tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50229524807415220362024-03-19T23:15:40.780-07:00Lost 70s GemsBringing obscure songs from the 1970s such as deep album cuts, underrated cover songs and forgotten singles back on this blog. The 70s was a great time for music, possibly the best and the most diverse; that some gems that need to be rediscoveredLOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.comBlogger757125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-89303225519460140752023-10-25T07:05:00.002-07:002023-10-25T07:05:36.323-07:00The Different Sounds of Brian May's Incredible Red Special - LOST70sGEMS<p> Probably the most famous home made guitar of all time, and it adorned all the hits of one of the greatest rock bands of all time</p><p>Brian May's Red Special </p><p>A mythic guitar that you can tell immediately from it's tactile purring and whining, it exudes far more character then most hard rock guitarists of the day.</p><p>In many ways, Brian May was the epitome of the great 70s guitar heroes; he had the sweet lilting tone of George Harrison, the gliding distortion of David Gilmour, the proto-speed metal playing of Ritchie Blackmore and displayed the finest expression of Jimmy Page's 'guitar army' concept with his heavy use of the treble booster and layers of overdubs.</p><p>The many tonal qualities of the Special enabled him to play a variety of styles of music; shape-shifting to fit the dynamic of each song. The animated shrieks, whines and drawls echo and back up similar trills and wails of front man Freddie Mercury's equally tangible voice.</p><p><br /></p><p>Here is a rundown of the sounds I've identified throughout his Queen's legendary 1970s run;</p><p><br /></p><p><b>1. Creamy, saturated sustain tone</b></p><p> This bouncy, elastic tone pops up everywhere: its almost his default sound. It practically screams out of his treble booster with minimal volume due to the Vox AC30 amplifier. The best example is the nasally multi-tracked solo in Killer Queen, where the different tracks diverge at times for strong harmonies and interesting dissonance </p><p><br /></p><p><b>2. Sudsy sweet chord slides</b></p><p>One of my favourite sounds that comes out of the Red Special are the sliding figures, where May wrenches the guitar neck for maximum sustain and sweetness in tone. The texture of this sound is soapy and wringed out, as well as carrying a saccharine romantic lilt to it. The most memorable usage of this sound was at the end of Bohemian Rhapsody, where it provides the musical bed for the bittersweet realisation that "nothing really matters": a line delivered by Freddie Mercury with breathy exhaustion, matching the weariness of the faint multi-tracked chord slide.</p><p><br /></p><p><b>3. Warm flute tone</b></p><p>This is a fairly common tone in Brian May's arsenal; it is a clear, juicy, lightsabre tone that drips and slips all over several tracks whilst piercing through with the attack of a piccolo flute. Midway through Love of my Life you hear this sound, as May’s Red Special prances back and forth in fanciful pied piper like doodles. </p><p>It's spritely and fluttering like a woodwind instrument, fitting in with the jazz band mimicry of Good Company; where it spouts and dallies around the skiffle rhythms.</p><p><br /></p><p><b>4. Muscular meaty torque slides</b></p><p> Another feature of May's playing on the Red Special would be his ability to wrangle out the most tactile squeaks and scratches from his creation in direct contrast to the inflated, puffed up distortion. The thick gauged strings, along with his unusual choice of plectrum (an old British sixpence) and the unique dimensions and materials of the guitar itself, all allow May to achieve a equal balance of smooth distortion whilst simultaneously producing sharp guitar zaps.</p><p> The best example of this is the triple tracked slide guitar solo at the end of Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon where May squeezes out a zingy little solo, dragging the strings in a meaty legato slide right at the tail end of the track</p><p><br /></p><p><b>Other experiments;</b></p><p>. <b>Misfire</b> kicks off with an array of sweet, multi-tracked slide guitars that sound like a hyped up Hawaiian lap steel</p><p>. In <b>39</b>, May lays down three guitar tracks, all an octave apart to create a majestic three part harmony line that cascades gloriously like a triumphant trumpet chorus</p><p>. <b>All Dead, All Dead</b> features walls of spongy fuzz guitars that converge on a beaming lead guitar. The sandwiched, multi-tracked fuzz guitars resemble a Moog or even a church organ in it's polyphonic grandeur</p><p>. <b>Seaside Rendezvous</b> features May’s tripled guitars strolling in a sultry, elegant drawl like a big band clarinet line</p><p>. In the intro of <b>Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together)</b>, slowed down multitracked bass notes of the guitar are used to mimic the brooding cellos of a Wagnerian string section</p><p> </p><div><br /></div>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-36727787835866661692023-02-16T11:04:00.006-08:002023-02-16T11:10:20.067-08:00Album Reviews: Player (1977) Player - LOST70sGEMS<p> Though known primarily for their No 1 hit Baby Come Back, a soft rock song in the vein of Hall And Oates that peaked during the Bee Gees reign, Player had a debut album full of fresh instrumental hooks and indelible melodies. This album had a bit of everything, from yacht rock, prog rock passages, soaring falsettos and even a countrypolitan closing track;</p><p><b><br /></b></p><p><b>"Come On Out" (Crowley) – 3:43 STEVIE WONDER & FOREIGNER </b></p><p>The ending coda is very much the style of Hall and Oates soul numbers and a throbbing bass-line taken from She's Gone. There is a blues Hard rock guitar turnaround from Traffic's Mr Fantasy and Led Zep's Ten Years Gone as well as guitar arpeggios from Bell Bottom Blues. It also starts with a Stevie Wonder mix of droopy wah synth and clavinet.</p><p><b><br /></b></p><p><b>"Baby Come Back" (Beckett, Crowley) – 4:10 HALL AND OATES TAVARES</b></p><p>A disco cymbal heavy beat, Hall and Oates styled confessional verses and a big falsetto chorus reminiscent of Tavares</p><p><b><br /></b></p><p><b>"Goodbye (That's All I Ever Heard)" (Crowley) – 3:44 STEELY DAN EARLY TOTO/ EARLY FOREIGNER</b></p><p>This song starts off similar to the openings of Every Which Way and Come on Out, with stacks of sweet but regal keyboard chords and lilting guitar sustains, the kind you would hear from Stevie Wonder.</p><p>The verses are a walking bassline, with a Steely Dan vocal and tremolo synthesizer ripples. The chorus is built around a stacked harmony rendition of the title, again sounding like Steely Dan before a middle eight, where circular guitar riff and equally circular vocal melody enter, claiming "Love is Strange.."</p><p> The quiet bridge is baroque with it's gentle/night time mix of playful flute, oscillating vibraphone and plucked flamenco strings reminiscent of the prog mid song breaks of early Foreigner and Toto</p><p><br /></p><p><b>"Melanie" (J. Crocker) – 3:39 LITTLE RIVER BAND</b></p><p>A summery soft rock song, similar to Shandi by Kiss, it has the layered shimmering tremolo guitars of Wild Cherry's Hold On and the vibe of Little River Band, it's defining hook is the big meaty, flamenco tinged guitar riff that bookends the song. </p><p><br /></p><p><b>"Every Which Way" (Beckett, Crowley) – 3:34 Michael McDonald era DOOBIE BROTHERS & STARBUCK</b></p><p>Every Which Way is a Michael McDonald era Doobie Brothers patented song, with the funky 'Mario Kart' keyboards during the verses and Sting like vocals of the chorus; the refrain of Every Which Way reminiscent of It Keeps you Running/ Minute by Minute. However it starts with a luscious multi tracked, synth part warbling in and out alongside a vibraphone part, a combo of instruments popularised by funky, Yacht Rockers Starbuck.</p><p><br /></p><p><b>"This Time I'm in It for Love" (Larry Keith, Steve Pippin) – 4:20 - ENGLAND DAN JOHN FORD COLEY & HALL AND OATES</b></p><p>The 'stop watch' sounding keyboard ticking away during the opening of This Time I'm in it for Love sounds like it was taken directly from the opening of Hall and Oates' Out of Me, Out of You. The chorus is the saccharine sentiment and soothing countrified balladry and twin slide guitars you would often find in songs by England Dan and John Ford Coley</p><p><b><br /></b></p><p><b>"Love Is Where You Find It" (Crocker, Reed Kailing, Crowley) – 4:00 ELO </b></p><p> A light disco-fied pop rock tune highlighted by call and response vocals with sprightly, pitchy falsetto harmonies reminiscent of ELO, that remind me of the schoolkid vocals song Dance by Justice</p><p><b><br /></b></p><p><b>"Movin' Up" (Crocker, Kailing, Steve Kipner) – 2:50 BONEY M BEE GEES OHIO PLAYERS </b></p><p>The jumped up rhythms of the Commodores, the clanky funk guitar chord strikes of disco groups like Boney M or the Kay Gees and the hysterical falsetto of the Bee Gees. But most of all it reminds me of the Ohio Players heavy funk bops like Body Vibes,Merry Go Round, Dance (If Ya Wanta), Funk-O-Nots, Contradictions etc</p><p><b><br /></b></p><p><b>"Cancellation" (Crocker, Kailing, Kipner) – 4:07 LRB FOREIGNER TOTO</b></p><p>Full of interesting elements from the swirling teapot flute in the middle of the verses, to the dueling Arena rock guitar riff, to the cooing Paul Stanley falsetto and finally the punchy synth solo </p><p><br /></p><p><b>"Trying to Write a Hit Song" (R. L. Mahonin) – 4:36 - GORDON LIGHTFOOT</b></p><p>A typical Gordon Lightfoot type of singer songwriter ballad</p><p> </p><p><b> VERDICT:</b> A Soft Rock Album with does of arena rock, funk disco rhythms and Blue eyed soul. Some tracks remind me of the <b>Hall and Oates Silver album 1975</b> which featured more guitar interplay. Overall it has the mix of blue eyed soul soft rock and hard rock of <b>Toto's first two albums in the late 70s</b></p><p> </p><p>A lot of Hall and Oates and early Toto/Foreigner in the prog bridge sections as well as Bee Gees Pablo Cruise but mainly a precursor to the late 70s albums by Toto</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/06SX3UZ8-Ro" width="320" youtube-src-id="06SX3UZ8-Ro"></iframe></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p><br /></p>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-87046748800373947312022-11-29T02:36:00.001-08:002022-11-29T02:36:06.726-08:00Led Zeppelin (1971) Four Sticks - LOST70sGEMS<p> The tune begins with a pile driving riff multi-tracked to sound as big as Kashmir, it is Indian, speed rock and monolithic as Zeppelin' most iconic riffs.The rattling battle drums of Bonham were achieved with the thickest drum Sticks available and two sets of them; the four Sticks of the title. The gung-ho riff has a funky Black Sabbath 'syncopate and wail' style, while the octave leaping notes sound slightly dissonant with its Eastern modalities. </p><p>The chorus is built around an Olde English folk guitar figure ending in string glissandos, it is played on a semi acoustic Danelectro backed with a snoring Moog part. Plant's reedy vocal sounds similar to the tone of Indian instruments. An onslaught of overdubbed fuzz Moogs take over with a new riff, carrying a raga tinge overstate what had been a subtle Indian sound. The ending shenai like synths and Plant's thin pitch vocal and undulating vocal gymnastics at the end confirm the Indian middle Eastern influence.The structure of the song is the same as Kashmir and Friends with a verse riff/chorus riff and a gigantic third riff that closes the whole thing out. </p><div>Lyrically, the haunted double-tracked glacial cries of Plant match the imagery of "owls cry in the night" as he describes either the end of a relationship or a drug addition in mysterious, fantastical metaphors.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/My1PH6H1Qpo" width="320" youtube-src-id="My1PH6H1Qpo"></iframe></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-90166161449238434102022-11-24T08:47:00.001-08:002022-11-24T08:47:12.538-08:00Badfinger (1971) Day After Day - LOST70sGEMS<p> A crash of sounds as big cymbals and acoustic guitars strike in unison to begin the track. Smothered in hypnotic layers of 12-string guitars, strumming eternally in the foreground while Pete Ham's sallow haunted vocals croon despairingly.</p><p>There's a glow to the track from George Harrison sweet lilting slide guitar aching through the mix to the golden sunshine of layers of guitars to the spellbinding use of twinkling tik-toking piano notes all add to the glorious splendour of this track. The bouncy bass drum turnarounds thud and roll like heavy artillery adding some hard rock and pace to the largely subdued tempo. </p><p> The drum parts kick in along with angelic oohs for the chorus to pick up before returning to the glistening malaise. This gilded production is an exercise in arrangement sense, to make lilting slide guitar, twilight piano, 12 string guitars together; the power of the vocals and the songwriting still make the track. The underlying tragic undercurrent of Pete Ham's songs was always evident, not just in the hit Without You but also here as he grimly recalls how "I remember finding out about you", it's not an endearing line but more of haunted statement, almost tinged with more regret and pathos as he struggles to go cold turkey off a relationship in a "lonely room, Day after Day" </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-btv-7GkVk0" width="320" youtube-src-id="-btv-7GkVk0"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-24866843630116319802022-11-03T07:50:00.001-07:002022-11-03T07:50:07.530-07:00Queen (1975) Good Company - LOST70SGEMS<br /><br /> Built around a skiffle ukelele tune with a philosophical message about friends and lovers and the importance of keeping good company is probably the best example of Brian May's orchestrated gutiar army concept. While the song treads the same acoustic May led shuffle as 39, this has such a range of guitar sounds it has to be broken down.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />It starts off with a trio of guitars pinging off in a a row of ascending frequencies, like a set of delayed arpeggios played in three rising octaves; it sounds like an old call signal or a TV Station Ident and functions as a motif or reoccurring break before returning to the skiffle.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Then around the 30 second mark, some syrupy flute like flutters enter and scampers around the edges of the song. The crystal clear bell tone of May's fills are fluid yet tactile. Then around 50 seconds the flute diddles are temporarily replaced by some rather spongy wah wah gasbag guitar fills chomping away in jazzy walking lines. Another run through of the 'radio station ident' delayed arpeggios, also known as a bell effect occurs ending at 1:08 in a particularly deliciously clean, triple tracked guitar scream; wrangled presumably with a very low gain tone setting so only the signal blares out with zero noise or ambiance; just a vacuum clean ghostly guitar shriek from the tracked guitars that if it wasn't for the pure distortion would mimic Roger Taylor's infamous "AAHHS" falsettos.<div><br /> The scruffy ukulele verse returns with the slap dash drums, some 'Flash Gordon/Procession/God Save the Queen' styled grand triple octave Court of the King processional guitar lines descend for this verse. Finally the group harmonies, dominated by Freddie deep velvet accent, appear for the first time, they segue in with their typical hushed 'lounge lizard' cabaret style, however it has occurred to me the undulating tone of their cooing vocals oohing and aahing matches the drawl of May's slushy/slurpy old timey clarinet licks, like a vocal reproduction of some of the Red Special. The way May could make his sleek guitar mimic the shrieks, oohs, aahhs of Mercury and Taylor's velvety vocals was very fitting. <br /><br /> A hyper phased bridge resembles everyone from Deep Purple Strange Kind of Woman to Rush's Fly By the Night, however right in the middle of it at 2.22, a piercing guitar with high pitch plays a pan flute type of doodle. As 2.40 approaches we descend into Brian May's own personal one man studio Dixieland Jazz band as he heaps different guitar sounds to replicate different 1920s Trad jazz, Big Band instruments on are ears. The slinky clarinet is a clear toned guitar playing a very fluid sustain like the flutes of earlier, except instead of little prancing riffs they play bawdy long figures. Around 2.56 an elephantine trombone bawls in, clearly achieved by sliding a note down the guitar's bass string, dragged with immense pressure and possibly detuned or slowed down to get the big, huffy brassiness. <br /><br />Among the baritone trombone bray of one guitar, buried deep beneath the clarinet and flutes are some guitars piping in with the chirpy Dixieland horns parts, clearly played out by more high ptiched, clean guitars.<br /><br />The Steamboat Willie-esque tin whistle pip at the end is the crackly 1920s jazz band cherry on top!</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/XQo5tqwAwgE" width="320" youtube-src-id="XQo5tqwAwgE"></iframe></div><br /><div><br /></div>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-84869345667648156882022-10-27T09:08:00.003-07:002022-10-27T14:46:08.599-07:00Gil Scott Heron (1971) The Prisoner - LOST70sGEMS<p> Off the legendary Pieces of a Man album, possibly the finest singer-songwriter record of all timecomes The Prisoner, a progressive song from one of the best voices in soul.</p><p>A 9 minute epic that starts ominously with the soul dampening thud of some bass drums, the eerie otherworldly scratchiness of an avant garde violin and the jangling of set of rusted chains. We are instantly thrown into a slave ship, the minimalism of those drums being struck with oppressive finality, the trembling vulnerability of Brian Jacksons' piano and Heron's iconic achingly crisp rasp. As always he is found contemplative and commenting against a smooth jazz double bass and piano combo, but the self destructive lyrics are given a new edge with the ceremonial pounding of the drums. </p><p>Delivering images of <i>"black babies shackled and bound"</i> and the violence done to them is arresting in it's horror and the desensitized brutality.</p><p>Further lines such as </p><p><i>"If I follow my mind, I know I'll slaughter my own" </i>and <i>"My woman, she don't say, but she hates to see her man chained this way...hemmed in by a suit and choked by a tie"</i> sum up the existential jail or prison of his state of mind that so many of his songs were set in.</p><p>The clinking of the rusting chains and the continual interruption of those one two punch drums are again another brutal contrast to the endless fluid piano runs. </p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2TGe_f_cYjI" width="320" youtube-src-id="2TGe_f_cYjI"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-47837807488248942742022-06-19T10:22:00.004-07:002022-06-19T10:22:47.339-07:00The Miracles (1975) Smog - LOST70SGEMS<p> A dazzling soundscape of a track by The Miracles, now pursuing the airy landscapes of their former front man Smokey Robinson, this shows off some excellent arrangment sense, reminscemnt of Norman Whitfield, Stevie Wonder and Roy Ayers.</p><p><br /></p><p>Flowering daisies of fuzzy korg synthesizers bloom over the track representing the dense clouds if air pollution that spring up from the ground instead of from the sky. The twangy chime of a water saw as it is scraped, adds a horror movie ambience fitting for the dangers of the inner city. The group's honeyed choral vocals loop over, Their gossamer harmonies glide over the track, softening the edges of the harsh instrumentation.</p><p><br /></p><p>The central instrumental hook is a gargly, mewling synth hook ascending in a wah wah scale to a abrupt yelp at the end. It could represent the industrial factories in the workers in them pumping away on autopilot til the sudden blare at the end of the hook representing them burning out.</p><p>The scratchy whine of the water saw clash with the rubbery thudding clop of a pair of castanets.</p><p>The plish plosh castanets represent leaky pipes or the sparse drops of water, while the weird synths are the overworked machines from AC units to nuclear generators to the hardworking inhabitants that run til they bust.</p><p>The atonal harmonics of the nasally clavinet, plopping castanets and water saw creaks and synth shreiks make this a very Progressive in sound.</p>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-84923382825329867452022-03-29T12:45:00.003-07:002022-03-29T13:01:50.305-07:00Jackson Five (1971) We've Got Blue Skies - LOST70SGEMS <p><br /></p><p>This luminescent tune begins by fading in with a Theremin warmly buzzing away like a bee on sunny day. It forms the main hook of the song and intro dominating proceedings. Panned acoustic arpeggios, a sharp flute fill out the rest along with an old timey pipe organ the kind you would hear at a circus, fanfare or carnival capturing the spirit of a new relationship.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/XUmkx3aT42U" width="320" youtube-src-id="XUmkx3aT42U"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>The Theremin is an oddity that makes the song memorable, it's fresh unique sound was different for a soft soul ballad. The pinging fuzz sound of the Theremin paints a picture in my mind of sunlight blazing out of a clear vibrant blue sky, partially obscured by a thin lens flare. Though a quirky sound, it works in creating a powerful sense of atmosphere like Kool and the Gang’s Summer Madness with its Dragnet style police siren hyperextended synth stings blazing a trail of fire into the stratosphere </p><p>The song is sung from the perspective of someone who feels betrayed as his ex's once vivid declaration of love for him which suggested they had a future now plays back in his head.</p><p><br /></p><p><i>"We've got blue skies, now can't you see?</i></p><p><i>There'll never ever be another love for me" </i></p><p><br /></p><p> The statement above acts as the chorus of the song, a line that turns out to be nothing more than an empty promise that now haunts the singer. Nicely in the final verse the singer can now hear her make the same pledge being made to her new lover; a suspicious sense of deja vu for the protagonist. The fatalism of the lyrics is pretty mature for what on the surface sounds like a Strawberry Fields type of psych pop nursery ditty.</p><p><br /></p><p>The three act structure is magical as the guy goes from initial doubts in the first verse to the strong suspicion surface in the second verse and then the humiliation, emptiness and resignment.</p><p><br /></p><p>The duplicity of his ex girlfriend is confirmed in the last verse as she recites the perfect blue skies of commitment to her new lover. Though the clouds will soon appear on the horizon knowing her track record.</p><p>Michael's little chuckle at the end of each verse is a slightly cheesy addition, that I can only guess is him pretending to reminiscing with good spirit. However when he continues to chuckle in the coda, it starts to sound incredibly forced and awkward</p><p><br /></p>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-60290458990648560382022-03-24T07:17:00.003-07:002022-03-24T07:17:58.290-07:00Doobie Brothers (1975) Flying Cloud - LOST70sGEMS<p> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">An instrumental credited to the band's long serving bassist Tiran Porter, it's dark mystic mood was one of the aspects of the Tom Johnson era of the band where they added a hypnotic jazzy bent to their folk/blues/southern rock sound. Opening with lapping waves and as a crystal clear acoustic progression chimes away; amidst the bucolic arpeggios, a warm heavily saturated synthesizer plays a series of honeyed sustains that sound sunny reggae organs but with smooth distorted polish. Then there is a hyperspatial Pink Floyd sounding slide guitar pinging off and around with a special polyphonic reverberation. This huge echoey slide guitar has the clean tone of Duane Allman but a spacey reverb adding yet another dimension to a track that doesn't even break the two minute barrier. The Grande echoey guitar remind me of The Eagles' portentous Sci-Fi instrumental Journey of the Sorcerer but without the string section and extended track time, this comes off as a cool studio experiment.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9y5WB7p3rpY" width="320" youtube-src-id="9y5WB7p3rpY"></iframe></div><br /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span><p></p>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-54395569638949178782022-03-20T09:40:00.004-07:002022-03-20T09:40:32.835-07:00The Dramatics (1977) Ocean Of Thoughts And Dreams - LOST70sGEMS<p> <span style="font-family: Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-style: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-weight: inherit;">A slick soul track from the late 70s that rides on an acoustic guitar lick based around hammer-ons and pull offs that lull you in with its ascending step by step feel. The clear acoustic guitar with tasteful kickdrum throbbing in the background dominates over the traditional sweeping strings, another notable touch is the the bubbling over wah wah watson slide guitar that ends each verse. The acoustic guitar and gospel backing harmonies along the </span>ascending<span style="font-size: 12pt; font-style: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-weight: inherit;"> scale of the songs' main hook give the track a golden sunrise gleam while the hushed lead vocals add a soothing seductive vibe. </span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-style: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-weight: inherit;">The acoustic lick is the anchor that kicks off each line of the verse and runs throughout the song like motif that has more to say than the lyrics. However, the lyrics are pensive and meditative in mood, gliding along and opening up our own personal Ocean of thoughts and dreams. </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/r-JmPmz84I0" width="320" youtube-src-id="r-JmPmz84I0"></iframe></div><br /><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; font-family: Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white;" /></div>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-47655970244992466152021-06-07T10:56:00.001-07:002021-06-07T10:56:04.977-07:00Gil Scott Heron (1977) We almost Lost Detroit - LOST70sGEMS<p> Supposedly based on an incident where a local power station almost blew up half of Detroit, it is also named after a 1975 book on the same subject, it features ghostly echoed synthesizers mimicking the lead vocal with a cool, subtle spookiness that embodied most of Scott-Heron's work. His literary voice, crisply detailing some prose, very visual and tangible and earnest to the core. His melancholy always just slipping underneath the surface of every line, while he is backed by TONTO's Expanding Head Band; a duo whose multi analogue synthesizer setup was a go to for many soul artists of the mid 70s era providing unique textures for each note like an orchestra over the usual synth combo and effects patches. A stunning plea from the wrecks of a once mighty juggernaut of a city. The cold urban landscape captures in the meandering pools of Synthesizer pads and markedly captures the desolate car graveyards of Detroit, where the American Dream died. Laying on a bed of fading blues licks and muted keyboard flutters, the tone of desperation is similar to Marvin Gaye's What's Going On but is accentuated by Herons citified growl; so gentle yet unspeakably ominous and drenched in foreboding, like he is almost resigned to his fate. It reminds me of the quieter, comedown spaced out numbers of Sly Stone but arguably with more socio potency.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/cpNUqNe0U5g" width="320" youtube-src-id="cpNUqNe0U5g"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-64421216790952462062021-06-05T09:25:00.010-07:002021-06-05T09:25:43.910-07:00The Dramatics (1971) In the Rain - LOST70sGEMS<p> Starting with some corny cracks of thunder from an effects library and some overused wind wailing, we get an incredible jolt as a heavily tremolo guitar rings out while a synth zaps a laser bolt like note. The enchanting flute, soothing strings and earthy vocals all combine with the guitar basic tracks to create a very evocative, humid atmosphere; it isn't helped by the corny rain sounds that keep returning. However nothing can take the shine off Wah Wah Watson's guitar work, the rattlesnake torqueage, the clangy, ramshackle chords echoing out in lopsided fashion. The dragged tremble chords act like sploshing puddles as they ripple with every disturbance of its surface while the darting Synthesizer ping; like an beaming ray gun discharge that fires off deep into the dark recesses like a shot to the heart, a zing to a string or even a massive rain drop slipping off a ledge into endless oblivion. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ux8gZuvTVR8" width="320" youtube-src-id="ux8gZuvTVR8"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-89537847658943581542021-05-09T09:03:00.001-07:002021-05-09T09:03:08.836-07:00T Rex (1971) Get It On - LOST70sGEMS ESSAY The track begins mid groove, a rhythm guitar sort of lurches around almost sounding like it's two guitars. Then the chirpy 'Morse code' sounding lead guitar of Marc Bolan enters, at first squeaking away in the background before interjecting with that now iconic guitar riff. Staunchly robust, like Link Wray's Rumble, The Kingsmen' Louie Louie or The Kinks' You Really Got Me; all you need is a short, sharp, simple little doodle that grinds itself into your brain. <div> The sax tail offs at the end of each guitar riff help provide a neat turnaround phrase, so we can swing right back into the start of the riff again. The partially hidden elements of the song, from the bawling saxes to the zinging piano glissandos to the droning backing vocals that creep in from time to time, they all somehow blend seamlessly into the fabrics of the track, which is made up of trembling vocals, leaden guitar, trebly bass and biscuit box drums. <br /><br />This is a car song in some ways, the way the verses crank up for the ear drum busting chorus or the way the guitar, bass and sax all rev up during the bumping chorus before the ecstatic cry of "Get It On" </div><div>What's remarkable is this manages to be both an immortal ode to 50s rock and roll whilst smacking of that soulful/ hipcocking strut that frequently dominated the early 70s rock scene. <br /><br /> One of the great things about this track is how Marc Bolan draws you in with his slithering, entrancing delivery; he never actually overdoes it, there is no lisping or overly camp pronunciations, unlike in other parts of his discography. The repetitive verses with their backstreet metaphors work a charm, you can almost picture Bolan with his jet black, leather jacket swank, coming on to a woman during this song. The leering, suggestive lead vocal, his idling Les Paul guitar, just ticking over; the surging rhythm guitar is the anchor, a calm before the storm before the riotous chorus cracks into life. Suddenly the harmonies wail, the saxes gargle and the guitar screeches fly right off the neck. They are then all bottled back up again, the restless energy is brought back into submission as we slip back into that chug, always ready to explode back into life again.</div><div><br /> The underlying tension of the verses are palpable from the subtle scoring of vocal hums; gradually building in size as band members join in on the act, one by one, the volume of the hums increasing as they are steadily pushed further forward in the mix. It sounds like a choir of throat singers or a human didgeridoo at full blast before dropping off again, occasionally returning in waves before dissipating out again; lurking around, waiting to seap back in, ultimately creating an unsettling sense of unease.<br /><br />The juxtaposition of the agitated, pared down verses into the white hot, yelping chorus with its busy sound and those inimitable harmonies jolting you with shrieking orders to '<i>get it on</i>', and '<i>bang a gong</i>' while you're at it, in that order; is it a about drug use, sex or just oriental percussion? </div><div><br /></div><div>Few cover bands exist that can even attempt T Rex, for many reasons, from the fact Bolan hit such a perfect balance of gritty and yet smooth to the stodgy, glam rock bop to the fact those harmonies were so impossibly shrill and high.<br /> For example, the harmony vocal does something unusual; usually the pitch of a vocal line naturally lowers as the vocal drops off, but here the vocal line increases in pitch almost inflecting upwards with each word. Speaking Get It On, the words would all stay flat on the same tone with no deviation, but on the track, Flo and Eddie start high on the first word as they shriek 'Get' then continue to go up, ending even higher on 'on'. It's so hard to replicate as your natural instincts are to lower the pitch as the vocal goes out.<br /><br /> The bump and grind rhythm guitar and cooing snarl of Bolan are poised like a coiled snake ready to pounce as they do in the big hook of the song. </div><div>Proceeding at a staggered pace, the guitar riff continues to pip up at the end of every couplet during the verse and each call during the rave up chorus; kinda like an imitation of what a horn part would play in those fills. The rock steady drum beat keeps the whole thing from being let loose and or go off the rails for a few more bars of foreplay, then turning into a heavy oil drum pounding when the chorus begins to rave up, before releasing the tension once again on cue as we slide back into that endless groove.</div><div><br /> It's early 70s hard rock in its sensational dynamics and cool swagger, shifting from the gruff masculine verses, which are almost mumbled, to the 'clear as daylight' penetration of those big choral harmonies. The ghostly backing vocals in the chorus are strained and euphoric for the orgasmic chorus, the tempo is driven up, the drum beat ramps up and the song almost climaxes before swiftly shifting down gears for the sensual verses. In between all these elements are Bolan's thrusting posteurs; tossing off axe and vocal licks aplenty and don't forget contributing the initial guitar riff and possessing that almighty, quivering voice that seems to be dragged along by the locked in grooves like a phone on vibrator mode.<br />Bolan bursts out the words, 'Take me!' in an exasperated and breathless tone of voice before unleashing a little guitar part that temporarily fools us into thinking we're gonna get a solo. Instead we continue on this exhausting blues rock carousel; it feels like workout of rock tune, like running on the treadmill with someone constantly putting your pace settings up every four bars.</div><div><br />The monotonous groove, the circular riffs that seem almost synchronised or set off by a timer, as well as the repeated, cheap corner store couplets add to this idea of rock as a western form of mantra; lulling you in whilst exciting all your physical senses. Songs like this are almost transcendental, compared to any club track being played or overplayed in any nightclub, they never get old or too familiar, you're just stuck listening to it on repeat for it's excited highs; trapped on it's catchy conveyor belt. Finally one last point, this song is the epitome of Rock and Roll, in how it rolls along in the teasingly flirtatious verses and then literally rocks you in the chorus.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/FyzWDl0nz00" width="320" youtube-src-id="FyzWDl0nz00"></iframe></div><br /><div><br /></div>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-44526072143713546752020-11-13T11:21:00.001-08:002020-11-13T11:21:10.235-08:00Pink Floyd (1971) Echoes - LOST70sGEMS<p> Pink Floyd's Echoes was the song most people remember when they think of their 1971 album Meddle; this was before the Dark Side world domination era of the band when they were in transition from their original success as thee definitive band of London's Psychedelic scene in the late 60s. Echoes was the key track that pointed towards the Dark Side Prog Rock era, the era that would define them and house their best work, Echoes would be immortalised by the band's storming rendition of it in the centre of an old ruined coliseum in Pompeii, Italy (in a spellbinding concert film called...you guessed it.. Live in Pompeii.)</p><p> Famously starting with what sounds like the 'ping' of a Sonar signal, it was actually created by an electric piano note being plonked and sent through a Hammond Leslie Amp and an echo unit for that cold, spacey pulse. It's a desolate sound with an icy effect that transcended any gimmickry, and would influence later Floyd experiments like the knotty overlapping cash register rattle of Money and random Helicopter rotor blade interludes of Another Brick in the Wall Part 1. </p><p> A couple of liquid guitars soon join the Sonar, as both instruments begin to ripple, undulate and modulate with the tide of ambient sound textures, slowly filling in the wide open, sub-aquatic space. The guitar work begins to take a turn towards the flamenco, then big drums crash in for a Phil Collins' In the Air Tonight style of drum rolls for an explosive transition. The thin but winsome Gilmour-Wright harmonies then descend upon us in floaty lines that are gently hung over the hypnotic brew of ambient organ. Their flat, droning voices recite the words like a mantra with seemingly possessed quality to it; this style of close harmony singin, popularised by Simon and Garfunkel. perfectly blends Gilmour's distinctive cutting warble with Wright's primitive whimper.</p><p> It's a successful technique for conveying the type of wide eyed Hippy poetry of the lyrics, the vocals first describe the setting starting with the line 'Overhead the albatross Hangs ..' their vocals hover over everything much like the Albatross, rising high into the clouds just like their dainty falsettos. </p><p><br /></p><p> The first verse is largely pastoral imagery ala Yes' Topographical Oceans, but the second verse brings the whole rhythm backing to a standstill, as Gilmourwright commentate 'Strangers passing in the street, By chance, two separate glances meet, And I am you and what I see is me'. It should be romantic but it feels strangely much closer to themes of detachment and social isolation similar to Wish You Were Here with it's fiery handshake cover or Dark Side of the Moon's Us and Them. In the last verse, the fire that had been smothered and buried deep inside them has now broken free, no longer as 'green as submarine', and now no one calls them 'to move on' and 'no one forces down' their eyes; an original description of how young people must come of age and see things for themselves; no longer having their eyes cupped by their elders, resisting attempts to contain or restrain by the establishment. </p><p><br /></p><p> A guitar passage then acts as a chorus, like the tolling of a bell as Gilmour's trebly hundred-tonne guitar intones and divebombs down into a spiral, before another flamenco influenced jazz solo with many guitars playing at different pitches, tape speeds and reverb settings howl. The fantastic drums and organ combo of Mason and Wright anchor the next section with a funky backbeat where percussive organ chords are broken up by hyper aggressive fills from Gilmour; wringing every inch of sonic bite and fury in his vibrato. No wonder it's called Echoes, from the natural resonance of Mason's drums to the multi-layers of guitars, we get a variety of wet and dry textures; the soaring notes cry out before we segue into the creepy Musique Concrete part. </p><p><br /></p><p> The long ghostly 'wind' effect erases all vestiges of the band's playing till we're transported to a dark exterior night scene; the wall of sound easily could be anything from dogs growling to crows crowing or just a very heavy gale, but it is actually Waters' bass with a slide ring and more tape effects to create a white noise. But this part of the suite get's even chillier with the entrance of a bizarre high pitched whine that, though emitted from Gilmour's guitar, has far more in common with some feral creature. The background sound collage begins to subtly oscillate as if the night is enveloping us or we're Dorothy, plummeting helplessly down the eye of the tornado, while a ring modulated organ adds more Sonar like qualities. Then some terrifying screams from that guitar jerk you to a very alert and panic state, the guitar shrieks out in these bursts of blood curdling mania, it reminds me of a cockerel or peacock in it's whooping manner, but the discordant screech is probably closer to that of a Theremin. </p><p><br /></p><p>The iconic Sonar 'ping' and Wright's endless organ washes slowly creep in, followed by the chug of Gilmour's hand muted guitar and Mason's precise cymbal work, acrobatically filling the sonic space back up. A Celtic sounding arpeggio by Gilmour adds a hopeful 'dawn breaking over the horizon' wonder to the section as the band builds to yet another verse. The verses are so drearily sung in a tinny, droll manner that it comes across almost comatose and the heavy English accents add a zombified cult like nature as was common with Pink Floyd's disembodied voice. </p><p><br /></p><p> The song pretty much bookends itself with one last flourish; a reverse echo sucking everything into its vortex, the ebb and flow of those ghoulish walls of sound towards the end, whether humans or something else, creates such an unsettling effect, it stands timelessly with anything one could produce today. Is it the sound of a crowd sighing, or is it the sound of the sirens of the French metro system ..whatever it is it caps off a magnificent composition and a successful experiment of what Prog could be beyond pretentious classical indulgences and would influence Van Der Graaf Generator, Robert Fripp and even that song Piltdown Man by Mike Oldfield.</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/53N99Nim6WE" width="320" youtube-src-id="53N99Nim6WE"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-23821049163150325922020-10-27T11:03:00.003-07:002020-10-27T11:12:45.037-07:00Smokey Robinson (1978) Quiet Storm Live - LOST70sGEMS<p>Defined by, famous session guitarist, Wah Wah Watson's Incredible Guitar fills, I was inspired to write my first live post on this 1978 performance of the soul standard, Quiet Storm; a live post, as in a review of a live rendition as opposed to writing this live because who would want to follow that?</p><p>The familiar jaunty walking bass line comes bounding in to the whoops and hollers of an excited audience while Wah Wah Watson's heavily reverbed slide guitar chirps away like a bird; Congas and Smokey's heavenly tenor add a dusky humid feel to the verses. A drawling blues figure lurks in the background, it's sacharine, lilting and thin tone reminds me of the one that opens Band on the Run by Wings, while dry, mellifluous flute swirls in; meanwhile Smokey's voice carries it's own inbuilt cascading filter; self produced of course😉. While the splintering guitar chinks of Watson are add a modern sheen as the lyrics of 'inner circuits' sound more dated, but those skewering slides down the neck are still so fresh. At the 3 minute mark a very metallic steel drum sounding organ punches in and flutters like the flute before Sonny Burke is announced on the keyboards by Smokey to the audience and starts soloing in an undefinable tone, playing a heavily delayed and echoey wrinkly clavinet that chimes in slinky tripled reverbs. Then Wah Wah Watson tosses out a few waka waka 'cracks' like their frisbies as a jazz flute soloes out of control like an exotic bird, whistling away before the performance sought've just ends there amongst the clapping for the excellent flute solo. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VdZwKGYZRaM" width="320" youtube-src-id="VdZwKGYZRaM"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-62546761864151471442020-10-26T06:41:00.001-07:002020-10-26T06:41:02.366-07:00Queen (1975) Millionaires' Waltz - LOST70sGEMS<p> </p><p><br /></p><p>This track, Millionaire's Waltz, is a perfect union of Freddie Mercury's undulating Vaudeville music theatre glam rock, their controlled expulsions of their vocal harmonies and Brian May' sweet, glowing guitar fills. May's Red Special has a gorgeously juicy yet remarkably clear tone; it's homemade charm means it practically clicks and clacks under the tough legato play of May and his robust digits; the manual labour he uses to wring out every lick on his cheap rig is commendable considering he still uses the same guitar forty years on and counting! You virtually hear him crank the guitar neck with each bend, wielding away his lightsabre tone in and out of Mercury's feather light piano, velvety vocals and the cooing harmonies to create a tough soft rock ballast that defines terms like soft rock or power balladry.</p><p><br /></p><p>The Millionaire's Waltz is built around a familiar Queen technique of using hard rock instrumentation to play older styles of music from 'court of the king' pan flute music to olde English maypole folk. The orchestrated melodies re-inacted with such a bracing, tactile and haptic electric guitar is one of their best traits displaying their unique take on Prog rock's established love of classical music forms. This starts with sturdy piano chords, noodle-ey bass machinations and Freddie's big wide voice with fairy voiced Roger Taylor's little harmonies. Deacon' bass notes gurgle and bubble in little up and down patterns before, while Freddie and the dreamers voices caress and soar all at once. But it's Brian May's additions that make it; from the walking guitar line at 2 minutes 30 where he turns the notch up into a powered horror film motif to his twiddling guitar waltz at the three minute mark complete with triangle and gong pinging and piano continuing to plink away; the mix of his overdriven sound and more traditional acoustic percussion backing him up his superb mix of old and new, natural and synthetic as the guitar's range stay central while the piano and drums splash out all over with plenty of air to ring out.</p><p><br /></p><p>I particularly love how May clenches, clangs the tough piano strings of his franken-guitar, every tweak unfurled in clear sunburst sustains; it's so electronic, analogue in it's texture full of diodes, currants and signals created by wiring and metal over the strings and ivory of the other instruments. His treacly guitar parts sway, ballet and twirl around in a tandem with Mercury's stomping piano and Taylor's air horn vocals; this 'dance' mixing Elizabethan grace and whimsy to art rock arrangement of plonking piano, twinkling triangles, hysterical falsetto harmonies blasting off and Brain May's guitar zapping away. The highlight has got to be the weeping guitar figure at 3.50 which would return at the end of Bohemian Rhapsody too, the glowing sustain practically dripping before revving back up into more fuzzed-out rhythm guitar and a sea of fluffy, sped up guitars gang up on us for one last run through of Freddie's melody. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/H-P0VznfK_E" width="320" youtube-src-id="H-P0VznfK_E"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-21017873367884980212020-10-21T08:09:00.003-07:002020-10-21T08:09:29.823-07:00Paul Kantner and Jefferson Starship(1970) Sunrise- LOST70sGEMS<p> The first use of the Jefferson Starship moniker was in 1970 for a side project from the very much active Jefferson Airplane; credited to Paul Kantner and the Jefferson Starship, the project was a concept album named Blows Against the Empire that would even go onto win a Hugo award for Sci-Fi. The album like David Crosby's first solo album were recorded at the same time and in the same studio and would feature a large ensemble of artists cross pollinated from different SF bands workin on this and the Crosby project with no real connection to the Jefferson Starship's official debut four years later; only Paul Kantner, Grace Slick and David Freiberg would remain to for the Starship's debut.</p><p>Mau Mau (Amerikon) is a Cream SWABLR sounding rave blues with Dylanesque accents and town cryer vocals and an archaic centuries old acapella intro; while it owes a debt to the noise rock of bands like Velvet Underground, The Seeds, The Sonics etc, by this point bands like Zeppelin and the Stooges had already moved passed that beat group style of garage rock to heavier fare. The Jerry Garcia banjo tune The Baby Tree is the same Pete Seeger working class folk style of song, stickin out like a sore thumb on this album due to it's stripped sensibility. The next track Let's Go Together could easily be the most generic Hippy tune of all as they wail defiantly about going to a starship 'right now' as they 'wave goodbye to America', sought've fits with the Post Trump era sentiments; possibly a track that could be in use in a couple weeks for the next election. </p><p>A Child is Coming is Sunshine Pop a year after it went out of fashion, but still a nice detraction if a little lacking in creativity as the vocals continue to prattle on with this empty rhetoric; none of the bite of later social conscious hip hop for example, just more of a mix of fantasy with some clumsy attempt at real world relevance. The call and response between Kantner and Slick in the middle is at first dramatic but soon goes on too long and repetitive and you start to question is it really 'gettin better' as they repeatedly claim? The ramping up tension of the rootsy strumming, piano scale leads to a great interjection of searing, whining lead guitar that feedbacks in and out of your left channel. However, it just keeps going till the end dominating the six-minute tune with the hopeful lyrics falling flat, much in the same way that the progression never really takes off. After a while the track just sought've stayed put never built to a climax in the way they would do so expertly on Epic 38 on Grace's solo album (see prior post). </p><p> Sunrise is an FX extravaganza as a droning electric guitar is fed back itself in big harmonic walls of dissonance, while Slick cleverly uses a Middle Eastern style of throat singing where she pushes her voice to it's limits, using the slightest twitches of her vocal cords to create skipping stone series of natural vibrato and breaks that only instruments and the most talented Berber singers usually achieve. Layers of overdriven guitar ring out in thunderous clouds of feedback; bassist Jack Cassady of the Airplane uses a stringed bow to drawl, scissor and dither over the bridge of his bass guitar (ala Jimmy Page), this allows a rumbling, synthetic orchestra whilst remaining a shape shifting monster of fuzzed out notes; abruptly able to change pitch and cutoff girth.</p><p> Hijack starts off sounding almost exactly like Friends by Led Zeppelin with it's jumpy acoustic hammer on eastern riff and tabla; the vocals, however, remind me of the Byrds and as always feature Grace sticking out from the background as if kept to the back of the studio due to her piercing tone always poking through. In Hijack, Kantner claims the Starship will start building in 1980 and be ready by 1990; more like built in 74 and ready by 84 for their big chart-topping successes with the shortened Mickey Thomas line-up. The change of tempo and a new acoustic riff at the 3-minute 20 mark is gloriously preceded by a little count off keeping a neat live performance feel that is unless there are overdubs and fixes, which I'm sure there are as these are polished performances and their live shows never matched their studio craft. Two minutes later and a Gypsy lyric and a funky rock strum enter and we get treated to some modal soloing before a laser beam of crackly electric distortion segues and seethes in a raging wah wah; Star Wars laser gun sound effects also ping off. The mundane piano and mandolin like acoustic slowly fade the tune out reminding me for some reason of the Cosmic Celtic bluegrass amalgamation of The Eagles' Journey of the Sorcerer; which like my earlier Star Wars reference was still several years off by this point.</p><p>The 37 second snippet Home packs a lot in; as tinny, canned cymbals clang before an oscillating signal enters and the tape is sped up to astronomical high pitch as if it's being rewound. Then follows, more blotches of 'cigarette burn' laser beams, a whirring wall of noise; which I believe is just a series of takes of distorted electric guitar with a tubular bell hammered sparsely for ambience, then this recording is sped, slowed and panned off into atmospheric static white noise that undulates like the ocean....Anyhoo, monk chanting finish the dirge Home and an acoustic guitar strums along joyfully.. a cutting pedal steel guitar peers in and out in crystal teardrop notes and a chorus finally returns as we realise, we are well into the next track; Have You Seen the Stars Tonite? </p><p>A bicycle bell rings in childish jingles, and a strange yet smooth coagulating distortion wriggles every now n' then, potentially produced by an electric reverbed guitar amp or something else..like a synth. XM is even more wild, starting with World War 2 era explosions and turbine sounds before some wobbling signals and radiator like buzz takeover before being washed away by ear caressing and very modern sounding phased 'whooshes'.</p><p>Industrial sounds of hydraulics, wind, ghostly theremin, white noise and many clipped sound crashes are weaved as if by a studio console, mixing desk or a synthesizer. Next song, Starship, drifts in with a happy piano progression, a nice little bass line, acoustic strum and group vocals espousing their hippi credentials, but it does contain a great line about 'an acid fever' that swamps the mind and gets in the way of the human experience, preventing you from connecting with others; it's a nice albeit brief bit of introspection on a very big concept album full of 'big picture' statements and counter cultural messages. But of course, it's Jerry Garcia with his lightning rod guitar solo that really stands out, he was often the cameo appearance who stole the limelight; as we all remember his immortal pedal steel on Crosby Stills and Nash' Teach Your Children.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/sa5yFYyZuSg" width="320" youtube-src-id="sa5yFYyZuSg"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-73671873115142373742020-10-20T03:58:00.004-07:002020-10-20T03:58:47.956-07:00Grace Slick (1974) Epic(#38) - LOST70sGEMS<p> Manhole is the first solo album by Grace Slick, and yes that's the title, it was released just before the rise of the Jefferson Starship, their 70s incarnation of their 60s band Jefferson Airplane. Album opener Jay starts with a eaceful intersecting array of acoustic guitar picking while Slick sings softly in mock Spanish, the panning and subtle echo work give off an quietly intxicating heat as her dulcet vocal overdubs caress the inner ear. </p><p> Theme from the the movie "Manhole" is fantastic too starting with a 70s piano soft rock sound, coursing vocal wails, slowly building dynamics, lead guitar working it's way to the fore til it's in full solo and best of all a downbeat piano progression. Another flamenco passage and more Spanish sung lyrics enter and while it all is pleasant, it feels very inauthentic but the song soon moves on into a big orchestra section where Slick wails in her Plant-esque style full of warbling tonsils, timpanis bang, cellos bray and strings scorch. Before we know it we're in a delightful Andalusian mandolin part, there is a long note from Slick which she always could pull off easily, then some trebly bass stumbles and plod along while triumphant horns and graceful strings intertwine for the mian body of the song as she sings abotu Spanish Wind. The best part is an electric guitar playing in a mandolin style; very tactile, strumming near the bridge fo the gutiar in a high pitched register with lightning quick abrasiveness and crystal clear timbre. The ending captures some top notch power balladry as Slick sings with bracing urgency about the state of affairs as the majestic full orchestra reigns down and the lead gutiar solos away. The coda is a return to the strident piano of the start with some banjo proving you can throw as many ideas as you like to a song if it sticks its fine otherwise it ends up a hot mess, I'm not sure how to evaluate this 15 minute suite; it was a soundtrack to a movie that never came about, much like this song, it's unfulfilled. </p><p>¿Come Again? Toucan starts with a damn loud mock Arriba! before we get some fluid electric flamenco laden 70s soft rock along the lines of Carole King or Stevie Nicks in it's mellow piano led arrangement and bewitched romantic vocals. It's Only Music is David Freiberg's moment to shine, a lot of this album was backed by the Jefferson Starship with Craig Chaquico providing all those lovely flamenco guitar. Freiberg's poppy folk rock high tenor and the melodic chords make this Dylanesque tune stand out as a flavourful solo spills out all over the track. The deep rumbling bass synthesizer always a presence waiting to drag out the tension appears on this track as does some Byrds/Poco sounding backing vocals on this ultimately a hybrid of 70s countrified soft rock and 60s psych folk pop. Grace returns on Better Lying Down a poor honky tonk blues injection with zero charisma just riding along with some very on the nose lyrics and no fun; Slick's wailing and tenacious delivery don't meld with fun lovin rock n roll. </p><p>The closer Epic(#38) starts with some startling duets of electric guitar/fuzz synth playing off strings butting in before a very Celtic strings drive this rocker; we get a melange of the dithering strings quivering in full Irish dance mode, 60s hippie rootsy harmonies and marching band triplet rolls. There is a spacey easy listening chorus, marked by more evergreen strings and little more electric mandolin strumming before a mid section where otherworldly glass harmonica (that thing with the glasses half full of water and licking the rim of the glass for high pitched wails otherwise impossible on traditional instruments). It's hypnotic as the hippy sounds continue, sweet flamenco jazz guitar, haunting picked notes, cymbals crackle, then we even get treated to some trumpets pipping up as the folky chorus continues. Finally it all builds to a magnificent Wagnerian cello riff that is joined one by one by the vocals, a variety of percussion, electronic synth and finally Chaquico's guitar who had been soloing separately this whole time creating an Epic climax to the album; now you understand it's name of not the #38 part</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/B0lmaI0bgAw" width="320" youtube-src-id="B0lmaI0bgAw"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-39040147843357534832020-10-18T05:31:00.002-07:002020-10-18T05:31:20.815-07:00 Paul Kantner, Grace Slick, and David Freiberg (1973) Fat - LOST70sGEMS<br /> Paul Kantner, Grace Slick, and David Freiberg collaborated on this pre-Jefferson Starship album called Baron von Tollbooth & the Chrome Nun; apparently Freiberg doesn't get a nickname. Ballad of the Chrome nun is a Quiksilver/Heart/Santana style of mystic tinged Latin blues rocker featuring Craig Chaquico' fluid wah wah, Fat is a mesmerising vocal performance and studio production as Grace Slick's witchy vocal slice and cut in sharply delivered sputters whilst being multi-tracked and given a slight phasing for a sky scraping tone; the multi-chorused, delayed country choral vocals, mellotron backing distantly make this a incandescent gem I love. Freiberg's Flowers of the Night is the typical SF sound of these artists as blues guitar and Hippy rousing folk rock mix with some strident harmonies and mellotron. Walkin is a delightful stretch of country rock as a truly ethereal violin comes across as a pop instrument while the banjo laced verses are an effective foundation for the group's melodic Hippy folk rock as the harmonies are as freewheeling as the country guitar and undulating tempo. Your Mind Has Left your Body begins with overdriven guitar and mournful pedal steel slowly waltzing with some piano turns, but the 'Riders of the Rainbow' mumbo jumbo lyrics and talk of "kissing the nearest sun" with such sobriety displays the worst of the Hippy music scene; though Slick's unchained vocals swaying and getting worked up with the mellotron, some cyborg synthesizer and Chaquico's syrupy guitar notes is fabulous. <br /><br />Across the Board is another mellotron and driven tune with Grace up front with more countrified rhythms and thankfully less Hippy sentiments but more Female empowerment than airy-fairy, Flower Power astrology, some of the raw roars from Slick are priceless even if the song is a little explicit. Help Free Lament returns to dated 60s revolutionary rock over the better country mainstream rock of the other half of this album with the incredible high sandpaper coarse, sunshine pop harmony texture the only saving grace. White Boy has some mechanical guitar brooding, African drum work, faded backing vocals and some well executed suspense in a dark rock atmosphere while the medieval harmonies keep things in line with the mood; the ending warped guitar toque scrapes and screams are so Martian in their blistering tone. The darkness pervades the soulful Fishman, which while reminds me of Big Brother and Holding Company, the dripping wah wah guitar that emulates a Moog or Electric Sitar at times has the smooth squelch of a bullfrog, though the song practically peters out without going anywhere. A gong predictably kicks of Sketches of China but it soon becomes another hippy folk sing-a-long with pretty shallow messages that sound meaningful and thoughtful till they repeat it a hundred times over the course of the song. <div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/aKJmoyFqB68" width="320" youtube-src-id="aKJmoyFqB68"></iframe></div><br /><div><br /></div>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-76960693214826348762020-10-18T02:25:00.001-07:002020-10-18T02:25:11.026-07:00 Paul Kantner and Grace Slick (1971) Diana Part 1 - LOST70sGEMS<p> Paul Kantner and Grace Slick' forerunner to the Jefferson Starship starts with Silver Spoon, where Spanish castanets rattle but Slicks' modal wailing owes more to the East, as the song heads into a piano led verse its unmistakable as she sings about picking up the food by hand over a silver spoon; the way food has been traditionally eaten since start of civilisation in Asia and the middle east. We're not even a full minute into the album and Slick begins to show off her powerful vibrato warbler as she did in White Rabbit's epic climax. Papa John Creach' electric violin screeches and dazzles in shrieking fills over guitar feedback and a repeating piano note. The violin in its thin creaky tone is pushed to the max with octave jumping slides while the distorted guitar drones aimlessly in sparse coils to merely colour the Elton John-esque ballad. We get short snippet of a folk rocker called Diana Part 1 that segues into the title track; an ecological and very hippie-esque ode with swirling flute and aggressive muted horns pipping up and butting in, Kantner voice clearly pales in comparison to his partner Slick's, though it does work on Diana Pt 1. The raga tinged blues slide licks and Spaghetti western operatic backing vocals live up to its title and the terribly photoshopped cover image of a baby held out from the sparkling crimson waves as a half Jaffa sun dips into the horizon. </p><p> Sound engineer Phil Sawyer takes a track all for himself, the eerie haunting ghost track called Titanic which mixes sound effects of all kinds reminding me of Pink Floyd's Echoes middle section. In the palette are an oscillating pulse running through the whole thing as rushing waves break, foghorns blare ominously, ship' tackle crackle, a siren cries and whines while a steady wall of sound and volume collide as sound collages drum up the intensity.</p><p>Look at the Wood is a silly bluegrass ode to a carpenter with a heavy guitar solo and acoustic hammer on chord progression rolling on. When I was a Boy I Watched the Wolves..no that's not a personal statement but the next song title, here mandolin and more raging guitar feedback ping and pong with a knotty acoustic picked rhythm line. Slick and Kantner go back to those ill advised Appalachian two part harmonies which don't mix with their cringey Utopian lyrics. Again Kantners' dour folk rock vocal shouldn't be given such prominence as its Slick' haughty, sonorous voice that is much stronger and fits the dramatictrack where rough piano keys are plonked and guitar notes struck.</p><p>Million is a weak plea to reignite the San Francisco commune-ity for one last chance at a peaceful world as the 60s dream dies. A Moog warping underneath and country picking creeps up in the intro and finale. There is of course more thundering piano keys and Kantner dominated droning harmonies while a teenage Craig Chaquico again plays like his life depends on it; the middle section follows a chord progression very similar to Sultans of Swing...just an observation.</p><p>The next is a sweet tune named after Paul and Grace' child China who appears as the baby on the album cover with one hand being Grace and one hand by Paul it's a beautiful image and the rousing march carries a Hey Jude or Aretha Franklin styled gospel structure. While Earth Mother is another hippie bluegrass picker about the joys of parenthood, Diana Pt 2 continues the 'do-right' hippy "goody two shoes" preaching and more catty Moog notes whine off like the lyrics into nothing. Universal Copernican Mumbles is what the title suggests, as the second instrumental of the album we are treated to watery synth oscillations over a standard jazz piano, as the tension racks up and Kantner employs some Pink Floyd vocals that ping off each other with their dark intoning half-speak like the British band were famous for.</p><p>The closing track to this mixed album and mixed collaboration doesn't at first seem to feature Grace at all, aside form the first few tracks this is a Paul Kantner solo album and not in a good way, lacking the electricity Slick's voice would bring if given the spotlight and freedom to soar. A joyous piano and more rigid folk humming vocals from Kantner espouses some cosmic lyrics as if birthing Starship right then and there; the song is basically a longwinded jazz blues guitar jam...though the piano part in the middle does sound an awful lot like the melody to I Fought the Law and the Law Won.. again just an observation;)</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/x30R3oL8uyA" width="320" youtube-src-id="x30R3oL8uyA"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-33315475610166279502020-10-15T06:04:00.002-07:002020-10-15T06:04:37.024-07:00Rolling Stones (1972) Shine a Light - LOST70sGEMS<p> This closing track to the towering Exile on Main Street album is probably one of the better-known forgotten gems (if that makes any sense?) when it was used as the title for a Rolling Stones concert film in the 2000s; but it deserves more appreciation for its incredible arrangement and production. Exile is rightly considered as the peak of the Stones' discography, it acts as the ultimate British tribute to Americana from the blues to honky tonk to rock n roll, gospel soul, country and rockabilly and more in all their guises and sub genres. There remains a strong traditionalism to the song writing, while the DIY basement recording setup of Chateaux Nellcôte also helps. It is a bit of a mystery how a bunch of middle-class rock stars from the South of England with their entourage of famous actors and models in tow could create an album of working-class roots music in a luxurious South of France retreat; definitely no authenticity and stacked with appropriation, but still rustic and faithful set of standards..actually songs that would become standards.</p><p><br /></p><p>So, it starts with an echoplex guitar jangle, the harmonics ricocheting off the studio baffles, the volume bumped up as the chamber reverb skitters away. This sound of the rattling of the electronic components of the echoplex will return and seep in and out of the song at certain points as if to retain an acoustic ambience. The crunchy interior of the analogue echo unit and the studio confines are almost tangible; as the scurrying clicks of the reverb signal flap away our ears can almost paint an image of how small the room is in the way sonar is used to create a visualisation of the interior of, say, a cave. The locust sounding crackles get closer than further away establishing a sonic landscape not fully explored by this song but creates an eardrum gripping intro. </p><p><br /></p><p> The song proper then begins as a couple big piano notes punch in with Mick Jagger's tired vocal in tow, as if still feeling the effects from the night before. The lyrics, the lonely chords and vocal place us squarely in a lonely hotel room (Room 1009 by the way), Jagger seemingly describes a fictitious account of stumbling across an OD victim. The watery organ drenches the track like a flood, every element reverberates to some degree, even the aforementioned 'locusts' reverb clicks scatter as we enter turn it up for the evangelical gospel chorus. It's a positive, beaming lyric and the cold confessional verses solidify the song's going to church feel but also grimy, harsh reality of coming back down off a drug; the song and life in general is full of slowdowns and fast highs. </p><p><br /></p><p>The angelic backing ooh's are treated with a Hammond Leslie Amp, almost as if the echo is slowly infecting all the elements of this song, it completely metamorphosizes the backing vocals from their original form. The Leslie amp drowns the choral vocals in a sudsy distortion, so heavy is the warping of this it practically mutates the rich, human voices into a synthetic instrument that can be moulded and shapeshift like a synthesizer. This strange sound is most pronounced at around the three-minute mark, where during the middle eight, the soupy organ is played with a lot of resonance and the reverb filter cranked up to create a high tactile riddling that sounds like a Xylophone.</p><p><br /></p><p>The slide guitar licks are restrained and the upbeat piano of the chorus are powerfully feel good in their simplicity; it all brings to mind the other epic closer in their discography; You Can't Always Get What You Want. But the organ and reverb machinations are what set this apart from your typical rock ballad; this is an immersive experience on a surround sound level.</p><p>The ending is a return to the gospel vocals and the xylophone sounding organ part of the middle eight, rapidly panning and disappearing down the sink hole like a stream of rainwater down a gutter after the deluge has ended. The cleansing effect of it is apparent as the waves of those 'organ voices' briefly submerge your earphones under the lapping waters before your head re-emerges bobbing up again; it's astounding how the Stones could blend choir vocals, organ and an amp into a representation of the sea and the tides. </p><p><br /></p><p> It's so affecting, it feels the song has been one big ol sobbing section, wringing out all the pain, the ending the perfect feeling of drained as the 'river of tears' , represented by the combined vocals/organ, wash away. </p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/the7gV99YRI" width="320" youtube-src-id="the7gV99YRI"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-85153788601774823372020-10-14T06:22:00.002-07:002020-10-14T06:22:38.085-07:00Quicksilver Messenger Service (1975) Cowboy on the Run - LOST70sGEMS<p> Solid Silver (1975)</p><p>Gypsy Lights lacks the mixing and unique accents of the playing in the say their 1972 album opener, Hope, Cowboy on the Run is a lilting cowboy ballad with magnificent strings and tasteful piano playing. Flames is an ill-advised attempt at merging then psych-folk rock base with some level of funk, but the next song is the I Heard You Singin with its Dylanesque and melodic Springsteen ride along feel. The Letter is very atmospheric country rock with incandescent singin that sounds like a rip off of Gram Parsons A Song for You..shame. The hyperspace lap steel twine that spaces in and out in wah wah fashion but the rave up ending, as the notes get increasingly higher pitched as we fade out is excellent as is the honky tonk rhythms that enter in the second half of the song. They Don't Know is basically a spindly pull off acoustic and guitar riff before devolving into a pretty solid country funk number with awesome backing vocal melody interplay and a wild synth solo, the kind you'd hear in the Bee Gees live show, possibly an influence as the chords sometimes remind me of Throw a Penny; the warbling synth solo at the end is palatial and melancholic in it's warped meander. Witch's Moon is more Santana-esque as bold twilight acoustics and defined blues guitar noodle and mingle and finally Bittersweet Love is a funk rocker with The Who styled power chord breaks, and frenzied drumming while the chorus is more country and has an overall Eagles sound.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/yq0_zeBycbk" width="320" youtube-src-id="yq0_zeBycbk"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-4636732444155372222020-10-09T02:18:00.003-07:002020-10-09T02:18:33.406-07:00ELO (1971) 10538 Overture - LOST70sGEMS<p> The Electric Light Orchestra started off in 1971 as a artsy prog offshoot of The Move, then Brummie's biggest group, fronted by the distinctive cat scratch vocals of Roy Wood. But the baton would be passed to Jeff Lyne and his Beatles-esque disco pop of the mid to late 70s built more on pop rock and vacuum packed falsetto. The song most remember from this transitory period of the band is the mammoth 10538 Overture. </p><p>Its built around an endless stream of fuzz guitar power chords trickling down the centre of the mix; attacked on both sides by armies of brass , like French horns and strings, like cellos. Big Walrus like brays of cello stride in the fills like meat on a carcass. Jeff Lynns' crackly vocal is almost tinfoil thin but pierces through the densest of mixes due to its sandpaper texture so fine; which was necessary for a band like ELO. His voice and monolithic power chords drone off in a malevolent way while the eerie orchestrations sweep in and creep you out in elephantine howls. French horns march in step, get all puffed up and then blow hard in their blustery little parts, bolstering the song along. The rustic cellos have a hollow creak apparent in every roll , while Lynne and the guitars plough through continuously like the structure of the System. There is a Logan's' Run like momentum to the track, perfect for a man running from a totalitarian authority in dystopian city or a young man with the song playing as he exercises..like me.</p><p><br /></p><p> They never perfected their dynamic between electric rock and acoustic orchestra as they did on this inaugural track, ironically everything after wasn't as successful; their later career would see the band flit from keyboard heavy pop arrangements faintly coloured by strings to old fashioned rock n roll. The wall of sound production creates a sizzling, frizzy hissy mix as the distorted array of electric and acoustic instruments do battle. The stabbing cellos squeak away as electric strings are plucked in digitised ripples, slashing across the mix, gouging huge chunks out the basic tracks with their raga pitched bellows. The invention of this towering masterpiece is up there with stately prog rock like Kashmir by Led Zeppelin, cleverly blending seamlessly a rock rhythm section with a string and horn section. There is a stature and innate power to this song from the tumbling arpeggios to the coruscating cellos and everything in between, not too dissimilar from the experimental noise of Bowie's Heroes. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/FY1FNKJ25vs" width="320" youtube-src-id="FY1FNKJ25vs"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-16351434574837593902020-10-08T10:04:00.002-07:002020-10-08T10:04:32.827-07:00Tavares (1974) If That's the Way You Want It - LOST70sGEMS<p> Tavares 1974 debut Check It Out is aptly named for any debut, but in a crowded marketplace of soft ballad groups they didn't bring anything new to the genre over more creative arrangements by The Temprees and Black Ivory. It's electric sitar flecked blues arrangements, opening track If That's the Way You Want It displays their tough youthful vocals, but often songs like Thats The Sound That Lonely Makes sound like the Spinners with a bit more funk. The title track is languid with no groove which is made up for on the very next track; the O Jays discofied sound of Wish You Were With Me Mary. I'll Never Say Never Again points to their future covering blue eyed soul artists like the Bee Gees and Hall and Oates with more smoothness and authenticity. The soldier drums of epic ballad Little Girl promises a lot of talent in the astonishing vocal prowess but the lyrics and arrangements still don't crackle like with other artists of the time; they needed their own style badly. The adaption of Ring-a-roses for the opening of the sly tune Mama's Little Girl is their most memorable, the vocals still have a nice sound but they need more instrumental ingenuity like that short nursery rhyme opening that repeats at the end. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/t7-BOITLMs8" width="320" youtube-src-id="t7-BOITLMs8"></iframe></div><br /><div><br /></div>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5022952480741522036.post-18029073916602908292020-10-05T04:57:00.005-07:002020-10-05T04:57:57.445-07:00Queen (1974) In The Lap of the Gods - LOST70sGEMS<br /> One of the songs that represents the 'sheer' power of Queen' mid 70s heavy Glam Prog phase, where vocal harmonies would blare out heavier than the guitar and drums put together; they were curious act when all the bands bombarded you with riffs and atom splitting drums Queen hit you with heavy stacks of powerful vocals, shrill and overdubbed to the Nth degree so they made up each note of a chord in all three octaves so they were as full as an open major chord and hammered out in spurts like a guitar strike or hit of a drum. <br /><br /> The shining majestic example is this Clash of the Titans sounding track with it's 'swords n sandals' mythological grandeur summing up the pomp of their first phase, trading in imagery concerning ogre battles and rampaging like Vikings and calling to the heavens. The song suddenly leaps to life with an abrupt start of Roger Taylor's shockingly high vocals; a siren like wail that would make peak Ian Gillan sound like a foghorn in comparison, his super clear tone and the delivery sounding like he is in hysterics, screaming, not to mention the glissando piano runs conjure a Phantom of the Opera familiarity. Soon the familiar Queen sound of multitracked vocals and guitars swirl around us before scorching declaration of 'Leave it in the Lap..OF THE GODS!' is fired out by the group like a cannon and is playfully panned in and out of the right and left earphones to truly leave your ear drums ringing. <br /><br /> Now enters Freddie's vocal under a lisping, heavily slurred croon that has been slowed down by the varispeed function on a tape machine lit is so sludgy you imagine his vocals emanating from a tar pit. The velvet vocals of Freddie are sung very deep on the verses already but along with the tape speed appear to be draped in some layer of distortion, it affects other elements too such Roger's cymbal and gong parts seem to also have been treated, he sounds like he is hitting them with brushes but with some flanging that drags out the ambience and echo into phased 'whooshes' that seem to reverse echo the sound and have very long decays to add to this muddy distorted mix. <br /><br /> The barrelling double bass drum rattles us into the chorus; Brian May's pinched harmonics sound like a sweet synthesizer while their surging harmonies soothe and comfort in their soft flutter but with a resounding defiance like Knights of the Order, fitting isn't it? But it's Roger's soul rending cries over and over in melodic loops through all the other cascading elements that touches a raw point inside of me it's anguish, happiness and a whole waterfall of emotions pouring out of him behind that big drum set. What's remarkable about this track is the contrasts from Mercury's dappled delivery, his timbre blends seamlessly into the smooth flanging almost drowning in it's murky, depth while Roger's spectacular melodious wail, so pinched and powerful it blares out like an air horn.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/IeBc-c1Yang" width="320" youtube-src-id="IeBc-c1Yang"></iframe></div><br /><div><br /><div><br /></div></div>LOST70sGEMShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006555679248854018noreply@blogger.com0