SERGIUS GOLOWIN
(with the COSMIC JOKERS)
"Lord
Krishna von Goloka":
In
1973, Rolf Ulrich Kaiser’s visionary powers acted as
a catalyst for an authentic combination of acid, music and
sprituality: the mystical LSD-fueled musical project “Lord
Krishna von Goloka.” For this adventure into Indian
and Oriental mythologies and legends, Kaiser asked esoteric
Swiss artist (he was a friend of Giger’s), poet, specialist
on Alpine folklore, and friend of Timothy Leary, Sergius Golowin,
to join a group of musicians including Klaus Schulze and members
of Wallenstein and Witthüser + Westrupp. It was perhaps
mere coincidence that Golowin's classic treatise on witches,
herbs, and magic mushrooms was published that same year (Magie
der verbotenen Märchen); the book was fast becoming a
cult item—it was secretly xeroxed in what was then-Communist
East Germany, and later distributed in the hippie-underground
there. Sergius Golowin’s intellectual and spiritual
world of occultism, popular legends, and shamanism were the
foundation for the project. He was responsible for the lyrics,
which consisted of incantatory recitations in German over
the multi-textural compositions.
“The first release of what has become known as the Cosmic
Jokers series, a Cosmic Courier super-session organized by
Rolf-Ulrich Kaiser... (Sergius Golowin) handles the vocals
on this extraordinary album, recanting verse over music that
sounds like a hybrid of Ash Ra Tempel and the Third Ear Band,
full of rich musical textures adrift with Mellotron and synthesizers.
A timeless work of beauty that has no equal.” —Crack
in the Cosmic Egg
“In which, Rolf-Ulrich Kaiser offered us the second
of his great Mage Recordings. After Timothy Leary (KK5001)
had so moved the producer with 7Up, ‘The Kaiser’
and his Starmaiden Gille Lettmann decided to stay in Switzerland
and record some more wise old men. As with Leary, the recording
of Sergius Golowin, the middle-aged ex-MP, was nothing less
than a full-on Vision-saga. Six musicians accompanied Golowin’s
pronouncements throughout the LP, and it’s most remarkable
of all that the speaker showed such restraint, often letting
the band fly off into Ash Ra Tempel-land at any opportunity.
It makes the most sensational combination and a long Kosmiche-epic
of high magic proportions. Opening with the 15 minute plus
“Der Grigen”, the LP announced its intention with
sombre pre-Christian keyboards then softly, softly into the
ritual…a slow amoeba production, at first scouting but
soon positive in its holy direction. The huge unfolding driving
thing called “Die Hoch-Zeit” covers the whole
of Side 2, in which Klaus Schultze’s drums are combine
harvesters in a Canadian wheat field 50 miles across. Massive
choirs of mellotron hold the distant horizon and the machine
that is the music covers the land like locusts. Dry dry music.
Arid heavy tragedy — Side 2 of Joy Division’s
‘Closer.’ Golowin doesn’t even say a word
for about the first eight minutes... There is no doubt this
is the very highest magic — believe me. The Ur-klang
of Mesolithic Man... No intellectual ever made music such
as this... His voice and that music. A righteous vision.”
—Julian Cope, Krautrocksampler
“The emergence of the great mythologies stands directly
at the beginning of mankind’s history. In them the occupation
with the large questions occurs: From whence do we come? What
and who are we? Where do we go? When our ancient ancestors
began to argue with appropriate ideas, dreams and emblems
(the most valuable pictures), what developed from it, and
was passed on to their descendants, was the birth of all that
we call culture.” —Sergius Golowin, excerpt from
Die grossen Mythen der Menschheit (the Great Myths
of Mankind)
Our Lion Productions edition comes with a 24-page booklet
which includes a Sergius Golowin biography, plus translated
excerpts from interviews and texts, a list of Golowin's writings,
translations of the original LP notes, text, and lyrics, as
well as a Kosmischen Kuriere label discography. And on a personal
note, we have long thought the song ‘Die Weiße
Alm’ to be perhaps the perfect cosmic folk track...
blissed out and uplifting, without being cloying.
Track Listing:
1. Der Reigen (16:57)
2. Die weiße Alm (6:09)
3. Die Hoch-Zeit (19:38)
Catalogue number: LION 628
UPC: 778578062828