GOOSE CREEK SYMPHONY
''LIVE IN CANADA '72 & 74''
JULY 2 2013
68:51
**********
1 Welcome To Goose Creek 03:53
2 The Corn Won't Grow So Rock 'n Roll 08:17
3 Sally Goodin 01:23
4 Pick Up The Tempo 03:56
5 Teresa 04:23
6 Saturday Night At The Grange 04:27
7 Mercedes Benz 03:36
8 Talk About Goose Creek 14:42
9 Hot Dog Daddy 05:25
10 The Bottle Let Me Down 03:46
11 Rush On Love 03:02
12 Fiddle Solo (Fred) 01:09
13 A Satisfied Mind (Live) 04:51
14 Guitars Pickin' And Fiddles Playin' 05:57
**********
REVIEW
Brian Robbins, www.jambands.com; www.brian-robbins.com
There’s a moment during the version of “Talk About Goose Creek” on Live In Canada ’72 & ’74 when Goose Creek Symphony’s lead vocalist/acoustic guitarist Charlie Gearheart sings: “Drumsticks flyin’, the guitars ringin’/ Boys, we sure like pickin’ and singin’/ We don’t need a whole lotta help/ We can freak out by ourselves” – and then he calls out “Freak out, boys!” And they do, rolling and a’tumbling for a couple of moments like a bunch of overall-clad Mothers Of Invention. The ironic part is, the whole damn fat hour’s-worth of vintage Goose Creek Symphony to be found on Live In Canada ’72 & ’74 is one big freak-out. And if you don’t know about Goose Creek Symphony, this is a fine time to feed your head.
Sometimes it’s the subtle stuff: the cool hand percussion (provided by do-anything-that-needs-doing drummer Dennis Kenmore) underneath the feet-dangling-off-the-tailgate bounce of “The Corn Won’t Grow So Rock ‘N’ Roll” – or the way bassist Pat Moore will insert anything from a little disco gallooop up the neck to a be-bop-flavored flurry into the weirdest of places – or the neat fiddle>overdriven guitar>fiddle>saxophone>that nasty guitar again tag-teaming on “Mercedes Benz”.
And sometimes it’s just plain mind-bending: “Talk About Goose Creek” effortlessly swaps hemispheres and genres in the blink of an eye (remember, boys and girls: this was a couple decades prior to String Cheese’s hot Appalachian/Celtic/Middle Eastern/Afro/Latin gumbos) with rhythm and instrumental change-ups that manage to shapeshift the vibe and groove without ever feeling abrupt. When did the almost-but-not-quite feedbacking guitars vaporize into an acoustic guitar/fiddle jazz glide – and when the hell did that sensuous flute appear? How did we get from sitting on a hay bale to the back of this hookah-smoking pachyderm? Wait – now it’s a goddamned wah-pedaled geetar rubbing fenders with the fiddle – no, horns – no, fiddle … oh, forget it.
“Hot Dog Daddy” morphs from sounding like some crazy time-warp deal where Duane Allman and Dickey Betts sit in with Railroad Earth (that would be Fred Wise on fiddle for that one; he mans the bow for the album’s latter tracks, while Ellis Schwied does the deed for the ’72 tracks); the gearbox for “Guitars Pickin’ And Fiddles Playin’” powerglides from “Y” for yee-haw to “P” for psych-rock flurry to “L” for locomotive barrel-assing down the side of a mountain; and a fierce horn section kicks the already-driving “Teresa” over the top (be prepared for the shift to a Santana-inspired minor-mode jam in the tune’s final minute). Even when Goose Creek plays it pretty straight – a cool cover of Merle Haggard’s “The Bottle Let Me Down” or “Satisfied Mind” (a big ol’ hit for Porter Wagoner) or Waylon Jennings’ “Pick Up The Tempo” – there’ll be an edge to the electric guitars (Bob Henke or Paul Spradlin) that throws a flash of tie-dye onto a song’s blue-denim roots. The best thing is, no matter how weird the going gets, life in Goose Creek is never nothin’ but grins.
Just listen to Gearheart count in “Rush On Love”: “One … two … six …” – that pretty much sums it all up. Don’t overthink things – just let the music play.
**********
BIOGRAPHY/AMG
Zac Johnson
Goose Creek Symphony found its roots in the Phoenix, AZ, area originally as a countrified side project for Richie Hart & the Heart Beats. Vocalist and guitarist Charles Gearheart (aka Richie Hart) spent his childhood "up Goose Creek Hollow" in Floyd County, KY, and when he put together his good-time country-rock group, he drew upon his home's rich musical heritage as well as its name. In 1970, Gearheart and a group of local studio musicians assembled a handful of songs and presented them to Capitol Records. Capitol signed his project, forcing Gearheart to assemble a touring group. Banjo player and fiddler Fred Weisz was brought in to complement existing guitarists Paul Spradlin (listed as "Paul Howard" on the album), Bob Henke ("Williard"), Mike McFadden (following the breakup of his psychedelic group Superfine Dandelion), as well as a rotating cast of bassists and drummers.
With a sound very similar to what the Band was doing at the same time, Goose Creek Symphony were rock & rollers who played a very faithful brand of country music, all the while layering rhythms and harmonies along the same lines as Buffalo Springfield and the Grateful Dead. They released albums through the mid-'70s, with that streak ending in a long hiatus from 1976 to 1990, when the group decided to re-form and record again.
Their marriage of earthy instrumentation and easygoing vibes have been able to give the group a certain longevity. Into their third decade, Goose Creek Symphony is drawing strong groups of fans to their summer festival appearances, similar to what the Dead and Jimmy Buffett have known.
**********
WIKIPEDIA
**********
WEBSITE
**********
TO THE TOP
**********
''LIVE IN CANADA '72 & 74''
JULY 2 2013
68:51
**********
1 Welcome To Goose Creek 03:53
2 The Corn Won't Grow So Rock 'n Roll 08:17
3 Sally Goodin 01:23
4 Pick Up The Tempo 03:56
5 Teresa 04:23
6 Saturday Night At The Grange 04:27
7 Mercedes Benz 03:36
8 Talk About Goose Creek 14:42
9 Hot Dog Daddy 05:25
10 The Bottle Let Me Down 03:46
11 Rush On Love 03:02
12 Fiddle Solo (Fred) 01:09
13 A Satisfied Mind (Live) 04:51
14 Guitars Pickin' And Fiddles Playin' 05:57
**********
REVIEW
Brian Robbins, www.jambands.com; www.brian-robbins.com
There’s a moment during the version of “Talk About Goose Creek” on Live In Canada ’72 & ’74 when Goose Creek Symphony’s lead vocalist/acoustic guitarist Charlie Gearheart sings: “Drumsticks flyin’, the guitars ringin’/ Boys, we sure like pickin’ and singin’/ We don’t need a whole lotta help/ We can freak out by ourselves” – and then he calls out “Freak out, boys!” And they do, rolling and a’tumbling for a couple of moments like a bunch of overall-clad Mothers Of Invention. The ironic part is, the whole damn fat hour’s-worth of vintage Goose Creek Symphony to be found on Live In Canada ’72 & ’74 is one big freak-out. And if you don’t know about Goose Creek Symphony, this is a fine time to feed your head.
Sometimes it’s the subtle stuff: the cool hand percussion (provided by do-anything-that-needs-doing drummer Dennis Kenmore) underneath the feet-dangling-off-the-tailgate bounce of “The Corn Won’t Grow So Rock ‘N’ Roll” – or the way bassist Pat Moore will insert anything from a little disco gallooop up the neck to a be-bop-flavored flurry into the weirdest of places – or the neat fiddle>overdriven guitar>fiddle>saxophone>that nasty guitar again tag-teaming on “Mercedes Benz”.
And sometimes it’s just plain mind-bending: “Talk About Goose Creek” effortlessly swaps hemispheres and genres in the blink of an eye (remember, boys and girls: this was a couple decades prior to String Cheese’s hot Appalachian/Celtic/Middle Eastern/Afro/Latin gumbos) with rhythm and instrumental change-ups that manage to shapeshift the vibe and groove without ever feeling abrupt. When did the almost-but-not-quite feedbacking guitars vaporize into an acoustic guitar/fiddle jazz glide – and when the hell did that sensuous flute appear? How did we get from sitting on a hay bale to the back of this hookah-smoking pachyderm? Wait – now it’s a goddamned wah-pedaled geetar rubbing fenders with the fiddle – no, horns – no, fiddle … oh, forget it.
“Hot Dog Daddy” morphs from sounding like some crazy time-warp deal where Duane Allman and Dickey Betts sit in with Railroad Earth (that would be Fred Wise on fiddle for that one; he mans the bow for the album’s latter tracks, while Ellis Schwied does the deed for the ’72 tracks); the gearbox for “Guitars Pickin’ And Fiddles Playin’” powerglides from “Y” for yee-haw to “P” for psych-rock flurry to “L” for locomotive barrel-assing down the side of a mountain; and a fierce horn section kicks the already-driving “Teresa” over the top (be prepared for the shift to a Santana-inspired minor-mode jam in the tune’s final minute). Even when Goose Creek plays it pretty straight – a cool cover of Merle Haggard’s “The Bottle Let Me Down” or “Satisfied Mind” (a big ol’ hit for Porter Wagoner) or Waylon Jennings’ “Pick Up The Tempo” – there’ll be an edge to the electric guitars (Bob Henke or Paul Spradlin) that throws a flash of tie-dye onto a song’s blue-denim roots. The best thing is, no matter how weird the going gets, life in Goose Creek is never nothin’ but grins.
Just listen to Gearheart count in “Rush On Love”: “One … two … six …” – that pretty much sums it all up. Don’t overthink things – just let the music play.
**********
BIOGRAPHY/AMG
Zac Johnson
Goose Creek Symphony found its roots in the Phoenix, AZ, area originally as a countrified side project for Richie Hart & the Heart Beats. Vocalist and guitarist Charles Gearheart (aka Richie Hart) spent his childhood "up Goose Creek Hollow" in Floyd County, KY, and when he put together his good-time country-rock group, he drew upon his home's rich musical heritage as well as its name. In 1970, Gearheart and a group of local studio musicians assembled a handful of songs and presented them to Capitol Records. Capitol signed his project, forcing Gearheart to assemble a touring group. Banjo player and fiddler Fred Weisz was brought in to complement existing guitarists Paul Spradlin (listed as "Paul Howard" on the album), Bob Henke ("Williard"), Mike McFadden (following the breakup of his psychedelic group Superfine Dandelion), as well as a rotating cast of bassists and drummers.
With a sound very similar to what the Band was doing at the same time, Goose Creek Symphony were rock & rollers who played a very faithful brand of country music, all the while layering rhythms and harmonies along the same lines as Buffalo Springfield and the Grateful Dead. They released albums through the mid-'70s, with that streak ending in a long hiatus from 1976 to 1990, when the group decided to re-form and record again.
Their marriage of earthy instrumentation and easygoing vibes have been able to give the group a certain longevity. Into their third decade, Goose Creek Symphony is drawing strong groups of fans to their summer festival appearances, similar to what the Dead and Jimmy Buffett have known.
**********
WIKIPEDIA
**********
WEBSITE
**********
TO THE TOP
**********
