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Ron Fowler

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Ron Fowler's Album Reviews

The cover of this album screams out "Saturday morning tv pop band", but the music inside is very much in tune with the psycadelic late 60's. Paul Revere & the Raiders featuring Mark Lindsay were one of the most successful groups of the era, so much so, hat in 1968, Paul was able to negotiate a new contract with Columbia Records. With the new deal, came unlimited studio time, and Mark Lindsay taking over as producer of their records. The results are evident here - Mark had a great ear for the little details that take a song from being good on a record to great. Listen to this album on headphones and you will hear some of the most creative uses of stereo panning ever. There is not a dull moment on this record - there is always SOMETHING HAPPENING. My favorites are the opening Happening Intro/Too Much Talk, which is nearly twice as long as the single version. It kicks off as an uptempo rocker, before breaking halfway through for an acoustic interlude with acoustic guitar and phased congas, then returning to uptempo rock. Burn Like a Candle and Communication (Part 1 & 2) both feature extended instrumental tags - Joe Correro Jr. really shines on the drums (no surprise there - his background was in jazz). There's also the dreamy psych pop of Observation from Flight 285 (in 3/4 time), "high in the air, you're not there", Free with it's exhortation to "pull out all the plugs in the switchboard of your mind", and the funky Happening '68 theme. Paul, Mark, Joe, Freddy Weller and Charlie Coe were seasoned studio pros by the time of this album, and it shows. Give this album a listen if you think all they ever did was bubblegum pop.
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