I saw a discussion about Cactus on a message board the other day. Anyone familiar with Cactus knows they were one of the heaviest and most explosive rock bands of the early 1970’s. Still, they never really attained headliner status. They recorded some forgettable studio albums; but their live shows were raucous, dynamic displays of musical energy.
Anyway, there isn’t much of a huge difference between the live and studio material. Cactus was a heavy boogie band; plain and simple. I have always labeled them as a glorified garage band. That is not intended to be a knock on the band. They could play. There was no nonsense about their approach; they plugged in and floored it. Carmine Appice and Tim Bogert were a premier rhythm section and Jim McCarty was a powerful guitarist. Rusty Day was a limited vocalist at best, but fortunately for him, the band’s material didn’t require Day to push any vocal boundaries.
Cactus’ material was a collage of heavy R&B and blues riffs, searing lead guitar licks, and intense boogie jams courtesy of the thundering rhythm section. Their live shows were over the top with volume and intense jamming. The studio work wasn’t much different. If anything, the songs were shorter in length, the band played a little tighter, and with the ability to play at a lower level in the studio, the band was able to pull off some more delicate musical passages within certain tracks. Whether Cactus was in the studio or on stage, the energy and power of their approach was the same.
Had Jeff Beck not been in a severe car accident in 1969, Cactus most likely would never have formed. Beck, Appice and Bogert had plans to create a rock band, but when his car accident left him out of commission for an indefinite period of time, Appice and Bogert went looking for another gig. While in the process of forming Cactus, the duo secured the vocal services of former Amboy Duke singer Rusty Day. Shortly thereafter, Day was able to reach out to Jim McCarty who had recently split from The Buddy Miles Express. With McCarty available and interested, one of rock’s most powerful line-ups was born.
Ultimately, Cactus would have a short shelf life. While the high quality of their musicianship was undeniable, the band was never able to come up with material that could propel them to the next level. By 1971, the band’s line-up began to change with the addition of second guitarist Ron Leejack. In 1972, McCarty and Day left the band and guitarist Werner Fritzschings, keyboardist Duane Hitchings, and vocalist Peter French came aboard Cactus, which by then was a sinking ship. There was the occasional musical highlight found with the post-McCarty/Day line-up, but the magic was gone. Cactus disbanded in mid-1972.
Cactus’ studio work isn’t bad; it’s just that their live work is a better representation of what they were all about. Whenever I’m in the mood to jam to some Cactus; I break out the live stuff. Cactus isn’t one of my favorite bands by a long stretch, but there is no doubt that the original line-up of the band would have blown most of its contemporaries off of the stage. They weren’t the biggest band, the best band, the best looking band, and they weren’t necessarily gifted songwriters – but, Cactus was a great rock band.
*Most of the band’s studio output is still available, in fact, Wounded Bird reissued some titles in 2007. Rhino Handmade’s “Barely Contained – The Studio Sessions” is worth seeking out for a thorough overview. Rhino Handmade’s “Fully Unleashed/The Live Gigs” and “Fully Unleashed/The Live Gigs - Volume II” are must-have live compilations. The 1971 show from Memphis found on the first volume is worth the price of admission alone. The fact that these titles are limited editions is baffling – how are future generations of fans supposed to enjoy these recordings?
Anyway, there isn’t much of a huge difference between the live and studio material. Cactus was a heavy boogie band; plain and simple. I have always labeled them as a glorified garage band. That is not intended to be a knock on the band. They could play. There was no nonsense about their approach; they plugged in and floored it. Carmine Appice and Tim Bogert were a premier rhythm section and Jim McCarty was a powerful guitarist. Rusty Day was a limited vocalist at best, but fortunately for him, the band’s material didn’t require Day to push any vocal boundaries.
Cactus’ material was a collage of heavy R&B and blues riffs, searing lead guitar licks, and intense boogie jams courtesy of the thundering rhythm section. Their live shows were over the top with volume and intense jamming. The studio work wasn’t much different. If anything, the songs were shorter in length, the band played a little tighter, and with the ability to play at a lower level in the studio, the band was able to pull off some more delicate musical passages within certain tracks. Whether Cactus was in the studio or on stage, the energy and power of their approach was the same.
Had Jeff Beck not been in a severe car accident in 1969, Cactus most likely would never have formed. Beck, Appice and Bogert had plans to create a rock band, but when his car accident left him out of commission for an indefinite period of time, Appice and Bogert went looking for another gig. While in the process of forming Cactus, the duo secured the vocal services of former Amboy Duke singer Rusty Day. Shortly thereafter, Day was able to reach out to Jim McCarty who had recently split from The Buddy Miles Express. With McCarty available and interested, one of rock’s most powerful line-ups was born.
Ultimately, Cactus would have a short shelf life. While the high quality of their musicianship was undeniable, the band was never able to come up with material that could propel them to the next level. By 1971, the band’s line-up began to change with the addition of second guitarist Ron Leejack. In 1972, McCarty and Day left the band and guitarist Werner Fritzschings, keyboardist Duane Hitchings, and vocalist Peter French came aboard Cactus, which by then was a sinking ship. There was the occasional musical highlight found with the post-McCarty/Day line-up, but the magic was gone. Cactus disbanded in mid-1972.
Cactus’ studio work isn’t bad; it’s just that their live work is a better representation of what they were all about. Whenever I’m in the mood to jam to some Cactus; I break out the live stuff. Cactus isn’t one of my favorite bands by a long stretch, but there is no doubt that the original line-up of the band would have blown most of its contemporaries off of the stage. They weren’t the biggest band, the best band, the best looking band, and they weren’t necessarily gifted songwriters – but, Cactus was a great rock band.
*Most of the band’s studio output is still available, in fact, Wounded Bird reissued some titles in 2007. Rhino Handmade’s “Barely Contained – The Studio Sessions” is worth seeking out for a thorough overview. Rhino Handmade’s “Fully Unleashed/The Live Gigs” and “Fully Unleashed/The Live Gigs - Volume II” are must-have live compilations. The 1971 show from Memphis found on the first volume is worth the price of admission alone. The fact that these titles are limited editions is baffling – how are future generations of fans supposed to enjoy these recordings?
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