Customer Reviews

Buzzy Linhart Loves You: Classic Recordings

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

Ok, a confession - I'm writing this before the CD is actually released, so i can't discuss the sound qualities of this particular release. I've been making tapes and burning CDs from my vinyl Buzzy for years (yeah, i PAID for ALL of it!), and all these years later, I never fail to get a big huge smile across my whole face when I hear him. Somebody else can talk tech, Buzzy is the BEST and he's finally on CD! Great songwriter, killer performer, great guitarist, and a master of - of all things - VIBES! The perfect mix of rock, folk, jazz, hell Buzzy even threw in a sitar or two. Biased? Yeh, I am. Back in the 70's, Buzzy's record label gave me free tickets to see Buzzy at NYC's Bitter End - he BLEW me away! Saw Buzzy a few DOZEN times after that. Even spent my college radio station's annual promo budget to bring ONE Buzzy Linhart concert live to our school back in '73. NObody minded. EVERYbody had a great time. The guy just always made us smile. Sure, if I were putting this together, there'd be a song change here and there. "Friends" had to be here - I still get bumps hearing Bette Middler use her version as her TV show theme - bless her for keeping Buzzy in the public eye. We miss him a lot, wish he'd come out of "hiding" more often....but this CD is a killer bunch of songs by my absolute favorite "rock" performer (and I use "rock" very loosely in Buzzy's case. MUSIC - before we had TOO many labels and radio formats. Just DAMN good MUSIC. Just BUY this CD, play it good and loud.... and play it for some FRIENDS too... Favorites include Talk About A Morning, Friends,Time To Live Is Now (make this your mantra!), Cheat-Cheat-Lied / Hit The Road Jack (best rock vibes solo ever!), Tell Me True (gorgeous)... this is all from his Buddah (Kama Sutra?) days, nothing from his Atlantic Pussycats Can Go Far. But I've waited this long - I'll just listen to this until Volume 2, and 3 come out....

When I first met Buzzy Linhart, he was hanging up posters for his upcomming Wavy Gravy gig in Berkeley California. I knew this guy was cool, so I went up and asked him : "Are you Ken Kesey?"He tells me: "I'm Buzzy Linhart, put out a couple of albums in the 60's and 70's, recorded with Hendrix," ...Buzzy then of course invited me to his gig, which was ferociously beautiful, sharp witted, cool jazzy acoustic funk with the REAL roots of Folk-Rock slammed in..This is one of the most powerful voices in the history of modern music...Buy this CD and get ready to live life with a great BUZZ

For years I was wondering when someone was gonna put something on CD of Buzzy's. Hurrah to Razor and Tie, any label that releases Arthur Alexanders last recording and now comes out with a Buzzy Anthology deserves a Grammy just for having great ears. This is a great collection from one of the true Giants of the 60's and 70's. If Buzzy makes an appearance in your town , catch him you wont be dissapointed. Hey Razor and Tie, do you think you could find any of Buzzys recordings with his legendary band the 7th Sons ?. I know ESP put out the Raga recording some years ago, any chance of unearthing any other material ? (if you unearth the Son's backing Fred Neal, you deserve to be Knighted-or something like that). Buy this-you'll luv it !!!!!.

Buzzy Linhart is so wonderful with his quirky lyrics and his unusual but wonderful voice and I pray for the day when they re-release A Pussycat Can Go Far CD. But for now I am thrilled with this wonderful CD.

The truth of the matter is, Buzzy Linhart does in fact love everybody, and it comes out in whacky, passionate songs that used to get me so excited I'd get up and dance in the middle of the night. I've seen Buzzy play so hard he was drooling,then drag half the audience home for pancakes in the morning. He is one of the most under-rated musical talents in history, and if you think this collection is good, clamor for the Red Album, with "I Might Be Wrong But I Say What I Mean" on it. A genius with harmony, rhythm, and lyrics... he can be a cross between Tom Leher, Milt Jackson, and Chuck Berry all in the same breath. It's about time in this world of electronic madness Buzzy is getting recognized. He could make good music in the kitchen with a beat up guitar and a washboard. He's the real thing.

The liner notes say it all,"What do Jimi Hendrix, Carley Simon, Bill Cosby,Stills and Nash,Buffy Saint Marie, Bette Midler, Barry Manilow, John Sebastian, the Roches, Richard Beltzer, Tim Hardin, Fred Neil, Harry Nilson, Jerry Wexler, Richie Havens, Todd Rundgren, Labelle and many others have in common? They all Love Buzzy Linhart." Why? Because Buzzy is the source who defies musical categorization. I have seen Buzzy do Jazz, Pop, Rock, Swamp and a 21st century version of a Gilbert & Sullivan vein. He can step up cold and tear a house down. Howard Stern said in 1989, " Buzzy is the man to me...responsible for waking me up from a drug stupor. I was smoking what they called wacky buds and passed out. It was a very bad experience. I thought that I had died and heard Heaven and thought that I was in Heaven and the song conveyed to me what Heaven was. It revived me. It brought me back." I have watched the Buzzy album go from 40,000 and change on the amazon list to 1,500 in one day since its release. It is like watching a stock go through the roof. Page 163 of Entertainment Weekly,2/23/01, reviewes the album and gives it a B+ beating out Gloria Estefan, who got a B. Buzzy, the gnostic musician's musician is back. For those of you who want more, check out Moogy Klingman's The Buzzy/Moogy Sessions 1983-94 and then go searching for the Buzzart Publishing Catalogue Volume One. Keep reaching and the marvelous, enlightened, ebullient, lieberating zone known as Buzzy Linhart will come to you. Sharlene Spingler

Yet, no one's heard of him. Foolishly, Razor and Tie has stopped producing this CD (I believe), so even less people will hear of him down the road, which is a shame. CD is docked one star because it's not as consistently great as the Kama Sutra vinyl release, "The Best," which came out around 1976 or so.

To the world of inquisitive listeners: This is something different. I have had the honor of studying guitar with this rock-n-roll innovator and have seen his powers in person. The man can practically play vibes, drums, guitar and sing simultaneosly while hanging naked by his toenails in sub-zero temperatures. These are the skills of Buzzy Linhart that were evident to me the first time I ever saw him play. He has ABSOLUTE COMMAND of rhythm, voice, and the conciousness of the listener like a precious few of all performers.

Only recently did I become exposed to his early recordings and compositions. I was amazed to hear the "live" quality they portrayed. Charisma is present as if a crowd of 10,000 is cheering him on.

The compositional technique is special because of Mr. Linhart's command of the esoteric concepts of predictability and surprise. Unlike generic pop music, you don't ever know what to expect in the next bar or verse, and conversely, the changes are just cohesive enough to create an overall pattern of pleasing freshness.

Give it up for the Pig! ( that's his pet name )

Lots of fans have been waiting for Buzzy on CD and it was worth the wait! What a great selection of Buzzy's best. One of the legends of the folk/rock era Buzzy not only wrote great songs for other people ('Friends' for Bette Midler...) but put out some of the most fun albums of the time. He always had crack bands and these songs are just plain great. It's very exciting (and long overdue) to hear these songs again.

Yeah, that's the guy, with an amazing best of collection. Second only to Beatles' "1." Buy IT!!