Capricorn is well on its way to building a dynasty of groups rooted in the Allman Brothers Band style, and Grinderswitch—with the former Allman roadie and now bass player Joe Dan Petty the founding member—is the closest yet to appear. Richard Betts appears on only one track, but his influence is everywhere: in the song lyrics, the bulk of which deal with the life-on-the-road theme best dramatized by Betts in "Ramblin' Man"; the fluid, blues-based rock & roll; and the lead and slide work of Dru Lombar. The most vivid example of all these parallels is "How the West Was Won," with its classic theme, rolling gait, and an astoundingly Betts-like solo by Lombar. From the convincing sound of Lombar's rather formal and mournfully intense vocals, he comes by both his style and his preoccupations naturally. While Grinderswitch doesn't yet deal in imaginative variations on the Allman style as do stablemates Boyer & Talton, the group deftly turns out the blend of smoothness and funk that is becoming the chief characteristic of a new regional rock idiom. (RS 169)

BUD SCOPPA