Whale Meat Again
	Produced by Jim Capaldi
	Released on June 1974
	US CHART POSITION #191
	Find it at GEMM
ILPS 9254 cover

I t’s better than all right, though it’s unlikely Whale Meat Again is a staple in anyone’s musical diet. Considering that Capaldi rarely stepped out in Traffic, I approached this album without any idea of what to expect. Having listened to John Lennon’s Walls And Bridges recently, I’d put it in that category, though the Muscle Shoals musicians give it more of a country rock feel than John was after. Based on the sleeve illustrations, I was tempted to point to Elton John’s Yellow Brick Road, but Capaldi’s voice just doesn’t invite the comparison. If you’re surprised that the Traffic signs are missing, you shouldn’t be. Steve Winwood (who guests here) had a voice that changed the tone of the music being played, while Capaldi has a much more pedestrian, serviceable voice. Take a song like “I Got So Much Lovin’.” Winwood would have turned it into a soulful scorcher; Capaldi musters more emotion than, say, Ringo Starr, but it’s a close race. If Whale Meat Again was a car, I’d say it was stuck in neutral. It’s certainly not a bad album; it’s certainly not a great one. In a sense, it’s the critical equivalent of a placebo: if someone has a strong reaction to this, you know it’s all in their head. That’s not to say that “It’s All Right” doesn’t have a charming island cuteness to it, or that “Low Rider” doesn’t paint the outlaw driver with sympathy and gritty veracity, but none of it is leading up to anything. What emerges on Whale Meat Again is the portrait of a pretty good singer and songwriter trying to make a statement and entertain at the same time. I’d recommend it over When The Eagle Flies just because that album sucked (and because “Summer Is Fading” delivers the goods better than “Dream Gerrard”), but no loss if you never make the acquaintance of Whale Meat Again, unless you’re writing a book report on Jim Capaldi or something. (And sorry about that cover, which features a CAPaldi sticker on the top left corner, though putting the CAP in caps is kind of a cute idea.)

ILPS 9254 back cover	ILPS 9254 lyric sleeve

TRACK LISTING

1. IT'S ALL RIGHT    4:12
2. WHALE MEAT AGAIN    4:33
3. YELLOW SUN    7:16
4. I'VE GOT SO MUCH LOVIN'    4:45
5. LOW RIDER    5:40
6. MY BROTHER    5:02
7. SUMMER IS FADING    8:30
   
   All tracks written by Jim Capaldi

CREDITS

JIM CAPALDI -- vocals
BARRY BECKET -- piano, steel drum, electric piano, synthesiser
PETE CARR -- lead guitar, acoustic guitar, dobro slide guitar
ROGER HAWKINS -- drums
DAVID HOOD -- bass
JIMMY JOHNSON -- electric guitar
MUSCLE SHOALS HORNS -- horns
Remi Kabaka -- percussion (5)
Gaspar Lawal -- drums (7)
Laurence Peabody -- backing vocals
Derek Quinn -- cabassa (7)
Rabbit -- piano & organ (2)
Reebop -- conga (7)
Harry Robinson -- string arrangement
Jean Roussel -- bass, clavinet
Potato Smith -- backing vocals
Chris Stainton -- organ (3)
Viv Stanshall -- original idea for (7)
Chris Stewart -- fuzz bass (6)
Bubs White -- electric & acoutsic guitars (7)
Steve Winwood -- pipe organ, organ, bass
Steve Melton -- recording engineer
Howard Kilgour -- mixing engineer
Phil Brown -- mixing engineer (4)
Rhett Davies, Richard Elen -- tape operators
Tony Wright -- art & design
Richard Polak -- front cover photograph
Don & Natalie Neff -- back cover photograph

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