Mitch Ryder Albums (21)
'The Acquitted Idiot'
Release Date 1/1/2006
Tracks 12
Label BuschFunk
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'Devil with Her Blue Dress Off'
Release Date 9/26/2005
Tracks 10
Label Music Avenue
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What The Critics Say
The admission in small print on the back cover of this budget-priced album reads, �All selections are all new digital recordings." That's significant since, if the potential purchaser merely reads the song titles, eight of which hark back to the mid-�60s heyday of Mitch Ryder & the Detroit Wheels, the obvious conclusion to be drawn would be that this is a greatest hits compilation; it's not. There are the group's five biggest hits (albeit not printed quite correctly): �Devil with a Blue Dress On/Good Golly Miss Molly," �Jenny Take a Ride!," �Sock It to Me -- Baby!," �Too Many Fish in the Sea/Three Little Fishes," and �Little Latin Lupe Lu." �Shake a Tail Feather," �Baby Jane (Mo-Mo Jane)," and �I'd Rather Go to Jail" were all LP tracks or B-sides in their original recordings. Add to these a cover of the Velvet Underground's �Rock & Roll" that replaces the familiar guitar riff (!?!) and a rock song called �Liberty," and you have the album's 34� minutes. Ryder sounds much as he did in 1966, and the playing behind him is competent, but these are not the original recordings and therefore not what nostalgic rock fans would hope for in a Ryder album with those song titles. ~ William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide
'Get Out the Vote: Live at the Hill Auditorium -- April 1, 1972'
Release Date 1/1/1997
Tracks 11
Label Total Energy
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What The Critics Say
On April 1, 1972, Detroit (the band, not the city), led by Mitch Ryder, performed at a Get Out the Vote rally in Ann Arbor, Michigan. This is a tape of the performance, which is listenable but rough around the edges, with a muffled quality that no amount of modern-day tweaking could fix. Ryder is in energetic form, but considerably hoarser voice than he was on the classic Detroit Wheels hits; you can believe it when the liner notes say he quit singing three months later rather than face a possible throat operation. The set is dominated by covers of Lou Reed ("Rock & Roll"), Chuck Berry, the Stones, Smokey Robinson, and Edgar Winter, as well as a reprise of the "Devil with a Blue Dress On"/Good Golly Miss Molly" hit by the Detroit Wheels; Steve Hunter, later to work with Lou Reed and Alice Cooper, plays lead guitar. It's good-time R&B-infused rock & roll, and no doubt was a good time indeed for those attending the event. But it's merely a souvenir when heard on disc, and not a recommended alternative to Detroit's official album. ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Featuring a crack band entering its prime, Red Blood White Mink shows why so many people thought this was one of the best bands on the planet, for a time. The album covers Ryder's career, but in Europe in the '80's he was considered a current artist rather than an oldies act. Consequently the disc focuses on Mitch's latter-day stuff. Johnny B Badanjek from the original Wheels propels this group to amazing heights with his rapid fire drumming, and guitarists Robert Gillespie and Joe Gutc raise eyebrows with their high wire act. Ryder's vocal prowess is best on display on a seven-minute version of the Stones classic, "Heart of Stone." Mitch sings alternately with sandpaper ferocity and a smooth gentle tone, building to bloodcurdling screams. One of Ryder's strengths has always been finding great material and making it his own, such as Lou Reed's "Rock and Roll," which has a totally different arrangement from any of Lou's versions. Also, "Gimme Shelter," is truly incendiary, upping the ante on one of rock's most intense songs ever. There is plenty of stuff from Ryder's moody late 70's and early 80's albums here as well, most notably the anti-war songs "Bang Bang" and "War." Also, "Ain't Nobody White," Mitch's reply to Ray Charles claiming that "ain't nobody white can sing the blues" is as powerful as its message. One of the few problems with this disc is in the sequencing, which is picking nits, but what the hell. The disc is front-loaded with epic songs generally better left for the middle or end of a show. It doesn't really represent the well-constructed sets the band was playing back then. Taken on it's own terms though, this is a mesmerizing example of what live rock and roll can be. ~ Geoff Ginsberg, All Music Guide
'Got Change for a Million?'
Release Date 5/26/1995
Tracks 9
Label Line
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What The Critics Say
Mitch Ryder's Got Change for a Million?, released in 1981 in Germany on Line Records, continues the progression started on The Detroit-Memphis Experiment in 1969 and the subsequent Detroit album produced by Bob Ezrin. This is no-nonsense blues-tinged rock produced by Tom Conner along with Ryder. "That's Charm," clocking in at five-and-a-half minutes, is the longest track and indeed has charm. Although Ryder looks a bit haggard a mere 12 years after The Detroit-Memphis Experiment, his voice is intact and the tunes, all by Kim Levise and Ryder (aka William S. Levise, Jr.), have a concise poppy snap. "Red Scar Eyes" is a real departure, a moody piece with lyrics that go from introspection to downright deranged, a far cry from the efficient opening track "My Heart Belongs to Me." Included with the liner notes are the handwritten lyrics, from side one seen next to a full glass of beer, and from side two with a photo of a pen next to an empty glass. The earthy voice of Ryder found fame as an instrument for producer Bob Crewe and songs by Crewe, Burt Bacharach, Bill Medley, and others. Although side two's opening track "Bang Bang" fails, "Back at Work" and the reggae-flavored "Ich Bin Aus Amerika" succeed, showing Ryder's development from singer to singer/songwriter. The classic growl of this true, well-rounded journeyman is in fine shape on the exquisite "Bare Your Soul." "We're Gonna Win" opens with looping guitars and unique backing vocals, the band cooking behind Ryder's hard-driving voice. The album was recorded and mixed at Delta Sound Studio in Wilster, West Germany, except for the final two tracks, "Bare Your Soul" and "We're Gonna Win," which were tracked in Detroit. The album was "recorded and mixed without the aid of any reduction devices." Re-released on J-Bird Records in 1995, it's a good look at Mitch Ryder on his own. ~ Joe Viglione, All Music Guide
'Beautiful Toulang Sunset'
Release Date 5/26/1995
Tracks 14
Label Line
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What The Critics Say
This spare, but no less indistinguishable, album from Ryder's catalog of forgotten '80s albums isn't as awful as most of them. Ryder sounds a little bit enthused here, and his band -- perhaps inspired by the guy who signs their checks -- follows suit. But spotting good songs is still tough. At least the overtly political and sexual tones are subdued, with the focus falling on the actual songs rather than their trite messages. ~ Michael Gallucci, All Music Guide
