Molkie Cole


Band members                              Related acts

  line up 1 (1972-79 and 2006)

- Pat Cole -- vocals, bass 

- Tim Cole -- vocals, drums percussion, harmonica

- Philip James -- vocals, guitar 

- Paul Pope -- vocals, lead guitar

- Bob Steinmetz -- vocals, keyboards, sax 

 

 

 

- The Paul Pope Band

 

 

 


 

Genre: rock

Rating: 3 stars ***

Title:  Molkie Cole

Company: Janus

Catalog: JXS 7031
Year:
 1977

Country/State: Cleveland, Ohio

Grade (cover/record): VG+/VG+

Comments: gatefold sleeve

Available: 1

Catalog ID: 2302

Price: $20.00

 

I almost didn't buy this album; put off my the Neon Parks cover that gave me a county-rock vibe and the Hello People makeup that a couple of band members favored ...  Luckily for a buck I figured I could take a chance on this one.

 

Molkie Cole (the name inspired by a deaf cat one of the members owned) came together in 1972, showcasing the talents of brothers Pat (guitar) and Tim Cole (drums), rounded out by guitarist Philip James, lead guitarist Paul Pope, and keyboardist Bob Steinmetz.  The band's career almost came to a premature ending when a fire destroyed the barn they were practicing in.  The fire also destroyed most of their equipment (and was commemorated in Neon Parks' album cover art).  Blending bar boogie and more theatrical moves (most of the online concert reviews take great pleasure in mentioning the band's penchants for dry ice and bubble machines), he band became fairly popular throughout Northeast Ohio and Western New York.  

 

top left to right: Philip James - Tim Cole - Pat Cole

bottom left to right: Paul Pope - Bob Steinmetz

 

In 1974 the band recorded a four song demo for the Ohio based Owl label.  Owl passed on the band, but pressed at least one copy of the demo (I've also seen a reference to 50 copies). Today the demo (housed in a generic white sleeve) commands a pretty stiff asking price.  I've seen one dealer asking $500.  'Course the dealer described the music as being progressive/psych.  It isn't ...  

 

Two years later the band finally got a chance to record via a contract with the California-based Janus label.  I honestly didn't know what to expect from this one given Janus was best known for signing European progressive leaning outfits.  On the other hand, given some of the bands these guys opened for (Cheap Trick, Kansas, Ted Nugent, etc.), I expected to hear some standard mid-1970s AOR material.  Produced by James Testa, the cleverly titled "Molkie Cole" didn't really fit either category.  These guys clearly had quite a bit of talent.  Pope had a nice voice and turned in some nice lead guitar throughout the collection.  Unfortunately they didn't have a great deal of artistic focus.  With five of the six members contributing material (four members handled lead vocals), the ten tracks bounced all over the musical spectrum giving the album a very unfocused, occasionally schizophrienic feel.  'Missing the Point' and 'Everything's Going To Be Alright' offered up fairly conventional rockers, the letter would have actually sounded good on top-40 radio. From there it got progressively stranger.  'Jackson' found the band in progressive land.  'Winter' sounded like a Graham Parker outtake.  Complete with Polish lyrics (?), 'Kapolsky' had a Beatlesque feel (and was probably the best song on the album).  'It's True' offered up baroque bubblegum. 'The Last Song' found the group apparently trying to mimic a mersybeat band ...  Gawd only knows if they were serious, or just goofing around.   At the other end of the spectrum 'Sugar Boogie' and 'Steel Grapes' showcased the band's quirkier edge.  Quirky can be okay, but here it was just irritating.  Without a doubt they must have been a blast to see in a club setting, but on vinyl the results just came off as disjointed.  Janus also tapped the album for a single:

 

 

 

 

 

-1975's 'Sugar Boogie' b/w 'Lullabye' (Janus catalog number J-268)

 

 

 

 

 

"Molkie Cole" track listing:
(side 1)

1.) Sugar Boogie   (Tim Cole - Robert Steinmetz) - 2:59

2.) Missing the Point   (Tim Cole) - 3:09

3.) Steel Grapes   (Tim Cole) - 2:58

4.) Everything's Going To Be Alright   (Philip James) - 3:06

5.) The Last Song   (Paul Pope) - 3:30

 

(side 2)
1.) Jackson   (Tim Cole - Paul Pope) - 3:40

2.) Winter   (Paul Pope) - 3:40

3.) Kapolsky  (Robert Steinmetz) - 3:03

4.) It's True   (Paul Pope) - 2:53

5.) Lullabye   (Tim Cole - Paul Pope) - 3:38

 

Opening for the likes of Cheap Trick, Meatloaf, and Ted Nugent got the band some national exposure and the album actually sold well in the Cleveland - reportedly some 30,000 copies.  The band continued to tour for the next two years, finally calling it quits in 1979 with a reported 961 performances under the collective belts.

 

Pope subsequently struck out in pursuit of a solo career, recording a number of albums with the Paul Pope Band and has a small web presence at:

 

http://www.paulpopeonline.com/

 

Just short of three decades later, in 2006 the band reunited for a couple of shows in Ohio.  The reunions saw the band record a two DVD set - released as "Molkie Cole - MMVI".  

 

They've set up a website at:

http://www.molkiecole.net/

 

And thanks to YouTube you can see quite a few reunion performances.  Neither the picture of sound quality's particularly good, but to give you a feel for these guys I linked to a pair of their more interesting covers from a May 2007 performance in Buffalo:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zk1hDf_xJZA

'2000 Light Years from Home'

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qtC76x6ni0

'I Am the Walrus'

 

 

 

 

 

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