THERE'S THE RUB

Take it from someone who was there back in the day, this (band and album) would have been 'filed under' Progressive, as some record shops did and that should end all debate on the matter. This album has a sophistication that a lot of 'prog' bands of the time would have given their right arms for...though that tends to ruin your bass/guitar playing especially so not the best idea perhaps.

As long haired music was so hard to get to listen to back in 1974 (you young uns have no idea!) there was a Radio 1 rock show fronted for a time by a guy called Michael Whale and he used FUBB from this album as his 'talk over' tape. Of course you had to ask your mates has anyone any idea what/who that is and eventually I found out. Yes I had heard of Wishbone Ash and had a friends copy of Live Dates on tape but this was my first purchase...oh ffs 49 years ago???...and since then have added everything up to Number The Brave plus 70's live archive releases. But this remains my favourite.

I now know that a guitar player had left and Laurie Wisefield (best guitarist they ever had) was new in from the band Home...who also supplied AC/DC with their long term bass player too. Maybe this was why this feels fresh and full of energy and moves on from the blues based influences of the first 2 albums and the folkier feel of Argus. They were never blessed with a stand out singer but the harmonies work well on the opening track Silver Shoes. Lyrically it always reminds me of the film Sunset Boulevard but it has a good guitar melody line and plenty of air/space which 2 guitar rifferama bands didn't seem to have but a guitar/keys line up did. Don't Come Back is very riff based and I nominate for 'the most riffs used in an outro' award and the next prog oscars! Persephone has been one of my all time favourite tracks and might sneak on to my desert island ten. I used to think it was because I had a 'from a distance' crush on a drop dead gorgeous hippie chick called Stephanie (you can see what I did in my head with the lyrics huh?) but when had grown out of it (ok ok you never do....!) the song still has an atmosphere...and cue echo on the guitars...and minor chord melancholy that works to this very day. Lady Jay nods back to Argus , which is no bad thing, but this was a band determined to move on and the beast that is FUBB strides into view. Epics should be about dynamics but the slow burn build of this is almost tantric. The bass leads and the restrained but haunting guitar harmony takes us deep into that place where rather than chuck the kitchen sink at it, we get the taps...and the plug...and maybe the washing up bowl first before the lope turns into a gallop (well you weren't the first were you Iron Maiden..) and the actual sink itself shows up. And praise the lord...no vocals!! The earlier mentioned dj only used the lope part as his talk over track btw so it came as a welcomed surprise to hear it go full on heavy when I finally bought the album.

So the tricky bit of a rating. No I can't give it a 5 even with 2 of my all time favourite tracks on it yet a 4 seems tight fisted. So it is 4.5+ but sticking with the criteria.....a 4 it has to be.