I love many of the 1960's Preview label releases. But as the early '70's move into the mid '70's, I tend to find fewer and fewer of the recordings on this label to be of interest, as more and more of them feel like poorly arranged, tossed off, forgettable nothings.
So I didn't have a lot of hope for this record, which seems to date from around 1974. But I was pleasantly surprised - delighted, actually, to find a funny, pun-filled record. "A Check Up With Love" is certainly not the first - or even close to the best - record to use car metaphors to describe a relationship, but it's a well done example of that concept, with several genuinely unusual, dryly humorous lyrics (although someone should have told the song-poets that no one has ever called it a "window-shield".
Gene Marshall does a solid job singing it, although it's not up to his standards. He was probably sight reading (as was usually the case) and he sounds a bit unsure here and there, tripping over the unexpected turns of phrase (I do love the little "yeh" at 1:33). The band sounds good, particular the excellent drumming.
Download: Gene Marshall - A Check Up With Love
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On the flip side, a more typical recording of the era, built around the phrase "Why Waste Time, Time Does Not Waste On Us", a trite thought which somehow puts me in the Yakov Smirnoff. The song is heard in a suitably blandly professional performance.
Download: Gene Marshall - Time Does Not Waste On Us
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2 comments:
Thanks for posting these! I like Gene and the band better than the songs, for sure. This seems to be 1973, meaning it could be Rodd K on keyboards. I do find it interesting that there are either two keyboard players or that they decided to overdub an organ on top of the electric piano.
Real fine cuts, both of the two, meaning this duo is real good each & every one of the combination of the two songs & sides of the one singular record.
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