Tracy Nelson / Mother Earth - Tracy Nelson / Mother Earth (1972)

Mother Earth was an eclectic American blues rock band formed in 1967 in California, fronted by Tracy Nelson. Nelson, who hailed from Madison, Wisconsin, began her career as a solo artist, but formed the Mother Earth ensemble after moving to San Francisco. The group performed at the Fillmore West in the late 1960s alongside Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, and Eric Burdon, and was included on the soundtrack to the 1968 film Revolution.

Tracy Nelson/Mother Earth (also known as just Mother Earth) is an album that was released in 1972 by the blues rock group Mother Earth. The band's fifth studio album, it was distributed by the label Reprise Records. The release's title reflects the growing separation between performer Tracy Nelson and the rest of the band, who had grown into something of a mere backing vehicle for Nelson.
Stylistically, the release features a laid-back, subdued sound in its rendering of blues music mixed with pop rock.
Tracy Nelson's transition from lead singer of Mother Earth to a solo artist was actually a gradual evolution. Unlike so many other women singers of the late 60s and early 70s (including Janis Joplin and Linda Ronstadt), she wasn't quick to leave her band behind once she had achieved a certain level of prominence herself.

The very title of this LP indicated a vagueness as to whether Mother Earth were still a group, or a vehicle for Tracy Nelson's solo career. It's a solid, if laid-back set of rock with strong country and soul flavorings, and a bit of gospel now and then.
It sounds a little like Janis Joplin's final solo recordings, but more subdued, both vocally and instrumentally.
The songs include three compositions by Louisiana swamp rock legend Bobby Charles, and an early effort by John Hiatt, "Thinking of You."

Track listing

01. "The Same Old Thing"  - 5:17
        Lyrics By, Music By – Jack Lee 
02. "I'm That Way"  - 3:10
        Lyrics By, Music By – Bobby Charles
03. "Mother Earth (Provides For Me)"  - 2:19 
        Lyrics By, Music By – Eric Kaz
04. "Tennessee Blues"  -  3:52
        Lyrics By, Music By – Bobby Charles
05. "I Want To Lay Down Beside You"  -  5:25 
        Lyrics By, Music By – Tim Drummond
06. "Someday My Love May Grow"  - 4:20
        Lyrics By, Music By – Eric Kaz
07. "(Staying Home And Singing) Homemade Songs"  -  4:41
        Lyrics By, Music By – Bobby Charles
08. "Thinking Of You"  -  4:07
        Lyrics By, Music By – John Hiatt
09. "The Memory Of Your Smile"  -  3:27
        Lyrics By, Music By – R. Rakes
10. "I Don't Do That Kind Of Thing Anymore"  -  3:26 
        Music By – Andy McMahon
         Music By, Lyrics By – T. Nelson

Credits
Vocals – Tracy Nelson
Bass – Steve Mendell
Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar – Jack Lee, John Andrews
Percussion – Karl Himmel
Piano, Organ – Andy McMahon
Engineer – Gene Eichelberger
Producer – Travis Rivers
Photography By – Jim McGuire, Marshall Fallwell, Jr.

Companies, etc.
Record Company – Warner Bros. Records Inc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Warner Bros. Records Inc.
Copyright (c) – Warner Bros. Records Inc.
Recorded At – Quadraphonic Sound Studios
Pressed By – Columbia Records Pressing Plant, Pitman

Notes
Released: 1972
Genre: Blues Rock
Length: 40:08
© 1972

Label - Reprise Records