Sharks - First Water (1973) {2011, Remastered}

The son of Bad Company is what this debut by the band Sharks resembles, lead vocalist Snips sounding like he gargled with Kim Carnes and Paul Rodgers' mouthwash, that gravel voice Rod Stewart made the most of accompanied here by guitar great Chris Spedding, drummer Marty Simon, and bassist Andy Fraser from the group Free. This self-titled debut doesn't have the groove of their 1974 release, Jab It in Yore Eye, despite four of the nine songs written by Fraser (replaced by Busta Cherry Jones on the follow-up), including "Doctor Love," a song Leslie West covered for his The Great Fatsby album, generating some early validation for this work. One of the problems here is the packaging -- the bane of any act's existence who found themselves on MCA at the time without having superstar credentials. The light-blue logo of Sharks on a deeper-blue underwater cover could be misconstrued for a children's record. Though none of the players had the profile of a Mick Ralphs or Paul Rodgers, this was still a minor supergroup and one who fit well into the early '70s. Album design problems aside, a song like "Broke a Feeling" comes off sounding like a jam, as does much of the record. With the redoubtable Chris Spedding on guitar -- an immensely powerful individual who holds this combination together -- it is still going to be worthwhile, though only for musical people and fans of this blues-based rock. When Andy Fraser punched out a number of classics with Paul Rodgers in Free, it was the songwriting that brought it over the top and onto radio. These compositions just don't have the bite found on Free records, or Bad Company or Mott the Hoople for that matter. Andy Fraser's "Brown Eyed Boy" and one of future Baker Gurvitz Army singer Snips' titles, "Snakes and Swallowtails," both sound like "Walking With a Mountain" from Mott the Hoople, blending together almost as one without the personality projected by an Ian Hunter or Paul Rodgers. It is interesting how Bad Company evolved out of Mott the Hoople and Free, both groups heavily influencing this rock & roll romp. "Driving Sideways" is light hard rock, while "Steal Away" is a light bit of blues. Perhaps that description means the band was holding back on this set of recordings engineered by Andy Johns and Tony Platt. Snips certainly can sing, and he has proficient and creative people around him on this, but the talent involved could have done so much more. They needed a "Ride Captain Ride" or an "All Right Now" to bring it home, just a tad more focus and direction to keep it from missing the mark.