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Product details
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Track Listings
| 1. Tigers Will Survive |
| 2. Midnight On the Water |
| 3. Right Before My eyes |
| 4. Da Doo Ron Ron (When He Walked Me Home) |
| 5. Hope You Know |
| 6. Please Be My Friend |
| 7. Never Again |
| 8. Close the Door Lightly |
| 9. House Of Unamerican Blues Activity Dream |
| 10. Morning song |
| 11. The Only Dancer |
Product Description
2007 RUNT LLC-USA-646315721027
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
Ian Matthews McDonald, a founding member of Fairport Convention, left the group as it was beginning to record "Unhalfbricking" (released in 1969) to form Matthews Southern Comfort.
The new group, signed by MCA, soon hit the paydirt when it topped the UK chart with its beautiful - and timely - cover of Joni Mitchell's "Woodstock." The two last LP's (out of three) recorded by Matthews Southern Comfort were in the same mould as Fairport Convention first two albums, mixing originals with covers of US songs by artists such as - this time - James Taylor, Neil Young and Jesse Winchester.
Matthews left the band quite suddenly at the end of 1970 and headed for a solo career on the Vertigo label with some aid from Paul Samwell-Smith (the ex-Yarbirds's bassist turned record producer.) "Tigers Will Survive" is the second of two excellent LP's released for that label in 1971 (the first one being: "If You Saw Through My Eyes".)
Out of the eleven tracks released on the original LP, six were Matthews orignals (1, 4, 6, 7, 10 and 11.)
Ian once again shows a keen eye for the work of others, while also proving his prowess as a first-rate interpretive singer. The five remaining tracks are distinctive interpretations of tunes written by Eric Andersen (3), Richard Farina (4), Muscle Shoal's Pete Carr (6), Moby Grape's Peter Lewis (8) and even Phil Spector! "Da Doo Ron Ron" (9) was originally co-written and produced by Spector for the Crystals.
The album is mainly acoustic but with the support of a fine rhythm section and delicate electric guitar touches. Matthews' sweet and evocative tenor is perfect for the chosen material, which succeeds in its blend of British and American folk, rock and pop. I will add that the sound quality of this remastered CD is very good.
Ian's own compositions are, artistically, of a high-level. The very soft "Morning Song" and "Midnight on the Water", on the one hand, and the more rhythmic "Never Again" and "Tigers Will Survive", on the other hand are, to my ears, the best of the lot.
"Close the Door Lightly When You Go" is a bittersweet romantic tune that fits Ian's style perfectly.
The rollicking, "House un-American Blues Activity Dream" (here abridged to "Unamerican Activity Dream") features stream-of-consciousness lyrics and brings a harder edge to Ian's voice (instrumentally complemented by the use of a more electric-sounding arrangement).
Peter Lewis's tune, which features an effervescent country melody crossed with fine folk-based hooks is a natural choice for Ian Matthews. It was, originally, one of three worthwhile tracks featured on Moby Grape's last Columbia LP ("Truly Fine Citizen.") Good as it is performed by Ian, I still prefer the original.
The next track, "Da-Doo-Ron-Ron" is both a surprise and a stunner. It features Ian's vocals backed with handclaps. It provides a very refreshing change of pace.
This album is a real gem for those who enjoy the US singer-songwriter genre (and also for those who want to replace their worn-out vinyl copies.) It is also a must for fans of the first two Fairport Convention studio albums.
The new group, signed by MCA, soon hit the paydirt when it topped the UK chart with its beautiful - and timely - cover of Joni Mitchell's "Woodstock." The two last LP's (out of three) recorded by Matthews Southern Comfort were in the same mould as Fairport Convention first two albums, mixing originals with covers of US songs by artists such as - this time - James Taylor, Neil Young and Jesse Winchester.
Matthews left the band quite suddenly at the end of 1970 and headed for a solo career on the Vertigo label with some aid from Paul Samwell-Smith (the ex-Yarbirds's bassist turned record producer.) "Tigers Will Survive" is the second of two excellent LP's released for that label in 1971 (the first one being: "If You Saw Through My Eyes".)
Out of the eleven tracks released on the original LP, six were Matthews orignals (1, 4, 6, 7, 10 and 11.)
Ian once again shows a keen eye for the work of others, while also proving his prowess as a first-rate interpretive singer. The five remaining tracks are distinctive interpretations of tunes written by Eric Andersen (3), Richard Farina (4), Muscle Shoal's Pete Carr (6), Moby Grape's Peter Lewis (8) and even Phil Spector! "Da Doo Ron Ron" (9) was originally co-written and produced by Spector for the Crystals.
The album is mainly acoustic but with the support of a fine rhythm section and delicate electric guitar touches. Matthews' sweet and evocative tenor is perfect for the chosen material, which succeeds in its blend of British and American folk, rock and pop. I will add that the sound quality of this remastered CD is very good.
Ian's own compositions are, artistically, of a high-level. The very soft "Morning Song" and "Midnight on the Water", on the one hand, and the more rhythmic "Never Again" and "Tigers Will Survive", on the other hand are, to my ears, the best of the lot.
"Close the Door Lightly When You Go" is a bittersweet romantic tune that fits Ian's style perfectly.
The rollicking, "House un-American Blues Activity Dream" (here abridged to "Unamerican Activity Dream") features stream-of-consciousness lyrics and brings a harder edge to Ian's voice (instrumentally complemented by the use of a more electric-sounding arrangement).
Peter Lewis's tune, which features an effervescent country melody crossed with fine folk-based hooks is a natural choice for Ian Matthews. It was, originally, one of three worthwhile tracks featured on Moby Grape's last Columbia LP ("Truly Fine Citizen.") Good as it is performed by Ian, I still prefer the original.
The next track, "Da-Doo-Ron-Ron" is both a surprise and a stunner. It features Ian's vocals backed with handclaps. It provides a very refreshing change of pace.
This album is a real gem for those who enjoy the US singer-songwriter genre (and also for those who want to replace their worn-out vinyl copies.) It is also a must for fans of the first two Fairport Convention studio albums.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
2 reviews
3 of 6 people found the following review helpful
His Best!
20 Feb 2010
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
I bought this album as a 'cut-out' 8-track way back in 1980 not knowing what to expect. I thought the cover was cool,but had never heard of Ian Mattews. But it turned out to be one of my favorite albums ever. This album is smooth, but still has some edge to it. 'The Only Dancer' is still one of my favorite songs, and I can't help but sing along every time I hear 'Please be my Friend'. I've bought several more of Ians albums since, but was kinda disappointed. None of them have the same originality and life to them that Tigers does. Just glad they finally put it on CD! My cassette recording of my original 8-track was wore out!
4 of 12 people found the following review helpful
tigers will survive
17 Sep 2005
Format:Audio CD
i am waiting for my copy of this japanese pressing I don't know if it has been remastered from the original pressing but this album is a gem The old lp side two is absolutely fantastic Close the door lightly when you go is probably my favourite A must have one And with the original cover even better
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