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9384 - ALAN PRICE - A PRICE ON HIS HEAD (1967)

ALAN PRICE
''A PRICE ON HIS HEAD''
1967
35:18

1 The House That Jack Built (Alan Price) 03:11
2 She's Got Another Pair Of Shoes (Alan Price) 02:39
3 Come And Dance With Me (Randy Newman) 01:59
4 On This Side Of Goodbye 03:25
5 So Long Dad (Randy Newman) 02:27
6 No One Ever Hurt So Bad (Randy Newman) 02:25
7 Don't Do That Again 02:06
8 Tickle Me (Randy Newman) 02:45
9 Grim Fairy Tale (Alan Price) 03:39
10 Living Without You (Randy Newman) 02:46
11 Happy Land (Randy Newman) 02:44
12 To Ramona (Bob Dylan) 03:05
13 Biggest Night Of Her Life (Randy Newman) 02:00

Eric Burdon/Vocals
Clive Burrows/Baritone
Chas Chandler/Bass Guitar
Steve Gregory/Sax (Tenor)
Mike Leander/Arrangement Collaboration, Arranger
Roy Mills/Drums
Alan Price/Arranger, Keyboards, Vocals
Ivor Raymonde/Arrangement Collaboration, Arranger
Hilton Valentine/Guitar
John L. Walters/Trumpet

REVIEW/AMG
by Richie Unterberger
Alan Price's second album consolidated the change of direction he'd started in early 1967, when his cover of Randy Newman's "Simon Smith and His Amazing Dancing Bear" became a big British hit. Moving away from the jazzy Animals-styled R&B-rock that he'd presented on his first album and singles, Price moved into a more original, if less powerful, brand of Newman-influenced vaudevillian pop. The Randy Newman influence isn't a matter of conjecture; about half of the songs were covers of songs by Newman (who had yet to release his first album at the time A Price on His Head was issued), often of tunes that remain obscure even to serious Newman fans. The effect is something like hearing an even jauntier, more lighthearted Georgie Fame, as even Price's own compositions bore a strong Newman influence in their emphasis on poppy craft and wit. Breaking up the Newman and Price songs were covers of Bob Dylan's "To Ramona" and the little-known Gerry Goffin-Carole King number "On This Side of Goodbye." For a long time the material on this album was difficult to find, particularly in the United States, where Price's early work was virtually unknown. But the CD era has seen it reissued several times, both on its own and as part of the compilation The House That Jack Built: The Complete 60's Sessions.

BIOGRAPHY/AMG
by Richie Unterberger

As the organist in the first Animals lineup, Alan Price was perhaps the most important instrumental contributor to their early run of hits. He left the group in 1965 after only a year or so of international success (he can be seen talking about his departure with Bob Dylan in the rockumentary Don't Look Back) to work on a solo career. Leading the Alan Price Set, he had a Top Ten British hit in 1966 with a reworking of "I Put a Spell on You," complete with Animals-ish organ breaks and bluesy vocals. His subsequent run of British hits between 1966 and 1968 -- "Hi-Lili-Hi-Lo," "Simon Smith and His Dancing Bear," "The House That Jack Built," and "Don't Stop the Carnival" -- were in a much lighter vein, drawing from British music hall influences. "Simon Smith and His Dancing Bear," from 1967, was one of the first Randy Newman songs to gain international exposure, though Price's version -- like all his British hits -- went virtually unnoticed in the U.S. A versatile entertainer, Price collaborated with Georgie Fame, hosted TV shows, and scored plays in the years following the breakup of the Alan Price Set in 1968. He composed the score to Lindsay Anderson's O Lucky Man!, where his spare and droll songs served almost as a Greek chorus to the surreal, whimsical film (Price himself has a small role in the movie). His 1974 concept album Between Today and Yesterday was his most critically acclaimed work.

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