Alvin Lee and Mylon LeFevre - On the Road to Freedom

Rock music's most unusual combination was Gregg Allman and Cher.  Second place belongs to the pairing of British blues rocker Alvin Lee, guitarist and lead singer for Ten Years After, with Mississippi gospel singer Mylon LeFevre.  I think it's safe to say that both men were working through some issues.  But the resulting album, On the Road to Freedom, released in 1973, contained some excellent music by some great musicians.

The album's best track is "So Sad (No Love of His Own)."  Written by George Harrison, the track features George (credited as Hari Georgeson) on guitar, a beautiful slide guitar, bass, and harmony vocal, with Mylon on lead and harmony vocals, Alvin on guitar and vocals, Ron Wood on 12-string guitar, and Mick Fleetwood on drums.  Not a bad band.  This version is much better than Harrison's own take, released on Dark Horse the following year.

My next-favorite song from the album is "We Will Shine," written by Mylon, who contributed lead vocal, 12-string guitar, and background vocals.  Alvin added guitars and vocals, with Steve Winwood on piano and Ron Wood on bass.  Again, not your average garage band.

These are timeless songs that we can carry around in our heads for decades.  Every now and then we need to pause and thank the artists who enrich our lives.  Alvin Lee died March 6, 2013 at the age of 68.  Thank you Alvin, Mylon, and George for giving us these great songs.