Carney (Leon Russell album)

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Carney
Studio album by
Leon Russell
ReleasedJune 26, 1972 (1972-06-26)
Studio
  • Skyhill (Hollywood)
  • Muscle Shoals (Sheffield, Alabama)
  • Paradise (Tia Juana, Oklahoma)
Genre
Length37:34
LabelShelter (US); A&M (UK)
ProducerDenny Cordell
Leon Russell
Leon Russell chronology
Asylum Choir II
(1971) 		Carney
(1972) 		Looking Back
(1973)

Carney is Leon Russell's third solo studio album, released in 1972. It peaked at number 2 on the Billboard Hot 200 and was the first for Russell to contain a hit single — "Tight Rope" b/w "This Masquerade" — which reached number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Side one of the record profiles

semi-autobiographical, Russell using the record to draw parallels between his life and old-fashioned carnivals and circus clowns. The record reflects the musician's interests in vaudeville and sideshows and also features two experimental
pieces.

Composition

Musical style and themes

surrealistic journey out in the woods of his newfound fame", veering between "ambivalence and outright rejection of that celebrity." He added: "At times, the album sounds like a demented circus stranded in a gnarled swamp. But it's mostly a collection of sedate and reflective songs."[2] Music critic Joel Vance highlighted Russell's uniqueness as being aided by "his whorehouse piano style and Oklahoma accent". He said: "Carney is like Rubber Soul; there isn't a unifying theme, but you come away from it thinking there is. Perhaps that's because of the role Russell portrays here, casting himself as a wanderer making entries in a musical diary."[3]

The album's themes were inspired by

rock 'n' roll. Carney's got that vaudeville thing. And then he started doing that stuff on stage ... They had a big fight over Carney."[2]

Songs

Side one opens with "Tight Rope", a hooky "cry for help" with vaudeville and

Moog synth.[2]

Side two, known by some fans as the "psychedelic side", commences with two

Zappa-warped doo-wop section set against the Chamberlin tape loops of voices." Russell sent the musicians into the studio at different times to "play anything they wanted, only allowing them to hear sample snippets of what else was on the track." Janovitz called it "a way to keep the salaried band members occupied, as he could not churn out songs quickly enough to keep them busy."[2] "If the Shoe Fits" is a satirical country song describing individuals' reactions to rock stars;[2] Robert Christgau contends that the song is "a cheap shot at hangers-on that says more about the performer's lot than 'Tight Rope' and 'Magic Mirror' put together."[6]

Release and reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Encyclopedia of Popular Music
[7]

Released in 1972, Carney appeared at the height of Leon Russell's popularity, both as a recording artist and live performer. It reached number two on the US

Cash Box charts; it also reached number eleven on the Billboard Hot 100.[2]

Joel Vance of

Stereo Review reviewed the album as a "Recording of Special Merit", classifying the performance as 'Really fine' and the recording as 'Excellent'.[9] In his review, he commented that Russell's artistry had increased with each album and praised his uniqueness, believing he repeatedly makes "the right decision" in his work. He added: "Only Russell can sing so insinuatingly, which fits in perfectly with the 'Carney' role. He could be a folk hero or he could be the Illustrated Man. Tempting, a little scary, a little sad, and damn good – Leon Russell can take care of himself."[3]

In their review, Billboard wrote that Russell comes over as "a slightly off-beat surprise and a revelation into the mind of a 'superstar'." They noted that the album draws unobvious parallels between Russell's life and "an old-fashioned carnival", and believed it to be an "amazingly insightful work" that will enchant fans of the singer, whose "exaggerated twang" they deemed the most delightful in rock.[10] Writing in Christgau's Record Guide (1981), Christgau wrote: "Not the radical falloff some report — just slippage, the first side listenable and the second flaky." He reserved praise for "If the Shoe Fits".[6]

In a retrospective review for

Colin Larkin described Carney as a "poignantly stunning" album, and deemed it a semi-autobiographical work which uses "the circus clown theme as an analogy to his own punishing career."[7]

Track listing

All tracks composed by Leon Russell except where indicated.

Side One

  1. "Tight Rope" – 2:59
  2. "Out in the Woods" – 3:35
  3. "Me and Baby Jane" – 3:53
  4. "Manhattan Island Serenade" – 3:26
  5. "Cajun Love Song" – 3:08
  6. "Queen of the Roller Derby" – 2:22

Side Two

  1. "Carney" – :45
  2. "Acid Annapolis" (Leon Russell, Don Preston) – 2:51
  3. "If the Shoe Fits" – 2:23
  4. "My Cricket" – 2:56
  5. "This Masquerade" – 4:22
  6. "Magic Mirror" – 4:54

Charts

Chart (1972) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[11] 6
United States (Billboard 200) 2

Personnel

  • Leon Russell – vocals, guitar, bass guitar, piano
  • Don Preston – guitar, vocals
  • Joey Cooper – guitar
  • Carl Radle – bass guitar
  • Chuck Blackwell, Jim Keltner – drums
  • John Gallie – Hammond organ
Technical
  • Marlin Greene, John Lemay, Peter Nicholls – engineer
  • Gene Brownell – art direction
  • Daniel Mayo – photography

References

  1. ^
    Allmusic
    . Retrieved November 23, 2010.
  2. ^
    ISBN 978-0306924774
    . Retrieved December 3, 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d e Vance, Joel (December 1972). "Recording of Special Merit" (PDF). Stereo Review: 102. Retrieved December 1, 2023.
  4. ^ Hardy, Phil; Laing, Dave (2001). "Leon Russell". Faber Companion to 20th Century Popular Music. Retrieved December 1, 2023.
  5. ^ Williams, David A. (December 10, 1974). "A Recording Studio And Offices For Shelter Records: An Interview With Leon Russell". Rock's Backpages. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  6. ^
    ISBN 089919026X
    . Retrieved March 12, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  7. ^
    ISBN 1-85227 745 9
    .
  8. ^ Laing, David (November 14, 2016). "Leon Russell obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  9. ^ Vance, Joel (December 1972). "Recording of Special Merit" (PDF). Stereo Review: 100. Retrieved December 1, 2023.
  10. ^ "Billboard Album Reviews". Billboard. Vol. 50, no. 84. July 15, 1972. p. 29. Retrieved December 1, 2023.
  11. ISBN 0-646-11917-6
    .
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