Reel to Real is the seventh and final studio album by the Americanrock band Love, released in 1974 by RSO Records.
Background
Reel to Real was the first official Love album in four years, following the release of frontman Arthur Lee's solo album Vindicator in 1972 and two different Love albums that had been recorded but unreleased.
Lee recorded the album with studio musicians after dismissing all previous band members. The album featured the same musicians that played on the then-unreleased Black Beauty (2012) and was originally intended as part of a two-album deal with Robert Stigwood's RSO Records. Skip Taylor, a long-time admirer of Lee, approached the label and convinced Stigwood to give the previously commercially unsuccessful Lee the largest advance he would ever receive, followed by the biggest touring opportunity any incarnation of Love would ever embark upon, opening for acts such as Lou Reed and Eric Clapton.[citation needed]
The album was reissued by High Moon Records on CD and digital in 2015 and LP in 2016, with new liner notes, archival photos and bonus tracks.
Critical reception
In retrospective reviews, PopDose opined that "A vitally important band – and performer like Arthur Lee – needs to be held in the light for their amazing catalog", and that later albums such as Reel to Real should "not be overlooked".[5] Mark Deming of AllMusic called it "An album with more than its share of great moments."[6] Daniel Sylvester of Exclaim! noted that Lee "comes off sounding nothing short of subdued, toothless and aimless," adding that the record "is lovingly assembled and digitally enhanced, but nonetheless, shouldn't be mistaken for an essential release."[4]
Track listing
All tracks written and arranged by Arthur Lee, except where noted.