In July 1968, eight months after Love's third album 'Forever Changes' was released, frontman Arthur Lee disbanded the original line-up, before regrouping with a completely new troupe of musicians, recording three albums with this new line-up, 'Four Sail' and 'Out Here' in 1969, and 'False Start' in 1970. Lee found limited success and was on the verge of obscurity, but following recording sessions with Jimi Hendrix in April 1970, he forsook his folk rock roots in favour of a hard rock approach. In 1972, he released his first solo effort 'Vindicator', featuring the first songs composed in the newly adapted style, but again it did not fare well with music critics or the public. Despite Lee's self-doubt and unwillingness to tour, he decided to persevere with another new line-up, recruiting drummer Joe Blocker, Melvan Whittington on lead guitar, and Robert Rozelle on bass. With record producer Paul Rothchild at the helm, Love recorded throughout mid-1973, with the resultant album intended to be released on Buffalo Records, a small indie label founded by Hair producer Michael Butler. However, before 'Black Beauty' could be distributed the company went bankrupt, and although some songs from the recording sessions did appear on 'Reel to Real' in 1974, 'Black Beauty' itself was consigned to the vaults. Over the years poor-quality releases of the 'Black Beauty' sessions have appeared, motivating Lee to push for an official release right up until his death in 2006. With his widow Diana overseeing the project, High Moon Records remastered the original acetates of the sessions, and released it on a limited edition of 5,000 vinyl copies in 2012, which are now long gone. One critic has proclaimed 'Black Beauty' to be the great lost Love album, praising the cohesive effort of the group, and the quality of the production, and while it will never reach the heights of their trilogy of classic albums of the late 60's, it's a welcome addition to the discography of a much-loved band.
Track listing
01 Young And Able (Good And Evil)
02 Midnight Sun
03 Can't Find It
04 Walk Right In
05 Skid
06 Beep Beep
07 Stay Away
08 Lonely Pigs
09 See Myself In You
10 Product Of The Times
search love beauty aiwe
