This collection of odds and ends from Sean Bonniwell's personal archive is the first in an ongoing series of CD's designed to accompany his "Beyond The Garage" autobiography. It covers material from sixties Music Machine through to his solo recordings from the 1970's and 1980's. One track is a vintage backing recording from 1966 with a newly written and recorded vocal, neatly bridging the decades.

Any CD that starts off with a reworking of a sixties garage classic appellated as a "Psyche Glam Version" is bound to set the alarm bell ringing. Surprisingly the late seventies re-workings of "Talk Talk" and "Trouble," with added guitar pyrotechnics and synthesiser, actually come across as valid updates whilst managing to remain faithful to the original recordings.

The remaining material from the late seventies and early eighties pursues the typical rock sound from those times but benefit from Mike Jett's guitar and Bonniwell's inimitable word play. Highlights are Jett's "Tommy Gun," Bonniwell's creationist paean "Out Of Darwin's Mind," and "Golden Sixties Boys" which manages to name check as many of the Music Machine's contemporaries as you could imagine.

From 1969 "Nothing's Too Good For My Car" is in the light-hearted mould of earlier Music Machine numbers like "This Should make You Happy" and "902" which turned up on the Sundazed Ignition CD. Bonniwell's soundtrack recordings are represented by the excellent title song from 1973's "Day Of The Wolves" and "Wolf Jazz," some self-explanatory incidental music from the same movie.

It's back to 1966 for the closer, an extended unedited Music Machine recording of the classic "Eagle Never Hunts The Fly." An interesting collection, but essentially one for the Bonniwell Music Machine completist.

Available from Uncle Helmet's Music .PO Box 409 Porterville, CA 93258. USA.

Gray Newell