In Hearing of Atomic Rooster

Playing off what has arguably become the most popular song from Mary Poppins, England’s Atomic Rooster used In Hearing of… to deliver one of the decade’s greatest song titles: “A Spoonful of Bromide Helps the Pulse Rate Go Down.” While this heavy metal-based instrumental (you were expecting lyrics?) reveals a rather dark sense of humor, it also typifies the quartet’s brand of keyboard-driven progressive hard rock. In Hearing of…, first released in 1971 on Pegasus Records, was the third of five Atomic Rooster albums (I’m not counting two early ‘80s reunion projects) and the only one to feature singer Pete French. “Devil’s Answer” was a hit in Britain, where the album cracked the Top 20, but nothing is quite as cheeky or entertaining as the aforementioned nod to a chemical sedative. That’s not to say the band doesn’t rock. Both “Break the Ice” and “Head in the Sky” showcase an effective mix of keyboard and guitar interplay, while “The Rock” is another nifty instrumental piece. In Hearing of… represented Atomic Rooster’s commercial peak. French soon left to join Cactus and was replaced by British soul singer Chris Farlowe. Founder and keyboardist Vincent Crane, an original member of the Crazy World of Arthur Brown, died of a painkiller overdose in 1989 after a long battle with mental illness.

Notes: Here’s Atomic Rooster’s “A Spoonful of Bromide Helps the Pulse Rate Go Down:” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Soy4x-H4gI4.