Ace - Five A Side

Band: Ace (an ACE album)
Albums(s): Five-A-Side
Year(s): 1974
Style: Pub Rock, Southern-Bluesy Rock
Similar Bands: Celluloid Heroes era Kinks, J Geils Band Lite. .
"One Word" Review: Southerny-Jangle-Rock
Based Out Of: Sheffield, Yorkshire, England
Label: Anchor Records, ABC Records

An Ace Album Cover Front & Slip Front (British Cover)An Ace Album Cover Back & Slip BackFive-A-Side Record A & B

Five-A-Side (1974)

1. Sniffin' About - 4.44
2. Rock & Roll Runaway - 3.06 (sample)
3. How Long - 3.21 (sample)
4. The Real Feeling - 2.23
5. 24 Hours - 4.00/
6. Why - 3.43
7. Time Ain't Long - 3.53
8. Know How It Feels - 3.27
9. Satellite - 3.28
10. So Sorry Baby - 3.54

Album Rating: (1-10 basis on how fresh the music sounds today)
6.5

Members & Other Bands:
Fran Byrne-Drums (Some People, Rockhouse, Bees Make Honey, Juice on the Loose)
Terry (Tex) Comer-Bass (Warm Dust)
Alan (Bam) King-Rhythm Guitar/Vox (Juice on the Loose, Action, Mighty Baby, B.B. Blunder, Clat Thyger)
Phil Harris-Lead Guitar/Vox (Clat Thyger, Ace Flash & Dynamos)
Paul Carrack-Organ/Vox (Warm Dust, Squeeze, Mike & The Mechanics, Solo current)
John Anthony-Producer
Pat Moran, Mike Stone, Dennis McKay, Pat & John Anthony-Engineers
Neil Kiernon, Peter Fielder-Tape-Ops
recorded at Rockfield Studios, Trident
mixed at Trident
Chris Hughes, Mick Eves, Buddy Beadle-Horns on "24 Hrs"
Chris Hughes-Sax on Satellite

Seabrook/Graves/Aslett Assoc. - Sleeve Design

Unknown-ness: I was completely unfamiliar with this band and all parts. (It was later that I discovered Carrack was in Squeeze, and had sang "Tempted"). I picked it up for the simplistic cover. I like the font of the text: "an ACE album" and I think there is nice organization and earthy color scheme. The drawn image of a lad playing football was what really drew me in. I got the feeling that this album would contain something pretty neat and unusual. This idea was supported by the back, which has images of the band playing football with their names and facts spelled out as if on sports cards. From their casual and scruffy appearance, I began to think of them along the lines of a jam band. Yet with the date reading '74, I was still interested to hear what it held.

Album Review: The album comes in half and half. The better half are the southern jammy songs, with smooth overlapping vocal harmonies, and stumbly honky tonk rock. "Sniffin About" "Satellite" and my favorite "Rock N' Roll Runaway" (sample) are examples of that. The other style is the easy listening country rock. "Know How it Feels," The Real Feeling" and their big hit "How Long" (sample) could be Chicago tunes. This is 70's manufactured groove, where it is not always there, and thus does not seem to come naturally, but as far as a bluesy souther rock outfit, this album fills that mood.

Stand Out Track:
Rock N' Roll Runaway

Links:

Ace allmusic page
Ace Wikipedia Page
Paul Carrack allmusic page
1974 NME article
Youtube How Long audio in video format