(Warner Bros., LP only, 1983)
With most (not all, but most) of the reviews I write, I seek to call attention to – to champion, if you will – worthwhile neglected albums of the past. Well, fair warning folks, I have something really obscure to share with you this time. Great, but obscure. It was never released as a CD, and I will be surprised if you can find it on any of the streaming services.
You will recognize the name Josh Leo if and only if you are either (option 1) involved in the music business with Nashville connections, or (option 2) someone who pays obsessive attention to the minutia of album credits in popular/country/rock genres of music.
As have so many others in the music biz, Leo began his career in an unsuccessful band. He had talent on a guitar, though, and in the latter 1970’s became a very successful session and touring guitarist, playing with a number of big-name artists. He also wrote songs on the side, and Crystal Gayle had a #1 hit with one he wrote in 1983. He moved to Nashville and became a producer and a VP for RCA Records. By way of summary: “All told, he has performed on over 150 records, produced 21 singles that reached No. 1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart, written six singles that reached No. 1 on the Billboard Country Singles chart, and won 6 BMI Millionaire awards.” (Thank you, Wikipedia. I hope acknowledging you as a quoted source keeps this legal. And I don’t know or really care what BMI Millionaire awards are, though I’m sure they’re very worthwhile.) So – are you getting the idea this guy knows something about music and what he’s doing?
Yes, well, in 1983, he recorded his one-and-only record album, for Warner Brothers. Wikipedia mistakenly calls Rockin’ on 6th a ‘pop’ album for some reason – it ain’t. This album is rock and roll to its musical bones, sounding like it comes straight out of the streets of NYC for which it is named. (At least I think it’s named after NYC streets – it was mostly recorded in LA, so...) Even the songs that are not high-energy have spirit, spark and verve. I imagine that some folks might attempt to compare this album stylistically to some of Springsteen’s work, but I will decline to go there. It will stand on its own quite well, thank you.
Leo wrote or co-wrote all the songs on the album, and co-produced it. I don’t recognize too many of the names of the musicians he assembled to back him, though they certainly sound extremely capable. The few names I do recognize in the credits are J.D. Souther, Wendy Waldman, and Bonnie Raitt. Along with the usual guitars, piano, and percussion, the instrumental backing on different songs features organ, horns, synthesizer, congas, and probably a kitchen sink here and there.
The album is woven with tales of real people, living hard, rough lives that matter. Side one kicks off with “Workin’ Class,” a rockin’ ode to that those who work hard and can’t get ahead:
“Work all day and you work all night, work some more but it just ain’t right
Can’t make no money, can’t make the bills, one way ticket down to Poverty Hill.”
The up-tempo continues with “She Don’t Need Nobody,” a great song with a deep philosophical message of... just kidding. It’s about a self-centered, heartless girl that has no need for anyone other than herself. “Do It All for You” is a love song that slows the pace down a bit, but is well-written and sung, and impresses with the sense of conviction that it conveys. “Two Car Garage” picks things back up again, a tale of a young couple who live life fast and hard in search of the American dream as idealized by the song’s title.
The album’s title cut leads off side 2, with background chatter and a variety of city sounds. It’s the story of Eddie Alvarado, “the king of gettin’ down low,” a tough guy who kills a man in a robbery and gets sentenced to life in prison. The organ and congas along with steel drums and more lend this song an authentic vibe.
And there’s more...
I can’t quite assert that every cut is a winner – there are very few albums indeed that I make that claim for! The closing song, “Rise Up World,” has a great sentiment but struggles to be musically effective. But on the whole this is really a strong album, one that makes you sit up and pay attention. It most definitely did not achieve the success that it deserved. I confess that I haven’t happened across it in any of my numerous forages through bins of used LPs, though it conceivably might be found there. It is available on Discogs embarrassingly cheap. I very much recommend it.
While I am not one of the aforementioned obsessives who study and memorize album credits, I have happened to notice Leo’s name showing up as producer on a number of county-related albums that I really liked over the last, oh, 30 years or more. A most capable guy indeed...