 | | Tractor – John Peel Bought Us Studio Gear And A PA |
This album, a collection of both the tunes that interested Peel enough to sign them for his record label, Dandelion Records, back in the 70s and their singles, offers a chance to see whether the reality lives up to the fable. In short, it does. The music is undoubtedly of its time, but if you’re a fan of epicly sprawling prog rock, then Tractor could well be the missing piece of your puzzle. Think the Pink Fairies with a touch of Led Zep and Soft Machine and you’re on the right roads. But maybe the myth has become more than the reality. Given that Jack and Meg White count Tractor amongst their influences, they can’t be that forgotten, can they? Better to simply say they were mislaid. Thanks to the legacy of Peelie and the only track that he specifically requested to feature part of his name, Ravenscroft’s 13 Bar Boogie (given a 2006 remix here), they’re back where they belong - at the end of one long arm of Mancunian musical family tree; loud, intricate and fantastically expansive. | 
