David Axelrod – 1968 To 1970 An Anthology (1999)

Confounding dozens of vinyl-philes who'd paid hundreds of dollars for the original LPs, 1968 to 1970: An Axelrod Anthology compiles 11 tracks from the first (and best) three albums released by David Axelrod, including the two-volume series devoted to William Blake (Song of Innocence, Songs of Experience) and the 1970 ecological nightmare, Earth Rot. Alongside those tracks are seven of Axelrod's best productions, for soul singers like Lou Rawls (the Buffalo Springfield's "For What It's Worth") and Letta as well as Cannonball Adderley and the psychedelic mystics known as the Electric Prunes. The solo Axelrod tracks are dreadfully spare, usually just cavernous drum pattern and occasional orchestral texture, but the songs have an odd power that grows over time. Overall, 1968 to 1970: An Axelrod Anthology is quite preferrable to spending collectors' prices for the originals.