SPIRIT

Spirit's self-titled first album is standard LA psychedelic rock, although the music is more jazz-tinged than perhaps was usual at the time, and the band certainly has its own sound defined here. And do not mistake Spirit for some lame, tripped-out 60's band. This is an accomplished crew.

They start off with three strong songs: Fresh Garbage, Uncle Jack, and Mechanical World, the latter having a great Randy California guitar solo. The fourth song, Taurus, is of course famous as the source of Led Zep's Stairway to Heaven. The remainder of the album shows a marked drop in song quality, some of which is dated (the electric sitar on Girl in Your Eye) or simply reflective of the times (the paranoia of Straight Arrow). The final song, Elijah, is a jazzy jam that gives the band a chance to show off their talents, but it is not particularly compelling -- it's obviously meant to be heard in a live setting.

So while not a classic, Spirit is a promising start for one of the better bands of the era. The remastered CD has great liner notes by Randy, as well as a handful of bonus tracks which neither add to nor detract from the album.