Groundhogs Solid Album |
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| Label and code | ||||
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Label |
Code |
Country |
Year |
Deleted |
| WWA | 004 | U.K. | Jul 1974 |
1979 |
| WWA |
WWC004 (casstette) |
U.K. | Jul 1974 |
1979 |
| Castle | CLACD266 | U.K. | Jun 1992 | |
| Repetoire | REP4307-WY (Includes Over Blue) | U.K. | 1993 | |
| HTD | HTD CD118 (Includes Over Blue) | U.K. | 2000 |
2001 |
| Talking Elephant | TECD025 (Includes Over Blue) | U.K. | 2001 | |
| Produced: | McPhee |
| Engineer: | McPhee |
| Recording Details: | recorded at St Francis Haverhill Suffolk England (Tony McPhee's Home) |
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Artist details |
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| Tony McPhee | Guitar / Bass / Mellotron / Synthesiser / Vocals |
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Pete Cruickshank |
Bass |
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Clive Brooks |
Drums |
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Track Listing |
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Track |
Title |
Composer |
Time |
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1 |
Light My Light | McPhee | 6:25 |
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2 |
Free from all Alarm | McPhee | 5:10 |
| 3 | Sins of the Fathers | McPhee | 5:34 |
| 4 | Sad Go Round | McPhee | 2:45 |
| 5 | Corn Cob | McPhee | 5:29 |
| 6 | Plea Sing Plea Song | McPhee | 2:57 |
| 7 | Snow Storm | McPhee | 3:26 |
| 8 | Jokers Grave | McPhee | 8:35 |
| Comments:
Released in 1974 with two tracks issued from the album as singles.
Sad
go Round / Over Blue, the B side only released on the single, although
later added to the CD reissue of Solid, and
Plea
Sing Plea Song / Dog Me Bitch the B side from Tony's solo album Two
Sides. Solid follows very much where Hogwash left off. With Clive Brooks still sitting in the drum stool Peter Cruickshank the longest serving member of the Hogs playing Bass. Side one opens up with Light My Light a steady Hogs rockin' boogie. No surprises in store on this track. The guitar solo is spiced with fazed and tonal trickery . The second track Free From All Alarm has McPhee returning initially to his Acoustic guitar for a solo start. The song is split into two halves with a good acoustic boogie accompanying the vocals the second half thunders into a Hogs Battering ram with McPhee firmly at the helm with some usual stunning guitar. Returning to a familiar theme of Mans Moral wrongs, Sins Of The Father Takes off at as good paced boogie. Complete with further electronic wizardry on the guitar, keyboards are added to swirl around the steady backing of drums and bass. The final track on the first side Sad Go Round slows the pace to a heavy plodding beat. Although the guitars and synthesisers screech and scream away the beat stays on in the plodding time as the vocals compete for space. Side two Opens with a solo effort, with Tony playing bass drum, bass and guitar. With more than a little nod back to his blues roots. Corn Cob recreates the Hooker style with modern sounds from the ubiquitous synthesiser. A good boogie beat with some nifty guitar work poking through the ever invading electronic squeaks and swirls. Plea Sing Plea Song moves deftly into a steady rocker. Unusually for McPhee this is a love song, or at least a song about yearning. Snow Storm another almost solo with Tony playing Bass, guitar and keyboards, leaving Clive to fill play drums. The track is a very well constructed piece with thoughtful use of the Mellotron to construct layers. The vocals are sung through the synthesiser , again plenty of swirling and fazing of sounds build up the atmosphere as Tony sings about his worries. The final track Jokes Grave opens with a greeting to move straight into the slower paced boogie bass and Tony's vocals again distorted through the recording. As is common with McPhee compositions the song is broken into two, the second part returning to some good fast paced guitar chords while Clive plays bongos to speed things along. The final guitar work is very much up to Tony's high standard as it dives at reckless speeds over the synthesiser and bongos. Ending in a powerful rocking head long crash, an inspired piece of playing. As always best appreciated with the volume at full blast. Always turn to level 11. The Energy finally giving way in a haze of smoke drifting away. The magic of heavy metal was starting to disappear, as such one week in the British charts at 31 was not bad going. Tony proving that the energy of his playing was still with him. At times the electronic gadgetry can seem today a little dated. But only rarely does it get in the way and sound gimmicky. The second of the two Hogs albums to be recorded at Tony's home in Kent, England. Solid and Hogwash can be viewed as a pair. Both using electronics to explore new sounds while still retaining one foot firmly in the blues/rock camp. As with all competent composers Tony had explored and accommodated many new recording techniques and musical styles in his songs. But always staying close to his roots. Whatever Tony produced always had the distinctive Groundhogs stamp all over it. |
