The Cover:
Album: “Ambergris?”
Band: Ambergris
Year: 1970 (Paramount Records)
Ambergris definition: A rare, opaque substance usually found floating on the ocean, used in perfume. (definition from inside cover ends with “A valuable mixture. Like:” then lists the members of the band.
About the band: This is the lone album from the group formed by Jerry Weiss, who played trumpet and flugelhorn in the first version of Blood, Sweat & Tears. … Vocalist and percussionist Jerry Maelen performed on hundreds of albums in the 70s and 80s including albums by Roxy Music, Peter Gabriel, James Taylor, Alice Cooper, John Lennon, The Jacksons, and Talking Heads. (Source Discogs.com).
Producer: Steve Cropper was a guitarist who spent time with Booker T & the MGs, and he was an original member of the Blues Brothers Band.
Who’s that Chicken: According to the inside cover, the chicken is “Jim” from Old McDonald’s Farm. I can neither confirm nor deny that comment. The cover was designed by Thom Williams, who also designed covers for Pavement, George Clinton, and Fire and Ice.
The tracks:
Side 1
1. Something Happened to Me
2. Play on Player
3. Gotta Find Her
4. Chocolate Pudding
5. Forget It, I Got It
Side 2
1. Walking on the Water
2. Sunday Lady
3. Home Groan
4. Soul Food
5. Endless Night
Where Did I Get This: I bought a collection of about 150 records at a garage sale this summer (2026) in Sterling. The collection is mainly rock from the 60s, 70s, and 80s. It was one of the sales where the people were still setting things up at about noon on Saturday and told us if there was something we were interested in, just ask, because they probably had it. Jodi said that I was into records, and sure enough, the guy brought up a bunch of gems from his basement. Sadly, a couple Beatles album covers were badly damaged, but everything else was in good condition for used vinyl.
My take: On first listen, Side 1 is catchier than Side 2, although the whole thing is interesting and this is a borderline keeper for me. The horns and instrumentation are reminiscent of bands like Blood, Sweat & Tears and Chicago. The song “Chocolate Pudding” on the surface is an ode to the sugary dessert. A read of the lyrics though, has Jodi and I both wondering if it’s not quite so innocent. Judge for yourself. Overall, I found this to be a fun album, and I think one that collectors will be interested in. Discogs lists the median value at $11.95 with the high end being $29.95. I’ll probably list it between $10-$12.
OK, what’s this all about? In 2025, I made a post a day about a song that I encountered that day. Since then, I haven’t been faithful in writing, so I wanted to get back to posting a bit about music. Concurrently, I have delved deeper into the world of buying and selling vinyl records. I have cycled through thousands of vinyl records over the last five years, and I am continually amazed by how many albums were produced between the 1950s and 1980s. I still encounter albums and bands that I have never heard of, and I am a guy that listens to tons of music. So, these posts are going to be a little bit of everything. Notes about the album, the band, and my thoughts after a few listens. Plus, I’ll probably do some creative writing with it, get a little weird, have some fun with it, so forth and so on.
Link to album: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUtwL_qG8bA&list=RDaUtwL_qG8bA&start_radio=1. Note I will usually just post the Spotify link, but I couldn't find this one on Spotify, but somebody did post it on YouTube.
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