Sunday, August 08, 2010

Lafauci - Lafauci (1978)



Oh yes, this is some fine music alright. Thanks to my French connection for this gem. It's a very rare piece of Southern Rock regalia. Only 1000 copies were pressed. The band was led by Sal Lafauci (vocals, drums & organ) and they hailed from Louisiana. Other members were Chip Weil (bass), Steve Dodds (guitars) and Keith Guidroz (guitar). Guests were Billy Stroud (synthesizer)and Sonny Wall (piano, organ, synthesizer, etc).
The first songs kicks of impressively, a song called "Flowing River", which could fool you to believe you got your hands on a Progressive Rock album instead. It's a little bit of everything which makes this album so interesting. It's mostly and most definitely Southern, though. And they do rock out. Other highlights are "Ride Chester", "Lovin' You Is Right" and "Mary, Mary" (some guitar stuff very reminiscent to early Hatchet). Boy, oh boy, are you boys and girls gonna love this one. I'll bet. Great playing and great songs. Pretty great, right?! Help Yourself.

10 comments:

dixiebird said...

Very Very Big ..Thanks!! Band extremely rare....Great Lp , Great Blog !!

OZARK said...

Thanks for the LAFAUCI BAND!
I appreciate it very much!!!

Sadness said...

my thanks . very impressive album. ride chester is great.. and flowing river is much the same..
all best

Tom Coerver said...

I played drums with Sal LaFauci in a band called “BooKooWattz” in 1977 while in my second semester in college, and then a year later Sal switched from keyboards back to drums (he was a great, solid rock drummer) and he asked me to play guitar in his new band to promote his LP “LaFauci” in 1978 because I would always bug Steve Dodds and Keith Guidroz to show me things they played on guitar and Sal liked the way I played, so when Keith quit, I learned his fantastic Blackmore-influenced parts and then traveled around LA, MS, TX, and AR on weekends playing and I’d try to study for my 4th semester classes in the car but that didn’t go so well and I made every grade you can make that report card, so that was the end of my term in LaFauci. Sadly, Sal suffered a bad stroke about 12 years ago that left him partly paralyzed and I haven’t run across him in ages.

Steve Dodds said...

Well I haven't digitized my unopen surviving vinyl and now I won't have to open it to do so. I had recently thought about Mr. Coerver when showing some of my old band photos to my youngest son, who by the way is putting out a CD himself. Went to high scool with Chip (bass)and played for years with him and Sal. Been out of Baton Rouge over 20 years and have not kept in touch. This is a nice platform for ex-band members. Thanks.

Skydogg said...

Thanks Tom and Steve for your reaction. 3 more to go...

Anonymous said...

Keith Guidroz said...

Wow! I cannot believe this was done some 33 years ago. For a small gap in time we were in a very creative state. One of my greatest wishes is that we could have stayed in that musical mode to see it reach more musical maturity. Our lyrics were primitive & we needed more vocal help & just a bit more direction, but our musical imaginations were running wild! Since the time of this album, I haven't had the opportunity to be in another band setting that was concerned with writing & being creative. Just cover bands - what a pity!! The line-up we had for that short duration worked so very well together. Chip always came up with just the right tasteful bass parts. Steve & I were so totally different & actually at opposite ends of the spectrum in our respective styles. That was a big asset that broadened us & gave our music more sophistication. Sal played solid drums & did provide the starting landscape for my only creative venture. I haven’t spoken to Sal or Steve in many years > Hey guys- hope y’all are doing great!! I talk to Chip usually on a daily basis. He tells me that Sal is doing fine & has recovered from his stroke & is actually playing drums again in a local Baton Rouge band. I am back in Na Na Sha after being with Bits & Pieces for a couple of years. Kuh!! &That’s the way it was/ is!!!

Janette Lafauci Coon said...

Hello everyone and thank you for enjoying my Daddy's music. I am Sal Lafauci's daughter, Janette. Friday Jan 4, 2013 my daddy left us to be with the Angels. He passed away from a massive heart attack. I just wanted to say thank you for appreciating his music and helping it live on. My email address is janettec@moonfire.com.

Randybob said...

Hi Skydogg! Can you please repost this rarity?
Thanks in advance!

Anonymous said...

I’m Kevin Cornette. Me and my best friend Keith Satterfield played with Sal three piece. Keith on guitars and me on bass Sal on drums and vocals. The first three piece band I had been in. We only played one summer and fall down around Gonzales and across the River at the little bars. I really learned to improvise with that group and Sal was the best at pushing me and Keith in his humorous non threatening way. I loved his sense of humor. The man just seemed to stay in a good mood. My friend Keith just passed away and left me a portion of his albums and I found Keith’s signed copy of Lafauci in it. My copy was taken years ago. Someone borrowed and never returned it. So I’m so glad I’ve Keith’s copy. I think we were together in 1979 or 80. To his family I say im sorry for your loss. What I knew of him he was an easy guy to like, never a dull moment.