Track Listing

1. Easy to Slip
2. Cold Cold Cold
3. Trouble
4. Tripe Face Boogie
5. Willin'
6. Apolitical Blues
7. Sailin' Shoes
8. Teenage Nervous Breakdown
9. Got No Shadow
10. Cat Fever
11. Texas Rose Cafe

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3313 in Music
• Released on: 1990-10-25
• Number of discs: 1

Album Description
24 karat gold pressing! New Numbered Limited Edition Mini-LP-Style Packaging! 5 stars on All Music Guide. Highlights include Easy To Slip, Cold, Cold, Cold, Sailin' Shoes, Willin' (reworked). Although considered a classic today, Little Feat's 1971 debut had failed to sell up to expectations and, for that, the band found themselves on thin ice at Warner Brothers. Turning to another red-hot WB staff producer in Ted Templeman (Doobie Brothers, Van Halen, Van Morrison), they were able to further hone Lowell George's bent and surreal writing and elevate Bill Payne and Richie Hayward's contributions into more hook-laden tunes, while maintaining the unique rock, blues and country blend that defined the quartet. Showing authority, confidence and indeed, major cojones (including a re-arranged Willin', a song from their first album, on their follow-up!), 1972's Sailin' Shoes firmly established Feat as a major force in pop music. The Flying Burrito Brothers' #1 Sneaky Pete, perfectly seasons both Willin' and Texas Rose Cafe with his steel guitar licks while ex-Beau Brummels member (remember them?) Ron Elliott adds rhythm guitar to A Apolitical Blues.

Amazon.com essential recording
Sailin' Shoes demonstrates just how briskly Little Feat was developing in their early 1970s formative years. A pronounced step up from the Southern California quartet's critically praised 1971 debut, it's not as fully realized as the Feat's 1973 zenith, Dixie Chicken. But it's not far behind, and that's saying something. The final recording made by the original quartet (the band swelled to six members after founding bassist and Mothers of Invention alumni Roy Estrada split), Little Feat circa 1972 is a lean, energetic outfit. "Cold, Cold, Cold," "Tripe Face Boogie," "Apolitical Blues," and "Teenage Nervous Breakdown" are blunter rockers than what would follow. Lowell George's title track and Bill Payne's "Got No Shadow" and "Cat Fever," meanwhile, presage the more limber direction the group was headed. --Steven Stolder

Customer Reviews

I've loved Sailin' Shoes for 28 years
The history of Little Feat consists of three phases: The first two albums, including this one, constitutes phase one, when they were at their most creative, veering between the worlds of Ry Cooder and Frank Zappa to create the freshest sounds they could think of. Sailin' Shoes churns with musical energy, layers of guitars and keyboards tweaked for maximum enjoyment, supporting lyrics that were both quirky and wise. Phase two, which is when they built their fan base, runs from Dixie Chicken thru Waiting for Columbus, and the death of founder Lowell George in about 1979. This is the sound they are most known for, when they gained the singularly inapt term "Southern Fried," as if this band had something to do with Marshall Tucker or Lynard Skynard. There is great music in this phase, but each album became more mannered and less inspired than the one preceeding it. No question, the band suffered from Lowell's bad habits, declining health, and reduced commitment to writing. But fat, drunk, stoned and creatively blocked as he might have been, during this period Lowell still gave the band a unique spark. Now they are in their third phase, as kind of a career party band known mostly for putting on a fun show. Nothing wrong with that, but if you like today's Little Feat, do yourself a favor and reach back into 1972 for the creative flash that started it all.

Kick Off Your Sailin' Shoes
As a collection of songs, this might be Little Feat's strongest effort ever. Americana Rock in the general vein of Moby Grape, The Band or American-Beauty era Dead.

While the songs are great, this record's secret weapon lies in the fact that you kind of slip into it's groove and before you know it, a collection of rather short songs becomes a groove album! This doesn't happen on most Little Feat albums due to their more mercurial nature in styles.

The original version of the almost-standard "Willin'" is here too.

Even Better!
Building on the brilliant musicianship of their excellent debut, Little Feat released their sophomore effort, "Sailin' Shoes," one of their finest efforts ever. A tightly constructed release with not a bum track in sight, "Sailin' Shoes" is an even better album than their debut partly because of the more relaxed nature that was on hand after the critical acclaim that was awarded "Little Feat." In this package, the Feat outdid themselves with a reworking of Lowell George's truck driving ballad "Willin'" and they also put down "Trouble," one of their best ballads ever. Also in the selection are the clever "Texas Rose Cafe (one of my favorites)," the concert staple title track and the radio hit "Easy To Slip." Alas, despite the strong critical acclaim, the poor sales contributed to one of the many Feat breakups and bassist Roy Estrada went back to the Mothers of Invention and then to Captain Beefheart's Magic Band. Remaining members Lowell George, Richie Hayward and Bill Payne pressed on...