SRC
Band members Related acts
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line up 1 (1967) - E.G. Clawson
(RIP) --
drums, percussion line up 2 (1967-70) - E.G. Clawson (aka
Scott WIlliamson) (RIP) --
drums, percussion
line up 3 (1970-71 - E.G. Clawson (aka
Scott WIlliamson
(RIP) --
drums, percussion Gary
Quackenbush) line up 4 (1971-72) - E.G. Clawson (aka Scott WIlliamson (RIP) -- drums, percussion
- Ray Goodman -- lead guitar - Al Wilmot (RIP 2005) -- bass, vocals
line up 4 (1972) - E.G. Clawson (aka Scott WIlliamson (RIP) -- drums, percussion - Ray Goodman -- lead guitar NEW
- Richard Haddad
(RIP) -- bass (replaced Al Wilmot) (1971-72)
line up 5 (1972) - E.G. Clawson (aka Scott WIlliamson (RIP) -- drums, percussion NEW
- Bryan Coons -- bass (replaced Richard
Haddad)
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- Blue Scepter
- The Chosen Few (Scot Richard Case) - Al Wilmont and the Groove Monsters |
Genre: psych Rating: *** (3 stars) Title: SRC Company: Capitol Catalog: ST 2991 Country/State: Ann Arbor, Michigan Year: 1968 Grade (cover/record): VG+/VG+ Comments: -- Available: SOLD Catalog number: SOLD Price: SOLD
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Originally known as The Tremelos (not to be
confused with the English band) and then The Fugitives (see separate entry),
SRC were among the found member's of Detroit's burgeoning mid-'60s rock
scene. Showcasing the talents of brothers Gary (guitar) and Glenn
(keyboards) Quackenbush, the original lineup was rounded out by drummer E.G.
Clawson , bassist Robin Dale, guitarist Steve Lyman and lead singer Scott
Richardson.
1.) Black Sheep (SRC) - 4:46
(side
2)
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Genre: psych Rating: *** (3 stars) Title: Milestones Company: Capitol Catalog: ST-134 Country/State: Ann Arbor, Michigan Year: 1969 Grade (cover/record): VG+/VG+ Comments: -- Available: 1 Catalog number: 3635 Price: $40.00
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Co-produced by John Eddins and SRC, having
enjoyed a taste of commercial success with their debut album, 1969's "Milestones"
reflected a growing sense of comfort in the studio and an apparent
willingness to stretch their musical boundaries. The second album wasn't a
wholehearted departure from their debut, but there some notable
changes. While tracks like the opening rocker 'No Secret Destination'
and 'I
Remember Your Face' retained psychedelic elements, the collection was far
more diverse this time around. As an example. material such as 'Show Me' and
'Eye of the Storm' found the group traveling a surprisingly commercial AOR road.
Nah, the results were not perfect. As reflected in their extended medley of
'In the Hall of the Mountain King/Bolero', the band added a needless classical/progressive
element to their catalog. You had to wonder if they'd latched on to
some ELP. The extended closer 'The Angel Song' found them
mucking around in Moody Blues territory. Luckily those were isolated
side trips, with a tougher, but still commercial rock sound predominating
throughout the collection. Plenty of highlights to my ears,
including the radio-friendly 'Checkmate' (which I would have tapped as the
single) and 'Up All Night'. Boasting
strong melodies, Richardson's nifty voice, and guitarist Gary Quackenbush's
crushing fuzz lead guitar, the set should have been a late-'60s FM
favorite. Unfortunately, their sophomore release proved another minor seller, the set peaked
at #134. 1.) No Secret Destination (SRC) - 4:17 rating: **** stars The
psyche-tinged opener featured some riveting Gary Quackenbush
fuzz lead guitar. Coupled with one of the album's strongest melodies
and some frenetic E.G. Clawson drums, this one would have made a dandy FM
single. The band reunited in June, 2012 and YouTube has a clip of the
survivors taking a stab at this track. Be warned, the sound is crap:: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aTyfn9DDgM Admittedly
I tend to be a sucker for any song with a prominent bass line
... Since the breezy ballad 'Show Me' opened up with a prominent Al
Wilmot bass line, this one went over well with me.
Another
quick dash into lysergic territory yields on of the band's best
performances. Propelled by Gary Quackenbush's
growling fuzz lead guitar, Scott Richardson
and the rest of the band seldom sounded as good.
The
aural equivalent of cotton
candy laced with LSD ... Always smile when I hear the treated
background vocals. Reminds me of a nod to the Magical Mystery Tour era
Fab Four. Apparently
a staple in their live show, I'll forgive most of this six minute excursion
as being a reflection of then popular themes. Nah, it wasn't
totally horrible - once again E.G. Clawson's
Keith Moon styked drumming and Gary Quackenbush's growling fuzz lead
guitar injected some interesting moments into the results, though this was
far from the album's creative high point. (side 1) 1.) Checkmate (SRC) - 3:42 rating: **** stars Probably my pick
for the album's standout performance, 'Checkmate' had a chess-related that
lyric that was goofy, but surprisingly charming. Also of interested
was the fact guitarist Gary Quackenbush
normally dominated the arrangements, but this time around that honor went to
keyboardist Glenn Quackenbush. 'Our
Little Secret' found the band slowing the tempo down, adding a nice little
slide guitar figure to what was one of their prettiest
performances. Almost garage-rock-ish in feel. You also got a
rare opportunity to hear the band's nice backing harmonies capabilities.
Every time I hear 'Turn Into Love' it becomes clear that I never would have made it in the world of music promotion. Displaying a hideous mash-up of doo-wop influences and Gary Quackenbush's fuzz guitar, this was easily the album's worst performance. Other than wanting to destroy the band's career, I couldn't even begin t guess why Capitol marketing thought it would make a dandy single. Simply awful choice.
- 1969's 'Turn Into Love' b/w 'Up All NIght' (Capitol catalog number P-2457)
Another
tune with a killer garage-rock vibe. And another tune that would have
made a far better single than the lame 'Turn Into Love'. Shame
it was lost as the "B" side on that throwaway single. The
album might be worth the purchase price just for Gary Quackenbush's
opening guitar segment on the extended closer 'The Angel Song'.
Admittedly the spoken word segment hasn't aged all that well. To my
ears it recalled something off of an early-'70s Moody Blues collection -
hard to tell if it was meant to be deep and insightful, or simply
over-the-top pomposity ... Well it will certainly appeal to
English and Philosophy majors everywhere.
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Genre: psych Rating: *** (3 stars) Title: Traveler's Tale Company: Capitol Catalog: SKAO 273 Country/State: Ann Arbor, Michigan Year: 1970 Grade (cover/record): VG+/VG+ Comments: minor ring and edge wear; gatefold sleeve Available: 1 Catalog number: 5051 Price: $40.00
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Prior to going into the studio to record their third album, guitarist Gary Quackenbush was involved in a nasty motorcycle crash that left him sidelined with a broken arm for a year. Rather than delay the recording sessions, 1970's "Traveler's Tale" saw guitarist Ray Goodman brought in as a repalcement. In spite of the personnel change, the album wasn't a major change in musical direction. In his role as lead singer Scot Richardson remained an acquired taste, continuing his penchant for singing flat and trying to cover his limited range and delivery with vocal histrionics - check out the painful closer 'The Offering' where you were left to wonder whether he was gonna make it to the end. Tracks like 'A New Crusader' (good) and the instrumental 'Across the Land of Light' (bad) found the band continuing to mine their Hammond and guitar powered progressive/psych hybrid with mixed results. Having recently pulled all three LPs out, I'll readily admit that their third studio set had a slightly more progressive orientation than the two earlier releases. It wasn't the most original or consistent release you've ever heard, but 'Midnight Fever' was one of their better straight ahead rockers, while 'Never Before Now' was one of their most blatantly commercial offerings.
All told it was probably the weakest of their three original studio releases, but the album had enough going for it to be worth a spin and it grows on you after awhile. Also a word of warning for audiophiles - as the album engineers blame the Glenn Quackenbush and E.G. Clawson for the collection's slightly muddy sound. Who knows, maybe it was just my copy.
"Traveler's
Tale" track listing: 1.) A New Crusader (Scott Richardson - Glenn Quackenbush - Ray Goodman) - 7:04 rating: **** stars For
some reason the opening of 'A New Crusader' has always reminded me of
something out of the Uriah Heep catalog. Guess it might have had
something to do with Glenn Quackenbush's
Hammond B-3 work. As mentioned earlier, clocking in at over seven
minutes, this was also one of those tunes that carried a more progressive
flavor, though the harmony vocals gave the song kind of a Beach Boys sheen. Always
liked the Gregorian chant-styled vocal sections. Kicked along by
Quakenbush's keyboards, the song had a nice enough melody, but really didn't
take off until Ray Goodman' fuzz solo
came to the rescue. Shame it took so long and didn't last longer. Unlike
the first two tracks, 'Midnight Fever' found the band turning towards bar
band, blues-rock. Built on a crushing Al
Wilmot bass line, Goodman's fuzz guitar, and Quackenvush's jittery
keyboards, this one was far better than you would have expected. Built on a roly-poly keyboard figure, 'Never Before Now' was probably the most mainstream and commercial track the band ever recorded - certainly the most commercial tune on this album. Capitol seemingly agreed with that assessment, tapping the song as a promotional 45, though the label doesn't seem to have released a stock copy of the single:
- 1970's 'Never Before Now' b/w 'My Fortune's Coming True' (Capital catalog number 2726)
(side
2) Initially
'By Way of You' struck me as being the band at their worst - a forgettable
melody; Richardson trying to power his way through the track; needless
complexity. Still not a favorite, but Goodman turned in a monstrous
solo and it's far better than my original valuation. A
jazz-rock-flavored ballad, 'Diana' captured the band at their nadir.
About the only nice things I can say about this one were it was relatively
brief and Wilmont turned in some nice
bass work. Let
me describe this with three words - pretentious and forgettable.
Actually the midsection of the song found the band stumbling into what
sounded like a "B: movie film score, before they moved on to some ELP-inspired
jamming. Geez, did I put on a Todd Rundgren album by mistake? 'The Offering' was another progressive-tinged tune with Richardson turning in a flat and irritating vocal and Goodman's lead guitar once again provided the song's most enjoyable component.
The band briefly struggled on through a couple of personnel changes, releasing a 1972 single for the small Big Casino label:
- 1972's 'Born To Love' b/w 'Badaz Shuffle' (instrumental) Big Casino catalog number BC-1001)
Under the name Blue Scepter, the band somehow attracting the attention of Motown which released one final single on the company's rock oriented Rare Earth subsidiary:
- 1972's 'Out In the Night' b/w 'Gypsy Eyes' (Rare Earth catalog number R 5040F)
And that was the end of their recording career ...
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