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May 02, 2022 By Austin Saalman

Underrated Los Angeles rock group Little Feat’s sophomore release Sailin’ Shoes stands among the finest of its decade. With a lineup including Roy Estrada and the late Lowell George—both former members of Frank Zappa’s legendary freak rock outfit The Mothers of Invention—the group continued its unique fusion of rock, country, blues, R&B, and jazz, Estrada and George incorporating the unconventional sonic techniques they had contributed to the Mothers the previous decade.

Upon the release of Sailin’ Shoes, Little Feat took another creative step forward, crafting a far more consistent and cohesive album than its eponymous debut, leaning heavily into the burgeoning Laurel Canyon sound, which soon took ’70s radio by storm and helped to refine the imprint of Southern California upon the national psyche. The group, however, was far more experimental in style than many of its more prominent Canyon peers, placing it in league with the likes of Van Dyke Parks—himself an early proponent of the group and album, having covered its title track on his own sophomore release Discover America in March ’72. Sailin’ Shoes, while not Little Feat’s key effort, is a triumph nonetheless, having helped to secure the group an essential place in L.A. musical history.

The psychedelic twang of opening cut “Easy to Slip” introduces the album’s lively persona on a breezy wind of West Coast country rock, perfecting the sound further explored by peers such as Eagles. “It’s so easy to slip/It’s so easy to fall,” George confesses. “And let your memory drift/And do nothin’ at all.” The group’s finest moments, a few of which are featured here, reveal its music as being alive in ways rare even to the warmest California rock record. Subsequently, gritty blues rocker “Cold, Cold, Cold” and New Orleans-tinged “Trouble” showcase Little Feat’s wide-ranging influences, setting it apart as an unusually versatile musical act.

A far superior reimagining of the previous year’s “Willin’” stands as both the album’s and one of the decade’s finest recordings. On this notable country rock anthem, George weaves a tale of a freewheeling trucker as he wanders across the Southwest and on into Mexico, in search of “weed, whites, and wine,” promising, “If you show me a sign/I’ll be willin’, to be movin’.” Elsewhere, lazy, downtempo faux-gospel ballad “Sailin’ Shoes” conjures a hallucinatory realm, in which George sings of a “lady in a turban” and a “cocaine tree.” Here, he describes to his doctor his ups and downs, declaring, “This is the worst day I ever had.” Luckily, a prescription is offered, and sounds promising: “Put on your sailin’ shoes/Everyone will start to cheer/When you put on your sailin’ shoes.”

Its dopey comic sensibilities, perhaps more than anything, is what places Little Feat within an elite class limited to such avant-garde musical giants as Zappa and Captain Beefheart. George’s bizarre, often mischievous sense of humor, which rendered him a key influence alongside Zappa within The Mothers, is highlighted throughout the album, accounting for some of its charm. Along with his bandmates, George was, in his time, a highly intelligent, extremely talented artist with an extensive palate and iconoclastic tendencies.

Electric satire “A Apolitical Blues” and gyrating rock and roll number “Teenage Nervous Breakdown” also stand out. The former finds George distressed that Chairman Mao Zedong has phoned for him, insisting, “You got to tell him anything/‘Cause I just don’t want to/Talk to him right now.” The latter arrives hot with a sock-hop fever, transporting the listener to a “crass and raucous crackass place,” described as a “plague upon the human race.” With lyrics as tongue in cheek as these, it is all the more impressive that George managed to deliver them with such fury that one cannot help but feel tempted to take the track seriously. The closing “Texas Rose Café” is prime Little Feat as well, George reminiscing about the titular Austin hippie hangout, before closing on a note of grim humor, singing, “Yet the things around me stay just the same/‘Cause outside my hotel window is a sign that turns from green to red/It says chop suey and join the U.S. Marines.”

Little Feat disbanded in 1979, just prior to George’s untimely death at age 34. Eight years later, the group reunited once more, and has remained together since. The band is still going strong, having amassed an adoring following among critics and fellow musicians alike. “Willin’” has been covered by such major artists as Linda Ronstadt, Steve Earle, Gregg Allman, and Bob Dylan. Jackson Browne paid tribute to George and his daughter Inara (currently of indie pop duo The Bird and the Bee) on 1980’s “Of Missing Persons,” while the group itself has collaborated alongside the likes of Emmylou Harris, Bonnie Raitt, Jimmy Buffett, Bob Seger, Chris Robinson, and Vince Gill. As made plain by the grand company kept by and within the band, Little Feat will continue to live on.

Sailin’ Shoes remains a classic release, its influence having touched any number of genres and relevant artists. It is an entirely unique head-trip into the dusty hills of Los Angeles, a high-speed race down that canyon road into enchanted darkness. Worth a listen even by younger inquisitors, the album is likely to impress. You can leave your blues at the feet of Little Feat, before you “put on your sailin’ shoes.”

www.littlefeat.net

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