Jade and Sarsaparilla were an American musical act of the 1970s.

Jade and Sarsaparilla
LP back cover
LP back cover
Background information
OriginCape Cod, Massachusetts, U.S.
GenresFolk rock
Years active1970s
LabelsSubmaureen Records
Past members
  • Janet Hood
  • Linda Langford

History

edit

American musicians Janet Hood and Linda Langford, both from Cape Cod, Massachusetts, formed Jade and Sarsaparilla in 1973. Their repertoire featured many original compositions, ranging "from passionate singer-songwriter ballads to funky pop to jazzy cabaret, with songs of love and sexuality addressed sensitively, [and] directly."[1][2]

Their first and only album, titled Jade and Sarsaparilla,[a] released in 1976 on Submaureen Records, out of Hyannis Port, is now considered a rarity.[3] Songs include "She's That Kind of Woman"; "Gimme a Pigfoot"; "Daytime"; "Talkin'"; "I Can't Say, I Can't Go"; "It's Gonna Take a Miracle; "I Need a Drink of Water in My Mind"; and "I'd Like to Be." In Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies (1981), critic Robert Christgau wrote that "the built-in societal conflict faced by two women who sing love songs to each other not only makes the melodrama more credible...but is also interesting in itself."[4]

In the late 80s, Janet Hood developed the song cycle Elegies for Angels, Punks and Raging Queens, inspired by the NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt and Edgar Lee Masters' Spoon River Anthology, with lyrics and additional text by Bill Russell. It was produced on stage in New York, London, and other places around the world.[5]

See also

edit

Notes

edit
  1. ^ Featured musicians were Linda Langford: vocals; Janet Hood: piano, vocals; Gene Roma: drums, congas; Richard Appleman: electric bass, double bass; and Bob Gullotti: drums. In the production team were Bob Stoughton: engineer; Maureen Boyce: executive producer; and Steve Tarshis: producer[1]

References

edit
  1. ^ a b Jade & Sarsaparilla, Amoeba Music, 24 June 2013
  2. ^ "Cabaret: Linda Langford" by John S. Wilson, The New York Times, 26 July 1979
  3. ^ Jade and Sarsaparilla, Groovy Tuesday
  4. ^ Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: J". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved February 27, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  5. ^ "Behind The Scenes at Elegies: a history" by Bruce D. Bossard, Talkin' Broadway, 29 March 2001

Further reading

edit
  • Shapiro, Lynne D. "The Growing Business Behind Women's Music", in Karla Jay (editor) Lavender Culture, NYU Press, November 1994, ISBN 978-0814742174