“Old Man” (1967) – Love * Written by Bryan MacLean * LP: Forever Changes * Produced by Bruce Botnick and Arthur Lee * Label: Elektra
Love’s Forever Changes album came out in 1967, and its virtual non-reception led toward the classic lineup’s dissolution. The band, of course, had its issues with drugs and chief songwriter Arthur Lee’s infamous reluctance to tour. But the music too, with its offbeat lyrics about “the times,” lush orchestrations, and epic song structures, required some years to catch on. By the ’70s it had become a beloved cult classic, more potent as a relic than as a contemporary statement. Among the oddest tracks on the already-odd album was Bryan MacLean’s “Old Man”—the only one not sung by Arthur Lee. It features unpredictable chord changes and melody lines with a timid lead vocal that sounds as though MacLean is imitating a Scotsman. And the lyrics, about an aged mentor who gives the singer words of wisdom and a mysterious leather book, ring with vintage, pre-1968 quaintness. Later demo recordings of the song by MacLean find him really belting it out and losing the accent.
Love’s Forever Changes album came out in 1967, and its virtual non-reception led toward the classic lineup’s dissolution. The band, of course, had its issues with drugs and chief songwriter Arthur Lee’s infamous reluctance to tour. But the music too, with its offbeat lyrics about “the times,” lush orchestrations, and epic song structures, required some years to catch on. By the ’70s it had become a beloved cult classic, more potent as a relic than as a contemporary statement. Among the oddest tracks on the already-odd album was Bryan MacLean’s “Old Man”—the only one not sung by Arthur Lee. It features unpredictable chord changes and melody lines with a timid lead vocal that sounds as though MacLean is imitating a Scotsman. And the lyrics, about an aged mentor who gives the singer words of wisdom and a mysterious leather book, ring with vintage, pre-1968 quaintness. Later demo recordings of the song by MacLean find him really belting it out and losing the accent.