Jeremy and the Satyrs
Banglior Desh | Cape Cod | 09/12/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Buy this if you have a special feeling for what was happening in the late 1960's, but this is not typical in any way of what was happening back then. Back in the day, this is one of those albums I had to play for everyone. These guys had carved out something special, even it if was fleeting. I guess you could say that this music is a "unique fusion of jazz and psychedelic rock." But the blues is in here too, and it's good, and there's more of it than "psychedelia". The bluesy mug shots of these guys on the back of the original album (inside on the CD) don't telegraph the talent that is heard within. These aren't your regional musicians who banded together, managed to get a record contract, and even a modicum of success. These guys are cream of the crop musicians, make no mistake about that. Jeremy Steig (son of "Shrek" author and illustrator William Steig) and Eddie Gomez may be more familiar to aficionados than Warren Bernhardt and Donald MacDonald, but all are respected jazz musicians and demonstrate their talents wonderfully on this album. MacDonald does not play rock drums--even when he's rocking the guy is jazzed. But for me personally it is Adrian Guillary who is the heart of this band. His vocals are city tough and he attacks his guitar with raw staccato passion. And as good as he can attack, he can finesse. Listen to his intro on "She Didn't Even Say Goodbye." You'll hear no guitar pedals here--just Guillary, his guitar and his amp (and he plays the harp, too). The only thing that bothers me about this band is that they never made another album together, and I deeply regret the absence of Guillary to the wider music scene. Adrian, if you're out there...man, you were one of the best."