Everybody knows Maggie May, the standout hit from this album, but I hadn’t realised it was originally released as the B side to Reason to Believe (a cover of a Tim Hardin song from 1961). The rest of the album more than holds up though - a pleasing mix of blues, rock and folk traditions, played and sung with aplomb. As well as the Hardin song there’s also an excellent version of Tomorrow is a Long Time by Bob Dylan.
I get the feeling that everyone involved was enjoying themselves (as can be seen on their iconic performance on Top of the Pops where they all have huge grins and start kicking a ball around while John Peel gamely mimes playing a mandolin).
Rod’s distinctive gravelly voice is to the fore here, and it’s something of a surprise to see that he was only 26 when this was recorded. Having said that, at this point he had two solo albums under his belt as well as being lead singer in The Faces and the Jeff Beck group, so that counts as being a grizzled veteran in this biz.
Mandolin-tastic!
https://album.link/gb/i/1469580609
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