"...Carry Me Back..."
Featuring the March 1971 Album "Search And Nearness"
Featuring the March 1971 Album "Search And Nearness"
Having dropped the 'Young' moniker in 1968 for their fourth platter "Once Upon A Dream" (thereafter simply known as The Rascals) – the American band’s sixth and seventh albums (reissued here) were originally issued Stateside in December 1969 and March 1971 on Atlantic Records. But whilst the 'groovin' on a Sunday afternoon' troupe might have been trying to spread out artistically - commercially they were bombing in leaps and bounds.
Few now remember the slightly trippy "See" or "Search And Nearness" LPs - 1969's effort making No. 45 on the Billboard album charts whilst 1971's platter barely registered at No. 198 and then for only 1 week. In fact by the time "Search..." had come round (recorded late 1969 and into 1970) - the four-piece was down to three (Brigati left) and they would soon be signing to Columbia Records for "Peaceful World" - a supposed new start double-album released in the early summer of 1971 but one that again only registered mild public interest.
Neither of these final records for Atlantic were well received by the critics of the day – most saying the band was either languishing on their positive sunshine vibe of 1966 and 1967 that now sounded old hat in 1969 and 1971 or were offering too many styles on their new outings (Country Rock, Sunshine Pop, Psych and Jazz Rock are just some on platter number two alone) which conversely had the backwards effect of making them seem directionless and not expansive.
But Rascals fans see "See" or "Search And Nearness" differently – liking them precisely because of the stretching-out and the range of genres. For instance, my particular poison is a truly stunning Jazz Fusion Rock instrumental called "Nama" which ends Side 1 of "Search And Nearness" (written by the drummer Dino Danelli). Its 5:34 minutes of Keyboards, Saxophones and Drum solos would make most people double-take if they were shown the authors of such a piece as being by 'The Rascals'. Sounding not unlike War meets Billy Cobham meets Earth Wind And Fire – the band of "Good Lovin'" or "Groovin'" are absolutely unrecognisable here.
Availability-wise too both albums have been hard to find on deleted CD for years now - so this card-slipcase September 2018 Double-Disc Remaster by England’s Beat Goes On is a welcome addition to their increasingly impressive reissue catalogue (even if some will feel that this is a five-Star reissue of three-Star material – which it is). So coming to a digital nirvana portal near you - here are the all-seeing all-enlightening details...
UK released Friday, 21 September 2018 - "See/Search And Nearness" by THE RASCALS on Beat Goes On BGOCD 1357 (Barcode 5017261213570) offers two albums (1969 and 1971) Remastered onto 2CDs and plays out as follows:
CD1 "See" (42:12 minutes):
1. See [Side 1]
2. I'd Like To Take You Home
3. Remember Me
4. I'm Blue
5. Stop And Think
6. Temptation's 'Bout To Get Me
7. Nubia [Side 2]
8. Carry Me Back
9. Away Away
10. Real Thing
11. Death's Reply
12. Hold On
Tracks 1 to 12 are their sixth studio album "See" - released December 1969 in the USA on Atlantic SD 8246 (Stereo only) and in the UK on Atlantic 588 210. Produced by THE RASCALS - it peaked at No. 45 on the US LP charts (didn't chart UK).
THE RASCALS for "See" were:
FELIX CAVALIERE – Keyboards (Organ, Piano), Lead and Backing Vocals
GENE CORNISH – Guitar, Lead and Backing Vocals
EDDIE BRIGATI – Percussion, Lead And Backing Vocals
DINO DANELLI – Drums
Guests:
Chuck Rainey – Bass on all tracks except...
Ron Carter – Bass on "Nubia" and "Carry Me Back"
Hubert Laws – Flute on "Nubia", Danny Labbate – Soprano Sax on "Nubia"
CD2 "Search And Nearness" (38:44 minutes):
1. Right On [Side 1]
2. I Believe
3. Thank You Baby
4. You Don't Know
5. Nama
6. Almost Home [Side 2]
7. The Letter
8. Ready For Love
9. Fortunes
10. Glory Glory
Tracks 1 to 10 are their seventh studio album "Search And Nearness" - released March 1971 in the USA on Atlantic SD 8276 and in the UK on Atlantic 2400 113. Produced by THE RASCALS - it peaked at No. 198 in the USA (didn't chart UK).
THE RASCALS for "Search And Nearness" were:
FELIX CAVALIERE – Keyboards (Organ, Piano), Lead and Backing Vocals
GENE CORNISH – Guitar, Lead and Backing Vocals
DINO DANELLI – Drums
Others:
Eddie Brigati (left the band during recordings) – Lead Vocals on "You Don’t Know", "The Letter" and "Fortunes" (Felix Cavaliere Lead on all others)
Ron Blanco – Bass on Track 4
Chuck Rainey – Bass on Tracks 1, 2, 5, 7 and 9
Howard Cowart – Bass on Tracks 3, 6, 8 and 10
Joe Newman (Trumpet) with Joe Farrell and Seldon Powell (Saxophones) on "Nama"
David Brigati – Backing Vocals
The Sweet Inspirations – Backing vocals on "Glory Glory"
Cissy Houston and Tasha Thomas – Backing Vocals on "I Believe"
The card-slipcase adds the reissue a classy/luxurious look - Mojo contributor CHARLES WARING does his usual bang-up job with the liner notes gamely describing some of the not-so-brill songs with imaginative adjectives - whilst the big draw will be new 2018 ANDREW THOMPSON Remasters. I've always found the band's own productions a tad clumsy - panning the three vocalists between the speakers like a badly recorded Three Dog Night - but there's no doubt to my ears of the improvement. Even when the guitars are fuzzy and the vocals bucket-deep, the overall stereo imaging is great and at last there's really power to the rhythm section. These CDs are upgrades and contain real oomph on recordings that needed it.
Lead Vocalist and founder member Felix Cavaliere came up with 8 of the 12 compositions on "See" – guitarist Gene Cornish proffering "Remember Me" and "Away Away" - while "I’m Blue" is a co-write between FC and Eddie Brigati - leaving only a lone cover of the Soul masterpiece "Temptation’s ‘Bout To Get Me" – a James Diggs song made a hit by The Knight Brothers in 1965 on Checker Records. Despite its yeah-man image of a silhouette dove on the front cover – the album seemed more full of short songs trying to be hits rather than messages of love and racial integration. Atlantic has issued "Carry Me Back" as a lead-in 45 in August 1969 with the album cut "Real Thing" as its flipside and it reached a respectable No. 26 on the Billboard 100.
They covered The Box Tops hit "The Letter" on "Search And Nearness" LP – a gorgeous gatefold sleeve on original release (the rear child-face artwork is the inlay beneath the CD trays whilst the front cover is the front page of the 16-page booklet). They psych it up although not perhaps as brilliantly as one would hope – but there is not doubt of their passion for the huge social changes taking place in the USA in the opener "Right On" – sort of Three Dog Night does inequality with a Norman Whitfield groove.
For sure not everything here is going to be worshipped from afar, but I can't help think that the second LP especially has stuff worthy of rediscovery and even an occasional rant ("Nama" baby - you heard it here first). Yes its 3-star material, but man what a 5-star presentation of it. Well done to all involved...
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