The psychedelic folk band Pearls Before Swine was the brainchild of singer, composer, and cult icon Tom Rapp, born in Bottineau, North Dakota in 1947; after writing his first song at age six, he later began performing at local talent shows, and as a teen, he bested a young Bob Dylan at one such event. Upon relocating to Eau Gallie (now part of Melbourne), Florida, Rapp formed Pearls Before Swine in 1965, recruiting high-school friends Wayne Harley (banjo, mandolin), Lane Lederer (bass, guitar), and Roger Crissinger (piano, organ) to record a demo with songs inspired by the Fugs, which he then sent to the ESP-Disk label; the company quickly signed the group, and they soon traveled to New York to record their superb 1967 debut One Nation Underground, featuring songs of mysticism, protest, melancholia, and some controversy, which went on to sell some 250,000 copies, although the band received little reward for its success. On working with the label ESP-Disk, Rapp has said that «We never got any money from ESP. Never, not even like a hundred dollars or something. My real sense is that he (Bernard Stollman) was abducted by aliens, and when he was probed it erased his memory of where all the money was». They released six albums between 1967 and 1971, before Rapp launched a solo career. The Use Of Ashes was their fourth album, and the second on Reprise Records after their move from ESP-Disk. After recording the album These Things Too, the other original founding members of Pearls Before Swine had all left, and leader Tom Rapp and his then wife Elisabeth moved to her home country of the Netherlands (travelling on the maiden voyage of the QE2 liner) to live for several months near Utrecht. According to Tom Rapp, the songs were written while he and his wife were living in the Netherlands, which Rapp said contributed significantly to the air of romanticism throughout.They were recorded back in Nashville in March 1970, primarily with some of the city's top session musicians, including a small orchestra who provide a stately feel to the highly intimate nature of the material, many of whom formed the basis of the band Area Code 615. Many of Rapp's admirers regard this, and particularly the first side of the original LP (tracks 1 through 5), as the finest and most consistent of all his albums. «The Jeweller» opens the album with an exquisite tale that exemplifies Rapp's remarkable abilities to draw upon disparate metaphors such as shining coins and worshiping God, both involving the The Use of Ashes - hence the title. «The Jeweler», with its refrain of «He knows the use of ashes/He worships God with ashes», came to him when he saw his wife cleaning a piece of jewelry with a paste made from ashes, and is generally regarded as one of his finest and most poetic songs. An excellent version was later recorded by This Mortal Coil. The rural mood created by the notable Music City USA stalwarts effortlessly fuses with David Briggs' baroque-flavored harpsichord on the delicate «From the Movie of the Same Name», featuring Rapp and spouse Elisabeth on non-verbal vocalizations as they «da-da-da» the melody. All tracks, appart from the opening masterpiece, are offset by the noir «When the War Began», the ethereal love song «Margery», and the mid-tempo retelling of the «Riegal», a ship whose 4,000 inhabitants perished during World War II. Rapp's juxtaposition of stark imagery reveals that while Pearls Before Swine might not have continued the bombastic direction set about on their earlier protest works «Uncle John» or «Drop Out», they maintained social and political relevance. Pearls Before Swine ‎– The Use Of Ashes [1970] (Full Album) Tracklist: A1. The Jeweler - 2:45/A2. From The Movie Of The Same Name - 2:20/A3. Rocket Man («based on a short story by Ray Bradbury») - 3:00/A4. God Save The Child («Elisabeth helped») - 3:00/A5. Song About A Rose - 2:18/B1. Tell Me Why - 3:42/B2. Margery - 2:57/B3. The Old Man - 3:20/B4. The Riegal - 3:05 B5. When The War Began - 5:02 Vocals: Elisabeth/Vocals, Guitar: Tom Rapp/Flute, Oboe: Bill Pippin/Guitar: Mac Gayden/Keyboards: Hutch Davie/Dobro, Guitar, Bass, Harmonica: Charles McCoy/Oboe, Flute: John Duke/Piano, Harpsichord: David Briggs/Violin, Cello, Viola: Buddy Spicher/Bass: Norbert Putnam/Drums: Kenneth Buttrey/Words By, Music By: Tom Rapp Art Direction: Ed Thrasher/Engineer: Rick Horton Mixed By [Mixing Engineer]: Brooks Arthur Executive Producer: Charles R. Rothschild Producer: Peter H. Edminston Recorded at Woodland Studios, Nashville, 3 days in March, 1970/Label: Reprise Records ‎– RS 6405 Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Stereo/Country: US Released: 1970/ Style: Folk Rock, Psychedelic Rock Label: Water ‎– WATER 112/Format: CD, Album, Reissue/Country: US/Released: 2003 DISCLAIMER: I do not make any profit from this video. No copyright infringement intended. All rights belong to the respecti

• published: 28 Jul 2017
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