ORIGINAL MAN

Riff Raff

Jazz Rock/Fusion

4.09 | 43 ratings

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Suedevanshoe

This album has been a joy to listen to over the past few weeks.

Not quite blues, not quite jazz, not the horn-driven rock of If or BST, and certainly not progressive in ELP or Canterbury terms, "Original Man" melts these genres, resulting in a cohesive whole that is as original and innovative as anything released in the early 1970's.

The opening title track and the closer, "Speed", are the best examples of the album's aesthetic. Winding, exciting solos bring the extended forays to a head before the end of each track. "In the Deep" and "Tom's Song" display a lovely, jazzy atmosphere and "Havakak" is an uptempo intrumental. It's fusion in it's delivery, but sounds more like Traffic than Isotope or Nucleus. "Goddamm the Man" and "Waster" are fabulous mid-tempo blues workouts.

In all, a classic album flawlessly executed. I feel the sound captured on this record is exactly what the group was going for. Personally, I consider this album more classic rock than progressive, leading to the 4 star rating. In my collection, this is a 5 star record with honors that merits repeated spins. I'd recommend it to anyone with a penchant for original classic rock on the fringes of prog.

Suedevanshoe | 4/5 | 2012-5-1

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