Seatrain
Sea Train

The Seatrain were formed from the remnants of an important group called Blues Project. The album was originally released in 1969 by A&M and is now presented here in this review in the 1986 reissue by Demon. Eight tracks totaling about thirty-four minutes. The lineup includes Roy Blumenfeld (drums & percussion), Richard Greene (violin & strings), John Gregory (guitar & vocals), Donald Kretmar (saxophone & Bass), Andrew Kulberg (bass & Flute), James T. Roberts (lyrics). It also seems appropriate to briefly focus on Greene, a versatile and creative violinist with great technical skills that span various musical styles. After the Seatrain adventure, Greene will continue on an interesting and at times experimental career. The atmosphere of this album often feels intimate with relaxing and gentle sounds, though there are moments loaded with tension and more inclined towards rock. The music is overall quite pleasant, with excellent and at times memorable instrumental excursions. The audio recording quality of the CD is satisfactory. All the tracks are sung by Gregory except for "Pudding Street". This track is undoubtedly a small and wonderful instrumental gem highlighting the violin and flute. John's voice comes across as convincing, credible, and full of charisma. Besides the sung parts, throughout the album, the sounds of the violin, flute, and saxophone stand out. The title track immediately highlights the group's remarkable technical and artistic abilities. "Let The Duchess No*" and "Rondo" are rather profound and moving acoustic ballads. "Portrait Of The Lady As A Young Artist" features Greene's magnificent violin. "Sweet Creek's Suite", with a solid guitar start, could be perfectly matched to a good '70s Western film. Excellent and particularly inspired flute solos.

The album did not achieve the expected commercial results, and the group was "dropped" by the record company. The album cover is decent and shows the five heads of the musicians connected to a sort of marine shell against a background resembling an oceanographic map with permanent yellow-green tones and real blue. The booklet is sparse, containing a brief biography of Seatrain on the back, while inside, there is a curious black and white photograph depicting the group inside a strange two-story marine train with curved glass windows, through which various images of seabeds can be glimpsed, while on the right, a ship can be seen in the distance.

In conclusion, a little gem not to be forgotten, recommended to all lovers of these musical genres.