Long Island based Stark Naked emulated the dual vocal work of Jefferson Airplane and It’s A Beautiful Day, fusing acid and prog.
Written by: Eric
ARTIST: Stark Naked
ALBUM: Stark Naked
LABEL: RCA Victor
SERIAL: LSP 4592
YEAR: 1971
CD REISSUE: Discogs Reissue List
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA
LINEUP: Lyne Bunn – vocals, percussion * Paul Venier – vocals, keyboards, percussion * Jim Monahan – vocals, guitars * John Fragos – drums, percussion, gong * Tom Rubino – bass * Richard Belsky – lead guitar
TRACK LISTING: 01 All Of Them Witches * 02 Done * 03 Sins * 04 Look Again * 05 Wasted Time * 06 Iceberg
Background
Good major label progressive rock from Long Island, New York, the uber talented Stark Naked had a one-time shot at the big leagues only to have the rug pulled out from underneath them by their unscrupulous manager and while on tour no less.
A familiar tale, but one listen to this album will leave you to wonder what might have been. Stark Naked played the game, touring the clubs and latching on to support appearances with everyone from The Grass Roots to Mountain as well as playing a few festivals along the way.
They were already preparing to record a follow-up when they discovered management had cut and run and without a manager – no second album. With hat in hand the band went their separate ways, most playing in various Long Island bands, but never coming close to the astounding Stark Naked.
The Songs
Vocal duties are shared by Paul Venier and Lyne Bunn drawing comparisons to Jefferson Airplane and It’s A Beautiful Day sans the violin.
The harmonies between the two are a match made in heaven and the opener ‘All Of Them Witches’ is nothing short of killer heavy rock with proggy overtones. Like an acid drenched Black Sabbath, guitarist Richard Belsky’s doomy heaviness mixed with Lyne Bunn’s tortured wailing is a wonder to behold.
Follow-up ballad ‘Done’ is a pastoral beauty and it’s here the It’s A Beautiful Day parallels come into focus as Stark Naked waste no time getting back to their ever appealing heavy side with the galloping and fuzzed out ‘Sin’ with Bunn taking over on lead vocals. ‘Wasted Time’ leaves no doubt these guys had a Pink Floyd album or two in their collections. ‘Iceberg’ has a nice hippie vibe to it and again its Belsky’s acidic guitar sound that closes this psychedelic circle on a high note.
In Summary
Stark Naked is an obscurity worth looking into if you’re a fan of early prog-American style. The Fallout imprint has made it a much easier proposition with its CD reissue which despite the company’s dubious origins sounds pretty good to these well worn ears.
