J.D. Elias
History:
J.D. Elias was a singer-songwriter from somewhere in the western United States. Most likely he was from either Arizona or Colorado. Elias, like many others, spent his evenings playing music on the club scene. He performed mostly acoustic material with folk and country influences.
Elias put together some original material and recorded his only full length album in 1978. It was recorded and released by BIRC and distributed by Audio Design out of Tuscon, Arizona.
The album features eleven original cuts, in which eight of them are performed solely by Elias. He played lead and rhythm acoustic guitars, bass guitar, and various percussion including stompbox, congas, and rings. He is joined on backing vocals on "Invitation" and "In Colorado" by the trio of Leora Napp, Nessa Benson, and Terry Closs. On the title track and "Inventions Of My Mind", Elias is joined by a full backing band of Tuscon jazz session musicians. The band included Bruce Stone on bass guitar, Dick Fazio on piano, and David Bromberg on drums. Tim O'Conner overdubbed fiddle and banjo onto several songs.
Elias didn't release anything after this and fell off the map entirely. A lot of copies are out there so perhaps it sold well at the time of release.
Review:
Who's That? (1978, BIRC)
Rating: 6/10
Sloppy, but good, acoustic folk rock with country influences. Nice vocals, decent guitar work, and a unique sound.
The album reminded me a lot of working at live music night at a country club restaurant. We always had acoustic guitar players with a stompbox because the club had a strict no drummer policy. Elias most likely dealt with a similar rule thus his abundant use of one on the album.
The recording is out of sync at times, most notable on "Invitation". I like that tune a lot with it's groovy congas and loud bass guitar. Elias does good work on bass. Its simple but has a such a unique flanging sound. "Inventions Of My Mind" is another groover with full band accompanient and a great guitar solo. I loved that song for years. The title track is a great funky country rock track with lovely bass and piano work. I didn't dislike any of the songs on this record save for "Bucks Worth Of Heartache". Just a bit corny at times.