Reflections

Like the Creation or the Small Faces, Les Fleur de Lys were a British mod band from the swinging London era that never rose above cult band status even though they had the wherewithal to be huge. Reflections sequences their singles to play like an album, though constant line-up changes and shifts in musical direction keep this compilation from flowing as cohesively. While the Who were incorporating guitar feedback into their sound during the mid-‘60s, Les Fleur de Lys improved on this effect with a rich-toned tube-amp distortion that became their signature sound — a cover of Pete Townshend’s “Circles” opens with more psychedelic feedback than the original version, boasting a psychedelic guitar solo that upstages that of the Who’s seminal guitar player. The ridiculously titled “Gong With The Luminous Nose” is a pinnacle tune of the “freakbeat” genre (pre-psych mod pop) that borrows riffs and feedback leads from Jimi Hendrix. South African singer Sharon Tandy fronted the band for a short spell, lending her witchy inflections to sultry rockers like the album’s heavy standout “Hold On.”