We continue our look back at the music of 50 years ago…….
You may only know them for their unlikely hit the previous year. The acoustic duo of Mike Brewer and Tom Shipley took “One Toke Over The Line” Top Ten in 1970. Nice sweater vest…NOT.
And since the song mentioned Jesus…Lawrence Welk though it was a “modern spiritual” LOL
But there were also had some other good songs including “Oh Mommy” which featured Jerry Garcia on pedal steel and I’m sure was a favorite of the Nixon White House.
In 1971 the duo released an Lp called “Shake Off The Demon”. It didn’t do well but did have some decent tunes and, of course, featured the excellent harmonies of the pair.
The title track features some nice slide work from John Cippolina, late of Quicksilver Messenger Service. Spencer Dryen played drums on a few cuts and David La Flamme added his electric violin which blends nicely withe acoustic guitar and banjo on the tune “Natural Child”.
This is also the first appearance of the Jackson Browne song “Rock Me On The Water” on record. There is some nice interplay of the guitar, piano & harmonica. Both Browne and Linda Ronstadt will record the song in 1972.
It’s not as good as “Tarkio” the previous year…and although having their 15 minutes of fame, the duo would continue to make appearances for years. The harmonies are nice and the sentiments seem to never go out of fashion for our fractured society.
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