Mountain

Mountain - Extended Versions - 2000 - BMG Special Products

A live recording from the mid-period lineup of the band when West, Laing and Pappalardi were joined by rhythm guitarist David Perry, who replaced keyboardist Steve Knight. Leslie and the band are in good form and they rip through some of the great Mountain standards including 'Mississippi Queen' 'Nantucket Sleighride' 'Never In My Life' and 'Theme From An Imaginary Western. They also throw in a couple of old rock'n'roll classics for good measure . Even with a 192 bitrate, the sound quality of this album could be much better. At times the bass is indiscernable, which at times makes Felix Pappalardi's great playing hard to hear. Still many of these live albums are notorious for sound quality, and you've sometimes got to live with it! The great Leslie West's guitar playing is clearer, and the album is worth hearing, as Mountain were a great live hard rock band. Buy their classic 1971 album " Nantucket Sleighride," and hear Mountain at their best. You can check out "The Best Of Mountain" album @ TBOM

TRACKS / COMPOSERS

You Better Believe It - Corky Laing, Leslie West
Theme from an Imaginary Western - Jack Bruce
Never in My Life - Corky Laing, Felix Pappalardi, Leslie West, Gail Collins
Jingle Bells - J.S. Pierpont
Get Out of My Life Woman - Allen Toussaint
Mississippi Queen - David Rea, Corky Laing, Felix Pappalardi, Leslie West
It's for You - Allen Toussiant
Nantucket Sleighride - Felix Pappalardi, Gail Collins
Roll Over Beethoven - Chuck Berry
Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On - Dave Williams, Sonny David

BAND

Corky Laing - Drums
Leslie West - Guitar, Vocals
Felix Pappalardi - Bass, Vocals
David Perry - Rhythm Guitar

REVIEW

The Mountain entry in BMG Special Products' budget-priced Extended Versions: The Encore Collection series is a reissue of a concert recorded by the King Biscuit Flower Hour at the Capitol Theater in Passaic, NJ, on November 3, 1974, and initially released by King Biscuit Flower Hour Records under the title Greatest Hits Live only five months earlier, in April 2000. The only difference between Extended Versions and Greatest Hits Live is that the latter contains a six-minute "bonus interview" not featured on the former. Promoter John Scher introduces the band by noting a three-year lapse between Mountain performances caused by the group's breakup. This is a reunited unit, with lead guitarist and singer Leslie West, bass player Felix Pappalardi, and drummer Corky Laing joined by new rhythm guitarist David Perry. They open with the largely instrumental "You Better Believe It,", continue with such favorites as "Theme from an Imaginary Western," "Mississippi Queen," and "Nantucket Sleighride," also throwing in "Jingle Bells" in acknowledgement of the onset of the holiday season, and conclude with a medley of the rock & roll standards "Roll Over Beethoven" and "Whole Lotta Shakin' Going On." The playing is powerful, and the bandmembers' stage remarks suggest they are glad to be back together. Unfortunately, the group split again shortly after the performance. ~ William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide

BIO (Wikipedia)

Mountain is an American rock band, popular in the early 1970s. The band broke up in 1972, reformed shortly thereafter, broke up soon after that, and now has begun touring again in recent years. Mountain remains popular in some circles despite having fallen out of the mainstream during the seventies. Mountain was influential during the development of hard rock, and their hit song "Mississippi Queen" became a radio hit and a hard rock classic. VH1 ranked Mountain as number 98 on its 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock. The band formed when guitarist Leslie West, having left the Long Island R&B band the Vagrants, recorded a solo album called Mountain with bassist and former Cream producer Felix Pappalardi producing. The album, Mountain, also featured former Remains drummer N.D. Smart and keyboard player Steve Knight. West's raw vocals and melodic, bluesy guitar style, and Pappalardi's heavy and elegant bass lines were the elements of Mountain's distinctive sound. The band was inspired by the power trio Cream, of which Pappalardi was an "unofficial" member: he featured heavily on Cream's third album, Wheels of Fire, contributing organ, viola, trumpet and handbells as well as producing. Mountain played their fourth live gig at the Woodstock Festival, but the band did not appear in the film of the event nor was it included on the first album. Soon after, Smart was replaced by Laurence "Corky" Laing. The group's first album, Climbing!, was released in 1970 and featured the band's best-known song, "Mississippi Queen"; the song reached the middle of the top 40 charts and the album reached the top 20 on the US album charts. The follow-up album Nantucket Sleighride (1971) also reached the top 20 on the US albums chart but failed to yield a hit single. After these early releases the band continued to receive a certain measure of critical acclaim but never achieved great commercial success. After Nantucket Sleighride, the band faced creative difficulties and failed to progress on their next album. The band broke up in 1972. West and Laing later formed West, Bruce and Laing with Cream bassist Jack Bruce. They released three albums (two studio and one live). In 1974 West and Pappalardi reformed Mountain with Allan Schwartzberg on drums and Bob Mann (of Dreams) on keyboards and guitar - a tour yielded the live double album Twin Peaks. The studio work Avalanche, with Laing on drums and rhythm guitarist David Perry, who as an African American was also credited for "added color". It was the last heard from Mountain until the mid 1980s since which West, sometimes with and sometimes without Laing, has worked under the name Mountain, New Mountain or the Leslie West Band. On April 17, 1983, Gail Collins Pappalardi, Felix's wife and songwriting partner who had designed many of the band's album covers, shot Pappalardi in the neck in their fifth-floor East Side Manhattan apartment. He was pronounced dead at the scene and Collins was charged with second-degree murder. She was cleared of that charge but convicted of the lesser criminally negligent homicide and sentenced to 16 months to four years in jail. After her release from jail, she vanished into private life. The band has reformed, and Richie Scarlet has taken over as bass player on the band's recent tours. Scarlet is also known for his work with Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley, Skid Row singer Sebastian Bach and for his multuiple solo records. In 2003 West and Laing produced a book of recollections called "Nantucket Sleighride" detailing their time with the band at its peak and their subsequent careers. Published by S.A.F. Publishing ISBN 0 946719 62 4