Genre: psych
Rating: **** (4 stars)
Title: Mosaics - Pieces of Stone
Company: Jade
Catalog: JS4351
Year: 1977
Country/State: Tennessee ?
Grade (cover/record): G+ / VG
Comments: DJ copy; sticker on front; cut lover right corner (see picture); tape along top seem; full size poster is missing
Available: 1
GEMM catalog ID: 5085
Price: $120.00
Cost: $66.00
Normally I shy away from buying and selling items that are only rated good, but there are a couple of reasons to make an exception in this case; 1.) the album itself is in great shape, so I'm only talking about the cover being in good shape, and 2.) this is one of those rarities that warrant putting up with less than perfect condition ....
Namesake Jade Stone and his partner the young Ms. Debbie Luv (who deserves special note for wearing some of highest and tightest shorts I've ever seen) were apparently active in the Tennessee/Kentucky area (easy to picture them playing pool halls and local Holiday Inn lounges). Released on their own Jade label (and apparently printed in miniscule quantities; one reference says 1,500 copies), 1977's "Mosaics - Pieces of Stone" is simply one of the strangest albums I've ever heard in the last couple of years. While Stone had a rather high pitched, non-descript voice (to say nothing of the fact on the back cover he looked like ELO's Jeff Lynne), he made up for it by writing and arranging some great psych-influenced material. Supported by a surprisingly accomplished no-name band (guitarist Paul Worley turning in some killer lead guitar - check out his solo on 'Come Home with Me') and supported by Luv's strident and ever-present backing vocals, tracks such as 'Waiting for the Rain', 'Man' and 'Reality' were damned impressive. Courtesy of Stone and Dennis Burnside the collection also sported surprisingly accomplished arrangements for a private press release. While the liner notes indicate the album was recorded in 1977, the overall sound and feel was much closer to something out of the early 1970s. Mind you the album wasn't perfect. Whenever Stone tried to espouse anything philosophical ('Working at the Business of Living'), or took aim at more commercial genres ('Backroads of My Mind' and 'So Close'), the results were unintentionally funny, occasionally sounded like third rate Delaney and Bonnie ('Grab Hold'). I'll also readily admit this one's too strange to accurate describe and it clearly won't appeal to everyone. Still, I'm a big fan. This one's also found in Hans Pokora's 2001 Record Collector Dreams. Pokora gives it a two disc rarity rating. Based on content I'd suggest it deserved four stars.
"Mosaics - Pieces of Stone" track listing:
(side 1)
1.) Waiting for the Rain (Jade Stone - Debbie Luv) - 3:05
2.) Come Home with Me (Jade Stone - Debbie Luv) - 4:05
3.) Working At the Business of Living (Jade Stone - Debbie Luv) - 2:49
4.) Backroads of My Mind (Jade Stone) - 3:04
5.) Man (Jade Stone - Debbie Luv) - 2:20
(side 2)
1.) Grab Hold (Jade Stone - Debbie Luv) - 2:37
2.) Take a Look (Jade Stone - Billie Olive) - 2:15
3.) So Close (Jade Stone) - 2:45
4.) Cool Breeze (Jade Stone - Debbie Luv - John Connell) - 2:42
5.) Reality (Jade Stone) - 3:18
Some copies of the album apparently included an oversized poster which is highly prized in collecting circles.
There are also a couple of non-LP singles which I've never seen or heard:
- 'Grab Hold' b/w 'Sing a Little Love Song' (Jade catalog number JR-1076)
- 'Take a Look' b/w 'Waiting for the Rain' (Jade catalog number JR-1077)
Turns out that save some wear and tear (actually quite a bit of wear and tear), Mr. Jade is still with us. As of the summer of 2006 he was living in Austin, Texas though seemed to have dropped out of music.