Label: Revolver Records (UK), REV XD 265
Style: Progressive Rock, Hard Rock
Country: Hatfield, Hertfordshire, England
Time: 61:34
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 444 Mb
Without
getting into all the dirt and rehashing old wounds, I think it's safe
to say that when British band Babe Ruth decided to pack up shop in 1976,
they didn't actually go out on a high note. A mere three years after
releasing their stellar debut album First Base things slowly began to go
south due to a serious of unforeseen circumstances and personnel
changes. The band hit rock bottom when founding member Alan Shacklock
decided that he had had enough in 1975. Fast forward approximately
thirty years and Babe Ruth have seemingly done the impossible; they've
reunited with the classic era lineup of Shacklock (guitars), vocalist
Janita Haan, keyboardist Dave Punshon, bassist Dave Hewitt and drummer
Ed Spevock. As if this wasn't surprising enough, their brand new album
entitled Que Pasa remarkably finds them in many ways picking up right
where First Base left off, and yet they've also brought their sound
right up to date in the process.
While not exactly what you'd call
progressive rock, Babe Ruth's sound was always a formidable blend of
straight ahead classic rock, R&B, soul, Spanish influences, with
classical orchestrations thrown into the mix as well. On Que Pasa
another influence, hip hop, has been added to their diverse sounding
musical gumbo. The reason for this is quite simple; it's their way of
giving back to the whole B-boy culture that helped keep their music
alive during their time out of the spotlight, as one of their most
famous songs "The Mexican" off of First Base went on to become a hit
with the breakers in the late 70's and early 80's, when DJ's like Kool
Herc were spinning the record at house parties in the Bronx.
The
familiar western themes are back in full force throughout opening track
"4 Dear Life", a barnburner of a track that signals the much heralded
return of our heroes. The title track, the first of six tracks to
utilize the skills of turntablist DJ Kidsmeal, finds Haan purring her
sultry tale as Shacklock's acoustic guitar and Punshon's electric piano
creates pure magic as they intertwine effortlessly. Oh...but it's the
third song "The Sun, Moon & Stars" where the band really kicks
things into the stratosphere. Drummer Ed Spevock gets right into the
pocket and lays down a solid groove while Shacklock and Punshon deliver
something fans of the band haven't heard since that first album, which
are those glorious dual harmony lines that were such a big part of Babe
Ruth's sound. The same approach is employed to great effect on "Break
For The Border", which is the lyrical follow up to "The Mexican". This
song not only highlights some sizzling Spanish style guitar and a
smoking solo from Shacklock, but also features plenty of additional
percussive accents from Spevock.
In addition to not only writing some
great music, principal writer Alan Shacklock has also some spun some
masterful prose as well, and vocalist Janita Haan rises to the occasion
as she belts out "Doncha Wanna Dance", "4 Letter Word" and "The Blues"
(two songs with fabulous horn arrangements by the way) with her typical
aplomb. While her vocal pyrotechnics are toned down a bit from the bands
glory days, trust me this woman hasn't lost one ounce of her vocal
power, and she sounds as potent as she ever has.
There's just so much
to like about a record like that is as musically diverse as Que Pasa
is. While some die hard fans might not appreciate the turntable
scratching and hip hop styled beats on some tracks I think the average,
open minded music fan will be able to appreciate what the band is trying
to do here. By picking up a few new influences along the way and
infusing them with the classic Babe Ruth sound that we've all come to
know and love, they can at last say they've delivered a worthy successor
to that classic debut album.
(seaoftranquility.org/reviews.php?op=showcontent&id=9253)
01. 4 Dear life (06:45)
02. Que pasa (05:02)
03. The sun, moon and stars (05:18)
04. Mother tongue (part 1) (02:18)
05. Apache (01:47)
06. Mother tongue (part 2) (04:35)
07. Doncha wanna dance (05:28)
08. Break for the border (05:33)
09. Killer smile (05:47)
10. 4 Letter word (05:32)
11. The blues (07:34)
12. The Mexican Millenium (part 1) (03:04)
13. Santa Ana (02:10)
14. The Mexican Millenium (part 2) (00:36)
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