Nelson moves into the psychedelic pop realm with bewildering results. Some songs have promise, and others just make you wonder what the artist was thinking in general ("Marshallmallow Skies", a fancified and obvious re-write of "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds"). This definitely is another side to Nelson - one that's better left to the dustbin of pop history.
The first real attempt from former teen idol Rick Nelson to distance himself from his original heartthrob run, Bright Lights consists of mainly interpretations of other country songs. It's not a bad reintroduction to the artist in a new setting, but not much in the substance department, I'm afraid.
This document is often hailed as Quicksilver's greatest and its worst - depending on who you ask - but all agree it is the most quintessential release. Captured mostly live, augmented with a few studio cuts that are of the same spirit, this has to be the most realized of the jam-style live albums, at least as far as 60's Bay Area bands go. Maybe 25-minute versions of Bo Diddley songs (the entire "Who Do You Love" suite") is a little excessive, but for the most part, it's well-concieved in that I like it all the way through and want to hear it again, and I'm not than enthusiastic about "Mona". The other big spot was "Calvary", which really gets out there on a limb and essentially closes the album on a flourish. A somewhat mercurial but definitely intriguing record.
Often viewed now as weird hippie-core offshoots of the Greatful Dead and Jefferson Airplane, not coming close to the longevity and hardiness of the former, or the commercial success of the latter, in reality Quicksilver Messenger Service were a whole other thing to be reckoned with, and should have rightly had at least more than the portions they earned. While the Dead's jams and flirtations with country made friends with bikers, QMS brought in a range of more cultured sounds via a two-guitar weaving approach (Gary Duncan and John Cipollina) that charmed and beguiled the listener. The only real bit of aggressiveness is on the opening cover of Hamilton Camp's "Pride of Man"; anything else up-tempo has a happier feel ("Dino's Song", "It's Been Too Long"). "Gold and Silver" and "The Fool" exemplify the classic QMS sound. It's the kind of psychedelic theater the Dead took years to bring to life on stage and never really got on record. Special mention goes to "The Fool" in this respect. Solid effort.
