Search - Black Oak Arkansas :: Knowbody Else 69

The Knowbody Else

Aron D. Rush | Cross Timbers, Mo usa | 11/01/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Well, this doesn't sound a lot like the albums to come. Hold Me Down, Black Blues and My Brother And Me come closest. The rest is mellow 60's rock with a rural feel. I think the band was listening to a lot of Quicksilver Messenger Service and smoking a lot of pot. The result? For the most part, they managed some good songs with an atmosphere of a dark summer night in Arkansas. No One And The Sun is hauntingly beautiful. Vieux Carre has Cippolina inspired guitar work. Flying Horse Of Louisiana and After I Smoke, I Like To Sleep are definitely inspired by Gary Duncan's song writing on the first two Quicksilver Albums.



I really enjoy this album, though it is a raw debut, and the band is obviously still looking for their own sound. If you love Black Oak Arkansas like I do, you'll want to check this out. I doubt anyone's reading this who hasn't heard of BOA, but if so, let me warn you, Jim Dandy's voice is a bit like drinking whiskey. It seems kind of harsh at first, and might burn a bit going down, but it makes you feel good. Once you've acquired the taste, there's nothing like it. I love Mr. Dandy and Co. and find all their music worth owning. Taste is subjective, though, as the diverse opinions here show.



A note of interest, BOA recorded one more album as the Knowbody Else. It was released as Early Times by Black Oak Arkansas, I believe. I'm searching for an affordable copy. One song from this LP, Mean Woman (If You Ever Blues), showed up on Rhino's excellent Best Of BOA collection. That disc is a great place to start if you're new to BOA."

Pre black oak lives again

Michael P. Dobey | colorado springs | 10/12/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This disc has the pre-black oak arkansas lineup from 1969 before they had changed their name and become 'black oak arkansas" so they were NOT tired at that time. They were a new band trying to figure out who they were. The classic first album would come out a few years later and establish the band as a southern rock stomper band. So this is NOT a NEW recording of black oak arkansas. It's the first version of the band when they were called: "the knowbody else". It's ok rock from that era and is for fans of black oak arkansas who want to own all their releases and see where they came from. Non fans should start with a greatest hits package or the first album."