I have always treasured the two albums by Pavlov’s Dog I have on an old cassette, with tracks like “Julia”, “Late November”, “Fast Gun”, “Natchez Trace”, “Theme From Subway Sue”, “Of Once and Future Kings”, “She Came Shining”, “Gold Nuggets”, “Early Morning On” and “Did You See HIm Cry”.
The band from St. Louis, Missouri, features the most amazing voice of David Surkamp. I’ve never heard anything like it and get a kick every time I hear it.
Unfortunately these first two albums, “Pampered Menial” in 1974 and “At The Sound Of The Bell” in 1977, did not sell very well, so Columbia Records refused to release the third album recorded in 1977, and the band split soon after.
Thirty years later the album was finally officially released on a German label as “Has Anyone Seen Siegfried?” (although there had been a limited edition bootleg version in the 1980s made from stolen master tapes and released under The St. Louis Hounds instead of Pavlov’s Dog).
The band, except for original member Siegfried Carver alias Richard Nadler, who died last year, got back together in June 2004 for a concert in St. Louis, Missouri, and has since toured annually in Europe.
So, from “Pampered Menial”, recorded in 1974, here’s “Julia”:
This is “Julia” live in Munich in November 2009:
The second track on “Pampered Menial” is “Late November”:
Many (most?) of Pavlov’s Dog’s songs tell a story, and “Fast Gun” is no exception:
Another story from “Pampered Menial”, “Natchez Trace”:
“Theme From Subway Sue”:
“Of Once and Future Kings”, live in Karlsruhe in 2009 (the other video I found showed the film “Beowulf”, definitely not for the squeamish, so I thought I’d take this version!):
From Pavlov’s Dog’s second album “At The Sound Of The Bell”, “She Came Shining”:
“Gold Nuggets”:
The closing track from “At The Sound Of The Bell”, “Did You See Him Cry”:
Actually, I find every single track on those two albums a jewel, and Pavlov’s Dog have received nowhere near the critical acclaim and commercial success they deserve.
But I’d better leave something to the imagination… I heartily recommend you go and find more from Pavlov’s Dog!
And if I find they are playing not too far away, I just might go and see them.
What about you?
Paul