Hat Trick

My absolute America favorite. Definitely worth purchasing for some of these timeless sounds. I spun this album so much at the radio station where I worked and on my home stereo that vinyl dust blew off it. The "track thru" works well and the trio experiments with fuller arrangements and some deep tracks that were never intended for Top 40. Had this album in every format and now 41 years later it still sounds fresh and holds me from start to finish. Wind Wave; and Molten Love sliding into Green Monkey still brings it. P.S. Thanks, Carol, for making those high school days listening to this with me even better!

So what if this record didn't achieve the success of their first 2 albums and subsequent records! It's my personal favorite. I really don't hear a bad song on it. Overall, I think America's best albums were the first 5 or 6 of their work.....and I'm not saying that just because Dan Peek was still in their band. I think Dan's work with them was sub par compared to Gerry's and Dewey's....it's just that overall, their first few albums were great. HAT TRICK is the best one....and I'm happy to see I'm not alone in this opinon!

On Hat Trick,America shifted from the folksy,sparse feel of their first 2 albums to a fuller,more varied sound.Many critics at the time thought that it was too slick and pop-sounding.Consequently,sales dropped off significantly.It didn't help that they decided to release,Muskrat Love,the only dud on the record as the 1st single!But,over the years most listeners have come to appreciate this album as one of America's bestSubsequent recordings borrowed heavily on what began on Hat Trick.My personal favorites are It's Life,She's Gonna Let You Down,Goodbye,Green Monkey(with Joe Walsh on guitar),Rainbow Song(with Tom Scott on sax),and the epic title track(with Beach Boys vocals)done in the style of The Beatles' Abbey Road Suite.I recommend that you download the entire album,there are no bad songs here,except the previously-mentioned "Gerbil Song!"

11 songs. Looks like the entire album to me. I guess itunes just gets more money if we buy each song seperately. great album though.

Can't understand how this album was overlooked by so many people. I loved it. A little more experimental than other America albums, but that made it a lot more interesting and playful. Sure, it didn't make a big dent in the radio market, but this was an age of album rock and this certainly qualified in my book. I highly recommend this gem. Why is this listed as partial?

What an incredibly beautiful work of art this is. America took the best aspects of what they had done previously and put it to use to the hilt here. Every band in the 70's had their peak period, and I would say for America this was it. It's true there's no top 40 here, but I would say that's because the hooks and riffs are more dispersed throughout the album rather than concentrated in a few songs; as a matter of fact it seems Amerca were so full of hooks at the time they had to forgo traditional top 40 song structures just to give all the hooks a place (especially on the title track). There are a few moments that don't work but they're almost almost rescued by the ensuing verse or chorus. The one thing that definitely stands out about this album is the recording quality--it's probably the warmest sounding album I've ever heard. Listen to the pianos on this record--very warm and sweet recording. This is one of those underrated 70's treasures.

Muskrat Love notwithstanding (although I don't think poeple would hate it so much if the Captain and Tenile hadn't covered it), this is a great album that the band should be justfiably proud of. An album shouldn't be panned just because it didn't produce the all-important Top-40 hit. Part of the beauty and fun of America's music is that it gets you to ponder the importance of seemingly benign occurances in the human experience. This album takes you on a journey, sometimes vaudevillian, sometimes dreamlike, always entertaining and thought-provoking. To me this is America at their best, and I enjoy returning to this album again and again, like an old friend.

Not true that this was their first to include an outside song. That distinction goes to HOMECOMING, which featured the John Martyn song HEAD & HEART. Later America albums would delve further into cover songs, but all that aside, the songwriting here became more adventurous than what went before, and perhaps more so than what came after. As a result, the album missed the commercial impact that the others enjoyed. Yet those who didn't listen missed something themselves. This one is different, but well worth it. A favorite of mine for sure.

This continued America's run of great albums. Every song except Muskrat Love is good to great, with that catchy America sound. Much better than given credit for, and much more adventurous than the following albums.

Ok, ok. It's not the traditional "every song is a hit" wonder wax. BUT (if you exclude "Muskrat Love" which is either a dud or a LOVE with almost every America fan - they either love it or HATE it. NO inbetweens..lol) every song is great! Worth a strong mention is "Hat Trick" (the song). It's a good sampling of what you'll hear thru the whole album. Personal fav of mine (a LONG TIME America fan).