The Walrus

by Roger Mills
Some two years in the making, the debut CD from The Walrus is finally out, and it was well worth the wait! Bellingham's popular Beatles cover band has released "Uncovered," a collection of eleven original pop-rock tunes guaranteed to delight their long list of faithful fans. Joe, Chuck, Jamie, Walt and Michael are talented musicians, the songwriting is solid, and the recording is clear and crisp. Clean, in-tune harmonies combine here with catchy melodies, a solid rhythmic base, and some tasteful lead work to produce a collection of tunes with a "familiar" feel. The professional sound of this CD is a tribute to the production and mixing talents at Bayside Recording here in Bellingham.

Lead guitarist and vocalist Joe Young has competently written seven of the eleven tunes on the CD. My favorites of his efforts are: The Garden, with its timeless lyric, good harmonies, and the big full sound of a 12-string underneath; the haunting Steel Blue Kiss, the story of love gone awry; and Guy's Song, a touching tribute to original Walrus member Guy Mulford who died much too young in 2001. The fiddle playing on Guy's Song is digitally re-claimed work by Mulford himself. Quite clever!

Rhythm guitarist and vocalist Chuck Dingee has only written two of the songs on the CD, but they are among the strongest. Chuck's melodic choices and chord progressions are less formulaic than most on the CD, but still lead the listener safely "home."This proficiency continues in the depth of his lyric, his crystal voice, and smooth delivery. Great job, Chuck! Add to that the well-placed and well-sung harmonies, great lead guitar work (including tasty pedal steel work on Starcharter) and solid bass and rhythm work and you have the complete package. The whole band really shines here, on Gaia and Starcharter both, showing us just how talented they really are.

Singer and keyboard player Jamie Shea rounds out the songwriting contributions with two songs, the vampish Tongue In Cheek and Own Person, showing the tremendous versatility of these "fab five." Like her band-mates, Jamie's ability to harmonize so well adds a great strength to The Walrus sound. Walt Burkett on bass guitar and vocals and Michael O'Neal on drums and vocals complete the list of Walrus players.

It can't be easy to go from being one of the most popular cover bands in the area to the release of a CD of all original tunes. It takes guts and talent to pull it off, this emotional exposing of one's self, especially when The Walrus could well just rest on the laurels of their success covering the rock and roll we all know and love. Thanks for taking the risk! It has paid off!

Roger Mills is a local performance coach, helping with all aspects of artistic presentation. - Entertainment News NW