Nirvana

Dedicated To Markos III


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Includes a bonus 7" EP and a four page colour insert with liner notes by Malcom Dome, plus a sheet with the lyrics of the songs.

Nirvana's third LP is a masterpiece of late UK sixties popsike turning into symphonic pop, it also marked the end of the collaborations between Patrick Campbel-Lyons and Alex Spyropoulos back in 1969.

It was turned down by Island boss Chris Blackwell under the title of Black Flower. Blackwell, however, he gave the masters to Campbell-Lyons and Spyropoulos so they could find a new label to release the album. That was to happen in the USA through Metromedia Record in 1969. At that time, the label's owner went through a scandal due to the payola days, which left Nirvana's third offering without any promotion – as a result of that, very few copies were pressed. There was also a UK release on PYE and it was even released by Metromedia in Japan. However, for years it remained as "the lost" Nirvana release, with the added fact that none of the released editions launched the album under its original title of Black Flower but under the rather cryptic Dedicated To Markos II (read why in the liner notes!).

Musically, this is Nirvana at their best. The tune that should have been the title track, Black Flower, is an incredible piece of symphonic psychedelia and probably the best produced Nirvana track ever. Campbell and Spyropoulos were backed for the occasion by Spooky Tooth, who played on many tracks of the album, and big orchestral arrangements mesmerize the listener in one of the duo's darkest offerings.

This is also a record that was widely acclaimed in the hip hop scene. And samplers of it have been used by several artists, most notably DJ Shadow used Love Suite in his 1996 debut album Endtroducing.

Tracklist

A1 The World Is Cold Without You 3:42
A2 Excerpt From "The Blind & The Beautiful" 2:38
A3 I Talk To My Room 3:35
A4 Christopher Lucifer 4:04
A5 Aline Cherie 3:00
B1 Tres, Tres Bien 2:52
B2 It Happened Two Sundays Ago 3:07
B3 Black Flower 4:30
B4 Love Suite 6:00
B5 Illinois 3:38

7" Single

1. We Can Make It Through
2. Love Suite Take 2
3. June