Brother (Cry of Love album)
Brother is the debut album by the American rock band Cry of Love, released in 1993.[2][3]
Brother | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 1993 | |||
Recorded | November 1992 | |||
Studio | Muscle Shoals Sound Studio | |||
Genre | Rock | |||
Label | Columbia[1] | |||
Producer | John Custer | |||
Cry of Love chronology | ||||
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"Peace Pipe" peaked at No. 1 on Billboard's Album Rock Tracks chart; two other singles made the chart's top twenty.[4] "Bad Thing" peaked at No. 60 on the UK Singles Chart.[5] The album sold more than 200,000 copies.[6]
Cry of Love supported Brother by opening for Robert Plant, Aerosmith, and ZZ Top on separate North American tours.[7][6][8]
Production
The album was produced by John Custer at Muscle Shoals Sound Studio, and was recorded and mixed in four weeks.[9][10][11] The majority of the album's songs were written by Cry of Love's guitar player, Audley Freed.[12] "Peace Pipe" is about the United States breaking its treaties with Native Americans.[13]
Critical reception
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [14] |
The Charlotte Observer | [1] |
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [15] |
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide | [16] |
The Washington Post called the album "the usual post-Allmans compendium of blues-rock swagger, soul-man vocals and bad-love and on-the-road songs."[17] The Morning Call wrote that the songs "have a raw, naked sound built around the tough, direct playing of guitarist Audley Freed, bassist Robert Kearns and drummer Jason Peterson, plus [Kelly] Holland's soulfully sandpapered singing."[18] The Boston Herald praised the "distinct and agreeable '60s and '70s blues-rock vibe."[19]
The Journal Star determined that "the straight-ahead rock, with a blues undercurrent, brings to mind basement jam sessions or a carful of friends singing to a blaring stereo."[12] The Los Angeles Daily News labeled it "unadorned, sparsely produced Stratocaster-driven rock."[7] The Modesto Bee concluded that Brother "contains straight-ahead rock that's raw and unfiltered, catching a sound that's since been urbanized and called 'grunge.'"[20] The Fort Worth Star-Telegram considered the band "awfully derivative—sometimes annoyingly so," writing that "Bad Thing" "is nothing more than Grand Funk's 'Some Kind of Wonderful' with a little Bad Co. mixed in."[21]
AllMusic deemed the album "a near-perfect fusion of classic British hard-rock influences (read Free) and Southern rock sensibility, bringing a refreshing honesty to the dreary radio landscape of the early '90s."[14]
Track listing
All tracks written by Audley Freed, except where noted.
- "Highway Jones" (Freed, K. Holland)
- "Pretty As You Please"
- "Bad Thing" (Holland, Freed, J. Custer)
- "Too Cold in the Winter" (Holland, Freed)
- "Hand Me Down"
- "Gotta Love Me" (Freed, Holland, Custer)
- "Carnival"
- "Drive It Home" (Freed, Holland, Custer)
- "Peace Pipe" (Freed, Holland)
- "Saving Grace"
Personnel
From Columbia's CK 53404 CD liner notes
- Audley Freed - guitars
- Kelly Holland - vocals, percussion, piano on "Carnival"
- Robert Kearns - bass
- Jason Patterson - drums
- John Custer - piano on "Bad Thing"
- Pepper Keenan - tremelo guitar on "Bad Thing"
- Kelly, Jason, Robert, Audley, Josh, John, Kent - hand claps on "Bad Thing"
References
- Walker, Richard (December 3, 1993). "CRY OF LOVE: 'Brother'". The Charlotte Observer. p. 7D.
- "Cry of Love Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic.
- Menconi, David (September 22, 2020). "Step It Up and Go: The Story of North Carolina Popular Music, from Blind Boy Fuller and Doc Watson to Nina Simone and Superchunk". UNC Press Books – via Google Books.
- Whitburn, Joel (January 15, 2008). "Joel Whitburn Presents Rock Tracks 1981-2008". Hal Leonard Corporation – via Google Books.
- "CRY OF LOVE | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com.
- Menconi, David (March 20, 1994). "A FAR CRY - If the road to success has a fast lane, it's not in sight on the extended rock tour". The News & Observer. p. G1.
- Shuster, Fred (October 12, 1993). "CRYING OUT FOR ACCEPTANCE - BAND ACHIEVES RECOGNITION AFTER INCREASING WORD-OF-MOUTH". Los Angeles Daily News. p. L8.
- Hill, Jack W. (April 29, 1994). "'WHAT YOU SEE IS WHAT YOU GET' AS CRY OF LOVE TAKES STAGE". 4. Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. p. 4.
- Menconi, David (February 12, 1993). "CAREER MOVES". The News & Observer. p. W4.
- Sculley, Alan (29 Apr 1994). "CRY OF LOVE: THEY MAKE THE '70S SOUND NEW". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. p. 4H.
- Green, Tony (August 6, 1993). "Cry of Love brings its "Peace Pipe' to town". St. Petersburg Times. Weekend. p. 19.
- Timm, Lori (March 10, 1994). "RETRO-ROCK GROUP OWES FAME TO A FRIEND". Journal Star. p. C4.
- Morse, Steve (7 Jan 1994). "Cry of Love builds future hits from an R & B past". The Boston Globe. ARTS & FILM. p. 81.
- "Brother - Cry of Love | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.
- Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 2. MUZE. p. 651.
- MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 297.
- Jenkins, Mark (13 Aug 1993). "The Sincere Cry Of an Allmans Love". The Washington Post. p. N16.
- Harry, Rich (August 21, 1993). "NORTH CAROLINA'S CRY OF LOVE TREATS VINTAGE BLUES ROCK LIKE A BROTHER". The Morning Call. p. A57.
- Johnson, Dean (January 10, 1994). "Band's got Love for '60s sound: Group members live for guitar-rock of the past". Boston Herald. A&l. p. 27.
- Coats, Rusty (October 8, 1993). "ROCKERS CRY OF LOVE, LITA FORD HAVE AREA DATES TONIGHT". The Modesto Bee. p. H6.
- Ferman, Dave (April 22, 1994). "Retread boogie". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. STAR TIME. p. 23.