Customer Reviews

Last Record Album

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Unfortunately, this album saw Little Feat starting down their long trajectory to musical mediocrity. Lowell George's problems began reducing his influence over the band, most of the hooks were gone, and an increasing jazz influence resulted in more fusion-type noodling and fewer funky Southern grooves. Furthermore, the band was apparently discovering synthesizers, which begin to make their unwelcome presence felt.

This is not a bad album, but it's unfortunate that the title turned out to be false advertising.

Little Feat was (and still is) a band needed to be heard live to capture their best work; which is quite a statement considering the great production work the late Lowell George was capable of. This in my opinion shows the band performing at thier studio best, though songwriting on other albums may be better.

i guess one should write this review entirely in lowercase as per the original lp sleeve which was covered with hospital bills (ENTIRELY IN UPPERCASE) following richie hayward's near-fatal car accident.

Or maybe not. Lowercase is wearing on the writer as well as the reader. I need to say that this is one of the finest rock albums yet made -- certainly in my Top 20 -- along with their earlier DIXIE CHICKEN. Everything came together perfectly with this album, and the rock critics -- certainly here in the UK -- went ecstatic about it. It has more dimensions to it than its predecessor, FEATS DON'T FAIL ME NOW, which is a more straightforward boogie album. Keyboardsman Bill Payne had been listening to a lot of jazz prior to recording this, and it shows. 'Day or Night', which one of the reviewers here slams, is one of the best tracks on the record. The reference point for the electric piano here is Chick Corea on NO MYSTERY (another excellent CD, by the way).

George's vocals never sounded sweeter than they do here -- e.g. on 'Long Distance Love' -- but it is the instrumental strength of Feat that stuns. Barrere's guitar-playing is just so weird, it's cool. (He failed his original audition, but that was on bass!)

All the tracks are outstanding, and the original recording was excellent too, so the remasterer could do little to improve it. It was a very short LP -- not much more than 32 minutes -- and the addition of a couple of tracks from the double-LP version of WAITING FOR COLUMBUS doesn't really match the mood of the rest of the LP.

This was undoubtedly the band's finest hour. I saw them at an open-air concert at a London soccer ground in 77. Within two years, George died of a heart attack at the age of 34. A total tragedy. This is the CD to remember him by.

What's wrong with this album? In a word, the indulgent "Day or Night" which seems to go on forever and is oddly placed right smack dab in the center of the album. Other than that, this is a fine album. "Romance Dance," "All That You Dream," "One Love Stand" and "Somebody's Leavin'" are all great songs. It goes without saying that the few George originals are great but even his abilites were waning. This was a mixed blessing, though. While it was sad to see George slowly go, it readied the audience for the George-less Feat and made its arrival not so much a shock to the system.

I remember it like it was yesterday. Of course, it wasn't. But, when this album was released, it was supposed to mark the end of Little Feat. Of course, it didn't. This is their finest studio album as all the members really came together to form a complete unit. There's no finer slinky- Feat than "Romance Dance"; no more touching Lowell George ballad than "Long Distance Love" and no better Bill Payne tune than "Somebody's Leavin'". A must for anyone interested in fine music. Period.

This is the album that helped me discover what an awesome band Little Feat is. Romance Dance, All That You Dream, Day or Night, Mercenary Territory all became live concert staples. Now, twenty-five years after this album's release, these songs remain vital to the Feat collection.