By 1974 Andy Kim was already a pretty established writer and performer. Most of us kids knew "Sugar Sugar" but couldn't have told you who wrote or sang it ... it was The Archies and that was that. Of course, everything is processed through a lens, and there's a huge difference between what I was able to process as an eleven-year-old who was obsessed with the radio and music and the knowledge and trivia I have accumulated over the intervening decades ... decades. Good lord, when did I get old?
Andy Kim was his eponymous release on ICE Records in 1974, and it was distributed here in Canada by London Records. The song everyone, and I mean EVERYONE, knows is "Rock Me Gently," a song that was made to sing along to. Like so many others back in the day, much of my record collection was comprised of K-Tel anthologies, and there were two that I played until I almost wore the needle through the vinyl. Canadian Mint. 22 songs that were carefully edited and condensed to the core song elements. I still cannot stand the DeFranco Family for unleashing their earworm "Save the Last Dance for Me," a song that still makes my tongue sweat when I think about it. It was Dynamite, though, that started with a three-punch combination that rocked my world. "Takin' Care of Business" by B.T.O., "Rock & Roll Hoochie Koo" by Rick Derringer, and "Rock Me Gently" by Andy Kim, a song that should have been the odd man out here, but it wasn't. Admittedly, there were more duds on this one than on Canadian Mint, but it didn't matter.
How is any of this relevant? It isn't, not really, but it's a fun memory.
Sitting here with a coffee, I'm settled in my comfy corner. I've got the record in my hands. I have no idea if this originally had liner notes, but there are credits on the back cover, and the talent assembled was top shelf. Larry Carlton and Dean Parks are among the best guitar players on the planet, and Michael Omartian was known more at this stage of his career as a keyboard ace, as well as an arranger. The songs still sound so good.
The album kicks off with "Rock Me Gently," and honestly, that's all I really wanted from the album. The rest of the first side was better than I expected, even if the songs often bore more than a passing resemblance to Neil Diamond at times. The record contained a couple more really solid songs, something I had hoped for but I didn't expect. I really liked "Fire, Baby I'm on Fire" and got a kick out of the closing treatment of "Rock Me Gently - Part II," that was mostly instrumental except for the chorus that was belted out by the ladies. The odd voice-over on "Here Comes the Morning" seems out of place, but at the time it was more common than it is today. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. That kind of thing works better on a country song where the dog limps into the saloon and asks the bartender, "I'm looking for the man who shot my paw."
"Sunshine" was an odd surprise. When the song started, I actually thought I was listening to a very clever cover of "American Woman," but then the song settled into its own groove. Who knows, maybe it was a deliberate nod to the Guess Who. Or not. You can read a lot into things and be completely wrong.
This was a really fun trip down memory lane, and it was great to hear "Rock Me Gently" in all its original glory, with all the parts on display. Those old K-Tel records cut out a lot of stuff, and hearing the keyboard parts here made me realize what I had been missing.
I definitely got my dollar's worth on this one.
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