11513 - JACKSON BROWNE - TRANSMISSION IMPOSSIBLE: LEGENDARY RADIO BROADCASTS FROM THE 1970S, DISC TWO (2015)

JACKSON BROWNE
''TRANSMISSION IMPOSSIBLE, DISC TWO''
2015
223:37
**********
DISC ONE
01 - Come All Ye Fair & Tender Ladies (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 01:52
02 - Take It Easy (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 03:41
03 - Jesus In 3-4 Time (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 06:46
04 - Our Lady Of The Well (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 07:35
05 - Jamaica Say You Will (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 03:23
06 - Rock Me On The Water (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 04:59
07 - Out To Sea (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 07:41
08 - Looking Into You (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 07:58
09 - Song For Adam (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 12:21
10 - My Opening Farewell (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 04:55
11 - The Times You've Come (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 03:45
12 - For Everyman (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 07:03
13 - Redneck Friend (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 04:01
**********
DISC TWO
01 - Take It Easy (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 05:08
02 - Don't Lead Me On (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 04:10
03 - Our Lady Of The Well (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 07:50
04 - Song For Adam (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 09:21
05 - Jamaica Say You Will (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 06:47
06 - Ready Or Not (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 04:01
07 - Interview (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 02:58
08 - For Everyman (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 06:25
09 - Rock Me On The Water (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 06:07
10 - The Road And The Sky (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 05:08
11 - Doctor My Eyes (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 06:33
12 - Redneck Friend (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 04:54
13 - Sweet Little Sixteen (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 02:51
14 - One More Song (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 06:35
**********
DISC THREE
01 - The Fuse (Live Tv Broadcast For Soundstage, Chicago 1976) 05:44
02 - Rock Me On The Water (Live Tv Broadcast For Soundstage, Chicago 1976) 04:58
03 - Late For The Sky (Live Tv Broadcast For Soundstage, Chicago 1976) 05:44
04 - The Road And The Sky (Live Tv Broadcast For Soundstage, Chicago 1976) 05:21
05 - Farther On (Live Tv Broadcast For Soundstage, Chicago 1976) 06:11
06 - Fountain Of Sorrow (Live Tv Broadcast For Soundstage, Chicago 1976) 06:56
07 - Before The Deluge (Live Tv Broadcast For Soundstage, Chicago 1976) 07:58
08 - Walking Slow (Live Tv Broadcast For Soundstage, Chicago 1976) 04:10
09 - I Thought I Was A Child (Live Tv Broadcast For Soundstage, Chicago 1976) 03:35
10 - The Pretender (Live Tv Broadcast For Soundstage, Chicago 1976) 07:31
11 - Running On Empty (Saturday Night Live 1976) 04:32
12 - The Pretender (Saturday Night Live 1976) 05:52
**********
BIOGRAPHY/AMG
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
The Pretender
In many ways, Jackson Browne was the quintessential sensitive California singer/songwriter of the early '70s. Only Joni Mitchell and James Taylor ranked alongside him in terms of influence, but neither artist tapped into the post-'60s Zeitgeist like Browne. While the majority of his classic '70s work was unflinchingly personal, it nevertheless provided a touchstone for a generation of maturing baby boomers coming to terms with adulthood. Not only did his introspective, literate lyrics strike a nerve, but his laid-back folk-rock set the template for much of the music to come out of California during the '70s. With his first four albums, Browne built a loyal following that helped him break into the mainstream with 1976's The Pretender. During the late '70s and early '80s, he was at the height of his popularity, as each of his albums charted in the Top Ten. Midway through the '80s, Browne made a series of political protest records that caused his audience to gradually shrink, but when he returned to introspective songwriting with 1993's I'm Alive, he made a modest comeback.

Chelsea Girl
Born in Heidelberg, West Germany, Jackson Browne and his family moved to Los Angeles when he was three years old, and by the time he was a teenager, Browne had developed an interest in folk music. He began playing guitar and writing songs, which he sang at local folk clubs. Early in 1966, he was invited to join the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, whom he had met through the L.A. folk circuit. While he was only with the band for a few months, the group recorded a handful of his songs on its first two records. By the beginning of 1967, he had signed a publishing deal with Nina Music, a division of Elektra Records; Nina helped Browne secure songs on albums by Tom Rush and Steve Noonan in 1968. During 1967 and 1968, he lived in New York's Greenwich Village, where he played in Tim Buckley's backing band. Browne also began working with Nico, who recorded three of his songs on her Chelsea Girl album. When their relationship disintegrated in 1968, he returned to Los Angeles, where he unsuccessfully tried to record a solo album and form a folk group with Ned Doheney and Jack Wilce. Browne continued to play local clubs and his reputation as a songwriter continued to grow, with Linda Ronstadt and the Byrds recording his songs. By the end of 1971, he had signed with David Geffen's fledgling Asylum Records on the strength of his widely circulated demo tape.

Jackson Browne
Jackson Browne was released in the spring of 1972, spawning the Top Ten hit single "Doctor My Eyes." Shortly after "Doctor My Eyes" reached its peak position, "Take It Easy," a song Browne co-wrote with Glenn Frey, became the Eagles' breakthrough hit. Many songs from his debut, including "Rock Me on the Water" and "Jamaica Say You Will," became singer/songwriter standards, but the album itself didn't establish Browne as a pop star, despite its hit single. On his second album, 1973's For Everyman, he began a long-term collaboration with instrumentalist David Lindley. For Everyman was a commercial disappointment, yet it consolidated his cult following.

Late for the Sky
Released in the fall of 1974, Late for the Sky expanded Browne's audience significantly, peaking at number 14 on the charts and going gold by the beginning of the following year. Browne's first wife, Phyllis, committed suicide in the spring of 1976, but in the wake of the tragedy he recorded his commercial breakthrough album, The Pretender. The record climbed into the Top Ten upon its fall 1976 release, going platinum in the spring of 1977. In the summer, Browne launched an extensive tour, recording a new album while he was on the road. The resulting record, Running on Empty (1977), was a bigger success than its predecessor, peaking at number three and launching the hit singles "Running on Empty" and "Stay/The Load-Out." With his career riding high, Browne began to pursue political and social causes, most notably protesting the use of nuclear energy.

Hold Out
The success of Hold Out, the 1980 follow-up to Running on Empty, was evidence of Jackson Browne's popularity. Though the album wasn't as well-crafted as its predecessors, it became his only number one album upon its summer release. In the summer of 1982, "Somebody's Baby," from the soundtrack of Fast Times at Ridgemont High, became Browne's biggest hit, climbing to number seven on the U.S. charts. Divided between love songs and political protests, Lawyers in Love was another hit due to success of the hit singles "Lawyers in Love," "Tender Is the Night," and "For a Rocker." Nevertheless, the album also showcased a newlfound social consciousness, which dominated 1986's Lives in the Balance. The album lacked any hit singles, yet its fiery condemnation of the Reagan era won an audience -- the album stayed on the charts for over six months and went gold.

World in Motion
Browne continued to write primarily political songs on 1989's World in Motion, but the record became his first album to not go gold. Browne was quiet for the next four years, working on a variety of social causes and suffering a painful public breakup with his girlfriend, actress Daryl Hannah. He finally returned with a comeback effort in the fall of 1993 entitled I'm Alive. Comprised of personal songs, I'm Alive received his best reviews since the late '70s and the record went gold without producing any major hits. In the spring of 1996, Browne released Looking East, which failed to gain the same attention as I'm Alive. In 2002, he released The Naked Ride Home. Two years later the two-disc The Very Best of Jackson Browne hit the shelves as Browne was being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by fellow Hall of Famer Bruce Springsteen. Around this time Browne took to the road and played intimate acoustic shows around the globe. The 2005 release Solo Acoustic, Vol. 1 was compiled from these concerts and appeared on Inside Recordings, an independent label founded by Browne. Solo Acoustic, Vol. 2 appeared in 2008, while an album of new material, Time the Conqueror, followed later in the year. Spring 2010 saw the release of Love Is Strange, followed by 2011's Live In Milan. Standing in the Breach, issued in October of 2014, was the first release of new studio material from the artist in six years. It appeared on his Inside Recordings label.
**********
WEBSITE
**********
TO THE TOP
********************

11512 - JACKSON BROWNE - TRANSMISSION IMPOSSIBLE: LEGENDARY RADIO BROADCASTS FROM THE 1970S, DISC ONE (2015)

JACKSON BROWNE
''TRANSMISSION IMPOSSIBLE, DISC ONE''
2015
223:37
**********
DISC ONE
01 - Come All Ye Fair & Tender Ladies (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 01:52
02 - Take It Easy (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 03:41
03 - Jesus In 3-4 Time (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 06:46
04 - Our Lady Of The Well (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 07:35
05 - Jamaica Say You Will (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 03:23
06 - Rock Me On The Water (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 04:59
07 - Out To Sea (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 07:41
08 - Looking Into You (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 07:58
09 - Song For Adam (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 12:21
10 - My Opening Farewell (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 04:55
11 - The Times You've Come (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 03:45
12 - For Everyman (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 07:03
13 - Redneck Friend (Live From Rea Studios, New York, 1972) 04:01
**********
DISC TWO
01 - Take It Easy (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 05:08
02 - Don't Lead Me On (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 04:10
03 - Our Lady Of The Well (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 07:50
04 - Song For Adam (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 09:21
05 - Jamaica Say You Will (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 06:47
06 - Ready Or Not (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 04:01
07 - Interview (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 02:58
08 - For Everyman (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 06:25
09 - Rock Me On The Water (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 06:07
10 - The Road And The Sky (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 05:08
11 - Doctor My Eyes (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 06:33
12 - Redneck Friend (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 04:54
13 - Sweet Little Sixteen (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 02:51
14 - One More Song (Live From Atwood Hall, Clark University, Worcester, Ma, 1974) 06:35
**********
DISC THREE
01 - The Fuse (Live Tv Broadcast For Soundstage, Chicago 1976) 05:44
02 - Rock Me On The Water (Live Tv Broadcast For Soundstage, Chicago 1976) 04:58
03 - Late For The Sky (Live Tv Broadcast For Soundstage, Chicago 1976) 05:44
04 - The Road And The Sky (Live Tv Broadcast For Soundstage, Chicago 1976) 05:21
05 - Farther On (Live Tv Broadcast For Soundstage, Chicago 1976) 06:11
06 - Fountain Of Sorrow (Live Tv Broadcast For Soundstage, Chicago 1976) 06:56
07 - Before The Deluge (Live Tv Broadcast For Soundstage, Chicago 1976) 07:58
08 - Walking Slow (Live Tv Broadcast For Soundstage, Chicago 1976) 04:10
09 - I Thought I Was A Child (Live Tv Broadcast For Soundstage, Chicago 1976) 03:35
10 - The Pretender (Live Tv Broadcast For Soundstage, Chicago 1976) 07:31
11 - Running On Empty (Saturday Night Live 1976) 04:32
12 - The Pretender (Saturday Night Live 1976) 05:52
**********
BIOGRAPHY/AMG
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
The Pretender
In many ways, Jackson Browne was the quintessential sensitive California singer/songwriter of the early '70s. Only Joni Mitchell and James Taylor ranked alongside him in terms of influence, but neither artist tapped into the post-'60s Zeitgeist like Browne. While the majority of his classic '70s work was unflinchingly personal, it nevertheless provided a touchstone for a generation of maturing baby boomers coming to terms with adulthood. Not only did his introspective, literate lyrics strike a nerve, but his laid-back folk-rock set the template for much of the music to come out of California during the '70s. With his first four albums, Browne built a loyal following that helped him break into the mainstream with 1976's The Pretender. During the late '70s and early '80s, he was at the height of his popularity, as each of his albums charted in the Top Ten. Midway through the '80s, Browne made a series of political protest records that caused his audience to gradually shrink, but when he returned to introspective songwriting with 1993's I'm Alive, he made a modest comeback.

Chelsea Girl
Born in Heidelberg, West Germany, Jackson Browne and his family moved to Los Angeles when he was three years old, and by the time he was a teenager, Browne had developed an interest in folk music. He began playing guitar and writing songs, which he sang at local folk clubs. Early in 1966, he was invited to join the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, whom he had met through the L.A. folk circuit. While he was only with the band for a few months, the group recorded a handful of his songs on its first two records. By the beginning of 1967, he had signed a publishing deal with Nina Music, a division of Elektra Records; Nina helped Browne secure songs on albums by Tom Rush and Steve Noonan in 1968. During 1967 and 1968, he lived in New York's Greenwich Village, where he played in Tim Buckley's backing band. Browne also began working with Nico, who recorded three of his songs on her Chelsea Girl album. When their relationship disintegrated in 1968, he returned to Los Angeles, where he unsuccessfully tried to record a solo album and form a folk group with Ned Doheney and Jack Wilce. Browne continued to play local clubs and his reputation as a songwriter continued to grow, with Linda Ronstadt and the Byrds recording his songs. By the end of 1971, he had signed with David Geffen's fledgling Asylum Records on the strength of his widely circulated demo tape.

Jackson Browne
Jackson Browne was released in the spring of 1972, spawning the Top Ten hit single "Doctor My Eyes." Shortly after "Doctor My Eyes" reached its peak position, "Take It Easy," a song Browne co-wrote with Glenn Frey, became the Eagles' breakthrough hit. Many songs from his debut, including "Rock Me on the Water" and "Jamaica Say You Will," became singer/songwriter standards, but the album itself didn't establish Browne as a pop star, despite its hit single. On his second album, 1973's For Everyman, he began a long-term collaboration with instrumentalist David Lindley. For Everyman was a commercial disappointment, yet it consolidated his cult following.

Late for the Sky
Released in the fall of 1974, Late for the Sky expanded Browne's audience significantly, peaking at number 14 on the charts and going gold by the beginning of the following year. Browne's first wife, Phyllis, committed suicide in the spring of 1976, but in the wake of the tragedy he recorded his commercial breakthrough album, The Pretender. The record climbed into the Top Ten upon its fall 1976 release, going platinum in the spring of 1977. In the summer, Browne launched an extensive tour, recording a new album while he was on the road. The resulting record, Running on Empty (1977), was a bigger success than its predecessor, peaking at number three and launching the hit singles "Running on Empty" and "Stay/The Load-Out." With his career riding high, Browne began to pursue political and social causes, most notably protesting the use of nuclear energy.

Hold Out
The success of Hold Out, the 1980 follow-up to Running on Empty, was evidence of Jackson Browne's popularity. Though the album wasn't as well-crafted as its predecessors, it became his only number one album upon its summer release. In the summer of 1982, "Somebody's Baby," from the soundtrack of Fast Times at Ridgemont High, became Browne's biggest hit, climbing to number seven on the U.S. charts. Divided between love songs and political protests, Lawyers in Love was another hit due to success of the hit singles "Lawyers in Love," "Tender Is the Night," and "For a Rocker." Nevertheless, the album also showcased a newlfound social consciousness, which dominated 1986's Lives in the Balance. The album lacked any hit singles, yet its fiery condemnation of the Reagan era won an audience -- the album stayed on the charts for over six months and went gold.

World in Motion
Browne continued to write primarily political songs on 1989's World in Motion, but the record became his first album to not go gold. Browne was quiet for the next four years, working on a variety of social causes and suffering a painful public breakup with his girlfriend, actress Daryl Hannah. He finally returned with a comeback effort in the fall of 1993 entitled I'm Alive. Comprised of personal songs, I'm Alive received his best reviews since the late '70s and the record went gold without producing any major hits. In the spring of 1996, Browne released Looking East, which failed to gain the same attention as I'm Alive. In 2002, he released The Naked Ride Home. Two years later the two-disc The Very Best of Jackson Browne hit the shelves as Browne was being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by fellow Hall of Famer Bruce Springsteen. Around this time Browne took to the road and played intimate acoustic shows around the globe. The 2005 release Solo Acoustic, Vol. 1 was compiled from these concerts and appeared on Inside Recordings, an independent label founded by Browne. Solo Acoustic, Vol. 2 appeared in 2008, while an album of new material, Time the Conqueror, followed later in the year. Spring 2010 saw the release of Love Is Strange, followed by 2011's Live In Milan. Standing in the Breach, issued in October of 2014, was the first release of new studio material from the artist in six years. It appeared on his Inside Recordings label.
**********
WEBSITE
**********
TO THE TOP
********************

11511 - NEAL CASAL - LEAVING TRACES: SONGS 1994-2004 (2004)

NEAL CASAL
''LEAVING TRACES: SONGS 1994-2004''
SEPTEMBER 20 2004
76:35
**********
01 - Free To Go 06:04
02 - Maybe California 04:36
03 - Real Country Dark 04:37
04 - St. Cloud 04:38 (Shawn Barton, Neal Casal)
05 - Fremont Row 03:09
06 - Eddy & Diamonds 05:11
07 - Too Much To Ask 05:02
08 - Oceanview 04:52
09 - Just Getting By 03:46
10 - All The Luck In The World 04:06
11 - Reason 02:58
12 - Today I'm Gonna Bleed 03:45
13 - Free Light Of Day 04:52
14 - Me And Queen Sylvia 02:58
15 - Lucky Stars 04:09
16 - Fierce Little Bird 04:11
17 - It's Not Enough 03:43 (Johnny Thunders)
18 - Delaware Station 03:53
Tracks By Neal Casal, Except 4, 17
**********
Neal Casal/Bass, Casio, Drums, Guitar, Harmonica, Keyboards, Organ, Percussion, Piano, Vocals, Wurlitzer
John Ginty/Melodica, Organ, Organ (Hammond), Piano, Wurlitzer
Bob Glaub/Bass
Don Heffington/Drums, Percussion
James "Hutch" Hutchinson/Bass, Harmony
Tonya Lamm/Harmony
Greg Leisz/Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Mandolin, Pedal Steel, Weissenborn
Darrell Leonard/Flugelhorn
Shannon McNally/Vocal Harmony
Kevin Spendley/Drums
**********
REVIEW/AMG
Hal Horowitz
This extensive 18 track, nearly 80-minute compilation is an excellent and much needed summary of the plaintive singer/songwriter's rather turbulent career. An American who is much better known in Europe, Casal's eight albums and EPs over the titular decade show glimpses of brilliance amidst material slightly less stellar. In other words, his output is inconsistent, which makes this a perfect entry point for those who haven't tuned in previously. Possessing a lovely, lilting tenor voice -- at times sounding like Squeeze's Glenn Tilbrook -- Casal is often compared to Jackson Browne and Neil Young due to introspective songs similar to the former ("Free Light of Day") and the ability to rock out when necessary with layered guitars ("Eddy & Diamonds") of the latter. There is an ease of performance here that transcends time, making these folk-country-rock songs sound effortless and natural. Even though they were recorded over a ten-year period, the album's non-chronological sequencing makes this feel like a seamless recording. The classy and thoughtfully laid-out 24-page book fills in Casal's back history, detailing his story through quotes from the artist and a meticulous track listing that includes all sidemen and lyrics to the songs. The end result is the portrait of a performer who, due to the usual bad business breaks, should be a much better-known quantity, at least in America. The album loses a little steam in its final third with a few too many ballads programmed back to back, but the songwriting and performance quality is so consistently resilient that this is a minor complaint. A second DVD included in some versions of the package features a documentary along with demos and live tracks. It further enhances this near definitive overview of an artist that has, unfortunately, fallen through the cracks. An obscure find well-worth searching out.
**********
BIOGRAPHY/AMG
Shaun Belcher
Exile on Main St.
Born in New Jersey on November 2, 1968, country-rock songwriter Neal Casal enjoyed an acclaimed solo career before joining Ryan Adams' backing band, the Cardinals, in the mid-2000s. Casal had a restless childhood following the divorce of his parents, spending time in such various states as Georgia, California, Michigan, Florida, and upstate New York. At the age of 13, he received what would prove to be the catalyst for his music career: the twin gifts of a guitar and a copy of the Rolling Stones' Exile on Main St. The budding singer/songwriter was fronting his own band by high school, taking inspiration from the swagger of the Stones as well as the craft of Peter Tosh, Hank Williams, and Woody Guthrie. A publishing deal with Warner/Chappell Music arrived in 1991, and a contract with Zoo Records followed three years later.

Fade Away Diamond Time
For his first studio album, Casal teamed up with Wilco/Whiskeytown producer Jim Scott, who molded a reinvention of post-Woodstock '70s rock around Casal's literate songwriting. Recording sessions took place in a Spanish mansion outside of Santa Barbara -- the same mansion that Dean Martin once called home, in fact -- and Casal emerged with his stunning debut, 1995's Fade Away Diamond Time. The album's mix of Americana and California-styled country-rock won critical acclaim from publications like the Washington Post, but Casal was still dropped from Zoo's roster halfway through the following tour. Zoo went out of business soon after, but Casal bounced back, joining the indie label Buy or Die and releasing a low-key acoustic disc, Rain, Wind and Speed, in 1996. The German label Glitterhouse released Rain, Wind and Speed in Europe, where Casal's melodic and tuneful "poetry" picked up a loyal following after he made several solo and group appearances. His increased profile led to a second Glitterhouse release, a limited-edition collection of outtakes and unreleased tracks called Field Recordings, in 1997. That same year, Casal assembled a full band (including many players who joined him on Fade Away Diamond Time) and took five days to record the self-produced The Sun Rises Here. Music veterans began to take note of the songwriter's credentials, and James Iha (the Smashing Pumpkins) even solicited Casal's help for his first solo disc, 1998's Let It Come Down.

Basement Dreams
Neal Casal continued to release solo albums in the late '90s and into the 21st century, including 1998's Basement Dreams, 2000's Anytime Tomorrow, 2005's Return in Kind, and 2006's No Wish to Reminisce. He also joined Ryan Adams' backing band, the Cardinals, playing lead guitar and contributing vocal harmonies to a string of albums.
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WEBSITE
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TO THE TOP
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11510 - NEAL CASAL - FADE AWAY DIAMOND TIME (1995)

NEAL CASAL
''FADE AWAY DIAMOND TIME''
OCTOBER 1995
57:00
**********
01 - Day In The Sun 05:03
Vocals: Janiva Magness, Julie Christensen
02 - Maybe California 04:35
03 - Free To Go 06:04
04 - Leaving Traces 04:27
Percussion: Dave McNair
05 - Bird In Hand 04:56
Pedal Steel Guitar: Greg Leisz
06 - These Days With You 04:28
Percussion: George Drakoulias
07 - Cincinnati Motel 04:27
Percussion: Jim Scott
08 - Feel No Pain 05:05
Piano: Neal Casal
09 - One Last Time 04:14
Vocals: Janiva Magness, Julie Christensen
10 - Open Ground 04:15
Pedal Steel Guitar: Greg Leisz
Percussion: Denny Fongheiser
11 - Detroit Or Buffalo 05:08 (Barbara Keith)
12 - Sunday River 04:18
Tracks By Neal Casal, Except 11
**********
Bass - Bob Glaub
Drums - Don Heffington
Guitar, Harmonica, Vocals - Neal Casal
Pedal Steel Guitar - Fooch Fischetti
Piano, Organ, Electric Piano - John Ginty
Vocals - Angie McKenna
**********
REVIEW/AMG
Rob Caldwell
The story of Fade Away Diamond Time is as rocky as one of the roads in Casal's rural country-rock songs. After a number of years as a struggling musician, including a stint as guitarist in the Southern rock band Blackfoot, he was signed in 1991 to a publishing contract with Warner/Chappell Music. He had enough songs at the time for an album, but it was felt they were not ready for release yet. In 1994, Bud Scoppa, who had been an ardent supporter of Casal's music, heard a tape of demos recorded that same year (of which one, "Don't Turn Your Back on Me," can be found on the 1997 outtakes release Field Recordings) and felt the time was right for Casal to be signed to the label he had just joined, Zoo Records. Yet, only five weeks after the signing, Scoppa was ousted from Zoo due to corporate downsizing. The label, surprisingly, let plans for the album continue, but basically ignored it. With a lesser experienced or talented artist, this might have resulted in a shoddy album, but it worked to Casal's advantage, as he was free to do whatever he wanted. Recording was done with producer Jim Scott and a fine array of musicians, including veteran session musician Bob Glaub on bass, in Palacio del Rio, a Spanish mansion near Santa Barbara that used to be Dean Martin's house. The idyllic setting proved perfectly suited for the music that resulted. Relaxed, timeless-sounding songs mixing elements of rock, country, and folk comprise the album. Casal's songs strongly evoke Jackson Browne and the Eagles' Southern California country-rock, along with the harder edge of Neil Young and Young's folk side. This is predominantly a band recording and the interplay of the musicians is very tight. It sounds like they're all playing together in a living room because, well, they are. Lyrically, the songs focus on interpersonal relationships and well-crafted character studies. The warm, bright "These Days With You" echoes Neil Young's "Long May You Run," while "Detroit or Buffalo" is an impassioned, take-no-prisoners song of restlessness and wanderlust. Despite his often-present influences, Casal is an adept songwriter in his own right, covering varied ground from the majestic rock of "Day in the Sun" to the introspective folk of "Bird in Hand" and the album-closing slow waltz of "Sunday River." The album was released to critical acclaim, but conversely, almost no support from the record label. Within a few months Casal was notified by phone in the Nashville bar where he was performing that he had been dropped from Zoo Records and that the tour was abruptly over. Within two months after that, Zoo itself was out of business. Though temporarily set back, Casal released Rain, Wind and Speed not long after in 1996.
**********
BIOGRAPHY/AMG
Shaun Belcher
Exile on Main St.
Born in New Jersey on November 2, 1968, country-rock songwriter Neal Casal enjoyed an acclaimed solo career before joining Ryan Adams' backing band, the Cardinals, in the mid-2000s. Casal had a restless childhood following the divorce of his parents, spending time in such various states as Georgia, California, Michigan, Florida, and upstate New York. At the age of 13, he received what would prove to be the catalyst for his music career: the twin gifts of a guitar and a copy of the Rolling Stones' Exile on Main St. The budding singer/songwriter was fronting his own band by high school, taking inspiration from the swagger of the Stones as well as the craft of Peter Tosh, Hank Williams, and Woody Guthrie. A publishing deal with Warner/Chappell Music arrived in 1991, and a contract with Zoo Records followed three years later.

Fade Away Diamond Time
For his first studio album, Casal teamed up with Wilco/Whiskeytown producer Jim Scott, who molded a reinvention of post-Woodstock '70s rock around Casal's literate songwriting. Recording sessions took place in a Spanish mansion outside of Santa Barbara -- the same mansion that Dean Martin once called home, in fact -- and Casal emerged with his stunning debut, 1995's Fade Away Diamond Time. The album's mix of Americana and California-styled country-rock won critical acclaim from publications like the Washington Post, but Casal was still dropped from Zoo's roster halfway through the following tour. Zoo went out of business soon after, but Casal bounced back, joining the indie label Buy or Die and releasing a low-key acoustic disc, Rain, Wind and Speed, in 1996. The German label Glitterhouse released Rain, Wind and Speed in Europe, where Casal's melodic and tuneful "poetry" picked up a loyal following after he made several solo and group appearances. His increased profile led to a second Glitterhouse release, a limited-edition collection of outtakes and unreleased tracks called Field Recordings, in 1997. That same year, Casal assembled a full band (including many players who joined him on Fade Away Diamond Time) and took five days to record the self-produced The Sun Rises Here. Music veterans began to take note of the songwriter's credentials, and James Iha (the Smashing Pumpkins) even solicited Casal's help for his first solo disc, 1998's Let It Come Down.

Basement Dreams
Neal Casal continued to release solo albums in the late '90s and into the 21st century, including 1998's Basement Dreams, 2000's Anytime Tomorrow, 2005's Return in Kind, and 2006's No Wish to Reminisce. He also joined Ryan Adams' backing band, the Cardinals, playing lead guitar and contributing vocal harmonies to a string of albums.
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WEBSITE
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11509 - AMERICAN FLYER - SPIRIT OF A WOMAN (1977)

AMERICAN FLYER
''SPIRIT OF A WOMAN''
1977
31:10
**********
01 - Spirit of a Woman 02:32 (Craig Fuller, Eric Kaz)
02 - Gamblin' Man 03:57 (Eric Kaz)
03 - My Love Comes Alive 02:39 (Eric Kaz)
04 - Victoria 03:18 (Steve Katz)
05 - Dear Carmen 04:08 (Craig Fuller, Eric Kaz)
06 - I'm Blowin' Away 02:33 (Eric Kaz)
07 - Flyer 04:24 (Doug Yule)
08 - The Good Years 04:18 (Steve Katz)
09 - Keep on Tryin' 03:18 (Eric Kaz)
**********
Craig Fuller/
Eric Kaz/
Steve Katz/
Doug Yule/
Whitey Glan/Drums
Prakash John/Bass
Bobby Keys/Horn
Tracy Nelson/Vocals
Linda Ronstadt/Vocals
Jerry Scheff/Bass
J.D. Souther/Vocals
Alvin "Red" Taylor/Drums
Sylvia Tyson/Vocals
**********
REVIEW/AMG
William Ruhlmann
Maybe there was only room for one really successful country-folk-rock group with good songs and strong harmonies in the mid-'70s, and the job had already been taken by The Eagles. Who knows? American Flyer's second and final album didn't have as many great songs as the debut, and some of them were swamped by strings, but it was a pleasant work, notably featuring a version of Eric Kaz's "I'm Blowin' Away," which Bonnie Raitt had covered a couple of years earlier.
**********
BIOGRAPHY/AMG
William Ruhlmann
American Flyer was a '70s folk-rock quartet made up of former members of other groups: Craig Fuller was from Pure Prairie League, Eric Kaz had been a member of Blues Magoos, Steve Katz was in Blood, Sweat & Tears, and Doug Yule had played in the Velvet Underground. Together they charted with two albums on United Artists in the mid-'70s.
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11508 - AMERICAN FLYER (1976)

AMERICAN FLYER
''AMERICAN FLYER''
1976
35:57
**********
01 - Light of Your Love 02:54 (Craig Fuller, Eric Kaz)
02 - Such a Beautiful Feeling 03:13 (Eric Kaz)
03 - Back in '57 03:26 (Steve Katz)
04 - Lady Blue Eyes 03:14 (Doug Yule)
05 - Let Me Down Easy 02:37 (Craig Fuller, Eric Kaz)
06 - M 03:51 (Steve Katz)
07 - The Woman in Your Heart 04:12 (Craig Fuller)
08 - Love Has No Pride 03:31 (Eric Kaz, Libby Titus)
09 - Queen of All My Days 02:50 (Doug Yule)
10 - Drive Away 02:31 (Eric Kaz)
11 - Call Me, Tell Me 02:36 (Craig Fuller)
12 - End of a Love Song 00:58 (Eric Kaz, George Martin)
**********
Craig Fuller/
Eric Kaz/
Steve Katz/
Doug Yule/
Fred Beckmeier/Bass
Byron Berline/Fiddle, Violin
Harry Bluestone/Concert Master, Strings
Larry Carlton/Guitar, Guitar (Electric)
Gary Coleman/Percussion
Vincent DeRosa/French Horn, Horn
Earl Dommler/Horn (English), Oboe
Scott Edwards/Bass
George Martin/Arranger, Conductor, Producer
Joe Sample/Keyboards
Leland Sklar/Bass
Alvin "Red" Taylor/Drums
Ernie Watts/Saxophone
Rusty Young/Guitar (Steel)
**********
REVIEW/AMG
William Ruhlmann
American Flyer deserved better. Eric Kaz had written great love songs for Linda Ronstadt and Bonnie Raitt, and Craig Fuller was coming off his Top 40 hit "Amie" with Pure Prairie League. As it happened, Steve Katz's "Back In '57" turned out to be one of the album's highlights, but "Let Me Down Easy," by Kaz And Fuller, was a minor hit, and there was also Kaz's classic co-composition, "Love Has No Pride." But those were just the cream of an excellent set produced by George Martin. Add it all up, and it should have meant more than a chart peak in the lower reaches of the Top 100, an early indication that, for whatever reasons, American Flyer was not destined to become the next Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.
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BIOGRAPHY/AMG
William Ruhlmann
American Flyer was a '70s folk-rock quartet made up of former members of other groups: Craig Fuller was from Pure Prairie League, Eric Kaz had been a member of Blues Magoos, Steve Katz was in Blood, Sweat & Tears, and Doug Yule had played in the Velvet Underground. Together they charted with two albums on United Artists in the mid-'70s.
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11507 - AMERICA - HOLIDAY (1974)

AMERICA
''HOLIDAY''
JUNE 1974
33:24
**********
01 - Miniature (Instrumental) 01:13 (Gerry Beckley)
02 - Tin Man 03:29 (Dewey Bunnell)
03 - Another Try 03:22 (Gerry Beckley)
04 - Lonely People 02:30 (Dan Peek, Catherine Peek)
05 - Glad To See You 03:45 (Dan Peek)
06 - Mad Dog 02:41 (Gerry Beckley)
07 - Hollywood 02:53 (Dewey Bunnell)
08 - Baby It's Up To You 02:26 (Gerry Beckley)
09 - You 02:28 (Dan Peek)
10 - Old Man Took 03:15 (Dewey Bunnell)
11 - What Does It Matter 02:22 (Gerry Beckley)
12 - In The Country 02:55 (Dan Peek)
**********
Gerry Beckley and Dan Peek - Bass, Keyboards, Guitars
Dewey Bunnell - Guitars
Willie Leacox - Drums and Percussion
George Martin - Producer, Arranger and Keyboards
**********
REVIEW/AMG
Mike DeGagne
America fully recovered from Hat Trick's dismal results with 1974's Holiday, with producer George Martin's influence rubbing off on both of the album's Top Five singles. With "Tin Man"'s wonderfully polished soft pop ease and the wispiness of "Lonely People," the band was able to recapture the same formula that put early hits like "A Horse with No Name," "I Need You," and "Ventura Highway" in the Top Ten. The difference with "Holiday" is that their light and breezy melodies and attractive folk-rock sound filtered through more than just the two hit tracks on the album. "Another Try," "Old Man Took," "In the Country," and even the cliché-sounding "Baby It's Up to You" contain a sturdy enough mixture of guitar and harmony to rise them above inessential filler, at least as far as America's material is concerned. Cuts like "Mad Dog" and "Hollywood" suffer somewhat from trite lyrics and a seemingly hurried compositional formula, but this album as a whole ascertained that the group was definitely showing their true potential once more. The album that followed Holiday, 1975's Hearts, showed even stronger improvement, taking the overly catchy "Sister Golden Hair" to number one and scoring a Top 20 hit with the Sunday morning frailty of "Daisy Jane."
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BIOGRAPHY/AMG
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
A light folk-rock act of the early '70s, America had several Top Ten hits, including the number ones "A Horse with No Name" and "Sister Golden Hair." Vocalists/guitarists Dewey Bunnell, Dan Peek, and Gerry Beckley met while they were still in high school in the late '60s; all three were sons of U.S. Air Force officers who were stationed in the U.K. After they completed school in 1970, they formed an acoustic folk-rock quartet called Daze in London, which was soon pared down to the trio of Bunnell, Peek, and Beckley. Adopting the name America, the group landed a contract with Jeff Dexter, a promoter for the Roundhouse concert venue. Dexter had America open for several major artists and the group soon signed with Warner Bros. Records. By the fall of 1970, the group was recording its debut album in London, with producers Ian Samwell and Jeff Dexter.

America
"A Horse with No Name," America's debut single, was released at the end of 1971. In January 1972, the song -- which strongly recalled the acoustic numbers of Neil Young -- became a number three hit in the U.K. The group's self-titled debut album followed the same stylistic pattern and became a hit as well, peaking at number 14. Following their British success, America returned to North America, beginning a supporting tour for the Everly Brothers. "A Horse with No Name" was released in the U.S. that spring, where it soon became a number one single, pushing Neil Young's "Heart of Gold" off the top of the charts; America followed the single to the top of the charts. "I Need You" became another Top Ten hit that summer, and the group began work on their second album. "Ventura Highway," the first single released from this collaboration, became their third straight Top Ten hit in December of 1972. In the beginning of 1973, America won the Grammy Award for Best New Artist of 1972.

Homecoming
Homecoming was released in January of 1973, becoming a Top Ten hit in the U.S. and peaking at number 21 in the U.K. America's essential sound didn't change with this record; it just became more polished. However, the hits stopped coming fairly soon -- they had only one minor Top 40 hit in 1973. Hat Trick, the group's third album, was released toward the end of 1973; it failed to make it past number 28 on the American charts. Released in the late fall of 1974, Holiday was the first record the group made with producer George Martin. Holiday returned America to the top of the charts, peaking at number three and launching the hit singles "Tin Man" and "Lonely People." "Sister Golden Hair," pulled from 1975's Hearts, became their second number one single. That same year, the group released History: America's Greatest Hits, which would eventually sell over four million copies.

Hideaway
Although America's 1976 effort Hideaway went gold and peaked at number 11, the group's audience was beginning to decline. After releasing Harbor to a lukewarm reception, Dan Peek left the group, deciding to become a contemporary Christian recording artist. The group continued as a duo; their last Martin-produced record, Silent Letter, was released in 1979 to little attention. America returned to the Top Ten in 1982 with "You Can Do Magic," an adult contemporary pop number that featured synthesizers along with their trademark harmonies. "The Border" became their last Top 40 hit in 1983, peaking at number 33. After releasing America in Concert in the summer of 1985, the group continued to tour successfully into the '90s, resurfacing in 1998 with Human Nature.

Highway: 30 Years of America
The early part of the new millennium saw America release not only a handful of live albums as well as a holiday-themed studio recording, but also the exhaustive, career-spanning box set Highway, released in 2000. On the heels of this renewed interest, America were tempted back into the studio in 2006 by longtime fans and musicians Adam Schlesinger of Fountains of Wayne and James Iha of the Smashing Pumpkins. Although encouraging Bunnell and Beckley to stick to America's core sound, producers Schlesinger and Iha brought in younger musicians influenced by America to guest on the album, including Ryan Adams, Nada Surf, and others. Released in early 2007, Here & Now featured new material by America as well as covers written by bands heavily influenced by the soft rock pioneers. The duo of Bunnell and Beckley returned with the independently released covers album Back Pages in July 2011. That very same month, the duo's former bandmate Dan Peek died at his home in Missouri at the age of 60.
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WEBSITE
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11506 - BLACKFOOT - AFTER THE REIGN (1994)

BLACKFOOT
''AFTER THE REIGN''
1995
43:32
**********
01 - Siftin' On Top Of The World 04:38 (Chester Arthur Burnett)
02 - Nobody Rides For Free 03:57 (Rick Medlocke, Mark Woerpel)
03 - Tupelo Honey 04:51 (Van Morrison)
04 - Rainbow 04:30 (Rick Medlocke, Benny Rappa)
05 - It's All Over Now 04:29 (Rick Medlocke, Mark Woerpel, Benny Rappa)
06 - The Road's My Middle Name 04:03 (Bonnie Raitt)
07 - Hang Time 04:22 (Rick Medlocke, Benny Rappa)
08 - Tonight 03:39 (Rick Medlocke, Benny Rappa)
09 - After The Reign 05:23 (Rick Medlocke, Mark Woerpel, Benny Rappa)
10 - Bandelaro (Instrumental) 03:37 (Rick Medlocke, Mark Woerpel)
**********
Rick Medlocke/Lead & Backing Vocals, Lead Guitar, Rhythm Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, National Steel Guitar, Percussion
Mark Woerpel/Lead Guitar, Rhythm Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Guitar Synthesizer, Backing Vocals
Benny Rappa/Drums, Percussion, Backing Vocals
Tim Stunson/Bass Guitar
Guest Musicians:
Zakk Wylde/2nd Lead On 09
Michael Galloway/Harmonica On 06
Neal Casal/Lead Guitar, Rhythm Guitar On 01; Rhythm Guitar On 04; Backing Vocals
Bo Davis/Hammond Organ On 03
Rob Robinson/Piano On 05, 07; Backing Vocals, Hammond Organ On 03; Sequence Programming
Donna Davis/Backing Vocals
**********
REVIEW/AMG
Eduardo Rivadavia
After systematically running Blackfoot into the ground during the late '80s, when he succumbed to record company pressures and agreed to water down the group's once potent Southern hard rock, Rickey Medlocke had finally come to his senses and attempted a tentative return to form with 1991's Medicine Man LP. But it all came as too little, too late (especially for ousted original Blackfooters Jakson Spires, Charlie Hargrett, and Greg T. Walker), and with grunge ushering in an entirely new rock & roll order, there was no room on the pop charts for old-school music like this, so Medlocke wisely went into hiding following this latest commercial failure. By the time he finally re-emerged, all of three years later, with the aptly named, conspicuously mellow, and blues-infused After the Reign, Medlocke seemed to finally be at peace with himself -- the artist -- although that gave little consolation to fans who craved a reunion of the classic Blackfoot lineup, since he was once again surrounded by unknown hired henchmen here. It might as well have been a solo album, in other words, and probably should have been labeled that way -- a feeling that's compounded by Medlocke's decision to start things off with a personal stab at the timeless blues standard "Sitting on Top of the World," followed by two more covers later on, Van Morrison's "Tupelo Honey" (rendered in unsurprising but effectively wistful fashion) and Bonnie Raitt's "The Road's My Middle Name" (which arguably sounds even tamer than the original). The remaining seven originals didn't exactly bust a nut, either, and even though standout moments like "Nobody Rides for Free," "It's All Over Now," and the title track radiated earthy, earnest, Southern rock vibes, none came anywhere close to recalling the quasi-metallic bombast of Blackfoot's glory years. (Also worth mentioning, although it landed even further away from the tree, was the wistful instrumental acoustic guitar piece "Bandelaro.") In the end, the fact that these numbers were at least superior to those late-'80s fiascoes certainly helped matters, but it doesn't spare After the Reign from feeling like an unofficial afterthought to a career already ten years in the books.
**********
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.
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WIKIPEDIA
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WEBSITE
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11505 - BLACKFOOT - MEDICINE MAN (1990)

BLACKFOOT
''MEDICINE MAN''
1990
29:24
**********
01 - Doin'My Job 03:59 (Gunner Ross, Neal Casal, Rick Medlocke)
02 - The Stealer 03:21 (Andy Fraser, Paul Kossoff, Paul Rodgers)
03 - Sleazy World 03:58 (Greg Stryker, Gunner Ross, Neal Casal, Rick Medlocke)
04 - Not Gonna Cry Anymore 03:38 (Bobby David)
05 - Runnin', Runnin' 04:39 (Doug Bare, Greg Stryker, Rick Medlocke)
06 - Chilled To D'Bone 04:16 (Doug Bare, Mark Woerpel, Rick Medlocke)
07 - Guitar Slingers Song & Dance 05:30 (Doug Bare, Rick Medlocke)
**********
Rick Medlocke/Lead & Backing Vocals, Lead Guitar, Rhythm Guitar, Acoustic 12-String Guitar, Slide Guitar
Gunner Ross/Drums, Percussion, Backing Vocals
Neal Casal/Lead Guitar, Rhythm Guitar, Backing Vocals
Rikki Mayr/Bass Guitar
**********
REVIEW/AMG
Cub Koda
This 1990 release was this once-great Southern rock band's swan song. After running out of steam on Atlantic with a string of increasingly overproduced albums, this bloated effort comes across as nothing more than very bad hair metal released approximately five years after the genre had peaked. By this time only Ricky Medlocke is left from the original band, with various local Detroit metal band refugees making up the rest of the lineup. The songwriting is clichéd beyond belief, the playing faceless, and while two of these tracks end up on their Rhino best-of, one really has to wonder why. Little wonder that Medlocke would soon be leaving for the comparative safety of a re-formed Lynyrd Skynyrd. For completists only.
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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.
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WIKIPEDIA
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WEBSITE
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TO THE TOP
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11504 - RICK MEDLOCKE AND BLACKFOOT (1987)

RICK MEDLOCKE AND BLACKFOOT
''RICK MEDLOCKE AND BLACKFOOT''
1987
37:57
**********
01 - Back On The Streets 03:15 (Rick Medlocke, Doug Bare, Jerry Seay)
02 - Saturday Night 03:51 (Herman Brood, Danny Lademacher)
03 - Closest Thing To Heaven 04:04 (Doug Bare)
04 - Silent Type 04:42 (Doug Bare)
05 - Reckless Boy 03:23 (Rick Medlocke, Doug Bare)
06 - Private Life 02:52 (Rick Medlocke, Doug Bare)
07 - Liar 04:39 (Russ Ballard)
08 - Steady Rockin' 03:48 (Rick Medlocke, Jerry Seay)
09 - My Wild Romance 03:42 (Rick Medlocke, Doug Bare)
10 - Rock 'N' Roll Tonight 03:36 (G. Murdock, J. Murdock, M. Keck, G. Moore, B. Borden, J. Seay)
**********
Rick Medlocke/Lead & Backing Vocals, Lead Guitar, Rhythm Guitar, Acoustic Guitar
Wizzard/Bass Guitar, Backing Vocals
Doug Bare/Keyboards, Backing Vocals
Harold Seay/Drums, Percussion, Backing Vocals
Additional Musicians:
Ben Grosse/Keybards, Percussion, Backing Vocals
Liz Larin/Vocal Duet On 03
Mark Woerpel/Guitar Synthesizer, Backing Vocals
Allen Liggett, Chris Andrews/Backing Vocals
**********
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.
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WIKIPEDIA
**********
WEBSITE
**********
TO THE TOP
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11503 - BLACKFOOT - VERTICAL SMILES (1984)

BLACKFOOT
''VERTICAL SMILES''
1984
33:06
**********
01 - Morning Dew 05:26 (Donnie Dobson, Gunner Ross)
02 - Livin' In The Limelight 03:59 (Peter Cetera)
03 - Ride With You 03:31 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
04 - Get It On 04:27 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
05 - Young Girl 04:23 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires, Greg T. Walker)
06 - Summer Days 03:18 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
07 - A Legend Never Dies 03:02 (Brent Maher)
08 - Heartbeat And Heels 03:15 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
09 - In For The Kill 03:50 (Ken Hensley, Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
**********
Rick Medlocke/Lead & Backing Vocals, Lead Guitar, Rhythm Guitar, Guitar Synthesizer
Jakson Spires/Drums, Percussion, Backing Vocals
Ken Hensley/Keyboards, Backing Vocals
Greg T. Walker/Bass Guitar, Backing Vocals
Sherri Jarrel/Backing Vocals
**********
REVIEW/AMG
Eduardo Rivadavia
Although they'd managed to become bona fide second division stars in England, where their incomparably heavy brand of Southern rock and devastating live performances had thrilled orphaned Lynyrd Skynyrd disciples and open-minded metal heads alike, Blackfoot had made dispiritedly little commercial headway in their own backyard: the American market. So as pressure mounted to deliver a hit for their label, Atco, Rickey Medlocke decided to invite former Uriah Heep keyboard player Ken Hensley to join the band, a calculated move intended to modernize the group's sound for the synth-happy '80s. But 1983's Siogo, though seemingly a passable compromise, still failed to yield any hits, so Blackfoot was literally put on notice prior to getting to work on their next effort, which was rejected upon initial delivery under the working title of "Cry of the Banshee." The band was ordered back into the studio to try again, only without founding second guitarist Charlie Hargrett, who had quit under duress after being fingered as the scapegoat for all of the band's problems (including "looking old" and playing "old-fashioned"-like). The resulting Vertical Smiles was finally released in the summer 1984 and represented not only Blackfoot's creative fall from grace, but also delivered one of the most misogynistic title/cover tandems (see multiple up-skirt Polaroids) since Montrose's equally tasteless and musically inadequate Jump on It eight years earlier. For starters, the first two songs on Vertical Smiles were covers (never a good sign), and although the perennial folk rock favorite "Morning Dew" was remade into a pretty classy power ballad, the ensuing "Living in the Limelight" was doomed from the get-go for being composed by Chicago schmaltz king Peter Cetera, of all people; need we say more? Of the seven originals that followed, few fared any better, being that most had what little lingering guitar grit they could muster summarily buried beneath a wash of unnecessary, glossy ‘80s synth lines, particularly offensive on such titles as "Ride with You," the electronic-drum horror of "Heartbeat and Heels," and the intolerably insipid "Summer Days." Die-hard Blackfoot fans may be able to tolerate partially convincing hard rockers like "Get It On" and "Young Girl" (even though the first one rips off ZZ Top's Eliminator sound; the second, antipodean new wavers Split Enz!), but the surrounding embarrassments are simply too painful to warrant anyone else being exposed to the torment and disappointment that is Vertical Smiles. At least Charlie Hargrett, wherever he was, might have had a good laugh about the whole ordeal.
**********
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.
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WIKIPEDIA
**********
WEBSITE
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TO THE TOP
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11502 - BLACKFOOT - SIOGO (1983)

BLACKFOOT
''SIOGO''
MAY 1983
40:51
**********
01 - Send Me An Angel 04:37 (Ken Hensley, Williams)
02 - Crossfire 04:16 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires, Charlie Hargrett, Barth)
03 - Heart's Grown Cold 03:22 (Zal Cleminson)
04 - We're Goin' Down 04:11 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
05 - Teenage Idol 04:47 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
06 - Goin' In Circles 03:06 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
07 - Run For Cover 04:21 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires, Ken Hensley)
08 - White Man's Land 02:55 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
09 - Sail Away 04:28 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires, Charlie Hargrett, Ken Hensley)
10 - Drivin' Fool 04:44 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
**********
Rick Medlocke/Lead Vocals, Lead Guitar, Rhythm Guitar, Acoustic Guitar
Jakson Spires/Drums, Percussion, Backing Vocals
Ken Hensley/Keyboards, Backing Vocals, Slide Guitar On 10
Greg T. Walker/Bass Guitar, Backing Vocals
Charlie Hargrett/Lead Guitar, Rhythm Guitar, Acoustic Guitar
Michael Osborne, LALA/Backing Vocals
**********
REVIEW/AMG
Whitney Z. Gomes
Blackfoot was always the heaviest of the great Southern rock movement, and on Siogo(reputedly either a Native American word for "closeness" or a crude groupie acronym, probably the latter) the boys try to break into the metal market and regain their brief hold on American audiences. Staunch metallists will recognize the touch of producer Al Nalli (from Axe's similarly excellent Nemesis) and a new bit of European muscle from Uriah Heep's Ken Hensley on the keyboards. Although cliched throughout, powerful performances send openers "Send Me an Angel," "Run for Cover," and "Drivin' Fool" to lofty hard rock heights. "We're Goin' Down" nips the riff from "Double Vision," while "Goin' in Circles" and the micro-hit "Teenage Idol" thunder like late Rainbow. "Heart's Grown Cold" treats the Nazareth dirge like a lost classic, and virtually transforms it into one as a result (The next and basically last Blackfoot burner, Vertical Smiles, houses another Nazareth standard in "Morning Dew," as well as the lost Peter Cetera nugget "Livin' in the Limelight," but that's another album.). Siogo would be founding guitarist Charlie Hargrett's finale; he was disgruntled at the band's bandwagon-jumping; but the record remains a great blast of hard-working heaviness, which definitely deserves restoration on CD.
**********
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
********************

11501 - BLACKFOOT - MARAUDER (1981)

BLACKFOOT
''MARAUDER''
JULY 1981
37:24
**********
01 - Good Morning 03:36 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
02 - Payin' For It 03:38 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
03 - Diary Of A Working Man 05:35 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
04 - Too Hard To Handle 04:02 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
05 - Fly Away 02:58 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
06 - Dry County 3:42 (Rick Medlocke, Kate Pierson, Fred Schneider, Jakson Spires, Keith Strickland, Cindy Wilson)
07 - Fire Of The Dragon 04:05 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
08 - Rattlesnake Rock ’N’ Roller 04:00 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires, Shorty Medlocke)
09 - Searchin' 05:43 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
**********
Rickey Medlocke - lead vocals, guitar
Charlie Hargrett - guitar
Greg T. Walker - bass guitar, keyboards, vocals
Jakson Spires - drums, percussion, vocals
Additional musicians:
Henry Week - percussion
Shorty Medlocke - banjo intro on track 8
Magic Rooster, Pat McCaffrey - horns, keyboards
David Cavender - trumpet
Donna Davis, Pamela Vincent - backing vocals
**********
REVIEW/AMG
Eduardo Rivadavia
By the time of 1981's Marauder album, Blackfoot's career had effectively stalled in America, as the band's hard rock sound evolved further and further from the Skynyrd-derived Southern rock sound of their successful 1979 opus, Strikes. Still, while continuing to rely on hard-driving numbers such as "Good Morning" and "Dry County," Marauder also saw Blackfoot attempting a compromise with the dramatic "Diary of a Workingman." Though it showcased the band at their melodic Southern rock best, the track failed to chart in America and Blackfoot decided to concentrate their touring efforts in Britain and Europe, where their popularity continued to skyrocket. As for the album, Shorty Medlocke makes his by-now-expected contribution to the intro of "Rattlesnake Rock 'N' Roller," which goes on to feature some upbeat piano tinkling and a horn section. Likewise, the unexpected breakdown (with Mexican horns and tango guitar rhythms) in the middle of "Too Hard to Handle" makes it one of the band's best hard rockers to date, and "Searchin'" is another Southern rock hit that might have been. Unfortunately, mounting inner-band tensions and record company indifference marked this as the last great Blackfoot album.
**********
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
********************

11500 - BLACKFOOT - TOMCATTIN' (1980)

BLACKFOOT
''TOMCATTIN'''
JUNE 1980
40:36
**********
01 - Warped 04:11 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
02 - On The Run 04:00 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
03 - Dream On 05:16 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires, Greg T. Walker)
04 - Street Fighter 02:34 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires, Charlie Hargrett)
05 - Gimme, Gimme, Gimme 04:06 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
06 - Every Man Should Know (Queenie) 03:43 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
07 - In The Night 03:51 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
08 - Reckless Abandoner 05:11 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
09 - Spendin' Cabbage 03:15 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires)
10 - Fox Chase 04:23 (Rick Medlocke, Jakson Spires, Shorty Medlocke)
**********
Rick Medlocke/Lead Vocals, Lead Guitar, Bottleneck Guitar, Acoustic & 12-String Guitars
Jakson Spires/Drums, Vocals
Charlie Hargrett/Lead Guitar
Greg T. Walker/Bass Guitar, Vocals
Pat McCaffrey/Keyboards, Saxes
Donna D. Davis, Pamela T. Vincent, Melody McCully/Backing Vocals
Henry H-Bomb Week (Alias Blind Baby)/Percussion
Shorty Medlocke/Harmonica
Peter Ruth/Electric Harmonica
**********
REVIEW/AMG
Eduardo Rivadavia
Blackfoot's second major-label effort, 1980s Tomcattin', continued pushing the envelope of Southern rock, and despite the absence of an obvious hit, fans of the band's heavier aspirations weren't disappointed. As usual, the album opens at full throttle with "Warped" before finding a mid-paced groove on songs such as "On the Run" and "Dream On." "Gimme, Gimme, Gimme" is another stomper, and "Every Man Should Know (Queenie)" is probably the record's all-around highlight, thanks to its clever combination of slide guitar, tough riffs, and a catchy chorus. Save for its interesting harmonica, the ballad "In the Night" feels rather forced, but band leader Rickey Medlocke is especially inspired on the bluesy hobo tale "Spendin' Cabbage." For the finale, the band once again calls upon Medlocke's dad Shorty to introduce the barnstorming, double entendre-laden "Fox Chase."
**********
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
********************