Al Kooper - I Stand Alone/You Never Know Who Your Friends Are

An unfettered explosion of creativity from Al

Today 64-year-old Kooper is one of the grand old men of rock, with impaired vision but unimpaired wit. These albums, recorded when he was young, thrusting and had the world at his feet, are breathtaking in the number of ideas and styles they contain, but irritating in their self-indulgence, particularly the sound effects, much in vogue in 1968 and 1969 when these were waxed. Beginning an album with two minutes of laughter followed by screams does not encourage repeated play.

He’d recently left Blood, Sweat & Tears, but brassy tracks such as I Stand Alone and Magic In My Socks show that he retained his way with a horn chart. Right Now For You reveals Kooper’s love of The Zombies, whom he championed at that time, while a cover of Traffic’s Coloured Rain is unusually restrained. A fabulous version of the Motown classic Too Busy Thinking About My Baby on Friends impresses the most, partly because of Kooper’s clear love of black music and because he sounds focused. Seven bonus tracks from 1970 complete the package.

A good producer and more focus could have made these classics, and these albums make one yearn for a career-encompassing best of. Until then, this is a tantalising taster.

3 stars 3 stars 3 stars

Raven | RVCD 269

Reviewed by Michael Heatley
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