Search - Ronnie Lane & Slim Chance :: Anymore For Anymore...Plus

Wonderfully Charming Music From a Gifted Artist

Steve Vrana | Aurora, NE | 01/15/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Ronnie Lane had to fight with the other Faces to get his songs on their albums and included in their concert set lists. The Faces were seen as an unabashed, hard-driving rock 'n' roll band; whereas Lane was at heart a traditional, music hall-inspired folkie. So in 1973 he left the Faces and formed Slim Chance. This band would eventually record three albums--this was the first and best.Anymore for Anymore was recorded in conjucntion with plans to put together a travelling circus to be called the Passing Show, which was to feature musicians, clowns, jugglers, dancers and fire eaters. Their music fit the carnival atmosphere perfectly.While the band could cook on songs like "Chicken Wired" (a more raucus version than that found on the Lane/Wood collaboration for the Mahoney's Last Stand soundtrack), a majority of the songs were more rooted in the folk tradition complete with fiddle, banjo and mandolin.The album kicks off with "Careless Love" with its rollicking piano, followed by "Don't You Cry for Me"--a lovely Lane-penned love song. Other highlights include "Bye and Bye (Gonna See the King), "The Poacher" (one of Ronnie's signature songs which first appeared on The Faces' debut and on Pete Townshend's first solo LP), "Amelia Earhardt's Last Flight" and the title track "Anymore for Anymore."The 7 bonus tracks feature remixes or alternate takes of five of the album's original songs, plus an acoustic version of the band's first single "How Come" and a Faces rehearsal version of "Anymore for Anymore" from 1972.This is quite simply some of the loveliest music I've ever heard. If you liked the songs Ronnie wrote for the Faces, this album will win your heart and send you searching for his other albums. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED"

Not So Fast...

H. Howorth | Chicagoland | 08/08/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I couldn't agree more with every word written by svrana. Anymore For Anymore is a masterpiece in every sense of the word except for one thing...this is NOT the version of the disc that contains all those wonderful bonus tracks referred to in svrana's review. The version to buy was released in 1997 by the British label New Millennium Communications (Pilot 15)under license from the Lane Family Estate. It contains the seven bonus tracks and a superb booklet with intelligent notes and excellent photos, making it worth the extra cost. Keep on the look out for it and don't forget to pick up Ronnie Lane's Slim Chance and One For The Road (both on Edsel). These are brilliant albums that will warm your heart with every listen--be sure to spin them in the company of good friends. Enjoy!!"

His first and perhaps strongest solo record

Elliot Knapp | Seattle, Washington United States | 01/21/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"You've gotta love Ronnie Lane, at the very least as a great character in the history of rock music. After leaving the growing success of The Faces because he saw Rod Stewart's ego begin to get too big for the group's britches (Ronnie saw the same thing happening with Steve Mariott in The Small Faces a few years earlier), he started living in his mobile recording studio and making music that is sometimes the polar opposite of The Faces' very late-60's brand of loud bar rock. When you compare Ronnie to someone like Rod Stewart, who started out great only to care about his pocketbook a lot more than making good music, Ronnie becomes a spontaneous, organic, and music-driven artist--exactly what he was. Anymore For Anymore is the first of three top-notch solo studio albums in which Ronnie crafted his own brand of rock that included a pastiche of styles and instrumental combinations, backed by a sometimes large ensemble of mostly acoustic instruments.



As on most of The Faces' albums and his solo records, Ronnie and Slim Chance play a variety of covers and Ronnie's excellent original songs. Anymore For Anymore starts with "Careless Love," an excellent choice to set the tone for this album as well as Ronnie's solo career. It's a traditional song, arranged by Ronnie, featuring a blend of acoustic and electric instrumentation. This microcosm perfectly represents the macrocosm of Ronnie's project--tradition, roots, blended with contemporary sounds and styles and his own creative flair. The song rocks and...folks...at the same time. The rest of this album basically follows this blueprint, except that it's Ronnie's original songs that really shine, bookended by fun, easygoing covers played by a group of people who are enjoying the ride.



"Don't You Cry for Me" and "Bye and Bye" are great examples of this--Ronnie effortlessly blends rock and traditional styles into his originals, backing with some great dobro and Ronnie's signature acoustic. He's in fine voice--one of my favorite things about Ronnie Lane's music is that he always sings his soul out, and there's no guile at all in his heartfelt delivery. With "Silk Stockings," Slim Chance throws in a saxophone, a regular staple of this album (less so on the later ones), "The Poacher," and "Anymore For Anymore" are instant classics, the first with its orchestral arrangement, and the second with its real pastoral feel (it was recorded outside at Ronnie's farm). The mellow, mandolin-tinged "Roll On Babe" is a subtle and moving song, and the album closes on "Chicken Wired," on of Slim Chance's hardest rocking tunes--they sound almost like The Faces.



The version of Anymore For Anymore that I managed to pick up used not only fills the rest of the first disc with alternate versions and bonus tracks, there's an entire second disc (Tin and Tambourine) featuring even more unreleased tracks and embryonic versions of later Slim Chance classics. It's a lot of music, though it's generally not cheap. All I can say is it's worth it to me--this is great music that deserves to be heard by a wider audience. I understand Ronnie's estate is working on re-releasing his catalog (hopefully soon). Until then, probably the cheapest introduction is the recent Ronnie Lane's Slim Chance, which combines most of his 2nd and 3rd albums on one disc. Once you're hooked on that great music, definitely check out Anymore For Anymore--it's a gem that might even outshine those two albums."