VA - Jon Savage - Meridian 1970 (Protest, Sorrow, Hobos, Folk And Blues) (2005)

In an overcrowded and weary marketplace - the VARIOUS ARTISTS CD compilation has slowly become something of an unloved and unwanted beast - and to look at “Meridian 1970” you really wouldn’t think very much of it either and be tempted to pass it by...

It doesn’t have a great sleeve to start with - and the track list on the rear is full of names you barely even know - and what’s this stuff in the subtitle about “Protest, Sorrow, Hobos, Folk And Blues”! Even the liner notes are made up entirely of crumpled pages from 4 rock music insiders who put together a compilation of their favourite childhood tracks and then described each in barely legible hand-written pages (complete with coffee stains). And who is this Jon Savage geezer anyway?

But then you play it – and man does it so work. It’s genius – it really is.

So why does it work? The song choices are brilliant and follow each other magnificently. There’s also the journey into the off-the-beaten track – discoveries that are exactly that – discoveries. Opening with the wonderfully soulful instrumental “Mouthful Of Grass” (the original B-side to Free’s “All Right Now” from May 1970 on Island), the emphasis is very much on ‘good’ songwriting and not just obscurities for the sake of it.

And the mixture of American acts with British artists is sweet too – The Move perfectly follow Danny O’Keefe, while the funk of Little Feat and the jangling melody of The Byrds lift the pace when needed. The guitar-driven rock of Sir Douglas Quinter on Track 5 matches the 12-string instrumental of Leo Kottke later on Track 18 - but in different ways.

You could of course argue endlessly about the song choices (I wouldn’t have used that Donovan track), but mostly it’s all good. There’s beautiful stuff on here too - ex Blues Project Tommy Sanders released his lone album in early 1970 on Verve and it sank without a trace – unfair – especially considering just how good “The Moonstone” is (lyrics above). Ending with the moody string-filled gem “Ashes, The Rain And I” by The James Gang (featuring Joe Walsh) is a superb choice too.

Given the varying sources and production values, the sound quality wavers between good only (Meic Stevens) to superb (The Doobie Brothers, Nick Drake, Dave Mason and Leo Kottke).

It may seem silly to say this, but getting a compilation like this ‘right’ is far more difficult than you would imagine – and as a voracious compilation maker myself - I was more than impressed when I only recently stumbled upon this unassuming little gem.

Do yourself a favour and spend a fiver on “Meridian 1970” – and enjoy the journey these 4 guys began over 40 years ago – and are still geed-up about to this day.