Thursday, October 5, 2017

Jack Traylor And Steelwind - Child Of Nature (1973 us, fine country folk rock with some psych traces, vinyl edition)



Jack Traylor was a Grateful Dead/Jefferson Airplane associate who contributed towards Kantner, Slick and Freiberg's Baron Von Tollbooth and the Chrome Nun, various members of the collective returning the favour by playing on his 1973 solo album, Child of Nature, credited to Jack Traylor and Steelwind.

Jack was the main songwriter and vocalist, and sticks to unvarnished acoustic rhythm guitar. The have a female vocalist, Diana Harris, who also happens to play some piano, a lead guitarist who mainly sticks to electric, a third guitar player, Skip Morairty, and a bassist.  Plus, longtime Airplane producer Al Schmitt produced their debut, Child of Nature.

Traylor's an okay singer/songwriter (the title track is catchy), the young Chaquito gets in some nice work, and has one extended solo which owes a lot more to flashy rock than folk ("Time to be Happy"). Besides Traylor and Chaquico, the other members of Steelwind dropped off the face of the planet.  The drummer is Malo member Rick Quintanal, and Freiberg plays faint mellotron on one track.  "Caveat Emptor".
Tracks
1. Child Of Nature - 3:48
2. Birds And Beasts And Bumblebees - 3:32
3. I've Got You - 3:14
4. Smile - 4:14
5. Time To Be Happy (Gerald D. Moriarty) - 4:30
6. Come On, Children - 3:50
7. Fifteen Years After - 4:17
8. Gone To Canada - 4:31
9. Caveat Emptor (Craig Chaquico) - 5:12
All songs written by Jack Traylor except where noted

Steelwind
*Jack Traylor - Guitar, Vocals
*Craig Chaquico - Guitar, Mandolin
*Danny Virdier - Bass, Vocals
*Skip Moriarty - Guitar, Flute, Vocals
*Diane Harris - Piano, Vocals
Friends
*David Freiberg - Keyboards
*Bill Laudner - Vocals
*Kent Middleton - Harmonica, Percussion
*Rick Quintanal - Drums

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5 comments:

  1. Thank you! Been looking for this one for a long time!

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  2. Traylor passed now in June of 2019. His music career destroyed our family . He destroyed my mother with his stupid drug addiction and they married very young causing our family terror while recording this album. We are relieved that he is off of tjis earth. Our parents marriage was horrible for the 20 years with just abuse and hate he had for this world .

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  3. During the entire making of this album , my father was using all types of heavy drugs in recording studios in the City , but the nice part of his addiction is that it terminated my parents' marriage we thank God and my grandparebts for with my grandfsther and the Jesuits . They forever helped us with emotional healimg still today we are enduring from his music life of abuse . Thank you Lord for taking him now as he will not be missed .

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  4. We hope Traylor's soul burns in hell as he forced us to endure his music career drug addict hell .

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  5. A fantastic album catchy folk / country songs

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