Edgar Winter Group - They Only Come Out At They Only Come Out At

Slipcased twin-set from 1972 and 74 by albino keysman and co

Ably assisted by the likes of singer/ bassist Dan Hartman and guitarist Ronnie Montrose, Edgar Winter issued the 10-song US No 3 album They Only Come Out At Night in 1972, heavy on period piano boogie and a host of other styles floating in the ether. He lends his rasping vocals to the saxy When It Comes, Alta Mira is a Latino-like horror, and Free Ride is a hippyish cowbell rocker. Then again, Round & Round is countryrock, Rock’n’Roll Boogie Woogie Blues in the glam vein, and Frankenstein quasi-jazz fusion. Only We All Had A Real Good Time rocks along with abandon.

The same goes for much of US No 13 Shock Treatment. There’s lame honky-tonk on the likes of Easy Street and Miracle Of Love sounds like Steely Dan going New Romantic on xylophones. Do Like Me funks it up in a Glenn Hughes style, before Rock & Roll Woman salvages things with its Boston-like glee. Queen Of My Dreams goes one better with its Led Zeppelin vocal phasing, while River’s Risin’ is a cheery number that could have come from Bachman Turner Overdrive. An experimental closer, Animal, jars, but by then you’ve come to expect the unexpected.

Gott | CD 058

Reviewed by Tim Jones
<< Back to Issue 337