Classic Rock Album of the Day- Bloodrock- Bloodrock 2 (1970). *** 1/2
If I was conducting my monthly Top 20 lists 3 years earlier (1970-1972) ,this would have beeb one of the top bands listed- Yes...Bloodrock- Bloodrock was a Dallas based hard rock and blues ensemble who dominated underground rock radio in the very early 1970's. Bands like this one, Grand Funk, Black Sabbath, and of course Led Zeppelin help wean (rescue) rock listeners from the grips of the masses of Sgt. Pepper/Magical Mystery Tourish like Beatle clones that absolutely flooded the airwaves in the late 1960's. Bloodrock got as much play on Beaker Street as anyone else at the time. Their macrabe feel of this band augmented well with the Station's eery theme.
It was a mystery to me how this particular band's legacy faded off the map, while the other bands I mentioned still have enormous airplay on classic rock stations. What I especailly loved about Bloodrock was their perfection of the wailing dual guitaring that was similar to the Clapton/Duane Allman stuff happening about the same time. They were among the best in that fray.
But why did they fizzle? Pretty easy to see..... Seems their chops, especially in the songwriting area, really went weak, after Blood Rock 3. And to be honest, 2 and 3 are really the only classics in the catalog. It didn't help that the two strongest members Lee Pickens and Jim Rutledge bailed. And by '74 Bloodrock was dead for good, as Capitol dropped, in an era when Record Companies were a lot more hep on retaining talent, just in case. It had to be bad for Capitol records to cut the cord, considering previous success. It was one mess.
The albums controversial claim to fame was D.O.A. the 8 1/2 chronicle of a plane crash that goes into gory painstaking detail. Was it an album sales gimmick? Maybe, but to a 13 year old kid, I thought it was pretty damned cool. But again, this LP has some great hard rock hooks, intertwined with some insane dueling guitar work.
Side 1-
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Lucky in the Morning- Really good solid opening tune that has some of the best percussion midway. -3
Cheater- Though the tempo slows the searing ax rings out though most of the song. Lee Pickens was definitely on his game on this one- 5
Sable and Pearl- Terrible strangled like sounding singing in a hodgepodge of styles. I think the band in the vein of trying to sound versatile, really missed the mark. Filler? Yep. 7
Fallin'- Great tune- Band hits on all cylinders and each instrument almost in sync lets all hell break out. The solo mix of guitar shreds with the hammond just is bad ass. 1
Side 2-
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Children's Heritage- Solid Solid rocker, with that rolling drum beat that you just knew the band would use this as their radio piece- 4
Dier Not a Lover- Another great tune that takes a chaotic rock blend of great organ and guitar. Song has very typical type Terry Knight production. You can hear a lot of Grand Funk (Another Knight produced band) in it -2
D.O. A. - In 1970, i thought this was unique and ground breaking. 50+ years later, I and probably almost everyone else sees this as nothing but a "novelty" tune. Back in the day, as is now, a schtick or an attention grabber was the best and often the only way to get noiticed in this industry,. 6
Fancy Space Odyssey- Band needlessly tries to captiualize on the 2001- A Space Odyssey. Some might find the hooks a tad catchy, but IMO filler classification- 8
Fun Fact:
As a bonus, i have found on YT, maybe the only single known clip of Bloodrock playing live in the hey day of their career.
If I was conducting my monthly Top 20 lists 3 years earlier (1970-1972) ,this would have beeb one of the top bands listed- Yes...Bloodrock- Bloodrock was a Dallas based hard rock and blues ensemble who dominated underground rock radio in the very early 1970's. Bands like this one, Grand Funk, Black Sabbath, and of course Led Zeppelin help wean (rescue) rock listeners from the grips of the masses of Sgt. Pepper/Magical Mystery Tourish like Beatle clones that absolutely flooded the airwaves in the late 1960's. Bloodrock got as much play on Beaker Street as anyone else at the time. Their macrabe feel of this band augmented well with the Station's eery theme.
It was a mystery to me how this particular band's legacy faded off the map, while the other bands I mentioned still have enormous airplay on classic rock stations. What I especailly loved about Bloodrock was their perfection of the wailing dual guitaring that was similar to the Clapton/Duane Allman stuff happening about the same time. They were among the best in that fray.
But why did they fizzle? Pretty easy to see..... Seems their chops, especially in the songwriting area, really went weak, after Blood Rock 3. And to be honest, 2 and 3 are really the only classics in the catalog. It didn't help that the two strongest members Lee Pickens and Jim Rutledge bailed. And by '74 Bloodrock was dead for good, as Capitol dropped, in an era when Record Companies were a lot more hep on retaining talent, just in case. It had to be bad for Capitol records to cut the cord, considering previous success. It was one mess.
The albums controversial claim to fame was D.O.A. the 8 1/2 chronicle of a plane crash that goes into gory painstaking detail. Was it an album sales gimmick? Maybe, but to a 13 year old kid, I thought it was pretty damned cool. But again, this LP has some great hard rock hooks, intertwined with some insane dueling guitar work.
Side 1-
-------------
Lucky in the Morning- Really good solid opening tune that has some of the best percussion midway. -3
Cheater- Though the tempo slows the searing ax rings out though most of the song. Lee Pickens was definitely on his game on this one- 5
Sable and Pearl- Terrible strangled like sounding singing in a hodgepodge of styles. I think the band in the vein of trying to sound versatile, really missed the mark. Filler? Yep. 7
Fallin'- Great tune- Band hits on all cylinders and each instrument almost in sync lets all hell break out. The solo mix of guitar shreds with the hammond just is bad ass. 1
Side 2-
------------
Children's Heritage- Solid Solid rocker, with that rolling drum beat that you just knew the band would use this as their radio piece- 4
Dier Not a Lover- Another great tune that takes a chaotic rock blend of great organ and guitar. Song has very typical type Terry Knight production. You can hear a lot of Grand Funk (Another Knight produced band) in it -2
D.O. A. - In 1970, i thought this was unique and ground breaking. 50+ years later, I and probably almost everyone else sees this as nothing but a "novelty" tune. Back in the day, as is now, a schtick or an attention grabber was the best and often the only way to get noiticed in this industry,. 6
Fancy Space Odyssey- Band needlessly tries to captiualize on the 2001- A Space Odyssey. Some might find the hooks a tad catchy, but IMO filler classification- 8
Fun Fact:
As a bonus, i have found on YT, maybe the only single known clip of Bloodrock playing live in the hey day of their career.
