Friday, November 8, 2013

The best album of The Illusion


The Illusion came from Long Island, New York and were together from 1965 to 1972. The group had one major hit with "Did You See Her Eyes", which peaked at number 32. Afterwards they had three minor hits: "Together", "How Does it Feel?" and "Let's Make Each Other Happy".
This is their debut and most succesful album and it starts with a session outtake that, I think, gives it a good time feel and provides the listener some insight as to the bands personality. The opening track, "Did You See Her Eyes" starts on a good beat, followed by an interesting change after the chorus, and then it goes into a drum solo finally ending with a jam that's good and funky. In the second track,"Talkin' Sweet Talkin' Soul" the vocals get a bit poppy but with a hard rock beat that makes for a good listen. "Just Imagine" has an acoustic guitar that gives it a laid-back easy listening feel for the third track. This side finishes with a medley, "Run, Run, Run / Willy Gee (Miss Holy Lady)" which is my favorite track on the album. It is upbeat and has enough variety to keep it interesting and they left an outtake from the session, at the end the drummer yells that he broke his drum head.
The second side has no outtakes and thus they seem more serious and geared towards getting airplay. The songs lean more towards pop rock and only until the final cut do they let loose and get the beat moving. They open with, "I Love You, Yes I Do", it has a good beat and decent harmonies. The last verse is sung acapella and mixed with some sound effects, which I feel, makes the song more interesting.  "Alone" is the next track and it sounds like they were going for a top forty hit with heavy harmonies and a very pop rock feel. The third track, "Charlena", is also full of vocal harmonies but with a good steady beat that you could dance to. This is followed by another medley, "Why, Tell Me Why / The Real Thing, and is slow and bluesy for the first part and then goes into pop rock with plenty of harmonies. The album closes with, "You Made Me What I Am" and it continues with a pop feel until the ending when it kicks into high gear and makes for a memorable ending to the album.
I feel that rock music from the sixties and seventies showcases the variety of styles that were developing in the music industry. The Illusion is an excellent example of the originality and talent of the musicians of that era. Their music will be enjoyed by anyone that listens to rock music.

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