''Black Rose'' is the second album by American singer-songwriter

J. D. Souther John David "J. D." Souther (born November 2, 1945) is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He has written and co-written songs recorded by Linda Ronstadt and the Eagles. Souther is probably best known for his songwriting abilities, especi ...

, released in 1976. It includes Souther's version of " Faithless Love" released by Linda Ronstadt in 1974. Ronstadt would later cover "Simple Man, Simple Dream" and "Silver Blue" from this album.

Reception

In his retrospective review for Allmusic, critic William Ruhlmann called it an "excellent album steeped in the Southern California country-rock sound of the '70s". In a review for Rolling Stone,

Stephen Holden Stephen Holden (born July 18, 1941) is an American writer, poet, and music and film critic. Biography Holden earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Yale University in 1963. He worked as a photo editor, staff writer, and eventually be ...

wrote, "John David Souther’s second solo album benefits from a beautiful, all-star Peter Asher production. More sophisticated than either his first album or the two Souther-Hillman-Furay albums, ''Black Rose'' underscores Souther’s melodic writing, his strongest point, with some genuinely innovative arrangements by David Campbell, the classically trained musician who scored “ Prisoner in Disguise" for Linda Ronstadt. "Silver Blue," much of which Campbell has scored as a duet for voice and plucked double bass and violas, is a starkly arresting production, while setting "Faithless Love" into a semiformal piece for voice, acoustic guitar and chamber ensemble transforms a prettier-than-average country-rock ballad into an eloquent one. "Doors Swing Open," a complex tune based on ninth and minor sixth chords, boasts an elegantly lush arrangement that both gives it shape and highlights its lovely chromaticism." "Midnight Prowl" was a minor hit in Boston in 1976.

Track listing

All songs written by J. D. Souther. #"Banging My Head Against the Moon" – 3:41 #"If You Have Crying Eyes" – 5:05 #"Your Turn Now" – 3:48 #" Faithless Love" – 3:33 #"Baby Come Home" – 3:47 #"Simple Man, Simple Dream" – 1:49 #"Silver Blue" – 4:15 #"Midnight Prowl" – 5:09 #"Doors Swing Open" – 4:42 #"Black Rose" – 3:56

Personnel

*J. D. Souther –

acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...

congas The conga, also known as tumbadora, is a tall, narrow, single-headed drum from Cuba. Congas are staved like barrels and classified into three types: quinto (lead drum, highest), tres dos or tres golpes (middle), and tumba or salidor (lowest) ...

ARP String Ensemble The Solina String Ensemble, also marketed as the ARP String Ensemble, is a fully polyphonic multi-orchestral synthesizer with a 49-key keyboard, produced by Eminent BV (known for their ''Solina'' brand). It was distributed in the United States by ...

, lead vocals, backing vocals * Peter Asher – percussion, piano,

electric piano An electric piano is a musical instrument which produces sounds when a performer presses the keys of a piano-style musical keyboard. Pressing keys causes mechanical hammers to strike metal strings, metal reeds or wire tines, leading to vibrations ...

, cabasa, shaker, vocals, backing vocals * James Bond – double bass *

Michael Botts Michael Gene Botts (December 8, 1944 – December 9, 2005) was an American drummer, best known for his work with 1970s soft rock band Bread, and as a session musician. During his career, he recorded with Linda Ronstadt, Karla Bonoff, Andrew Gold ...

– drums *

Donald Byrd Donaldson Toussaint L'Ouverture Byrd II (December 9, 1932 – February 4, 2013) was an American jazz and rhythm & blues trumpeter and vocalist. A sideman for many other jazz musicians of his generation, Byrd was one of the few hard bop m ...

–

flugelhorn The flugelhorn (), also spelled fluegelhorn, flugel horn, or flügelhorn, is a brass instrument that resembles the trumpet and cornet but has a wider, more conical bore. Like trumpets and cornets, most flugelhorns are pitched in B, though some ...

, horn * David Campbell – arranger, conductor, viola * Stanley Clarke – bass, double bass *Ronald Cooper – cello * David Crosby – vocals, backing vocals *Vincent De Rosa – horn, French horn * Ned Doheny – guitar, backing vocals * Chuck Domanico – bass *Robert Dubow – violin *David Duke – horn, French horn *Earl Dumler – flute, oboe *James Dunham – viola * Kenny Edwards – bass * Glenn Frey – guitar, electric guitar, electric piano, backing vocals * Art Garfunkel – vocals, backing vocals *

Lowell George Lowell Thomas George (April 13, 1945 – June 29, 1979) was an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer, who was the primary guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and founder/leader for the rock band Little Feat. Earl ...

– guitar,

slide guitar Slide guitar is a technique for playing the guitar that is often used in blues music. It involves playing a guitar while holding a hard object (a slide) against the strings, creating the opportunity for glissando effects and deep vibratos tha ...

* Andrew Gold – guitar, piano, electric guitar,

, tambourine, vocals, backing vocals *Pamela Goldsmith – viola * John Guerin – drums *

Don Henley Donald Hugh Henley (born July 22, 1947) is an American musician and a founding member of the rock band Eagles. He is the drummer and one of the lead singers for the Eagles. Henley sang the lead vocals on Eagles hits such as "Witchy Woman", "Despe ...

– vocals, backing vocals *Dennis Karmazyn – cello *Ray Kelly – cello * Jim Keltner – drums * Danny "Kootch" Kortchmar – guitar, electric guitar * Russ Kunkel – drums *Kathleen Lenski – violin * Don Menza – flute *Roy Poper – flugelhorn, horn, French horn * Linda Ronstadt – vocals, backing vocals, harmony vocals, gut-string guitar *Sheldon Sanov – violin *Harry Shlutz – cello *Haim Shtrum – violin *Paul Stallworth – bass *Charles Veal – violin * Waddy Wachtel – electric guitar * Joe Walsh – guitar, slide guitar *John Wittenberg – violin

Production

*Producer: Peter Asher *Engineers:

Val Garay Val Garay (born May 9, 1942, in San Francisco, California, United States) is an American recording engineer and record producer who has worked with Kim Carnes, Linda Ronstadt, James Taylor, Neil Diamond, and others. Garay also co-founded Los An ...

, Greg Ladanyi *Mastering:

Doug Sax Doug Lionel Sax (April 26, 1936 – April 2, 2015) was an American mastering engineer from Los Angeles, California. He mastered three of The Doors' albums, including their 1967 debut; six of Pink Floyd's albums, including ''The Wall''; Ray Charles ...

*Arranger: David Campbell *Direction:

Elliot Roberts Elliot Roberts (born Elliot Rabinowitz,Tom King, ''The Operator: David Geffen Builds, Buys, and Sells the New Hollywood'', p. 54, Broadway Books (New York 2001). February 25, 1943 – June 21, 2019)''The Guardian'' article:Lady of the Canyon" ...

*Art Direction:

Jimmy Wachtel Jimmy Wachtel is an American photographer, art director and designer based in Los Angeles. He has designed album covers for big artists such as Joe Walsh, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, Michael Stanley, Jo Jo Gunne, John Cougar, and Buckingham Ni ...

*Design: Jimmy Wachtel *Photography: Lorrie Sullivan

Charts

Album –

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

(North America)

References

{{Authority control J. D. Souther albums 1976 albums Albums arranged by David Campbell (composer) Albums produced by Peter Asher Elektra Records albums Albums with cover art by Jimmy Wachtel