THE THIRD ALBUM

Possible tracklist

1. Iron Horse (J Christie)
2. One Way Ticket (J Christie)
3. Jo Jo's Band (V Elmes)
4. One For The Road (J Christie)
5. Positively 4th Street (B Dylan)
6. Born To Lose (V Elmes)
7. Rock'n'Roll Woman (S Stills)
8. Fool's Gold (J Christie)
9. Witness For The Prosecution (J Christie)
10. Every Now And Then (V Elmes)
11. Tobacco Road (JD Loudermilk)
12. California Sunshine (L Lubin)
13. Mr Big Shot (J Christie)
14. Funny Things (M Blythe)

 

CHRISTIE were due to release a third album in 1972 when circumstances forced the band to go through several personnel changes. Lem, Vic and Paul left, while Roger, Terry and Danny joined.
   A number of tracks had already been recorded for the album, such as Jo Jo's Band, eventually released as a single in South America. At the time, Christie were also featuring several new songs as part of their stage repertoire, and it is possible these would have made it onto the album.
   They included the group's well-received cover version of The Nashville Teens' hit Tobacco Road (which incorporated a Paul Fenton drum solo), a bluesy, chugging original Jeff Christie piece called One For The Road (which the band actually previewed on a music video), and another of Jeff's songs, One Way Ticket.
   The songs were recorded at the same time as Fool's Gold was released as a single, so it would have been safe to assume that the song and its flipside, Vic Elmes' Born To Lose, would also have been on the third album (as would have Lem Lubin's California Sunshine, the flipside on German pressings of Fool's Gold). The set could also have included Iron Horse and its flipside Every Now and Then, with the former — because of its hit status — perhaps kicking off the album.
  The line-up with Lem recorded two cover versions for the BBC: Funny Things (a song released by Birmingham band the Redcaps) and Buffalo Springfield's Rock'Roll Woman. These reflected Christie's evolving bluesy sounds and would have been ideal inclusions on the album.
   Another song the foursome performed in live shows was Dylan's Positively 4th Street: a piece which involved Jeff, Vic and Lem each handling different verses. It could easily have been transferred onto album.
   After Lem and Paul left, Danny, Terry, Roger and Jeff recorded two demos — Witness For The Prosecution and Mr Big Shot — two R&B numbers which would have complemented the album well.
   To round it off, perhaps Jeff's experimental Nightmare might have been included, a song that dated back to the For All Mankind sessions; and maybe Rockin' Suzanna, a song recorded with Vic which later emerged as the flipside to Most Wanted Man In The USA.