Town and Country (album)

Town and Country
Studio album by Humble Pie
Released November 1969
Recorded 1969, Olympic Studios London, England
Genre Folk rock, blues rock
Length 37:51
Label Immediate
Producer Andy Johns
Humble Pie chronology

As Safe As Yesterday Is
(1969)		 Town and Country
(1969)		 Humble Pie
(1970)
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Town and Country is rock band Humble Pie's second studio album, released in November 1969 (see 1969 in music).

Album profile

An interesting anomaly in the Humble Pie oeuvre, Town And Country finds the band in a gentler mood than their first album. Immediate Records rushed it into UK shops in the fall of 1969 to try to get up the charts before the company went bankrupt, but with no promotional money to back it, it quickly sank without a trace. The record didn't even make it into the US at the time, even though the band was on its first American tour when the album was released. All four members contributed songs, with Peter Frampton featured on acoustic guitar and Steve Marriott featured on keyboards. Two of the more memorable tracks were a cover of the classic Buddy Holly song "Heartbeat" and the notable Marriott composition "Every Mother's Son". Most, if not all, of the material dates back to recordings in the spring and early summer of 1969, when the Pie recorded more than two albums' worth of material — legal wrangling with Frampton's old management had delayed a release until August — before striking out on the road over the last half of the year. Like the band's early live shows, "Town And Country" was an eclectic mix of acoustic ballads, country-rock, folk and blues; concerts at this time typically featured a long (and sometimes laborious) 'unplugged' set, followed by more conventional electric set. It was after this album that Humble Pie forged their trademark "heavy" sound — and would continue in that vein until disbanding in 1975.

The album was produced by Glyn Johns' brother, Andy Johns, who also worked for Olympic Studios.

Track listing

  1. "Take Me Back" - (Frampton) – 4:52
  2. "The Sad Bag of Shaky Jake" - (Marriott) – 2:59
  3. "The Light of Love" - (Ridley) – 3:00
  4. "Cold Lady" - (Shirley) – 3:22
  5. "Down Home Again" - (Marriott) – 2:56
  6. "Ollie Ollie" - (Frampton/Marriott/Ridley/Shirley/Johns) – 0:50
  7. "Every Mother's Son" - (Marriott) – 5:43
  8. "Heartbeat" - (Montgomery/Petty) – 2:33
  9. "Only You Can See" - (Frampton) – 3:38
  10. "Silver Tongue" - (Marriott) – 3:20
  11. "Home and Away" - (Marriott/Frampton/Ridley) – 5:55
  12. "79th Street Blues" (Humble Pie) - 3:00 (bonus track for CD release)
  13. "Greg's Song" (Ridley) - 4:29 (bonus track for CD release)

Personnel

List incomplete: No vocalist (Marriott) and keyborder (probably Marriott) for (10) Silver Tongue

Notes

    External links