By Ken Paulson
There was a time when pop and politics were often intertwined and two new releases from Real Gone Music nicely illustrate that.
The Hello People were known for their “mime rock,” essentially a mime performance punctuated with songs. Yes, that was a weird concept even for the late sixties. Fusion, released in 1968, is genteel and jazzy pop, with a number of politically-minded compositions. Most notable is “Anthem,” a modest FM hit that told the story of a draft resister being sent to prison: “I’m going to prison for what I believe.”
The Hello People would go on to play with and be produced by Todd Rundgren ,but Fusion was their most ambitious and rewarding album.
Wilderness Road used humor to make its political points. Its second album Sold for the Prevention of Disease Only is laden with country, rock and parody. Band members had ties to Chicago’s Second City Comedy troupe and a good part of this entertaining album from 1973 sounds like comedy skits set to music. That’s most notable in the band’s extended send-up of evangelical preachers.
It’s adventurous and surprisingly fresh 40 years on.
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