Pardon the expression, but here's a real diamond in the rough. Pittsburgh's Diamond Reo started and ended as a rather typical 70s glam band, at least that's what I've read not having heard these albums. But in the middle was one try at gritty midwest styled hard rock, of the kind you almost exclusively find in the private press world. There are ten tracks here and almost all of them feature some nasty guitar riffs and solos. A couple of tracks on Side 1 (A3, A4) are more basic, but otherwise this is hard rock heaven. Nothing at all commercial about it. If Diamond Reo could have navigated the mid 70s terrain like Frank Marino did, then great rewards would have been for the taking at the end of the decade with the success of Van Halen and the like. But it wasn't meant to be and Diamond Reo is a band very few have heard of. Look for this title in the budget bins if you have a taste for 70s hard rock. Also lend an ear to 'It's a Jungle Out There' and tell me that maybe Axl Rose and the boys might have stumbled onto this album in their youth.Ownership: 1976 Buddha Germany (LP)
11/28/18; 9/6/21; 8/8/24 (review / new entry)
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