JohnTem82387976

31 July 2016

New Inspiration - Medicine Man/ Is It Really Hard To Understand



Label: Penny Farthing
Year of Release: 1973

Now here's a tricky one - I can happily provide you with some limited facts about New Inspiration, but not bagloads. It would seem that they formed in Ghent, Belgium in the late sixties and were spotted by Dave Berry while he was touring that country. Berry quickly decided to act as their mentor, and penned additional material for the group, undoubtedly acting as a factor in getting them signed to Decca in their native country.

Stacks of singles and three LPs followed their signing, buried among which are apparently some surprisingly psychedelic tracks, including the mournful "Hurry Up and Tell Me". Much of their early work is obscure for a reason, though - faintly under-produced and with heavily accented vocals, it doesn't really stand up against the cream of the period.

By the seventies, however, they had moved in a more successful, rockier direction where the earlier flaws had been ironed out, and it's from this period that "Medicine Man" stems. For all their usual heaviosity, though, this single is something of a dancefloor treat, featuring pounding drums, whooping backing vocals and a chanting chorus so successful that it forms the basis of three-quarters of the track and gets away with it. Elements of it do drift frightening close to Creme Brulee's "Voodoo Lady" conceptually, but it's no piece of half-arsed plastic glam. This is actually fantastically and insistently groovy, in a manner which Bobby Gillespie might approve.

"Medicine Man" stems from the tail end of the group's career, and I'm not too sure what became of them or even really who was the line-up. If anyone can plug the gaps in my knowledge, I'd be very grateful. 


5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Superb posting !!

Thank you so much, Albert

Anonymous said...


More info about The New Inspiration
Yes, it's a Belgian band formed in Ghent from the 60's

Biography

The group was founded around the early 60s under the name The Black Fellows and did well in the Ghent club circuit as a dance band. Home Cutting the tape was the TF Club (later Teatro Arena) and manager were the Ghent police sergeant Walter Hellbyck. After three years, the group name was changed to New Inspiration under the influence of the new manager of the group Jacques Verdonck.

The success did not matter and the debut single I Got a Feeling became a hit and one of the favorite records of Radio Caroline. Any subsequent recordings as You Made a Fool of Me, I See No Reason Why, Mister Moody and Happy Charly Madman were relative hits with average sales of approximately 35,000 units. The group was allowed to shoot in the UK and some songs appeared on the prestigious Apple label of The Beatles. Through many personnel changes, however, the group is about 1970 apart. Band members included Danny Sinclair, Daniel Gilbert and Prove Remue. Danny Sinclair decided to start a solo project.

Shortly afterwards manager Jacques Verdonck founded a "new" New Inspirations with key figures Guido Wolfaert and Eddy Vander Linden. The group recorded some new successes with songs like Rainbow I Love You and Judy Please, but once again the band has the same disease and do many personnel changes the band fall apart.


Songlist

A rainy day
Alison
All my life
Baby you're wonderfull
Bottle of whisky
Bram Oliver
But anyway
Camino solitario
Come let's sing us hallelujah
Die in ordinary way
Do you know what I mean
For what it's worth
From Chicago to L.A. 2 versies
Grey hair, wrinkled skin
Happy Charly Madman
Hitchin' a ride
Hurry up and tell me
Hustler
I fell flat on my face
I found a love
I got a feeling
I got nothing
I guess
I know we'll stay
I see no reason why
I will find her
I'm going nowhere
Intro for Linda
Intro from Chicago
Is it really hard to understand
Judy please
Lazy life
Little darling
Lonesome way
Looking for my baby
M.T.
Medecine man
Mister Moody
My world's beginning
Nighttime story
Nobody
Ode to Linda
On my horse
Over you
Party 68
Racketteers
Rainbow (I love you)
Rockin' Sally
Rudy the Marsman
See my car
Something's burning
Song for everybody
Sunday
Symphony for a rose
That'll be the day
The memory
There you go my friend
They're drowing my town
Thinking about the good times
We never did, we never will
When you're gone
You ain't got the feeling
You made a fool of me
You won't come tomorrow

Greetings Albert

23 Daves said...

Thanks Albert! Interesting stuff.

oldies1 said...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUBbI6V4ZK0

oldies1 said...

MORE NEW INSPIRATION CLIPS I MADE ?

The New Inspiration - The memory (1969) (FIRST time on YT)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0jf78MFCN4

The New Inspiration - I see no reason why (1968)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDTrP4-fTNA

The New Inspiration - You made a fool of me (1967)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zu7MBP2XtWY