Bronco
Country Home

THE REVIEW

The somewhat folk rural sound, with nearly hard rock surges surrounded by a blues spirit, could be the main characteristics of the debut album by Bronco, released in 1970. The band is led by Jess Roden (early in his career, who would later be better known as a solo artist) and Robbie Blunt (who collaborated with Stan Webb's Chicken Shack, Robert Plant). The lineup is completed by Kevyn Gammond, John Pasternak, and drummer Pete Robinson. From the very first notes of the opening track "Civil of You Stranger," the band's style becomes apparent: acoustic guitar sounds blend with hints of electric parts, marked by Jess Roden's voice. The mood turns more subdued with the following tracks "Love" and "Misfit On your Stair," which evoke sounds related to English psychedelia, featuring the voice of guest Clifford Ward. Side A closes with "Bumpers West," with its elegant and dreamy atmospheres that could be depicted as a dense woodland, well represented by the inside of the album's gatefold sleeve, showing the band portrayed in their woodland home, an image more than fitting. Side B opens in a more aggressive manner, where the guitars of Gammond and Blunt roar (it's said that the band was one of the most powerful live acts of the time, in contrast to their much more acoustic studio work). "Home" is followed by "Well Anyhow," where the two guitars overlap, creating a very powerful soundscape, interspersed with Roden's harmonica and his ever-prominent voice. The album concludes with "Time," a track with uptempo inserts, always guided by well-crafted guitar riffs. The band released a second album, "Ace of Sunlight," the following year, after which Roden and Blunt left, and with a replacement, they recorded a third and final album, "Smoking Mixture," which did not measure up to the first work; Country Home is a great album not recognized as it deserves.