Federal Duck-Federal Duck-'68 US Psychedelic Rock-NEW LP

$

25

Federal Duck-Federal Duck-'68 US Psychedelic Rock-NEW LP 

Federal Duck ‎– Federal Duck
Label:
Munster Records ‎– MR 404
Format:
Vinyl, LP, Album, Reissue, Stereo
Country:
Spain
Released:
2020
Genre:
Rock, Pop
Style:
Psychedelic Rock

This much sought after and truly freaky album, originally released in the USA by Musicor in 1968 and blending psychedelic pop with elements of jazz, country and more, finally gets reissued on 180-GRAM VINYL, including reproduced artwork! Federal Duck's sole LP is nothing short of an essential album for genre fanatics!

It would be difficult to overlook the eye-catching colourful cover of the Federal Duck’s only album (designed by Abe Gurvin, who was also responsible for the very appealing artwork on other Tito Rodriguez and Gene Pitney’s records released on the New York based Musicor label). However, this self-titled LP was soon forgotten after not having any singles released as promotional support to the album and also, maybe, due to the complete absence of covers in the tracklist…

Federal Duck was one of the many college bands to pop up during the psychedelic years. It consisted of Tony Shaftel (vocals, bass), Jack Bowers (guitar), George Stavis (guitar, vocals and, moreover, writer to most of the songs), Huck White (guitar, french horn), Ken Stover (keyboards, tuba), Bob Stern (bass, vocals), and Timmy Ackerman (drums, percussion). They met at Haverford College, just outside Philadelphia, and after using other previous names (Stomp Jackson Quintet and The Guides) the band members came up with that name one night when they were lying on the bank of the campus duck pond and some ducks started waddling toward them in what looked like a purposeful and menacing way, as if they were working for the government… or so they thought. They played many gigs over the four years of the band’s short life and made a name for themselves as skilled musicians who would be able to play all night long if required.

The album was recorded at Groove Sound Studios, NYC, in 1968 and included a number of quality tracks, mixing elements of jazz, country and soft-psychedelia. ‘Tomorrow Waits For Today’ stands out as a wonderful piece of jazzy pop psych that could easily rival the best recordings of the genre. But some will find ‘Bird’ is the most accomplished song on the album, featuring fierce guitars and energetic drums, bordering on hard psych, that eventually lead into a long jazzy piano solo in the middle of the +5 minute song. ‘While You’re Away’ keeps a similar high levels of energy, echoing harmonies reminiscent of bands like The Byrds. But it is the soft pysch approach as on tracks like ‘Friday Morning’ or ‘Dawn Comes Slow’ what best describes the overall sound of the album. ‘Circus In The Sea’ is another quality song and the closing track on this solid LP that successfully mixes such a varied combination of sounds and deserved to have made a bigger splash when originally released.

Tracklist

A1     Knowing That I Loved You So

    Written-By – G. Stavis*

    2:18
A2     Easy Virtue Blues

    Written-By – J. Bowers*

    2:44
A3     Tomorrow Waits For Today

    Written-By – G. Stavis*

    3:04
A4     Just Like The Snow

    Written-By – D. Koteen*

    4:22
A5     Bird

    Written-By – Stavis*, J. Bowers*, Stover*

    5:56
A6     Hello

    Written-By – G. Stavis*

    0:17
B1     While You're Away

    Written-By – G. Stavis*

    2:09
B2     Peace In My Mind

    Written-By – G. Stavis*

    2:57
B3     Just A Band

    Written-By – G. Stavis*

    0:34
B4     Friday Morning

    Written-By – G. Stavis*

    3:09
B5     Dawn Comes Slow

    Written-By – G. Stavis*, J. Bowers*

    3:05
B6     Ain't Gonna Be Nobody To Sing The Blues

    Written-By – J. Bowers*

    2:11
B7     Circus In The Sea

    Written-By – G. Stavis*

    3:33
Companies, etc.

    Recorded At – Groove Sound Studio

Credits

    Artwork [Cover Design] – Abe Gurvin
    Bass, Vocals – Bob Stern
    Coordinator [Album Coordinator] – Irwin Rawitz
    Drums, Congas, Percussion – Timmy Ackerman*
    Guitar [Guitars], Vocals – George Stavis
    Guitar, Dulcimer, Recorder – Jack Bowers
    Guitar, French Horn, Recorder – Huck White
    Piano, Organ, Tuba – Ken Stover (2)
    Triangle – Thesha Dow
    Vocals, Bass – Tony Shaftel

Notes
Barcode : 8435008840419