JUKE BOX JURY

Juke Box Jury

A lot of pretty good records

BY GREG SHAW

Feb. 22

That’s what we’ve got this month. Biggest pile of worthy discs I’ve had yet, but no real killers — unless you count Neil Young’s “Heart of Gold” (Reprise 1065) which is beginning to wear thru overexposure. It still stands head & shoulders above the rest of Harvest though, and it’s the finest evocation of the folkrock sound since “Oh Yoko”. When a guy with a harmonica and a restrained rock group can wrench your guts like that, you have to wonder why all these autistic dullards continue to waste your time with their bland guitar strummings. :: The second-best Neil Young song lately is “Horse With No Name” by America (WB 7355) even though he had nothing to do with it. It ain’t on their album, by the way, so wait for the next one.

The long-awaited Christopher Milk mini-album is out (UA SP-66), and while it has neat graphics and a bully little bio, I can’t seem to get into it. I like some of their songs but this record is lacking something. “Basket Case” is nice, though they’re all rather poorly engineered. If you really like the 1968 effeminate English sound you might go for this. But dig: it won’t be on sale anywhere and you can only gdt it by writing to UA Records, 6920 Sunset, Los Angeles, CA. 90028. It’s free, so why not? And you can stick that fan letter you’ve always wanted to write John Mendelsohn in with your request, as he works part time in the mail room. :: The UA mini-album series is having some trouble, incidentally, and they may not be released for awhile of ever. So order that Roger Spear EP from England, folks, and sorry about the bum steer.

New Doors single “Ships W/ Sails” (Elektra 45768) is a strong letdown. Sounds like a hip cocktail lounge version of Gabor Szabo. Louie & the Lovers lose some mellowness through the departure of Doug Sahm as producer on “Little Georgie Baker” (Epic 5-10825), but galin an edge and vitality that more truly reflect the young Chicano-folkrock group. Buy this one in case they don’t get another album.

Echoing voices ala Zep’s “Whole Lotta Love” may be the next trend in heavy groups. Uriah Heep employs it to good effect in “The Wizard”, a laid-back but hard-edge new single (Mercury 73271). As my wife pointed out, it’s a lot like one of my favorite 1967 psychedelic-punk classics, “Swami” by the William Penn Fyve (Thunderbird 502). :: Timber has a promising single in “Outlaw” (Elektra 45773) which mixes 1966 spunk with a 1972 vocal style. Not bad at all. The Wackers are another Electra group hard at work resurrecting the old vintage Beatles sound. Avoid their first album but watch for the live one if it includes the oldies they do so many of in concert. Their new single “Oh My Love” (45772) brings back a Lennon-Ono number from not too long ago, produced by Gary Usher and sounding very nice. And get a load of this California group’s English accents! Go out and buy the R.E.O. Speedwagon LP if you haven’t already, but also call up your local rock & roll station and request “Sophisticated Lady” (Epic 5-10827), an AM natural.

Remember Abner “no relation to Phil” Spector? Sure you do, he gave us “Sally Go Round the Roses” by the Jaynetts (Tuff 369) and “Dear Abby” by the Hearts (Tuff 5557), both in 1963. A damn good producer. Well, he’s surfaced again with a group called Blackbear Exchange whose “Walkin’ Man” (Laurie 3588) sounds like the pre-Darlene Love Crystals (“Uptown”, “He’s a Rebel”) doing a very soulful gospel-pop song. Like the old Philles records, the flip is a jazz-tinged instrumental. The mystery of Abner Spector deepens! On the other hand, the record of the month may well be another Laurie girl-groupsound revival, “Your Life is Gone” by Reparata (3589). Far and away the best thing she’s done since “Whenever a Teenager Cries” (World Artists 1036) back in ’65, this record has what I’d swear is the backing track from an old Ronettes song, with Reparata not equaling Ronnie (What’d you expect?) but holding her own as we are treated to the best motorcycle and police siren sound effects this side of “Leader of the Pack” toward the end of the record. You can’t pass these two by.

It might not astound you to learn that Jan Berry has a new record out unless you were aware of the damage he sustained in the accident that ended the career of Jan & Dean. Their last record was “Vegetables” (White Whale 261) and that’s about what Jan became, barely able to form the words of ordinary conversation. Well, for the first time since that fateful day he has returned to the studio, coming out with “Mother Earth” (Ode 66023). It ain’t bad, considering, but unfortunately all the strings and choirs and elaborate arrangements in Hollywood can’t give his voice the strength it once possessed. Still, it’s great to see him working again.

Sounds of the past this month include Donny Osmond singing “Puppy Love” (as if he hoped to cut a real talent like Paul Anka!) on MGM 14367. But he’s kinda cute, isn’t he? And speaking of cute, the Cowsills chuck their old image and come on like a pack of fuzztone heavies on “Covered Wagon” (London 170). There don’t seem to be more than four of them either, although the rest might be lurking quietly in the corner of the studio, practicing their James Taylor songs.

You don’t believe Huey “Piano” Smith and his Clowns are still around, do you? Well if not you’d better think twice, because they’ve got an all-new version of “Rockin’ Pneumonia” out (Cotillion 44142) that retains the old New Orleans R&B flavor of the original despite the replacement of saxophones with trumpets and the absence of Bobby Marchan. Huey sings this one himself, and he ain’t bad. Nice piano, too. Charlie Gillett. will sleep with a smile on his face tonight.

Since we mentioned Bobby Marchan you might like to know that Little Johnny Taylor has a new version of a song Bobby made famous, “There is Something On Your Mind” (Ronn 59). Unlike “Rockin’ Pneumonia”, it is ruined by an overbearing soul arrangement. The flip, “My Fault Darling” is much better. Good blues/R&B waxings this time out include Charlie Musselwhite’s “Just a Little Bit’7“Takin’ Care of Business” (Cherry Red 4503) and John Lee Hooker’s “I Feel Good” (Jewel 824), a boogie-shuffle groove. Barbara & the Browns give the old Willie Cobbs blues standard “You Don’t Love Me” a nice workout on MGM Sounds of Memphis 705. The flip is “If I Can’t Run to You I’ll Crawl”, a fine soulful ballad in the Brenda Holloway style. And are you ready for a blues song about lawsuits? If so, latch onto the amusing “Sue Me, Sue You Blues” by Jesse Davis (Atco 6873). Written by George Harrison??

We thought he’d never rock again, but oF Jerry Lee Lewis is back with his second thumper in a row. “Chantilly Lace” (Mercury 73273) is the B-side of a country ballad of course, but a good sign just the same. I think he’s popular enough with the cracker audience to get away with some rock; maybe he’s coming to the same conclusion. Not as good a performance as “Me and Bobby McGee” unfortunately, but still worth a listen. And “Sherry’s Lips” by David Houston (Sun 1127), ostensibly a C&W platter, is actually a 1969 teenage pud lament in a very thin disguise. Eat it up, Ral Donner fans.

Nary a month goes by without some kind of novelty record. This time it’s “Ping Pong” by the George Fischoff Keyboard Komplex (Project-3 1414), which features ping-pong sound effects that disappointingly make no use of stereo. Besides the effects are some piano tiriklings punctuated by statements from a seductive female voice, such as “mmmmm, ping pong” and “c’mon baby, play with me”. This one’s for Dad. And while you’re thinking of the old boy, did you know that Playboy has started a record company? Their first release is “Leavin’ It’s Over” by Hudson (Playboy 50001) which, contrary to what you might expect, is a very teen-oriented English sort of rock record. And finally, you could call James Brown’s “King Heroin” (Polydor 14116) a novelty tune, but he wouldn’t be too happy about it. Neither would the President of Polydor, who calls it “the most moving statement I have ever heard on record.”

In the never-never land of the Billboard charts, we find Commander Cody’s “Hot Rod Lincoln” (Paramount 146) rising on the pop and country charts (whoopee!), Nilsson in the top five with a pallid rendition of Badfinger’s “Without You” (RCA 74-0604), and Robert John’s “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” (Atlantic 2846) a top ten item, which proves" anything is possible. I bet plenty of old songs from “You Cheated” to “Shimmy Shimmy Ko Ko Bop” could be hits today. Some like “Born Too Late” wouldn’t, but certain kinds of pube frosting never age. Send in your favorite titles and maybe we’ll run a “top ten revival nominations” listing. Or maybe not.

Speaking of old records and teen pud, be sure to send two (2) sticky quarters for the latest grease-caked issue of Who Put the Bomp, devoted this time to Gene Vincent and the 1956 rockabilly sound. Send that cash directly to me at 64 Taylor Dr., Fairfax, CA. 94930. You won’t regret it.