oktober 25, 2025

Published oktober 25, 2025 by ad-vinylrecords with 0 comment

Lowell George - Thanks I'll Eat It Here (1979) [vinyl Lp] - €7,00

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Lowell Thomas George (April 13, 1945 – June 29, 1979) was an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. 
He was the primary guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter for the rock band Little Feat. Before forming Little Feat, he was a member of Frank Zappa's band the Mothers of Invention.

Lowell George made this album, a melting pot of so many musical influences,  because apparently, he was not happy with the way that Little Feat was heading, as he saw it, into jazz-rock territory.  
I can’t say that I noticed but certainly, the sparse gritty sounds of the eponymous début were being lost as the band continued to record in the late ’70s.
‘Thanks, I’ll Eat It Here’, was released in March 1979 and George died in June of the same year of a heart attack.  It was his one and only solo effort, though there seems to be a lot of speculation as to what other unreleased material there may be (George had a reputation of loving the studio process).  
The opener, ‘What Do You Want the Girl to Do’, is an Allen Toussaint track which very much sets the relaxed groove for the whole album and has a superb little keyboard intro. 
The use of horns, as on this track, is one marked difference from the group albums and there are at least 8 different players with credits.
This is followed by George’s collaboration with guitarist Fred Tackett on, ‘Honest Man’, which introduces a little taste of funk to proceedings.  
‘Two Trains’, is a George penned highlight, originally spotted on the,’ Dixie Chicken‘, album but seemingly with quite different lyrics in this iteration. Either way, it needs no boosting from me and is one of his finest compositions.  
‘Can’t Stand the Rain’, is an Anne Peebles / Bryant / Miller original and her version has to be acknowledged as particularly memorable – but George’s is none too shabby and further proof of his fine singing throughout.
‘Cheek to Cheek’, opens side two of the vinyl issue- and was written in collaboration with Van Dyke Parks and Martin Kibbee (aka Fred Martin).  
It changes the mood considerably as it heads way south with what sound like steel drums – though none are credited.  This is a complete departure from the bands typical sound.
‘Easy Money’, is a Ricky Lee Jones tune and again the horns feature on a performance that illustrates the easy-going nature of the entire proceedings.  
This leads to, ‘20 Million Things’, and, ‘Find a River’, perhaps the creative heart of the album both exemplifying the kind of heartfelt ballads which George excelled in writing and/or singing (‘Willin’’, and ‘Long Distance Love’, being prime examples).  The former is written with Ged Levy and the second however is a Fred Tackett original – showing him to be a fine writer and guitarist – even if the hand of George is in there somewhere?
The final track, ‘Himmler’s Ring’, is a ‘Marmite’ track.  It does feel a little like something thrown in at the end of proceedings- striking a discordant jokey note; like something from the weaker end of Randy Newman’s oeuvre, particularly the arrangement.  
It’s actually a Jimmy Webb song and two forum comments perhaps sum it up as one asks if anyone else likes it (there are a few) and another claims rightly that it seems the least characteristic song that Jimmy Webb ever wrote.  

Side one
1.  What Do You Want The Girl To Do - 4:45  
2.  Honest Man - 3:43  
3.  Two Trains - 4:32  
4.  Can't Stand The Rain - 3:21  

Side two
1.  Cheek To Cheek - 2:21  
2.  Easy Money - 3:28  
3.  20 Million Things - 2:46  
4.  Find A River - 3:42  
5.  Himmler's Ring - 2:25 


Companies, etc.

Credits

Notes
Release:  1979
Format:  LP, Vinyl
Genre:  Roots Rock
Label:  Warner Bros. Records
Catalog#  WB 56 487

Vinyl:  Goed (VG)
Cover:  Goed (VG)

Prijs:  €7,00

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