Adelaide, Melbourne, Australia [Regal Zonophone 1022]
BompStore.com
The Masters Apprentices are bona-fide Australian rock legends. As Stan Rofe said, the Masters Apprentices were Australia's Rolling Stones. They left an indelible mark on Australian music, and along with the Easybeats and the Twilights, they were one of the"could-have-been" bands, who tried valiantly to break into the British and international charts. Like both those bands they were ultimately unsuccessful in their attempts, but one of the later members of the band, Glenn Wheatley, learned valuable lessons from their mistakes and has played a major role in the music industry and the media over the last 30 years
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RockAnthology.com
Official reissue of the Masters best album from 1972 and perhaps one of the best heavy progressive/psych rock albums of the era. Titled after a particularly fine strain of hash, this is an epic piece of guitar led psychedelic / cosmic progressive rock. Superbly structured epic shards of inspired guitar music that are underscored with a melancholic stream of despair... beautiful stuff that brings tears to your eyes..... Fabulous sound quality.
Great Australian Band!!!
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MidozTouch.com
The follow-up to Choice Cuts and the live Nicklodean, this was the last Masters Apprentices album until they released the disappointing 80s reunion album 'Do What You Wanna Do'.
Made under the influence of the reference in the title this album is consistently excellent. From gentle acoustic guitar led songs through to heavy rock influences and some spacey moments this album is just one highlight after another. Opening with the "Answer Lies Beyond through to the prophetic "Thyme to Rhyme" (with the lyric line "now that it's over") the album is a wonderful listening experience that should not be missed.
Given the strength of this and Choice Cuts, one can only wonder how good the next album would have been if the band had of stayed together.
A classic progressive rock album this is a must have for any fan of the genre.
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Fretplay.com
Customer Review
JUST A CLASSIC HEAVY ROCK ALBUM.
At a pinch this album is the better of the two, but it's a hard choice to make. Originally a psych rock band in Australia in the '60s and with little success the band decided to update their sound in the early 70's and sign to Regal Zonophone and go on to record what are (in my opinion) two absolutely essential heavy rock albums. The whole album is a treasure trove of brilliant riffs ('the lesson so listen' has a riff that Zeppelin would kill for) great lead work and top notch vocals. The harmonies on 'love is' are pure class and unlike a lot of early seventies heavy rock the songs are strong with great hooks and not prone to self indulgence. What is exceptional is the strings on the closing part of 'games we play' are just right and fit perfectly into the track. This is an essential purchase and also has a unique cover and great title! It is up there with May Blitz and Cactus as prime examples of how thrilling heavy rock could be and way better than the so called classic bands.
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Swinburne Senior Secondary College
In early 1971 the Masters had released Choice Cuts, recorded at the legendary Abbey Road studios.
Relesed and getting rave reviews in England and Europe, Jenny Halsall who worked for EMI alerted her brother, John Halsall a promoter and huge fan. He contacted the Masters in Australia and urged them to come back. They reformed and set off back to England. Again on a boat!
When they arrived 7 weeks later all interest in Choice Cuts had fizzled out (It had sold 12000 copies). EMI had offered to finance the recording of another album. EMI England set the recording date for 3 months away. That gave the band plenty of time to write, rehearse and polish the songs. They went back to Jeff Jarratt and the same team at Abbey Road studios. A Toast To Panama Red was the result.
The title is a homage to an illicit national crop picked up while traveling through the Panama Canal on the way to England.
The band took their time and experimented with a variety of styles and sounds and produced a far more diverse set of songs than those on Choice Cuts. It was a personal creative venture that was the most enjoyable thing they had done.
Recording this time much more relaxed as the Masters new the routine. However Glenn had a part time job that interfered with rehearsals and recording sessions. The upshot of it meant Doug ended up recording some of the bass parts.
The album was released early 1972. Again, like Choice Cuts, to good, solid reviews despite it being undeniably self-indulgent. Doug Ford, whose soloing dominates the album came in for particular acclaim. Europe once again took to the album warmly. It is still a popular bootleg there today.
The band were broke, under-rehearsed with Glenn being part-time and they were unable to promote the new album properly. The single Love Is failed to do anything significant and the end was near.
Glenn left for a lucrative job in Australia and soon after Jim reluctantly quit and returned to Australia, both sad and glad that it was all over. Colin's brother Denny joined on bass and the Masters continued for about 6 months in England. They only recorded one song - Freedom Seekers (available on the Hands of Time CD compilation, also the only Master's song Jim did not contribute too)
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This was the Masters last album before they split in 1972. Although largely overlooked at the time, it is seen in retrospect as a highly accomplished work. In Germany, France, Holland and Britain it is considered a major Progressive Rock album and a sought after collector's item.
Early 72 the band released 'A Toast To Panama Red' which died without a trace. It is now hailed as one of Australia's most creative and innovative albums. A diverse range of styles, instruments, a choir and unusual vocals mean that it is still eagerly collected in Europe (Where they are releasing bootleg copies of it). The money ran out and the band split with Glenn and Jim returning home.
Original Album Discography:
The Master's Apprentices 1967
Masterpiece 1970
Choice Cuts 1971
Nickelodeon (Live in Perth) 1971
A Toast To Panama Red 1972
1.Answer Lies Beyond
2.Beneath the Sun
3.Games We Play I
4.Games We Play II
5.The Lesson So Listen
6.Love Is
7.Melodies of St Kilda
8.Southern Cross
9.Thyme To Rhyme
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