Aphrodite's Child - "Magic Mirror"

Ah, Grecian man-mountain Demis Roussos, prime purveyor, along with James Last and Klaus Wunderlicht, of charity shop fodder.

FACT: It's actually illegal under UK law for a charity shop not to stock an LP by at least one of these artists at any time.

Demis LPs were a respectable fourth behind straw donkeys, sombreros and those funny wine pouring things as the top souvenir from sunshine holidays in the 1970's to carry off the plane... a time when the working masses could first afford a foreign holiday, as long as it was taken in country under right-wing military rule.

Anyway, a few years earlier Demis was rocking out with his pal Vangelis ("Chariots of Fire" theme tune and so on) and some other bloke, in the glorious Aphrodite's Child. Quite possibly the best band in the world ever. If only because:

a) they were Greek. How many Athenian progressive rockers do you get to the pound?
b) they made a concept album about the Book of Revelations called "666.'"I used to own this, but I didn't like having it in the house. I couldn't sleep.
c) see picture above.

"Magic Mirror" was, I think, their first single. It's a perfect slice of mod-prog, organ-driven psych. They followed this up with a couple of attempts at apeing Can (very well - check out "Funky Mary" and "Let me love, let me live"), then made the afore mentioned "666", before Demis quit and started making balladry for 70's honeymooning couples to drink Retsina to.

Aphrodite's Child - "Magic Mirror"