Tear Down the Walls

by Fred Neil, Vince Martin

Overview

Because of the renown achieved in later years by Fred Neil, it is easy to forget that his partner was much better known at the time Martin & Neil released their sole album in 1964. "Vince Martin With the Tarriers," as they were billed, had scored a Top Ten hit with "Cindy, Oh Cindy" in 1956. Martin possessed the sort of forceful tenor that enabled Glenn Yarbrough to lead the Limeliters to success, and he used it in a similarly dramatic way. It also provided a striking contrast to Neil's bass-baritone. Martin & Neil came along at a time when commercial folk was showing a distinct social consciousness, and their style drew heavily on that of the massively popular Peter, Paul & Mary, particularly on the Neil-composed title song, with its stirring utopian tone ("one world in harmony"), and even Martin's "Red Balloon," a children's song in the tradition of "Puff the Magic Dragon" with some lyrics that later turned up in Jefferson Airplane's "Ballad of You and Me and Pooneil." Accompanied by Felix Pappalardi on the bass-like guitarron and John Sebastian on harmonica, the duo strummed 12-string acoustic guitars and used their strikingly different voices to reinvent traditional songs like "I Know You Rider" and "Lonesome Valley," popular covers like Bonnie Dobson's "Morning Dew," and some originals. Neil's "Wild Child in a World of Trouble," which he sang alone, looked forward to his career as a solo singer/songwriter, which commenced not long after this album was released. [Sundazed released an LP reissue in 2006.] ~ William Ruhlmann

Product Details

Release Date:	01/29/2008
Label:	Sundazed
UPC:	0090771514219

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Vince Martin   Primary Artist,Guitar (12 String),Vocals,Guitar
Fred Neil   Primary Artist,Guitar (12 String),Vocals,Guitar
Felix Pappalardi   Harmonica,Guitarron,Bass
John Sebastian   Harmonica,Guitar

Technical Credits

Huddie Ledbetter   Composer
Jerry Garcia   Composer
Paul Rothchild   Recording Director
Traditional   Composer
Bill Kreutzmann   Composer
Bonnie Dobson   Composer
Bob Weir   Composer
Richie Unterberger   Liner Notes,Reissue Liner Notes
Vince Martin   Composer
Fred Neil   Composer,Arranger
William S. Harvey   Cover Design,Photography,Cover Photo,Design
Gordon Anderson   Executive Producer
Artie Matthews   Composer
Mickey Hart   Composer
Phil Lesh   Composer
Robert Hunter   Composer
Ron "Pigpen" McKernan   Composer
Jac Holzman   Production Supervisor
Travis Edmonson   Composer
Tim Rose   Composer
Woody Guthrie   Composer