Artist: Neal Ford And The Fanatics
Title: Good Men
Year Of Release: 1965-68/2013
Label: Big Beat Records
Genre: Garage Rock, Psychedelic Rock
Quality: Flac (tracks)
Total Time: 01:07:06
Total Size: 345 Mb (scans)
Tracklist:
1. Good Men (Are Hard to Find) (Lanier Greig) - 2:58
2. I Will Not Be Lonely (Neal Ford, Jon Pereles, John Stringfellow) - 2:46
3. Don't Tie Me Down (Neal Ford, Walter Johnson, John Stringfellow) - 2:21
4. Gonna Be My Girl (Jon Pereles) - 2:43
5. Better Slow Down (Neal Ford, John Stringfellow) - 2:50
6. I Can't Go On (Neal Ford, Lanier Greig) - 2:28
7. I Will If You Want To (Neal Ford, Lanier Greig) - 2:10
8. Woman (Rod Argent) - 2:36
9. Movin' Along (Jon Pereles) - 2:03
10. The Seasons - 2:13
11. Bitter Bells (Neal Ford, Walter Johnson, John Stringfellow) - 1:52
12. Save Your Affection - 2:10
13. Baby, You're Gonna Cry (Neal Ford, Jon Pereles) - 2:23
14. For You (Neal Ford, Lanier Greig) - 2:21
15. Nothing Left to Do (Jon Pereles) - 2:41
16. Pain (John Cravey, Neal Ford) - 2:37
17. I Have Thoughts of You (Jon Pereles) - 3:26
18. One Times One Ain't Two (Mickey Newbury) - 2:45
19. Shame on You (Neal Ford, Walter Johnson, John Stringfellow) - 2:14
20. That Girl of Mine (Jon Pereles) - 2:19
21. Night Time (Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein, Richard Gottehrer) - 3:12
22. (I've Got A) Brand New Girl (Neal Ford, Lanier Greig, Jon Pereles) - 2:37
23. Little World Girl (John D. Loudermilk) - 2:23
24. Lucille/I'm Down (Albert Collins, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Richard Penniman) - 2:50
25. The Jones (John D. Loudermilk) - 2:49
26. KTRK Jingle/Every Night a New Surprise (Steve Ames, Lanier Greig) - 3:06
Neal Ford - Vocals
Lanier Greig - Keyboards
John Cravey - Drums
W.T. Johnson - Bass Guitar
Jon Pereles - Guitar, Vocals
Johnny Stringfellow - Guitar
Steve Ames - Keyboards
Dennis Senter - Keyboards
Texas was a bastion of garage rock and psychedelia in the '60s, known in particular for the ravings of Austin's 13th Floor Elevators, but over to the east lay Houston's Neal Ford & the Fanatics, a sextet that harnessed the softer sound of their chosen genre. At times, the Fanatics seem as if they were poised to run away with the ragged variation of the kind of sunshine pop that came beaming out of the West Coast, so comfortable were they with effervescent melodies and lighter textures. But they could still rock, as Ace's terrific 2013 anthology Good Men illustrates. Running a generous 26 tracks, this Alec Palao-produced compilation doesn't have everything from their 1967 LP, but rather sharply culls from that LP, adds several rare singles dating back to 1965, and dredges up unreleased material and other rarities, all in the effort to tell the entire story of Ford & the Fanatics. There are times where the group really does get hard and heavy -- usually, it's earlier, when they barrel through the title track and strike a sneering, defiant stance on "I Will Not Be Lonely," but they also pour it all out on an unheard medley of Little Richard's "Lucille" and the Beatles' "I'm Down" -- but the group is largely interesting because they're more varied than most of their garage rock peers, particularly those who called Texas their home. Ford & the Fanatics had a facility with melody, an eagerness to get trippy without ever losing sight of home base, and would occasionally thump with a clear knowledge of R&B; their facility with grooves is rarely heard in garage. As Palao's notes make clear, the group's ability to sound commercial wound up being a bit of an Achilles heel, as it brought them to the attention of labels that were willing to exploit the softer elements in hopes of a hit, but this compilation shows them at their best. If their originals weren't quite hooky enough to guarantee hearing outside of Houston -- they were sturdy songs that perhaps given the right break would've been hits -- the versatility means they're one of the more intriguing unheard bands of their time, finally given their proper respect on this wildly entertaining Ace collection.
