After a string of pop hits that were, and largely remain, underrated for their artistry, Chad Stuart and Jeremy Clyde were looking for the project that would boost their esteem beyond the teen idol level. Releases like Pet Sounds and Sgt. Peppers had raised the bar for pop production considerably, and in September of 1967, Chad & Jeremy entered the studio to create their response, Of Cabbages And Kings. Although the album didn't have the commercial impact the duo hoped for, it has stood as one of the underrated gems of 60's pop. Sundazed has assembled the original album's six bonus cuts for reissue, and it's a reissue that should delight any fan of Brit-pop who is familiar with it, and happily inform those who aren't.
Producer Gary Usher ran interference with the Columbia accountants, providing Stuart and Clyde the time and resources they needed to realize their ambitions, and their ambitions were high. Using sounds ranging from didgeridoo, horns and strings to flushing toilets and the verbal antics of their labelmates, The Firesign Theater, they produced a set of original songs that included the five movement "Progress Suite," a collage of music and found sounds.
The result was an album worthy of inclusion in the pantheon established by its noteworthy predecessors, but ultimately it wasn't the album Chad & Jeremy fans were looking for, and save for the relative handful of us who revered it both then and now, it became best remembered more as a novelty near the end of a career (they would record one more album, the similarly ambitious The Ark, before Clyde departed to pursue an acting career on British stages) than as a triumphant peak.
by Shaun Dale
1. Rest In Peace (Chad Stuart) - 6:47
2. The Gentle Cold Of Dawn - 3:52
3. Busman's Holiday - 3:25
4. Can I See You - 3:49
5. Family Way - 2:47
6. I'll Get Around To It When And If I Can (James William Guercio) - 2:41
7. Prologue (Chad Stuart) - 5:48
8. Decline (Chad Stuart) - 4:08
9. Editorial (Vocal) - 2:56
10.Fall (Chad Stuart) - 8:30
11.Epilogue (Vocal) - 5:08
12.Rest in Peace (Chad Stuart) - 3:18
13.Family Way - 2:47
14.The Progress Suite: Editorial - 2:56
All compositions by Jeremy Clyde except as else indicated
Musicians
*Jeremy Clyde - Vocals, Guitar
*Chad Stuart - Vocals, Guitar, Banjo, Harpsichord, Organ, Tack Piano, Ukulele, Sitar
1968 Three In The Attic (2013 edition)
Free Text
I have always been curious which session musicians Usher used on this (and "Ark").
ReplyDeleteThank you.
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