Customer Reviews

Brave Belt & Brave Belt 2

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Everything Darth says is true as far as I know. However, I want to clarify his conclusion, which suggests these pre-BTO recordings were not available until now. On the heels of BTO's success in 1973-74, the Brave Belt albums were quickly reissued by Reprise in order to capitalize on Overdrive's popularity. I have never heard Brave Belt I, but Brave Belt II contains several great tunes that could have been quite popular. Dunrobin's Gone and Another Way Out are two of my favorites on that second Brave Belt album, which was fairly popular in the Northwest even as a reissue. The album isn't consistently good enough to merit 5 stars and I suspect Brave Belt I is similar. Still, there is worthy material here...if you liked BTO you will probably like at least some of what Brave Belt produced.

This is a handy 2fer CD, pairing up both Brave Belt albums. Thus, it also couples the two discreet incarnations of the band onto one disc. This is problematic for one HUGE reason: C.F. Turner is NOT on the 1st album, but his awesome presence is all over the 2nd.

The difference between the two albums is, literally, day and night. The first album is fey and sunshine-dappled, like a country walk through a Canadian wheatfield. The second album, conversely, is like a dancing, drink-spilling night in a Toronto honky tonk roadhouse.

Andru Reeve widely prefers the latter. And, therefore, he must dock this collection one star. Still, it's highly recommended for fans of Bachman-Turner Overdrive's riff-happy excesses. Andru Reeve would be one such fan.

With this release that combines the two Brave Belt releases into one disc, it is best to review the two halves separately. Brave Belt is a follow up to the Chad Allen era Guess Who. Brave Belt II could serve as the first Bachman Turner Overdrive album.

Let me start by saying I'm a big fan of the Chad Allen era Guess Who. Turn Around and Walk Away, Till We Kissed, Hurting Each Other, Could This Be Love and Shakin' All Over are all classics that should be heard by all generations.

Brave Belt is not the follow up album to American Woman, the Guess album prior to this and the last one with guitarist, Randy Bachman. It is somewhat a step back if you look at music as a series of progressions. But Crazy Arms, the lead track, rocks. It's a catchy song. It is followed by Lifetime; a nice country folk rock song. Waiting There For Me picks the pace up with almost a hint of No Sugar Tonight. I Am the Man has a nice guitar hook and a haunting fade out for a more or less forgettable song (forgettable, but I still like it). It's Over flies pretty close to the Roy Orbison song by the same name. In a Rock and Roll Band is another Chad song that gives Randy a chance to play some great guitar licks. Wandering Fantasy Girl might work a little better if you were smoking pot. It's kind of trippy.

I Wouldn't Trade My Guitar For a Woman reminds us that the album has a bigger country influence on it than we might have realized. Again, Randy does not forget to add the guitar hooks.

I think Holy Train is the song that makes you think, "There is a lot of good music on this album". It is gospel tinged as you might surmise by the title. It works as gospel rock. Any Day Now is a solid pop that serves as a lead in to the much darker Scarecrow.
Scarecrow makes you wish this version of the band could have continued. But then, had it, there would have been no BTO.

Let me continue by saying I think the Bachman Turner Overdrive was a great band in their own right. They have a song in my top five all-time greatest songs list. Let it Ride has you scratching your head until you realize that she is the one that cheated and now he's asking would YOU cry if I told you I lied or would YOU let it ride.

Brave Belt II has a few songs with Chad but it mostly switches Chad for CF Turner, the Turner in BTO. In my opinion, the songs with Chad are the better songs. The Bachman Turner songs are hard rockin' but just short of being great. They are filled with guitar licks, with the excellent tone that would soon be the BTO sound. Too Far Away starts the album nicely with a good solid rock song, with real rocking riff and with what I assume is Turner singing but it may be Randy.

Dunrobin's Gone, Another Way Out and Waterloo Country are Chad Allen songs on the second half. I don't know, maybe I just prefer their pop style over the more driving hard rock of the Turner songs. Waterloo Country, I think it is even sung by Turner but it's written by Allen, has a driving hard rock sound but it has a pop style, in that it gives you little hooks here and there; something to grab on to.

This album is very much worth having in your collection.

It's nice to finally have a CD of these albums.
Pre Bachman Turner Overdrive, Brave Belt Two is my favorite.
C F Turner sounds great, and Chad Allen is awesome.
Randy Bachman's guitar work shines as well,
A must for BTO fans!

randy bachman played with these guys , great songs and great talent , something to kick back and get into and as i said part of your bto archives