A Song for Me
A Song for Me is the third album by the British progressive rock band Family, released on 23 January 1970 on Reprise Records.
| A Song for Me | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 23 January 1970[1] | |||
| Recorded | 1969 | |||
| Studio | Olympic Studios, London | |||
| Genre | Progressive rock, psychedelic rock, folk rock | |||
| Length | 38:25 | |||
| Label | Reprise | |||
| Producer | Family | |||
| Family chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
Background
The album was recorded in late 1969 at Olympic Studios in London. It was their first album with new members John Weider on bass and Poli Palmer on keyboards, flute and vibraphone. The past several months had been full of setbacks for Family. Rick Grech left for Blind Faith, Jim King was forced to leave for getting too deep into drug addiction, and their first U.S. tour proved to be a disaster.
Although many of the songs had been written with King's saxophone in mind, Charlie Whitney and Roger Chapman were able to rework them with Palmer's instruments, and Palmer quickly made himself integral to Family's sound. Because some of these songs had been debuted in live performances in the previous year, many Family fans found themselves getting accommodated to arrangements that sounded radically different from what they expected.
Much of A Song for Me shows Family exploring various popular forms, from jazz and blues to folk and country.
Track listing
All tracks written by John "Charlie" Whitney and Roger Chapman, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Drowned in Wine" | 4:08 | |
| 2. | "Some Poor Soul" | 2:44 | |
| 3. | "Love Is a Sleeper" | 4:00 | |
| 4. | "Stop for the Traffic – Through the Heart of Me" | 2:09 | |
| 5. | "Wheels" | Whitney, Chapman, Ric Grech | 4:38 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Song for Sinking Lovers" | 4:04 | |
| 2. | "Hey – Let It Rock" | 1:02 | |
| 3. | "The Cat and the Rat" | 2:30 | |
| 4. | "93's O.K. J" (instrumental) | Whitney, John Weider | 3:57 |
| 5. | "A Song for Me" | Whitney, Chapman, Weider, Rob Townsend | 9:13 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "No Mule's Fool" | |
| 2. | "Good Friend of Mine" | |
| 3. | "Drowned in Wine" (Live) | |
| 4. | "Cat and the Rat" (Live) | |
| 5. | "Wheels" (Live) | |
| 6. | "Song for Me" (Live) |
U.S. Vinyl track listing (All CD issues contain the UK track listing)
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "No Mule's Fool" | ||
| 2. | "Drowned in Wine" | ||
| 3. | "Love is a Sleeper" | ||
| 4. | "Some Poor Soul" | ||
| 5. | "Wheels" | Whitney, Chapman, Ric Grech |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Hey – Let It Rock" | ||
| 2. | "Stop for the Traffic - Through the Heart of Me" | ||
| 3. | "Song for Sinking Lovers" | ||
| 4. | "93's O.K. J" (instrumental) | Whitney, John Weider | |
| 5. | "A Song for Me" | Whitney, Chapman, Weider, Rob Townsend |
Personnel
Family
- Roger Chapman – vocals, percussion
- John "Charlie" Whitney – guitars, banjo, organ
- John Weider – guitars, bass, violin, dobro
- John "Poli" Palmer – vibes, piano, flute
- Robert Townsend – drums, percussion, harp
Additional musicians
- George Bruno - organ (3)
Technical
- Family – producer
- George Chkiantz – engineer
- Dave Bridges – assistant engineer
- Keith Harwood – assistant engineer
- Roger Beale – assistant engineer
Chart positions
- Highest chart position (UK) – No. 4
- Highest chart position (US) – did not chart
References
- "Album Reviews" (PDF). Melody Maker. 24 January 1969. p. 23. Retrieved 15 September 2021.
- Dougan, John (2011). "A Song for Me – Family | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 25 June 2011.