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Plain and Fancy

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

Plato

Wednesday, March 18, 2015

Unicorn - Uphill All The Way (1971-73 uk, splendid harmony folk soft rock, 2009 remaster and expanded)



The Unicorn’s first album,  Uphill All the Way, sounds like a band simply ecstatic at the possibilities of this new brand of folk-rock; they cover all the greats of the genre: Neil Young, Jimmy Webb, John Stewart, James Taylor, Joe Cocker, and Gerry Rafferty. But the originals by Ken Baker show that he was just as good at evoking the sun drenched canyons of the beaches of Southern California as his influences; which is all the more impressive considering he was writing and singing from the famously overcast and rainy London. 

Still Baker’s songwriting wasn’t yet up to snuff, the best song here is their beautiful interpretation of Webb’s  P.F. Sloan,  a tribute to the American songwriter. The amazing harmonies on this track reveal Unicorn was more than just a CSN rip-off like so many bands of this breed; these guys are the real deal.
by Stephen Belden


Tracks
1. P.F. Sloan (Jimmy Webb) - 4:30
2. 115 Bar Joy (Ken Baker) - 3:51
3. I've Loved Her So Long (Neil Young) - 2:42
4. Don't Ever Give Up Trying (Ken Baker) - 5:08
5. Country Road (James Taylor) - 4:16
6. Something To Say (Joe Cocker) - 4:43
7. Ain't Got A Lot Of Future (Ken Baker) - 6:49
8. Never Going Back (John Stewart) - 3:21
9. You, You, Hate Me (Ken Baker) - 5:38
10.Please Sing A Song For Us (Gerry Rafferty) - 3:13
11.Going Back Home (Ken Baker) - 3:36
12.Cosmic Kid (Ken Baker) - 2:57
13.All We Really Want To Do (Bonnie Bramlett, Delaney Bramlett) - 3:17
14.P.F. Sloan (2006 Remix) (Jimmy Webb) - 4:40
Bonus Tracks 11-14

Unicorn
*Peter Perrier - Drums, Congas, Percussion, Vocals
*Pat Martin - Bass Guitar, Vocals
*Ken Baker - Electric Guitar, Acoustic 6, 12 String Guitar, Organ, Piano, Harmonium, Electric Piano, Vocals
*Trevor Mee - 6, 12 String Electric Acoustic Guitars, Flute, Vocals
With
*Kevin Smith - Guitar, Mandolin
*Hugh Murphy - Tambourine

1974  Unicorn - Blue Pine Trees (2006 Japan remaster and expanded)
1976  Unicorn - Too Many Crooks (2006 Japan remaster)

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