After releasing three classic garage blue-eyed soul records, the Rascals felt a need to expand their sound, become a bit more ornate, and take in the influence of psychedelia. In early 1968 they released Once Upon A Dream, a vague concept lp inspired by recent albums Pet Sounds and Sgt. Pepper’s. The concept is a bit unclear to me but I believe each track is supposed to represent a different dream. The group’s vocal arrangements were some of their most ambitious to date and where the previous three albums had been excellent collections of album tracks and singles, Once Upon A Dream hangs together quite well as an album - a finished product if you will.
Once Upon A Dream opens up with a fairly well known track, Easy Rollin’. Easy Rollin’ is one of the mini classics on this album and stands out from previous Rascal outings in that it’s more roots influenced with edgy acoustic guitars, harmonica, and B-3. The production on this song is remarkable: one can hear birds chirping in the background and the band itself seems to have more space and breathing room. Other tracks like the dreamy Silly Girl and zany Rainy Day are psychedelic pop songs that have strings and horns in the mix. These sweet, confectionery treats give way to harder edged psych rockers Please Love Me and It’s Wonderful. Please Love Me harks back to the band’s mid 60s garage soul period but has wonderful flute and swirling fuzz guitar effects. Other great songs are the soul-blues of Singin’ The Blues Too Long which has a clear Ray Charles influence, and the great, overlooked blue-eyed soul classic, My World. My World is notable for including female backup singers as well as the Rascals’ own excellent vocal arrangement.
The Rascals would release other good albums after Once Upon A Dream but few pop records from the time are as instantly memorable and sophisticated as this. At the time, the album’s production and sound were considered a triumph. This is a true classic and should be part of any serious rock n roll collection. There are a few cd reissues of Once Upon A Dream currently available while the original Atlantic lp is fairly easy to find.
It’s amazing how such a perfect stroke of rock n-roll can hide in the shadows. Terry Reid’s albums are an instantly likable mix of blues, rock, and blue-eyed soul. Excellent juke box fodder, you could drop a quarter on a random song from his catalog and feel confident in any bar around. Maybe classic rock radio would give the boy a spin if he hadn’t turned down that lead-singer gig for Led Zeppelin.
I guess it’s lucky for us that Terry recommended Robert Plant for the job (he was busy opening for the Stones). Needless to say, the kid can belt. One of the great unsung voices of rock, in fact. The leadoff track on this record is an aptly titled Donovan cover, Superlungs My Supergirl. Most of the rest are fine originals, shining on the toned down folk numbers, May Fly case in point.
Another case of classic management problems, Terry would remain under the radar, unhelped by Mickie Most’s contractual obligations. Reid’s music gathered some renewed interest thanks to Rob Zombie, particularly via his ultra-horrifying film, The Devil’s Rejects, soundtracked with a bunch of classic Terry Reid joints. I can firmly agree you won’t be disappointed with any Terry Reid purchase ventured, even the confusing mix of his early albums on Astralwerks, Superlungs.
I’m posting Terry’s 2nd, self-titled album above for its lovely 1969 grit, but his other albums, notably River and Seed of Memory, are every bit as essential. They take a more manicured 1970s approach, adding bass groovers and horns, with Seed of Memory approaching superfunk on side two, but damn if they won’t get ya. Here’s two from a personal favorite, River:
It really doesn’t get any better than this, Funkadelic’s 1970 sophomore release off the Westbound label. Formed in 1968, Funkadelic was one of two bands on two different record labels fronted by George Clinton (the other group being Parliament, of course).
Some years back George Clinton had this to say about his two pioneering funk groups, “Parliament was more orchestrated with horns and complicated vocal arrangements while Funkadelic was more a straight up rock band with a heavy rhythm section.” He also added, “what we knew from Motown and what we’d seen with Sly, and everybody else… We were able to take that and make a real classy jazz funk and then be as silly as we were.” The early Funkadelic sound was more rock oriented with lots of insane guitar soloing and creative keyboard work coming from both Eddie Hazel and Bernie Worrell. George Clinton produced and provided vocals on this fine psychedelic masterwork which many feel is Funkadelic’s most “out there” recording. There are all kinds of zany production tricks at work here from the stereo panning on I Wanna Know If It’s Good For You to super phased vocals that smear Some More. Some More may be the album’s most conventional cut though it’s still a great experimental soul number with lots of reefer madness and a nice bluesy arrangement.
Clinton’s lyrics are pretty sharp and humorous throughout the album and there is no doubt that Hazel’s guitar playing was heavily influenced by Jimi Hendrix. For example, songs like I Wanna Know If It’s Good For You and Friday Night, August 14th have tons of feedback and wah-wah that recall late period Hendrix, specifically the Band of Gypsies. Hazel was surely one of the great guitarists of his generation and one can also hear a little Curtis Mayfield in his playing. But Funkadelic were first and foremost orginal artists and legend has it that George Clinton and the group engulfed an enormous amount of drugs during the album’s recording sessions. Other fine tracks like Funky Dollar Bill represent the group’s funky, good time side, a sound they would develop with great success on future releases.
Funkadelic were one of the great Detroit groups and nothing in the rock n roll or soul cannon resembles their early catalog. The song arrangements and performances on this lp are much looser and less pop oriented than other psychedelic soul masterpieces like Psychedelic Shack by the Temptations or Sly Stone’s Stand! Easy to find on cd or vinyl, this is truly an inspirational recording and one of the greatest psychedelic releases ever.
A one of a kind record from a talent so deep it kills you to learn… this is all there is. Straight of Austin, Texas this may be the best of the whole Armadillo/outlaw scene, though Willis never wanted a part of it in the first place. Country fans and foes alike should grab this record and hold on tight.
Willis Alan Ramsey s/t merges country and soul as much as it combines chicken shack production with a touch of studio glitter. Put out by Leon Russell on his Shelter label (Russell also contributes keyboard work), Ramsey was only twenty when he wrote many of these tunes, and only 22 or so when he laid down the vocals. Pretty remarkable considering the sound. It’s an ecclectic mix of styles with songwriter tunes ranging from the sweet and waltzy to bluesy, gritty grooves. Muskrat Candlelight, the album’s most sugary spot, would be covered by America and forever confined to the Lite 97s as Muskrat Love. But other tracks tear it up. All originals except for Angel Eyes, which fits like a glove on Side 2, every song is a serious keeper.
A few tracks are ornamented with strings and orchestral accompianment, which works for the more developed numbers, but the sound gets so nicely stripped at times. On two tracks, Satin Sheets one of them, the only percussion is a steady kick drum with a thick cardboard sound. Ballad of Spider John, the hypnotic storytale opener, also achieves this effect, which inexplicably delights me to no end. And then this little green bit of heaven closes with a cut no one could argue, a swampy and irresistible groove: Northeast Texas Women.
Willis Alan Ramsey made one of those perfect albums. Unfortunately for us, he was seriously jaded by the music business, and never put out another record. In 1999, Koch reissued this gem on CD.
I’ll forever be indebted to British R&B bands like the Rolling Stones, the Pretty Things and the Downliner’s Sect for not only changing my life with their incredible music, but for also infecting me with an incurable obsession with American roots music. Noticing that their early albums were almost entirely comprised of cover songs sent me scrambling all over the place to track down the raw blues of Howlin’ Wolf and Slim Harpo, the trailblazing country of Hank Snow and Buck Owens, and lots of Southern soul.
Mick Jagger was no Solomon Burke. Well aware of his limitations, he found a way to make it work by studying less technically accomplished singers like Don Covay. One listen to those falsetto notes he hits and you’ll know what I’m talking about.
Covay was a prolific songwriter who penned an impressive string of hits for the likes of Aretha Franklin, Burke and Wilson Pickett. He was also one of the most overlooked soul singers of his generation. His first single, “Bip Bop Bip,” is a frantic ‘50s shouter wild enough to make Little Richard (who he once chauffeured for) sound like Fabian. After releasing a few more sides that were a bit derivative but great nonetheless, Covay finally hit his stride in 64’ with the genre blurring cut “Mercy, Mercy.” A solid R&B groove was intact, but the prominent raw guitars (rumored to have been played by a young Hendrix) and crashing drums gave it a strong rocknroll edge, anticipating the garage boom that was just on the horizon. His pleading vocals convey a sense of desperation that even surpasses Pickett’s stellar rendition of the song.
This single along with some equally crude tracks from the same era were collected on the 1966 LP See Saw. “Everything Gonna Be Everything” is an all-out stomper that’ll make you to wonder if he’s not being backed by the Pretties. Also included are some more straight-ahead soul songs he cut at Stax, featuring the tight, horn dominated sound and Steve Cropper licks that made the label famous. On the title cut and “Iron Out the Rough Spots” we find Covay neck and neck with best talent on the formidable Stax roster.
See Saw is the epitome of a great mid-‘60s Southern soul album, perfectly balanced with the right amount of dance tunes and ballads. It was reissued on CD as a twofer with his terrific first LP Mercy. Razor and Tie released a decent anthology, which includes some of his earlier and later efforts.
The first time you hear her voice. Listen to track 1 on this record (see below) and you’ll know what I mean. Karen’s got “whoa” factor that few singers can pull off and has been lauded by the likes of Bobby Dylan, Freddy Neil, the Holy Modal Rounders, and must have inspired Joanna Newsom. Yeh, the first time you hear that voice, it can transfix you.
We tend to favor garage rock and country rock records with a high ratio of original material, and tribute numbers seem to rarely ever surpass originals, but this sophomore LP comprised solely of cover songs will dash any preconceptions. Karen didn’t write songs, she interpreted really good ones. Her voice is described elsewhere in a million similar words and comparisons (”to describe it would take a poet” -Fred Neil), but all I’ll say about it, she’s got soul. It’s almost like how Miles used to say it’s not the notes you play, it’s the notes you don’t; Karen phrases in a way that pwns every tune.
Songs by Dino Valenti, Richard Manuel, Paul Butterfield mix with traditionals and pop classics recorded at legendary Bearsville Studios, featuring a couple players from the Bobby Charles sessions. The sound is akin to that of The Band on some takes, but riding solely on a clawhammer banjo on others. It’s something special though to close your eyes with this record and let her take you.Hard to get all the way through to Are You Leaving For The Country without feeling something; this one’s a mover.
The CD digipak 2006 reissue, with excellent liners, is the best way to go, containing an additional disc of alternate takes that are truly different versions, proving the strength of the material and versatility of the band. No idea what’s up with the backwards cut of Are You Leaving… but it sure would explain why people sometimes refer to this music as psychedelic folk. Her only other album, 1969’s It’s So Hard To Tell Who’s Going To Love You The Best will be essential for fans, but the above record is essential for everybody.
Oh yeah!! The Remains! This album was out of print when I initially reviewed it here, and I’ve got the old flashy yellow cover, which is a Greatest Hits collection but still a blazing hot disc. A month later their self-titled debut lp was reissued featuring the original album artwork, which is an important update. The yellow cover makes the Remains look like some novelty rock act, whereas the cover above restores their authenticity and edge. The Remains are positively one of the best rock bands you’ve never heard.
Barry Tashian and The Remains used to cook it up for Boston audiences back in the mid 60s (they were originally from Brookline), and this record, though none of it recorded live, is still proof. The beauty is in their by-the-book formula: loud rhythm guitars, electric piano, bluesy bass riffs, and most importantly, great songs.
The Remains get it started every time. But apparently they had trouble getting it started for Beatles fans. The Remains toured with the fab four a short while, playing to a screaming mob who were impatiently awaiting one of the all time historic rock concerts, seriously, who could blame them? But the truth is, the Remains deserved all the same attention back then, and now we can give it back, for the first time in style. Will I be buying the reissue just for the packaging? Yes, I think I will.
Literally, every song on this record is good. Each one a gem so surprisingly radio friendly it’s astonishing to think we haven’t heard these before. They are quick friends with instant familiarity and appreciating resonance.
If you’d like to hear The Remains tear it apart in a live setting, check out A Session With The Remains from Sundazed, a live studio audition recording.
Crazy Horse is a fantastic band. They were formed by Danny Whitten, an excellent songwriter, and originally released an album while known as The Rockets, considered essential for collectors. Nils Lofgren, virtuoso guitarist, and Jack Nitzsche, Spector associate and renowned producer, joined when Neil Young recruited the band to back him on his 2nd solo album, and they were renamed Crazy Horse. Their debut is an excellent hard country rock LP that would prove the capability of the band apart from Young’s vox and songwriting.
This is a real good album to throw on for a fix. At the right time it packs the most satisfying punch. There are some bruisers on here in Gone Dead Train and the foot-stompin’ Beggars Day with its phaser or flanger sound penetrating the mix. Parts sound inspired by Young and Dance, Dance, Dance, under his pen, is a great country rock number with an old-timey feel. Arguably, the best tunes come from Whitten, though, like the awesome and hypnotic Look At All The Things. A soft and beautiful ballad I Don’t Want To Talk About It, and of course the rollicking Downtown which would resurface on Neil’s perfect Tonight’s The Night.
Sadly, Danny Whitten’s heroin use would lead to him being excused from Crazy Horse and he overdosed in late 1972. A major loss considering his unrealized talents, best heard on this album, and his death would partly influence the Ditch Trilogy.
Forget the whole story though, forget Neil Young. Just get yourself some Crazy Horse and drive.
Here’s another roots rock classic in the same vein as The Band, only this slice of ‘Americana’ is from the UK! McGuinness Flint is sort of ‘The British Band’ and their debut album is a good, straightforward roots rock record worthy of your attention.
McGuinness Flint are Steve McGuinness, former Manfred Mann guitarist, and Hughie Flint, former John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers drummer. They only lasted from about 1970-1973 and thus were a bit ahead of the emerging Pub Rock scene in the UK, which might have provided them some more longevity, but it was well received in 1971. Two of these songs made the top 5 upon release in the UK: the upbeat go-to track, When I’m Dead And Gone(#2), and the polka-ish Malt And Barley Blues(#5). There are fun and strong tunes here like Bodang Buck, and Lazy Afternoon has a great mid-song transition. Mister Mister is brilliantly penned and infinitely catchy. Mainly, a good English folk/blues classic, and a pleasurable listen.
Faintly, the album teases some classic rock schmaltz; I don’t know how comfortable I’d be singing along to the lyrics “Rock on, rock on, everybody’s gonna rock on!” (unless it were a T-Rex song or something). And one time I dj’ed a track from this at a party and had to cut it short. But you can’t let missteps like these be judge. Fans of the Band are sure to be pleased with this quality record and will find the right time and place to let it ride.
The Capitol Years collection of Flint is your best bet, combining their first two albums on the same affordable CD. Their 3rd album, Lo and Behold, is a collection of Dylan covers!
CD Reissue | 2007 | Collector’s Choice | buy from amazon
Original Vinyl | 1968 | Atlantic | search ebay ]
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will be essential for fans, but the above record is essential for everybody.
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