening moment occurred to me a few weeks ago on listening for the first time to an album from 1968; it was entitled a Trip Thru Hell and was by a band by the name of The C.A. Quintet. The C.A. Quintet were from Minneapolis and that’s about it really, to say they are a bit of a mystery is an understatement. They never made it big anywhere outside of the twin cities, and furthermore they only ever made this one album, a record which sold less than a thousand copies on its original release in 1968. It is sad but true to say that this band faded from memory quicker than they actually arrived. But encouraged by its obscurity, the loving and genius people at Sundazed Records have blown the dust off this forgotten gem and reissued it for the benefit of mankind. The first thing to mention about this record is the direction of it, on the excellent linear notes accompanying the music, the writer and producer Ken Erwin comments that basically he wanted to write an album like no other as his band’s first release. Both brave and foolhardy, you cannot argue that this has not been achieved. On listening to the first track, which is entitled Trip Thru Hell (Part One), you’re hit by a feeling of desperation and anguish, was music ever this powerful before I first heard this album? This is a stunning musical creation which goes to all kinds of places, and it is by no means alone here. This is followed by the trumpet led Colorado Mourning, by the standards set in the opening song, this second track is a pretty upbeat number with lyrical content far from it. By the end of this second song, the music descends back into the tune which ran through the bleaker opening track, this is not the last time this happens on this album. On some of these songs like Dr of Philosophy, you can just about hear that original Garage influence that The C.A. Quintet must have had in their earlier days, with a deranged organ taking pride of place. But for sure the power of the vocal harmonies, the trumpet and the overall direction of the record has ensured that this is not your typical post ’66 record Whatever sound The C.A. Quintet wanted for their debut album it was certainly ambitious, but you know I would wager that even they didn’t realise what intensity could have been provided by their music. The Sundazed reissue of this album also includes some extra pieces of Psychedelic gold, the best of these songs is probably their cover of I Put a Spell on You, and it’s actually a triumph as covers go. The thing about this album is that I am struggling to place it, I hate to say that it is truly unique, but I cannot imagine more than one band ever coming up with a sound as dark as what The C.A. Quintet have thrown up with a Trip Thru Hell. Combining Pychedelia with Acid Rock, what has been created is something truly unnerving and as close to terrifying that music can possibly bring you. People bang on about the power of Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of The Moon, but what this unknown band from Minneapolis has done here is to have created the first decent of man to a backdrop of rock music, this album can only be described as a brutal yet beautiful masterpiece, not bad for a band nobody ever heard of eh?