Manfred Mann's Earth Band
The Good Earth

The first line-up of Manfred Mann’s group still did not change, and the guys continued to consistently produce excellent prog-rock products. This album, which became the fifth in a row, was no exception. This time, Mann decided to turn our attention to environmental problems, in connection with which some called this work a representative of the eco-rock genre. 1) "Give Me the Good Earth." Cover for the song by Gary Wright, a member of the Spooky Tooth band. Several times the rooster cries out, which continues to sound distorted even when a guitar appears, accompanied by excellent bass. Major music, uplifting, uplifting. The lyrical hero asks him to be given a good Earth - with grass, flowers, trees, sunlight, a clear sky, a cool breeze, seas full of fish, at times normally changing each other. For the hippie era, this was quite relevant, but the relevance is not lost for the modern person, given the terrible ecological situation around the world. The instrumental middle provides us with an interesting solo part - first on the keyboards, then on the guitar, to speeding up and heavier music. Then the music calms down, and we hear a whole set of animals, as if taken from the Pink Floyd album of the same name. Birds, cows, sheep ... In addition to the rhythm section, this is accompanied by a piano, and then vocals. Then the keyboards and rhythm section become more alarming, and the guitar gives out a piercing solo, while the keyboards seem to be trying to fly into space. The appearance of another rhythm precedes the next vocal part, after which another guitar solo ends, ending with diminuendo. After that, we hear birds for another half a minute. 2) “Launching Place”. This and the subsequent themes are covers for the compositions of the Australian prog-rock band Spectrum, released by one single, the first for these guys and very successful, in May 1971 (check out, by the way, the speed of the English in finding themes for covers). Keyboards and a guitar sound quietly, to which drums will soon join. Music is gradually amplified, and then it becomes more energetic. The keyboards and the guitar sound together, but alternately come to the fore with soloing. Launching Place (literally, “a place to run”) is the name of a small town near Melbourne, where on December 31, 1970 an open-air festival (rainy, by the way, turned out to be a day) was held at the rock festival. However, the text seems to be completely different - it is full of unpleasant images (fireballs, water leeches, flies over 5 thousand corpses), apparently related to the Vietnam War, but it also talks about hippies, “flower children” who call make love, not war. 3) "I’ll Be Gone." The guitar and bass enter, then the drums set a measured tempo. From more lyrical pop folk music several times moves to a very energetic one. Sweet simple lyrics, a little sad: "Someday I will have love, but love is not easy to find, so by the time it appears, I will be gone (from life)." 4) "Earth Hymn." The glockenspiel sounds (a kind of a metallophone), then the drums begin to beat the rhythm to bass, and then piano chords. Keyboards are heard in the background. The vocals here sound very strong and sincere: “Listen to what's around. A symphony of sound will lead you into swimming in your dreams in an endless stream. ” And so it really is - you close your eyes and seem to swim somewhere. After the first vocal part, piercingly, in the spirit of Steve Hackett, a guitar solo depicting a weeping earth echoing in the sea and heaven is soloing, and after the second part the rhythm unexpectedly accelerates and becomes very major, showing us a cool keyboard solo. Honestly, this song can hardly be called a “hymn”, but it is still good. 5) "Sky High". Instrumental. Gradually the sound of a guitar approaches, accompanied by strange sounds. Drums set the beat. The piano sounds periodically. The rhythm accelerates, and the music becomes more energetic - the instruments seem to depict flying. 6) "Be Not Too Hard". A song written by Rogers based on a poem by Christopher Logue, a poet whose name is associated with the so-called “Revival of British Poetry” in the middle of the last century. The guitar and keyboards enter quietly and smoothly. The banging drums and bass join timidly. Nice vocal melody. The main theme of the composition is not to be too harsh on people, no matter what they do, because life is short and they will not take anything with themselves. From time to time, the guitar plays harder and more energetically, especially in the solo part, in which bells also appear. 7) "Earth Hymn Part 2". Alarmingly sounding keyboards enter, causing me to associate with space radio communications. The vocals are almost drowned out by the music. Then he disappears, leaving us with a piercing synthesizer solo. At a certain moment, the melody of the first part appears, which gradually replaces this music, and the vocals returning, repeating the same text as in the first part. The composition ends with an excellent guitar solo, but too short, because as soon as it starts, the music suddenly begins to fade. Verdict - a great example of art rock, which shows this team in the best shape