Robson Tapes - I Painted a Picture, 1986

I guess the cover doesn't inspire a lot of confidence in the contents here.  But I had to obtain this record, because we heard so much unbelievable stuff from him in the past.  Do you remember? The first ST one (1974) with the photo of the back of his head, then the equally amazing follow up Stay Awhile (1976).  These are legendarily beautiful lost albums of progressive vocal rock from Finland.

Frank Robson is discogged here thusly:

Profile: Born on April 27, 1946 in Bradford-on-Avon, England. Died on November 16th, 2024 in Lahti, Finland. A singer and pianist. He moved to Finland in 1967. His daughter Jenny Robson is also a singer.

I guess he was in Tasavallan P. too, the legendary Finnish prog rock outfit. 

Incidentally if you check out his discography, the 'Sings Nick Hanian' (1987) is quite ordinary and not worth hearing.

This LP is listed under Robson Tapes, the only release from this gathering, also interesting to me because it includes Nono Soderberg, recently posted here. I didn't listen to the CD 'Back in Business' the recent one (recent! from 1998 that is).

I think, but am not sure, the best track is Yesterday's News:

At any rate, gives you an idea of the contents. Along with that cover.

Frank Robson's second album Stay Awhile from 1976 by request

This his second album continues in the same vein of bluesy James Taylor-like songwriting (the earliest records he made, and without the solo acoustic) with harder progressive elements here and there, horns-driven round the speedway track.  Taken straightforwardly as an album from the "golden age" it should be on every top hundred list of best rock albums, ever.  Sadly, we will never find its presence there or anywhere similar no matter how much we choose to enlighten those awful criterati...

In particular the title track is a pure masterpiece of melodious storytelling with its deep horns and emotive intensity:





In addition to that wonderful laidback of with sustained notes in the melody, the key here is the chord progression with a not-so-rare initial sequence: C, C7, F, Bflatm, Aflat, then the big surprise: the diminished chord in A, with its awful tension, steps us up to Bflat, after which the song is able to return to the 'stepping stones' of F, G7, and thus tonic C.

But the LP is chock-full of gorgeous musical ideas... have a listen to the casual sexiness of "You're Just My Love:"





Really? It couldn't have been a radio hit back then?

Apologies for the mono rip here, all I had.  I would've purchased the vinyl for a better but the price is a bit prohibitive with the dreaded Christmas approach.  If you take a look at his discography he made a third album in 1987 which eschewed the rock and horn sound for a simpler songwriterly approach in keeping with the times, and is of less interest particularly due to its inferior quality.

ADDEDNUM: quimsy provided a stereo rip, thanks!!

Frank Robson ST, 1974

Yes, the cover is a little bit ridiculous, but many thanks to my friend for purchasing this record and reripping it, a poor mp3 was circulating for some time, and this really deserved better.  I'd be particularly curious to know if the formidable song "A House without a Name" became a radio hit, which it should have been, being multiple orders of magnitude better than any old hit song they play ad nauseam on the radio stations...  The title track from the next album "Stay Awhile" is just as brilliantly beautiful.

Here are those two hit songs:









Why aren't these songs played on the radio every day, like "Michelle, ma belle" which everyone should surely be sick of by now, for some new interest?  It boggles my mind.

His voice, though deeper, recalls to me Al Kooper, as in the gorgeous album "Super Session" he did with Bloomfield and Stills, and I really love the intensity of his passionate vocal cords.  A natural singer without a doubt.


From my friend:

"Frank Robson, UK singer, pianist and organist, moved to Finland in 1967. Before that, he had been playing for some time with the Small Faces, among others. In Finland, he has sung and played in bands, for example, Mosaic, Blues Section, and Tasavallan Presidentti. Robson has also released five solo albums. Robson has two daughters, one of whom, Jenny Robson, is a singer."

I wonder what happened to him after the mid-seventies, he no longer became active?  Anyone know?
http://www.discogs.com/artist/653498-Frank-Robson

Wait a second-- five solo albums?  I only have two!  Once again the hunt is on...