BLACK OAK ARKANSAS

The Complete Raunch ’N’ Roll Live

$29.98 CD

An individually numbered, limited edition of 5000 copies from Rhino Handmade.

 Elevated to cult immortality by the singing and sexed-up sermonizing of tight-trousered Christian weedian Jim “Dandy” Mangrum, Black Oak Arkansas were a part angel-part-devil Southern boogie glam band that counted Elvis Presley among its fans. 

 According to Bill DeYoung's liner notes to this Handmade release, “There never walked another Southern band as gritty, greasy, and unpredictably wild as this six-man cave-bear clan from Black Oak, Arkansas. Legend says they were the first longhaired loiterers to make the old folks nervous in that staid little hillbilly town (it's about 60 miles northwest of Memphis, as the crow flies). They'd begun as The Knowbody Else, mixing guitar-crunch boogie, psychedelia, and general-store spiritualism into a raunchy stew. Stax Records-pretty much the only label in Memphis-signed them up and issued their self-titled album.” 

 Atlantic's Ahmet Ertegun discovered The Knowbody Else at an L.A. club date and put out Black Oak's self-titled debut on Atco in 1971. The album laid out Mangum's dichotomy between faith and rock 'n' roll hedonism, particularly on “Lord Have Mercy On My Soul,” which came out of a bad acid trip. Two more albums followed in 1972-Keep The Faith and If An Angel Came To See you, Would You Make Her Feel At Home-before Raunch 'N' Roll Live was recorded on tour in December of the same year. 

 A live document of a band that was best live, Raunch captures Black Oak Arkansas in all their barnstorming, shit-kicking glory. For the first time, this deluxe two-disc Rhino Handmade edition presents both complete concerts-recorded at the Paramount Theaters in Portland and Seattle-from which the original album was compiled, for a total of 24 remastered tracks. 

 The Complete Raunch 'N' Roll Live is available as an individually numbered limited edition of 5,000 copies.