ALAN PRICE: ALAN PRICE (1977)
1) Rainbow's End; 2) I've Been
Hurt; 3) I Wanna Dance; 4) Let Yourself Go; 5) Just For You; 6) I'm A Gambler;
7) Poor Boy; 8) The Same Love; 9) Is It Right; 10) Life Is Good; 11) The Thrill.
I am not quite sure if this was recorded and
released before or immediately after the first attempt at the original Animals'
reunion... but who cares? It's not as if you can see any faint echoes of
«Animalisms» in this album, which seems to be continuing in the same direction
as its predecessor — glossing Alan's image as that of a clean-cut entertainer
with equal respect to vintage and modern forms of said entertainment. For sure,
this «between today and yesterday» angle makes for a mildly interesting listen,
but in fact the album's only saving grace is Price's humble charisma that even
a bowtie cannot totally melt away.
The record is a stylistic hodge-podge — there's
gospel soul (ʽRainbow's Endʼ), discofied pop rock (ʽI've Been Hurtʼ), sugary
folk pop (ʽI Wanna Danceʼ), funk-pop (ʽLet Yourself Goʼ), Billy Joel-esque
balladry (ʽJust For Youʼ), glossed-over rock'n'roll (ʽI'm A Gamblerʼ), and
later on, there'll be some blues, some country, some vaudeville... no two songs
really sound alike, which would have probably made the album a masterpiece if
all the tunes had something new and stunning to say in their respective genres.
Which they do not; but Price sings them all in his usual lovable voice, and
oversees arrangements that avoid contemporary gimmicks and concentrate on quite
traditional and well-constructed guitar and organ solos. (The screechy guitar
solo on ʽLife Is Goodʼ is particularly well rounded — I have no idea who Rod
Hendry, the officially credited guitar player, is, but if he's alive and well,
please tell him that somebody still cares).
Most importantly, the «new» elements, such as
the very well noticeable disco bassline on ʽI've Been Hurtʼ, are quite
harmlessly integrated with old stylistics — really, that song sounds just like good
old time barroom entertainment, just with an extra «hop quotient» thrown in for
the sake of modernity. And I suppose that on ʽI'm A Gamblerʼ, Alan delivers a
solo on the newly manufactured Polymoog synth, because you just don't get that
sound from him or anybody else prior to those times, but it just adds a
slightly «technophile» aspect to take away the generic flavor of this otherwise
completely run-of-the-mill boogie number.
The only real standout on the album is
ʽRainbow's Endʼ, which could have easily fit on any of Alan's conceptual
records — a soulful, self-questioning epic with great interaction between the
almost operatic lead vocal part (terrific falsetto flourishes at the end of
each line) and the gospel-style backing vocals. Unfortunately, it sets the
wrong tone for the record: had it been placed at the end, it might have mildly
stunned us as a sort of ʽDay In The Lifeʼ conclusion to the overall «whimsy» of
the album — as it is, it serves as an inadequately grand introduction to lots
of pleasant, but simplistic entertainment (although ʽLife Is Goodʼ, near the
end of the record, tries to somewhat remedy the situation and bring back the
epic vibe — especially with that guitar solo — but it is not as originally
written as ʽRainbow's Endʼ).
Still a thumbs up, though: the overall combination of
diversity, modest energy, occasional hooks, and personal charisma ensure that
this is one of those «high-mediocre» albums where nothing specifically stands
out, but the collective humor, emotionality, and taste produces a positive vibe
all the same. Generic entertainment, yes, and, again, a far cry from the man's lucky
streak of 1973-75, but «if all generic entertainment were like this»... and you
can finish this one up in any way you personally prefer.
I don't know any RoD Hendry, but there was a RoB Hendry who played with Renaissance in 1972 (the "Prologue" album); maybe his name was misspelt, who knows?
ReplyDeleteIt seems the same guy, according to Allmusic: http://www.allmusic.com/artist/rob-hendry-mn0001603442/credits
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