Search - If :: Waterfall

NOSTALGIA NOTHING --- THIS IS JUST GREAT MUSIC!

Milton Gregory Grew | Woodbury, CT United States | 12/08/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I first heard the Waterfall LP back around 1975 in Canada when my high school buddy's older brother had a copy and we used to listen to his albums after school. I listened to it over and over. Then I found it in a record store and continued to listen to it often. I still take the LP out and listen but now I have a CD of it as well. I get way too much pleasure from this album and the earlier If recordings. It's hard to describe but you get the sense that these musicians really enjoyed what they were doing and they knew it was a unique and creative blend of rock and jazz but with great melodies, lyrics and solos. You really wish bands like this could just go on but they always seem to come to an early end. I am just thankful that I was introduced to them early enough and my enjoyment of them has not diminished over the years."

Essential stuff for IF fans

tony_hunt | 10719 Berlin Germany | 02/01/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Many of the titles on this CD correspond to those on IF 4 and/or Europe '72, but are mostly live takes and are different to those on Europe '72, which makes for interesting comparison. Given that Europe '72 is the ultimate, I'd recommend enjoying Waterfall first. The production leaves something to be desired on some tracks, hence only four stars, but this CD is still an essential part of the small number of recordings by IF that'll we'll have to live with: with the recent tragically early decease of Dick Morrissey, we'll certainly never get any more.Three of the tracks feature a new, but also excellent rhythm section of Dave Wintour (bass) and Cliff Davies (drums). The latter wrote Cast No Shadows, which along with Paint Your Pictures (Morrissey) are, I believe, only to be found on this album and are so good they would on their own justify its purchase."

HEY, WHAT'S THAT ON THE COVER?

Kerry Leimer | Makawao, Hawaii United States | 04/14/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I can't actually describe my reasons for liking If -- they are sorta kinda like a number of other brass-inflected rock/fusion outfits of the period, and yet still not at all similar. Unusual vocals, less rhythmic predicability, tight ensemble work in favor of featured solos. I guess that's enough. Or perhaps by now it is simply a form of aural nostalgia, but the music has a bounce and tone that strikes me as still rare enough, especially the instrumental tracks here and throughout their too-small a catalog. Perfect music for light household chores or better still an outdoor gathering of a mid-summer evening."