Gypsy Music: Albums and 45's          

Gypsy's first self titled double album 1970.
LP: Metromedia M2D 1031 1970
Cognito re-released the vinyl first LP in 1979. LP: COG 0006
CD: Cognito/AJK/K-Tel label 1979 A 862-2
CD. Bedrock label 1999 BR103

What band starts out with a double album? You do remember vinyl LP's, right? Beautiful harmonies (their trademark), Jim's fine, unique guitar playing, and James Walsh's classy keyboards. Plus just the right amount of orchestration. There is much more to this album than just the Gypsy Queen single.
Listen to (a) Gypsy Queen part I & II, (b) The Vision(my favorite on this album), (c) Dead and Gone. (d) The Third Eye. (e) Decisions. The middle of which is just plain gorgeous (starting at the 4:30 mark). And more. I agree with Gary Hartman, "It doesn't get much better than this".
Great music.

Gypsy's second album, "IN THE GARDEN" 1971.
LP: Metromedia MD 1044
CD: Bedrock 1999 BR104

Favorite album. If you don't have it, buy it now! You won't be sorry. Starts out with a killer track, Around You. Here in the Garden is great, and Blind Man is probably their best song ever. As far as you can see (as much as you can feel) is a favorite with many Gypsy fans. This album is damn near perfect. Bill Lordan (drummer with Sly & the Family Stone, Robin Trower, etc.) and Willie Weeks (bass, George Harrison, Wynonna, Doobie Brothers, etc.) are on here.

Gypsy's third album, "ANTITHESIS" 1972.
LP: RCA LSP-4775 1972
CD: Bedrock BR105 1999

This is when the wheels started to come off. Sorry. It sounds like they were under pressure (from RCA) to be more "commercial", in other words, sell more albums. Recording quality may not be as high as the first two. It's still a good album. Certainly worth buying. Listen to a) Don't bother me, b) Antithesis, c) Rico's voice box shredding on "Money". d. Day after Day. Crusader is ok, also.

The music business is pretty brutal. If only they had more support from a deep pockets record company. A similar situation happened to another Minnesota group, Crow. They went with a smaller label, for the same reasons as Gypsy. They ended up in debt. Whew, maybe we should keep our day jobs!

Is it just me or does Rico sound a little like Burton Cummings on this album?

Gypsy's fourth album, "UNLOCK THE GATES" 1973.
LP: RCA APL 1-0093 1973
CD: Still not on CD

Infamous among the band and Gypsy fans for it's cheesy cover. I have trouble warming up to this album. "Don't get mad, get even", is a great song, should have done well. But the rest...I think I was spoiled by the first two or three albums. But, maybe I'm wrong. Jim Johnson told me it's his favorite album, very funky. Let me know what you think!
Note: Horns from the group "Chicago" are on here. One of the few times Chicago played on anyone else's album.

James Walsh Gypsy Band 1978   LP: RCA AFL1-2914 CD: Only on import (Japan). Allegedly being released here also. Amazon and CD Now have the import.

I had a guy at Cheapo records turn up his nose when I mentioned this album. I disagree.
This is a good album, in spite of being somewhat slick. Don't expect the original sound at all. I still like the first three lbums better than this incarnation of Gypsy. No original members except Owl is on this record.
My favorites are: Looking Up I See, Gray Tears, and, of course, the best song on the album "Cuz It's You Girl".

Diehard fans are still waiting to see if the SECOND James Walsh Gypsy album will ever surface.


Other albums with James Walsh: 20 years Ago Today(Metro Records), released in 1996. 20 Years Ago included two old songs that were re-done, Third Eye, and Gypsy Queen. The album is uneven in quality to my ears. James Walsh also was in a band called Jumpstreet, which released one album (Follow Her Home Tonight, Metro Records) in 1984.
Jumpstreet has it's moments but is too commercial for me. It does have, however, "Someone Else Is Always On Your Mind", and "How Do I Feel About You" which was their strong suit, romantic ballads.