Ed Askew - Ask The Unicorn, Vinyl LP

Ed Askew - Ask The Unicorn, Vinyl LP

Factory Sealed (New)

Ask the Unicorn is an "acid folk" masterpiece and one of the most singular releases from the infamous and historic ESP-Disk catalogue. It was recorded live to tape by a 27 year-old Ed Askew in 1968. Since that time, the impossible-to-find record and the man have acquired a mythological status. This first-ever, fully-remastered reissue has been awaited internationally for over 30 years.

But Ask the Unicorn, one of the most unique and gripping records under the 1960's sun, remained a question and an item of critical and fan devotion. The cover for the UK release, reproduced here, is the positive of the US edition. It is a photo of the protests in Stamford following the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Ask the Unicorn is a wild album. Inspired by immersion in Lorca and Kurt Weil, Askew's live psych delivery blends "bitter and economical" with deep imagism. The tone of the Martin tiple, the 10-string ultra-resonant acoustic instrument for which Askew is known, is wiry and stark -- a true counterpoint to contemporary psychedelic music. Ask the Unicorn is also a very rare and important work by an openly gay songwriter in the 1960's.

Text via Tin Angel Records