AMBERGRIS – AMBERGRIS!
(PARAMOUNT RECORDS)
This is the kind of
lost album lost band you could expect to appear on a Quentin Tarantino
soundtrack. That or poker party
music. There is a ragged joy in the aged
sound here that rides a fine line between cheesy and credible. Released in 1970 the sound of Ambergris has
remained stationary in the meantime modern acts have caught up.
Perhaps now best known
for housing cover artwork later vandalised and adapted by Pavement,
Ambergris was part of a horn rock movement in the late 60s/early 70s. Boasting
a line-up of ten players this album was produced by Steve Cropper so there is a slight Blues Brothers
before Blues Brothers tone (as opposed to a Booker T vibe). However it has been said since that Cropper
did not know what to do with the band at the time.
Often functional and
generic you sense this record was not necessarily consumed with the best of
aims and intention. Sometimes there is
only surface. Earnest and often with its
heart on its sleeve these are love songs to a fault. The hidden sleaze lacks substance and a
thinly veiled guise. This is the
flattering to deceive approach to romance.
God only knows what specifically is meant by “Chocolate Pudding”
(apparently it was the band’s anti-drug statement).
That said it is
difficult to dislike this record. The
most likely reaction is resounding indifference but housed here is the work is
the dense tone of jobbing.
On vocals and conga is
Jimmy Maeulen who in places found himself described as an acquired taste. There something whiny in his lengthy drawl
and something equally sad in his inability to co-exist with a horn section that
plants him straight in the corner.
There is a lot going
on in this record. Many directions are
being ploughed all at once. Strings
meander, horns blast everything out of sight, bass goes ghetto while guitars
noodle. You sense keeping everyone happy
was quite the contest. At times tracks
sound like a different band when placed against next to others.
Select choices include
the funky swagger of “Play On Player” being near narrative driven while housing
a huge smart hook. The aforementioned
“Chocolate Pudding” boasts some amazing bass player along with a nice line
about insulin and diabetes. The
energetic “Home Groan” scores points for the clever wordplay of the title. And I actually appreciate the workout that is
closing track “Endless Night”. The air
is left appropriate.
On the downside at the
commercial end single “Forget It, I Got It” opens with a “Soul Man” intro rip off
before housing a heavily unsuitable hook which destroys all credibility while
elsewhere their clear attempt at a pop ballad “Sunday Lady” is just yucky and
wet.
Ambergris is actually
a type of shit that comes from sperm-whales.
It is flammable and traditionally used for perfume.
This is devoid of
irony.
Thesaurus moment:
fragrant.
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