Plain and Fancy: Jo Mama - Jo Mama (1970 us, awesome blend of blues country folk rock, from James Taylor's and Carole King's support band, 2013 japan remaster)

Saturday, November 13, 2021

Jo Mama - Jo Mama (1970 us, awesome blend of blues country folk rock, from James Taylor's and Carole King's support band, 2013 japan remaster)

The members of Jo Mama were well established in the LA music scene when this LP came out. Guitarist Danny Kootch (aka Danny Kortchmar, who started out with James Taylor & Original The Flying Machine) and drummer Walt O'Brien were together in the King Bees. Organist Ralph Schuckett had played in the acid psych groups Clear Light and Peanut Butter Conspiracy, while Charles Larkey was in The City with his then wife Carol King, along with Kootch. When this Jo Mama LP debuted in 1970, Larkey was dating singer Abigale Haness (aka Gayle Haness), who takes lead vocals here. If you're looking for a terrific vibe, JO Mama certainly embodies it with this album of West Coast pop rock, a lá The Band, as well as some jazzy tunes.

Selections such as Machine Gun Kelly; Midnight Rider; Searching High, Searching Low; Lighten Up, Tighten Up; Venga Venga; Sailing; Great Balls Of Fire (Jerry Lee Lewis song); The Sky Is Falling; The Word Is Goodbye; Check Out This Gorilla; Cotton Eyed Joe; Love’ll Get You High. Additional musicians include: Bob Williams; Michael Dubkin; Ollie Mitchell; & Mayo Tiana. This debut album was produced by Peter Asher.

After Jo Mama, Abigale Haness (with Danny Kootch) did lots of sessions, including Carly Simon, James Taylor and on Bill Wyman's Monkey Grip album. She was also the featured voice of Janet Weiss in the "Rocky Horror Picture Show".