Area Code 615 - Area Code 615

Polydor Records

One of the dozens of short-lived and easily forgotten bands that came out of the late 1960s, Area Code 615 and their debut album sound almost exactly the way you'd expect a band from Nashville to sound, and you can hear songs that sound exactly like theirs at any early '70s country honky-tonk.

Apart from some nice fiddle playing, a few prominent bass lines, heavy handed drumming, the unnecessary usage of harmonica instead of vocal to add more layers of country, and a steel guitar player who is really working for his paycheck, this album plainly doesn't have much going for it. Most of the songs sound the same, with the occasional shading of jug band, and the only one worth remembering is "I've Been Loving You Too Long" which would've easily fit in on the soundtracks of films like "Midnight Cowboy" or "Carny".  It is a chore to even sit through this whole album front-to-back. It is shades of mediocrity. 

Rating: 2.5/5