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Mountain (Leslie West album)

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Mountain
Studio album by
Leslie West
ReleasedJuly 1969
StudioGotham Recording Studios, New York City
GenreHard rock[1]
Length35:27
LabelWindfall
ProducerFelix Pappalardi
Leslie West chronology
Mountain
(1969) 		The Great Fatsby
(1975)
Singles from Mountain
  1. "Long Red"
    Released: 1969
  2. "Dreams of Milk and Honey"
    Released: 1969

Mountain is the debut studio album by American rock guitarist and vocalist Leslie West, released in July 1969 by Windfall Records.[2] The album peaked at No. 72 on the Billboard 200 chart.[3]

At least five of the album's tracks were played live by Mountain, which has given it the mistaken reputation of being the band's first album.[4]

Background

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Mountain is West's first solo album, after several years as a member of the Vagrants. It was recorded with bassist and producer Felix Pappalardi. Soon after its release, West and Pappalardi formed the band Mountain (named after the album).[4][5]

Release

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The album was released on LP in July 1969 by Windfall Records and in the UK on Bell Records.[2][4] "Long Red" was released as a single from the album.[6] The album debuted at No. 175,[7] and peaked at No. 72 on the Billboard 200 chart.[3]

On April 16, 1996, Columbia/Legacy reissued Mountain on CD.[5]

Reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[4]
The Village VoiceB[8]
Classic Rock[9]

Reviewing for The Village Voice in September of that year, Robert Christgau wrote: "With Felix Pappalardi singing and playing bass regularly this could be New York's third supergroup. (The Rascals and the Spoonful got there first.) The visual possibilities alone—with West, the enormous ex-Vagrant guitarist, set against the hyperactive Pappalardi, are fantastic. West plays good guitar and is a good roarer, and Pappalardi is not only first-rate on several instruments but has a wonderful singing voice, sweet and mellow. Unfortunately, he hadn't decided to join the group when this was recorded, and so participates only as bassist and producer. West alone can't quite carry it. More like early Cream than Blind Faith."[8]

In a retrospective review, AllMusic's William Ruhlmann regarded it as a rock album "dominated by West's throaty roar of a voice and inventive blues-rock guitar playing", as well as "an auspicious debut, instantly establishing him as a guitar hero and setting the style of Mountain's subsequent recordings."[4]

Track listing

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Side one

  1. "Blood of the Sun" (Leslie West, Felix Pappalardi, Gail Collins) – 2:35
  2. "Long Red" (West, Pappalardi, John Ventura, Norman Landsberg) – 3:14
  3. "Better Watch Out" (Pappalardi, Collins) – 2:47
  4. "Blind Man" (Collins, Pappalardi, West, Ventura) – 3:50
  5. "Baby, I'm Down" (Pappalardi, Collins) – 3:58

Side two

  1. "Dreams of Milk and Honey" (West, Pappalardi, Ventura, Landsberg) – 3:22
  2. "Storyteller Man" (West, Pappalardi, Ventura, Landsberg) – 3:04
  3. "This Wheel's on Fire" (Bob Dylan, Rick Danko) – 3:18
  4. "Look to the Wind" (West, Pappalardi, Ventura) – 2:43
  5. "Southbound Train" (West, Ventura, Landsberg) – 2:57
  6. "Because You Are My Friend" (West) – 3:10

Personnel

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The following personnel are credited on the album:[10]

with:

  • Norman Landsberg – Hammond organ on "Long Red", "Storyteller Man" and "Southbound Train"
Additional personnel
  • Bob D'Orleans – recording engineer
  • Beverly Weinstein – art direction
  • The Graffiteria/David Krieger – design
  • Joel Brodsky – photography

References

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  1. ^ "Album Reviews". Billboard. August 23, 1969. p. 91.
  2. ^ a b "Bell Distributes Windfall" (PDF). Record World. August 9, 1969. p. 14 – via World Radio History.
  3. ^ a b "Billboard 200 - Week of October 18, 1969". Billboard. October 18, 1969.
  4. ^ a b c d e Ruhlmann, William. "Mountain Review by William Ruhlmann". AllMusic. Retrieved March 23, 2019.
  5. ^ a b Ruhlmann, William. "Leslie West Biography by William Ruhlmann". AllMusic.
  6. ^ "Record World - Single Picks" (PDF). Record World. August 16, 1969. p. 8 – via World Radio History.
  7. ^ "Billboard 200 - Week of September 6, 1969". Billboard. September 6, 1969.
  8. ^ a b Christgau, Robert (September 18, 1969). "Consumer Guide (4)". The Village Voice. Retrieved March 23, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  9. ^ Classic Rock Review
  10. ^ "Mountain - Leslie West | Album | AllMusic". AllMusic.
  11. ^ "N.D. Smart II at the Cool Groove". Thecoolgroove.com. Retrieved 2012-03-02.
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