Bryan MacLean - No One Was Kinder (re-post)

Bryan MacLean - No One Was Kinder - 2005

by Richie Unterberger, AMG

As the secondary songwriter in the renowned folk-rock/psychedelic group Love, guitarist and vocalist Bryan MacLean was overshadowed by that group's driving force, singer/songwriter Arthur Lee. Yet MacLean did manage to squeeze a few of his own compositions onto the group's first three albums: "Softly to Me," "Orange Skies," "Old Man," and "Alone Again Or." MacLean's tunes had a lighter, poppier touch than Lee's, but also had a similar evanescent, mystical glow, enhanced by MacLean's odd trembling vocals. "Alone Again Or," in fact, could be Love's most well-known song of all, leading off their classic Forever Changes album, and driven by an unearthly arrangement of harmony vocals, mariachi trumpet, and strings.

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Elizabeth Mckee, Bryan's mother, in 2006 pieced together some more of Bryan's unreleased recordings, an album of tracks recordd around 1981 with his sister, the very talented singer Maria Mckee and a double album of Bryan's personal spiritual songs. No One Was Kinder features 11 songs including 2 live songs.

"This is a vignette, a bit of musical history. The time, 1981, the place, the apartment we shared in Beverly Hills. Two gifted children, brother and sister, eighteen years apart, yet musically symbiotic. It was wonderful for me to hear them singing together, Maria harmonizing and Bryan singing and playing into an old cassette recorder in the living room" (Elizabeth McKee 25 Oct 2005)

01. No One Was Kinder
02. Candy's Waltz
03. Tired of Sitting
04. Dumbell Song
05. Darlin'
06. Kathleen
07. Never Before
08. Orange Yellow
09. Country Waltz
10. Sweet Dr. Jesus
11. Now I'm Shining


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