Them - In Reality (Reissue) (1971/2008)

Them in Reality kicks off with a version of Them's best known song, "Gloria," but anyone who doesn't recognize this as the same band that introduced Van Morrison's garage rock classic to the world is to be forgiven for not making the connection. Them in Reality was cut in 1971, long after Morrison had quit to go solo, and bassist Alan Henderson was the only original member still on board; after parting ways with Jerry Cole, who played guitar and drums as well as singing lead on Them's previous album, Henderson recruited guitarist Jim Parker and drummer John Stark, and their extended interpretation of "Gloria" (which segues into a similarly stretched out take of "Baby Please Don't Go") sounds more like a second-rate Cream knock-off than anything else. At least Them in Reality displayed a more distinct personality than 1970s Them, even if it is borrowed; Parker and Stark wrote most of the songs, and their sturdy hard rock jams allow Them to sound like a band rather than an under-funded studio project as they did with Cole. (They also managed to anticipate the opening guitar figure of "Sweet Home Alabama" by three years on "Let My Song Through.") But this music bears practically no relation to the hard-as-nails blues rock that was Them's calling card in the mid-'60s, and the recording of "Gloria" only makes it glaringly obvious that this is a different and far less satisfying kettle of fish. Them in Reality proved to be the group's last album, though Them's demise only made official something that anyone who had listened to this album already knew.