Spooky & Sue - Spooky & Sue (1974)

Spooky & Sue zijn een Brits-Arubaans in Nederland wonend duo, met soulzangeres Sue Chaloner dat midden jaren zeventig een aantal grote hits scoort.
Rond 1970 richt Sue Chaloner een zangtrio op dat twee jaar lang als onderdeel van de Mounties-show door het land trekt. Dan wordt ze benaderd door Han Meijer en producer Jaap Eggermont voor het duo Spooky & Sue, waarvoor ook Ivan Groeneveld van The Swinging Soul Machine wordt gevraagd.
In september 1974 scoort het duo een enorme hit met “Swinging On A Star”, een dansbare versie van Bing Crosby's klassieke ballade. Het nummer is niet ingezongen door Iwan maar door John Russell die aanvankelijk als wederhelft van Sue was ingepland.
In maart 1975 wordt de tweede single, “You Talk Too Much”, een grote hit en ook de opvolger “I've Got The Need” bereikt in oktober de hoogste regionen van de hitlijsten. Tijdens optredens wordt het duo begeleid door de Amsterdamse groep Mayflower. In 1975 verschijnt hun eerste en enige album “Spooky & Sue”.
Omdat de succesformule na twee jaar lijkt uitgewerkt, starten Spooky & Sue in 1977 beiden een solo-carrière. Spooky's single “Music” flopt waarna de zanger zich aansluit bij de Surfers. Sue's single “Give Me Love” flopt eveneens maar de zangeres is redelijk succesvol met haar songmateriaal voor de jazz-rockgroep Spin en voor Ekseption, twee groepen waarvan haar echtgenoot Hans Jansen deel uitmaakt.  
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Tracklist

01.  "You Talk Too Much"   (Jones, Reginald Hall)  - 2:56
02.  "Catch A Falling Star"    (Packris, Vance)  - 2:15
03.  "When Something Is Wrong With My Baby"    (Hayes-Porter)  - 3:50
04.  "Ain't It Good"    (Russell, Meijer, Gimmik)  - 2:58
05.  "Romeo And Juliet"   (Gimmik, Reyem, Pavelski)  - 2:42
06.  "The Birds And The Bees"   (Stuart)  - 2:15
07.  "Swinging On A Star"   (van Heusen, Johnny Burke)  - 2:35 
08.  "Blue Moon"   (Rodgers-Hart)  - 2:45
09.  "Baby Don't You Let Me Loose This"   (Wright, Wonder)  - 3:19
10.  "Dancing Funky"   (Gimmik, Reyem, Pavelski)  - 2:40
11.  "Lady Stay"   (Gimmik, Reyem, Pavelski)  - 3:10
12.  "Spooky's Day Off By"   (Vink)  - 2:59

Credits
Arranged By – Hans Hollestelle
Management – Han Meyer
Photography By – Laurens van Houten
Producer – Jaap Eggermont

Notes
Genre: Funk, Soul, Disco
Label: Negram Record
Length: 34:26

Kayak - See See The Sun (1973)

Kayak II is the second album by the Dutch progressive rock band Kayak.

At first, the title was to be "His Master's Noise". But the band expected problems with the record label "His Master's Voice" (HMV) , and so they chose simply for "Kayak". The album is also known as "Kayak II" and "Alibi" (after its first track).

"Kayak II" is the perfect marriage of the band’s hard rock tendencies, their dazzling symphonic edges and the adventurous middle ground between the two. The songs are top-notch slices of upbeat, exciting progressive.

The album opens with an addictive dose of high energy, but it’s the second song, “Wintertime”, that really sets the tone. Somewhat melancholic in the verses, the chorus becomes almost Supertramp-ish in its brightness. Side 1 is rounded out by two very different songs: “Mountain Too Rough”, a mostly-mellow trip into folky atmospheres with some deliberately disruptive sound effects occurring. “They Get To Know Me” offers a killer momentum, symphonic and Genesis-like in spots, with a healthy bit of aggression, especially when guitarist Johan Slager takes over. It’s always so enjoyable to witness this song unfolding.

Side two is even more diverse in scope than side one. “Serenades” is a bouncy number, hinting at the sound they’d perfect on the ‘Starlight Dancer’ album. “Woe And Alas” offers slightly tricky timing and an impassioned Max Werner vocal. Some gorgeous layers are built up as the song moves along. We get the more gentle side of Kayak with the caress of “Mireille”, a short, to-the-point instrumental that provides a good balance to the more involved stuff here. The album’s final moments couldn’t be better: “Trust In The Machine” has a demented bit of vocal from Werner and swirling keyboard sounds that envelop the rest of the music, that music being kinetic stuff that’s wild but never out of control.

Tracklist

01.  Alibi  (Scherpenzeel)  - 3:39

02.  Wintertime  (Van Leeuwen, Koopman)  - 2:51

03.  Mountain Too Rough  (Scherpenzeel) -  3:57

04.  They Get To Know Me  (Van Leeuwen, Koopman)  - 9:18

05.  Serenades  (Koopman, Scherpenzeel)  - 3:33

06.  Woe And Alas  (Scherpenzeel)  - 3:01

07.  Mireille (Instr.)  (Koopman)  - 2:13

08.  Trust In The Machine  (Van Leeuwen, Koopman)  - 6:06

09.  His Master's Noise  (Koopman, Scherpenzeel, Van Leeuwen)  - 1:45

Personnel

Ton Scherpenzeel - keyboards, vocals, accordion

Pim Koopman - drums, percussion, marimba, vocals

Max Werner - lead vocals, percussion, mellotron

Cees van Leeuwen - bass, harmonica

Johan Slager - guitars, vocals

Notes

Released:  1974

Recorded at:  Intertone Studio, Heemstede, The Netherlands

Genre:  Progressive Rock

Label:  EMI

Producer:  Gerrit-Jan Leenders and Kayak

(44) Linda Ronstadt - Heart Like A Wheel (1974)

"Heart Like A Wheel" is Linda Ronstadt's fifth solo album release and the last of her studio projects for Capitol Records, released in late 1974. It is universally considered to be Ronstadt's all-time high watermark masterpiece recording and a pioneering blueprint of Country Rock.

Following the same formula as her early records, "Heart Like A Wheel" doesn't appear to be a great breakthrough on the surface. However, Ronstadt comes into her own on this mix of oldies and contemporary classics. Backed by a fleet of Los Angeles musicians, Ronstadt sings with vigor and passion, helping bring the music alive. But what really makes Heart Like a Wheel a breakthrough is the inventive arrangements that producer Peter Asher, Ronstadt, and the studio musicians have developed. Finding the right note for each song  whether it's the soulful reworking of "When Will I Be Loved," the hit "You're No Good," or the laid-back folk-rock of "Willing"  the musicians help turn Heart Like a Wheel into a veritable catalog of Californian soft rock, and it stands as a landmark of '70s mainstream pop/rock.

Not only do you get the hit "You're No Good" and the Everly Brothers' classic "When Will I Be Loved," but the sorrowful title track and Hank Williams' "I Can't Help It (If I'm Still In Love With You)" give testament to Ronstadt's legendary feel for driving the emotion home. What's more, if the powerful "Willing" doesn't have you longing for the days of bell bottoms and bandanas, you just aren't feeling it. With production by Peter Asher and guests like Emmylou Harris, Maria Muldaur, J.D. Souther and most of the aforementioned Eagles, Ronstadt crafted a magnificent blend of country, rock and folk that is among the greatest records made in a generation.

Track listing

01.  You're No Good  (Clint Ballard, Jr.) -  3:44

02.  It Doesn't Matter Anymore  (Paul Anka)  - 3:26

03.  Faithless Love  (J. D. Souther) (also singing harmony)  - 3:15

04.  The Dark End of the Street  (Chips Moman, Dan Penn)  - 3:55

05.  Heart Like a Wheel  (Anna McGarrigle)  - 3:10

06.  When Will I Be Loved  (Phil Everly)  - 2:04

07.  Willin'  (Lowell George)  - 3:02

08.  I Can't Help It  (If I'm Still in Love with You) (Hank Williams)  - 2:45

09.  Keep Me from Blowing Away  (Paul Craft)  - 3:10

10.  You Can Close Your Eyes  (James Taylor)  - 3:09

Released:  November 1974

Recorded:  at The Sound Factory, Los Angeles, California

Genre:  Country Rock

Length:  32:19

Label:  Capitol

Producer:  Peter Asher

Personnel

Linda Ronstadt – vocals, background vocals

Andrew Gold – guitar, percussion, piano, drums, keyboards, electric piano, tambourine, ukulele, background vocals

Peter Asher – guitar, percussion, background vocals, cowbell

Ed Black – guitar

John Boylan – guitar

Paul Craft – guitar

Kenny Edwards – bass, background vocals

Chris Ethridge – bass

Jimmie Fadden – harmonica

Richard Feves – bass

Glenn Frey – guitar

Emory Gordy – bass

Tom Guidera – bass

Emmylou Harris – harmony vocals

Don Henley – drums, background vocals

Dennis Karmazyn – cello

Sneaky Pete Kleinow – pedal steel guitar

Russ Kunkel – drums

Lloyd Myers – drums

David Lindley – fiddle

Cissy Houston – background vocals

Sherlie Matthews – background vocals

Maria Muldaur – background vocals

Clydie King – background vocals

Wendy Waldman – background vocals

Joyce Nesbitt – background vocals

Herb Pedersen – banjo, background vocals

Danny Pendleton – pedal steel guitar

Dennis St. John – drums

Timothy B. Schmit – bass

J. D. Souther – guitar, background vocals

John Starling – guitar

Bob Warford – guitar

David Campbell – viola, string arrangements

(43) The Eagles - On The Border (1974)

The Eagles began recording their third album in England with producer Glyn Johns, as they had their first two albums, but abandoned the sessions after completing two acceptable tracks. Johns, it is said, tended to emphasize the group's country elements and its harmonies, while the band, in particular Glenn Frey and Don Henley, wanted to take more of a hard rock direction. They reconvened with a new producer, Bill Szymczyk, who had produced artists like B.B. King and, more significantly, Joe Walsh. But the resulting album is not an outright rock effort by any means. Certainly, Frey and Henley got what they wanted with "Already Gone," the lead-off track, which introduces new bandmember Don Felder as one part of the twin guitar solo that recalls the Allman Brothers Band; "James Dean," a rock & roll song on the order of "Your Mama Don't Dance," and "Good Day in Hell," which is strongly reminiscent of Joe Walsh songs like "Rocky Mountain Way." But the album also features the usual mixture of styles typical of an Eagles album. For example, "Midnight Flyer," sung by Randy Meisner, is modern bluegrass; "My Man" is Bernie Leadon's country-rock tribute to the recently deceased Gram Parsons; and "Ol' 55" is one of the group's well-done covers of a tune by a singer/songwriter labelmate, in this case Tom Waits. The title track, meanwhile, points the band in a new R&B direction that was later pursued more fully. Like most successful groups, the Eagles combined many different elements, and their third album, which looked back to their earlier work and anticipated their later work, was a transitional effort that combined even more styles than most of their records did.

Bernie Leadon's "My Man" is a tribute to Gram Parsons, who had died of a drug overdose in September 1973. Leadon and Parsons had been members of the pioneering country-rock band The Flying Burrito Brothers.

"On the Border"This track was inspired by the infamous Watergate scandal and fears at the time of the government overstepping its bounds and infringing on people's privacy. Barely audible at the end of the song, someone (either Henley or Frey) can be heard whispering "Say Goodnight, Dick," a line made famous by Dan Rowan of Rowan and Martin but in this case referring to Richard Nixon's resignation.

Track listing

01.  Already Gone  (Strandlund, Tempchin) -  4:13

02.  You Never Cry Like a Lover  (Henley, Souther)  - 4:02

03.  Midnight Flyer  (Craft)  - 3:58

04.  My Man  (Leadon)  - 3:30

05.  On the Border  (Frey, Henley, Leadon)  - 4:28

06.  James Dean  (Browne, Frey, Henley, Souther)  - 3:36

07.  Ol' 55  (Waits)  - 4:22

08.  Is It True  (Meisner)  - 3:14

09.  Good Day in Hell  (Frey, Henley)  - 4:27

10.  The Best of My Love  (Frey, Henley, Souther)  - 4:35

Personnel

Glenn Frey - lead vocals, lead guitar, slide guitar, piano

Don Henley - lead vocals, drums, guitar

Randy Meisner - lead vocals, bass guitar

Bernie Leadon - lead vocals, lead guitar, banjo, steel guitar

Don Felder - electric guitar, slide guitar

Notes

Released:  March 22, 1974

Recorded at:  Record Plant Studios, Los Angeles, CA, Olympic Studios, London, 1973-74

Genre:  Country Rock

Length:  40:29

Label:  Asylum

Producer:  Bill Szymczyk, Glyn Johns

(29) Gino Vannelli - Powerful People (1974)

"Powerful People" is the title of the second studio album of Italian-Canadian singer Gino Vannelli. The album was released in 1974, and was produced by Gino and his brother Joe Vannelli.
The album is characterized by Joe Vannelli's first experiments with synthesizers.
The music and singing are pleasant enough on this Montrealer's second outing.  The funky "People Gotta Move" was Vannelli's first hit in the United States, when disco music was gaining popularity. And you just know from the lyrics that while you are having a good time grooving to the music that Gino also wants you to think a little bit too. The ballads "lady" and "jojo" are two favoirtes. They showcase Gino's honeyed, crystal clear, beautiful voice (the instrument that I think he plays the best). You feel as if the songs are really personal. I imangined he was singing "lady" just for me (as did, no doubt, a million other women), and I wondered who "jojo" was, if he was really the child of a family member or friend. The last track, "Poor Happy Jimmy", is a tribute to American singer Jim Croce, who died in an airplane accident a year earlier.
"Powerful People" gives listeners a hint that in addition to being a talented singer, musician, and lyricist, Gino is also a superb arranger and orchestrator. The songs on the album that most clearly demonstrate that are, "son of a new york gun", "jack miraculous", and "powerful people".

Tracklist

1.  People Gotta Move  (Gino Vannelli)  - 3:21
2.  Lady  (Gino Vannelli)  - 3:43
3.  Son of a New York Gun  (Gino Vannelli)  - 3:23
4.  Jack Miraculous  (Gino Vannelli)  - 2:42
5.  Jo Jo  (Gino Vannelli)  - 3:40
6.  Powerful People  (Gino Vannelli)  - 6:12
7.  Felicia  (Gino Vannelli)  - 3:04
8.  The Work Verse  (Gino Vannelli)  - 2:54
9.  Poor Happy Jimmy  (Gino Vannelli)  - 3:49

Released:  1974
Label:  A&M
Genre:  Soft Rock, Jazz, Funk
Length:  32:48
Producer:  Gino Vannelli, Joe Vannelli
Arrangements by:  Joe Vannelli

Personnel:
Gino Vannelli - vocals
Joe Vannelli - electric piano, synthesizer
Richard Baker - organ, synthesizer
Graham Lear - drums
Tony Golia - bongos, congas
John Mandel - percussion
Lani Hall - background vocals

(06) The Hollies - The Hollies (1974)

"Hollies" is a 1974 album by the English pop-rock band The Hollies. The centerpiece is the band's classic cover of Albert Hammond's ballad "The Air That I Breathe," a major worldwide hit that year. It also contains another "Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress soundalike in "The Day That Curly Billy Shot Down Crazy Sam McGee".
This record would have disappeared long ago were it not for regal centerpiece "The Air That I Breathe," arguably pop's greatest ballad. The rest of the material naturally pales in comparison, but 1974's Hollies delivers likable-enough smiley face rock with the quintet's lilting trademark harmonies throughout. Of course, silly star fables like "Out on the Road" can't measure up to past glories. Same goes for the morally ambiguous, similarly titled openers. Luckily, the album maintains the Brits' peculiar pent-up energy, even in countrified hootenannies like "Rubber Lucy" (surprisingly not a companion to Roxy Music's blow-up doll ode). The meaningless "Transatlantic Westbound Jet" cruises along enjoyably, with visions of Cheap Trick dancing in the verses. "Pick up the Pieces Again" is rolled up in Crosby, Stills, & Nash (the last a former Hollies running mate), and the boys cannibalize their own "Long Tall Women in a Black Dress" for denouement "The Day That Curly Billy Shot Down Crazy Sam McGee" (whew). Unfortunately, here, the Hollies have run out of tunes to match their talent. But that beautiful ballad will live forever: "Sleep, silent angel, go to sleep." By the way, the band is named after Buddy Holly.

Tracklist

01.  Falling Calling  (Clarke, Sylvester)  - 3:10
02.  It's a Shame, It's a Game  (Hicks, Jennings)  - 3:41
03.  Don't Let Me Down  (Clarke)  - 4:21
04.  Out on the Road  (Hicks, Lynch)  - 2:57
05.  The Air That I Breathe  (Hammond, Hazelwood)  - 4:12
06.  Rubber Lucy  (Clarke)  - 4:12
07.  Transatlantic West Bound Jet  (Elliot, Sylvester)  - 3:13
08.  Pick Up the Pieces Again  (Sylvester)  - 3:58
09.  Down on the Run  (Hicks, Jennings)  - 3:49
10.  Love Makes the World Go Round  (Clarke, Sylvester)  - 3:44
11.  The Day That Curly Billy Shot Down Crazy Sam McGee  (Clarke)  - 4:25

Released:  March 1974
Recorded:  EMI Abbey Road Studios, London, England
Genre:  Rock, Pop
Length:  41:42
Label:  Epic
Producer:  The Hollies, Ron Richards

Personnel:
Allan Clarke - vocals
Terry Sylvester - guitarist, vocals
Duffy Power - harmonica
Bernie Calvert - keyboards
Bobby Elliott - drums, percussion