Customer Reviews

First Base/Amar Caballero

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

 

 

It is sad, very sad, this group had never been able to gain much more recognition; in fact, I like very much Babe Ruth's music, and I consider Allan Shaklock as a master guitarist, if not a genius in rock music! Jenny Haan's vocal punch will bring you as much thrill as any good female artist does today. LOST TREASURES of 70's pop music is, perhaps, what best describes this group. Despite some good airplay and solid hits, such as "The Mexican", Babe Ruth (as it seems) falled slowly in the 'forgotten room of ages'. An important, if not ESSENTIAL rock band in the HISTORY (read today : INDUSTRY) of rock'n'roll.

First Base? This was the group's first album. Put this in your car's CD player and CRANK IT UP! The leader, guitarist, and principal writer, Alan Shacklock was a talent with whom to reckon. Check out the crunching "Wells Fargo" and the nimble guitar of "The Mexican" which has been covered a few times by other bands.

Amar Caballero- This one was the second album, and it is a mixed bag. Here Shacklock and the slightly revamped gang avoided the big guitar sound of the first and third albums: more brass, strings, funk, raggae, and jazz but it is really uneven with some weak songs. Weakend by an attempt to be a little too avant garde. Don't give up though; I think that Jenny Haan's voice is put to better use here. More singing and less screaming. Wait around for side 2 and listen for the Spanish guitar pieces, the beautiful "We are Holding On" and and steamy Latin "Amar Caballero." "Amar" is the REAL payoff since it contains some really killer guitar lines. The album finally moves--even the sad old horses on the cover finally break into a gallop.

Also the group released an eponymous album after this album which I highly recommend. It does not have the same cutting edge as First Base, but it is a definite departure from Amar Caballero. Faintly sounds almost kinda like Rush during the mid-seventies.

Babe Ruth made three really fine albums. "First Base" is by far my favorite. Their self titled album and "Stealing Home" are excellent as well. "First Base" has some excellent rockers including: Black Dog, The Mexican/For a Few Dollars More, Joker, and (my favorite) The Runaways. Now..."Amar Caballero" is a major disappointment to me. There are a few nice songs (Lady, We are Holding On, and the title track) but the rest of them are really not worth listening to. If I had it to do over again, I would have purchased "First Base" as a single CD and not bothered buying this dual CD. I really do only listen to half of this CD. "First Base" is a classic..."Amar Caballero" is a waste of time.

"The Mexican" was one of the original B-Boy cuts at the dawn of hip-hop. Required listening in the Bronx in the early 70s. I just received this CD and have been playing it all week. You will most likely find other gems on this disk but if you got it just for The Mexican you won't go wrong.

Agreed. Under-rated quartet failed to market themselves effectivley. Haan can out sing anyone from her era. Project suffers from lack of direction. Jenny should've been the frontis...they may have done more than splash. You can sense the promise, but later deliveries failed.

The Mexican is the best song on the planet, by far. Period. I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE this song! Buy the album just for this song, if you must. Listen to this song. and keep on listening.

Get a very cursory listen to 1970s rock on foucused group classic radio now, and you will think that the era was poles of music-ELP and Ten Years after.

The truth is, the true progressive bands---the ones on 70s after-midnight FM if they even hit radio-did it all and did it well. Babe Ruth is one of these.

Any band that can grind hard rock--sound like Deep Purple with a Y chromosone-AND punch out a fluid version of "King Kong" gets my big upped thumb. Babe Ruth was one of these ambitous bands, soaked in both the blues and and hard and progressive rock.

With a female singer, nimble guitar and jazzy keybords, this band represents what made early 70s rock truely gripping and edgey; origonallty, eclecticisism, and great chops.

Trying to outdo your sterling peers by doing something truely different, and being the best at it. That is what Babe Ruth was about.

If you are looking for symphonic progressive rock in the vein of Yes, you are looking in the wrong place. The only thing in common Babe Ruth has in common with Yes is the roger dean painted album cover. Other than that, this is progressive rock infused with soul, funk, jazz, and mexican guiater stylings.
`First base' is probaly Babe ruth`s best effort. It starts off wih the rocking `Wells fargo'. `The Runaways', a ballad that progesses into a bolero type composition is the next track and it`s a gentle respite from the freneticism of the first track.
`King Kong' is a Frank Zappa instrumental and it gives this band to show off their considerable chops.
`Black Dog' starts off in a gentle manner and then progresses rockier as it goes along. then we get to probaly the band`s most famous track, `The Mexican', which became remixed in the 80`s as a house dance song. The mexican spanish influence is prevalent on this composition and i could see how people can dance to it.
The final track is Joker, a rocking call and response type between Jenny Haan and Alan Shacklock, who`s the main songwriter. Jenny Haan is in great vocal form,but it sometimes appears she`s not in full control of her voice. At times, she screeches,but I attribute that to her age and inexperience. I dodnt think she was even 20 when Babe Ruth made their first effort
Amar Cabellero was Babe ruth`s sophomore effort. Here, Haan is more in control of her voice, but the material is uneven in places. They employ orchestration on some of the tracks. `Lady' is a fine opening number,and it`s followed by the atmospheric `Broken Cloud, which is possibly the best track on this second album. Tracks such as `Cool Jerk' and `Gimme Some leg' feel more like sketches than actual songs,. `We are Holding on' and `doctor love' are mediocre, nothing more. The amar caballero suite is quite impressive, once again displaying Alan Shacklock`s mexican /spanish influences to the fore.
All the complaints i may have aside, this disc is worth getting, especially for the fact you are getting two albums in one disc at good value. Even though the material on the second album is spotty, the beatiuful `Broken Cloud' makes it worth having..

I saw Babe Ruth for the first time At Hatfield Poly some time in the beginning of the 70's. and after that I was sold.

The classical strains from Alan Shacklock and the voice of Jenny Haan were a perfect match. I saw The original line up twice after that concert, once in St Alban where thay left the building skaking and once in Mornington Cresent (London) where they once again left the area partially demolished.

After Alan Shacklock left and other people started to influence the music thay went further and furtehr from their root, and finally after Jennie and Dave left the band and Elly Hope (The Hope Sisters) took over it was not long before Babe Ruth were no more..

Vic Thompson panta.rej@swipnet.se