First Sessions
Like most "long-lost" chapters of many established recording artists' careers, this collection of (mostly) mid-'60s demos, outtakes, and singles bears little resemblance to the Warren Zevon most are familiar with. Echoing the folk-rock boom that had just taken root on the West Coast, most of the tracks here were cut in service of a duet Zevon formed while still a teenager at L.A.'s Fairfax High, Lyme & Cybelle (Zevon is Lyme; Cybelle one Violet Santangelo, later to become Broadway star Laura Kenyon). Their buoyant folk-pop is showcased on the Top 100 single "Follow Me" as well as a bedroom demo of theBeatles' "I've Just Seen a Face," a more Zevon-esque take ofJimmy Reed's "Peeping and Hiding" and a cover/withdrawn singleBob Dylan's "If You Gotta Go, Go Now." Zevon's tenure in L&C; ended shortly after t! he latter track's demise (the "Lyme" on the two bonus cuts here is session musician Wayne Erwin), but he continued to work with producer Bones Howe, yielding the four solo demos also included here. The flitting, folkie-tenor Zevon uses on "Outside Chance" (which became a single for the Howe-produced Turtles) and "And If I Had You" give way to the familiar weary voice and  dark concerns of his solo piano demo for "Bullet for Ramona," later recut forWanted Dead or Alive. It's a jarring moment of revelation, one that hints at the deep-seated torment and unease that's always informed the best of Zevon's songs.--Jerry McCulley