Into Resurrection Land

Into Resurrection Land (The Divine Healing Mission. UK. 1970's)

Listen to: "Dawn"

A very obscure xian private pressing that is slowly gaining a reputation. I certainly can't take credit for discovering this album, the first time i became aware of it was through Jason Mills at Folkadelic. Due to being pretty much ungoogleable, apart from the couple that have sold on eBay in the past, i have very little information to share. The album was released by The Divine Healing Mission and contains the words and music of the Crowhurst Theatre of the Spirit. It is based around Transcendental meditation and contains many spoken word passages as well as mucic. The whole album kicks off with the track "Dawn" that is an inventive piece of music that sets the scene well.

Listen to: "He is here"

"He is here" is the standout track for me, certainly more prog rock than psych with an obvious Pink Floyd influence. The quality of arrangemnets, writing, musicianship and production are very high, which leads me to wonder what else the group were involved with. Unfortunately the album sleeve and label do not list the musicians. From the sound of this track alone i would have thought the album was recorded and released in the 1970's. If anyone involved comes across this post i'd love to hear from them, all my investigations have been unsuccesful.

Phil Downer - The Dust of Time

Phil Downer - The Dust of Time (Lestar Records. UK. 1968)

Listen to an extract from: "Pretty Soon"

I can tell you nothing of Phil Downer except for the fact that he is one very aptly named folk artist. The guitar playing is rather accomplished and the voice is nice, but for me it's the delivery and lyrics that lift this above the usual solo acoustic folk effort. These are amongst the darkest lyrics i've heard in many years. For me this is the stand out track where everything seems to come together perfectly.

Listen to an extract from: "The Dust of Time"

This is the title track of this four track ep that may originally have come with a picture sleeve. This is another solid track and definitely another favourite for me. It doesn't quite have the dark atmosphere of Pretty Soon but is still a strong effort. Unfortunately Phil Downer and this single have proved so far to be ungooglable. Any information from Phil or anyone who knew him would be most gratefully accepted. Also, if anyone has a picture sleeve i'd love to see it.