Plain and Fancy: 09/04/26

Friday, September 4, 2026

rep>>> Roger McGuinn And Band - Roger McGuinn And Band (1975 us, great classic rock, 2004 extra tracks remaster)

In the liner notes to Sundazed's reissue of Roger McGuinn & Band, the former Byrds leader says, "A band should be a benevolent dictatorship," adding, "Democracy is a great form of government, but it doesn't work in rock & roll." Whether you agree with that statement or not, Roger McGuinn & Band is one album that supports McGuinn's argument pretty well; in 1975, after his first two solo albums were greeted with lackluster commercial and critical response, Columbia Records assigned producer John Boylan to McGuinn's next project, and Boylan brought along a band. While the players turned out to be a solid rhythm section who brought a tight, energetic groove to the sessions, McGuinn decided to let them contribute songs to the album in the name of esprit de corps, and let the record show that none of these guys had ever written a great song for one of America's benchmark rock bands.

Consequently, Roger McGuinn & Band is knee-deep in filler, though not all the blame can be pointed at Roger's bandmates, since "Easy Does It" and "Lisa" don't exactly loom large in his catalog. And while Boylan's production isn't especially intrusive, the results have a bit more gloss than this music needs, and the country-rock and boogie accents don't leave much room for the folk touches that have always been McGuinn's strong suit. Still, "Born to Rock and Roll" and "Lover of the Bayou" are solid McGuinn compositions that deserve wider circulation, and while this isn't one of his better albums, at least it finds him in sharp and passionate form with a good band behind him. He just shouldn't have let them write half of the album, that's all.

by Mark Deming

Tracks
1. Somebody Loves You (Allen Kemp, Stephen A. Love) - 3:16
2. Knockin' On Heaven's Door (Bob Dylan) - 3:20
3. Bull Dog (Richard Bowden) - 1:59
4. Painted Lady (David Lovelace, Greg Attaway) - 3:08
5. Lover Of The Bayou (Jacques Levy, Roger McGuinn) - 3:25
6. Lisa (Roger McGuinn) - 1:59
7. Circle Song (David Lovelace) - 3:04
8. So Long (Richard Bowden) - 3:13
9. Easy Does It (Roger McGuinn) - 2:41
10.Born To Rock And Roll (Roger McGuinn) - 3:21
11.Wasn't Born To Follow (Gerry Goffin, Carole King) - 2:02
12.Chestnut Mare (Jacques Levy, Roger McGuinn) - 5:50
Bonus Tracks Live 11-12

Personnel
Roger McGuinn - Guitar, Vocals, Bass
Steve Love - Bass
David Lovelace - Keyboards
Greg Attaway - Drums
Richard Bowden - Guitar

1973 Roger McGuinn - Roger McGuinn (2013 Edition)
1976 Roger McGuinn - Cardiff Rose (2013 edition)
1979 McGuinn, Clark And Hillman (2014 Japan SHM Remaster)

The Byrds
1964 The Byrds - Preflyte (2012 Edition)
1968 The Byrds - Sweetheart Of The Rodeo (Double Disc Set)
1969 The Byrds - Live At Fillmore
1971 The Byrds - Live At Royal Albert Hall
1971 The Byrds - Farther Along (Blu Spec 2014 extra tracks release)
1971 The Byrds - Byrdmaniax (2013 Japan Blu Spec edition)
1973 Byrds - Byrds

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rep>>> Thee Sixpence - Step By Step (1966-67 us, rough garage rock, Akarma digipak)

Thee Sixpence was a garage rock/psych band that released a few singles in 1966-7 before recording "Incense And Peppermints", changing their name to Strawberry Alarm Clock, and achieving a fluke #1 hit. Most of the key musicians in the latter band were members at least part of the time in Thee Sixpence.

Beginning with "Long Days Care" b/w "Can't Explain" in the summer of 1966, Thee Sixpence went on to release a total of ten songs in roughly as many months. The last two of these, "The Birdman Of Alkatrash" b/w "Incense And Pepermints" [sic], were re-released by Uni after the band had changed their name to Strawberry Alarm Clock; the a- and b-sides of the record were also reversed, reflecting the rapidly growing popularity of the original single's b-side. All of Thee Sixpence's 45s were released on the small All American label, though at least one, "Fortune Teller" b/w "My Flash On You", was also released on Dot.

Musically, Thee Sixpence was a rambunctious garage/punk band in the mold of the Leaves, the Standells, and early Love. In fact, the band recorded two of Arthur Lee's songs from Love's eponymous 1966 debut LP, "Can't Explain" and "My Flash On You". (Another Thee Sixpence recording, of "Hey Joe", may be seen as a de facto third Love cover.) The ten songs available by Thee Sixpence show obvious and remarkable progress over the band's short career; where their first single is exciting but just manages to hold things together, by the end Thee Sixpence was experimenting with daring arrangements, varied song structures, and much more assured playing.

Along the way, Thee Sixpence also released a real lost psychedelic classic, the haunting, horrifying "In The Building". Strawberry Alarm Clock themselves rarely exceeded the weirdness of this piece, and although the recording is somewhat crude in a late-66 kind of way, "In The Building" benefits from its earnest, untutored performance.

Thee Sixpence eventually added Mark Weitz on keyboards, and the Strawberry Alarm Clock sound proper was borne. The band brought in Randy Seol on drums, and along with long-time members Ed King, Lee Freeman, and Gary Lovetro, the Clock was set and worldwide fame, not to mention further audacious musical explorations, were continued right under the noses of listeners everywhere.

TheSixpense