Great Speckled Bird is a country rock

Country rock

Country rock is sub-genre of popular music, formed from the fusion of rock with country. The term is generally used to refer to the wave of rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s, beginning with Bob Dylan and The Byrds; reaching its greatest...

 album by Great Speckled Bird

Great Speckled Bird (band)

Great Speckled Bird was a country rock group formed in 1969 by the Canadian musical duo Ian & Sylvia. Ian Tyson sang, played guitar and composed. Sylvia Tyson sang, composed and occasionally played piano...

, a band formed in 1969 by Canadian musicians Ian and Sylvia Tyson. The other group members at the time of recording were Buddy Cage

Buddy Cage

Buddy Cage is an American pedal steel guitarist, best known as a longtime member of the New Riders of the Purple Sage....

, on pedal steel guitar, Amos Garrett

Amos Garrett

Amos Garrett is a Juno Award-winning American-Canadian musician, performer, and author. He holds dual citizenship and was raised in Toronto and Montreal...

, on guitar and backup vocals, and N.D. Smart, on drums. Nashville session musicians David Briggs

David Briggs (American musician)

David Briggs is an American keyboardist, record producer, arranger, composer and studio owner....

 and Norbert Putnam

Norbert Putnam

Norbert Putnam is an American record producer and musician. He grew up near Florence, Alabama and was part of the Muscle Shoals musicians brought to Nashville to play for Elvis Presley in 1965. Putnam worked there as a bassist on recording sessions with Presley, Roy Orbison, Al Hirt, Henry...

 sat in, with Briggs on piano and Putnam on bass guitar. Although founding member Ken Kalmusky

Ken Kalmusky

Ken Kalmusky was a Canadian musician born in Stratford, Ontario, Canada, to saxophonist Walter "JoJo" Kalmusky and Mary Kalmusky.-Early career:...

 is listed in the original liner notes, he had actually departed the group prior to recording.

“That album is a cornerstone of the country-rock movement that emerged in the 1970s." - Tom Russell

Tom Russell

Thomas George "Tom" Russell is an American singer-songwriter. Although most strongly identified with the Texas Country music tradition, his music also incorporates elements of folk, Tex-Mex, and the cowboy music of the American West. Many of his songs have been recorded by other artists, including...

, on Great Speckled Bird

The album is notable for being the first album to be produced by Todd Rundgren

Todd Rundgren

Todd Harry Rundgren is an American multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and record producer. Hailed in the early stage of his career as a new pop-wunderkind, supported by the certified gold solo double LP Something/Anything? in 1972, Todd Rundgren's career has produced a diverse range of recordings...

.

Track listing

1. "Love What You're Doing Child" (Ian Tyson
   Ian Tyson
   Ian Tyson CM, AOE is a Canadian singer-songwriter, best known for his song "Four Strong Winds". He was also one half of the duo Ian & Sylvia.-Career:Tyson was born to British immigrants in Victoria in 1933, and grew up in Duncan B.C...
   
   ) – 3:39
2. "Calgary" (Ian Tyson, Sylvia Tyson
   Sylvia Tyson
   Sylvia Tyson, CM , is a musician, performer, singer-songwriter and broadcaster. From 1959 to 1974, she was half of the popular folk duo Ian & Sylvia with Ian Tyson....
   
   ) – 3:03
3. "Trucker's Cafe" (Ian Tyson) – 3:22
4. "Long Long Time to Get Old" (Ian Tyson) – 3:07
5. "Flies in the Bottle" (Ian Tyson) – 3:47
6. "Bloodshot Beholder" (Ian Tyson) – 2:58
7. "Crazy Arms
   Crazy Arms
   "Crazy Arms" is an American country song recorded by Ray Price. The song, released in May 1956, went on to become a hit that year and a honky-tonk standard. It was Price's first number one hit. The song was written by Ralph Mooney and Charles Seals...
   
   " (Chuck Seals, Ralph Mooney) – 2:54
8. "This Dream" (Ian Tyson) – 3:40
9. "Smiling Wine" (Sylvia Tyson) – 3:11
10. "Rio Grande" (Ian Tyson, Amos Garrett
    Amos Garrett
    Amos Garrett is a Juno Award-winning American-Canadian musician, performer, and author. He holds dual citizenship and was raised in Toronto and Montreal...
    
    ) – 3:51
11. "Disappearing Woman" (Sylvia Tyson) – 2:10
12. "We Sail" (Sylvia Tyson) – 4:37

Personnel

• Ian Tyson
  Ian Tyson
  Ian Tyson CM, AOE is a Canadian singer-songwriter, best known for his song "Four Strong Winds". He was also one half of the duo Ian & Sylvia.-Career:Tyson was born to British immigrants in Victoria in 1933, and grew up in Duncan B.C...
  
   - guitar, vocals
• Sylvia Tyson
  Sylvia Tyson
  Sylvia Tyson, CM , is a musician, performer, singer-songwriter and broadcaster. From 1959 to 1974, she was half of the popular folk duo Ian & Sylvia with Ian Tyson....
  
   - vocals
• Buddy Cage
  Buddy Cage
  Buddy Cage is an American pedal steel guitarist, best known as a longtime member of the New Riders of the Purple Sage....
  
   - pedal steel guitar
• Amos Garrett
  Amos Garrett
  Amos Garrett is a Juno Award-winning American-Canadian musician, performer, and author. He holds dual citizenship and was raised in Toronto and Montreal...
  
   - guitar, background vocals
• N.D. Smart - drums
• David Briggs
  David Briggs (American musician)
  David Briggs is an American keyboardist, record producer, arranger, composer and studio owner....
  
   - piano
• Norbert Putnam
  Norbert Putnam
  Norbert Putnam is an American record producer and musician. He grew up near Florence, Alabama and was part of the Muscle Shoals musicians brought to Nashville to play for Elvis Presley in 1965. Putnam worked there as a bassist on recording sessions with Presley, Roy Orbison, Al Hirt, Henry...
  
   - bass guitar

Production

• Producer: Todd Rundgren
  Todd Rundgren
  Todd Harry Rundgren is an American multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and record producer. Hailed in the early stage of his career as a new pop-wunderkind, supported by the certified gold solo double LP Something/Anything? in 1972, Todd Rundgren's career has produced a diverse range of recordings...
  
  
• Recording Engineer: Charlie Tallent
• Art Direction: Bob Cato
  Bob Cato
  Bob Cato was a graphic designer whose work in record album cover design contributed to the development of music and popular culture for five decades. He was vice president of creative services at Columbia Records, and later at United Artists.-Biography:Bob Cato was raised in New Orleans, Louisiana...
  
  
• Liner notes: Peter North
• Liner notes - 2006 reissue: Richie Unterberger
  Richie Unterberger
  Richie Unterberger is a US author and journalist whose focus is popular music and travel writing.-Life and writing:Having worked as a DJ at WXPN in Philadelphia, he started reviewing records for Op magazine in 1983...