Montage

Do not be fooled by the other reviews on this page. This is not Michael Brown of the Left Banke's music. Rather it's some Finnish group with the same name as Michael Brown's band. I'm not sure who is responsible for this diversion, whether it's intentional or just an honest mistake. However if you buy this album thinking it's Michael Brown's music, don't blame me. You're hereby forewarned. Caveat emptor!

Replacing my two scratched Left Banke albums with "There's Gonna be A Storm" was one of the wisest moves I've ever made. Great band. Great sound. Timeless, but not enough. The band dissolved too soon. Recently, Montage caught my eye while surfing the web. That was how I came upon this lost gem. Montage? Who are these guys? Let me tell you. They are Michael Brown's post-Banke pet project, but that shouldn't dissuade anyone from listening. There are some wonderful tunes here and even a couple raided from Banke's own catalog to flesh it out. The sound is pure Left Banke. Or perhaps, pure Brown would be a better way to put it. So why the three star rating. No offense, but these Jersey boys don't match up to the stellar vocals of Steve Martin and crew. "Tinsel and Ivory" is a great tune, slightly marred by some off key vocals. The aforementioned off note in "Men Are Building Sand," not only happens once, but twice more and not only is it off, it is actually painful to listen to. It will make you wince! It's that bad. "Wake Up Jimmy" has, perhaps, the worst ending of any song recorded. It appears a free ride in artistic control to Mike Brown is, perhap, not too good an idea. Don't get me wrong, this is not a bad buy, but I suggest you get it used and save some cash. Get the extended version because the three instrumentals will leave you wondering why there are no lyrics. Very catchy melodies.As a whole, Montage delivers. Sadly, it just makes me think what this album could have been if Left Banke had recorded these songs.

I Loved the album when it was being made... I was there. I was lead singer Vance Chapman's girlfriend and I am now his wife. I was with Vance when he sang the lead on 7 of the 10 vocals and the off-key song is not his, although one thing I need to explain is that Mike Brown's intention in the song "Men are Building Sand" was to have that NOTE painfully out of tune since it was the writer's intent to demonstrate his displeasure of urban sprawl. But Vance and I agree, it does sound bad and the reason for doing it that way was never known by listeners. However, Mike Brown never let the band use the simple technology of echo on the vocals, which is why the vocals sound drier than those of the richly styled Left Banke. The talent and voices were always there and still are. Vance went on successfully making music with the VANCE CHAPMAN BAND for years after the Montage went their separate ways. He still sings and is still capable of producing the same dulcit tones with more fullness and maturity. I may seem prejudiced and of course, I am. Vance and I hope you all will continue to enjoy this labor of love.

You do realize, that the music being shown here is NOT the Montage tunes that are being reviewed don't you? Bogus listings and bogus tunes Beware.

Very good album post Left Bank,underestimated, but in the same vein with already leading Bob Stereur of this Band.Just one thing,the packaging and présentation of this Cd is HORRIBLE in a very cheap jewel case...Pinckle.

There was alot of talent behind the scenes of this album (Mike Brown, Bert Sommer, & Tom Fair) but it failed to go anywhere mostly because of the impotence of Laurie Records who were too busy pushing Snoopy records to give attention to this decent sounding group.The harmonies on this CD are nice to listen to, though it is obvious that the members of Montage had nowhere the talent or charisma of the original Left Banke members, especially Left Banke lead singer Steve Martin-Caro. This has nothing to do with which group was produced better. Anyone who is a rabid enough Left Banke fan to know about this album has also heard tracks from Strangers on a Train and perhaps even 2002's Airborne, the majority of tracks on these being demos and proving that NO ONE can hold a candle to Steve Martin-Caro's singing.This could had been a stellar effort for the Left Banke if they would have worked as a team, combining the strongest tracks from this album, with the strongest tracks from Left Banke Too to put together the Left Banke's 2nd LP.Stand out tracks on this album are "She's Alone," "I Shall Call Her Mary," and "Wake Up Jimmy." Any of these could and should have been in Billboard's top 20 during 1967.Tracks like "An Audience With Miss Priscilla Gray" and "Men Are Building Sand" are weak and corny. The "Desiree" cover is not so great either. The vocals are not bad, but the music sounds thin, almost like he's singing to a karaoke track.Overall, the CD is fairly good. Most of Mike Brown's melodys are lovely as expected and they definately benefit from the help of talented lyricist Tom Fair. This CD is a must for die hard Left Banke fans.

Despite commentaries linking this cd to the classic 1960's Band "The Left Banke" and its sequel "Montage", the fact is that the cd here considered is the 2014 self-titled debut album by the Finnish ( from Helsinki ) hard and prog-rock Band with the same name .

Ce disque ne correspond pas au commentaire affiché. C'est un album d'un groupe finlandais de metal progressif pas désagréable, certes, mais assez convenu. Il n'est en rien comparable à ce qu'aurait dû être le «Montage» de «Montage», perle de pop baroque des années 60 que je recherche depuis longtemps...et dont je me disais qu'une réédition avait peut-être entraîné un changement de pochette...

レフトバンクのマイケルブラウンがプロデュース、楽曲提供したアルバム。ここではバンドメンバーがマイケルブラウンの表現のための道具として使われてるとしか思えない。このアルバムが名盤たり得るのはレフトバンク期と同じくらい曲が良いから。メロディーが良く練られていて、慎ましい雰囲気がたまらない。このプロジェクトが1枚で終わってしまったのが悔やまれる。