George-Edwards -

George-Edwards was an American art-pop duo from Detroit that self-pressed the 1977 album 38:38 and the followup single “I See Your Smile.” Both reappeared with additional material on a 2009 CD on Bella Terra Records. Further tracks surfaced on the discs Archives and Chapter III. The duo reunited for the 2010 disc 41:57.

Members: Raymond M. George (vocals, keyboards, guitar, drums, percussion), Edward S. Balian (vocals, piano, synthesizers, guitar, bass)

Background

Raymond M. George and Edward Sarkis Balian met at a pickup baseball game on Pilgrim Street in Detroit in 1960, beginning a long association. The group name joined George’s surname to Balian’s first name and middle initial.

Both musicians played in the four-piece Andromeda from 1968 until the group ended two years later. Their partnership continued into home recording, with Balian assembling a basement studio at his Detroit residence.

George and Balian began a sustained series of four-track sessions there in June 1976 and worked intermittently at the Detroit facility. They completed the master the following June and sent it to Nashville Record Pressing after Balian found the plant’s advertisement in Billboard.

38:38

The George-Edwards Group released their debut album, 38:38, in 1977 as a private pressing.

George and Balian wrote and performed the thirteen-track program. The sequence alternates vocal pieces with short instrumentals and draws on guitars, piano, monophonic Moog synthesizers, bass, drums, percussion, chimes, and tape effects.

“Planets and Stars” coils through one-note electronic figures as layered four-track passages accumulate around each phrase. “Easternia” drifts through reverberant piano and chimes; resonant tones hang against grainy room ambience. “Wintertime” glides through acoustic figures while Moog and ARP phrases hover across sparse intervals.

A1. “You Without Me” (2:36)
A2. “Planets and Stars” (5:28)
A3. “La Jolla” (2:02)
A4. “Wintertime” (4:48)
A5. “Country Interlude” (1:16)
A6. “Easternia” (2:27)

B1. “You Came Away” (3:48)
B2. “Hypertrain” (4:14)
B3. “Floating Away” (3:43)
B4. “Magnetic Variation” (6:25)
B5. “Just a Minute” (1:08)
B6. “Some Fun” (1:18)
B7. “Solar Flare” (1:23)

George and Balian produced 38:38 from June 1976 through June 1977 at Balian’s basement studio in Detroit. Balian engineered the sessions with Dokorder 1140 and Teac 3340 four-track machines running at 15 ips, then prepared the stereo master on a Sony 850-2 half-track deck. The pair used track bounces, submixes, and tape splices to extend the four-track format, continuing the multi-instrumental working arrangement established in Andromeda.

Balian answered a Nashville Record Pressing advertisement in a 1977 issue of Billboard and paid approximately $300 for 100 white-label copies. The records came in blank white sleeves without liner notes. George carried copies to record offices on Sunset Boulevard while Balian mailed others from Detroit; they distributed roughly thirty and received approximately twenty-five rejection letters.

The duo followed the album with a standalone pressing of “I See Your Smile.” Drag City and Galactic Zoo Disk issued 38:38 on April 14, 2009, with the single added as a bonus track. South Korean label Bella Terra released an 18-track CD the same year with four further recordings: “The Blowing Wind,” “I Can Find My Way,” “She Was All,” and “Nevada.”

Later Recordings

George and Balian continued home recording after the original pressing. Their working arrangement changed when George moved to California; Balian later carried equipment west for brief sessions in the early Eighties.

The duo released 41:57 in 2010 before opening their tape library to Drag City and Galactic Zoo Disk. Archives appeared on August 23, 2011, with thirteen recordings drawn from the 38:38 period through the mid-Eighties. Chapter III followed on October 21, 2014, with twelve further recordings from the same archive.

41:57

The George-Edwards Group released their second album, 41:57, in 2010 from recordings completed the previous year.

41:57 presents new material and precedes the two archival collections issued through Drag City and Galactic Zoo Disk.

1. “I Can Find My Way” (3:32)
2. “Nevada” (4:02)
3. “Play By the Rules” (3:55)
4. “Puppermen” (3:07)
5. “Morning Glory” (4:32)
6. “Shattered Heart” (4:54)
7. “Beautiful Girl” (4:14)
8. “Anything I Want” (3:21)
9. “The Blowing Wind” (2:51)
10. “She Was All” (3:44)
11. “Weeping Rock” (3:42)

George and Balian recorded the material across sessions held in 2009.

Chapter III

The George-Edwards Group released the archival collection Chapter III in October 2014 through Drag City and Galactic Zoo Disk.

The twelve-track set combines rediscovered recordings from the 38:38 master tapes with material from the duo’s later sessions. Its program moves between instrumentals, acoustic ballads, pop songs, and harder arrangements developed after the original private pressing.

“The 8th Circus” careens through squealing guitar and broad cinematic synthesizer chords as chirps and swoops scatter across an arrhythmic mass. “My Love” bounces through bright, sugary phrases. “Who Stole My Brain?” lurches through crooked funhouse phrases and warped theatrical turns. “Wondrous Child” croons over delicate acoustic figures with a mellow, intimate delivery. “Morning Light” murmurs across delicate acoustic figures with subdued phrasing. “The Voice” grinds through crunchy, tinny distortion while a sweet, uplifting line stays prominent.

A1. “The 8th Circus” (3:54)
A2. “Morning Light” (2:51)
A3. “Does It Feel Alright?” (3:46)
A4. “Weeping Rock” (2:46)
A5. “My Love” (2:36)
A6. “Who Stole My Brain?” (1:50)
B1. “How Many Ways?” (3:03)
B2. “She Was All” (3:48)
B3. “Wondrous Child” (4:10)
B4. “The Voice” (2:50)
B5. “Were We All So Young?” (2:20)
B6. “The Children Sing” (3:34)

George and Balian recorded the later selections at various locations in Michigan and California, while other tracks came from tapes prepared at Balian’s Detroit basement studio. Drag City and Galactic Zoo Disk issued the collection on LP and digital formats under the joint DC591/GZD-012 catalog designation.

Discography: