The last of the "Black and White" trilogy of albums, Secret Treaties ups the ante on just about everything. Considered by many to be their most thoughtful and challenging album, lyrically Blue Oyster Cult were living in a surreal, but parallel, universe. Even tracks that are essentially boogie rockers receive mid track breaks that belong more to progressive rock - or later in the heavy metal genre considering the mid song riff change. 'Subhuman' is melancholy on a plate with a killer underlying riff. 'Astronomy' is about as progressive as BOC will ever get, always pulling back instinctively knowing their audience are there to rock and roll. Buck Dharma has a very recognizable guitar style. Had he chosen a route similar to Santana, his name would be far more known today as a soloist rather than band member.
Ownership: CD: 2001 Columbia Legacy. Didn't get around to buying this until 2015 (in one of those $5 sealed sales). This replaced my old LP (see below). Wonderful reissue with insightful liner notes, lyrics, photos, and 5 bonus tracks. Three of these were recorded during the Secret Treaties sessions but left off due to time constraints. Revisiting these, it appears the band / label made the right choice as they are more straightforward than the album proper. Still it's quite excellent to hear unreleased tracks like this. The other 2 are singles, including live favorite 'Born to be Wild'. The definitive reissue.
LP: 1974 Columbia. Original with textured cover. Picked up at one of the Denver record shows earlier in the year (2022) at a great price. Likely to keep this one as the cover is very interesting. I bought my first LP all the way back in 1978, at the tender age of 13. This was the album that sent my religious Mother into a tizzy and darn near thwarted my initial foray into the world of record collecting. She didn't get the irony of the imagery - at all. Fortunately Dad just waved it off. This was the standard Columbia red label version, likely to have been the current pressing for sale in the late 70s. It wasn't in the best shape when I gave it to a friend 7 years ago.
11//12; 7/7/15; 11/26/22 (new entry)
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