Customer Reviews

Reach for the Sky

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

 

 

This is possibly their best album, and contains their only charting U.S. single, Arms Of Mary. Concise hook filled pop songs with fine guitar work. When The Train Comes really grooves along. Still waiting for their other fine latter day albums, Slipstream, Night Comes Down, and Down To Earth, to come out on CD.

Simply put, Reach for the Sky represents the pinnacle of the Sutherland Brother's underappreciated output. Released in 1975, it contains 10 concise, melodic cuts and seems to exist well apart from its 1970s context. The recording is crisp and clear; the arrangements spare and invigorating. 25 years ago I awaited each new recording from this band and, sadly, not many more were forthcoming. If you haven't seen it yet, I highly recommend Gavin Sutherland's 2000 CD "Diamond's and Gold" (see http://www.gavinsutherland.net/).

By the time this record came out SB&Q was down to 4 members from the original 6. No matter, they were still great. The Albert's production is excellent, the band cooks on the When the train comes, Tim Renwick's guitar solo on Ain't to Proud to Beg is exquisite. There is not a bad song on the album - buy it and enjoy it.

A caveat: This CD almost lets me forgive 70's schlockmeisters Ron & Howie Albert, the producers of "Reach For The Sky," for ruining Procol Harum's "Something Magic," which they also "produced"...the operative word there being "almost." I'm not sure who either the Sutherland Brothers OR Quiver were, but evidentally, they were two separate entities who pooled their considerable talents for this album. I remember being very stoned, very late one night back in 1976 and driving home from my girlfriend's house across the Newburgh-Beacon bridge up in NY. The "hip" radio station played "Doctor Dancer," and I almost wrecked my Volkswagen, trying to get off the road, or at least somewhere where I didn't have to be so responsible while driving, so I could devote my full attention to that song. Luckily for me, Pat, a friend of mine, was a security-person at a record store, and he correctly identified "Reach For The Sky." A marvelous bit of music: no excessive-"70's" drumming, no "wee-wee-diddly-diddly" "lead" guitar (THANK YOU, Tim Renwick), and, thank God, no synthesizers; just ten beautifully written, beautifully performed songs. All ten are for listening when you're head's in a...good place, and "Dr. Dancer" still almost affects me now, some 25 years later, as it did then. The title track and "Mad Trail" are great, too.

This is by far the best album the Sutherland Bros. did.
The sad thing is the group and their output was almost completely ignored in this country. Songs like "Arms of Mary",
"Love on the Moon", and "Doctor Dancer" are wonderful examples of the groups' simple, but elegant writing and performance style.
Of course when this album was released disco was still the rage
and anything not sung in falsetto was pushed aside and quickly relegated to the cut-out bin. The albums that followed this one were good too, but in my opinion REACH FOR THE SKY was the band's high point.If you own nothing by the Sutherland Brothers, and are curious about them, then start with this album. I'll bet you'll be looking for more very shortly.

Really great to read these positive reviews!.. I remember stumbling on this album in the 70's and loving it straight away. A couple years ago i found the cd in the bargain bin for 3$..i was on the moon!..Still sounds great