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Non-Prog CD Reviews

Tony Natale

The Camden Promise

Review by Gary Hill

Have you ever fantasized about going back in time? This album might make you feel like you've done that. It wouldn't be a stretch of the imagination to listen to this and be convinced that the year is 1968. This really feels like a slice of that long lost time. This is a cool disc that has a fairly wide range while serving as a time capsule.

This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2017  Volume 5 at  garyhillauthor.com/Music-Street-Journal-2017.

Track by Track Review
What If You Did?

I really like the bass line that dances around prominently on the background of this. The cut itself feels like hippie pop rock from the 1970s/ It's just such a slab of historic sound. It manages to pull that off while also exhibiting catchy hooks and an entertaining song.

Nobody

Another song that's like a blast from the past, this feels like what you might get if you combined The Monkees with Motown. The vocals have a more modern element to them, though. I really dig the guitar fills that dance around the outside of this.

Your Love Takes Me Home

A mellower cut, folk and psychedelia work together on this.

Promiseman

A driving rocker, this is also packed with retro textures. It really feels like something that could have come out of the psychedelic hey-day of the 1960s. It's a powerhouse cut. That much is certain.

3 Days on the Road

There are definitely bits of this that make me think of Santana. Again, I feel like I've been teleported to the late 1960s. This retro rocker has a lot of folk music built into it. It has some killer guitar fills, too.

U Shine

In some ways this has more of a modern element at play. I love the guitar soloing later in the piece that has a bit of an Adrian Belew vibe. The percussion is really in the driver seat a lot of the time here. This is another cool tune. It's not as retro-tinged as the stuff that's come before, but that aspect is still present.

Boogie Around

A harder rocking tune. the retro stylings are back in full here. This is another piece that feels like a piece of the late 1960s/ The psychedelic rock elements are driving this blues rocker.

Insanity

This does feel rather insane. There are things that are tied to punk rock in this. Overall, though, it leans more along the lines of old-school psychedelic music. That said, I can hear hints of Lords of the New Church styled things here.

The Way You Walk

While this is also based on 1960s sounds, it's more of the pop music of the time. I'm talking about the stuff that's more like adult contemporary these days. This has some jazzy elements at its heart. It's catchy and entertaining and feels tied to the Motown kind of sound. A half-time movement later brings into some serious jazz territory. It's not my favorite tune, but it lends some variety to the table. I tend to think that this would have worked better earlier in the set, though.

 
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