Nik Turner's Sphynx Xitintoday Eclectic Discs ECLCD1055 || 13.03.2007 (1978) || £10.64  $ € ¥  + p+p +tax Click for big pic With Steve Hillage, Mike Howlett, Tim Blake, Harry Williamson...1978 album remastered & with bonus track and all the works A sonic invocation of the Egyptian Book of the Dead based around Nik's flute recordings in the King's Chamber of the Great Pyramid - there's nothing like it. This is all that you could hope for and expect from a good reissue - re-mastered from the original master tapes, fully restored artwork, some good new additional liner notes that add background colour and information and a long bonus track, 'Pyramidaflutenik', which is the unadulterated, pure original flute recording from ther Great Pyramid. What else can I tell you? The great Barney Bubbles booklet that accompanied the original LP is reprduced in full and is not too much of a strain on the old peepers. To be honest the stillness of some of the music was never well served by being on vinyl, and not a great pressing at that, so the clarity of the sound now is wonderful - all produced by Steve Hillage of course. The arrival of this CD so soon after the Unconvention, has really got me thinking about how this strange Hawk/Gong album came into being, it's subject matter, the unique music and much more. The handful of Sphynx gigs that followed the release of the LP were undoubtedly 'soul family' affairs with David Id on the crew, Steffe in the band and some very odd tales attached to the performances. I will try and delve deeper, much more soon... Track Listing: Total Runtime ??.?? The Awakening (Life On Venus) 4.20 Pyramid Spell 4.18 The Hall Of Double Truth 6.00 Anubis 4.39 Thoth 3.40 Horus 5.18 Isis And Nephthys 5.46 Osiris 5.10 God Rock (The Awakening) 8.09 Bonus track:- Pyramidaflutenik 29.51 Musicians: Nik Turner: Flute, vocals, saxophone, ubu, moog sympathiser, knocks - Sarcophagus Kings Chamber Great Pyramid Miquette Giraudy: Voices, synthesiser, tibetan and chinese bells 'Stiv' Hillage: Guitar, gliss guitar, sympathiser Tim Blake: Synthesizers, Venusian sympathiser Harry Williamson: Backwards piano, chinese bells Morris Pert: Percussion, Vibraphone, tympani Mike Howlett: Bass George Kazazian: Rababa, Percussion Alan Powell: Drums Jeremy Gilbert: Keyboards, harp Malcolm Ashmore: Congas Jahalib: Tablas Sheik Mahmud: Chant 'Android' Anderson: Drums Baron Sanyata: Timbales Shelly Morris: Congas Massed Bongos of Atlantis: Percussion