Rock Archeologia

Gallagher & Lyle - Willie And The Lapdog (1973)

Artist: Gallagher & Lyle
Album: Willie And The Lapdog
Label: A&M Records
Catalog#: AMLH 68148
Format: Vinyl, LP
Country: UK
Released: 1973
Genre: Rock, Pop Rock
Duration: 00:29:58

• "Willie and the Lapdog takes on a cohesive aura, depicting various aspects of man's journey from youth to old age, the way he misuses the former and dwells upon the latter, the way he relates to life and its passing acquaintances, and its music, which always seems to provide sustenance when all else fails." • Willie & the Lap Dog has the early-'70s rustic British folk-influenced rock feel associated with Pete Townshend and Ronnie Lane's early solo work. These comparisons are hardly a surprise, given that Townshend himself plays harmonica on the LP, and that Gallagher & Lyle would join Ronnie Lane's Slim Chance shortly afterward. Still, approximating the feel of work by major artists is one thing; matching it is another. And while Gallagher & Lyle's material here has a pleasing, wistful, informal ambience, the songs aren't anything on the order of what Townshend and Lane were coming up with for their own rootsy solo endeavors. These are mostly easygoing ambles that drift by without leaving too much of an impression, sometimes going into more serious introspective and slightly bluer moods on tracks like "Home" and "Hotel Constantine," and adding orchestration for just one song, the closing "Thoughts from a Station." The use of harmonica, harmonium (on a cut actually titled "Harmonium"), and accordion adds to the archaic feel, though some of the harmonica riffs on "Give a Boy a Break" veer uncomfortably close to some that were used on George Harrison's "Apple Scruffs." - Richie Unterberger

 • Side One:
A1. Willie 02:21
A2. Home 02:18
A3. Give A Boy A Break 03:36
A4. Sittin' Down Music 02:46
A5. Dan 02:51
A6. Among The Birks 03:01
 • Side Two:
B1. Jesus Save Me 02:45
B2. S.S. Man 03:38
B3. Hotel Constantine 02:27
B4. The Lap Dog 02:35
B5. Harmonium 02:28
B6. Thoughts From A Station 01:55

      All songs composed by Benny Gallagher, & Graham Lyle

Personel:
Benny Gallagher, Graham Lyle - Guitar, Vocals
Hughie Flint - Drums
Bruce Rowland - Percussion, Drums
Pete Townshend - Harmonica

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