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Editors’ Notes This is the second album from the Dutch group Shocking Blue and the first to feature their remarkable singer Mariska Veres. The original vinyl version of the album featured a slightly different line-up but subsequent versions were solidified with the first eleven tracks here and the four bonus cuts. Most of the songs were written by the band’s main instrumentalist Robbie van Leeuwen. The arrangements range from the tight garage-band attack of “Boll Weevil” to the sensual strut of “I’m a Woman” to the quick-throttle of their worldwide hit “Venus.” “Acka Raga” is a superb sitar-based tune. “Long and Lonesome Road” throws in a dense, powerful keyboard and a damaging drum assault. “California Here I Come” has a seductively exotic feel for a band from the Hague in the Netherlands trying to make the connection to the sun and fun of California’s shores. “Love Buzz” was covered by Nirvana, further building Shocking Blue’s reputation for future generations. “Hot Sand” is apocalyptic power. A brilliant psychedelic garage-rock album with pop appeal.