AC/DC - Powerage (1978)

"Powerage" is the fifth studio album by Australian hard rock band AC/DC, released in May 1978. It is also AC/DC's fourth international studio album. All songs were written by Angus Young, Malcolm Young and Bon Scott. "Powerage" was a first in the sense that it debuted bassist Cliff Williams, but it really is more of a final curtain to the band's early years.

It would be the last produced by Vanda & Young, the legendary Australian production team who also helmed hits by the Easybeats, and it was the last before AC/DC became superstars. As such, it's perhaps the most overlooked of their '70s records, also because, frankly, it is the most uneven of them. Not that it's a bad record far from it, actually.
There are a few genuine classics here, most notably "Down Payment Blues" and "Up to My Neck in You," and there's a real appeal in how Bon Scott's gutter poems of excess are reaching a mythic level; there's a real sense that he truly does believe that rock & roll leads straight to hell on "Rock 'n' Roll Damnation." But overall, the record is just a bit too wobbly, one where the parts don't add up to a record as hard and addictive as before  but there's still plenty worth hearing here.

 Tracklist

01.  Rock 'n' Roll Damnation   (A.Young, M.Young, B.Scott)  - 3:06

02.  Gimme a Bullet  (A.Young, M.Young, B.Scott)  - 3:20

03.  Down Payment Blues  (A.Young, M.Young, B.Scott)  - 5:40

04.  Gone Shootin'  (A.Young, M.Young, B.Scott)  - 5:22

05.  Riff Raff  (A.Young, M.Young, B.Scott)  - 5:14

06.  Sin City  (A.Young, M.Young, B.Scott)  - 4:45

07.  Up to My Neck in You  (A.Young, M.Young, B.Scott)  - 4:12

08.  What's Next to the Moon  (A.Young, M.Young, B.Scott)  - 3:42

09.  Cold Hearted Man  (A.Young, M.Young, B.Scott)  - 3:32

10.  Kicked in the Teeth  (A.Young, M.Young, B.Scott)  - 3.58

Released:  25 May 1978

Recorded at:  Albert Studios in Sydney, Australia

Genre:  Hard Rock

Length:  39:43

Label:  Atlantic

Producer:  Harry Vanda, George Young

Personnel

Bon Scott – lead vocals

Angus Young – lead guitar

Malcolm Young – rhythm guitar, backing vocals

Cliff Williams – bass guitar, backing vocals

Phil Rudd – drums

Kansas - Point Of Know Return (1977)

"Point Of Know Return" is the fifth album by American rock band Kansas, released in 1977.

On This is recording, includes their most famous tune, "Dust in the Wind." The band is in peak form and also churned out the single "Point of Know Return," which is still played daily on classic rock stations.

The huge success of Kansas's previous effort, "Leftoverture", brought a new kind of pressure. While they were no longer desperately poor and starving for a hit, the band wondered whether they would be able to build on or, at least, maintain the level of achievement the years of recording and touring had brought them. The sessions for their follow-up LP, "Point of Know Return", were filled with tension as singer/songwriter Steve Walsh, who had always been uncomfortable with the artistic direction of the band, left the group briefly. Years later, Walsh would admit in an interview that he had been something of a prima donna at this point.

While their pop-oriented approach and standard rock guitar sound helped define the classic rock sound of the '70s, careful listening reveals that this band's talent goes beyond colleagues such as Bachman-Turner Overdrive and Boston. Their arrangements and time signatures more accurately reflect the music of Yes and Emerson, Lake & Palmer. "Paradox" and "The Spider" are both excellent examples of their progressive approach.
Unfortunately, the band always struggled to maintain a healthy balance of progression combined with pop. That made for such awkward moments here as "Portrait (He Knew)" and "Lightning's Hand." Yet despite the minor inconsistencies and a dated sound, their interplay and superior musicianship make this both an essential classic rock and progressive rock recording.

Track listing

01.  Point of Know Return  (Phil Ehart, Robby Steinhardt, Steve Walsh)  - 3:13

02.  Paradox  (Kerry Livgren, Steve Walsh)  - 3:50

03.  The Spider  (Walsh)  - 2:05

04.  Portrait (He Knew)  (Kerry Livgren, Steve Walsh)  - 4:38

05.  Closet Chronicles  (Kerry Livgren, Steve Walsh)  - 6:31

06.  Lightning's Hand  (Kerry Livgren, Steve Walsh)  - 4:24

07.  Dust in the Wind  (Livgren)  - 3:28

08.  Sparks of the Tempest  (Kerry Livgren, Steve Walsh)  - 4:18

09.  Nobody's Home  (Kerry Livgren, Steve Walsh)  - 4:40

10.  Hopelessly Human  (Livgren)  - 7:17

Released:  October 11, 1977

Recorded at:  Woodland Sound, Nashville, TN and Studio In The Country, Bogalusa, LA

Genre:  Progressive rock

Length:  43:59

Label:  Epic

Producer:  Jeff Glixman

Personnel

Phil Ehart - drums, timpani, chimes, additional percussion

Dave Hope - bass

Kerry Livgren - synthesizers, piano, electric and acoustic guitars, additional percussion

Robby Steinhardt - violins, viola, backing vocals, lead vocals

Steve Walsh - organ, synthesizers, vibraphone, piano, lead vocals, backing vocals, additional percussion

Rich Williams - electric and acoustic guitars

The Doobie Brothers - Stampede (1975)

"Stampede" is the fifth studio album by American rock band The Doobie Brothers, released in 1975. It was the final album by the band before Michael McDonald took over from Tom Johnston.  "Stampede" showed the band diversifying elements of their sound more than ever before. Combining elements of their old sound as well as country-rock, Funk and folk music. Many guest musicians contributed on the album including Maria Muldaur, Ry Cooder and Curtis Mayfield. The first single released from this album was "Take Me in Your Arms (Rock Me a Little While)", a classic Motown tune written by the legendary songwriting trio of Holland-Dozier-Holland. Tom Johnston had wanted to record the song for several years. "I thought that would be a killer track to cover," he said. "It's probably one of my favorite songs of all time. I thought our version came out great."

The second single, was "Sweet Maxine" which was more akin to the Doobie Brothers' earlier hits style-wise. "Pat wrote the music to this and I wrote the words, " Johnston recalled. "And Billy Payne had a lot to do with the sound of the song, because of his incredible keyboard playing."  The third and final single was Patrick Simmons' "I Cheat the Hangman". It is a somber outlaw ballad that was inspired by the story An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge by Ambrose Bierce. "It's about a ghost returning to his home after the Civil War and not realizing he's dead," said Simmons about the song. The album version of the song is a progressive rock-style composition ending in a twisted collage of strings, horns and synthesizers made to sound like ghostly wails. "We'd cut the track, and we kicked around how to develop the ending-I thought about synthesizers and guitar solos. Ted Templeman got to thinking about it, and he ran it past [arranger] Nick DeCaro for some orchestration ideas. 'Night on Bald Mountain' by Mussorgsky really inspired the wildness of the strings, and Nick came up with the chorale thing at the end." The ambitious "I Cheat the Hangman".

"Neal's Fandango", inspired by the Santa Cruz mountains is occasionally played on San Francisco Bay Area classic rock station KFOX because of the Doobie Brothers' South Bay roots.

Track listing

01.  Sweet Maxine  (Johnston, Simmons) - 4:26

02.  Neal's Fandango  (Simmons)-  3:16

03.  Texas Lullaby  (Johnston) - 5:00

04.  Music Man  (Johnston) - 3:28

05.  Slack Key Soquel Rag  (Simmons) - 1:50

06.  Take Me in Your Arms (Rock Me a Little While)  (Holland-Dozier-Holland) - 3:39

07.  I Cheat the Hangman  (Simmons) - 6:38

08.  Précis  (Baxter) - 0:56

09.  Rainy Day Crossroad Blues  (Johnston) - 3:45

10.  I Been Workin' on You  (Johnston) - 4:22

11.  Double Dealin' Four Flusher  (Simmons)  3:30

Released:  April 25, 1975

Recorded at:  Warner Brothers Studios, North Hollywood, CA, Burbank Studios, Burbank, CA, Curlom Studios, Chicago, IL and The Record Plant, Sausalito, CA., Creative Workshop, Nashville, TN

Genre:  Rock

Length:  40:50

Label:  Warner Bros.

Producer:  Ted Templeman

Personnel

Tom Johnston - guitars, vocals

Patrick Simmons - guitars, vocals

Jeff "Skunk" Baxter - guitar, steel guitar

Tiran Porter - bass, vocals

John Hartman - drums

Keith Knudsen - drums, vocals

Bill Payne - keyboards

Ry Cooder - bottleneck guitar

Maria Muldaur - vocals

Karl Himmel - drums and percussion

Conte and Pete Candoli - trumpets

Bobbye Hall Porter - congas

Victor Feldman - marimba, percussion

Sherlie Matthews - vocals on

Venetta Fields - vocals

Jessica Smith – vocals

Ted Templeman - percussion

Little Feat - Time Loves A Hero (1977)

"Time Loves A Hero" is the sixth studio album by the American rock band Little Feat, released in 1977. The album cover depicts the Cattolica di Stilo.

When Little Feat headed into the studio to record "Time Loves a Hero", tensions between the bandmembers more specifically, Lowell George and the rest of the band were at a peak. George had not only succumbed to various addictions, but he was growing restless with the group's fondness for extending their jams into territory strikingly reminiscent of jazz fusion. The rest of the group brought in Ted Templeman, who previously worked on their debut and produced "Sailin' Shoes", to mediate the sessions. George wasn't thrilled with that, but that's probably not the only reason why his presence isn't large on this release all signs point to his frustration with the band, and he wasn't in great health, so he just didn't contribute to the record. He wrote one song, the pleasant but comparatively faceless "Rocket in My Pocket," and collaborated with Paul Barrere on "Keepin' Up with the Joneses." Barrere was responsible for the only bright moments on the album, the ingratiatingly silly "Old Folks Boogie" and, along with Bill Payne and Ken Gradney, the funky singalong title track. Elsewhere, Barrere and Payne come up dry, turning out generic pieces that are well played but not as memorable as comparable Doobie Brothers cuts from the same time. Then there's "Day at the Dog Races," a lengthy fusion jam that Templeman and everyone in the band loved except for George, who, according to Bud Scoppa's liner notes in Hotcakes & Outtakes, disparagingly compared it to Weather Report. He was right no matter how well Little Feat play on this track, it comes across as self-serving indulgence, and the clearest sign on this muddled album that they had indeed lost the plot.

Track listing

01.  Hi Roller  (Paul Barrère)  - 3:35

02.  Time Loves a Hero  (Barrère, Kenny Gradney, Bill Payne)  - 3:47

03.  Rocket in My Pocket  (Lowell George)  - 3:25

04.  Day at the Dog Races  (Barrère, Sam Clayton, Gradney, Richie Hayward, Payne)  - 6:27

05.  Old Folks Boogie  (Barrère)  - 3:31

06.  Red Streamliner  (Payne, Fran Tate)  - 4:44

07.  New Delhi Freight Train  (Terry Allen)  - 3:42

08.  Keepin' up With the Joneses  (Barrère, George)  - 3:51

09.  Missin' You  (Barrère)  - 2:21

Released:  May 1977

Recorded at:  Sunset Sound Studios, Hollywood, CA; Warner Bros. Studios, North Hollywood, CA; Western Recorders, Hollywood, CA and Record Plant, Sausalito, CA

Genre:  Southern Rock, Jazz Funk

Length:  35:23

Label:  Warner Bros.

Producer:  Ted Templeman

Personnel

Paul Barrère - guitar, vocals

Sam Clayton - congas, percussion, vocals

Lowell George - vocals, guitar

Kenny Gradney - bass

Richie Hayward - drums, percussion, vocals

Bill Payne - keyboards, synthesizer, marimba, vocals

Greg Adams - trumpet

Jeff "Skunk" Baxter - dobro

Emilio Castillo - tenor saxophone

Mic Gillette - trombone, trumpet

Stephen "Doc" Kupka - baritone saxophone

Mike McDonald - vocals

Lenny Pickett - alto saxophone, tenor saxophone

Patrick Simmons - guitar, vocals

Fred Tackett - mandocello, guitar

America - Hideaway (1976)

"Hideaway" is the sixth original studio album by American folk rock trio America, released by Warner Bros. Records in April 1976. The album was produced by legendary Beatles producer George Martin.

For those who think of America as purveyors of airily pleasant, driving-with-the-windows down folk-rock songs, this one may be a jolt. On the wintry "Hideaway" from 1976, Gerry Beckley, Dewey Bunnell and Dan Peek continue to grow away from the relative acoustic simplicity of their earlier LPs in favor of a more lush and ornate pop sound. But unlike 1974's Holiday LP, which was an earlier foray into Beatle-esque, Magical-Mystery-Tour-era ornamentation, the stepped up production flourishes here don't always work to advantage.

Virtually all of the songs are loaded, overloaded? with vocal harmonies, horns and strings. That's not to say "Hideaway" is lacking in good songs. "Letter," "Amber Cascades," "Jet Boy Blue" and "Lovely Night," for example, are pop tunes whose hooks eventually sink in. Likewise, the ballads "Can't You See" and "Who Loves You" have their charm after a while. But casual listeners should beware: the gauzy vocal arrangements can sometimes obtrude, as can the abundant horns and strings. Also, there are two orchestral instrumentals credited to producer George Martin. Finally, there is something between the lines here that feels different a kind of lyrical solemnity that is new, at least in such quantity.

Track listing

01.  Lovely Night  (Gerry Beckley)  - 2:33

02.  Amber Cascades  (Dewey Bunnell)  - 2:51

03.  Don't Let It Get You Down  (Dewey Bunnell)  - 2:58

04.  Can't You See  (Dan Peek)  - 2:23

05.  Watership Down  (Gerry Beckley)  - 4:57

06.  She's Beside You  (Dan Peek)  - 2:58

07.  Hideaway Part I  (Dewey Bunnell)  - 1:32

08.  She's A Liar  (Gerry Beckley)  - 3:30

09.  Letter  (Dewey Bunnell) - 3:06

10.  Today's the Day  (Dan Peek)  - 3:15

11.  Jet Boy Blue  (Dan and Catherine Peek)  - 3:23

12.  Who Loves You  (Gerry Beckley)  - 4:33

13.  Hideaway Part II  (Dewey Bunnell)  - 2:00

Released:  April 9, 1976

Recorded at:  Caribou Ranch, Nederland, Colorado, February 1976

Genre:  Pop, Rock

Label:  Warner Bros.

Producer:  George Martin

Personnel

Dewey Bunnell - vocal, guitar, drums

Dean Peek - Vocals, guitar

Gerry Beckley - vocal, guitar, keyboard

George Martin – piano

Mother´s Finest - Live (1979)

The potential of the first black rock band in history was easily perceptible after the release of their self-titled debut-album. In 1979, after 3 studio recordings, they released what they could best: a live album which in terms of energy, perfectionism and virtuosity could not have been any better. Groovin' Rock-songs that made everybody dance, combined with some real hitting soul-ballads. The failure of a band that had as exciting a vocalist as Joyce Kennedy and did both solid rock and fine grinding funk proved one of the '80s' more puzzling questions.
It couldn't just be attributed to racism either, because Mother's Finest actually did better among white audiences than black ones.

Tracklist

01.  Somebody to Love  (Darby, Slick)  - 5:55   

02.  Fire  (Mother´s Finest)  - 4:10   

03.  Mickey's Monkey  (Lamont Dozier, Brian Holland, Eddie Holland  - 6:03   

04.  Give You All the Love (Inside of Me)  (Mother´s Finest)  - 6:30   

05.  Baby Love  (Mother´s Finest)  - 4:13   

06.  Magic Carpet Ride  (John Kay, Rushton Moreve)  - 5:11   

07.  Love Changes  (Skip Scarborough)  - 5:21   

08.  Watch My Stylin'  (Mother´s Finest)  - 4:46   

09.  Don't Wanna Come Back  (Mother´s Finest)  - 3:48   

10.  Can´t Fight The Feeling  (Mother´s Finest)  - 4:25

Personnel

Joyce "Baby Jean" Kennedy - Vocals

Glenn Murdock - Vocals, Backing Vocals

Wizzard - Bass, Backing Vocals  

B.B. Queen - Drums, Percussion   

Moses Mo - Guitar, Backing Vocals 

Mike Keck - Keyboards [Keys], Percussion

Notes

Released:  1979

Label:  Legacy

Genre:  Rock, Funk, Live

Length:  42:13

Producer:  Bobby Colomby

Peter Tosh - Mystic Man (1979)

Having flirted with commercial acceptance on "Bush Doctor", the former Wailers guitarist reasserted his cranky contrarian militancy on this album which is why he never reached the mega-stardom of his countryman Bob Marley. Unlike his old Wailers bandmate, Tosh had little interest in leavening his music's fiercely political bent, which effectively cemented his acquired-taste status (at least to American audiences). "Rumors of War" and "Fight On" explicitly address black majority rule in South Africa, a subject that few '70s artists even touched. Similarly, "Recruiting Soldiers" vows to physically round up enough fighters for the inevitable resistance, while "Jah She No" casts the poor's struggle to survive in stark, elemental terms ("Must righteous live in pain/And always look to shame?"). "Mystic Man" is a proud declaration of Tosh's lifestyle, which he pointedly contrasts against Western consumerist decadence (among other things, swearing off frankfurters, hamburgers, and any notions of drinking "pink, yellow, blue, green soda"). "Buk-in-hamm Palace is the biggest departure, building its outlaw theme of smoking marijuana in the Queen of England's home over a bubbling disco rhythm. It's easily the most accessible moment here, driven by Tosh's crack backup band of the time, Word, Sound & Power. There's no doubting Tosh's sincerity, though it sometimes founders in clichés and clunky lyric writing (like "Crystal Ball"'s coupling of "city" and "sh*tty"). From a strict songwriting viewpoint, "Mystic Man" isn't as distinctive as its predecessors, but a representative snapshot of Tosh's provocative artistry. "The Day the Dollar Die" is a roots classic, in which Tosh pleads his case for capitalism's demise over a shimmering pop-reggae groove  proof he could craft compelling tunes to match his message.

Track listing

01.  Mystic Man  (Peter Tosh)  - 5:54

02.  Recruiting Soldiers  (Peter Tosh)  - 4:26

03.  Can't You See  (Peter Tosh)  - 3:42

04.  Jah Seh No  (Peter Tosh)  - 3:20

05.  Fight On  (Peter Tosh)  - 3:20

06.  Buk-In-Hamm Palace  (Peter Tosh)  - 4:39

07.  The Day The Dollar Die  (Peter Tosh)  - 4:48

08.  Crystal Ball  (Peter Tosh)  - 5:11

09.  Rumours Of War  (Peter Tosh)  - 3:25

Released:  1979

Recorded at:  Dynamic Sound Studio, Kingston, Jamaica

Genre:  Reggae

Length:  44:24

Label:  Rolling Stones Records

Producer:  Peter Tosh, Word, Sound and Power (Keith Sterling, Mikey Chung, Robbie Lyn, Robbie Shakespeare, Sly Dunbar)

Recorded By & Mixed By:  Geoffrey Chung

Personnel

Peter Tosh - Lead Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards

Brenda White, Gwen Guthrie, The Tamlins, Yvonne Lewis - Backing Vocals

Robbie Shakespeare - Bass, Guitar

Sly Dunbar - Drums, Percussion

Mikey Chung - Keyboards, Guitar, Percussion

Robbie Lyn - Organ, Piano 

Uziah "Sticky" Thompson - Percussion

George Young - Alto Saxophone, Flute

Howard Johnson - Baritone Saxophone

Lou Marini - Tenor Saxophone, Flute

Ed Walsh  - Synthesizer [Oberheim]

Barry Rogers - Trombone

Mike Lawrence - Trumpet

Sammy Figueroa - Percussion

Keith Sterling - Acoustic piano 

Ed Elizalde - Lead guitar