- Ron Nagle -- vocals, keyboards

  backing musicians

- Jim Barnett - backing vocals

- John Blakeley -- guitar, percussion, backing vocals

- Ry Cooder -- electric bottleneck guitar, rhythm guitar 

- West Virginia Creeper -- steel guitar

- Jimmy Getzoff -- strings

- George Rains -- drums

- Brad Sexton -- bass

- Sal Valentino -- backing vocals

- Mickey Waller -- drums

Jack Nitzsche - percussion

- The Durocs (Ron Nagle)

- The Mystery Trend (Ron Nagle)

Genre: rock

Rating: *** (3 stars)

Title:  Bad Rice

Company: Warner Brothers

Catalog: WS-1902

Year: 1970

Country/State: California, US

Grade (cover/record): VG / VG+

Comments: gatefold sleeve

Available: 1

Catalog ID: 4833

Price: $20.00

My first brush with Ron Nagle was in the late-1970s when I bought an album he recorded as part of the quirky The Durocs.  Little did I know that Nagle had been a key member of San Francisco's legendary The Mystery Trend, let alone that he'd recorded a cool and increasingly difficult to locate solo album.  I also didn't realize that Nagle's a world renown ceramicist.

Co-produced by Tom Donahue and Jack Nitzsche, 1970's "Bad Rice" may be a disappointment to Mystery Trend fans, but I'll readily admit to having a soft spot for it.  With backing from an all-star cast including guitarist Ry Cooder and The Beau Brummels' Sal Valentino, Nagel's compositions are quite attractive with tracks such as ''Party In L.A. and 'Sister Cora' sporting suitably weird lyrics. There's no one musical style, with Nagel and company bouncing across sensitive singer/songwriter introspection (Billy Joel could have recorded 'Frank's Store'), country-rock ('Somethin's Gotta Give Now') and conventional rock ('Capricorn Queen').  Elsewhere, the anti-drug 'Marjuana Hell' was one of the album highlights, though it must have been tongue in cheek given that Nagel's admitted he was stoned and drunk during most of the recording sessions. Certainly not a great or challenging album (check out The Durocs), but one that I routinely pull out one or twice a year for a quick spin.

"Bad Rice" track listing:
(side 1)

1.) 61 Clay   (Ron Nagle) - 2:43

2.) Marjuana Hell   (Ron Nagle - John Blakeley) - 2:50

3.) Frank's Store   (Ron Nagle) - 4:09

4.) Party In L.A.   (Ron Nagle) - 2:28

5.) That's What Friends Are For    (Ron Nagle) - 3:39

(side 2)
1.) Dolores   (Ron Nagle) - 3:22

2.) Capricorn Queen   (Ron Nagle) - 2:37

3.) Sister Cora   (Ron Nagle) - 2:31

4.) Somethin's Gotta Give Now   (Ron Nagle - Frank Robertson) - 2:05

5.) Family Style   (Ron Nagle) - 2:40

6.) House of Mandia   (Ron Nagle) - 2:55