No Other

by Gene Clark

Product Description:

Personnel: Gene Clark (vocals, guitar); Michael Utley (keyboards); Leland Sklar (bass instrument); Butch Trucks (drums); Cindy Bullens, Clydie King, Ronnie Barron, Timothy B. Schmit, Venetta Fields, Claudia Linnear, Shirley Matthews, Carlena Williams (background vocals).

Liner Note Author: Matt Greenwald.

Recording information: The Village Recorder, Los Angeles, California.

Ex-Byrd Gene Clark's early-'70s solo efforts, which rank alongside the recordings of the Flying Burrito Brothers and Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young in terms of quality, vision, and appeal, have been unjustly overlooked. This is particularly true of NO OTHER, Clark's 1974 coup de grace. While the focus of NO OTHER's excellent predecessors WHITE LIGHT and ROADMASTER was on stripped down, passionate country-rock, NO OTHER pushes Clark's aesthetic to another level entirely. A cadre of female backing vocalists lend gospel-drenched color to the album, taking Clark's excellent compositions to church, and giving the whole a sanctified feel.

Amid the strummed acoustics and weeping pedal steel of songs like "Life's Greatest Fool" and "The True One," there is also the expansive, orchestral feel of "Strength of Strings" which sounds like the Moody Blues by way of the Delta, and the exceptional title track, which encompasses sinuous blues, a light, synthesizer-touched groove, and gospel dreaminess. An unbeatable team of session musicians gives the record a solid backbone, while producer Thomas Jefferson Kaye adds a high gloss that puts NO OTHER with best of radio-ready '70s rock. Still, it is ultimately Clark's unique, superior songwriting and reflective lyrics that make NO OTHER a treasure worth seeking out.