Jackie DeShannon – Laurel Canyon

I've had this album since it was new. When I was in college at Illinois State University, one of my friends worked at the college radio station. He was at my apartment and told me about a "worst album" contest the station was having. I said, "I have one that would be perfect!" I pulled out DeShannon's "Laurel Canyon" and played "The Weight." I loaned him my copy. When he spun the track on the air mentioning Dr. John on keyboards, this got voted as worst album. It didn't seem to hang together for me. When he returned it, my prize was another worst album. Listening to it decades later, it doesn't sound quite as awful as it did to me in my early 20s. On the bright side, "Laurel Canyon" was an award winning album!

"Happy Go Lucky Girl" and "Ooh, You Did It Again" are absolutely phenomenal. Why did they decide not to release them?? It would've been super nice to be on a single at least!! And of course "What Is This" is a notable highlight in the bonus tracks. At least that one was released back then.

...this is Jackie getting a funky groove on at the back end of '68, just in time for the newly emerging singer/writer phenomenon (the fact that she had been such an artiste since the late '50s didn't matter-this was new territory)...this is Jackie 'grown up', no longer being seen as an irrelevant purveyor of teenpop / MOR songstress, Jackie reaching for a new audience that might be waiting for a new sound...being on an old fashion label (liberty) didn't help her get this audience, they had no idea how to market this new style so it all came to nothing (she had a minor hit with the bands big deal tune(the weight) but otherwise...)...with the brilliant illuminating vision of hindsight she should have gone to Warner Bros who were getting some kind market space with Randy Newman/van dyke parks (though they couldn't shift any of parks wax they still wanted him on the label, they tried their utmost with him), but all this don't take away the stone cold fact this is some barefoot funky stew that needs to be heard by all heads that dig the strong and mellow vibes that were happening roundabout this time, the 'get back' vibe that was getting stronger since the tapes from big pink had started getting widely circulated...a top spin and goes well with the Carole king joint (the City) that was out the same time...