PHIL CORDELL, 'Roadie For The Band' b/w 'Twistin' And Jivin'' (Mowest, 1973)
To me, this sums up the aesthetic interregnum experienced by many Brit Invasion boomers better than almost anything this side of THE LIVERPOOL ECHO. The die-hard faithful - pious unflagging to the initial three-minute POP spark.
More familiar to some as the name behind the 'Red Lady' 45 comped on the first FADING YELLOW installment and, to likely far fewer, as a latter day saint in the UK Christian rock scene, PHIL CORDELL turned in this humble, yet emphatic/ecstatic power pop ode to chart rock's lowest rung in the year when ROCK was perhaps experiencing its greatest glam rock bloat. Whether it was intended as autobiography or just pithy song-crafting, the A-side of this single is pure Mersey revival brilliance with the OOMPH and technical savvy of the top flight studios where it was recorded showing through.
The B-side is, sadly, not that great.
Still, the guitarwork, melody and production on the A will not be denied and proved more than enough to convince Motown to cover the bill. Hopefully payment included burn treatment for the searing lead guitar outro.
Enjoy then PHIL CORDELL - may he rest in peace and no longer have to lug around amps in Rock 'N' Roll Heaven.
'ROADIE FOR THE BAND'
