Garfield - Strange Streets+Out There Tonight (76-77 can hard rock rock)

Strange Streets

This is an EXCELLENT Canadian folk progressive rock, made in 1976. All the tracks are excellent: they all have some catchy & addictive parts & melodies that retain the listener's attention. The VERY EMOTIVE male lead singer Garfield French has an androgynous voice, and his tone is such that he all the time sounds like he is on the verge of crying. There are very subtly floating keyboards a bit like on Pink Floyd's "Animals". The omnipresent folkier acoustic guitars are often accompanied with tender flute parts and slow rhythmic piano. There are some excellent ambient echoed harmonica & discrete electric guitars in the background. This record may slightly give you the blues, because the songs are not really joyful, except "Old time movies". "Someday if you're lucky" has a mix of dynamic Jethro Tull-like and peaceful PFM-like flute parts. "Catch you next time 'round" has lead vocals and piano sounding like Supertramp. "Old time movies" begins with a barking dog which seems to only calm down after an harmonica melody starts; this track reminds me ELP'S "Lucky man", especially the moog solos. The tracks are quite short, lasting around 2-3 minutes, except the last one which lasts around 9 minutes.

The tracks:

Side 1: "Strange streets", "Give me love to Anne", "Someday if you're lucky", "Above market street", "Old time movies"

Side 2: "Nanny's song", "Ride the waves", "Catch you next time 'round". "Eyes" 
From RYM (greenback)

 Out There Tonight

If not for White Witch, I don't know if Capricorn would have ever started signing bands like this. They're not as heavy or camp glam as WW, but they do get a bit spaced out with their synth & the songs are odd. The singer (Garfield French) sounds like a British Sal Valentino mixed with a touch of Paul Williams.


From RYM (thelatepetercook)
 

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