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Reviews

Velvet Opera — Ride a Hustler's Dream
(Bandcamp Think Like a Key TLAK1199, 1969/2025, CD / DL)

by Henry Schneider, Published 2025-10-09

Ride a Hustler's Dream Cover art

When Dave Terry (AKA Elmer Gantry) left Elmer Gantry’s Velvet Opera in early 1969, remaining band members John Ford and Richard Hudson were unhappy with losing their vocalist. So they enlisted Paul Brett and Johnny Joyce, but couldn’t continue with the band name, so they shortened it to Velvet Opera, and also changed their musical direction with a new set list including cover tunes and original compositions, the result being Ride a Hustler’s Dream, a mixed bag of music ranging from folk rock to blues rock to raga rock. The music is good, but it appears as if they couldn’t decide on their musical niche. Then in 1970 Dave Cousins discovered Velvet Opera and asked Ford and Hudson to join The Strawbs. Ride a Hustler’s Dream opens with the 57-second title track, a Dylan-esque acoustic tune. Next is a folky blues cover of Blind Willie McTell’s “Statesboro Blues,” which the Allman Brothers did much better. The third track is the mediocre acoustic folk song “Money By.” I was looking forward to the next track “Black Jack Davy” that both Steeleye Span and the Incredible String Band performed exceedingly well, only to be disappointed by the safe reading of this song by Velvet Opera. Then suddenly the album changes direction with the baroque prog rock song “Raise the Light,” one of the album highlights that is followed by the sitar and tamboura raga rock instrumental “Raga and Lime.” Is this even the same band? Then they shift back to the bluegrass inspired toe tapper “Anna Dance Square,” that leads into the music hall folk rock of “Depression” with some similarities to Country Joe and the Fish. Next is the funky blues rock “Don’t You Realize.” Then they jolt you with “Warm Day in July” with a young girl’s introductory narration segueing into gentle folk rock. Where did this song come from? The album ends with an acoustic rocking cover of The Beatles’ “Eleanor Rigby.” This reissue also includes four bonus tracks, mono versions of “Anna Dance Square” and “Don’t You Realize” from their 1969 single and “She Keeps Giving Me These Feelings” and “There’s a Hole in My Pocket” from their final single in 1970 with some new band members as Ford and Hudson had already departed for The Strawbs and Paul Brett had joined Dave Lambert’s band Fire, playing on The Magic Shoemaker. I suppose Ride a Hustler’s Dream was better received in the late 60s, but looking back now after 50+ years, I am not that impressed.

Filed under: Reissues, 2025 releases, 1969 recordings

Related artist(s): Paul Brett, Hudson-Ford, Velvet Opera

More info
http://thinklikeakey.bandcamp.com/album/ride-a-hustlers-dream-2025-remaster

 

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