Customer Reviews

Shoot Out at the Fantasy Factory

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Island/Universal's new remaster of Traffic's "Shootout at The Fantasy Factory" is the CD debut of the album's true original master and set of mixes as heard on the original U.S. vinyl L.P.,back when Island was an independant label,manufactured and distributed by Capitol.When Island's distribution deal with Capitol ended,Traffic submitted a revised master(used on all pre-2003 CD's),in which "(Sometimes I Feel So)Uninspired" was remixed,and "Roll Right Stones" was the subject of remixing,additional instrumental overdubbing,and editing(reducing the song from 13:40 to 11:47).Universal Music has now retrieved the original,unrevised master from Capitol,and it debuts on the May 2003 remaster.The sound quality blows away the old Mobile Fidelity Gold CD,with improved punch & clarity.Be cautioned only to buy a new(not used) copy when ordering from Amazon.Why? Because pre-2003 Island/Universal discs mistakenly state that "Roll Right Stones" is 13:40,but those CD's are made from the revised/remixed/edited album master,so those discs actually contain the 11:47 "Roll Right Stones".All of this was explained by Universal Music catalogue chief Bill Levenson in "ICE Magazine".

Steve Winwood, Jim Capaldi, Chris Wood & the gang serve up another barnburning Traffic set with 1973's "Shoot Out At The Fantasy Factory." The title track is a phenomenal full-throttle rocker, one of Traffic's most powerful pieces. "Roll Right Stones" is a nearly 12-minute, laid-back jazz-popper, with great melodies & musicianship throughout. "Evening Blue" is a beautiful ballad, Chris Wood's "Tragic Magic" is a tasty, funky instrumental, and "(Sometimes I Feel So) Uninspired," despite the downbeat title, is actually a very uplifting tune, filled with great spirit & fine words of wisdom. Steve Winwood & company totally cook on this one: "Shoot Out At The Fantasy Factory" is another jazz/rock classic from Traffic.

Traffic hit a new creative stride after Mason left the band following "Last Exit". Personally I am torn, because I really do like Mason's sound, but in the end I cannot deny that it helped Traffic as a group throw caution to the wind and really venture out from the world of Brit psychedelic pop-rock into rock-jazz fusion, with the addition of Reebop Kwanku-bah on drums for a more African-oriented sound (something Santana was doing too albeit in a Latinized way). One indicator of this transition is track length, which starts to take a jump up from 3-4 minutes to 6-10 minutes with "John Barleycorn Must Die" (the first post-Mason album) and continuing here and on Low Spark, etc. On "Shootout", we find Traffic mixing it up with slow ballads like "Sometimes I Feel So Uninspired", Jazzy instrumentals like "Tragic Magic", and two great tunes which can loosely be qualified as "rock": "Shootout at the Fantasy Factory" and the album's cornerstone, "Roll Right Stones", a 13-1/2 minute ripper where Wood and Winwood bust out their improvisational chops while Winwood shows off his incredible voice. Traffic is pretty much a footnote with most folks these days, which seems a bit strange considering the more prominent solo careers some of the musicians enjoyed afterwards, even with less creative musical material (i.e., Mason, Winwood). Part of that has to do with the more keyboard-brass driven sound of the band rather than the standard guitar-dominated sound of other contemporary rock-outfits: but the guitar as a driving element probably would have hindered their fusion excursions. On a related note: another plus is listening to how quickly Winwood's ability as a guitarist was progressing (the guitar is there, but is not prominent like it was with earlier albums), as it already is a huge step up from his offerings on "Welcome to the Canteen", and offers a glimpse of what is to come with "When the Eagle Flies" and "On the Road" (where he really sounds great). A somewhat overlooked but great classic-rock album.

While not as memorable as 'Low Spark', SOTFF does have it's moments: Evening Blue, The Title Track, Uninspired. The disc is a bit on the short side at 37.29 and the domestic 1st generation copies were average in terms of sound quality. The MOFI Gold version is light years ahead of any other version thus far in terms of you-are-there sonics. I'd wager it surpasses the newly remastered version as well. If you can find the gold version, grab it while you can, well worth owning.

A true "CLASSIC". Innovative rock at its best. Along with "John Barleycorn Must Die" and "Low Spark of High-Heeled Boys", TRAFFIC has achieved a new breed of rock - rhythmic blending of rock, jazz, folk and R & B. There is so many instruments doing their own bit that every time I hear these, my mind latch's on to a different trip - every each time there is a new discovery and a whole new outlook which keeps changing on and on......!!! Personally one of my top album - with Tragic Magic - an evergreen No. 1. I would rank this album along with Pink Floyd's THE WALL and Led Zep's - 4 in my list of never-get-tired-of-hearing albums.

This 1973 album by Traffic is an exceptionally solid release that finds the core of Steve Winwood, Jim Capaldi and Chris Wood continuing their involvement with accomplished studio musicians. The overall feel of the album is a bit more solid than the fantastic Low Spark of High Heeled Boys (1971) and has less in the way of short, psychedelic tracks. Overall, while Shootout at the Fantasy Factory did not get the favorable critical reception that Low Spark of High Heeled Boys did, I especially like the somber mood of the album and it may very well be one of my favorite albums from the group.

The lineup on this album includes Steve Winwood (vocals, acoustic and electric guitars, piano, organ); Jim Capaldi (percussion and backing vocals); Chris Wood (flutes and saxophones); Rebop Kwaku Baah (percussion); and session aces David Hood (bass guitar); and Roger Hawkins (drum kit). Additional musicians include Barry Beckett (keyboards on Tragic Magic) and Jimmy Johnson (clarinet on Tragic Magic). I think that overall, this was a great lineup and the group playing on this album is very tight and at times, fairly powerful (as on the title track). Everything is just very carefully performed and I especially like the use of acoustic instruments on the album, particularly the piano. The use of various bits of percussion add an earthy texture to the music, which is another thing I like about this album.

The five tracks range in length from 5:19 to the newly restored Roll Right Stones (13:40). The music on this album consists of a smooth mixture of rock, jazz, folk, with a tiny smidge of progressive rock that is seamlessly blended together. There is great consistency with respect to the texture of each piece (slow to mid-paced tempi), and all of the tracks work well together. The instrumental passages are especially fine and I think that Roll Right Stones presents a great jam session in spite of its structured nature and the use of pre-composed solos. There is somewhat of a gloomy feel to the album, and minor keys are used a lot.

This remastered CD is fantastic and features a restored full-length version of Roll Right Stones (apparently, 2 minutes were lopped off of this track on previous versions of the recording) along with the original (surreal) cover art and informative liner notes. I have to say that I like this CD version better than my old LP, which had the corners of the record jacket cut off just to emphasize the cube pattern on the cover! Furthermore, the sound quality is wonderful and features crisp highs, full midrange and deep bass - there is also excellent separation of individual instruments.

All in all, this is an exceptional album by Traffic and is highly recommended along with Low Spark of High Heeled Boys and When the Eagle Flies (1974).

I already have this on album, but on the cd they seemed to have improve on the quality of the original recording I am a big fan of the Traffic so I do like most of their music, this cd is a good one for the collection.

Why isn't THIS album more popular? I'll tell you why- by this point in the bands career, Steve Winwood was starting to run low on musical ideas for the band, and was on the verge of making a big commercial impact on the music scene going solo. However, whatever was about to happen, doesn't affect what really DID happen, that being Winwood and the rest of the band members continuing to deliver with the creative goods for another Traffic album.

The title song rocks hard with some funkiness thrown in, "Roll Right Stones" has some spiritual vocals from Winwood and magnificent rocking segments that elevate the song to new heights (and no, the song is NOT overlong- I wish Winwood's vocals would keep going for another few minutes because they're THAT good, and on a personal note, they move me quite a bit) and "Tragic Magic" is just a really jazzy piece of melodic brilliance. "(Sometimes I Feel So) Uninspired" probably shows the frustration of Winwood at the time, but doesn't interfere with the great music. Another great song.

A classic album that's JUST as good as all the previous Traffic albums.

Whether or not you're interested in this particular album depends on a lot on whether you're interested in Traffic. But if you're a Traffic fan, be sure you get the 2003 remaster rather than any other CD version. That's because the remaster includes the full-length versions of "Roll Right Stones" and "(Sometimes I Feel So) Uninspired." Besides this remaster and the earliest (U.S.?) LP copies, ALL copies of SHOOT OUT have shortened versions of these songs. "Uninspired" was faded out just a little early (about 15 seconds), but "Roll Right Stones" lost a full 2 minutes. The 2003 remaster is the ONLY place to get the full-length versions on CD.

I don't know why none of this was pointed out in any advertising for the remaster or in its liner notes.

(P.S.: Note that a few of the reviews here are referring to CD editions that contain the shorter versions of these songs. The full, remastered version of the album is longer than 37:39, for example.)

1973's Shootout at the Fantasy Factory was Traffic's follow-up to 1971's excellent and classic Low Spark of High Heelded Boys. While Shootout is not nearly as well known as a Traffic album, it's still an excellent disc. Only 5 songs on here, but they are all great!

The album opens up with the storming title cut, which has fuzzed out multi-tracked guitars from Steve Winwood over a cookin' groove from the rhythm section of David Hood, Roger Hawkins, Rebop, and Jim Capaldi. The centerpiece of the album has to be the next track, the 14 minute Roll Right Stones, which has some truly excellent chord changes along with great singing from Winwood to go along with his piano and organ playing. Evening Blue is a plaintive ballad driven by acoustic guitar that's very pretty. Chris Wood's Tragic Magic is a jazzy, funky instrumental showcasing his stellar ability on woodwinds. And the closing track, Sometimes I Feel So Uninspired, is a slow burner that is actually pretty uplifting given the rather dour tone of the title.

All in all a fantastic album and if you're a fan of Traffic's "classic" albums (Mr. Fantasty, Traffic, John Barleycorn Must Die, Low Spark) then this is one you should definitely check out.