Roger McGuinn & Band is a minor effort to be sure, but it's easy to like.ġ976's Cardiff Rose was the best of McGuinn's '70's solo albums. Otherwise, there are new versions of two Byrds songs ("Lover Of The Bayou" and "Born To Rock And Roll") and Bob Dylan's much-covered "Knockin' On Heaven's Door". The only new McGuinn compositions are "Easy Does It" and the uncharacteristic reggae song "Lisa". This crew mainly offers simple but appealing mainstream rock. McGuinn left most of the writing to the titular four-piece backing band, whose members (Steve Love, Richard Bowden, Greg Attaway, and David Lovelace) had previously been members of a band called Cold Steel, a short-lived offshoot of the Flying Burrito Brothers. Roger McGuinn & Band runs for barely half an hour. Without You - (Roger McGuinn/Jacques Levy)ģ. Peace On You was released on CD in January 2004 by Sundazed.Ģ. The sarcastic title track (written by Charlie Rich) pokes fun at the then-fading flower-power generation. ![]() "Gate Of Horn" is a fond reminiscence of the old tavern in Chicago, interspersed with an Irish jig. On "Same Old Sound", he bemoans the fact that people want him to keep playing Byrds songs, and plays a few familiar notes to underline his point. ![]() But the album's best songs were written or co-written by McGuinn. There are songwriting contributions here by Al Kooper and Dan Fogelberg, who also make instrumental appearances on their tracks. Peace On You basically follows the same path with more studio polish. The best song is "Draggin'", a vintage road song. The songs on Side One have a bit of an edge, while Side Two is full of prettier songs. It opens with the Dylanesque "I'm So Restless", and mainly consists of similar singer-songwriter type songs, along with a couple of traditional folk songs ("The Water Is Wide", the Celtic "Heave Away"). For the most part, the album continues in the same country and folk-rock vein as the latter-day Byrds albums. "My New Woman" was apparently recorded during the same sessions, since the Byrds are audibly present on this track. McGuinn's self-titled solo debut was released in 1973, the same year as the ill-fated reunion album by the five original Byrds. ![]() Thunderbyrd is still out of print in the U.S., but is available as an import from Germany. The first two were reissued on the Sundazed label in January 2004, and the next two were reissued the following October. After the breakup of the Byrds in 1973, McGuinn recorded five solo albums in as many years, and those albums have aged better than many other '70's recordings. Every one of his works bears his personal stamp, which still sounds original despite his many imitators. He has perhaps participated in some mediocre ones who hasn't over the course of a 45-year career? But a bad McGuinn album doesn't exist. As a Byrd or as a solo artist, McGuinn has arguably never recorded a bad album. McGuinn also developed his own distinctive vocal style, intended as a middle ground between Bob Dylan and John Lennon. Although his seminal '60's band the Byrds were regarded as the "American Beatles" by some, the band had its own individual sound, distinguished by McGuinn's celebrated 12-string Rickenbacker guitar playing. Roger (formerly known as Jim) McGuinn is one of the most original and influential American rock performers.
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