''Time Loves a Hero'' is the sixth studio album by the American rock band

Little Feat Little Feat is an American rock band formed by lead vocalist and guitarist Lowell George and keyboardist Bill Payne in 1969 in Los Angeles. George disbanded the group because of creative differences shortly before his death in 1979. Surviving ...

, released in 1977. The album's cover art is by

Neon Park Neon Park (born Martin Muller, December 28, 1940 – September 1, 1993) was an American artist, comics artist and illustrator, best known for the images that have strongly defined covers for nearly every Little Feat album except for the band's ...

. ''

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of the three main music industry trade magazines in the United States, along with '' Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 under the name ''Music Vendor'', but in 1964 it was changed to ''Record Wo ...

'' called the title track "a philosophical, mid -tempo funk tune with some interesting melodic and instrumental hooks."

Track listing

Side One

#"Hi Roller" ( Paul Barrère) – 3:35 (lead singer: Lowell George) #"Time Loves a Hero" (Barrère,

Kenny Gradney Kenny Gradney, (born February 25, 1950) a native of Baton Rouge, is an American bassist and songwriter, best known as a member of the band Little Feat. He joined after their second album, replacing founding bassist Roy Estrada in 1972. Gradney ...

Bill Payne William H. Payne (born March 12, 1949) is an American pianist who, with Lowell George, co-founded the American rock band Little Feat. He is considered by many other rock pianists, including Elton John, to be one of the finest American piano roc ...

) – 3:47 (lead singers: Bill Payne, Paul Barrère) #"Rocket in My Pocket" (

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 ...

) – 3:25 (lead singer: Lowell George) #"Day at the Dog Races" (instrumental) (Barrère,

Sam Clayton Sam Clayton (born March 30, 1952) is an American singer and percussionist, primarily focusing on drums, conga and djembe, throughout his musical career. He is best known as a supporting vocalist and percussionist with the American rock band Lit ...

, Gradney,

Richie Hayward Richard "Richie" Hayward (February 6, 1946 – August 12, 2010) was an American drummer best known as a founding member and drummer in the band Little Feat. He performed with several bands and worked as a session player. Hayward also joined ...

, Payne) – 6:27

Side Two

#"Old Folks Boogie" (Barrère, Gabriel Barrère) – 3:31 (lead singer: Paul Barrère) #"Red Streamliner" (Payne, Fran Tate) – 4:44 (lead singer: Bill Payne) #"New Delhi Freight Train" ( Terry Allen) – 3:42 (lead singer: Lowell George) #"Keepin' Up with the Joneses" (Barrère, George) – 3:51 (lead singer: Paul Barrère) #"Missin' You" (Barrère) – 2:21 (lead singer: Paul Barrère)

Charts

Personnel

;Little Feat * Paul Barrère –

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

, vocals *

–

conga 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). ...

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

, vocals *

– vocals, guitar *

– bass *

–

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

, percussion, vocals *

– keyboards,

synthesizer A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and ...

marimba The marimba () is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars that are struck by mallets. Below each bar is a resonator pipe that amplifies particular harmonics of its sound. Compared to the xylophone, the timbre ...

, vocals Additional musicians * Greg Adams –

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...

Jeff "Skunk" Baxter Jeffrey Allen "Skunk" Baxter (born December 13, 1948) is an American guitarist, known for his stints in the rock bands Steely Dan and The Doobie Brothers during the 1970s and Spirit in the 1980s. More recently, he has worked as a defense consu ...

–

dobro Dobro is an American brand of resonator guitars, currently owned by Gibson and manufactured by its subsidiary Epiphone. The term "dobro" is also used as a generic term for any wood-bodied, single-cone resonator guitar. The Dobro was originally ...

("Missin' You")¹ *

Emilio Castillo Emilio Castillo (born September 24, 1950) is an American saxophone player and composer, best known as the founder of the band Tower of Power. Background In 1965, Emilio Castillo took to music after he and his brother Jack were caught stealing by ...

– tenor

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to pr ...

Mic Gillette Mic Gillette (May 7, 1951 – January 17, 2016) was an American brass player, born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area's East Bay. He is best known for being a member of the bands; Tower of Power, Cold Blood, and The Sons of Champlin. He pl ...

–

trombone The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the Brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the Standing wave, air column ...

Stephen "Doc" Kupka Tower of Power is an American R&B and funk based band and horn section, originating in Oakland, California, that has been performing since 1968. There have been a number of lead vocalists, the best-known being Lenny Williams, who fronted the ...

– baritone saxophone * Michael McDonald – vocals ("Red Streamliner") *

Lenny Pickett Lenny Pickett (born April 10, 1954) is an American saxophonist and musical director of the ''Saturday Night Live'' band. From 1973 to 1981 he was a member of Tower of Power. He is known for his skill in the altissimo register (executed by using ...

– alto saxophone and tenor

Patrick Simmons Patrick Simmons (born October 19, 1948) is an American musician best known as a founding member of the rock band The Doobie Brothers. Born in Aberdeen, Washington, he has been the only consistent member of the band throughout their tenure. Simm ...

– guitar ("New Delhi Freight Train"), vocals ("Red Streamliner") *

Fred Tackett Fred Tackett (born August 30, 1945) is an American songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Originally a session player on guitar, mandolin, and trumpet, he is best known as a member of the band Little Feat. In addition to his work with Little F ...

–

mandocello The mandocello ( it, mandoloncello, Liuto cantabile, liuto moderno) is a plucked string instrument of the mandolin family. It is larger than the mandolin, and is the baritone instrument of the mandolin family. Its eight strings are in four paire ...

and guitar ("Time Loves a Hero") (joined band 1988)

Note

¹ ''Little Feat – Raw Tomatoes Vol.1'' (2002) booklet p14: "the skunk was not on that track"

References

{{Authority control 1977 albums Little Feat albums Albums produced by Ted Templeman Warner Records albums Albums with cover art by Neon Park Albums recorded at Sunset Sound Recorders Albums recorded at United Western Recorders