Nevertheless, it seems like the right thing to do to pass the word when something fine reaches our ears and leaves an impression worth remembering for at least a few days (because who knows when our galtian overlords will pull the plug).
So I thought I'd talk abou this vinyl reissue of Stan Hubbs "Crystal" album by Companion Records, which for my money is the finest of their products to date, with the possible exception of the Luie Luie "Touchy" reissue (which was CD only, for you purists -- I know you're out there!).Originally released in 1982, Hubbs' only album has been tagged as "stoner rock" and I suppose if you want to reduce it to its basest level, it's not wildly inaccurate. But that description applies equally well to Steve Miller's "Space Cowboy" or Jimi's "Are You Experienced" and little or nothing on this LP sounds remotely like either of those. I'm going to take the cheap way out and say it's the bastard offspring of Rumor's-era Fleetwood Mac (thanks to Kriss O'Neill's excellent vocals on a few tracks, and the relatively chill tempos and arrangements of the songs, including the "rockers") crossed with MX-80 (only by virtue of Hubb's Rich Stimm-esque deadpan delivery). Unlike a lot of one-off "local" albums that disappear upon release only to be "discovered" by some thrift store gold miner decades later, this one is more of a grower with a consistent vision, as opposed to an LP consisting of 9 tracks of pure crap amidst which is buried a single nugget with modest camp value. In large part, that's due to the excellent drumming throughout by one Ron Castro (like the rest of the band, he appears to be twenty years younger than Hubbs). Castro's drumming is solid where it needs to be solid, just flashy enough to let you know he's digging it, and on the downbeat tracks, he's "exquisitely sensitive" (props to my high school biology teacher for that phrase). That said, those looking for a cheap thrill will find it in the last half of the first track on side 2 ("The Best Man for Some Jobs Is A Woman), a jam that sounds like Terry Brooks attempting to solo his way out of the deep end of The Afflicated Man's peanut butter jar.
That tasty bit of apocalyptic improvisation is followed by 'Golden Rose,' a lovely example of the fogged over Pacific Coast reggae sound that I associate more with the mid-70s than the early 80s (probably Hubbs was playing it back in the 60s). It was while listening to this track for the first time that I began wishing for a lyric sheet. And lo and behold when I gently spread those thick laminated cardboard lips apart I found not just a lyric sheet but a lovely lyric booklet (with drawings!) ... and even better: the lyrics are overflowin with pleasantly browned out vibes like this:
Four things will make you happy
The wise man beamed
Four things to make you
Cool as the breeze:
And the last is to have no ambition.
(from 'Golden Rose'). Yes, I do believe that Mr. Hubbs nailed it.
3 comments:
I currently have no ambition Phill. Except, after contemplating your name a few times, trying to characterize that sample's appeal. Strung out Fleetwood Mac overtones no doubt, but wasted guitar, juxtaposed with such peppy drumming. Kind of uniquely 1982.
To be clear, Johnson, that bit of severe riffage that I sampled is anomalous (and is one more reason why the Hubbs album is such a head-scratcher). It may not be the least FM-sounding part of the record, but it's close.
Hey Phill,
I had bought the album over iTunes and for the love of my life I cannot find the lyrics anywhere on the web. If this is not too much to ask of you, could you please share the lyrics with me? Photos/text of the lyrics anything would do!
Thanks!
/Murtaza
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