CANNED HEAT – ONE MORE RIVER TO CROSS LP – Nr MINT A1/B1 UK ORIG 1974

Canned Heat – One More River To Cross
(Atlantic Records  1974  K50026)
Matrix No’s: A1/B1 – UK Pressing

Gatefold Sleeve in Nr MINT/Excellent+ condition
– some slight wear to edges/corners

Vinyl in Nr MINT condition
(there are some surface marks visible on the vinyl when held up to the light but they don’t affect the sound quality)

Canned Heat is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965. The group has been noted for its interpretations of blues material and for its efforts to promote interest in this type of music and its original artists. It was launched by two blues enthusiasts, Alan Wilson and Bob Hite, who took the name from Tommy Johnson‘s 1928 “Canned Heat Blues”, a song about an alcoholic who had desperately turned to drinking Sterno, generically called “canned heat”. After appearances at the Monterey and Woodstock festivals at the end of the 1960s, the band acquired worldwide fame with a lineup consisting of Bob Hite (vocals), Alan Wilson (guitar, harmonica and vocals), Henry Vestine and later Harvey Mandel (lead guitar), Larry Taylor (bass), and Adolfo de la Parra (drums).

The music and attitude of Canned Heat afforded them a large following and established the band as one of the popular acts of the hippie era. Canned Heat appeared at most major musical events at the end of the 1960s, performances blues standards along with their own material and occasionally indulging in lengthy ‘psychedelic’ solos. Two of their songs – “Going Up the Country” and “On the Road Again” – became international hits. “Going Up the Country” was a remake of the Henry Thomas song “Bull Doze Blues”, recorded in Louisville, Kentucky, in 1927. “On the Road Again” was a cover version of the 1953 Floyd Jones song of the same name, which is reportedly based on the Tommy Johnson song “Big Road Blues”, recorded in 1928.

Since the early 1970s, numerous personnel changes have occurred, although the current lineup includes all three surviving members of the classic lineup: de la Parra (who has remained in the band since first joining in 1967), Mandel, and Taylor. For much of the 1990s and 2000s, de la Parra was the only member from the band’s 1960s lineup. He wrote a book about the band’s career. Larry Taylor, whose presence in the band has not been steady, is the other surviving member from the earliest lineups. Mandel, Walter Trout and Junior Watson are among the guitarists who gained fame for playing in later editions of the band. British blues pioneer John Mayall found several musicians for his band among former members of Canned Heat.

One More River to Cross is the tenth studio album by Canned Heat, released in 1973. The band negotiated out of their contract with Liberty Records and debuted with Atlantic Records. This album featured horn arrangements played by the Muscle Shoal Horns along with Barry Beckett and Roger Hawkins. The album cover was designed by Ernie Cefalu.

1. “One More River to Cross” (Daniel Moore) – 3:10
2. “L.A. Town” (Canned Heat) – 3:28
3. “I Need Someone” (Bob Hite) – 4:54
4. “Bagful of Boogie” (Canned Heat) – 3:34
5. “I’m a Hog for You Baby” (Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller) – 2:40
6. “You Am What You Am” (James Shane) – 4:31
7. “Shake, Rattle and Roll” (Charles E. Calhoun, Joel Scott Hill) – 2:31
8. “Bright Times Are Comin'” (Canned Heat) – 3:11
9. “Highway 401” (Canned Heat) – 3:53
10. “We Remember Fats” (Fats Domino Medley) (Dave Bartholomew, Fats Domino, Al Lewis) – 5:07

Canned Heat

• Bob Hite – vocals, harmonica
• Henry Vestine – lead guitar
• James Shane – rhythm guitar, bass, vocals
• Ed Beyer – keyboards
• Richard Hite – bass, rhythm guitar, backing vocals
• Adolfo de la Parra – drums

Additional personnel

• Muscle Shoal Horns – horns
• Roger Hawkins – drums
• Barry Beckett – keyboards

Production

• Barry Beckett – producer
• Roger Hawkins – producer
• Jerry Masters – engineer
• Steve Melton – engineer