- Stuffy Shmitt-- vocals

- Stuffy Shmitt (solo efforts)

Genre: pop

Rating: 2 stars **

Title:  Stuffy and His Frozen Parachute Band

Company: Paramount

Catalog: PAS-6070
Year: 1973

Country/State: US

Grade (cover/record): VG+/VG+

Comments:  white label promo copy

Available: 1

Catalog ID: 6335

Price: $20.00

Great band name and cool cover (courtesy of Jansen Eding Clapper).   Elsewhere, mediocre folk-rock/pop  album ...   Hum, I guess that was my first Robert Christgau-styled record review.

I guess I could leave it like that, but here's a little more on 1973's "Stuffy and His Frozen Parachute Band".  Produced by Tom Gress, the album offered up little in the way of performance credits, or bibliographical information - certainly nothing to tell you about the make-up of the Frozen Parachute Band.   Assuming he handled the lead vocals, Stuffy had a surprisingly attractive voice that would have actually sounded pretty good on top-40 radio.   Credited with penning all twelve selections, most of the songs had an easy going pop orientation with quite a few including a catchy hook, or refrain.  There wasn't anything particularly original here and you frequently found yourself playing spot-the-influence.  Moreover, a couple of times Stuffy and company came a bit too close to novelty act status - check out 'Giraffe Back Blue' or 'Everybody Hopes Your Mine'.  And while it may sound weird, the songs stood up better when you only heard one or two of them at a time.  Listening to the entire album in one sitting and the set just kind of blurred together ...

"Stuffy and His Frozen Parachute Band" track listing:
(side 1)

1.) Parachute Man   (Stuffy) - 3:44

I'm not sure why, but 'Parachute Man' has always reminded me of one of those mid-1970s singer/songwriters who wanted to make big statements with pop music - think along the lines of Harry Chapin, or maybe even early Billy Joel.  The song wasn't bad, with some nice strumming guitars, an interesting aeronautic-oriented lyric and the cheesy synthesizers that kicked in at the end of the song were great fun.   rating: ** stars

-2.) Giraffe Back Blue   (Stuffy) - 2:36

'Remember the '20s English styled-Vaudevillian sound The New Vaudeville Band tapped into for their fluke mid-1960s hit 'Winchester Cathedral' ?  Well, that seems to have been the inspiration for 'Giraffe Back Blue'.  Cute as a novelty effort ...  nothing more.   rating: ** stars

3.) Oh Me Oh My   (Stuffy) - 3:45

'Oh Me Oh My' had an easy-going, bouncy piano-based melody and some goody lyrics going for it.  I liked this one quite a bit.   rating: *** stars

4.) Captain Jack   (Stuffy) - 3:16

An up-tempo, percussion heavy pop number, 'Captain Jack' had a distinctive mid-'70s vibe including goofy lyrics that was very commercial.   The only drawback were the unnecessarily shrill female backing singers.  rating: *** stars

5.) Home To You Circus   (Stuffy) - 3:19

A pretty acoustic guitar and keyboard-propelled ballad, 'Home To You Circus'  was actually one of the album's nicer performances.  The song also served to showcase Stuffy's likeable voice.   rating: *** stars

6.) Stow-A-Way   (Stuffy) - 3:46

Remember all those mid-tempo ballads Dave Mason released after he quit Traffic ?  Well 'Stow-A-Way' sounded amazingly like one of those songs.  I actually liked it quite a bit though it would have been even better without the shrill backing female chorus.   rating: **** stars

(side 2)
1.) Just Another Jesus   (Stuffy) - 2:58

'Just Another Jesus' started side two with a track that sounded a bit like second-rate Elton John composition.  Easy to picture this one on John's "Madman Across Water" album.   rating: ** stars

2.) My Woman   (Stuffy) - 3:38

 With a breezy, upbeat melody and some eclectic lyrics, 'My Woman' was cute ("she mix my tea with amphetamine ...").   rating: *** stars

3.).Space Ranger   (Stuffy) - 3:40

'Space Ranger' was a bland and forgettable country-oriented number.  The song's standout feature came in the form of the cheesy spacey sound effects.  rating: ** stars

4.) Everybody Hopes Your Mine   (Stuffy) - 2:53

I always disliked the old school country-rock stuff that bands like Command Cody and Dan Hicks made a career out of so 'Everybody Hopes Your Mine' a complete waste to my ears.   rating: * star

5.) Doo-Dah-Day   (Stuffy) - 6:02

If I had to pick a standout track, I guess I'd go with 'Doo-Dah-Day'.  A mid-tempo, acoustic guitar propelled number with some interesting orchestration, this one actually had a touch of originality.  Stuffy also stretched out a bit giving the song a bit more energy than was the norm.   rating: *** stars

6.) My Brothers   (Stuffy) - 3:24

The stark ballad  'My Brothers' offered up a slice of singer/songwriter sensitivity.  A big yech !!!   rating: * star

I'm not sure why, but the preponderance of copies that hit the market seem to be promotional pressings.  There's also a promotional version packaged in a plain white cover with the band name stamped on it.

Stuffy is still active in music and  has a website at:  www.stuffyshmitt.com

Thanks to Fool 3 from the band Suffering Fools of SufferingFools.com for the web line.