VINCENT CRANE Featuring ARTHUR BROWN
''TARO ROTA''
1997
48:26
1 - Part 1/22:24
2 - Part 2/3:17
3 - Part 3/22:25
REVIEW
by Dave Thompson
Properly termed a Vincent Crane solo album, but so dominated by Arthur Brown's preternatural vocals that the billing has been totally flipped, the oft misspelled Taro Rota album was originally conceived around 1975, when Crane and wife-to be Jeannie Crane found their shared interest in Tarot cards spilling over into their songwriting. (The pair used to offer Tarot readings at fetes and fairs.) A 22-minute opus arranged for orchestra and more, Taro it was a fascinating piece of work, but far too ambitious to ever be realized. Even Crane's otherwise-enthusiastic publishers were willing only to fund a ten-minute demo, which was recorded later in 1975 with Arthur Brown and a full band -- it is this piece which leads off the 1997 Voiceprint CD, alongside Crane's own piano demo of the full work. The original Taro Rota did not remain entirely unheard. Atomic Rooster's valedictory Headline News album lifted elements for the songs "Time" and "Machine," although little more than the melody will prepare the listener for the full Taro Rota experience. Nor, of course, does the music presented here. Despite a spellbinding Brown recital, the band performance is just a shade too clunky to capture the full dynamic of the Cranes' vision, while the piano rendition is by necessity too Spartan. But both allow one to dream of what could have been -- and it is a wonderful dream.
BIOGRAPHY
by Richie Unterberger
One of the most electrifying one-shot artists of the '60s, British singer Arthur Brown briefly set the charts alight in 1968, as well as thrilling audiences with his theatrical performances, which saw him wearing helmets of fire and outlandish costumes. His debut album was surely one of the most left-field commercial successes of the late '60s, if not of rock history. In addition to topping the British charts (and reaching number two in the U.S.) with his brilliantly demonic single "Fire," the self-proclaimed god of hellfire actually scored a Top Ten LP with his 1968 debut. Unveiling Brown's demented, fire-obsessed lyrical visions and swooping, theatrical vocals, it showcased his band's manic, agitated psychedelic sound, which was anchored by incendiary drumming, Pete Townshend's production, and an organist who could be best described as Jimmy Smith on acid. Brown's original band broke up in early 1969; in the early '70s he released several albums with Kingdom Come, which saw him pursuing a maddeningly obscure and less exciting brand of art rock. He recorded off and on after, with an additional flash of fame springing from his role as a priest in the film Tommy.
''TARO ROTA''
1997
48:26
1 - Part 1/22:24
2 - Part 2/3:17
3 - Part 3/22:25
REVIEW
by Dave Thompson
Properly termed a Vincent Crane solo album, but so dominated by Arthur Brown's preternatural vocals that the billing has been totally flipped, the oft misspelled Taro Rota album was originally conceived around 1975, when Crane and wife-to be Jeannie Crane found their shared interest in Tarot cards spilling over into their songwriting. (The pair used to offer Tarot readings at fetes and fairs.) A 22-minute opus arranged for orchestra and more, Taro it was a fascinating piece of work, but far too ambitious to ever be realized. Even Crane's otherwise-enthusiastic publishers were willing only to fund a ten-minute demo, which was recorded later in 1975 with Arthur Brown and a full band -- it is this piece which leads off the 1997 Voiceprint CD, alongside Crane's own piano demo of the full work. The original Taro Rota did not remain entirely unheard. Atomic Rooster's valedictory Headline News album lifted elements for the songs "Time" and "Machine," although little more than the melody will prepare the listener for the full Taro Rota experience. Nor, of course, does the music presented here. Despite a spellbinding Brown recital, the band performance is just a shade too clunky to capture the full dynamic of the Cranes' vision, while the piano rendition is by necessity too Spartan. But both allow one to dream of what could have been -- and it is a wonderful dream.
BIOGRAPHY
by Richie Unterberger
One of the most electrifying one-shot artists of the '60s, British singer Arthur Brown briefly set the charts alight in 1968, as well as thrilling audiences with his theatrical performances, which saw him wearing helmets of fire and outlandish costumes. His debut album was surely one of the most left-field commercial successes of the late '60s, if not of rock history. In addition to topping the British charts (and reaching number two in the U.S.) with his brilliantly demonic single "Fire," the self-proclaimed god of hellfire actually scored a Top Ten LP with his 1968 debut. Unveiling Brown's demented, fire-obsessed lyrical visions and swooping, theatrical vocals, it showcased his band's manic, agitated psychedelic sound, which was anchored by incendiary drumming, Pete Townshend's production, and an organist who could be best described as Jimmy Smith on acid. Brown's original band broke up in early 1969; in the early '70s he released several albums with Kingdom Come, which saw him pursuing a maddeningly obscure and less exciting brand of art rock. He recorded off and on after, with an additional flash of fame springing from his role as a priest in the film Tommy.
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