For all the many recordings of
Duffy Power in the '60s and the '70s that eventually found release, his 1973 album on the GSF label (sometimes reported to have come out in 1972) was the only full-length
Power LP that came out shortly after the material it contained was recorded. Confusingly, another album titled
Duffy Power came out around the same time on the Spark label, though that LP contained tracks recorded in the late '60s. The
Duffy Power album on the GSF label was entirely different, and has received relatively little attention even among his cult followers, in part because so much other
Power material was reissued on CD prior to the record finally coming out in the compact disc format in 2007. While the tracks on the GSF album aren't among the best
Power cuts, they prove to be surprisingly and satisfyingly worthwhile, finding his trademark eclectic folk-rock-blues blends intact on a set of entirely self-composed songs. Though not as sparsely produced as some of his more effective '60s efforts, or as cracking with R&B excitement, it's a pretty gutsy set, though imbued with the likably humble humanity
Power invested with almost everything he laid down. He takes on some pretty big subjects -- religion, most notably, on "Song About Jesus" and "Glimpses of God" -- along with his more standard vulnerable, sweetly edgy romantic ruminations ("Holiday" is close to torch song jazz-blues). Generally
Power does sound better the folkier he gets, and the odder, jazzier tunes he uses (as on "Holiday," "The River," and "Love Is Shelter," all of which use effectively dramatic light orchestration) are the highlights. The more rock-oriented tracks, while OK, have a more generic early-'70s British rock feel. The 2007 CD reissue added extensive comments about each song by
Power in the liner notes, along with three bonus tracks of almost similar quality that he cut shortly afterward for a follow-up LP that never came out. [A Japanese import was released in 2007.] ~ Richie Unterberger