A song for you (Leon Russell) (LP 3674 - 3681)

Leon Russell  Leon Russell (Vinyl, Shelter Records, 1970) ****  

Leon Russell  Leon Russell and the Shelter People (Vinyl, Shelter Records, 1971) ***** 

Leon Russell  Carney (Vinyl, Shelter Records, 1972) ***

Leon Russell  Leon Live (Vinyl, Shelter Records, 1973) *** 

Leon Russell  Stop All That Jazz (Vinyl, Shelter Records, 1974) *** 

Leon Russell  Will O' The Wisp (Vinyl, Shelter Records, 1975) ****

Leon Russell  Americana (Vinyl, Paradise Records, 1978) ***

Leon Russell  Life and Love (Vinyl, Warner Bros. Records, 1979) **

Genre: Pop, rock 

Places I remember: Real Groovy Records, RCA Music Club

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Tight Rope (Carney)

Gear costume: A Song For You (Leon Russell), Crystal Closet Queen, Alcatraz (L R & The Shelter People)

They loom large in his legend (The Album Collection playlists): Part 1; Part 2; Part 3; Part 4; Part 5; Part 6

Active compensatory factors: Leon Russell's debut solo album came out in between his work in Asylum Choir (found here). It opens with A Song For You - a quiet introspective slow piano lead ballad. It's a plea for forgiveness and understanding from an estranged lover. A ballsy move for track one on a solo debut album, but that's Leon for you.

The rest of the album is superb too. Full of great songs, and interesting arrangements. Yes, it's an acquired taste, but I love his voice and he's on fine form throughout his first album.

I discovered its joys much later in life, truth be told. My first taste of Leon was 1971's Leon Russell and the Shelter People, an album I bought from the RCA Music Club. It arrived in the mail in 1971 and I was thrilled. So, it's one of the first albums I ever bought - therefore it has a special place in my heart.

Originally, I think I was swayed by seeing Beware of Darkness in the track listings. Anyone covering George Harrison was worth my time, I reasoned. But then I fell in love with every track - Crystal Closet Queen, Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall...All delivered in Leon's unmistakable voice. There is a joy and confidence about the album and it has a unique place in my collection.

Carney was next in 1972. It contains some superb songs like Tight Rope (I fell for this one big time in 1972) and This Masquerade. However, much of it (including much of side 2) is flat out weird.

Leon Live is an album I bought and sold and then needed to buy again. As soon as I played it, I realised why I'd sold it before. 

It's a triple album, so a lot to get through and these days I seldom have enough time to play six sides of vinyl. Then there's all the medleys and the stage announcements. It's all a bit too much. Instead, I'll stick with Russell and Cocker's Mad Dogs and Englishmen double, and his performance on the Concert for Bangladesh triple, I think.

Stop All That Jazz reins in the weirdness from Carney but is still inventive. His version of Dylan's Ballad of Hollis Brown is certainly unique!

The album came after his country excursions and has Willie Nelson playing on it, as well as John Cale. It's a tidy little album with Leon playing some great piano on Mona Lisa Please. I like his approach on Will O' The Wisp. The excellent cover clues you into a playful album. Contrast that with the terrible cover to Americana (that didn't bode well and so it came to pass).

Although Will O'The Wisp has synths (not a good move IMHO), it is widely regarded as a return to form (i.e. Carney). Leon sounds in good voice and energetic throughout. Make You Feel Good and the single from the album - Lady Blue are two highlights.

Americana was a change of approach thanks to Kim Fowley's contribution. Elvis and Marilyn is a good example of a poppier style. That's the good news. The bad news is Kim Fowley and a mainstream pop approach to most of the album, plus strings  don't really suit his approach. That means the interesting stuff of the past is in the past.

Still - it's listenable, unlike the next two albums in my list. Before his next studio album (Life and Love), Leon and Willie Nelson teamed up for a tour. It's pretty dire and I've reviewed it previously here.

Then comes Life and Love complete with terrible Linn drums, boring arrangements and a lack lustre Leon going through the motions. Again, the cover should have clued me in. A morose Leon hiding behind sun glasses - distant and off-putting. 

I'm not sure why I bothered with these last few. I was hoping against hope that he had a resurgence in him. That would eventually come with The Union and Elton's help.

Even better was Signature Songs on Dark Horse Records.

 

Where do they all belong? And that's it for Leon. I'm not looking for any lost gems. 

That's it for the R section as well. The huge S catalogue is next with some heavy hitters just around the corner.