Search - Cryan Shames :: Scratch in the Sky

Had forgotten how much I liked this album

Richard P. Collins | 01/04/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Am a fan of this group and have the album but the quality of a CD is much better."

The Best of The Midwest

Edward Schweinberg | Peoria | 05/01/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"You really had to live in the Midwest in the late '60's to appreciate this band. They toured all over the Midwest, were probably the first rock and roll band that many people experienced. You could hear all of their hits on WLS-AM-Chicago. "A Scratch in the Sky" is their masterpiece accomplishment without any doubt. Growing up downstate Illinois, this band was as big as any in the country or abroad, at least here in the Midwest. They played at big auditoriums or small dance halls. The shows they put on were of the A+ catorgory. I saw them twice, once at small dance hall in Bloomington, Illinois and again at Illinois State University Horton Field house and they put on a show that I have remembered all my life. The other two Columbia releases are great too, but this one is it."

Classic Midwest 60's Pop/Rock

Boomertunes | Illinois USA | 12/23/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In the mid to late 1960's, Chicago was a boom town for bands that broke nationally-The Buckinghams, Spanky and Our Gang, The New Colony Six, The Ides Of March, The American Breed, and The Shadows Of Knight.

Although their national success didn't quite match those groups, the Cryan' Shames were hugely popular in the Chicago area and the upper Midwest and received lots of airplay on local radio. Their three Columbia LP releases were essential records of the time if you lived in the area.

Their second album, "A Scratch In The Sky", is part of the Sundazed reissue series of the group's catalog. It features the original eleven song line-up (along with five single or mono versions of those tracks) and two songs previously unavailable on album.

If there ever was a model for Chicago radio in 1967/1968, it would have to be this album. You can hear Beatle, Beach Boy, Byrd, and Association influences throughout the material and arrangements(add a dash of garage and psychedelia, also).

Songwriters James Fairs and Lenny Kerley knew how to write hooks for their tunes, too. "It Could Be We're In Love" dominated the Chicago AM airwaves when classic radio singles were everywhere. Along with that Shames' classic, the other highlights of this set are the rocking "Mr. Unreliable"; both versions of the lovely "I Was Lonely When"; the Brian Wilson homage "A Carol For Lorelei"; and the unique "Sunshine Psalm".

Their take on the Carole King/Gerry Goffin classic "Up On The Roof" was a regional hit featuring a big arrangement of nifty lead and background vocals.

The two special bonus tracks are a reflective James Fairs' beauty entitled "The Warm" and a moving cover of Oliver's "Young Birds Fly" featuring Tom Doody's heartfelt lead vocal.

As was always true with the Shames' work, the vocal work and musicianship is top notch."