Robert John (1979) Takin My Love For Granted

 Robert John had a hit in the 50s as a child star under a different name as Bobby Pedrick Jr, his real name. The song 'White Bucks and Saddle Shoes' was a hit as a 12 year old, a singer with a strong falsetto and child prodigy; his biggest hit however was in 1979, with Sad Eyes. This song is from the same self titled album, older and with a bona fide, self penned soft rock hit. Takin My Love For Granted is probably the other good song from the unremarkable album where on some cuts he sounds exactly like Barry Gibb however the immaculate keyboards and exquisite melody make it nice gem.

Styx (1978) It's OK

 From the theatrical, prog rockers of the late 70s/80s who were considered an acquired taste and arguably part of the corporate rock of image of the late 70s groups such as Journey and Foreigner. It's OK has a message of being yourself and is an individualistic message complete with the bands extended proggy musical passages and proves they weren't that corporate in terms of creative output. With reggae sounding rhythm guitars and as always Dennis DeYoungs' confident operatic soprano. Starting with a shouted out count in, this song is one of many that display Styx's desire to embrace many vibes and styles such as the poppy use of a Oberheimer synthesizer by DeYoung along with a church organ section. All wrapped in the band's usual arena rock assault, corporate or not the music was always indefinable and artistic and every track a musical tour de-force.

Dave Mason (1977) What Do We Got Here?

 From his enormously successful 77 solo album Let It Flow, an album best remembered for his best selling single, We Just Disagree, What Do We Got Here? is penned by the same author, his guitarist Jim Krueger. An unromantic affair is described by  Mason, his acoustic strumming and matter of fact delivery is supported by flute and sax in typical Yacht rock style. The chorus features sweeping disco strings and triumphant electric guitar as he declares proudly how 'I think they call it love!' Another underrated Mason song that remains  ambiguous about romance; another of his gems from that great decade of music of which he was key artist.

Bee Gees (1974) I Can't Let You Go

 Today's our 70s gem is from the Gibb Brother's criminally underrated, Mr Natural album, the first one to delve into RnB, soul and Funk music. Full of gems, the first of many to address in later posts this is the burning,rocking ballad that already has melodic shades of alter ballads such as More than a Woman but with far more ferocity than their later slick, disco phase; this is in my opinion them at their most primal and their creative peak. Playing better than ever before with a new line-up and a new sound I Can't Let You Go is a storming elegy to not being able to let go it displayed brother Barry shift to front man and remarkable writer of lyrics and a vocal delivery far more convincing than his trademark strained falsetto of the late 70s.

Kansas (1975) All The World

 From their third album, the American Prog act Kansas were in search of a hit single to placate their patron and label head, Don Kirshner. That is probably why this and it's predecessor Song for America, showcase shorter songs with more overtly heavy rock and pop moments then their debut or their longer suites.All The World is probably the best with it's 'We Are The World' message conveyed with a great joyous vocals by Steve Walsh before giving way to a much heavies guitar rock section. The song is Kansas at their most accessible with minimal Violin accompaniment from Robby Steinhardt who also shares lead vocals duties on this song; should have been thier breakthrough but possibly it's too long at 7 minutes, however Carry on My Wayward Son was now just around the corner and Kirshner would have the hit single he desired.

The Hues Corporation (1973) Freedom for the Stallion

 This early song by the Hues Corporation sounds like a Carpenters easy listening hit, this was in 1973 before their major proto-disco hit Rock the Boat hit in 1974. The follow up to Rock the Boat was Rockin Soul,  which is pretty much the same song with different lyrics. The gospel mixed with traditional easy listening trumpets and flutes is a nice different sounding soul ballad.  With a Jackson Five sound that also makes it  an appealing song from a group that are definitely a one hit wonder, then again what a hit that was..

Atlanta Rhythm Section (1975) All Night Rain

A quiet storm number from ARS, a Southern Rock band that took over from bands like the Allmans and Lynrd Skynrd in the second half of the 70s. Their form of gritty blues was often filtered with a smooth soft rock vibe as is displayed in much of their work particularly this number. All Night Rain was their smoothest number with a loose jazzy arrangement of acoustic guitars and their fluid slide guitars and keyboards. It's an ode to bad weather, as singer Rodney Justo croons in a Adult Contemporary style about how all night rain is made 'for all night love'.

Eddie Hazel (1977) California Dreamin

Eddie Hazel, lead guitar on the famous Parliament Funkadelic masterpiece, Maggot Brain had his own solo album in 1977. The modestly titled Games, Dames and Guitar Thangs is full of great guitar work in his inimitable funky, chicken scratch guitar style. Backed by his fellow band members from Funkadelic the results are incredible, his rendition of the Mamas and Papas tune features some of his most clean guitar runs with great restrained vocals from him and the Brides of Funkenstein. A ghostly
piano figure builds considerable drama and tension in the music throughout is the real genius of a forgotten guitar hero on an album no longer available.

Black Sabbath (1976) It's Alright

 From their often forgotten 70s album, Technical Ecstasy (always loved that name, it reminds me of Physical Graffiti) it featured the first non Ozzy vocals with Bill Ward taking up lead vocals and nailing them in this deep, heartfelt piano ballad. A strong departure from their usual repertoire and  echoing the earlier odd departures such as  1972's Changes, another piano ballad and the acoustic and keyboard contributions to recent albums. It features a dazling guitar solo from Iommi picking up the beat in the mid section but this is a storming show-piece for Ward and the band's more delicate ballad side. The lyrics no doubt reflected the band's lacklustre slump in the mid 70s, uninspired and disillusioned as put brilliantly in lines such as 'they are always seeking but they'll never find it' and 'Give it all and ask for no return and very soon you'll see and you'll begin to learn, that it's alright'.

Jackson 5 (1971) Honey Chile

 Off their 1971 album Maybe Tomorrow, The Jacksons covered this song, originally performed by Motown label mates Martha and the Vandellas. The song is bright pop song opening with a farmyard feel complete with a cockerel crowing and country and western harmonica before some bombastic drums lead the song into it's orchestra lined groove. This with most Jackson 5 songs are showcases for the powerful vocals of a young Michael Jackson that belied his years. Still incredible that he was only 12 when delivering this stinging soul material about infidelity.

Whitesnake (1978) Ain't no Love in the Heart of the City‏

David Coverdale had been pricked from obscurity for the lead vocalist role in Deep Purple, so after that outfit crashed and burned after three more albums he had enough credibility as a rock performer to hit our on his own with his first album White Snake.  When he decided to use his backing band for his two solo albums a hard rock act in their own right to rival former band mate Richie Blackmore's Rainbow. On their Snakebite EP that started off their long career in the rock business the future glam metal act would create an soulful, hard rocking cover f the Bobby Blue Bland's masterpiece. The laid-back groove of the guitars combined with Coverdale's best vocals, a soulful delivery that doesn't simply imitate black soul singers but sounds more natural and restrained. His voice has never sounded more clear and aching with genuine blues.

Bob Welch (1977) Sentimental Lady

 Welch had been a guitarist in the pre- Buckingham Nicks incarnation of Fleetwood Mac and had started another group called Paris after his stint with Mac. It was while starting his solo career with his 77 album Paris, originally meant to be material for a third album with his titular band, that he decided to revive this song he wrote originally for Fleetwood Mac. The song works well here in a Dave Mason sounding ballad form that fit the late 70s soft rock that was big at the time. Above the guitar work of the song is the excellent crossing vocal lines particular the repeating lyric 'And all of the things that I said that I wanted, Come rushing by in my head when I'm with you, 14 joys and a will to be merry..' Backed by members of Fleetwood Mac, particularly Christine McVie, this version of the song sounds right at home as opposed to the less intense 72 Mac version and showed that Mac may have had some exceptional, song-writing talent already in the band before Buckingham Nicks turned up.

Badfinger (1971) I'd Die Babe

 From their best album, 1971's Straight Up, it's another lost album of 70's gems from the group once tipped to follow on form The Beatles. Signed to the Beatles record company, Apple, produced by George Harrison and with Paul McCartney writing their first hit, Come and Get It, they had a lot to live up to. And though some of their songs sound like the Beatles mainly due to the vocals, the Welsh outfit had their own style best represented on this album. It is called Power Pop and along with The Who and Big Star were one of the earliest examples and arguably the best mixing heavy guitar riffs and solos with pop harmonies and light melodies.

 Their song I'd Die Babe is good example of the mix of light and dark in power pop such as the glistening acoustic guitars, mixed with the heavy guitar licks and hard rock changes of pace. The lyrics are directly about dying for lost love, sung earnestly form lead vocalist Pete Ham who would tragically take his own life four years after this album.

The Bee Gees (1973) Method to my Madness

The closing track to their country tinged 1973 album, Life in a Tin Can, famously a commercial failure that forced the brothers to reinvigorate their careers with a switch from melodramatic piano ballads, to guitar driven funk. But before they reignited with a new RnB identity they were trying out a country and western feel complete with acoustic guitars and harmonicas. The album has its moments on songs such as Living in Chicago and While I Play, though neither were the single release; the most complete composition was the closing track  Method to my Madness. Starting of with maudlin electric piano and occasionally triple tracked vocals, it is dominated by superb delivery from Robin Gibb though Barry Gibb also comes in at the bridge. Song that displays the brother's tremendously powerful execution that could also be chamelionic from country to disco there weren't many genres they couldn't do convincingly. This song does justice to the dramatic ballads they could excel at later on such songs as I Can't Let you Go.

Dan Fogelberg (1972) To The Morning

 From his 1972 album, Home Free, it contains his best song, though it isn't often acknowledged as much as his early 80s work. With the dark, yet enlightening gospel feel of a James Taylor song it features  great 'weeping' vocal melody from Fogelberg. A hidden masterpiece from the LA Singer Songwriter phase of James Taylor, Joni Mitchell and Jackson Browne that peaked in 1972. It is an ode about about getting on with things.

Jay Ferguson (1976) Hit and Run

 From Jay Ferguson's' first solo album, All Alone in the End Zone, a soft rock album with a mix of funky disco beats, Moogs, Hard Rock Rhythm section and acoustic guitars. Famously had quite a career through the 60s to the 80s, from being the lead singer of the Psychedelic giants, Spirit in the late 60s and hard rock band Jo Jo Gunne who had a hit with 'Run Run Run' in the early 70s before having a top ten solo hit with Thunder Island, a classic Yacht Rock hit from his second album.

 This song has it all from the immediate piano rock intro to 'thunder and rain' sound effects to a chugging disco verse to a Moog based bridge to it's flute solo it has a driving quality to it and is the best composition on the album and slightly hints at Thunder Island in it' s visceral, heavy production.

Sweet (1978) California Nights

A breezy soft rock song during the band's later years, their peak of popularity may have been behind them but they were certainly at their musical peak. From their Level-headed (1978) album, it saw them experiment with Abba style Europop and duets (Lettre D'amour), country (Silverbird) as well as classical horns all over the tracks and funk on their top 10 comeback hit 'Love is like Oxygen'.
California Nights is a successful mix of Sweet's shrill choruses with California AM country pop and featured second vocalist Steve Priest on lead vocals. Lyrics describe the typical West Coast paradise, the destination of many pilgrimages all over the States. Describing girls from Las Vegas and New York with a disco feel, though it does feature dated lyrics like 'Boogie through to mornin'. One of many gems on this fine album from Sweet, expect more posts about what I consider their most essential album.

Deep Purple (1970) Flight of the Rat

 From their landmark heavy metal album In Rock (1970), Deep Purple transformed from a London based Psychedelia jam group with classical leanings into a heavy riff oriented rock act. Initially inspired with taking the sound of groups such as Zeppelin and Sabbath to boost their commercial success that was flagging they soon added their own style of instrumental passages to hard rock music. While it too some time to convince hard rock fans that what was missing was some Bach keyboard flourishes, it was Richie Blackmore's contributions which were key.

 Flight of the Rat is the hidden gem from the classic album, often overlooked and buried in the album, it's Purple at their best, a rare moment where they don't indulge but stay tight with a some heavy solos before the whole band descends into an all out funk session before regaining the original riff and ending on a superb drum solo. It stays sharp rather than rehashing any classical passages as they did with most of their songs sticking to a blues template that works best in hard rockand features a nice melody and lyrics by vocalist Ian Gillan. The central downstroke riff is a rip off of Communication Breakdown by Led Zeppelin, as is Sabbath's Paranoid, though it makes sense as Zep invented hard rock on their frist two albums. Also Blackmore noted they didn't know what type of music they were looking for till Zep debuted on the scene in 1968. This is the closest they came to Zep's tight fury and never would again, it's a shame it isn't the song their known for.

Harriet Schock (1974) Hollywood Town

 Harriet Schock released what is an undiscovered country classic from the Hollywood Town debut album in 1974. A singer songwriter from a commercials background, the song came out to little fanfare but has an indelible melody with swooping keyboards making up for an orchestra and Schock's heartfelt, down home vocals give this ballad a glowing, Disney pop feel. While the lyrics are excellent deconstruction of LA like Hotel California later in the decade this song comes at critical, post-hippie slant on the city that ahs been the subject of many songs.  Lines such as 'the lost and found try to find their way' , 'Putting their pride through well-known paces' and 'But their hearts are low down, dragging as they go' make great observations about Californians. While Manfred Mann would tackle this song, their version is irrecognizable sounding flat and too detached, for me Schock's is the only version that could do justice  to it.

Mott The Hoople (1973) Roll Away the Stone

 A single that would be re-recorded for the 1974 album The Hoople, a ballad heavy album, Roll Away the Stone, along with the Golden Age of Rock n Roll and Crash Street Kids are tough rockers and a throwback to the original spirit of 50s rock n roll and 60s soul. With doom laden guitars at the beginning, backing vocals and horns, the song is heavy but also features an excellent Ian Hunter lead vocals, while the chorus has a Motown quality to it. While Mott The Hoople are famous for one song but the quality of the production and Hunter' vocals are so much better than All the Young Dudes.

Karla Bonoff (1979) The Water is Wide

 From her second album, Restless Nights, Karla Bonoff covered the traditional Scottish folk song that dates back centuries to the 1600s. Bringing her reverbed, breathy vocals, acoustic picking and thick paino style to the classic, she gives the song a deep meaning in her wistful delivery. Though covered by many folk artists like Joan Baez and James Taylor, Bonoff's version is still the best modern cover with it's mixture of dark and light moods.

Larry Lee (1982) Number One Girl

 A bit of background, Larry Lee was the drummer for country rockers, Ozark Mountain Daredevils; a band developed in 1974 by the same people who helped put together the Eagles two years prior. Though their experimental bluegrass sound may never had emulated the same success of the Eagles, they did have a no 3 hit with a breezy ballad full of hard rock guitars and piano by the drummer, Larry Lee called 'Jackie Blue'. Larry Lee's story isn't so different from that of Kiss drummer Peter Criss, like Criss he was not the lead singer songwriter but the third singer in the band who contributed a few compositions to each album. Also like Criss, he would sing and compose their respective band's biggest hits; and also like Criss's ballad Beth, Jackie Blue was nothing like their usual repertoire and would never be reproduced by either band. Also like Criss, he embarked on a solo career in 1979 leaving the Ozark Mountain Daredevils to see if he could follow up with an album away from the style of their groups indulging in their own tastes and ultimately failing.

Lee's 1982 solo debut, Marooned is a nice 80s soft rock collection that features a few good songs such as the singles, Don't Talk and ballad, The Best is Yet to Come alld renched in 80s synths sounds. Though Number One Girl is chosen as it comes close to sounding like Jackie Blue, something OMD dared not do the same way Kiss never tried to write another Beth type song. It has the same stabbing piano keys and heavy slide guitar of his 1976 hit but with a more of a romantic fun feel with great pop chorus.

Hall and Oates (1972) Goodnight and Goodmorning

 From their folky 1972 debut, Whole Oates, this is another gem of many from the 70s version of Hall and Oates when they were of many Philly Soul Stars. Signed to Atlantic Records they stripped down their soul music to a folky, country acoustic based sound over the extravagant productions of their contemporaries in the Philly scene. No lush string and horn sections this song was the lead single for them, and later used as a lead single by Hawaian, Hall and Oates style duo, Cecillio and Kapono. It's a another flower power type of song with it's glistening strums sounding like the breaking of a new morning. An nice bass line and hopeful lyrics about a burgeoning romance, it is very life affirming and nature based and very different to what they would become known for. Underservedly their first three albums at Atlantic got them no notice, and this song should have put them on the map.

Dave Mason (1975) She's A Friend

A song I discovered this week along with many other great Dave Mason songs from his post-Traffic solo career in the mid 70s. She's A Friend is a catchy almost 60s sounding folk pop tune with an unforgettable melody as Mason charts a fading romance. With a very light reggae feel and short running time this is the definition of a 70s gem. Not much more to say, other than listen to it; right away.

King Harvest (1973) Marty and The Captain

 King Harvest are another one hit wonder group, a heavy group with a 60s rock n' roll sound. Their hit song was a track called 'Dancing in the Moonlight' that exemplified the good time rock n roll spirit they embodied.  Their accompanying 1973 album was released on the small American label Perception Records, while 'Dancing in the Moonlight' was recorded in Paris, France. One song off this album struck me, it was called Marty and the Captain and has a jaunty feel with some classic Memphis style horns and RnB rhythm.  While their follow up single, A Little Bit Like Magic was a Dancing in the Moonlight clone, Marty and the Captain captures teh same upbeat tone but with a completely different sound. Unfortunately, they weren't able to break their one hit wonder status, maybe this song could have given them an elusive second hit single...

Player (1977) Love is Where you Find It

 Player, a one hit wonder 70's soft rock band famous for the 1978 hit 'Baby Come Back', created a funky, rocker  of a debut album. Goodbye That's All I've Ever Heard, Melanie and Come on Out are excellent offerings from the album; though most reviewers will point 'This Time I'm In It For Love', the follow up single to Baby Come Back as the sleeper of the album. 'This Time I'm In It For Love' sounds like a forced, un-engaging lyric, while the melody to Baby Come Back was so direct and the album's closing countrified ballad, Tryin to Write a Hit Song, are well executed ballads.

 But I have chosen Love is Where You Find It for this post, a personal choice, the James Brown guitar of original guitarist Steve Kipner along with their standard, shrill backing vocals give the song a lot of soul. It also features good lyrics such as the title and "Never push the river, you've got to let it flow." It was also the B side to their first single, a obscure track called Saturday Night Jukebox; this was before their full studio album debut when they were called Bandana.

Loggins and Messina (1972) Till the Ends Meet

 Today's song is from Loggins and Messina's second album, and technically their first as an equal partnership, the duo had been working together on their first album, Sitting In, with Loggins as the main artist and Messina supporting him on guitar. However when Messina contributed some lead vocals and songs to the mix a duo was born that would dominate the first half of the 1970s, before Hall and Oates had taken off, with a mix of folk, pop and rock n roll built around a yacht rock smoothness. Til the Ends Meet starts off with a pop rock riff and some sensual vocals from Kenny Loggins before in it's bridge Loggins's vocals go supersonic in a true display of his incredible voice. Of course he was still the star and revelation of the duo being relatively unknown before, he went on to have a successful solo career in film soundtracks and was one of many Blue Eyed soul acts of the late 70s along with Hall and Oates and Michael McDonald.

Black Sabbath (1978) A Hard Road

 Black Sabbath's 70s run with Ozzy came to an end with the Never Say Die album before they promptly said die and sacked their infamous lead singer. A Hard Road chugs along with more of a hard rock feel like many songs on the album leading to it's low standing with hardcore fans more used to their classic metal style. The subjects were less ominous more about their upbringing in Aston, Birmingham. A Hard Road is a 6 minute rocker that could have been the closer, with it's great harmony vocals at the end from the band giving it it's rousing finale. Ozzy is on top form with great lines such as 'Old Man Dyin, Young Man Cryin, World still turns as Father Time Looks on ' and a Springsteenish vibe with inspiring lyrics such as 'Forget all your sorrow, Don't live in the past. And look to the future cause life goes too fast'. A great forgotten gem that ended the 70s classic line-up, time to look to the future and the 80s for Sabbath.

Led Zeppelin (1975) The Rover

 Originally starting as a acoustic number during their trip to Bron Yr Aur, it ended up being transformed into an electric mid tempo rocker with a lot of groove. This song first got me into Zeppelin five years ago, with it's swaggering riff, phased guitar and Page's clear cut guitar solo.
However it's the simple power chord bridge around the 2:40 mark that revealed that Zeppelin's album cuts could rock so hard and sound so fresh and unique.  Like Houses of the Holy or Sick Again, Zep were able to create very heavy yet funky rockers; The Rover is more phenomenal as it is one of many classic Zep songs that were never performed live. That was the power of Zep above all their contempories, they had too many classic songs to play; a problem no other artist had.

Paul Stanley (1978) Take Me Away (Together as One)

 Once upon a time disco and punk were at their peak popularity and a raucous rock band git the idea to release four solo albums on the same day while all still together.  The year was 1978, the band was Kiss and it all happened. Lead singer Paul Stanley's was said the least diverse and the closest to Kiss usual material, power chord party rock. It featured classic kiss material such as It's Alright and saccharine ballads such as Hold Me, Touch Me.

 Including some of Zeppelins light and shade as he did in Black Diamond, Stanley's ballad from his 78 solo effort had a haunting effect complete with hushed vocals and a hard rocking solo, it was an epic rocker that showcased Stanley delicate song-writing married with his hard rock chops and was worthy of Kiss' s best tracks.

Hall and Oates (1973) When the Morning Comes

This is an underrated song from the pop duo's second album, Abandoned Luncheonette,  which featured the epic soul showcase She's Gone. As they increased their experimental diversity further as they would continually in their 70s incarnation this track opens with a psychedelic wah wah treated oboe solo before entering the folky body of the song. The lyrics' universal feel this gives the track a flower power hippie hangover vibe; and this is certainly song with a vibe, an anthem for anyone dreading the present and waiting for the sun to come up.