Rayburn - Your Mind

(CD 2012, 68:28, Excited States Entertainment)

The tracks:
  1- Your Mind(3:16)
  2- Working My Way Upstream(5:26)
  3- Hey Friend(4:01)
  4- Gotta Be Ready To Die(6:25)
  5- Sunset(2:13)
  6- Farmer(4:57)
  7- The Trail Is Gone(2:13)
  8- Summer Showers(3:41)
  9- Saltless Tears(5:00)
10- See My Eyes(4:29)
11- Said I Love Only You(7:41)
12- America(2:30)
13- Stand(5:42)
14- Righteous Man(5:22)
15- Steam Shuffle(3:20)
16- It's Time Again(2:13)

Rayburn Website        Excited States Entertainment


Rayburn were an American progressive rock band from Arkansas, and Your Mind is an album containing demos that were kept from publishing way back in the seventies. Many years later these demos were released as Your Mind With Psych Of The Sixth, and now this album has been re-released with the help of producer Ben Fowler and an orchestra consisting of 26 members. The running time of this CD is almost seventy minutes, but to be honest, this is way too long as most of the songs are rather dull and tiresome.

Take for example Sunset, a piano ballad with female vocals or Summer Showers, another piano ballad, or the musical-like song Saltless Tears and furthermore Stand, Righteous Man and It's Time Again. I was almost bored to death with all these songs... The other tracks show influences of Vanilla Fudge, Steely Dan, The Doors, Gentle Giant and ELP, the latter being rather obviously exploited in the best track of the album called Working My Way Upstream featuring a marvellous guitar solo. Other songs that are worthwhile listening to are Farmer, a retro rock piece with an organ solo, the funky See My Eyes and the instrumental Steam Shuffle, which sounds like Booker T & The MG's. All in all this isn't a remarkable CD as none of the songs really stuck in my mind.

** Martien Koolen (edited by Peter Willemsen)

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