Search - Ricky Nelson :: Stay Young: Epic Recordings

GREAT recordings from a frustrated artist!

Henry R. Kujawa | "The Forbidden Zone" (Camden, NJ) | 06/28/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"During 1976-78, Rick Nelson recorded 3 albums with Epic Records, a label that seemed so unsure what to do with him that 2 of the 3 albums were unreleased! This CD, one of earliest I saw from their "Legacy" division, seeks to redress that, and contains 18 songs NOT currently available elsewhere! A good job, here-- in addition to extensive liner notes & some nice photos, they have 7 of the 10 songs from INTAKES (I have the LP-- they did pick the best ones), along with 4 from the never-released / Al Kooper-produced BACK TO VIENNA, and 7 from his MEMPHIS SESSIONS album, restored to the original mixes before the tampering that caused Rick to go to Capitol. Among the highlights: "Wings", "Five Minutes More" (the one song from INTAKES that really SHOULD have been a single! ), "That's Alright Mama" (Rick does Elvis!), "New Delhi Freight Train" (when you've worked for Civil Engineers from India, a weird hypnotic tune like this will have a special place in your heart!), "Almost Saturday Night" (Rick would re-do this even better in '81), "Rave On" (keeping the memory of Buddy Holly alive!). My one quibble is their reversing tracks 1 & 2, when "You Can't Dance" originally opened INTAKES. Besides that, I'd also hope someday all 3 albums may be reissued in their ENTIRETY-- with any leftovers, bonus tracks & remixes anyone could ever hope to include. (Hey-- why not?)"

Great CD!

Henry R. Kujawa | 07/31/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Great CD! and I mean great in today's terms not as an oldie. Check out "Gimmie A Little Sign" (track 6). I can't hear it enough. I love this entire CD. The recordings are crisp, clear and come from the heart of the artist. This has been taken from the orignal recordings, not the re-mixed songs I understand were released by Epic some years back (which Nelson disliked, or so the story goes). The songs on this CD are as Nelson and Stone Canyon intended. Enjoy!"

Rick at his best

Ron | Tacoma, WA | 10/14/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I'm glad to see that the other reviews here for this CD are all raves. This CD is one of the best purchases I have ever made! The 7 songs from the "Intakes" album are all excellent, although I miss Rick's piano ballad "It's Another Day" and the hard rocking Baker Knight song "I Wanna Move With You". Hopefully we will get a reissue of the entire "Intakes" album someday (the last album he recorded with the Dennis Larden/Jay De Witt White incarnation of the Stone Canyon Band). I've heard the unreleased Al Kooper sessions, so I can honestly say that the best songs are the ones included here. "Carl of the Jungle" is a real different kind of song for Rick to do - the fade out sounds almost disco, and the lyric is real "out there" for Rick Nelson, but the way he sings it makes it very believable. Rick always did a great job with Bob Dylan's songs, and "Mama You've Been on my Mind" is no exception. "Conversation" is another reflective ballad - very haunting if you've endured the ending of a relationship. The final seven songs on the CD are from Rick's 1978-79 sessions at Lynn-Lou Studios in Memphis. Some of these tracks have filtered out over the years on various singles, e.p's and albums, again, I can only hope the entire album comes out someday. "Dream Lover" was a minor hit in 1979, and ranks among my ten favorite Nelson recordings ever. "Lay Back in the Arms of Someone" and "Send Me Somebody to Love" continue the soft country rock sound he pioneered in the early 70's (think "She Belongs to Me" and "Garden Party"), while "Almost Saturday Night", "That's All Right" and "Rave On" find Rick returning to his rock and roll roots. The liner notes with this set are very informative about this overlooked period of Rick's career, and there is also detailed session information and some good previously unseen photos. If you like this CD, be sure to check out Capitol's reissue of his 1981 album "Playing to Win", and the two-fer issues of his 70's Stone Canyon Band albums."