In The Land Of FREE we still Keep on Rockin'

It's Not Dark Yet

Plain and Fancy

Music gives soul to universe, wings to mind, flight to imagination, charm to sadness, and life to everything.

Plato

Sunday, June 15, 2025

Elliott Murphy - Just A Story From America (1977 us, a foundation of indelible melodies commanding vocal work in a rich lyrical landscape, 2004 digipak)



For his fourth album, Just a Story from America, Elliott Murphy moved on to his third major label, appropriately finding a berth with Columbia Records, home of Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen. A follower of Dylan and a contemporary of Springsteen, Murphy also attempts to invest rock & roll with poetry and then sings it in an alternately husky and whiny tenor. For Just a Story from America, he traveled to London and recorded with a band including Genesis drummer Phil Collins and, for a bluesy solo on "Rock Ballad," former Rolling Stone guitarist Mick Taylor. "Drive All Night" sets the scene early, an uptempo rocker paced by a Farfisa organ reminiscent of Del Shannon, while the lyric reflects the same sense of youthful adventure via a fast car on a highway that Springsteen describes so often. Murphy's artistic vision is more urban and literary than Springsteen's, however, his short stories in song concern self-consciously arty characters bent on an escape as much spiritual as economic. 

Murphy is, as ever, up-front about his influences, putting a line from Raymond Chandler on the LP sleeve, crediting "Nick Caraway" (the narrator of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby) for background vocals, and dropping movie names including Errol Flynn and Rhett Butler. If Dylan uses names like that for comic and absurd effect, and Springsteen is serious about the lives of his hometown heroes, Murphy is deliberately creating a rock & roll equivalent for the novels and movies he loves; he's serious, too, but he also has a perspective on the scenes he describes. Thus, when he writes a rock ballad, he calls it "Rock Ballad." He never lets his audience forget that it is watching a show, which may go against the supposed authenticity and emotional directness of rock. But that's the point. In Murphy's world, the great Gatsby is a rock star, and life is a movie. 
by William Ruhlmann


Tracks
1. Drive All Night  - 3:37
2. Summer House  - 3:20
3. Just A Story From America  - 2:32
4. Rock Ballad  - 5:04
5. Think Too Hard  - 3:30
6. Anastasia  - 5:10
7. Darlin' - And She Called Me  - 3:49
8. Let Go  - 3:43
9. Caught Short In The Long Run  - 4:49
Stories and Music by Elliott Murphy

Personnel
*Elliott Murphy - Vocals, Guitar, Harmonica, Farfisa Organ, Marimba, Tambourine, Harmonium, Portuguese Guitar
*Phil Collins - Drums, Backing Vocals
*Mick Taylor - Guitar (Track 4)
*Dave Markee - Bass
*Peter Oxendale - Piano, Organ
*Morris Pert - Percussion
*Chris Mercer - Saxophone (Track 1) 
*Steve Gregory - Saxophone (Track 1)
*Barry De Souza - Drums (Track 9)
*Mike Moran - Keyboards (Track 9)


Wednesday, June 11, 2025

Various Artists - Fading Yellow Vol. 21 Dreamy Day (1966-73, world wide selection of magical pop-sike gems and more, 2025 release)



The compilation series Fading Yellow has become its own genre for those who enjoy the sunnier side of psychedelia. Released early 2025, volume 21 explores the entire world for more 60’s-70's sunshine psych pop, making it one of the strongest in the series. And as always on a compilation for the first time. Groups on Fading Yellow 21 include The Garnets from Belgium, Gents from Sweden, Jade & Pepper from Singapore, Hedgehoppers from South Africa, Cats Eyes from the UK, and The Lotus from Hong Kong. 


Artists - Tracks - Composer
1. The Garnets - Dreamy Day (J. Vincent Edwards) - 3:45
2. The Majority - Time Is On Your Side (Bob Long, Peter Mizen) - 2:44
3. Gents - Walksong (Bjarne Löwdin, Ronnie Larsson) - 2:06
4. Malcolm Holland - Sally (Malcolm Holland) - 3:04
5. Bitter Almond - We Need Someone (Bruno Kretschmar) - 2:35
6. Jade And Pepper - All Alone (Jay Shotam, Peter Diaz) - 3:11
7. Hedgehoppers Anonymous - My Friend John Carter The Kind Magician (Mick Matthews) - 2:58
8. Dobbelt Opp - Baby You're A Seener (Birger Dahlman, Steinar Fjeld) - 2:52
9. David McNeil - The Machine (David McNeil) - 2:30
10.Simon - The Little Tin Soldier (Simon Adams) - 2:55
11.Cats Eyes - Where Is She Now (Cliff Brittle, Roger Banning, Roy Banks) - 3:00
12.January - It Sings For Me (Nigel Havers, Philip Havers) - 3:36
13.Gerry Morris - Nothing To Declare (Gerry Morris) - 2:44
14.Mandarin Kraze - Magazine Cottage (Robert Worton) - 3:02
15.Earl Okin - Stop And You Will Become Aware (Earl Okin) - 3:10
16.Tony Merrick - Wake Up (Bob Amato) - 2:20
17.Three Hits Med The Sapphires - Ever Since I Met You (Leif Strøm, Ole Neegaard, Kari Diesen) - 2:16
18.John Christian Gaydon - Wait By The Fire (Al Gorgoni, Chip Taylor) - 3:44
19.Canticle - Who Put The Light Out (Norman Coates) - 3:43
20.The Silvers - Where Has Love Gone (Noel Burns) - 2:53
21.The Lotus - Cute Little June (Samuel Hui) - 2:24


Friday, June 6, 2025

Various Artists - The World Of Blues (us, blues pioneers, double disc remaster)



Blues artists compilation with a wide range of aspects, from folk acoustic blues to electric Chicago blues and rock blues. Includes some of the top bluesmen of the 20th century, such as B.B. King, Willie Dixon, Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters among others. 

I'm very curious about the first track, a Hooker classic played by some guys that, they look to me as a studio project and not as an official band, with polished sound. Also the recording dates going back from early sixties to nineties. a very enjoyable collection, especially if you are on the road. Mr. Highway Man get out of my way.........


Artist - Title - Composer
Disc 1
1. The Cryin' Fox - Boom Boom (John Lee Hooker) - 3:20
2. B.B. King - The Thrill Is Gone (Athur Benson, Dale Pettite) - 5:01
3. Willie Dixon And Memphis Slim - That's My Baby (Willie Dixon) - 3:24
4. Elmore James - Mean Mistreatin' Mama (Leroy Carr) - 2:44
5. B.B. King - Payin' The Cost To The Boss (B.B. King) - 6:11
6. John Lee Hooker - Hobo Blues (John Lee Hooker) - 2:50
7. Howlin' Wolf - My Mind Is Ramblin' (Howlin' Wolf) - 2:48
8. Muddy Waters - Goin' Home (McKinley Morganfield) - 2:33
9. Big Joe Turner - Roll Me Baby (Big Joe Turner) - 8:05
10.Memphis Slim - Gambler's Blues (Memphis Slim) - 4:07
11.Sonny Terry And Brownie McGhee - Gonna Lay My Body Down (Bernard C. Solomon) - 3:16
12.Jimmy Reed - My Baby Is So Sweet (Jimmy Reed) - 2:42
13.Little Walter - Walters Blues (Little Walter) - 3:34
14.Howlin' Wolf - Highway 49 (Big Joe Williams) - 3:05
15.Lightnin' Hopkins - Automobile Blues (Sam Hopkins) - 4:32


Disc 2
1. Elmore James - Dust My Broom (Robert Johnson) - 2:56
2. B.B. King - Please Love Me (B.B. King, Jules Taub) - 2:49
3. Gary Browne - Still Got The Blues (Gary Moore) - 4:20
4. John Lee Hooker - Crawling King Snake (Unknown) - 2:41
5. Jimmy Reed - Honest I Do (Jimmy Reed) - 2:41
6. King Curtis - Trouble In Mind (Richard Jones) - 2:59
7. B.B. King - Everyday I Have The Blues (Memphis Slim) - 5:00
8. Otis Rush - It's Hard For Me To Believe My Baby (Otis Rush) - 5:58
9. Howlin' Wolf - 'Cause Of It All (Clement Burnette) - 2:47
10.Muddy Waters - Forty Days And Forty Nights (Bernard Roth) - 2:51
11.Sonny Terry - Ida Mae (Sonny Terry) - 3:20
12.Big Joe Turner - Roll 'M Pete (Pete Johnson) - 4:00
13.B.B. King - Sweet Sixteen (Ahmet Ertegün) - 4:16
14.Otis Spann - The Blues Never Die (Otis Spann) - 3:40

 Related Acts

Saturday, May 31, 2025

Clancy - Seriously Speaking (1975 ireland / uk, fusion of soul funk groove, laid-back pub rock, and AOR sophistication, with a deep vocal range, 2025 korean remaster)



An album with a nicely down-to-earth vibe, as you might guess from the group's sweatshirted image on the cover – but one that also has a great mix of jazzy elements as well! The record's kind of a laidback take on AOR territory of the mid 70s – served up by a British group, and not nearly as slick as similar efforts coming out of California during the time – almost with a joyous approach that has the group hitting all the right soulful notes on their instruments, and following suit on their vocals as well! The latter are shared by different group members from track to track – Dave Skinner, Colin Bass, Ernie Graham, and Barry Ford – which makes for a nice sense of variety that matches the instrumentation's shifts as well. Titles include "Sign Of The Times", "Lose Me", "Body To Body", "Back On Love", "Long Time Comin", and "Move On"
Du•Gr
Tracks
1. Back On Love - 3:45
2. Lose Me - 5:24
3. Body To Body - 6:08
4. Steal Away - 4:49
5. Sign Of The Times - 3:19
6. Southern Boogie - 3:31
7. Money - 3:27
8. Long Time Comin' - 3:27
9. Move On - 6:33
10. Eat Gook (Colin Bass, Dave Vasco) - 3:53
Song 1,2,6,9 written by Dave Skinner
Songs 3,5,7 written by Colin Bass
Songs 4,8 by Ernie Graham

Clancy 
*Barry Ford - Drums, Vocals
*Colin Bass - Bass, Vocals
*Dave Skinner - Keyboards, Vocals
*Dave Vasco - Guitar, Vocals
*Ernie Graham - Guitar, Vocals
*Gaspar Lawal - Percussion, Vocals
With
*Jim Cuomo - Saxophone

Related Acts

Monday, May 26, 2025

Monument - Vol. 1 (1970 france, weird strong hammond organ sounds, tight rhythm section and sharp guitar licks, 2015 reissue)



Monument is a legendary French band from the 1970s, who came into their own with the release of their eponymous album in 1970. The sound of the Hammond organ is positively superb, and the rhythm section is impressive, making this rare opus one of the crème de la crème of French progressive rock.

The band's English lyrics are sung by Michy Vals, who also plays rhythm guitar, followed by Patrick Famechon on bass, Tony Laguerre on beet, Joël Averbouch as lead guitarist, and Lou Lou Laguerre on organ and piano. They were signed to the AFA label (Artistes Français Associés).

Tracks
1. Are You Dizzy (Joël Averbouch) - 3:40
2. The Norway Girl (Michy Vals) - 3:29
3. The Sun Is Rising (Michy Vals) - 3:30
4. With No Success (Joël Averbouch) - 3:31
5. Don't Cry Clown (Joël Averbouch) - 4:56
6. You Look Funny (Michy Vals) - 4:54
7. Because You're Mine (Michy Vals) - 3:00
8. I Love You (Joël Averbouch) - 4:19

Monument
*Michy Vals - Vocal, Rhythm Guitar
*Lou Lou Laguerre - Organ, Piano
*Joël Averbouch - Lead Guitar
*Patrick Famechon - Bass Guitar
*Tony Laguerre - Drums

Saturday, May 24, 2025

rep> Listening - Listening (1968 us, solid heavy psych, , 2000 Akarma and 2014 Flawed Gems reissues)



Michael Tschudin led the Boston-based band Listening, but it is the contributions by former Velvet Underground bassist Walter Powers and guitarist Peter Malick which make this album historic. Powers performed over the years with keyboardist Willie Alexander as members of Capitol Recording Artist the Lost, the aforementioned Velvets, and on Autre Chose, a live album from Alexander released on New Rose in Paris. Peter Malick is best known for being Otis Spann's guitarist and a member of the James Montgomery Band on Capricorn.

Their legendary status in Boston rock & roll history brings positive notoriety to the fine music on this Vanguard release. "So Happy" is the poppiest tune, a cross between the Monkees and the Mojo Men, which is quite misleading. The album runs the gamut from pop to blues to jazz. "Baby Where Are You" is some strange fusion of Motown and the Spencer Davis Group which then veers off in a frenzy of effects and musical jam. Eight of the 11 tracks are written by keyboard/vocalist Michael Tschudin, with three titles attributed to the group. "See You Again," one of the group efforts, is another jam with riffs the Who would greatly appreciate. Phish's success validates how ahead of its time Listening truly was.

There is certainly an identity here as Tschudin takes the boys through all sorts of styles inside the tune "Laugh at the Stars." Elements of Jimi Hendrix, the Band, and the Vanilla Fudge swirl around in the pretty decent production by Michael Chechik. Listening has punch and creativity which deserved a better fate.
by Joe Viglione


 Tracks
1. You're Not There - 4:06
2. Laugh at the Stars - 4:15
3. 9/8 Song - 4:28
4. Stoned Is (Michael Tschudin, Walter Powers, Peter Malick, Ernie Kamanis, Gilbert Moses) - 4:51
5. Forget It, Man! - 3:24
6. I Can Teach You - 2:23
7. So Happy - 2:33
8. Cuando (Michael Tschudin, Walter Powers, Peter Malick, Ernie Kamanis) - 2:51
9. Baby: Where Are You? - 6:23
10. Fantasy - 1:02
11. See You Again (Michael Tschudin, Walter Powers, Peter Malick, Ernie Kamanis) - 3:45
All songs by Michael Tschudin except where stated.

Listening

*Michael Tschudin - Vocals, Vibes, Keyboards, Conga Drum
*Walter Powers - Bass
*Peter Malick - Guitars
*Ernie Kamanis - Vocals, Drums

Thursday, May 22, 2025

rep> Cynara - Cynara (1970 us, spectacular hard prog psych with jazz elements, 2011 kismet edition)



Michael Tschudin is taking his new group, Cynara, on me road to play rock clubs and music festivals free as a trailer for his debut record for Capitol. The free dates are part of Capitol's over-all promotion campaign for Cynara, as well as part of Tschudin's plan to get as wide an audience as possible 'into the group', and to give the group a chance to 'get it together'. 

Among the free dates played by Cynara are Ungano's in New York and the upcoming Harmony Music Festival in Atlantic City beginning Tuesday. Touring with Tschudin, who composed the songs for Cynara's first Capitol LP, are Jeff Watson (lead singer), Cal Hill (bass), Les Lumley (guitar) and Chip White (percussion). The album, which was produced by Tschudin and Capitol A&R staffer Ken Cooper, is the first all-New York production to go into release. 

It's scheduled for an August 24th shipment. Tschudin, who has studied with Rudolf Serkin and E. Power Biggs, and who says that "Johann Sebastian Bach is my greatest teacher," has three one-year options with Capitol and a guarantee of two album releases a year. Capitol's New York office will be keeping tabs on Cynara as they go into the free situations, and the company's men in the territory will be alerted to make these dates pay off in potential album sales' 
Bil/rd, August 1st 1970  


Tracks
1. Life Stories - 5:55
2. Hello You - 3:56
3. Stoned Is (Gil Moses, Michael Tschudin) - 4:07
4. Religious Song - 5:20
5. Mermaid Song - 7:59
6. Lullaby For CIA - 11:21
All songs by Michael Tschudin except where noted.

Cynara
*Jeff Watson - Lead Vocals
*Cal Hill- Bass
*Michael Tschudin - Keyboards, Drums
*Les Lumley - Guitar
*Chip White - Percussion
Guest Musician
*Elvin Jones - Drums

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Wednesday, May 21, 2025

rep> Eugene Carnan - Eugene Carnan (1972 uk, hard raw power rock, 2011 release)



In September 1971 Eugene Carnan entered a UK -wide competition for "Best New Band" run by the famous Melody Maker magazine. The competition took place in regional venues all over the UK and the South Wales heat was held in a Club in Caerphilly - a town famous for it's ancient Castle, it's Cheese and later to be the home of the Manic Street Preachers. 

Each band was asked to play 3 numbers. We decided to perform our own compositions rather than covers and so we played : "I Found Out", "Blues Thing" and '"Mountain". We took care in the choice of songs to balance the pace and feel to try to capture the essence of a Eugene Carnan live gig in a 12 minute slot. We had even written 'Blues Thing' especially to play at this competition because we hadn't up to then had any original slow numbers. 

When the results of the heat were announced we were very disappointed not to have been selected to go though to the final. However, as we were packing up we were approached by a guy who introduced himself as Wayne Williams and said he had a small recording studio and he was interested in recording us. Wayne's offer was to record a demo of the band for free then he said he would try to get some record companies interested. If he did we could discuss terms then. Of course our initial reaction was sceptical and wary because there were so many stories of bands getting ripped off. 

However, what made us change our mind was that Wayne mentioned that he was backed by a gentleman called Major Arthur Kenny. This name meant nothing to the other band members but it did to me. Major Kenny was the musical director of The Cory Band, one of the UK's top league brass bands, which was based in the Rhondda . My father played cornet in Cory Band for many years and I had also played a number of sessions with the band and had been a member of the Cory junior band. Because of this connection we agreed to go along with Waynes suggestion. However, it was many months later that Wayne contacted us again and we went over to his studio in Risca, Monmouth on Sunday 26th March and the following Friday 31st March which was Good Friday and Bank holiday. 

These few weeks in March were one of the busiest ever for the band. I have an accounts book that shows we had gigs in Teorchy on both the 24th and 25th and in Crumlin on the 30th March. Wayne's studio was in a converted stand-alone garage set away from any houses. Inside a small control room had been built in one corner and the rest of the space was the recording area. The walls were covered with cardboard egg boxes - a popular do-it-yourself form of sound proofing. Wayne's recording equipment consisted of a Sony Stereo 2-track tape recorder and a small mixer. 

The band set up and we had a two microphone to record the guitars - one for each amplifier and there were 3 mics for the drum kit - for the kick, snare and an overhead mic. Very simply we played the tracks live – exactly as we did in gigs with Adrian signing along as well but without microphone so that Wayne could recorded the instruments on one channel without any vocals. Then Adrian would 'overdub' the vocals onto the second track. Of course with this equipment there could be no post-production editing or effects added afterwards. So what you hear is what we really did play and sound like in that place in 1972. 

The recordings have all our mistakes, some duff notes, I even hit a microphone while aiming for the hi-hat in one of the songs and you can hear this on the record. You can hear some echo on the vocals – but again this was recorded live using the tape loop echo effect we used for gigs. We recorded 8 tracks during the two days. The missing track was called -"Camburoo" - a song with an African-type drum beat inspired by Osibisa a band we admired at the time. The name was a made-up joke word - sounding to us, part Welsh (Cambrian) and part Africa (Uroo came from Lieutenant Uhura in Star Trek). 

After we did the recordings several things happened at the same time. Wayne had a falling-out with Major Kenny and said that he was packing-in the studio. But he offered to give us the tapes. Second, our bass guitarist Mickey Williams started to get very unreliable and eventually decided to leave the band. I met up with Wayne in June 1972 and he gave me a tape reel that he said had all our tracks on it. Unfortunately, one track was missing - and when I contacted him, he said that it has been on another tape reel, but he thought he had recorded over it - so we never did get to hear "Camburoo". Despite the break-up of the band I decided that we should at least get some IP's made for our  own collections and also to have the songs available for a new replacement bass guitarist to learn. 

With this in mind on 28th July 1972 I went to London by myself on the train and took the tapes to J Eden Studio in Kingston-upon-Thames who offered a tape-to disc service. I found about about them though an advert in the back pages of Melody Maker. At the studio they cut 4 copies of the 7 tracks on the tape direct to Acetate LP. 

The process was of course analogue and live - the guy played the tape through and a stylus cut the grooves in the plastic. He did this 4 times to get the 4 discs, stopping to turn the disc over half way though the duplication so we ended up with 4 tracks on one side and 3 on the other. I came back to the Rhondda with the 4 IP's and gave one to each of the band and the other to one of our roadies. Later I was able to make some Cassette copies for friends from my copy, and several years later I loaned the original reel-to-reel tape to my then brother-in-law Colin Benjamin to whom I am grateful for its recent return. 

The Eugene Carnan tracks capture the live raw sound of a young band with very limited resources and equipment who played with enthusiasm and passion because they enjoyed what they did. Of course we dreamt of making it big, but really never expected to and so I suppose our fate was that of the many over the few. These were the tracks that got away, that we didn't get to play on The Old Grey Whistle Test' or Top of the Pops'. Now, I hope that almost 40 years later - others will enjoy them and smile.
by Mike Evans, Sheffield , February 2011


Tracks
1. Confusion - 4:33
2. I Found Out (Adrian Llewellyn) - 3:27
3. People In the City - 5:12
4. Black As Night (Adrian Llewellyn) - 3:22
5. Blues Thing - 4:07
6. On Your Mind - 4:16
7. Mountain - 5:05
All songs by Adrian Llewellyn, Michael Williams, Mike Evans except where indicated

Eugene Carnan
*Adrian Llewellyn - Guitar, Vocals
*Michael Williams - Bass Guitar
*Mike Evans - Drums

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Sunday, May 18, 2025

The Hello People - The Hello People (1968 us, spectacular psych rock, 2016 korean remaster)

 



One of the most unique rock groups of the 1960s, The Hello People, was created during late 1967 in New York by producer Lou Futterman. There is precious little information on this group that is available on the Internet. This is an attempt to fill that void.

The idea for creating the group stemmed from Marcel Carné's film Children of Paradise (Les Enfants du Paradis). Etienne De Crux, the father of French mime, plays the part of Bapties's father in the film. During the sixties De Crux taught painting to a group of musicians. Since these musicians learned to paint so quickly, De Crux reasoned that musicians could also learn mime and apply it in some new way to create a new form. The manager of the musicians De Crux taught, Lou Futterman, decided he would implement this new concept. He then put together a new group of musicians who would perform in mime makeup and do mime routines between songs, never speaking a word to the audience.

The group recorded for Philips Records, performed at the Café Wha? in Greenwich Village in 1968 and at The Players Theater, upstairs above the Café Wha? Although the group didn't have a hit record they were often seen on major network television shows such as The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson and the controversial Smothers Brothers Show.

"They say I was born in the land of the free but the home of the briefcase is all I can see." W. S. Tongue.


Tracks
1. It's A Monday Kind Of Tuesday (Nancy Reiner) - 3:29
2. Sunrise Meadow - 6:09
3. A Stranger At Her Door - 2:40
4. Movin' And Growin' - 3:41
5. Paisley Teddy Bear - 2:55
6. (As I Went Down To) Jerusalem (W. S. "Sonny" Tongue) - 4:18
7. Lamplight, Nightlight - 4:32
8. Mr. Truth Evading, Masquerading Man - 2:21
9. Paris In The Rain - 4:54
All songs by Greg Geddes, Bobby Sedita, Wrightson Samuel Tongue Jr., Larry Tasse except where noted
 
The Hello People
*W. S. "Sonny" Tongue "Country" - Vocal, Guitar
*Greg Geddes "Smoothie" - Bass, Vocal
*Bobby Sedita "Goodfellow" - Guitar, Vocal
*Larry Tassi "Much More" - Keyboards, Vocal
*Michael Sagarese "Wry One" - Flute
*Ronnie Blake "Thump Thump" - Drums


Tuesday, May 13, 2025

Baxter - Baxter (1973 us, delicate art soft prog rock, 2025 remaster)



Baxter were one of those early-'70s US bands who can only really be described as 'rock': not heavy enough to be 'heavy', prog enough to be 'prog' or soft enough to be 'West Coast'. Their sole, eponymous album from '73 displays a mixture of styles, from the twin-guitar hard rock of '51 through the near-country balladry of Gentle Arms to the almost-prog of Renaissance Woman and Moonfire II, the two main tracks that save this album from mediocrity and gain it an extra half star. There are other progressive moments, not least in Doctor Doctor and 197Three, but too much of this album is mid-paced third-division material, which explains why you've probably never heard of them before.

Mellotron from both Doug Arioli and Steve Kirshenbaum, though I've no idea who played what and where. Renaissance Woman marks the first entrance of the Mellotron, with a cello part that couldn't be anything else, with a more 'normal' string part on Gentle Arms, leaving the album's major Mellotron interjection to side two's Moonfire II, with some very upfront strings and less of the same on closer 197Three. So; Baxter is a game of two halves, the band's proggier material being dragged down by their more straightforward stuff. However, I'm quite sure that the latter went down better on stage and, since I'm sure they relied on live work to pay the bills, who can blame them for recording some of it? Anyway, not bad, not great, with a surprising amount of Mellotron work.
Planet-Mellotron


Tracks
1. By The Gates (Steven Kirshenbaum) - 3:55
2. Give It All (John Linde, Peter Antell) - 2:56
3. Renaissance Woman (Steven Kirshenbaum) - 7:36
4. "51" (Steven Kirshenbaum, Lawrence Di Natale, Steve Belgrade, Edwin Damus Perry) - 4:32
5. Gentle Arms (Doug Arioli) - 3:02
6. Moonfire II (Lawrence Di Natale, Steven Kirshenbaum) - 7:32
7. Can't Find The Time (Doug Arioli) - 4:07
8. Doctor, Doctor (Steven Kirshenbaum) - 5:29
9. 197three (Lawrence Di Natale) - 4:16

Baxter
*Steven Kirshenbaum - Keyboards, Synthesizer
*Lawrence Di Natale - Drums, Percussion
*Edwin Damus Perry - Bass, Vocals
*Steve Belgrade - Electric Guitar, Vocals
*Doug Arioli - Electric Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals