The True Sound Of "The Guess Who" Turns Fifty This Year
Their Diverse And Energetic Fourth Album Is Worth Celebrating At Its Half Century Mark
Burton Cummings Took Over As Lead Vocalist, And These Eyes Took Notice
Many of them are turning fifty this year, making them eligible for what could be acronymized as the AARE (Association of Albums Rendered Excellent). The most celebrated of course will be Abbey Road by The Beatles, which will turn a half a century old in September of this year.
One that may go undeservedly overlooked will turn fifty in April, a record that includes a bit of everything from pure pop to psychedelic rock to folk ballads. If you are still trying to guess what it is, the mystery record is by the Guess Who.
Titled Wheatfield Soul, the album is the band's first with Burton Cummings as the lead singer. Chad Allen, the previous front man for the first three records, had dropped out of the group the previous year.
It does not take long for Cummings to show off his strong vocal ability, which completely carries the opening song "These Eyes." That hit would become the biggest in the group's career so far, and it can still be heard in frequent rotation on most oldies stations.
While the psychedelic second track was not nearly as popular, "The Pink Wine Sparkles In The Glass" does reference the most famous songwriting duo of the closing decade, Lennon and McCartney. There is also a jab at the political failures of the Sixties, as the song remarks "The colour of skin still beats education" in spite of the Brown v. Topeka Board decision that had made segregated schools illegal.
Also reinforcing the psychedelic vibe of the record, both lyrically and musically, are "Found Her In A Star" and "Wednesday In Her Garden." There is also an instrumental track that resembles the rock work of more well-known artists at the time, hit makers such as Donovan or Oliver or the Strawberry Alarm Clock.
A standout tune that strays from the overall theme of Wheatfield Soul is a ballad simply called Lightfoot. As one could easily infer from the title, the song is a tribute to folk singer and fellow Canadian Gordon Lightfoot.
Another track that reflects some of the musical trends of the late Sixties and early Seventies is "Friends Of Mine", a Grateful Dead like jam session that extends to over ten minutes in length. not to be dismissed are pop songs like "Love and a Yellow Rose" and "We're Coming To Dinner."
The Guess Who would very soon make less diverse albums, which would actually reward them more success on the charts. Less than a year later they released the American Woman album, whose title track went all the way to number one.
Other songs from American Woman became huge hits, such as "No Time", "No Sugar Tonight" and "New Mother Nature." These tunes helped make American Woman the biggest seller in the band's discography, but there is a rawness and a diversity that make Wheatfield Soul even more of a treasure than its chart-topping successor.
