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QUEEN OF DIAMONDS Desolation Sound/ Eldorado/ Silver Dollars (she wore)/ El Nino/ Maeve/ Betrayed/ The Hitch/ Hells Gate/ Sahara/ Barracuda/ The Moon Under Water/ Queen of Diamonds/ Seattle/ Rikki Now on Youtube on The Falcons Music
Channel: REVIEWS... From
the bottom of my heart, I am glad
The
Falcons have produced such a beautiful album. The
Falcons sound mixes the energy of
The
Ventures with the twangy atmosphere of The Shadows. For fans of
instrumental rock this will be an essential purchase. Queen
Of Diamonds, from the Canadian
twangsters, THE FALCONS, with two "Bonus Tracks", Seattle and Rikki,
featuring legendary VENTURES' guitarist Nokie Edwards, covers the
entire instro rock genre, from surf, frat rock and the perennial
spaghetti western themes. Recorded "live off the floor" early sixties
style with distance miking and double-tracked lead guitars, using
vintage tube amps, spring reverb and Eccofonic tape echo, this
collection pays tribute to the group's musical roots in the Pacific
Northwest sound, the home turf of THE VENTURES themselves. Even the CD
album cover utilises a photo concept pioneered by THE VENTURES during
the early sixties. And of course, "Bonus" track Seattle is THE VENTURES
hometown, and musically traces the Pacific Northwest sound from where
it all started. Although not swamped with the surf sound, there is
enough to keep even the most hardened gremmie happy. After all, most
people not familiar with "surf music" automatically think of THE
VENTURES as a surf band. However, as their product and these 14 tunes
from a group of musicians who know their sound well, they and Queen Of
Diamonds were/are much more. The Big K's faves (so far) are Silver
Dollars (she wore), The Moon Under Water and Seattle. Any
instro combo that's gonna quote
from
the 13th Floor Elevators right off the bat is gonna score big with me.
The Falcons fondly display the classic, clear-ringing guitar of past
greats like The Ventures and Duane Eddy, while also embracing a more
ethereal and breathy tone, reminiscent of Mark Knopfler guitar
stylings. They seem to like hanging out in the old west rather than at
the beach, too, with tracks like "Eldorado" and "El Nino". However,
what really sets them apart from the pack is the way they flesh the
tunes out: They give them time to breathe instead of making them all
high-octane bursts of reverb. Heck, they even use a water stick on
"Hell's Gate". And for the cherry on top, two bonus cuts feature
original Ventures guitarist Nokie Edwards. In
this excellent album, The Falcons
are better
than ever! Superb.
Indispensable. |
 14 original Falcons' instros - featuring 2 tunes with guest Nokie Edwards of The Ventures. Liner notes by Pipeline Instrumental Review editors Alan Taylor & Dave Burke. PIPELINE Album of the Year for 1998. Available from
iTunes, Amazon and more
"Queen of
Diamonds must be the most
eagerly awaited debut instrumental album since The Shadows LP in
1961..."  Mike Beddoes with Nokie Edwards of The Ventures. Photo: Judy Edwards |
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