Genre: pop
Rating: *** (3 stars)
Title: Two Suns Worth
Company: Fontana
Catalog: SRF-67573
Year: 1968
Country/State: California, US
Grade (cover/record): VG/VG
Comments: small drill hole in center of LP
Available: 1
GEMM catalog ID: 4910
Price: $40.00
Here's a valuable reminder that price and rarity don't equate to quality. This one sat around in my 'listen to' pile for a couple of years. I finally gave it a spin after playing a nameless big ticket item that had been endlessly hyped. Guess what? Even though this one will cost you a tenth of the other album, it's way better !!!
Other than the fact keyboardist Larry Gerughty had previously been a member of Butch Engle and the Styx, I know virtually nothing about this outfit. Since Butch Engle and company were based in Mill Valley, California and the album was recorded at Hollywood's Amigo Studios there's a good chance these guys also had a Southern California base though they apparently attracted attention playing in San Francisco.
Signed by Fontana, the group's 1968 debut "Two Suns Worth" teamed them with producer Abe 'Voco' Kesh (of Blue Cheer fame). Interestingly the set was engineered by Velvet Underground alumnus John Cale. With three of the six members contributing material, the all original set offered up a distinctively West Coast sound that was simultaneously quite heavy, but also quite commercial. At least a couple of reviews I've seen draw a comparison to The Airplane. It's not a perfect comparison, but gets you in the general aural neighborhood. Exemplified by tracks such as 'Need Somebody' and 'I Cry' Graybeal had a great voice that could more than handle the band's heavy edges. She also avoided the shrieking excesses favored by many of her contemporaries (Lynda Pense, Grace Slick). The rest of the band were also pretty impressive with Daniel NuDelman kicking in more than his share of fuzz guitar. The album certainly wasn't perfect. Bassist Bohanna's voice was okay, but nothing great and numbers like 'Hey Little Girl' and 'Point of Know Return' were rather tuneless and un-spirited. Still, there are enough treasures here to give the album a strong recommendation, particularly since you can still find this one cheap. Personal favorites included 'Stone Good Day', 'Even When I'm Up I'm Down' and 'Jelly Gas Flame'. Fontana tapped the album for at least one single: 'Need Somebody' b/w 'I See a Light' (Fontana catalog number F-1614).
"Two Suns
Worth" track listing:
(side 1)
1.) Need Someone (Bob Bohanna) - 4:28
2.) I Cry (Bob Bohanna) - 2:34
3.) Hey Little Girl (Bob Bohanna) - 2:22
4.) Stone Good Day (Bob Bohanna) - 4:00
5.) Even When I'm Up I'm Down (Daniel NuDelman) - 5:20
(side
2)
1.) Jelly Gas Flame
(Daniel) - 4:38
2.) I See a Light (Daniel NuDelman - Gini Graybeal) - 3:12
3.) Live For Today (Bob Bohanna) - 3:12
4.) Point Of No Return (Larry Gerughty) - 5:02
5.) So Glad Being Here (Bob Bohanna) - 3:37
One album and one single is all she wrote, though bassist Bohanna later reappeared as a member of Pure Love and Pleasure.