Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels - Wheels of Steel 10"

Label: PRT Records; Year: 1983; Format: 10" Vinyl

Today I've had a long and busy day at work so when I got home I just wanted to have a bite to eat and kick back for a little while. I promised myself that I would do another entry for the blog tonight but when it came to it I wasn't particularly in a punk rock mood so I opted for something lighter and more soulful so to speak. Mitch Ryder (nee William Lewis Jr.) is a Detroit Rock'N'Roll legend who recently turned seventy eight years young. From 1964 to 1967 Mitch Ryder used the Detroit Wheels as his back-up band releasing a number of Top 20 hits. This little 10" that came out in 1983 on PRT (Precision Records and Tapes, formerly known as Pye Records) in the UK collects some of the bands greatest hits such as "Jenny Take A Ride", "Sock it to Me Baby" or "Little Latin Lupe Lu" to name a few. It's a great little compilation when it comes to the music, but not so much when it comes to the packaging as there is absolutely no info about the recordings to be found. I suppose the people behind Precision weren't so precise and forthcoming about that and expected the music hungry consumers to make a trip to the library to find out about Mitch Ryder but in all fairness not much has changed to this day except that we have the intranet and can find everything with a few clicks. Well, goal achieved for tonight. I had a good twenty minutes of shaking my arthritis ridden knees to the soulful rock'n'roll smashers coming out of Motor City and that put a smile on my face. Keep on wheeling! 

The Freeze - Rabid Reaction LP

Label: Taang Records; Year; 2021; Format: Vinyl LP

I am certain everyone can relate to the dilemma I have tonight. After having come home from work I decided to spin the originally in 1985 released second Freeze album "Rabid Reaction" after not having heard it in ages. As much as I love the Freeze this record does not convince me to the fullest though, and that's a bummer. But, one thing after another. Back in the early '90s I bought the first two Freeze albums on Modern Method and absolutely loved "Land of the Lost". I certainly never held "Rabid Reaction" in the same regard, but it would be hard for anybody to follow up with an equal to "Land of the Lost". At some point I stupidly parted with both albums as I needed the money and got the CD collecting both albums. At some point I thought I would really want to get both back on vinyl, reissue or not. So, not too long ago I got my fingers on a Taang copy of Rabid Reaction and I am a little torn. Don't get me wrong, it's a good record and most likely a record that whenever I will listen to again I will like more as it is more layered and is one of those record that grows on you the more you listen to it. In that sense it doesn't offer the same instant gratification of the first LP but it certainly is still a Freeze album and that stands for high quality. The ten songs are a departure from the faster first album and hint as to what was to come in years to come in the long career of this Cape Cod band. The songs are rockier, more melodic and in some ways more experimental. A perfect example for that would be the version of "Trouble if you hide" found on this LP compared to the one the band recorded for the classic 1982 Comp. LP "This is Boston, Not L.A.". What you get here is not as fast and furious but a more rounded and structured song performed at a lower speed level with more hooks and melody. The lyrics are as always critical of American society and the ten songs are over with in twenty-five minutes. Not as great as the first one, but still a must!