BEDSIDE MANNERS ARE EXTRA

This was one of the bands that colored my childhood rock spirit when I knew nothing about prog rock. To me, at that time, everything I was listening to was just "rock" that's it. It spanned from Deep Purple, Grand Funk, Yes, Genesis etc. which sounded "roc" to me. Greenslade was known due to a local cassette compilation by Prambors radio station which included one of Greenslade songs in their compilation. By then I recognized that the music of Greenslade was quite unique especially the way keyboard was played and the vocal quality. "Feathered Friends" which became hit from the band's first album was very famous and had become my regular play list before I went to school. And now I got the CD format of the second album "Bedside Manners Are Extra" with me.

This is the 2nd album by Greenslade - a band which had a mastermind of keyboard player Dave Greenslade, joined by colleague Colosseum alumnus Tony Reeves (bass), Andy McCullough who played on King Crimson's "Lizard", and keyboardist/vocalist Dave Lawson. From their track records you can guess that this must had been a great supergroup. Their music is basically comprising multi-layered keyboard / mellotron work with unique vocal line of Dave Lawson. Unfortunately this album is not as strong as the first one. The whole album when it's enjoyed in its entirety seems like having a disorientation of the overall music theme. However, each individual song is not a bad one. The opening track "Bedside Manners Are Extra" (6:16) attempts to create a cohesive tune, by blending the vocal and mellotron work combined with drumming. However, the melody line of the vocal and the mellotron / keyboard work do not seem to unite in a cohesive way. The best track is, of course, track no 4 "Drum Folk" where Andy McCullough demonstrates his virtuosity in dynamic drumming throughout the track. It's like McCullough Show entirely!

Overall, I think this is a good classic prog rock album which should be collected by those of you who love vintage prog bands. Even though this is less solid than the debut album, but still . it's worth collecting. Keep on proggin' ..!

Peace on earth and mercy mild - GW