BullAngus ~ USA ~ New York

BullAngus (1971)

Hudson Valley's finest BullAngus (name stylized as such) broke onto the American stage with a grittier hard rock sound than most of their contemporaries. The dual guitarists are clearly the focus. BullAngus were certainly of their era, and you might find yourself pining for some cowbell. They also brought a few more ideas to the table than what was expected in North America at this time. Great organ work and even a little recorder (those high school private lessons finally paying off no doubt). They've got that Rare Earth and Grand Funk Railroad white boy funk thing going too. They never go off the leash for extended jamming (though there's plenty of solos), preferring to stay close to the song. 

Interesting to note that the producer says "Riff-rock should be played loud." So they called it that back then, eh?

Ownership: 1971 Mercury (LP). Gatefold. Acquired in 1993.

1993; 11//05; 1/7/25 (review)

Free For All (1972)

Free For All is the sophomore and final album from BullAngus. Similar in construction to the first album, Free For All is a mix of hard rock, bar boogie, late psych, and proto progressive rock. Organ and guitar are the focal instruments. I also picked up a distinct "Midwest Progressive Rock" sound on a couple of tracks, despite their New York roots, which prompted me to do a little research. Turns out they did embark on some extensive touring in the Midwest region. They opened for major acts of the day like Fleetwood Mac and Deep Purple, which appears to have had some impact on their sound.

A good friend of mine will tell you BullAngus were the best US band ever, and he's heard a ton of music (way more than I), so they definitely had something going on here. Unfortunately their talent didn't result in sales, and this was to be the end for BullAngus.

---2/20/26

I decided to part with my LP not long after that review. Some records come back home anyway. I ended up grabbing this Canadian copy on the cheap at the last COS record show, so let's go for another round.

As noted in the first review, this is a diverse album and not all of it works. The opener is great though, a type of proggy hard rock I gravitate towards in a big way. A2 hedges between bar n' roll and extended hard rocking guitar solos. A3 sounds like something from the English prog movement, with recorder in the lead (those lessons still paying off!). Think the Transatlantic stable of albums. B1 brings us some funk, with choruses sounding like Grand Funk Railroad. B2 is straight up hard rock with a bangin' riff. B3 oddly reminds me of Styx, circa their Wooden Nickel years. The best is saved for last, a heavy organ driven proggy piece. Much like primo Uriah Heep. A whole album of music like this, A1, and A3 would have resulted in a prog rock classic.

Ownership: 1972 Mercury Canada (LP). Gatefold. Reacquired in 2026.

1/13/07 (first acquired); 5/24/19 (review); 2/20/26 (update)

No legit reissues exist for either album as of 2/20/26.

5/24/19 (new entry)