Joy Of Cooking - Castles (1972)

Joy of Cooking was an American music ensemble formed in 1967, in Berkeley, California. Identified with the hippie culture, the band's music melded rock & roll with folk, blues, and jazz. 

The band released three studio albums on Capitol Records in the early 1970s as well as a minor hit single in 1971, "Brownsville". 

 Led by guitarist Terry Garthwaite and pianist Toni Brown, who shared lead vocals, Joy of Cooking was an unusual example of a rock band fronted by women.

If last time Toni Brown was betrayed by her folkie upbringing, this time she makes something of it, leading off elegantly with a modernized blues, "Don't the Moon Look Fat and Lonesome," and following up quickly enough with "Lady Called Love," a modernized heroic ballad. 

Both the incitements to independence and the love advisories are more general than need be, but the music has grown crisper and fuller while continuing to flow as swimmingly as you'd hope

Joy of Cooking started out strong & just got better with each new album -- yet their third effort would also prove to be their last under that name, although Toni Browne & Terry Garthwaite would do further fine work both as a duo & as solo artists. "Castles" is an exceptional collection of songs, with rich emotional depth, intelligent & witty & sometimes poignant lyrics, and tight, impressive playing & musical composition. So why is the Joy of Cooking unjustly forgotten by all but those of us lucky enough to have heard them in the 1970s? 

 Never was a band so aptly named -- there's plenty of joy here, and the band cooks like nobody's business. These are songs by smart, gifted women who have thoughtful, nuanced things to say about love, relationships, loneliness, and being true to yourself. 

And while the lyrics & vocals have depth, if all you want is music that makes you feel good & makes you move, you'll find that here as well. Everything comes together beautifully, they have a warm & organic sound, and it's clear that they should have been a major band commercially as well as critically.

Track listing

A1.  Don't The Moon Look Fat And Lonesome - 4:10 

A2.  Waiting For The Last Plane - 4:00 

A3.  Lady Called Love  (Vocals [Lead] – Toni Brown) - 3:30 

A4.  Three-Day Loser - 4:00 

A5.  Castles - 3:50 

B1.  Beginning Tomorrow - 4:30 

B2.  Let Love Carry You Along - 2:45 

B3.  Home Town Man - 4:00 

B4.  All Around The Sun And The Moon - 4:00 

B5.  Bad Luck Blues - 3:30

Companies, etc.

• Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Capitol Records, Inc.
• Copyright © – Capitol Records, Inc.
• Pressed By – Capitol Records Pressing Plant, Los Angeles
• Manufactured By – Capitol Records, Inc.

Credits

• Arranged By [Strings & Horns], Saxophone [Solo] – Jim Horn (tracks: A4 to B1, B4)
• Art Direction – John Hoernle
• Bass – Jeff Neighbor
• Chorus – Joy Of Cooking (tracks: A4, B2)
• Congas – Ron Wilson (tracks: A2, A5 to B1, B3 to B4)
• Design [Album] – Bob Fried
• Drums – Fritz Kasten (tracks: A1 to A5, B2 to B5)
• Engineer – Gary Coolick, Jay Ranellucci
• Guitar – Terry Garthwaite (tracks: A4 to B5)
• Management – Ed Denson
• Photography By [Cover] – Roland Schneider
• Photography By [Liner] – Baron Wolman
• Piano – Toni Brown (tracks: A2 to B2, B4 to B5)
• Piano [Electric] – Toni Brown (tracks: A1, B3)
• Producer – John Palladino
• Tambourine – Ron Wilson (8) (tracks: A1, A3, B2)
• Vocals – Terry Garthwaite (tracks: A1, A3, A5, B2 to B3), Toni Brown (tracks: A1 to A2, A5, B1 to B2, B4 to B5)
• Vocals [Lead] – Terry Garthwaite (tracks: A2, A4, B1, B4 to B5)
• Written-By – Terry Garthwaite (tracks: A4, B3), Toni Brown (tracks: A1 to A3, A5 to B2, B4)

Notes

Release Date:  1972

Recording Date:  March, 1972

Recording Location:  Berkeley, CA

Genre:  Folk Rock

Styles:  Country-Rock

Duration:  39:17

Label - Capitol Records