Because Gold was a member of the Peter Asher/Linda Ronstandt L.A. soft-rock Mafia in the 70s, a lot of critics with a punk and post-punk axe to grind have tended to sell his artistic contributions short; frankly, I may have done it myself from time to time. But the guy was clearly a hell of a musician, and I think the world would be a poorer place without some of the records he played on and arranged. "You're No Good" immediately springs to mind....
...especially that Beatles-ish minor key riffy guitar breakdown solo section after titular star Ronsztadt temporarily shuts her not as soulful as it should be yap.
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For me, "Lonely Boy" is a fondly-remembered piece of post-high school angst - a song no one else I knew cared about at the time... I think I snuck it on to the turntable at parties in between cuts from Pink Floyd and Steely Dan a few times!
Loved his psych parody "Greetings From Planet Love" by the fictional Fraternal Order of All. Good stuff ala the Dukes of Stratosphear.
KC -- I never heard that one; I'll have to check it out, as it sounds like it was designed with my mind in mind.
Great playing and arranging. I love the sound of "Lonely Boy". As for his lyrics, well, let's just say there is a lot of danger in very direct lyrics. And it seems that applies to many of Gold's songs ("Thank You For Being a Friend"). But going back and putting it in context of other music of the time (thinking the sarcastic and ironic works of Steely Dan or Randy Newman), perhaps the direct lyric took more guts. RIP
That guitar break in "Lonely Boy," blasting out of the AM radio, thrilled a certain 16-year-old as he drove to his job washing dishes at the olde folkes home.
The lyrics, however, have a certain Paper Lace quality. No denying. But still a great tune.
As for "You're No Good," Elvis Costello used that song and a cheesy drum machine to get his revenge on Ms. Linda. But that is a great arrangement, no doubt.
One of my favorite Ronstadt cuts, mainly because of the music. She once described singing as pushing columns of air around ... no, Linda, that's making pretty sounds. That's not singing.
Apparently, Jeffrey Foskett is in the "Byrds of a Feather" line-up - he's also been working with Brian Wilson for a number of years.
Here's Andrew closing out an edition of "Midnight Special" with "Lonely Boy":
http://youtu.be/kBe-6EXBvaA
I like this version just slightly more than the one you linked to below.
Is that Waddy Wachtel in the shadows on gee-tar?
This version of Bluebird is glorious. Byrds/Feather should have released it as a single. I laughed out loud at the guitar work, it was so good and true.
AP
On the Five Way Street bonus disc there is a nice version of Eight Miles High by Byrds of a Feather.
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