Genre: pop
Rating: 3 stars ***
Title: The First of Felix Harp
Company: Western World Music
Catalog: GNS
36053
Year: 1977
Country/State: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Grade (cover/record): VG- / VG
Comments: little bit of water damage along bottom right corner of the sleeve
Available: SOLD
GEMM catalog ID: SOLD
Price: SOLD $40.00
I actually owned this early-1970s private press LP for a couple of years before I became aware of the fact that the band had been subjected to a pair of mid-1970s releases by the Guinness 'tax scam' label. It would be interesting to know if the band were aware they'd been re-issued by Guinness; let alone how the process worked.
Anyhow, here's a Pittsburgh-based obscurity. Formed in 1970, Felix Harp consisted of bassist David Adomites, drummer Michael Ardisson, singer/guitarist Billy Hricsina, and lead guitarist David Lenart. Still in their teens, the quartet generated some buzz on the local club circuit, eventually capturing the attention of Louis Guarino who signed them to the small Western World Music label.
The few brief reviews of 1972's Guarino produced "The First of Felix Harp" you'll find aren't particularly positive, I'll go out on a limb and beg to differ. First, I'll readily admit this isn't a lost classic, but song for song it's as good as anything Eric Carmen and the Raspberries or the hoard of early-1970s power poppers ever released. It's even more impressive when you consider these guys were still in high school when they recorded the album. Pretty high praise there ! The big problem with this set was that producer Guarino and engineer Tony Bongiovi Jr. apparently did think these guys were strong enough to stand without extensive backing. As a result they literally drown the band in over-the-top orchestration (courtesy of James Drake and Lewis del Gatto). That was unfortunate since these guys were actually quite good on their own (check out 'Mother').
- 'Black' started off as a pretty, but rather standard acoustic ballad, however once it got rolling it became quite good. Yeah, the string arrangement was a major irritation, but Hricsina's fragile voice was well suited to the genre and at least to my ears he sounded a little but like the guys in Styx. rating: *** stars
- A mid tempo number, 'Dear' also took awhile to get going, but was rescued by a nice chorus. The somewhat arch structure also reminded me a bit of Styx. rating: ** stars
- One of the standout tracks, 'Life' sounded like a strange cross pollination of a Beatles tune and something The Free Design might have done. Complete with punchy horns, it was different but quite engaging and would have made a nice single. rating: **** stars
- 'There Comes a Time' was another pretty ballad that propelled by the group vocals recalled Styx at their most commercial. It also sported some first rate slide guitar that sounded like something off of a Badfinger album. Very nice. rating: *** stars
- There really isn't much you can do with a Paul Williams ballad and 'My Love and I' was pretty sappy, though to their credit the performance got better once they got rolling and the electric guitar kicked in. Adomites provided some nice bass throughout and once again their harmony work was excellent. rating: ** stars
- Overlooking the clichéd lyrics, 'Mother' was atypical in that it was one of the few tracks without extensive orchestration. The first half was a decent enough ballad, but the song definitely improved when the slide guitar kicked in. rating: ** stars
- Boasting a great melody and guitar hook, the rocker 'Never Should Have Let It Happen' was the most commercial track on the set. rating: **** stars
- Another rocker that benefited from the absence of orchestration, 'Try Not To Listen' also had considerable FM commercial potential. rating: *** stars
- One of two numbers penned by drummer Ardisson, normally straightforward blues numbers don't do a great deal for me, but 'Love Has Been All Around' had a couple of things going for it, including the absence of orchestration and some great lead guitar. rating: *** stars
- The second Ardisson composition, 'She Done Me Wrong' sounded like the song Kim Simmonds and Savoy Brown were always looking for. Terrific slice of blues-rock that would have sounded great on FM radio. rating: *** stars
The album doesn't seem to have done anything commercially. In fact I've only seen two copies and both were promo sets, making me wonder whether there were actually any stock releases.
"The
First of Felix Harp" track listing:
(side 1)
1.) Black
(Eric Beam) -
2.) Dear (Eric Beam)
-
3.) Life (Eric Beam)
-
4.) There Comes A Time (Eric
Beam) -
5.) My Love and I (Paul Williams) -
(side
2)
1.) Mother
(Eric Beam) -
2.) Never Should Have Let It Happen
(Eric Beam) -
3.) Try Not To Listen (Eric
Beam) -
4.) Love Has Been All Around
(Michael Ardisson)
-
5.) She Done Me Wrong (Michael
Ardisson) -
The band apparently struggled on through 1973 releasing a non-LP single on the small North American Music Industries (NAMI) label:
- 'She Didn't Forget Her Shoes (Johnny & Louise)' b/w '' (NAMI catalog number 2011)
As of 2006 Adomites still seemed to be active on the Pittsburgh music scene. Last thing I could track down had him playing as a member of Rick Malis' backing band.
