Customer Reviews

Vehicle

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

In the glory days of horn-driven rock bands, such as CHICAGO, B,S,and T, Chase, and Lighthouse, the "Ides of March" were probably the most underrated and least appreciated of all the bands in that genre. Originally, IDES of March was more of a sixties garage-band, based in the Chicago area. They even scored with a few hits when they were in their mid-teens!! ("You Wouldn't Listen" and "Rollercoaster" to mention a couple.) By 1969 they added some trumpets and a sax, and it was a whole new sound for them!! Vehicle was recorded in a radio broadcasting studio so the sound quality was going to be a mystery. However, the sound quality was just fine for a record recorded in 1970. Vehicle went on to be a monster hit but the LP went on to medium sales. Now, that being said, this album was one of the finest records of the early 70's. Each song is full of life and the ballads are beautiful such as "HOME". in which Jim Peterik
delivers a emotional message that sends shivers down one's spine. "Factory Band" is a fun rocker that gets your feet stomping, and that's followed by "The Sky is Falling", which really shows off the powerful horn section. "Wooden Ships", (the old C,S. and N song) finishes side one. The IDES version is even better than the original in my opinion. ( I know, How dare I say that against the legendary C,S, and N!!!) But, the Ides version is excellent! Side two features the excellent "Aire of Good Feeling" which definitely puts you in one. (It should have been the follow up hit, but rumour has it that WB wanted another Vehicle rip-off for a second single. That being "Superman" which is on their second album. "One Woman Man" is another beautiful ballad on this side. Jim Peterik's voice is so awesome and it is amazing that he was only 20 years old when he recorded this album!! Hey, if you like 70's horn rock, do yourself a favor and buy this one before it disappears forever. The LP went out of print and I was fortunate enough to buy an extra copy because my first one was worn out. Buy and enjoy!! This CD is a lot more than just VEHICLE. By the way, their second LP, "Common Bond" is fantastic too!! That is also still available.

I weighed in on this CD when Amazon first offered it, nearly 4 years ago, and I voiced my disappointment in the sound quality of such a good piece of music. Fortunately, The Ides have had a renaissance of popularity (they re-formed in 1990) and Rhino has issued the Warner Bros. albums, with some outtakes, on a 2-disc set. It has to be heard to be believed; seldom does a CD set transcend the best vinyl can offer. You have not heard Vehicle and Common Bond until you get this set. The catalog # is: RHM7834, on Rhino Records, and the full title is "Friendly Strangers: The Warner Bros. Recordings." It also has the track "Melody" so you are not losing anything from the (inferior) Magic Label release...

I'd also like to add that I received more emails in response to that first review than for any other thing I have done on the internet; it was fascinating to hear from so many other music lovers!

This is one of my favorite all-time albums. The band, while having great material and sound, has hints of Blood, Sweat and Tears, Chicago, and some Gary Pucket. The title track, Vehicle, is now widely used for General Motors cars commercials.
Alas, this CD is a very poor shadow of the original album. The re-mastering is inept, as the sound is muffled, tinny sometimes, and overly bassy most of the time. It is not possible to adjust your equalizer to make it sound right.
It hurts to listen to this poorly done CD. My advise: get the vynil if possible.

Performance 5 stars .... poopie audio ... I want to avoid too much comparing this CD with the original vinyl (I do have a pristine copy), but the engineering of the CD is muffled and overly bassy. If you have no vinyl, then consider this as a (poor) substitute (but existing) for a great album. At least this allows me to avoid overuse of the LP.

True, this CD does have some production flaws due to "Magic" duplication, but, this is a very collectable item as Warner Brothers never released this on CD. This album went gold in April of 1971. This is one of the most overlooked groups in history. [...] If you ever have the chance to catch one of their live perfromances, do so, you will come back for more. This is one group of professionals that have not forgot about their fans.
Rock-on,
Jeffrey R. Ellmann

"Your sink needs a plumber, and you need a man." -- Who can resist a lyric like that? Seriously, this is an interesting album. Don't expect all songs to sound like "Vehicle", though. This albums sounds range from Blood, Sweat, & Tears to The Righteous Brothers and Creedence Clearwater Revival. Good use of horns.

I just received (10/5/05) a copy of the "Remastered in high definition 24 bit - CD Digipak - New edition 2004" of Vehicle and it included these "extra" songs:

14. Vehicle (single version)
15. High On A Hillside

Strangely, Tracks 14 and 15 are not listed on the CD cover, but they are listed on a sticker attached to the wrapper.

The two version of Vehicle are exactly the same length and sound like the same exact song (to me). I ordered this on Amazon from Import CD Specialists.

Always liked this one. Use to have a 33 1/3 LP of this album; wore it out. To hear it again, without the scratches and pops associated with that medium, is nice. Quality of the recording is limited by what was available in the late 60s early 70s, but it's as good as you can get from something of that era.

What a great classic album! Every song is great. A wonderful collection of music from the rennesance of rock.

"Vehicle" provides The Ides Of March's best work of their career. The albums to follow would not reach the high quality of this one. Of course the title track is wonderful, as is all of the songs on here. A very underrated band, but great.