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From the Vault...
11/07/1999
#654 |
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info
Amboy Dukes
"The Amboy Dukes Featuring Ted Nugent"
© Mainstream Records
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Year of Release: 1968
Rating:
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track listing
Baby Please Don't Go
I Feel Free
Young Love
Psalms Of Aftermath
Colors
Let's Go Get Stoned
Down On
Phillips Escalator
The Lovely Lady
Night Time
It's Not True
Gimme Love
J.B. Special
Sobbin' In My
Mug Of Beer
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Amboy Dukes
"The Amboy Dukes Featuring Ted Nugent"
In the late 1960s, many bands were focusing on a more harder rock style.
By the year 1968, the music world was introduced to the likes of Jimi Hendrix,
Led Zeppelin, and The Yardbirds, where their talents merged rock and blues,
with a harder edge. In that style, a group by the name of The Amboy Dukes
emerged, and from this band was a little-known guitar player, by the name of
Ted Nugent. Their debut album, The Amboy Dukes featuring Ted Nugent, is
an excellent album, and for those who enjoy the 1960s rock, blues and
psychedelic, this will definitely be a must.
"Baby Please Don't Go" is a song where many bands in the late Sixties
were covering, like Them (featuring Van Morrison) and the early Fleetwood Mac
(with Peter Green). The Amboy Dukes' version is definitely cool, where the
guitar works by Nugent and Steve Farmer showcases some unique and fantastic
listening. Another cover, Cream's "I Feel Free" is not as energetic
as Cream's version (main vocals), but the music does capture a good atmosphere.
And we all can't help but sing along with the "bump-bump-bump-de-bump-bump"s.
"Young Love", written by guitarists Nugent and Farmer, has a 1960s
British rock sound, "Psalms Of Aftermath", another Nugent/Farmer
composition, is a mellow song, compared to the mellow 1960s sounds of The Moody
Blues, with a sitar-sounding guitar providing the backdrop. "Colors",
co-written by Nugent and Farmer, is rock/blues psychedelic, as in songs by
Cream and The Yardbirds.
"Let's Go Get Stoned", the Ray Charles cover, and also covered by
Joe Cocker, has the 1960s blues sound, as heard by the early Rolling Stones
and Them. Nugent and Farmer's "Down On Phillips Escalator" is another
British Sixties sounding number, as in groups like the early Kinks and the
early Who. "The Lovely Lady", a song solely written by Steve Farmer,
has the sound of another British Sixties band, The Hollies. "Night Time",
another Nugent/Farmer tune, has the early Rolling Stones sound with Hollies'
harmonies and psychedelic Hendrix-sounding guitar. "It's Not True",
written by Pete Townshend, definitely has the early Who sound, with its
harmonies and pop sound. Nugent and Farmer's songwriting returns with
"Gimme Love", another rock styled song, with its British sound, and
hard rocking guitars.
The CD of The Amboy Dukes has two bonus tracks. "J.B. Special"
and "Sobbin' In My Mug Of Beer". Both songs were written by Nugent and
Farmer, as both songs rock in their common style in previous Nugent/Farmer
compositions. "J.B. Special" has a Kinks-rock style, and "Sobbin'
In My Mug Of Beer" can be compared to the early Kinks and/or the early Who.
For the late Sixties British invasion fan, The Amboy Dukes featuring
Ted Nugent will definitely be appreciated. A lot of bands during this time
were discovering the British Invasion and developed their sound based on their
sound, likewise the sound of the blues, mixed with rock. Ted Nugent only
played guitar with the Dukes on this album, as the vocals were handled by
John Drake. Both guitarists of this band (Ted Nugent and Steve Farmer) were
the primary songwriters for this album, and their songwriting abilities were
extremely exceptional, in the area of rock mixed with blues. The guitar solos
truly stand out in each song on this album, where many British bands of the
Sixties can easily be compared.
In conclusion, the debut of The Amboy Dukes is truly exceptional. It would
be their next album, Journey To The Center Of The Mind (the title track
written by Nugent and Farmer), would become their best well-known song.
Little did Nugent know that this song would be written about drugs, Nugent
would later voice his opinion (among other things) about the dangers of drugs
and how it can and will destroy people's lives.
The rest is history: Ted Nugent would become one of rock's unique and
exceptional guitarists. His glory days were in the 1970s, but even so, he
still performs today (I recently saw him perform at the World Music Theatre,
along with Slaughter, Quiet Riot, and Night Ranger -- Nugent put on an
excellent show...) Nugent is very opinionated, whether it be his speeches on
anti-drugs and pro-guns, Nugent is the kind of person you would not want to
piss off. Watch VH-1's biography of Nugent on Behind The Music, and
you'll see why.
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