Their future profile may have been irreparably limited when Mountain elected not to allow inclusion of their performance at Woodstock in the subsequent album or movie, but early hard rock connoisseurs will be aware of their reputation, not to mention the (literally) sizeable instrumental talent of the late Leslie West. This compilation, repackaged from its original 1995 incarnation, is a pretty tidy primer for the uninitiated, even if it hasn’t been updated to include their fleetingly arresting later work.
And while Corky Laing’s thumping, Bonhamesque introductory beat of has been sampled in hip-hop records galore from its live version, the 1969 studio take here is superior, its bluesy country-rock enhanced by flute-ish organ accompaniment that somehow evokes a quintessentially free festival quality.
Mississippi Queen was Mountain’s biggest US hit, but it sounds less characterful now than less celebrated cuts such as Don’t Look Around, a fiery affair accompanied by hyperactive bass drum percussion, and Nantucket Sleighride, the title track of Mountain’s 1971 album, which steered them briefly into altogether proggier waters. British rock fans of a certain vintage will also know that track’s galloping, Wagnerian middle section as the theme to ITV politics show Weekend World, and it’s a major highlight here – more so than dated instrumental indulgences such as an 18-minute live version of Stormy Monday.
Later reunion material such as 1985’s ZZ Top-aping Shimmy On The Footlights, has its moments, but that early burst of creativity remains the big selling point for these discs.
