GOLDEN EARRING – Moontan 1973 [Remastered & Expanded], MP3+FLAC

So sad news that George Kooymans, founder of classic rock act GOLDEN EARRING, left us a few days ago. A very underrated guitar player, Kooymans born in 1948 just like Ozzy. Unfortunately passing away on the same day as Ozzy meant he wasn’t going to get his just due.

He leaves behind an incredible musical legacy of over 50 years, including this Remastered & Expanded edition of GOLDEN EARRING’s classic LP ”Moontan” from 1973. Quite simply one of the greatest hard rock albums of all-time.
GOLDEN EARRING is the most important Dutch Rock band in history: they were big in UK and America, with huge tours, hit singles and gold records. Of course they achieved worldwide fame with their international hit song “Radar Love” taken from this album, a song mentioned by countless musicians as influence, and re-recoded by various, including White Lion.
GOLDEN EARRING’s ”Moontan” is a classic you need in your collection, here presented with a fantastic remastered sound quality preserving its analog magic.
But there is much more to this album than just “Radar Love”. In many ways, ”Moontan” is like a summation of everything the group had learned on their first three albums; a combination of prog epics, heavy rockers, and songs that combine both elements, but everything is raised to a new level of inspiration and polish.

It begins with a bang thanks to “Candy’s Going Bad,” a piece that starts off as a thunderous, pounding rocker but transforms midway into a bluesy instrumental mood piece. Other highlights include of course “Radar Love,” a relentless rock tune with a left-field instrumental break in which tribal drums duel with a big band-style horn section, and “Just Like Vince Taylor,” a guitar-slinging slice of boogie rock that pays tribute to the fallen rock idol of the title.

The album also includes what may be the group’s finest prog effort in “Vanilla Queen”: this classic builds from pulsating, ominous verses dominated by analog synthesizer into a hard-rocking chorus and also throws in a stark acoustic guitar midsection before climaxing in a frantic band jam augmented by blaring horns and an ever-spiraling string section.

Despite the album’s overall strength, not every song reaches these heights: the twangy pop of “Suzy Lunacy (Mental Rock)” is a little too poppy to gel with the rest of the album. However, even these tunes benefit from tight arrangements and a spirited, totally committed performance from the group.
The result is an album that retains its power today.
In the end, ”Moontan” is a necessity for Golden Earring fans, and a worthwhile listen for anyone interested in 70s hard rock at its most adventurous.
Highly Recommended

CD 1: Original Album Version Remastered plus Bonus Tracks
01 – Candy’s Going Bad
02 – Are You Receiving Me
03 – Suzy Lunacy (Mental Rock)
04 – Radar Love
05 – Just Like Vince Taylor
06 – Vanilla Queen
Bonus Tracks:
07 – Big Tree, Blue Sea (1973 Version)
08 – Candy’s Going Bad (Single Version}
09 – Radar Love (Single Version)
10 – The Song Is Over
11 – Instant Poetry
12 – From Heaven, From Hell (1974 Version)

CD 2: The Moontan Sessions
01 – Vanilla Queen (Early Version)
02 – Radar Love (Basic Track)
03 – The Song Is Over (Basis Track)
04 – Are You Receiving Me (Basic Track)
05 – Candy’s Going Bad (Rough Mix)
06 – Vanilla Queen Part 1 (Rough Mix)
07 – Just Like Vince Taylor (Altenate Mix)
08 – Big Tree, Blue Sea Part 1 (Rough Mix)
09 – Radar Love (Instrumental Mono Mix)

Barry Hay — lead / backing vocals, flute, saxophone, percussion, sound effects
George Kooymans — guitars, lead vocals, backing vocals, sound effects
Rinus Gerritsen — bass, minimoog, ARP 2500 synthesizer, piano, organ
Cesar Zuiderwijk — drums, percussion

Additional personnel:
Patricia Paay — backing vocals
Bertus Borgers — saxophone
Eelco Gelling — slide guitar on “Radar Love”

MP3 FLAC