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Highlighting in album tracklistings denotes 'contains Mellotron'. On 'multi-part' tracks I've tried to indicate which parts contain 'Tron, although this isn't always possible.
Ratings:
The * rating (½-5) is my personal, entirely subjective and completely partisan rating of the music.
The 'T' ('Tron, of course...) rating (0-5) is an only slightly more objective indicator of an album's Mellotronness.
By the way, if you know of any Mellotron albums that aren't listed here, please look at my albums page first! Thanks.
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Worse for the Wear (2003, 32.22) ***/½ |
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| Vignette The Spoils of the Spoiled Hover Near Fame From California Hanging on for Hope The Smoking Gun Are You True? Asleep at the Wheel |
Poison in the Ink All Our Vice Worse for the Wear Slight Return |
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The New Amsterdams began as the Get Up Kids' Matt Pryor's side-project, going on to take on a life of its own. 2003's Worse for the Wear is their third album, combining Americana and modern indie into an only intermittently appealing stew, better tracks including brief opening instrumental Vignette, From California and haunted closer Slight Return. The slower stuff, basically.
Pryor plays Mellotron, but his use isn't exactly what you'd call overt; I think that's a string part hiding away in the mix on the harmonium-fuelled Vignette, with more of the same on the title track, but you're really not going to buy this for its Mellotron use. You may well not want it for the music either; I've heard worse, but I've also certainly heard better.
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New England (1979, 41.02) ***½/TTT½ |
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| Hello, Hello, Hello Don't Ever Wanna Lose Ya P.U.N.K. Shall I Run Away Alone Tonight Nothing to Fear Shoot Turn Out the Light |
The Last Show Encore |
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Explorer Suite (1980, 43.58) ***½/TTT |
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| Honey Money Livin' in the Eighties Conversation It's Never Too Late Explorer Suite Seal it With a Kiss Hey You're on the Run No Place to Go |
Searchin' Hope You'll Be Born Again |
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Walking Wild (1981, 35.38) ***½/TT |
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| Walking Wild Holdin' Out on Me Don't Ever Let Me Go Love's Up in the Air DDT Get it Up L-5 She's Gonna Tear You Apart |
Elevator You're There |
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1978 (1998, recorded 1978, 37.55) ***½/TTT½ |
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| Alone Tonight Nothing to Fear Candy I Will Be There Shoot Don't Ever Wanna Lose Ya Hello Hello Hello Even When I'm Away |
Searchin' Turn Out the Light |
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Evolving from US pompsters American Tears, New England are one of those strange imponderables life chucks up sometimes; why were they not huge? New England is chock-full of great melodies and big guitars, easily rivalling the likes of Foreigner and Journey, if not quite in the Boston league. Maybe they were a bit too gutsy? Or the keyboards a touch too prog? The public's taste is always fickle, and even a sure-fire winner like this can be ignored if the planets aren't correctly aligned that week, or something. Part of the problem was probably the label concerned; as an independent, Infinity (also home to the excellent Screams) were never going to have a big enough budget to achieve the saturation airplay that a band like New England needed. Even the coup of Kiss' Paul Stanley 'producing' the album (actually produced by Mike Stone) didn't give them enough sales to step into the big league.
Anyway, on to the music. The album's runaway AOR classic is the mighty Don't Ever Wanna Lose Ya; utterly ridiculous, but at the same time quite magical, this has a chorus to die for several times over, but startlingly was only a minor hit (reached US #40). The rest of the album is actually quite varied, shifting between ballads along the lines of Turn Out The Light and all-out rockers like the lyrically iffy P.U.N.K., but nothing quite reaches the heady heights of the hit that never was. The melodies actually beat Foreigner and co into the ground in several instances, but it obviously just wasn't enough. Keyboard man Jimmy Waldo used quite a 'retro' rig for 1979, with very little obvious polysynth (although various machines had been available for the preceding couple of years), sticking mainly to Hammond, piano, monosynth (probably Moog) and, of course, largish quantities of Mellotron. After a slow start, he really didn't stint on his 'Tron use here, with strings on most tracks, including (of course) Don't Ever Wanna Lose Ya, plus choirs on Alone Tonight. His string work was actually quite orchestral, although a lack of originality in the 'Tron department loses them a T or so.
The following year's Explorer Suite is less of a 'concept piece' than I'd been led to expect, being more of a natural follow-on from their debut. The songwriting is mostly in the same league, although there's no Don't Ever Wanna Lose Ya but then, how could there be? Waldo's keyboards sound (sadly) more contemporary, with plenty of polysynth and less of everything else, until, that is, you hit track five, Explorer Suite itself. You want 'Tron? Huh? This is loaded with it - mainly choir, plus strings, and it seems to trigger a bit of a 'Tron-fest from the hands of Mr. Waldo (although there is actually a little bit of strings on track four, It's Never Too Late). Despite the lack of one killer song, Explorer Suite is a worthy second effort, with nearly as much 'Tron as their debut, and, if anything, more of a 'pomp' songwriting style.
Their third (and last) album, Walking Wild (produced by Todd Rundgren) carries on in a similar vein, although it seems to lack the various highlights of its two predecessors. Don't get me wrong; it's perfectly good at what it does, but it's rather more generic AOR, lacking the surprise factor of another Don't Ever... or Explorer Suite. Gardner's 'Tron is still in evidence, though mostly rather further back in the mix, and mostly choirs, apart from a fairly overt string part on L-5.
There are also two recent Tron-heavy archive releases available; 1978 gathers up their pre-first album demos, containing four otherwise unavailable tracks, while the duffly-titled Greatest Hits Live gives you a selection of songs from the first two albums, Waldo's Mellotron to the fore. I haven't yet heard the latter, but the former is pretty much what you'd expect, being high-quality demos of largely familiar material. Maybe they don't have that 'sheen' you expect of big-budget recordings, but a (very) slight roughness quite suits the material, surprisingly. About the only real loser here, is Don't Ever Wanna Lose Ya, which is slower, in a different key and overall, less gutsy. I suppose that's what 'proper' producers are for... Anyway, full-on 'Tron strings on opener Alone Tonight and several other tracks, with a Strawberry Fields-style flute part on Hello Hello Hello that isn't on the official album version. Other than that, it's fairly standard use throughout, but 1978 gives an interestingly different perspective on their first album material, so it's probably worth it for fans.
So; if you can handle the ultra-Americanisms of the music, New England had good songs and mucho Mellotron all round, so that'll be a cautious recommendation, then.
See: American Tears | Alcatrazz
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The Demo's (1994, recorded 1984, 65.38) ***/TTTPreludeMy Uncle Fool's Overture Fool's Journey Anguish The Ladder Circles |
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Fool's Journey (1996, 48.34) ****/TTT½PreludeMy Uncle Where am I Going From Here Decision Fool's Journey Anguish The Ladder |
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Brill (2005, 61.35) ****/TTNeon Light SubmissionThoughts Sui Generis The Sounding Flood The Light Within Laughternoon Dream Cool Fool Floating Brill |
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The story goes: Swedish musician Ingemar Hjertqvist wrote an album's worth of material in 1984 with his friend, keyboardist Per Sundbom, which they demoed using guitar, bass, synths, Mellotron and drum computer. As you do. Hjertqvist subsequently got married and moved to Switzerland, where he eventually dug out his old demos and released them as, er, The Demo's (sic), allegedly in a limited edition of 300, making it a minor collectable these days. Well, I have to say that I think he made a bit of a mistake in exposing them to the scrutiny of the prog world, to be honest; they sound like what they are, and while the drum programming is OK, the sounds aren't, and most of the keyboards (with one obvious exception) don't sound too hot, either. Basically, reasonable material, with a noticeable late-'70s Genesis/Yes influence, obscured by poor production values, although the rather clanky-sounding Mellotron brightens up most of the tracks, although it's used pretty sparingly.
Before releasing the demos, Hjertqvist had put together various lineups to play his old songs, but wasn't really happy with any of them. Eventually, he pulled several musicians together as a studio project, including The Flower Kings' Roine Stolt on guitars, Pär Lindh on keyboards and, startlingly, Jode Leigh of the superb England on drums. Unlike several things I've listened to lately, Fool's Journey is actually better than I remembered it, being sort-of neo-prog with a '70s feel, enhanced by the vintage instrumentation. The song structures are more interesting than many '80s outfits, with some nice key changes here and there, and an 'epic' feel to some of the material (My Uncle, for example), sadly absent in the work of the likes of Marillion. There's plenty of Lindh's Mark V to be heard, particularly on My Uncle, with stacks of strings, plus flute and choir parts, although he's a little more restrained on some of the other tracks. Fool's Overture from the demos has been retitled Where Am I Going From Here and the Mellotron use between the two recordings is pretty inconsistent, but that's what happens when you rearrange material, I suppose. Anyway, all in all, a much better album than I'd thought, although the lyrics and vocals are a little suspect in places, but there's enough Mellotron for it to be considered a 'Tron Album proper.
Nine years later, Hjertqvist released his follow-up (!), Brill. It is immediately apparent that things have changed in the interim; the style is noticeably different, with far more piano work from either Jode Leigh (back again) or Pär Lindh (ditto). About the only real criticism I would make is in the vocal department; it's not that either Hjertqvist or guest singer John "Bo Bo" Bollenberg have bad voices, but the lyrics frequently don't scan too well, and the spoken-word The Sounding Flood doesn't work at all, although I see it was actually written by the only Englishman on the project. I'm splitting hairs, though; it's actually a very good album, with considerable thought put into both composition and arrangement, knocking spots off many of their contemporaries, notably one led by another Swede who are doing considerably better. Naming no names. Lindh's Mellotron work is even sparser than on Fool's Journey, with a brief string part on Thoughts Sui Generis, choir and strings on Bollenberg's Laughternoon Dream and a fair helping of strings on Brill itself. Speaking of which, the title track is a reworking of Circles from the demos, with lyrics added, finally exhausting that source of material.
Well, both Fool's Journey and Brill are worth a listen, unless you're an extremely hardline '70s-only type, though I'd probably give The Demo's a miss, although there's the odd nice bit of Mellotron here and there.
See: Pär Lindh | England | Bollenberg Experience
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Brujo (1974, 32.57) ***/T |
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| Old Man Noll Ashes of Love You Angel You Instant Armadillo Blues Workingman's Woman On the Amazon Big Wheels Singing Cowboy |
Crooked Judge Parson Brown Neon Rose |
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New Riders of the Purple Sage started life as a country-rock Grateful Dead side-project, although no Dead members play on Brujo. They cover various country styles on the album, including a reasonable dose of humour in Singing Cowboy, although the shamelessly sentimental rural-centric Old Man Noll gets things off to a rather cheesy start.
Guest Ed Freeman plays understated Mellotron strings on Parson Brown and slightly more upfront ones on Neon Rose, but that's it on the 'Tron front. Anyway, most certainly not a Mellotron album, but despite my general dislike of the genre, a pretty good country-rock effort, especially Buddy Cage's excellent pedal steel work.
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New Trolls Atomic System (1973, 40.40/44.11) ****/TLa Nuova Predica di Padre O'BrienHo Visto Poi Tornere a Credere Una Notte sul Monte Calvo Ibernazione Quando l'Erbe Vestiva la Terra Butterfly |
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New Trolls Atomic System were an offshoot of the New Trolls, one of Italy's best-known progressive outfits. A messy split between the two main members lead to an uneasy compromise where the splinter faction were known as 'N.T. Atomic System', although initial copies of the album had a sticker on the front with the full name... While the New Trolls were sporadically good, New Trolls Atomic System is a stormer of an album, radiating energy, although it's no great surprise after hearing it to discover that their sole follow-up, Tempi Dispari, was full-on fusion. Basically, there isn't a bad track here, although the band moves through various tempos and moods; in fact, I'd go as far as to say that this is possibly better than anything by their parent band, though I know many readers will disagree.
Renato Rosset played the bulk of the album's keyboards, although both guitarist Vittorio de Scalzi and saxophonist Giorgio Baiocco chipped in, too. Rosset played the minimal Mellotron on offer here, with a very audible cello part, of all things, on opener La Nuova Predica Di Padre O'Brien, with more of the same on Tornere A Credere, but that appears to be it, as the album's flute parts, even the polyphonic ones, appear to be real. Una Notte Sul Monte Calvo is that rather unusual thing, a vinyl bonus track, a single added to later pressings of the LP and carried over onto the CD version. It's actually yet another adaptation of Mussorgsky's 'Night on Bare Mountain', although somewhat shorter than the other two that spring to mind.
So; a damn' good album of high-energy Italian prog, though somewhat thin on the ground Mellotronically, which shouldn't affect your purchasing decision in the slightest. Buy.
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Not Ashamed (1992, 42.09) */T |
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| I Cannot Get You Out of My System I'm Not Ashamed Where You Belong/Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus Upon This Rock Strong Love Dear Shame Boycott Hell |
We Come Together Love Comes True Lost the Sky Again |
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The Newsboys are a truly grim proposition; not only is the Aussie-via-the-States band's music (going by 1992's Not Ashamed) the worst kind of pseudo-'modern rock' going, but they're Christians, too, meaning that the album's entire lyrical content consists of the usual, tired old single-issue tosh about their god (note small 'g'), ignoring anything as tedious as real life. Musically, they seem to've been influenced, at least at the time, by U2 and maybe Midnight Oil (well, they are Aussies), with a horrible '80s-hangover production job, full of nasty 'dance-lite' beats and crummy samples, the only plus point being reasonable Hammond use, although it's a definite case of 'too little, too late'. Particular horrors include the schlocky balladry of Where You Belong/Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus, the attempt at dancefloor rhythms in the ludicrously-titled Boycott Hell (yeah, right) and the shitty choir samples in Dear Shame, but it's all bad, really.
The reason I sat/skipped through this drivel was, of course, its Mellotron content, at a time when the 'Tron was still at a pretty low ebb, which is about the only positive thing I can think of to say about this awful record. John (Mark) Painter plays a nice flute part on Where You Belong/Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus, but I'd be lying if I said it improved the song in any meaningful way. Please don't go anywhere near this album, on the remote offchance you might have been thinking of doing so. Everything about it, from its vile sleeve through its faceless, second- (third-? Fifth-? Nineteenth-?) hand music to its pointless lyrical platitudes are only going to offend those who like well-crafted, interesting music with something to say for itself. Avoid, avoid, avoid.
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7" (1968) ***/TT America (Second Amendment) Diamond-Hard Blue Apples of the Moon |
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Keith Emerson is noted for his deep loathing of the Mellotron, probably because you can't play honky-tonk piano on it or, in fact, show off at all. It's quite surprising, then, that he deigned to play one on this b-side with the Nice, back in '68. Diamond-Hard Blue Apples Of The Moon is fairly typical for the period, without being particularly outstanding, with a rather cheesy brass melody (real, I think), and several Mellotron string interjections. It's available on various compilations, and, I believe, reissues of their debut, The Thoughts of Emerlist Davjack, but I wouldn't buy anything specifically to hear it, to be honest. The a-side, America is a different matter, but that's another story...
The rumours that Emerson had one other brush with the Mellotron in his career have recently been disproved, principally by the man himself in a recent ELP bio. Allegedly, he persuaded Greg Lake to play a string line on Abaddon's Bolero, from Trilogy, although he wouldn't touch the hated instrument himself; in fact, it's a multi-overdubbed Moog line, so bang goes that theory. They apparently actually bought an M400 around the same period, loaded it with effects from either that album or Tarkus, then got Lake to trigger these onstage. This arrangement lasted exactly two gigs, until the 'Tron caught fire (!) and the experiment was abandoned. So what is it with '70s über-keyboard players and flammable Mellotrons, anyway?
See: Jackson Heights
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Man With a Memory (2002, 45.01) **½/½ |
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| The Impossible Joe's Place Brokenheartsville She Only Smokes When She Drinks Everything's a Thing That Would Be Her Cool to Be a Fool Can't Hold a Halo to You |
You Can't Break the Fall You Ain't Heard Nothin' Yet Life Don't Have to Mean Nothin' at All Man With a Memory |
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Joe Nichols is a young traditionalist, a country singer in an age of Americana. Or is that just my perception? Non-Americans tend to forget just how ubiquitous the style is there, with whole swathes of the country in its thrall. "What kinds of music do you have here?" " We have both kinds - country and western..." After his eponymous 1996 debut, it took Nichols six years to follow it up with Man With a Memory, and it has to be said; this is a country album. Not Americana, country. As a result, your chances of liking any of it are directly related to your tolerance for the style. Good Americana albums have increased mine, but it's still pretty hard to take when he sings about 'Sweet Betty Lou' in the title track. Not Americana, country.
Tim Lauer is credited with Mellotron, amongst other things, but the only place it even might be is on That Would Be Her, with a muted cello part that could be almost anything. So; mainstream country, next to no 'Tron. Maybe not, eh?
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Trouble in Shangri-La (2001, 57.18) **½/T |
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| Trouble in Shangri-La Candlebright Sorcerer Planets of the Universe Everyday Too Far From Texas That Made Me Stronger It's Only Love |
Love Changes I Miss You Bombay Sapphire Fall From Grace Love is |
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Trouble in Shangri-La was Stephanie "Stevie" Nicks' sixth solo album, twenty years after the first, Bella Donna, in between several joinings and leavings of Fleetwood Mac. It is, entirely unsurprisingly, soft rock par excellence, all assuming that you consider that to be an achievement. It is, of course, impeccably played and produced, although you can hear the ravages of the Coke Years in Stevie's voice; this is probably neither the time nor the place to reiterate the scurrilous rumours (Rumours! Geddit?) concerning exactly which mucous membrane Stevie chose to use after her nasal septum started disintegrating... On a more musicianly note, Tom Petty and various Heartbreakers appear, having collaborated several times before, both in the studio and on stage, and brighten things up a little, though only a little, I'm afraid.
Heartbreaker Benmont Tench plays his Chamberlin on a couple of tracks, with a string part on Candlebright that's too clunky to be real, but too 'real' to be samples, with more of the same, plus flutes, on Everyday. Given how inaudible the Chamberlin tends to be, it's remarkably audible here, although it could easily be on two or three other tracks, too. Anyway, this is a Stevie Nicks album, which tells you more about it than I ever could; squeaky-clean AOR is the order of the day, so don't expect any surprises. A little Chamberlin, but nowhere near enough to actually make this worth hearing.
See: Fleetwood Mac
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The Voyage (1996, 62.31) ***/TT½ |
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| Departure On the High Seas Morning Light Eventide Wandering Moon Endless Days Distant Encounter |
Conflict (including The Battle and March of the Dead) Remembrance The Voyage Home |
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The Milwaukee-based Nightales grew out of another local act, Paragone, sharing several members and apparently not sounding dissimilar, in a '90s prog kind of way. Actually, more in a laid-back, Camel-esque kind of way, had they been fully instrumental (OK, maybe they should've been), or maybe Pink Floyd. Yeah, more Floyd, I think. Unfortunately, on their sole album, 1996's The Voyage, memorable melodies seem to be at a premium, making way for the kind of cheeso synth solo heard on Endless Days (endless solos?), although comments like that do the album a disservice, as it's a perfectly pleasant listen for those used to prog's conventions (conventions? How did that happen?), just a slightly unengaging one.
Keys man Mark Walczak plays Mellotron here and there, sounding decidedly real, amongst his polysynth warblings and the album's guest woodwind players. Wandering Moon is essentially a 'Tron strings solo, Distant Encounter features some very upfront strings and Conflict has what sounds like 'Tron brass on its more upfront moments, making for a higher rating than I'd expected, to be honest. Most of the album's strings are generic synth, mind you, but it's nice to hear the real thing on a few tracks. Overall, then, a passable enough effort, but a bit bland for many progsters' tastes, I'll warrant, despite a few nice moments and some decent 'Tron work.
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Nightwinds (1991, recorded 1979, 45.52) ****/TT½We Were the YoungCrude Exports Ivy The Pirates of Rebecca's Choice Out'n'About Sad But True As the Crow Flies The Curious Case of Benjamin Button |
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Nightwinds were one of the distressingly lengthy list of bands who recorded an album, then split up before they could release it; unlike other unluckier outfits, though, it finally came out a decade after their demise on US label The Laser's Edge. Although a little derivative, Nightwinds is actually well worth hearing; think a cross between Styx and Saga, with bits of UK thrown in for good measure, not to mention Genesis (As The Crow Flies) and Yes, although their influences are more wide-ranging than that. Saga were obviously particularly high on their list of fave bands (they probably played on the same bill more than once), with closer The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button (from F. Scott Fitzgerald's 1921 short story) being a spot-on copy of Saga's lyrical style of the time, although Nightwinds were probably more retro, despite their 'modern' use of synths. No bad tracks here, with The Pirates Of Rebecca's Choice and Out'n'About being particularly good; the album only gets docked another half star for its lack of originality, which isn't necessarily to criticise.
Gerald O'Brien's keyboard work is excellent throughout, with Mellotron on several tracks, although what sounds like a real string section confuses the issue in places. As a result, I think that's 'Tron strings on Crude Exports, though it's difficult to tell on We Were The Young, although the choirs on the track are most definitely tape-driven. None of the highlighted tracks are exactly laden with 'Tron, though there's reasonable use on Benjamin Button, with probably as much choir as strings. So, although only a so-so Mellotron album, stick Nightwinds on your shopping list if US/Canadian progressive is up your street.
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Something in the Air (1980, 39.19) ***½/TFantasiaNightwing Cold Love Edge of a Knife Something in the Air Barrel of Pain Boogie Woman You Keep Me Hanging on Fantasia Reprise |
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Nightwing were put together by charismatic bassist/vocalist Gordon Rowley, ex-Strife, a Liverpool-based band who toured exhaustively throughout the '70s. They released two albums over the course of the decade, '75's Rush (occasionally confused with the band of the same name) and '78's Back to Thunder, featuring what has to be one the most stupid lyrics of all time in Feel So Good. Anyway, Nightwing were obviously Rowley's stab at real success, with a more commercial sound than his previous outfit, although their debut, Something in the Air, only shows glimpses of their eventual AOR style. The material varies wildly, from the pseudo-classical Fantasia and its reprise, through the workaday hard rock of Edge Of A Knife, the balladry of the title track, the tedious blues of Boogie Woman (nice title, chaps) to the lengthy cover of Vanilla Fudge's version of the Supremes' You Keep Me Hanging On.
Although the band's regular keys man was ex-Nutz member Kenny Newton (Nutz had simplified their approach by this point, eventually becoming Rage), the mysterious Berington van Campen played extra keys, as well as writing Fantasia. As a result, I assume it's him playing the Mellotron flutes on both parts of his piece, plus occasional choirs on You Keep Me Hanging On, although all the strings appear to be real.
Nightwing went on to release several more albums, always occupying an odd, rather dead-end niche in UK hard rock circles, while finding some measure of success on the continent. I can't have played this album for 20 years, and I certainly didn't expect to find any 'Tron work on it, so thanks to Mark for alerting me to its presence. Not a classic, but fans of the genre may find something here to interest them.
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Quarante Jours Sur Le Sinaï (2003, 65.03) ****/TAct IAct II |
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Nil are a current French progressive outfit whose mix'n'match approach to the genre is refreshingly postmodern, as they combine elements of '70s symphonic prog, '80s metal, jazz and more recent influences into a mélange of progressiveness, creating something new in the process. Quarante Jours Sur Le Sinaï ('Forty Days on the Sinaï') is their third album, and seems to be rated the most highly by online reviewers. It's a concept work involving Atlantis and ancient Egypt, consisting of two lengthy acts, each broken up into numerous shorter pieces. A great deal of the album is instrumental, although there are vocal passages, including a spoken-word piece by (presumably) Audrey Casella, which is entirely unintelligible to non-French speakers.
Although there are many acoustic instruments credited, including soprano sax, cello, bass clarinet and harp, the overriding sound of the album is that of a regular rock band, with a great deal of guitar and modern synth work, although the latter never shifts into 'cheese' territory; keys man Benjamin Croizy appears to know what he's doing, and never overuses the 'typical' digital sounds. Although it's credited, there's actually very little Mellotron (picture of a battered face-plate in the booklet) on the album; all I can hear in the first movement is a brief choir part towards the end, although there's a major strings and choir section about halfway through Act II, before the more 'standard' 'boards kick in again.
So; a good album that will almost certainly get better with repeated listening (which I shall find time for... When?). Not much 'Tron, though, so don't go buying it on those grounds. Incidentally, their follow-up, 2005's Novo Sub Sole, definitely uses samples, and is reviewed here.
See: Sampledelica!
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Nilsson Schmilsson (1971, 37.42) ***/T |
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| Gotta Get Up Driving Along Early in the Morning The Moonbeam Song Down Without You Coconut Let the Good Times Roll |
Jump Into the Fire I'll Never Leave You |
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Pussy Cats (1974, 37.02/56.08) **½/T |
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| Many Rivers to Cross Subterranean Homesick Blues Don't Forget Me All My Life Old Forgotten Soldier Save the Last Dance for Me Mucho Mungo/Mt. Elga Loop De Loop |
Black Sails Rock Around the Clock [CD adds: Down by the Sea The Flying Saucer Song Turn Out the Light Save the Last Dance for Me] |
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What irony; fêted throughout his career as a 'classic' songwriter, Harry Nilsson remains best-known for his overwrought version of Badfinger's cheese classic Without You, although we can't hold him responsible for the appalling Mariah Carey's abomination of a version, I suppose. After watching his Hollywood drinking buddies die around him, Nilsson hung on until 1994, by which time his career was in freefall anyway, before finally drinking himself to death.
Nilsson Schmilsson is a somewhat mixed bag, despite (or because of?) containing the aforementioned Without You; few of the songs strike me as being 'classic', and the supposed 'hard rock' of Jump Into The Fire, well, er, isn't really. Very tame. Maybe the album made more sense at the time; listening to it 30 years later, it's impossible not to compare it with everything that's happened since. Mellotron on two tracks; Driving Along has strings and maybe brass, played by both Harry and Richard Perry, while Nilsson tackles the flutes on The Moonbeam Song alone. Hardly classic use, to be honest, although it's always nice to hear a reasonable 'Tron part.
The Moonbeam Song also turns up on 1974's Son of Dracula (soundtrack to the film of the same name), although I believe it's the same recording as on Schmilsson. Pussy Cats from the same year has one 'Tron track, too, with exceedingly smooth strings on Black Sails (a.k.a. Black Sails In The Moonlight), one of the album's least irritating tracks. Produced by the 'lost weekend' John Lennon, the album is decidedly uneven, not helped by Harry's rupturing of a vocal cord during recording, a fact he hid from Lennon (how?). Several dodgy covers do nothing to improve matters, so I think you're probably best off giving this a miss.
Anyway, if you like what Nilsson does, you probably already own Nilsson Schmilsson, and if you don't, you won't; just don't go buying it for its Mellotron use. Conversely, while Pussy Cats is a dullard of an album, it has one excellent 'Tron track. Typical. Little-known fact about Harry Nilsson (gleaned from Wikipedia - sorry): both 'Mama' Cass Elliott and Keith Moon died in his London flat; no wonder he got rid of the place soon after.
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We Never Lost Control (1973, 35.35) ***/TTDays in Bright LightFisherman's Dream Andromeda Nomads The Great Game Angels Due to Arrive We Grasp the Naked Meat Armaranda |
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Only the Dancers (1974, 38.42) **½/TTLong Distance LineOnly the Dancers It's Not My Fault Frustration Hovercraft Queen Time is Due The Way I'm Living Moment |
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Nine Days Wonder formed in the mid-'60s, but didn't release anything until 1971's Nine Days Wonder; that version of the band broke up, leaving vocalist Walter Seyffer to join Medusa, who became the second version of Nine Days Wonder (their countrymen The Scorpions pulled a similar stunt a couple of years later). Their second album, with an almost entirely new lineup, was We Never Lost Control, which falls into the same general area as Message, being rather middling prog-ish German rock, without any major distinguishing features. It's not a bad album, but not something to which I expect to return that often. Freddie Münster plays Mellotron on three tracks, with full-on cellos and strings on Fisherman's Dream, a brief flute line at the beginning of the oddly-titled We Grasp The Naked Meat, with a string part later on in the nine-minute track and some very background strings in closer Armaranda.
They followed up with 1974's Only the Dancers, which is, by and large, more mainstream than its predecessor, more in line with Message's later albums. The nearest the album gets to a highlight is closer Moment, which is the only progressive track here, if you use the term loosely. 'Tron strings from guest Steve Robinson (from Twenty Sixty Six & Then) on It's Not My Fault and The Way I'm Living, although the only part worth writing home about is on Moment, where he actually goes for it properly, though it's a case of too little, too late, I'm afraid.
Nine Days Wonder's fourth and last album was the fairly useless A Sonnet to Billy Frost (**), which is probably even worse than the later Message albums I've heard, to continue the comparison. Of these albums, We Never Lost Control is clearly the better of the two, but neither's a classic in any way whatsoever, so unless you're a German prog fanatic, I'd advise going elsewhere. OK, some passable Mellotron work, but nothing you couldn't live without.
