THE HIGH KEYS – A Little Too Heavy [’70s album previously unreleased] (2022)

This post is especially focused to readers of this website with love for Seventies rock – and there’s many of you who will enjoy this; the unreleased 1970-72 album from American rockers THE HIGH KEYS. The title of this one – “A Little Too Heavy” – might be very well-put, as the record was almost too heavy to be issued at the time of its recording – finally seeing the light of day after way too many years in the vault… 50 years!
Produced by Ron and Howard Albert – the legendary Fat Albert Productions (Wishbone Ash, Procol Harum, Crosby, Still, Nash, etc) and recorded at famous Criteria Studios in Miami, this powerhouse album finally sees the light of day.
The set’s a tremendous bit of American proto hard rock driven by fuzzy guitars and organs, and at the same time the group utilizes elaborated harmonies at all the right moments. A perfect example of THE HIGH KEYS sound is the title track “A Little Too Heavy”, a commanding opener mixing organ flourishes with heavy lead guitar runs for a searing hard rocker that proudly displays their Vanilla Fudge influence.
The Fat Albert productions team really helped ensure that the whole thing came out beautifully during recording – and the whole set is hardly a half-baked set of demos or raw tapes – but instead a top-shelf record that would have been right at home in the major record racks of the time.

“Bird In The Hand” and the road weary “Headin’ Home” also lay down the heavy gauntlet — the former with some fine soloing and the latter with complex harmonies and rhythms as fast as a touring van’s wheels. And on “Too God To Be True,” the hard rock is slower, more contemplative and, above all, still affecting.
But the band could do more than just rock out, sliding into a soulful groove on “Memories Never Cease,” laying back for a ballad on “Chance” and doing a little of both on “Buffalo Girl,” which starts as a melancholy blues before segueing into a hard-rockin’ climax that leaves room for Druckman to stretch out again.

The playful “I’m On My Way Up” takes still another direction with more great harmonies to bolster its choruses, while congas played by frontman Joey Calarusso fill out the sound on the catchy rock of “It’s Alright.” “Something New” displays the band’s melodic inclinations, which can also be heard on the pleading “Take Me Back.”

While “A Little Too Heavy” wasn’t released back in the day, THE HIGH KEYS released various singles and continued into the 70s remaining a fan favorite touring as opening act for such bands as Sly & The Family Stone, Fleetwood Mac, Little Feat, and Blue Oyster Cult along with playing festivals besides major night clubs on the East Coast.
If you like Seventies pure rock n roll, you need to check out this album.
Highly Recommended

 

01 – A Little Too Heavy
02 – Memories Never Cease
03 – I’m On My Way Up
04 – Bird In Hand
05 – Buffalo Girl
06 – It’s Alright
07 – Chance
08 – Something New
09 – Headin’ Home
10 – Too God To Be True
11 – Take Me Back

Joey Calarusso – Lead Vocals, Guitar, Percussion
Rick Carhart – Bass
Marty Druckman – Lead Guitar
Johnny DeFrancesca – Hammond Organ
Michael “Gino” Schimpf – Drums

 

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