Saturday, July 14, 2007

Oakley - Oakley (1980)

Oakley were another Nova Scotia band, hailing from the city of Halifax in the mid 70's. Essentially a regional "supergroup", Oakley built a solid reputation for themselves quickly with high profile gigs in the region. Their eponymous debut was released in 1980 by Nova Records and immediately spawned numerous hit singles, prompting tours with April Wine, The Doobie Brothers and Blue Rodeo. Sadly, despite their warm reception, the band was already beginning to drift apart. After a critical shift in personnel, the band dissolved in 1982.

This is tragic, really, as this debut release is an excellent example of tightly played journeyman hard rock. With traces of southern rock and AOR mixed together, this is a brilliant marriage of 70's rock and 80's rock. Members of the band have all gone on to other projects in the business, though keyboardist Bill McAuley passed away in 2000.

Download this at once and enjoy a slice of rare Nova Scotia rock...yes, it's that good!

5 comments:

Jason T. Carter said...

Wow, this one is awesome. One small thing, it seems track #3 cuts off short. Other than that...great album!

micksguitar said...

great post by a very underrated band. thanx mick.

Anonymous said...

J, you are putting these albums up faster than I can listen or comment! :)

I like this album, too. It definitely has a Southern Rock sound; kinda reminds me of ZZ Top. Really a raunchy listen! :)

Anonymous said...

This album really rocks. It reminds a bit of the late 70's Uriah Heep. Great musicians, great vocals, good songs and a great drive.
Thanks!. (4/5)

Anonymous said...

This is an awesome find! Living near Nova Scotia as I do we all know about Oakley. He still performs. Seen him play one night with the legendary Sam Moon.

Cheers for this! It's memory lane time.