"Ram: Special Edition - Paul McCartney Archive Collection" by PAUL and LINDA McCARTNEY (2012 MPL Communications/Hear Music/Concord Music Group 2CD Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...Hands Across The Water..." 

Part of the on-going 'Paul McCartney Archive Collection' of CD Reissues - 1971's "Ram" was always going to be a tug on the old purse strings for Macca fans. And while I can't and won't buy any of the extortionate 'Super Deluxe' sets - I can live with this 2CD 'Deluxe Edition' because it gives me all I need. Here are the sheepish details...

UK released 21 May 2012 - "Ram: Special Edition - Paul McCartney Archive Collection" by PAUL and LINDA McCARTNEY on MPL Communications/Hear Music/Concord Music Group 888072334496 (Barcode 888072334496) is a 2CD Reissue and Remaster that plays out as follows:

Disc 1 - Special Edition Remastered Album (43:17 minutes):

1. Too Many People [Side 1]

2. 3 Legs

3. Ram On

4. Dear Boy

5. Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey

6. Smile Away

7. Heart Of The Country [Side 2]

8. Monkberry Moon Delight

9. Eat At Home

10. Long Haired Lady

11. Ram On

12. The Back Seat Of My Car

Tracks 1 to 12 are his second solo album "Ram" (credited to Paul and Linda McCartney) - released 21 May 1971 in the UK on Apple PAS 10003 and 17 May 1971 in the USA on Capitol SMAS-3375.  Produced by Paul McCartney - it peaked at No. 1 in the UK and No. 2 on the US LP charts.

Disc 2 - Special Edition Bonus Audio (33:08 minutes):

1. Another Day

2. Oh Woman, Oh Why

Tracks 1 and 2 are his debut UK 7" single released February 1971 on Apple R 5889 - both Tracks were non-album

3. Little Woman Love

Track 3 is the non-album B-side to "Mary Had A Little Lamb" - his 4th solo UK 7" single on Apple R 5949 released 12 May 1972

4. A Love For You (Jon Kelly Mix)

5. Hey Diddle (Dixon Van Winkle Mix)

6. Great Cock And Seagull Race (Dixon Van Winkle Mix)

7. Rode All Night

8. Sunshine Sometime (Earliest Mix)

Tracks 1 to 3 were featured as Bonus Tracks on the September 1998 Remasters

Track 5 featured as part of a song "Bip Bop/Hey Diddle" on the 2001 Greatest Hits 2CD set "Wingspan"

Tracks 6 and 8 are Instrumentals - Track 7 is 8:33 minutes long

Tracks 4 to 8 are Previously Unreleased Versions

Both as a looker and tactile thing - "Ram: Special Edition" certainly looks the part - but once you get past the lyrics in the attached 24-page booklet and the nice photos from his own personal archives - there's nothing else - no liner notes - not even the release dates of the LP or the 7" single on the Bonus Audio CD. There are no liner notes of any kind - no history and no illumination. And apart from the three single sides on Disc 2 (which we've had before many times on Remasters) - the rest are dismissible instrumentals that test the word 'Bonus' to its limits. Sure the Jon Kelly Mix of "A Love For You" and the Dixon Van Winkle Mix of "Hey Diddle" could actually constitute songs and even feel lovely at times in a small time way – but mostly this stuff just feels like he's taking the proper Michael. The near nine-minute guitar jam that is “Rode All Night” is particularly useless.

The Remaster was done at Abbey Road by the team that handled The Beatles - GUY MASSEY, STEVE ROOKE and SIMON GIBSON - and it's excellent. I've had the 1998 version for years and those idea changes in "Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey" feel more alive than ever before.

I've never understood why people rave about "Ram" as an album - as if it was some kind of folksy masterpiece – it isn't. "Too Many People" and "Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey" have that songwriting magic for sure - but the rest of Side 1 feels like ditties trying to be songs. Also I'm hard-pressed in my later years to put up with his lyrical twaddle like "...a dog is here...a dog is there...my dog has three legs...". There's the shadow of The Beach Boys "Pet Sounds" in the Ukulele-led "Ram On" - the remaster making those chunky keyboard notes and plucked strings count. The swirl of the voices in "Dear Boy" come out of your speakers from all angles - while the unlikely but beautifully produced American single "Uncle Albert/Albert Halsey" and the out-and-out rocker "Smile Away" end Side 1 with rain, strings and Paul singing about smelly feet (we're so sorry). The cleverly constructed "Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey" is the nearest he gets to the best parts of "Abbey Road" on Side 2 and was a deserved American No. 1.

"...I look high...I look low...looking for a home in the heart of the country..." he sings on the Side 2 opener "Heart Of The Country" - those acoustic guitar flourishes and accompanied vocals as he plays are extremely clear - sounding better than they ever have. I can't really get on with the ketchup and soup puree lyrics of "Monkberry Moon Delight" - even if Linda's vocals are better. "Eat At Home" is a sort of semi rocker about eating in bed while the domestic bliss continues with "Long Haired Lady" - a song that just seems to amble and go nowhere - even with its best-ever sound quality here. "Back Seat Of My Car" would become his second UK 7" single on Apple R 5914 in August 1971 - a really pretty melody with string arrangements that deserved better than its No. 39 placing on the British single charts. "Another Day" and "Oh Woman, Oh Why" make for a cool stand alone single too.

The remaster is superb - but that half-hearted packaging and equally dodgy set of extras - lose a star in my book. He would of course go onto the huge "Band On The Run" in 1973 and "Venus And Mars" in 1975...

"Brothers And Sisters: Deluxe Edition" by THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND (July 2013 '40th Anniversary Deluxe Edition' 2CD Reissue – Seth Foster Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"…The Band Is Jumping And So Am I…"

The Allman Brothers Band fifth album was an American No. 1 - so a decent aural brush-up of 1973's "Brothers And Sisters" has long been on the cards. And you have to say that Universal's 40th Anniversary celebration does that huge fan favourite a proper solid. 

Typically (and just like buses) this 2013 sonic overhaul comes at cash-strapped music lovers in three forms - a 2CD Deluxe Edition (reviewed) - a 4-Disc Super Deluxe Edition and even a good old Vinyl reissue. Here are the details for the Rambln' Southbound Man...

UK released July 2013 - "Brothers And Sisters: Deluxe Edition" by THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND on Mercury/Universal 3728804 (Barcode 602537288045) is a 2CD '40th Anniversary' Reissue and Remaster that breaks down as follows:

Disc 1 (38:23 minutes):

1. Wasted Words [Side 1]

2. Ramblin' Man

3. Come And Go Blues

4. Jelly Jelly

5. Southbound [Side 2]

6. Jessica

7. Pony Boy

Tracks 1 to 7 are their 5th album "Brothers And Sisters" - released August 1973 in the USA on Capricorn CP 0111 and September 1973 in the UK on Capricorn 2429 102 (reissued shortly after onto Capricorn K 47507).

Disc 2 - REHEARSALS, JAMS and OUTTAKES (66:16 minutes):

1. Wasted Words (3 Dec 1972 Rehearsal) 5:06 minutes

2. Trouble No More (Oct/Nov 1972 Rehearsal - Muddy Waters cover) 3:58 minutes

3. Southbound (Instrumental Outtake, Recorded 8 Nov 1972) 5:56 minutes

4. One Way Out (Rehearsal) 5:38 minutes

5. I'm Gonna Move To The Outskirts Of The Town (Rehearsal) 11:14 minutes

6. Done Somebody Wrong (3 Dec 1972 Rehearsal) 3:50 minutes

7. Double Cross (Outtake - Recorded 13 May 1973) 4:36 minutes

8. Early Morning Blues (Outtake - Recorded 27 May 1973) 9:27 minutes

9. A Minor Jam (Studio Jam - Recorded 8 March 1973) 16:30 minutes

Tracks 1 to 9 are all PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED

Note: There is also a 4CD American SUPER DELUXE EDITION of "Brothers And Sisters" on Mercury/Universal B0018079-02 (Barcode 602537288076) that offers 2 further 2CDs (10 tracks on Disc 3 and 7 on Disc 4). Both feature a Previously Unreleased Concert - "Live At Winterland, 26 September 1973". This has unfortunately garnished something of a price tag since its release...

The 3-way foldout card digipak has one of those ugly stick-on DE bandanas unceremoniously taped onto the bottom of the outer digipak instead of the outer title plastic slipcase of old. Those slipcases were/are awkward to get the discs out of - but I actually kind of miss them now. Once opened the inside has a live photo of the band spread across all three flaps (under both see-through plastic trays) and the 24-page booklet is a chunky and colourful affair with excellent SCOTT SCHINDER liner notes. Butch Truck's son Vaylor is on the front of the booklet and Berry Oakley's daughter Brittany is on the back page - as they were on the front and rear of the original gatefold vinyl LP sleeve in 1973. There's the famous family photo gracing the centerspread and live shots of the band in action and detailed reissue credits on the last four pages. But the big news is a massive upgrade in sound. ANDY SKUROW and ELIOT KISSELEFF did the Tape Research and Transfers (respectively) and SETH FOSTER (a very experienced Universal engineer) did the mastering - and what a bang-up job they've done. Everything to my ears is better - vocals, guitars, but especially the Rhythm Section - clear and full of presence.

The album opens with Gregg Allman's "Wasted Words" which now has huge punch - Betts slide guitar tight with the vocals. Perennial rave "Ramblin' Man" has the keyboards punching above its former weight while that dual guitar finish sounds brill. Chuck Leavell's fab piano licks on "Come And Go Blues" now get a bit of extra oomph - but they properly explode out of the speakers on the Side 1 Bluesy finisher "Jelly Jelly". Side 2 opens with another Dicky Betts original "Southbound" where the cohesion of the guitars, piano and especially the funkily tight rhythm section blast into your living room. New Bassist Lamar Williams had only finished auditions for the band and along with Drummer Jaimoe they absolutely rock this track. We then an instrumental that has since gone into history - up there with "Albatross" and "Cavatina" in its impact - the wonderful "Jessica" in its full seven and half minutes glory (where would "Top Gear" be without it). With Betts given full Lead Guitar reign, Les Dudek on Acoustic and Gregg Allman on Organ - that Leavell solo part still put chills up me - and now sounding utterly brilliant. "Brothers And Sisters" ends on "Pony Boy" with Betts on his Dobro sounding like he's in your living room - beautifully done and easy to see why it's a concert fave still (lyrics from it title this review).

I had expected Disc 2 to be workmanlike - it s not - it rocks. Because the rehearsals are from their most volatile, sad and yet strangely productive period - to my ears the tracks bristle with looseness and discovery and a band wanting to matter and cope. The "Southbound" instrumental is a case in point - the band boogieing through the song like it was the most natural thing in the world (which for them it was). The cover of Muddy Waters' old Chess classic "Trouble No More" is just brilliant - while a real find is "Early Morning Blues" - the song replaced by "Jelly Jelly" on the album. Using the same back beat - you get mournful Rock Blues for nine and half great minutes ("What goes on in your worried and mixed up mind..."). The other cool outtake is "Double Cross" - a Lynyrd Skynyrd Boogie Shuffle circa "Nuthin' Fancy". Admittedly the near seventeen minutes of "A Minor Jam" will test the patience of newcomers - but I can't help think that die-hards will secretly chew up every indulgent guitar/piano jamming minute of it.

So there you it - a winner made better. Five weeks at Number 1 and their first platter to go Platinum - it's easy to hear why "Brothers And Sisters" endures all these years after. And I still wonder what that child is looking at in those leaves below his feet...a plectrum maybe...a discarded hairnet...

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"At Fillmore East" by THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND (September 2003 Universal/Mercury/Chronicles 2CD Reissue - Suha Gur Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...Six In The Morning..." 

Jetlagged and bleary after a 10-hour transatlantic flight from Paris the day before (itself a spur of the moment thing after bad weather in Europe freaked him out) – Producer Tom Dowd phoned the offices of Atlantic Records in New York the following afternoon to see what was occurring. A panicked secretary reputedly advised him in no uncertain terms that he'd better wake up pronto (or partake of some Peruvian dancing dust) because he was urgently required for a recording gig in less than 24-hours. The Allman Brothers would be headlining at Bill Graham's Fillmore East – an old vaudevillian New York theatre house on 2nd Avenue where they'd played four times before but always as a support act to the likes of Blood, Sweat & Tears. Unfazed – the revered Producer who'd been shaping Atlantic's distinctive Soul and Rock sounds for over 20 years - witnessed the Southern Rockers take the stage on the opening Thursday night with a less than well rehearsed brass section. Dowd was duly appalled.

Legend has it that he bawled out the band backstage – calling it sloppy and unprofessional – roaring at them – demanding they drop the peripheral crap and get back to boogie basics – a set made up of new material and Blues standards from Elmore James, Willie Cobbs, T-Bone Walker and Blind Willie McTell. Now most hairy-assed slide-guitar Southern diplomats would have broken a bottle of Jack Daniels over his nancy New Yorker's head and used words not necessarily in the Webster Dictionary as they pointed his grizzled rump towards the stage door. But this was TOM DOWD and they knew of his incredible track record and professional 'ear'. The Allmans listened – respected – and acted. And across the remaining three shows over two nights (8:00 pm and 11:30 pm on 12 and 13 March) – Dowd caught lightning in a bottle – one of the most famous and revered live doubles ever put to tape. The fourth show had been interrupted by a bomb scare but they played into the early hours regardless – huge 30-minute jams – a tight rhythm section – Duane's inspired lead – a band ready to take on the world.

Dowd got 20 reels of tape – mostly favouring the fourth show where (perhaps because of the scares) he felt the band was most fluid - 'cooking' even. Seven tracks made the final July 1971 2LP set with "You Don't Love Me" and "Whipping Post" taking up residency as all of Side 2 and 4 respectively. "Trouble No More" and the humungous 33-minute "Mountain Jam" were set aside for use on the "Eat A Peach" double released February 1972 - as was "One Way Out" taped 27 June 1971 at further Fillmore East gigs. "Don't Keep Me Wonderin'" turned up on the appeared-too-fast "Duane Allman Anthology" twofer in November 1972 - released after his passing from a motorcycle accident October 1971 during the Peach Sessions aged only 24. Another straggler from the 27 June 1971 shows "Midnight Rider" eventually showed on "Duane Allman Anthology, Volume 2" in August 1974. Last but by no means least – with dawn's light already broken - "Drunken Hearted Boy" was an encore that saw Elvin Bishop join the band on stage at six a.m. on the 13th of March 1971 – itself finally appearing in the 4CD/6LP Retrospective Box Set "Dreams" in July 1989. It’s also safe to say that "At Fillmore East" put the Capricorn Records label and Southern Rock in general on the world map – paving the way for The Marshall Tucker Band, Elvin Bishop, The Outlaws, Z.Z. Top and of course Lynyrd Skynyrd.

Which brings us to this 23 September 2003 Deluxe Edition reissue that draws all of those disparate sources together in one ace remastered bundle – here are the six-in-the-morning details...

UK released 23 September 2003 (24 September 2004 in the USA) – "The Allman Brothers Band At Fillmore East: Deluxe Edition" by THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND on Universal/Mercury/Chronicles 0044007735329 (Barcode 044007735329) is a 2CD 'Deluxe Edition' Remaster that plays outs as follows (the USA issue is B0000401-02 - Barcode 044007735329):

Disc 1 (65:12 minutes):

1. Statesboro Blues [4:17 minutes]

2. Trouble No More [3:43 minutes]

3. Don't Keep Me Wonderin' [3:27 minutes]

4. Done Somebody Wrong [4:33 minutes]

5. Stormy Monday [8:48 minutes]

6. One Way Out [4:56 minutes]

7. In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed [13:04 minutes]

8. You Don't Love Me [19:16 minutes]

9. Midnight Rider [2:55 minutes]

Disc 2 (68:51 minutes):

1. Hot 'Lanta [5:20 minutes]

2. Whipping Post [22:53 minutes]

3. Mountain Jam [33:39 minutes]

4. Drunken Hearted Boy [6:57 minutes]

Tracks 1, 4, 5, 8 on Disc 1 and Tracks 1 and 2 on Disc 2 make up the original July 1971 2LP set as follows:

Side 1:

1. Statesboro Blues [Blind Willie McTell cover]

2. Done Somebody Wrong [Elmore James cover]

3. Stormy Monday [T-Bone Walker cover]

Side 2:

1. You Don't Love Me [Willie Cobbs cover]

Side 3:

1. Hot 'Lanta [Allman Brothers song]

2. In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed [Dickey Betts of The Allman Brothers song]

Side 4:

1. Whipping Post [Gregg Allman song]

"The Allman Brothers Band At Fillmore East" was released July 1971 in the USA on Capricorn Records SD-2 860 and Capricorn 2659 005 in the UK. Produced by TOM DOWD - it peaked at No. 13 in the US LP charts (didn't chart UK).

Tracks 2 and 6 on Disc 1 originally appeared February 1972 on the US 2LP set "Eat A Peach" on Capricorn Records 2CP-0102

Track 3 on Disc 1 originally appeared November 1972 on the US 2LP set "Duane Allman Anthology" on Capricorn Records 2CP-0108

Track 9 on Disc 1 originally appeared August 1974 on the US 2LP set "Duane Allman Anthology, Volume 2" on Capricorn Records CPN-2-0139

Track 4 on Disc 2 originally appeared July 1989 on the 4CD/6LP/4MC Box Set "Dreams" on Polydor 422 839 417-2

The Band:

DUANE ALLMAN – Lead and Slide Guitars

GREGG ALLMAN – Organ, Piano and Vocals

DICKEY BETTS – Lead Guitar

BERRY OAKLEY – Bass

JAIMOE – Drums, Congas and Timbales

BUTCH TRUCKS – Drums and Tympani

Guests:

Thom Doucette – Harmonica on "Don't Keep Me Wonderin'", "Done Somebody Wrong", "Stormy Monday" and "You Don't Love Me"

Elvin Bishop - Guitar and Vocals on "Drunken Hearted Boy"

Steve Miller - Piano on "Drunken Hearted Boy"

Bobby Caldwell - Percussion on "Drunken Hearted Boy"

The outer plastic 'Deluxe Edition' slipcase lends these reissues a real touch of substance - while the 28-page features classy black and white photos of the boys making history and individual plates of each band member. The original album's inner gatefold photos of the band live now take up either side of the opened digipak. A nice touch is an alternate outtake of the famous 'five roadies' photo on the back cover of the original double (still on the back of the digipak). The booklet's last page uses a moments-earlier outtake photo where there's suddenly six of them (the iconic shot was actually done at the Capricorn Studios in Macon, Georgia and not as people presumed against the walls of The Fillmore East in New York). DAVE THOMPSON stumps up an entertaining and enlightening set of liner notes - filling in the factual stuff while at the same time wearing his affection for the album firmly on his sleeve. He also quite rightly points out that the release practically kick-started the ‘Live Double-Album’ as a vinyl phenomenon that still exists to this day and dominated the whole of the Seventies.

But the big news is a new SUHA GUR Remaster. As you can see from the track line-up above – this 2CD DE lines up the tracks as they were played –giving you a feel for progression. When he says ‘we got an Elmore James number for you’ at the beginning of "Done Somebody Wrong" or the intro to "Whipping Post" where someone from the audience shouts for it – you can feel the intensity of the band live in your living room. There is also that discernable feeling that these are recordings unleashed – much like the band as they rip through solo and solo...

As that slide guitar comes screaming in on "Statesboro Blues" – they already sound like your favourite bar band – only writ larger. Introducing the new Elmore James cut "Done Somebody Wrong" (said with a Southern twang). The audience gets a real taste of the playing when they launch into a fabulous version of T-Bone Walker's "Stormy Monday" - those solos and that organ support - all of it so sweet. The put-your-hands-together Willie Cobbs winner "You Don't Love Me" lifts the crowd into boogie heaven. To this day when I hear a bar-band lay into its great chords to get a crowd neck-jerking - I think of what it must have been like for Allmans fans at that show – all 19-minutes of it.

"Hot 'Lanta" feels almost early Little Feat in places or even Santana - the band swinging and swaying - the whole thing just so beautifully together. The Dickie Betts instrumental "In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed" changes the tempo into a sexy almost Latin sway - while at the same time allowing the two lead guitars to indulge. You get well-rehearsed virtuoso playing - in fact this is one of my faves on the double precisely because it shows the Allmans could 'groove' with the best of them (I'd swear Carlos would approve).  The 5:22 minutes of "Whipping Post" from their November 1969 self-titled debut album gets cranked up to eleven on the 23-minute live version in 1971. And again there's that Santana thing going on as the band slow it down half way through - all that sweet Bass and crashing cymbals.

The 1955 Muddy Waters Chess classic "Trouble No More" gives the boys another chance to shine on the Boogie front and frankly you can't help think it should have been on the original double album - but what would you drop (sports fabulous remastered sound here and feel). Another Elmore James stomper "One Way Out" only adds to that foot-tapping bank balance. The 33 and a half-minute bruiser that is "Mountain Jam" takes its central theme from a 1967 Donovan single "There Is A Mountain" and is surely one of the prizes here. And there’s Steve Miller and Elvin Bishop helping out on the raucous finisher "Drunken Hearted Boy" – how cool.

When I think about the landslide of Southern Rock that followed after this landmark live set - I look at my battered vinyl copy (its spine split) and smile. I'm fairly certain this truly excellent 2CD DE version of "At Fillmore East" will elicit the same response once it's in your latest rig...

"Solo (Live)" by DON McLEAN - September 1976 First Live Set - Double-Album on United Artists (1994 and 2008 UK Beat Goes On Records (BGO) Reissue - 2LP set Remastered onto 2CDs) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"…I Was Coming Back Anyway!"

After five studio albums covering the varying styles of Folk, Rock, Country, Dixieland and even Old Timey Music Hall - it was time for Don McLean to strip away all the studio gadgets - get back to basics and literally go 'Solo' on stage. Originally released in late 1976 as a vinyl double-album - "Solo" does what it says on the tin - it's just Don McLean and his guitar or his banjo or his voice ("Geordie Has Lost His Penker" is Acapella). With songs covering love, heartbreak, painters, hobos, poverty and lots of laughter and Americana inbetween - the crowd is swept along with his sincerity, his warmth and crafted performance skills.

So back in 1994 - Britain's Beat Goes On remastered much of his United Artists album catalogue from the Seventies - and this 2CD offering is one of those hidden nuggets. Here are the details...

Originally released November 1994 (reissued in December 2008) – "Solo (Live)" by DON McLEAN on Beat Goes On BGOCD 300 (Barcode 5017261203007) is a straightforward 2CD transfer of the vinyl double-album "Solo" originally released September 1976 in the USA on United Artists UA-LA652-H2 and in the UK on United Artists UAD 60139. It breaks down as follows...

Disc 1 (53:50 minutes):

1. Magdalene Lane

2. Masters Of War

3. Wonderful Baby

4. Where Were You Baby

5. Empty Chairs

6. Geordie's Lost His Penker

7. Babylon

8. And I Love You So [Side 2]

9. Mactavish Is Dead

10. Cripple Creek/Muleskinner Blues

11. Great Big man

12. Bronco Bill's Lament

13. Happy Trails

14. Circus Song

15. Birthday Song

16. On The Amazon

Disc 2 (50:48 minutes):

1. American Pie [Side 3]

2. Over The Waterfall/Arkansas Traveller

3. Homeless Brother

4. Castles In The Air/Three Flights Up

5. Lovesick Blues [Side 4]

6. Winter Has Me In Its Grip

7. The Legend Of Andrew McCrew

8. Dreidel

9. Vincent

10. Till Tomorrow

The 12-page booklet has typically excellent liner notes by JOHN TOBLER (dated 1994) with gatefold artwork on the inner pages. Tobler details much of McLean's career up to 1976 (Perry Como and Presley covering the gorgeous "And I Love You So" - the story of the black cripple and pauper Andrew McCrew finally getting a headstone because of McLean's song - and so on). The remaster was done at Sound Mastering (then in Cambridge) and is clean with only minor hiss issues on the very quietest of songs (doesn't say who did what). But it should be added that as this is a live set clearly from different audiences - the audio ping-pongs about a bit - but mostly it's a top-notch transfer and hugely evocative. Mostly you're too immersed in the storytelling to notice...

Amongst my favourites is "Winter Has Me In Its Grip" - originally on 1974's "Homeless Brother" - a typically simple song that slays you. The audience almost sings along to "And I Love You So" while the trio of "American Pie", "Vincent" and the lovely "Till Tomorrow" elicit just that - crowd sing-alongs ("Empty Chairs" is fabulous too). But the album belongs to "Babylon" where he splits the audience up into groups and has them singing various parts - each harmonising - it's frankly magical. McLean has always been a great songwriter - but this lovely BGO 2CD reissue shows what an amazing performer he is too into the bargain.

As he comes back out on stage to perform "Till Tomorrow" as an encore (ending Side 4) - he jokes - "I was coming back anyway!" I suspect that after you succumb to this reissue’s many charms - you'll find yourself doing exactly that...

"Homeless Brother" by DON McLEAN (1994 and 2008 Beat Goes On CD Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"…I'm Too Young To Feel This Old…" 

Don McLean albums are often hit and miss affairs ("Homeless Brother" is no different). But possessed of a way with melody that few artists have – when New York State Don hits that sweet spot - the results are gorgeous and often impossibly moving.

Back in 1994 Britain's Beat Goes On Records (aka BGO Records) remastered much of his United Artists album catalogue from the Seventies - and this 1974 offering is one of those hidden nuggets. Here are the details…

Originally released November 1994 (reissued in December 2008) – "Homeless Brother" by DON McLEAN on Beat Goes On BGOCD 247 (Barcode 5017261202475) is a straightforward transfer of his 5th album released November 1974 in the USA on United Artists UA-LA315-G and also November 1974 in the UK on United Artists UAG 29646 (38:26 minutes):

1. Winter Has Me In Its Grip [Side 1]

2. La La Love You

3. Homeless Brother

4. Sunshine Life For Me (Sail Away Raymond)

5. The Legend Of Andrew McCrew

6. Wonderful Baby [Side 2]

7. You Have Lived

8. Great Big Man

9. Tangled (Like A Spider In Her Hair)

10. Crying In The Chapel

11. Did You Know

The 12-page booklet has typically excellent liner notes by JOHN TOBLER (dated 1994) followed by song lyrics and musician credits. The remaster was done at Sound Mastering (then in Cambridge) and is beautifully clean with only minor hiss issues on the very quietest of songs (doesn't say who did what). It's a top-notch transfer.

McLean is a fantastic lyricist - painting images that are so vivid. In "Lonesome Brother" we get "...it was just a drunken hobo...dancin' circles in the night...pourin’ whisky on the headstones in the blue moonlight…" and in "You Have Lived" he admires a social outcast "...confined by fashion and peer…I love you for your courage in this frighten atmosphere…" Inspired by Fred Astaire and dedicated to him – McLean's "Wonderful Baby" would eventually be recorded by the master dancer himself in 1976 on Astaire's "Attitude Dancing" album (United Artists UK put McLean's song out as a 45 in January 1975 on UP 35764 with "Homeless Brother" on the flip). The upbeat and decidedly fruity "La La Love You" has Don pleading with his lady to "...just let me ride your box car…and I'll hobo with you…" - naughty boy.

One of the huge songs on the album even made the news in the USA and changed a forgotten soul's final fate. "The Legend Of Andrew McGrew" tells the story of a tramp's body sat prostate in a straw chair – his mummified remains peddled for decades as a travelling-show exhibit. Highlighting McGrew's horrible treatment - the song finally saw the lost man be given a decent burial. The lovely ballad "Tangled (Like A Spider In Her Hair)" sees Don sing and play acoustic guitar with only the faintest of percussion from Ralph McDonald. He then shares an Acapella rendition of The Orioles 1953 Vocal Group hit on Jubilee "Crying In The Chapel" with The Persuasions – the lack of instruments give it a Fifties feel and make it all the more striking (the song was also covered memorably by Elvis in 1965 on RCA).

One of my favourites is the gentle opener "Winter Has Me In Its Grip" – a typically simple Don McLean melody that slays and soothes simultaneously. Yusef Lateef provides Flute as McLean does a truly gorgeous backing vocal duet with Kenny Vance (lyrics from it title this review). The album ends on one of the album's prettier songs "Did You Know" – again just McLean and acoustic guitar with a Willis Jackson Tenor Saxophone towards the end.

The 1974 Don McLean album "Homeless Brother" isn't up there with "American Pie" (1971) or "Playing Favourites" (1973) - but typical of such much of his gorgeously understated music - those moments in-between are going to get you. 

A lovely reissue and if I'd enough mullah, I'd love to own his UA Back-catalogue catalogue on those natty Mini-LP SHM-CD reissues out of Japan…

"American Pie" by DON McLEAN (June 2003 Capitol 'Expanded Edition' CD Remaster in Gatefold Card Slv Repro Artwork with Two Bonus Tracks) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...Now I Understand What You Tried To Say To Me..." 

Some artists have a gift. Their songs are more than pretty or even beautiful - they somehow find their way into your very soul. New York's DON McLEAN is one of those singer-songwriters - and 1971's "American Pie" will forever be his acoustic-soulful rock-masterpiece.

Some backdrop first - his September 1970 debut album "Tapestry" was originally issued on Mediarts 41-4 in the USA and received hugely favourable reviews but precious little chart action. But akin to his monolithic second LP - his debut had tunes that were undeniably good. So when UA picked up the Mediarts back-catalogue they reissued "Tapestry" in August 1971 on United Artists UAS 5522. That version finally charted December 1972 in the USA on the back of the "American Pie" single and LP success peaking at No. 111. Over in Blighty however - "Tapestry" would not surface until May 1972 on United Artists UAS 29350 - 3 months after the also late British release of the "American Pie" LP in February 1972. “Tapestry" made no impact and UA Britain didn't even try a 45 from it. Which brings us to album No. 2...

Aged only 26 and dedicating his second outing to Buddy Holly (McLean was 13 when the plane that took his Rock 'n' Roll hero's life crashed in a snowy field in February 1959) - "American Pie" was released October 1971 on United Artists UAS 5535. Running to a whopping 8:32 minutes - the album's famous title track was split into two parts for a 45 in November 1971 by UA and given the luxury of a picture sleeve (the album artwork). United Artists 50856 made an immediate impact. So popular was the song that DJs even blanked the 'turn it over' hassle of the single and played the full LP version instead - unheard off for a tune of such length on American Radio. On the back of all this airwave plugging the "American Pie" album entered the US LP charts 13 November 1971 where it began an ascent all the way to Number 1 - staying on the LP charts a huge 48 weeks - almost an entire year.

The UK didn't see the "American Pie" 7" single until early December 1971 and then as a 4-minute edited A-side on United Artists UP 35323 with "Empty Chairs" on the B. It was reissued 21 January 1972 as a two-part single on United Artists UP 35325 – a month before the LP's release in February – and it was this reissued version that hit the charts immediately – eventually rising to No. 2. The albums only other UK 45 was of course "Vincent" with "Castles In The Air" on the flipside - released late March 1972 on United Artists UP 35359 in a picture sleeve. It famously became a UK No. 1 - a poignant ballad that is adored to this day and permanent feature on Oldies playlists.

Which brings by a circuitous route to this rather lovely CD reissue that unfortunately has audio issues on some important tracks. Here are the starry, starry details...

UK released 24 June 2003 - "American Pie" by DON McLEAN on Capitol 72435-84279-2-9 (Barcode 724358427929) is an 'Expanded Edition' CD Remaster with Two Bonus Tracks that plays out as follows (46:23 minutes):

1. American Pie [Side 1]

2. Till Tomorrow

3. Vincent

4. Crossroads

5. Winterwood [Side 2]

6. Empty Chairs

7. Everybody Loves Me, Baby

8. Sister Fatima

9. The Grave

10. Babylon

Tracks 1 to 10 are his 2nd studio album "American Pie" - released 15 October 1971 in the USA on United Artists UAS 5535 and February 1972 in the UK on United Artists UAS 29285. Recorded at The Record Plant Studios in New York in May and June 1971 and Produced by ED FREEMAN - it peaked at No. 1 in the USA and No.3 in the UK. All songs are Don McLean originals except the Traditional "Babylon".

BONUS TRACKS (Previously Unreleased):

11. Mother Nature

12. Aftermath

Original vinyl copies of the LP (artwork and photos by George Whiteman) came with an inner sleeve sporting a photo and dedication to the TV cowboy Hoppalong Cassidy astride his steed Hopper that is reproduced in the centre of the foldout card sleeve. The 12-page booklet in the left flap reproduces the lyrics for the first time and gives a track-by-track breakdown from new interviews with McLean in April 2003 by liner-notes writer PAUL GREIN. Amidst the telling is the recounting of Lori Lieberman's writing of "Killing Me Softly With His Song" - itself a No. 1 for Roberta Flack - a song Lieberman wrote after attending a Don McLean concert in the Troubadour in L.A. – moved to tears on hearing him play "Empty Chairs" from the American Pie LP. There's also a photo of DL on a bench with an old Blues Boy and his acoustic guitar (looks like The Village).

The CD Remaster by DOUG SCHWARTZ was done April 2003 at Mulholland Music in California with one of the Bonus Tracks "Aftermath" mixed by BILL SMITH at Capitol. The sound improvement is immediate when you play that famous opening cut – Paul Griffin's Piano – David Spinoza's guitar licks – much better for sure – clear and warm. But I'd add that there is some serious tape hiss on some of the quieter tracks and typically its on songs people adore like "Vincent" and "Empty Chairs". It’s a warm transfer overall for sure – full of life and air around the instruments - but I’d warn caution. This is a four-star audio listen for five-star material - something I suspect is inherent on the source tapes and couldn't be helped. On to the music and the words...

I’d forgotten about his lyrics – how good they are. "American Pie" – his tribute to the day the music died (3 February 1959) - hosts some great storytelling – the father, the son and the Holy Ghost who caught the last train to the coast – while good ole boys sit drinking whiskey and rye singing... But for me the real magic begins with the truly gorgeous "Till Tomorrow" – as beautiful and as simple a melody as you've ever heard. The album's other monster song is of course "Vincent" - a ballad to the doomed artist - but along with "Crossroads" - both are laden with hiss despite their sweet beauty.

Side 2 opens with a song I played to death back in the day - the uplifting jaunt of "Winterwood". Acoustic guitars and gentle vibes hold up lyrics like "...no one can take your place with me...there's no place I'd rather be...than it's your place for the night..." This is a song where birds sing hopeful songs on dismal days. I wonder how many men and women have shed a tear to the heartache inherent in "Empty Chairs" - McLean strumming your pain as the lady said ("...I never understood...that although you said you'd go...until you did...I never thought you would..."). Grein reckons that the bopper "Everybody Loves Me, Baby" would have made a great third 45 - I beg to differ - I've always thought it overbearing (although the Remaster is excellent). The trio of "Sister Fatima", the Acapella bareness of the lost marines song "The Grave" and the Traditional cover of "Babylon" take the LP to the finish line - beautiful stuff.

I hadn't expected much from the two bonus cuts - but I'm glad to say that both the upbeat "Mother Nature" (a band number) and the haunting "Aftermath" (an acoustic number that should have replaced "Everybody Loves Me, Baby") act as a perfect end game. "Aftermath" also has gorgeous audio – better than many of the more famous album cuts on Side 1.

"...My sorrow will take wings in the morning..." – Don McLean sings on the Soul touching "Till Tomorrow". Discover why they call this great album an American classic on this lovely and cheap-as-chips CD...

PS: I've also reviewed "Homeless Brother" and the double-live set "Solo"...

"One Year" by COLIN BLUNSTONE (August 1998 Epic/Rewind CD Remaster - Reissued March 2010) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...Say You Don't Mind...You'll Let Me Off This Time..." 

Colin Blunstone's debut solo album "One Year" has always been a huge fan fave - its 1971 stippled effect LP sleeve and distinctive Epic Records yellow label enough to make men of a certain age go mushy. Not only did it contain the hugely popular and melodic hit single "Say You Don't Mind" (peaked at No. 15 in early 1972) - it featured more of the same - other breathy lushly orchestrated beauties that stand up to scrutiny in 2017 - 46 years after the event.

Which brings us to this 'Rewind' CD - a basic Remaster from Sony's Epic accompanied by a hugely inadequate gatefold slip of paper as a supposed inlay. Still - it sounds good enough - and at least it's still available relatively cheaply. Here are the details... 

UK released August 1998 (reissued March 2010) - "One Year" by COLIN BLUNSTONE on Epic/Rewind 491694 2 (Barcode 5099749169425) is a straightforward 10-track Remaster of the 1971 LP and plays out as follows (43:23 minutes):

1. She Loves The Way They Love Her - Side 1
2. Misty Roses
3. Smokey Day
4. Caroline Goodbye
5. Though You Are Far Away
6. Mary Won't You Warm My Bed - Side 2
7. Her Song
8. I Can't Live Without You
9. Let Me Come Closer To You
10. Say You Don't Mind
Tracks 1 to 10 are his debut solo LP (after The Zombies) called "One Year" - released December 1971 in the UK on Epic Records S EPC 64557 and January 1972 in the USA on Epic Records E 30974. Produced by ROD ARGENT and CHRIS WHITE (both of Argent) - it failed to chart in either country.

"Caroline Goodbye", "Though You Are far Away", "I Can’t Live Without You" and "Let Me Come Closer To You" are Colin Blunstone originals - "She Loves The Way They Love Her", "Smokey Day" and "Her Song" are Rod Argent/Chris White songs (both from ARGENT) - "Mary Won’t You Warm My Bed" is a Mike d’Abo cover version - "Misty Roses" is a Tim Hardin cover version and "Say You Don’t Mind" is a Denny Laine song (he would later play and be a part of Paul and Linda McCartney’s Wings).

Four members of the British band ARGENT (Rod Argent, Russ Ballard, Robert Henrit and Jim Rodford) play on three songs - "She Loves The Way They Love Her", "Caroline Goodbye" and "Mary Won't You Warm My Bed". Rod Argent, Chris White, Jim Rodford and Colin Blunstone had also been founder members of THE ZOMBIES - Drummer Robert 'Bob' Henrit also played with The John Verity Band in 1974, Phoenix in 1976 and Russ Ballard's Barnet's Dogs in 1980. Alan Crosthwaite also plays guitar on "Misty Roses".

The gatefold slip of paper that is the inlay reproduces the original album musician and recording credits (T. Rex and Bowie's Tony Visconti arranged some of the tracks) and Blunstone's own short appraisal from the rear sleeve (he'd written the record between July 1970 and July 1971 hence its title) – but absolutely naught else. It doesn't even advise who remastered what or where or from which source – although to my ears the sound is GORGEOUS. Most of these songs feature Blunstone up against a set of cello strings or lone viola – and the clarity is beautiful. Most of the 'Rewind' Series of CD reissues were like this - short on details - but with excellent Remastered Audio. Let's get to the music...

As early as March 1971 – Epic UK tried the Mike d'Abo song "Mary, Won't You Warm My Bed" as his British debut 7" single using the non-album Blunstone original "I Hope I Didn't Say Too Much Last Night" as its flipside. But there were few takers for Epic EPC 7095 and it tanked. Speaking of catalogue disasters - it doesn't of course take particular genius to work out that if the Sony Rewind compilers had any brains or real interest in this reissue – they could easily have included that non-album song as a Bonus Track (but alas). Epic UK then tried 45 No. 2 in early October 1971 just before the album was about to hit the shops. Pairing two of his own - "Caroline Goodbye" with the equally beautiful "Though You Are Far Away" – Epic EPC 7520 suffered the same fate as its March 1971 predecessor - no takers. Which is a damn shame because both songs make for a truly classy outing – melodies that deserved a better fate. Epic in the USA paired "Caroline Goodbye" with "Misty Roses" in January 1972 (the month the album was released) on Epic 5-10826 but it didn't chart.

It wasn't until late January 1972 when the album's last cut - Denny Laine's fabulous "Say You Don't Mind" - got put on UK 7" single No. 3 - and suddenly Blunstone was on the map. Epic S EPC 7765 entered the British pop charts 12 February 1972 (only two weeks after its 28 January 1972 release date) and eventually rose to a respectable and deserving No. 15 - staying a total of 9 weeks in the Top 40. The brass band sounding and organ based "Let Me Come Closer To You" was its perfect B-side in Blighty - in fact I thought it should have been released as the follow-up 45.

The album's opening track is the overly busy and loud "She Loves The Way They Love Her" - the earliest recording for the album where Blunstone clearly hadn't yet decided that his debut would be a largely quiet affair with melody, acoustic guitars and various string instruments. It sticks out as a rather odd and bombastic beginning. Things however settle into Nick Drake beauty with Colin's seriously smart and superbly arranged cover version of Tim Hardin's "Misty Roses" - a highlight on his "Tim Hardin 1" debut LP on Verve Forecast in 1966. Chris Gunning arranged the sweetly played string section that makes up Part 2 of the "Misty Roses" cover - and I wish we finally knew the names of the classy players (but no). Other highlights include "Smokey Day" which comes so close to "Bryter Layter" in its ethereal gorgeousness - again wonderful string arrangements from Chris Gunning. The hurting "Her Song" is probably the ballad I return to the most – amazingly poignant - almost too sad. It’s yet another moving song - even from a distance of nearly five decades – on an LP that deserves to be rediscovered. 

Never as retro-cool as Nick Drake or commercially hip as Cat Stevens - nonetheless Colin Blunstone produced a hugely underrated album in "One Year" - something of a masterpiece in my mind (excepting that opening clunker). I just wish the CD showed that same love and affection. What we essentially have here is a 5-star singer-songwriter album from back in the day being given a 3-star CD reissue in the 90s. 

Blunstone would then follow "One Year" with "Ennismore" in November 1972 and "Journey" in March 1974 - both available on a Floating World/Voiceprint CD reissue in 2014 (see separate review). 

"...I love you ...you are love to me..." - Colin Blunstone pines in the aching "Her Song". I feel the same. Check out this forgotten classic...