Acid Jazz has once again succeeded in uncovering some gems of 1960s music with the latest of its rare Mod EP series. The Riot Squad did not enjoy commercial success during their career despite producers including Larry Page and Joe Meek. Their original drummer was Mitch Mitchell (not on this recording) and a vocalist who is present on this is EP is David Bowie. Indeed, the presence of Bowie on these tracks gives the EP more historical interest given his later career.

Little Boy Blue will already be familiar to Bowie fans as it appears on his 1967 debut LP. Strangely enough, this version sounds like it is a demo recording. The title track Tin Soldier shows the first influence of the Velvet Underground with its lyrical sampling of Venus in Furs. The sado-masochism subject matter of the track is certainly unusual for a 1960s London piece of work even if Bowie's delivery is perfect for transposing the New York underground to the East End. the whipping act was acted out on stage with a padded Bob Evans taking the part of Little Sadie whipped by the Toy Soldier.

The second side starts with a cover of the Velvet Underground classic I'm Waiting for My Man which, again, seems unusual for a London group given the New York associations of the song. Maybe this is simply because the Velvet Underground version has become such as classic and is now seen as the benchmark. The final track, Silver Treetop School for Boys, does sound like a track that could have been on Bowie's first album.

This EP represents a missing link in the career of David Bowie with its connections to the Velvet Underground but also the theatrical performances of Ziggy Stardust. However, it is more than that as the four tracks are gems of late 1960s London music which sound quite unlike anything else that was around at the time. This gives the Riot Squad a quite unique sound when music was going through a major transformation.

Release Date: June 2013

Acid Jazz

Track Listing:

1. Toy Soldier
2. Little Boy Blue
3. I'm Waiting For My Man
4. Silver Treetop School for Boys