Cottonwood ● Camaraderie

You know you're a strong candidate for The "I-Own-Every-Record-You'd-Never-Buy" CD Consumer's Guide when your lead singer dies on the day of your album's release. It's this tragic piece of bad luck that apparently derailed Cottonwood, a country-flavored rock quintet from California. The details are fuzzy--time, age and an assortment of narcotic substances usually have that affect on most early '70s rock-related drug deaths--but legend has it the band's vocalist overdosed on the same day Camaraderie hit stores. Whatever label support the band had quickly evaporated and Cottonwood disappeared forever. Assembled by former Love guitarist Gary Knowles, Cottonwood released its lone album--a pleasant collection of largely acoustic-based pop rock--in 1971 on ABC Records. "Cottonwood" and "Thank You Mr. Man" best represent the group's mellow, harmony-laced sound, while "Passin' Through" and "Red" provide a much-needed shot of hard-rock guitar. The band stumbles through a couple of maudlin ballads ("In My Life" is particularly inept), but they are the exception to an otherwise rewarding set of turn-of-the-decade rural rock. The end was abrupt, of course, and the sad set of circumstances surrounding the band's demise comes with a strange, almost eerie twist; Camaraderie's front cover suggests these guys were having the time of their lives.