BLACKFOOT
''STRIKES''
MARCH 1979
33:50
**********
01 - Road Fever 03:07 (Rick Medlocke, Jackson Spires)
02 - I Got A Line On You 03:17 (Randy California)
03 - Left Turn On A Red Light 04:36 (Rick Medlocke, Jackson Spires)
04 - Pay My Dues 03:03 (The Blues Image)
05 - Baby Blue 02:34 (Rick Medlocke, Jackson Spires)
06 - Wishing Well 03:11 (John Bundrick, Simon Kirke, Paul Kossoff, Paul Rodgers, Tetsu Yamauchi)
07 - Run And Hide 03:25 (Scott Anthony, Rick Medlocke, Jackson Spires)
08 - Train, Train (Prelude) 00:36 (Rick Medlocke, Shorty Medlocke)
09 - Train, Train 02:58 (Zenon De Fleur, Rick Medlocke, Shorty Medlocke)
10 - Highway Song 07:01 (Rick Medlocke, Jackson Spires)
**********
Rickey Medlocke - lead vocals, guitar
Charlie Hargrett - guitar
Greg T. Walker - bass guitar, keyboards, vocals
Jakson Spires - drums, percussion, vocals
Additional personnel:
Pat McCaffrey - keyboards
Shorty Medlocke - harmonica (track 8)
Cub Koda - harmonica (track 9)
Donna D. Davis - backing vocals
Pamela T. Vincent - backing vocals
Cynthia M. Douglas - backing vocals
Henry "H-Bomb" Week - percussion
**********
REVIEW/AMG
Eduardo Rivadavia
After missing the boat with Lynyrd Skynyrd (for whom he played drums early on), guitarist/singer Rick Medlocke formed Blackfoot, arguably the first all-Native American rock group. The band struggled for almost a decade, playing run-of-the-mill Southern rock that they eventually injected with extra volume and attitude before signing with Atco, for whom they recorded their 1979 breakthrough Strikes. Known as a ferocious live unit and probably the heaviest of Southern rock bands (see opener "Road Fever"), Strikes also proved that Blackfoot could write great melodies for the gloomy "Left Turn on a Red Light" and the inspired cover version of Free's "Wishing Well." But the band's biggest hit would come in the form of the seven-minute "Highway Song," a tune that was admittedly very reminiscent of Skynyrd's "Freebird" and that helped drive the album to gold status. Also of note is the harmonica performance of Shorty Medlocke (Rick's grandfather) on his own blues, "Train, Train."
**********
BIOGRAPHY/AMG
Bruce Eder
Strikes
Blackfoot were contemporaries of Lynyrd Skynyrd, and tried for years to make it as a Southern rock band, although they finally succeeded as a hard rock outfit, in the manner of AC/DC and the Scorpions. They racked up a hit album (Strikes) and a pair of successful singles ("Train, Train," "Highway Song") in the late '70s and early '80s, before they became lost in the post-MTV era of visually oriented bands.
Tomcattin'
The group started out as a quartet comprising singer/guitarist Rickey Medlocke (the grandson of bluegrass musician Shorty Medlocke, who wrote "Train, Train"), drummer/singer Jakson Spires, bassist/singer Greg T. Walker, and lead guitarist Charlie Hargrett. Named Blackfoot as an acknowledgment of Medlocke's heritage, they were signed to Island in 1975, evidently as that label's resident Southern rockers, but moved to Epic the following year. Neither relationship was successful, but in 1979, after moving to Atco, their first album for the new label, Strikes, hit a responsive chord -- the group spent the next few years on that label, racking up impressive sales with the follow-ups Tomcattin' and Marauder.
Rick Medlocke & Blackfoot
In the mid-'80s, Blackfoot added ex-Uriah Heep keyboardist Ken Hensley in order to bring a new side to their sound. Their fortunes declined amid the advent of MTV and the growth in importance of rock video promotional clips, as well as the influence of sounds from Europe and Australia, and they never recovered, despite efforts to adapt their sound and image. Hensley was replaced, and a new lineup recorded Rick Medlocke & Blackfoot (1987). Only two albums, Medicine Man (1990) and After the Reign (1994), were released during the first half of the 1990s. Committed to his duties in Lynyrd Skynyrd, Medlocke put Blackfoot on ice in 1997.
On the Run
The following decade and into the 2010s, the band was active as a performing act featuring original members but not Medlocke. Blackfoot released a handful of live sets, including On the Run (2004) and Fly Away (2011). In 2012, Medlocke -- still part of Lynyrd Skynyrd -- chose four new musicians to represent Blackfoot and acted as the band's producer.
**********
WIKIPEDIA
**********
WEBSITE
**********
TO THE TOP
********************
''STRIKES''
MARCH 1979
33:50
**********
01 - Road Fever 03:07 (Rick Medlocke, Jackson Spires)
02 - I Got A Line On You 03:17 (Randy California)
03 - Left Turn On A Red Light 04:36 (Rick Medlocke, Jackson Spires)
04 - Pay My Dues 03:03 (The Blues Image)
05 - Baby Blue 02:34 (Rick Medlocke, Jackson Spires)
06 - Wishing Well 03:11 (John Bundrick, Simon Kirke, Paul Kossoff, Paul Rodgers, Tetsu Yamauchi)
07 - Run And Hide 03:25 (Scott Anthony, Rick Medlocke, Jackson Spires)
08 - Train, Train (Prelude) 00:36 (Rick Medlocke, Shorty Medlocke)
09 - Train, Train 02:58 (Zenon De Fleur, Rick Medlocke, Shorty Medlocke)
10 - Highway Song 07:01 (Rick Medlocke, Jackson Spires)
**********
Rickey Medlocke - lead vocals, guitar
Charlie Hargrett - guitar
Greg T. Walker - bass guitar, keyboards, vocals
Jakson Spires - drums, percussion, vocals
Additional personnel:
Pat McCaffrey - keyboards
Shorty Medlocke - harmonica (track 8)
Cub Koda - harmonica (track 9)
Donna D. Davis - backing vocals
Pamela T. Vincent - backing vocals
Cynthia M. Douglas - backing vocals
Henry "H-Bomb" Week - percussion
**********
REVIEW/AMG
Eduardo Rivadavia
After missing the boat with Lynyrd Skynyrd (for whom he played drums early on), guitarist/singer Rick Medlocke formed Blackfoot, arguably the first all-Native American rock group. The band struggled for almost a decade, playing run-of-the-mill Southern rock that they eventually injected with extra volume and attitude before signing with Atco, for whom they recorded their 1979 breakthrough Strikes. Known as a ferocious live unit and probably the heaviest of Southern rock bands (see opener "Road Fever"), Strikes also proved that Blackfoot could write great melodies for the gloomy "Left Turn on a Red Light" and the inspired cover version of Free's "Wishing Well." But the band's biggest hit would come in the form of the seven-minute "Highway Song," a tune that was admittedly very reminiscent of Skynyrd's "Freebird" and that helped drive the album to gold status. Also of note is the harmonica performance of Shorty Medlocke (Rick's grandfather) on his own blues, "Train, Train."
**********
BIOGRAPHY/AMG
Bruce Eder
Strikes
Blackfoot were contemporaries of Lynyrd Skynyrd, and tried for years to make it as a Southern rock band, although they finally succeeded as a hard rock outfit, in the manner of AC/DC and the Scorpions. They racked up a hit album (Strikes) and a pair of successful singles ("Train, Train," "Highway Song") in the late '70s and early '80s, before they became lost in the post-MTV era of visually oriented bands.
Tomcattin'
The group started out as a quartet comprising singer/guitarist Rickey Medlocke (the grandson of bluegrass musician Shorty Medlocke, who wrote "Train, Train"), drummer/singer Jakson Spires, bassist/singer Greg T. Walker, and lead guitarist Charlie Hargrett. Named Blackfoot as an acknowledgment of Medlocke's heritage, they were signed to Island in 1975, evidently as that label's resident Southern rockers, but moved to Epic the following year. Neither relationship was successful, but in 1979, after moving to Atco, their first album for the new label, Strikes, hit a responsive chord -- the group spent the next few years on that label, racking up impressive sales with the follow-ups Tomcattin' and Marauder.
Rick Medlocke & Blackfoot
In the mid-'80s, Blackfoot added ex-Uriah Heep keyboardist Ken Hensley in order to bring a new side to their sound. Their fortunes declined amid the advent of MTV and the growth in importance of rock video promotional clips, as well as the influence of sounds from Europe and Australia, and they never recovered, despite efforts to adapt their sound and image. Hensley was replaced, and a new lineup recorded Rick Medlocke & Blackfoot (1987). Only two albums, Medicine Man (1990) and After the Reign (1994), were released during the first half of the 1990s. Committed to his duties in Lynyrd Skynyrd, Medlocke put Blackfoot on ice in 1997.
On the Run
The following decade and into the 2010s, the band was active as a performing act featuring original members but not Medlocke. Blackfoot released a handful of live sets, including On the Run (2004) and Fly Away (2011). In 2012, Medlocke -- still part of Lynyrd Skynyrd -- chose four new musicians to represent Blackfoot and acted as the band's producer.
**********
WIKIPEDIA
**********
WEBSITE
**********
TO THE TOP
********************
No comments :
Post a Comment