LAST LISTENED TO yesterday
CHANCE OF WAKING TO IT reasonable
RATING
The Groundhogs were formed in the mid-'60s, playing mostly as a power-trio led by guitarist and vocalist Tony McPhee. They began playing the blues, but moved into psychedelia and later towards prog. This type of music was quite popular around the band's creative high point at the start of the '70s. They managed to score three hit albums in the UK, but that was as far as it went, as commercially and critically they were judged to be not quite as good as the competition.
Split was one of their most successful albums and on it The Groundhogs were living in the land between blue rock and psychedelia. Evidenced especially in the first side, which contained four tracks named Split - Part One, Two, Three and Four. Of these four tracks, Split - Part Two is the strongest (although not nearly as strong as Cherry Red on the B-side). All three players are in top form here, playing good material that makes great use of their trio grouping. McPhee's guitar is clearly the star of the piece, however there is a beefy presence from both the bass and drums, which are doing more than just supporting the front man.
Lyrically the Split side of the album deals with schizophrenia, which is a topic that can easily fall into cliché. However, the style of playing (and writing) here means that, frankly, it's not all too clear what they're on about. This may or may not be the point. The only obvious reference, other than the disjointed music, is the final vocal on this track – a cry of 'I must get help before I go insane'. The kind of thing i can really do without first thing in the morning.
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