Rare Earth - Ecology (1970)
Rare Earth - Ecology (1970)
A1 Born To Wander 3:20 A2 Long Time Leavin' 4:47 A3 (I Know) I'm Losing You 10:53 B1 Satisfaction Guaranteed 4:34 B2 Nice Place To Visit 3:57 B3 No. 1 Man 4:52 B4 Eleanor Rigby 6:38 Gil Bridges -Flute, Saxophone, Tabla, Vocals Eddie Guzman - Congas Kenny James -Keyboards, Organ John Persh - Bass, Composer, Tambourine, Vocals Rod Richards - Guitar, Vocals Pete Rivera - Drums, Vocals
Two strong tracks propelled Ecology up the pop charts: the swaggering, bravado-laden "Born to Wander," written by Tom Baird, and a hard-hitting, rocking rendition of the Temptations' "I Know I'm Losing You," written by Cornelius Grant, Eddie Holland, and Norman Whitfield; the epic remake of the latter is almost eleven minutes of pure funk-rock. Lead singer Pete Riviera had a powerful voice, similar to Dennis Edwards, that could sell a song; the percussion and echo vocals accentuate the classic. The guys do a nice job on John Lennon and Paul McCartney's "Eleanor Rigby," and bass player John Persh's "Nice Place to Visit" adds a different twist to Rare Earth's legacy. ---Andrew Hamilton, AllMusic Review
“Ecology” Rare Earth’s sophomore effort hit the album chart on 11 July 1970, topping at #15, and hanging on for 49 weeks. The band settled into guitar driven, percussion supplemented grooves that worked well. Edward Guzman (congas and percussion) became the band’s sixth member and the album yielded not one, but two hit singles. First “(I Know) I’m Losing You” written by the Motown team of Norman Whitfield, Edward Holland, Jr. & Cornelius Grant. Whitfield was brought in to produce the sessions, obviously a great choice. The song charted on 1 August 1970, peaking at #7 and hanging on the charts for 14 weeks. Like the band’s first single, the track was edited to just less than 4 minutes from the nearly 11 minute album take which gave each band member a chance to show their chops. The band’s cover, like “Get Ready” before it, outperformed The Temptations’ original. The single edit is available on both “Anthology” and “Fill Your Head.” The album’s second hit single “Born To Wander” charted 12 December 1970, reaching #17 and holding on for 11 weeks. The single, penned by producer Tom Baird, was their first not written by anyone from the old school Motown roster and was edited to 3 minutes compared to the LP version’s four minute plus run time. The single was quite a change in sound for the band, with its lighter, more carefree feel. Gil Bridge’s flue is memorable as is Rod Richards’ lead guitar. The single edit of “Born To Wander” is available only on “Anthology.” ---psychedelicbabymag.com
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