Rating:
Genre:
Rock
Release Date: 10/03/2006
Humble Pie, known as
boogie hammerheads, at least once achieved American popularity in the mid-'70s. Its origins were quite different, however, and its debut album,
As Safe as Yesterday Is, is a visionary blend of hard
blues, crushing
rock, pastoral
folk, and post-
mod pop. It would be even more impressive if the group had written songs to support its sound, but it seemed to have overlooked that element of the equation. Still, there's no denying that the sound of the band isn't just good, it's quite engaging, as the band bring disparate elements together, letting them bump up against each other, forming a wildly rich blend of hippie
folk and deeply sexy
blues. Musically, this set a template for a lot of bands that followed later --
Led Zeppelin seemed to directly lift parts of this, and
Paul Weller would later rely heavily on this for his '90s comeback -- and it's very intriguing, even rewarding, on that level. But it falls short of a genuine classic, even with its originality and influence, because the songwriting is rarely more than a structure for the playing and the album often sounds more like a period piece than an album that defined its times.
~Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide