Nantucket - No Direction Home (1983)

North Carolina's Nantucket came to life in 1969 and spent eight years flourishing as one of the area's hottest cover bands until Epic Records stepped in and offered the band a contract in 1977. The following year, "Nantucket" was issued and saw the band entering the billboard charts while touring alongside bands like Mother's Finest, Kiss, Styx, Boston and Journey. The following year, the band issued their sophomore album, "Your Face or Mine?" which failed to take the band any further. More touring ensued, bringing the band to a higher visibility but ultimately no one was listening. At this point, bassist Mike Uzzell took over the reigns as manager while Pee Wee Watson filled his vacant spot in the band. The band released their third album in 1980, titled "It's a Long Way to the Top", a tip of the hat to recently deceased AC/DC frontman Bon Scott. Flattered, AC/DC took the band on the road for a summer tour but sales never improved prompting Epic to drop the band in 1981.

It was only a year before RCA took the band under their wing, later prompting the release of their fourth album, "No Direction Home" in 1983. The label were quick to discover that Nantucket's commercial viability was all but doomed and by 1984, the band were again without a record deal. Frustrated, the band sought local label, Executive Records to issue their fifth album, "V", which hit store shelves in 1985. Though the band's sound had changed radically to fit the times, it was a case of too little too late and the band packed it in at the end of a short tour in 1986. It would be several years before the entire original lineup would regroup to record their only official live album, "Still Live After All These Years". Though the album fared well in the New England region, there wasn't enough widespread interest to inspire a full fledged reunion. Since then, the band has performed sporadically in various configurations along the east coast and have successfully entertained their core audience for over thirty years.

"No Direction Home" is an interesting part of the band's evolution, showing the band blending their old sound with a more contemporary AOR style. There are slight traces of southern rock present also, making the album sound a bit schizophrenic in its execution. In spite of this hodgepodge approach, this is a fairly solid batch of pop driven hard rock. Fans of the band might be a bit put off by the change in sound, but first timers will likely find enough goodness here to warrant its inclusion here. This would be the last decent Nantucket album before the release of the terribly weak, "V" a few years later. Enjoy this excellent vinyl rip by Nantucket!

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