Roger Mcguinn Peace On You CD

Personnel: Roger McGuinn (vocals, guitar, 12-string guitar); Roger McGuinn; Donnie Dacus (vocals, guitar, 6-string guitar, background vocals); Howard Kaylan, Mark Volman (vocals, background vocals); Gwendolyn Edwards, Brenda Gordon, Brooks Hunnicutt, Brian Russell, Paul Stallworth, William McLeish Smith, Tim Coulter, Jorge Calderon (vocals); Al Kooper (guitar, piano, Clavinet, keyboards); Al Perkins (steel guitar); Tommy Tedesco (flamenco guitar); Paul "Harry" Harris (keyboards); Lee Sklar (bass guitar); Dan Fogelberg (vocals, guitar, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, background vocals); Paul Harris (keyboards); Russ Kunkel (drums, percussion).
Liner Note Authors: Tony Lawrence; Jud Cost.
Recording information: The Record Plant, Los Angeles, CA (1974); Wally Heider's, Los Angeles, CA (1974).
Illustrator: John Van Hamersveld.
Arrangers: Bill Halverson; Lee Kiefer; Al Kooper.
The solo career of this great rock artist took a while to gather some steam; his 1976 album, Cardiff Rose, showed that with at least some consistent production and a tight backing ensemble, he could put across a powerful musical vision without having to rely totally on re-creating the sound of the Byrds. For this 1974 album his focus is as wandering as a glaucoma patient who has just gone through a two-hour field test. Many different influences come into his musical world, like strange cooks passing through a kitchen and dropping odd things into the stew. There is heavy collaborating with songwriter Jacques Levy, who like McGuinn was part of Bob Dylan's chaotic music world during this period. While Levy has fans who feel he brought great riches to the kingdoms of artists such as McGuinn, the offerings from the McGuinn and Levy songwriting team on this album, such as "Together" and "The Lady," are packed with corny images and shallow sentiments -- in other words, not exactly what one is used to hearing from McGuinn in his practically angelic role as a lead vocal spokesman for the Byrds. A bit of Turtles sauce goes in courtesy of vocal contributions from Howard Kaylan and Mark Volman -- it doesn't add much, but at least doesn't detract, which is more than can be said for the song contributions of session pro Al Kooper or the wimpy Dan Fogelberg. The title of the former artist's tune is a gift to critics and the public alike: "(Please Not) One More Time." One Donnie Dacus offers another pair of nothing songs, while the album's title number, courtesy of country singer Charlie Rich and hyped to the hilt via the album's artwork, is also pretty much a disappointment, a one-idea song that badly muddles the all-important opening track parade. [The 2004 CD reissue on Sundazed adds a previously unreleased McGuinn-Levy composition, "Rock & Roll Time," as a bonus track, and also includes historical liner notes with quotes from McGuinn.] ~ Eugene Chadbourne
The solo career of this great rock artist took awhile to gather some steam; his 1976 album, Cardiff Rose, showed that with at least some consistent production and a tight backing ensemble, he could put across a powerful musical vision without having to rely totally on re-creating the sound of the Byrds. For this 1974 album his focus is as wandering as a glaucoma patient who has just gone through a two-hour field test. Many different influences come into his musical world, like strange cooks passing through a kitchen and dropping odd things into the stew. There is heavy collaborating with songwriter Jacques Levy, who like McGuinn was part of Bob Dylan's chaotic music world during this period. While Levy has fans who feel he brought great riches to the kingdoms of artists such as McGuinn, the offerings from the McGuinn and Levy songwriting team on this album, such as "Together" and "The Lady," are packed with corny images and shallow sentiments -- in other words, not exactly what one is used to hearing from McGuinn in his practically angelic role as a lead vocal spokesman for the Byrds. A bit of TurtleDirty Linen (4/04, p.59) - "The best song, and maybe the most personal one, is 'Gate of Horn'....He pulls you in with this bluesy trip down memory lane..."