Hardwater Self-Titled Fuzz Psych Shrink Wrap
$
19
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Description
Hardwater Self Titled LP
1968 Capitol Records
Amazing West Coast Folk Psych Country album produced by the maestro David Axelrod! By far one of my favorite Axelrod productions that flies under the radar of a lot Axe fans....
Condition:
Record :Not far into the first track on the sole, self-titled Hard Water album, it's pretty obvious these guys had to be big Buffalo Springfield fans. The hard folk-rock riffs, the soaring harmony vocals, and the way the drums push the beat can't fail to recall Springfield classics like "Rock 'n' Roll Woman" and "Mr. Soul" (whose squelched, backwards distorted guitar riffs are even echoed in some cuts). Perhaps there's a bit of the San Francisco sound, à la early Jefferson Airplane or Moby Grape, in some of the guitar tones and harmonies as well. You can't fault young musicians for admiring the best, but they might have benefited from someone -- say, the respected producer of this 1968 Capitol album, David Axelrod -- taking them aside and advising them to put more of themselves into their songwriting and arrangements. Instead, it's a little like hearing Buffalo Springfield Revisited again, but with considerably less substance, especially in the songwriting department. If you're not one to demand something of the level of their inspirations, and just want to hear a rarity that's reminiscent of theSpringfield in some ways, Hard Water isn't bad (though as heavily Springfield-influenced bands of the time go, the Penny Arkade are much better). The country-tinged folk-rock is tight, though there isn't much of the humor heard in much Springfield, and it's more on the Stephen Stills side than the Neil Young one in the songwriting department. "City Sidewalks" is one of the less derivative numbers and a mild standout for that reason, edging toward the overly earnest with a lead vocal in the pinched, earlyBee Gees mold. "To Nowhere" is also a bit of a departure into bittersweet acoustic balladry that's a bit poppier and more sentimental than the Springfield and their ilk usually got. The album really is an OK listen, despite its faults, but its appeal is probably limited to collectors who are especially big fans of late-'60s California folk-rock (with some pop and country in the mix). [The 2011 CD reissue on Tune In adds the single version of "Plate of My Fare," as well as historical liner notes with quotes from bandmembers.] ANY QUESTIONS PLEASE MESSAGE ME. ALBUM IS IN GREAT SHAPE. COVER IS EXCELLENT. I DID SEE THE LITTLE HOLE ON TOP WHICH I THINK THIS WAS ONE OF THE CUT RECORDS BACK IN THE DAY?
Side A : VG+ , Has nice glos
Track Listing
Title/Composer Performer Time 1 My Time/Take a Long Look Hard Water 2 City Sidewalks Hard Water 3 Love and I Hard Water 4 Monday Hard Water 5 Plate of My Fare Hard Water 6 Not So Hard Hard Water 7 Good Ole Friends Hard Water 8 Sanctuary Hard Water 9 To Nowhere Hard Water 10 Good Luck Hard Water 11 Plate of My Fare Hard Water s and plays and sounds great. There are a few surface marks and dust that do not really affect play but are a bit noticeable between songs.Side B : VG, Plays nice but has some moments of noise that never overpowers the sound. There are very few marks that are very slight so any noise being made seems to be from dust.
Sleeve: VG, Shows some wear but spine is intact. Has two inch split on top left corner.
All in all this LP sounds really great. I just listened to the whole album and sounds really great but could possibly benefit from a VPI cleaning. A great chance to own a nice copy of this masterpiece...
More about the album from The Rising Storm . Net ...
Their back pedigree was immaculate; guitarist Richard Fifield and bassist Robert McLerran had been members of the Astronauts, the Boulder-based surf outfit who’d released a string of nationally successful singles and albums on RCA between 1962 and 1968 and garnered an enthusiastic following in Japan. Relocating to LA and recruiting full-blooded Apache drummer Tony Murillo and bilingual guitarist Peter “Pedro” Wyant, they were signed rapidly to Capitol as Hardwater – the name being hippie argot for ice – assigned to illustrious house producer David Axelrod and directed to record in Capitol’s famed Records Tower studios with all its near-limitless resources. David was also a top-notch composer and arranger, and Hardwater’s situad singer, but effortless three-part harmonies carried the songs which were comparable with those of Buffalo Springfield and Moby Grape, although the band members themselveshave bn heavily influenced by Sweetheart Of The Rodeo. In other words, definitive West Coast folk/country/acid rock that couldn’t have come from any other area or any other era. Liberally sprinkled over the tight, taut rhythm tracks was Wyant’s remarkable lead guitar, whose unique style juxtaposed rippling Eastern raga scales with aching pedal steel simulations via a volume swell. His sound was and remains revolutionary, especially since he favoured an unfashionable hollowbody Fender Coronado guitar with low-powered DeArmonof “To Nowhere” to the funky finisher “Good Luck” with its popping bass and eleventh chords reminiscent of the Fabs’ “Taxman”. No problems in the execution, then, and the album should have been a biggie. The problem was that Capitol had signed and recorded a glut of top-quality acts around that time, noas six months delayed in release, there was no record company-sponsored tour, and like so many other praiseworthy offerings in those prolific days it failed to sell and duly disappeared, the disillusioned band fragmeting. Of its members, t had the most high-profile subsequent career, having i
Electric Prunes infamous Mass In F Minor.
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