There is both a hippie quality to this (it was recorded in 1969) but also a more modern sound, too. In fact, that’s the most intriguing thing here is that some of this is definitely ahead of its time. All in all, this is quite an enjoyable, if rather inconsistent, album.
This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2013 Volume 2 at lulu.com/strangesound.
Track by Track Review
If You Love Me
There’s sort of a killer funky groove to this thing. It’s got a sound that’s sort of like King’s X merged with Steely Dan. There’s more of a hard rocking jam later in the piece. That’s perhaps closer to something like Rick Derringer. That instrumental section gives way to a reprise of the song proper. Of course, when you consider that this was recorded in 1969, that says a lot about how ahead of its time it was.
The Bag I'm In Here is more of a straight ahead, hard rocker. This is rather psychedelic in nature. This thing is very much a 1970s rocker. Again, this is a forward thinking sound.
The Birds
This one is more in keeping with the psychedelic, folk inspired music of the late 1960s. It’s a cool tune, no matter how you see it landing, though.
Talk About a Morning
This cool rocker is very much in keeping with the 1960s. There’s a lot of psychedelia in place here. There are also some hints of something akin to progressive rock on this beast. There is some killer guitar soloing later in this thing.
Reputation More high energy 1960s rock is the basis of this thing. It’s got some country in the mix, too. Some of the inspired guitar work on this beast is killer.
Time to Go
Fast paced, catchy and fun, this is very much a 1960s kind of thing. It’s definitely a piece of the Woodstock Generation. The vocal arrangement really steals the show on this one. It works out into some cool jams later, too.
Mother's Red Light
I love the bass groove as this thing opens up and it really has a funky sort of vibe overall. There are elements that make me think of Frank Zappa a bit. There is definitely quite a bit of jazz built into this beast. We get some killer guitar soloing on this thing, too.
Everybody's Got /Don't You Know Jazz, psychedelia and rock are all merged on this energetic 1960s styled rocker that’s just so cool.