Caravan [1976] Blind Dog At St. Dunstan's

[01] Here Am I
[02] Chiefs And Indians
[03] A Very Smelly Grubby Little Oik
[04] Bobbing Wide
[05] Come On Back
[06] Oik (Reprise)
[07] Jack And Jill
[08] Can You Hear Me
[09] All The Way



amg: After the surprisingly warm reception of Cunning Stunts, it looked like Caravan could do no wrong. Unfortunately, the band's next release was a major turn for the worse. New keyboard player Jan Schelhaas was part of the reason - his jazzy, up-tempo playing on every song regardless of the intended mood is one of the major problems here. It doesn't help that the material here is generally weaker, lacking either compelling lyrics or interesting song structures. Only the opening "Here Am I" is up to the standard of their older material and played with any kind of finesse. What is missing on this album is the character that made Caravan something more than just another technically proficient band. The critical and popular reaction was devastating. Blind Dog at St. Dunstan's took a career that was headed for the big time and brought it firmly back to ground.
(amg 3/10)