Made In England

Rather than rest his fate on Vincent Crane's whim, vocalist Pete French took an offer to join Cactus after a US tour in early 1972. Undeterred, Crane called a recently ex-Colosseum Chris Farlowe to join Atomic Rooster. The new band previewed material from the album on a particularly excellent set for the BBC in June, recorded at the Paris Theatre. The resulting Made In England album is again another strong effort, and one quite novel in the timeline. Here Crane ups the mixture of soul, something almost unheard of in progressive circles. The opening "Time Take My Life" is certainly funky, yet Crane's arrangements are progressive as well. "Stand by Me" and "People You Can't Trust" are great songs served straight up—the former as the album's single, and the latter with some cool wah-wah guitar from Steve Bolton. Farlowe has just the voice for the job, offering one of his best vocals efforts on record. The Rooster doesn't forget to rock out either; "Little Bit of Inner Air" and "All in Satan's Name" display the heavier side of the band's previous work. Yet somehow, the album failed to chart, which must have been a major disappointment for them. Guitarist Johnny Mandala (actually John Goodsall of future Brand X fame) replaced Bolton for the follow-up Nice ‘n' Greasy (released in the US as IV). Another solid effort, it too failed to chart despite a decent single in "Save Me" b/w "Close Your Eyes." After one final single, "Tell Your Story (Sing Your Song)" b/w "O.D.," Crane would shelve the band until 1980.