Sea Level Cats on the Coast On The Edge  E-mail this product to a friend Tweet

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In the mid-seventies three members of the Allman Brothers Band - drummer Jaimoe, bassist Lamar Williams and Chuck Level, keyboards and vocals - would get together and play between band dates.  Originally they called themselves "We Three," because as Jaimoe explains “we were the only three practicing and rehearsing in the band!”  The trio would occasionally open for the ABB in 1975 and 1976.

With the Allmans' first disbanding in 1976, the trio added guitarist Jimmy Nalls and named the band based on a phonetic pun of their new bandleader's name: "C. Leavell".  They toured relentlessly, experimenting and refining their sound, a tasty blend of jazz, blues and Southern rock (in other words, they would have fit nicely into today’s jam band scene).  Eventually signing with Capricorn Records, they recorded their self-titled debut album, Sea level, in 1977.

After the release of their first album, the group expanded to a septet with the additions of Davis Causey (guitar), George Weaver (percussion) and Randall Bramblett (saxophones, keyboards and vocals).  That configuration recorded the group's second album, Cats on the Coast, in 1978.  By the time of the third album, On the Edge, Jaimoe and Weaver had both left, replaced by Joe English.  Despite the changing lineups, the second and third albums are remarkably consistent affairs featuring such signature Sea Level songs as “That’s Your Secret” and “King Grand.”   Both CDs have been out of print for about a decade and command big bucks online.

A new record label, called Real Gone Music, has recently released the second and third albums as a single CD.  This new re-issue also includes a 20 page CD booklet with liner notes by Scott Schinder.