Pure Prairie League

All In Good Time

2006-06-02

OK I'm a big fan of Craig Lee Fuller the lead singer of the "ORIGINAL" Pure Prairie League. Irony abounds with this guy. He sang lead on AMIE, but...it was a hit AFTER he left the band to serve 2 years of public service for being a Conscientious Objector during the Viet Nam Police Action. After his service was over, he formed American Flyer with Eric Kaz, then in 1988 he joined up with Little Feat. Here lies the first album from PPL since 1981. And it's a good one. It doesn't have the charm of the 1st two PPL albums, but it has a maturity that sinks in with every new listen. Yes there are songs that remind me of those first two masterpieces of early C-Rock, (Country-Rock), in particular the song "I Sure Do Miss You Now" which is so evocative of the early stuff you may want to play this with discretion because it will be the CENTERPIECE of marketing towards that older audience. That doesn't mean there's nothing new or exciting here. Craig doesn't do all the lead vocals, and the songs are very contemporary in their musicality. Lots of pedal steel guitars, tons of acoustic guitar harmonies, and the overall vocal work is nothing short of awesome. Everything about this CD is a reminder of the past PPL, paying homage I'm sure, right down to the take off of Norman Rockwell's salty cowboy character re-imagined by Bill Brown. (Quite Expertly I might add) But don't put it off as a celebration of what was, but what is again! Great harmonies, wonderful songs and toe tapping melodies to make you feel REAL GOOD! Ogie (The Duke) Dreyer