Track by track 102 De Ti O De Mi

Archive number: 102

Title: De Ti O De Mi

Main Album: Focus 8

Track number: 5

Genre: Progressive Rock Instrumental

Studio: Peptide Studio, Vuren Length: 06' 22”

Composer: Bobby Jacobs

Musicians: Thijs van Leer – Hammond organ; Jan Dumee – Guitars; Bobby Jacobs - Bass; Bert Smaak - Drums

Producer: Geert Scheijgrond & Focus

Engineer: Geert Scheijgrond & Dick Kemper Label: Musea/Red Bullet

Date of recording/release: A limited run of 500 of the album appeared in August 2002 to be followed by a general release on CD later that year. Also later on Paras and JVC Victor Alternative version: None Notes: We begin with a dark bass riff backed by drums then organ (from about 00:26). At 00:46 an electric guitar takes up the lead with a yearning jazz melody that when eventually about to build at 01:21 reverts to the sparse bass riff. At 01:39 drums re-introduce the organ and a cleaner electric guitar sound and (from 02:01) the jazz guitar melody. It builds a little more this time until panning out with an organ backed development leading to a caesura at 02:59 and 03:00. For the remainder of the track the guitar-led melody is allowed to develop further, this time eventually taking off to some extent, though still meandering a little and later getting quite earnest. The section eventually begins to fade at 05:55 and ends around 06' 22”.

Track by track 101 Hurkey Turkey

Archive number: 101

Title: Hurkey Turkey

Main Album: Focus 8

Track number: 4

Genre: Progressive Rock Instrumental

Studio: Peptide Studio, Vuren

Length: 4' 07”

Composer: T van der Kaaij, Thijs van Leer

Musicians: Thijs van Leer – Hammond organ, Voices; Jan Dumee – Guitars; Bobby Jacobs - Bass; Bert Smaak - Drums; Geert Scheigrond - Additional guitars.

Producer: Geert Scheijgrond & Focus

Engineer: Geert Scheijgrond & Dick Kemper Label: Musea/Red Bullet

Date of recording/release: A limited run of 500 of the album appeared in August 2002 to be followed by a general release on CD later that year. Also later on Paras and JVC Victor Alternative version: None

Notes: The studio version of Hurkey Turkey starts very distinctively with 8 slightly odd notes on electric guitars followed by a longer ninth one that also features a crash cymbal (00:00-00:08). We then get another two and one then one and one twice and the drums crash in before one of two main themes starts at 00:15 - a bassy riff thing. This is played several times with van Leer's voice in the background and Dumee going up and down the fretboard. At 01:00 there is a slight change of pace announced by the guitar which then takes up more of a lead with the other contrasting theme. This ends at 01:32 when the first theme returns led this time by the Hammond organ (01:33-02:03). We then go back to the guitar-led second theme (02:04-02:34) before the original theme returns with van Leer's voice more prominent at first. This section slows down around 02:44 and from 02:51-03:12 we have a 'scat' section where van Leer's voice is multi-tracked over just drums, one voice providing a jazzy “danga danga danga dang dumdiddy” style and the other a rather crazy turkey voice! The band then come back, with the guitar getting pretty wild and ending with a fade around 04:07.

Track by track 100 Fretless Love

Archive number: 100

Title: Fretless Love

Main Album: Focus 8

Track number: 3

Genre: Progressive Rock Instrumental

Studio: Peptide Studio, Vuren

Length: 6'05”

Composer: Thijs van Leer

Musicians: Thijs van Leer – Hammond organ, Flute, Voice; Jan Dumee – Guitars; Bobby Jacobs - Bass; Bert Smaak - Drums, Timpani

Producer: Geert Scheijgrond & Focus

Engineer: Geert Scheijgrond & Dick Kemper

Label: Musea/Red Bullet

Date of recording/release: A limited run of 500 of the album appeared in August 2002 to be followed by a general release on CD later that year. Also later on Paras and JVC Victor Alternative version: None

Notes: The track begins in quiet and relaxed style with acoustic guitar (possibly synthesised) and a beautiful and melodic flute, backed by the Hammond (from 00:24). At 00:46 we move to a new yearning electric guitar-led section with Hammond and rhythm section. This itself is succeeded (at 01:30) by a funky guitar and organ part (with van Leer's voice giving oompahs at first - again possibly synthesised) and led by a hard blown flute. This is in turn is repeated and developed (from 02:19). Another break in tempo comes at 03:08 and we go into a section led by melodic flute but backed by the band with a riffing style and a distinct underlying guitar motif. Another break comes at 04:09 with a timpani marked halt (almost a caesura). We then return to the yearning electric guitar of the second section but slightly more staccato, until 04:50 where it all gets pretty funky again, this time with a heavier bass and more earnest guitar work from Dumee. This then heads relentlessly for the fade, volume disappearing around 06:05”

Track by track 99 Tamara's Move

Archive number: 99
Title: Tamara's move (Allegro-adagio-allegro)

Main Album: Focus 8
Track number: 2
Genre: Progressive Rock Instrumental
Studio: Peptide Studio, Vuren
Length: 5' 14”
Composer: Jan Dumee
Musicians: Thijs van Leer – Hammond organ, Flute, synthesisers, hanclaps; Jan Dumee –Guitars including Spanish guitar, Vocal; Guitar; Bobby Jacobs - Bass; Bert Smaak - Drums
Producer: Geert Scheijgrond & Focus
Engineer: Geert Scheijgrond & Dick Kemper
Label: Musea/Red Bullet
Date of recording/release: A limited run of 500 of the album appeared in August 2002 to be followed by a general release on CD later that year. Also later on Paras and JVC Victor
Alternative version: None
Notes: The piece is in three sections – allegro, adagio, allegro. The first allegro section is from 00:00-02:12. It begins with double tracked acoustic guitars (00:00-00:07) soon accompanied by the rhythm section, which includes a distinctive synthesised mouth tom tom sound at certain points (00:08-00:00:18). The flute (multi-tracked at certain points) then takes up the lead in joyful style as far as 02:12, with a note held around 01:08 and handclaps from both speakers from 01:36.
The adagio section (02:13-03:34) has two parts. First, a mournful organ and synthesiser backed vocal section that ends at 02:49 with a timpani sound. The words are indistinct but appear to be

Don't let a thing respond,
No breath for you too.
Just signs of trying to forget you,
To exorcise you.
Leave me in your thoughts
But don't you miss the sight.

A drum roll immediately follows (02:50-02:57) and we are into a rather grand instrumental version of the same tune led by guitar with organ that ends at 03:34.
The third section is the flute-led allegro again. The handclaps begin at 04:03, the mouth tom toms are there and the Spanish guitar has a much more prominent role from 04:24.

Track by track 98 Rock and Rio

Archive number: 98

Title: Rock and Rio

Main Album: Focus 8

Track number: 1

Genre: Progressive Rock Instrumental

Studio: Peptide Studio, Vuren

Length: 3' 24”

Composer: Thijs van Leer

Musicians: Thijs van Leer – Hammond organ, pizzicato synthesiser, voice; Jan Dumee – Guitar; Bobby Jacobs - Bass; Bert Smaak - Drums

Producer: Geert Scheijgrond & Focus

Engineer: Geert Scheijgrond & Dick Kemper

Label: Musea/Red Bullet

Date of recording/release: A limited run of 500 of the album appeared in August 2002 to be followed by a general release on CD later that year. Also later on Paras and JVC Victor

Alternative version: None

Notes: The track begins with a clicking voice from van Leer soon joined by drums then a distinctive bassy groove with Hammond organ (00:00-00:14). This bassy groove hook alternates with van Leer leading in a yodelling voice (backed by a pizzicato synthesiser early on) and the band (00:15-00:24; 00:25-00:34; 00:35-00:45). At 00:46 Dumee takes up the lead, this part punctuated by staccato beats from the band at 00:56-58 and 01:01-02. Then it's back to the bass groove (01:04-01:13) followed by the yodelling again (01:14-01:23). Dumee leads once more (01:24-00:33) with the staccato punchline (01:34-01:36) and a little improvisation until 01:45 and a new guitar led rising section (to 01:54) followed by a fresh allegro part that includes a Russian like halt at 02:08. At 02:10 we return to the guitar-led style with the punctuation more to the background this time (02:21,22 and 02:26, 02:27). At 02:31 we go back to alternating the distinctive bassy groove and yodelling sections (02:31-02:40; 02:41-51; 02:52-03:06; 03:07-03:11; 03:12-03:24)

Track by track 97 Neurotika

Archive number: 97

Title: Neurotika

Main Album: Focus 8

Track number: 8

Genre: Progressive Rock Instrumental

Studio: Peptide Studio, Vuren

Length: 3' 42”

Composer: Thijs van Leer

Musicians: Thijs van Leer – Hammond organ, flute, voice; Jan Dumee – Guitar; Bobby Jacobs - Bass; Ruben Van Roon - Drums Producer: Geert Scheijgrond & Focus

Engineer: Geert Scheijgrond & Dick Kemper Label: Musea/Red Bullet

Date of recording/release: This track was recorded early in 2002. The presence of van Roon on drums makes it a unique release. As for the eventual album - a limited run of 500 appeared in August to be followed by a general release on CD later that year. Also later on Paras and JVC Victor

Alternative version: None

Notes: This is the earliest recorded track by the Focus reincarnation that came about when the CONXI line up that had come together as a Focus tribute band was joined by van Leer himself. Called a rehearsal track on the album listing, it is counted in by van Roon (00:00-00:02) and is a mostly fast paced piece driven mainly by bass, drums, organ and guitar but being bolstered by van Leer's voice mainly yodelling (00:18-00:28; 00:44-00:51; 01:07-01:12; 02:29-02:35, etc) and the flute (00:52-01:06; 01:36-01:45, 02:45-02:55) then with a guitar-led middle section (01:46-02:28). The guitar also leads twice with a slower, typically Focus, section at 01:13-01:35, and repeated at 02:56-03:19. We end with a ritartando or slowing down from 03:24 and a live finish.

On first listening to Moving Waves

The first Focus album I ever heard was their second. Moving Waves, as it was called in the UK, appeared towards the end of 1971. It was initially on the Blue Horizon label (the label my first copy bore). I must have first listened to it in 1973, the year I turned 14. I had heard the single version of Hocus Pocus on TV but the rest of the album was unknown to me. Before buying it I borrowed a copy from my friend Gwilym Evans, already a fan. The cover looked good for the time with a nice purple colour and a small picture of the group on the front and a mainly red, black and yellow set up on the back. There were quite a few words on the back but not much information.
I guess I started with Hocus Pocus knowing I liked that already. At 6' 42" the album version is quite a bit longer than the single version and it was amazing to have it there pumping into the room, this really wild rock music and yet with these weird, sometimes quite primitive, bits and that crazy yodelling. Then after the blistering opening track it goes quiet and you get a Rodrigo style classical guitar and what sounds like an orchestra and I know we have gone really classical. Nice though. The third track is Janis and we're off somewhere else this time - somewhere very eastern. I like it but it's difficult to compare it with anything. The track after that is Moving Waves and now I really don't know which way is which. This weird piano and vocal piece sounds like something in a Dutch eisteddfod or something. The last track on the first side of the vinyl album is Focus 2. It is at this point that I am hooked. This is jazz - the sort of thing Michael Parkinson would come on stage to - and yet it's a rock band playing. What have I got here?
So I flip the thing over and now I'm anxious. Here is a piece that takes up the whole of one side. It is broken up into sections according to the cover but you can see by looking that there are no gaps between tracks. This is 23 solid minutes of music! So we listen and it is mostly jazz again, although at one point the guitarist does go quite wild (the Bridge, etc) and I like the ethereal voices that remind you of something from Holst. Eruption really did take several listens to get into and I would often get lost in one passage or another. I knew instinctively that this was good stuff though and worth persevering with. As soon as I had the money I trundled off to the shops (can't remember if it was the local independent retailer Sounds or the chain store Boots) and bought my own copy.

Personnel Graph 2

Double Click

Personnel Graph 1

Double Click

Eruption Part 4

Eruption Part 3

Eruption Part 2

Eruption Part 1

,

Focus 2

Moving Waves

Janis

Le Clochard (Bread)

Hocus Pocus

Focus (Instrumental)

Why Dream?

Happy Nightmare

House of the King

Anonymus

Sugar Island

Black Beauty

Focus (Vocal)

Focus Live 10

The last time Akkerman and Van Leer performed together was in 1993. In 1999 and since 2000 Van Leer has revived the band under the name of Focus. There have not only been studio albums but many, many concerts. Since the 1990s things have changed exponentially as far as live recordings are concerned. The story of the bootleg has turned to a new and perhaps less exciting chapter. The new Focus have themselves produced a number of official live albums in various formats including - Live in South America (2002), Live in America (2003), Live in England, Live in Europe (both 2009). No doubt trips to the far east and Australia, not to mention the Arctic (!), will lead to further albums.

Meanwhile a plethora of good and bad recordings have become available from the past ancient and more recent. Youtube alone has an abundance of material. Available recordings today include concerts in Brazil, Canada, England, Holland, Mexico (2002), Brazil, Chile, France, Holland, Japan, Mexico, Scotland, Wales (2003) England, Scotland (2004) Holland (2006) England, Mexico, Holland (2007) Germany, Holland, Wales (2008).

Focus Live 09

In February 1976 Jan Akkerman finally left the band. A 33 date tour of the UK and Ireland had already been agreed and could not be cancelled so Belgian jazz guitarist Philip Catherine was drafted in. The first date (February 20) was in the Cardiff University Student Union. I remember being present on that rather disappointing occasion. The band was forced to perform a relatively brief set of unfamiliar material that included Catherine's own Sneezing Bull. When pressed for an encore they could only repeat one of the previous numbers.

As the tour progressed it was possible to add Hocus Pocus and one or two other familiar things to the set list. The tour ended on March 29 and included near the end (recorded March 17, broadcast March 21 by the BBC) the concert at The New Victoria Theatre, London. This concert appeared on CD many years later. At this time they also did Maximum and Sneezing Bull on the The Old Grey Whistle Test. The concert in Southport is also around but is of poor quality.
Things then go very quiet as far as Focus is concerned for nearly a decade. In 1985 there were at least four reunion concerts in Holland, including one recorded in Utrecht on May 21 where, with Mario Argandoña and Tato Gomez, Akkerman and Van Leer play the material found on the album of that year among other things. The set list reads - Who Is Who? (14:56) King Kong (4:02) a reggae-style House Of The King (8:51) Le Tango (6:20) Tommy (11:15) Russian Roulette (8:34) Sylvia (4:53) Streetwalker (14:05) Beethoven's Revenge (13:12) Indian Summer (8:44) Song For The Open Road (12:29) and Just Like A Star (5:31). Previous to this Akkerman had guested at a Pedal Point concert at De Brakke Grond in Amsterdam (April 4) where the Dona Nobis Pacum material was played along with a version of Akkerman's Central Station (Centralus Stationium!)
There is then another shorter gap until 1990 and the concert for Radio Veronica's Goud Van Oud in Apeldoorn, available in audio and video formats. On that occasion the classic line up of Akkerman, Van Leer, Van Der Linden and Ruiter tackled Focus 3, Focus 2, House of the King, Sylvia, Tommy and Hocus Pocus.

The very last time that Akkerman and Van Leer appeared together was in 1993 on July 10 when they shared the stage at The North Sea Jazz Festival. The set list at that time included Focus 3 (6:17) Pietons/Hocus Pocus (10:18) Puccini's Cafe (7:22) Streetwalker (8:56) My Pleasure (14:03) Fool For Your Stockings (10:55) Crackers (8:04) House of the King (2:23) Hocus Pocus (reprise) (0:55) Flute Solo (2:13) Focus 2 (4:09) Burger's Blues (4:24). Akkerman and Van Leer were joined by Ton Dijkman (Drums) Lesley Joseph (Bass) and Willem Swikker (Keyboards).

Focus Live 08

By 1975 things in the Focus camp were beginning to unravel but they continued to play together. The final Akkerman era album, Mother Focus, was recorded in Belgium early in the year with David Kemper as drummer. In late June the band appeared at the Roskilde Festival in Denmark. There seems to have been other activity in Scandinavia that year, including a disastrous stadium concert in Oslo, but none of it is available in recorded form.

At some point Pierre Van Der Linden rejoined the band for their return visit to Australia and Japan in June. Again the Japanese were ready with recording devices and shows in Osaka and Tokyo have been preserved. The one in Osaka on Thursday June 19 features part of AQQA/Focus 2 (presumably they began with Focus 3 or an improvisation, as in Tokyo), then comes Sylvia and House of the King and a new piece that never made it to a studio recording (some detect lines from Crackers and Can't Believe My Eyes in it). It was also played in the Budokan Hall, Tokyo on July 2. In Osaka we then have the end of Hamburger Concerto, a flute solo and most of a version of Eruption. The Budokan Hall concert begins with an improvisation that leads into AQQA/Focus 2. We then have the untitled track, the very end of Hamburger Concerto, House of the King and Sylvia. Both concerts close with Hocus Pocus, an improvisation (partly lost on the Osaka version) with Eurydice from Eruption and Hocus Pocus (reprise). Recordings also exist from Tokyo in 1975 of a 24 minute Eruption and a 10 minute Hocus Pocus. The lack of Mother Focus material seems strange but was may be due to working with Van Der Linden.

That year three concerts were performed in Spain (February 4-7) and at least two in Denmark.

Focus Live 07

The year 1974 was the year of the Hamburger Concerto album and concerts feature that material alongside the older numbers. In April a TV show was recorded for Danish television with Colin Allen (not 1975 as previously stated here). The show includes the ever popular Sylvia, House of the King and Hocus Pocus. They also do an Improvisation in D major and the wonderful No Hang Ups.

In March, Focus did their first tour of Germany. A recording exists of a performance in the Hamburg Musikhalle. It begins with a 21 minute Hamburger Concerto plus other tracks from the album (Strasbourg, Harem and a 14 minute Birth). They finish off with the familiar Hocus Pocus/Sylvia/Hocus Pocus (reprise) sequence. Between comes a jam featuring bits of Focus 2, Focus 3 and Tommy, possibly a regular feature of concerts at the time.
A good recording exists from Monday April 29 from Vereeniging, Nijmegen, Holland. It begins with a 25 minute Hamburger followed by La Cathedrale, Sylvia, a 12 minute Harem and a 14 minute Birth. Finally there is a 10 minute improvisation and House of the King. Oddly, there seems to have been no Hocus Pocus this time round. Perhaps they just ran out of time.
Focus recorded several shows for TV in 1974. One was for Vara Televisie in Holland featuring Hocus Pocus, a Hamburger excerpt and House Of The King. A well known recording exists for BBC 2's In Concert. It begins with an 18 minute Hamburger followed by La Cathedrale and Harem and ends with a Hocus Pocus/Sylvia medley.
Later in the year concerts were televised in America. One on ABC included short versions of Hocus Pocus, No Hang Ups and some improvised material (from the Rainbow?). In October or November the Don Kirshner Rock Concert featured Hocus Pocus, Birth (9:57) and Hamburger (13:51). No Hang Ups was also apparently performed but not recorded.
In May there was a short tour of seven British cities (May 19-27) including two nights at the Rainbow Theatre. The support band was Blue. On Saturday May 25 they played the Bristol Hippodrome and I was there - the one and only time to see Akkerman and Van Leer play together. It was an amazing concert - very loud (massive Bose speakers to the fore) and pretty magical all round.

In the Summer they toured Japan (June) and Australia (July). Later in the year they also performed in Scandinavia. Recordings exist from at least three of the Japanese concerts – one in the Koseinenkin Kaikan, Osaka on Sunday June 2; one in the Koseinenkin Kaikan, Tokyo on Sunday June 30 and one the same month some time in Nagoya.
The concerts begin with the Focus 3/AQQA/Focus 2 sequence (first two missing from the Nagoya recording) followed by Sylvia. Then comes Harem (11:07 Tokyo; 14:03 Osaka; 15:17 Nagoya). Very unusually, in Osaka, Love Remembered comes next. It also features in the Nagoya show where it is preceded by an early version of My Sweetheart on piano and guitar (untitled and apparently composed that afternoon!). The Osaka and Nagoya concerts continue with Tommy then (in Tokyo and Osaka) House of the King, Birth (around 13 minutes), Hamburger Concerto (around 21 minutes) and Hocus Pocus. In Tokyo Tommy comes after Birth. Next in Osaka comes a drum solo and various improvisations (15:20). In Osaka and Tokyo they finish with No Hang Ups and Hocus Pocus (reprise). In Tokyo the jam is more of a Hamburger Concerto thing and lasts around 13 minutes. The Nagoya recording has after Tommy - Birth (13:31), Hamburger (20:43) and Hocus Pocus.

On August 23 they again did the Reading Festival.