Jo Jo Gunne

• Jo Jo Gunne [Asylum, 1971] B+
• Jumpin' the Gunne [Asylum, 1973] B-

Consumer Guide Reviews:

Jo Jo Gunne [Asylum, 1971]
A hard rock band that digs structure and texture as well as drumming and amplification. Vaguely reminiscent of Layla and Detroit, this also derives from the best of Spirit--namely, "I've Got a Line on You." Hi-high, American pie. B+

Jumpin' the Gunne [Asylum, 1973]
For three straight albums this second-generation band, named after a Chuck Berry song by Spirit keyboard man and hard rock stalwart Jay Ferguson, has hung tough enough to attract my attention, but despite their high-speed, cross-riffing structural facility they haven't played smart enough to hold it. "At the Spa," a nasty metaphor about the limits of entertainment, almost changed that. But in the end I find their oddly un-Californian rock cynicism almost as wearying as the other kinds. B-