By
Richie Unterberger
When
Ned Doheny's self-titled debut LP appeared in 1973, the artist had
already been active in the Southern California singer-songwriter scene
for several years. In that respect, he shared similar roots with two
other acts that began their recording career for Asylum Records at
around the same time, Jackson Browne and the Eagles. Though Ned Doheny did not approach the
commercial success of the early-'70s releases by his labelmates, it was
the first of a long-running series of albums under his own name that
he's continuing to generate to this day, even if his association with
Asylum would prove short-lived.
Like Browne,
Doheny—who'd done his first session as a guitar player for producer
Terry Melcher at the age of eighteen—nearly began his career as a
recording artist about five years earlier with Elektra Records. In the
late '60s, he, Jackson, and other young singer-songwriters had been
part of an Elektra venture that set them up in a rural Northern
Californian property, Paxton Lodge. The goals of the project have
varied according to different accounts, but included the possibility of
solo albums from Browne, Doheny, and other Paxton residents such as
Jack Wilce. Ideally, the artists would have played on each other's
records, or perhaps combine forces on the same record, as well as
helping out on recordings by other acts who came to Paxton to make
music or just draw creative inspiration. Ultimately, however, though
some material was recorded there, neither Browne nor Doheny would
release anything on Elektra.
"After Paxton conflated, I played on a jazz album
with Charles Lloyd and toured with him briefly—we even played a concert
at McNeil Island Federal Penitentiary," remembers Ned. "I took a year
of classical guitar from Fred Noad, which set the stage for the Ned
Doheny album. Jackson and I continued to play together, but a general
restlessness inspired me to drive my Land Rover across America and ship
it to England. There I met Dave Mason, wrote a song on his living room
floor, and was asked to join his band." Indeed, one of Doheny's songs,
"On and On," would be included on the 1971 LP Dave Mason and Cass Elliot.
"We returned to the US," continues Doheny, "and
Jackson introduced me to David Geffen. Things had gotten shaky with
Mason and company and the songs for the Ned Doheny record were beginning to
take shape so I became part of Asylum." Along with Browne and the
Eagles, Ned was among the first signees to Geffen's new label. Its
early-'70s roster—also including Joni Mitchell, Linda Ronstadt, and
less high-selling but acclaimed singer-songwriters such as David Blue,
Judee Sill, and John David Souther—quickly made the company a
powerhouse in the industry, as well as a major repository of talent
that was defining the Los Angeles rock of the era.
The core band on most of the tracks on Ned Doheny included his friend Gary
Mallaber on drums (and some vibes) and keyboardist Jimmy Calleri, who
was staying at Ned's house off and on; buddies from Buffalo, both had
been in the band Raven. Mallaber, who played on several early-'70s Van
Morrison albums, was the connection to David Parlatta, who played bass
on most of the songs; another Buffalo transplant, Don Menza, added
tenor sax to a few cuts. Doheny himself played all the guitars on the
record, going solo acoustic for one selection, "It Calls for You."
While the songs were written shortly before the
sessions, the most familiar one due to its inclusion on Mason and
Elliot's LP would have been "On and On," here bolstered by harmony
vocals from Graham Nash. "'On and On' was my first 'real' song,
finished in a hotel room in New York while I waited to board the QE2
with my car," Ned notes. "By the time I got to England and met Dave,
the song was done. He liked it and I wrote the second tune, 'Trust Me,'
shortly thereafter." As for Nash's participation, "We were all hanging
out at Asylum at the time and he was kind enough to oblige."
Co-producing the record with Doheny was John Haeny,
who'd engineered many sessions for Elektra in the late 1960s and early
1970s for the likes of Judy Collins and Nico. "John was the voice in
the control room," Ned says. "He made recommendations about takes and
tone so that we could go on about our business without having to run
back and forth constantly. He is a brilliant engineer. We did our very
best and John recorded it beautifully." Adds Doheny, "I stood behind
the songs. To us it sounded like something new and exciting and we all
thought it would make us famous. The album could easily have been
called, Postcards From Hollywood."
Upon its release, the album found praise in the July
19, 1973 Rolling Stone from
future New York Times critic
Stephen Holden. "Here is a debut album that is all of a piece, a sort
of Southern California Astral Weeks,
its material supremely laidback, acoustical jazz-rock that on first
listening is pleasant, and after several more absorbing," he enthused.
"Doheny possesses a high, almost frail tenor that is somewhat
reminiscent of a Todd Rundgren without the hysteria. He phrases like a
cool jazz man, seldom using his voice other than as the leading line
above a tightly-coordinated instrumental texture. Though this approach
de-emphasizes Doheny's wistfully appealing song lyrics to the point
that they hardly count at all, it increases one's awareness of Doheny
as a musical thinker of exceptional sophistication. Among the
better-known contemporary singer/songwriters, only James Taylor shows a
similar tendency toward such aristocratic reserve, but Doheny carries
this reserve much farther." Concluded Holden: "The final impression
Doheny leaves behind is one of prodigious musical intelligence combined
with an attitude of serene resignation. It makes for a subtly
intoxicating brew—good rainy day/Sunday afternoon listening."
Ned Doheny,
however, did not benefit from nearly as much promotion as some other
early Asylum albums. "Asylum wasn't really interested in the record,"
says Ned. "A great deal of money had already been spent getting Jackson
up and running and the ongoing expenses of starting a new label took
their toll. I wound up paying a large chunk of the album budget myself.
David had his favorites."
Doheny moved to CBS a few years later for his next
albums, Hard Candy and Prone, also going on to co-write
Chaka Khan's R&B chart-topper "What Cha' Gonna Do for Me." While he
hasn't issued an album since 1993's Between
Two Worlds, as of this writing he's preparing his first album
release in about fifteen years. This CD reissue restores his maiden
effort to wide availability, giving Ned his due for his contribution to
the Southern Californian singer-songwriter movement in its heyday. –
Richie Unterberger
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