Customer Reviews

Boulders

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Don't be put off by the fact that Roy Wood is a studio wiz and a musician virtuoso. This a very human album with a real heart that beats behind these songs. Wood's purpose for this album was not to dazzle us by playing every instrument (which he does!), but to share some really good songs, such as the uplifting opener, "Songs of Praise". To be sure, there are many eccentric turns. "When Grandma Plays The Banjo" has some very ferrocious banjo playing, and "Wake Up" may be the only song you hear that utilizes a pan of water as an instrument. For me the signature songs are "Dear Elaine" and "Miss Clark and the Computer"; the former I understood to be a song about England, and the latter a great metaphor for relationships where the expectations are too high. Never again has Wood made an album as focused and tuneful as Boulders. His next solo album was Mustard, which had its moments, but it didn't quite cut the, well you get the idea.

roy wood's 1st solo album, boulders, was his best album after leaving the move, and one of the best albums of 1973. by this time, most of the wonderful experimentation of the sixties had pretty much died out. wood plays virtually every instrument on this disc, and all of the tunes are totally different from each other. some sound like the beach boys, some like 50's rock stars. one cut is kind of like fairport convention, another like the rolling stones, and yet another like the beatles. gospel , hard rock, and jazz are some of the many genres that one can trace here. the songwriting and playing are top notch as always, and the album was well produced by wood with, of all people, alan parsons as engineer. i strongly recommend this excellent disc.

Roy Wood's solo debut, "Boulders", might just be the best album of all time. It is not something easily described, it must be listened to. If you're a normal person, you're gonna freak out and ask why in the world I gave it this distinction, until you actually listen to it a few times. This is prime Wood. Roy Wood has to be the most underrated songwriter/singer/musician of all time, simply because he is The Best songwriter/singer/musician of all time. And this CD is only the start, there's plenty more for you to discover. This CD has been Out-of-Print for a few years now, but luckily, a new, remastered, enchanced, bonus-indulged version is planned for release in Summer 2002. When this becomes available, buy it and enrich your muscial spectrum and world.

Having been kicked out of his own band, the former leader of The Move either went over the deep end or just simply decided he was going to completely amuse himself in the studio for his solo debut in 1973. Roy pulled out all the stops for Boulders.

Either way, the world is a better place for it.

The stylistic ground covered on the album is dizzying, and it's the way it's covered -- with a pastiche of symphonic glory and marshmallows -- is a stroke of genius. The album opens with what appears, at first to be a straight-ahead gospel-inflected rocker with "Songs Of Praise". But that notion is quickly dispelled by the chorus of sped-up, chipmunk Roy voices that sing harmony in the chorus. That's folloed up with the sleepy-eyed "Wake Up", which features percussion provided by a hand splashing in a bowl of water.

The rest of the album follows suit, as every whim is indulged. The country hoedown of "When Gran'ma Plays the Banjo", to "The Irish Loafer and His Hen" and the pedal steel-led "Rockin' Shoes" (which sounds like it could be a countrified Move outtake).

It's a warped masterpiece of the highest order.

If Roy Wood followed his muse right over the cliff... he landed in a humongous pile of feathers and cookies, where we can all frolic together.

This album is uniquely good. By far, it is the best Roy Wood material I have heard. This album exists on the murky borderline between the novelty record and the serious introspective solo project. Wood's vocal style and tone resembles Ozzy Osbourne, while his writing style resembles the Beatles. His 'cello & sitar playing don't hurt the Beatles comparison!

and was laughed at soundly by everyone in the room when I put it on the stereo. By the end of the month everyone of them had bought this album. Roy Wood grows on you!

Roy Wood's "Boulders" is a breath of fresh air. While other bands were experimenting with leftovers from Psychedelia, British Invasion, Blues/Rock, Country/Rock, and all other types of fusion, Wood gets back to basics. This album features real instruments being used in real compositions. There is no gimmick here.
It is a work of passion for Wood. There is not a single song on here that sounds like the one before it. The album is rich with highs, lows, rock, twang, melodies, harmonies and just straight up good music. To call this simply a rock record doesn't do it justice. It is a musical record.

Roy Wood (the driving force behind The Move and the creator of the Electric Light Orchestra) showed the full range of his talents here. Every song is a different style, every song sounds like it has a different singer, and yet EVERYTHING on the album is Wood. He wrote every song, played every instrument, sang every vocal (including the 'female' choir on "Song of Praise"), produced the album and even drew the picture on the cover.

They don't make them like this any more, folks.

A very cool album. I put this platter on the turntable the other night for the first time in maybe 15 years, two kids, several addresses, etc. A sonic masterpiece, and very eccentric to boot. I wonder why it has not been more thoroughly distributed? Perhaps it's a Republican thing. Politics aside, I would enjoin any lover of Rock roots music to explore this excellent achievement. The only downer is somewhat wimpy album art--- good in concept, but ineptly produced (by

the print production people, I'm sure!)

clear proof of genius, further listening:anything roy was ever involved in