Elephants Memory

This is the 1969 debut long-player from the extended Big Apple-based ensemble Elephant’s Memory. As such, it should not be confused with their 1972 release on the Apple Records label, featuring John Lennon and Yoko Ono. Instead, this 11-song collection is from an earlier lineup that would, among other things, gain significant visibility for their contributions to the film Midnight Cowboy and its subsequent soundtrack (1969). Musically, the combo were multi-faceted; on the jazzy “R.I.P.” and the uptempo opener, “Don’t Put Me on Trial No More,” they display a soulful horn-driven vibe, while “Super Heep,” “Brief Encounter,” and “Jungle Gym at the Zoo” are decidedly trippier and slightly reminiscent of the Electric Flag or the incipient incarnation of Al Kooper’s Blood, Sweat & Tears. Incidentally, “Jungle Gym at the Zoo” and “Old Man Willow,” an ethereal seven-plus minute psychedelic waltz, were chosen for the aforementioned Midnight Cowboy and even spawned Songs from Midnight Cowboy Plus Their Hit Singles (1969), an album that was little more than a profit-motivated retread to cash in on the name recognition. Two of the more interesting pieces on Elephant’s Memory are the catchy pop ditty “Crossroads of the Stepping Stone,” a song that could easily be mistaken for a Sopwith Camel outtake, and the pseudo-ragtime “Yogurt Song,” which is as much a sly parody of the granola-lovin’ generation as it is a stab at the jug band sound that inspired artists such as the Charlatans and New Vaudeville Band. Although they would continue, by the mid-’70s Elephant’s Memory had gone through radical personnel changes and the name was eventually retired after the release of Angels Forever (1974). [In 2004, Elephant’s Memory was issued on CD by Collector’ Choice Music, sporting a great liner note essay by Richie Unterberger.] ~ Lindsay Planer, Rovi