SON OF SPIRIT

Having returned in a veritable blaze of glory with the double LP "Spirit of '76", Randy California and Ed Cassidy kept the fire burning in 1975 with this second Spirit release for that year. There is an element of floor sweeping going on here, with surplus tracks from the "Spirit of '76" sessions combining with even older previously discarded songs such as "Maybe you'll find; it's time now" and "Family".

The results are therefore understandably an album which is indeed the "son" of its predecessor. The opening "Holy man" is however one of Spirit's finest songs. The semi-whispered vocals are delivered in deep gruff tones, but the song has an understated and smooth overall feel. The vocal harmonies are delivered very tightly with a hint of phasing and a general nod to artists such as Simon and Garfunkel and the Beach Boys.

"Looking into darkness" is a whispy, light-weight affair with a very high pitched repetitive vocal and even some sundry whistling. Later, "Circle" retains the lighter mood with harmonica and flute combining with multi-tracked West-Coast style vocals to create a delightful but most definitely time-stamped mood.

The intriguingly named "The other song" adopts a blues feel with dominant drums interplaying with incisive guitar intrusions. California's vocals are more offbeat than usual, the track seeming lazy until it suddenly bursts into life with a jazzy section followed by a much dirtier guitar solo.

Given that it is the most covered song in the history of pop, the choice of the Beatles "Yesterday" seems an odd one. On the plus side, this is a tastefully simple adaptation. "Family" is one of the old songs, being a 1972 composition. It is easy to understand why it was not used at that time, but the whimsical mood is ideal for this new Spirit. "Maybe you'll find/it's time now" dates from a year earlier than "Family", being written for the unreleased (at the time) "Potatoland" album. The song is a lovely soft piece of the type Paul Simon would have been proud of.

In all, a fine second album for the reformed Spirit, which is both atmospheric and enjoyable. The pop orientation of many of the songs means that the prog tendencies of the early days are largely suppressed, but songs such as "Holy man" and "Maybe you'll find" more than compensate.

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