Genre: rock
Rating: 3 stars ***
Title: 2nd Look
Company: Akashic
Catalog: AST 1001
Year: 1974
Country/State: Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Grade (cover/record): VG / VG+
Comments: includes the lyric poster insert;3 inch seam split along bottom edge
Available: 1
GEMM catalog ID: 5531
Price: $200.00
Jim Spencer originally made his name as a writer/publisher responsible for a series of early-1970s underground magazines including the short-lived publication Freek. for anyone interested in the literary side of Spencer's career, co-published Karl Young has a lengthy retrospective on the web at:
http://www.bigbridge.org/young/freek.htm
Spencer also found time to record a pair of mid-1970s solo LPs that attracted local attention, but did little on the national scene. As you've probably figured out from the title, 1974's "2nd Look" was Spencer's sophomore solo LP. Co-produced by Spencer and Mike Pageant (who also played rhythm guitar and contributed several tracks), anyone expecting to hear a collection of Major Arcana-styled psych was probably going to be somewhat disappointed by this collection. That's not to say the collection was without merit. Spencer had an attractive voice and tracks like the jazz tinged 'What Am I Doing Here' and the atypical rocker 'The Devil Is a Fat Man' were almost as enjoyable as anything on the Major Arcana release. That said, the bulk of the LP featured an acoustic singer/songwriter vibe. Songs like the title track, 'No Place To Land' and 'There Comes a Time' were quality singer/songwriter material with nice melodies, great harmony vocals, but probably a little too tame for psych collectors. My five year old listened to the first side with a pair of headphones and described the set as 'boring'. That's a little harsh in my opinion and I'd rather hear most of these songs than most of the John Denver, Gordon Lightfoot, or Lobo catalogs. By the way, Ron Matelic of Anonymous fame also participated in the sessions, writing the harpsichord-propelled ballad 'Laura' and co-writing 'Lament' with Spencer.
"2nd
Look" track listing:
(side 1)
1.) Second Look (Mike Pageant) - 4:26
2.) No Place To Land (Mike Pageant - Jim Spencer) - 3:18
3.) There Comes a Time (Jim Spencer) - 3:36
4.) What Am I Doing Here (Jim Spencer) - 7:27
(side
2)
1.) Just a Little Time with You (Jim Spencer) - 2:31
2.) Laura (Ron Matelic) - 2:24
3.) Interlude (Beni) - 0:53
4.) Lament (Ron Matelic - Jim Spencer) - 2:18
5.) Next To You (Jim Spencer) - 2:36
6.) The Devil Is a Fat Man (Jim Spencer) - 6:34
In 1974 Spencer decided to form a band, recruiting the talents of bassist Michael Burdecki, lead guitarist Randall Dubis, and percussionist Jim Kitchen to form Major Arcana (see separate entry).
Suffering from a number of personal issues and apparently heavily into drugs, Spencer died of a stroke. He was only 39 years old.