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The Last Record Album

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The Last Record Album
Cover artwork, with giant orange jelly,
by Neon Park
Studio album by
Little Feat
ReleasedOctober 17, 1975[citation needed]
Recorded1975
StudioThe Sound Factory, Los Angeles
Length38:17
LabelWarner Bros.
ProducerLowell George
Little Feat chronology
Feats Don't Fail Me Now
(1974) 		The Last Record Album
(1975) 		Time Loves a Hero
(1977)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Christgau's Record GuideB−[2]
Rolling Stone(not rated)[3]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[4]

The Last Record Album is the fifth studio album by the American rock band Little Feat, released in 1975 on the Warner Bros. label.

Background

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The album title and cover illustration by Neon Park[5] both allude to the 1971 film The Last Picture Show as well as the title typography on the film's poster, with Hollywood Boulevard turned into a desert leading to the apparent visual pun of the Hollywood Sign Jell-O mold "dessert". At left, Frederick's of Hollywood has long since closed, but the famous Grauman's Chinese Theatre at right is still a landmark.

The album's back cover includes the record's lyrics. One song, "Hi Roller," was marked out in black ink with the annotation "Maybe Next Time". The song was indeed included on their next album Time Loves a Hero (1977).

Reception

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Reviewing the album for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote, "For a very short album – only eight songs – too many of the cuts fall flat. Those that succeed, however, are quite good, particularly Paul Barrère and Bill Payne's gently propulsive 'All That You Dream,' Lowell George's beautiful 'Long Distance Love,' and the sublime 'Mercenary Territory' .... There are enough signs of Little Feat's true character on The Last Record Album – the three previously mentioned songs are essential for any Feat fan – to make it fairly enjoyable, but it's clear that the band is beginning to run out of steam."[6]

The track "Long Distance Love" was placed at number 26 in John Peel's 1976 "Festive Fifty".[7] The album was voted number 555 in the third edition of Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums (2000).[8]

Writing for The Guardian in 2010, after the death of Richie Hayward, Adam Sweeting commented:

The Last Record Album (1975) was a less cohesive effort, but continued the group's upward commercial progress. In hindsight, there is bleak irony in the way George chose to decorate the album's sleeve with the medical bills racked up by Hayward following a serious motorcycle accident ... During his final illness, when he had moved to Canada, Hayward's lack of medical insurance left him facing huge bills for treatment.[9]

Cover versions

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  • Elvis Costello recorded a version of "Long Distance Love" for the 2024 album Long Distance Love: A Sweet Relief Tribute to Lowell George by various artists.[11][12]

Track listing

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Side one

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  1. "Romance Dance" (Barrère, Gradney, Payne) – 3:49 (lead vocals: Bill Payne, Paul Barrère)
  2. "All That You Dream" (Barrère, Payne) – 3:52 (lead vocal: Lowell George)
  3. "Long Distance Love" (George) – 2:43 (lead vocal: Lowell George)
  4. "Day or Night" (Payne, Fran Tate) – 6:24 (lead vocals: Bill Payne, Paul Barrère)

Side two

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  1. "One Love Stand" (Barrère, Gradney, Payne) – 4:26 (lead vocal: Lowell George)
  2. "Down Below the Borderline" (George) – 3:41 (lead vocal: Lowell George)
  3. "Somebody's Leavin'" (Payne) – 5:07 (vocal: Bill Payne)
  4. "Mercenary Territory" (George, Hayward, Elizabeth George) – 4:27 (lead vocal: Lowell George)

Charts

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Chart (1975) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[13] 51
US Billboard 200[14] 36

Personnel

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Source: The Last Record Album, Warner Bros. Records – K 56156, & BS 2884, 1975, liner notes.

Little Feat

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Additional musicians

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  • John Hall – guitar ("All That You Dream")
  • Linda Ronstadt – backing vocals (“All That You Dream”)
  • Valerie Carter – backing vocals ("Long Distance Love" and "One Love Stand")
  • Fran Tate – backing vocals ("Long Distance Love" and "One Love Stand")

Production

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References

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  1. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. The Last Record Album at AllMusic
  2. ^ Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: L". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 1, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  3. ^ "Little Feat: The Last Record Album : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone". Rolling Stone. 30 September 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  4. ^ Larkin, Colin (2007). Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0857125958.
  5. ^ "Neon Park". Lambiek.net. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  6. ^ Stephen Thomas Erlewine. "Little Feat: The Last Record Album". allmusic.com/. Retrieved 5 April 2013.
  7. ^ "Little Feat: Festive 50 tracks". bbc.co.uk. November 2006. Retrieved 5 April 2013.
  8. ^ Colin Larkin, ed. (2006). All Time Top 1000 Albums (3rd ed.). Virgin Books. p. 189. ISBN 0-7535-0493-6.
  9. ^ Adam Sweeting (13 August 2010). "Richie Hayward obituary | Music". The Guardian. Retrieved 2014-02-20.
  10. ^ Ruhlmann, William. "Another Passenger". AllMusic. Archived from the original on October 22, 2022. Retrieved July 12, 2007.
  11. ^ "Long Distance Love: A Sweet Relief Tribute to ... | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.
  12. ^ "Long Distance Love". May 16, 2024 – via YouTube.
  13. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 178. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  14. ^ "Little Feat Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 5 January 2022.
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