Dave Edmunds Gets Heavy...
Chuck Potocki | Highland, Indiana | 10/28/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"When I first heard "Forms And Feelings", I was floored--I had heard of Dave Edmunds before, mainly from his work with Rockpile and solo albums, but I had no idea he was the guitarist of Love Sculpture! I purchased a now out-of-print double CD called "The Early Edmunds", which covered his career from 1967-1972 from his first band, The Human Beans through early Rockpile, and right in between was Love Sculpture; it includes both this album and "Blues Helping", and one listen to their versions of the classical pieces "Farandole" by Georges Bizet, and "Sabre Dance" by Khachaturian, and I was left speechless by Edmunds' fast, fluid and energetic guitar leads; articulating each and every note with dexterity, skill and passion. Edmunds was like the Yngwie Malmsteen of his day; no one (including myself) could believe that a guitarist from the 60's could play that fast and that well; I thought Hendrix was all that, until I heard this Dave Edmunds guy, and my opinion changed quickly!I agree with the man in the previous review that the omission of "Mars" was the only downside to this CD; apparently, the U.K. version of this album could not include it because the great-granddaughter of Gustav Holst (the composer of "Mars") sought legal action to prevent it from being released, but her influence was non-existent in the U.S. (due to variances in copyright laws), and "Mars" does appear on the Parrot Records release; it's inclusion on the U.S. album fit in nicely with the rest of the songs, with it's trippy sound and remarkable ending, segueing into the ridiculously fast, 11-minute plus version of "Sabre Dance" (I've often wondered if the drum and bass backing rhythm track on "Sabre Dance" was a tape loop, or if the band played consistently at that fast pace?). It can be a bit monotonous at times, but to hear the tight and powerful ending to the song (which in case some of you didn't know, was the ending theme music for "The Lone Ranger" TV series in the 1950's), which will leave you breathless! This is an excellent CD, and a great chance for you to experience the virtually unknown guitar wizardry of Dave Edmunds in a completely different context, before he became a roots-rocker and producer in the 1970's, covering 50's R&B, doo-wop, and even girl-group classics (check out his authentically-recreated versions of "The Doo Ron Ron" and "Baby I Love You" on his 1975 "Subtle As A Flying Mallet" album)! Buy this CD, you can't go wrong with it!"
Dave & Co. Get Psychedelic This Time Out.
Stephen F Mulcahy | 05/17/1999
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Generally not as highly regarded as the blues-based rave ups on the previous "Blues Helping" album, the tunes on "Forms and Feelings" are actually quite good. Doing a 360-degree stylistic turnaround, the band now explored revved-up classical rave-ups (Sabre Dance, Farondole), late-sixties psychedelia (In The Land Of The Few, Why How-Now) with a couple of nice ballads (Seagull, People People) thrown into the mix. Blues purists probably scoffed at the somewhat outdated psychedelic overtones (the original LP cover looked like something from a Fillmore West light show), but overall, the songwriting and performances still hold up extremely well, even after 29 years. Maybe not the perfect way to experience the awesome guitar work of Dave Edmunds, but recommended nonetheless."
