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Richard Bowden is a guitarist from a small town in Texas, one of those in the middle of nowhere, with a welcome sign indicating the number of inhabitants. When he enters the big circuit, he partners with none other than Don Henley in various ventures. Together with him and Al Perkins, he creates Shiloh, achieving moderate success with their first album, but luck doesn’t continue beyond that. Then, he and Henley become part of Linda Ronstadt’s backing band. When the two eventually part ways, Henley heads towards a future called Eagles. Bowden, on the other hand, becomes a session man for everyone from Jackson Browne to Stevie Nicks to Dan Fogelberg, and is also a member of the Flying Burrito Brothers in their fifty-seventh consecutive lineup in fifty-seven albums... All this until he meets fellow townsmen Greg Attaway, a drummer, and David Lovelace, a keyboardist. Together with them, and bassist Steve Love, they become the band for Roger McGuinn in 1975.
The ex-Byrds musician found solid and substantial musicians for his endless tours, to materialize his arrangement ideas. Sure, they might not be sex symbols, but they are tasked with being the backing band. As is his habit, however, Roger seems to impose the obligation, if you want to enjoy the benefits of being associated with a (decidedly declining) star, to contribute on the compositional front as well. Only Bowden, perhaps because he is the most qualified, doesn't contribute anything of his own, while the others, in a setlist composed of nine originals and a cover, sign three tracks. The result is, of course, that those three tracks are the best among the originals.
The cover is "Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door," which McGuinn presents in a sickly sweet and somewhat cosmic version. But Dylan’s masterpiece is almost totally out of context: his "Americana" has transformed into a beach rock that winks at the fashion of the time. Of the six songs signed by McGuinn, two are already released on other albums, namely "Lover Of The Bayou" and "Born To Rock And Roll." The first track, a strong hard-rock proposed live on disc one of "(Untitled)," due to the conversion to this lighter, more carefree sound, has been considerably weakened: McGuinn has preferred increasing the groove over shredding. "Born To Rock And Roll," already present in "Byrds," has weakened to the point of becoming a twist. The insights aren’t bad; the attempts are made by a band of people who know their craft, but the previous versions, though not masterpieces in rock history, remain superior.
In short, McGuinn’s new songs are only four, and his writing, besides being a rare commodity, seems rather sterile. Only the delicate little ballad "Easy Does It" might be saved. "Bull Dog," a blues-tinged mid-tempo, and "Lisa," a playful track that winks at Central and South America, are catchy episodes but entirely negligible, and "So Long" is his traditional folk rock turned into beach pop, transported to the Pacific shores.
His band doesn't change its register, but offers significantly more remarkable episodes. Even the opener "Somebody Loves You" is an ex-folk rock turned beach, but the result is much more enjoyable on one hand and powerful on the other. "Painted Away" is inspired and sweet, while "Circle Song" is a trusty return to country. McGuinn interprets it with the flair of a folk man wanderer with a backpack and thumb always up.
As usual, success did not smile on the good Roger, someone who tried little to sell himself a lot, and the band dissolved after the inevitable, immense, endless tour. The three Texans, exhausted from revolving around things they could never reach or grasp, likely decided they had reached their limit after McGuinn. Don Henley, after all, although neither the accredited criticism nor I recognize the Eagles’ quality that justifies all their success, was ascending to success, while the good Roger continued his endless descent.
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