- Label: 'Think Like A Key Music'
- Genre: 'Seventies'
- Release Date: '12.12.25.'
Our Rating:
Moonrider are a long lost and almost totally forgotten 70's supergroup formed by Keith West of Tomorrow alongside Family's John Weider, who then roped in future member of Elvis Costello's Attractions Bruce Thomas and (Brian) Chico Greenwood of Ace and Phil May And The Fallen Angels. For this 50th Anniversary re-issue of the bands only album, has for the first time been expanded to include the non-album single and the bands appearance on the Old Grey Whistle Test and BBC In Concert series.
The album opens with the funky guitar intro to Angel Of Mercy that has Doobie Brothers style vocals for this song pleading for more help from that special person who will always be your Angel Of Mercy. Having Someone is begging and pleading for you to be the one that looks after him in that special loving way he needs so much, this sounds like west coast soft rock in search of easy action one well-constructed song at a time.
Our Day's Gonna Come is easy-going laid-back song that claims that they will one day be the chosen one, the supple guitar solo lifts things. Good Things are apparently going to come to you if you can learn the words to this rather pretty, soft country rocker that like much of the album hooks me with the guitar playing. Living On Main Street gives us more sublime playing from John Weider that is anything but Main Street guitar playing, this has a strolling blues feel.
Too Early In The Morning for dealing with all this stuff to make them into the stars they think they should be, the vocal harmonies use some classic stereo separation effects, all the details of why he doesn't want to be up in the morning playing all these late-night guitar licks.
Goldigger is classic 70's bad taste song about a woman they describe as being a Golddigger, on this anthem for the lady that's gonna take all of the band's money if she can. Danger In The Night is laid back and feels so safe that the lyrics end up not matching the music, I could never take music this calm and gentle as being a credible warning for whatever might happen when that person cuts loose.
Ridin' For A Fall has that Doobie Brothers feel for someone whose luck must run out sooner or later. As Long As It Takes he will do everything he can to make sure you love him till the end of time and beyond the cool strings accenting this song.
The bonus material opens with I Found Love (Single A-side) is an admission that it took him a while, but now he's head over heels in love with you and your smiling face, Aah this is sweet soft rock declaration of love of the sort that would make an Eagles fan very happy indeed.
Whisperin Bob Harris then introduced the band on the BBC In Session that I assume was recorded at the Paris Theatre on Lower Regent Street, the session opens with Golddigger that sounds very similar to the album version, only the vocals have more of an angry edge to them, with the guitar letting loose a bit more. Having Someone has a gentle country groove to this song asking for the right kind of person to love you through the night and long into the future.
Whisperin Bob then does some intros before Our Day's Gonna Come with the gentle backing showing why Bob loved them, but how they were very much the right band at the wrong time, they are totally easy listening. Danger In The Night sounds slower and the tale of danger in the station late at night was covered far better by The Jam on Down In The Tube Station At Midnight, this lacks the menace it needs but instead has a superb guitar solo.
Bob does the band intros for them and explains what bands they had all been in before Too Early In The Morning that's all about that guitar figure and how it bends and mutates through this tale of being kept up late at night. They close the In Session set with Riding For A Fall before Sassafras follow them on, this version has extra cowbell and again is far too laid back to feel dangerous in anyway, it's far more hillbilly than anything.
The Old Grey Whistle Test version of Golddigger is again all about that John Weider guitar part, while the tale of how she's gonna fleece ya of everything you have if she can unfolds again. It is almost like he's jealous that she's with you rather than him while calling you a bitch of a guy. The album closes with The Old Grey Whistle Test version of Danger In The Night introduced once again by Whisperin Bob Harris, this is all easy-going gentle backing and cool harmony vocals trying to get you to be scared of what happens at night in the least frightening ways possible, beware of that station at night
Find out more at https://www.thinklikeakey.com/release/548368-moonrider-moonrider-50th-anniversary-edition
