The Cowsills - Cocaine Drain

I was 100% certain I learned about this album from ilm, but search isn't turning up any mentions of it either here or in the sandbox, so *shrug*.

via Wikipedia: "In 1978, several of the Cowsills—including Paul, John, Barry, Bob and Susan—recorded an album called Cocaine Drain with producer Chuck Plotkin.[7] The album was never completed, and at some point the master tapes were lost.[citation needed] For almost 30 years the album existed only as a scratchy acetate. In March 2008 a version of the album was finally released, remastered from that acetate under Bob Cowsill's direction. Several other previously unreleased tracks were included on the 2008 release. After the Cocaine Drain sessions, the Cowsills did some reunion shows in 1979–1980 but returned to their separate careers after that."

This is one of the better "lost" albums I've ever heard. It's obvious they were inspired by Rumours when recording, and I can't imagine who would've heard these songs and then decide "fuck it, there's nothing here." It's soooooo good. (Plotkin apparently had a commitment to go work with Springsteen before the album was completed.)

As far as the only surviving copy being an acetate, whoever mixed and mastered the 2008 release did a pretty good job. It's just too bad there'll never be a version that's crystal clear. And now just about all the Cowsills are six feet under, so there's not even any way to recreate the songs.

Frustrating and wonderful all at the same time.

It's on iTunes and is streaming on Spotify: http://open.spotify.com/album/6kROz7T0NqSULoibjYdSnd

huh, i've never heard of this but i love lost album bullshit so i gotta check it out

Me too. Only Cowsill I'm familiar with is Susan, who sounds like a rough-edged Christine McVie--- assertive voice of experience---on an album with Freedy Johnston and Jon Dee Graham, billed as The Hobart Brothers and Lil Sis Hobart, alas. She's also real good on a recent collection of live and studio tracks by the folk-rock collective (for lack of a better term) The Continental Drifters (with her then-hubbie, Peter Holsapple, also Vicki Petersen of The Bangles, Mark Walton of Dream Syndicate, and a bunch of others)

It's uneven, but she and Peterson are always good. She did a couple albums with her own backing band too. one of which was okay, haven't heard the other (maybe more?)

this is really nice! man they do get as close to peak Fleetwood Mac as I've heard anyone else get, and without seeming like they are trying to ape them but man "I Will Always" wouldn't be out of place on Tusk or Rumours

feel you on the recording, you can hear the crackles from the vinyl rip, cleaned up pretty good but it's a shame because one of the joys of yacht rock type stuff like this is the pristine quality of the peak of big budget california analog studios

man they really got some good tunes

Would be awesome if this had had at least a 100 pressing at least, then three would be hope I could find one.

hopefully in another 10 years or so somebody will find the master tape in a dumpster

cocaine runnin around in my drain

The title track was written by John Hall and released on his album Power in 1979.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cakq3DzjLb8

Definitely prefer the Cowsills' version from a year earlier, though.

@susancowsill_1-26 m
This is fun!
https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/8530739/the-cowsills-new-songs-interview

Thought there was a longer Cowsills thread, more recently updated, but can't find it.

The Cowsills vs The Partridge Family