Circus Maximus/Neverland [Import]

Product Description
Vanguard release combines the first two albums for the east coast version of Country Joe & the Fish fronted by Jerry Jeff Walker, Circus Maximus and Neverland Revisited, both originally released in 1971. Deluxe gatefold digipack. 2001 release.

Circus Maximus/Neverland,Circus Maximus,Phantom Sound & Visi,Rock/Pop

Average customer rating:

Circus Maximus/Neverland Circus Maximus Manufacturer: Phantom Sound & Vision ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Country | Styles | Music ASIN: B000BRI8BU Release Date: 2001-03-14

Average customer rating: Performance/writing exceeds similar 'models' of the era.

Circus Maximus/Neverland Manufacturer: Phantom Sound & Visi ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Rock | Styles | Music Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music ASIN: B00005BI0M Release Date: 2001-03-14

Tracks:

1. Travelin Around
2. Lost Sea Shanty
3. Oops I Can Dance
4. You Know Ive Got The Rest Of My Life To Go
5. Bright Light Lover
6. Chess Game
7. Peoples Games
8. Time Waits
9. Fading Lady
10. Short-Haired Fathers
11. Wind
12. Hello Baby
13. Hows Your Sky Straight Guy Spy
14. Come Outside Believe In It
15. Parallel
16. Trying To Live Right
17. Lonely Man
18. Mixtures
19. Negative Dreamer Girl
20. Neverland
21. Neverland Revisited
22. Hansel And Gretel

Album Description

Vanguard release combines the first two albums for the east coast version of Country Joe & the Fish fronted by Jerry Jeff Walker, Circus Maximus and Neverland Revisited, both originally released in 1971. Deluxe gatefold digipack. 2001 release.

Customer Reviews:

Performance/writing exceeds similar 'models' of the era........2002-02-22

I have previously reviewed tracks 1-11 on the CD 'Circus Maximus with Jerry Jeff Walker'; here, tracks 12-22 constitute CM's 2nd album, 'Neverland Revisited'. There could hardly be a more marked difference stylistically between consecutive releases by the same band than these two albums. That said, I shall add that those folks who are seriously enamoured of the material and style of the first album might [at first] be mightily disappointed listening to the second. I shall further add that the 2nd album is every bit as professional, inventive, well-produced and well-played as the first.

'Neverland . . .' ranges through a list of various stylistic territories. CM are more gutty artists (and better, more creative players) than the admittedly excellent session musicians used by producers of many groups of their epoch. A lot of CM's output here is definitely music of the psychedelic era [circa '68-'69], but it's more the jazzy and r&b edge of that 'movement'.

Then there are the typical acid rock songs. Bob Bruno plays more incisive acid lead guitar than the best of the Airplane, the Dead, and Quicksilver, plus the tunes are tighter, never degenerating into the long boring jams so often characteristic of the era. And the harmony vocals of each chorus are every bit as good as what one hears on the first album [that one filled mostly with folk rock and '66-era garage à la Byrds/Moby Grape/Paul Revere]. Note that both Bruno's and Jerry Jeff Walker's tunes are gems each one in its own right.

Many of the songs on 'Neverland Revisited' are good enough musically to have been top 10 singles on the pop charts if the lyrics weren't so over the top. The music inhabits an odd niche-not exactly a concept album, and definitely not a collection of pop singles, though after hearing them just a few times you start thinking you've heard these a lot on the radio. In a way, on "Neverland', CM is writing/playing a lengthy and telling musical essay on the state of pop/rock circa 1968. The way which the band engages/energizes the relative depths and superficialities of that contemporary range of 'traditions'/styles, and then takes the music to greater heights, can seem quite mind-boggling.

Walker, in his semi-autobiographical book 'Gypsy Songman', starts out his discussion of the CM years telling us what a genius Bruno was at coming up with [rock] tunes, and I would add: hooks and bridges within those tunes. Bruno somehow manages to exceed what would seem to be possible on nearly every attempt, both in the way he writes/arranges and the way he plays/sings. I might add that if Bruno was a genius, by association, JJ wasn't far behind; and together they dragged the rest of the band with them effortlessly, as if the others really even needed such coaxing (they probably didn't).

Others have lamented that this band broke up after only two efforts (neither Walker nor Bruno wanted to continue with it anymore); but hey, sometimes the greatest things come in the smallest packages . . .

Since there are no audio samples available to audition, let's consider the individual songs.

"Hello Baby" (Bruno) is 4½ stars worth of acid surf rock . . . the lead singing and guitar is straight acid [and quite hard], while the backup harmony vocals at the chorus and bridge are straight 'Beach Boys'. Like almost all of Circus Maximus' tunes, the various incongruities in form, style, melody and rhythm blend effortlessly, in a seemingly magical way.

"Straight Guy Spy" (Bruno) is 2 stars worth of long raunchy soliloquy, simultaneous with a duel between raunchy garage organ and lead guitar. Interesting, although not very sweet.

"Come Outside . . ." [4 stars] is Jerry Jeff Walker's bow to the likes of Spanky and Our Gang. This could easily have gone top 10 pop [with a little luck and a lot of good promotion].

"Parallel" (Bruno) [5 stars] starts with a 30-second slow piano solo, then morphs into jazzy garage rock with great harmony vocal licks. It's the song from 'Neverland' which is most like some of the material from the 1st album.

Walker's next tune, "Trying to Live Right" starts out with a tasty 3-part harmony chorus, then becomes a highly developed, up-tempo jazz-rock piece [5 stars].

"Lonely Man" (Bruno) starts out in amazing, humorous fashion. Its melody and rhythm are bouncy in a manner similar to "Rest of My Life to Go" from the first album, but this is r&b flavored, a little like the Rascals and/or Tommy James, though once again, with 'Beach Boys' style backup vocals. [5 stars again].

"Mixtures" (Walker) is very upbeat emotionally, with very fine segues between the various sections, and more great 'Beach Boys' harmonies. [4 stars].

"Negative Dreamer Girl" is like the inverse of Walker's previous tune. Another track with great acid lead guitar throughout, and excellent vocal harmonies. This one is almost like one of the Monkees' better tunes, though with a harder edge and much more interest formally, melodically and rhythmically. [4½-5 stars.]

"Neverland" [3½ stars] begins sounding like a "Revolution 9" knockoff, but morphs (after almost a minute and a half) into uptempo jazz-rock with a decidedly acid edge, and which includes lyrics. This goes on for another 3 minutes, then further morphs into "Neverland Revisited" [5 stars] which is a long, complex piano solo in the style of McCoy Tyner, played over the same 'acid-jazz' ostinado which proliferates in "Neverland".

This further yet morphs into the long up-tempo jazz-rock ballad "Hansel and Gretel" (Walker), with more great hippie lyrics [4½ stars].

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