Search - Pretty Things :: Parachute

Hidden Treasure

Hans Meuller | Chicago IL | 03/28/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This album is about the beginning of the 1970s and the ending of the 1960s. Usually bonus tracks take away from an album, but these add to it. My favorite songs on the original album include "Sickle Clowns" where the liner notes indicate it was inspired by the film "Easy Rider"--the end of the 60s. Other favorites are "Cries From the Midnight Circus" where the lyrics describe a sailor being robbed and murdered by two hookers. That song is driven by a heavy bass line and a riveting guitar. Think of Jimi Hendrix "Voodo Child" meets the Beatles "Come Together"--songs from the end of the 60s that were inspired by bluesmen like Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker. Fast forward to the end of the 70s and listen to the Kinks "Low Budget". A third favorite is "Grass"--a song about being separated from the person you love. With its acoustic guitar, 4-part vocal harmonies, and mellotron, you hear a mellower side of the Pretties. Most of the songs are incomplete (think of the Beatles Abbey Road album}, but they make them work. The bonus tracks rock with "Summertime" using the lyrical lead guitar normally associated with the Allman Brothers and great vocal harmonies (think of the Beatles, Byrds, Beach Boys, Hollies, Buffalo Springfield, CSN&Y, etc.). The final track "Circus Mind" features a Stratocaster being played through a Leslie (courtesy of 18-year old Peter Tolson) and almost gospel like vocals from Phil May. Supposedly, this song is about Phil's girlfriend at the time (1971). Think of Grateful Dead meets Jimi Hendrix at his mellower moments. This album anticipated the heavy metal and glam rock of the early 70s as well as the new wave and punk rock of the later 70s and early 80s. It also shows an influence of the blues, progressive, and folk rock influences of the late 60s."

Superb Remastering

William R. Bettler | Indiana | 03/29/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This classic album is now available in K2 HD remastering. If sound quality matters to you, please seek it out. Other critics have downplayed the fact that Rolling Stone named this the album of the year for 1970. While it may not have the gravitas of Let It Be or Layla and Assorted Love Songs (other albums from the same era), it is a very strong set. The Pretty Things' harmonies are celestial, the songs are witty and concise, and, as mentioned above, the K2 HD sound quality is superb. If you like Kinks, Who, Zombies, don't hesitate on this one."

A parachute of greatness

B. E Jackson | Pennsylvania | 03/29/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Normally I disagree strongly with Rolling Stone magazine (to put it lightly) but in this particular case, Parachute really SHOULD have been a better selling album than it turned out to be. It really is a fantastic album.



What's amazing to me is how drastically different the music on here is compared to S.F. Sorrow, but I guess that's to be expected since two whole years had passed since that album was made, and as we know, the music scene was changing VERY quickly back then in just a matter of months (maybe even weeks!).



"Cries from the Midnight Circus" has some really great guitar playing. This is definitely NOT anything like what you've heard the Pretty Things attempt just a few years before- now it sounds like the band wants to play hard rock in the same style as Steppenwolf or the Guess Who (yes, believe it or not, the Guess Who rocked the house occasionally).



Sounding similar to those two excellent bands is definitely NOT a bad thing, but it does make Parachute sound a bit dated by todays standards. It shows me why Parachute hasn't gone down as a classic. Of course, I personally could care less how dated an album sounds- it's the songwriting that counts. If the album's good, that's the only thing that really matters.



"Grass" contains *beautiful* guitar playing in all the right places. It reminds me of a Wishbone Ash song that would come out a couple years later.



"Sickle Clowns" is the highlight of the entire album. Amazing John Lennon-like soaring vocal range, magnificent guitar solos, a slight degree of "messiness" (and I mean that in an appealing way because it's beautiful) and just a spectacular song all around.



No, this is not in the same league as S.F. Sorrow (how CAN it be? This is just really good hard rock and S.F. Sorrow is one of the greatest and most underrated concept albums ever made) but it comes darn close in spots."