Michael Murphey "Geronimo's Cadillac"

For many people, their only exposure to Michael Murphey is via his 1975 top 5 hit "Wildfire" While there's no denying "Wildfire" is a great song, Michael Martin Murphey (He started using his full name in the early 80s) is so much more than that one song. Through most of the 70s MMM straddled the line between edgy soft rock and country & western, with an emphasis on western. Most of his 80s work is more C&W oriented. Far from a one-hit wonder, MMM placed a total of five singles on The Hot 100. Including todays spotlight song, his first single from the summer of 1972. Released on A&M Records, it peaked at #37 on The Hot 100. By '72 MMM was already an old hand in the music biz, having had some chart success as a member of The Lewis And Clarke Expedition, and writing songs for acts such as The Monkees, Flatt & Scruggs, and Kenny Rogers. Though "Geronimo's Cadillac is not my favorite MMM song, it has a raw unvarnished sound that I really like. About 1:30 is edited out of the 45 version, but it's still a desirable early MMM record.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Image
Dennis Coffey And The Detroit Guitar Band   "Taurus" Dennis worked behind the scenes as a session guitarist for Motown Records, playing on late 60's hits by The Temptations, The Supremes and others. In the fall of 1971 he released "Scorpio" a funky guitar driven instrumental which went top 10 on both the pop and RnB charts. For his follow-up single Dennis didn't have to look far for a title, he simply went over to the other end of the zodiac and called it "Taurus" Also an instrumental "Taurus" while not as successful as "Scorpio" did well peaking at #18 in early 1972. That was pretty much it for the hits and Dennis went on to produce for fellow Detroiters Gallery who hit big with "Nice To Be With You"
Read more
Image
Donovan      "I Like You" If there's one artist who's synonymous with the love and peace hippie culture of the 60s, it's Donovan. Donovan racked up a dozen top 40 hits in the 60s, but once the calendar turned to 1970 the hits dried up, and just like that Donovan was yesterday's news. Ironically some of the artists of the singer-songwriter movement of the early 70s, who were putting out hits left and right, were not that much different than Donovan was early in his career as a folkie troubadour. Donovan's huge success in the 60s is a combination of making the right music at the right time and teaming up with legendary record producer Mickie Most. When Donovan and Most parted ways in 1969 the hits dried up. But Donovan was not done yet, he continued to release records well into the 70s. Most of his 70s work is worth a listen. "I Like You" is Donovan's last song to chart on the Billboard Hot 100. It managed to climb to #66 in the spring of 1...
Read more