Recorded between 1968 and 1970, the tracks on this eponymous CD were not released back then and represent Headstone Circus' complete legacy.
Bassist Nick Bonis, drummer Randy Ray Pope and lead guitarist Mike Johnstone formed Headstone Circus in 1966.
The group was meant to have a psychedelic rock imprint, but the addition of singer/songwriter Glenn Faria diverted that original intention toward something much closer to Crosby, Stills & Nash, Neil Young or Buffalo Springfield.
Upon listening to these tracks released almost 40 years after the fact, it is obvious that the group was doing some things right.
Faria has a warm and soulful voice, the multi-part vocal harmonies (the main CS&N tie-in) are beautiful and most of the melodies exert an immediate appeal. However, possible reasons why the group never "made it" also become quickly obvious, the main one being a tendency to overstretch simple songs.
While musically proficient, the group simply doesn't have in its ranks the kind of virtuosity or creativity that could justify playing a simple chorus-and-verse song for five minutes or more.
As a result, otherwise pretty good songs like "I'm Going Down" and "Summers Gone" drag on for too long, making them sound weaker than they had to be.
There is still some enjoyment to be had from these tapes though, especially for fans of harmony folk-rock or connoisseurs who liked Faria's early-'70s solo LP (another rarity legitimately released for the first time in the 2000s).
The first eight tracks make up what would have been Headstone Circus' album proper; they are well recorded but the tapes clearly suffered from old age (distortion, slight drops, a grainy feel). The last four tracks are demo recordings.
"On Halloween night we went to an old cemetery, dropped acid, and spent a very strange night among the tombstones. The tombstones appeared to be melting and taking on animal shapes. Some of us saw spirits, and I'm not sure what I saw, but it was disturbing. Afterwards, we referred to that night as the "Headstone Circus". It seemed appropriate to call ourselves "Headstone Circus" as a band so we did". Enjoy this amazing westcoat album which was recorded in Washington D.C."
Headstone Circus - I'm Crazy
Track list:
01. I'm Going Down (04:37)
02. You Don't Know (06:51)
03. Summers Gone (04:43)
04. I'm Crazy (05:57)
05. Healer (04:09)
06. Arms of God (03:31)
07. Born in Georgia (03:55)
08. Reason to Live (03:15)
09. Reach Out (02:45)
10. I Hear the Thunder (03:43)
11. I Love the Wind (04:11)
12. Bear Down (05:18)
Headstone Circus:
*Randy Ray Pope - drums, vocals
*Mike Johnstone - guitar
*Nick Bonis - bass
*Glenn Faria - lead vocals, guitar
[ Thank you NELWIZARD for sending this post ]
CODE: 48477
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