I saw Kiss of the Gypsy live couple of times back in the day off the back of the ‘Whatever it Takes’ single and mightily impressive they were too: and then seemingly in the blink of an eye they were gone. Of course back in those pre-internet days some great bands came and went without you ever finding out what went on. In this case the UK arm of the label they signed to folded the same year they signed. Like so many bands shunted onto another label, a second album was recorded but the lack of support from the new label led to the band folding. That ‘blink of an eye’ took two years.
I have no idea whether the songs here on ‘Unfinished Business’ written by main man Tony Mitchell are the songs intended for that second record but doubt it, though they are written in a similar style and have by and large that familiar sound and vibe to the debut album. I only doubt it because they are far too good to have been shelved for 30 years!
Adding “Mitchell’s” before Kiss of the Gypsy in the band name on this release also makes an already unusual name even more so, almost sounding like an esoteric 18th Century prescription for what ails you: and when you hit play you actually start to feel that you might be onto something after all!
Opener ‘Eye of the Hurricane’ has a nice Bluesy hard rock groove, it’s a safe track to begin with as it is very reminiscent of Fleetwood’s finest’s first outing; and backed up by ‘Duty to Party’ a gritty ‘foot to the floor’ party rocker it’s a solid start.
The stomp and cliched lyrics of ‘Runaways’ belies a rather smooth and catchy chorus and it’s a good choice for a single though the next track ‘Too Much Love’ is lighter and bluesier with a soulful vocal that is mid-point between classic Whitesnake and bands like Badlands. It’s seriously good.
‘Remedy’ that follows starts with some tasty slide and gets down to business; whilst ‘Taking Care of Business’ (not an inspired cover of the BTO classic) is a lightly funky hard rocker with some nice guitar and cool urgency; and ‘Foolin” (not the song Def Leppard made famous) delivers a rather Petty-esque rootsy rocker which is rather good too.
‘Sin City’ isn’t, you guessed it, a take on the AC/DC classic, but a slow rattlesnake shake of slide and harmonica that leads into a glorious rocking romp. ‘Time to Heal’, that follows hot on the heels has an opening guitar part that makes you think of early Black Crowes who would have released their debut the year before Kiss of the Gypsy hit the streets. It’s one of my favorite here.
Closer ‘Wild Horses’ (you guessed it… NOT a cover of that song either) starts out lightly Celtic before rocking out and has an almost alternative rock vibe and a huge chorus meant to sign along to. It’s a great way to close what is a rather fine collection of songs that should bring back some great memories.
8/10