On The Floor of Heaven is considered by many of those who got to hear it upon its initial release in 1993 as one of the great, unheralded achievements of the alt-country movement. The roots rock masterpiece is now reissued as a two-disc Deluxe Edition via Bumstead Records. Formed in the early 1990s, The Blue Shadows consisted of guitarist and singer Billy Cowsill (now deceased) - who began his career as leader of the legendary American bubblegum group The Cowsills and roots rocker Jeffrey Hatcher - who enjoyed cult success in the 1980s fronting Jeffrey Hatcher & The Big Beat. Together with drummer J.B. Johnson and bassist Elmar Spanier (later replaced by Barry Muir), the quartet forged a style built on the rustic sounds of classic country fused with the pop sensibility of The Beatles and tight harmony vocals that have drawn flattering comparisons to the Everly Brothers. Disc one is the complete original album while disc two has some great cover tunes, lost B-sides and other gems! (NO DEPRESSION)
The press release that accompanied this album sure seemed heavy on the hype. The record, it claimed, represents 'one of the great unheralded achievements of the alt-country movement' - a 'lost Americana classic' that came out in the 'legendary' Blue Shadows' native Canada in 1993 but went unreleased and consequently mostly unheard south of the border. I grew even more skeptical after I read that one of the quartet's singer/guitarists was the late Billy Cowsill, who started his career as leader of the bubblegum-pop group the Cowsills - an outfit the press release also called 'legendary.'
But damned if it isn't all true - ok, everything but the part about the Cowsills' legendary status. On the Floor of Heaven turns out to be alt-country heaven. It's jam-packed with harmonies redolent of the Everly Brothers, the twangy, reverb-heavy guitar sound of early Johnny Cash and melodies that take you back to mid-period Beatles. If I Were You, a high point, sounds like a cross between the Searchers and the Flying Burrito Brothers.
This reissue combines the original 12-track release with a bonus CD that features another dozen gems, including outtakes and covers of songs like Merle Haggard's If We Make It Through December, Arthur Alexander's Soldier of Love, Joni Mitchell's Raised on Robbery and George Jones' Hell Stays Open All Night Long. 'Lost Americana classic' sounds just about right. - Jeff Burger, No Depression.com
Most people's memories of the Cowsills are confined to their giddy hits of the late '60s - The Rain, the Park and Other Things, We Can Fly, Indian Lake and a cover of Hair that helped bring that counter-cultural phenomenon to a wider audience. Stigmatized by their sappy sweet image as an innocuous PG-rated, family-friendly bubblegum band, they provided the perfect blueprint for TV's Partridge Family, before yielding to the competition when their claim on the pop charts expired.
Naturally then, they weren't given much of a second thought thereafter, even though several family members gamely attempted to further advance their own musical ambitions. Susan Cowsill spent time with the communal combo the Continental Drifters before recording two excellent solo sets. Barry Cowsill issued an album of his own, released shortly before Hurricane Katrina struck his native New Orleans and made him a victim of its fury. But it was Billy Cowsill who was the most determined to carve out a career, beginning with his solo debut Nervous Breakdown, and subsequent participation in the Co-Dependents and the Blue Shadows, a pair of Canadian combos that kept him busy throughout much of the '90s.
Up until recently, Bill Cowsill's work has been all but impossible to locate here in the U.S., but thanks to the steadfast dedication of a small Canadian indie label called Indelible Music, his recordings with the Co-Dependents - as well as a solo show titled Live at Crystal Ballroom and his contributions to various compilations - are now available. Now, along comes On the Floor of Heaven, a reissue of Bill's first album with the Blue Shadows, expanded to a two disc set with the addition of covers and outtakes from the original sessions. He shares the spotlight with a perfect foil, Jeffrey Hatcher, veteran of a number of north-of-the-border bands that crafted the framework for their Americana stance.
To be sure, the Blue Shadows were a traditional outfit with an old-fashioned feel. While Cowsill and Hatcher were responsible for writing most of the material, the music sounds as if it was written and recorded in the '40s, '50s and '60s, when honkytonk was rampant and barroom balladeers shed tears in their beers. Steel guitar adds a suitably weepy touch to slower songs like A Thousand Times, The Embers and Learn to Forget, but it's the up-tempo tunes and lilting harmonies of A Paper 'N a Promise, Deliver Me, and Think of It that give the band its homegrown flair. That makes it all the more disappointing that the Blue Shadows never got their due; with a little push they might have sealed their place as the illegitimate offspring of the Eagles, Poco and Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. Indeed, there's a timeless quality to this music. It's manifested in part by their choice of covers - check their rambunctious version of Joni Mitchell's Raised On Robbery or their appropriately Beatlesque take on an early Fab Four staple, Buzz Cason's Soldier of Love - as well as their stylistic debt to such famous forebears as the Everly Brothers (I Believe), Buddy Holly (Wonder 'Bout Me) and various country crooners (A Little Bit Lonesome, A Little Bit Blue, Heart of a Lion, Soul of a Dove).
Sadly, Cowsill succumbed to ongoing health issues in 2006, a year after his brother Barry passed, making any glory gained from this wonderful reissue ultimately seem way too belated. Yet it's also comforting to know that with the Blue Shadows' work finally seeing the light of day, Bill Cowsill's legacy may indeed live on. - Lee Zimmerman, Blurt-online.com
trax:
01 Coming On Strong 02 The Fool Is The Last One To Know 03 If I Were You 04 Think On It 05 Deliver Me 06 A Thousand Times 07 If It Ain't Rockin' 08 On The Floor Of Heaven 09 When Will This Heartache End 10 The Embers 11 I Believe 12 Is Anybody Here 13 A Paper & A Promise 14 A Little Bit Lonesome, A Little Bit Blue 15 Learn To Forget 16 Give Give Givin' 17 And The Curtains Close 18 Wonder 'Bout Me 19 Heart Of A Lion, Soul Of A Dove 20 Solder Of Love 21 What The Hell I Got 22 Raised On Robbery 23 Hell Stays Open All Night Long 24 If We Make It Through December
...served by Gyro1966...
The back cover photo of Spoke is a furrowing farm machine. When I see such machinery working, clouds of birds follow to eat up the disturbed insects. Calexico snatches up the bits of Americana turned out by a rototilling of the national music psyche. The nineteen resultant tracks can be insect small (0:28 to 3:54) and erratic in flight. The tracks are lo-fi songs suggested and themes follow without concern for what preceded. One bit is held up by guitar, another by accordion, then one by vibes. A bit of desert dust sprinkled throughout may be the only constant theme - a Santa Fe rummage sale of sounds. Spoke is very intriguing and well-worth exploring. ~ Thomas Schulte, All Music Guide
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