Rock, Metal

The Nazz – Nazz (1968)

2014-03-26T17:42:37Z

The Nazz – Nazz (1968)

Side one
1.    "Open My Eyes" – 2:48
2.    "Back of Your Mind" – 3:48
3.    "See What You Can Be" – 3:00
4.    "Hello It's Me" – 3:57
5.    "Wildwood Blues" (Rundgren, Thom Mooney, Robert "Stewkey" Antoni, Carson Van Osten) – 4:39

Side two
6.    "If That's the Way You Feel" – 4:49
7.    "When I Get My Plane" – 3:08
8.    "Lemming Song" – 4:26
9.    "Crowded" (Mooney, Stewkey) – 2:20
10.    "She's Goin' Down" – 4:58

    Robert "Stewkey" Antoni - Keyboards, Vocals
    Thom Mooney - Drums
    Todd Rundgren - Guitar, Vocals, String Arrangements, Mixing
    Carson Van Osten - Bass, Vocals

Though many of their American peers interpreted the sounds of the British Invasion in different ways, the Nazz's take on jangly guitar pop and nascent heavy psychedelia turned into a blueprint for the American Anglophile power pop guitar bands that followed in the '70s. Which is why the Nazz's eponymous debut album is still a fascinating listen, even if portions of the record haven't dated particularly well. Ironically, one of the songs that hasn't aged well is "Hello It's Me," a ballad that Todd Rundgren later turned into a contemporary standard. It fails here because its dirgey arrangement meanders -- something that can't be said for the rest of Nazz. That's not to say that the bandmembers know exactly where they're going, since it often seems like they don't; they just like to try a lot of different styles, cross-breeding their favorite bands in a blatant act of fanboy worship. At their best, the results of this approach are flat-out stunning, as on the lead cut "Open My Eyes," which twists the Who's "I Can't Explain" around until it winds up in Roy Wood territory. While that may be the only undisputed classic on the record, almost everything else on the album will be interesting to listeners that are as obsessive about '60s Brit-rock as the Nazz themselves. It's great to hear Rundgren and lead vocalist Stewkey approximate the high-pitched harmonies of Cream on "Back of Your Mind," or hearing them swing through London on "See What You Can Be." It's possible that some pure pop fans will hear too much Cream and Hendrix on the record, but they're exceptional showpieces for Rundgren's fine guitar. And that's what shines through on Nazz -- even when the record gets muddled, it's possible to hear the first flowering of Rundgren's talents. --- Stephen Thomas Erlewine

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The Nazz – Nazz III (1970)

2014-04-01T15:47:26Z

The Nazz – Nazz III (1970)

Side one

1.    "Some People" - 3:38
2.    "Only One Winner" - 3:02
3.    "Kicks" (Barry Mann/Cynthia Weil) - 3:47
4.    "Resolution" - 2:44
5.    "It's Not That Easy" - 2:36
6.    "Old Time Lovemaking" - 2:29
7.    "Magic Me" - 3:04

Side two

8.    "Loosen Up" (Antoni/Mooney/Rundgren/Van Osten) - 1:24
9.    "Take the Hand" - 2:15
10.    "How Can You Call That Beautiful" - 3:39
11.    "Plenty of Lovin'" (Carson van Osten)- 3:43
12.    "Christopher Columbus" (Carson van Osten) - 3:20
13.    "You Are My Window" - 6:00

    Robert "Stewkey" Antoni: keyboards, vocals
    Thom Mooney: drums
    Todd Rundgren: guitar, backing vocals, lead vocal on "You Are My Window"
    Carson Van Osten: bass, vocals

Fungo Bat was scrapped for a variety of reasons, among them Todd Rundgren's insistence on singing lead vocals on his newer songs. Nazz Nazz was released instead, leaving the second half of the proposed LP temporarily in the vaults. Rundgren left the group before it was released. Taking hold of uncontested leadership of the group, lead vocalist Robert "Stewkey" Antoni erased Rundgren's lead vocals, replacing them with his own and releasing the entire project as Nazz III. This is, at the very least, sour grapes, but the situation is made all the more peculiar since much of the material finds Rundgren's songwriting moving toward the signature pop style that dominated his first solo records. Stewkey has publicly stated his distaste for Rundgren's Laura Nyro infatuation, so it's a little odd to hear him sing such finely crafted songs as "Only One Winner" and "Some People." That aside, Nazz III is an impressive effort that, if taken in conjunction, would have resulted in a very good double record. Sure, there's some clutter, but such detours as "Loosen Up," a po-faced parody of Archie Bell & the Drells' "Tighten Up," reveal the snotty side of Rundgren's humor. More importantly, the bulk of the record indicates how rapidly he was developing as a songwriter and a producer. Where he proved himself as a gifted mimic on Nazz, the group's second two albums found him assimilating those influences and developing a signature style. If anything, Nazz III demonstrates that better than its predecessor, which often seemed a little disjointed. There still isn't anything as immediate and indelible as "Open My Eyes," yet the best moments easily provide the road map for Rundgren's solo career. Even if he doesn't sing on it. [Originally released in 1970, Nazz III was reissued in 2006 and included bonus tracks.] --- Stephen Thomas Erlewine, allmusic.com

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The Nazz – Nazz Nazz (1969)

2014-03-30T15:53:47Z

The Nazz – Nazz Nazz (1969)

Side one

1.    "Forget All About It" – 3:15
2.    "Not Wrong Long" – 2:30
3.    "Rain Rider" – 3:52
4.    "Gonna Cry Today" – 3:15
5.    "Meridian Leeward" – 3:20
6.    "Under the Ice" – 5:40

Side two

7.    "Hang On Paul" – 2:42
8.    "Kiddie Boy" – 3:30
9.    "Featherbedding Lover" – 2:47
10.    "Letters Don't Count" – 3:25
11.    "A Beautiful Song" – 11:15

    Robert "Stewkey" Antoni: vocals
    Thom Mooney: drums, vocals
    Todd Rundgren: guitar, keyboards, horn arrangements, string arrangements, vocals
    Carson Van Osten: bass, vocals

Originally intended as a double album titled Fungo Bat, Nazz Nazz is at once as equally diverse and more cohesive than the Nazz's eponymous debut. It's a weird trick, but the group pulls it off, largely due to the rapidly maturing talents of Todd Rundgren, their main songwriter and producer. Throughout the Nazz's first record, he proved that he was a gifted mimic and a savvy melodicist, yet he never quite landed upon a signature style outside of their debut single "Hello It's Me"/"Open My Eyes." Not coincidentally, these were the two songs on the record that the Nazz produced themselves, and they followed that lead on Nazz Nazz, fusing their sundry influences into a distinctive psych pop sound. Sonically, it's certainly more ambitious than its predecessor and, apart from the odd forays into soul and blues (filtered through Cream, naturally) on "Featherbedding Lover" and "Kiddie Boy," it's more consistent. In many ways, that makes Nazz Nazz a better listen than its predecessor, even if it doesn't have a knockout punch like "Open My Eyes." That's because Rundgren's songs exhibit a stronger sense of identity, as ballads like "Letters Don't Count" and snarky pop-rockers like "Hang On Paul" point the way toward his solo career. There are a few embarrassing detours, such as the hippie-dippy "Meridian Leeward," but the second Nazz record rivals the first because it offers a progression. It shows that the band, or at least Rundgren, have figured out how to blend their influences into something original. the Nazz may never have delivered a follow-up to this -- Nazz III consists of the remaining sessions from the abandoned double album -- but this is certainly ground zero for Rundgren's fascinating solo career. --- Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi

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