FRIJID PINK

It surprised me that Frijid Pink is now included here at this site as I previously categorized the band as straight forward blues rock music with some rock'n'roll flavor. I knew the band in early 2000 when I saw the CD was displayed at local store here in Jakarta, Indonesia. When I looked at the label, it's REPERTOIRE ... so I purchased the CD; I bought three albums altogether because I was sure that Repertoire is a reputable label for classic rock outfit. I think all of my Babe Ruth CDs are all released by Repertoire as well.

The music contained here with this debut album really represented the time when rock music was emerging in early 70s. In fact the CD sonic quality is so vintage and it represented the period. As long as you can appreciate vintage rock music, I would think you like this album regardless the recording quality. For me personally this album serves a change when I get bored with digital recording where everything is so clean. Well, sometimes I need to return to the old times and this music is really good representing the seventies. You will find vintage guitar work throughout the album.

The opening track 'God Gave Me You' is a straight forward classic rock music that reminds me to the time when music was characterized by riffs and guitar solo. 'Crying Shame' follows similar vein like the opening track but this time with bluesy touch. The third track 'I'm On My Way' is a rock'n'roll track. One of my favorites is 'Drivin' Blues' that reminds me to John Mayall style or people called is white blues. In here they use harmonica to demonstrate the blues style, combined beautifully with guitar solo. People know very well The Animals' 'House of the Rising Sun' and this was one of the factors that made Frijid Pink was known by American in 1970. The closing blues track 'Boozin' Blues' is a very good blues music.

Peace on earth and mercy mild - GW

After releasing two albums within a year in 1970, Frijid Pink fell apart when the core song writing team of lead guitarist Gary Ray Thompson and vocalist/bassist Tom Beaudry (AKA Kelly Green) left the band. Not one to be put off by such minor setbacks(!), drummer Richard Stevers promoted guest keyboard player Larry Zelankato full band membership then brought in new vocalist Jon Wearing and lead guitarist Craig Webb. Bassist Tom Harris, who played on the band's début album, also returned to the line up having been absent without replacement for "Defrosted" (Beaudry filled in on bass).

It is therefore immediately apparent that this is not the band which recorded the wonderful adaptation of "House of the rising sun", but a largely new band exploiting the name of their predecessors. It is ironic then that this is generally hailed as the best, and certainly most progressive, album released under the band name.

From the opening bars of "Miss evil" it is apparent why Zelankato has been promoted, his Hammond organ fanfare indicating that this album will exploit his talents to a much greater extent. The oft quoted comparisons with Uriah Heep are justified, but only in relation to Heep's earliest days ("Very 'eavy, very 'umble") when they were still finding their own direction.

The progressive credentials of the band should not be overstated though, even when referring to this album. While tracks such as the opening "Miss evil" display an admirable willingness to indulge in more complex arrangements, other songs such as "Sailor" are largely straightforward, in this case anthemic pop, affairs.

Musically, "Earth omen" is light years ahead of the band's two preceding albums, both in terms of composition and performance. Almost completely absent is are the basic blues tenets which dominated those albums, to be replaced by a rich variety of styles and sounds. "Lazy day" is one track which sums up this diversity nicely, the song's pop ballad foundations being built upon by fine harmonies, delightful mandolin, and some excellent bass playing. Another highlight is "Eternal dream" which features Uriah Heep like multi-part harmonic ah-ahs and "Dream" references.

"Earth omen" is in many ways a one off album. At times it reminds me of Rare Bird's flirtation with prog around the same time ("As your mind flies by"), in that it is radically different to the other Frijid Pink releases. The album features the heavier (but not metallic) end of the prog spectrum, driven along by powerful organ and a fine bass/drum workhouse. Its strength lies in both the song writing and the performances by the band members.

The CD version includes two bonus tracks which made up a non-album single in 1972, although one of these is a single edit of the album track "Lazy day". The other is a note for note cover of the Moody Blues "go now".

Worth seeking out.

Having enjoyed major commercial success with their inspired interpretation of "House of the rising sun", Frijid Pink tried hard to emulate that achievement within a year. To be fair, the band remained faithful to their blues rock roots, the line up remaining unchanged save for the departure of bassist Tom Harris. Do not be misled though by the apparent arrival of new bassist Tom Beaudry, he is in fact simply lead vocalist Kelly Green using his real name rather than his stage name! Bizarrely, he is therefore credited under both names giving the misleading appearance that the band remained a five piece (including keyboard player Larry Zelanka who was actually considered a "guest" musician on the first two albums).

"Defrosted" finds the band progressing well musically, although the songs here fall short of being prog as such. The opening six minute "Black lace" has a more complex arrangement than anything which appeared on the band's eponymous début. Green's vocals sound ever more like those of the great Burton Cummings (Guess Who), his confidence in his own abilities clearly maturing with the band's ambition. He moves up a further gear on the reflective blues "I'll never be lonely", where he gives his finest vocal performance thus far, while Gary Ray Thompson adds a wonderful Leslie West (Mountain) inspired guitar solo. The following "Bye bye blues" maintains the moody blues (small letters!), the track also finishing with a stonking lead guitar solo, which unfortunately fades in full flow.

The 8+ minute "Pain in my heart" is a wonderful extended blues rocker which sounds like a single take live in the studio number. The extended nature of the track is simply down to some lead guitar improvisation, the song as a whole reminding me of The Guess Who's captivating live performances of "American woman".

The band's attempt to follow up their singles success by appealing to those who discovered the magic of "The house of the rising sun" is included here in the form of "Sing A Song For Freedom", but while it captures the mood of the early 1970's ("Joy to the world", "Give peace a chance", etc.), the song is prosaic and anonymous. A couple of other tracks (the instrumental "Sloony" and "I'm moving") fall into a similar category, being enjoyable but unremarkable.

As I mentioned in my review of the band's first album, both of Frijid Pink's 1970 releases would have constituted excellent proto prog albums had they been released a few years earlier. Overall though, this is a pleasing listen, especially for those who seek the blues influences on early 70's prog (a facet rather lost in the overemphasis on the contribution of orthodox jazz). The music here is certainly not over complicated, but the proficiency of these quasi-live recordings is clear, and the band's ambitions becoming apparent. In one of the most obvious examples of a double edged sword, those ambitions would be realised on the next album, but not before a couple of unexpected departures.

The CD re-issue includes four bonus tracks, which formed two subsequent non-album singles A and B sides. "We're gonna be there" is the most interesting of these, being a liberal interpretation of "When Johnny comes marching home".

For some bizarre reason, perhaps related to the misspelling of their name, Frijid Pink are often mistaken for being a band from mainland Europe. In fact, they hail from Detroit in the USA, the band forming in the late 1960's out of a band called the Detroit Vibrations. One of their early claims to fame is that they were once supported by a newly formed Led Zeppelin.

Frijid Pink's 15 minutes of super-stardom came early on in their recording career, and is included on this album. Towards the end of a recording session, they still had some time available to them, so they came up with a cover of a traditional folk song which had previously been a hit for the Animals called "House of the rising sun". Despite its "New Orleans" references, the song is generally regarded as British in origin, having been later adapted by settlers heading west. Whatever its roots, Frijid Pink's heavy lead guitar laden version captured the imagination of the singles buying public on both sides of the Atlantic in 1970, and became the band's only notable hit single.

As a whole, this the band's début album is best compared to the work of their label mates Ten Years After (one of Woodstock's greatest successes). Blues rock tracks such as "I'm on my way" and "Driving blues" (an earlier unsuccessful single which became the B-side of "House of the rising sun") are straight-forward heavy blues numbers featuring distorted lead guitar, dominant drums and heavy rock vocals.

The majority of the songs are composed by guitarist Gary Ray Thompson and vocalist Tom Beaudry (who adopted the stage name Kelly Green). Album producer Michael Valvano is also credited with writing or co-writing two of the tracks, but he was reported to be upset that he was not financially rewarded for his contribution to the success of "House of the rising sun".

Most of the tracks fall within the standard 3-5 minute range, but the last pair run for slightly longer. Unfortunately, the lengthening of "I Want To Be Your Lover" is mostly down to an amazingly tedious drum solo but "Boozin' blues" is a decent attempt at more traditional slow blues.

In all, this album would probably fall into the proto-prog category had it been released a couple of years earlier. As it is, the songs are most likely to appeal to those who enjoy the sounds of the (early) 70's. Do not expect any lost prog classics though. That said, the version of "House of the rising sun" recorded by the band is undoubtedly the definitive one.

The Repertoire records CD re-issue includes two non-album singles A-sides (their respective B-sides can be found on the "Defrosted" album). "Heartbreak hotel" is a heavy cover of the Elvis song. "Music for the people" is a band original with a highly commercial hook, similar to The Guess Who's "Share the land".

So while I immensely enjoy Frijid Pink and Defrosted, I still can't give it anything higher than 3 Stars because its not Heavy Prog and I don't think its prog period. But like I said it's a masterpiece of its own genre (and my favorite FP album) and a superb, if not perfect, follow up to Frijid Pink.

So 3 Stars for a slice of cold excellence!

-AP

I must've played that thing to death, still do! But then I started getting deeply into progressive rock and soon after I discovered their third album Earth Omen, which in my opinion is there only prog album.

So after saying that, I want to make it clear that the Frijid Pink and Defrosted albums are simply the best Psychedelic/Blues Rock/Boogie/Fuzz Rock (whatever you want to call it) albums you will ever listen to, but its not really prog. So I can only give this album as well as Defrosted 3 Stars and no more for being superb blues/boogie albums with a touch of psychedelia for good measure.

-AP