Patto Roll Em Smoke Em Put Another Line Out Review by Gary Hill
I hadn't heard of this act until recently, but in the course of the last couple months I've reviewed a number of their discs, this one included. This act is often considered a jazz prog band. I can see that to some degree. They have a basis in a lot more mainstream hard rock sound in a lot of ways, though. Still, this has enough prog to land it there. This album has a tendency to get very weird, but it's still well worth having. There are three bonus tracks in the form of some performances recorded on John Peel's radio show.
This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2017 Volume 4 at lulu.com/strangesound.
Track by Track Review
Flat Footed Woman
This comes up gradually with some really bizarre sounds. It's freaky stuff in terms of the odd bits of sound and the weird vocals. Then they launch into more of a mainstream rock sound from there. In fact, this is very much a standard blues rocker at its core. Still, here are enough interesting elements over the top to qualify it as prog, particularly after that weird intro. The powerhouse instrumental section takes us into some serious jazz oriented territory. The ending movement brings into some seriously bizarre proggy stuff, too.
Singing the Blues on Reds
They bring this in as another hard rocking bluesy cut. This is a fairly straight rock oriented cut until around the three minute mark when they take it out into a trippy kind of proggy jam that's quite cool. Some funk shows up later as the jam turns jazzier. There is a bit of a James Brown thing right at the end.
Mummy
With some spoken stuff and laughter at the start, we get a weird acapella treatment here. Some voices in the background sing bits at the back. Then a spoken voice does some pretty bizarre stuff. This is definitely weird. It's quite sexual, and in a very twisted way.
Loud Green Song
I'm not sure about the "green" part of the title, but this is a loud rocker. It makes me think of a cross between Alice Cooper and the Rolling Stones in some ways. The guitar jamming takes it in some different directions, perhaps closer to Jimi Hendrix and Blue Cheer. This definitely leans toward punk rock.
Turn Turtle
There is a lot of old time rock and roll built into this. It has some jazz, and some prog is laced over the top. It's fast paced and classy. The freaky jam and weirdness late in the track land it near the Rock In Opposition style of prog.
I Got Rhythm
Bluesy rocking psychedelia brings this into being. The lyrics on this might be problematic for some people. Overall, though, this is more of a mainstream rocker than it is anything else.
Peter Abraham
The same kind of weirdness that opened the album starts off this song. The cut grows out from there to more of a mainstream psychedelic rocker. I can make out some Beatles elements on this thing. The cut has some definite straight-line elements, but also works into more freeform weirdness at various points.
Cap'n P and the Attos Sea Biscuits Parts One and Two
This is incredibly strange stuff. It's very freeform and bizarre. There are definitely pirate based things here that work well. The later parts of this are made up of theatrics and sound-effects.
Bonus Tracks
General Custer
The first of three songs recorded on John Peel's BBC One radio show in 1973, this is a fairly straightforward rock and roller.
Flat Footed Woman
There is a lot of jazz on this live rendition. It's a cool rocker that works really well. The jamming takes it into some interesting directions. The ending is particularly bizarre.
Singing the Blues on Reds
Coming in with more of a bluesy jazz rock sound, this gets some funk right out of the gate in this performance. I definitely hear some James Brown in this thing. They bring it out into jazzier stuff later in the piece.
