CELEBRATION ROAD SHOW - ...We Believe In People (Celebration, 197?) [ORIGINAL LP]
Celebration Road Show - ... We Believe In People (Celebration, 197?)
Celebration Road Show is a bit of an oddity I dug up a few years back... The majority of the record is straight private-press showband Dixieland jazz (yet, solid at that), but the bulk of the second side displays singer-songwriter/SSW modes, lounge-psych and a slightly funky number, none of which betray the influence of jazz whatsoever. The first is a solid jam which has attempted to be sold by some in Japan as having a break, but I don't rate the break much highly (it's a solid and lightly funky take on the pop standard "I Believe In Music"), though the other three tracks are stirring, moody magic. Tops is a percussion-heavy, minimalist lounge-psych (see Estes Bros. or Kaplan Bros.) take of "Get Together" by the Youngbloods which flips the well-worn psychedelic-era chestnut—that personally treads the grounds of hippy-dippy'ness too much for myself—into the realm of again worth kicks, heavy on vibe featuring a vocalist with a rich, deep, laid-back approach (sans the lovable histrionics many in the showband/lounge scene take). I can listen to this cover all-day (though, I do dig plenty else by The Youngbloods). In a similar psychedelized mode—though slightly less effective due to content—their take on the Cival War-era standard "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" with femme vox is another worth your ear-time, but perhaps the dour, loner'ish take on The Carpenters' "Bless The Beasts and the Children" (led by the same vocalist) is the other top winner worth the entry price here, tipping the light'n'lush, airy sound of the original into desolate SSW territory.
Another to snatch up while its on the inexpensive end... [Most copies have some shelf/storage wear and typically are signed by various members of the group... typical for albums of this sort.]