Neil Young / Harvest
1972 Warner Bros.
Terrific content, fidelity, typical outstanding Neil Young recording. Backed by The Stray Gators, The London Symphony Orchestra and appearances by other familiar names. Often called his signature album.
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@spiritofradio, we were talking fleetwood mac's "future games," which i'd rate as my second favorite behind "kiln house" and just ahead of "bare trees", though i'm occasionally persuaded that "then play on" is their pinnacle. @mammothguy54, i'm with you on "bridge of sighs"--it is one terribly-produced record. odd that no one rates james dewar among the great white soul singers, but he was pretty formidable. just been listening to the go-betweens "before hollywood." incredible record. |
Bridge of Sighs in my top 10 all time favorite records. I only have my OP and I guess I never noticed it was really that badly produced. It still conveys an atmosphere and so much feeling and soul so I guess somebody did something to get that across. It’s interesting, on a record like Layla, for example, the bad production is so bad I can’t play it on my good stereo. But records like Montrose or Bridge of Sighs I don’t really care. If somebody redid BOS to improve it I’d sure buy it though. |
@loomisjohnson James Dewar was the best! He was really shy and wouldn’t get out front so maybe the shallow inpercipients running the rock promotion mafia back then didn’t help. We know though. Who’s got a better voice to let microphones and a PA fill a stadium? I can’t think of one. He did it effortlessly. Thank you for the clarification on the Fleetwood Mac. I don’t know anything about that band. I see though that maybe Stevie Nicks wasn’t on that record so might give it a try. |
I was fortunate to have seen Robin Trower perform the Bridge Of Sighs concert in 1974, just after the album released. Roughly center stage and about 10 rows from the stage. Very memorable. Friday Music did a reissue but I have no idea if it was properly mastered/plated/pressed and if the SQ is much better. It's no longer available as new and I can find only two NM/M- used at $60 and $225 (some people are beyond ridiculous). Anyway, I'll keep one of my copies and give the other to my brother-in-law. I cherish the music and will listen at a lower volume. That always helps with lesser SQ albums. |
@spiritofradio James, anything from Fleetwood Mac prior to Stevie Nicks is their best music. I will give them excellence to the album "Rumors", though. That is really quite good. Kiln House and Then Play On are my favorites, by far. Completely different music than the pop version of the band, which is about when Stevie Nicks came on board. I saw them play in 1972 and then again much later, after the album Tusk came out. What a world of difference. 1972 was a superb concert. The Tusk concert was rather boring, the same long-winded screaming guitar stuff and Stevie Nicks bellowing like a sick cow. (sorry for the strong opinion here). |
re: "bridge of sighs"...i've had 3 or 4 thrifted/dollar bin copies here over the years. all clean. not a single one sounded very good to me. it's not my favorite album so no great loss to me but can confirm that it's hard to find one that sounds "right" ( if it exists at all). i find it fascinating that i have an art blakey record that looks like it went through a washing machine and still sounds unbelievably good, but a 70's mainstream rock record like the trower can look factory fresh and sound like a napster download. that's just the record game i guess. speaking of old rock i'm listening to badfinger "straight up" right now. a personal favorite
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Kenny Burrell with Coleman Hawkins - Bluesey Burrell Paul Simon - One Trick Pony Ringo Star - Ringo This is Ringo's first solo album. I bought it right after it came out, in 1973 and it has only been played on a quality turntable and cartridge (my first real high-fidelity system). Still sounds like new. A very well produced album, Recorded at Sunset Sound in Los Angeles and Apple Studios in London. Mastering by (a very young) Doug Sax at The Mastering Lab in Los Angeles. Includes a fabulous 20-page 12' X 12" booklet inside of the gatefold jacket. What a treasure this album is. I was nineteen at the time and was dating a girl who was 16 (still is a friend of mine) so the song 'You're Sixteen' inspired me to buy the album. I am so glad that I did. |
+1 on Badfinger |
@bslon thank you for the rec! adding it to my streaming queue |
Agree Dewar is a terrific blues singer and Bridge of Sighs an all-time great rock blues LP. Yeah, the SQ could be better. I have that MFSL digital, @slaw. @spiritofradio and others here have it too. Perhaps I’ll compare vs my old vinyl copy sometime. When it comes to the eras of Fleetwood Mac, I think of them as 3 totally different bands 1) classic British blues 2) Welch era softer rock 3) Lindsey/Stevie Pop/Rock. They all have their merits, IMHO. It’s amazing how Mick/John/Christine held them together for so long, stretched in so many directions, with such highs and lows. Lots of highs! |
@slaw Lemme know what you think. You've to be in the mood. Play whole album through. Turn up the volume. |
