Thank you to Mike, Anj, and the charity shops of Yeadon and Otley.

John Leslie: 'Ireland A'GoGo' (LP; Saga; 1966)
Show Details

The homeland! Alas, the music on this record doesn't consist of 'Danny Boy' in a 60s discotheque Go-Go style.

It was definitely worth a try though...

Check out the full-size image for the full glory of this cover.

Larry Page Orchestra: 'Larry Page Orchestra' (LP; Silverline; 1969)
Show Details

I bought this purely because it was on the Silverline label, and I have another LP on that label by Zack Laurence which has some great beaty tracks on it.

This one isn't so great, but it has some reasonable versions of 60s standards.

Compilation - Mandingo: 'The Music of Mandingo: Tiger in the Night' (LP; MFP; 1973-1977)
Show Details

This record is astonishingly good. Some people will know Mandingo from the Sound Gallery compilation, which featured the great 'Black Rite', which is the lead track on this LP. This is well put together imitation afro funk/rock/beat music, made in the UK.

The original LPs are quite hard to find, so I was pleased to find this one. Some (all?) of the albums were reissued on CD about five years ago, and although I did buy one of them, I found it a bit boring. Perhaps it just all works better for me when the poppiest tracks are collected together as they are here.

However, this 'best of' LP is great, with not a bad track at all. It's tasty instrumental music; at times quite spare and minimal, and at others overflowing with brass and guitars. A huge variety of percussion instruments are featured throughout (they're conveniently listed on the back cover). There's nothing remotely authentic about the LP, but it's great fun.