October 15th:

Mountain ~ "Climbing!/Nantucket Sleighride"



>> Combined on the one cd for the first time, these two albums - 'climbing!' and 'nantucket sleighride' - reinforce the heavyweight impact of one of the greatest rock acts of the 1970s, the mighty mountain. Led by the gargantuan leslie west - a phenomenal guitar player and owner of a roaring, barrelhouse vocal bawl - and multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger and producer felix pappalardi - one of rock music's true visionaries - mountain cut a swaggering path through the times with a sound that distilled the true essence of the american hard rock tradition, a sound that still reverberates to this day. Their 1970 debut 'climbing!' featured the hit single 'mississippi queen', a classic rock essential that never outstays its welcome, while 'nantucket sleighride' (1971) consolidated their position with monumental tracks like 'don't look around' and 'nantucket sleighride', pappalardi's epic tale of searching "for the mighty sperm whale". These songs have stood the test of time, sounding as potent today as they did upon original release. Featuring 20 tracks, including two bonus cuts, and 77 minutes of superb audio quality this power-packed 2-for-1 cd will satisfy fans of loud, raucous blues rock and classic rock guitar fireworks. <<

1. Mississippi Queen
2. Theme For An Imaginary Western
3. Never In My Life
4. Silver Paper
5. For Yasgur's Farm
6. To My Friend
7. Laird
8. Sittin' On A Rainbow
9. Boys In The Band
10. Don't Look Around
11. Taunta (Sammy's Tune)
12. Nantucket Sleighride (To Owen Coffin)
13. You Can't Get Away!
14. Tired Angels (To J.M.H.)
15. Animal Trainer And The Toad
16. My Lady
17. Travelin' In The Dark (To E.M.P.)
18. Great Train Robbery
19. Flowers Of Evil (Bonus Track)
20. Travelin' In The Dark (Bonus Track)

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000VAQWV0/?tag=imwan-20

I had the chance of catching them live a few years ago, but passed. Mistake.

Anyone know if this is a newer actual mastering then the 2003 CBS expanded cd's?

This one actually looks more interesting to me:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000MEYHR6/?tag=imwan-20

Anyone else think that Theme For An Imaginary Western is one of the greatest "under-rated" rock songs of all time?

You just never hear it on radio ever.

Yes.

It is a newer mastering. Raven is basically the BGO of Australia, they do their own remasters and don't just license the work from other countries. Now, whether this new mastering will be better than the domestic versions, who knows ... "probably" ... but for my tastes Repertoire tends to trump everyone else, so I'd personally opt for the version you linked to.

I always felt Mountain was vastly underrated. There was a lot more going on there than just big riffs and heavy beats.

Felix Pappalardi is not normally mentioned along with Jimi, Janis, Morrison, etc; but who knows how far Mountain would have gone if he'd lived?

While I'm a huge Jack Bruce fan, West Bruce & Laing never worked for me. It should have, but it didn't.

On a slightly related topic, I'd really like to hear their complete Woodstock set some day. The 3 tracks that were released are really good.

I 2nd that!

Also coming on October 9th from Raven is this compilation album:

Guy Clark ~ "Hindsight 21/20: The Anthology 1975-1995"



>> GUY CLARK is recognised as one of the greatest of all Texan singer/songwriters and Raven is proud to present for the first time on one CD the only truly essential anthology covering his work over the years 1975-1995. Culled from seven albums over three labels (RCA, Warner, Elektra/Nonesuch) this is the master songwriter at his very best. Five tracks from his incomparable debut, 1975’s Old No.1, including ‘L.A. Freeway’, ‘Texas 1947’ and ‘Desperados Waiting For The Train’, reveal the depths of his talents from the get-go. More of his best are here including ‘Boats To Build’, ‘Heartbroke’, ‘The Randall Knife’, his biggest hit ‘Homegrown Tomatoes’ and his collaboration with Rodney Crowell on ‘She’s Crazy For Leaving’.

Others may have had bigger hits with his songs – Bobby Bare with ‘New Cut Road’, Ricky Skaggs with ‘Heartbroke’, The Highwaymen with ‘Desperados Waiting for the Train’, Rodney Crowell with ‘She’s Crazy For Leaving’ – but they pale into comparison with the stark beauty of the original versions. And as All Music Guide states: “The emotional level of his work consistently transcends sales figures and musical genres. He remains the kind of song writer young artists study and seasoned writers (and listeners) admire”. With 21 tracks and 77 minutes of superb audio quality this impressive collection of timeless gems is a must have for the country music fan in general and the Guy Clark aficionado in particular. <<

1. L.A. FREEWAY
2. RITA BALLOU
3. SHE AIN’T GOIN’ NOWHERE
4. TEXAS 1947
5. DESPERADOS WAITING FOR THE TRAIN
6. TEXAS COOKIN’
7. BROKEN HEARTED PEOPLE
8. THE LAST GUNFIGHTER BALLAD
9. COMFORT AND CRAZY
10. THE HOUSTON KID
11. NEW CUT ROAD
12. SOUTH COAST OF TEXAS
13. HEARTBROKE
14. SHE’S CRAZY FOR LEAVING
15. HOMEGROWN TOMATOES
16. THE RANDALL KNIFE
17. NO DEAL
18. BATON ROUGE
19. BOATS TO BUILD
20. DUBLIN BLUES
21. THE CAPE

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000VAQX6O/?tag=imwan-20