Caravan welcomed back original keyboardist David Sinclair after his short stint with Matching Mole. Bassist Richard Sinclair left at this time, though, dissatisfied that the rest of the band did not want to continue in the jazz-rock vein of Waterloo Lily. Sinclair was replaced by John Perry (Spreadeagle). Thus, the path was cleared for Caravan to return (for an album, at least) to the basic sound that they had patented with In the Land of Grey and Pink. According to the liner notes, Caravan fans in the early 1970s were a particular lot (even the innocuous newcomer, violist Peter Geoffrey, was greeted by the fans with a mixture of suspicion and hostility); they knew what they wanted and it wasn't jazz fusion. I'm partial to the direction the band took on Waterloo Lily, but I do think that For Girls Who Grow Plump in the Night is another very good Caravan album. It was the last record, though, of the group's most creative period (though far from the last to feature a lame pun).
In fact, For Girls Who Grow Plump in the Night may well be Caravan's most consistently listenable album for me — there's not a single weak track, by my estimates. Every tune seems candy-coated with catchy vocal melodies and the music — the band's most rock-oriented to date — is full of hooks and is quite economical for a band that liked to stretch things out. The "L'Auberge Du Sanglier" suite is weighed down some by the strings and it occasionally labors through its winding 9:46, but that's really the worst I can say. For Girls... is also the most guitar-dominated of any previous Caravan album, contributing to its "rock" feel and also giving it a west-coast (U.S.) jam-band quality in spots. The harmonized "Hoedown," for instance, reminds me of nothing so much as Moby Grape's barn-burning "Hey Grandma." Some of this late-'60s vibe is present elsewhere, like "Surprise, Surprise," and the choruses of "C'thlu Thlu." Everything else is pretty much what fans of earlier Caravan came to know and love.
The 2001 remaster of this album contains over thirty minutes of additional material; unfortunately, all of it is just alternate versions or demos of the music already on the album.
Tracklist:
1. Memory Lain, Hugh/Headloss — 9:19
2. Hoedown — 3:10
3. Surprise, Surprise — 3:45
4. C'thlu Thlu — 6:10
5. The Dog, The Dog, He’s At It Again — 5:53
6. Be Alright/Chance of a Lifetime — 6:38
7. L'Auberge Du Sanglier/A Hunting We Shall Go/Pengola/Backwards/A Hunting We Shall Go (Reprise) — 9:46
8. Memory Lain, Hugh/Headloss (US Mix) — 9:18
9. No! ("Be Alright")/Waffle ("Chance of a Lifetime") — 5:10
10. He Who Smelt It Dealt It ("Memory Lain, Hugh") — 4:43
11. Surprise, Surprise — 3:15
12. Derek's Long Thing — 11:00
total time 78:51
http://rapidshare.com/files/112525499/CARAFOR.rar
In fact, For Girls Who Grow Plump in the Night may well be Caravan's most consistently listenable album for me — there's not a single weak track, by my estimates. Every tune seems candy-coated with catchy vocal melodies and the music — the band's most rock-oriented to date — is full of hooks and is quite economical for a band that liked to stretch things out. The "L'Auberge Du Sanglier" suite is weighed down some by the strings and it occasionally labors through its winding 9:46, but that's really the worst I can say. For Girls... is also the most guitar-dominated of any previous Caravan album, contributing to its "rock" feel and also giving it a west-coast (U.S.) jam-band quality in spots. The harmonized "Hoedown," for instance, reminds me of nothing so much as Moby Grape's barn-burning "Hey Grandma." Some of this late-'60s vibe is present elsewhere, like "Surprise, Surprise," and the choruses of "C'thlu Thlu." Everything else is pretty much what fans of earlier Caravan came to know and love.
The 2001 remaster of this album contains over thirty minutes of additional material; unfortunately, all of it is just alternate versions or demos of the music already on the album.
Tracklist:
1. Memory Lain, Hugh/Headloss — 9:19
2. Hoedown — 3:10
3. Surprise, Surprise — 3:45
4. C'thlu Thlu — 6:10
5. The Dog, The Dog, He’s At It Again — 5:53
6. Be Alright/Chance of a Lifetime — 6:38
7. L'Auberge Du Sanglier/A Hunting We Shall Go/Pengola/Backwards/A Hunting We Shall Go (Reprise) — 9:46
8. Memory Lain, Hugh/Headloss (US Mix) — 9:18
9. No! ("Be Alright")/Waffle ("Chance of a Lifetime") — 5:10
10. He Who Smelt It Dealt It ("Memory Lain, Hugh") — 4:43
11. Surprise, Surprise — 3:15
12. Derek's Long Thing — 11:00
total time 78:51
http://rapidshare.com/files/112525499/CARAFOR.rar
