Climbing!
| Climbing! | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Mountain | ||||
| Released | March 7, 1970 | |||
| Recorded | 1969 - 1970 | |||
| Studio | Record Plant Studios, New York City | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 32:38 | |||
| Label | Windfall | |||
| Producer | Felix Pappalardi | |||
| Mountain chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   |
| Christgau's Record Guide | C+[2] |
Climbing!, also known as Mountain Climbing!, is the official debut studio album by American blues rock band Mountain. Released on March 7, 1970, the album featured the 'classic' Mountain lineup of Leslie West (guitar, vocals), Felix Pappalardi (bass, vocals, piano), Corky Laing (drums, percussion) and Steve Knight (keyboards) and followed the West solo album Mountain featuring Pappalardi and drummer Norman Smart, released in 1969 and often credited to the band. Produced by Pappalardi, the album reached number 17 on the American Billboard 200 albums chart and featured the band's best-known song, "Mississippi Queen". An early rendition of "For Yasgur's Farm" was actually performed at the Woodstock Festival in August 1969 as Who Am I But You And The Sun. It was subsequently recorded and retitled for the album.
Track listing
| Side one | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Personnel | Length |
| 1. | "Mississippi Queen" | Leslie West, Corky Laing, Felix Pappalardi, David Rea | Personnel:
| 2:31 |
| 2. | "Theme for an Imaginary Western" | Pete Brown, Jack Bruce | Personnel:
| 5:06 |
| 3. | "Never in My Life" | West, Laing, Pappalardi, Gail Collins | Personnel:
| 3:51 |
| 4. | "Silver Paper" | West, Collins, Laing, Pappalardi, Steve Knight, George Gardos | Personnel:
| 3:19 |
| Side two | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Personnel | Length |
| 5. | "For Yasgur's Farm" | Collins, Gardos, Laing, Pappalardi, Rea, Gary Ship | Personnel:
| 3:23 |
| 6. | "To My Friend" | West | Personnel:
| 3:38 |
| 7. | "The Laird" | Collins, Pappalardi | Personnel:
| 4:39 |
| 8. | "Sittin' on a Rainbow" | West, Collins, Laing | Personnel:
| 2:23 |
| 9. | "Boys in the Band" | Collins, Pappalardi | Personnel:
| 3:33 |
| Total length: | 32:38 | |||
| 2003 US and Canada reissue bonus track | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
| 10. | "For Yasgur's Farm" (live) | Collins, Gardos, Laing, Pappalardi, Rea, Ship | 4:19 |
Track timings listed on the original 1970 Windfall Records LP pressings of the album differ slightly from the above, with the notable exception that the listed duration of 4:50 for "Never in My Life" is significantly in error.
Personnel
- Mountain
- Leslie West – guitars on all tracks; lead vocals on tracks 1, 3, and 8; co-lead vocals on tracks 4, 5 and 9
- Felix Pappalardi – bass on all tracks except 6 and 7; piano on tracks 1, 2 and 9; rhythm guitar on track 7; lead vocals on tracks 2 and 7; co-lead vocals on tracks 4, 5 and 9; production
- Corky Laing – drums on all tracks except 6 and 7; percussion on tracks 7 and 9
- Steve Knight – organ on tracks 2, 3, 4 and 5; mellotron on tracks 2 and 9; handbells on track 4
- Additional personnel
- Bud Prager – executive production
- Bob D'Orleans – engineering
- Lillian Douma – engineering assistance
- Beverly Weinstein – art direction
- Gail Collins – cover artwork, photography
See also
References
- ↑ Mountain - Climbing! (1970) album review by Matthew Greenwald at AllMusic.com
- ↑ Christgau, Robert (1981). "Mountain". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 0-89919-025-1. Retrieved September 7, 2016.