FIELDS

Some sort of supergroup that was not one. Field was from Rare Bird and McCullough was from Crimson (Lizard) and will be in Greenslade later and Barry was also from another band (I read somewhere he had played with the Giles (KC)brothers) but this did not amount to much on this vynil. I guess what was lacking was a real leader with inspiration and drive. The music is not bad , but hardly a "find"and should by no means be high on your priority list . If you are (like me) scraping the entire earth to find forgotten, lost , hidden gems of the 70's , you might want to check this out , but unless you are quite easy to please , you will not find that many satisfaction as this is second league stuff. Sufficiently apt musicians but lacking relevance in the prog rock history.

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Posted Tuesday, November 2, 2004 | Review this album | Report (Review #33223)

2010 saw a nice remaster of this disc from Esoteric including an account of keyboardist Graham Field's messy and sordid affairs with various record companies [for both Rare Bird and this project] during the turbulent period that was the early 1970s. No huge surprise that a quality prog band, even in 1971, would have to struggle just to stay afloat and as with so many of them, it's a miracle the album saw any daylight at all-- "..in circumstances like this records don't get released, they escape", recalls Field quoting an industry friend. Eventually he dropped the rock scene entirely, drummer Andy McCulloch hooked-up with Dave Greenslade and bassist/guitarist Alan Barry became a session man. But not before laying down a damn fine little set of prog that could be compared to peers Quatermass, Argent, Greenslade, Rooster now&then, maybe early ELP, with heavy duty organ-rich artrock, walls of sound and soulful performances from this mere trio.

The songs themselves are fine if forgettable, Graham Field finding no 'Sympathy' here and in need of a good producer to sharpen the material, clean up the sound and keep the focal point. However his keys are outstanding (at times even mimicking a synth) as on very good Bach-rocker 'A Friend of Mine'. Off-kilter radio/post-hippie claptrap 'While the Sun Still Shines' passes while hysterically cynical 'Not So Good' moans of cultural decay, leaving 'Three Minstrels' in its wake, funereal 'Slow Susan' tailed by tasty jam 'Over and Over Again' filled with Field's chops on organ and the tight backup of McCulloch/Barry. Gospels 'Feeling Free' & 'A Place to Lay My Head' are almost Joe Cocker-like in their evangelism, and 'The Eagle' finishes on a very prog note featuring a brief salute to Pachelbel and a slight suggestion of Genesis; an outstanding arrangement and the instrumental highlight of the LP. Really very nice, especially for these bunch of grunts.

Surely there are fumbles here; nasty, bitter hunks of offal; varietal cuts of questionable edibility. On top of that, only about half the stuff is really good. But if you like a nice slab of headcheese or blood sausage now&then, Graham Field's band were respectable heavy proggers in the most dangerous and unpredictable way. Which is of course the best way.

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Posted Thursday, September 2, 2010 | Review this album | Report (Review #297221)

What a lovely surprise this album was. I can't believe I never heard it before. I wouldn't claim it's among my personal top 20 favorites of all time, but in my book every serious prog fan should have this album. The best parts are downright brilliant, the weakest parts are not at all bad. First ... (read more)

Report this review (#1502630) | Posted by Realbillball | Wednesday, December 23, 2015 | Review Permanlink

Now here's a curio ripe for a revisit. Quickly, Fields was Rare Bird's main keyboard man Graham Field's first (last?) post-Bird project. Bringing at least a little of the early Rare Bird vibe along for the ride, albeit with one keyboardist rather than two, bassist/guitarist/composer/vocalist ... (read more)

Report this review (#208976) | Posted by Steven in Atlanta | Friday, March 27, 2009 | Review Permanlink

Tis a crime that this absolute joy of an album is somehow overlooked by the majority of prog heads! Each and every song will delight the eardrums as the albums songs seem to float around you. There is nothing particularly flashy about the music itself, just quality track after quality track. ... (read more)

Report this review (#165948) | Posted by manofmystery | Monday, April 7, 2008 | Review Permanlink

It IS rubbish to slam this most wonderful album! I am glad some people can appreciate what IS a forgotten masterpiece by this threesome. Graham Field was of course a founding member of Rare Bird, but if you expect the same kind of abrasive proto metal only with organ doing all of it that Rare ... (read more)

Report this review (#38979) | Posted by | Saturday, July 9, 2005 | Review Permanlink

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