Silk — Smooth As Raw Silk 1969 (USA, Psychedelic Rock)<br /><br />The only album by the band from Cleveland, Ohio. Formed in 1968 by producer Bill Szymczyk, they were originally called "The Tree Stumps." The group disbanded in 1969. Michael Gee later became the founder and leader of the Michael Stanley Band. Harry Palmer later played at the Ford Theatre and later became a session musician.In 1965 the teenager Michael Gee, started his career playing in a number of local groups including The Scepters. By 1968 Gee was attending Hiram University and joined a late-inning version of Clevelabd's Beatles-inspired The Tree Stumps showcasing the talents of Gee, guitarist Chris Johns, drummer Courtney Johns and keyboardist Randy Sabo. <br /><br />Playing dances and local clubs won the band a cult following and released a couple of singles, but met with little financial reward and by 1969 the Stumps had morphed into Silk. Silk did little and o the verge of calling it quits, a performance at a Cleveland club attracted the attention of producer Bill Szymczyk who'd been sent on the road by ABC Records to look for talent. (The same trip saw him sign Joe Walsh and the James Gang to a contract.) <br /><br />Signed to ABC, the band were teamed with producer Szymczyk (who also co-wrote several tracks). The group's 1969 debut "Smooth As Raw Silk" served to showcase the band's broad and versatile repertoire. Gee and Sabo split vocal duties and while both were professional, neither was overwhelming (Sabo actually struck me as the better of the two). <br /><br />With all four members contributed the writing chores (a cover of Tim Rose's 'Long Haired Boy' was the lone non-original), the results found the band touching base on a wide array of genres ranging from country ('Custody'), to sensitive singer/songwriter moves, and even horn rock ('Not a Whole Lot I Can Do'). <br /><br />The results were never less than professional. The collection got off to a nice start with the effects laden 'Introduction' (dedicated to airline pilots everywhere) and the psych-rocker 'Foreign Trip'. Sporting some nice twin lead guitar work from Johns and guest Harry Porter 'Skito Blues' was an excellent rocker. Almost as good was the raucous 'Come On Down Girl'. At the other end of the spectrum taking on the then-taboo issue of divorce and children the C&W-flavored 'Custody' was easily the strangest song. <br /><br />Tracks:<br /><br />01. Foreign Trip - 0:00<br /><br />02. Long Haired Boy - 5:12<br /><br />03. Not A Whole Lot I Can Do - 8:49<br /><br />04. Custody - 11:53<br /><br />05. Scottish Thing - 14:10<br /><br />06. Skitzo Blues - 18:53<br /><br />07. Hours - 23:19<br /><br />08. Walk In My Mind - 26:22<br /><br />09. Come On Down Girl - 30:29<br /><br />10. For All Time - 34:10<br /><br /><br />Personnel:<br /><br />Michael Stanley Gee - bass, vocals<br />Chris Jones - guitar<br />Randy Sabo - keyboards<br />Courtney Johns - drums<br />+<br />Bill Szymczyk – producer<br /><br /><br />⚠ If there are any copyright issues please contact me. I will remove the video.<br />Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use"
