Rose -

Rose was a Canadian rock band from Barrie, Ont., that released the folk-pop/harmony album Hooked on a Rose on G.A.S. Records in 1973, followed with the children’s album Earth Air & Water on Young & Rubicam that same year. In 1977, the band released the Polydor hard-rock albums A Taste of Neptune and Judgement Day.

Members: Brian Allen (guitar, vocals), Ron Glatley (keyboards, guitar, vocals), Gary Lalonde (bass), Ian Kenzie (bass), Ken King (drums), James Fox (drums)

Background

Rose formed in the Barrie area early in the 1970s when guitarist Brian Allen and keyboardist Ron Glatley assembled a group with bassist Gary Lalonde and drummer Ken King. Bassist Ian Kenzie briefly replaced Lalonde before the latter returned to the lineup. Ronnie Hawkins connected the musicians with manager Milt Brodie and helped secure bookings. Rose built a cover repertoire for Ontario clubs and recorded demos at Eastern Sound in Toronto. The demos led to a G.A.S. Records contract in 1973 and a return to Eastern Sound for the debut.

Hooked on a Rose

Rose released their debut album, Hooked on a Rose, in March 1973 on G.A.S. Records.

David Van De Pitte expanded the four-member lineup with string and horn arrangements across ten original songs.

“Long Lonesome Road” barrels through a boogie stride before a saxophone solo. “Train to You” eases through acoustic passages and three-part harmony. “Hex” coils around hard-edged organ passages. “Wonder Wings” surges through psychedelic-tinged guitar leads. “What’s Happening” swells beneath arranged strings. “Love Will Always Be There” pounds through a jam-based riff sequence.

A1. “Long Lonesome Road” (3:12) – Allen
A2. “Train to You” (2:58) – Allen
A3. “In Between” (4:08) – Allen
A4. “Hex” (3:57) – Allen
A5. “Lone Theme” (5:41) – Allen

B1. “Wonder Wings” (3:12) – Lalonde
B2. “What’s Happening” (3:54) – Glatley
B3. “All I Really Need” (2:46) – Lalonde
B4. “Upon Parting” (4:20) – Allen
B5. “Love Will Always Be There” (5:36) – Allen

Rose recorded Hooked on a Rose at Eastern Sound in Toronto with producer John James Stewart and engineer Tom Brennand. Gary Salter served as executive producer. British producer Stewart previously worked with Jon Lord, while Brennand also engineered Jerry Eli’s 1973 album Newfoundsongs of Newfoundland.

The album appeared in an uncredited watercolor sleeve with a cottage beside a winding path under trees and flowers. Hand-lettered “Chapter One” and “Chapter Two” headings introduce the track lists.

G.A.S. paired “All I Really Need” with “Lone Theme” on a 1973 single. The label closed soon after the release, and Rose recovered the masters for a self-manufactured 1974 pressing on Vinyl Records.

Earth, Air & Water

Rose released Earth, Air & Water in 1973 on Dominion Records as a commissioned Young & Rubicam project.

The program combines thirteen short songs and spoken pieces about animals and recycling. Other selections address urban noise and pollution. Rose composed and performed all music. Actor Jack Duffy supplied narration, while the Thistletown Centre School choir joined the program.

A1. “Animals” (2:14)
A2. “Bee Interview” (2:06)
A3. “Noise Is Noisey” (2:18)
A4. “Hackbird” (3:47)
A5. “Big Bulldozer” (2:48)
A6. “Recycle Machine” (2:00)
A7. “Paper Calypso” (2:13)

B1. “Earth, Air & Water” (3:23)
B2. “The Day the Sun Didn’t Shine” (3:09)
B3. “Yechhh Soup” (3:27)
B4. “Without a Tree” (0:50)
B5. “I Love a Slug” (2:27)
B6. “Circle Song” (4:13)

Young & Rubicam produced the 1973 sessions at Eastern Sound in Toronto, where John James Stewart engineered Rose and the guest participants. This package marked the agency’s fiftieth-anniversary campaign.

The uncredited gatefold illustration places wildlife among trees and water, with exposed roots below.

Rejoice coupled the title track with “Paper Calypso” on a 1973 single.

Polydor Deal

Rose continued to demo at Eastern Sound after the G.A.S. collapse, with James Fox replacing King on drums. Vinyl Records also issued “Payin’ Your Dues” on both sides of a 1974 promotional single. Polydor signed the revised lineup in fall 1976 before sessions for A Taste of Neptune.

A Taste of Neptune

Rose released A Taste of Neptune in early 1977 as their first Polydor album.

Fox replaced King and added autoharp to his drum-and-percussion role. Glatley supplemented keyboards with rhythm guitar. Allen wrote seven songs, while Glatley supplied “Snakes and Ladders.”

“Ride Away” charges through hard riffs and keyboard-laced flourishes. “Snakes and Ladders” locks organ and guitar into a broad chorus. “Marie (Where Have You Gone?)” slows before a late solo. “Bangin’ My Head Against the Wall” grinds into a hard jam. “A Taste of Neptune” glides from surf effects into string washes beneath a seafaring narrative.

A1. “Ride Away” (4:25) – Allen
A2. “Snakes and Ladders” (5:14) – Glatley
A3. “Marie (Where Have You Gone?)” (5:36) – Allen
A4. “Bangin’ My Head Against the Wall” (5:32) – Allen
B1. “Aquarian” (3:31) – Allen
B2. “Don’t Surrender” (4:24) – Allen
B3. “Yet It Follows Me Still” (4:53) – Allen
B4. “A Taste of Neptune” (7:13) – Allen

Rose co-produced A Taste of Neptune with manager Fraser Kaufman at Listen! Audio Productions in Montreal, where Dixon Van Winkle served as recording engineer. Kaufman mixed the album at Phase One in Toronto, where Alan Thorne handled the remix. Bob Ludwig mastered the sequence at Masterdisk in New York. Van Winkle brought recent engineering credits from Wings’ Red Rose Speedway and the New York Dolls’ Too Much Too Soon.

Polydor creative-services director Eugene Moule directed the sleeve, while François of Thin Ice supplied the cover painting. The front shows a red rose growing from a green bottle on a shoreline, with the title traced across the sand. Moule coordinated the cover and François supplied the photomontage for the 1977 Stratavarious album.

Polydor lifted “Aquarian” as a 1977 single (b/w “Yet It Follows Me Still”).

Judgement Day

Rose released Judgement Day in late 1977 as their second Polydor album.

Allen wrote eight songs, while Fox supplied “Too Beautiful.” Lalonde wrote “Tender Is the Night.” Glatley added synthesizers, and Lalonde used Moog pedals. Annie Woods joined “Johnny Law” as a guest vocalist.

“Between the Lines” roars through emphatic fills. “Johnny Law” drives a duet toward a drawn-out finale with Annie Woods. “Recession, Depression” pivots through theatrical passages.

A1. “Between the Lines” (4:51) – Allen
A2. “Too Beautiful” (3:30) – Fox
A3. “Johnny Law” (3:28) – Allen
A4. “Dealer” (3:13) – Allen
A5. “Recession, Depression” (3:25) – Allen
B1. “Whirling Dervish” (5:10) – Allen
B2. “Tender Is the Night” (2:56) – Lalonde
B3. “The Magic of Holidays” (3:21) – Allen
B4. “Marionnette” (4:23) – Allen
B5. “On Judgement Day” (4:37) – Allen

Sessions occurred in late 1977 at Phase One in Toronto, where manager-producer Kaufman worked with engineer Alan Thorne. Alan Moy mastered the album at the Lacquer Channel in Toronto. Thorne next engineered and mixed Saga’s self-titled debut for a 1978 release.

Judgement Day appeared with cover art by Ian Black and photographs by Bob Prelec and David Allen of Format. The front suspends a red rose above fractured gold bars and scattered red droplets; the back isolates the four members in oval portraits.

Polydor first issued “Tender Is the Night” in 1977 (b/w the non-album “Too Much in Her Eyes”). Later that year, “Johnny Law” followed (b/w “Dealer”).

After Rose

Polydor dropped Rose after a 1978 Canadian tour. Toronto formed soon afterward around guitarist Allen and drummer Fox. Singer Annie Woods and guitarist Sheron Alton joined the new group, which bassist Nick Costello and keyboardist Scott Kreyer completed. Lalonde appeared on Toronto’s Get It on Credit and then joined Honeymoon Suite. Allen moved into production and artists-and-repertoire work, with credits for Lee Aaron and Haywire.

Discography: