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PETER BARDENS [AKA: WRITE MY NAME IN THE DUST]

Peter Bardens

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Peter Bardens Peter Bardens [Aka: Write My Name In The Dust] album cover
2.50 | 26 ratings | 4 reviews | 12% 5 stars

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Studio Album, released in 1971

Songs / Tracks Listing

1. North End Road (1:25)
2. Write My Name In The Dust (6:34)
3. Down So Long (7:00)
4. Sweet Home Wine (4:26)
5. Tear Down The Wall (7:21)
6. Simple Song (2:20)
7. My House (6:17)
8. Feeling High (5:08)
9. Blueser (2:15)

Total Time 42:46

Line-up / Musicians

- Peter Bardens / organ, piano, vocals, producer

With:
- Vic Linton / electric & acoustic guitars
- Andy Gee / guitar (8,9)
- Victor Brox / electric violin, cornet, jew's harp, vocals
- John Owen / bass
- Reg Isadore / drums, percussion
- Maxine Iffla / backing vocals
- Linda Lewis / backing vocals
- Anita Pollinger / backing vocals
- Judith Powell / backing vocals
- Liza Strike / backing vocals

Releases information

Artwork: Hipgnosis

LP Transatlantic Records ‎- TRA 243 (1971, UK)
LP Verve Forecast ‎- FTS 3091 (1971, US) Re-entitled "Write My Name In The Dust " w/ new cover art

CD Line Music ‎- TACD 9.00559 (1988, Germany)
CD Esoteric Recordings ‎- ECLEC 2220 (2010, Europe)

Thanks to chris stacey for the addition
and to Quinino for the last updates
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PETER BARDENS Peter Bardens [Aka: Write My Name In The Dust] ratings distribution


2.50
(26 ratings)
Essential: a masterpiece of rock music(12%)
12%
Excellent addition to any rock music collection(19%)
19%
Good, but non-essential (38%)
38%
Collectors/fans only (23%)
23%
Poor. Only for completionists (8%)
8%

PETER BARDENS Peter Bardens [Aka: Write My Name In The Dust] reviews


Showing all collaborators reviews and last reviews preview | Show all reviews/ratings

Collaborators/Experts Reviews

Review by Chris S
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
3 stars The Transatlantic label released this gem way back in 1971. This was Peter Bardens doing his follow up album to " The Answer" A very bluesy album, less prog related than his later works and understandably rough around the edges in parts. Nevertheless there are some excellent tracks to enjoy off here notably ' Write My Name In The Dust', 'My House' and 'Feeling High'. If you are a strong follower of the Camelogue output it is worth you getting some of Peter Barden's early work and you will understand the influences he made to Camel material even after his departure in the late 70's. This is a good album and worthy of three stars although I would recommend his first album The Answer to any new Peter Bardens investors!
Review by SouthSideoftheSky
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Symphonic Team
1 stars Blueser

This self-titled album by Peter Bardens is actually his second solo album. Being a big fan of Camel, I was curios to know what his solo music prior to Camel sounded like. I must say that it was a major disappointment and anyone looking for the roots of the Camel-sound must clearly look elsewhere; by no means can this music be regarded as proto-Camel. It is indeed hard to believe that this was released in 1971, only two years before Camel's debut album. Judging from the sound of this album, it belongs more in the 60's and in the Blues Rock/Rock 'N' Roll category. There is nothing distinctive about it at all and it could have been done by any number of bands in the late 60's/early 70's.

Bardens plays organ and piano and there are lots of female backing vocals. The songs are a bit sloppy and they lack memorable melodies. Some of the choruses are very repetitive. Overall, this album is poor and is even worse than Barden's first solo album The Answer. That album did at least feature one interesting track in Homage To The God Of Light.

Only for completionists this one

Review by octopus-4
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR RIO/Avant/Zeuhl,Neo & Post/Math Teams
3 stars It's still too early for Camel, and Peter Bardens is a sort of artsy and very skilled keyboardist who dives between the Blues revival and Canterbury.

The album is opened by a short piano ragtime. It's not unusual: Caravan have placed "Tollington Park Rag" at the end of their second album, but also Rick Wakeman and Keith Emerson put some ragtime interludes in their albums. So "North End Road" is not a bad ragtime.

Organ based with a touch of R&B specially in the background vocals and strongly smelling of flower power, "Write My Name in The Dust" is an excellent song and the most successful single ever released by Bardens as solo artist.

"Down So Long" is unusually hard for Peter Bardens. It's a blues-rock song with a bit of psychedelia mainly in the long organ solo. There's much of Fleetwood Mac in this song.

After the acid rock something more British: "Sweet Honey Wine" is son of its times, or a bit earlier. I hear the influence of Moody Blues.

"Tear Down The Wall" may have inspired Roger Waters' The Trial...I'm joking. This is a funky-rock song in a Motown style. Not properly my pot. Barely listenable. The repeated chorus is quite boring. However when it changes pitch I hear a symptom of Camel. The organ solo is fine, but it's exactly what you can hear in a police movie of the early 70s.

"Simple Song" with whistle and acoustic guitar is between the Beatles of Her Majesty and the early Caravan. two funny minutes.

"My House" is opened by a Procol Harum's style organ, and also the guitar solo which follows reminds to that great British band with a touch of psychedelia more.

"Feeling High" is a sort of acid rock very flower power, something good for the soundtrack of Hair.

"Blueser", a slow chillout blues base with grotesque vocals closes the album.

I don't know if we can call it prog, effectively Bardens is in the prog-related section, but the album is not too bad. It's only that it doesn't follow a direction. It's like Bardens has tried to compose different kinds of songs to catch a bigger audience, or it's just reflecting that fact that he was in the middle of a musical transition. As a result, this is far from the heights reached with Camel, but still a good and absolutely non-essential album.

Latest members reviews

2 stars On "See You in Black" on its monstrous en prend plein la gueule pour pas un rond, the rhytmique is very fast is quite fatty and greasy melody as well. "Harvest soon" is a title rather pop rock, nothing to do with progressive rock. The other revolves around the Hard Fm, a little muscle it is true ... (read more)

Report this review (#230267) | Posted by Discographia | Thursday, August 6, 2009 | Review Permanlink

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