Alice Cooper - Easy Action. 1975 Warner Bros (LP) (1970). It's true what they say when folks tell you this is nothing like the Alice Cooper you know. Musically this is a post psych, early prog, slightly jazzy release. If the songs were more memorable, I'd probably hold onto it. Apparently the band hadn't found their glammy hard rock sound yet, one they were to create on their next album Love it to Death.(Jun)
x - Cricket. 1979 Z-Brah (LP). Grabbed this out of a garage sale and it was strangely the only thing of interest in their stack. Signed copy of a private press rock album from Los Angeles is an immediate purchase for me. Guess the homeowners may have known the band in some way and the signature was for them. In any case the music displayed here is Female Fronted AOR (FFAOR), a subgenre that's become popular is recent years. Musically it's too brash for Yacht Rock, too rigid to be disco or boogie, and too AM poppy to be FM oriented. The songs are OK but mostly standard issue efforts looking for hits. Not near as charming as, say, Airborne. This is a very professional looking release. The band had a full management team and must have thought they were backing the winning horse. However, this horse was a loser and the LP was the only thing the label released along with a single (both cuts are from the album). No fame and fortune here. 2.5 stars. (May)
New England. 1979 Infinity (LP). I've been reading some very positive reviews about this album, some saying it's one of the great examples of late 70s AOR. I'm very much into that sound of late, so I thought this might be a good time to revisit the LP. And this copy has been signed by all four members of the band, giving it some value (maybe). I say revisit because I'd heard it real time when a buddy bought the album. I'm not entirely sure of the track we both liked but I think it was 'Shoot', which not coincidentally is also the heaviest thing on here. The one song that receives the highest praise is 'Don't Ever Wanna Lose Ya' but I would not have liked that back then, and most certainly not now. In hearing the album throughout again for the first time in 46 years, I'm not swayed anymore now than I was when I was 14. The LP also draws in the prog rock crowd since it has an inordinate amount of mellotron for an album such as this. But not as much as Small Wonder, one of those obscure AOR albums I do appreciate today. New England comes from the time when many bands took on regional, city, or state names as their moniker. No takers for Scranton however. (May)
Brian Eno - Before and After Science. 1977 Island (LP). As I've mentioned before regarding Eno, his albums are unpredictable and generally fall under the guise of "art rock". Before and After Science is no exception to that motif. My observation is that Brian Eno pretty much got to do whatever he wanted to, and today is highly praised for his innovative approach to various kinds of music. I think a lot of artists would have had a similar trajectory had they been afforded the same freedom Eno received. Good for him though, because he took full advantage of it. Before and After Science is another mixed bag of before-its-time New Wave, before-its-time New Age, electronic music, Roxy Music stuff, and whatever else he could cram into 40 minutes. As is usual with him, each side is very different from the other. I'm going to let this go and take the profit, but if I find a cheapie CD out there, I may hold onto it. (May)
Head East. 1978 A&M (LP). Another $1 record. I was in the mood to go as fast as I could through my budget finds and get them into the show boxes. But this title caught my attention. Hey, not bad at all! I had little expectation for it, but it's solid Midwestern AOR with a hard rock punch. Not sure I heard enough to keep, but these guys showed up for this title and earned their place in the late 70s FM landscape. (Mar)
John Mayall - A Hard Core Package. 1977 ABC (LP). Later era Mayall trying to keep up with the times by adding a little funk. But it's still blues rock all the way. Stayed true to his principles, especially considering it was the late 70s, and I think this would be a fine album for loyal fans. Too straight up for me, but not an unpleasant listen. (Jan)
Ten Years After - Cricklewood Green. Chrysalis (CD) (1970). Generally considered their best album, the first two tracks hold out promise this is going to be a heavy psych winner. But it eventually bogs down into the blues, and even country music. It's not until the last track that my ears perk up again. Seems Ten Years After had a lot of influence here in North America, as you can hear this sound in a multitude of obscure major label bands from the same time frame. A good album, but nothing more for me. (Jan)
Billy Squier - Emotions in Motion. 1982 Capitol (LP). Squier is another character who dominated the radio in my high school years. He had a unique sound that brought 80s production techniques to 50's rock n' roll revivalism. He was much better at it than his female counterpart Joan Jett. Not so bad on the whole, and a decent ride at the memory theme park, but everything here is wide brushstrokes lacking in any kind of nuance. Similar to the cover painting. And not just anyone can claim that Andy Warhol painted your portrait. (Jan)
x - One Aisle Over - Live @ UAS 2-28-09. 2009 private (CD). Got this for free from a local shop. Couldn't find it in Discogs so why not try it? Sounds like a more modern version of Fleetwood Mac. Naomi Hooley's voice is a reasonable facsimile of Stevie Nicks. What we used to call Adult Contemporary music I suppose (maybe they still do). You will hear bands like this occasionally playing at some upscale bar / hotel in the ritzy Colorado mountain towns such as Vail, Aspen, Breckenridge, or Telluride. UAS is the University of Alaska, so same kind of regional identity. Not really for me. Would be 2 stars on RYM. (Dec 2024).
Other albums heard but not reviewed: Jefferson Starship - Dragon Fly (Mar); Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - Deja Vu (Apr); Supertramp - Crisis? What Crisis! (Apr); Neil Young - Live Rust (Jun); ELO - A New World Record (Jun); ELO (1971) (Jun); Roxy Music - Manifesto (Jun); Idle Cure (Jun).
* - Keeping for the collection; x - Not in RYM
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