9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Earth Band matures to ripeness!, September 28, 2000
This review is from: Good Earth (Audio CD)
Recorded in 1974 by Manfred (synths and organ), Colin Pattenden (bass), Chris Slade (drums) and Mick Rogers (guitar and vocals). This is the first MMEB album where the band begins to transcend its plateau of competent but coarse driving proto-prog rock into a more fusionary and cohesive dynamism. The title track, a long, lumbering riff oriented piece, showcases the first indications that Manfred has finally gotten comfortable enough with his synthesizers to start breaking the rules and really begin to explore the textural and primordial boundaries of electronic music. After several OK albums, the MMEB has come full circle into a formidable and instrumentally proficient rock band willing to stretch the definitions of rock. I'll Be Gone showcases a band willing to play a tasteful and beautiful arrangement while other songs show the band willing to really hash out complex riffs and arrangements that transcend their rock origins. A transitory album, Good Earth showcases the instrumental maturity and confidence of a band that has finally found its voice and is willing to start pushing the envelope. The remastered edition with extra tracks is a great bonus. I can only hope that someday soon live material from the 1974-1976 MMEB era will become commercially available...
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1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
what a great treat, July 7, 2007
This review is from: Good Earth (Audio CD)
It's a mystery why Manfred Mann's Earth Band hasn't become one of those bands that people need to dig up and discover, and it's just as disappointing that the band has been attached as a one-hit wonder over the years (which was never really that great of a song anyway because it didn't provide the unusual style of music that the band normally puts on record).
These guys had the talent and the unusual and unpredictable songwriting skills to be considered one of the best rock bands of the 70's. But for some reason, it never happened.
The title song of The Good Earth is a pretty good hard rock track that almost feels multi-part, but not quite. Just really good rock music. This is a fairly ordinary album compared to other releases from the band, but totally worth owning if you're a curious kind of person when it comes to finding out about 70's rock. You won't be disappointed.
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