Strider - Exposed (Universum Records) 1973

Biography Strider released two albums in 1973 and ‘74 respectively. 1973’s “Exposed” is a lost gem of an album and deserves attention. They played an excellent brand of Hard Rock/Blues in line with Status Quo, Deep Purple, Humble Pie, and Free. Their legacy post-Strider far out lived their brief carreer as a band. The record hit the shops in the prolific period of February, 1973, It mirrored much of what was changing about blues based rock. Humble Pie was moving into the mainstream with “Smokin’”, Foghat just released their debut with the Willie Dixon penned “I Just Wanna Make Love to You” getting serious airplay on the FM dial, and Zeppelin was still burning from the “Zoso” release. Most notable was what the Rolling Stones left with “Exile on Mainstreet” permeating every record for the next two years. Strider took their best club show and committed it to 40 minutes of vinyl. They were a tight R&B band with a biting guitar sound. Where other bands were dousing their audience with American standard Blues/Rock, Strider was blasting R&B tunes. Of the seven songs of their debut, two of them were R&B classics. Jackie Wilsons “Higher and Higher”, and the Temptations “Get Ready.” The later becoming a stoned out jam with some searing guitar melee closing down the second side.Ian Kewley (vocals, keyboards) wrote on the liner notes, “I think we should have started with the second album, then we’d have been better prepared for this one” But peole loved the grit of the first one and it landed them openeing tour slots with the Faces, and Rory Galagher. “Flying” was definitely the bands signature song. However, with the release of their second L.P., The band had reached their plateau. Rod Stewart was to grab up their guitar player before embarking on a solo career in the U.S., other members would start The Babys w/Jon Waite, and go on to play with Roger Daltrey and John Entwistle. 

Strider was a hard rock group from the early 70s that had the honor of participating in the Reading Festival for two consecutive years, 1973 and 1974. Strider’s original line-up consisted of Gary Grainger (guitar), Ian Kewley (vocals, keyboards), Lee Hunter (bass) and Jimmy Hawkin (drums). They came from the United Kingdom. His manager, Billy Gaff, was the same as the one of The Faces and for that reason they managed to perform with The Sensational Alex Harvey Band, Rory Gallagher and The Faces. In 1973 his first album “Exposed” would arrive and a year later the second, “Misunderstood”, with new singer, Rob Elliott, and drummer Tony Brock. The Strider delight us with an excellent hard rock. The peculiar voice of Ina Kewley and the guitar strings of Gary Grainger are its main protagonists. The album starts with the powerful “Flying” and a great guitar riff. The tone is minimized in “Is not Got No Love” where good rock is still present. We finally took a break in “Woman Blue” supported by Kewley’s piano and a magnificent solo guitar ending. The hostilities continue in the frantic “Higher And Higher”. “Esther’s Place” with its different rhythm changes is a little gem. Again a typical hard rock theme, “Straddle”. The album closes with a version of “Get Ready”, the longest track of the recording and one of the best.

Tracklist

01.Flying 6:00

02.Ain’t Got No Love 4:17

03.Woman Blue  5:39

04.Higher And Higher 3:53

05.Esther’s Place 6:29

06.Straddle 3:48

07.Get Ready 8:47

Line-up

Gary Grainger - Lead Guitar

Ian Kewley - Lead Vocals, Keyboards

Lee Hunter - Bass

Jimmy Hawkins - Drums, Percussion

Janita “Jennie” Haan - Backing vocals

Tranquility - Silver (Epic Sony Music Japan) 1973

 

Biography Tranquility were the brainchild of Ashley Kozak, former Donovan manager turned record producer in the early 1970's.  His idea was to form a group that played a "hybrid of pop, rock and English folk music", (like Donovan then!).  So Tranquility were formed in 1971 based around the song writing talent of Terry Shaddick. The band went through many line up changes throughout their three year life span and members included Eric Dillon, Kevin McCarthy, Berkeley Wright, Tony Lukyn, Jim Leverton, John Perry and Bernie Hagley, all of whom had played in other psych and prog bands previously.

1972 saw the release of their first album "Tranquility" for Epic records.  A very mellow affair with a strong West Coast hippy vibe floating throughout the ten tracks. An album to listen to on a lazy summers day.  There is also a not too obvious McCartney influence that you might not pick up on the first listen as the record breezes along, notably on tracks "Lady Of The Lake" and "Black Currant Betty".It's easy to see why the Americans dug this band so much on their support tour of the states in 1972 and the demand for an extra two months worth of dates even before a record had been released over there. Tranquility were far more popular in the states than their home land where they couldn't get arrested. Comments left on YouTube prove that the band must have been a pretty good live act as fans are still leaving messages, reminiscing about their six part harmonies during those Byrds support concerts.

The band returned to London to record their second album "Silver" released again on Epic in 1973.  "Silver" follows on from their first album in a similar direction albeit more polished and tighter thanks to the extensive touring.  Some tracks bordering on lightweight funk (sounds bad but trust me, it works!) with clavinet and mellotron giving the tracks a more fuller sound than the previous album. The title track sums up the typical Tranquility sound, angelic vocal harmonies that drift around a good comparison would be the band America.  My personal favourite "Can I See You" sees the band playing the type of mellow, post-psychedelic goodness that I seem to be blowing all my wages these days. The Beatles influence turns up again on "Dear Oh Dear" and "Nice and Easy", both tracks chosen as leading single to promote the album in the UK where the where it flopped just like the first one did.  Even the hope of sales in the US never materialised.

One last attempt at success in the form of a single, "Midnight Fortune" b/w "One Day Lady", this time for Island records also failed to sell in numbers and so the band called it a day in 1974. Terry Shaddick would eventually find success as co-writer, along with Steve Kipner, of the Olivia Newton-John hit single "Physical" which I've just found out was originally intended for Rod Stewart.  Ya learn summat new every day! allmusic.com

Tracklist

01.Eagle Eye 3:57

02.Can I See You 5:46

03.Linda 4:06

04.Whip Wheel 5:19

05.The Driver's Engine 3:42

06.Couldn't Possibly Be 4:21

07.Nice And Easy 3:17

08.Dear Oh Dear 3:24

09.Silver 7:24

10.The Tree 1:07

Line-up

Bernard Hagley - Bass Guitar, Flute

Paul Francis - Drums, Percussion

Tony Lukyn - Electric and Acoustic Pianos, Clavinet, Vibes, Organ, Mellotron, Vocals

Terry Shaddick - Lead Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Lead Vocals

Berkeley Wright - Lead Guitar, Vocals

Kevin McCarthy - Rhythm Guitar, Vocals

Butts Band (Feat. John Densmore & Robby Krieger) - Butts Band & Hear and Now - The Complete Recordings (1996 One Way Records) 1974 - 1975

Biography : Formed in 1972, the Butts Band included two former members of the Doors, Robbie Krieger (b. Robert Alan Krieger, 8 January 1946, Los Angeles, California, USA; guitar) and John Densmore (b. 1 December 1944, Santa Monica, California, USA; drums). After the 1973 dissolution of the Doors, the two musicians teamed up with vocalist Jess Roden (b. England), formerly of Bronco. Roy Davies (keyboards; also a member of funk/soul unit Gonzalez) and Phillip Chen (bass) completed the original line-up. One of the first white American bands to specialize in reggae music, the Butts Band signed to Blue Thumb Records. The first album was a self-titled affair that did not chart. For the second and final album, 1975’s Hear & Now, Krieger and Densmore fired the rest of the band and formed a completely new line-up, featuring Michael Stull (guitar/keyboards), Alex Richman (keyboards/vocals), Karl Rucker (bass) and Mike Berkowitz (drums). It, too, failed to chart and they disbanded in 1975. Krieger and Densmore returned to their solo careers and the other members faded into obscurity, with the exception of Roden, who recorded a number of solo albums for Island Records.

Review First Album Butts Band 1974 : The 1973 debut of Butts Band, produced by Doors engineer turned producer Bruce Botnick, is along with Ray Manzarek's 1974 release, The Golden Scarab (also produced by Botnick) the true fulfillment of what Other Voices and Full Circle initiated. A release of Golden Scarab and The Butts Band on one CD would be a good companion piece to the aforementioned post-Morrison Doors releases; it's most likely what would have evolved had the Doors' trio given us a third album in the early '70s. Make no mistake, this is very musical and great stuff, it just had no image, introduced us to new personalities, and was saddled with a terrible name (c'mon, the Butts Band? What was Jimmy Castor's line in "Troglodyte"? "Bertha Butt, one of the Butt sisters." It's just plain silly with the world watching the Doors' legacy). Before Robbie Krieger went on his jazz tangent, this folky blues group may have been a necessary diversion. There's none of the Doors' darkness or Ray Manzarek's manic intensity here. It's laid-back, well-played, perfectly recorded music on the Blue Thumb label. What is surprising is that Robbie Krieger was an integral part of the Doors' hit singles. He seems to have put that in the past on these compositions. "Baja Bus," with conga by Larry McDonald, might as well be the Allman Brothers. Side one was recorded in Kingston, Jamaica, with Botnick as engineer, while in London for side two at Olympic Studios they used Keith Harwood on the boards, though Bruce Botnick is the producer of the entire package. More of what you'd expect than the follow-up, Hear and Now, which changes all the musicians save the two Doors and completely reshuffles the sound. Gotta hand it to Krieger and Densmore; they can be as proud of this as Ten Wheel Drive's Zager and Schefrin can be of their post-Genya Ravan disc on EMI. That record wasn't Ten Wheel Drive with Genya Ravan, but it was competent and worth a listen, as is The Butts Band

Review Second Album Hear and Now 1975 : John Densmore and Robbie Krieger put together a second version of Butts Band for Hear & Now, which is really bizarre because Roy Davies, Phillip Chen, and vocalist Jess Roden did an admirable job on the first disc's folky blues sound. With Mike Berkowitz brought in as a second drummer, Karl Rucker on bass, and Bobbi Hall on congas, the band is expanded and substantially changed. Add Michael Stull and Alex Richman, both on keyboards and vocals, with Stull on guitar as well, and you may think you have what the Doors were up to on Other Voices. Almost, but not quite. The jazz element is definitely there, but subdued, for this is a soul record, an honest to God soul record by two of the guys who backed up Jim Morrison. Krieger and Densmore sound like they are sponsoring Barry White doing the songs of Percy Sledge. "If You Gotta Make a Fool of Somebody" is pure rhythm & blues, as is "Livin' and Dyin'," but it is not Butts Band that producer Bruce Botnick worked with. Sure it is dynamite stuff, but as the first go round for Butts Band had no image, this must have confused the hell out of radio programmers, retail workers, critics, and fans of the Doors. Botnick has been replaced by Jerry Fuller and is truly is the anomaly when it comes to Doors spin-off projects. Heck, even Ray Manzarek's work with poet Michael McClure contains Jim Morrison American Prayer elements, but the quasi-Steely Dan sound of "Caught in the Middle" could be early Lou Rawls cutting his teeth backed by a pseudo-pop band. It's commendable that Blue Thumb allowed rock stars to stretch like this, but no one familiar with Densmore and Krieger could get a handle on where Hear & Now was going. What might have been a nice calling card would be to take the Doors' "Touch Me" and let this crew send it up the R&B charts. For two members of a totally established group to create a new entity then switch genres is totally original and quite obscure. Butts Band would have been better off trying to get Tower of Power to do this arrangement of Bob Marley and Peter Tosh's "Get up, Stand Up." Robbie Krieger writes a majority of the songs, and female vocalist Alex Richman has a bit of Kathi McDonald in her for her composition "Everybody's Fool," but it is territory not embraced by most Doors aficionados. Labelmates with the Four Tops, this was moved to the Blue Thumb/ABC imprint (the Four Tops were on sister label Dunhill for their "Keeper of the Castle" phase). Gotta have it for the collection, but Manzarek's The Golden Scarab will get more spins. Reviews by allmusic.com

Tracklist
01.I Won't Be Alone Anymore 4:31
02.Baja Bus 4:42
03.Sweet Danger 4:55
04.Pop-A-Top 3:25
05.Be With Me 4:24
06.New Ways 3:58
07.Love Your Brother 4:55
08.Kansas City 4:08

09.Get Up, Stand Up 3:39
10.Corner Of My Mind 4:39
11.Caught In The Middle 3:25
12.Everybody's Fool 2:47
13.Livin' And Dyin' 3:16
14.Don't Wake Up 4:15
15.If You Gotta Make A Fool Of Somebody 4:07
16.Feelin' So Bad 4:20
17.White House 4:30
18.Act Of Love 3:07
19.That's All Right 3:21
20.Lovin' You For All The Right Reasons 2:32

Line-up
John Densmore - drums (1973-1975)
Robby Krieger - guitar (1973-1975)
Phil Chen - bass (1973-1974)
Roy Davies - keyboards, synthesisers (1973-1974)
Jess Roden - vocals (1973-1974)
Mick Weaver - organ (1973-1974)
Mike Berkowitz - drums (1974-1975)
Alex Richman - keyboards, vocals (1974-1975)
Karl Ruckner - bass (1974-1975)
Michael Stull - guitar, vocals (1974-1975)
David Paul Campbell - keyboards, vocals (1975)

REPOST : Grace Slick - Dreams (Si-Wan Records) 1980 (REQUEST)

Biography : Less controversially titled than 1973's Manhole, Grace Slick's second solo album is an inconsistent, erratic, yet often compelling collection. Written in the aftermath of an extended Alcoholics Anonymous stay, Slick's self-penned tunes revisit themes of self-reflection and atonement. As a result, her lyrics are far less obtuse, more accessible than usual, even becoming downright obvious on "Do It the Hard Way." It's a letdown for someone accustomed to her more poetic and challenging musings on previous Jefferson Airplane/Starship records. Musically the album is far less focused, with the subpar up-tempo track "Angel of Night" foretelling the vapid arena rock that would comprise her next solo album, Welcome to the Wrecking Ball. There are, however, several strong moments, such as the flamenco-styled "El Diablo" and the strong guitar work of Scott Zito on the sweeping "Full Moon Man." Most curious of the bunch, though, are the album-opening title track and the Slick-authored "Seasons": both surge on mock-whimsical melodies straight out of a haunted Biergarten, a side of Slick rarely seen before or since. Also new to her repertoire is the addition of orchestration on some tracks, ably arranged on the remarkable closer "Garden of Man" by Ron Frangipane. While her voice is not up to par on this record (there's a distinct husk and gasp on the album-opening title track in particular), Dreams is a useful acquisition for Grace Slick completists and listeners engrossed by the life and personality of its creator. Review by Joseph McCombs

Tracklist
01.Dreams 5:08
02.El Diablo 5:58
03.Face To The Wind 5:31
04.Angel Of Night 3:50
05.Seasons 3:26
06.Do It The Hard Way 4:59
07.Full Moon Man 5:07
08.Let It Go 5:43
09.Garden Of Man 6:33

Line-up
Grace Slick - Guitar, Keyboards, Piano,Vocals
Phil Bodner - Sax (Tenor), Saxophone
Ronnie Cuber - Sax (Baritone), Saxophone
Joe d'Elia - Piano
George Devens - Percussion
Sal DiTroia - Guitar
David Freiberg - Guitar, Vocals
David Friedman - Percussion
Neil Jason - Bass, Bass (Electric), Guitar
Arthur Kaplan - Saxophone
Artie Kaplan - Contractor, Sax (Baritone)
Jimmy Maelen - Percussion
Jik Malin - Percussion
Frank Owens - Keyboards, Piano
Steve Price - Drums
Allan Schwartzberg - Drums
Joe Shepley - Piccolo Trumpet
Joseph J. Shepley - Trumpet
David Tofani - Sax (Tenor)
Georg "Jojje" Wadenius - Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic)
Ed Walsh     Oberheim - Synthesizer,
Scott Zito - Guitar, Harmonica, Vocals

Mega

Gypsy - Gypsy (Walhalla Records) 1970

Biography by Jason Ankeny : Progressive rock outfit Gypsy began its existence as the Minneapolis-based pop band the Underbeats, formed in 1964 by guitarist James Johnson, bassist Doni Larson, and drummer Tom Green. With the subsequent addition of singer/guitarist Enrico Rosenbaum, the group regularly performed throughout the Twin Cities circuit, scoring a handful of local hits including "Footstompin'," "Annie Do the Dog" and "Book of Love." Keyboardist James "Owl" Walsh was recruited after Johnson was drafted for military service in 1969; upon his discharge, Johnson returned to the Underbeats lineup, and the quintet relocated to Los Angeles soon after, where they landed a gig as the house band at the famed Whiskey-a-Go-Go. Rechristened Gypsy, they began pursuing a heavier, more complex sound inspired by the rise of British progressive rock, though often compared to the music of Santana. After replacing Green with drummer Jay Epstein, the band signed to the Metromedia label, issuing their self-titled double-album debut in 1970 and earned considerable FM airplay with the tracks "Gypsy Queen" and "Dead and Gone." Larson and Epstein exited Gypsy prior to recording the follow-up, 1971's In the Garden, cut with bassist Willie Weeks -- who later resurfaced in the Doobie Brothers -- and drummer Bill Lordan. Randy Cates assumed bass duties for 1972's Antithesis, Gypsy's first album for new label RCA; however, upon releasing 1973's Unlock the Gates, the group dissolved, reforming just long enough to play the Super Jam '77 concert at St. Louis' Busch Stadium. A year later Walsh formed a new Gypsy lineup, issuing The James Walsh Gypsy Band on RCA to little notice; in 1996 -- once again the sole original member -- he assembled another Gypsy unit, releasing 20 Years Ago Today. While Lordan went on to play with Robin Trower, Rosenbaum died September 10, 1979 after a long battle with drug abuse; he was just 36 years old.

Review by Richard Foss

Though nothing else on Gypsy's debut album came quite up to the standard of the opening number, the whole album is enjoyable for connoisseurs of jazzy progressive rock. That opening number, "Gypsy Queen," was the band's musical and commercial highlight, an organ-driven and harmony-laden blast of great progressive pop. Elsewhere on this album, the band blends Santana-like guitar and organ riffs with vocals and arrangements reminiscent of early Chicago in their better moments. Much of this is first-rate, and if "Gypsy Queen" weren't on this album, cuts like "The Vision" or "Standing in My Loneliness" would still make it worth having. The ensemble work is so impressive that it's hard to single out a particular player for praise, though James "Owl" Walsh's keyboard playing is particularly inventive. In retrospect, it's hard to believe that this debut didn't make a bigger splash when it was first released. Gypsy's work has held up very well compared to most albums from this era, and is still a delightful listen. Allmusic.com

Tracklist
01.Gypsy Queen - Part One (4:21)
02.Gypsy Queen - Part Two (2:30)
03.Man of Reason (3:04)
04.Dream If You Can (2:50)
05.Late December (4:11)
06.The Third Eye (4:53)
07.Decisions (8:15)
08.I Was So Young (4:14)
09.Here In My Loneliness (2:59)
10.More Time (5:16)
11.The Vision (7:28)
12.Dead and Gone (10:56)
13.Tomorrow Is The Last To Be Heard (5:45)

Line-up
Enrico Rosenbaum - guitar, vocals
James Walsh - keyboards, vocals
James Johnson - guitar, vocals
James Epstein - drums
Doni Larson - bass
Preston Epps - percussion
Jimmie Haskell - string arrangements

Hotlegs - You Didn't Like It Because You Didn't Think Of It - The Complete Sessions (2012 Grapefruit Records) 1970 - 1971

Biography : One of the finest archive products of the pre-CD age, You Didn't Like It was released in the U.K. in 1975, at the height of 10cc's success, as a reminder that there was more, so much more, to the members' past incarnation as Hotlegs than the hit "Neanderthal Man." Rounding up every track that the ultimately ill-starred combo cut -- that is, the entire Thinks: School Stinks album, plus four additional performances -- You Didn't Like It not only took the edge off an increasingly desperate collectors market (copies of that original album were impossible to come by), it also reminded listeners just how much of Hotlegs' legacy had been bequeathed to the members' next project. "Fly Away," itself re-recorded from a Godley-Creme contribution to a 1969 Marmalade label sampler, offers the prototype for any number of subsequent ballads -- innocent vocal, innocent song, but a deceptive beast of a lyric. "How Many Times" (the doomed U.S. follow-up to the hit "Neanderthal Man"), "Take Me Back," and "All God's Children" each had a close relation lurking within the 10cc catalog, while "You Didn't Like It" itself had already been pressed back into surface, as the first 10cc album's closing "Fresh Air for My Mama." "You Didn't Like It" is one of four songs appended to the original Thinks album. Of the remainder, "Lady Sadie" was released as a single in 1971 and went absolutely nowhere, while "Today" and "The Loser" saw service on the "second" Hotlegs album, Songs. Despite such generosity, however, You Didn't Like It fared no better than either of its predecessors, and, bitterly, one remembers why. 10cc at the time were universally regarded among the most creative bands on the planet. Hotlegs, on the other hand, were good for one thing and one thing only. "I'm a Neanderthal man -- CRASH; you're a Neanderthal girl -- CRASH...." And collectors notwithstanding, that was never going to change.  Review by Dave Thompson

Tracklist:
01. Neanderthal Man 4:15
02. How Many Times 4:18
03. Desperate Dan 2:19
04. Take Me Back 5:01
05. Um Wah, Um Woh 5:07
06. Suite F.A. 12:49
- a) First Movement: On My Way
- b) Second Movement: Indecision
- c) Third Movement: The Return
07. Fly Away 2:45
08. Run Baby Run 2:53
09. All God's Children 4:00
10. The Loser 3:39
11. Today 4:03
12. Lady Sadie 4:20
13. You Didn't Like It, Because You Didn't Think Of It 4:33
14. Neanderthal Man (alternative US mix) 4:18

Line.up:
Eric Stewart - vocals, guitar, bass, moog
Kevin Godley - vocals, drums, percussion
Lol Creme - vocals, guitar, bass, keyboards
and:
Graham Gouldman - bass guitar
Mike Timoney - organ
Peter Tattersall - left-handed boogey piano
Rod Morton - on-beat tambourine
Baz Barker - violin
Ian Brookes - trumpet
Mike Bell - saxophone

Stories - Stories & About Us (2007 Raven) 1972 - 1973

Biography : Few one-hit wonders have ever been as thoroughly misleading as Stories and their cover of Hot Chocolate's "Brother Louie." Stories turned Hot Chocolate's tale of interracial love into an early-'70s AM pop classic, a number one hit in 1973 and a staple of '70s oldies radio and compilations from that point after, but its very omnipresence hurt the band, suggesting they were another faceless studio-created outfit, maybe even a bubblegum group, when they were nothing of the sort. Stories was the brainchild of former Left Banke pianist/songwriter Michael Brown, who wrote the baroque classics "Walk Away Renee" and "Pretty Ballerina" for the group, and bassist/singer Ian Lloyd. The two were paired after Brown signed to Kama Sutra in 1971, with Lloyd bringing in associates drummer Bryan Madey and guitarist Steve Love, thus completing Stories. Brown and Lloyd collaborated on two albums but Brown did not stick around to finish the second, 1973's About Us, due to his dissatisfaction with the direction Lloyd and producer Eddie Kramer were taking the band. That second album brought the band closer to a polished commercialism, but Raven's 2007's two-fer Stories/About Us the best-produced collection of the band's two major albums ever produced, supplemented by the 1974 single "Another Love," which was released after the group's third album Traveling Underground, was billed to Ian Lloyd & Stories upon its release shows that Stories was always an odd creature, bearing echoes of Brown's delicate work with Left Banke, a more mainstream McCartney-esque pop also reminiscent of a sweeter Raspberries and, thanks to Lloyd's light rasp, hints of Rod Stewart. That hoarse soulfulness served Lloyd well on "Brother Louie," but he was never a true blue-eyed soul vocalist, and not just because Stories didn't often delve into blues-rock: his touch was too light, his voice too high and thin to dig deep into R&B. He was stuck between two sounds, between precious pop and soulful rock, which was completely appropriate for Brown's artful pop writing. Brown's songs for Stories weren't immediate, they were elliptical and gentle, just melodic enough to hint that these tunes are hookier than they are, having just enough structure to suggest big pop arrangements that never quite materialize, at least on their debut Stories. The touchstone for Stories is quite plainly Paul McCartney, as this is music that places the melody at the forefront; it's proudly precious and willfully whimsical, music crying out for listeners with a sweet tooth. Here, Stories make Badfinger seem like muscular macho men, as their hardest-rocking song, "Take Cover" with its big, cascading chorus, it's a tune that could have slipped onto No Dice almost perversely avoids power chords. Then again, "Take Cover," while it does point the way to About Us, is atypical on Stories, as it's built upon baroque ballads and lovely, lilting, mid-tempo pop, signatures of Michael Brown from the days of Left Banke. While it's interesting to hear Brown navigate the valleys of modern rock production here, Stories could have used more definition in its arrangements, more power in its production, to really grab listeners. As it stands, it's ideal music for cultists: music that requires a bit of work, but not too much, to truly appreciate, and it does pay back the effort it demands.

About Us is a completely different story altogether. No work is required of the listener on this second album by Stories, as Eddie Kramer's cinematic production gives the band definition and drama, pulling them into the leagues of such power poppers as Badfinger, the Raspberries and Todd Rundgren. Not that Stories rocked as hard as any of those three -- there's not much kinetic thrust to their rhythms or reckless abandon to their playing, not even on the boogie "Don't Ever Let Me Down" or the jokey blues of "Down Time Blooze" but there's muscle and color to their sound on About Us; the songs leap out of the speakers and command attention, unlike the tunes on the debut, which whispered and required close listening. Not that Michael Brown has abandoned his long-standing infatuation with delicate melodies, or even his fondness for McCartney-esque whimsy, but when put through the filter of Kramer's production, everything becomes bigger and bolder, to the extent that a jaunty piano instrumental, "Circles," recalls nothing so much as one of Billy Joel's ragtime tunes of the early '70s. Such moves toward the mainstream are undoubtedly why Brown bolted sometime during the recording, leaving the band as the sole province of singer Ian Lloyd, but the music left behind is almost all unmistakably Brown's, as it's all driven by melody and even occasionally built upon baroque keyboards. The major difference and inarguable improvement is in the production, which fleshes out the songs, not only making them easier to appreciate but harder to resist, turning About Us into a minor power pop classic. Of course, the exception to the rule is the album's lone hit, a lush cover of Hot Chocolate's "Brother Louie," which suggested Stories were a blue-eyed soul AM pop band, a suggestion that the rest of the album proved untrue but fewer people heard the other 12 songs on this album, not just in 1973 but throughout the years, so About Us turned into a lost pop classic that even pop aficionados had to be persuaded to find. But once they were persuaded, they were often seduced by this sumptuous yet powerful pop album. Raven's 2007 two-fer contains one bonus track, the 1974 single "Another Love" which was an attempt to do a bisexual spin on "Brother Louie"'s tale of interracial love and, appropriately for the topic, it sounds a bit more glammy than "Brother Louie," or anything else on About Us, actually. Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Stories:
01.Hello People 3:19
02.I'm Comming Home 2:41
03.Winter Scenes 4:21
04.Step Back 3:21
05.You Told Me 3:07
06.Saint James 4:31
07.Kathleen 3:15
08.Take Cover 3:03
09.Nice To Have You Here 3:36
10.High And Low 4:27
About Us:
11.Darling 2:45
12.Don't Ever Let Me Down 2:22
13.Love Is In Motion 3:17
14.Hey France 2:58
15.Please, Please 5:02
16.Changes Have Begun 3:35
17.Circles 1:36
18.Believe Me 3:38
19.Words 2:26
20.Top Of The City 3:00
21.Down Time Blooze 1:19
22.What Comes After 2:02
23.Brother Louie 3:54
Bonus Track Single:
24.Another Love 3:16

Stories:
Ian Lloyd - Lead Vocals, Bass
Steve Love - Vocal Harmonies, Guitar
Brian Madey - Drums
Michael Brown - Piano, Harpsichord, Organ

Ian Lloyd & Stories - Traveling Underground (Buddah Records) 1973

Biography : With 1973's Traveling Underground, Stories changed its name to Ian Lloyd & Stories and unveiled a new five-man lineup. Lead singer Lloyd (a whiskey-voiced belter comparable to Rod Stewart and Led Zeppelin's Robert Plant), guitarist Steve Love, and drummer Bryan Madey were still on board. But keyboardist/composer Michael Brown (a graduate of Left Banke and Montage) was gone, and the new members were keyboardist Kenneth Bichel and bassist Kenny Aaronson. Traveling Underground proved that there was life after Brown for Stories; this is a generally solid effort, although About Us remains the band's most essential album. Like before, Stories came out with an R&B-minded single that doesn't sound anything like the rest of the album it's on. "Mammy Blue" is as different from the other songs on Traveling Underground as "Brother Louie" is from the rest of About Us. A long way from the R&B leanings of "Mammy Blue," tracks like "Stories Untold," "Hard When You're So Far Away," and "Earth Bound/Freefall" favor the type of baroque art-rock approach that had worked so well on Stories' previous releases. "Brother Louie" and "Mammy Blue" indicated that Stories might have made a great blue-eyed soul band, instead, Traveling Underground is the work of a fine pop-rock/art-rock band that occasionally detoured into blue-eyed soul. Review by Alex Henderson

Tracklist:
01.Bridges 5:11
02.Soft Rain 4:33
03.Hard When You're So Far Away 4:28
04.If It Feels Good, Do It 2:50
05.Mammy Blue 3:43
06.Stories Untold 4:04
07.I Can't Understand It 3:58
08.Earthbound / Free Fall 8:16
09.Traveling Underground 4:31

Ian Lloyd & Stories:
Ian Lloyd - Vocals
Steve Love - Guitar
Kenneth Bichel - Keyboards, Art Synthesizers, Mellotron
Brian Madey - Drums, Percussion
Kenny Aaronson - Bass Guitar